And it’s back to the hustle and bustle of the Premier League this weekend, and all your favorite plots, subplots, rumors, loved and hated individuals will all come alive again on your TV screens. Oh such is the life we lead, emotions tossed to and fro among the waves of this soap opera we call the Barclay’s Premier League.

This weekend, among the top fixtures is Liverpool vs Wigan. The Reds are eager to continue their improving form under hero/manager Kenny Dalglish, while Wigan seem content in mid-table notoriety — albeit with the off chance of picking off a win.

Liverpool vs Wigan football odds

Liverpool – 1.41

Wigan – 10.5

Draw – 5.1

Kenny Dalglish needs Steven Gerrard to be healthy for any chance of extending their good run of form

Dalglish has revealed (O captain, my Captain) Steven Gerrard — now back to his status as the undisputed heart and soul of this Liverpool team — is continuing to receive treatment on his groin injury and Liverpool will leave it late before making a decision on the participation of their captain against Wigan.

Gerrard played 90 minutes in their win against Chelsea at the weekend, but was left out of England‘s friendly with Denmark on Wednesday after reporting discomfort in his groin. The problem is not felt to be serious, but Dalglish will not take any risks with his captain. Liverpool are at an interesting point in this years campaign where an extended run of good form might actually give them a chance to secure European places. This is a far cry from early season where they languished in and around the relegation area.

Such has been the effect of the iconic Dalglish that they have even seemingly survived the loss of Fernando Torres. To lose Gerrard to further injury at this point would be no less than a tragedy, so the cautious approach always seems best at this point.

Of the earlier signing of a certain Joe Cole, Dalglish says that his fitness and form has been a worry for Liverpool since his switch from Chelsea, but he is still convinced the midfielder has a future Anfield.

He added: “He’s had a couple of injuries. Obviously he got off to a bad start when he got sent off in the first game. He lost a bit of the momentum he gained. He’s picked up a few injuries after training very well here and then just tweaked his knee a bit.

Of a certain Andy Carroll, he admits there is still no date set for his return from injury. Carroll has not played since December after picking up a thigh strain, which was initially only expected to keep him out of action for a couple of weeks. He missed five matches for Newcastle in January, but his injury was not enough to deter the Reds, who paid £35 million for him on transfer deadline day.

Luis Suarez may be available, at least that signing is poised to try and reap early dividends for Liverpool. Whatever the case, Liverpool vs Wigan odds still have the Reds highly tipped for a win. Agian as we always say with the Premier League, you never really know.

A glut of international friendlies this midweek means we get to see how teams are prepping for their own continental tournaments and what kind of shape they’re in, basically. And one of the picks of the lot was a friendly between a pair of teams desperately Argentina needing to rebound from totally uneventful World Cup campaigns – Argentina and Portugal.

The fact that they had in their teams arguably the 2 top players in the world only served to fuel the excitement, even though it was still just a friendly. That the sold-out clash at the Stade de Geneve in Switzerland turned out to be so much more besides is a fine answer to those who think international friendlies are just a waste of time.

Gijon vs Barcelona football odds

Gijon – 19.5

Barca – 1.2

Draw – 8.2

Lionel Messi, in fine form for Barcelona, provided the punctuation for this Argentina win

Lionel Messi‘s last-gasp strike lifted Argentina to a battling win. In a game featuring two of the planet’s best players in world player of the year Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, it was the Argentinian who took home street cred and bragging rights as he slotted home a penalty in the final minute.

It was not by all means a one-sided game. Real Madrid winger Angel Di Maria fired Argentina ahead in the 14th minute — it took less than a quarter of an hour for Messi to unlock the Portugal defence as he moved from the right wing into a central position where he provided a simple, one-on-one opportunity for Di Maria who slotted home.

Just seven minutes later, though, Portugal replied through none other than Ronaldo. Nani, who was looking dangerous the whole half on the wing, crossed from the left, Hugo Almeida got his head to ball and Ronaldo pounced to send it past Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero. Ronaldo almost scored again just two minutes later but he sent his long-range shot just wide.

