Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor Passes Manchester City Medical

Arsenal stand to make a £22 million profit on Manchester City-bound Emmanuel Adebayor as the Togo striker made a further step towards a deal with the Citizens following a successful medical check at Eastlands, according to the BBC.

The player's mega-money move - he stands to pocket a tidy weekly wage of £170,000 - is riding on a work permit, which should be granted later today.

Adebayor spent three-and-half seasons at Arsenal following a £3 million switch from Monaco after he helped the Ligue 1 side make an unexpected appearance in the Champions League final in 2004 - a match they were to ultimately lose to Jose Mourinho's Porto.

Adebayor will be City's third striker signing this summer, and will join target-man Roque Santa Cruz and tireless forward Carlos Tevez, who received a hero's welcome following his two-year loan spell at city rivals Manchester United.

Mark Hughes' strengthening at City has now dented the squads of two members of England's top four, and the club's chances of breaking into the Champions League elite continue to increase.
Adebayor scored 62 goals in 142 Arsenal appearances.

Fabregas tug of war - Barca and Real Madrid do battle for £40m Arsenal skipper Cesc

Real Madrid are ready to rival Barcelona with a move for Cesc Fabregas after being frustrated in the chase of Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso.

Madrid yesterday moved for Roma midfielder Daniele de Rossi but were immediately knocked back by the Italians, leaving them to turn to third-choice Fabregas.

And Barcelona president Joan Laporta last night said the Arsenal midfielder should not be ruled out as an alternative to Franck Ribery, the Barcelona star who increasingly looks to be beyond their financial reach.
It is only a fortnight since Arsenal skipper Fabregas publicly declared: 'I am wholeheartedly committed to Arsenal and my future lies with this great club.'
But that has not deterred Laporta, who recently said Barca was in Fabregas's DNA, or, it seems, Madrid.

Bernabeu sporting director Jorge Valdano has refused to completely rule out a move for Liverpool midfielder Alonso, but admitted they were nowhere near agreement with Rafa Benitez's valuation of the player.

Liverpool want £40m for the 27-year-old, according to reports in Spain, leading Madrid to make a £26m move for Rossi, but the Italians immediately ruled out the sale of their 25-year-old talisman.
Third choice is Fabregas, though Madrid have yet to make a bid and are also looking at Villarreal's 24-year-old Spain international Santi Cazorla.

Barcelona would love to sign Fabregas, who left the club for Arsenal when he was 16. Laporta yesterday said he hoped to sign a striker, left winger and midfielder.

Pep Guardiola would most likely team Fabregas with Xavi in central midfield, using Andres Iniesta in a more advanced role wide on the left.

The European champions are working on a restricted budget and would are hoping to push through the sale of Samuel Eto'o to Manchester City in a bid to boost their spending power above £60m.

Arsenal, who don't have the biggest budget themselves, may demand £40m for Fabregas, but Madrid believe they could get him cheaper and, at 22, he is better value for money than Alonso.

Fabregas, on holiday in New York, is frustrated by Arsenal's four-year run without a major trophy but is thought to be happy to stay at the Emirates for at least another season to see if there is an upturn in fortunes.

He is said to have an agreement with Sandro Rosell, who hopes to unseat Laporta as president in Barcelona elections next summer.

John Mikel Obi commits future to Chelsea by agreeing a new five-year deal

John Mikel Obi is ready to sign a new five-year contract with Chelsea.

Former Blues boss Jose Mourinho had hoped to take Obi to Inter Milan and was prepared to pay the midfielder £60,000 a week, as revealed in Sportsmail in April.

But the 22-year-old Nigerian, who is thought to be on around £40,000 a week, will see his wages rise to around £70,000 a week when he puts pen to paper at Stamford Bridge in the next few days.

Obi's agent John Shittu said: 'He will sign the deal early this week. Some of the club officials were away but they were expected back last weekend. As soon as everybody is in, we will sign the new contract.

'It is a very good deal for him and would put him on a par with some of the top earners in the club.'

Obi is due to report back for pre-season training next week but is expected to cut short his summer break by a few days to sign the new deal.

Chelsea have already secured Florent Malouda on a new contract and Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba, Joe Cole and Alex will follow soon.

The Blues have also confirmed they have agreed an £18million deal with CSKA Moscow for Yuri Zhirkov.

Bring me Tevez! Ancelotti demands Chelsea splash the cash to beat Manchester City to Carlos

Carlo Ancelotti has ordered Chelsea to go all out in their bid to sign Carlos Tevez.

