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Despite Liverpool’s excellent display against Manchester United at the weekend, I still feel that if we are to compete for the title within the next few years, we will need a player in the guise of Javier Mascherano to really help the Reds break up attacks, not only against the best teams but also against the less talented, more physical opponents in the Barclays Premier League. Lucas has played very well for the last year but it is clear he will never be the most physical of holding midfield players. Although he can break up play and pass neatly, he will never outmuscle opponents. Certainly, this doesn’t mean we have to go for a like for like replacement for Mascherano but for me, to give us a different option to Lucas, we need somebody who is both physically up the challenge but also able on the ball to the pass the ball like the Brazilian. The five options below have all been linked with us in the past couple of months. Who would you pick?

Moussa Sissoko – Probably the prime candidate for the Reds for a few reasons. 1) He is strong and physical, making him the ideal defensive midfielder to break up play and outmuscle opponents. 2) He has played further forward over the last couple of seasons for Toulouse and has scored his fair share of goals, giving the player an added dimension to the rest of the players on the list. 3) He is young, talented and French meaning Damien Comolli will know all about Sissoko, and will no doubt have scouted the player on a number of occasions.

Yann M’Vila – Another young French star who has probably caught the eye of Comolli is Rennes’ holding midfield player M’Vila. Tall and rangy, he is an excellent tackler but lacks the forward thinking ambitions of Sissoko. Despite this though, France coach Laurent Blanc has used the 20 year old regularly in the national team and impressed playing for France against England back in November.

Blaise Matuidi – Another young Frenchman, Matuidi has most likely been linked with Liverpool due to Comolli’s prior association with St Etienne. Still he is the club’s captain at the age of 23 and has already been capped by France. Considering Comolli has stated he wouldn’t buy players off St Etienne however, it is unlikely the Reds will move for the player, although he maybe a cheaper option than the rest of the players on this list.

Lassana Diarra – Probably the least likely player to move to Liverpool on this list as in recent weeks, he has been back in favour with Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid. If the Portuguese manager does depart in the summer though, the French midfielder may opt to leave the Bernabeu if Real’s hierarchy deem him surplus to requirements. A talented holding midfielder with experience of the Premier League, as well as having the capability to get forward, if Diarra was available he would probably cost a significant amount more than the other 4 on this list.

Fernando Gago – More in the mould of Lucas than the rest of the players on this list, the Argentine holding midfielder has been linked with a move away from Spain. His agent today failed to rule out a move away from Real Madrid, and with Gago being both young and talented; the Reds have been linked with the player. Whenever I have watched the player play for Real though, I feel he wouldn’t necessarily be the type of midfield destroyer we would be looking for.

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Read more of David articles at the excellent Live4Liverpool

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Sevilla's Brazil striker Luis Fabiano has stated his hope of securing a move to either Manchester United or AC Milan this summer.

The 29-year-old has recently been the subject of interest from Tottenham Hotspur, but Fabiano is set to snub Spurs.

He told the Daily Star Sunday:"I have a real chance of winning a World Cup here in South Africa and that is what I must stay focused on, even though I know my future has to be sorted soon.

"I have made it clear that I will not be signing a new contract with Sevilla and at 29 I now need to join a club where I can start challenging for the highest honours from the first season.

"I have heard Tottenham Hotspur made an inquiry about me but, with all respect, that is not somewhere I am going to be able to win the Premier League or the European Cup in the next three or four years.

"There would be no point in me joining Tottenham. I might as well stay at Sevilla, as it's the same thing. Sevilla are actually bigger when you look at how much we have been in the European Cup, so there would be no point me moving to a smaller team.

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"The choice will come down to Manchester United and AC Milan. That is the sort of team I want to be signing for, one of the true giants of Europe.

"As soon as the World Cup is over I will make a quick decision on my future and while it is going on, I hope Sevilla can open discussions. I have enjoyed my time here but I now need to be at a giant."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Newcastle winger Jonas Gutierrez has applauded his side for their unbeaten start to the Premier League campaign, and feels his side deserves their current league standing.

Four wins and four draws in their opening eight domestic fixtures sees Alan Pardew’s men hold fourth place in the standings, with a fightback against Tottenham on Sunday maintaining their unbeaten start to the season.

The Argentina international has been impressed with how The Magpies have played so far, and feels their place close to the summit is warranted.

“We deserve to be fourth. Nobody has beaten us yet, so we deserve it,” he told Mirror Football.