In the latter stages of the game, once wholesale substitutions were made, Argentina began to dominate. Faustino Rojo failed to convert Ezequiel Lavezzi‘s cross before Javier Pastore was close with a header after Messi’s free-kick had hit the bar with a little over five minutes to go.

Messi, on the last minute, was not to be denied and Argentina were awarded a penalty when Coentrao was fouled in the area by Juan Manuel Martinez. Messi sent a shot to the right of the keeper and sealed a hard-earned victory.

Though they lost, the result was not indicative of the revival and togetherness that has swept through the Portugal national team since Carlos Quieroz was sacked. It was unfortunate that they lost, but they look to be a force to reckon with when the EURO tournament begins. It will be back to the Spanish league for Ronaldo this weekend, where it is Real Madrid vs Espanyol, betting odds not reflecting what a tricky outing this could be for the Madridistas.

Once again Arsenal have proven that statement which most people seem to say of them lately — “With Arsenal, you never really know.”

And with Newcastle, well whaddaya know? From losing Andy Carroll to coming back from 4 goals down is a pretty cool turnaround. And to top that, midfielder Cheik Tiote‘s first goal in English football secured an amazing point for the Magpies as they fought back from 4-0 down against a 10-man Arsenal.

Arsenal vs Wolves football odds

Arsenal – 1.27

Wolves – 16

Draw – 6.4

Cheik Tiote fired a wonder goal to give Newcastle an improbable draw

The Ivory Coast midfielder pegged back a suffering 10-man Arsenal with a stunning 87th-minute volley after Joey Barton had scored twice from the penalty spot either side of Leon Best‘s fourth goal of the season. But the story wasn’t so rosy when it started — in fact, it was abysmal for Newcastle.

Goals from a comebacking Theo Walcott, central defender Johan Djourou and a double for Robin van Persie looked to have secured the win and gotten all the points, allowing Arsenal to keep the pressure on Barclay’s Premier League leaders Manchester United. People who thought this couldn’t have been more wrong in their decision to leave the stadium early.

It started when all hell broke loose from Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby.

Abou Diaby - he tweeted that he was "a broken man" after the draw with Newcastle

The Arsenal midfielder was sent off for a wrestling tackle that pushed Joey Barton — of all people — to the ground, after a no-holds-barred 48th-minute challenge. This became the sparkplug for Newcastle, roared on by a crowd of 51,561, and they pulled off the most unlikely of recoveries.

Life for Newcastle without Andy Carroll started off really bad at Fulham on Wednesday evening, and the mood inside St James’ was undeniably ugly by the time the 10th minute had elapsed. Arsenal were breathtaking, their pace and movement left the Magpies just ball watching at times. It’s pretty much an understatement that they met very little resistance from  a Newcastle side which had won 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium in November. This version of Newcastle-without-Carroll showed few signs of producing a similarly display on their own pitch, even with combative midfielder Tiote restored to the side after his three-match ban.

But the cracks started to appear for Arsenal — and allow me to say this, they usually do — after Diaby over-reacted to Barton’s rugged challenge and pushed him to the ground to earn an inevitable red card. Newcastle took that as their cue to step up a gear, and they got their deserved reward. Tiote saved the best for last when he lashed an 87th-minute left-footed volley into the bottom left corner to complete a remarkable repair job.

What’s next for Arsenal? Well, it was a pity that Manchester United chose this weekend to  end their unbeaten run, else it would have been “goodbye Premier League title”. They will face the Red Devils’ conquerors — in Arsenal vs Wolves, whose betting odds are even further apart than Wolves vs United.

So yeah, I didn’t stay up for the deadline day (like my Liverpool friends out there, hello Ida Torres) but boy was I shocked when I woke up and turned on the Internet. As a Manchester United fan — and sitting pretty on top of the table, mind you — I knew that there weren’t gonna be any significant comings and goings to and from Old Trafford this deadline day. But for some teams, it got a tad bit exciting as the last few hours of transfer deadline day rolled in. Not a lot of wheeling and dealing involved, but the deals that did happen have changed the face and landscape of English Football for the years to follow.

This should give you a strong idea of what happened.

This is our lowdown on  all the big transfer deadline day deals and news — and there were quite a few big ones. Strap yourselves on and let’s go!

