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Beitar Jerusalem fans infamous in the Israeli league for their Meir Kahane inspired hyper-nationalism and racism towards Arabs an Muslims had their world turned upside down in the January transfer window when eccentric billionaire Arkadi Gaydamak (the former owner of Portsmouth) brought in not one but two Chechen Muslim players, Zaur Sadaev and Dzabhrail Kadiev. Thus breaking a proud tradition of being the only Israeli club to never to hire the enemy.

The news was met with anger and protesting fans rioted in shopping malls and hurled racist abuse at the two players during their first training session. However, Gaydamak remained unbowed and his intransigence seems to have really gotten under the skin of the nastiest of the lot, the ultras known as La Familia. The club's office and trophy room was torched in an arson attack a week ago, on the same day four Beitar fans were indicted for chanting "Death To Arabs" and "May Your Village Burn" at a match against Bnei Yehuda, a club long associated with Arab players. The club's caretaker Meir Harush in an interview afterwards talked of the loss:

"They burned the symbol of Beitar, the history of the club. People without a heart. It's infuriating and shocking," reported Channel 1.

Seven fans were taken in by the police and more are arrests are on the way.

The mindless act seems to have repulsed Israel political figures, football authorities, and the saner elements in Beitar's fan base. Even Benjamin Netanyahu, never one to shy away from cynically sticking a shiv in any ME peace accord appeared moved enough to issue a boilerplate:

"Such behavior is shameful. We cannot countenance such racism." He added, "The Jewish people, who suffered from boycotts and ostracism, must be a light unto the nations."

Of course, coincidentally enough, this remorseful condemnation came after Beitar's arson attack and not before when from the stands, this exhibition of ugly racism was in full display. According to reports, the majority of fans who appear moderate reject the most extreme elements and authorities are determined to marginalize them further. The evidence was the 79th minute introduction of Sadiyev, the Chechen player into last week's match against Bnei Sakhnin with Beitar trailing. His debut was greeted by both sides with applause creating a rare moment of unity.

There is also increasing anxiety on the part of Gaydamak, who has tried unsuccessfully to sell the club on numerous occasions and one of the factors cited in that failure is the club's unsavoury reputation. His move to recruit the Chechens might be driven by economic considerations more than tempering the behaviour of the ultras. However, this sounds like a temporary icing because the sort of virulent Meir Kahane extremism that drives La Familia is not going away. If they can resort to arson against the club they profess to love, Gaydamak's revisionism, whether pretended or genuine, is just mere inconvenience. There is also a double standard involved when it comes to Israeli racism as they unlike other associations or clubs have never been sanctioned or fined by UEFA or FIFA. Rifaat Turk, one of the best know Arab Israeli players subjected to racial abuse in every match played for Hapoel Tel Aviv during the 70s and 80s, has every reason to feel pessimistic.

A moving tribute by the Toffees to remember the 96 fallen before the Newcastle game. To the Everton fans who made this day about fans no matter where and what stripe they support. And David Moyes showing that he's not just a manager but a class act through and through:

"I applaud the families who continued to fight for the ones they loved. The outcome was nothing short of disgraceful. We have all been brought up to believe and trust in authority. The authorities who were responsible for ensuring the safety of supporters that afternoon let themselves down, as have the government parties who have been in power since. Praise must go to Andy Burnham and the families for getting disclosure."

He won in court and now he wants his handshake too? Anton Ferdinand snubbed John Terry and a bit later Ashley Cole, his co-conspirator declining to shake their hands. Lip reading Terry, he appears to say, "My handshake is better than yours, damn right!"

The Hillsborough Panel's report exposing a systematic and pernicious police cover up has in its aftermath generated a growing list of personalities apologizing for their part in blaming fans for causing Britain's most horrific peacetime tragedy. As many have put it, this was the mother of all cover ups.

Add Boris Johnson to that list along with Kelvin Mackenzie, the editor of the Sun, who earlier profusely apologized for writing 'The Truth', a planted story by the SYC, blaming drunk, violent fans invading the pitch for causing the deaths of other fans.

