by Chris Howe

FA Cup semi-final draw
Chelsea vs Aston Villa 17.00 April 10th at Wembley
Portsmouth vs Spurs/Fulham 16.00 April 11th at Wembley
Spurs play Fulham at White Hart Lane in a Quarter final replay on March 24th and the winners will face Pompey in the semi-final.

Wigan Victory Threatens Liverpools Chamions League Prospects

Wigan upset Liverpool 1-0 to give their survival hopes a massive boost. Neither side started the game too well , and Liverpool had a good early chance when an off balance Steven Gerrard fired over the bar from just a few yards out. The Latics grew in to the game though and Frenchman Charles N'Zogbia was causing reds left back Emilio Insua all kinds of problems. The home side took a deserved lead when a fantastic cross from Emerson Boyce was met by Colombian striker Hugo Rodallega who wrong footed Pepe Reina with his close range volley  in the 35th minute. Fernando Torres got a chance to equalise towards the end of the half as he was found unmarked, but his first time volley went just wide of the Wigan post.

Liverpool didn't seem to approach the second half any differently and still lacked a cutting edge despite the number of attacking players on the pitch.Torres got another chance, but again saw his volley go wide after a strong header form Dirk Kuyt set him up. Rafa Benitez brought on 20 million pound man Alberto Aquilani to little affect, Ryan Babel looked more threatening when he came on but he had only 10 minutes to rescue his side. Wigan showed alot of heart aswell as quality, young Irish midfielder James Mccarthy was a contender for man of the match along with N'Zogbia who also had a great game. Liverpool stay 1 point behind  4th place, but Spurs have a game in hand on them and Man City are in the strongest position as they are 1 point ahead of the Merseysiders with 2 games in hand. Rafa Benitez was brutally honest about his sides performance in a post match interview declaring that the players attitude was bad and they deserved to lose, some refreshing honesty from the Spaniard. Fellow Spaniard Roberto Martinez will be over the moon as this result takes them 4 points clear of the relegation zone and gives them a vital confidence boost after a string of poor results.  

Man United go top after beating Wolves 1-0. Wolves were the better side for much of the first half and were largely untroubled by the champions. Wolves had the best chance of the opening 45 minutes with a header from six yards out that was poorly missed. The reds were starting to dominate posession in the second half and despite the absence of Wayne Rooney they were the side looking to take the lead. Veteran midfielder Paul Scholes got the crucial winner for his side after defender Jody Craddock slipped, Scholes scored his 100th league goal with a fine finish past Marcus Hanhemann. Wolves failed to get back in the game, but got a golden opportunity in the dying seconds when Wales striker Sam Vokes was left unmarked and blasted over the bar from a few yards out. So United go 2 points clear at the top, but Chelsea have a game in the hand. For Wolves it's not looking great as they find themselves 1 place outside the relegation zone on goal difference

Arsenal beat Burnley by 3 goals to 1 at the Emirates Stadium.The Gunners endured a frustrating start, but eventually got their breakthrough when Samir Nasri delicately chipped the Burnley defence and his chip was met by a first time volley from Captain Cesc Fabregas with his 14th league goal of the season. Fabregas left the game just a few minutes later with a suspected hamstring injury which raised concerns over his fitness ahead of the massive game with Porto on Tuesday. The away side equalised at the start of the second half when defender Carl Cort headed through a crowd of bodies and David Nugent exploited some woeful Arsenal defending and lobbed Manuel Almunia to level the score. Arsenal were once again frustrated by a stubborn Burnley defence, but Theo Walcott answered his critics with great goal after going on a trademark run and cooly netting. Danish Striker Nicklas Bentdner missed a hattrick of easy chances in what was one of the worst displays from a Premiership striker I've ever seen. It was another nervy ending for the home team  as Burnley remained in the game until injury time when substitute Andriy Arshavin smashed home a goal to secure the points. Arsenal go level on goal difference with Chelsea and just 2 points behind new leaders Man United. Burnley remain second bottom and looked destined for the drop

Chelsea beat Stoke 2-0 to go through to the Semi-finals of the FA cup. Stoke were stubborn for the majority of the first half and it looked like a potential banana skin for the holders. Chelseas persistence paid off towards the end of the first half when Frank Lampard rattled home the opening goal with the aid of a deflection from Potters captain Abdoulaye Faye. The away side didn't give up hope though and stayed in the tie until the 67th minute when Mr. Controversy John Terry headed his side into a 2-0 lead. The blues looked comfortable for the remainder of the game and walked away 2-0 winners and booked  a semi-final appearance against Aston Villa at Wembley next month.

Aston Villa won 4-2 at Reading in a cup classic. Villa were punished by the giant killers from Berkshire in the first half as Irish striker Shane Long continued his great form in the cup with a double to put the Championship side 2-0 up at the interval. Villa came out in the second half a completely different side and grabbed a goal bcak through winger Ashley Young. We then saw 2 more goals in 3 minutes from Norweigian striker John Carew to see the Premiership take a dramatic lead after an amazing 3 goals in 5 minutes at the start of the second half. Reading battled and were still very much in with the chance of a replay until Carew scored his hattrick with a belter from the penalty spot. Aston Villa ran out 4-2 winners and if John Carew has not done enough to cement his place in the side over Emile Heskey then he should consider leaving the club in the summer. Heskey is powerful and strong , but so is Carew and he actually carries a goal threat .

Spurs drew 0-0 with Fulham at Craven Cottage. It was a tight and tense affair whcih was largely dominated by Spurs as they had the creation of the Croatian duo Modric and Kranjcar. Bobby Zamora worked hard for Fulham, but was not gifted with great service. In the end I think the draw was a fair result and both defences must take credit for this game ending goalless. A replay is set to be played at White Hart Lane in 10 days with the winners facing Portsmouth in the semi-final.

Sunderlanda Naughty Boy

The owners of Manchester United the American Glazer family who are not widely loved by the clubs supporters have issued a statement saying said that the club is not for sale. Under the Glazier ownership the once profitable club has run up debts £700m., but they are repotedly 'happy' with their business model. though critics say they treat it like a boys train set. The Glazer statement follows news that a group of rich well heeled Manchester United supporters - nicknamed the Red Knights are currently in the process of forming a consortium intent on making a takeover bid for the club which may require funds of £1bn.

The Red Knights include: A lifelong Man U fan Jim O'Neill, chief economist at the Goldman Sachs Bank. who's in the past was known to be be friends with Sir Alex Ferguson. Keith Harris a former chief executive of the HSBC Investment bank previously involved in takeovers at Aston Villa Mancheter City and West Ham and a open advocate of the proposed bid. Mark Rawlinson a former partner at law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer who tried unsuccesfully to Man u from the Glazier takeover in 2005. Richard Hytner currently Deputy chairman of Saatchi & Saatchi Worldwide and the Manchester United Supporters Club Trust President. He was a key player in stopping a takeover of the club by Rupert Murdochin 1998. Paul Marshall who is the co-founder and chairman of one of Europe's biggest Hedge funds Marshall Wace and who has put on record the need for the club to free of debt. Unofficial sources are reporting that Man U manager Sir Alex Ferguson would welcome a successful bid by the Red Knights.

In a statement issued on March 2nd the Red Knights said “We can confirm that a group of high net worth individuals, who support Manchester United (known as the "Red Knights"), met in London yesterday,” It continued “This group is supportive of current management but are looking at the feasibility of putting together a proposal to be put to the Glazer family regarding the ownership of Manchester United. “These discussions are in early stages and no contact has been made with the Glazer family.”

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