Chelsea vs Liverpool football odds

Chelsea – 1.65

Liverpool – 6

Draw – 4.2

Fernando Torres to Chelsea for a cool 50 mil

Fernando Torres to Chelsea – £50 million

It looks like Roman Abramovich is not happy at all with how his oldies-but-goodies team having thrown away a significant lead early this season and is hoping that the Spanish golden boy Fernando Torres can help Chelsea back into Champions’ League places and even a title fight with United. This move has been rumored to be on for a while there, with issues of pricing the main cause for concern. Liverpool were very keen on getting a replacement striker with the money from El Niño‘s sale and that heavily factored into the deal.

But there never was much doubt that the deal would happen when Torres himself submitted a transfer request to the Liverpool management, thereby forcing their hand. Of course, one can imagine that this didn’t go pretty well with the Anfield faithful (as referenced in the earlier image). He is now hoping to team up with Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and John Terry in a Chelsea team that suddenly looks competent with his addition.

Benfica's central defender David Luiz now wears Chelsea blue

David Luiz from Benfica to Chelsea – £21.3 million

Chelsea then continued their extensive deadline day spending with the £21.3 million signing of Benfica’s Brazilian defender David Luiz. Luiz has signed a contract that ties him to Chelsea until the summer of 2016 and joins for a fee of €25 million (£21.3 million), while young midfielder Nemanja Matic will also move the other way from Stamford Bridge to Estadio da Luz at the end of the season.

Luiz, 23, was named Portugal’s Player of the Year for 2010 as he helped Benfica win the domestic Double and has carved out a reputation as a defender of some repute since joining the club in 2007. He now bolsters the Chelsea defense and joins an already formidable (albeit aging) backline that includes  Alex, Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry, and Ashley Cole.

Ajax and Uruguay striker Luis Suarez with Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish

Luis Suarez from Ajax Amsterdam to Liverpool – £22.7 million

With cash now to spend from Nando’s sale, Liverpool were keen to bolster their squad with what little time was left. This move was first seen as a support for Torres — now it can be seen as a bit of foresight on Liverpool management’s side. Luis Suarez joins the club for a fee that could reach €26.5 million (£22.7 million) and takes the No. 7 shirt made famous by his new manager, Kenny Dalglish.

Suarez scored a remarkable 49 goals in 48 games for the Dutch Eredivisie side last season and courted notoriety in the summer when he was dismissed for deliberate handball in Uruguay’s victory over Ghana in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

Big Andy Carroll joins the Reds from Newcastle

Andy Carroll from Newcastle to Liverpool – £35 million

A bit of records keeping here, striker Andy Carroll became the seventh most expensive player in the history of football after the confirmation of his £35 million transfer to Liverpool. Crazy? Well, in a transfer deadline day megabuck deal, who isn’t?

As a direct replacement to Torres, he will now seek to find an understanding with Suarez as the main attacking force of Liverpool and seek to lift Liverpool out of midtable mediocrity. He is currently injured for a month, so his home debut will have to wait. But when he does play, his forceful running and accurate finishing should help Liverpool a lot. He is also very tidy on the floor — as they say, good touch for a big man.

Just as perspective — this deal has elevated Carroll into an elite group of footballers.

Cristiano Ronaldo cost Real Madrid £80 million when joining from Manchester United in 2009, while only Zlatan Ibrahimovic (£60.7 million), Kaka (£56 million), Zinedine Zidane (£45.6 million), Luis Figo (£37 million) and Hernan Crespo (£35.5 million) have cost more than Carroll’s reported price.

No pressure, eh?

Newcastle – sold 2 strikers (Xisco to Deportivo La Coruña, and Carroll), no replacements

The big losers of transfer deadline day will have to be Newcastle. For the reasons mentioned, they will now have to rely on the untried Leon Best and Nile Ranger, as well as the aging and injury-prone pair of Shola Ameobi and Peter Lovenkrands to keep them in the Premier League come May. Tall order, if we may say so.

There is also the small issue of re-investing the 35 million from Carroll’s sale. With Newcastle owner Mike Ashley’s history, we don’t expect the team to see any amount from that total in the summer transfer window.

THIS JUST IN!

