There Is Only One Sinnacle

Paraguay striker Cabanas shot in bar attack

“He was shot in the head,” prosecutor Miguel Angel Mancera, told the news channel Televisa. “According to an initial report it [the bullet] was a shot from a firearm with a frontal entry point and without exit.”

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I remember when Steven Gerrard got arrested I said nothing good can happen to you in a bar when your famous. Let me add to that, nothing good can happen to you in a bar at nearly 6am too. Part me is wondering what kind of night Sunderland target Salvador Cabanas was having. The other part of me is still in shock over this news. What an awful story to read about. It must be a miracle Cabanas wasn’t killed on the spot, hope he is able to pull through this tragic event.

Manchester United are set to make Wayne Rooney their highest-paid player on £150,000 a week to fend off interest from Spanish sides Barcelona and Real Madrid. Daily Mirror

Good thing that bond issue was so successful.

The Glazer family are planning to spend another £54m of Manchester United’s cash to fight their huge debt. The Sun

I love how the British press get a hold of a story and milk it dry from every angle. Actually I find it quite annoying. (I figured the I love part wouldn’t come through as sarcasm.)

Valencia forward David Villa has given the clearest indication yet that he is prepared to move to the Premier League. Manchester United and Liverpool have both been linked to the Spain striker. (Spanish Newspaper AS)

“It’s the league I follow the most, along with La Liga – and I’ve got a lot of friends playing there.”

All this means is that he likes watching football like the rest of us.

Manchester City have made a bid of about £15m for Real Madrid’s Argentine midfielder Fernando Gago, 23. (Spanish newspaper Marca)

Gago can ask fellow countrymen Esteban Cambiasso who will tell him there is life after Real Madrid.

A delegation from Santos, Robinho’s former club in Brazil, is set to meet Manchester City officials in England this week and several other clubs, led by Benfica, have registered an official interest in the former Real Madrid player. The Guardian

The deal that will result in Robinho returning to Santos gives Manchester City first refusal on two of the club’s hottest prospects – forward Neymar, 17, and attacking midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso, 20. Full story: IMScouting

Considering Manchester City aren’t playing European football it’s a wonder why more European clubs haven’t been kicking the tires here. If Robinho were able to make these types of headlines on the pitch none of this would be happening.

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is ready to make a last-minute swoop for Palermo’s 20-year-old Danish defender Simon Kjaer. Daily Mirror

What last minute? Been reading for two weeks about Tottenham’s interest in Kjaer.

Preston boss Darren Ferguson hopes to complete the loan signing of striker Danny Welbeck from his father’s club Manchester United. Daily Mail

Nice to have connections.

Dynamo Moscow want to sign Liverpool’s Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun and are prepared to pay £7m for the 29-year-old. Daily Mail

Liverpool are prepared to think about it only to have Benayoun say no. Not a chance he leaves Liverpool for Russia.

Zimbabwe striker Benjani, 31, is set to complete his £3m move from Manchester City to West Ham on Monday. (Daily Mirror)

It’s best they don’t wait until the final day to make this happen. Benjani falling asleep on the way to Manchester from Portsmouth on transfer day was a gem of a story two years ago.

Villarreal’s Argentine striker Marco Ruben, 23, is set to arrive in England on Monday to clinch a £7m switch to Wigan Athletic. Daily Mirror

A lot of cash for a club like Wigan but provided Ruben settles into life in England he should be the type of player Roberto Martinez wants.

Nose-breaker Ronaldo disputes dismissal

Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed the red card he received in his side’s 2-0 La Liga win over Malaga was a “disgrace” despite breaking Patrick Mtiliga’s nose with a swinging arm.

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Sadly didn’t watch this game. Part of me thinks red cards have been given for less then part of me thinks this is Cristiano Ronaldo, he isn’t out there to break anyone’s nose. Yellow card….of course, red card and out for three games is very disappointing.

Nine-man Inter Milan moved nine points clear of city rivals AC Milan at the top of Serie A thanks to a 2-0 win at the San Siro.

Milan tried to react but Goran Pandev’s 65th-minute strike secured the points for Jose Mourinho’s side, who lost Lucio to a red card in stoppage time before Ronaldinho saw his penalty saved at the end of a dramatic derby.