The Argentina striker had been expected to complete his switch to Manchester City this week.

But new Blues boss Ancelotti has told owner Roman Abramovich to raise his offer for the club-less star after admitting a creative player was high on his wish list.
Tevez is available to buy at £25.5million after refusing to sign a long-term deal at champions Manchester United, where he spent the past two seasons.

Chelsea and City have both matched the asking price but Abramovich is unlikely to be able to offer the same astronomical wages available at Eastlands.

Mega-rich City, who have already splashed out £30m on Roque Santa Cruz and Gareth Barry, are believed to have put a five-year deal worth £130,000 per week on the table.
Yet, Ancelotti is refusing to give up hope that Chelsea can lure the former West Ham striker to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea are also thought to be looking at Real Madrid midfielder Wesley Sneijder and haven't completely given up on France star Franck Ribery, but Ancelotti said: 'Ribery is for sure a great player, but Ribery I think stays in Bayern Munich.'
'I think Chelsea is a strong team, a great team, a physical team that plays very well and can be improved with some creative players. And we are looking for these players.

'But you can be creative not only with creative players. You can be creative with creative ideas and a creative organisation. You can change the idea of the team with the same players.

'I would like to have a team that plays well, plays good, creative football and naturally I would like to win. For a coach it is important to win but it is important to build a team with good characteristics, to play well, to play with organisation.'

They have already wrapped up deals for Yuri Zhirkov, Ross Turnbull and Daniel Sturridge, while Milan forward Alexandre Pato remains in their sights.

Ancelotti has ruled out selling skipper John Terry to ambitious City, although he is expected to trim his squad ahead of the new campaign.

Newcastle put Martins up for Sale

Obafemi Martins and Fabricio Coloccini are among the list of names Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley hopes to offload in a bid to slash the club's £65m annual wage bill and make the relegated club more attractive to sell.

Martins is one of the biggest earners at St James' Park and Ashley is desperate to get his £80,000-a-week wages off Newcastle's books as they prepare for life in the Championship.

The Guardian reports the 24-year-old Nigerian striker, who cost the Magpies £10m in 2006, has been linked with Wolfsburg, Sevilla and Lyon but he will reportedly not be offered anymore than £40,000-a-week at any of the three clubs.
Coloccini, 27, another £10m purchase, is on £70,000-a-week but after a disappointing season is unlikely to earn that anywhere else - although Galatasaray have made a £4m bid for the Argentina defender.

Newcastle has attracted interest from Malaysia, the US and the UK but the club remains unsold with concerns about their £65m annual wage a major stumbling block.

Should 'Jay Jay' Okocha Come Back To Super Eagles?

The sweet science of boxing is very much known for its many stories of comebacks - a former champion, either out of pocket or simply bored and missing the limelight and public adulation, comes out of retirement to fulfil some new expectations.

Football itself has had its own fair share of comebacks, none more notable than that of Cameroon's Roger Milla, who at 38 was called out of retirement by his country's president to go on to score four goals as the Indomitable Lions reached the last eight of the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

The man who made famous the Makosa goal celebration also, at the ripe old age of 42, scored against Russia at the 1994 World Cup in the United States of America, making him the oldest player ever to find the back of the net at this level.

Nigerian football is replete with its own international comebacks - the likes of Christain Chukwu, Rashidi Yekini, Peter Rufai and Ben Iroha all returned to the Eagles fold with various degrees of success.

Austin 'Jay Jay' Okocha has also flirted with retirement from the international scene.

He first announced he will no longer wear the green-white-green shirt after he skippered an experimental Nigerian team which crashed out in the very first round of the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan.

He would then be pressurised to return to the Super Eagles in time for the 2004 Nations Cup in Tunisia, where he emerged as one of the shinning lights of the tournament as Nigeria reached the semi-finals.

He again hung up his international football boots after the 2006 Nations Cup in Egypt, months after he had failed to lead the Eagles to the World Cup finals in Germany as an unfancied Angola beat Nigeria to the punch.

Since his bow, the Eagles have struggled and struggled for creativity in the middle of the park.

Nigeria coach Shuaibu Amodu is not willing to risk it and throw youngster Rabiu Ibrahim in at the deep end, while the likes of Christain Obodo, Kalu Uche, Wilson Oruma and even the now more defensive-minded Mikel have yet to assert themselves as the old-fashioned no.10 or playmaker.