“It will be hard to stay in the top four, we know that. There are a lot of good teams in the league. But here at Newcastle we are all about trying to play good football and keep the ball.

“I don’t care about what people think about Newcastle, or if they say we will never keep it up or that we have had an easy start. All I am bothered about is making sure that we improve with every game and stay focused.

“Last season, we did well against good teams and lost against the poorer teams. This season we have drawn against the top teams so far, like Tottenham and Arsenal, and we are beating the teams that we should be beating.

“We look strong, but we have to keep that up.

“The fans have helped us. They are enjoying it now more than they have before while I have been here. In the past, when we have been losing, they have not liked it. Now we are winning games they are clearly happier. It is great to see lots of smiling faces,” he concluded.

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Newcastle host struggling Wigan at St James’ Park next weekend, and with Roberto Martinez’s men losing their last five games, Pardew will identify it as a game to pick three points up from.

By Gareth McKnight

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Daniele De Rossi has handed new coach Vincenzo Montella victory on debut, scoring the winner in Roma’s 1-0 result at Bologna on Wednesday.The Italy international, who was lucky to avoid being sent off for a second caution just minutes before scoring, ensured Roma snapped the three-game losing streak that ultimately led to Claudio Ranieri’s resignation from the Serie A club. Montella rang the changes in his first game as manager, promoting Brazilian custodian Doni to number one ahead of compatriot Julio Sergio and dropping iconic captain Francesco Totti to the bench.The midweek game, rescheduled after being abandoned in January due to snow, bizarrely began with a corner at the 17-minute mark – the point at which the original fixture was called off.De Rossi should have earned a second yellow card for clearing the ball with his hand in the 41st minute, and four minutes later he popped up to slot home Mirko Vucinic’s centre past Bologna goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano.Roma rise to sixth on the Serie A table with their first win in a month, six points adrift of fourth-placed city rivals Lazio.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta says that his club will not pay over the odds to try and secure the services of Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

The 23-year-old Spain international is expected to head back to the Camp Nou at some point this summer, but Laporta has warned that a deal is far from certain.

He told the Spanish press:"We will not sign any players for above market value.

"We are interested in signing Cesc and Arsenal know that, but we will not pay an exorbitant price for any player.

"When it comes to market prices, we'll strengthen where we can, but will not pay an unrealistic price."

Meanwhile, Laporta has admitted that Yaya Toure could leave Barca, with the Ivory Coast midfielder having been linked with both the Gunners and Manchester City.

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He told Sport:"We intend to keep the current squad for next season, reinforced with the addition of David Villa and another player.

"We would like Toure to continue at the club for many years, because there are few players in the world like him."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

For a player who is bettered only by David James when it comes to consecutive appearances, and is used to playing every minute of every game, since huge questions over his future AVB took the reins at Chelsea , Frank Lampard has had more than a little shock.

On the back of an injury hit campaign last time round, where only 11 goals were scored by the midfielder – a dramatically reduced amount from his usual 20 plus – Lampard has worked hard to regain fitness and a place back in the starting line-up.

After several lack luster performances by both Lampard and Chelsea, not to mention the arrival of Juan Mata and Meireles, Lampard found himself being the player to make way on more than one occasion, if he made the team at all. The low point for the player came against Swansea, where youngster Josh McEachran became the third Chelsea sub, thus meaning Lampard played no part in the game. The player subsequently went down the tunnel and huge questions over not only his future but just how much he featured in the plans of a manager who is slightly younger than him.

Much of the press attention pre match tonight focused on that specific issue, to the contention of the Chelsea manager, who was adamant that Lampard had a role to play for the blues, and included the 33 year old in his starting line-up.

After a decent performance first half, Lampard managed to score the only Chelsea goal of the game, in which Chelsea were lucky to come away with a draw after Valencia finally got a deserved equalizer courtesy of a Soldado penalty in the 87 minute after a foul by Kalou.

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The Spanish side suffered from a lack of clinical finishing which also cost them points against Barcelona and Sevilla, with more than a couple of chances coming their way. That is not to say Chelsea did not have their own opportunities, with Lampard setting up Torres, who of course failed to convert, and Ramires missing a one on one with the keeper that should see him serving a life sentence for his finishing skills – or lack of them.

Lampard’s goal came on the 56th minute, and will be a comfort to the player, who still failed to last the duration of the match, being replaced late in to the second half, yet will be glad that Meireles replaced Ramires, and not himself. Lampard will see this as a small response to the critics who have plagued him his whole career, and must now be at peace with the fact that no matter what he does, whether it be at West Ham, Chelsea or for England, it will not be enough for some people.

