Kevin Keegan thinks the Premier League is getting boring — see our latest Vlog on the Pitch — but, not for the first time, Sir Alex Ferguson sees things a bit differently.

“The League is murder for me and Avram Grant and nerve-racking for fans and players,” Ferguson said. “It would be impossible to make the Premier League any more exciting.”

Perhaps Ferguson has a point. The top two are heading into the final day level on points, and a glance at Mike Collett’s piece here will show you how rare that is.

But look at this phrase of Ferguson’s, as quoted in the Daily Telegraph.

“Domination is not a word that will get used again with Everton and Aston Villa getting better,” Ferguson was quoted as saying.

Yet the fact remains, Tottenham, Portsmouth, Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton will all face a battle from the big four just to maintain their star players this summer.

Gareth Barry and Dimitar Berbatov have been strongly linked with moves to Liverpool and Manchester United, meaning Villa and Spurs could be weakened before they can try to add to their squads.

So what’s the answer? A salary cap? It would at least stop the likes of Chelsea and United adding all the top players to already bulging squads and allow the smaller clubs to compete.  

One league that does use this method is Rugby’s English Premiership, where six of the 12 teams were in contention to win this year’s title with two games to go.

Something has to be done, certainly. Whether Keegan is right or not, the truth is that the top four clubs get pretty much all the top players  in the end. Carlos Tevez, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Michael Carrick are examples of this.

My colleague Zoran Milosavljevic was enthused about Wednesday’s batch of friendlies but not everyone was so impressed. Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger both pondered the death of the international friendly after the midweek ‘action’ and they were not alone.

Other than the dramatic 4-3 victory by the Dutch, who had been trailing 3-0 to Euro 2008 co-hosts Austria, Wednesday’s games were a poor advert for mid-season international football with many players coming back injured — much to the annoyance of their club managers.

Ferguson did not hold back when asked what he thought of the matches after Darren Fletcher returned injured from helping Scotland draw 1-1 with Croatia.

“It was a bad blow with Darren Fletcher, which to me just emphasises the futility of playing these friendly games. It’s crazy. We have lost him for six weeks now… It’s crazy and supporters will stop going to these kind of games anyway, paying all that money and travelling. I think every manager knows, deep down, that they are a waste of time.”

Wenger added this:

“I’m scared that in the modern game, there is no room any more for friendly internationals. Not because countries take our players, just because people will not be interested in that anymore. There is nothing at stake. People want to see competitive games. Maybe I’m completely wrong but is it in the long term organisable for people to travel and spend their money to watch this kind of game? I’m not sure.”

Aston Villa’s Martin O’Neill, Fulham boss Roy Hodgson and Steve Bruce of Wigan all complained as well, while Blackburn manager Mark Hughes will be the most fed up of all after seeing his South African midfielder Aaron Mokoena injure his Paraguayan club colleague Roque Sante Cruz in their international friendly.

So with all this unrest is it time FIFA acted and separated the international season from the domestic season and have all internationals played in a six week window in the summer?

PHOTO: David Beckham talks to German referee Florian Meyer during France’s win over England in Paris, March 26, 2008 REUTERS/Charles Platiau

Arsenal and Croatia fans - think Larsson and Cisse not Busst and Nilis.

The sight of Eduardo da Silva’s foot dangling at right angles to his leg was the overshadowing image of a weekend of English football where Tottenham Hotspur won the League Cup and Manchester United crushed Newcastle 5-1 away.

The injury will rule the Croatian out of the remainder of the English season and Euro 2008 while there are doubts about whether the striker, who will attempt to celebrate his 25^th birthday on Monday, will ever playing again.

A heated Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger demanded after the game that Birmingham City defender Martin Taylor be banned for life for his mistimed tackle:

“The guy should never play again. People will always use the excuse that the guy is not a dirty player and that he did not mean it. It is like a guy who kills one time in his life. You still have a dead person.”

However, Wenger later issued a statement saying his initial comments about Taylor had been “excessive” as he tried to defuse the situation.

The English press compared the injury to previous gruesome leg-breaks which ended the careers of Coventry City defender David Busst, Belgian striker Luc Nilis and Chelsea’s Italian midfielder Roberto Di Matteo.

As Croatia and Arsenal fans pray the Brazilian-born striker does not become another name on that unfortunate list, they should take heart from two other strikers who overcame similar injuries to compete in Champions League finals.

Henrik Larsson suffered a double fracture of his left leg whilst playing for Celtic in their UEFA Cup clash with Olympique Lyon in October 1999. However Larsson returned to action and went on to play for European giants Barcelona and Manchester United.

The Swede came on as a second-half substitute with the Spanish side losing 1-0 in the Champions League final against Arsenal in 2006 and two assists inspired a 2-1 victory.

When playing for Liverpool in October 2004, French striker Djibril Cisse fractured his left tibia and fibula.

