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Chelsea’s narrow, hard fought victory against West Brom last Saturday saw them collect maximum points for the first time this season – but not for the first time, the win came once Fernando Torres had left the field of play. For all of Torres’ apparent sharpness at the start of this new campaign, there still remains a pattern which has followed Chelsea more often than not, since the Spaniard’s expensive arrival at the club – a win trail which seems to follow, whenever Torres has left the pitch.

As of yet, it may not be deemed too alarming a situation for Chelsea, and their fans. After all, a win trail means they are still collecting 3-points when all’s said and done. But it will be very alarming for Fernando Torres, especially as the pattern becomes more and more noticeable. The thing is, the Chelsea number-9 is yet to find his goalscoring boots since arriving in London (leading many to claim he’s forgotten to pack them). And whilst his personal drought continues, he will always be under scrutiny – whether Chelsea win or lose. Unfortunately for the £50 million man, big price-tags bring big expectations and pressure, and this coupled with his poor form straight from the off, led to the immediate and intense scrutiny of his Chelsea career.

It took Torres until his 15th game in Chelsea colours to finally score for his new team, but rather than the flood gates opening as many predicted, he has failed to add to his tally of one goal. Even the much maligned and scrutinised Andy Carroll has scored more goals than Torres since he replaced the Spaniard at Anfield, to many people’s amazement. Most notably, ‘expert’ Paul Merson, who made a (bigger) fool of himself when stating that Liverpool had made a mistake in letting Torres go and replacing him with Carroll and Suarez, as the Spaniard would score more than the pair of them put together during the rest of that season. Don’t stick to your day job Paul…

Pre-season was supposed to bring a fresh start for all at Chelsea and more so to Torres. New manager, new tactics, new team-mates – and a chance to start the new season 100% fit. However the Spaniard continued to misfire during their Asian tour, leading to touchy and tetchy interviews whenever questioned on his form. ‘I have not forgotten how to score – I will score!’ he stated, rather sharply – which only managed to intensify the whole situation.

Even Abramovich must now be wondering if he gave the go-ahead for the massive signing of the correct striker, such has been Sergio Aguero’s (who Chelsea were linked with over a number of years) instant brilliance at Manchester City since joining his new club. The Argentine has scored more goals in 30 minutes of Premier League action, than Torres has in 6-months. The comparisons with Shevchenko – another expensive flop at Chelsea, continue to grow and grow. The situation becomes even more intriguing, the more Chelsea find ways to win once their costly number-9 is substituted – giving new manager Andre Villas-Boas a striking conundrum.

You see Chelsea already have strikers at the club, and whilst they may be deemed past their prime, they are proven goalscorers for the club – and proven winners whilst wearing Blue. Although Chelsea may be trying to usher in a new period – led by Torres, they still find themselves in situations where they have to fall back on the ‘old-guard’ of Drogba and Anelka to win games, such has been Torres’ failings. That’s not to say things will remain the same – Torres has looked visibly sharper in the season’s opening two fixtures, winning the Man of the Match award in the first. But the fact still remains; they drew the opening fixture 0-0 with Torres playing 89 minutes, then against West Brom it wasn’t until they withdrew Torres for Drogba on 58 minutes, that they took the lead and won the game 2-1. It is a worrying, reoccurring pattern which stretches back to last season with Chelsea gaining better results once Torres has left the pitch.

Until Villas-Boas finds a perfect solution and formation for Torres, a player who throughout his career has always performed best individually when playing up-front alone (Atletico, Liverpool and Spain as evidence), or Torres himself finally manages to adapt his game in a way he has never done before, then his career in the ‘Big Smoke’, may go up in smoke.

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Liverpool have struck a deal with Dutch club Ajax to sign Uruguay forward Luis Suarez.

Liverpool will pay about 23 million pounds for the striker, who starred at the 2010 FIFA World Cup for his country, scoring three goals in six appearances.

The two clubs have been in negotiations throughout the January transfer window and recently Ajax boss Frank de Boer claimed Suarez’s move was a “50-50 chance” of being completed.

“Ajax and Liverpool have reached an agreement over the transfer of Luis Suarez,” a statement on Ajax’s official website confirmed on Friday.

“He will make the move to the English club immediately. The deal is worth up to a total of 26.5 million euros (22.8 million pounds).”

Liverpool will now hope to agree on personal terms with the 24-year-old striker, before he completes a medical and officially signs with the Anfield outfit.

The signing of Suarez is sure to boost Liverpool’s current league position, with the 2005 Champions League winners currently sitting seventh.

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Suarez has a prolific scoring record for Ajax, netting 81 goals in 110 Eredivisie appearances for the club and could form a lethal partnership with Fernando Torres.

But for that to happen, Liverpool must hang onto Torres, who has been the subject of big-money bids from Chelsea.

