Patrick Vieira stood tall at 6′3″ but still walked into the land of giants when he first set foot inside the Arsenal dressing room 14 years ago.

It had to be the most improbable way to begin a journey which saw the virtually unknown Frenchman rise to become one of the most celebrated players in Premier League history.

Ian Wright, David Seaman, Martin Keown and Dennis Bergkamp were all present one afternoon at the training ground in September 1996.

Tony Adams, the captain, the leader, the inspiration - everything Vieira himself grew to be - was perhaps the man who most embodied the old Arsenal, where style gave way to hard graft and pragmatism under George Graham.

Read the rest of this entry »

Group A: Germany, Turkey, Austria, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan.

A rerun of the thrilling Euro 2008 semi-final awaits. Germany overcame Turkey that time and will be favourites to progress again. The Turks are currently without a manager after a faltering World Cup qualification campaign, and will be pushed hard by Austria and Belgium, two youthful teams who are in the ascendant.

——————————————————————————–

Group B: Russia, Slovakia, Republic of Ireland, FYR Macedonia, Armenia, Andorra.

Luck has come to the Irish. Russia are the weakest seeds and will be an even more appetising prospect if Guus Hiddink moves on. World Cup qualifiers Slovakia are solid, but Ireland should back themselves. Armenia were moved into this group after refusing to play Azerbaijan in Group A.

Read the rest of this story »

The fourth ticket sales phase for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa will kicks off  today.

A minimum of 400,000 tickets for a total of 53 matches will be made available during the next 58 days until April 7. Tickets will be allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis subject to availability.

Applications can be made on the FIFA website or at FNB branches for South African residents.

“As we enter this fourth ticketing phase, it is important for football fans to note that time is very important when one applies for a ticket. The ‘first come, first served’ principle means that if you do not apply on time, you run the risk of not getting a ticket. That is why it is crucial for fans to process their applications speedily,” emphasised Horst R. Schmidt, Chairman of the FIFA World Cup Ticketing Sub-Committee in a statement.

Read the rest of this story »

Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill believes Liverpool’s recent resurgence is down to the belief the Anfield giants gained from their dramatic late winner at Villa Park in December.

The Villa chief, whose side are in the thick of the battle for fourth place, said: “As a player when we had a really decent run with Nottingham Forest, playing against what I consider one of the best teams that Europe has produced - that Liverpool side of Dalglish, Souness  and all the others - I am not totally sure they ever got the credit for it.

Read the rest of this story »

Arsene Wenger is ready to go to war with Barcelona in the battle to hold on to Cesc Fabregas.

Spanish giants Barcelona are ready to launch a £40m bid for Fabregas this summer and believe they may be able to lure him away unless Arsenal win some silverware this season.

But Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis has already written to Barcelona to demand the Spanish giants stop their very public campaign to try to sign Fabregas.

Gazidis wanted to know why stories keep appearing in the Spanish press and for the club’s executives to stop making statements about the Arsenal captain.

Read the rest of this story »

Peter Crouch believes Liverpool are now the favourites for the fourth Champions League place.

The Spurs striker reckons his old team have hit form at the right time after taking an impressive 17 points from their last 21 stretching back to Christmas - a far cry from their meltdown in the first half of the season.

Spurs travel to Wolves tomorrow night, while Liverpool go to Arsenal and Aston Villa host Manchester United as the race for fourth place hots up.

Crouch said: “The previous seasons don’t lie. They have always been in the Champions League.

Read the rest of this story »

Rio Ferdinand, the new England captain, was still agonising on Monday night over whether he should withdraw his appeal against a four-match ban as a gesture of goodwill to the Football Association.

The ban was increased by one match after Ferdinand’s initial appeal and, despite a sense of injustice at Manchester United, there is an expectation that the subsequent appeal will be withdrawn.

Ferdinand will be aware of the embarrassment that could be caused by a hearing on Friday, just a week after he was chosen by Fabio Capello to lead England at the World Cup.

Read the rest of this story »

India’s wealthiest man, Mukesh Ambani, has denied he is competing to purchase a stake in Liverpool.

But another Indian businessman who is also said to be in the running for the Merseyside club appeared more circumspect.

The Times reported that Ambani, the world’s seventh-richest man, was one of two tycoons from the subcontinent who were interested in buying a stake at Anfield.

According to the report, Ambani’s Reliance Industries and Sahara Group chairman Subrata Roy had each tendered similar bids to pay off Liverpool’s £237 million debts in return for a 51 per cent stake in the club.

Read the rest of this story »

Chelsea (58 points currently)

Feb 27 v Manchester City (h) - The prospect of Terry v Wayne Bridge already has the tabloids salivating, but can City’s fragile defence cope with Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka. Will Chelsea be able to handle Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor? Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 City

March 21 v Blackburn (a) - Carlo Ancelotti’s men will travel to Ewood Park for what will be a robust challenge against a Blackburn side fighting near the foot of the table. This match will test Chelsea physically, coming as it does just four days after hosting Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League. Prediction: Blackburn 1-2 Chelsea

Read the rest of this story »

Two men were jailed today over a planned arson attack in which a military hand grenade was left outside football hero Kenny Dalglish’s home.

The army bomb squad had to be called to the former Liverpool and Blackburn manager’s house last July when undercover police scotched an attack on one of his neighbours.

Dalglish, 58, now Liverpool FC’s academy director, and his wife Marina, 55, who runs a cancer charity, were not at the property in Birkdale, near Southport, at the time.

A gang of thugs were planning to launch the British military grenade - which explodes into 1,800 lethal fragments - through the living room window of businessman John Ball.

Mr Ball was at home with his children aged nine and 17 months at the time.

The attack, which was abandoned when a security guard reported the men, would have been one of many intimidatory attacks on Mr Ball’s properties and businesses.

Read the rest of this story »