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It's hardly a rare occurrence for a relatively unknown youngster to be caught up in the limelight in the days and weeks preceding a crucial European tie. Last Wednesday was no different. The name on everyone's lips at the Stade Gerland stadium, Lyon, was of the 20-year-old French striker Karim Benzema.
Much had been spoken and written of the talents the Lyon frontman was poised to unleash on Manchester United - the club whom are supposedly interested in Benzema and weighing up the option of tabling a substantial bid in the near future for him. The leading goalscorer in France has attracted praise from a host of respected figures in football and had football fans everywhere eagerly anticipating how he'd cope against a defence boasting an often formidable centre-back pairing of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
As soon as Benzema's name was announced, a wild chorus of cheers emanated from the Les Gones support, which would echo every time the youngster received the ball during the match. High expectations were resting on the shoulders of someone so young, but the Olympique Lyonais fans knew he'd cope, and knew he'd step up to the plate.
Although a youngster by age, a youngster by physical frame he most certainly is not. Tall, powerful and fast, Benzema appears to possess all of the key attributes necessary to become one of the deadliest strikers in the world and showcased his ability on the pitch to devastating effect against United.
After recieving a short pass from Jeremy Toulalan outside the United box, the Lyon-born Benzema spun in an instant, taking two quick-fire touches to steady himself before unleashing a wonderful left-footed driven strike past Edwin Van Der Sar. Lyon were 1-0 up and the home fans were inevitably proven right yet again to put their faith and expectation onto Benzema's shoulders.
The top scorer in Ligue 1 took his tally to 25 goals in all competitions and subsequently further cemented his reputation as one of the most exciting strikers in Europe.
Intelligent, direct, and possessing a deadly eye for goal, Benzema is, somewhat unsurprisingly, an admirer of the many talents of Ronaldo and confesses that the Brazilian was his idol as a youngster growing up. The Frenchman has evidently picked up a few useful pointers from the legendary AC Milan striker's glittering playing career; resembling the Brazilian's style which eventually helped him to become the record goalscorer in World Cup history.
As the saying goes: for every death, there's a birth. The images of Ronaldo clutching his knee in agony a week ago was a tragic moment in time which could - barring a miraculous recovery - mark the end of a truly extraordinary career. The following Wednesday a young, gifted striker in the form of Karim Benzema once again stamps his mark on the European stage with a stunning goal against Premiership champions Manchester United.
If the videos of Sir Alex Ferguson meeting with Gerard Houllier and Benzema after the match are to be analysed with suspicion, Manchester United fans could well be in for a treat if the Lyon number 10 is to make his move to a stage more suited to containing the talents of a potential football genius.
It would be the beginning of the next stage in Benzema's development as one of the most revered strikers in world football. Could the Frenchman of Algerian-descent, fulfil his potential and go on to become as successful as his idol Ronaldo? Well, that question will be answered in due course. But will the next stage of his journey begin at Manchester United?
Football and swearing have always gone hand in hand since the early days. Some of the funniest and most inventive chants from the terraces have contained enough blue language to make the Osbourne family blush.
However in recent years there has been a surge in high-profile players caught red tongued aiming their dictionary of expletives at the referee. As a result, the men in black have had enough, and a new FA initiative has been introduced in the north-east of England where any player caught swearing on the pitch will automatically be given their marching orders.
If successful the scheme to stop sweary players effing and blinding could be extended to some of the more recognisable legues, but just how realistic a scheme is it? And is it even a good thing for the sport?
The University of East Anglia claims that swearing is a natural method to realease pent-up aggression and is a healthy way for an individual to let off some steam. This appears to be true for footballers. Imagine the carnage that would ensue if Wayne Rooney was told he'd have to keep schtum or risk an early bath. No doubt there'd be a handful of wounded victims of Rooney's built-up rage on treatment tables across England.
Swearing is a sign of the passion that a player has for the club. A misplaced pass or a wayward shot on goal often leads to a close-up on the player's face and nine times out of 10 the resulting action will be to scream a swear word. It's healthy and shows the fans they're committed to winning the game and performing well. It's unrealistic to aim to create a generation of footballers who appear as though they've been brought up reading Charlie Brown comics. This isn't 1950.