What Lampard will not take lightly is suggestions that he is finished at the top level, and is under the firm belief that he has a great deal more to give, albeit as a midfielder who plays slightly deeper than he has previously done, but with the vision the player possesses and his ability to read the game, this is not an impossible role for Lampard to take up, in a similar fashion to Paul Scholes during his last couple of seasons at United.

As the player showed in midweek, his career is far from over, and there is a great deal to come from Lampard yet.

Article courtesy of Rebecca Knight from This is Futbol

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FIFA has dismissed appeals to erase bans handed out to corrupt executives Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii on Friday.

After appeals to world football’s governing body, Adamu – a Nigerian representative on the FIFA executive committee – had his three-year ban confirmed, while Oceania representative Temarii maintained his one-year suspension away from any football-related activity.

The pair were found guilty of breaking FIFA’s confidentiality rules in the process of deciding host nations for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

FIFA confirmed the outcome of the appeals in a statement on Friday.

“The FIFA appeal committee has confirmed the decisions taken on November 17 regarding the bans on Reynald Temarii and Amos Adamu – who were at the time FIFA vice-president and FIFA executive committee member – for a breach of the FIFA code of ethics,” the statement read.

The suspensions can be appealed, again, at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

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Three former FIFA ethics committee members had their suspensions upheld, but reduced, after being found guilty of unethical behaviour: Slim Aloulou, Amadou Diakite and Ahongalu Fusimalohi.

Tottenham are set to make a move for Porto starlet Christian Atsu according to the Daily Mail.

Atsu, 20, spent most of last season on loan at Portuguese team Rio Ave and impressed whilst he was in Vila do Conde, scoring 6 goals in 27 appearances. New Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas was the first man to call upon the young Ghanian during his successful tenure at the Dragao, offering Atsu a place in the first team squad. Despite the youngster not making an appearance, it seems that the 34-year old is now impressed enough to make a bid to his former employers.

Rumours have also been surfacing that Villas-Boas is keen on capturing Liverpool sensation Raheem Stirling. The 17-year old has made a handful of appearances at Anfield but has significantly impressed at youth level.

Brazilian playmaker Willian is also a reported target for Tottenham. Shakhtar turned down Chelsea’s bid for their 23-year old last week, setting a £19 million asking price and it is thought that Villas-Boas will attempt to acquire his target before his previous employers.

To attain the finances to realistically approach these targets, want away star man Luka Modric will likely be sold. With PSG declaring their interest along with their willingness to pay Tottenham’s full asking price, an alternative European Capital City may be the destination for the Croatian.

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FFC this week investigates the state of women’s football and whether significant strides have been made this summer to increase its popularity.

There have been a number of fantastic sporting events for fans across the world to get excited by this summer. The Rugby World has kicked off in New Zealand, audiences got to watch the best athletes from across the globe at this year’s World Championships whilst English cricket fans in particular enjoyed a good summer as they watched their team become the best test team in the world. But the surprise sporting event of the summer and one of the most talked about was the FIFA Women’s World Cup held in Germany.

For a sport that has often suffered from a lack of interest and investment, this year’s tournament must be seen as a resounding success across the globe. The quality of the football was of a much higher level than previous years whilst in first time winners Japan, the women’s game had a fairytale story that captured the attention of the world. But FIFA, the national teams, players and fans must not let the renewed attention drawn to the sport thanks to the World Cup drop and the success of the summer must be something that women’s football takes advantage of.

This year’s tournament began with some minor buzz surrounding the event. 16 teams arrived in Germany and whilst there was the usual mix of potential winners in Brazil, England, Germany, USA and teams there with less of a chance, each of the four groups threw up some potentially mouth-watering ties. In particular both France and Germany, and USA and Sweden were both pitted against each other in the group stages. Across the schedule there was exciting encounters worthy of the increased TV audiences and stadium attendances. Eventual runners-up USA and South American favourites Brazil clashed in the quarter-finals where the Americans eventually prevailed on penalties but the game itself included all the excitement of a men’s World Cup game. The quality may still and probably will always be well below the men’s but beyond the unrealistic comparison, the quality of football on show was of a very high standard. The final itself, which saw favourites USA and underdogs Japan clash, was again decided on penalties after a match worthy of being the showpiece game of any major tournament.