Gary Neville quits football at 35

Manchester United defender Gary Neville has become the first of the ‘Fergie Fledglings’ to end his footballing career after announcing his immediate retirement at the age of 35.

You had a good run, Gary. Woeful these past few months, but your good years were behind you. We wish you well.

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To end this, and as cruel fate would have it — it’s Chelsea vs Liverpool at he weekend, football betting odds surprisingly put Chelsea as heavy favorites to win this one outright. With Luis Suarez at the point doing well on his debut, I guess we’ll all have to see about this one, shall we not?

So you want Liverpool‘s fair-haired boy, eh? Chelsea owner and Russian tycoon Roman Abramovich better be prepared to shell out the big bucks again as Pool wil not give up Fernando Torres for anything less than a package worth £50M — preferably one that includes striker Nicolas Anelka coming the other way as well.

This is sensible work by the Liverpool front office, as it will be impossible to find a replacement for Torres this near the end of the transfer window. Anelka has played with Liverpool before, and with new signing Luis Suarez also on board, losing Torres to the Blues might just begin to be tolerable. Just a wee bit.

Football odds for Liverpool vs Stoke City

Liverpool – 1.58

Stoke City – 5.50

Draw – 3.65

Nando is not amused at Liverpool's place in the table, which means no Champion's League football for him. Solution? Hand in a transfer request and have Chelsea chase you.

Roman Abramovich’s latest offer was short of the £50 million mark — a bid of £35 million in cash plus young striker Daniel Sturridge, taking the total package to £40 million – and there is, as yet, no sign that the Blues’ owner will meet Liverpool’s demands. Will he or will he not? Among many of the factors that put the Torres move to Stamford Bridge on a knife edge, is whether Abramovich will sanction a record busting deal for British football. There are real doubts that he will.

Another big question is if indeed, Anelka would co-operate in the switch, going to Liverpool as the makeweight. For that matter is Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti prepared to sacrifice Anelka to get Torres? That’s a tricky one.

Will Nicolas Anelka go back to Liverpool? Are Chelsea willing to go that far to get their man?

Abramovich felt he could get Torres on the cheap, by first offering £28 million knowing that Torres wanted to go to his club with the player submitting a written transfer request to back it up.  With Liverpool making it perfectly plain that they don’t want to lose their main scorer without a fight, it has become clear that Liverpool will only entertain the figure they had agreed with Torres last summer when the striker accepted that he would stay for the season with the promise that the club would deliver the players to return to the Champions League.

It is very near crunch time for these two teams, and it’s a toss up whether Liverpool will actually keep Torres. Meanwhile, it’s Liverpool vs. Stoke City this week, betting odds are for Liverpool to continue their on-again off-again revival of sorts.

Some say they’re not even playing that well. We say, you just might have to get used to this vintage of Manchester United — the one that does not dazzle and sparkle like one Cristiano Ronaldo used to, but one that will grind out a win through sheer force of will.

This game with Blackpool was the one canceled in December, one of United‘s “3 games in hand” — with Manchester City losing out to Aston Villa and Arsenal threatening, it is imperative that they win their games in hand and stamp their authority on the league table.

Football odds for Southampton vs Manchester United

Southampton – 8.6

Manchester United – 1.44

Draw – 5.1

Dimitar Berbatov is absolutely on fire, grabbing 2 goals against Blackpool

This game was canceled in December on account of Blackpool’s pitch at Bloomfield Road not having undersoil heating. On the evidence provided, the pitch was not much improved on the day — muddy and very prone to cracking. It didn’t stop this surprising Blackpool side from continuing to prove its detractors wrong, grabbing 2 goals in the first half — both from set pieces — and thoroughly outplaying the current league leaders.

Whatever Sir Alex Ferguson told them on the halftime team talk must have been either good or too scary to ponder, as it brought out a vintage United performance. The 37-year-old Ryan Giggs glided along the left wing, setting up a goal with a pass of pure class. Not to be outdone, and having been overshadowed by a junior playmaker in Charlie Adam, Paul Scholes provided the decisive goal with another glorious piece of distribution. Dimitar Berbatov cemented his status as the Premier League’s top scorer with a 2-goal performance to suggest a fair-weather footballer can thrive in the chill of Bloomfield Road. Javier Hernandez‘s introduction served as an electric shock to a slumbering side.

Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez came in for the still slumping Wayne Rooney and promptly scored a goal either side of Berbatov's brace

Collectively they were suddenly, recognisably Manchester United. As people have said and actually believe, United seem to have comebacks and fightbacks running through their veins.

Sir Alex Ferguson made stellar substitutions. Giggs took over from the anonymous Darron Gibson; Hernandez came on for the ineffective Wayne Rooney. The focus switched from containment to coruscating, incessant attack, the tactics from 4-5-1 to a 4-4-2 that verged on 4-2-4.

For Blackpool, there were a lot of positives to take home from this. It is a bit sad that those are the only things they can take home — United bringing home all 3 points and keeping their unbeaten run going. Charlie Adam — as he showed in the first half — is a midfielder of pure class. His weighted passes and diagonal aerial passes to both wings from deep in midfield show that he has the range to survive and excel in this league — in fact if you were color blind, you would thin it might have been Paul Scholes doing the passing, so accurate were they. It’s only right that Ian Holloway wait for the right amount for those courting the services of Adam — with Liverpool leading the pack. The team performance in the first half was one of grit and attacking nous — they knew their strengths and used them to the full. Sadly they ran out of gas in the 2nd half, and United, well, did what they do best.

On their next match, it is Blackpool vs West Ham, and betting odds put them ahead of the Premier League strugglers from London. It should be a cracking match.

Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs has confirmed that he will continue playing for the Red Devils for another season — if ever that will count as an awe-inspiring 22nd season for him.

Giggs, now at 37, has been playing “1  season contracts” for a few of years now — and speculations on whether he will continue are always numerous as spring enters. But it seems that season after season, when people are convinced that he would call it quits, he produces one sparkling performance after another — as he has done in this weekend’s 5-0 thrashing of Birmingham — making it difficult for Sir Alex Ferguson to let go of him.

Football odds for Blackpool vs Manchester United

Blackpool – 9.6

Bolton – 1.39

Draw – 5.6

Ryan Giggs, 37 and still contributing heavily to the Manchester United title charge

After a 2010 campaign in which his influence has not appeared to decline by any stretch of imagination, the veteran Welshman has revealed he has no plans to retire in the summer.

“I am quite happy still playing at the moment and enjoying my football as much as ever,” Giggs said. “I said if I was still enjoying myself and still getting picked I would carry on. We will sit down and talk but I am really looking forward to playing next year.”

Ryan Giggs is attempting to win a record 12th league title this season to go alongside his two European Cups and the countless other trophies on his mantlepiece. With Manchester United firmly on top of the Premier League table — with a number of games in hand — he could make that record a reality come end of season. United are also still involved in the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League — more chances for Giggs to add to his trophy haul.

Many people have lauded Giggs’ sense of loyalty — all these years he has ever only worn the Manchester United shirt, him and fellow teammate Paul Scholes showing the younger generation a thing or two about team loyalty. This is indeed a far cry from the youngsters today who seemingly want to cash in on their talents before they retire of old age.

Manchester United play one of their games in hand this Tuesday against Premier League newcomers and surprise package Blackpool. This fixture was canceled in its original schedule in December because of the adverse weather conditions that gripped the UK that month.  United are still unbeaten this season, and last weekend’s demolition of Birmingham confirm that they are still the force to be reckoned with at the top tier of English football. The betting odds for Blackpool vs Manchester United is such that even betting for draw is considered a high risk game, what with Dimitar  Berbatov hitting Birmingham for another hat trick last weekend and Rooney approaching his top form. We say an away win for Man Utd is in order.

More transfer speculation coming your way from the Barclay’s Premier League.

Liverpool are keen to lift themselves out of mid-table mediocrity to the heights where they used to belong. But with they way they have been playing, plus the lackluster performances of a squad that most people deem “not good enough” to slug it out with the big boys, they would need a shot in the arm — a few solid transfers to boost the team morale. And with just over a week to go until this January transfer window draws to a close, new boss and Anfield hero Kenny Dalglish needs to get a move on it.

