Much of the attention will be on the London derbies involving Chelsea and Arsenal this weekend, but by Sunday morning it may be Alex Ferguson smiling, with Manchester United in with a chance of taking the league leadership.

It’s been over a week since the departure of the self-confessed ‘special one’ from Chelsea and the pressure on Avram Grant to produce style as well as substance reignites on Saturday with the visit of West London neighbours Fulham.

Like it or not, the mission for Grant is to emulate Arsenal, who have confidently moved top while thrilling fans and neutrals alike. Here’s what Martin Lipton wrote in the Mirror after the 3-0 win over Sevilla in the Champions League:

“Thrilling football, fantastic entertainment, goals and a win to set Europe talking. Maybe you should sell Chelsea and buy this lot, Mr Abramovich.”

A trip to seventh place West Ham will provide a decent test for Arsene Wenger’s side. If they fail, champions United could replace them at the top by winning away to Birmingham City, managed by Old Trafford old boy Steve Bruce.

Two other Premier League managers will be under the spotlight. As Dave Thompson asked in his blog, can Rafa Benitez continue to leave Fernando Torres out of his starting line-up when they play away to Wigan? (No, according to a Reuters poll). And can Martin Jol inspire a Tottenham revival at home to Aston Villa on Monday night?

Patrick Johnston, London

Photo: Sir Alex Ferguson watches during Manchester United’s League Cup defeat by Coventry City, September 26, 2007. Darren Staples / Reuters 

Here are a couple of Friday afternoon questions for you:

• Should Fernando Torres be an automatic choice?
• Which means more to Liverpool — the Premier League or the Champions League?

Rafa Benitez made it pretty clear where he stands on the first of them after Torres scored a hat-trick in Tuesday’s 4-2 win over Reading, earning comparisons with Ian Rush from Steven Gerrard and with Thierry Henry from Caught Offside.

“If you say to me that Dirk Kuyt is a worse striker or Peter Crouch is a worse striker or Andriy Voronin is a worse striker then I would play Torres every game,” Benitez said. ”But because we have very good strikers, I like to choose the strikers for every game and if it is necessary to change I will change.”

Even given the nature of Tuesday’s opposition, would Kuyt, Crouch or Voronin have scored such a sublime hat-trick? Many fans might doubt it.

The first goal featured a blend of strength and skill as he held off a defender and then stroked the ball into the far corner of the net. Many strikers with less poise would have blasted high and wide.

As for question number two, for all Liverpool’s European pedigree, given the choice, many fans might prefer the league title, a first since 1990, rather than the Champions League. Torres could well be the man to fulfil those ambitions — if Benitez plays him.
 
Liverpool stand fourth in the league, four points off leaders Arsenal and really need victory from Saturday’s trip to Wigan.

Torres has to start, doesn’t he?

Dave Thompson

Everyone enjoyed putting the boot in when Leeds United were down and out, but against all the odds Dennis Wise’s outfit have made a storming start to their bid to return to happier days.

Relegated to the third division for the first time in their history the debt-ridden club were also slapped with a 15-point deduction by the Football League for failing to comply with the league’s insolvency policy.

In response, they have equalled Don Revie’s 1973 club record start to a season of seven wins from seven, including the match against Nottingham Forest we wrote about here. A crowd of over 29,000 watched them beat Swansea 2-0 last time out.

They have quickly pulled themselves off the foot of the table and now lie 18th with six points. Without the punishment they would lead the standings by five.

If they go on to win promotion it will be a startling achievement after six miserable years and might win them some positive headlines for a change.

It will be unthinkable for some, but could they become a cuddly, loveable or even admired team? Or is there no escaping the bad old reputation of the Revie years.

Mark Elkington

So it’s been confirmed, a torn groin muscle will keep Michael Owen out of England’s Euro 2008 qualifiers against Estonia and Russia next month. It will be small comfort for England manager Steve McClaren but it will at least relieve him of a selection headache.

After England’s comprehensive 3-0 victory over Russia, Owen and his reinstated strike partner Emile Heskey became undroppable, leaving Who Ate All the Pies to ask, “Do we leave Wayne Rooney on the sidelines when he’s fit again?

Now that both Owen and Heskey are injured, we’re left in the dark as to how courageous McClaren might have been.

While Rooney’s talents are unquestionable, one goal in his last 10 England appearance has raised doubts over where he fits into the side and particularly how effectively Owen can perform beside him.

While West Ham’s Dean Ashton may now get an injury delayed first cap, it is likely to be as a substitute, with Rooney certain to be joined by the far more Three Lions productive Peter Crouch (himself full of praise for England’s striking riches just this week).

But what then if Rooney and Crouch prove a similarly irresistible big man/small man hit in Moscow and ease England’s qualification? Who’ll be starting up front at Euro 2008?

And before McClaren faces that conundrum, he has a few more pressing issues to solve. Do Micah Richards and Shaun Wright-Phillips continue on the right ahead of Gary Neville and David Beckham? And should Frank Lampard or Owen Hargreaves displace Gareth Barry in the middle?