Although the referee shouldn't have to endure the belittlement of being sworn at by an army of foul-mouthed 20 somethings, there is already a rule in force to prevent this from happening. The rule where the ref can issue a yellow card for dissent should be sufficient enough, and often is.
Unquestionably, the levels of dissent can be a bit out of hand at times, but dismissing a player for the use of the 'F' word will lead to a record number of match abandonments on the grounds that the team doesn't have enough players to continue playing.
It could also set a dangerous precident for other ridiculous rules to come into force. Red cards for taking off a shirt in celebration? A straight red for taking a free-kick too quickly?
Players should be allowed to swear within reason. Perhaps unleashing a torrent of abuse Tupac would have been proud directly to the referee or the assistant referee is worthy of a player being sent off, but the odd "F***!" or "Wan***!!" does have a place in professional football.
Football is a game with working class roots, which targets normal everyday people across the globe. To put it simply, all the red cards Steve Bennett can shake a stick at won't eridacate x-rated language from the beautiful game.
And we like it that way.
17-year-old Danny Welbeck is set to feature in Manchester United's team to face bitter rivals Manchester City during tomorrow afternoon's much-anticipated derby.
The Manchester born striker has been fast tracked into United's senior team after impressing Sir Alex Ferguson and the rest of the coaching staff at Old Trafford, and could be handed a surprise start due to the absence of Wayne Rooney who will serve his one game suspension.
Welbeck made his first senior team appearance in Saudi Arabia last month against Al-Hilal, and looked bright during his 25 minutes on the pitch. After showing some nice touches and demonstrating his pace, the 17-year-old went on to win himself a late penalty, but unfortunatly lost his nerve and blasted it high over the bar.
Hearing the news that a relatively unknown 17-year-old striker will start in tomorrow's derby is likely to put a few butterflies in the stomachs of those supporting the red half of Manchester. However, for Ferguson to even consider giving the youngster his first competitive start in such an important tie clearly suggests Welbeck has a bright future ahead of him.
With Micah Richards and Richard Dunne poised to start in central defence for Manchester City tomorrow, Welbeck's task to make a nuisance of himself will be no mean feat. Fortunatly for the youngster, his teammates include the likes of Carlos Tevez, Paul Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo - making his task less insurmountable.
With the 50th anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster being marked tomorrow, with both sides set to observe a one minute's silence before playing the match wearing strips bearing no names or sponsors, Welbeck's opportunity to shine is a fitting coincidence - a young, talented Mancunian who will be aiming to follow in the footsteps of legends of the past and become an instant hero at Manchester United.
Just when you think the money men in football couldn't come up with anything else to leech football fans of more money, they do. And this time it's the most insane idea yet.
See the story here about the possibility of ten overseas games being played per season.
Although this may appeal to the bank balances of chairmen and club owners of Premiership clubs, it's merely another example in the long line of plans to rinse supporters of more hard earnt cash. However, this time they're directing their money-grabbing assault at the wallets of 'long-distance fans' in places like Asia and America - markets where interest is large in places and growing significantly in others.
Introducing a 39th game to be played in a city such as Los Angeles or Beijing is a digusting money orientated gimmick, which could tarnish the Premier League's status amongst match-going fans in this country.
Supporters of Premeirship clubs have already become disillusioned enough in recent years with the surge in ticket prices, changes in ownership and the ever increasing wage demands from players. This 'initiative' could be the final straw for the remaining loyal supporters who have yet to have suffered the fate of being priced out the game.
Do they really expect season ticket holders to shell out several hundred more pounds in order to see their team play their final Premiership game? Or - and this is far more likely - has no consideration been issued towards the people that keep the Premiership and its clubs alive?
I think we can all guess the answer to that one.
If there's one statement which really grates on me, it's the answer to this question: Who is the greatest footballer of all time?
When asking a member of the general public or a casual fan, more often than not the resounding answer to the question will be... Pelé - said in the sure and certain hope that there is no other possible answer. Football is of course all based on opinion but the argument for Pelé is rarely backed up properly.
