Saturday, 12 April 2014

Peter Schmeichels Import XI: No Liverpool stars, but a shock inclusion from Chelsea

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Peter Schmeichels Import XI: No Liverpool stars, but a shock inclusion from Chelsea

Peter Schmeichels Import XI: No Liverpool stars, but a shock inclusion from Chelsea

Posted: 11 Apr 2014 09:00 AM PDT

Goalkeeper: Edwin van der Sar 
Someone I always admired, even early in his career at Ajax and Juventus. In six years at Old Trafford, he helped Manchester United to three Champions League finals, and gave them great stability from the back. Right back: Dan Petrescu Changed the way full-backs play in the Premier League, coming inside, as well as overlapping and getting involved in attacks, making him very hard to pick up. You'd often find him in the opposition box looking to get on the end of a cross, but he'd never shirk his defensive duties. Centre back: Jaap Stam Exactly the right temperament you'd want from a defender – he was angry and loved defending! Never afraid to bark out orders if he wasn't happy (we had a few shouting matches) and even scored goals; I'm struggling to think if he had any flaws. Awesome, absolutely awesome. Centre back: Nemanja Vidic Came in when Manchester United were seriously lacking a no-nonsense defender. Full-blooded tackler, never afraid to boot the ball clear but very tactically aware at the same time. He'd put his foot or head in danger for the benefit of the team – as a goalkeeper you love that. Left back: Patrice Evra I questioned why he was signed when United had Gabriel Heinze, but then you see what he brought to the side and you understood why. A solid defender, excellent going forward and a leader. He's been through a difficult period this season, but there is no doubting his ability. Right wing: Cristiano Ronaldo
 What more is there to say? Gave United fans and neutrals exciting times that they'll never forget. A great goalscorer AND a scorer of great goals. I was at Sporting Lisbon when he was in the youth team and they said he could become one of the best players in the world. They were right. Central midfield: Patrick Vieira A great all-round midfielder. I used to look forward to playing him because he made every one of us raise our game. Arsenal had a great side, but I firmly believe without him they would've been 25 per cent weaker. We had Roy Keane, they had Vieira – it was a great rivalry. Central midfield: Michael Essien
 Always seems to be where the ball is. His physicality and energy is unrivalled – he defends and attacks for the entire game, without seemingly getting tired. At his peak, he is great to watch, and it's a shame he has had his injuries because he is on the cusp of being world class. Left wing: David Ginola Loved at all the clubs he played for – he seemed to have everything in his locker. I still remember the goal he scored against me when we lost 5-0 to Newcastle; he rolled Gary Neville like a striker, and blasted the ball in the top corner with his right foot. I never stood a chance. Forward: Thierry Henry
 Who else? Took him time to settle, but it was well worth the wait. Quick, graceful, intelligent – just brilliant. One of those players that goalkeepers and defenders pride themselves on playing well against (not that they got one over on him very often). More than worthy of his statue outside the Emirates. Forward: Eric Cantona In my eyes, he was responsible for the Premier League developing as quickly as it did. Everyone took to him, controversy or not. He oozed charisma and genius in equal measure, and is by far and away the best ever in the Premier League. It was an honour to have played with him. Substitutes Gianfranco Zola I could never tell where he was going to shoot – unplayable and read the game like no other. Dennis Bergkamp Played football like it was all a dream – you couldn't even imagine some of the things that he was capable of doing with a football. Ricardo Carvalho Instrumental to Porto and Chelsea's successes. His made John Terry a better player, and Chelsea an unbeatable side. Manager: Arsene Wenger Jose Mourinho, for sure – two league titles in three years and a real character as well. [FFT: What about Arsene Wenger?] S**t yes! Of course Wenger – took Arsenal from the brink of mediocrity to a world-class side. Not to mention an entire season unbeaten. Yes – Wenger! This interview was originally published in the April 2012 issue of FourFourTwo.

