Porto have moved one step closer to completing a historic treble after a 1-0 win over Sporting Braga in the Europa League final on Wednesday.After wrapping up the Liga Sagres title with five matches to spare, Andre Villas-Boas’ side won their second trophy of the season thanks to Radamel Falcao’s header one minute before half-time.

Falcao’s goal was his 17th of the Europa League campaign – a new record – and means Porto just need to defeat Vitoria Guimaraes in the Taca De Portugal final on Sunday to wrap up the treble.

Porto entered the match having scored a staggering 130 goals in 52 matches this season – largely thanks to the likes of Hulk and Falcao – but could not repeat the dose in Dublin as they struggled to break down a Braga defence in what was, in truth, a poor match.

It was an open affair early and Braga could have gone ahead inside five minutes but Custodio’s volley flew wide after he beat Porto’s offside trap.

Hulk was next to go close on eight minutes after he cut inside from the right, beating two defenders before curling his left-foot strike inches wide.

The remainder of the first half turned out to be a cagey affair with Braga pair Silvio and Hugo Viana going into the book for rash challenges.

Porto were the more creative in the attacking third and deservedly went ahead one minute before the interval.

Colombian midfielder Fredy Guarin picked up a loose pass on halfway, before he burst forward and supplied a delightful cross from the right for striker Falcao, who placed a superb header into the top corner.

Braga could have replied almost straight away when Marcio Mossoro was presented with a gilt-edged chance in the first minute of the second half.

A defensive lapse allowed him in and behind the Porto defence but goalkeeper Helton saved well with his legs.

Helton was in the thick of the action, rushing off his line in a bizarre move, but for all of their second-half dominance Braga struggled to create clear-cut opportunities.

Alvaro Periera could have doubled Porto’s lead with 20 minutes remaining but he could not meet Hulk’s superb cross while Braga’s Meyong Ze wasted a chance from the edge of the penalty area.

Porto were solid enough in defence to keep their opponents at bay and although it was not the prettiest of encounters, it would have mattered little to their fans as they now are favourites to win three trophies in one season.

With Charlie Adam tipped to arrive at Liverpool in the near future, the issue of central midfield will seemingly become a big topic among Reds fans. With Steven Gerrard, Raul Meireles , Jordan Henderson , Alberto Aquilani and perhaps Adam all vying for offensive midfielder spots, it is difficult to see how they all can fit in:

Raul Meireles – With the arrival of Adam seemingly imminent, it has led to speculation that the Portuguese international may depart the club. Reports in Italy suggest that Inter Milan maybe interested in persuading the 28 year old to move to the San Siro. A £14million has been suggested for the player who only arrived from Porto last summer for £12.5million. It has been hinted that age and niggling injuries has persuaded Kenny Dalglish to allow the player to depart. Personally, I hope he doesn’t go, he had a decent first season and found his feet gradually as the season wore on. It takes time to adapt to a new league, and I think it would be unfair to allow the player to go before he is truly allowed to shine.

Alberto Aquilani – His agent speaks daily in newspapers, TV and radio about how the Italian midfielder wants to stay in Italy. It is unlikely he will return to Anfield but there maybe a scenario where he might have to if no Italian club can meet Liverpool’s asking price. Juve manager Antonio Conte is still considering his options, and has yet to make up his mind on Aqua, while both Napoli and AC Milan have reportedly been interested but there has been no sign of movement in attempting to buy the 26 year old.

Jordan Henderson – The midfielder will most certainly get his fair share of games after his £16m+ move from Sunderland. Some believe he will play on the right hand side of midfield, and he may well do for some games, but I am fairly certain he is destined for a central midfield berth in the long term. With Gerrard returning from injury, and Lucas playing a holding midfield role, he will have to displace somebody else in the team.

Charlie Adam – I am still uncertain as to why we are interested in the Blackpool captain. For sure he is a good passer of the ball, and an expert set piece taker but attacking midfield is full of players such as Gerrard, Henderson and Meireles already. If he comes to play in a deep-lying playmaker role, he will not be playing to his strengths, and this reasoning has led to some to speculate over the future of Raul Meireles . Personally I would take Raul over Adam for an attacking midfield role.

What do you think?

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Read more of David’s articles at Live4Liverpool

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Another week and another footballer looks to use the media in order to ensure he gets what he wants. This time Luka Modric felt the need to tell all and sundry the reason he needs to leave White Hart Lane and move to one of Tottenham’s main rivals. It is a crass way to conduct business, but footballers have never been renowned for having great etiquette when it comes to such matters.

