Photo: AFP

Leonardo is either:

A) Too busy organizing a pity party; homeboy to his left is clearly not invited

B) Feeling overwhelmed with the constant pressure of being so attractive. Is it too much to ask for a jammies and eye bogeys mental health day?

C) Brainstorming ways to shimmy his fashionable arse in between Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson.

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The battle over the future of English football hotted up this month as Uefa president Michael Platini threatened to boot Premiership clubs out of the Champions League. Platini would say that all he is aiming for is a level playing field in the competition and it is true that he has other targets such as AC Milan and Real Madrid.

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Much has been said about Arsenal striker Eduardo da Silva's dive against Celtic during last Wednesday's 2nd leg of the Champions League pre-qualifier. One split-second incident has led to questions about Michael Platini's proposed system of 5 referees, TV technology, retrospective charges and just exactly what is it that constitutes a dive.

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Well, it looks like tomorrow a new era in European Football will start. One where revenue will determine what kind of players can be signed, NOT reputation, nor Arab monies. I'm betting that al-Fahim is thrilled to be getting in on Portsmouth just in time to find out that an actual business plan is necessary. Click to continue reading...

Of course, 1985 will always be known more for the Heysel Stadium disaster, in which 39 fans lost their lives and hundreds more were injured shortly before the final of the European Cup, than for the final itself. In the wake of that tragedy, European powerhouses Liverpool and Juventus played a controversial match in which the only score was a Michael Platini penalty kick that gave Juventus a 1-0 victory and the championship. Click to continue reading...

Sure, this is a bit of a detour, from the regularly schedule programming, but we are waiting to see the extent of Brad Evans injury, and I've got a few messages out to the greater North American soccer community concerning the role of the target forward, so I thought I would dive into a subject [...] Click to continue reading...

Over the years racist chanting and banners have dogged the European stage. Clubs and players alike have all demanded action, have all appealed for more to be done however their cries nearly always fall on deaf ears. UEFA act yet their action is far too little, far too late.

This week President Michael Platini has announced that a new scheme will soon be implemented to allow officials to stop play for 10 minutes and if problems persist abandon them altogether.

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Match Schedule Tuesday 30 Sept. 2008   20:45 Fiorentina vs FC Steaua Bucuresti 20:45 FC BATE Borisov vs Juventus Wednesday 01 Oct. 2008 20:45 Bordeaux vs AS Roma 20:45 Internazionale vs Werder Bremen all times (CET) UEFA.com Magazine Interviews UEFA.com magazine interviews Juventus legend, UEFA president Michel Platini UEFA. Click to continue reading...

On one side of this sparring match, we have Frenchman Michael Platini, the president of Uefa and the other, good old Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal FC. Both were friends for many years but ever since Platini ascends the lofty position of Uefa president, relationships have been strained. Wenger and Platini were embroiled in a bitter [. Click to continue reading...