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Why romantics should want Liverpool to win the Premier League title this season

Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT

On May 26, 1989, I found myself sitting, cross-legged, on the turf of an east London park with at least two dozen other teenagers. Shoulder to shoulder in a circle, we huddled around a small radio like it was an idol worthy of worship. We had gathered for a kickabout but the scuffed ball was left looking rather forlorn, about 20 yards away, long forgotten. We had kicked off about the same time as Arsenal at Anfield, where the north Londoners required a 2-0 victory to win the old First Division title on the final night of the season. We had focused more on our own meandering muddling than events up at Liverpool. And then Alan Smith scored for the Gunners. Arsenal were a goal away from the most romantic ending in English football's history. Our game was swiftly abandoned. An hour earlier, almost all of us had wanted Liverpool to win; for their attacking panache under Kenny Dalglish; for Barnes and Beardsley; for Hillsborough. But Michael Thomas, charging through the midfield, did his thing. He scored that decisive second. We rose as one, hugging each other, none of us Arsenal fans, before tearing off around the pitch in celebration. In a rare moment of sporting perfection, Thomas made every boy's backyard dream a reality. He breathed life back into a dying game. Romance returned to English football. This season, against all sensible odds, there is a chance of it happening again. People's choice In a delicious turn of events, the Reds now represent the romantics. Liverpool are not just gunning for their first domestic title since 1990. They are promising to become the Gunners of 1989. They are rapidly winning the hearts and minds of the masses. Beyond the myopic centres of Manchester and Chelsea, every neutral should want Brendan Rodgers' unlikely title challengers to prevail. What the Premier League is fortuitously witnessing right now may not be repeated again. The overbearing oligarchs won't be so obliging next season. The Middle Eastern owners of Manchester City bought the club not only to diversify funds while their oil wells keep on pumping, but to sell their country to a sceptical world. A top English club is an ongoing branding exercise. And yet, despite City's sterling community work and philanthropy in the area, they are not quite the "people's club" they wish to be among the top four. Liverpool are still perceived as the likely lads upsetting the big boys; their impudent, attacking play sidestepping the cold, detached, muscular ATM machines that are trundled out on match days. The thought of omnipotent oligarchs struggling to pull off their dastardly schemes of global domination – potentially thwarted by those cheeky imposters from Liverpool –is a comforting one. City and Chelsea's billionaires are at risk of ending up as cartoonish schemers from Scooby Doo. They would've gotten away with it, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids from Merseyside. And the Reds need to triumph this season. Chequebooks will be waved in the air like City and Chelsea just don't care after the World Cup. The absence of a Premier League trophy in the cabinet room is one thing, but a loss of face in the boardroom is quite something else. They will return with a vengeance, with the debt-ridden, breathless Glazers possibly bringing up the rear. This is Liverpool's greatest opportunity to walk alone. Otherwise Luis Suarez could walk off. If Real Madrid make the striker this year's prized catch, he'll be off even with a winners medal in his pocket. But a title presents him with a dilemma at least. He will procrastinate. There will be reasons to stay. Walking together Chief among them is the scintillating, swashbuckling style introduced by Manager of the Year-in-waiting Rodgers. This is where the Reds leave the Gunners of 1989 far behind. They might even eclipse the great Liverpool sides of the 1970s and early 1980s, if not their trophy haul. Anfield hasn't had it so good in a generation. Suarez is threatening to end the season with an extraordinary goal-a-game average, Daniel Sturridge's consistency has England supporters daring to dream of World Cup progress beyond the group stages, and Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho are dancing in the Merseyside moonlight. Something quite magical has returned to Anfield. Noise. The Kop has always been a cacophony of Scouse songs, wind-ups and piss-takes, but this is something else. This is the collective roar of belief; a series of Hobbesian, brutish, hypnotic, ritualistic chants that are lifting the hosts and unnerving visitors. You'll Never Walk Alone is ripping hairs from the back of the neck and spitting them at opponents. With a perfect soundtrack, a rogue's gallery of opposing villains and a real sense of Spielbergian adventure, Liverpool's captivating narrative is difficult to dismiss. Any remaining sceptics still resistant to the club's dashing title run must surely fall for its indomitable local hero. The long wait He will be 34 at the end of next month. Captain for both club and country, he made his debut in 1998 and has finished above Manchester United only once in his entire Liverpool career. That was back in 2002. United came third. He is one of the finest English midfielders of all time. He is perhaps the greatest player never to win the Premier League. He is the Oscar-less Richard Burton of the modern game. No footballer deserves a winner's medal more than Steven Gerrard. His manager, team-mates and supporters have all referenced him in their title challenge. Everyone wants to win it for Stevie G. Even Manchester United fans shuffle their feet and mutter something into their beer about the Scouser meriting his place at the pinnacle. From Gerrard's renaissance to the rehabilitation of Suarez, Liverpool's invigorating style and their comparatively mediocre resources surely make them a welcome roadblock to City and Chelsea's blitzkrieg advance towards domestic domination. And if the skipper can guide this fantastical script to its fairytale conclusion by charging through the midfield and doing 'a Michael Thomas', then even the game's most hardened cynics should party like it's 1989. ALSO SEE The ten most massive matches Anfield has ever seen Neil Humphreys is the best-selling author of football novels Match Fixer and Premier Leech, which was the FourFourTwo Football Novel of the Year. You can find his website righthere.

