Valencia’s financial problems are well documented: they’ve had to halt the construction of their new stadium due to lack of funds—something which has fortunately been resolved this season—and the departures of their World Cup winning superstars in David Villa, David Silva and Juan Mata should have left the side all at sea with little hope of finishing in the Champions League places in the league. But Unai Emery has kept his side competitive, rebuilding, reshaping and moving impressively in the transfer market to acquire players which he believes are good enough to retain the title of the ‘second league’ in Spain. But the players entering the door at the Mestalla have not done enough to quash the demands from fans for their managers head.

Sergio Canales, despite missing a large part of the season so far through injury, gave another glimpse into the future of Spain’s midfield, as he comfortably slotted into the heart of the midfield alongside Ever Banega. The new-look centre-back pairing of Adil Rami and Victor Ruiz has done well at the back for Valencia, but it’s not been enough.

Fans are complaining of a lack of identity, a lack of motivation, and, most importantly, a lack of excitement and anything of note to cheer for. Coming third best in a league dominated by two of the biggest clubs in world football is not enough, the fans want to be closer to Barcelona and Real Madrid, rather than picking up that fictional first placed trophy for the other league in Spain and being over 20pts adrift of the top two.

In the fans’ eyes, Emery is tactically inept. Surrendering a two goal lead on the weekend to Mallorca is simply not good enough, even if it was preceded by a 4-2 win over PSV in the Europa League on Thursday. The supporters are tired of draws against the top two being the best they can hope for. While they are of aware of their limitations restricting them from overhauling Barcelona and Madrid, they just want to know that there is progress being made. Unai Emery is certainly not that man in their eyes to catapult them onto the next level.

The decision to fire Andre Villas-Boas by Roman Abramovich may be all the impetus Valencia president Manuel Llorente needed to make up his mind that Emery would be gone in the summer, with the Portuguese likely to head the list—albeit, apparently a very short one—to replace Emery.

Despite his extremely early dismissal at Stamford Bridge, Villas-Boas has not had his reputation tarnished in Spain. They understand the demands of the Chelsea job and there is still a feeling that somewhere down the road he may take on the job at one of the big two in Spain.

As for Unai Emery, England could be a likely destination; with the manager taking English lessons and the likely availability of a number of jobs in the Premier League opening up in the summer.

At this stage it would be wrong to assume Emery may be a candidate for the Chelsea job. It would be a re-working of the Villas-Boas episode, and a likely destination would be a team more inclined to offer the manager time to make positive strides forward.

It’s still unclear what the situation at Tottenham will be come the summer with Harry Redknapp keeping himself in no-mans land and not committing to either England or Spurs for the moment. But Tottenham are keen to look for managers with a higher reputation than the Spaniard, despite his excellent work over the past four seasons.

Liverpool could be a possibility, with calls recently from a minority of fans to remove Kenny Dalglish, and with the feeling from the new owner that Dalglish was never intended to be in place for the long-term. John W. Henry always wanted a younger manager who could take the managerial post for many years, with Jurgen Klopp as the front runner prior to Dalglish’s appointment. Picking up another manager from Valencia could be a positive move, as Emery has shown his relentless attention to detail and his ability to keep his side competitive despite a number of injuries to key players.

Whenever it’s questioned why Valencia fans aren’t happy with the manager they have, in light of his excellent achievements from a neutral spectator, the short reply is simply that you wouldn’t understand. Valencia’s proposed move into the Nou Mestalla in 2013 could lay the foundations for a much stronger push to close the gap on the leading two in Spain. But for now, the certain dismissal of Unai Emery in the summer maybe something they look back on as a mistake, especially in a climate where there is very little domestic or European clubs can do to stop the might of Barcelona and Real Madrid.

As Chelsea’s Fernando Torres and Valencia’s Roberto Soldado go head-to-head, both strikers could not have had a more contrasting year. 2011 has saw one of the most dramatic falls from grace ever witnessed on a football field for Torres, whilst Soldado’s stock continues to rise at an impressive rate. It’s true that there were troubling signs in Torres’ form months before he decided to swap the red of Liverpool, for the blue of Chelsea back in January, in search of ‘career advancement’. But if the striker looked to blame his loss of form and his apparent lack of appetite for the game on the turmoil that surrounded the Anfield club at the time, he was proved very much mistaken. He has somehow managed to fall even further, enduring a nightmare time thus far since his British record £50million move, appearing to have lost all self-confidence and belief which once helped him become the most feared striker in Europe. Whilst wearing the blue of Chelsea, Torres has scored just 5 times in the 34 games he’s played (in all competitions) – and has received as many yellow cards as goals.

