Arguably the best left-back at last summer’s Euro 2008 finals was Russia’s outstanding Yuri Zhirkov. The CSKA Moscow star was in sensational form as the Russians stormed into the semi-finals on the back of a 3-1 win over the Dutch. Despite the loss to Spain a number of the Russian players impressed during the tournament though Arsenal’s Andrey Arshavin received most of the plaudits. However, reports suggest Zhirkov will be the next Russian import to the English top flight with Liverpool set to steal the left-sided star from under Chelsea’s noses.

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What an exciting end to the Championship promotion race we have in store this weekend. Birmingham looked to have sowed up the 2nd automatic spot but defeat against Preston has left them facing a tough trip to Reading. The Royals are not in the best of home form at the moment but with promotion there to be won, I am sure they will be well up for this one.

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Newcastle are a side seriously struggling for both confidence and goals and now face a really tough trip to Anfield this weekend where you wouldn’t expect them to get anything on current form.

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Manchester United should have booked their Champions League final place last night with the amount of opportunities they had to put this tie to bed.

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In the aftermath of Chelsea’s heroic 0-0 draw over at the Nou Camp, the Barcelona players have been outspoken against their opponent’s physical and defensive display. They can say what they like but what did they expect Chelsea to do? Play an open expansive game against a team with some of the best attacking players in the world? Of course not, if you do that against Barca they will destroy you.

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Miguel Veloso is set to leave Sporting Lisbon this summer with Man City leading a number of Premier Leagues for the signature of the £15m man. The versatile star has been limited to just 18 League appearances this season (12 starts) and is finally set to leave his homeland after being continually linked with moves abroad in recent seasons.

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The Croatians impressed everyone at Euro 2008 with their victories over Austria, Germany and Poland last summer. Most of the plaudits fell firmly at the feet of Tottenham’s summer signing Luka Modric. However, there are a number of players who caught the eye including Croatia’s left-sided flying wing raider Danijel Pranjic. Reports today in the Dutch and Croatian media suggest Rafa Benitez is targeting Pranjic in a summer swoop.

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According to reports in the Turkish press North London giants Tottenham and Arsenal are gearing up for a battle for the exciting young Turkish winger Arda Turan this summer. The player is expected to leave Galatasaray with the club currently sitting a disappointed 4th in the table, 8 points behind leaders Sivasspor.

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Press reports suggest a number of Serie A’s biggest clubs are vying for the signature of PSV’s attacking midfielder Ibrahim Afellay this summer although Chelsea, Everton, Tottenham and Aston Villa are also keen.

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The latest Croat star to be linked with a move to the Premier League is 22-year-old NK Rijeka midfield star Anas Sharbini. Celtic reportedly made a tentative enquiry in January month but Liverpool and Aston Villa are strongly linked in the Croatian press. The player should also be available at a knock-down £3m as his contract expires at the end of the 2009/10 season.

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