But then, even amid injuries, selection problems are nice problems, right?

Padraic Halpin, London

Photo: Michael Owen celebrates after scoring his second goal in England’s Euro 2008 Group E qualifier against Russia at Wembley, September 12, 2007. Kieran Doherty / Reuters

An intriguing and unexpected debate has begun in England in the wake of Jose Mourinho’s exit from Chelsea. It is this: What constitutes a “big” club in terms of English soccer?

Note the use of the word. The debate is not about what makes a successful club or a rich club, but a “big club”. Until the early 1990s, the Big Five clubs in England were Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Spurs and Everton. They were the richest and the most successful clubs in the land but had also won major trophies throughout the decades.

Spurs and Everton have slipped behind the other three and Chelsea have overtaken them in terms of honours won and money spent, with most of the recent success bankrolled by billionaire Roman Abramovich. Money, though, cannot buy history or class.

Two things in particular have sparked the discussion: the attendances last week at the European matches played by Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs on successive nights and the comments of Arsenal’s chairman Peter Hill-Wood.

The Old Etonian, whose family have been involved in Arsenal for generations, dismissed Chelsea’s bid for “world domination” as “fantasy” when he announced Arsenal’s near 35.0 million pounds profits and their 200 million pounds turnover on Monday.

Chelsea’s chief executive Peter Kenyon once said Chelsea “would paint the world blue” and become THE club for London and be the richest club in the world by 2011. With Mourinho gone and Chelsea in relative disarray, those claims seem rather fanciful right now.

The night before Mourinho went, Chelsea had fewer than 25,000 fans for a Champions League match at Stamford Bridge against Rosenborg Trondheim. Meanwhile Everton had 37,000 in for a UEFA Cup match against Metalist Kharkiv of Ukraine and Spurs had a near-capacity crowd of almost 36,000 for their UEFA Cup game against Anorthosis Famagusta of Cyprus. Arsenal of course had a capacity 60,000 for their Champions League match with Sevilla.

Those figures are a reflection of the history, the passion and the commitment of the fans of those clubs — especially Everton and Spurs who have under-achieved for years.

The Big Five was always a misnomer anyway. Newcastle United are a “big club”, despite not having won an honour since 1969. Aston Villa remain a “big club” despite going years without a trophy. Sunderland, in the 1890s themselves known as “the Bank of England club” are still a big club, so are Manchester City.

Wolverhampton Wanderers, giants in the 1950s could be a big club again. So could Sheffield Wednesday.

Football fans “know” who the big clubs are and what they stand for. It’s an intangible mix of history, success, tradition, great players neutrals love and admire, and their potential to come back if they are currently languishing somewhere outside the top division.

Of course Chelsea are a rich and successful club. But a “big” club in the way real fans understand the phrase? That’s another story.

Mike Collett, Reuters Soccer Correspondent, London

Football fans brought up in Britain, and now of a certain age, know exactly who had the Safest Hands in Soccer — Scottish keeper Gordon Stewart, who played for Tynefield City in the fantastic football comic Roy of the Rovers.

Now, we also know who has the most valuable hands in soccer — Spanish keeper Iker Casillas, who has just had them insured for 7.5 million euros.

I was in in Spain when Casillas burst into the Real Madrid in the 1999-2000 season and he often seemed to show the sort of miraculous form Gordon Stewart was famous for (unless the fictional keeper ran out for the first half without his lucky charm, which he seemed to do every other week). For a while Casillas looked unbeatable in one-on-one situations as he helped Real win two European Cups and soon became Spanish number one (helped by a dropped bottle of cologne that kept Santiago Canizares out of the 2002 World Cup).

Anyway, I’m sure his hands are worth every ’centimo’. Does anyone know if a goalkeeper has insured his hands for more?

Kevin Fylan

Photo: Casillas shows off his hands during a news conference in Madrid September 26, 2007. Susana Vera / Reuters

I loved going to Highbury, Arsenal’s old ground, because the seats were so close to the pitch that they shook as players ran down the touchlines. Watching football at The Emirates is more distant. But from the lower tier last night you could still see the sweat and the effort as Theo Walcott and Armand Traore sprinted down the left and the Newcastle defence back-pedalled to hold them at bay.  

It was members’ night, so plenty of kids had been brought along. About the 70th minute of the League Cup tie the little boy behind me asked his dad, “Why don’t they just score?” Good question, as yet another Arsenal corner was pinged away. I began to fear a repeat of the frustrating draws and unfinished attacks that eventually exhausted Arsenal and extinguished last season’s hope of honours.

The atmosphere was boisterous, despite the numerous youngsters, and the air rich with colourful curses. Arsenal’s version of baseball’s ’seventh-inning stretch’ is to do the Mexican wave while chanting, “If you hate Tottenham, stand up.” The disgruntled spectator near me got fed up leaping from his padded seat to see the action and tried a chorus of “If you love Arsenal, sit down.”  

