Top ten derbies in world football- number 9- Ajax V Feyenoord

Known as "Der Klassiker" in Holland, this a bitter and often violent derby. Its a clash of cultures more than anything, Rotterdam is a huge port city with many thousands working on the docks. They seem to have a no-nonsense, working class attitude. Amsterdam is a more bohemian, vibrant and percieved by many Feyenoord fans as middle class.

Great clashes

Feyenoord fans remember fondly when they beat their fierce rivals 3-1 in the final of the Dutch Cup in 1980. This was the only time these two great clubs have ever met in a major final, and Petursson ensured that the trophy would be in the Rotterdam club's cabinet. Ajax fans, however, will point out this season's breathtaking 5-1 victory in Amsterdam, when Demy De Zeeuw grabbed two goals. Also, Ajax's 2006 victory in Rotterdam is a great memory for the Ajax faithful. They ran out 4-0 winners thanks to double's from Kenny Perez and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

Off the pitch

There has been a lot of violence and bitterness between both clubs but perhaps the most unforgettable was at a reserve match in 2004. Ajax fans stormed the pitch and attacked players and staff, Jorge Acuna, Feyenoord's winger, was attacked and consequently taken to hospital with head injuries. All this happened at a reserve match! In 1989, two nail bombs made by Feyenoord fans were used against Ajax supporters. This led to 14 people being injured, but luckily no deaths.

Some of the chants are unsavoury as well. Ajax are thought to be a jewish club by Feyenoord fans and Ajax have adopted this and refer to themselves as the "super jews", but Feyenoord sing "Hamas, Hamas, kill the jews", which is a reference to the Gaza conflict.

Who's top dog?

Well, between these two it has to be Ajax. They, guided by Johan Cruyff's brilliance, won the European cup three times in a row from 1971 to 1973. They have also won 29 Dutch league titles, 17 Dutch cups. They have been successful internationally and have won the European cup 4 times (which they have also won since it's been the Champions League in 1995), 1 UEFA Cup, 1 Cup Winners' Cup, 3 Super Cups and 2 World Club Cups.

Feyenoord also have a long and proud history. Domestically, they have won 14 league titles and 11 Dutch Cups. They have also been successful in Europe, becoming the first Dutch club ever to win the European Cup in 1970 when they beat Celtic in the final. They have also won the World Club Cup once in 1970. They have also won the UEFA Cup twice, and their second UEFA Cup final win over Borussia Dortmund was the last time a Dutch club won a European trophy.

In recent years, PSV have been the team to beat and both Ajax and Feyenoord have struggled to match the Eindhoven club. Ajax last won the league in 2004 whereas Feyenoord haven't won it since 1999.

Cock Idol: The Premier idiot of the week competition

This weeks award goes to... Emiliano Insua. Interesting choice I know, but we've been rather starved of idiocy this week and it has generally been a good week for English clubs in Europe, with one exception of course: Liverpool. Everyone's favourite crisis club were beaten by Wigan on Sunday, then by Lille in the Europa League. Insua had an absolute shocker against Wigan, getting turned inside out by Charles N'Zogbia (who now qualifies to play for England, you watching Fabio?). Most thought Liverpool would recover well, and beat a good side, Lille, in France. Well, that didn't happen and Insua got skinned by Lille starlet Eden Hazard time and time again. Insua's problem is he doesn't know whether he's a left-back or left-midfielder. I'd go for neither: he's a bench-warmer. We need to define idiocy here, is it poor performance?

That is why this week's runner up is Rafa Benitez. He plays Insua at left-back after all plus he probably should have started Albert Riera, who I personally believe is better than Babel in the sense that he is more consistent. Benitez has to motivate the side and looks to have failed here. The rumours of him leaving will be surrounding Liverpool's fixture against Portsmouth on Monday as they have to win to maintain pursuit of forth place.

Cock Idol: The Premier idiot of the week competition

The winner of the inaugural Cock Idol award goes to... Wayne Bridge.

The Manchester City left-back refused to shake John Terry's hand in the wake of the "Terrygate" scandal. Firstly, Wayne Bridge's ex-girlfriend had the affair with Terry (notice the "ex" prefix), which was a private matter, and then the media made the headlines. Firstly, Bridge wasn't in a relationship with the woman in question despite her being a mother to Bridge's child, and secondly Terry was the one who lost out. Terry almost lost his wife, lost sponsorship money and the England captaincy thanks to Capello's beliefs and knee-jerk reaction to idiotic media pressure. What Terry did was morally wrong, but what Bridge did at Stamford Bridge was just plain unprofessional. What happens off the pitch is irrelevant, when you step out into the limelight of a Premier League fixture a certain decorum should be maintained. Bridge was pathetic, childish and wholly unprofessional. A close second in this week's award was Craig Bellamy, whose unpopularity is well documented. The Welshman went on record as saying "everybody in football knows what the guy (Terry) is like". Well, Craig Bellamy, it is well known what you're like. Sending abusive messages to Alan Shearer, Brawling in a Cardiff nightclub and hitting former Liverpool team-mate John Arne Riise with a golf club because he wouldn't sing in a karaoke competition. As Terry himself said, "people who live in glass houses should not throw stones".