Whilst the quality of the football may have been a notable improvement, it was the attention the tournament drew across the world as the competition progressed that marks the start of potentially a new era for the women’s game. Across the 16 teams that competed there was stand out personalities as the interest in particular players as celebrities grew, in particular that of US goalkeeper Hope Solo, whose dramatic performances at the tournament stole a lot of the headlines despite her team coming up just short. The World Cup also drew record TV audiences; in host nation Germany alone 17million tuned into see Germany crash out to Japan in the quarter-finals. Despite the hosts and home favourites leaving the competition early, the interest in the tournament in Germany and around the world remained strong.

The UK’s coverage of the tournament was somewhat restricted by the BBC’s decision to limit the coverage to the red button or online but the pressure to show England’s quarter-final encounter with France live was a sign of the growing interest in the game for TV audiences in this country.

But the most impressive stat of them all was that on one of the most popular forms of communication across the globe Twitter, the Women’s World Cup final became the most tweeted event in the website’s history. No one could have anticipated the online interest in a game between players few outside the women’s footballing world would recognise.

The success of the tournament has not gone unnoticed. Last week marked the arrival of the 2011 European Women and Sport conference in London. The conference saw UEFA announce plans to invest €23.6 million (just over £20 million) between the member national associations between 2012 and 2016. This level of finance and attention that Europe alone is putting into the women’s game and over a number of nations that have varying levels of participation and interest is a good sign for the future of the women’s football. It is hard to look past the 2011 World Cup has a major selling point for UEFA and hopefully world organisations to really push the game forward.

In England alone the FA looked to capitalise on the attention of the World Cup as England’s now slightly more famous players returned to action in the Women’s Super League (WSL) after a mid-season break. Arsenal were the eventual winners of the league format and whilst the buzz surrounding the World Cup did quickly die down (partly due to England’s failure to progress past the quarter-finals in Germany), the WSL and World Cup are a much superior format to any that women’s football in England has seen in a long time.

Qualification has already started for the next major tournament on the women’s calendar, the European Championships in 2013. Whilst early big wins (including Portugal beating Armenia 8-0 and Spain’s 10-1 destruction of Turkey) indicate that problems with consistent quality still remain, all the European heavyweights including England, Germany and France are in the mix as UEFA will look to replicate the success of the World Cup in Sweden in two years time. This year’s UEFA Women’s Champions League knockout stages are also due to start soon and UEFA will be hoping the competition better promotes the club game, something that women’s football needs to do during the wait for another major international tournament.

The success of the World Cup may have been impressive but it would soon be no more than pointless if those in charge of the game around the world didn’t pay extra attention to one of the largest growing sports. The tournament in Germany not only set a benchmark for the players, FIFA and fans but also proved how good the women’s game can really be.

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Do you think women’s football can build on the success of the World Cup? If you want to read more of my bite size, 140 character views and thoughts follow me on Twitter @jennyk5

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Fabio Capello admits he made a mistake in leaving Theo Walcott out of the England squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Arsenal forward Walcott was a mainstay of the qualification campaign under Italian Capello, but was surprisingly dropped from final 23-man contingent.

England were dumped out in the first knock-out round after struggling to escape their group in South Africa.

Now, former Roma and Juventus coach Capello has conceded that Walcott should have been included.

“He is playing how I remember when he started to play with us. It was a tough decision leaving Theo out for the World Cup,” Capello said.

“He is one of the players after the World Cup I thought about a lot. I made a mistake not selecting him.”

“He is one of the players who can make the difference. I should have taken him.”

Capello also bemoaned his lack of options for the pivotal role of a holding midfielder ahead of the World Cup.

But he appears to have now settled on a long-term solution in the form of Arsenal youngster Jack Wilshere.

“(Owen) Hargreaves played this position very, very well every game,” Capello said.

“But after the knee problem, he was never back.”

“I put different players in there but they’d never played in this position. (Gareth) Barry with Aston Villa never played this position. But I saw Wilshere play every game in this position.”

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Capello compared Wilshere to former France international midfielder Claude Makelele, who underpinned the Chelsea side that won two English Premier League titles under Jose Mourinho in 2005 and 2006.

“Wilshere is better technically than Makelele. He’s slower than Makelele but when he receives the ball he is more dangerous than Makelele.”

“Wilshere is the best young player. He now plays all the time with Arsenal. If you play with Arsenal, you are a really good player because Arsene Wenger likes good players.”

“I think he’s mature enough to play this role. He’s a really interesting player.”