I can't say what the tale is but it is a very interesting one...I would love to go into some detail but there are people who keep an eye on titbits and can let you down. I can't write it just now because I've been sworn to secrecy on this for the moment.

There could be an announcement on this on Tuesday - but it is relating to something that happened just over a month ago.

It will be the first time this has happened and it will be interesting to see how football handles it.

Hoping to be able to write this but it is a very hard one to touch until it goes 'official.'

Rest assured it doesn't affect your club but it will cause an awful lot of talk...and raise some serious questions.

"ADUG is worth around £550bn (£530bn a year ago, and plenty of petrol still being consumed). That is £550,000,000,000. John Terry might cost say £45,000,000, or 0.008% of their net worth.

To put this into context, the equivalent John Terry cost for one of us is £2.45 per year. That's about the price of a pint.

Ronaldo = £4.36
Kaka = £3.05.
Robinho = £1.75.
RSC = 93 pence.
Barry = 65 pence.

The whole of United and Liverpool's debt would be less than £50.
Pay Eto'o's £12m loyalty bonus to smooth the move from Barcelona - 65 pence.

Money is no object."

This was posted by somebody on another forum I visit from time to time. The guy that posted it must be in close with somebody that works in fotball as he tends to know things a while before they happen and very rarely gets them wrong. I'm struggling to find the last time he got anything wrong. I wonder what this could be?

I just read this, it's sickening really.

What is this?

It's how much players would cost just some random person based on their relative net worth to ADUG.

Actually ADUG was the key word but don't worry I looked it up.

Carlo Ancelotti Confirms Maldini-Like John Terry Will Continue As Chelsea Captain
The Blues defender is a "symbol of the team" and will be "captain forever".

New Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has compared club captain John Terry to Italian legend Paolo Maldini.

The former Milan coach appeared in confident mood during his unveiling as a Blue, conducting his first press conference in English, requesting that any questions journalists had should be asked slowly in order for him to fully understand.

"I am very happy to start here," he said.

According to a plethora of reports, Manchester City had offered £30 million for Terry, an offer that had been swiftly rejected. However, City's interest continues to hover in the press, as the money-laden club are willing to pay the centre-back a weekly salary of £300,000.

Ancelotti was keen to quash such speculation, but not after he duped an unwitting audience into believing that the skipper is expendable.

"I think that John Terry is a symbol of this team, but I don't know if he will be a captain next season," Ancelotti delivered nonchalantly, before slowly cracking a wry smile. "Naturally I am joking. I like to joke in a conference.

"There is Manchester City, but there is no price for Terry. Terry will be captain of Chelsea forever," he said.

As proof of the Italian tactician's admiration of the player, Ancelotti likened the lionhearted Englishman to retired legend Paolo Maldini.

"He said he wants to stay; there is no problem. I would like to have a captain like Terry - I think he is close to Maldini in terms of professionalism and quality," the new boss smiled.

::goal::

Terry will be captain of Chelsea forever

Forza Carletto!

I hope to see his comeback at Milan soon

Hmmm...I wish him well. There's Wilkins and Carlo there, so it's again a 'Milan' staff.

Luke Young is desperate to deliver top performances for Villa next season - because he knows exactly what football means to the fans.

Young is adamant that 'football is religion' and revealed his first taste of this supporter passion came when he was a young and upcoming professional.

He said: "As a player, you always drive past the fans in the pub with their claret and blue shirts on and it reiterates in your mind what it means to them and how much money they've spent to go to a game.

"Not only do you go out and perform for yourself, your family, your manager and chairman, you do it for all those fans too.

"I appreciate and understand that. If you win, they have a smile on their face for the entire week until the next match rolls around.

"My dad's mates are all Spurs fans and when I was a youngster at the club I used to pop down the pub to see them.

"They went home and away with their club and they used to have competitions to see who had travelled to more games, who had done more miles and who had missed the last game - that sort of thing.