"But he won four World Cups!," people exclaim. Well he did officially win four, however, in 1962 he missed the majority of the tournament through injury. In 1966, Pelé was taken out the tournament after one or two too many hefty tackles.
Pelé has a reputation as being the first player of his type - the first player regarded as 'world class', if you like. However, the Brazilian is also by far and away the most famous player of all time. Ask a random person who takes no interest in football and they'll still be able to quote Pelé's name back to you.
This clearly works in Pelé's favour. It's unlikely the same person would be able to reel off names such as Cruyff, Puskas or Zico...
The 17-year-old Pelé burst onto the scene in Sweden during the 1958 World Cup finals. His impact in the final few games of the tournament was huge and this subsequently ensured his place in the football history books. He was the first prodigy of world football and this created the public image of 'Pelé' which has lasted to this very day.
There's no denying that the Brazilian was an incredibly gifted footballer, with the grainy footage of old World Cups there for all to see - but he played his entire club career in Brazil - hardly the ideal place for a true test of an individuals' ability. The famous statistic of him scoring over 1200 club goals is another very grey area, and is probably about as accurate as a Stevie Wonder recreation of the Mona Lisa.
Pelé's main rival for the title of the greatest player ever is more often than not, Diego Armando Maradona.
Those that were fortunate enough to witness Maradona in action claim that the Argentine is the greatest ever. His unmatched dribbling ability combined with the pitbull strength to hold off and beat defender after defender and a deadly eye for both a pass and a goal, the 5ft 5" magician from Buenos Aires was often unstoppable. Inspiring an unfashionable club side to the most successful period in their history would be impossible for most players, but Maradona led Napoli to their only two Italian titles and a UEFA Cup.
It might be a cliché to suggest Maradona single handedly won Argentina the World Cup in 1986 but it's simple - without Maradona, Argentina would never have won the 1986 World Cup.
On the other hand, take Pelé out of the 1970 Brazil side and the south American's would still have eased to victory purely because of the vast amount of talent they possessed in what is regarded by many as being the greatest team of all time. Even if you'd replaced Pelé with Jim Davidson, Brazil would still have been crowned world champions that year. However, this was the tournament that finally cemented his status as the king of football.
The most determined football personality trying to keep up the belief that Pelé was the best of all time seems to be Pelé himself. For example, he has already put a dampner on the possibility of the wonderkid Pato eventually taking his mantle and did the same about Ronaldinho two years ago - playing down the fact he was Brazil's saviour and ensuring the media knew he had a less than acceptable World Cup campaign.
It gives the impression he is terrified that his legacy may be surpassed. But the fact is, it was surpassed as soon as the final whistle blew on June 29 1986 - when Maradona's Argentina beat West Germany in front of 114,000 spectators.
How ironic then, that if you were to ask a Brazilian football supporter their opinion on the best footballer ever, they're likely to give you the name of the bow-legged genius Garrincha and not of FIFA's golden son Pelé.
Of course, you'd never catch any self-respecting Brazilian naming Maradona as the best player ever, but the fact that they'd name Garrincha over Pelé gives you a clue about who should really win the old age Pelé vs. Maradona debate...
When Juande Ramos left the sunny climes of Seville to take charge of a Tottenham side in dire need of an overhaul last October, many would have questioned his sanity levels, but few would have predicted the extent to which the Spaniard has managed to turn things around.
Following the whole debacle between the Spurs board and Martin Jol - where the Dutchman was infamously notified he'd be picking up his P45 after the 2-1 UEFA Cup defeat to Getafé via text message - Tottenham have finally steadied the ship and begun to produce the type of football which prompted many pundits before the start of the season to tip the north London club to finish in fourth position come May.
All courtesy of the managerial skills of Ramos.
Spurs' performance at White Hart Lane today against champions Manchester United was another example of how far Spurs have come in such a short space of time, and a credit to Ramos's ability as a tactician and most importantly - a man motivator.
The new fitness reigeme also appears to have worked wonders for several of the players at White Hart Lane, who appeared lethargic and uninterested little more than five months ago. The likes of Tom Huddlestone and Jermaine Jenas seem revitalised in the Tottenham midfield with more freedom and confidence than seen in past months.
