So it’s a good time to give you a heads up about a new website that is about to launch which will bring you a scores and results service covering all of the major British and European leagues and tournaments, including the Premier League, English Football League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and the Champions League.

As well as following favourite domestic clubs in the Premier League and Championship, I also follow the trials and tribulations of my non-league hometown team, formerly Gravesend & Northfleet now known as Ebbsfleet, as well as favourite European teams of which I have personal favourites in each of the top European leagues.

These passive allegiances stem from my childhood when the only European football to be shown on British television was on Wednesday nights on the sadly missed Sportsnight programme.  My memories are full of exciting  European football matches when I was allowed to stay up way past my bedtime to watch great teams with world class players and cool looking football kits to match.

Johan Cruyff and Ajax, Franz Beckenbauer and Bayern Munich and wonderful sounding teams like Dukla Prague, Panathinaikos and Borussia Monchengladbach!

I recall Leeds United losing 1-0 in a ill-tempered game to AC Milan in the 1973 Cup Winners Cup final just four days after losing 1-0 to Sunderland in the FA Cup final; Nottm Forest beating the Swedish part-timeers Malmo in 1979 with a Trevor Francis header and retaining the European Cup by beating Hamburg in 1980; and West Ham losing to Anderlecht of Belgium in the 1976 Cup Winners Cup.

I remember the glory days of Saint Etienne in the French League and how Real Madrid played in a similar all-white kit to Leeds United (only to recently read that Don Revie changed the home kit to mimic the Spanish giants on becoming manager of Leeds United in 1961!).

I also have a passive favouritism for teams with cool kits, choosing Celtic over Rangers not for any political or religious reasons but because I thought green and whites hoops looked cooler than a regular blue shirt.  I also preferred the black & blue stripes of Inter Milan to the red & black stripes of AC Milan.
So even before European football was made available on satellite tv, my interest in football spread further than the English leagues.  The English Premier League is often cited by critics and players alike to currently be the best league in the world.  But I still lookout for scores and results from the Spanish La Liga and Italy’s Serie A.

The Football Scores website will be a great source for all this information and will also include international tournaments, such as the European Championships, international friendly matches, international qualifiers and the World Cup. The website is called FootballScores.com and it launches this month.

The only team to soak up the pressure for 80 minutes and then attack Barcelona in the last 10 minutes with any success were Arsenal at the Emirates. So, yes it can be done and Barcelona are beatable.  But can Manchester United play such a tight disciplined game?

Barcelona manager, Pep Guardiola has singled-out Wayne Rooney as the main threat, and it’s true to say Manchester United have been on a role since Wayne Rooney returned to form.  But don’t underestimate the sheer brilliance of Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez who has formed a great striking partnership with Rooney which has seen Premier League top goals corer and big sulky pants Dimitar Berbatov sidelined for much of 2011.

If Ferguson is true to his word, he will name both Rooney & Hernandez in an attacking formation of 4-4-2 with Rooney dropping into midfield for a 4-5-1 when they lose possession.  The plan will only succeed if Man Utd can keep this up for the whole game and in the process saturate the midfield and suffocate the genius of Xavi & Iniesta as they look for space to feed Lionel Messi between the midfield and defence. But it only needs one sloppy pass or one moments’ lack of concentration and Barcelona can punish even the best of sides, which is what beat Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho’s plan in both legs of the semi-final.

When the two teams met in the 2009 Champions League Final in Rome Manchester United started brightly enough but were punished after just 10 minutes by a Samuel Eto’o goal and completely outplayed by the better side.  Barcelona went on to win 2-0 with Messi, the smallest player on the pitch, heading a second goal in the 70th minute.

Wembley is a fitting stadium for the final as it was where both teams were first crowned champions of Europe.  Barcelona beat Sampdoria in 1992 1-0 and for Manchester United, who were the first English team to win the European Cup (as it was called), beat Benfica 4-1 after extra-time in 1968.  That day they managed to stop the brilliance of Eusebio.  But in fairness they did have Bobby Charlton, George Best & Denis Law!

For the neutral a Barcelona v Manchester United Champions League Final promises to be an exciting open and high scoring game.  3-2 would be good. Let’s hope it lives up to expectations.

