Not even close!

Saturday's loss to Inter Milan (0 x 4) just proved the point I made some time ago about how AC Milan won't be very successful this season. Ronaldinho has shown glimpses of his old self, Pato is slowing developing into a star, and Thiago Silva will be one of the best defenders in the Serie A, but not right now. The rest of the squad just doesn't seem to respond well to new coach Leonardo.

As I mentioned before, AC Milan did nothing to replace the departure of Kaka to Real Madrid. Instead, they decided to pocket 65 Million Euros instead of providing first year coach Leonardo with reinforcements. The evidence was clear who will come out on top this season, and that is Inter Milan.

All Inter did this offseason was exchange goal-scoring strikers (Ibrahimovic for Eto'o), sign Diego Milito, Thiago Motta, and Lucio. Not to mention their new signing Wesley Sneijder, who started against AC Milan and proved the world that he was worthy of staying at Madrid playing alongside the rest of the stars signed by that club. The results of this will possibly be another Serie A title and maybe even the Champions League.

AC Milan's fate are on the feet of one player: Ronaldinho Gaucho. Milan will play as he plays, but as much as I hate to admit this, I think his time has passed. I really hope he comes back to form as club president Silvio Berlusconi has put all his faith on Ronaldinho to lead Milan after dealing Kaka, but I just don't see that happening.

P.S. - Gattusso is an idiot for getting a red card seconds before getting substituted out because of an injury!!!

Europe League Draw

Group A
AFC Ajax (NED)
RSC Anderlecht (BEL)
NK Dinamo Zagreb (CRO)
FC Timişoara (ROU)

Group B
Valencia CF (ESP)
LOSC Lille Métropole (FRA)
SK Slavia Praha (CZE)
Genoa CFC (ITA)

Group C
Hamburger SV (GER)
Celtic FC (SCO)
Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC (ISR)
SK Rapid Wien (AUT)

Group D
Sporting Clube de Portugal (POR)
SC Heerenveen (NED)
Hertha BSC Berlin (GER)
FK Ventspils (LVA)

Group E
AS Roma (ITA)
FC Basel 1893 (SUI)
Fulham FC (ENG)
PFC CSKA Sofia (BUL)

Group F
Panathinaikos FC (GRE)
Galatasaray SK (TUR)
FC Dinamo 1948 Bucureşti (ROU)
SK Sturm Graz (AUT)

Group G
Villarreal CF (ESP)
S.S. Lazio (ITA)
PFC Levski Sofia (BUL)
FC Salzburg (AUT)

Group H
FC Steaua Bucureşti (ROU)
Fenerbahçe SK (TUR)
FC Twente (NED)
FC Sheriff (MDA)

Group I
SL Benfica (POR)
Everton FC (ENG)
AEK Athens FC (GRE)
FC BATE Borisov (BLR)

Group J
FC Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Club Brugge KV (BEL)
FK Partizan (SRB)
Toulouse FC (FRA)

Group K
PSV Eindhoven (NED)
FC København (DEN)
AC Sparta Praha (CZE)
CFR 1907 Cluj (BLR)

Group L
Werder Bremen (GER)
FK Austria Wien (AUT)
Athletic Club Bilbao (ESP)
CD Nacional (POR)

Champions League Draw

Group A
FC Bayern München
Juventus
FC Girondins de Bordeaux
Maccabi Haifa FC

Group B
Manchester United FC
PFC CSKA Moskva
Beşiktaş JK
VfL Wolfsburg

Group C
AC Milan
Real Madrid CF
Olympique de Marseille
FC Zürich

Group D
Chelsea FC
FC Porto
Club Atlético de Madrid
APOEL FC

Group E
Liverpool FC
Olympique Lyonnais
ACF Fiorentina
Debreceni VSC

Group F
FC Barcelona
FC Internazionale Milano
FC Dynamo Kyiv
FC Rubin Kazan

Group G
Sevilla FC
Rangers FC
VfB Stuttgart
AFC Unirea Urziceni

Group H
Arsenal FC
AZ Alkmaar
Olympiacos FC
R. Standard de Liège

Will Franck Ribery play for Real Madrid this season?

Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have reached an agreement for the transfer of Arjen Robben for 25 Million Euros. Although Real Madrid's coach Manuel Pellegrini wanted Robben to be part of his team, the club needs to sell some of their players to recoup some of the money that was spent this Summer.

There are rumors that this move is in preparation for the arrival of Ribery to the Spanish capital, perhaps this season. The German club has rejected all offers for Rivery thus far, but with the current situation of the team (in 3 games this season - 0 Wins, 2 Draws, 1 Loss), and the bad chemistry between the players and coach Louis van Gaal (especially with Ribery), this could mean that Bayern might be willing to part ways with the French international.

Bayern Munich has said they will be willing to transfer Ribery next season and there is speculation that a deal might already be in place for the transfer of Ribery to Real Madrid for the 2010-11 season, although Bayern has denied this and have said the transfer of Robben is independent of the Ribery situation.

Out of all the players Real Madrid wanted to transfer out this season, there are still 2 that will be transferred before the transfer windows closes: Miguel Torres (close to signing for Atletico Madrid) and Rafael van der Vaart. With that said, van Gaal really likes his Dutch compatriots, so Real Madrid could still make a final push for the transfer of Ribery in exchange for van der Vaart and extra cash.

Real Madrid director Jorge Valdano says Real Madrid won't spend any more money this season, but Chelsea has reportedly made a 65 Million Euro offer to Bayern for Ribery, so Real Madrid might restart negotiations in fear of losing this signing.

Unlike his predecessor, Ramon Calderon, Florentino Perez has delivered on all his promises with the exception of Ribery. To sign big name players such as Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo is hard enough, but to do it all in the same offseason is truly a great accomplishment.

Will Perez pull the trigger on the Ribery deal and really come through with all his promises in just one offseason? If he does, this team will be even more amazing to watch!

Time for predictions

Who's going to win what?
These are my predictions for the 2009-2010 season. Let me know if you agree or disagree.

Club World Cup: Barcelona

Champions League - Real Madrid

UEFA Europe League (UEFA Cup) - Valencia

England:
Premier League - Chelsea
FA Cup - Manchester City

Spain:
La Liga - Barcelona
Copa del Rey (King's Cup) - Sevilla

Italy:
Serie A - Juventus
Coppa Italia - Inter Milan

Germany:
Bundesliga - Bayern Munich
DFB-Pokal (German Cup) - VfL Wolfsburg

FIFA World Player 2009 - Lionel Messi

FIFPro World Player of the Year 2009 - Lionel Messi

Ballon d'Or 2009 - Lionel Messi

Very sad news

Dani Jarque, central defender and captain of RCD Espanyol, has passed away at the age of 26. Spanish newspapers report the Spanish player was found dead in his hotel room in Converciano, Italy from an apparent heart failure during Espanyol's pre-season tour of Italy. Jarque was on the phone with his girlfriend, who is pregnant with their first child, when he suddenly stopped talking. She informed teammate Ferran Corominas, who then informed teammate Moisés Hurtado as the rest of team felt his absence during a team meal. He was found unconscious and doctors tried to revive him, but without success.

From watching Jarque play, I can tell everyone first hand that this was a talented player who deserved all the success in the world. He was a natural leader who set an example to the rest of his teammates on how to be a true professional. From watching his press conference you could tell this was a man who was always in a good mood while speaking to reporters and really enjoyed doing what he did.

This comes almost 2 years after the passing of 22 year-old Antonio Puerta, former midfielder for Sevilla, who suffered from an inherited heart disease. Puerta collapsed during a game against Getafe, and after recovering and being substituted, collapsed again in the dressing room before being taken to the hospital. Doctors say he suffered a clot in his brain, which then triggered a heart attack due to his heart condition. All this goes without mentioning many other soccer players like Marc-Vivien Foé and Miklós Fehér, who passed away from the same undiagnosed heart condition.

The point I'm trying to make is that clubs around the world should not allow players to play until they have been fully examined and tested for various heart conditions or any other disease that might cause sudden death. These men are dying way too young from something that could have been diagnosed and treated, thus prolonging their lives. Regardless of what club they play for, big or small, every time a passing of this nature happens, it shocks the entire world of soccer. I hope clubs take the necessary measures to prevent this from ever happening again as this is a very serious problem.