Real Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra’s days at the Bernabeu look numbered as he will soon find himself even further down the pecking order with the arrival of Nuri Sahin confirmed for the Summer. The man originally touted as the next Makelele will hardly be short of suitors across Europe with his versatility and superb defensive capabilities.

Having already represented three clubs in the Premier League, the French international would be well positioned for a return to England. And, with champions-in-waiting Manchester United the latest club to be linked with the player, would Diarra be the ideal man to bolster the United midfield?

United have lacked a real midfield enforced since the days of Roy Keane. Whilst Paul Scholes has adopted a deeper role in recent seasons and remains a master in possession, he has never really excelled at the tackling side of the game. Similarly, Michael Carrick is more comfortable in possession of the ball than he is tackling, whilst Owen Hargreaves constant injury problems have turned him into a ghost at Old Trafford.

But, Sir Alex Ferguson has since adopted a different playing style as the rigid 4-4-2 of old has often been replaced been replaced by a 4-3-3. The tenacity of Keane has been replaced by the energy and work rate of Darren Fletcher and Park Ji-Sung whilst the likes of Scholes, Anderson and now Ryan Giggs all distribute from the middle. So would a deep-lying holding midfielder really fit in with United’s tactics and justify the transfer fee?

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People have also raised questions about Diarra’s attitude off the field. Having played for five clubs in six years, Madrid would be the third club for the player to leave after things had not worked out and Ferguson would surely be loathe to adopt a player with a bad attitude. And, whilst a versatile performer, this has counted against him at Chelsea, Arsenal and to an extent Real Madrid where, rather than playing in his favoured position in the centre of midfield, he has been annexed at full back. And, if he was such a good holding midfielder, then why would Real have insisted on playing Pepe, a centre back by trade, in that position instead?

Bearing in mind Diarra moved to Real for around £20 million only a year and a half ago, he would not come cheap. Whilst Real would accept a loss on the player, figures upwards of £12 million have still been quoted for Diarra and, if United were to spend big then surely they would look more closely at the likes of Roma’s Daniele De Rossi. Alternatively, a cheaper option could be Newcastle’s Ivorian midfielder Cheik Tioté.

However, if Manchester United want a player with Premiership experience who understands the fast-paced and physical nature of the English game then Diarra could be a fantastic fit. With 28 caps for France to his name and having only just turned 26, he could be a great signing if Ferguson feels his midfield needs a bit more energy and tenacity. Whilst some may have questioned his attitude and he has struggled to excel under the likes of Jose Mourinho, if there is one manager who could get the best out of him it would surely be Sir Alex Ferguson.

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FootballFanCast.com WORLD Exclusive, Robbie Savage’s Face in a Baby Scan

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There are reports that Jermain Defoe may be looking for a move away from Tottenham if he doesn’t get more first-team action. The England striker has recently dropped out of Harry Redknapp’s regular starting line-up; due to his poor Premier League form that has produced only 4 goals this season. Defoe told Sky Sports News “I want to help the club achieve things, win trophies, and get in the Champions League, but when you feel like you are working hard, training hard and being professional, and then for some reason you are not playing, it is difficult.” However doesn’t Defoe’s poor goal return suggest that his exclusion is justified and could a move benefit both Tottenham and the player himself?

It’s easy to understand the situation from both sides and it would be great if Tottenham could afford to keep faith with a misfiring forward – but this is a club that wants to play in the Champions League and to compete with their Premier League rivals they need 3 or 4 strikers all scoring goals on a regular basis. Defoe may rediscover his form next season but can Tottenham afford to take the risk because if he doesn’t they could lose crucial ground over their rivals. However, at 28 and an England career to consider it’s perfectly understandable that Defoe is frustrated by the lack of games and really he needs to be playing on a regular basis. Despite the fact that Defoe has been poor this season he can point to a previously strong record in the Premier League. Last season for instance he scored 18 in the league and 24 overall.

