There Is Only One Sinnacle

Below is the video Pep Guardiola showed to his Barcelona team prior to the Champions League finals.

Pellegrini named as new Real Madrid coach

The 55-year-old, who lists Argentinian giants River Plate amongst his former clubs, will be officially presented on Tuesday at midday local time at the Santiago Bernabeu.

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There is no denying the job Pellegrini has done with Villarreal but coaching for Real Madrid is a totally different animal. At Villarreal, Pellegrini got the most out of what he was given. Now at Real Madrid he’ll have access to near unlimited funds but with that sky high expectations. Finishing 2nd and 3rd at Villarreal gains you respect, at Real Madrid those performances would find yourself out of a job.

Atletico Madrid Hitman Diego Forlan Would Consider Barcelona Offer

The Pichichi and European Golden Shoe winner has admitted that he is open to a move to the Camp Nou if the right offer comes along.

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Despite being able to claim Champions League football next season with Atletico Madrid, Forlan or any player mind you would consider a move to Barcelona. A Barcelona lineup featuring the top scoring in La Liga last year would be something you’d think only would exist in Fifa 2009.

New Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti has made AC Milan’s Brazilian striker Pato and Portsmouth defender Glen Johnson his top targets. The Blues have bid £30m for Pato and have offered £12m for their former player Johnson. (The Sun)

A.C Milan just about paid 30 million for Pato two years ago. A player with his potential, at his age A.C Milan will not move. Ancelotti has some history with Glen Johnson due to Portsmouth and A.C Milan playing in the UEFA Cup but despite Johnson’s history at Chelsea I’d still ask the question what is wrong with Jose Boswinga at right back?

AC Milan have hinted it will be hard for them to reject a substantial offer for their Brazilian playmaker Kaka, which could alert Chelsea and Real Madrid. (The Sun)

A.C Milan accepted a substantial offer for Andriy Shevchenko and live went on.

Everton manager David Moyes is offering Newcastle striker Michael Owen £50,000 a week to make the switch to Goodison Park. (Daily Mirror)

One thing is for sure Owen will face a huge drop in salary when he finally decides on his next team.

Manchester City’s Brazilian forward Robinho has ruled out a summer switch to his homeland club Santos. (Daily Mirror)

This was the dumbest rumour I’ve heard in awhile, all due to president of Santos talking to the press. Let’s face facts even with the Pele connection/history the entire club isn’t worth much more than what Manchester City paid for Robinho. Where would this transfer money come from? Add to that Robinho weekly salary is more then the entire Santos starting 11.

Real Madrid will use rookie striker Negredo as bait in a bid for Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso – but they will first have to buy back the forward from Almeria. (The Sun)

From a Liverpool point of view the last time a make weight was used between the two clubs was Antonio Núñez in the Michael Owen deal. Given that experience I’m sure Liverpool will not jump at the chance to sign Negredo who to his credit had a good year at Almeria.

Fulham look set to beat Portsmouth to the signing of Brazilian left-back Felip Lopes, who plays for Portuguese side Nacional. (The Sun)

Finishing 4th in the Portuguese Super Liga standings like Nacional while on a shoe string budget will mean other teams will take notice. All things being equal between two players a club like Fulham/Portsmouth will go after the player who is easiest to sign.

Tottenham are keen to sell defender Pascal Chimbonda back to Blackburn for about £3m as the Londoners chase Marseille utility man Lorik Cana, who is valued at £5m. (Various)

Never understood why they went after Chimbonda again in the first place. I know Tottenham were still near the bottom in January but someone like Pascal Chimbonda was not going to make a difference if a club stays up or not.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is keen to bring goalkeeper Paul Robinson back to the club, a year after he was sold to Blackburn. (Daily Star)

Remember when Blackburn went back to White Hart Lane how the fans screamed England’s number one as a tribute to Robinson. Must of been a nice feeling for Robinson to hear that.

Sunderland will make a £5m bid for Wigan defender Titus Bramble, once Steve Bruce is installed as manager. (Daily Star)

Granted Titus Bramble had a good year despite his repetition (well deserved) of being error prone. Five million however isn’t a bad return on a player signed via a free transfer two years ago.

Hull boss Phil Brown is eager to sign Newcastle midfielder Kevin Nolan. (Daily Mirror)

You think Kevin Nolan wouldn’t jump at this chance right about now? Brown and Nolan also have a history together dating back to Phil Brown’s time as an assistant coach at Bolton.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich picked Italian Carlo Ancelotti as the club’s new manager because he wants a yes man in charge. The Russian tycoon plans to be more hands-on at Stamford Bridge than before, deciding which players will come in and are let go. (Daily Star)

Kinda harsh since Ancelotti is a great coach. Ancelotti however doesn’t bite the hand that feeds him. During his time at A.C Milan not a word was spoken against flamboyant owner/Italian P.M Silvio Berlusconi.

Manchester United left-back Patrice Evra has lifted the lid on his team’s pampered lifestyle – admitting he even rings someone to rush over and change a lightbulb. Evra says he can call player liaison manager Barry Moorhouse night or day.

Figured you wanted to know.

