It’s Christmas and to celebrate the festive season and their sponsorship of the Football League, npower are giving away pairs of tickets to Championship club supporters. It is the perfect gift for these lucky winners and a friend to commemorate 2010 and see their team into a successful 2011. Make sure you don’t miss out!

npower are offering you one last chance to save on your energy as they are rewarding fans for switching their gas and electricity supply to npower and paying by direct debit. For ‘real fans’ npower has launched Football Saver* for new customers – It’s guaranteed 7% cheaper than standard rates until 31st December 2011 plus you will automatically be placed into a special prize draw where you could win a £45 voucher to spend at your local Football League club shop, courtesy of npower, say for example towards a new shirt for the season. To take advantage of the offer call 0800 975 6613** quoting N570P, offer closes 30th January 2011.

npower are all about giving not only to the fans but to the local community too. As the new title sponsor of The Football League Kids Cup, they fully support the annual six-a-side competition with teams of Under-11’s and Under-13 girls played in towns and cities throughout the country, culminating in finals played at Wembley Stadium before the end of season npower Play-Off Finals.

The Competition:

Here at FootballFanCast we have teamed up with npower to offer footy fans the chance to win a Pair of Tickets for sixteen lucky home fans to the following four matches:

Doncaster Rovers v Middlesbrough – Saturday 18th December Barnsley v Burnley – Sunday 26th December (Boxing Day) Derby County v Doncaster Rovers – Sunday 26th December (Boxing Day) Scunthorpe United v Preston North End – Sunday 26th December (Boxing Day)

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All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning is to answer the following question correctly:

Which team is not in the npower Football League?

A) Crystal Palace

B) Chelsea FC

C) Cardiff City

Email your answer along with the game you would like to watch to [email protected].

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Terms and conditions:

Tickets are located in the home team stand and are only valid for home team supporters. Winning the football tickets doesn’t guarantee the automatic win of the £45 voucher. Winners of the voucher will be notified by npower by 31st Dec 2010. *Residential customers only. Offer and vouchers subject to availability. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply visit www.npower.com/shirtoffer or call 0800 975 6613** ** Calls may be recorded and monitored for training and security purposes. To view all the competition terms and conditions visit http://www.npower.com/footballcricketterms

Could this be the season that the Gunners end their trophy drought? Arsene Wenger desperately wants silverware as do the players and the fans. It’s been too long for a club of the stature of Arsenal to be without silverware. Whilst it hasn’t exactly been a scintillating start to the season, there are signs that this side are capable of winning things. Below are five reasons why I believe that Arsenal are genuine title contenders this season. Yes, there is some room for improvement, but the current state of Arsenal FC also offers a number of reasons to be cheerful.

5. Samir Nasri:

The Gunner’s young Frenchman really has a point to prove this season. Egregiously omitted from the French World Cup squad this summer, the 23 year old has started the season determined to prove his detractors wrong. It’s his third season with Arsenal, but even though it’s only the halfway point, he’s already managed to beat his personal best in terms of goals scored per season. He’s made 18 appearances thus far knocked home 9 goals – a feat that would have most strikers looking on with envy. Yet, Nasri gives Arsenal so much more than goals. He’s creative and intelligent and links up the play well. He chases back and gives 100% in every game he plays. With Fabregas struggling with injury this season, he has thus far been the Gunner’s best player. If Arsenal are to win something this season, you can bet that Samir Nasri will have played a large part in them doing so.

4. Arsenal appear to have found a 20+ goal per season striker:

Since Thierry Henry left Arsenal, they have struggled to find a striker who can knock home the goals on a consistent basis. Robin van Persie cannot keep fit long enough to support an Arsenal title tilt and Bendtner is too inconsistent. The less said about Adebayor, the better. Chamakh joined Arsenal this summer on a free transfer and has thus far endeared himself greatly to the Arsenal supporters. With Van Persie out injured once more, Chamakh has picked up the goal scoring burden and has already scored 10 goals this season, making him the club’s top scorer. He’s quick footed, great in the air, but more importantly, he appears to be the clinical player that Arsenal are often claimed to lack. If he keeps up the hard work, he’ll easily manage 20+ goals this season, a feat that might just be vital if Arsenal want silverware this season. There’s also the mouth-watering prospect of a Van Persie-Chamakh partnership upfront for Arsenal fans to contemplate.