It was worth getting up to look. The mazy passing and elaborate build-up pleased the eye and unlike last year the persistent, deliberate approach is paying off. Armand Traore put in a fine cross which Nicklas Bendtner headed into goal. Denilson’s shot across the box in the 89th minute sealed it, with Newcastle ground down. The air would have gone out of Arsenal if Newcastle’s Obafemi Martins had finished with more vigour after clearing the Gunner’s goalkeeper in the 85th minute. Philip Senderos steamed back to clear off the line in one of those “I can’t believe he managed to do that” moments.

Can Arsenal keep up the combination of entertaining football and winning matches? The 60,004 people who saw last night’s splendid game would likely say yes. And all that for just £10 a ticket, the price of admission on members’ night.

Last season he was accused of being overweight and out of shape, this season critics say he has lost his appetite for game. Is it just a temporary blip in a glittering career or is it time for Barcelona to offload three times World Player of the Year Ronaldinho?

Feted as the most talented and exciting player in the world when he signed for Barcelona in 2003, Ronaldinho single-handedly restored the morale at the Catalan club and then inspired them to consecutive league titles and a second European Cup.

But the honeymoon period ended as the trophies dried up last season and judging by the chorus of boos and whistles he was subjected to last time he played at home a significant section of Barcelona fans no longer believe Ronaldinho is indispensable.

Lionel Messi has succeeded the Brazilian as the king of the Nou Camp, while the arrival of Thierry Henry and the emergence of two new prodigies, Giovani dos Santos and Bojan Krkic means there is no shortage of successors to the crown.

Former Barcelona coach Johan Cruyff issued a clear warning to Ronaldinho in his weekly column in El Periódico on Monday.

“You don’t survive on what you have been, but on what you are, that’s the law of football and the players know it,” said Cruyff.

Should Barcelona to cash in and sell the 27-year-old to AC Milan, Chelsea or even Liverpool (he’s fantasy signing number one, according to Liverpool Pies)? Or should they stick it out in the hope that he will rediscover the sort of form that once made him the best player in the world?

Simon Baskett

Photo: Ronaldinho reacts during Barcelona’s 0-0 draw against Racing Santander on the opening day of the season. Victor Fraile / Reuters 

The Premier League is often billed as the most exciting league in the world but you’d be hard pushed to justify that tag going by what’s happening on the pitch.

The rumbles of discontent amongst Chelsea’s supporters continue in the wake of Jose Mourinho’s departure last week, with the team now having gone three league games without scoring. See this from Tony Glover at Chelseablog, for example:

“Whilst we are hurting as fans, the rest of football sees us as a laughing stock. Whereas before everybody hated us, but we didn’t care, it now feels like everyone is laughing at us and I do bloody well care about that.”  

But if goals and entertainment were the standard of success and failure this season then many other managers could be standing in Jose Mourinho’s shoes.

The six goals they scored against Derby aside, Liverpool have managed just five in their five other games and supporters are getting very frustrated. As they say at Have You Ever Been to Liverpool?

“Benitez was unable to keep his tinkering hands firmly in his pockets (against Portsmouth and Birmingham) and made switches, some would say needless ones, for both games. The results were unimpressive, two points from a possible six. Truly a case of premature rotation?”

Third-placed Manchester City have scored only eight times in seven games, while, incredibly, Manchester United have an even worse record, with just six in their seven matches.

That’s a particularly poor goals-per-game ratio considering they scored 83 times in 38 matches en route to the title last season, and they have added Argentine Carlos Tevez to their attack. At least at Red Rants they saw signs in the win over Chelsea that United might be getting their swagger back. “Really, it’s about time we started doing that,” they say.

Thank goodness for Arsenal and Derby, then. Otherwise it’s been pretty disappointing on the goal front for a league that spent half a billion pounds over the summer. Or are you enjoying the league’s new accent on defence?

Patrick Johnston, London

Photo: Fernando Torres in training back in August. Liverpool’s strikers are struggling again this season. Phil Noble / Reuters

Arsenal fans peering down from the top of the Premier League could be forgiven for asking who needs Thierry Henry.

His 16 million pound move to Barcelona put money in the club coffers and their firepower on the pitch seems undimmed, judging by the 5-0 demolition of Derby on Saturday.

Fifteen goals in the first six league games hardly suggest Henry is being missed and the 3-0 win over Sevilla last week validated Champions League ambitions. Henry himself has been impressed, while Jason Pereira at Soccerlens wonders whether they might be the world’s best team to watch.

Talents such as Emmanuel Adebayor and Cesc Fabregas continue to blossom and revenues at the new 60,000 seater Emirates Stadium now yield an astonishing 3.5 million pounds per-match — double the amount generated at Highbury.

The power-wrangling will continue behind the scenes but there is little sign of that affecting what happens on field, as Arsenal continue to turn their attractive, free-flow style into goals — something that was not a given in Henry’s time at the club.

The only nagging doubt for supporters will be whether it can all last. Fabregas says Henry’s departure helped young players like himself blossom, but when it comes down to the end of the season could they be short of the sort of experience that gets you over the line. What do you think, Arsenal fans?

Dave Thompson, London

Photo: Fabregas celebrates after scoring against Sevilla in the Champions League. Dylan Martinez / Reuters