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The best Bosman free transfers of 2014: The men your club should sign

Posted: 11 Apr 2014 05:00 AM PDT

There can surely be few greater feelings for a top-level football club than picking up a high quality player for nothing. In an age where transfer fees have become outrageously inflated, making a big signing without spending a penny (on transfer fees, at least) must leave club chairmen and accountants purring. The big one this summer will be Robert Lewandowksi's transfer from Dortmund to Bayern Munich, with the Polish striker following in the footsteps of the likes of Sol Campbell, Michael Ballack, Henrik Larsson, Andrea Pirlo and Fernando Llorente in having allowed his contract to run down before moving on to pastures new. Here are ten more players who could join the Bosman Club in the coming months… Bacary Sagna (Arsenal) Linked with: Manchester City, Inter Once again, Arsenal appear to have got it wrong as far as contract lengths are concerned. In 2012 they were forced to sell Robin van Persie on the cheap, relatively speaking, and now it seems Bacary Sagna is set to walk away from the Emirates for nothing. The Frenchman has stated that he would be willing to a sign a new deal but feels the terms offered by Arsenal are not reasonable. Premier League rivals Manchester City are said to have offered a deal with vastly improved terms - surely Arsenal can't afford to let another star move to the Etihad? Patrice Evra (Manchester United) Linked with: Monaco, Inter, Roma One thing David Moyes has tried to do in his first season as Manchester United manager is ease out the old guard and try and build a younger core. To that end, Nemanja Vidic is being allowed to leave for Inter, with defensive partner Rio Ferdinand also likely to be moved on. Evra's attacking instincts have never deserted him, and he is arguably more of a threat going forward than ever (see his recent Champions League goal at Munich), but his legs aren't coping quite so well when it comes to going the other way, and he is regularly exposed defensively. He has become a liability for a team like United but could easily slot in at Monaco or Inter Milan, two clubs he's been heavily linked with. Ashley Cole (Chelsea) Linked with: Liverpool, New York Red Bulls A couple of years ago it would have seemed impossible that Cole would be in the position of very much not first choice for either club or country. Leighton Baines' usurping of the England left-back slot was inevitable, but his displacement by right-back Cesar Azpilicueta at Chelsea was much more of a surprise. Nevertheless, the Spaniard has been magnificent where Cole has been shaky, and as the 33-year-old is unlikely to accept another season as a squad player, his future appears to be elsewhere. A reunion with Thierry Henry in New York or David Beckham in Miami has been mooted. Manuel Fernandes (Besiktas) Linked with: Newcastle United, Lokomotiv Moscow One who may be familiar to Newcastle fans, the Magpies were rumoured to be in talks with the Besiktas midfielder in the summer but nothing came of it. The Portuguese midfielder has been locked in a talks with the Turkish club and looks set to leave in the summer. Fernandes – who previously spent two loan spells at Everton – is a technically gifted playmaker with excellent shooting and passing ability. There have been rumours of a move to Lokomotiv Moscow, but nothing has been confirmed – could the Magpies swoop in? Jeremy Menez (Paris Saint-Germain) Linked with: Liverpool, Juventus One of the greatest bad boys, Menez has a taste for the ridiculous, both on and off the pitch. The French winger hasn't had the happiest season at PSG, and is very much below Lucas Moura, Edinson Cavani, Javier Pastore and Ezequiel Lavezzi in the Parisian pecking order. At the end of March, Menez confirmed his intention to leave the French champions. Liverpool have been long-term admirers of the former Roma man and have once again been heavily linked – as have Juventus, who were reported by the Swiss media to have completed a deal last month. As long as that remains unconfirmed, Brendan Rodgers is likely to be keeping tabs on the fiery wide-man. Diego (Atletico Madrid) Linked