In the team's last three World Cup qualifiers, the Eagles clearly missed a player like Okocha, who could dictate the pace of the game
as well as use his vision and dribbles to create chances for what on paper is one of the most feared strike forces in Africa.

In Maputo in March, strikers Ikechukwu Uche, Osaze Odemwingie, Obafemi Martins and Obinna Nsofor ran around the artificial pitch like some headless chickens, deprived of any service from the midfield.

In the home game against the Kenyans, not known for their midfield play, the Eagles engine-room again struggled so much so that it needed old war horse Nwankwo Kanu to get the Eagles flying again in the second half.

It is now very obvious that Mikel is not the new 'Jay Jay', and if at all he has to line up for Nigeria, it would be as a defensive midfielder, the role he now occupies with Chelsea.

Kalu Uche appeared to have settled in at central midfield in the previous round of the qualifiers, but as the competition has intensified in the final round, it looks like he is a lot happier playing a more offensive role than to carry the whole team as playmaker.

That may well explain why with his Spanish team, Almeria, he is played as a second striker.

'Jay Jay', on the other hand, is one of the top cheer leaders of the Eagles as a member of a Presidential Task Force mandated to ensure Nigeria's flag flies high at South Africa 2010.

In a recent interview, he told me that one of the happiest days of his life was the day he hung up his boots for good. But he also told me he still enjoys the occasional kickabout with friends.

Probably, it would be asking too much of his 35-year-old body to return for the crunch World Cup tie against Tunisia on September 6 in Abuja.

But who says that this crowd pleaser should not again be convinced to come back to star for the Eagles in time for next year's World Cup.

His boots have been too big for any of the younger pretenders to fill.

Michael Owen finally joins Manchester United

Michael Owen completed his shock move to Manchester United last night after being put through one of the most gruelling medical examinations in football history.

Determined to satisfy themselves that the injury-troubled 29-year-old will not spend more time in the treatment room than in training, the English champions sent him for two days of tests.

But after United's medical team gave the green light last night, the deal was confirmed.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson said: 'Michael is a world-class forward with a proven goalscoring record at the highest level and that has never been in question.

'Coming to United with the expectations that we have is something Michael will relish.'

Owen said: 'I know there will be people out there saying maybe the manager shouldn't have signed me. But when the first game kicks off I can do my talking on the pitch and I want to start with a bang.

'A lot has been made out of my fitness but I certainly do not think I'm injury-prone. I'm 29 and have played over 500 games at the highest levels for clubs and at international level so I can't have been on the treatment table all the time.

'I had just begun talking to other clubs when out of the blue Sir Alex phoned me and invited me to have breakfast with him, during which he told me that he wanted to sign me.

'I agreed without a moment's thought. This is a fantastic opportunity for me and I intend to seize it with both hands. I want to thank Sir Alex for the faith he has shown in me and I will repay him with my goals and performances.'

It is understood Owen's troublesome knee was examined by a specialist in London on Thursday before he arrived in Manchester yesterday morning for yet more fitness checks.

Owen began the day at the club's state-of-the-art Carrington training complex before moving to a private hospital on the outskirts of the city for a further examination.

Owen has agreed a two-year deal, with an option for another season. If Owen can stay fit and even go close to rediscovering the kind of form that earned him the Ballon d'Or in 2001, he could become a sensational piece of business.
As well as arriving on a free, Owen has accepted a low basic wage that will only rise if he earns the performance-related bonuses.

The striker is desperate to prove his doubters wrong and silence those who think he is more interested in his horse racing stables than football.

He particularly wants to demonstrate to Fabio Capello that he can no longer be omitted from the England squad.

After four difficult years at Newcastle he has his heart set on boarding the plane to next summer's World Cup in South Africa.

Ferguson must be impressed by the player's willingness to drop his basic wage from £110,000 a week to nearer £20,000.

He will also see Owen as someone who could prove an effective partner in attack for Wayne Rooney, who has expressed a desire to be given a more central role now that Cristiano Ronaldo has moved to Real Madrid.

Ferguson has looked at other strikers, including Valencia's David Villa, but the striker wants to stay in Spain. In Owen, however, United might have someone just as prolific - for a fraction of the price.

Chelsea snub £30million Manchester City bid for John Terry

Manchester City last night had a £30million bid for England captain John Terry rejected, as Chelsea told them he is not for sale at any price.

