Where should Ribery go if he leaves Bayern?

MANCHESTER United has joined the race to land Frenchman Franck Ribery, said Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (read Soccernet story here).

The English champions have joined Chelsea and Barcelona with bids for Ribery, who is touted to be the next Zinedine Zidane, while Real Madrid are said to be interested in the player as well.

Although Rummenigge has insisted that Ribery will see out his contract at the German club, a big-money bid might persuade them to release ‘the jewel of French football’.

If Ribery does leave Bayern, which club is he most suitable for?

Best player in the world – Messi or Iniesta?

Lionel Messi kisses his adidas F50i boots after scoring the second goal against Manchester United in the final. Will he be kissing the Fifa World Player of the Year plaque this December?

(Picture: Telegraph.co.uk)

IT WOULD be safe to say that Lionel Messi has clearly won his “duel” with Cristiano Ronaldo in the Champions League final yesterday morning, and will surely be a strong contender to succeed the Portuguese as the Fifa World Player of the Year this December.

But what of Andreas Iniesta, the quiet workhorse in the Barca engine room?

Wayne Rooney has proclaimed the 25-year-old as the best player in the world after the final, and it is not difficult to understand why.

The shy and unassuming playmaker had burst into mainstream consciousness during Euro08, where his playmaking skills were instrumental in guiding Spain to its first major international title in 44 years.

With Barca, Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez have been pulling all the strings in the midfield the entire season, with the Albacete native scoring the injury-time goal that brought the Catalans to the final.

There is no doubt that Messi – who scored the second goal in the final – possesses a wizardry and craft on the field that rarely comes about in football, but what about his “anti-galactico” team-mate, who had been the heartbeat of Barca’s midfield the entire season?

What had gone all so wrong for United?

BARCELONA proved to be worthy winners of the European Cup this season with a mesmerising display that all but crushed Manchester United early this morning in Rome.

It was supposed to be a match between two of the world’s best sides, famed for their free-flowing attacking football, but as we all saw, only one side turned up. It wasn’t even a boring game where United played to negate the Barca triumvirate of Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry and Samuel Eto’o.

It just was simply a one-sided game with mesmerising (did I say that already?) football played by the Catalans.

In his post game comments, Sir Alex Ferguson said that the absence of the suspended Darren Fletcher had robbed United of its steel in midfield, although he freely admitted that Barca were the better side.

But what do you think went all so wrong for United, after a bright first 10 minutes?

What would be the key clash in the Champs League final tomorrow morning?

ONE OF the most eagerly anticipated games of the season will take place later tomorrow morning, as Manchester United face Barcelona in the Champions League final in Rome.

Both sides boasts of top players – such as Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney – and reputations of playing beautiful, free-flowing football, even though United seems likely to adopt a defensive stance to frustrate Barcelona’s awesome strike-force (read Soccernet story on Sir Alex Ferguson’s comments here).

Looking at the possible line-ups for both teams, the clash between which two players is most likely to affect the outcome of the final?

Is it the midfield battle between Michael Carrick and Andreas Iniesta? Or is it the duel between Patrice Evra and Messi? Or maybe it’s between the determined British bulldog Rooney and the ageing but experience Carlos Puyol?

What are your thoughts?

Question of the Weekend (Prefer Man U or Barca to win?)

Hi all,

THE POSTMAN’S QUESTION OF THE WEEKEND: Who do you prefer to see win the coming Champions League final – Manchester United or Barcelona, and why?
Take part in our poll online here too.

Cheers

Ernest Luis, The Postman, The New Paper

  

My Ballot Box Champs League final outcome?  Man U will win!  No way, Barcelona will win!  View Results

 

Fergie warned: play full team against Hull or prepare to be sued

SIR ALEX Ferguson has been warned by the relegation-threatened clubs that Manchester United could be sued if Hull City won against the recently-crowned champions as a result of a much-weakened United team on the pitch this weekend, reported The Sun (read article here)

Sunderland, Hull, Newcastle and Middlesbrough are still fighting to avoid the drop, with West Bromwich Albion already relegated. Victory over United on the final day of the season will help the Premiership newcomers preserve their top flight status for another season.

The thing is, with the title already in the bag and a Champions League final against Barcelona less than week after the Hull game, Fergie wants his players as fresh and injury-free as possible, and he has already hinted that he would rotate his team for the final game of the season.

But Premier League rule E20 states that “In every league match, each participating club should field a full-strength team.” Fielding a weakened team would not only contravene the rules, but show disrespect to a competition that actually qualified them for the European spectacle, said some critics.

The debate here is: Should Fergie preserve the integrity of the Premiership by fielding a team that is capable of winning against Hull, or should he rest all his top guns for the Barcelona clash?

Question of the Weekend (Agree with Chelsea?)

Hi all,

THE POSTMAN’S QUESTION OF THE WEEKEND: Singapore, your verdict – Agree with Chelsea? (See today’s The New Paper (Fri 8 May)

Cheers,

Ernest Luis, The Postman, The New Paper

 

Question of the Weekend (Champs League return legs)

Hi all,

THE POSTMAN’S QUESTION OF THE WEEKEND: For next week’s return legs of the Champs League semis, are Chelsea the favourites to win because Barcelona will miss the injured Rafael Marquez and suspended Carles Puyol, and can Arsenal upset Man United?

Cheers

Ernest Luis, The Postman, The New Paper

 

How would you stop the Barca juggernaut?

How to stop Lionel Messi? (Picture: AP)

CHELSEA face an in-form Barcelona tomorrow morning (Singapore time) in the Champions League semi-final at the Nou Camp, and for the Blues, the match could not come at a worse time.

While the Premiership club have been revitalised with the appointment of interim coach Guus Hiddink, chalking up 11 victories in the Dutchman’s 15 games in charge, they face a Barcelona that had all but swept aside Bayern Munich in the previous stage of the competition.

A particular area to note would be Chelsea’s left flank.

Leftback Ashley Cole is suspended for the first-leg, after receiving a yellow card in the second-leg quarter-final against Liverpool. That flank just so happens to be the favourite hunting ground for Barca’s wonderboy Lionel Messi, who has grown from strength to strength this season, and surely a shoo-in for one of the contenders for the World Player of the Year award this season.

Without Wayne Bridge, who has since departed for Manchester City, Hiddink seems to be thinking of using Bosingwa to keep the mercurial Argentinian in check.

Problem is, Messi isn’t the only problem that Chelsea have to face. Strike partners Samuel Eto’o and Thierry Henry have been prolific in front of goal this season as well, scoring 27 and 17 goals respectively.

Given the situation, what would be your strategy if you were Guus Hiddink?

Question of the Week (EPL world’s best league?)

HI all,

THE POSTMAN’S QUESTION OF THE WEEK: With three English teams in the Champions League semi-finals next week, and only Spain’s Barcelona challenging their might, is the English Premier League finally the best league in the world? Why or why not?

Cheers,

Ernest Luis, The Postman, The New Paper