Ramos has succeeded in strengthening his defence by bringing in Jonathan Woodgate - a superb center back when fit who could form a very sturdy partnership with fellow England international Ledley King. And Alan Hutton - dubbed 'the white Cafu' in Scotland after a series of sensational performances north of the border for Rangers and Scotland. Manchester United were interested in the right-back but Spurs were the only club to put in a worthy bid of £9m. Undoubtedly a good bit of business on Ramos's behalf.
Since Ramos took the reigns at Tottenham, the club have looked almost Sevilla-esq in many of the matches they've played since the turn of the new year. Particularly during the 5-1 demolision of bitter rivals Arsenal in the Carling Cup semi-final when Spurs' produced a sensational team performance, effectively beating the Gunners at their own game on the night.
Incisive passing, swift counter attacks and clinical finishing must have recreated fond memories for veteran Spurs supporters of the glory years of days gone by.
The victory meant Spurs were heading to Wembley for the first time since 1999 and choruses of Tottenham's classic 1981 FA Cup song, 'Ossie's Dream' - "Spurs are on their way to Wembley" - will continue to ring out over White Hart Lane from now until the final against Chelsea later this month.
And such is Ramos's pedigree in cup competition... even the most zealous Chelsea supporter will think twice before prematurely proclaiming it'll be their club's name etched on the trophy come Febuary 24.
Given Ramos's cool nature, it seems somewhat doubtful that Ramos's knees will be anywhere near as 'trembly' as Ossie's were 27 years ago when he takes his position in the dugout later this month at Wembley.
So... David Beckham has once again been left in football limbo by Fabio Capello, who has denied the former England captain the chance to pick up that coveted 100th international cap.
However unlike at Real Madrid where the 32-year-old was harshly dealt with by the Italian, Beckham can have no-one to blame but himself this time around for not being part of Capello's plans for his new team.
All of the comments that were thrown about the moment Beckham signed on the dotted line for LA Galaxy were true: Move to the USA - wave goodbye to your chances of reaching 100 England caps.
Beckham may have been training with Arsenal for the past few weeks, he may be in good physical condition and he may still be able to pose a decent threat from set pieces and crosses... but he isn't match fit. Capello is a shrewd competitor and the 61-year-old is fully aware that he has to win the first game of his reign as England manager to get the press on his side from the start.
The match against Switzerland on Wednesday may just be a friendly, but only if England win the game. A loss would inevitably result in a press backlash, and Capello knows he can ill-afford to take any risks. He has to make an impression on the fans, players and the media and anything less than a convincing win will not be entirely acceptable - even if it is seen by some as just a 'meaningless friendly', there is no such thing with England.
He also had to ensure he sent out a clear message to those vying for Beckham's right-wing position. It wouldn't have been fair on the likes of Shaun Wright-Phillips and David Bentley - two wingers who have been in fine form for their respective clubs of late - if Beckham was included in the 23-man squad to be announced tomorrow.
Capello has made the right decision and it's an encouraging sign that his choices have not been swayed by the English media. The tabloids and broadsheets have all been pleading for Capello to give Beckham the ideal send off this week, to let him retire gracefully after reaching that all important ton of caps. Perhaps then it's a blessing in disguise that Fabio can only speak pigeon English at this stage.
To put it bluntly, there's little room for sentiment in football - particularly when dealing with the England national side.
If Beckham is now condemned to remain on 99 caps forever, this will not bother Capello. It's just a number and a very respectable one at that. Beckham was an extremely loyal captain and undoubtedly a good player for many years but a new era has dawned on the England national side and Capello's decision is no McClaren style gimmick either.
Munich Air Disaster Tribute - Update
I posted last month about the proposed 'One Minute Silence' being cancelled before England's match with Switzerland.
However, it has now been decided that a minute's silence will take place before the game on Wednesday.
It's a nice gesture, but it's a gesture which could entice the idiots to show themselves up on the night.
I truly hope this won't be the case because in spite of club rivalries, football takes a back seat when remembering a group of people who died tragically - including eight young men who had such promising lives cruelly cut short.