"They worked - and worked very hard - to be able to see their team at the weekend. I have seen first-hand what it means to fans out there. The game is so important to supporters.

"Our fans work all week and their release - and their main thought throughout the week - is football. They talk about it 24/7.

"Football is religion. It's their identity - who they are is who they support.

"If I wasn't playing, I'd be exactly the same. Credit to our fans, they come week in and week out and going to a game is almost a religious experience."

Dude..so did that insider post whatver he was on about?

Damn..I was hoping for something more earth shaking...bahh!

Apparently he exaggerated. It's Paddy Kenny, the Sheffield United goalkeeper. He's been found using performance enhancing drugs and could face a 2 year ban. I suppose it is a big story, if it had happened to a bigger name player it'd been one of the all-time biggest footballing stories I suppose. It is the first of it's kind, players have used recreational drugs before, but never 'cheated' with them. I like the guy, but he should be banned for life, there's already enough of this in US sports, don't let it come here, send a messege, make an example.

You truly believe Europe is clean? I am almost sure drugs are heavily used in football in every country.

by the way, are there drugs that can improve one's reflexes cause otherwise I don't see why a goalie needs such "help"...

Aston Villa Told To Pay £20million For Middlesbrough's Downing And Tuncay - Report

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

overrated prices to unreachable levels. Thats 25 million euros LOL

... I'd even look past the fact he's a Turk.

So which countries do you NOT dislike? Switzerland does not count.

So which countries do you NOT dislike? Switzerland does not count.

So which countries do you NOT dislike? Switzerland does not count.

RAFA BENITEZ has branded Gareth Barry a gold-digger for choosing Manchester City's cash ahead of a move to Liverpool.

Kop boss Benitez blasted: "With Barry it's 100 per cent about money. Money, money, money."

Benitez wanted to land Barry this summer but the England midfield ace chose Eastlands rather than Merseyside.

Barry insisted his decision was based entirely on his desire to be in at the start of the City revolution.

But Benitez scoffed: "In the market now, money should not be the main thing - because all the people in football at that level are on big money.

"At the end of the day, the most important thing for me is the passion of the players."

Benitez knows the money on offer at Eastlands, both in wages and the amount they can offer in transfer fees, makes City top dogs.

Yet he had a harsh warning for City fans who think it is a sure-fire route to glory - and are rubbing their hands at the prospect of ending 33 years without a major trophy.

On the day he unveiled new right-back Glen Johnson, Benitez added: "Signing a lot of good players is good but no guarantee, so it will be interesting to see.

"It may be more difficult next season now but experience is so important and we have more than in the past.

"Money to sign good players does make it easier but only if you have understanding between the players. That's crucial.

"The understanding between our players is much better. We'll have our chances this season."

That's a terrible midfield! Diarra and Alonso? If Villa signed either of them to replace Barry I'd be immensly disappointed.

You serious?

I think they are both top quality.

I think Diarra is really average. Did nout at Chelsea or Arsenal, had one half decent season at Pompey (Though he was playing alongside Muntari and Kranjcar who had fantastic seasons that year) and then Madrid buy him..? As for Alonso, I just don't think he's particularly good, a MotD player. He'll play 2 or 3 amazing, inch-perfect passes that're shown on MotD.. what you don't see is the 7 or 8 that were massively over-hit and go out for goal kicks. Not sure why people rave about him, Liverpool couldn't even get rid of him last summer.

Whatever happened to Madrid's other Diarra? He was supposed to be the next big thing!

Isn't he going to return from injury?

This season I would put my money on liverpool and chelsea winning the title.

£12m fee agreed for Stewart Downing according to SSN. He can't play until November though, the irony being that it was Milner who injured him when they played us.. Tuncay is expected to follow him to VP when/if the deal is complete.

Not only is Downing (possibly) signing a good thing because he's a good player, we surely can't bring in another winger and that means no Bentley, which is almost as good as signing someone! He can rot on the Spurs bench.