With the much anticipated news that FIFA have finally announced goal line technology will be introduced into football, fans, managers and players alike have been celebrating a new era for the sport. After years of yearning for more conclusive evidence to be made available to referees, there is now a system in place to remove any questions marks over whether the ball has crossed the line.

Despite this progress, there are still concerns that the new system will be the end of the professional game as we know it. Sepp Blatter v Michel Platini may not be a prize fight that fans would flock to witness but the two leaders of World and European football are at loggerheads over how intrusive the latest technology will be. I for one have always favoured the idea of technology playing a role but I could never see how it would be introduced without it spreading to every facet of the beautiful game. With this in mind I must admit to agreeing with the concerns raised by UEFA’s outspoken President.

While Blatter has responded to constant cries from the professional game to introduce such a system, Platini has remained steadfast in his concerns that it will be the beginning of the end for football as we know it. The Frenchman insists he’s against all form of technology, not simply on the goal line, and has been vocal in his concerns for the future of the sport as more and more incidents become scrutinised. A recent example of this was Ukraine’s disallowed goal against England at Euro 2012. The ball was over the line so a goal should have been given and yet replays showed there was an offside in the build up meaning in fact the goal shouldn’t have stood. While two wrongs by the linesman do not make a right, the correct decision was made but the manner with which it was reached is not a precedent for future refereeing. Platini believes extra officials are the key to increasing the success rate of decisions but in this instance both the linesman and his little helper behind the goal got it wrong. In all honesty, the involvement of the extra officials will be regarded as completely unnecessary until they are seen to actually make a decision but clearly however many eyes the authorities place around the ground, there will always be room for human error.

As much I dismiss Platini’s naivety when introducing 5th and 6th officials, I do understand his attempts to avoid technology for as long as possible because unfortunately there are still far too many loop holes to be found and controversy will inevitably follow. Had a goal line system been in place in Donetsk then Ukraine’s goal against England would’ve been given. The logic is officials must assume every decision they made in the build up was acceptable and ultimately the only debatable issue is whether the Ukrainian shot actually crossed the line. Well as we all know it did, so Ukraine are given a goal but England are left bemoaning technology once more, especially considering the ease with which spectators have seen the replays. Suddenly technology has given a goal that wasn’t and this will be heightened when a handball or a foul is also involved during the build up.

Blatter believes the bottom line is that goals are most important thing for officials to get right. If we start debating offside calls as well then we have to look at handballs, throw ins, fouls and every other decision made since the ball last went dead. It would be impossible to sift through minutes of footage to find the smallest inconsistencies so perhaps the technology is better suited to its finite role. Since fans currently suffer through plenty of controversial decisions, surely any improvements will be to the benefit of the game, however limiting the authorities are being at the moment.

If supporters accept that goal line technology is the only system to be introduced then there’s no reason why it cannot be embraced amidst the remaining contentious decisions that surround the game on a weekly basis. I may fear the potential repercussions but I appreciate there will be a number of teams who will benefit from system even if it doesn’t spread throughout the game. That said I still wait with trepidation for the day a player is rewarded for standing offside and handling the ball over the goal line.

Are you pleased to see goal line technology introduced? Do you think it will be the downfall of football as we know it?

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Wesley Sneijder could finally join Manchester United this week in a £32 million deal the Mirror reports.

The Dutch midfielder is hoping to thrash out his future in the next 48 hours and also hold formal talks with the Premier League champions.

He hinted that a move could be close after informal talks were held between United and Inter Milan.

Further talks were planned to take place after Holland’s friendly with England but the riots that have gripped the country has shifted the move forward a few steps.

Sneijder will now seek the permission of officials at the San Siro to begin negotiating with the Red Devils over personal terms.

Inter have accepted that they will lose their playmaker and his officials are set to fly into Manchester to start discussing terms on a deal worth £200,000.

His wage could be a problem as he enjoys tax favourable status on a deal worth £250,000.

The pay structure at Old Trafford is set at £180,000 although a number of performance based add-ons would be included in the deal to bring it up to Sneijder’s requirements.

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Should the move go through it would end a transfer saga that has dragged on for the entire summer.

It will also but an end to Sir Alex Ferguson’s search for a midfielder capable of replacing Paul Scholes in midfield.

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has suggested Shaun Wright-Phillips could stay at Eastlands until the end of the season.

Speculation over the 29-year-old’s future has been rife during the January transfer window, with a host of top flight clubs interested in securing the services of the out-of-favour winger.

While it appeared only a matter of time before Wright-Phillips moved away from City, Mancini has now declared he could be retained to preserve squad depth.

“If we lose another player we need to bring in someone different. It is impossible to have 19-20 players for the next four months,” Mancini said.

Mancini also said he would not object to a return for Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who left this week to begin a loan spell at Real Madrid until the end of the season.