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It’s games like this why I love Jose Mourinho. A.C Milan were the in form team. Ronaldinho was the in form player and Mourinho drew up a game plan to shut down Ronaldinho with the likes of Cambiasso, Muntar, and Zanetti keeping a close eye on him. Marco Borriello to his credit has played well but he is feeding off the scraps Ronaldinho leaves. Inter shut Ronaldinho and no one else was able to step up.

When I think of Inter, I just think damn that is a group of professionals out there. It may not always be pretty but in Serie A at least when there is a team challenging them for top spot they always come through with a performance. The English announcer made mention of it a couple of times but it never stops amazing me how special Mourinho’s 155 games and counting home undefeated streak is. Imagine if you were a fan and for the next six months your team that you spend good money to watch will not lose in front of you. An amazing feat.

Onto the referee. Another reason I loved Mourinho in this game is because while everyone else was annoyed as Wesley Sneijder straight red card for mocking the referee by hand clapping, Mourinho keep his cool and kept his players focused. On the subject of the referee, one of the few things I still love about hockey is when it comes to Game 7 or the Stanley Cup finals the referees let the players decide the game on the ice. Gianluca Rocchi should of done the same. Sure Sneijder was being a brat with his mock clapping gesture but you yellow card him then warn Zanetti that if Sneijder even looks at him again he’d be off.

Juventus 1-2 Roma: Ranieri’s Revenge As Riise Leaves It Late

Del Piero and Totti get on the score sheet , Buffon sees red plus a last minute winner on a dramatic night in Turin…

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It’s true coaches are often fired too quickly but coaches have been fired for a lot less. It amazes me how Juventus has lost it’s swagger. This team does not act and most certainly not believe they are one of the best clubs in Italy. Even up 1-0 you had a feeling a dark cloud was coming and sure enough Fabio Grosso is called for a foul in the box and Francesco Totti put it away to tie it up.

Right before his penalty I was thinking to myself, who else would I rather have taking a penalty kick right now? You know it was going into the back of the net. Totti and Ronaldinho would be 1 and 1A of players I’d want on the spot. Would be interesting to see what some of you could want to take a penalty.

John Arne Riise injury time goal was well taken. That was a strikers touch, heading the ball into the far corner to give. Roma now has some breathing ground in 3rd place and Ranieri some sweet revenge against his former club.

Hamburg Sign Real Madrid’s Ruud Van Nistelrooy On Free Transfer

The 33-year-old moves to the north of Germany on a free transfer, penning a 1.5 year deal at the HSH Nordbank Arena.

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A couple of days ago I said Van Nistelrooy should join a German club and I’m happy to see he has taken my advice. Playing in Germany allows Van Nistelrooy to play in an offensive league without the pounding his body would take if he signed up with an English club. I’m sure Van Nistelrooy is playing paid nicely in Hamburg but aside from that it’s a no risk deal for the club. He may not be what he once was but Van Nistelrooy can still find the back of the net and the long winter break in German football should help keep him fit.

Once thing is for sure, Van Nistelrooy is hoping Ronaldo doesn’t join Hamburg cause once Ronaldo signs on with a club, Van Nistelrooy leaves soon after. Oh and Hamburg need a new logo.

Barca make history with Valladolid victory

Xavi, Daniel Alves and Lionel Messi scored to round off a positive week for the champions, in which coach Pep Guardiola ended speculation over his future by agreeing to a one-year contract extension.

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When you are an underdog you have to be lucky to even have one shot at getting a lead. Diego Costa had a chance to put Valladolid up 1-0 just after 20 minutes, he missed it and before he could run back up the pitch Barcelona scored two goals in a matter of minutes. Game over.

To most clubs being up eight points is a healthy lead. To Barcelona being up eight points even with Real Madrid having a game in hand tomorrow seems like a death grip. Real Madrid will need to play perfect football from here on out as Barcelona shows no sign of slipping up.

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti says it is “100% clear” that Joe Cole will still be at Stamford Bridge next season. (1300 GMT, Press Association)

Bruce Beck and Carlo Ancelotti can come out and say Joe Cole will be staying but til Joe Cole puts pen to paper these questions are going to remain.

