Gunner 44 - 1. Race between Man U and Chelsea will come down to the wire. Arsenal might play the biggest part in deciding who gets to lift that title with that game just before Chelsea faces Man U.

2. Race for Player of the Year will come down to what Drogba and C. Ronaldo do in these last games. Right now Ronaldo has the upper hand.

3. Arsenal better wake up or they will be competing for 4th with The Coldspurs again, who will finish 5 above Bolton.

4. Relegation battle might also come down to the last games also. Charlton have a chance of surviving but I don's see West Ham surviving.

What do you think of these 4 issues?

Bobby –1. It is going to come down to more than Chelsea beating or losing to Arsenal. Although the gap is currently six points United have a much better goal difference which is the equivalent of an extra point. For the Arsenal game to mean something then United has to drop points somewhere.

2. Ronaldo gets my vote at the moment.

3. Arsenal cannot afford to be complacent but I cannot see them finishing lower than fourth. They have Bolton and Spurs coming up on April 14 and 21.

4. I agree, it looks as if West Ham have dug to deep a hole. All they can do is to focus on getting some points and hope somehow that the other results go their way.

Foxcube - I find the BBC (Lineker)/FA row fascinating. Would you add some comments? Plus what do you think of the new deal?

Bobby – 1. As someone wrote – only the FA can take a good story (a record TV deal) and turn it into a bad story. I think the BBC is trying to save face while the FA should have just said nothing. As for the new deal it only applies to the UK so in the short term it won’t affect us on this side of the pond.

oldcoach - Is it just me or do others view England's quest for a second WC as the greatest, longest running soap opera in sports? I know that Scotland must be enjoying it. Fergie defended McClaren but then added he wished they were playing Scotland next. From an objective point of view, do you think McClaren has what it takes? If not, would you run off McClaren now and give it to Venables for the Estonia game?

Should Man U be concerned about Rooney's form?

Bobby – Scotland has nothing to enjoy unfortunately. Not qualifying for the knock out stage of the World Cup in 8 attempts is an atrocious record. The FA will not get rid of McClaren because it would call into question their collective judgment to an even greater degree than it is at the moment. I thought at the time McClaren was a bad choice and that opinion remains. If the FA wanted to appoint Venables they could have done it on a couple of occasions since he resigned in 1996 but his past is still a factor. If United and Rooney were struggling then I think it would be a worry but as it is they are still getting good results and Rooney is bound to come good.

AlexMorph - Who is 1. your pick, 2. who you think will win PFA young player of the year. At first I might have thought Ces was a shoe in, except for a couple things. First, I thought it was a 21- award when infect it's 23-. Second, in yesterday's game it was said that Cesc has 0 goals in 56 goal attempts, a rather poor return for an offensive midfielder. His contribution in assists and overall play is not to be denied, but his competition is greater than it seems.......Martins, Rooney, Doyle, even Kalou for what little he plays, all having pretty big impacts on their teams this year.

Bobby – You have not included Ronaldo as an option. If he doesn’t win the Player of the Year he could still win the Young Player of the Year Award. If he doesn’t win the big one then he will get the Young Player, if he does then Fabregas will likely win. 

Henry 14 – Q1 Do you know how many goals Baptista score from open play from his 38 in 50 appearances, l would want to believe 95% were set plays?
Q2 - Now that Tevez seems to have settled in the Prem do you change your mind to see one of the big four going for him
Q3 - l am a big Lampard fan, l feel for the past three season he has been the outstanding midfielder in the Prem bar none, and still feel this season as no exception how would you solve the Gerrard Lampard conundrum

Q4 - l saw that you are showing UEFA cup why don't you do the same with CL

Q5 - As an Arsenal fan l am worried about Tottenham's form and since we have to go to the lane do you see them nicking fourth place

Bobby – Q1, I can’t say for sure but I don’t remember seeing an inordinate number of his goals for Sevilla coming from free kicks or penalties.
Q2 – No.
Q3 – If the feeling is that they can’t play together then one of them just has to be dropped. It is pointless simply hoping that they will gel. If you go back to the days of Alf Ramsey then you can find numerous examples of players who were regarded as better players being overlooked in favour of lesser players because the coach believed that it was more important for a player to fit into the team.  If it was me I would be playing Gerrard and leaving Lampard on the bench.
Q4 – ESPN hold the English language rights in North America.
Q5 – I don’t think Arsenal will finish lower than 4th and 3rd is still a very real possibility.

Foxcube - Regarding the booing fans, I don't think there is anything wrong with booing itself since I believe fans are bigger than clubs and teams and players so they are entitled to their actions. Have the England fans not suffered enough?

