Rafael Benitez acknowledges that Liverpool's clash with Manchester City on Saturday is 'make or break' to their hopes of ensuring Champions League football next season.
The stakes are very high for boss Benitez, who has sent four players - Yossi Benayoun, Albert Riera, Glen Johnson and Fabio Aurelio - to Belgrade this week for unorthodox placenta cell treatment on their injuries. Click to continue reading...

Pepe Reina is the "tower of strength" that has already prevented Liverpool's season from heading into oblivion.
That's the verdict of Alan Hansen, who believes the Spain international is now challenging Ray Clemence for the title of the club's greatest-ever goalkeeper.
Liverpool entertain Manchester City on Saturday having suffered a run of just one win in nine games to slip to seventh in the Premier League standings. Click to continue reading...

Arsenal defender Mikael Silvestre says their looming clash with Chelsea could be decisive for their own title ambitions.
The Gunners face Chelsea at the end of the month.
Silvestre said: "I think Chelsea is going to be a big test for us. It could be a decider for the league title this season. Click to continue reading...

Mauricio Pellegrino today acclaimed the leadership qualities of Rafa Benitez during a difficult start to the 2009-10 campaign.
The first-team coach, who played under Benitez at Valencia and Liverpool, describes him as a man who stays calm amid the storm.
And Pellegrino is confident his boss is building a team capable of dominating English football despite a dip in form this term. Click to continue reading...

It was Tim Vickery who said that of all the unimportant things in the world, football is the most important. So while Germany comes to terms with the death of Robert Enke, let us take a few moments to reflect on trivial yet happier matters, namely last weekend's Bundesliga action. Click to continue reading...

Many are expecting Liverpool's Champions League fate to be decided a fortnight today but I'm convinced it will boil down to the last game against Fiorentina.
I can see Lyon getting a result in Florence and the Reds seeing off Debrecen to set things up for a Match Day Six showdown at Anfield. Click to continue reading...

Mark Hughes has eye on Angel Di Maria.

Fulham Vs Manchester City Tickets Still Available!
Join Our Facebook Fan Page for the Latest News/Rumours/Forums/Videos/WAGS/Funny Stuff/Features!

Robinho heading for the exit as Manchester City dream sours

Manchester City's attempts to placate Robinho and keep the most expensive footballer in England happy have failed, with the Brazilian desperate to leave in the January transfer window.

Click to continue reading...

Fresh after posting this came another report regarding Robinho surfaced, again in The Guardian, and it is fairly conclusive in its tone:

Manchester City's attempts to placate Robinho and keep the most expensive footballer in England happy have failed, with the Brazilian desperate to leave in the January transfer window.

Click to continue reading...

I've always said that one of the realistic options for the disaffected USL owners was to leave and then just setup their own league away from the USL umbrella. Today, that appears to be what has happened, with everyone bailing on Francisco Marcos and the USL. I have not been following this all that closely, but where does this leave Portland, who has one more year to go before they join MLS. Click to continue reading...

-
- In addition to this site, try the combination messageboard and quasi-blog QPR Report Messageboard. If your're interested in constantly-updated QPR-related news; QPR nostalgia; and some other broader football-related isssues: QPR Report Messageboard is there for you. All opinions welcome! Click to continue reading...

by CARL ELDRIDGE Silent Stan Kroenke's actions certainly speak louder than his words and, again, this morning's papers reflect on the Yank minted moustachioed one's latest purchases of Arsenal shares as he inches ever closer to a takeover.

Kroenke yesterday took his stake in the Arsenal to 29.

Click to continue reading...

The news that Gael Clichy is out for up to two months is unfortunate and may harm Arsenal's trophy ambitions. When he first started his career at Arsenal, he was very injury prone, with continuous operations on his broken metatarsals. He always seems to get injured at an awkward time for The Gunners, and will return in the New Year.

Click to continue reading...

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has insisted that he would like to remain as the tactican of the Merseyside club for many more years to come.
The Reds are in a serious crisis, as six losses in seven games has threatened to throw the club's ambitions out the window. A seventh loss - against Olympique Lyonnais in the Champions League - would be catastrophic for the Anfield outfit, as it would be their worst run since the appointment of the legendary Bill Shankly as manager of the club. Click to continue reading...

Nicklas Bendtner believes nothing will stop him from becoming one of the best strikers in the world. In this interview Nicklas talks about his ambitions in the future, and how it is important to be confident within yourself. Many people forget Nicklas Bendtner is only 21, not many 21 year olds have achieved what this young man has done.

Click to continue reading...

Arsenal midfielders Abou Diaby and Andrey Arshavin have both spoken out ahead of their Champions League clash with Dutch side AZ Alkmaar. Diaby has clamored for better defensive displays while Arshavin has stated his ambitions to win a Premier League and Champions League double.

"It is always good to win every game and stay in first place," said Diaby.

Click to continue reading...

Clean sheets are very important to Newcastle's promotion ambitions this season. Chris Hughton very pleased with clean sheet Former manager Sam Allardyce often talked about clean sheets and said the team that had the most in the Premier League generally ended up being the Champions. It's a pity we couldn't have kept more clean sheets during the [. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool's willingness to seal a new contract for first-choice goalkeeper Pepe Reina has been returned by the 27-year-old, who has revealed that he feels at home on Merseyside after five years at Anfield.
The Spaniard, bought by Rafael Benitez in 2005 from Villarreal, also added that one of his daughters "is a Scouser", and that he is desperate to help the club realise their primary ambition of landing a Premier League title. Click to continue reading...