Champions League qualification officially states that Manchester City have a seat on European football’s head table; and whereas before Kaka turned down a move in favour of Real Madrid, we should now expect even more serious money attracting some of the very best players in the world.  Strange then, that Carlos Tevez should now want to make public his desire to move to Italy in the summer. A great player yes, but in my opinion, not world class.

So Roberto Mancini has achieved the goal of Abu Dhabi club owners who expected nothing less than a top four finish.  But even though Manchester City may also win the FA Cup this Saturday, I believe if Jose Mourinho showed any interest in a move to the sky blue side of Manchester, Mancini would be sacked.

Following Real Madrid’s public disapproval of Mourinho’s behaviour in recent matches with Barcelona, it has made it more likely that Jose Mourinho may return to the Premier League sooner rather than later.  He has already stated his next job will be in England.  Such a statement would sound bold coming from anyone else, but with Jose Mourinho’s reputation and past record there will always be interest for those willing to pay his price.

Manchester City’s victory last night means FA Cup finalists Stoke City will automatically play in the Europa League next season.  While Spurs may miss out on European football altogether as they drop to sixth position, two points behind Liverpool who they play on Sunday at Anfield.

Harry Redknapp has already said he will be selling a few on before buying better quality players this summer and said that might not be enough to finish in the top four next season.  I agree that Spurs are going to need to strengthen their squad if they are going to mount a serious challenge next season.  And if Kenny Dalglish continues to make Liverpool tick and is given money to spend in the summer, who’s to count them out actually winning the Premiership next season.

Liverpool have made a dramatic recovery since King Kenny took over from Roy Hodgson; and on Monday night thrashed an in-form Fulham team 5-2 at Craven Cottage to move above Spurs for the first time this season.

With two games remaining, the Premier League title race may be all but over, but Liverpool v Tottenham on Sunday promises to be another cracking match in what is by far the most exciting Premier League season I can remember.

When Sir Alex Ferguson took over as manager of Man Utd in 1986 they had won only seven League titles and none since 1967.  Ferguson went about building Manchester United into arguably, the biggest football club in the world.

Under his leadership they now hold the record for the most FA Cup wins (11) and the record for the most FA Cup Final appearances (18).  They have also won the Champions League (was the European Cup) a further two times, and two seasons ago equalled Liverpool’s record of 18 Football League titles.  In the next two games Sir Alex Ferguson will have officially taken Manchester United back to the top of English football.

Since its inception in the 1991-92 season, Manchester United have won a staggering 11 Premier League titles.  Next Saturday, away to Blackburn is destined to bring a 12th; and later this month Ferguson will lead his team out at Wembley in an attempt to win his third Champions League title (was the European Cup) and Manchester United’s fourth.

Ferguson’s rants and at times shockingly one-sided views annoy me but there is no getting away from the fact that his achievements at Manchester United are second to none.

With the semi-final second leg matches to play next Tuesday (Barcelona v Real Madrid) and Wednesday (Manchester Utd v Schalke 04) nothing is certain but with both Manchester United & Barcelona winning their away legs 2-0 it would be a very brave or foolish man to place a bet on either Real Madrid or Schalke 04 winning the second leg, let alone going through to the final.

Manchester United dominated Schalke 04 throughout the match and were unfortunate not to score four or five against a team that looked every bit a mid-table Bundesliga side.

As for Barcelona, they had plenty of possession and though Real Madrid didn’t have many chances in the first half, it was a very tight game.  At half-time tempers boiled over with Barcelona’s reserve goalkeeper being sent off!  In the second half Real Madrid continued to break up the play and fight a rough game – the kind Jose Mourinho used to complain about teams such as Bolton & Blackburn playing against Chelsea.

As Barcelona continued to pass the ball around and start to boss the game Real’s defensive midfielder Pepe was given a straight red card for a high, late challenge with one third of the game to go.  Jose Mourinho was also shown a red card following Pepe’s dismal.  As so many teams have found in the past, containing Barca with eleven men is difficult, but with ten men it is almost impossible.  The extra space and time allowed Barcelona to turn the screw on a Real Madrid side that looked content with a 0-0 draw.  But Lionel Messi’s quality eventually shone through as he scored to magnificent goals in the last 15 minutes, the second an amazing solo giving Barcelona the chance to appear in the Champions League final for the third time in the past five years.