3. The squad has good strength in depth:

Arsenal’s midfield is particularly congested with talent. You have Cesc Fabregas, Alex Song, Theo Walcott, Tomas Rosicky, Samir Nasri, Andrey Arshavin, Denilson, Jack Wilshere and more competing for midfield positions. Even Arsenal’s young talent are capable of turning matches in their favour. Particularly startling has been Wilshere’s rise to prominence. Still just 18 years old, he has been a key player in Arsenal’s season thus far. Then there is the likes of Aaron Ramsey (recently loaned out to Nottingham Forrest), Craig Eastmond and Carlos Vela – all of whom will have a role to play in the first team squad before the season’s end. Better still is Jay-Emmanuel Thomas, a striker who produces the goods consistently with the reserves. Is he ready to make the step up?

2. Arsenal are a physically tougher side this season:

Away from home, Arsenal have been able to exhibit a remarkably hard-shell. In previous seasons it has often been claimed that Arsenal were unable to deal with the physical or competitive nature of the game. “Arsenal don’t like it up ‘em”. That’s not the case this season. Everton skipper Phil Neville told the Press that Arsenal, “seem a little more resilient now”.  He went on to say “We have always caused them problems with our energy before. They haven’t been able to cope, but they did this time”. His comments came after Arsenal beat Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park. If Arsenal can show the same strength in their home performances, they have a genuine shot at the title this season.

1. Despite not starting strongly, Arsenal are still only two points from the top of the table:

The Gunner’s have let a number of games slip this season. Games against Newcastle, Sunderland and West Brom should have brought with them 3 points, but Arsenal failed to deliver. Worst still was the way Arsenal capitulated against Spurs. Despite this The Gunners remain only two points from the top of the Premier League table. Neither Chelsea nor Manchester United have really kicked into gear yet. If Arsenal beat the other contenders to the draw, they could find themselves in the driving seat.

If you’re interested and want to hear more feel free to follow me on Twitter

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Click on Giorgia Palmas below to see her in all her glory

Santos moved top of the Campeonato Paulista with a 3-0 victory over Mirassol on Wednesday.Striker Maikon Leite opened the scoring in the 27th minute to give the hosts at Estadio Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho the advantage at the break.

Midfielder Ze Eduardo maintained his perfect record of scoring in both of Santos’ Paulista matches so far this campaign when he struck two minutes after the break, before netting a second in the 75th minute.

Elsewhere, Mogi Mirim’s Ricardinho scored both goals in his side’s 2-0 dispatching of Ponte Preta.

Portuguesa brought up their maiden victory of the Paulista campaign with a 1-0 triumph over Oeste at Estadio Dr. Oswaldo Teixeira Duarte.

Santo Andre and Linense played out a 1-1 draw, while Americana beat Sao Caetano away from home 1-0 at the Estadio Municipal Anacleto Campanella.

Bragantino and Corinthians exchanged first-half goals before finishing 1-1 and Sao Paolo crushed Sao Bernando 3-0 to go level on points with leaders Santos after two games.

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Dagoberto, Marlos and Fernandinho were the scorers for Sao Paolo in their victory.

In many respects the world has got a lot smaller in the last 40 years. Transport and communication has got quicker and easier, and a holiday in sunny Europe can cost you less than a dreary break in Blighty. This mentality of looking abroad over staying in England is a mindset that has stretched far beyond your average 2.4 child family; football clubs are also employing these tactics to sign young players more than ever before.

All of the top clubs in the Premier League have huge scouting networks that can take them all over the world from Abuja to Zagreb. In 2009, then Celtic manager Tony Mowbray declared that he would be looking further afield to find players: “I am trying to expand the scouting system that is in place. We are actively pursuing all parts of the world at the moment, including South America where some players have European passports”. Clubs are increasingly finding themselves left behind if they don’t pursue these widening avenues and a new emphasis is being put on signing promising players at a younger and younger age.