The prognosis was that he would miss the rest of the season, but incredibly he battled back to fitness, making his return in the Champions League quarter-final against Juventus six months later. He went on to score a penalty in the dramatic shootout victory in the final against AC Milan.

Let’s all hope that Eduardo can replicate them and not Busst, Di Matteo and Nilis.

Patrick Johnston, London

As an aside, we decided not to display the most gruesome picture (even though it is not very gruesome). Sky also opted not to show the replay after the incident but other news organisations have analysed the pictures in detail. Who is right? PHOTO: REUTERS/Darren Staples

Ever since Manchester United pulled out of the FA Cup in 2000 to enter the FIFA Club World Championship, the most famous domestic knockout competition has struggled to maintain its allure.

Many players and managers have tried to reassure sponsors and fans alike that the competition is still important, but Reading striker Dave Kitson made his feelings clear ahead of this weekend’s third round fixtures.

“We are not going to win the FA Cup and I do not care less about it, to be honest,” said the 27-year-old, whose side visit Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

“I care about staying in the Premier League, as does everybody at this club. Our league status is not protected by winning the FA Cup — simple as that.”

But with amateurs Chasetown, from the eighth tier of English football, playing the 1927 winners Cardiff City and fellow minor league side Havant and Waterlooville facing another Welsh team in Swansea City, the romance of the competition could again be in full flow this weekend.

The magic does not stop there, with holders Chelsea and Russian billionaire owner Roman Abramovich entertaining Championship (second division) side Queens Park Rangers and their illustrious board including Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, Renault F1 boss Flavio Briatore and the son-in-law of Lakshmi Mittal, the world’s fifth richest man.

Surely ties such as these mean the FA Cup still has an important role in the soccer calendar? Or do you think Kitson’s comments are more realistic?

Patrick Johnston, London 

PHOTO: Chelsea’s Shaun Wright-Phillips and Salomon Kalou hold up the FA Cup after beating Manchester United, May 19 REUTERS/Dylan Martinez  

Here we go again. Eighteen months on from Steve McClaren’s controversial appointment the English FA are in the market for a new coach.

We’d like your views on who they should pick. Martin O’Neill is being talked up in the English media, but according to a Reuters poll the fans’ favourite would be Jose Mourinho. Then again, as my colleague Mark Meadows notes below, Fabio Capello is so far the only man to have expressed an interest.

A brief look at the expected candidates:

Martin O’Neill: The charismatic Northern Irishman won the League Cup twice with Leicester City in 1997 and 2000 before transferring to Celtic, where he won seven trophies in five years. He was interviewed by the FA last time around but has attempted to distance himself from the position this time around saying he has unfinished work with Aston Villa.

Jose Mourinho: The fans’ choice, if you believe the Reuters poll. Heavily linked with Valencia before Ronald Koeman took charge, the Portuguese coach has kept a surprisingly low profile since his Chelsea departure in September.

Alan Shearer: No experience? No problem. Former Newcastle United and England striker Shearer has been offering his words of wisdom from the television studios, but following the success of other novice coaches Klinsmann and Van Basten the FA may decide no experience is a template for success. Irish fans who witnessed Steve Staunton mastermind a last minute 2-1 victory over San Marino and a 5-2 defeat to Cyprus might disagree, of course.

Luiz Felipe Scolari: Big Phil was all set to take charge 18 months ago but a change of heart meant the Brazilian stayed on with Portugal and oversaw a third consecutive victory over England at a major tournament. Could the FA persuade Scolari that media intrusion, which the Brazilian cited as a reason for not accepting the role previously, is not that bad?

Mark Meadows adds:

“It would be a beautiful challenge. I am the right age,” the 61-year-old Fabio Capello said, hours before Steve McClaren was sacked for failing to guide England to Euro 2008. No one else in club football has credentials like Capello, who has won a title at all four teams he has worked for. He is also available after being dismissed by Real at the end of last season for being too defensive, despite winning the championship. Right now most England fans wouldn’t care about performances as long as they delivered results.
 
His compatriot and fellow deft tactician Marcello Lippi is also out of work and has the best international pedigree around after leading a modest Italy side to World Cup glory last year.

If the FA want to be truly daring, perhaps they should go for Juergen Klinsmann. Erik Kirschbaum argues the case for Klinsi in a separate blog below, but if you want to make comments on the German please come back here to do it.

PHOTO: A bookmaker offers odds on the next England football manager outside the FA headquarters in London. REUTERS/Stephen Hird

Criticism of Arsene Wenger occurs about as frequently as a Cesc Fabregas misplaced pass. The Frenchman has enjoyed unanimous praise for the football and results his side have produced this season, but there is at least one powerful man who has not been entirely impressed.

UEFA president Michel Platini is upset with the way Wenger has assembled his squad.