Johnson, London's mayor is a former editor of the Spectator and in 2004 ran this piece which lambasted Liverpudlians for barely failing to observe a minute's silence in memory of Ken Bigley, a fellow Liverpudlian, at a soccer match. Bigley was murdered in a particularly gruesome way by Iraqi insurgents and his death was televised on the internet. This indifference was traced to the welfarism infecting the city which Johnson said led to the feeling of "vicarious victimhood" that allowed fans to escape blame for their own role in bringing about the Hillsborough tragedy.

It would appear as if Johnson, like Paul Ryan, loves some Ayn Rand. Masters of our own destiny sounds nobler than fighting for JFT96. Who knows better than conservatives that trusting the people is the right thing to do, eh? But are they right kind of people? Here is Johnson's apology a week later. It is hard to find it in all the word salad of self aggrandizement and third person references. But if you have a whole day and a particularly powerful microscope. Eight years later he is a bit more clear and forthright in his contrition.

• The panel finds that a total of 41 people out of 96 "had the potential to be saved" beyond the 1515 time determined by the original inquest.

There is a now a move on for a new inquest and possible prosecutions for those involved in the cover up. A total of 116 police statements out of 164 were altered by the South Yorkshire Constabulary reflecting a deep and well orchestrated effort to shift the blame onto the fans. A group of four officers, a police spokesperson, and a local MP, fed untrue claims to a news agency of disruptive, drunken, and violent fans causing the tragedy. That narrative was picked up by The Sun who then ran that infamous article, ironically titled "The Truth."

Frank Lampard collects a brace from a spot kick and a header. Jermain Defoe combines with Alex Oxlade - Chamberlain in an Arsenal- Spurs hook up to score a third. James Milner collects a fourth after a clever interchange involving Tom Cleverley and Theo Walcott. And Leighton Baines finishes off hapless Moldova with a deflected free kick.

Cleverley and Oxlade Chamberlain caught the eye. And Frank Lampard spoke glowingly of the Arsenal youngster.

"And Alex was brilliant. He lit up the first half with his injection of pace and running with the ball. It's great to see exciting young players like that playing for England. "

Roy Hodgson starts his 2014 World Cup campaign swimmingly. David Beckham started his international career at Kishinev sixteen years ago as England won 3-0 win in their 1998 World Cup qualifiers. Pretty historical milestones, wouldn't you say?

When is a deal between two clubs not a straight deal? When it involves a third party.

Spurs found out Joao Moutinho's economic interests were not just owned by Porto but a third party investor who wanted to be paid his share of the transfer fee. It's all quite complex and the Guardian has the goods. The English league bans third party ownership. Which meant for this deal to go through Porto had to pay off the third party at their end before Moutinho could move. As a result they went back on the price they had agreed to previously and raised it further just an hour before deadline which Spurs did not agree to.

Interestingly, one of Andres Villas Boas big coups while Porto manager was landing Moutinho from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2010 which included a third party payoff and buyback. Moutinho became an instrumental part of that unbeatable Porto team that swept aside the league.

AVB probably had working knowledge of these financial transactions. Which makes you wonder did he did not press harder knowing these were the potential stumbling blocks? The Spurs manager called Moutinho's arrival impossible stating the club could not afford him.

Is it possible to be a legend in two clubs within two consecutive seasons? Robin Van Persie may just be on his way to being that. This like the other two previous matches was not Utd at its best. They are leaking goals, getting bossed in the midfield, and coincidentally like Arsenal last season, over reliant on Van Persie for their scoring. Against the Saints, they had no answer to Ricky Lambert who rose unmolested into the air to head the ball from a cross by Jason Puncheon past Anders Lindegaard. The opportunity arose when Morgan Schneiderlin reading Tom Cleverley's pass stole the ball from Shinji Kagawa and then fed Puncheon.