Stamford Bridge officials released a statement exclusively to Sportsmail after confirming that a bid had been made in person by City chief executive Garry Cook.
Cook asked to meet Peter Kenyon, the Stamford Bridge chief executive, yesterday to discuss Chelsea's pursuit of talented young striker Daniel Sturridge.
It was something that surprised Chelsea when they had already said they would be happy to let an independent tribunal set the size of the fee for the 19-year-old.

But an even bigger surprise followed when Cook suddenly presented a letter with a formal offer for Terry. Kenyon was understood to be stunned, not least because he had already made it clear to Cook last season that the club captain and the heartbeat of the Chelsea team was not available at any price.

A club statement issued last night said: 'Chelsea Football Club can confirm it has completely rejected an offer from Manchester City for John Terry.

'It was made clear to City, for the second time following another approach last season, that we would not entertain any conversation on the subject. At that time John also reiterated his total commitment to Chelsea. We would like to make clear, and will not do so again, that John is not for sale.'
That Cook offered such a derisory sum further amazed Chelsea. When Bayern Munich are demanding £65m for Franck Ribery and Cristiano Ronaldo has moved to Real Madrid for £80m, and when City are prepared to pay vast sums for players like Robinho and Samuel Eto'o, less than £30million for one of the world's best centre halves seems low.

But City have long had their eye on Terry and Chelsea suspect this amounts to the latest stage in a poker game designed to try to lure exactly the kind of inspirational figure Mark Hughes wants in his team at Eastlands.

When City tabled an offer last season, Terry expressed his loyalty to a club he has served with distinction his entire career.

But the money on offer could yet prove tempting when the richest club in England would be prepared to almost double his current £130,000-aweek wage. Terry is already the highest paid player at Stamford Bridge but City could take him into an elite occupied only by players such as Ronaldo and Kaka at Real Madrid.
City plan to make at least one major impact signing this summer. Not least because they were left so embarrassed over the Kaka debacle when Cook responded to missing out on the Brazilian by launching an astonishing verbal attack on AC Milan. The former Nike executive, relatively new to football at the time, branded the Italian giants 'bottlers'.

Right now Samuel Eto'o is still believed to be within their reach, although they feel they are being used by the striker in his pay dispute with Barcelona. Eto'o, who will cost around £25m, will be available on a free next summer but City have offered a staggering £10m a year, net, in an attempt to lure him to the Barclays Premier League this summer.

A more realistic target is Carlos Tevez, who is expected to join the club early next week - even though others are interested. City will not want to fail in their Tevez bid after missing out on Terry. Cook, whose transfer-market prowess is being monitored by City's backers, is under pressure to close deals.

One observer commented: 'City have a lot of clout in the transfer market because of their backing, but it's important they go about their business in the right manner also.'

Cook and his top team were pleased when Roque Santa Cruz eventually arrived from Blackburn to spearhead the attack, alongside Robinho and - hopefully - Tevez.

Mark Hughes, however, demanded a top centre back. Although City continue to monitor Arsenal's Kolo Toure, Terry was always first choice for Hughes, who sees him as the iron man to lead his team and stabilise a back four that often conceded soft goals last season.

City say they hope to break into the top four this season and moving for a player of Terry's standing would appear to support their claims. They mean business and, although they have failed with this audacious effort, there will be more money flowing from their coffers in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, Chelsea's imminent £18m recruit Yuri Zhirkov has been provided with personal armed bodyguards for the first time in a move seen in Moscow as a sign that his deal is agreed.

Zhirkov, 25, is expected to arrive in London on Monday and has a reputation for mixing freely with journalists and fans.

But now security men prevent access to him. 'All we can do now is watch Zhirkov from a distance,' said Sovetski Sport. 'His huge and extremely intimidating bodyguards who followed him everywhere did not let us ask him any questions about negotiations of his move to Chelsea and the date of his flight to London.'

Owen arrives for Manchester United medical ahead of shock free transfer to the champions

Michael Owen was today undergoing a stringent medical before completing his free transfer to Manchester United.

The former England striker, whose contract with Newcastle expired on Wednesday, is on the brink of a sensational move to United after accepting the terms of a pay-as-you-play one-year deal with the champions.