with: Tottenham Hotspur One of football's greatest mercenaries, few players outside the elite clubs in Europe are paid more than Diego, which probably explains why his former club Wolfsburg felt it necessary to use him even if he was sulking. The cause for Diego's strop was his desire to play Champions League football, so on deadline day this January he re-joined Atletico Madrid, where he had previously spent the 2011/12 season on loan. His deal with the Spanish side runs to the end of the season and at the moment there appear to be no plans for renewal. His contract demands will be hefty and his fitness isn't great but there are few better technicians around, Diego is a magician with the ball at his feet. The Brazilian has long been linked with Tottenham, although we'd quite like to see the look on Daniel Levy's face when he heard the playmaker's contractual demands… Victor Valdes (Barcelona) Linked with: Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Monaco The question of where Victor Valdes is going to be playing his football next season has been a hot topic for over a year now. The Spaniard made it clear in January 2013 that he would not be renewing his contract with the Catalan giants and would be looking for a fresh challenge. Those ambitions were dealt a huge blow when Valdes suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage in his knee in Barcelona's recent 3-0 victory over Celta Vigo. The Spanish international is set to be out for seven months, so whoever signs him will be taking a big risk. Having said that though if he can get back to his best his new club will have one of the world's best on their hands and unsurprisingly Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City and Monaco have all been linked. Aaron Hunt (Werder Bremen) Linked with: Tottenham Hotspur, Besiktas If the name Aaron Hunt sounds familiar then it is because he was the man who owned up to diving to prevent his own side being awarded a penalty in a recent Bundesliga match. The other reason his name sounds familiar is because back in 2009 he was heavily courted by the FA on the basis of having an English mother. Hunt rejected the calls and has since represented Germany. He now looks set to leave Werder Bremen after over a decade with the club. Tottenham have been heavily linked to Hunt who is a skilful wide man capable of playing through the centre. He scored 11 times in the Bundesliga last season and has chipped in with four this year. The latest reports suggest he has picked Besiktas over the London side but nothing has been confirmed yet. Ivica Olic (Wolfsburg) Linked with: Stoke City If Ivica Olic is to move to England this summer, it seems very possible that it will be to join Mark Hughes' Stoke City. The Croatian forward admitted that he was in Stoke recently for a visit with his wife, and on his return he told the German press that he liked what he saw. However the former Bayern man was also keen to point out that there was every chance he would remain with Wolfsburg for another season. Olic's work rate is the stuff of legend, and his big game mentality is second to none, he thrives under pressure. He came close to joining Stoke in the winter but he stalled and eventually rejected the offer. Hughes is doing a commendable job trying to adjust Stoke's style of play and bringing in a player of Olic's calibre would show they're moving in the right direction. The only real surprise is that there appear to be no other Premier League sides in for him. Bafetimbi Gomis (Lyon) Linked with: Newcastle United, Fulham If Bafetimbi Gomis leaves Lyon and joins a Premier League side it will draw to end one of the longest running sagas in recent history. Not a single window goes by without Gomis being linked to a Premier League side, normally Newcastle United. His contract is up at the end of the summer and whilst the player has insisted he could stay at Lyon it does appear as if the two parties are miles away from reaching an agreement. Gomis is a physically imposing forward who can be a nightmare for defenders, but is also frustratingly inconsistent. If he does leave Lyon, he will probably find a number of potential suitors, but success in the Premier League is far less certain.