Terry the villain part two

When will England's supporters who go to Wembley to watch games do one thing: leave club interests at the door. England's "loyal" fans who boo players because they hate their club side have no clue about football. John Terry, the ex-captain, faced early boos from the crowd which were lapped up by the media as if they haven't got enough mileage out of the saga already. Club interests or personal interests are irrelevant at international level, and the booing can affect all the players' moral. For instance, what if something happens in the private life of Gareth Barry that has nothing to do with football, will he be harshly booed? is he now having to watch his back? Also, it may occupy the concentration of players when they should be focused on delivering the result plus the players may be good friends with John Terry and have no wish to see him harshly abused in such a manor. It proves that whilst many football fans have the sense to see past our sensationalist, CCTV culture, many idiots can not. Please, support the England team if you're English rather than abuse people who are committed to the cause. Terry put in an average performance as England were under par, particularly in the first half, against Egypt. In the end it took fantastic substitutions as Capello threw on Wright-Phillips and Crouch. Crouch grabbed a brace, one of which was set up by Shaun Wright-Phillips, who got the third.

Mourinho's team get win

Inter Milan claimed the 2-1 win in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League first knock-out phase. Inter, now managed by former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, surprised Chelsea in the 3rd minute as Argentine striker Gabriel Milito beat Petr Cech at his near post. Milito's strike embarrassed both John Terry and Petr Cech, who should have done better to prevent the goal. Chelsea stepped up soon after and dominated possession, and saw a Drogba free-kick strike the bar. Chelsea eventually got the equaliser in the 51st minute through Saloman Kalou, who up until this point had an absolute shocker and constantly gave the ball away. Kalou was, however, the victim of a terrible refereeing decision when he was brought down just before half time by Inter's Walter Samuel. Esteban Cambiasso scored a fantastic long range effort in the 55th minute to give Inter the lead. Chelsea faced an even bigger problem when Petr Cech fell awkwardly and had to go off. It is now confirmed that he will be out for a month, which could effect the rest of Chelsea's season. Chelsea had the better of the game but Inter were resolute and held on. All eyes will be on the Mourinho's return to Stanford Bridge in three weeks.

Fulham shock Europe

Fulham did the impossible to claim a 1-1 draw in Donetsk against the mighty Shakhtar. if last weeks win was the start of a possible giant killing, this is where it finished. It was a huge scalp as the stylish football Shakhtar played proved lacking in substance, and Fulham's stubborn resistance paid off. This will raise eyebrows throughout Europe as the winners of last years tournament couldn't break the West London side down. Fulham had a shock 2-1 lead from the first leg and Shakhtar were expected to easily beat Roy Hodgson's team. Brede Hangeland sent Fulham into the lead in Donetsk in the 33rd minute and although the magnificent Jadson equalised, the Ukrainian giants couldn't get the winner. Fulham went down to 10 men in the last minute with Danny Murphy being sent off, ensuring a few nervous moments but Fulham held on. The story here is the same as last week, being an excellent side is not enough, you have to go out and play and over the two legs Shakhtar were arrogant, expecting to score at will. This ultimately proved to be their undoing.

Credit where credit is due

As we prepare to see the weekend's action, it is important to take note of what happened in the Europa League clash between Fulham and Shakhtar Donetsk. This contest was not just a great advert for the newly-branded Europa League, but a great advert for cup football in general.

Shakhtar are the current holders of the trophy and beat teams such as Tottenham, CSKA Moscow, Marseille and bitter rivals Dynamo Kiev in their run up to last seasons final in Istanbul. They then beat a very good Werder Bremen team in the final. Shakhtar's team consists of 8 Brazilians in the first team, making them similar in their approach to Arsenal in generally relying on foreign talent. Luiz Adriano is among the most notable, he is one of Europe's top emerging talents with 8 goals in 23 games in the Ukrainian Premier League. The Ukrainians boast an excellent squad overall with Jadson, Darijo Srna, Razvan Rat and Wilian.