Utd came back as Van Persie taking advantage of Nathaniel Clyne losing his footing chested a cross and thumped it past Kelvin Davies. It was another slip this time by Patrice Evra allowing Schneiderlin to give the Saints the lead in the second half. Could this be a miracle at St Mary's? Sir Alex immediately made a double switch bringing in Paul Scholes in place of the lackluster Cleverley and Nani for the invisible Kagawa. And things improved considerably as Scholes connected with Van Persie almost immediately. The former Arsenal striker could not convert and in the next few minutes also made a hash of a spot kick after Jos Hooiveld brought him down with a tackle from behind. It's hard to characterize but RVP might have tried a panenka but instead it mutated into a ugly wobble which Davies was able to swat away while prone on the ground. The miracle at St Mary's was still alive.

Then came the game changer. Don't you love that word? It's so American. Nigel Adkins takes off Puncheon, Lambert, and Adam Lallana and brings in Guly, Emmanuel Mayuka, and Jay Rodriguez. The attacking zest is gone and the Saints now just close shop which if you've followed enough Utd matches means you're essentially going to self immolate. And that is what happened as an impatient Sir Alex warned his players tapping on his watch. With time running out, Utd forced corner after corner and from one of them Rio Ferdinand thumped a header that came off the upright and Van Persie was at hand to pounce on it. It was the 87th minute. Immediate rationalization being this would still count as a moral victory for the Saints even if they came away with a draw. But Van Persie had one more trick up his sleeve, swiveling his head perfectly to guide Nani's cross past Davies in extra time. The miracle was over.

Moussa Dembele's undoubted moment of genius was the only redeeming feature in an otherwise rather insipid, dull, and lethargic Spurs side that was hard pressed keeping away an industrious and well organized Norwich side.

The former Fulham midfielder scored a goal on debut showing his class in the 68th minute as he used some nifty footwork and a cool finish to frustrate an enterprising Norwich side who had plenty of chances of their own. Brad Friedel showed some excellent reflexes as out of position he managed to palm away Robert Snodgrass's cleverly flicked header and then the crossbar came in the way after Russell Martin thumped Snodgrass's free kick. Friedel is not going to go away quietly into that night even as Spurs sign Hugo Lloris.

Apart from Dembele's bit of improvisation the Spurs attack seemed to lack imagination and even the basic craft of passing. Often their attacks would break down as Gareth Bale got forced inside into traffic and Aaron Lennon lacked the finishing cross. Sandro made a few eye opening runs but he and Jake Livermore were fairly invisible in midfield as a quick Norwich side with more fluent passing wrested control.

Not quite sure what it is but Andre Villas- Boas might be losing something in translation or maybe his micro-managing style stifles creative expression but Spurs who were so good at home last season have two consecutive draws. They started the season with a 1-2 loss at Newcastle. For the second time, they gave up a goal as Snodgrass inflicted some late minute pain with his equalizer. There was no sign of Clint Dempsey. But he could have been a difference maker.

Having made a cursory tour of the blogosphere and the attendant media the common emotion one picks up after Arsenal's no show at yesterday's transfer deadline is that of frustration, of disbelief, and a sense of resignation that once again what seems so obvious to us is lost on the manager and the boardroom. Particularly, with Alex Song's departure, there appeared to be an overwhelming need to fill his position. Nuri Sahin bypassing the Emirates in what appeared to be a sure shot deal. Or the cheap availability of Clint Dempsey after Liverpool gave up on him and Spurs bagged him. But here again, is a reminder as to why things are different.

Arsenal are not contending for the title: Arseblog leads with the belief that Arsenal cannot really contend for the title with this squad. The reality is that Arsenal gave up as contenders a number of seasons ago and the present philosophy is to finish fourth as an ideal or as Peter Hill Wood puts its, "its not as if we were relegated", in response to Alisher Usmanov's accusations of Arsenal lacking ambition. Wenger has backed this up by questioning the loyalty of fans pointing out they are spoiled having a great stadium, a good team that gets to play Champions League football year in and year out. This is an era of reduced expectations so what exactly is the problem?

Arsenal are a selling club: Too many examples to dispute this premise. Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure, Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy, Robin Van Persie, Alex Song, are the marquee names moving out for most part attracted by more money offered by clubs with fewer qualms on spending. Fabregas is an exception, he was motivated by a return to his boyhood club for which he took a salary cut. We make purchases but not at market prices. It is a bit unnerving to think that Malaga's financial difficulties opened up an opportunity for Santi Cazorla's sale but only after negotiating for a lower price.

