Do they really need a striker? When Arsenal shareholder Alisher Usmanov claimed his team were just one player short of challenging for the title this forthcoming season, it didn’t take too much examination to work out which position the Russian business magnate was referring to. Lyon’s Alexander Lacazette and Napoli’s Gonzalo Higuain have both 

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Roberto Martinez’s troubled second year at Everton bore the Toffees’ worst league campaign for 11 years and poorest domestic cup showing ever. An 11th-place finish and two immediate exits dauntingly undermined an impressive debut season. The drastic response that might reasonably be expected hasn’t happened. Much the opposite in fact. Everton have lost a few 

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Analysis of the Big Three after summer transfers and pre-season friendlies As ever, the summer transfer market has seen many of the Primeira Liga’s top players leaving Portugal in exchange for more high-profile leagues or a huge hike in their salaries, or for the exceptional few, both. As for the incomers, a mixed bag of 

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What do you expect from Juventus? I expect Juventus to focus on remaining compact and solid. It’s near impossible to match Barcelona man for man in Berlin on Saturday. We can’t make the same mistake as Bayern Munich did in the semi-final first leg, which they lost 3-0. Coach Massimiliano Allegri will field four at 

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Since his acrimonious £23 million move from Arsenal, Robin Van Persie has scored 3 times for Manchester United in the five games he has played against his former club. This Sunday afternoon, in what will be a significant game for both clubs in the bid to avoid an August play-off for the Champions League, he 

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The second leg of the quarter-final is here, so what should we look forward to: Tuesday’s match-ups Barca will hope to finish off ‘Ibra-less’ PSG when the two teams collide in the Camp Nou. Now it’s true that Barca is not unbeatable and PSG does have the capability to bring down Enrique’s men, but let’s be 

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Despite all the tenuous rumours of a fix, the Champions League draw for this season’s round of 16 was always going to be intriguing. After the group stage, which as always was mildly entertaining but is essentially merely a rather drawn out Hors d’oeuvre before the competition truly heats up in February, we have been 

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  Arsenal will push for that 3rd consecutive victory in the Champions League this season, as they host last year’s finalist Dortmund at the Emirates on Tuesday. Wenger’s men continued from where they left off before the International break fixtures in the league; by thrashing Norwich to retain top spot on the log. The Gunners 

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Le Presidente returns to the Stade Velodrome as manager of the Les Parisiens.  When Laurent Blanc was chosen to replace Carlo Ancelotti, eyebrows were raised across France at Marseille. Tomorrow, it will be no different as high flying PSG come to the Velodrome to take on L’OM. Both clubs enjoyed mixed fortunes in their European 

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Who would have thought that going into the 7th week of the season, Manchester United would lie a distant 12th? Eight points behind Leaders, Arsenal-another huge shock. Even Hull City is placed ahead of the defending champions of the EPL and it is a worrying sight for the fans. Unbelievable development. Going into this evening’s 

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The post-Sir Alex Ferguson era has been filled with twists and turns up until this point. The favoured one, David Moyesis about to embark on his first MAJOR EUROPEAN adventure tonight when Steffan KeiSling’s Leverkusen visit Old Trafford for the first time in 11 long years. The draw has pitted a European powerhouse with three 

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Sometimes I wonder who writes these scripts. You know, Josep ‘Pep’ Guardiola returns from his sabbatical and Mourinho is back at his ‘beloved’ Chelsea. What happens next? They face-off in Europe for a very important ‘winner takes-all’ game. Whoever is victorious will not only smile home with the trophy, but also the upper hand in 

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