Carlo Ancelotti confirmed as new Chelsea coach

The Italian succeeds Guus Hiddink, whose short stint at Stamford Bridge ended after Saturday’s FA Cup final victory over Everton.

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Just about the worst kept secret in sports has come to an end with Chelsea officially announcing the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti as the new Chelsea coach. There are two main reasons Ancelotti finds himself coaching in London’s west end. Those are the two Champions League titles Ancelotti holds which is something Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich desperately wishes to bring too Stamford Bridge.

Manchester United will make a last-ditch attempt to keep striker Carlos Tevez at the club and are willing to pay £25m for the Argentine. (Full story: Daily Telegraph)

Any attempt to sign Carlos Tevez is truly a last ditch effort to save some face with United fans. The bridge between Tevez and United is all but burnt.

However, Manchester City are leading the race for Tevez and are prepared to pay £30m to land the 25-year-old. (Daily Mirror)

Maybe Tevez can kick start Robinho and show what him how to excel in England.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has insisted that Xabi Alonso is a key part of his plans and does not want to sell him. Real Madrid are reportedly interested in the midfielder. (Daily Telegraph)

Rafa had his fingers cross behind his back when he was making this statement.

Birmingham are set to land Ecuador striker Christian Benitez for £6.25m from Mexican club Santos Leguna. (Daily Mirror)

Wigan’s interest apparently cooled down in Benitez who they’ve been linked with all season long.

Alex McLeish’s Premier League new boys also look set to sign Manchester City keeper Joe Hart on loan. (Daily Mirror)

Meet the next Scott Carson in Joe Hart who will bounce around on loan from team to team before hopefully finding the right long term fit. Unlike Scott Carson who will be playing in the second tier of English football come the fall.

West Ham captain Lucas Neill looks set to leave the club after turning down a new one-year deal. (Full story: Daily Mail)

Don’t think West Ham will miss making payments to the tune of 50 000 pounds a week for Neill’s services.

Former AC Milan manager Carlo Ancelotti will be given £50m to spend on new players if he takes over at Chelsea.
(Full story: The Sun)

The former Italian midfielder is also targeting Atletico Madrid’s £50m-rated striker Sergio Aguero. (Daily Express)

Just think Ancelotti is not officially the Chelsea coach yet. Good to see the papers working over time linking every player under the sun to Chelsea. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before Eto’o and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are also linked to Chelsea.

Chelsea players celebrated their Wembley triumph on Saturday with a night out and left the FA Cup in a bin liner. (Daily Star)

Thankfully Ledley King was no where to be found.

Sir Alex Ferguson has had a lot of players who have gone on to coaching careers. Players like Roy Keane, Steve Bruce, Paul Ince, Gordan Strachan, Alex Mcleish and Mark Hughes immediately come to mind. Despite all the previous mentioned coaches having varying degrees of success one can easily make the argument that former Manchester United defender and current Bordeaux manager Laurent Blanc has the brightest future. Blanc is already becoming a hot prospect in the coaching ranks with clubs like Juventus interested. It appears Blanc’s experience winning the World Cup and European championship is quickly being translated to the bench with his ability to guide Bordeaux this year to the Lique One title.

Carlo Ancelotti has announced his contract at AC Milan has been terminated by mutual consent, and the Italian club have wasted no time by immediately installing Leonardo as his replacement.

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It simply was time for both parties to make a clean break. A.C Milan’s 2007 Champions League win masked the fact that it’s been awhile since A.C Milan were a feared force in Serie A. Far too often, far too many teams were able to walk away from the San Siro with points the last couple of years. Ancelotti gets to recharge his batteries by taking on a new challenge at Chelsea and new A.C Milan coach Leonardo should be a good fit going forward. What Leonardo lacks in experience he makes up in knowing the club just about inside and out. His appointment should also appease the main Brazilian trio currently at A.C Milan Alexandre Pato, Kaka, and Ronaldinho. When you have the respect of your star players everyone else should fall in line soon after.

- After 10 long years, the last seven of which watching Lyon claim the Lique One title Bordeaux was finally able to reach the pinnacle of French football. Despite Marseille taking care of their end of the deal beating Rennes 4-0, Bordeaux thanks to Yoan Gouffran scoring against his former team which also doomed Caen to Lique 2 next season was enough for Bordeaux to claim the top prize in French football.

- Nice going away present by Diego for the Werder Bremen fans helping them win their first silverware in four years. Bremen 1-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB Pokal was a nice send off before Diego links up with Juventus next season.

- Just think at the beginning of the season Rangers fans wants to give Walter Smith the sack after being upset by FBK Kaunas in the Champions League qualifying stages. After their league and cup double no one is questioning Smith tenure at the club right about now.

- Speaking of doubles, Porto caps off their season by winning the Taça de Portugal with a 1-0 victory over Pacos Ferreira.

- While the regulation battle in England was largely devoid of drama, the same can’t be said in Spain. Thanks to an Osasuna win over nine man Real Madrid and Getafe hanging on to dear life in their draw against Racing, Real Betis were doomed to life in the second division next season despite their 1-1 draw against Valladolid. Despite scoring yesterday Ricardo Oliveira has gone down in back to back seasons. Last year with Real Zaragoza and this year with Real Betis.