Wenger says he will buy but only if it is quality: When Wenger says this, he's giving himself an out. Faced with criticism of a failure to buy, he can defend himself by saying he tried but there was no one he considered "quality". It has become a mantra of his to protect himself from these recent transfer periods which are now a constant source of much angst and handwringing amongst fans. Just two days before the transfer deadline, he said there could be one or two arrivals if they happened to be of quality. Those words should warn us that there is a good chance reinforcements will not arrive.

The boardroom is invested in itself: There is a good reason to further the current policy. Stan Kroenke has not put in a single dime of his as investment but the stock of his 63% shareholding will keep going up. Alisher Usmanov will not make a move because he's a shareholder with no boardroom privileges and he is not going to invest his money till he is given assurances he can increase his shareholding for a takeover. It is a stalemated chess match and each camp is trying to protect themselves. A self sustaining model is sound financial practise but it also benefits the status quo which borders on self serving inertia.

This year Arsenal acted more decisively before deadline: Last year was just chaotic with the Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri situation eating up all of Wenger's living moments. With them gone, a fourth placed finish in jeopardy, he moved decisively on transfer deadline and did pick up some excellent bargains who played regular minutes in the starting squad. We managed a respectable third thanks to those replacements and RVP. This year, the frustration has been mitigated somewhat with the arrivals of Podolski, Giroud, and Cazorla well before and Arsenal holding well with Abou Diaby and Mikel Arteta working centrally in the first two matches till Jack Wilshere and Tomas Rosicky work their way back to give more options.

Defence, an issue shows undeniable improvement: There appears to be an early assurance to Arsenal's defense. Steve Bould's imprint shows up in zonal marking on set pieces, less panic defending long balls, more tracking output from other players. Wenger probably sees this as encouragement they can keep things close even if Arsenal take their time get stuck in with their attack. RVP and Song's loss is keenly felt but the defensive displays are proving to be the difference between frustration and outright angst. Of course, all could change with a crucial fixture against Liverpool tomorrow, Chelsea and United to follow in the next few weeks, in what could define Arsenal's season early enough.

If you ever hypothesized that the Europa Cup last season was the competition with the talent, the passion, and the more compelling matches, then you had your proof today. It was Atletico at the end looking as if it could have played another 90 minutes while Chelsea looked like it wanted back those 90 minutes, each minute more painful than the one before.

Radamel Falcao made them look like a team from Shrewington Newsbury and remember this is a Chelsea team that is exponentially better than the one that won the Champions League because they have you know, creativity now for £80m more and Fernando Torres improved version 3.7. The Spanish striker was returning to his old club for what should have been a sweet reunion but at the end was all snarly like and ready to punch every Rojiblanco fan in the face.

The Colombian scored a hat trick and each of his goals had this sweet, calculating touch. You realize Falcao is a pretty special player not because he scores a zillion goals. He is special because he makes himself available and seamless with the team.

It's not as if he has to have service at his feet, he's most happy to go to midfield or to the wing and help Koke, Arda Turan, Gabi and Adrian Lopez get him the ball which when he does, shows how he sets up with a perfect first touch. Then with a wiggle and shake, he creates space, affixes a mental map of goalie and gaps between goalie and obstructing structures or between goalie's legs, and pulls the trigger. If there were tests of visuo-spatial superiority, Falcao would be breaking all sorts of records. There are few who can do it better than Falcao. Check out his second goal.

James Collins scored a hat trick at the impregnable fortress, the Britannia stadium which saw Arsenal labour to a scoreless draw over the weekend. Seven goals were scored, three in extra time, as Stoke came back twice to level. Collins had the last answer in the 118th minute right after Peter Crouch equalized for the Potters. Later Paolo Di Canio praised his side saying they played like Barcelona at the Britannia.

Eh, what happened to the "But can you beat Stoke away on a rainy Tuesday night" that you keep hearing about?

With the clubs poised at a tantalizing 1-1 in the 83rd minute, a black cat streaks across the Toronto FC half of the field just in front of goal. In the next 10 minutes, Toronto concedes two more goals to lose the match, a CONCACAF Champions League group encounter, 1-3, to Santos Laguna at home.