Bobby – McIlvanney’s piece was not about fans booing it was about obscene behaviour. 

RINGO - Do you think the rise of Gretna FC, from the English northern league to the SPL (almost), is the greatest footballing fairytale?

Bobby – It is a great story but you also have to place it into a context. It is doubtful if Gretna would have achieved what they have so far if it was not for the largesse of multi-millionaire philanthropist Brooks Mileson – the "Roman Abramovich of the Borders". Wigan is also a great story but would they have done it without Dave Whelan and his investment? That's why I think Wimbledon takes pride of place. Their run to the FA Cup Final and win over Liverpool should really be made into a movie but I am not sure who would play the part of Vinnie Jones!

atleti_female - I wonder why the English media don't rate Totti. Any ideas anyone?

Bobby – Although Serie A was shown for a number of years in the UK it only attracted a niche viewership. I think it is simply a case that many of his UK critics have never taken the time to watch him.  I have mates back home that have hardly see hm play.

Gongatore - How silly is it that people are calling for Wenger's head? Why would he leave Arsenal? IMHO he has done a fantastic job (this year, they have slipped, it happens to the best sides) and arguably one of the architects of why the EPL has become an exciting league.

How do you rate Mexes? Panucci? Taddei?

Bobby – Mexes - the French Rio Ferdinand. Panucci - the Italian Philip Neville. I should probably add that Mexes obviously has a lot of talent but he seems short on application. I can’t really explain my opinion of Panucci.

I like watching Taddei. He has been a great acquisition for Roma over the last couple of seasons.

A holdover question from last week.

henry14 - Do you agree that Arsenal should look beyond Ljungberg and he also should look beyond Arsenal?

Bobby – I think Arsenal have looked beyond Ljunberg this year basically because they have had to because of his injuries. He is reputed to be on a wage of around $130,000 a week until 2009 so I am not sure that there are too many teams lining up to sign him. He is so reliant on his quick feet and late darting runs in behind defenders but he is not up to it – at present. Given that he will soon be turning 30 then it is a fair question whether or not he will ever regain that sharpness on a regular basis.

And now for this week’s questions.
LosAngelesChelseaFan - Here’s another article that I thought made interesting reading. Terry Venables on training camps instead of friendlies. Do you have a view on it?

J3sUsD - I like to get your views on this past week’s friendlies especially the games between England and Spain and Mexico vs. United States. Were these meaningful results or were they just empty results?

Gongatore - What are the most important elements to take away from these two friendlies of last week? AND if you feel it appropriate....
Why can't the soccer media in this country address the real issues?

Bobby – I think Venables makes a very valid point and I think you will see more international managers opting for a get together rather than a “friendly”. (I would make the clubs a lot happier as well.) There is so much attention paid – even to friendlies - that you have to ask yourself what is really gained? The purpose of a friendly should be to allow a certain amount of experimentation by the manager and a chance to blood younger players. Now it is a case that every game has to be won or a crisis ensues. How stupid is it that the media and fans call for a manager’s head because a friendly is lost?  Logically the only thing that really counts is results in major competitions and friendly’s should only be a means to an end.  As for addressing the real issues – what are the real issues?

Henry14 - My first question is do you think the era of the goal poacher has gone, like the Ruuds and Inzaghi. If you look at the last ten years the best strikers have been all-round, like Henry, Sheva, Eto'o and Ronaldo. They could adapt to the different positions in games and give more to the team and you look at Fergie getting rid of Ruud while even Drogba and Eto'o now who are really good seem not to be out and out goal poachers. The other thing is l read about Harry Rednapp being linked with Spurs do you really see that happening and can you see Jol being sacked?

Bobby – I can see the point you  are trying to make but you what about other examples?Emile Heskey has been regarded by a number of  managers as a good all-round player – would you pick him over Ruud Van Nistelrooy? There will always be a place for goal poachers although most people will agree with you that Ronaldo is all-round.

The pressure is mounting on Martin Jol – increased expectations going into this season – but I think it would be foolish to fire him. As for ‘Arry taking over – I can’t see that happening. Harry seems quite particular about who he works with and who is calling the shots. I don’t think he would be comfortable at White Hart Lane.

spike24 - What do you think of Glen Little of Reading? He flies under the radar, almost nobody talks about him, yet he consistently makes the best left backs in the Premiership look completely foolish. He is an absolute magician with the ball. His ability to get down the line and fire in great crosses defies logic given his utter lack of pace, yet you never hear him mentioned. Any thoughts?

Bobby- I would agree that he has an utter lack of pace! But he doesn’t seem to give the ball away to often and plays his position well. I’m not sure I would place him in the magician class though.

