Wesley Sneijder believes Inter Milan stood little chance of progressing in the Champions League after losing 5-2 at home to Schalke.The 2010 winners surrendered their crown following a 2-1 defeat away to German club Schalke in Wednesday’s quarter-final second leg.

But the real damage had already been inflicted, after the Italian giants slumped to a shock 5-2 loss during the first leg in Milan on April 5.

“I think they played well, like they did in Milan,” Dutch playmaker Sneijder said.

“In my opinion we lost this game at home. After the 5-2, it was difficult here.”

“We have to go forward now. On Saturday there’s another game and we want to win the Italian championship. It’s going to be difficult as well, but we can still win the Italian Cup, so we can still win two titles.”

“Even 4-2 down would have been difficult tonight but, as I said before, they did very well in Milan and even tonight.”

“We created many chances from the outset. We started really well but we just couldn’t score a goal. When you cannot score it’s difficult, especially if you have to score four goals in just 45 minutes.”

Inter now face an uphill battle to retain their domestic title.

They are third in Serie A, five points behind league leaders AC Milan with six matches remaining.

“We have to forget these games,” Sneijder said.

“It’s true, we are out, but we still have a championship to win. We start on Saturday with Parma which is going to be difficult. We have to look forward.”

Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier will be absent from the dugout for Saturday’s match against Stoke, having been admitted to hospital with chest pains.The former Liverpool manager needed a major heart operation during his time at Anfield but will not require surgery this time.

Villa assistant Gary McAllister will take charge for the match at Villa Park and he said: “He is on the coronary ward. He was great and bubbly. He had a tough night but he was looking surprisingly well and in fine fettle.”

“They (the specialists) are definitely saying there is no surgery needed, which is a massive plus.”

“The last time there was major surgery. This time there will be no surgery needed, purely medicine and rest.”

Villa are likely to be unchanged after collecting seven points from their previous three games to climb into the top half of the table, easing their relegation fears.

Midfielder Fabian Delph was the only previous absentee and he has recovered from a groin injury.

McAllister was at Liverpool when Houllier required major heart surgery in October 2001 and the Villa assistant is confident the team will be able to cope as well as he managed the first time Houllier suffered a scare.

He added: “There was shock within the Liverpool dressing room and we knew there was a major problem with the length of the surgery and what it entailed. It was a big operation.

“But Phil Thompson came in and that midweek we went to Kiev for a Champions League game and it was the first time Kiev had been beaten at home.

“The players rallied and were playing for the manager and I’m sure that is what will happen here. A perfect tonic for the manager will be getting three points against Stoke.”

There have been some outstanding players in the Premier League over the years, but what ingredients are needed to make a great Premiership player? The English league is widely regarded as the league which is played at the highest tempo, so if a player doesn’t have the grit and determination required this is the league that will find them out!

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what makes a great Premiership player, as the attributes for each position vary, as a great defender’s make up will be different from a great striker’s. If I had to single out one player who optimises what it is to be a great Premiership player, I would just say the name Steven Gerrard. He has everything in his locker, I’d go as far as saying he is the complete football player. Most players have a weakness, they may be adept at scoring goals but the defensive side of their game is lacking, or they might have excellent defensive skills in terms of tackling and breaking up of play but little in the way of going forward.  For me Gerrard can do everything. He has vision and an excellent range of passing and he is a set piece specialist. His tackling is ferocious and solid and he has the ability to shoot with pure power or finesse. He also has leadership qualities and passion, desire and determination.

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There aren’t many players who possess all of the attributes required to be a great player in the Premiership and players like Steven Gerrard don’t come along very often. The Premier League has experienced a selection of players who have excelled in other leagues, but when it has come to the Premiership they have been found wanting. Juan Sebastian Veron and Mateja Kezman would fall under this category. They were players who were undoubtedly talented footballers, however they weren’t destined to be great Premiership players as they couldn’t adjust to the pace and high tempo required in Premiership football. In contrast, two players who came from abroad who did have the skill set to make them great Premiership players are Dennis Bergkamp and Gianfranco Zola. Both of these players had the ability to adapt to the pace and power of the Premiership and were still able to exhibit the full extent of their skill and football expertise.

With it being so hard to distinguish what it is that makes a great Premiership player, it ultimately comes down to individual opinions. Is it the all round game that Steven Gerrard encompasses or is the brilliance of a player like Bergkamp, maybe the abundant skill and prolific goal scoring of Thierry Henry. The Premier League is the best league in the world and while there are many great players out there, in my view to be a great Premier League player requires something more than it does to be a great La Liga or Serie A player. You only have to look at the likes of Diego Forlan and Freddie Kanoute who were average Premiership players but have gone on to take La Liga by storm. What’s your view?