There is no denying Jose Mourinho is a genius as far as football tactics go, but his comments after the game only highlighted how ungracious he is in defeat.  Pepe Guardiola will have the last laugh next Tuesday at the Nou Camp, while the result will possibly have Jose Mourinho looking for a new challenge come the end of the season.

New boss Ralf Rangnick has managed to take his side to the last four thanks to an impressive display over the two legs against Inter Milan, where his side scored seven goals despite registering less than 47% of possession in both games.

Despite conceding much of the possession to their opponents during their impressive Champions League run, Schalke 04 have lost only once in the tournament this season and that was on day one against Lyon.

They have since shown their resilience against the bigger clubs in the competition and their strength is on the counter attack, having racked up 21 goals in the ten games played so far.

The experience of former Real Madrid player Raul has been a major factor in the Champions League this term and along with Ryan Giggs on the opposing team, could be a key player over the two legs of the semi final.

Castrol performance data shows that Giggs has provided the assist on all four of United’s goals most recent goals in the Champions League and the veteran 37 year old has once again been in outstanding form for his club this season.

Occupying a free role on the pitch, the Welsh veteran has been instrumental in Manchester United’s Champions League quarter final tie against Chelsea, assisting all three of his side’s goals, the left-footed wizard had also assisted United’s last goal against Marseille in the last 16 stage.

The key factor for United is not to underestimate the German team, who despite having a miserable season in the Bundesliga where they are currently in tenth place, have achieved the unimaginable in disposing of some of the top clubs in Europe so far in the Champions League.

Barcelona, Real Madrid and Schalke 04 all but booked their places after first leg goal fests against Shakhtar Donetsk, Tottenham and Inter Milan respectively but Chelsea only trailed Manchester United by one goal when they visited Old Trafford on Tuesday.

Chelsea were abysmal, and the 1-0 result on the night leaves plenty of questions but as yet, no answers.  Carlo Ancelotti surprised everyone, possibly including his players, by playing a 4-3-2-1 formation, once referred to as ‘the Christmas Tree formation’ by then England manager Terry Venables.  Frank Lampard played a more advanced role tucked in alongside Nicolas Anelka behind the lone striker, Fernando Torres while Didier Drogba started the match on the subs bench!

Not surprisingly Frank Lampard had a poor game and no effect on the match whatsoever. Drogba replaced Torres at half-time but the whole team were poor.  If only they hadn’t of sacked Ray Wilkins earlier in the season Ancelotti could have brought him on to replace any one of the midfield players.

Whether or not Ancelotti is being told to play Torres, I don’t expect he will be making the decision next season.  Rumours suggest Carlo Ancelotti is going to Roma in the summer and once again Roman Abramovich and Chelsea will no doubt be looking for a high profile manager to supply a quick fix rather than a long term strategy.

Spurs on the other hand put on a great performance that left their supporters cheering them on until the final whistle even when Heurelho Gomes fumbled a Christiano Ronaldo shot for Real Madrid to win 1-0 on the night and 5-0 over two legs. Tottenham now need to secure fourth place in the Premier League to qualify for next season’s Champions League, if they are going to continue their progress under Harry Redknapp.

Manchester United have come unstuck in Champions League semi-finals against German opposition in the past including Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich, so will be weary of Schalke 04.  But the other semi-final is a mouth-watering prospect as Real Madrid play Barcelona.

Pepe Guardiola still has Barcelona playing at the peak of their game and for that reason they have remained favourites to win the Champions League all season.  However, if there’s one manager that can work out how to stop and beat Barcelona, it’s Jose Mourinho.  He managed to stifle Barca last season with an Inter Milan side that I believe were inferior to Real Madrid. And just to rub salt in Chelsea’s wounds, who would bet against Jose Mourinho being the first manager to win the Champions League with three different clubs?

I am going to stick my neck out and say I think Real Madrid will beat Manchester United in the Champions League Final at Wembley on 28th May.

Castrol Edge performance data shows that Michael Carrick was a key member of the United team in the first leg, the midfielder made seven interceptions on the night, three more than any other player on the pitch.

The England international was also impeccable in his delivery, completing 36 of his 41 passes, an 88% success ratio that no other United midfielder could match at the Bridge.

Ryan Giggs was the highest beneficiary of his passes (seven), a fact that reaped rewards with Carrick’s long diagonal ball to the Welsh wizard being the catalyst for the only goal of the game.

