Guess Who's Back, Back Again

The scrappy win on Saturday via a brilliant Cristiano Ronaldo goal has maintained Real Madrid 10-points lead in La Liga. With merely 14 games to go, another domestic title is awaiting to be added to the already-comprehensive resume of the Special One.

Having already netted league titles in Portugal, England and Italy, Jose Mourinho arrived in Madrid in 2010, with an obvious mission impossible --- stop the invincible Barcelona.

Mourinho has balanced a squad full of talents and flair with some much-needed work rate and discipline by bringing in Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira, Angel Di Maria and Fábio Coentrão. The German pairs, together with Xabi Alonso, form a solid midfield to support the goal feast Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as the blossoming Benzema and Higuain, who both are enjoying a career-best season.

The Special one has not been enjoying the spotlight in Spain he usually would have attracted. The first thing that would come to one's mind about La Liga must be Barcelona. This is the team Jose Mourinho has still been struggling to resolve, despite his past success against the Catalans. In ten attempts, Mourinho earned four draws, five losses and one victory, an extra time winner that brought him the Copa Del Rey, his first and only title with Real Madrid.

Barcelona 2011-12 season has been slowed down by various factors. Iniesta missed the start of the season while David Villa suffers a season-ending knee injury; Alexis and Fabregas display wonderful potential but are still adapting to Barca's attacking system; Xavi and Puyol are aging and Barca's bench is weakened by several leaving players.

But this does not mean Real Madrid can gain an upper hand in El Clasico. In fact, Barcelona's dominance in recent years have already gained a mental advantage over Real Madrid, which is why we saw Pepe, Alonso and Sergio Ramos lost their cool, and ridiculous scenes such as four players chasing Messi without a ball.

The only thing people remember of Mourinho in El Clasicos might be his finger attack at Barcelona's assistant coach Tito Vilanova during a fight in 2011 Super Cup. He excused himself by claiming he didn't know who Tito is and also humiliating him in Spanish.

Although Madrid’s defence may appear catastrophic against Barca, it has rarely let them down, or cost them points to be specific. The consistency and superiority shown by the Los Blancos look unbeatable, even Pep Guardiola expressed sign of surrender in the title race.

However, will the Portuguese settle with the La Liga champion?

'Anything else bigger?' <The SUN>

He led Porto to dominate in both domestic and European competitions during his two year regime; the success was encored in Italy with Inter Milan, enjoying a treble in 2009-10; His outspoken character and winner's attitude had reignited the determination of Sir Alex Ferguson. Before coming to Spain, he has never failed to bring at least two trophies to the club he managed every year.

Yet with nearly a hand on the league trophy and in hunt for the Champions League, Mourinho remains adamant to quit the Bernabeu in summer. Rumour has it he is looking for a new place to live in Chelsea, further fuelling speculation of his much-awaited-by-Chelsea-fans return to the Bridge as AVB also recently admitted his fear of the Russian axe. Nonetheless, is Chelsea the team he is looking for to defeat Barcelona before a new era of the Catalans arises? Or is he actually looking at the England National Team to kick-start his national team management (and to wait for the decline of Barca)?

Captivating.

Alan Pardew is not the man to lead Newcastle

Newcastle United look to be in contention for qualifying for next season’s UEFA Champions League. However, despite an exhilarating start to the 11/12 season, Mike Ashley should sack (yet) another manager to improve their odds, a decision which should inflict less discontent from the Toon fans than renaming their home stadium.

The Magpies collected 25 points from 11 games prior to their first defeat at the Etihad Stadium. A consistent lineup including exciting signings such as the 16-goals-in-21-games Demba Ba and French orchestrator Cabaye, not to exclude the impressive young Tim Krul, all contributed to an amazing lift in team morale and league position. However we all know that unless ‘accumulated fatigue’ and ‘injuries’ are not checked, you can’t play the same lineup for all 38 games.

Alan Pardew, like Harry Redknapp, does not like to make many changes in lineup. They too don’t make many substitutions; but the quality and squad depth of the two teams are incomparable. Sir Alex has long been an advocate of squad rotation. Not only does it keep your squad match fit, the competition for a starting place gets the better out of your players. Jose Mourinho is also known to be relentless in taking off underperforming players whatever the match time, if he feels his team could turn the match around.