Nothing surprises me in football. Ever since I sat in that bar in New York and saw the news that Sol Campbell had moved to the other side, I lost complete faith in footballers and their loyalty to the cause. If your own captain can do it to your football club then why should expect any different from the likes of Dimitar Berbatov and now in this case Luka Modric. I am sure the latter won’t go through the same measures to force a move like Berbatov did by refusing to play, but I do question the logic of Tottenham holding onto a player that clearly wants to leave. You only have to see what happened at Arsenal last summer with Fabregas to know that it is a mistake to hold a player against their will, given the kind of performances that Cesc put in last season.

What frustrates me more than anything is the need to make his feelings public. If Modric wants to leave then do it through the proper channels instead of the public plea through the media. The press need little excuse to unsettle the football club and now they have their bait for the next few months and Spurs fans can now look forward to a summer of speculation and unrest. I am sure that is one of the reasons why Daniel Levy was so swift in his response on the official website and why it was refreshing to see; unfortunately player power will ultimately win the day.

Luka Modric may have been good for Tottenham in the past few years, but equally the club has been very good for him and deserves a far greater respect that has been shown. The Croatian may believe he is bigger than the football club and that he needs to fulfil his ambitions elsewhere, but he should be careful what he wishes for as Spurs aren’t a million miles away from Chelsea in terms of potential. Modric has made his bed and I agree with Gary Mabbutt in that we should sell him on as we can’t afford to have unhappy players at Tottenham and we need those who will give everything for the cause. It’s just a shame for the fans that stood by him in the early days and given him so much support, but unfortunately they have been here many times before.

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Continuing our look into the foreign wags that put the Premier League ones to shame…

Davide Bombardini is a pretty unremarkable footballer who is currently plying his trade in Serie B with AlbinoLeffe; however the same certainly cannot be said of the experienced midfielder’s other half, Giorgia Palmas.

A former Miss World runner-up, Giorgia Palmas is model and TV personality in her native Italy and I’m sure you’ll agree by flicking through the gallery that she more that puts the Premier League WAGs firmly in the shade.

While life in Serie B cannot be much fun for Mr Bombardini, I’m certain Davide must take a lot of comfort knowing the little lady he has waiting at home for him.

*

Click on Giorgia Palmas below to see here in all her glory

Tony Pulis is lining up a shock £9 million move for Nicklas Bendtner the Telegraph understands.

Bendtner is free to leave the Emirates Stadium after a poor season and Stoke boss Pulis is lining up a club record bid for the striker.

He became a target for frustrated Gunners fans last season with his frightening self-confidence never being replicated on the pitch.

Arsene Wenger sealed his fate at the club by leaving him out of the Far East tour and now Pulis is ready to pounce.

Interest from Borussia Dortmund and Sporting Lisbon has already evaporated due to Bendtner’s transfer fee and wage demands but that hasn’t put off the Potters boss.

Pulis is determined to add to his squad as they prepare for the new Premier League campaign along with the Europa League.

He told the Telegraph: “We are threadbare at the moment. Fingers crossed we can bring one or two players in over the next few days.

“The biggest thing we have to do as a football club is improve our recruitment from the lowest level right through to the top level.

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“We’ve brought people in to help us do that and we’re really going to concentrate on that and put more resources into it.”

He is prepared to offer Bendtner the option to remain in England and revitalise his career, which is in danger of fizzling out, at the Britannia Stadium.

Whether the 23-year-old Danish international would be prepared to move to the FA Cup runners remains to be seen. Stoke can offer him European football and a guaranteed first team place every week.

QPR had a miserable return to Premier League football as Bolton Wanderers thumped them 4-0 at Loftus Rd.

Goals from Cahill, Klasnic, Muamba and an own goal from Danny Gabbidon ensured an emphatic win for Owen Coyle’s men who found their hosts defence in a particularly generous mood this afternoon.

It was by no means one way traffic, especially in the first half; however the quality of Bolton in the final third proved decisive and it certainly could have been more than four in the end. To complete a frustrating afternoon for Neil Warnock he saw new signing Kieron Dyer stretchered off in the early stages of the game, while Clint Hill saw red later on after a clash with Martin Petrov.

Boos rang out at the final whistle and supporters will be hoping that the apparent Fernandes takeover goes through sooner rather than later.

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Check the winning the numbers from this week’s Goaldash here

Stoke City’s first jaunt in the group stages of the Europa League sees a tough task for Tony Pulis’ men if they are to make it through to the knock-out stages of the competition. Elsewhere the Irish giant killers Shamrock Rovers have got themselves a plump draw with Tottenham Hotspur in their group, which promises to be quite an occasion for the Rovers’ fans.