Jermain Defoe though will want to be a little bit careful about what he wishes for, because it’s unlikely that a team in the top six of the Premier League would take the gamble on him. Therefore, he may be scratching around for clubs that really need a striker and those teams may not be competing for honours next season; clubs that come to mind include Everton, Sunderland and Newcastle. But it remains to be seen what kind of transfer fee Tottenham would be looking for and whetever or not that would be within reach of the clubs mentioned. However, Newcastle and Sunderland should have plenty of money available following the big money departures of Andy Carroll and Darren Bent respectively. A move may also be just what Defoe needs to rediscover his goal-scoring touch.

The main issue for Defoe is simply a case of playing a bit part role for a club competing for the top four place or playing on a more regular basis for a team that may not be competing in that area of the table. However, Defoe may feel that with his goals and general ability there is no reason to suggest that these clubs can’t perform very well in the Premier League.

Tottenham will rightly feel that they cannot offer Defoe the assurance of regular first-team football bearing in mind his poor Premier League form. Therefore, they may feel it best to cash in. As I mentioned earlier it’s vital that Tottenham have 3 or 4 strikers that can be relied upon to score goals and at the moment Defoe isn’t reliable.

Follow me on Twitter and tell me if Tottenham should sell Jermain Defoe?

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Sir Alex Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti have both been warned by the FA after making comments about referee Howard Webb.Manchester United boss Ferguson and Chelsea’s Ancelotti both made comments about Webb ahead of the Red Devil’s crucial 2-1 English Premier League win over Chelsea on May 8.

The Football Association (FA) said on Tuesday that the pair had broken the rule that forbids managers from talking about referees prior to a match.

“It was a minor breach but a breach nevertheless,” an FA statement said.

The chairman of the commission said Ferguson’s minor breach should act as a warning to all managers.

“This rule was brought in at the start of the 2009/10 season and this was reiterated formally to all clubs again on 21 October 2010,” the chairman said.

“This is a clear breach of the rule and it is the first such a matter has been placed in front of a commission.”

“As a result of this charge, the commission were aware of other occasions where pre-match comments were made by other managers.”

“In this case, it was considered to be a minor breach and it should be taken as a warning to all managers in the future that any such breach, even positive comments, are likely to result in a charge by the FA.”

Ancelotti was also warned for making similar comments, with the FA saying: “The Chelsea manager’s warning relates to his pre-match media comments prior to the Premier League match with Manchester United on May 8.”

United clinched their 19th league title with a 1-1 draw at Blackburn on Saturday, but it was the win over Chelsea on May 8 that put them well-clear in the title race.

Ferguson had made comments about Webb two days before the game, but was not critical of the official.

“We are getting the best referee. There is no doubt about that,” Ferguson said. “But (getting a bad decision) is definitely our big fear.”

Ancelotti’s comments were almost identical to his counterpart, saying: “Howard Webb is a fantastic referee, he has experience, he has skills, but this is football and sometimes when things are not good you speak about the bad decisions against you.”

Ferguson also received a five-game touchline ban and 30,000-pound fine for criticism of referee Martin Atkinson earlier in the year.

There is no doubting that as a club, Newcastle has a good reputation across Europe. This is always illustrated when new signings state how proud they are to be joining a club with such a great tradition, Yohan Cabaye being the most recent example of this, and Newcastle’s fans are rightly highly regarded around the world. While there isn’t a shortage of players speaking highly about the Magpies, Michael Owen aside, Newcastle have received some praise from an unlikely source.

David Rozehnal didn’t exactly have the greatest of spells in the north-east. Signed from PSG in the summer of 2007 for around £3 million, just 6 months and 21 games later the Czech Republic international was off to Lazio on loan before making the move permanent 12 months after signing for Newcastle. A Sam Allardyce signature, I wouldn’t class Rozehnal as a decent signing, but he certainly wasn’t an out and out flop.