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Bosnich: United must spend ‘over £200m’ in summer

Posted: 11 Apr 2014 03:19 AM PDT

The Reds are currently seventh in the Premier League table with 57 points, seven points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, and crashed out of the Champions League at Bayern Munich on Wednesday night. With five matches of the season remaining it is unlikely that Moyes' troops will qualify for next season's tournament, and Bosnich believes the Old Trafford side will need to make up for their lack of European football by spending big. "Manchester United will probably have to spend a little more than £200m," the Australian, who played 33 times for the Old Trafford side over two spells, told talkSPORT. "Money wise, they can afford to be out of the Champions League for a few years. Where they can't afford to fall behind is in their ability to entice top players to the club. "If you're going to get the best players in the world to play for you, then some of them will take a little less [money] if they know they're going to play in the Champions League. It's the biggest level of football bar none, including the World Cup. That's where it's going to cost them. "To entice those players you're probably going to have to pay them a little more just because you're not in the Champions League. You have to say, 'I know we're not there this year, but if you come here then you can help us be in it the year after.'"

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Stars fighting for United careers, says Fletcher

Posted: 10 Apr 2014 10:30 PM PDT

United have endured a turbulent season under David Moyes, who replaced long-serving manager Sir Alex Ferguson in May. The Manchester club were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals by defending champions Bayern Munich on Wednesday, ending any hopes of silverware this season. United also look set to miss out on Champions League football next season for the first time in 19 years, with the club languishing in seven position, seven points adrift of fourth-placed Arsenal. And Fletcher, who appears to have overcome an inflammatory bowel disease, says it is time for the teams under-performing stars to prove their worth with Moyes expected to ring the changes at seasons end. It is time to show the manager that you deserve to be at this club, Fletcher said. If you get a chance to play, you have to go and impress the manager and show him that you are capable of being here next year. Go and put in performances because the manager will be thinking of next season, no doubt about that. You have to make sure that you are one of the names that he still wants. Moyes is expected to overhaul an aging United squad in the coming months, with captain Nemanja Vidic set for Inter Milan. Rio Ferdinand, Patrice Evra and Javier Hernandez face uncertain futures, while Bayern midfielder Toni Kroos has been tipped to move to Old Trafford in a big-money deal. He will definitely look back on this season and realise it was a disappointment but I fully expect there to be some signings, the Scottish midfielder said. People expect signings in the summer, there is no doubt about that, but that is always the case at Manchester United.

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The Football Weekly, FREE from FourFourTwo

Posted: 10 Apr 2014 10:00 AM PDT

The new app, which works on all Apple and Android devices, updates ahead of each weekend's fixtures to bring football fans content on their mobiles. With entirely separate content from the monthly magazine (also now available in abespoke-for-iPad version), theWeeklybrings interviews, analysis, reaction and previews. The fifth issue, available now, assesses how football has changed since the Hillsborough tragedy of 1989. Twenty-five years on, FFT looks back over a quarter-century of media-fuelled metamorphosis. Michael Cox gives analysis of how Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero can give their managers tactical headaches ahead of Sunday's crucial title showdown at Anfield. There's also an exclusive interview with Aston Villa and United States goalkeeper Brad Guzan, suggestions on how Tim Sherwood can save his career and an Arsenal blog-off over Arsene Wenger's future. We also get the lowdown on the Barcelona youngsters who could be propelled into the limelight next season, point out the Premier League's new Tinkerman and share a chuckle at QPR's expense with Back of the Net. And if that's not enough to tickle your fancy, there's full match previews of every Premier League and FA Cup game this weekend, with tailored betting advice. TheFootball Weeklyis downloadable for free atGoogle Playand theAppStoreand updates every Thursday evening.

