Why Cesc has to go

As the latest set of transfer tittle-tattle hog the back pages of the newspapers –there is one story which dominates all others.
If the latest reports emanating from Cataluña and London are true and Arsenal are about to lose their skipper and talisman Cesc Fabregas to his boyhood club Barcelona then this provides Arsene Wenger with his sternest test.
When Manchester Utd finally caved in and allowed Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Old Trafford last summer to join Real Madrid the deal was negotiated from a position of strength.
Sure United had just been outclassed in the Champions League final against Barcelona but they had also just secured their third successive Premiership.

Moreover the Portuguese had won everything there was to win at Old Trafford and desired a fresh challenge to reignite the fortunes of a flagging Madrid who were flashing the cash like never before to restore their glory days.
For Fabregas the situation is entirely different.

Not only is he set to rejoin the club where he was taken as a nine month old baby by his grandfather to his first game, where as a youth team player he shared the same dressing room as Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique, but he is moving to a team which humiliated Arsenal in this season’s Champions League quarter final.
Obviously the lure of returning to the club which is in his DNA would be almost too strong for any player to resist, but since Cesc has been at Arsenal the only medal on his mantel piece is a rather forlorn looking FA Cup winners medal and a European Championship with Spain.
In the meantime the Catalans have bagged 2 European Cups, 4 La Liga titles, 1 Copa Del Rey, 1 World Club Championship and are widely regarded as the finest football team on the planet.
Now could you imagine if the situation was reversed?
If Barca had been trophyless and Arsenal were securing titles – do you think Cesc woud be pinning for a homecoming ?
No I very much doubt it either.
For Arsenal fans – these facts are hard to stomach.
Fabregas is set to leave a club which has failed to match his own talents, ambitions and dreams.
The midfield maestro is one of the finest in the game yet in every match this season against top opposition whether it is Manchester Utd or Chelsea at home or Barca in Europe he has had to watch his teammates humbled and embarrassed.
The Arsenal skipper can deliver all the probing passes, goals and assists, but when Wenger refuses to buy a decent goalkeeper then all his brilliant work is in vain.
So Gunners’ fans can hardly blame their talisman for leaving –he has given them 7 years of sterling service and has at times carried his team to some wonderful victories.
But Fabregas is a winner and is tired of losing, and that is the brutal truth for all Arsenal lovers to endure.

D-Day for Ronaldo and Messi

They are the two brightest stars in the football galaxy and yet for Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, heartbreak awaits one of them.
For you see tonight, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, the two irremovable mountains of Spainish football, it is D-Day.
After what seems like endless weeks of pummelling the rest of the league into submission, it’s the penultimate round of games which could finally seal the destiny of the championship.
To recap reigning champions Barca, Messi’s home since the age of 13, lead their arch rivals by a point and tonight travel to fourth placed and Champion League hopefuls Seville.
Meanwhile Madrid, who smashed the world record when they shelled out a whopping 94 million Euros for Ronaldo, entertain Athletic Bilbao who are eighth and bidding for a Europa League place.
If Barca win, and Madrid slip up, then Pep Guardiola’s side will retain their titile, as they won both this season’s Classicos and head-to head separates sides if they are level on points.
As both are expected to win their final games of the season, tonight’s events at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in Seville, and the Bernabeu in Madrid, will seal the leagues fate.
This season La Liga has resembled something akin to a Rocky slug-fest.
Two heavyweights searching for the knockout blow while leaving the rest trailing in their wake.
Third placed Valencia are a massive 24 points behind Madrid, surely not healthy for any competitive league.
But should anyone be surprised?
A look at the World’s 20 Richest Clubs helps explain why the gap between the top two and the rest of Spain has gone from being a disparity to a yawning chasm.
Real Madrid and Barca are ranked 1st and 2nd with income reaching a jaw dropping 401 and 365 million Euros respectively.
No other Spanish club makes the list.
The reason for such disparity is largely due to the sale of TV rights.
In England and Germany, the EPL and Bundesliga sell their rights collectively and the money is then distributed among all the clubs.
However in Spain, Barca and Madrid negotiate their massive contracts individually which leaves the rest of the league fighting for the rest of the TV pie like two bold men over a comb.
So the duopoly is set to continue and while events tonight will be no doubt enthralling as the two best players in the world try and drag their respective clubs over the winning line, the claim that La Liga is the best in the world is a hollow one until the rest of Spain catches up.

My team of the year

As the European season draws to its thrilling finale with league titles still undecided in England, Italy and Spain, I take a look at those players who have shined for their clubs this season and should be making all the headlines in South Africa.
Goalkeeper -Hugo Lloris (Lyon and France)
Probably the hardest choice simply because no shot stopper has performed at the top of their game, but I am plucking for Lyon and Les Bleus keeper Loris who has bags of potential and is the only Frenchman with any sort of form going into the World Cup.

Left back - Ashley Cole (Chelsea and England)
Cheryl Cole might not want him anymore but he would walk into my team. On form the best left back in the world before he suffered a broken ankle in February. His performances have been even more impressive when you consider how much the tabloids have earmarked him as public enemy number 1.

Centre back -Gerard Pique (Barcelona and Spain)
The 23-year-old Catalan oozes class and is the closest thing we have in the modern game to Beckenbauer. His goal against Inter Milan in the Champions League Semi Final was worthy of a top striker. Future Spain captain.

Centre back - Lucio (Inter Milan and Brazil)
His containment of Didier Drogba against Chelsea in the Champions League was a master class in defending, like Pique excellent on the ball.
Right back – Maicon (Inter Milan and Brazil)
Brazil can count on not one but two truly stellar right backs in Dani Alves and Maicon. Both fantastic going forward but like Dunga I am selecting the Inter Milan man as he is the better defender.

Midfield – Xavi ( Barcelona and Spain)
Simply the best passer of a ball in the world, instrumental in setting the tempo for both his club and country. For Barcelona he loads the bullets which allow Messi to fire.

Midfield –Wesley Sneijder (Inter Milan and Holland)
Real Madrid cast off who has fitted seamlessly into Jose Mourino’s side and is the team’s heartbeat. Can show Madrid President Florentino Perez just how foolish he was in offloading him when he takes the field in the European Cup final.

Left midfield – Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich and Holland)
Another Real Madrid reject after he was deemed surplus to requirements at the Bernabeu.
Seems to have finally escaped his injury nightmare which has plagued him throughout his career. His 20 plus goals have taken the German giants to the brink of a treble and like Sneijder can embarrass his former employers in the Madrid showpiece. Still only 26.

Right Midfield –Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid and Portugal)
The world’s most expensive player has been somewhat overshadowed because of a certain genius from Argentina (see later) but the Portuguese winger has excelled in his first season in Madrid scoring 32 Goals and pushing Barcelona all the way in La Liga. Will hope to steal the headlines this summer.

Forward –Wayne Rooney (Manchester United and England)
Has truly come of age this season as his 34 goals have carried a rather uninspired Manchester United. Will need every inch of his broad shoulders to carry the hopes of a nation in South Africa.

Forward – Lionel Messi ( Barcelona and Argentina)
What else is there to say? 42 goals for his club, greatest player of his generation....now he has to go and do it for his country!