Liverpool vs Fulham football odds

Liverpool – 1.64

Bolton – 6.4

Draw – 3.9

Ajax star Luiz Suarez is a target for Dalglish and Liverpool

Liverpool have been eying Ajax frontman Luiz Suarez — he of World Cup handball fame — for a boost to their attacking options. Reality has begun to sink in that Fernando Torres is not firing on all cylinders this season (yet, hopes the Pool fans), and you can only rely on him so much. The Uruguay-born Suarez revels in the second striker position, playing off a traditional center forward like Torres and scores a lot of goals in that position. With a dearth of attackers in that position to support Torres, Suarez could provide the shot in the arm Liverpool need. Other attack options have proven insufficient so far — Twitter fanatic Ryan Babel is on his way out to German club Hoffenheim (his sale could help finance this Suarez transfer), Joe Cole injured and even when fit desperately out of form, and Dirk Kuyt almost always relegated to right wing midfield duties.

Dalglish has remained tight-lipped over the move for the Ajax striker, who has been heavily linked by the media to the club this week.

“We had a positive meeting yesterday to discuss many things, including transfers,” Dalglish said. “There’s no problem as long as we’re responsible we can go and look for players, and try to sign players.

Liverpool chairman Tom Werner also re-iterates that the new owner John W. Henry has the funds to get the targets this January window. He insists that the club’s owners are prepared to splash the cash if the right player becomes available.

Dutch midfielder Mark van Bommel is another Liverpool transfer target

Bayern Munich‘s captain and Dutch international Mark van Bommel is another one in Liverpool’s sights. He is currently on his last year of contract with the German giants and if he doesn’t come to an agreement with Bayern, Liverpool could swoop in and sign him on the cheap. A defensive midfielder who is able to pass and score on set pieces, Van Bommel will represent an instant upgrade in Liverpool’s current under-performing midfield. With lots of experience, he can provide the leadership that the defense has been lacking sorely. Teaming him up with Raul Mereiles and/or Gerrard it might just be a complete midfield for Pool.

But all these need to happen. If not, there is the huge possibility that Liverpool go down a downward spiral that they may take a long time to recover from. This weekend, it’s Liverpool vs Fulham — with Pool odds on to win by the bookies. Fulham is another resurgent team wanting to pull out of the middle pack and into a European spot. Let’s see how long they can hold on.

It’s ten more days ’til the January transfer window closes — usually around this time when the clubs go crazy and spend big money buying unusually high risk players. I bet right around this time, Aston Villa fans are still unsure if the cool 24 million euro they spent on Sunderland striker Darrent Bent is gonna be enough to pull them out of the bottom part of the table and into the more familiar mid-table mediocrity — they currently sit just above the bottom 3. (If you didn’t know, the bottom 3 teams at the end of the season are relegated to the 2nd tier of English football — the Championship).

But this hack’s opinion of the topic at hand — Chelsea‘s pursuit of Benfica’s central defender David Luiz — is a bit different. The Blues have not hidden their admiration of the 22-year old Brazilian center back, so much that they made their intentions of eventually signing him known as early as a year ago.

Chelsea vs Bolton football odds

Chelsea – 1.66

Bolton – 6.6

Draw – 3.95

Benfica's highly-rated central defender David Luiz

This transfer window, it seems that they’ve stepped up their efforts of signing the lad, but they’ve had 3 bids now rejected by Portuguese club Benfica. The Portuguese are holding out for the full £25 million price tag they put on their prized defender. And by this hack’s opinion, 25 mill is just about right for this guy. He’s “on the up”, as hey would say. Fast, strong, agile and good in the air, this kid would be a proper replacement for John Terry when those old legs give out. Him and Branislav Ivanovic could be the central defense pairing of Chelsea for the future.

Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti has earmarked a top quality center-back as his main priority for the January transfer window, as the injury problems to skipper John Terry and Alex, alongside the sale of Ricardo Carvalho to Real Madrid in the summer, have left Chelsea very very thin at the back. A source close to the transfer has revealed that Chelsea’s offer, while not a bad one in itself,  is shy of the £25 million Benfica are asking .