Hopefully the kitty was not harmed by security although she might have left some of the fans feeling blue.

Paddy Power coming to Milan?

This weekend's loss to Sampdoria set off alarm bells ringing at AC Milan with Adriano Galliani putting in a double shift signing Bojan Krkic from Roma and bringing in M'baye Niang from Caen. The latter was also linked strongly to Arsenal in the pre-season.

Galliani also appears to be tracking Nicklas Bendtner and the Dane's agent brought up a possible loan move.

" I can not say anything but it is possible that there will be news soon. The situation could unlock and Nicklas may leave Arsenal, also on loan."

Arseblog has a run down of players who could find new homes including Theo Walcott whose contract negotiations for an extension seem to be going nowhere. It's all about money. But Walcott seems to be stuck in some twilight zone, not quite winger, not quite striker, but maddeningly inconsistent and in the two matches this season, not effective enough.

Reports from China indicate Didier Drogba and his former Chelsea team mate, Nicholas Anelka could leave Shanghai Shenhua because the club is unable to meet its wage commitments because of an escalating shareholder row. Both Drogba and Anelka earn a mind boggling £300,000 per week to play for 10th placed Shenhua.

Having watched Arsenal's final third frustrations against Stoke and Sunderland, it is clear as Arsene Wenger himself suggested, there appears to be something missing. He stated, " we are not spontaneous enough in some situations."

Well, one can't think of a more spontaneous goal scorer than Drogba and before one says he's too old, he won last season's Champions League for the Blues. If Fernando Torres has gotten his scoring groove back on it is because he's finally been freed of Drogba's shadow and it might be added, he's getting some pretty good service at his doorstep from Juan Mata and Eden Hazard.

As many more astute have suggested, goals will come when all the new parts mesh together and the old parts shake off their long injury absences. It will take time. But you cannot leave too big a gap in an unforgivable league. There has to be a brand of individuality and also tested goods in the Premiership to keep the opposition honest while Arsenal find their feet. Drogba might relish a league return to a club that he used to virtually destroy single handed. He's a player who can break a stalemate. Manufacture a goal out of nowhere. Intimidate defenses into making mistakes.

That late minute scoring chance that Oliver Giroud missed in front of goal against Sunderland? That would have been at the back of the net in a trice with Drogba. The two Sunderland defenders who snuffed out Podolski's half chance bundling him off the ball would have been sitting on their behinds. Drogba is not half bad when it comes to set pieces. Some of those free kicks are keepers and there is every chance he would have done more damage from the 18 corners Arsenal poured in those two matches.

Be bold. Take a chance. If Drogba is available, offer him a return to the Premiership to a club where he can make a difference. He's risen to every other challenge. This is one more.

For doing this. Actually, there should be some sympathy for the Newcastle manager because the ball clearly rolled out for a throw in but the linesman did not appear to be paying attention. Pardew made a more forceful "wake up" gesture than needed.

His subsequent apology will most likely have no effect. The FA is set to come down with a 3 match ban plus a fine. All this comes with a heavy dose of irony as Pardew urged his players to imbibe the Olympic spirit before the match.

FC Sheriff Stadium, a top notch stadium which stands out amongst its poorer counterparts

The NYT has a fascinating article about FC Sheriff Tiraspol, the dominant soccer team of the Moldovan league which has won the national title 11 times in the last twelve years. Well good, yes, but the funny fact is that FC Sheriff Tiraspol is not based in Moldova but in the breakaway sliver of land called Transnistria, which borders Moldova to the west and the Ukraine to the east.

Transnistria, an offshoot of the disintegrating USSR in the early 90s was supposed to accede to newly formed Moldova but instead decided to fight a war of independence while declaring its autonomy. It maintained friendly relations with Russia, creating a Supreme Soviet style government and allowing the Russians to run a military base outside of Tiraspol, its capital.