At Craven Cottage, Newcastle forfeited a 0-1half time lead and ended up the match losing 5-2. (Un)fortunate for Fulham, Sidwell’s injury near half time prompted a change of formation from 451 to 442. With Andrew Johnson coming on and Bryan Ruiz making way for the defensive Chris Baird, Fulham’s gameplan was obvious – direct and counter. In spite of a dominating first half, the Newcastle manager made minimal, if any, tactical changes to deal with the new Fulham side and the less defensive Ben Arfa – albeit scoring his side’s 2^nd goal – and Guthrie-Cabaye midfield were never ready to fend off the Cottagers’ desperate attack on away ground. Pardew only sent James Perch on in a less competent defensive midfielder position in place for Guthrie when the score was 4-1.

Recently at White Hart Lane, a first half blitzkrieg put Spurs 4-0 up and Newcastle United never looked like staging another 4-4 comeback. The less defensive Gabriel Obertan started on the right and Guthrie and Perch sit opposite to Modric and Marker in midfield with Demba Ba and new signing Papiss Demba Cisse leading the attack in an ambitious lineup. As expected, Pardew once again did minimal, if any, tactical changes before brining on the inexperienced Shan Ferguson for Obertan in the second half.

In both hammering results, Pardew completely overestimated his side and it was quite obvious he did not have a plan B. As a manager he might be good at maintaining a good relationship with his players but as a tactician, he has never looked like one capable of leading the decent Magpies squad into Europe.  With less than 15 games to play, they still have fixtures against Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City and if Pardew continues to be sluggish and slow, and in charge, don’t be surprised to see Newcastle eventually slipping down to the bottom half of the table. 

Friends? or Foes?

It’s been nearly two years since Abramovich’s Chelsea won the Premier League and it’s been…forever since they’ve won the Champions League. Despite the Special One winning two Champions League trophies in his impressive CV, it was with Porto and Inter, not the blues. Abramovich also recruited – personally – Champions League winners Shevchenko and Ancelotti in a bid to push for the best-in-Europe title but neither brought their UEFA luck with them to London. Then, and perhaps the most ludicrous move by the Russian, he splashed out 50M pounds on another trophies-winning forward (at international level) which, to date, proved nothing but a goal-shy forward. Comparatively, a 13M-worth young manager who won the Europa League may appear to be a better choice.

Rather than breaking the bank on top players yet again, Abramovich paid a large sum of money to lure the Portuguese, signaling the first step to bring in young and energetic personnel to Stamford Bridge. It is fair to say AVB was taking over a declining squad in summer and was already outstanding to persuade Raul Meireles and Juan Mata to join the revolution.

Every team has a transition period and Chelsea is no exception. Sitting at 5th of the table at the moment, they are facing fierce pressure from Arsenal, Newcastle and Liverpool in contest for Champions League qualification next season. With 13 league matches remaining, Chelsea fans may finally have to accept the current to be a ‘transition’ season since Roman Abramovich bought the club.

 It is certainly hoped that they won’t take as long as Arsenal but it is also unrealistic for such a young manager to carry it out as smoothly as Sir Alex. AVB did stamp his authority by first freezing out Alex and Anelka before going on to limit the playing time of Ancelotti’s spinal trio Lampard, Malouda and Drogba. As expected by a side undergoing transition, their results were only a little more than satisfactory and to AVB’s dismay, the fallible David Luiz and Torres barely repaid his faith.

Kevin De Bruyne’s signature in January raised eyebrows as AVB openly admitted it was Abramovich’s decision but not his. The Russian owner’s influence on and off the field, evident from his recent visits to Cobham, is detrimental to the rebuilding process, still assuming that’s the reason AVB was brought in.  If he was willing to pay one of the most lucrative release clauses in the first place, he should offer AVB total control on club affairs and announce his faith in him to help lubricate the process. Yet, as it seems to be right now, AVB has lost control of the dressing room and the division of opinions within the team has shadowed the team’s form.

If Sir Alex Ferguson was dismissed in 2006 when he was out-performed by Jose Mourinho, could Manutd fans be still singing the chants about their 19th top-flight champion? If Chelsea are determined to transform, AVB should be given patience and authority by his owner but not jeers and boos demanding his removal.

After the window is closed....

