Manchester City’s failed 100 million euros plus bid for AC Milan’s Kaka now begs the question: should there be a limit on the amount of money a club can pay for a player or should there be a salary cap?

Some of Europe’s top soccer clubs and the game’s European governing body UEFA seem to think so, with the news that they have started talks on curbing the amount of money that can be spent on player transfers or wages.

Sources familiar with the discussions have told Reuters that the European Club Association (ECA) — which represents the continent’s leading clubs such as Manchester United, Real Madrid and AC Milan — has proposed clubs should only be allowed to spend around 51 percent of their revenue on transfers or salaries.

Under the ECA proposal, revenue would be determined as money received only from ticket sales, sponsorship, merchandise and television income. It would not include any financial investment by owners or major shareholders. (more…)

Spats like Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez’s recent run-in with his Manchester United counterpart Alex Ferguson are always guaranteed attention-grabbers.

But while I find stories of polemics between football’s top figures good fun, I sometimes get the impression they’re having us on.

Inter’s Jose Mourinho gave the game away some time ago, admitting he drank wine with Ferguson after matches despite their feuding in his Chelsea days.

Ferguson, especially, strikes me as someone who’s aware that he is acting a role in a pantomime which serves his purposes and helps generate interest in the game.

He cultivates an image of being surly and aggressive, possibly so that the media, referees, players, agents etc know that he takes no nonsense. (more…)

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp’s frank admission that he will send a “mish-mash” side to face Manchester United in Saturday’s FA Cup tie adds to concerns that the competition has lost its elite status.

Speaking after sneaking through their League Cup semi-final second leg 6-4 on aggregate against Championship (second division) Burnley on Wednesday, Redknapp moaned:

“We’ve got some tough games, we’ve a game at Man United that really is so secondary to me now. We’re in a relegation battle and I can’t risk Jamie O’Hara, Jonathan Woodgate and Michael Dawson at Old Trafford.

“If Alex (Ferguson) is listening, I’m really going to send a real mish-mash team up there. I hope it doesn’t upset the fans, but we played extra-time and we’re out on our feet a little bit.

“The lads who didn’t play tonight will play and I’m going to rest the key players who played tonight because I can’t afford to lose any more to injuries.”

However, a delve into the FA Cup rules shows that maybe Redknapp was a bit hasty in confessing his master plan as Rule 15a of the FA Cup states:

“Each team participating in a match shall represent the full available strength of each competing club.”

There is no explanation of what punishment breaking this rule a team can expect to receive and it is unlikely that Tottenham will suffer with so many other ‘big’ teams ignoring it previously.

But perhaps offering the winners of the FA Cup a much coveted Champions League place would prevent the wonderful old trophy losing any more prestige?

PHOTO: Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp gestures during their English League Cup match at Burnley, Jan. 21, 2009. REUTERS/Phil Noble

Portsmouth are interested in bringing Inter Milan’s Patrick Vieira back to England.

The only problem is that the former Arsenal man is injured…again. 

I’ve been the Reuters sports correspondent in Milan for nearly two years and I have interviewed Vieira more times than I have seen him play live.

A catalogue of knocks has led many fans to forget one of the most-powerful midfield players in a generation. 

The 32-year-old admitted last week that he may not play for France much longer.

When he has turned out for Inter, he has looked a shadow of the long-legged, rampaging figure we all remember from his Arsenal days.

Even if he gets fully fit, he is no longer guaranteed a start in Inter’s first team and coach Jose Mourinho rarely laments his unavailability. (Fellow Inter benchwarmer Marco Materazzi has also been linked in the media with Tottenham.)

A move back to England at some point could re-energise Vieira’s career but if his weary limbs can not be fixed, he will never be the player he once was.

PHOTO: Inter’s Vieira fights for the ball with AC Milan’s Ronaldinho in the city derby, Sept. 28 REUTERS/Tony Gentile

Insurance giant AIG will not renew its shirt sponsorship of Manchester United.

The American company also said in an email sent to Reuters that it was “in active discussions” with the club regarding the current four-year $100 million deal, which runs until next May.

Owen Wyatt is joined by football consultant Alex Fynn to discuss the implications of AIG’s decision. How worried should football be about sponsorship problems and the credit crunch?

Chelsea gear up for an easy-looking FA Cup tie at home to Ipswich Town this weekend knowing the match will be anything but given their recent form.

The crushing 3-0 defeat to rivals Manchester United recently was just one of a string of lacklustre performances and while their struggles may come as a shock to many, United boss Alex Ferguson saw this coming some time ago.

Looking into his crystal ball last July, a month before the new Premier League season had started, Ferguson boldly stated that new manager Luiz Felipe Scolari had inherited a Chelsea squad which had already peaked and that progress was unlikely.

This season’s performances include six draws and three defeats in the league, while they were losing 1-0 at home to Stoke City last weekend before late goals gave then a 2-1 win. (more…)

Well, at least it wasn’t all bad news for Manchester City on Monday,

You win some, you lose some, as the old saying goes and they may have lost out on Kaka, but City did sign Craig Bellamy from West Ham United.

The Welsh firebrand may not have quite the charisma of the Brazilian pin-up, or quite the same talent, or quite the same following — but he certainly brings something to every club he plays for.

And at 14.0 million pounds he also represents something of a bargain for the club’s owners who can safely put their 100 million pounds or whatever it was they were prepared to spend on Kaka back in their wallets for now. (more…)

Vlog on the pitch regulars Owen Wyatt and Jon Bramley are joined by Kevin Fylan in the video above to discuss the Kaka effect.

Will Manchester City’s world record bid for the AC Milan playmaker change the transfer market forever or is this just a one-off? Is Mark Hughes a famous enough coach to really attract the big names?

Let us know your views.

Lukas Podolski has broken an unwritten rule in Germany: Thou shalt not leave Bayern Munich in the prime of one’s career for a small, struggling Bundesliga club.

Bayern’s decision to let the 23-year-old Podolski go back to the club he came from three years ago, once the current season is over, is an astonishing move from the Bavarians, who could probably have earned a far more handsome return on the Germany striker from another club abroad or even a wealthier Bundesliga side.

In all the years I’ve been watching Bayern’s transfer moves, I’ve never seen anything like this. Has Bayern sporting director Uli Hoeness grown soft in the twilight of his career?

But who could forget the scene in Cologne in September when Podolski set up one goal and scored a second after coming on for the final half hour to lead Bayern to a 3-0 win — and more than 50,000 Cologne fans cheered Poldi’s 90th minute goal against their team. Cologne players and Bayern managers were incensed, according to German media reports. It was an amazing scene. (more…)

In a world suffering from such a serious economic downturn, one that is causing millions of ordinary people financial hardship, there is almost something obscene about the amount of money Manchester City are reportedly hoping to spend on acquiring Kaka from AC Milan.

There are many definitions of obscenity in the dictionary but the one that best describes Manchester City’s pursuit of the Brazilian midfielder is simply “beyond all reason”.

City are said to have offered 100 million-plus pounds for Kaka, plus reported wages of 500,000 pounds a week, money that will earn the genius just shy of 3,000 pounds an hour — even when he is sleeping. (more…)