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The Football Association is reportedly examining claims of a ‘bung’ paid to a Manchester tailor for his part in Gael Givet’s Blackburn move.English tabloid The Sun reported on Tuesday that a 50,000-pound payment was given to tailor Phil Black for his part in helping Givet move from Marseille to Blackburn in 2009.

The French defender initially joined the English Premier League club on loan before a 3.5 million-pound deal, but his affiliation with an ‘agent’ not registered with the FA has sparked concerns from English football’s governing body.

Givet allegedly recalled being picked up from the airport by Black, and driven to meet then-Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce.

“Phil Black was the first person to contact me, texting and asking if I was interested in joining Blackburn,” Givet said, as reported by The Sun.

“I just thought he was working for Blackburn. But after I’d signed he started demanding money, saying he was due a slice of the agent’s fee agreed by Blackburn with my agent.”

“Black kept on asking me for money. He kept saying he should have been paid and had received nothing.”

“It felt bizarre, it felt wrong and I was very uncomfortable about it, but he was very persistent. I was in a strange country, I didn’t know if this was usual – I didn’t know who to turn to. Afterwards I felt such a fool.”

Veteran Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar is determined to finish his career on a high with a win in the Champions League final.The 40-year old Dutchman already has two Champions League wins to his name, with Ajax and United.

But a third winners’ medal would be the best possible way to round-off his 21-year professional career, which will come to an end against Barcelona at Wembley on Saturday.

“If it’s a winning game then it will be the perfect one,” van der Saar

“To be fair I’m not really thinking about that. It’s an accumulation of things over the season. It starts in July with pre-season.”

“You hope to do well in the league, in the Champions League and the FA Cup and certain things fall off during the season … and luckily we won the Premier League and the only thing left is the Champions League now so all the resources and all the energy go into that game.”

United, who sealed their 19th top flight title in England this season, defeated Chelsea and Schalke en route to facing Barcelona.

It sets up a fascinating repeat of the 2009 final, which the Spanish champions won 2-0, and van der Sar said he was enjoying the build-up to the match.

“It’s a massive game and your friends and family are getting excited and everyone wants tickets and you have to sort out hotels and flights,” he said.

“There’s also an ash cloud over England, so alternative means of transportation as well. No, it’s a joy to be involved in these kind of games.”

Victory on Saturday will give either club their fourth European Cup title.

England winger Adam Johnson said the team is enjoying the lack of media scrutiny ahead of Saturday’s Euro 2012 qualifier with Switzerland.With the majority of the media spotlight focusing on the woes at FIFA, England have enjoyed a low-key build up to the Wembley match.

But Manchester City’s Johnson said the side will be out to put on an impressive showing against Switzerland – a country England have not lost to since 1947 – as they look to move clear of Montenegro on top of Group G.

England are level on 10 points with Montenegro but top the group on goal difference, and Johnson said the lack of attention was being enjoyed by the camp.

“I think it’s definitely suited the players,” Johnson said. “A lot of games before there has been a lot of pressure and build up on the team, on individuals as well which is sometimes not good.”

“Obviously it’s massive for us. It’s the last game of the season for a lot of the players – well, for all of the players. It’s one last big push before we get a break and everyone wants go into the break off the back of a big win and in a good position.”

“We are at home, at Wembley. We’ve got to win or try and win every single game we play at home in front of a big crowd. If we play like we did in Switzerland (a 3-1 win in Basel last September), we have got a good chance of winning the game.”

England goalkeeper and Johnson’s City team-mate Joe Hart said the lack of attention before the game did not bother the players at all.

“I don’t think anyone really cares whether the media spotlight is on us or not,” Hart said.

“It’s a massive game (and) it’s a massive three points for us to get that end goal of being in the European Championships.”

“England are expected to win every game. If we played against a team of 500 people, we would be expected to win at Wembley, so nothing changes there.”

“But we are just going to turn up and do our best and I think we have got enough to get those three points and go to the top of the group again.”

Manchester City have confirmed that they have reached a ten-year agreement with Etihad Airways to rename the City of Manchester Stadium. As reported yesterday, the Eastlands club arranged a press conference for Friday, and chief executive Gary Cook, along with his equivalent in the investors James Hogan, revealed the news to the press.

The Asian organisation already hold the shirt sponsorship of Roberto Mancini’s side, which is worth £2.3million a year and it is believed that the stadium rename will bring £10-12 million investment per season.

“We are delighted to be expanding our relationship with Etihad Airways through this comprehensive partnership agreement. The partnership will not only cover a shirt sponsorship extension, but also the Etihad Stadium,” Cook confirmed in the press conference.