I guess out of a tough decision out of Downing & Bentley, I'd go for Downing. I still think Young should be way above those 2 in the England ranks though.

Tuncay would be a good signing as I imagine you'll pick him up for next to nothing.

Mark Hughes has upped the ante in Manchester City's pursuit of John Terry by making an extraordinary public plea to the Chelsea captain to "reignite" his career at Eastlands.

In a set of remarks carried by every leading daily national, suggesting that they were made in a separate press conference to the one broadcast yesterday by Sky Sports News to mark the arrival of Carlos Tevez, Hughes declared that the defender needed a new challenge. The comments are bound to enrage Chelsea, who insist Terry is not for sale, and may yet rebound on the City manager if they strengthen the London's club resolve not to let the 28-year-old depart.

"We could offer John Terry a different challenge. From my own experience, when you have been with a club a long time, you maybe get to a point when you need a new challenge, when you think a change of scenery would just reignite certain things within you," Hughes said.

Terry has yet to comment on City's interest - a reticence that has encouraged the Welshman.

"It is not a question of money. It is about a different challenge, a different stage in his life and career.

"Maybe that is why there hasn't been a response, because John is seriously thinking in those terms. I went through that process myself as a player and I can understand if that is the way he is thinking."

"We made an offer to Chelsea and, if the opportunity presents itself to bring a player of his calibre to the club, we will do our utmost to bring that about. Obviously, we need conversations with Chelsea in that regard."

As The Independent notes, 'The significance of Hughes making such an utterance cannot be overstated and is clearly designed to put pressure on Terry to ask for a transfer. City have been extremely reluctant to speculate on transfer targets in the past few weeks for fear of the same hubristic consequences which befell them when the Kaka deal fell apart in January, but Hughes, well-briefed on Terry's state of mind, has touched precisely on some of the defender's sentiments.'

However, Terry's future is believed to remain in the balance with Chelsea showing no indication that they are willing to do business. He is expected to be part of the Chelsea squad that departs for America on Thursday and, according to The Times, 'Sources say that, after meeting Roman Abramovich, the Chelsea owner, at the weekend, his main concern is over the club's failure to sign top-class reinforcements to improve a squad that finished a distant third in the Premier League last season.'

The Guardian says that City's next move will be to 'inform Chelsea they are willing to pay in excess of £30m for Terry.'

Stewart Downing revealed his mind was made up on a move to Villa as soon as he met Martin O'Neill.



Downing says the ambition of the manager was a massive pull as he completed a switch from Middlesbrough this afternoon.

He told AVTV: "I am really pleased to be joining Villa. It's a massive football club with good ambition.

"It's certainly been a summer of speculation for me but I have tried to switch off and get a good break after my injury.

"Saying that, when it became apparent that Villa were interested I was very excited. I wanted to come as soon as I met Martin O'Neill so I am delighted it's now sorted out.

"As soon as I spoke to the manager at the training ground, I wanted to play for Villa and I wanted to play for him. He has great ambition and wants to build a good squad to take the club forward. I want to be part of that.

"As an outsider looking in, it was obvious that Villa were a club on the up. You can see a chairman and manager who want to build great things. They have done that over the past few seasons, particularly by finishing sixth last time around, which was great.

"But once you get here and see the stadium, the training ground, the people behind the scenes and the manager with his ambition and hopes for the future, it's even better than you realised."

Downing also revealed his delight at stepping out at Villa Park in the coming years as a claret and blue troop.

He added: "I have fond memories of playing at Villa Park with Middlesbrough because we managed a few good results there. But I always enjoy playing there anyway.

"The atmosphere is always brilliant and Villa always put out a great team so it's always a test. I looked forward to going there and testing myself - it's fantastic that I'll now be playing for the home side."

Yay! So glad we got him, it's official!

When will he be injury free roughly?