However, the soccer team is a different story, as FIFA/ UEFA refused to grant it legitimacy because of the political dispute and so instead FC Sheriff became part of the Moldovan league. Where much to the chagrin of the Moldovans, it has flourished becoming the regions best known team with a spanking top of the line stadium and pitch. It is also the only team that gains eligibility to compete for the Champions League. Their fans seemingly love rubbing it in when they win against a Moldovan side often seeking confrontation with their in your face celebrations.

Sheriff Tiraspol is owned by two former KGB agents, Viktor Gushan and Ilya Kazmaly, who made their fortune in the region in real estate and oil. Sheriff, the parent company runs everything from gas stations to supermarkets to a mobile phone network. The real owner is supposedly Igor Smirnov, the former premier of Transnistria, a godfather like figure who allegedly uses the company as a front for his money laundering operations. Unsurprisingly, Sheriff has been accused of undue influence in the political process as they have looked to support politicians who push a pro business agenda.

To that end they have supported Smirnov, an old style Soviet apparatchik but also put their eggs in other baskets including the reform minded Renewal, the main opposition party, whose former chairman Yevgeny Shevchuk came to power last December running as an independent on the platform of business reforms and a closer relationship with Moldova which was frowned upon by Russia who supported his rival Anatoliy Kaminski, the former assistant speaker of the Supreme Soviet, and now present speaker. Shevchuk used to sit on the board of Sheriff.

It's all complex and murky and tied to Transnistria's ambiguous existence, finding common cause with disputed territories like South Ossetia, Nagorno Karabakh, and Abkhazia and yet tied uneasily to its hosts through the soccer team. As the NYT article points out, the spokesperson was happy to talk about the team and their league chances but he was less forthcoming about putting Transnistria on the map or where they got their money from. FC Sheriff are now in the midst of their Europa campaign and are meeting L'OM on Thursday.

szólj hozzá: EVERTON 1-0 MANCHESTER UNITED Full highlights

Marouane Fellaini was a beast. You knew it was coming as he battered a makeshift Utd defense unceasingly with his physical presence. Utd finally broke in the 57th minutes as Fellaini rose above Michael Carrick to thump a header past David De Gea from a Darron Gibson corner. De Gea also produced a fine goalkeeping spell as he kept out a number of close calls. With this win, it is safe to say Everton is Utd's bogey team.

RVP was trotted out in the 69th minute and no, he did not break an ankle, but he did not score either. Rooney looked like he was carrying a load. But Shinji Kagawa turned in a pretty impressive debut performance. Sir Alex was forced to draft Carrick alongside Nemanja Vidic with Phil Jones, Jonny Evans, Chris Smalling, and Rio Ferdinand all out with injuries and they were mauled by Fellaini.

Watch out, this season might have some surprises at the top.

A couple of observations: This goal would not have been scored if Iker Casillas had stayed on the line. That was his mistake. But even the slimmest of chances punching the ball away evaporated after he got into the way of an out of control Pepe who launches himself with the single purpose of annihilating Jonas. As it were it was Casillas clashing heads with Pepe and coming down partially concussed as Pepe lay on the pitch with a nasty cut on his forehead.

All this happened while a blissfully unaware Jonas scored the goal with his header as cool as you like. He must have been surprised to see the body count it took after he turned around to celebrate.

His strike leveled Valencia with Real after they had gone up with Gonzalo Higuain's goal which came after a tennis match between him and Diego Alves.

szólj hozzá: Quenns park 0-5

No sympathy for QPR the second time on opening day. This time the Swans bollixed them, 5-0 as Michu got a brace on his debut. The situation got dire and then just when it couldn't get worse, great scott, they were sent clear with a fifth and final goal. Michael Laudrup could not have asked for a better start from Brendan Rodgers's old team.

QPR have not been shy spending money and being spanked like this at home cannot be too pleasing to Mark Hughes or Tony Fernandez.

No retreat, retweet

The FA has spoken. Rio Ferdinand is to be fined £45,000 for re-tweeting "choc ice" used to describe the sense of betrayal when Ashley Cole took the stand to defend John Terry in his racial abuse trial against Rio's brother, Anton Ferdinand.

There are a few ways of looking at this away from the abuse angle.