Whilst his drastic loss of form has been as mystifying as it is blatant for all to see, what is getting even more mystifying, with every passing week, is Roberto Soldado’s lack of inclusion in the Spanish national team set-up so far this year. After all, his statistics are blatant for all to see. Since joining his hometown club in 2010, Soldado has been a goalscoring machine and become a talisman. During his first season he netted 18 times from his 34 appearances in La Liga, and this season has increased his rate, notching 9 in 15 games. His Champions League credentials are mightily impressive too with 12 goals coming from just 15 games. To look at it another way, this year the hitman from Valencia has hit the target 26 times in his past 28 appearances across all competitions; a rate that is comparable with the likes of Robin van Persie, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo – players who have been lauded week in, week out for their goalscoring exploits this season. If he carries on at this rate, surely Vicente Del Bosque, Spain’s mild-mannered national team coach cannot ignore him for much longer – and if Torres carries on at his current rate, should come at his expense?

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Torres has so far been spared the final indignity of being overlooked by the national team, but for how long can he live on past glories? It’s been rumoured in the Spanish media that the only reason for Torres’ continued inclusion in the national team over Soldado is down to his Madrid connections – where he was born, raised and captained Atletico Madrid. The argument falls down slightly when you consider Soldado himself spent 8 years in the Spanish capital, first as a youth-teamer, then progressing all the way through to the first team with Real Madrid. However one can’t help but start to think there may be something in it, as the weeks pass by and Soldado continues to impress. Of course Torres isn’t the only striker included in any Spanish squad so why should be the one to make way? Simple. The other strikers are performing. Sevilla’s Alvaro Negredo is central to everything good the club does, whilst the powerful Fernando Llorente continues to improve and impress, especially under Marcelo Bielsa’s guidance at Athletic Bilbao. With his 2011 form to go by, Torres appears to be living off his reputation – but what a reputation it is.

They used to say a striker had done his job if he scored, but that is no longer the case – and was never really the case with Fernando Torres, who offered so much more. This old adage has no relevance in Spain today, as the country who promotes the use of the false-9 formation. Strikers must do more than simply wait for a goalscoring opportunity, and the Torres of old would be one to be involved in all attacking build-ups. He was never a great goalscorer at international level, however he has scored decisive goals – including the one hailed as the most important in the country’s history; in the final at Euro 2008 which ended Spain’s tag as the ‘nearly men’.

Whilst Torres may not be an automatic first choice in Spain’s starting XI, a situation that stretches back to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, he is still being called up – and currently it appears to be at the expense of Soldado. When they met earlier on in the season, the game finished 1-1 with Torres unlucky not to score whilst Soldado hit the Valencia goal. When the two meet on Tuesday night, the protagonist maybe firing himself through to both club AND country European glory in 2012.

If you want to read more from myself including news, thoughts and views you can follow me on Twitter @fantasista1077 or visit www.footballmundial.co.uk thanks!

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Manchester City have been sending scouts to watch Valencia’s Mehmet Topal according to the player’s agent. The 25 year old Turkish midfielder featured in Valencia’s 7-0 thrashing of Genk mid week and has been on excellent form for the Spanish outfit this season. However the midfielder has a buy out clause of around £8.5m, which has alerted the City hierarchy. However City are not the only club to be interested in the Turkish international as Chelsea are set to rival the Manchester club for his signature

Topal’s agent Balti Altiparmak told The International Business Times:

“They [Chelsea and Manchester City] have been watching him for two months now but I must stress there is nothing concrete from either club. We will reassess his future at the end of the season. He is happy in Valencia and has two and a half years left on his contract.”

Whilst City have plenty of options in midfield Chelsea are perhaps the club more in need of his services. Their failure to sign Luka Modric in the summer has left Chelsea short of options in midfield; with Michael Essien injured and Mikel’s form having deserted him Topal appears a cheap and attractive offer for the west London club.

Jordi Alba is being looked at as a long term replacement for Patrice Evra

Valencia left back Jordi Alba is the latest addition to Manchester United’s transfer list, with Sir Alex Ferguson looking to strengthen his squad at Old Trafford. The Manchester club are considering Alba as a long term replacement for Patrice Evra, with the 22 year old currently the stand out candidate.

Alba has been a stand out performer for Valencia thus far this season, with his displays catching the attention of Europe’s top clubs and the Spaniard made his international debut in last month’s 3-1 victory against Scotland.

The fact that Alba has Champions League experience, as well as a blossoming international career ahead of him has reportedly convinced United that he is their man.

United may also shop in Spain for a central midfielder, as they look to find a player who can assert dominance in the heart of midfield, a quality that has been questioned in recent weeks.

One of the player’s currently linked is Atletico Bilbao and Spain international Javi Martinez, although Bilbao’s apparent £30 million pound valuation may prove a stumbling block.

Perhaps more likely is a move for Villareal’s Bruno Soriano, with any offer around the £10 million mark likely to test the financially insecure club.