They arrived at Craven Cottage as hot favourites to beat a decent, if lesser, side in Fulham. Fulham showed they were no pushovers and took the lead early on. When Shakhtar equalised, it look as though an upset would not occur. The Ukrainians moved the ball about beautifully and it was no surprise when Adriano, who will no doubt go on to be an even bigger star, scored. Zamora's stunner which won Fulham the match was an amazing individual effort, but crucially it reflected the grit and determination of a unit. It showed to us that no European Competition is always going to be dominated totally 100% by richer clubs. It showed what cup football is all about, the drama and the shocks and showed that the Europa League is not necessarily much worse in quality than the converted Champions' League.

All in all, Shakhtar should beat Fulham well on home turf but the West London club have certainly given the rich boys something to think about with their win.

The January Sales!

The Main Moves

The transfer market threw up some surprising transfers over January. Perhaps the most surprising was that of Sol Campbell to Arsenal. It seems strange that Arsene Wenger would sign a 35 year-old ex-England international. This is a man who has in the past seemingly refused to sign an experienced centre-back and instead putting his faith in younger, inexperienced defenders. However, now he has brought back old favourite Sol Campbell, an experienced defender who, of course, recently had a strange spell with minnows Notts County in League Two. Now, signing an experienced centre back would normally imply that the defender is still able to play at the very top and has international and experience of playing in Europe. Sol Campbell is not experienced in a positive way. He is too old and washed-up, incapable of competing at the very top now due partly to a lack of pace. Wenger may have got Campbell on a free but there is a reason why he hasn't had to fend of competition from the other "big four" clubs. He is simply not the same player from 4 or 5 years ago and it would be unfair to expect him to be. Sorry Mr Wenger, you got it wrong again.

All eyes were on one club in this transfer window: Manchester City. Robinho was finally allowed to sulk all the way back to Brazil, where he could see the sun again and play for former club Santos on loan. City also attempted to sign Fernando Gago from Real Madrid. Unfortunately for City, Gago stayed in Madrid. They also moved for Kenyan international Macdonald Mariga. A fee and personal terms were agreed but Mariga could not get a work permit, but was sold anyway, to Inter Milan. City signed a quality young player when Adam Johnson arrived from Middlesbrough for around £10 million. With tremendous talent, Johnson will be an excellent signing should he break into the first team.

Before the Johnson move, City managed to tempt former Arsenal hardman Patrick Vieira back to the Premier League from Inter Milan. Vieira was apparently frustrated at the lack of first-team oppotunities at Inter this season. He joined initially for six months with the option of a further year. Rumours suggested the 33 year-old is earning a staggering £150,000 a week! a huge amount for a midfielder in the autumn years of his career.

One of the most active clubs were Celtic, who tempted Robbie Keane to Parkhead on loan. The signing of Keane may have been galvanised by the bust up with Harry Redknapp following the Tottenham squad going to Dublin for a forbidden Christmas party. Celtic also managed to sign Dutch International left-back Edson Braafheid on loan from Bayern Munich and Diomansy Kamara from Fulham, also on loan. Braafheid is a first-class full-back with both attacking and defensive qualities, and can also play as a centre-back. He could well be the first-choice left-back for Holland at the World Cup.

Younes Kaboul and former Chelsea and Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen were the major signings at Tottenham during the transfer window. Kaboul returns to his former club from Portsmouth. He will be a good signing as Tottenham need cover for injury-prone defenders Ledley King and Jonathan Woodgate.

Gudjohnsen also made an excellent decision in moving to Tottenham. At Monaco he had a falling out with manager Guy Lacombe and ran the risk of being a forgotten man. This move will provide him with a chance to finish where he left off, scoring goals in the Premier League. It has also worked out nicely for the Icelandic star as there is even more chance of playing regularly with Robbie Keane being loaned to Celtic. Gudjohnsen was criticised by former team mate Gianfranco Zola for not signing for his West Ham side. Zola said he was "disappointed with Spurs and disappointed with Gudjohnsen" after Gudjohnsen had a medical with West Ham then promptly signed for London rivals Tottenham. Ok, so Gudjohnsen's ethics can be criticised but it was a good move for his career and therefore the correct decision.

Top Transfer

The swoop of the month was Wigan Athletic's move for Crystal Palace forward Victor Moses. The young starlet made his switch to Premier League Wigan for just £2.5 million, with Crystal Palace badly needing to offload their star player as the financial crisis continues at Selhurst Park. Although other clubs like Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and West Brom were serious contenders for his signature, there was also apparent interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid. The England Under 19 international is a terrific talent and should really shine at Wigan, who previously lacked a player who could provide the perfect foil for current star striker Hugo Rodallega. Wigan also signed striker Marcelo Moreno from Shaktar Donetsk on loan and with Moreno, Rodellega and Moses up front, should score many more goals in the second half of the season.

Lack of New Articles

Due to my serious illness recently I have been unable to write any new articles. Now I have recovered, THE Football Space can continue.