Talks were understood to have been continuing last night and the 29-year-old, who made his name playing for United's arch-rivals Liverpool, was pictured arriving at the champions' Carrington training complex this morning.
Ferguson believes the 29-year-old is a gamble worth taking if he can stay injury-free and return to the kind of goalscoring form that made him European Footballer of the Year in 2001.
It is believed Owen could be offered as little as £20,000 a week as a basic salary but with massive performance-related bonuses which could take him close to the £110,000 a week he was on at Newcastle United.

It has been a difficult time for Owen. Dropped from the England squad by Fabio Capello and the captain of the woeful Newcastle side who were relegated at the end of last season, he was ridiculed recently when his management company advertised his credentials in a brochure sent to a number of clubs.

There was thought to have been interest from Aston Villa and Everton, while Hull City manager Phil Brown made public his wish to lure Owen to the KC Stadium.

But agent Tony Stephens may have negotiated a dream move that could propel him back into the England squad in time for the World Cup.

The move would be a free transfer as Owen's Newcastle contract expired on Wednesday.
Neither United nor Owen's management company WMG would comment last night, but it is believed he is travelling to Manchester today for a medical, having
already undergone an assessment of his troublesome knee yesterday.

The move failed to impress United fans, particularly after the club said they had received £80million in a single payment from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo and they had been linked to the likes of Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema.

The Republik of Mancunia website, under the heading ‘God No, Not Michael
Owen’, lists 10 reasons why the club
should not sign him.

One fan wrote: ‘Not in a million years. I’d rather bring Bellion back . . . than have Michael “I’m a crocked scouse” Owen.’

But Owen has proved himself an excellent strike partner to Wayne Rooney with England and Ferguson clearly considers him a decent acquisition when the financial risk is so small. The United boss declined to move for Owen when the player left Real Madrid for Newcastle four years ago in a £16million deal.

His medical record will be a worry, however, having gone down with injury or illness 16 times during his time at Newcastle. Within his first four months at St James' Park, Owen pulled a hamstring, strained his groin and broke a metatarsal. Having signed for a club record £16m, he made only 58 Premier League starts.

Chelsea and Manchester United snub: Franck Ribery admits he wants to sign for Real Madrid

Franck Ribery has admitted he wants to leave Bayern Munich - but warned Chelsea and Manchester United that he only has eyes for Real Madrid.

Chelsea are determined to make a final push for the France forward, despite his German employers insisting he is not for sale.

And United could reignite their interest after missing out on fellow France forward Karim Benzema, who yesterday agreed to join Real Madrid from Lyon for a fee that could reach £35million.
And now 26-year-old Ribery has tried to force a move to the Bernabeu by going public on his desire to join the New Galacticos.
'It's decided, I want to leave,' he told respected French newspaper L'Equipe. 'It will be to Real or nothing.'

Ribery also said that he would, 'wait and see how things go. Then I would quickly like to have a discussion with the Bayern management'.
Reports in Spain, meanwhile, say Madrid's next target is Valencia attacking midfielder David Silva, who could join for £21.5million.

Madrid newspaper Marca claims an agreement to sign Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa from Liverpool is imminent and that 23-year-old Silva - also a target for Liverpool - is next.
Silva's capture would take Madrid's summer outlay above the £200m mark - twice the amount it would cost to buy Newcastle United - even before fees for Alonso and Arbeloa are taken into account.

Bayern have suggested the fee for Ribery could be £60m, but his desire to leave could drive down the price.

The former Marseille player will turn down any offer to extend his current contract which is worth £115,000 a week and runs until 2011, meaning next summer his value would depreciate significantly.

But both Bayern and Ribery are aware there are few superstars left for United to recruit - Valencia's David Villa is set to join Barcelona - and an offer of around £50m plus £150,000 a week is likely to secure his signature.

It would also represent good business for Bayern who signed Ribery for a club record £18m from Marseille two years ago.
However, Bayern are still insisting publicly that there will be no deal. Bayern general manager said: 'Franck wants to go to Real? For us, it changes absolutely nothing. Life is not always a fairy-tale.

'Real did not gave us a concrete proposal. Real's directors have wanted to come to Munich and we have told them they would do better to save on a few tickets. We do not need their money and we keep Franck against all odds.'

The Bundesliga club's new boss Louis van Gaal said: 'I want to lead the world's best players and Ribery is part of that.'

Adebayor fights with a nigerian fan at the Lagos Airport

Striker Emmanuel Adebayor had a furious four-letter word bust-up with an Arsenal fan at Lagos airport who accused him of not pulling his weight for the club.

Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas admits he was flattered by reports Inter Milan were interested in signing him during the January transfer window, but insists he is committed to Spurs, according to today's national papers.

