There was a devout Geordie fan with his twin 10 year old nephews, one in a Newcastle top the other in a Sunderland top! We agreed there was a lot of deadwood at Newcastle, and it wasn’t only the owner who had to go before they made a return to the Premiership but overpaid prima donnas who don’t appear to care whether they win or lose as long as they get the cash.

There was a lovely fanatical Galatasaray fan who was convinced they were going to win the first Europa Cup (formerly the UEFA Cup) and another Turkish guy, a staunch Fenerbahce fan who didn’t mind any team, as long as it wasn’t Galatasaray!

I sat at a pool side bar discussing Peterborough’s chances of a third straight promotion under the leadership of Darren Ferguson and the plausibility of a third straight Premier League title for Alex Ferguson and Manchester United with a couple of fans.  We all agreed mid-table for Posh and odds-on for the Red Devils.

Waking up at the crack of dawn to place towels on sun beds was made all the easier by morning chats with Gary, a Wigan season ticket holder, who is looking forward to the new season, watching the ‘beautiful game’ according to Roberto Martinez.  Steve Bruce done a gallant job at Wigan last season, pulling them away from the relegation battle.

We agreed the most likely candidates for Premier League relegation this season would be from Portsmouth, Hull City, Burnley & Wolves.

I also think Michael Owen will not only claw his way back into the England team in time for World Cup 2010, but a fit Michael Owen will also claim the Premiership Golden Boot.

As always I like to place a pre-season accumulator bet on winners of all 4 English football leagues and the Conference.  So here are my predictions for the 2009/10 season.

I think Manchester United will win the Premier League for a third successive season through lack of competition.  I think the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea is even more proof that Roman Abramovich is more concerned with winning the Champions League than the Premier League; and without Xabi Alonso Liverpool will not be the same force they were last season.

I really can’t predict the Championship with any conviction.  Of the teams that went down I can only see West Brom having any chance of bouncing straight back into the Premier League.  There’s a few teams that I feel confident to say will be top six – Preston, Sheffield United and Cardiff City.  But I also have a feeling Leicester City is going to do well.

Last season I thought Leeds United and Millwall would be favourites for promotion from League One.  Both were beaten in the play-offs; and I can see them doing well again this season.

I don’t profess to have much knowledge about League Two, though last season chose Gillingham and Shrewsbury.  They both made the play-off final, with the Gills winning at Wembley for the first time in their history.  I think Shrewsbury Town will go up this year but cannot ignore the influence Sven Gotran Eriksson will have at Notts County.

As for the Conference League, I am confident Luton Town will win the title by about 10 points  So, here’s my accumulator bet:

Premier League Champions – Manchester United
Championship Champions – Leicester City
League One Champions – Leeds United
League Two Champions – Notts County
Conference League Champions – Luton Town

What do you think?

Turkey once again put Spain under pressure from the start and took a deserved lead in the 26th minute with a tap in from Semih Senturk from a pass by Tuncay Sanli.

Turkey adopted the same tactics they had in Spain, closing down quickly on the Spanish playmakers in midfield almost suffocating the Euro champions at times with clever man marking. Such is the quality of this Spanish side that they stuck to the task, passing the ball well and probing the Turkish defence.

But it was the Turks who came closest to scoring another goal and but for some poor finishing would have had a commanding lead into the second half. Nihat Kahveci was guilty of wasting chances either side of half time, before Spain fought their way back into the game. The pressure on the Turkish defence was immense and they had done well to contain the Spanish threat until Fernando Torres headed the ball towards goal hitting Ibrahim Uzulmez on the arm and winning a penalty.

Xabi Alonso duly scored from the spot and Spain were back in the game. The winner came in injury time when Daniel Guiza on for a jaded looking Torres was picked out with a lovely diagonal ball from Gerard Pique. Guiza beat his man on the right wing and crossed for Albert Riera to convert.

In summary, Spain have not looked so fluid in these last two games and are particularly missing the ingenuity of Andre Iniesta in midfield. Take nothing away from Turkey though who have given Spain two fantastic games. The Turks defend extremely well but are not a defensive side, some of their passing has been sublime  and tactically they have been extremely efficient in their handling of Spain. They had the chances too, to win both games and will rue their awful finishing as they sit in third place in the group, behind Bosnia.

Possession was 50-50, but if anything Turkey appeared to have the slight edge. Considering injuries and suspensions, I really didn’t expect them to put up such a fight.

Turkey looked to attack from the kick-off which again I was surpised by, thinking they would attempt to soak up the pressure for most of the game and then attack in the last 10 minutes; a tactic they employed against Croatia.

But former Sheffield United, Brighton & QPR winger Colin Kazim Kazim-Richards beat Jens Lehmann twice, only to hit the woodwork before Turkey eventually took the lead on 22 minutes. But the breakthrough only lasted minutes, as Bastian Schweinsteiger equalised from close range.

When Miroslav Klose headed Germany into the lead after 79 minutes it really did look like the end of Turkey’s Euro 2008 experience. But Semih Senturk levelled late on and everyone was set for another thrilling 30 minutes. But Germany had time for just one more attack in injury time and Phillip Lahme was put through by a great pass from Thomas Hitzlsperger. Lahme beat goalkeeper Rustu Recber to put Germany through to the Euro 2008 final in Vienna on Sunday where they will play the winners of tonight’s second semi-final between Russia and Spain.

Tipping both Russia and Spain before the competition got under way, I now feel Guus Hiddink & Russia will be brimming with confidence and start as the underdogs, where once again the weight of expectation is firmly on the shoulders of Spain, who for me, have been the best team in the competition.

Germany 3 Turkey 2 – what a great showcase for international football. Let’s hope for another five goal thriller!