There have been numerous rules imposed by FIFA, UEFA and the FA to encourage teams to develop their academies instead of spending their way to success. They have been effective in the respect that teams now find themselves with stronger youth set-ups. But many of these laws have inadvertently resulted English clubs ignoring English talent for reasons of finance and practicality.

There are two rules that are set to have a big impact on the way that football teams trade in the transfer market. The Premier League’s 25 player squad rule was implemented at the start of the season and states that teams must have at least eight ‘home grown players in their squad. The other rule is UEFA’s financial fair play initiative which will impose European bans on teams who find themselves with large debts and who do not spend within their means.

The two rules together are encouraging teams to buy young players at small prices, with a decline in the big money moves with which we have become so accustomed. Even mega-rich Manchester City said that their capture of Edin Dzeko could signal their last big money signing for the foreseeable future.

However, far from reverting back to the old days of sourcing talent from the local area it is infact proving cheaper to sign teenagers from Europe than from down the road.

When a club tries to sign a young player from another English team compensation is decided by a tribunal if the two parties can not reach an agreement between themselves (and when the selling club is reluctant to let their most talented kids leave and the buying club wanting to pay as little as possible an agreement can be very difficult to come by). A tribunal can often drastically increase the fee of a player, in 2009 Everton were forced to pay a total of £1.7 million for 16 year-old Luke Garbutt – a lot of money for a player without a first team appearance to his name.

The FA also impose a rule on home-grown players which is called the ’90 minute rule’. It states that a youth player must not live further than 90 minutes away from the club which he plays for. While the rule is meant to stop big clubs poaching talent from smaller clubs, it is widely seen as more red-tape preventing young players from developing to their full potential and discouraging the big teams form making moves for English talent.

As a result of the FA’s rule over the transfer of youth players, teams are looking towards Europe where the rules are slightly different.

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The compensation which a team pays for a youth player from a European side is far cheaper than what they could have to pay in England. If a player is younger then 17 then a fee of €90,000 has to be paid for every year of development put in by the selling club, but if he is 18 then the amount of only €10,000. It is unsurprising that the U18 sides of many Premier League teams contain a high number of non-English players. Arsenal have 13 non-English players in their U18 squad, Manchester have 13 in their academy and Chelsea have seven. FIFA has imposed a ban on the transfer of players below the age of 18, however this rule does not extend to the European Union where the freedom of movement law applies.

The battle to find the talent before it reaches its peak always been competitive, but with the new rules in place it is due to hot-up even further. Manchester City have a worldwide scouting network which costs them £3 million every year, yet City’s technical director Mike Rigg still deems his youth set-up to be 10 years behind Arsenal and Manchester United. It would be difficult for the FA to change their rules without playing into the hands of the big boys. After the transfer of John Bostock from Crystal Palace, then chairman Simon Jordan was bitter towards the tribunal system for not ordering a larger fee to be paid: “I feel mugged and brutalised, it is scandalous, and this sends a message to smaller clubs. Why bother to bring players through if tribunals cannot reflect the work that has gone in?”.

Young players need to be developed so that they can reach their potential and excel at the highest level of football. However it is difficult to do this without leaving one party feeling as if they have been ripped off, and the lower leagues need to be protected just as much as clubs in the Premier League. But until a middle ground can be reached this foreign trend looks set to continue.

Juventus manager Luigi Delneri was relieved his strikers could produce the goods in their 3-1 victory over Cagliari on Saturday.

The Italian boss had seen his side lose their past three games before the clash at Stadio Sant’Elia, scoring just twice in 270 minutes, but an Alessandro Matri brace plus a Luca Toni strike eased fears Juventus were without strike power.

“We always said that Juve paid the price for not having the right players in the right place, especially in the box,” Delneri said.

“Both (Jorge) Martinez and Milos Krasic did well interpreting their roles, but we changed to a 4-3-1-2 giving Alessandro Del Piero and Matri more freedom.”

“Do not forget that at Palermo (2-1 loss) we only had Martinez as a reserve in attack and he’s not really a forward. We should have Vincenzo Iaquinta back soon too, so it’s easier when you actually have strikers.”