Manchester United target Karim Benzema says he would rather move to Spain from Lyon than the Premier League.

Striker Robin van Persie says he will only sign a new contract at Arsenal if they can match his desire to win silverware.

Report: Arsenal Line-Up Real Madrid's Huntelaar To Replace Barcelona-Bound Emmanuel Adebayor

According to a report in the British tabloid The Daily Star, Spanish giants Barcelona are preparing an end-of-season offer for Arsenal forward Emmanuel Adebayor.

The 6ft 3in forward, who found the back of the net 30 times in all competitions for the Gunners last season, is wanted by La Blaugrana as both Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry could leave in the summer.

It is thought that Los Cules have also identified Arsenal's Robin van Persie as a possible arrival, but while manager Arsene Wenger would be prepared to sell Adebayor for around €22.7 million, he is eager to keep hold of the Dutch forward.

Apparently, Wenger already has a potential replacement in mind in the form of Real Madrid's Dutch international striker, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

The 25-year-old only moved to the Bernabeu from Ajax in the January transfer window, for €20m, but it is claimed Los Blancos are already prepared to let him go in the summer, possibly for around €17m.

African Debate: CAF Bungles Awards Yet Again

How credible is the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Player of the Year Award?

Not very credible, and unless something drastic is done about this, it will soon become a scandal.

Before CAF took over this award in 1992, it was organised by France Football Magazine. Football Football began the awards in 1970 and over time, winners were mainly from Francophone countries or playing in the French league.

Nigeria's Austin 'Jay-Jay' Okocha was twice denied the award by CAF, in 1998 and 2004.

At the 1998 World Cup in France, Okocha caught the eye so much that Paris Saint-Germain promptly forked out a then record-breaking $17 million to prise the stylish midfielder from Fenerbahce in Turkey. Yet Morocco's Mustapha Hadji was preferred by CAF as the Player of the Year for 1998.

And in 2004, Okocha led an average Nigerian team to reach the last four at the Nations Cup in Tunisia, even scoring three goals to emerge as one of the tournament's leading scorers. Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o would later be preferred as Africa's Player of the Year.

In 2007, CAF gifted the gong to a surprised Frederic Kanoute of Mali.

Didier Drogba was far and away the stand-out player that year but his "undoing" was that he elected to stay back with his national team at the then ongoing Nations Cup, rather than break camp and fly out to pick up his prize in neighbouring Togo.

The truth was that the awards ceremony in Togo was ill-timed and once again showed how easily CAF can be manipulated by powerful sponsors, even beyond reason.

The 2007 award was a farce, and it went a long way in further reducing the value of what is supposed to be the continent's most prestigious individual accolade.

Following on the heels of this was the installation of Togo's Emmanuel Adebayor as Africa's top player for 2008.

No one doubts the talent of Adebayor or what he achieved at English club Arsenal last year. Yet, Arsenal did not win anything in the year under review and Togo failed to qualify for the 2008 Nations Cup.

Mohamed Aboutrika, on the other hand, played a pivotal role as Egypt won a record sixth Nations cup in Ghana. He scored four goals including the championship winner.

Aboutrika followed up on this months later by inspiring Al Ahly to land an unprecedented sixth CAF Champions League trophy.

The football in the English Premier League is on a higher level than what we have in Egypt or even the CAF Champions League, but it must also be argued that Adebayor netted 30 goals in 49 games playing alongside top-class players like Cesc Fabregas, Mathieu Flamini and Alexander Hleb.

By endorsing Adebayor's nomination, CAF has again acknowledged that football on the continent is many light years behind that in Europe. It was more a case of anything foreign, better than what we may ever have here.

To CAF's credit, they did what they could not dare do in 2007 - publish a detailed breakdown of how the voting went for the 2008 Player of the Year Award.

But even then, it is rather worrying that only 37 of the 53 national team coaches (less than 70%) thought it important to respond to this poll. Would the 16 other coaches not have made a difference in the final outcome?

Had CAF been offering these member-nations monetary grants, they would have been oversubscribed by these same countries.

CAF must therefore re-design its voting format to be more representative, as it is with the FIFA awards, where both national team coaches and their captains as well as representatives of FIFpro are involved in the voting.

If the Cairo-based association insist on bungling this award, it can only mean that organisers of rival such awards may soon be having the last laugh, because the CAF award will soon be a bad joke for football.