After another busy round of fixtures in Spain, here is a round-up of the league that includes 13 of the shortlist of players to win the Ballon D’or.

The Big Two

No La Liga conversation is complete without reference to Real Madrid and Barcelona, and this is where our review starts. Despite surprise package Levante topping the table for the first few rounds of La Liga, their bubble has now been burst somewhat and all attention is back on the top two. Real, under the Special One are in scintillating form, scoring for fun and managing to keep clean sheets to boot. Both Higuain and Benzema are on fire, giving Mourinho the dilemma of his life when picking his starting striker. Add to this the form of Ronaldo and the resurgence of one Kaka, and the fact that Real can now offer solutions when Xabi Alonso is effectively man marked during games, they are looking more than a match for Barca.

Of course they went into the first Classico and mauling one point ahead of their fierce rivals, so Barca will not be unduly worried. However, one thing that Real have in their locker this season is the ability to grind out a 1 – 0 win – something that was lacking last season during games where teams effectively parked the bus in front of their goal and closed down Alonso. This was shown on the weekend where Sociedad literally played with a back five at the Anoeta, yet Madrid scored early courtesy of Higuain and held on for a hard fought win. Not a vintage Madrid performance but one that shows how far they have come under Mourinho.

Regardless of Los Blancos topping the table by as point, most people’s favourites for the La Liga crown is reigning champions Barcelona, who looked back to their best at the Camp Nou, with Messi making a clear signal to fans and the media with his goal celebration after his hat trick – the prolific striker had failed to score in 3 games yet after being played in his preferred position down the centre not the dreaded wing for the game, with Barca putting a grand total of 5 past a hapless Mallorca.

The Surprise of the season

Most people thought that the team wearing blue and red stripes would be the ones to top la liga throughout the season, and they have been for the past few rounds – yet it was Levante not  Barcelona doing this. Levante have been everyone’s surprise of the season and have looked to be living some sort of footballing fairy tale thus far, before this weekend being unbeaten, even being able to claim a victory over Mourinho’s men at the Ciudad de Valencia.

In players such as Sergio Ballesteros, Valencia have a core of seasoned professionals who offer much more to the team than their average age would suggest, and new coach Martinez settling into life at Levante quicker than anyone could have expected.

However this weekend the bubble was somewhat burst with a 2 – 0 defeat at the hands of Osasuna. Several things were said after the game – Martinez praised his players for their unbeaten run, the media inevitably predicted a rapid slide down the table to mimic that of Espanyol last season and it was noted that due to their small squad who are mostly the wrong side of thirty, a couple of injuries and suspensions will have serious effects on the team from Valencia. Yet should they take the lead, especially at home, Levante are dogged in their defending and whilst they are probably not going to finish in the European places, they should manage to avoid the relegation fight they were involved in last tie round.

The best of the rest

Valencia – after a  slightly slow start, Valencia are picking up pace, and have been fast climbing the table. They now occupy 4^th place after the weekend’s victory and have their eye on the third place that is currently held by local rivals Levante. After losing their three best players – Villa, Silva and Mata over the last couple of seasons, huge amounts of credit has to be given to long-time coach – well for a league famous for waving white handkerchiefs at Managers, being at the helm since 2008 is a long time – Unai Emery, who has weathered all of this and still managed to keep Valencia widely viewed as the ‘best of the rest’.

Sevilla – Currently sitting in 5^th place, there is now a gap opening up between the top four and the rest after a shock victory for Granada at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. In a season full of surprises, this can be put down to a bad day at the office for Sevilla who next up face  a flailing Mallorca side and will expect to bounce back and take all three points.

Atletico Madrid – one side who expect to e doing much better are the second best team in Madrid, Atletico, who fully expect to be sat in the top four. However, after a poor start to the season they sit 10^th, with a sizeable gap between themselves and the champion’s league places. After a good victory against Zaragoza, Atletico will be looking to this as a kick-start to their season.  With few goals scored this season and fan protests calling for Aragonez to return, the pressure on Gregorio Manzano has been alleviated slightly, yet improvements are vital.

Malaga – the Andalucians were the team that, after a huge influx of money then players, not to mention coach Manuel Pellagrini were everyone’s favourites to break into the top four this season. However this, so far, has not come to pass, and Malaga have been struggling, and were so lucky against Espanyol receiving a penalty for a very dubious handball and do not seem to be gelling quite in the way they should be.

The relegation Battle

Getafe sit rock bottom and after a heavy loss last weekend things look no brighter with local rivals Atletico up next. A shock victory for Granada gave them much needed points, yet the newly promoted Andalucians need to improve their form and fast if they don’t want to go straight back down.  The final club to occupy a spot in the bottom 3 is Racing, and the victory by a single goal over Betis cannot be underestimated in importance. Hector Cuper and his team will be looking to now climb the table, starting with the away tie at Granada next round.