The influence of Eurozone crisis has spread to the football transfer market.  Big name signings were lacking this January, with the total transfer fees across Premier League very likely lower than Andy Carroll's value this time last year. Movements were made to further anchor the club's position, but no reckless moves were seen. The headline-grabbing Tevez is going nowhere, so as the pricy duo Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll. Harry Redknapp did not disappoint his fans with his usually active January, though only in the last minute; while  Mark Hughes is determined to be the saviour of QPR by bringing in quality pieces, including his favourite, Bobby Zamora. The Linesman predicted the likely transfers to be happened, and now it's time to wrap up who has gone and who has stayed.

Cahill in Blue

Finally, Gary Cahill will be playing in Stamford Bridge. The minor crisis about his contract demand being revealed has been resolved, and Andres Villas Boas cannot wait for the England international's debut to help restore the stability of the defensive line, which is hit by the comedian David Luiz and John Terry's racism claim. Cahill's arrival also helps Alex's escape to the France, joining the ambitious PSG and hoping to revive his career.

American invasion

Unlike Tevez, they really love football. What's better than playing on the familiar soil again? Thierry Henry, Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan has all returned to England during the MLS winter break with various degree of success. Henry might be the first person to play in a stadium with his own statue outside. His winning goal helped Arsenal get through in FA Cup, though days later a devastating loss at Swansea provoked clash with the fans. Robbie Keane joined the tenth club of his career and scored an amazing goal to lead a comeback victory against Wolves; Donovan secures a starting spot in Everton and injects speed and creativity that Moyes' side midfield is certainly lacking. His assist to Gibson has helped Everton beat the league leader Manchester City last night.

There is never forever teammates

Tottenham and QPR

Tony Fernandez has never hidden his intention to bring in new signings to save the struggling QPR. After purchasing Mark Hughes, they have strengthened the backline by loaning Onohua and Taiwo from Mancity and AC Milan respectively. The signing of Djibril Cisse and Bobby Zamora will help the second-lowest scoring frontline. Having brought in the right pieces, QPR's fate will be hinged on how Mark Hughes utilises the improved squad.

Harry Redknapp has always been a fan of January transfer window, but he stressed not for once he will only bring in "special" players. Having been quiet for most of the January, Spurs had made a lot of phone calls in the last 12 hours before deadline. Louis Saha is a fitter option as a lone striker than Defoe and Pavlyuchenko (sold to Lokomotiv Moscow), but Ryan Nelsen seems to be a compensation to Tottenham from Blackburn for not letting Samba go. The out-of-favour Pienaar returns to Everton on loan after a season.

The return of the legends

Small pieces for the big clubs

Inflation of the players' values has urged more sensible spending. There is little excitement to cheer the fans, but the clubs are pushing the right moves. Sir Alex stole the headline of the transfer window by bringing back Scholes to fill up the injury-prone midfield. It is not often you can see a top team fielding a central midfield pair with an average age of 37, but now they are back in level with Man City. 

Meanwhile, City has brought in David Pizarro, given their lack of creativity in midfield apart from David Silva. A big question remains whether he can adapt to the physicality of Premier League. One of their fringe player, Wayne Bridge, is loaned out to Sunderland. It is a win-win situation as the Black Cats fans can finally enjoy the service of a proper left back, who was also a former-international.  

Arsenal and Chelsea migrated their focus onto the future by signing two young midfielders abroad, but Newcastle has decided to put their faith into Africa. They have brought in Demba Ba's Senegal partner, Papiss Cisse, to share his goal-scoring duty. The surprised exit of Senegal in African Nations Cup means the pair will be seen in Toon's jersey in early February.



The new striking force

Bits and Bobs

Everton had another busy transfer window.  Bilyaletdinov joined Pavlyuchenko on the flight back to home country, leaving Arshavin alone in London. Darron Gibson is more like a piece from Ferguson to urge Everton selling Rodwell to them in the summer, although he became the unlikely hero against Man City. Former Rangers Nikica Jelavic is described by Moyes as the solution to their goalscoring problem.

The bottom three seems to be relatively content with their current squad. Wolves tries to anchor the defence by acquiring Bassong and Frimpong; Bolton has brought in Tim Ream from New York to fill in for Cahill; Wigan has only brought in rarely-known left winger Beausejour from Birmingham. Their awfully weak squad will struggle to retain the Premier League place, unless Rodallega will do the magic again before he, very likely, leaves in the summer.