Drogba Hails Eto'o And Barcelona Improvements

Chelsea's Didier Drogba believes that Samuel Eto'o has matured in recent seasons, while revealing his admiration for the current Barcelona side that remind him of the team that won the Champions League three years ago.

The Chelsea forward was asked for his thoughts on Barcelona and their Cameroonian star Eto'o, who has yet to commit himself to a new contract at Camp Nou.

Last summer Drogba was one name put forward to replace Eto'o when it appeared that Pep Guardiola was preparing to sell the former Mallorca star and replace him.

"He has grown up with his behaviour. Two or three years ago he would have reacted badly to what happened last summer," Drogba told Sportsweek.

"Now he is much calmer. He is more mature."

Drogba has been impressed with Barcelona as well as Eto'o and thinks that they have a team that are reminiscent of the side that tasted European glory in 2006.

"The team is, quite frankly, impressive. The great players that they have are playing as a team and they are very effective," he continued.

"They remind me of the Barça side that won the Champions League in the Stade de France.

"[Lionel] Messi has replaced Ronaldinho and at present he is one of the best forwards in Europe, if not the best."

Adebayor Named African Player Of The Year

Togo international Emmanuel Adebayor was Tuesday night named CAF African Player of the Year for 2008 at an elaborate awards ceremony in Lagos.

Adebayor beat Mohamed Aboutrika of Egypt and Ghana’s Michael Essien to win the prestigious award, which involved voting by the national team coaches of CAF’s member-nations.

“This is a special night for me. I dedicate this award to my mum, without her, I would be nothing. My father is no more but where ever he is, he will be proud of me,” said Adebayor, who was accompanied by his mother.

Adebayor took away a crystal trophy and a cash prize of $20,000.

This is the first time that a Togolese will be voted as Africa’s best player.

The Arsenal star's exploits of the past year were mainly with his English Premier League club. In the absence of France international Thierry Henry, who moved to Spanish club Barcelona, the Togo star stepped up to finish the season with an impressive tally of 30 goals.

The striker also inspired Togo to reach the final qualifying round for the 2010 World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations.

The awards night was graced by many dignitaries including FIFA president Joseph Blatter and CAF president Issa Hayatou.

Ahly’s Aboutrika got a consolation prize as the Inter-Club Player of the Year.

Several other Egyptians won various award categories. Egypt coach, Hassan Shehata was Africa’s Coach of the Year, and the team he led to successfully defend the Nations Cup in Accra last year were picked as the best national team on the continent.

Ahly were crowned Club of the Year ahead of Tunisia’s CS Sfaxien, who defended the CAF Confederation Cup, and beaten CAF Champions League finalists, Cotonsport from Cameroon.

Salomon Kalou of Ivory Coast and Chelsea was the CAF Young Player of the Year ahead of Cameroon’s Stephane Mbia and Nigerian forward Victor Obinna Nsofor.

The list of award winners:

CAF Player of the Year

Emmanuel Adebayor - Togo/Arsenal

CAF Young Player

Salomon Kalou - Ivory Coast/Chelsea

CAF Female Player

Alice Matlou - South Africa

National Team of the Year

Egypt

Coach of the Year

Hassan Shehata - Egypt

Best Club

Ahly - Egypt

Inter-Club Player of the Year

Mohamed Aboutrika - Al Ahly

African Legend

Christian Chukwu - Nigeria

Chelsea Sack Scolari

After a series of underwhelming and unsatisfactory performances and results, Chelsea have been quick to ensure the rut does not continue by relieving Brazilian boss Luiz Felipe Scolari of his managerial responsibilities.

Chelsea's numerous weaknesses all over the park: from their static movement from defending set-pieces, to their midfield's inability to accelerate with the ball, to the forward line spurning the chances in front of goal, have been exposed and the club have won just seven points from a possible 15 in 2009.

Assistant manager Ray Wilkins - who was appointed to the role in September - will temporarily take control of first team affairs while the club search for a more permanent recruit.

A statement on the club's official website read: "Luiz Felipe Scolari has been dismissed as manager of Chelsea Football Club today (Monday) with immediate effect.

"The board would like to record our gratitude for his time as manager. Unfortunately the results and performances of the team appeared to be deteriorating at a key time in the season.

It continued: "In order to maintain a challenge for the trophies we are still competing for we felt the only option was to make the change now.

"The search for a new manager has already started and we hope to have someone in place as soon as possible.