Even though Rozehnal’s time on Tyneside was so short-lived, it appears that he still enjoyed himself in the Premier League. He even put a good word in when talking to Cabaye, with the Frenchman stating: “I spoke to Charles N’Zogbia and David Rozehnal before joining Newcastle. They both said it was a good choice to come to Newcastle. They said I would have a great time, especially with the fans.” Let’s hope that he does and that it’s a great choice!

It’s nice to see that players only have good things to say about Newcastle. They say that it takes years to build a reputation that can be damaged forever in the blink of an eye, and Newcastle’s name has been dragged through the mud in recent years. But the important thing is that the club has come through it with its reputation intact, and hopefully that should play a part in attracting players to make the move to Tyneside this summer.

So, at least David Rozehnal’s spell at Newcastle wasn’t a complete waste of time. Then there’s N’Zogbia, and if he’s happy to put in a good word, maybe he’ll go one step further and put on the famous black and white striped shirt once more. I wonder if Alan Pardew has any more allies in the footballing world who can help him in his pursuit of top class players in the coming weeks?

Read more of Tom’s articles at his NEW Toon website ‘Nothing But Newcastle’

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Guangzhou Evergrande extended their unbeaten run in the Chinese Super League to 11 with a 2-0 win over Shaanxi Chanba on Saturday.It took until late in the second half for them to find the breakthrough but they maintained their hold on top spot with the victory at the Tianhe Stadium.

Brazilian forward Muriqui opened the scoring on 76 minutes before midfielder Wu Pingfeng wrapped up victory in stoppage time.

Beijing Guoan were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw at home to Shandong Luneng.

Australian Joel Griffiths gave Beijing a 49th-minute lead and they looked to be headed for victory until Brazilian Obina struck a late equaliser.

Third-placed Liaoning Hongyun handed struggling Shenzhen Ruby a 6-1 belting.

Midfielder Yu Hanchao scored a brace, while Zhao Junzhe, Yang Xu, Valdo and Xing Xuefei were also on the scoresheet as Liaoning found the net three times in each half.

Only an own goal from Kim Yoo-Jin blemished an otherwise superb performance against bottom-placed Shenzhen.

Elsewhere, a goal from Uruguayan Paulo Pezzolano helped Hangzhou Lucheng to a 1-0 win over Shanghai Shenhua, while Nanchang Bayi slumped to a seventh-straight winless league game as an own goal from Sun Yifan handed Changchun Yatai a 1-0 win.

Qingdao Jonoon and the winless Henan Jianye played out a 1-1 draw, as did Dalian Shide and Tianjin Teda.

Meanwhile, Australian Bruce Djite struck the winner as Jiangsu Shuntian overcame Chengdu Blades 1-0.

Roberto Mancini is unlikely to punish Mario Balotelli further after his latest tantrum during Manchester City’s friendly against LA Galaxy.Striker Balotelli attempted an outrageous showboat in Sunday’s match at the Home Depot Centre, pirouetting on the ball and trying to backheel it into the net, but missing wide of the post.

Mancini substituted the former Inter Milan bad boy after just 30 minutes, with a heated exchange taking place between the two Italians on the touchline.

Balotelli then sulked on the bench for the rest of the half and failed to emerge to watch the second half.

“I hope this is a lesson for him,” Mancini said.

“In football you always need to be professional, always serious and in this moment he wasn’t professional.”

“If you are serious, you can play 90 minutes. If not, you can come and sit by me on the bench.”

“He needs to understand his behaviour has to be good in every game – not just in a final or a semi-final but every game.”

“He knows he made a mistake. Football should always be serious and if you have a chance to score, you should score.”

Stiff disciplinary action might have been expected from some, but Mancini, who has taken a relaxed line on touchline disputes in the past, believes the embarrassment of being withdrawn after only half an hour is punishment enough.

“Mario is young, I want to help him and that is the end of it,” he said.

“To take him off after 30 minutes is enough punishment. It won’t have been easy for him but it has to be a lesson.”

