Benitez Ready for new Project After Bolstering C.V at Chelsea [picture]

Rafa Benitez can enter his final game as interim manager of Chelsea with his head held high after having secured a top four finish as well as winning the Europa League.

His final challenge is to secure automatic qualification for the Champions League, which will be guaranteed today if his side can beat Everton at Stamford Bridge.

With his C.V nicely bolstered and the respect of some of the Chelsea fans begrudgingly won, Rafa has expressed his desire to manage another English club next season.

Speaking to the press, Benitez said: 'I don’t see too many top sides in England available at the moment but in football every day things can change.'

'Everyone knows I want to stay in England. I’m a family man so I want to stay close to my family if I can.'

'It’s still my idea to be at a club by next season but there are no official offers so far. A lot of rumours, a lot of agents approaching but that’s it.'

'A top club or a project. I will not put any a name on it, but a project would interest me. I want to stay around if I can and I want to compete, so we’ll see if we can do it.'

'But the next job I’m sure will be a team that will try to compete for something and they will look for a manager that can compete for something.'

With David Moyes going into his final game with Everton also today, some have suggested that with Benitez's family living in the Wirrall that the two could be a good fit. However due to his allegiance to the red side of Merseyside, Benitez has ruled out a switch to Everton.

'I don’t think it will be easy for them to approach me and not easy for me to go there,' he said. 'I think I have to be consistent with my ideas. I have a lot of respect for Everton but it would be difficult.'

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Time for a New Scarf for Mancini [picture]

The blue and white scarf that has been permanently attached to the neck of Roberto Mancini for the past three season's can finally be put to rest after the Italian was sacked as Manchester City manager.

Less than a year ago Mancini signed a new five year deal with the club after winning the City's first top flight league title in forty-four years, however a trophyless season in which their Premiership crown was reclaimed by Manchester United saw him fall out of favour with the Chairman and Board.

A statement released by City stated: 'Despite everyone’s best efforts, the Club has failed to achieve any of its stated targets this year, with the exception of qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League. This, combined with an identified need to develop a holistic approach to all aspects of football at the Club, has meant that the decision has been taken to find a new manager for the 2013/14 season and beyond.'

Many have cited Mancini's poor relationship with the players he managed as a key factors leading to his dismissal. There were a number of infamous fallouts between Mancini and member's of his squad including a training ground scrap with Mario Balotelli and a drawn out feud with Carlos Tevez.

Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak expressed his gratitude for the success Mancini acheived during his spell as City manager, stating: 'Roberto’s record speaks for itself and he has the respect and gratitude of Sheikh Mansour, myself and the Board for all of his hard work and commitment over the last three and a half years.

'He has clearly also secured the love and respect of our fans. He has done as he promised and delivered silverware and success, breaking the Club’s 35-year trophy drought and securing the title in 2012. I would like to personally and publicly thank him for his dedication to the progress that he has overseen and for his support and continued friendship.'

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Arsenal v Wigan: 'Do or die' Situation for Both Sides

Arsenal and Wigan go head-to-head at the Emirates on Wednesday night with all to play for at both ends of the Premier League table. The hosts need to get three points to move back into fourth place and regain the ascendancy in the race for Champions League qualification, while if the Latics lose their fate will be Championship football next season.

Arsenal go into the game as favourites in Betfair football tips given that they have not been beaten in their last eight domestic games. Arsene Wenger's men know that their top-four destiny is in their own hands, and that if they beat Wigan and then get three points against Newcastle on the last day they are assured of a top-four berth.

Should they slip up against Wigan, north London rivals Tottenham have the chance of doing the unthinkable and stealing their place in the Champions League qualification places.

Wigan recorded a memorable FA Cup triumph at the weekend, defying the odds to beat Manchester City at Wembley. The DW Stadium side's league status is precarious however, as they find themselves four points adrift of Sunderland with two games remaining. Roberto Martinez's men seem to only come to life in the second half of the season, however this year some of their fans are scared that they have left it too late.

Should Arsenal get an early goal it could be a long night for Wigan, and seal their relegation from the top flight of English football. The hosts will look to the likes of Santi Cazorla, Theo Walcott and Lukas Podolski to inspire their side to victory.

Wigan did record a memorable 2-1 victory in the corresponding fixture last season in their route to safety, and will need similar belief if they are to somehow avoid the drop again this term. Should they get a positive result against Arsenal, whether it be a draw or a win, they will go into their last fixture at home to Aston Villa with the chance of survival.

One team will be disappointed at the full-time whistle, with everything to play for at both ends of the Premier League table.

Fergie's Farewell to Old Trafford: Manu v Swansea

Aged 71 it was inevitable that at some point Alex Ferguson would have to hang up his hairdryer and hand over the reigns of power at Manchester, however this week’s announcement that he will be stepping down at the end of this season sent shock waves across the world of football.