“It’s not simple to win at Cagliari, so this result gives us great confidence for the future, even if we have to keep our feet on the ground. We know we’re on the right track.”

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The result created a gap mid-table in the Serie A, with Juve in eighth place on 38 points, six clear of Cagliari in ninth.

The FA Cup saved the best till last this weekend, as League One Leyton Orient earned a replay against Arsenal, and Barry Hearn will reward the players by sending them all to Las Vegas in the summer!

The Champions League is back on the agenda this week, with Manchester United and Chelsea both in last 16 action, but Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti’s job is in danger after Chelsea exited the FA Cup at the hands of Everton.

This is one of the stories making the back pages of the newspapers this morning, while elsewhere Arsene Wenger is targeting two teenagers, Kenny Dalglish is set to raid the SPL for a left back and Harry Redknapp is set to give crock Jonathan Woodgate a new contract.

Arsenal target two teenagers – Daily Mail

Kuszczak in yet another outburst – The Sun

West Ham bond on the race track – Telegraph

Ancelotti’s future depends on Chelsea’s Champions League exploits – Independent

Redknapp to give Woodgate new contract – Mirror

Emilio Izaguirre on Kenny Dalglish’s radar – Daily Mail

Guardiola plays down move for Wilshere – Telegraph

Violent scenes mar Black Country derby – Guardian

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Italian escape route on offer for Ancelotti – Daily Mail

Deschamps offered the Liverpool job before Dalglish – The Sun

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Wolverhampton manager Mick McCarthy was delighted his side could capitalise on their numerical advantage in their 4-0 win over Blackpool.Wolves led 1-0 at Molineux when prevalent Tangerines goalscorer DJ Campbell was red carded late in the first half, allowing McCarthy’s men to overrun their opponents in the second half.The win saw Wolves not only climb off bottom, but escape the clutches of the relegation zone.McCarthy said: “We started well and scored a great goal, but they had one sent off and I think that has a huge impact in the game. I know sometimes it can be hard to play against 10 men but I thought we kept it simple, we were professional and we managed to finish them off.” “Things change games for you – they lose a player who has been vital to them, in double figures for goals, teams make mistakes and players make mistakes that cost them.”Shattered Blackpool boss Ian Holloway said the defeat was one of the worst he had overseen as manager of the club, but also gave credit to their relegation rivals.”What disappoints me is I don’t mind losing but it’s the way you lose and today was probably one of the most disappointing performances I’ve seen from any team of mine in a Blackpool shirt,” Holloway told Sky Sports.”Well done to Wolves – they were terrific, they were up for it, they’ve got a terrific home record and we’ve got to get on with the next one.”

Arsenal forward Robin van Persie is a shock inclusion in his side’s squad that will take on Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Van Persie injured ligaments in his knee in the club’s 2-1 Carling Cup defeat to Birmingham just eight days ago and quotes at the time from Arsene Wenger indicated he would miss at least three weeks.

“I am not a specialist but he overstretched his knee at the back when he made the volley (to score against Birmingham),” Wenger said after the Carling Cup final loss.

“It is a ligament at the back of the knee, a tear in the ligament. It is three to four weeks, I take the short delay because I am an optimist but it could be four.”

But Van Persie has made a remarkable recovery and – after being photographed in full training on Monday – has been included in Wenger’s squad for the second-leg of the Champions League last-16 tie.

Van Persie scored to bring Arsenal level in the first leg at the Emirates Stadium before they won 2-1 thanks to Andrey Arshavin’s late strike.

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The result has set up a fascinating second-leg encounter in Barcelona, with van Persie and his fellow strikers hoping to make the most of the absence of Barcelona captain Carles Puyol and suspended defensive partner Gerard Pique.

Arsenal squad: Manuel Almunia, Wojciech Szczesny, Johan Djourou, Gael Clichy, Emmanuel Eboue, Kieran Gibbs, Laurent Koscielny, Bacary Sagna, Sebastien Squillaci, Cesc Fabregas, Andrey Arshavin, Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky, Samir Nasri, Abou Diaby, Denilson, Nicklas Bendtner, Marouane Chamakh, Robin van Persie.