It feels like this deal is a “when, not if” one, and soon Roman Abramovich’s money will do the talking again — long has it been since we’ve heard that one. This is a good deal for Chelsea, and hopefully, they can push through with it.

Chelsea play away on Monday to Bolton in the Reebok Stadium. Chelsea are odds on favorites to win the game, although this slumping Bolton side might just pick this moment to wake up, we’ll just have to see.

“What the heck is an El Clasico?”

You were born under a rock, I’m sure. Because if you have an inkling about football, you know this is, at this specific period in the football world, the big cheese. This is the whole shebang, the gift of Spanish football in its ultimate form from the footballing gods almighty to every footy fan in the whole world — go crazy, willya? — it dawneth upon us mortals — Real Madrid vs Barcelona, the one and only el clasico. There is no other.

Kid yourselves not, if you’re thinking this is just about the whole Madrid vs Barcelona thing — with all its socio-political color, regional animosity, and just genuine utter dislike for one another — trust us, it is so much more than that.

Real Madrid vs Barcelona football odds

Real – 3.6

Barca – 2.18

Draw – 3.7

Let's not kid ourselves -- it is every bit about Ronaldo vs Messi

Everything about this match screams Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi — the 2 top footballing phenoms of the day. Even though football is still a team sport, many fans and pundits will use this match as a straightforward basis to the ultimate question — who is better? And we know you understand why: Messi and Ronaldo, each of whom scored a hat trick last weekend, are racking up goals as normally as one breathes. In Messi versus Ronaldo, we have an epic clash on our hands.

So which one will it be?

Let’s let that question hang for this:

Side Note

El Clasico - you take your money and you take your pick

Question: If you ran a club and were given a cool 100 mil, whom would you spend it on?

Of course, being the greedy bastard that you are, you’d probably want both. Do you know that the football gods were this close to making that happen? Check it out — back in 2003, Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes got in touch with FC Barcelona — who already had the burgeoning talent of Lionel Messi in their academy — to alert the club about two phenomenal wingers in his stable: one was the emerging Portuguese talent Ricardo Quaresma (you can spell that name as F-L-O-P), the other one a relatively young and then unproven Cristiano Ronaldo. Barca eventually chose Quaresma over Ronaldo (we all know what happened there — absolutely nothing), paving the way for Sir Alex Ferguson to sign the 17 year old boy.

Yes, it was that close.

Imagine the 2 of them in one team. Almost happened. I know, right?

And now back to our story.

So who will it be, then? Football is an matter of the heart. For most neutrals, Messi is love at first sight — humble to a fault, wins you over with his football god-like abilities, infectious smile as he looks skyward after scoring his goals, with a complete lack of pomp and circumstance.

Ronaldo is your typical movie bad girl (hey, I tell it like I see it) — dark, flirtatious, sexy and dangerous.

Ultimately, this is the score: Messi (from interviews current and past) doesn’t really care about the rivalry. Ronaldo, by his own admission, desperately wants to become acknowledged as the greatest of all time — bar none, even Messi. Yet we all know that all this Messi adoration must affect a huge ego like Cristina’s — err, I meant, Cristiano. Messi stands in his way, that’s really all there is to it.

But hey, this doesn’t lessen the fact that Ronaldo’s has scored his 50 for Madrid in 53 matches, faster than anyone else in the club’s history, or that he didn’t earn all those medals and awards in 2008 when he was with United. Ronaldo — according to his teammates — is bright, uplifting company, much more mature than the often whining prima donna figure you see on the pitch. He’s not a bad fella, in other words.

But the “jolly good” fella, the man, the one for whom they sing the song, is Messi.

Beyond the stats, Messi embodies football in its purest form. His play is imaginative, smooth but infinitely and beautifully complicated. You could just see the millisecond calculations processing through his brain when he blasts through the middle on his way to scoring a goal — and most of the time, a beautiful one. Ronaldo gathers pace to breakneck speed; Messi erupts into geometrical brilliance.

So there you have it. Monday night is the first episode of this 2-part dance — 98,000 absolutely crazy Catalans at the Camp Nou will make for an electric atmosphere. Who will blink first? Real Madrid vs Barcelona odds inevitably have the blaugrana in a slight advantage. Let’s see if they can make the home advantage work.