What direction is football heading in? Sunday afternoon was supposed to be a feast of world class football; a battle between the titans; Manchester United versus Chelsea. Instead, Howard Webb and his team of assistant referees were determined to leave their own mark on the game, and for that reason football was robbed of one of its great goals.

Portsmouth's season is on the verge of collapse.

I don't know about you, but I am genuinely excited about the rest of the Premier League season. Unlike other seasons, it's not just the title race that is exciting me. Instead, it's the whole table. After the closing of the January transfer window, I can't help but take a look at the battle going on between Aston Villa, Arsenal, and Everton.

A lot has changed since Round 1 of the Merseyside Derby. Way back on September 27th, Liverpool came away with a 2-0 victory. Before the match, Liverpool was coming into the match undefeated with 3 victories and 2 draws - 11 points out of a possible 15. Everton, on the other hand, was coming into the match with 2 victories and a draw - 7 points out of 15.

After Liverpool faced an early FA Cup exit to crosstown rivals Everton last night, Liverpool fans were quick to harp about talismanic captain Steven Gerrard's injury. While there's no doubt that his injury hampered Liverpool's ability to win against Everton, Liverpool now face a battle to turn excuses into motivators.

As the first installment of the round of sixteen games came to an end in four different venues across Europe, Arsenal stood out as the only winner on the night. One may argue that away goals for F.C. Porto and Barcelona, at Atletico and Lyon respectively, also make them winners in terms of morale going into the second leg.

This weekend sees the Spanish city of Madrid come to a halt as El Derbi madrileño takes place between Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid. We take a look at some of the history behind the two sides and wonder which of them will be victorious come Saturday. In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, [.

There were some big results in this week's Champions League, but none were bigger than Bayern Munich's thrashing of Sporting. On this week's show we ask our German correspondent about the giant team from the Bundesliga. In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English [.

Is the Premier League the 'greatest show on Earth' or a boring 'private member's club'? On this week's podcast we ask whether the dominance of the 'Big Four' in England is a good thing for football. In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in [.

Although there are a few very intriguing match-ups this weekend, such as Manchester United v. Everton and Aston Villa v. Wigan, there is always something special about a Big Four match. This weekend happens to feature a match that could really put a dent in one of these team's title hopes. Liverpool is coming into the game with a lot to prove.

With the possibilities of winning the English Premier League quickly fading away, the next question that remains is, "can Chelsea do enough to finish in the all important top four?" Since 2009 began, Chelsea has a paltry 2-2-1 record and there seems to be a whirlwind of discontent from not only the fans, but it's also trickled down to the players on the field.

The leagues in Europe are getting closer to the finishing line. Everyone wants to win at the start of the season, but now many clubs are just looking to avoid the drop. This week we look at the teams who are nervously hoping they down drop down a division this summer. In addition we: Review the football [.

Shay Given could be leaving Newcastle after all.

Looking back at last season, there were many twists and turns to the Premier League season. For Wigan, it was a rather emotional season. Rooted in the relegation battle in the fall, Wigan fans rejoiced when Steve Bruce resigned from Birmingham to take control of the Wigan reins again. Steve Bruce successfully steered the club clear of relegation, and a 1-1 draw with Chelsea in April ensured safety.

Languagecaster look at one of the oldest rivalries in English football, the East Midlands derby between Derby Coury and Nottingham Forest. We also... Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English for Football And continue the predictions battle in the Predictions competition For learners of English check out [.

After a thrilling end to the Argentinian apertura season in December, football returns to Argentina with the clausura season this weekend and languagecaster looks at some of the players and teams that will feature. We also ... Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English for [.

Tottenham manager Harry Rednapp has consistently told the media that his side is facing a relegation battle. Despite most suggesting this won't happen, the fact that we are currently in 15th position in the Premier League with 25 points, just two away from the relegation zone with 13 matches to play, means that we need [.

Carling Cup victory, poor refereeing, Ronaldo's comeback and some slightly over-exaggerated TV commentary all feature on this week's good, the bad and the ugly on languagecaster's football podcast. Click on the links below to find out more on all of these stories. Explanations of key vocabulary (in bold) can be found at the foot of [.

The World Cup Asian qualifiers are nearing their end and on this week's pod languagecaster takes a look at who is in the driving seat for places in South Africa next year. In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English for Football And continue the [.

Most people in the UK cannot fall asleep before watching the final airing of Sky News, as they just need their regular dose of football. Tuesday night, however, the entire UK watched as a major development came into effect. This development primarily concerned only one region - the Northeast - but it has the potential to eventually impact the entire nation.

Tottenham hope Kenwyne Jones can propel them up the table.

Ricky Sbragia must surely be thinking that he is living the life of luxury. Since taking over from Roy Keane, Sbragia has slowly been leading Sunderland from the bottom of the Premier League to the edge of the top half. Sunderland's 1-0 win against Fulham tonight propels them up to 11th in the table, and just five points away from a potential European spot.

When Manchester City was taken over earlier this season, talks of Galacticos and 10 digit numbers were floating about. At the turn of the new year, City found themselves embroiled in a relegation battle that heavily scuppered their worldwide ambitions. With their latest victory over Newcastle, City have climbed out of the bottom half of the table and into 9th place.

Kaka to Man City? Beckham to AC Milan? The transfer window has been full of rumours and gossip. On this week's show we take a look at some of the main transfer stories that have made the headlines over the past three weeks. We also ... Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and [...]

Kevin Davies led Bolton to a 3-2 victory over Tottenham.

After all the recent news about managers being sacked, canned, given the chop, released, fired, languagecaster takes a look at the language we use to describe a managers job. We also ... Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English for Football And continue the predictions battle [.

After almost a three-month break the Champions League is back and languagecaster previews the 8 mouthwatering ties that lie ahead. Will it be another all-English final or will the winner come from Spain, Italy or ... Greece? In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in [.

The two sides clash in the FA Cup quarters.

On this week's show we focus on the World Cup qualifying matches that took place in Europe over the past few days. In addition we: Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Introduce a new football expression in English for Football And continue the predictions battle in the Predictions competition For learners of English check [.