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10 reasons why the Football League is the best in the world

Posted: 10 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT

1) Nothing average about these attendances Go to watch a match in the French or Spanish second tier and it's possible you'll be joining one man and his chien (or perro) on the terraces. Head to most grounds across the Championship, League One and League Two and there'll barely be room to swing a cat. Astonishingly, six clubs in the second tier of English football boast average crowds of over 20,000. Brighton top that list, ahead of Leeds United, Derby County, Leicester City and Nottingham Forest. The stands are slightly less chocka in League One, but five clubs still average crowds of over 10,000. In League Two, meanwhile, Pompey's average is 15,215, while fellow seaside dwellers Plymouth average well over 7,000. The stands are less well populated at far-flung Accrington and Morecambe but Football League fans take a bow – your bums are still filling a ridiculous number of seats. 2) Young, gifted and English As a young and English footballer, breaking into the Premier League has never been so tough. In the Football League, though, fresh domestic talent is flourishing. Derby County's precocious Will Hughes, Danny Ings of Burnley, Leicester's Liam Moore and Nottingham Forest's Jamaal Lascelles are just four players shining in the Championship promotion race. Further down the league, Brentford's Everton loanee Adam Forshaw has been a smash hit at Griffin Park this season, while League Two hitmen Scott Hogan of Rochdale and Sam Winnall of Scunthorpe are two of the hottest young properties in the English game. 3) Tomorrow's stars - today! There are no shortage of loan rangers across the Championship, League One and League Two, so if you want to watch the stars of tomorrow today, then you're in luck. Chelsea striker Patrick Bamford has been banging them in for fun at Derby this season after a similarly prolific spell at MK Dons. He'll return to Chelsea this summer with his reputation firmly enhanced. The same can be said of Tottenham's Tom Carroll, who has spent the season on loan at promotion-chasing QPR, and Manchester United pair Michael Keane (currently at Blackburn) and Nick Powell (at Wigan). 4) Local clubs for local people It's a common whine that the cossetted stars of the Premier League have little or no affiliation with the club that pays their eye-watering wages. It's hard to level the same accusation at the Football League, with clubs like Coventry doing a passable impression of Celtic's famous Lisbon Lions and recruiting heavily from the local area. Colchester chairman Robbie Cowling, meanwhile, told a recent fans forum of his ambition to have "a world-class academy and the whole of the squad to be homegrown by 2025". Crewe are also maintaining a reputation that's almost second to none when it comes to producing talent capable of challenging for a first-team place at Gresty Road. 5) David vs Goliath (pssst…David still wins) The chances of any team winning the Premier League without an über-rich foreign owner are as remote as Mario Balotelli landing on the moon (although wouldn't that be good?). In the Football League, though, dreams can still come true. Burnley were 16/1 to gain promotion from the Championship at the start of the season (and 50/1 to win the title) but now find themselves a gnat's breath away from the Promised Land. Leyton Orient were also long shots (10/1) to get promoted to the Championship for the first time since the sepia-tinted days of 1969, but could still re-write history after a memorable campaign under the estimable Russell Slade. Loaded they're not, but both are busy proving that money is no barrier for dreaming big. And there's not a minted Russian in sight. 6) Swings and roundabouts Fair enough, Manchester United and Liverpool enjoyed something of a role reversal in the Premier League this season, but that's pretty out of character for a league that has become little more than a rather large pot split between three teams since 2004. The Football League, though, is a very different beast – and it has bared its teeth once again this season. Take Northampton as an example. Last season the Cobblers were 90 minutes from promotion to League One via the play-offs; now with six matches remaining, they're in danger of dropping out of the league altogether. The same could be said of Derby, who until this season had regressed to little more than a middling Championship side. Then they controversially sack Nigel Clough, brought in the previously lampooned Steve McClaren and bosh…the rest is history. Talking of Clough, he has worked wonders at Sheffield United, transforming them from relegation candidates to FA Cup semi-finalists. Okay, Leicester and Wolves have waltzed towards promotion from the Championship and League One but they're the exceptions rather than the rule–even then it's taken the Foxes 10 seasons to return to the top flight, while Wolves dropped two divisions in as many seasons. Predictability isn't a watchword in the Football League. 