With Carlos Tevez, Mario Balotelli and new signing Edin Dzeko above him in the pecking order at Eastlands, Adebayor opted for a move to the Bernabeu to regain some lost confidence.

When asked if Adebayor could return to City under his stewardship, Mancini replied: “Why not?”

“I think that it’s important that when a player plays, he always plays 100 percent happy.”

“I think that the situation is good for him because with Real Madrid he has a chance to play in the Champions League.”

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“I think that will be good for his confidence and at the end of the season, we will see. I hope he can play well and score a lot of goals for Real Madrid, and I’d be happy for him.”

City travel to Meadow Lane on Sunday for an FA Cup fourth-round clash with Notts County, but will be without winger Adam Johnson who has an ankle injury.

Jermain Defoe has left England’s Euro 2012 camp to fly back home after his father Jimmy passed away.

The Tottenham striker’s father lost a long fight against cancer, and the diminutive attacker has flown home for an undetermined amount of time.

It is yet to be seen how long Defoe will be absent for and whether he will return in time for the Three Lions opener against France on Monday.

“England striker Jermain Defoe has returned home to England this morning following the passing of his father overnight,” read an FA statement.

“Jermain will rejoin the England Euro squad in due course. There will be no replacement player called in.

“We would ask all media to respect Jermain and his family’s privacy at this difficult time.”

Defoe thanked all concerned after the sad event for their support and understanding.

“I want to thank the fans, my family and friends, the England boys, the FA and the manager for their support,” he said on Twitter.

“I can’t tell you how much it means to me.

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“I love you all may God bless you. A special thank you to Royal Marsden’s doctors & nurses who looked after my dad v.special people.”

By Gareth McKnight

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The Premier League is often billed as the Greatest League In The World Ever ™. Compared to its European counterparts, it is often held up as a shining light for all things great and good about the beautiful game –  on a weekly basis it boasts excitement, action, quality and a smattering of drama along the way to boot. So it may come as a shock to some that upon closer inspection that this exalted league of ours lacks a truly global superstar (both financially and out on the pitch) to pin it’s sizeable marketing drive behind.

Ever since Cristiano Ronaldo packed up those ever so tight shorts of his for pastures new with a world record move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, the league has lacked a truly definable top talent.

That is not to say of course that the league lacks world class players. Of course it doesn’t. Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez and Cesc Fabregas are the envy of club sides the world over just for starters. However, there isn’t that one big name that takes games at the highest level by the scruff of the neck and delivers in the same way that Ronaldo did. That would walk into any other club side in the world.

The Premier League may be the best league in the world to the paying public at least, but when it comes to the minds’ of the players, it will always remain a poor second to La Liga.

England is a breeding ground for world class talent. It’s here that emerging talent above any other league is given the platform to perform, with it’s hustling and bustling style making or breaking even the best. But when it comes to the best players in the world, they only ever see the pinnacle of their career playing for the hegemonic duo of Real Madrid or Barcelona over in Spain.

Last season’s Premier League, while fascinatingly and rather unusually competitive for the most part, lacked a true standout performer. Tevez threatened for spells, Van Persie probably would have been had his team-mates not capitulated when the going got tough and the likes of Gareth Bale, Dimitar Berbatov and Charlie Adam all enjoyed their respective moments in the sun.

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To put it another way, in no other year in recent memory would Scott Parker or Raul Meireles have finished the season with an award in tow. Despite both of them enjoying consistent yet unspectacular campaigns, they were rewarded for their performances as there was simply no bigger, brighter name able to step up and perform consistently as is customary at end of season award ceremonies.

What is concerning though, is that some of the league’s world class talent looks set to depart, with the likes of the aforementioned duo Tevez and Fabregas angling for moves away from our fair shores.

Some will say that this marks the dawning of a new, exciting and increasingly competitive era. But ask yourself – has the status quo really changed that much? Man Utd won the title, Chelsea, Arsenal and Man City all sealed Champions League qualification as expected and Liverpool and Spurs sealed the other two European spots. A league works best when there is something to aim at, a standard to work towards. With concerns to it’s quality, the league may be lacking behind La Liga now – or to put it better, solely behind it’s big two.

The Premier League has and always will be a league that fosters and creates the next big global superstar as opposed to buying it. At no point in time has one of the top three players in the world moved to the Premier League to ply their trade by choice. This is obviously down to several factors outside of our control such as culture, weather etc, but it‘s a point worth noting.

But with several of the league’s big name players looking at moves away and the likes of Chelsea and Man City struggling to compete in the transfer market despite their relative riches, now more than ever before, the Premier League lacks quality, and with it, a true global superstar.

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A last-minute Masahiko Inoha goal gave 10-man Japan a dramatic 3-2 victory over Qatar in a thrilling Asian Cup quarter-final on Friday.