"While that continues Assistant Coach Ray Wilkins will take charge of the team on a temporary basis," the statement concluded.
Sky Sports are speculating that Guus Hiddink - of the Russian national team - and Avram Grant, who guided the club to the League Cup final, the Champions League final, and second place in the Premier League, are understood to be forerunning candidates, possibly together, with the former as Director of Football and the latter as head coach.

Mikel charged with drink-driving

The 21-year-old was stopped by police at 5.30am on Saturday, after being seen driving his Range Rover "erratically" near his club's ground in London's Fulham Road.

Later the same day, Chelsea beat Ipswich 3-1 in the fourth round - although Mikel was not part of the squad.

The Nigerian midfielder has since been charged and will appear in court on April 3.

He faces a year's driving ban or a jail term if the offence is deemed exceptionally serious.

A Chelsea spokesman told The Sun: "We are aware (Mikel) was arrested and charged. We want to establish the facts before we comment."

Blackburn Snap Up The "Egyptian Beckham"

It was reported just days ago that Blackburn Rovers were interested in signing the Egyptian international Ahmed Al-Muhammadi, from the Engineering for the Petroleum and Process Industries (ENPPI) in the Egyptian Premier League.

The British tabloid, the Daily Mirror, reported that the English outfit were prepared to offer around £1.5 million to acquire the player’s services, which would not be a bad investment, considering the fact that he is known as his country’s very own David Beckham.

According to the latest reports coming from Sportsmediaset, the Riversiders have taken the next step however, as they have made an offer to the player in person.

The details of the offer are yet to be officially released, however the 21-year-old winger has confirmed that he is ready to accept the offer made by the English club, which would thus allow him to follow in the footsteps of those such as Amr Zaki and Mido, who currently play for Wigan in the same competition.

The Beckham of Egypt has managed to make 20 appearances for the Egyptian national team over time, and as a result, he may prove to be the key to avoiding relegation for the club that finished in seventh place last term.

Jamaica Coach Expects Super Show Against Nigeria

"Nigeria is one of the World's top teams so it will be a competitive match for us," said the former England and Liverpool star of the game that will be played at Millwall FC's Stadium.

"We are now stronger than we have been for some time as a national team. We have quality players that we will blend together with the right balance, spirit and mentality, but of course we also need the right tactics.

"I would say to fans from across the country, come and enjoy the game and expect a good performance!"

Nigeria have named a strong squad for the encounter, which they will use to prepare for their World Cup qualifying game against Mozambique in March.

Jamaica's Reggae Boys have, within 14 months, leapt to 66th place in the Fifa world rankings.

They won the Caribbean Championship last month and for this game, they have called up several English Premier League players including Marlon King of Hull City, Ricardo Gardner from Bolton and Ricardo Fuller of Stoke City.

Manchester City Want Didier Drogba

According to The Sun, mega-rich Manchester City are preparing a £15 million swoop for Chelsea's unsettled forward, Didier Drogba.

The Sky Blues are in need of an out-and-out striker, as the likes of Jo, Benjani and the injured Valeri Bojinov have failed to make much of an impression at Eastlands.

City boss Mark Hughes has long wanted Roque Santa Cruz to lead the line, but Blackburn Rovers continue to jack up the price on the Paraguayan hitman.

Thus, 'Sparky' has begun scouting out other potential targets, and it is thought his new favorite currently resides on the fringes at Stamford Bridge.

Drogba has fallen out of favor at Chelsea this season, as a combination of off-field drama and Nicolas Anelka's red-hot form have seen him relegated to second choice in the club's one-striker system.

Indeed, following a meek display in the Blues' recent defeat to Manchester United, the Ivorian was banished to the reserves and missed out on the FA Cup replay with Southend United.

He was also excluded from the squad for last weekend's narrow win over Stoke City, with youngsters Miroslav Stoch and Franco di Santo filling the bench instead.

There has been considerable speculation as to where the 30-year-old's future lies, with former club Olympique Marseille touted as a likely destination, but Luiz Felipe Scolari has dismissed those rumors.

However, the Chelsea manager could be tempted by the possibility of a swap deal involving Robinho, with Drogba replacing Anelka in the supposed four-man trade reported yesterday involving Florent Malouda, Salomon Kalou and Alex.

It remains to be seen whether Robinho is eligible to move this month, but it is nonetheless highly unlikely that City would swap him for a player who, on paper, seems an ideal strike-partner for the samba star.