It was suggested that Balotelli claimed he thought he was offside, explaining why he attempted the trick.

But Mancini declined to reveal what was said during the furious exchange between player and coach.

“It was in Italian,” he said.

“In English I would find it difficult to give you the translation. But Mario is streetwise, he knows he was not offside.”

Following a 1-1 draw against the MLS side, Manchester City went on to win the match 7-6 on penalties, with goalkeeper Joe Hart striking the decisive spot kick.

The Premier League season kicked-off in usual fashion with controversial decisions, sending offs and dives aplenty, which is undoubtedly going to bring the referees in the spotlight in the press in next few hours.

I guess English football fans wouldn’t have it any other way and the longer the authorities continue to turn a blind eye to the use of technology to assist officials, then we will continue to have these grey areas that fuels supporters ranting and moans on football phone-ins, forums and websites like ours.

However there were some great goals to talk about this afternoon and thanks to the good people of ESPN and their NEW Goals App – we are all able to enjoy them without having to wait for the match highlights on MOTD later this evening. There are eleven strikes to enjoy from this afternoon’s games, including a wonder goal from Sunderland’s Seb Larsson.

Click here to see today’s Premier League action and download ESPN’s New GOALS APP – simply a must have for every football supporter.

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The clubs pushing for a spot in the top four have to try and compete both on and off the pitch. Whilst in terms of recent achievements on the pitch teams like Liverpool and Tottenham are falling behind their rivals, both have invested time in considering a new stadium to better compete at the top of the Premier League and in Europe. But should both clubs consider the perils of investing heavily in a new ground?

Building a new, bigger stadium would on the face of it be a huge bonus with increased gate receipts and larger revenues that improved infrastructure can generate. The growth of teams often comes hand in hand with investment on and off the pitch. In recent months both Tottenham and Liverpool have been reportedly keen on building new stadiums. The disappointment over missing out on the Olympic Stadium has not deterred Spurs and Daniel Levy from believing that a new ground is essential to Tottenham’s future growth. Liverpool have been weighing up the prospects of redeveloping Anfield or building a completely new stadium. But would the financial burden of a new ground come at the cost in other areas of the clubs?

Arsenal’s move to the Emirates from Highbury in 2006 was a fantastic long-term move for the Gunners but the project cost £390million with a reported loan of £260million to finance the move. The burden of debt (thought to reach nearly £318million at Arsenal in recent years but now slashed considerably) will always have an impact of financial resources and free cash available in other areas of the club, most notable to fans would be transfer fees and wages. Loans taken out for new stadiums mean interest rates and repayments are a continued issue. The true effect of the debt on spending will only be known by the Gunners’ hierarchy but Arsenal’s conscientious spending on new players in recent years has meant that whilst their infrastructure has improved greatly, they have not developed sufficiently on the pitch.

But there are fantastic benefits of having a new ground. The Gunners are reaping the awards of increased gate revenues and being able to sustain competitiveness with an impressive stadium. There is no doubt that to expand, infrastructure is often key. The fact that Arsenal can generate nearly £94million from a 60,000-seat stadium compared to just under £37million in the 36,000 capacity White Hart Lane hit Spurs hard. But clubs like Tottenham and Liverpool must consider whether they are happy being potentially uncompetitive in the transfer market until sufficient revenues could be generated from any move?

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Plans for Spurs’ new £400million stadium will need to be properly financed so there is no long-term debt effect. Tottenham have applied for public funding whilst another possible option reported last month was asking supporters to pay some of their fees for long-term contracts upfront that would effectively part fund any new stadium and hopefully pay off any debt quickly, thus reducing any impact on player investment.

Liverpool are facing the same issue as Spurs and are considering whether redevelop their famous home Anfield or build a new ground in their push for growth. The Reds’ plans have hit many stumbling blocks recently in their desire to increase Anfield’s 45,000 capacity. A potential move to Stanley Park would be an ideal way for Liverpool FC to continue to expand as a brand and business but the financial burden for a club riddled with recent money problems would be a huge risk for the current owners to take.