Whilst Betis and Rayo have made decent starts, only 4 points separate both these promoted sides from the relegation zones, and they are still in danger and will be looking over their shoulders until a real gap is formed.

Villarreal – after a vital 2 – 0 win over Rayo this weekend, despite the missed penalty from skipper Marcos Senna, the yellow submarines have shot up the table and out of the relegation zone to 13^th.  With an European campaign still to worry about, not to mention keeping their head above the relegation zone, Garrido has his work cut out for him.

The bottom half of the table is so tight, with only 5 points separating rock bottom Getafe and 11^th placed Rayo, so anyone who has a poor run of form or can piece together a run of victories can drastically change their fortunes so early on in the season.

Game of Next round –  Levante v Valencia

3^rd play host to 4^th in a real test of Levante’s credentials. A must see.

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In other news this morning, Jerome Boateng has told his former club Manchester City that they can “forget” winning the Champions’ League ahead of their clash with his new team, Bayern Munich, tonight; Fernando Torres has thanked fans for sticking by him during his difficult start to the season at Chelsea; and Martin Atkinson has been announced as the referee for the forthcoming Liverpool derby, a fixture he was also in charge of last season – sending off two players and booking six.

Qatar’s emir ends speculation over Man Utd bid – The Sun

Boateng: City can forget about winning the Champions’ League – Daily Mail

Best friend looking to make Mata’s Valencia return “hell” – The Sun

Berbatov in line for start against Basel - The Guardian

Torres: I’ve been struggling for form – Daily Mirror

Wilshere faces six months on sidelines – The Sun

Kuyt determined to force his back into the Liverpool side – Daily Mirror

Atkinson handed Liverpool derby - Daily Mail

FA reacts to QPR criticism of referee - The Guardian

The veteran midfielder has started the last two fixtures for The Blues on the sidelines, and was not used at all during the Stamford Bridge outfit’s 4-1 win over Swansea at the weekend.

The Portuguese coach’s decision to leave Lampard out of his starting line-up has sparked speculation that he is no longer an important player in the squad, but Villas-Boas disagrees.

“The players just want the team to perform and Frank is like that,” the former Porto trainer told reporters at a press conference.

“He’s a magnificent player and soon he’ll be back into the team, sooner than you expect,” he continued.

Chelsea take on Valencia on Wednesday in a tricky Champions League fixture, and it is thought that Lampard will be brought back into the starting XI.

Latest reports emanating Spain suggest that Harry Redknapp and Spurs are already planning their January transfer moves, as they have contacted Valencia about the possibility of bringing in midfielder Ever Banega on a loan deal. Spurs, who were unusually quit in the last transfer window, have had a disappointing start to the season, winning just one of their first three games, and suffering heavy defeats to both Manchester United and Manchester City. Redknapp must believe that Banega can add something to the Spurs midfield, which looked thoroughly outclassed against both City and United, and is keen to bring in the Argentinian.

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Next up for Unai Emery’s side is a match with Romanian champions Cluj, while Hamburg start their Bundesliga campaign against champions Borussia Dortmund on Friday.

Valencia meanwhile will be hoping to still have Mata at their disposal when they start their domestic campaign against Osasuna on August 20.

A Sandro Wagner goal was the difference between Bundesliga club Werder Bremen and English Premier League side Everton.

Wagner exploited Everton‘s defensive frailties to head home the winner on 37 minutes.

Promoted Premier League side Queen’s Park Rangers had more fortune in their friendly with Football League graduates Crawley Town, winning 4-2.

Charlie Wassmer scored a brace for the new League Two boys, but QPR were too strong, with Heidar Helguson scoring twice and Kaspar Gorkss and Lee Cook also finding the back of the net.

A release clause was in place stating that La Liga outfit Valencia must accept offers of 18 million pounds before Monday, which saw Arsenal’s North London rivals, Tottenham, table a last-minute bid on Saturday.

Mata was not keen on a switch to Tottenham due to club not featuring in the Champions League, but was said to be interested in moving to the Gunners.

The clause has now reportedly gone up to a whopping 52 million pounds, although Arsenal are still hopeful they can land their man.

Fellow English Premier League club West Bromwich Albion have signed Zoltan Gera from Fulham on a free transfer, returning the 32-year-old Hungarian to his former club.

Gera made 136 Premier League appearance and scored 21 goals for West Brom from 2004 to 2008 before joining Fulham when his contract expired.

He signed a three-year deal with Fulham and starred under then-manager Roy Hodgson, who is now in charge at The Hawthorns.

In the Championship, Preston winger Keith Treacy join Burnley for an undisclosed fee while former Manchester United and West Ham utility Jonathan Spector has signed for Birmingham on a free transfer.

And Serie A club Roma have confirmed the signing of Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg, with the 28-year-old Netherlands number one reportedly joining for a fee of 6.3 million euros.