Sir Alex Ferguson has reproved the decision to host this season’s FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley, in lieu of travelling “chaos” and financial outlay fans of the four northern participants will face. United’s fans are unlikely to be affected by Ferguson’s concerns, seeing as the majority of them are based in the Capital, but the Scot’s suggestion that a Manchester derby to decide an FA Cup finalist should take place at Anfield provides a farcical alternative. Albeit Ferguson proposed Villa Park as a secondary option, I would feel personally disappointed as a Stoke City or Bolton fan to relinquish a rare trip to Wembley due to travelling costs which are incurred on most Premier League weekends.

A growing concern amongst a number of fans and pundits alike is the fading ‘magic’ of England’s oldest Cup competition. In my view, the recent hosting of FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley have preserved at least some of the tournament’s gloss, as they have provided a handful of smaller clubs a unique opportunity to perform for up to 90,000 spectators in one of the world’s most recognisable venues. Barnsley fans may have been similarly content to feature in a semi-final at say Old Trafford in 2008, but the opportunity to feature at a stadium of Wembley’s prestige, however recently developed, occurs quite literally once in a lifetime for a club of that calibre.

Staging three FA Cup ties a season instead of one increases the odds for small clubs to realise such a unique opportunity, and certainly improves their chances of causing an upset as Portsmouth proved last season in beating Spurs. A regular reappearance at Wembley seems implausible for both Stoke and Bolton fans, but it is understandable that Ferguson, who has led his team out on eight occasions since the stadium re-opened in 2007, feels aggrieved at the heightened importance of such a fixture with a tense culmination of United’s Premier League and European challenges also occupying his thoughts.

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It is possible that Ferguson is attempting to alleviate some of the pressure on his squad and undermine the progress Roberto Mancini has made since his instalment as City manager. I have no doubt that City will be competing with their neighbours on all fronts before long, but next month’s semi-final affords the Sky Blues a first return to Wembley since the 1999 Second Division Play-Off Final. Two injury-time goals thrust City towards what is now referred to as the Championship just four days after their rivals had completed an unprecedented European treble with two stoppage-time goals of their own. The difference in stature provides evidence of just how far City have advanced since the turn of the century, as they are presently able to entice World Cup winning stars to a state-of-the-art 50,000 capacity stadium.

The chance to showcase that wealth of talent at Wembley and the incentive to humiliate their neighbouring adversary in front of a global audience should not be undermined by Ferguson. For City, April 16th provides a glimpse at the rewards their extensive and expensive project will soon repeatedly reap and the prospect of ratifying the Abu Dhabi regime against United at Wembley is an occasion no amount of Ferguson mind-games will dampen.

Football fans are susceptible to travel ‘chaos’ each and every weekend, but no supporter would dispute Wembley as a destination whether as a semi-final or show-piece venue. It is worth remembering that Ferguson refrained from similar rambling when, in 2008, fans of Manchester United and Chelsea embarked on a round-trip of over 3,000 miles to see their teams compete in the Champions’ League Final in Moscow. Perhaps on that occasion UEFA could have taken the logical step to re-locate the match to Birmingham’s St Andrew’s Stadium to allay Ferguson’s fear that supporters spend too much money following their clubs, but somehow I suspect the supporters would not have concurred.

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Rangers closed the gap on Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premier League to two points after a 1-0 win at Hamilton on Sunday.Hamilton’s last league victory came way back in November when they won 1-0 at Motherwell. Amazingly, they have not won a home fixture all season, meaning Walter Smith’s side entered the clash as red-hot favourites.

But the reigning champions were given a test by the SPL cellar-dwellers, with the first half almost entirely non-eventful until Nikica Jelavic scored on the stroke of half-time.

Jelavic’s strike was of the highest quality, with his free-kick from the edge of the box curling past the wall and leaving Hamilton shot-stopper Tomas Cerny with no chance.

Throughout a tense second half, Rangers failed to get the all-important second half and left themselves vulnerable to a late equaliser from the hosts.

But it never materialised as Rangers kept the pressure on their arch-rivals Celtic.

Hamilton remain 12 points behind their nearest competitor St Mirren and have amassed just 16 points in 32 league fixtures this season.