Football fans are regularly accused of being 'fickle' but, as Pepe Reina proves with his latest comments, it seems that footballers also fall into that category!
September 12th - Liverpool had lost 2 of the first 4 league games. Clearly down in the dumps, Reina stated the following:
"We all want to win the league but right now it's not a realistic objective. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has admitted an early exit from the UEFA Champions League would be a 'disaster' for the Anfield outfit.
Rafa Benitez's side are floundering in the Premier League title race after suffering their fifth defeat of the season away to Fulham on Saturday, a match which full-back Johnson missed through injury. Click to continue reading...

In these still early stages of the season a few new additions to the Premier League have looked like excellent additions to the league and indeed their respective clubs. The English game may have lost the massive talent of Cristiano Ronaldo but the following players have already made an impression on the Premier League.

Click to continue reading...

Rafa Benitez has banished thoughts of revenge as he bids to take a step closer to fulfilling one of his ambitions as Liverpool manager.
The Reds face Arsenal in the Carling Cup fourth round and Benitez has no wish to experience a scoreline similar to when the sides last met in this competition. Click to continue reading...

Irrespective of what some would have you believe, it is foolhardy to try and predict at an early age which players can make it at any professional club, let alone one with Liverpool's ambitions.
This should be the principle underlying any talk about the prospects of those players at the academy or in the reserves. Click to continue reading...

by CARL ELDRIDGE Arsene Wenger chose his 60th birthday to declare that the rip-roaring Gunners will win a trophy this season, claims the Daily Mail.

Playing catch-up with our own Vic Crescit's brilliant report from yesterday's AGM, this morning's paper says Wenger retains the total faith of the board and fans for his glittering achievements during more than 13 years as the club's longest-serving manager and the way his teams play despite it being four years since Arsenal won any silverware.

Click to continue reading...

Liverpool's crushing defeats to Sunderland and Lyon are undoubtedly devastating blows to the club's trophy ambitions. Clearly, the recurring problems that have plagued Liverpool under Rafa Benitez are wreaking havoc once again. As such, if the club is to recover and salvage something from this campaign, it is imperative that important changes are made NOW. Click to continue reading...

It was the best of times, it is the worst of times now for Liverpool fans - of that there can be no doubt. Looking back briefly to last season when Rafa Benitez's side lead Manchester United in the Premier League by nearly double digits, this was going to be the year that finally ended Liverpool fans long wait for the biggest domestic prize.

Click to continue reading...

A look at the winners and losers after week nine of the Premier League.

Winners
Manchester United
If the mark of a champion is winning when not playing well then Manchester United are in line to win another Premier title. That United are top of the Premier League while struggling in all but two of their nine league fixtures since August shows that they have the heart of a champion.

Click to continue reading...

A look at the winners and losers after week nine of the Premier League.

Winners
Manchester United
If the mark of a champion is winning when not playing well then Manchester United are in line to win another Premier title. That United are top of the Premier League while struggling in all but two of their nine league fixtures since August shows that they have the heart of a champion.

Click to continue reading...

Jose Mourinho has heaped praise on Rene Krhin amid speculation connecting the Inter Milan midfielder with a move to Liverpool.
The Slovenian teenager is regarded as an exciting prospect for the future and Liverpool are understood to be monitoring his situation at Inter.
However, the Reds are likely to find it difficult to prise him away from Inter as he still figures in the plans of Mourinho. Click to continue reading...

Speaking to many of my friends, there was the suggestion that Birmingham were no real enemy and Saturday's match was just a routine three points. Not for me.
Birmingham are the masters of PR management. It is easy to forget that it wasn't just Eduardo's injury that went against Arsenal on that fateful day at St. Click to continue reading...

Vincent Kompany - who made his first appearance of the season yesterday at Wigan - has signed an extension to his current deal:

Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany has signed a new five-year deal with the Premier League club that will keep him at Eastlands until 2014.

Kompany, 23, was signed from German side Hamburg in August 2008.

Click to continue reading...

Gary Neville and his balloon hit Liverpool's title ambitions At last, the Liverpool balloon thrower is unmasked, and it doesn't look like he has quite the Scouse connection we first thought!

Click to continue reading...

Nottingham Forest put a dent in our title ambitions as what appeared to be a very unmotivated Newcastle side struggled early on.

Forest had the best of the first half and were unfortunate to only go in to the half-time break with a one goal lead. Newcastle were guilty of:

• Giving away possession (Are you listening Marlon Harewood?

Click to continue reading...

In his 2006 book "Floodlit Dreams", writer Ian Ridley brilliantly summed up the small town politics that drive the running of so many football clubs. He had taken the chairmanship at Weymouth Football Club with big ambitions, but a combination of under-achievement on the pitch, vultures circling overhead and internal squabbling saw him eventually removed by a coup d'etat.

Click to continue reading...

Liverpool's cultural ties with Spain appear to have reached a new high with news coming from Anfield that the club's official television channel will provide a live broadcast of La Roja's World Cup qualification match with Bosnia-Herzegovina for their subscribers.
With Spanish manager Rafael Benitez at the helm on Merseyside and striker Fernando Torres winning both hearts and minds with his dedication to the Reds' Premier League and European ambitions it appears that the club have taken advantage of the region's love affair with the Iberian peninsula. Click to continue reading...

It hadn't been a great week for the Old Firm, starting with results that put their lowly status in Europe into perspective and finishing with a mildly critical piece on the famous 'twohundredpercent' football blog , so I suppose it was inevitable that it was time once again for both clubs to do what they do when times are hard: to talk once again about leaving the backwaters of the Scottish Premier League behind them and finding somewhere more lucrative to play.

Click to continue reading...