And although the race for the Champions League places and the Premier League relegation battle will have some of the focus this weekend, the main event is surely Sir Alex’s last game managing for the last time at the Theatre of Dreams.

It promises to be an emotional and historic occasion as Fergie’s 26 year tenure at Old Trafford draws to a close and Swansea coach Alan Curtis has stated it will be an honour for his side to participate in the match.

Speaking ahead of Sunday’s game Curtis said: 'It will be one of those 'I was there' sort of moments. It will be an honour for the club to participate in Sir Alex's last game for Manchester United at Old Trafford.'

'It's a game the Swansea players always look forward to anyway to go to Old Trafford. We knew that the Premiership trophy was going to be presented to them but it gives it added spice now.'

'It's something that we're really looking forward to. It really is going to be a momentous occasion to say the least. Probably the game, in many ways, will be a sideshow but it's important we go there and perform because it will be a massive audience.'

The United players will surely wish to give their long standing gaffer an epic send off and hopefully the game will live up to the occasion. This seasons top scorer Robin Van Persie is favourite to bag the first goal with odds of 5/2 and has odds of 6/1 see Fergie off in style with a hattrick.

Wayne Rooney may miss out on the occasion after having handed in a transfer request at United, with some expecting Ferguson to leave him out of the starting eleven.

A party atmosphere can be expected with United being handed the Premiership trophy after the game and Swansea City defender Angel Rangel has stated that despite the season being effectively over for his team they will be going out to spoil Fergie's big day.

'Our season is not over at all. We are trying to get as many points as we can,' said Rangel. 'We haven’t matched the 47 points we got last season and it’s important to beat that. Old Trafford is a difficult place to go, but they are on holidays more than us.'

'United have deserved to win the title, but it doesn’t bother us that they are getting the trophy. We are going there to play a football game and to try and win it. If they are having a party, they can enjoy it. We’ll say well done to them but we want to win.'

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Luiz Acting No Laughing Matter for Fergie [picture]

David Luiz has defended himself after being accused by Alex Ferguson of rolling about 'like a dying swan' in a deliberate attempt to get Rafael Da Silva sent off in the game at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The Brazilian was seen grinning whilst still on the ground after being fouled by Da Silva and the United manager saw this as play acting to ensure Howard Webb got the red card out.

'The ref has been bought by the fact Luiz is rolling about,' said Ferguson. 'But whether the ref will do anything about it, I doubt very much. When a player retaliates he gets punished the most. Luiz rolled about. You see that with these European, foreign and South American players.'

'He [Da Silva] retaliates but Luiz quite clearly elbows him twice, then rolls about like a diving swan and that convinces the referee. He was smiling. It's bad. What kind of professional is that? He [Da Silva] was elbowed and he retaliated. That's what always happens, the player who retaliates always gets the bigger penalty and it was clear that Luiz elbowed him twice.'

'It was rash what he [Da Silva] did, he's a young lad and should know better but retaliation never works. I wouldn't say it was violent conduct. The referee hasn't even seen it, I don't think he could see it at all. But he has gone with the fact that Luiz has rolled about on the floor and I think that convinced him it was a red card.'

Luiz has since stated he was smiling in reaction to a group of United fans who mocked him for his likeness to Simpsons character Sideshow Bob.

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Bale Plays Down Talk of £60M Move to Madrid

Former Real Madrid Star Zinadine Zidane has hailed Gareth Bale as the best player in Europe, after the Welshman scooped both the PFA Player of the Year award and Young Player of the Year award on Sunday night.

There has been speculation linking Bale with a move to Los Blancos and Zidane has suggested that Bale could easily be worth up to £60 million should he decide to leave Tottenham.

'After the season he has just had and still being so young of course Gareth Bale is going to be one of the most expensive players in the world if he decides to move, said Zidane.

'Tottenham could command £40m, £50m, maybe even £60m for him. It is a lot of money. but there are maybe three or four teams in the world that can pay that sort of transfer fee and it wont put them off.'

'They would be getting the best player in Europe this season and he is at an age where he can still play at the top for another ten years. What I like about him is that he has this electric pace, but also a big footballing brain to go with it. That is very rare.'

'A player like Bale can be the difference between a big club winning the league or Champions League.'

Bale has played down the talk of a transfer this summer stating that: 'I just take no notice, it's all speculation, I can’t do anything about it. I just concentrate on my football and play as well as I can and do my best for the team.'

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Rehab Time for Suarez [picture]

Liverpool manager Brendan Rogers hopes that the time away from the spotlight during Luis Suarez’ 10 match ban will allow the troubled striker time to work on his problems and come back a better person as a result.

Suarez is set to miss the final four games of this season and the first six of next after biting Branislav Ivanovic during Liverpool’s game against Chelsea last weekend. The incident drew condemnation from many including Prime Minister David Cameron who stated the Uruguayan had set the 'most appalling example.'