“The wider area around the stadium will be known as the Etihad Campus. There are other elements, such as media, business and community co-operation. It could be one of the most important arrangements in the history of world football.

“Most importantly, in addition to delivering significant revenue at a key stage in the club’s evolution, the agreement creates exciting opportunities for our two organisations to co-operate more deeply commercially and on media and community initiatives in the future,” he continued.

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The club are expecting to be investigated by Uefa’s Financial Fair Play committee due to the close relationship between the investors and City’s owners. The deal has immediately sparked speculation of increased transfer activity, with Sergio Aguero and Samuel Eto’o linked with moves to the Etihad Stadium in The Daily Mail.

New Roma signing Bojan Krkic wants to put his bitter departure from European champions Barcelona behind him.The Spain Under-21 international criticised Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola after signing for his new Serie A employers on Friday.

But Krkic says he has moved on and is focused on producing his best form for Luis Enrique’s team.

“Well, first of all I’m very happy to be here. I came from a big club, but I have moved to a big club and for me it is a dream to be here,” Krkic said on Monday.

“Regarding Guardiola and Barcelona, for me it is finished. I only want to think about Roma.”

“Coming here to work for Luis Enrique makes me think a lot of things. It was because of him that I made my decision to come here and I want to thank him for that.”

The 20-year-old is hopeful of taking inspiration from former Arsenal and Barcelona forward Thierry Henry after choosing to wear the number 14 jersey this season.

After his departure from La Liga, Krkic admitted he had not spoken to Guardiola since May’s UEFA Champions League final and said he did not think the Spaniard was the best coach in the world.

Liverpool and Sunderland shared the spoils at Anfield in what was the battle of the debutants.

No fewer than 7 players made their debuts for their respective new clubs, in a game that was very much a clichéd game of two halves.

Liverpool was by far the better team in the first half and created numerous chances and although Luis Suarez missed an early penalty, was able to head home from the impressive Charlie Adam.

The penalty caused friction within the Liverpool camp who felt that Phil Dowd should have sent off Kieran Richardson for the challenge on the Uruguayan. Whether Dowd felt Suarez was going away from goal remains unknown, but it is hard to argue that this was a goalscoring opportunity that was thwarted by Richardson’s challenge. Dowd issued a yellow much to the dismay of the Reds.

Sunderland impressed in the second half and looked the much better of the two teams and scored a wonderful equaliser through Sebastian Larsson. Sessegnon’s cross was met with an acrobatic effort from the Swedish international that gave Pepe Reina absolutely no chance.

Both sides huffed and puffed in the end but neither could make a breakthrough to secure the points. The spoils were shared in a result that Steve Bruce would arguably be the happier with.

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Watching Tottenham Hotspur last season, there were moments when you could see that accommodating Rafael Van der Vaart in the side had consequences. His desire to be on the ball and involved at all times was at odds with his advanced role in the team, sitting just off Peter Crouch. He would often, frustratingly, be seen in between the centre backs, picking the ball off their toes and playing a long ball out to the wings. This constant dropping off was unnecessary. Luka Modric and Tom Huddlestone were more than capable of starting Tottenham’s moves and Van der Vaart’s constant movement was at times more confusing than it was advantageous.

So, after a season, does Rafael Van der Vaart fit in Tottenham’s midfield? Can both Luka Modric’s and Van der Vaart’s creative styles work together? I think the answer is yes, if only Van der Vaart plays with slightly more positional discipline.

In the current starting eleven both players fit well, Modric controls possession and tempo in the centre of the pitch whilst Van der Vaart drops to link with him and flood central midfield but also pushes on to feed on Crouch’s knockdowns. The only time it doesn’t work is when Van der Vaart feels starved of the ball. Allowed a free reign by Redknapp, Van der Vaart upsets the balance when he gets impatient and starts attempting to do everything on his own. Whilst Modric plays the patient, percentage, possession game, Van der Vaart likes to move the ball forward quickly. It may be a contrast of styles but it is not a conflict, the two players compliment each other well and their respective styles are well balanced.

Had Tottenham possessed a front man who could put the ball in the net, the true quality of Modric and Van der Vaart as a creative force would have been seen. Modric created 66 goalscoring opportunities last season, one behind Van der Vaart, the fact that our leading striker scored 10 (Pavlyuchenko) shows where it all went wrong.

Both players have a confidence on the ball that makes their quality obvious to see, it would be a great shame if they could not be accommodated in the same side, fortunately I think they can and I hope they will be next season. If Van der Vaart stops dropping all the way back to get the ball, and out of somewhere we find an in form striker I’ll be a happy man.

Do you agree? Would Redknapp be better off with a traditional 4-4-2?

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