Ruud van Nistelrooy’s agent says the Real Madrid striker prefers a move to Germany rather than a return to the Premier League, even though the money is better in England, but no deal has been done yet

Great as Ruud van Nistelrooy was in England he doesn’t seem suited for the English game anymore. A move to Germany or even Turkey would do him some good.

Manchester City have offered £15m for West Ham’s Swiss midfielder Valon Behrami.

At £15 million I doubt West Ham would even think twice about keeping Behrami.

Spurs are closing in on a £11m swoop for Palermo central defender Simon Kjaer, but the player’s wage demands are proving to be a problem. Daily Mirror

Don’t care what Kjaer wage demans are. If Spurs can sign a promising defender like Kjaer, Tottenham should do all they can to make it happen.

West Ham and Birmingham are both keen on signing AC Milan striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar on loan. Daily Mirror

Imagine going from Real Madrid to Birmingham in a space of a year. Talk about the bloom being off the rose but I’m sure if Huntelaar will move it would be to a German club.

Tevez slams ”sock-sucker” Neville

In another interview, broadcast on ESPN Radio in Argentina, Carlos Tevez has again lashed out at Gary Neville, calling him a ”sock-sucker” and branding him a ”moron” for his lack of respect in his pre-match comments about the striker ahead of the Carling Cup semi-final.

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Reading Carlos Tevez quotes below made my day. Pure gold. Only thing missing was 2pac’s Hit em up playing in the background.

Speaking in a radio interview in his native language on ESPN Argentina’s La Oral Deportiva show, Tevez said: “My celebration was directed at Gary Neville. He acted like a complete sock-sucker [boot-licker] when he said I wasn’t worth £25 million just to suck up to the manager. I don’t know what the hell that idiot is talking about me for. I never said anything about him.

I can now picture Gary Neville talking about Cristiano Ronaldo if Real Madrid and Manchester United were to play and saying something to the effect of “The gaffer was right to sell Ronaldo and bring in Antonio Valencia.”

Gary Neville shouldn’t be talking about other players, period. He isn’t a starter anymore, he couldn’t back up what he said about Tevez on the pitch and with that being the case he should of gave a standard boring answer. Part of me feels some of the foreign players on Manchester United also had a chuckle when they heard about Tevez’s comments.

Can’t wait for the second leg of this Carling Cup tie.

Liverpool will take Sunderland striker Kenwyne Jones on loan, with a view to a permanent transfer in the summer. This would enable both clubs to carry the impact of the transfer on their balance sheets into the next tax year, which begins in April. Daily Mirror

Remeber the days when EPL clubs would spend freely and often times foolishly? Unless you are Manchester City this seems to be along time ago.

West Ham are set to make Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy the first signing of the David Gold/David Sullivan era after lodging a £1.2m bid. Daily Star

McCarthy is one of those players who will give a club a boost then quickly wear out his welcome soon after that. Don’t think Blackburn will see it as a wise idea to sell a striker to another club in the bottom half.

Manchester City remain hopeful of signing Rubin Kazan left-back Cristian Ansaldi. Daily Mail

Turthfully I’m somewhat surprised this transfer hasn’t been wrapped up by now.

Fulham boss Roy Hodgson has made a move to sign out-of-favour Stoke striker James Beattie.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Beattie’s goals in the second half of last year were the main reason Stoke stayed up.

Everton boss David Moyes is ready to sell striker James Vaughan in the January transfer window.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Seems like forever he scored against Crystal Palace as a 15 year old. Vaughan is only 21 so I’m sure other clubs will be interested.

Hull are considering offering a lifeline to out-of-favour Sunderland striker David Healy. Daily Mirror

How many average to below average strikers do Sunderland need?

Striker Daniel Cousin says he wants to quit Hull because he cannot stand manager Phil Brown. “The gaffer and I don’t have a good relationship. It’s difficult to stay. I want to leave,” said Cousin. The Sun

Speaking of below average strikers here we are a Daniel Cousin story.

Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez claims his ear-cupping celebration after scoring against Manchester United in the Carling Cup was not a dig at Red Devils manager Sir Alex Ferguson for refusing to sign the striker last summer but was a tribute to a popular Argentine children’s puppet Topo Gigio. Daily Mirror

The showing up of Sir Alex Ferguson is a lot better of a story.