Qatar twice went ahead through Sebastian Soria and Fabio Cesar Montezine, but Shinji Kagawa equalised on both occasions before Inoha’s 90th minute strike secured victory for the three-time Asian Cup winners.

While Japan made three changes headlined by Eiji Kawashima’s return from suspension, Qatar made just the one, with Mesaad Ali Al Hamad starting in place of the suspended Mohammed Kasola.

Qatar lost left-back Ibrahim Majid in the 11th minute to a hamstring injury, but were undettered by the setback and went ahead just a minute later.

The goal came when Sebastian Soria was inexplicably allowed to turn onto his left foot in the Japanese penalty area, before squeezing his shot past Eiji Kawashima for his first goal of the tournament.

Japan fought back in the 27th minute when Borussia Dortmund’s Kagawa produced the equaliser.

A chip into the penalty area from Keisuke Honda set Shinji Okazaki free, who lofted the ball over the oncoming Qasem Burhan in the Qatar goal.

Okazaki’s chip was headed for the back of the net but with the presence of Ali Al Hamad, Kagawa was required to bundle it home from the goal-line to level proceedings.

The lively Yousef Ahmad had a chance to put Qatar in front but dragged his shot wide, while Burhan made two good saves within a minute, denying Okazaki and Makoto Hasebe.

Japan came out with an attacking mindset after the interval, and Okazaki went close to scoring but his header flashed just wide, before Nagatomo’s 20-yard strike was well saved by Burhan.

Qatar were given a boost after the hour mark following the dubious sending off of Japan’s Maya Yoshida, who received his marching orders after a questionable second yellow card when he tried to tackle Ahmad.

Qatar deepened the wound when substitute Cesar Montezine scored from the resultant free-kick after a poor piece of goalkeeping from Kawashima.

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Rather than pressing on and looking for a third goal, Qatar went on the defensive and allowed Japan time and space on the ball.

And they were quickly made to pay when Kagawa pounced on a ball that spilt on the edge of the box before sending a neat finish to equalise with 20 minutes to play.

Just as it seemed the match was heading for extra time, Inoha popped up to crush Qatar’s hope of a first Asian Cup semi-final appearance, slotting the ball home into goal following Khaled Muftah’s challenge on Kagawa.

Chelsea have confirmed that they have appointed Roberto Di Matteo as their new manager on a two-year contract.

The Italian coach took over at the west London club on an interim basis after the dismissal of Andre Villas Boas last term, and helped the Blues to an FA Cup and Champions League double.

Despite the former midfielder’s heroics, other names such as Pep Guardiola have been linked to the vacant Stamford Bridge role, however Di Matteo has now been confirmed as the club’s full-time boss.

“Roberto’s quality was clear for all to see when he galvanised the squad last season and helped the club make history, and the owner and board are very pleased he will be continuing his good work,” chief executive Ron Gourlay admitted to Sky Sports.

We all believed he was a young coach with much to offer when we first asked him to take charge of team affairs in March and the manner in which he worked with us, the players and all the staff, and the success that followed, made him the clear choice when it came to selecting the person to take us forward in the seasons to come.

“We will be working closely with Roberto in the weeks ahead, some exciting signings have already been made and Roberto has had input into those.

“Although he has set the bar very high in the short time he has been in charge, we know that Roberto is the right man to lead Chelsea onto further success,” he revealed.

Meanwhile, Di Matteo has confessed his delight at being appointed in the position on a full-time basis.

“I’m obviously delighted to have been appointed as manager and first-team coach. We all achieved incredible success last season that made history for this great club,” he told the side’s official website.

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“Our aim is to continue building on that and I’m already planning and looking forward to the squad’s return for pre-season.”

By Gareth McKnight

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The Daily Mail is reporting that Stoke City manager Tony Pulis is preparing a bid for Tottenham forward Peter Crouch.

Pulis has been searching for a experienced Premier League striker all summer and has identified £10 million rated Crouch as his number one target.

The former Liverpool man looks set to struggle for a starting spot at White Hart Lane next season with Spurs chasing Emmanuel Adebayor and Pulis wants to offer him guaranteed first team football.

It’s been a frustrating summer already for the Potters boss who has already seen a move for West Ham’s Carlton Cole collapse and talks with Birmingham’s Cameron Jerome stall.

Stoke failed to match the wages of both players and with Crouch picking up around £70,000-a-week it may take a sizeable chunk out of Pulis’ budget if he were to land the Spurs man.

30-year-old Crouch has also been linked with a move to former club QPR although they and Stoke wouldn’t be able to offer regular European football to a man who has performed at the highest level.

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The England regular has played and scored vital goals in the Champions League and it is doubtful that a move to Stoke will appeal to him as he requires regular European action.