“I do not like the system of Arsène Wenger,” Platini said this week. “In France, Italy and Spain it is easy to buy with money the best players at 14, 15 or 16. I don’t like that. If the best clubs buy the best 15 or 16 players, [then it] is finished for all the clubs in Europe. If my son is playing at Millwall and at 16 Manchester United come in for this player, then when will Millwall have a good team?”

With Arsenal having to finance the cost of building the Emirates Stadium, Wenger’s acumen has been timely. Wenger plucked Fabregas, Emmanuel Eboue, Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy and many more when they were all teenagers, from various clubs across the world and for minimal cost.

Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Martin Jol spent nearly £60 million on players in the past two seasons and paid the price of not achieving the necessary success, whereas Wenger has generally broken even on his transfer activity over the past four seasons.

Is Platini right to question Wenger’s methods? Should he propose a ruling to block the movement of Under-18 players, or is there nothing wrong with the Arsenal manager’s approach?

He is certainly not alone. To choose just one example, you may not have heard of Gerardo Bruna yet (check the link), but if reports are right, and Liverpool have done their homework, the 16-year-old will be the next foreign teenager to star in the Premier League. Cost to the English club? About 40 million euros less than it cost to bring in Torres.

My colleague Martyn Herman wrote this morning: “If Martin Jol, who was sacked by Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday, is guilty of anything it is raising expectations of a club mired in mediocrity for years.”

Is he right?

Jol stepped up, firstly as caretaker manager, after a brief spell of 13 games of defensive football headed by Frenchman Jacques Santini in November 2004 and guided Spurs to a respectable ninth at the end of the season.

The likeable Dutchman then bolstered his reputation with two consecutive fifth place finishes, narrowly missing out on the golden ticket of Champions League football in 2005.

Just seven points from 10 games this season equates to the club’s worst ever start to a Premier League season but with rumours of Jol’s departure circulating midway through last night’s 2-1 UEFA Cup defeat to Getafe the fans rose to voice their appreciation of their soon-to-be-axed manager. Should he have been given more time?

The British press have been quick to point the finger of blame. Matt Lawton and Neil Ashton write in the Daily Mail: “A breakdown in his relationship with Daniel Levy and the chairman’s colleagues on the board has led to his departure. It began when, against Jol’s wishes, Levy brought in Damien Comolli as the club’s director of football.”

Meanwhile, Jim Duggan at Top Spurs is critical of the manner of Jol’s departure, saying:

‘Spurs were a laughing stock once again through incompetent leadership - a leak to a newspaper before the game, widespread uncertainty during a game played in a sometimes surreal atmosphere and then the usual “unofficial” sources briefing the press.’

So who is to blame? And what next for Spurs? Ramos and Klinsmann are already being talked about but our current Reuters Poll suggests a certain former Chelsea manager is required.

Do you agree?

He may have stumbled upon it more through luck than tactical judgement but Steve McClaren has discovered that the formula for a successful team may not simply be playing your supposed best 11 players.

Gareth Barry was again at the backbone of a more than competent England display in which Estonia were brushed aside 3-0 with expected ease. The Aston Villa captain showed discipline and assured passing throughout in a man-of-the-match display alongside Steven Gerrard to leave the English press purring.

Anthony Clavane wrote in the Sunday Mirror: “Once again Barry was my man of the match, as he was against Israel and Russia. His great vision and simple approach will have delighted McClaren.”

Jamie Jackson wrote in the Observer: “Just the fact that Barry is content to play deeper than Liverpool’s captain seems to give England the balance and shape they lack when it is (Frank) Lampard partnering him.”

Barry’s selection came about due to injuries to Lampard and Manchester United pair Owen Hargreaves and Michael Carrick and it was originally expected that when any of the injured trio returned to fitness they would regain their place at the expense of the Villa midfielder. Not any more.

Barry’s third consecutive game coincided with a third consecutive 3-0 victory for England and Lampard’s introduction on Saturday as a second-half substitute was welcomed with a chorus of boos from a section of the home support who clearly feel Barry should keep his place regardless of Lampard’s health.

McClaren’s predecessor Sven-Goran Eriksson persisted with a midfield pairing of Lampard and Gerrard when fans groaned that they couldn’t play successfully together and some fear the current England coach may employ the same tactic.

Roy Collins wrote in the Telegraph: “So if he (Barry) is dropped in favour of Lampard, it will suggest that McClaren is continuing the policy of predecessor Sven-Goran Eriksson by pandering to the biggest names and that his claims to favour the team ethic are simply empty words.”

McClaren’s team selection against Russia on Wednesday could help define his legacy as England coach. He was commended for preserving Barry’s place for Saturday’s match, but that was at home to a side ranked 127 in the world. Russia, in Moscow, is a much sterner test and he may be inclined to go back to Lampard. Would that be right?

Patrick Johnston, London

PHOTO: England’s Gareth Barry (L) fights for the ball with Estonia’s Ragnar Klavan during their Euro 2008 Group E qualifying soccer match at Wembley Stadium in London October 13, 2007. REUTERS/Darren Staples.

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 

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