Good morning and it’s one of those wonderful days where you can smell something special in the air. No, no, no, not spring (though, fingers crossed, that’s finally arrived). No it’s the pugent odor of fear and crushed expectation burbling up on Fleet Street and given voice by aspiring poet and northwest provincialist Henry of Winter as the Three [...]

This was supposed to be the summer that all agents dreaded, European’s equivalent of Black Friday (note to FA: that’s a not a “choc ice” reference). Where the recession’s bite would see the rise of Wengerism and the shrinkage of sweeteners. All the omens were there. Roberto Mancini undigified shrieking at Brian Marwood, the cost-cutting on both sides of Milan, FC Franco haggling with Daniel [...]

It’s a pretty sedate Monday following a weekend dominated by international friendlies and frenetic spinning of tales in the rumour mills, facilitated by Twitter. It’s becoming ever harder to sift the real from the surreal as Twitter appears to be populated by people with too much time on their hands, many who are either socially dysfunctional, barely [...]

With the financial uncertainty looming all over Europe, given the results of the recent elections in France and Greece, it’s probably not terribly surprising that filthy lucre continues to dominate the headlines. Although it’s sort of ironic that most of Fleet Street’s finest are channeling their inner Chicken Littles to cluck omniously about debt loads [...]

So the manager with the best-ever winning percentage in the history of the Three Lions quits after twice steering them to qualification in major tournaments. He does after comments backing his low-rent captain (who led a revolt against him in England’s last major tournament)  were torqued right out of context by a pack of witless, [...]

I’m not feeling so hot about the weekend and, no, it has nothing to do with Beetface’s forces of evil pitching up in north London after HRP laid up turds in their last few matches. When we beat Salford LBO last spring, it was unexpected because we were in the middle of our annual spring wilting.
No, both my [...]

GOSSIP TIME
Want-away Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez is still hopeful his move to AC Milan can be resurrected. the Independent
I see Carlitos still lives in a world with disbelief fully suspended. 
Chelsea are planning a £25m swoop for Lille playmaker Eden Hazard. the Sun  But Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas insists Frank Lampard remains in his plans. [...]

The latest derby between Salford’s finest and its noisy Middleastlands neigbhours was scheduled to start at an ungodly hour on Sunday morning but, eager combatants they are, the festivities kicked off a touch early. Beetface’s opening gambit was to suggest his forces would prepare for the Toure brothers to play, dismissing the notion that Abu Dhabi FC couldn’t [...]

On the Christian calendar, this weekend marks the first Sunday of Advent, the season of hope. On the footballing calendar, it was the season of pot luck as UEFA held the Euro 2012. And while Advent is marked by the lighting of candles on a wreath, the Euro draw is traditionally celebrated by Fleet Street [...]

Oh glorious day. With the big thinkers on Fleet Street channeling their inner Piglets and proclaiming a slaughter by the reigning world and European champions, the Three Lions turned in a composed, disciplined performance on the Wembley potato patch, all without their loyal, brave and non-racist captain and best player, whose lack of self control [...]