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The prospect of a new stadium is exciting for any club but for teams like Liverpool and Tottenham, chasing the top tier of the Premier League both on and off the pitch is risky business. The burden of stadium debt may take a toll on other areas of the club and like Arsenal have shown, a new ground doesn’t generate instant success on the pitch. Fans may be looking forward to watching their team in an impressive new stadium in years to come but the true scale of such an investment may come at a cost to more than just the bank balance of clubs.

Should Liverpool and Spurs burden themselves with debt for a new stadium? If you want to read more of my bite size, 140 character views and thoughts follow me on Twitter @jennyk5

Rafael Van Der Vaart is hungry. He wants the ball all the time. This is undoubtedly an excellent quality in a player. Because of Van der Vaart’s appetite and his status within the Tottenham Hotspur side, he has quickly and firmly established himself as the first choice set-piece taker but after a series of dreadful decisions against Manchester United on Monday night, this duty should definitely be put under review.

When playing against a side of United’s quality, every set-piece should be treated with great importance, there are few opportunities against the Champions and all should be taken seriously. Corners and free kicks must be viewed as a chance to test the defence and in particular, on Monday, to test the new goalkeeper. Van Der Vaart failed to do this completely. One of his corners didn’t even make it onto the pitch and he struck a horribly wasteful shot from 40 yards when both centre backs had gone forward. Harry Redknapp was furious and rightly so.

In the big games Van Der Vaart does get particularly carried away, the occasion seems to inflate his already considerable sense of self-importance and, whilst this benefited Spurs last season, particularly in the Champions League and against Arsenal at White Hart Lane, it was evident on Monday that his enthusiasm doesn’t always benefit the team. Aside from screaming at Lennon and then throwing a strop, he was hot-headed and rushing on Monday when what was needed was a cool head. By all means put van der Vaart on the free kicks from the edge of the box, he cannot really do much worse than Gareth Bale’s return of 1, but when Spurs are trying to slow down play and take the pressure of their back four, the last thing they need is a selfishly taken, rushed set-piece.

Perhaps taking Van der Vaart off set pieces entirely is too strong a reaction to this one particularly poor display as he is undoubtedly a talented enough player to whip in a great cross, but getting him to calm down and reminding him of the priority to put the ball into a dangerous area might be a start. There are several other players capable of delivering in the Tottenham side, particularly Tom Huddlestone and Gareth Bale. It wouldn’t hurt to let them have a go and at least make Van der Vaart appreciate his responsibilities a bit more on the process.

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Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that veteran defender Rio Ferdinand still has a place in the Manchester United first-team, and that his experience will be vital in the club’s quest for honours this season.

The England international has had a frustrating start to the season,as niggling injuries have forced him to watch his side power to the top of the league from the sidelines.

Despite the performances of the team and other defenders in his absence, Ferguson still values Ferdinand as an important part of the United side.

“Rio’s [injury] record is fact. We wish it was better but we use him to our advantage when we have him available because you cannot dismiss the experience he brings,” he stated in a press conference.

“He missed a couple [of matches] after Bolton and one after West Brom but I don’t mind that because with the squad we have got we utilise him the way we want to.”

With the rise to prominence of Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, and the ever-steady Jonny Evans also available, Ferdinand’s future has been put in doubt. However the Scottish coach believes that Ferdinand is still integral to the Red Devils squad.

“He walked through the game at Bolton. We are absolutely delighted with Smalling, Evans and Jones. The three of them have been absolutely magnificent. They are the long-term future.

“But there are occasions when you bring in the experience Rio offers because it does make a difference. The young players know that.

“They also know there will be a time when they are left out for the right reasons and knowing they will get better the next time they come in,” he concluded.

United take on Stoke at the Britannia in the 5.30pm kick-off on Saturday, and will look to continue their flawless record in the Premier League.

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