The Europa League fixtures for the English clubs below:

Birmingham City

Sept 15: Braga (H)

Sept 29: Maribor (A)

Oct 20: Club Brugge (A)

Nov 3: Club Brugge (H)

Nov 30: Braga (A)

Dec 15: Maribor (H)

Fulham

Sept 15: Twente (H)

Sept 29: Odense BK (A)

Oct 20: Wisla Krakow (A)

Nov 3: Wisla Krakow (H)

Dec 1: Twente (A)

Dec 14: Odense BK (H)

Stoke City

Sept 15: Dynamo Kiev (A)

Sept 29: Besiktas (H)

Oct 20: Maccabi Tel Aviv (H)

Nov 3: Maccabi Tel Aviv (A)

Dec 1: Dynamo Kiev (H)

Dec 14: Besiktas (A)

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Tottenham

Sept 15: PAOK (A)

Sept 29: Shamrock Rovers (H)

Oct 20: Rubin Kazan (H)

Nov 3: Rubin Kazan (A)

Nov 30: PAOK (H)

Dec 15: Shamrock Rovers (A)

Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor has stated that he will not celebrate if he scores against Arsenal on Sunday, as a mark of respect to his former club.

The African forward has been in exceptional form since joining Spurs on loan from Manchester City at the start of the season, scoring three goals in three straight Tottenham victories.

The Togolese man ruffled Arsenal feathers however back in 2009 when he ran the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of the London side’s fans after scoring against Arsene Wenger’s men for City, but has stated the same will not happen on Sunday.

“What happened two years ago was an accident and I do apologise to all the fans of Arsenal,” he stated in a press conference.

“Sometimes the emotions, we cannot control them, we are all human beings. I regret what I have done and I say sorry to everyone but at the end of the day sorry doesn’t change anything. For me, it’s over.

“I’m looking forward to playing against Arsenal again on Sunday. But believe me, if I have a chance to score – trust me, I will score – but as for the celebration, never in my life will I do something like that again.

“It will be a funny game, it’ll be fantastic. I have a chance to play against Arsenal again, the club that gave me the chance to be where I am today. I have a huge respect for the club,” he concluded.

Tottenham will go into the game as favourites following their 4-0 win over Liverpool in their last fixture at White Hart Lane, but Arsenal have improved over their last couple of games after a shaky start.

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By Gareth McKnight

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The English FA have revealed that they will have to wait for an extra week at least to learn the written reasons for Wayne Rooney’s three match ban from Uefa.

The Manchester United striker was sent off against Montenegro in The Three Lions’ last Euro 2012 qualifier, and the European governing body handed down a three match ban to the attacker.

The punishment means that Rooney is ineligible for all three of England’s Euro 2012 group games, with the player’s inclusion in the squad for the tournament in Ukraine and Poland now in doubt.

Despite Uefa’s sanctions, the FA may appeal the decision but are waiting to hear the reasons behind the length of the ban. However this will not be disclosed by Uefa for at least another seven days.

“The FA has today been advised by Uefa that we may not be provided with the written reasons regarding Wayne Rooney’s three-match suspension for another week at a minimum,” an official statement reads.

“Once the reasons are received, the FA will determine on any appeal after discussions with Fabio Capello and Wayne Rooney.”

Fabio Capello faces a dilemma in whether or not to include Rooney in his squad, but any reduction in the striker’s ban would surely sway his decision.

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By Gareth McKnight

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Chelsea manager Andre Villas Boas has been fined £12,000 after being deemed guilty of improper conduct.

The Portuguese coach was fuming with referee Chris Foy after his side’s 1-0 defeat to QPR at Loftus Road back in October, in which the home side were awarded a penalty and Jose Bosingwa and Didier Drogba were both sent off.

Villa Boas stated that the official’s performance in the game was “very, very poor” and queried Foy’s decision making process.

After investigation from the governing body, the Stamford Bridge trainer was found guilty of the charges.

“Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas has today been fined £12,000 by the FA and warned as to his future conduct after being charged in respect of media comments which were found by an Independent Regulatory Commission to have constituted improper conduct,” an official FA statement reads.

“The comments were made after Chelsea’s away fixture at Queens Park Rangers on 23 October 2011. Villas-Boas had denied the charge and requested a non-personal hearing,” it concludes.

Villas Boas currently finds himself under pressure in the Blues’ hotseat, as his team have lost their last three league games and are currently 12 points behind leaders Manchester City.

Due to the sizeable gap and the weight of expectation at Stamford Bridge, calls have started for the manager’s head, something that he has been expecting.

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“When results like this happen, the head of the manager is called for execution. I’m not worried by the comments. I want to get my team back to winning ways, and we’ll try and do that against Leverkusen,” he told Sky Sports.

By Gareth McKnight

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