First, getting docked £45,000 for a crime by association. Rio became notorious for a force multiplier effect by picking on the "choc ice" derogation which was not even his and spraying it to a large army of followers. It became polarizing because of his colour, connection to the sport, and to the plaintiff. Otherwise it would have been just another witty observation.

Second, it serves as a reminder that even in this post racial society, one has not completely turned the page away from the ghetto-ization of race and colour. We live in a world where tribal allegiances rule and perceived betrayal is swiftly punished.

Third, this would have never been if Ashley Cole and John Terry were not such easy targets outside of Stamford Bridge. If we look at it from that point, £45,000 is a small amount to pay. Both have a long list of transgressions that left copious amounts of slime. Cole defending an indefensible Terry brought to the fore, more of that same ooze.

Fourth, there is a glaring lack of professionalism in soccer. It is getting easier and easier with the use of more powerful social media toys at one's disposal to air out instant grievances to even larger segments of population. This feeds into the second point.

Fifth, this is Ashley Cole. Choc ice? You want a fully loaded package? That's just an add on to money grubber, adulterer, liar, and diver.

Money, its a gas. Don't give me that do goody goody BS.

There are ways of ending a relationship amicably or fifty ways to leave your lover. But Robin Van Persie chose a entirely different route altogether by publicly denouncing the club and as per Amy Lawrence made some outlandish demands during his talks with the Wenger and Gazidis. It left the Arsenal manager with no other option but to negotiate his transfer. There was irrefutable evidence that the club was putting up good money to bring in quality transfers which lays his central tenet to waste.

Such statements are usually made to force the hand of the club and to kick to the curb any emotion that might cloud your judgment. No, RVP had made up his mind that he did not want a Cesc Fabregas like saga where the player had to say laudatory things to his mentor and the club that shaped him while the signs all pointed back to where he began his footballing career. It slowed things down to the point where Arsenal had literally to engage in hand to hand combat with Barca for three whole summers before Fabregas finally ended up in the Camp Nou.

The thing going for Fabregas was that he was still very young when this all began. For RVP, there is no such luxury. He's hitting 30 years of age, massively injury prone, with time running out. Putting out feel good vibes and platitudes would have put a huge degree of confusion in the proceedings, slowed it down, and then both camps would have battled back and forth with more Sir Alex like public pronouncements about how Arsenal were violating every bit of confidentiality and putting up barricades on doing business. Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs would have been inducted in the PR war. With Juventus basically shooting themselves in the foot and City not biting, the roads led to Old Trafford.

The whole situation reeked of potential acrimony going all the way to the end of transfer deadline and beyond. Then dealing with a disgruntled, menopausal striker, who if the gun laws had been less restrictive in the UK might have thought of going postal. Meanwhile all the chatter would have been about how Arsenal were afraid to cede the Dutchman to their onetime rivals. On the pitch any sign of drop off in performance or injury, faked or real would have been taken as a sign that RVP had checked out of the club. The whole thing would have led to one conclusion. It would have been wise to get rid of RVP when we had the chance and make money while at it.

We have to thank RVP for that. At least he chose to be honest about leaving the club and whether it is for trophies or money or both, he goes to a club that keeps those assumptions honest. Utd is a winning side and they have a very high ceiling on wages when it comes to their top players. We were spared any nostalgia about a rivalry getting in the way of doing good business. Perhaps Kenny Dalglish was onto something when he said success should be re-defined away from just winning titles.

What really doesn't get talked in all this while we are still beating Arsenal with a broomstick becoming a "feeder club" is how City has spooked Utd into taking such a huge risk with a 29 year old semi crocked striker who has had one and half good seasons and is sure to keep the physio staff busy overtime. A perfectly good transfer policy has been jettisoned because Utd has seen young players with perfectly inflatable resale potential bypass them. It is unsettling when a 20 year old like Lucas Moura is snapped up by PSG for £40m without even considering Utd's shiny brochure of accomplishments. You are forced to go to the market to buy some knockdowns but the market knows you might be coming and they take away the clearance sale signs. RVP's desperation to get out of the club fed into Utd's desperation to keep abreast of City. Result: Arsenal get a £24m check.