Rodog - Here is a trivia question that I hope will last 24 hours. I grew up in Great Britain. I came to the US and played college soccer in the late 1980's- early 1990's. I am currently playing in the SPL (for the second time). I have played in the EPL. I recently earned my 50th cap (now 52) for my country. Who am I? Where am I currently playing? And what US college/university did I play for?

Bobby – Very good question. I have the answer (I think) but I will wait to see if anyone else can answer before the 24 hours are up.

Kirbym - What do you think are the chances of Tevez sticking with West Ham? I see that though he finds the English managing approach a bit cold, he says he is comfortable at WH (of course, I did read that in The Sun). Despite their struggles, this team is not a Watford--they're a talented side that has underperformed horribly. Should they avoid relegation, I can see them finishing much higher next season once they've regrouped mentally. Sordid implications of the third-party deal aside, I can see WH as being an attractive team for Tevez, more so than Mascharano. And it would be nice to see a fantastic player plying his trade somewhere other than the big 4.

Bobby – I read that the Actim Index currently ranks Tevez as the worst player in the Premiership. However, he seemed to give WH some jump in the second half against Watford and hammers fans can only hope that if he gets one goal he will get many.

AlexMorph - Not to kick a dead horse here, but with every article about England I keep reading the exact same thing: Lampard should be dropped for a more suitable partner to Gerrard. Admittedly, Lampard's form for England hasn't been great (and that could be the reason, who knows), but with his club form nearly impeccable clearly superior and his work rate at least equal, does all the criticism being laid on him make sense? Do you agree that dropping Lampard for someone else would actually change things? And why, if either, should Lampard be the one dropped?

Bobby – The manager’s job is to put out the best functioning side. In the case of Lampard and Gerrard I don’t think either of them has consistently shown club form on the international stage so either or both should be on the chopping block. As stated elsewhere friendly games should be the forum for trying different formations but McClaren felt that he couldn’t afford to try something different against Spain – of course others will point out that McClaren only experiments in competitive games!

Gregz - What do you think about Alexandre Hleb and Mathieu Flamini? Are they good players that bring diversity to the Arsenal team or is it that they look good under Wenger's system.

Bobby – I watched Hleb play for Stuttgart in the Bundesliga before he moved to Arsenal and he is a terrific player. He plays on the edge and needs to be right on his game, otherwise he can look awful. I regard Flamini as the modern day Gilles Grimandi. Many wonder how he makes the team but Wenger has a lot of faith in him. Remember how well he played at left back last season when Cole and Clichy were out injured? His versatility does provide the manager with a number of options as we saw on Sunday when he came on for Justin Hoyte.

Henry14 - How do you feel the Reyes and Baptist issue will be resolved, it appears Madrid do not want to buy him and Baptista seems to be settling and l for one personally would choose Baptista, what do you see happening. One more thing l feel Ronaldo is saying to Madrid and Barca come and get me and l feel he might go next season.

Bobby – I can’t see Reyes returning to London. Reyes is very talented but plays in spurts and he never looked comfortable in the Premiership. Baptista is a player that provides a couple of options. When he moved to Sevilla from Brazil he was a defensive midfield player. On Sunday when Djourou went off, Silva dropped back to central defense and Baptista dropped back into midfield. Overall Baptista looks to be a better Premiership fit than Reyes.

 Steve McClaren is making changes to the England backroom staff. We found at a while ago that former England manager Terry Venables will be part of the England coaching staff and now it looks as if Steve Round – a relatively unknown figure – will be joining McClaren's support group. Round was McClaren’s assistant at Middlesbrough and will maintain a position at the Riverside as well as performing his new England duties.

Round replaces former Liverpool midfielder Sammy Lee. Lee was offered the chance to replace Peter Taylor as the coach of the Under 21 team but chose instead to commit himself full time to Bolton. McClaren has decided that he would like the Under-21 coaching job to be a full time assignment and the cynic in me wonders if McClaren knew that Lee wasn’t interested in leaving Bolton – hence the job offer, the refusal, and now the chance to replace him.

McClaren will name his first England squad on Friday for a friendly against Greece on August 16 in Manchester. Another decision for McClaren is who will be the new England captain. Realistically it comes down to John Terry (Chelsea) and Steven Gerrard (Liverpool). Both are captains at club level and both are excellent candidates.

I think Terry will be given the nod - the position he plays might be the deciding factor - but whoever the choice it is sure to set off a heated debate.

There are a couple of other things to watch for over the next week or so. Will David Beckham remain part of the England set up under McClaren? And what new faces will be drafted into the England squad? Just last weekend a number of English newspapers tipped West Ham's Dean Ashton to be a likely newcomer.