'We can't hide our disappointment at the outcome of this situation, but we have to move on and support Luis in his decision.'

'Luis has made a huge contribution to the squad this season and we respect his decision to accept the ban.'

'He will be missed for the remainder of this season and the early part of next, but we will have the opportunity to welcome a better person and player when he returns.'

Suarez previously bit PSV Eindhoven player Otman Bakkal whilst playing for Ajax in 2010 and his repeat offence has seen the PFA step in and offer anger management counselling to help control his temper.

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How Di Canio Solved Sunderland's Attacking Issues [picture]

Many saw Sunderland Chairman Ellis Short's decision to bring in Paolo Di Canio to rescue his side from the threat of relegation as a massive gamble, given the Italian's controversial nature and lack of experience managing the Premiership. Three games into his tenure though, Di Canio has already began vindicating the decision with impressive wins over Everton and Newcastle moving the Black Cats towards safety.

 Di Canio's passion is obvious, but John O'Shea credited the Italian's methodical approach to the game and shrews tactics for Sunderland's swift change of fortune.

Speaking about Di Canio, O'Shea said: 'When the manager took over people were looking at the fixtures and obviously Chelsea away was the first one then Newcastle away, where we hadn’t beat them for so long, and Everton who we hadn’t beaten for so long. People were genuinely thinking Sunderland had a difficult run of fixtures.'

'We had to forget about that and just listen to the manager and what he had to say. He came in on the very first day and said that he took the job because he believed in us. He said he saw the quality the team had.'

'The boys have taken that on board, they believe what he’s telling us and he’s very clever tactically and in terms of how he sees the opposition. He will pick out things that you might not necessarily see as obvious that we can use to hurt them, and it is benefiting us.'

'You’ve seen with the way we’ve been scoring goals it has partly been about making teams make mistakes and countering from there. It’s gone well so far, but we have got some really big games to come.'

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Wenger and Rodgers set to Miss out on Valdez this Summer [picture]

Arsene Wenger and Brendan Rodger's hope of signing Barcelona keeper Victor Valdes have taken a blow after the Catalan club's vice-president revealed they will not be letting him leave until the end of his contract.

Valdes has expressed his desire to leave Barca after declining to extend his current contract with the club which expires in 2014 and a move to the Premiership was thought to be imminent.

Liverpool and Arsenal have both been linked with the 31-year-old, however they could have to wait until next year following comments from Josep Maria Bartomeu.

Maria Bartomeu stated: 'President Sandro Rosell has had contact with Valdes to make it clear that we have to leave the doors open.'

'As we prioritise sporting aspects, we prefer to run out the contract until June 2014 rather than sell him this summer.'

'We have no deadline in Valdes’ case, one option is to run to the end of his contract and in that case we will not sign a goalkeeper this summer.'

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Toon fan Apologises After Punching Bud the Police Horse

Newcastle have condemned the behaviour of some of their fans after losing 3-0 at home in their derby game against Sunderland on Sunday. Northumbria Police made 29 arrests after fans clashed with the police, with four officers receiving injuries.

A Newcastle spokesman released a statement commenting on the weekends incidents: 'We were embarrassed and appalled by the behaviour of a minority of so-called fans who last night were involved in disturbances and disorder in Newcastle city centre after the match.

'Newcastle United have been working with Northumbria Police, and will continue to do so, in order to identify all of the individuals concerned.'

'The club will take the strongest possible action against those involved in the disturbances and will impose immediate lifetime bans on all those found guilty.'

'These deplorable individuals have no place at Newcastle United and bring shame on the club and the vast majority of its proper, law-abiding, fans.'

One Newcastle supporter was pictured punching a police horse in the head during the trouble following the game on Sunday. The supporter has been identified as Barry Rogerson, who has been given a lifetime ban from attending Newcastle games.

Rogerson has since apologised for his actions, claiming to be an animal lover despite trying to KO 'Bud' the police horse.

'I reacted stupidly. I did not go out to attack a horse,' Stated Rogerson. I love animals, I've got three dogs, a fish pond out the back and I feed foxes across the road. For some reason people are more upset about the fact that I hit a horse than a policewoman getting hurt.'

'But I would like to apologise to the horse, to all the mounted section, to people of the North East. I am on medication and had been drinking, but that does not excuse what happened. I had two pints before the match, two bottles of beer at the match and a pint when I left early.

'I had just come out of the Terrace bar at St James’, turned right and I was right in the middle of it. There was a loud bang and it spooked all the horses. This horse came towards me and I just reacted. The fire cracker went off, and it charged at me. That’s when I panicked and threw a punch.'

'It made contact with the horse, I tried to get him away from me with my left hand and then punched him with my right. It was sheer panic.'

Luckily Bud was not injured in the attack with a spokesman for West Yorkshire Police confirming that he is: 'fine and back in his paddock. All our horses are fit and well, resting and relaxed.'

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