On a near perfect night, he also won all seven of his duels, including the two dribbles he embarked on. Physical but fair, he was the only United outfield player who didn’t concede a foul.

The question that Chelsea fans will be asking is where are the goals going to come from for the Blues if they are to beat United and progress in the competition.

There appears to be a general frustration with the contribution of Fernando Torres since his move from Liverpool, he has taken time to adjust to the Chelsea style, but he has not been helped so far by Carlo Ancelotti who has only just got his head around how best to utilise Drogba and Anelka in the team.

However, Castrol EDGE Performance data shows that no player has had more shots on target than Fernando Torres in the Champions League knockout stages this season.

The Chelsea striker has tested the ‘keeper eight times, a tally only Lionel Messi can match, although the Barcelona wizard has scored from two of those chances.  Surely it is just a matter of time before Torres breaks his duck for the Blues in Europe and Old Trafford could be the perfect arena for that.

At the moment though, he is the player who has had the most attempts without scoring in the knockout stages of this season’s competition, ahead of teammate Didier Drogba and Tottenham midfielder Rafael van der Vaart.

A goal fest for Torres or another clean sheet for Carrick?

On Tuesday Tottenham Hotspur suffered from a sore throat, a psychotic striker and a 4-0 thrashing by Real Madrid in the Bernabeu Stadium; while the current European Champions, Inter Milan suffered a shocking 5-2 stuffing by Schalke 04 who are currently mid-table in the German Bundesliga.  Both Spurs and Inter Milan had a man sent-off.

Barcelona look set to meet Real Madrid in the semi-finals after a comfortable 5-1 win in the Nou Camp against Ukranian champions Shakhtar Donetsk.  While the all-English tie at Stamford Bridge last night was always destined to be a tight game, but it was far from cagey.

Chelsea had three spells in the game where they looked threatening, the start and end of the first half and the final few minutes, where they should have been awarded a penalty for a challenge on Ramires by Patrice Evra who, as the last defender, should have received the red card.  The penalty wasn’t given which evens up the poor decision that went in Chelsea’s favour in last month’s Premier League match.

Despite constant booing and a couple of late challenges, Wayne Rooney was on his best behaviour and scored the winning goal after a great cutback from Man Utd legend Ryan Giggs.

The second leg ties will be played next Tuesday (Man United v Chelsea & Shakhtar Donetsk v Barcelona) and Wednesday (Spurs v Real Madrid & Schalke 04 v Inter Milan).

Though Chelsea beat Manchester United in the Premier League 2-1  last season, I would be very surprised if they join Real Madrid, Barcelona & Schalke 04 in the Champions League semi-finals.

In fact the Chelsea strike force has been nowhere near as potent as you would expect from a world class trio of strikers, Drogba, Anelka and Torres and the blues will be looking for a change of fortune tonight, if they are to progress.

According to Castrol EDGE Performance Analysis, Chelsea’s strikers haven’t clicked since the arrival of Fernando Torres.

Nicolas Anelka scored two goals in the Champions League against FC Copenhagen, but Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres haven’t managed a goal between them.

In the Champions League, it has not been for the want of trying as the three strikers have mustered 13 shots on target in the two matches against their Danish opponents.

But in domestic competition, it has been a different story with the three forwards managing just two shots on target between them in over 16 hours combined.

The struggle to find an effective combination is also demonstrated by the fact that they have only two assists in that time, both for Drogba, prior to last weekend’s games.

While Manchester United have experienced few problems in front of goal in the Premier League, Rooney and Berbatov have been scoring for fun, in the Champions League they have not been at their sharpest.

Castrol EDGE Performance data shows that Manchester United have struggled in attack in the Champions League this season and they will need to improve their goalscoring record when they go up against rivals Chelsea in the Champions League quarter finals tonight if they fancy their chances of taking an advantage back to Old Trafford in the second leg.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s side scored on average one goal for every nine shots in the Champions League compared to one in for every 5.6 in domestic games, and as a result have scored nearly twice as many goals per game.

Chelsea have won all three Premier League meetings with Manchester United since Carlo Ancelotti arrived at Stamford Bridge, with United scoring just two goals in the three games.

So if you are looking for goals it looks like the best bet maybe in the other game between favourites Barcelona and Shakhtar Donetsk.