7) Football fairy tales Last summer James Beattie found himself in the unaccustomed position of cleaning the toilets at Accrington Stanley's Crown Ground. Just weeks before he'd dipped into his own pockets to pay the club's tax bill. After the club failed to win any of their first 12 matches, he could have been forgiven for picking up the phone and asking HMRC for a refund. To add insult to injury, Stanley were fined £20k in January for Beattie not having the requisite qualifications as manager. Hardly a dream start to your managerial career then, but with Beattie's men now almost certainly safe from relegation, the former Southampton, Everton and England striker has emerged as one of the brightest young managers in the Football League. His toilet-cleaning days might soon be over. 8) The land of the second coming If you want a new lease of life as a manager then the Football League is the place for you. McClaren's Derby have been a revelation this season, while Phil Brown is gradually rebuilding his reputation at promotion-chasing Southend. Even more unlikely is the return of the motor-mouth John Gregory at Crawley Town. Before losing their last four matches, Gregory's boys were an outside bet for a late play-off run. After over six years out of the English game, he, like Brown and McClaren, is relishing the chance to remind people that he still has something to offer. 9) You don't have to be crazy to work here... But it certainly helps. Leeds United are the prime example of the craziness that exists below the well-oiled Premier League machine. The former champions and European Cup finalists' year has gone from the ridiculous to the downright potty as their season's merciful conclusion approaches. "Both on and off the pitch, it's just a joke when I think about it," said boss Brian McDermott, who has suffered more than his fair share of indignities in recent months. Sacked once, then reinstated, McDermott is understandably and admirably refusing to walk away from a truly ungodly mess. The unpaid players, meanwhile, no longer have to wonder if the takeover by Massimo Cellino will ever happen. Whatever transpires is unlikely to be dull. 10) Taking a stand...well, kind of... Championship clubs voluntarily signed up to UEFA's financial fair play regulations in April 2012 – a move which drew widespread praise two years ago. It has now induced widespread panic as a growing number of clubs realise they've got no chance of adhering to the requirements. It has, though, had an impact, with spending down hugely this season and last. Whether reported challenges are successful remains to be seen but, hey, fair play to those who are sticking to the rules. The Top 50 Players in the Football League - as voted by the fans - features in the May 2014 issue of FourFourTwo.

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Carrick bemoans Man United defeat at Bayern

Posted: 10 Apr 2014 12:11 AM PDT

United crashed out of Europe on Wednesday after losing 3-1 to defending champions Bayern Munich in the return leg of their quarter-final, which completed a 4-2 aggregate defeat. David Moyes' men went ahead on aggregate just shy of the hour mark courtesy of Patrice Evra's stunning left-footed effort. But United's joy was short lived as Bayern hit back through Mario Mandzukic within 22 seconds. The Bundesliga champions duly added a further two goals to settle the tie. "It's bitterly disappointing, we put ourselves in a great position after scoring the first goal," said Carrick. "It was a big blow to concede again after 22 seconds. "Wayne (Rooney) had a great chance to score again later on and it didn't go for us. "The high of scoring and conceding is a blow but it is something we had to deal with and we were still well in the game, the second goal was a bit of a killer." United are seventh in the Premier League, seven points adrift of fourth-placed Arsenal, and look set to miss out on a spot in Europe's most prestigious club competition for the first time since 1995-96.

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