Rampant Rafael

Rafael heading for greatness?

Manchester United's right back Rafael has improved dramatically over this Season and his performance on Saturday against Queens Park Rangers deserved a Man of the Match award.As well as contributing to Man United assault on the Premier League title with one of the best goals this Season, his defensive work and transitions to attack were executed so well defenders world wide should take note.The 22 year old dominated in defense by stopping nearly all of Qpr's attacks on the right and through midfield.

As he is dubbed as 'Manchester United's most improved player this Season', its seems he will continue to give his Manchester United fans great performances and hopefully

 score another one of those stunning goals.

Neymar's future continues to unfold.

Neymar in crossfire of advice.

It almost seems that Neymar's future club will be decided by which fellow Brazilian gives him the best advice for their club even though there is still a year left on his contract.

Brazilian soccer stars from as far appart as Germany, Brazil, France and Spain have all had their say on where they believe Neymar should play and the 21 year old must feel under huge pressure over all the cloudy speculation caused by his fellow sportsmen. There is a long list of teams after Neymar and it seems that there is a Brazilian with a connection to the club that has spoken about how the Santos man would benefit the team in question or, spoken to Neymar about a move in person which have the press foaming at the mouth to find out what team he will be playing for next.

One team that has recently been questioned with a link to Neymar has been Bayern Munich, who completely deny this however a supposed conversation between Bayern Munich's Brazilian center back, Dante and the Santos striker hinted interest by Neymar. However when discovered Neymar denied asking, "what is life like playing for Bayern", to the opposite reaction of Dante who told Sky Sports, " I told Neymar there is nothing better than Bayern Munich". Understandably Neymar played down his conversation with Dante as it could affect interest from other clubs in the future.

Other players that have had their attempt of predicting Neymar's future decision for a club have been, Sao Paolo's Fabiano who said to a local news paper that Neymar should join Barcelona as, "Neymar and Lionel Messi would be almost unstopabble". Manchester City's Mancini, " Neymar will sign for Barcelona or Rael Madrid".Brazilian Ledgend Pele, "Neymar should pick Barcelona over Manchester City"

The list of people who have commented on Neymar's future is extremely long and it seems that the youngster has a huge decision to make though his final decision may not be accepted by all. Whether he plays with Marcelo at Real Madrid or listens to the advice of the Brazilian footballing hero Pele and goes to Barcelona, there is a new chapter to the Neymar Saga nearly every week and his future seems ever more imminent.

Dante driven Bayern to Title and Champions leage final?

Dante the difference for Bayern this Season?

Since moving to Germany, Dante has created an almost heroic persona for his awesome footballing ability and his distinctively long hair.His first move to Germany was to  Borussia Monchengladbach where his somewhat natural and explosive defensive performances got him noticed by European giants Bayern Munchen. With there decisions made after 3 years of watching carefully, he was purchased for only €5 million to the sadness of his afro wig wearing fans at his old club. Since his move Bayern have only conceded 2 away goals so far this season, which a huge feat considering last season they ended with a record of 28 away goals and 16 conceded. As Dante has been the only significant change to the the defence, it is undoubtable that his  single handed  influence on the squad has undoubtably driven Bayern to the title as they are 15 points ahead of their rivals.

The Brazilian center back has a great physical presence, can run with the ball, charge forward and even begin attacks from a defensive midfield position. He is extremely calm in possession, great arial threat and an overall great athlete. Footage of the 27 year old training with his fellow Brazilians at Bayern show there are many strings to this all-rounders bow and that we can only expect greater things to come of this dream defender.

Youngsters to watch out for : 2 Felipe Anderson

Felipe Anderson 

Felipe Anderson Pereira Gomez is 19 years old and plays for Santos FC. He is 5 ft 10 and is and is a attacking midfielder who will float on either the left or right wings.

Felipe's footballing life began at the young age of 6 where he had numerous high level performances at his different clubs, however his performances at Coritiba FC got him noticed by Brazilian giants Santos. Injuries and poor form in the first team in 2010 lead to Felipe being offered a professional contract after playing in the youth squad all his career, and made his debut in a 3-0 win against Fluminense. He has been playing ever since and with first team players such as Brazilian international Ganso and Elano leaving Santos, Felipe has grasped his first team opportunity with both hands and has been playing with some serious form giving him a market value of 6 million Euros, which is high considering he has only been playing professional for 3 years.

Felipe is a great player going forward who is great at seeing passes and unleashing players on one on one's. He is agile and skillful. Felipe usually puts himself forward when there is a set piece and can usually deliver a deadly accurate free kick. He does not always shoot and usually prefers to take the ball to the keeper and deliver a last second pass to a teammate  however this youngster has a long shot Steven Gerrard would be proud of!

Like many young Santos players, Felipe has had offers from clubs such as Tottenham Hotspur, however, he has decided to stay in Brasil and keep improving until he feels he can make the next step in his career.

Youngsters to watch out for : 1 Adryan Tavares

Adryan Tavares 

Adryan Tavares is 17 years old and has been a successful product of the Flamengo's youth system who has huge potential. Though the youngsters proffesional career has been quite short his experience shown has been well beyond his years. Adryan has represented Brazil and even been capped on several occasions. 

Adryan Tavares is a 5 ft 6.5 attacking midfielder who sometimes plays forward has a great agility, skill and free kick accuracy. Through his huge dominance in the youth academy he has had the great honor of playing for his Country and even being capped at the ages of U-15, U-16 and under U-17. 

After his performance in the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior He had been heavily linked with Premier League giants Manchester United however the confident youngster turned the club down."Manchester United actually spoke and showed interest, but it was not something that interested me at the moment," Adryan told the Globo Esporte  site. He went on to say, "We shall see later when it appears the proper place so that I can participate and be important.

The youngster seems to want to stay in Brazil and make a name for himself before he considers a move which is an intelligent move for such a young player.

Hulk scores but is he happy in Russia?

Hulk Scores, but was Zenit a smart move?

After being signed from F.C. Porto for a beastly €40 million, is Hulk regretting such an extremely far-fetched move. With such a heavy price tag and interest from Chelsea and Inter Milan, it was hugely anticipated that he would either appear in the Serie A or appear in the premier league we blue shirt, not wearing a blue shirt in the freezing temperatures of Russia.

With 4 goals in 15 appearances, 'Hulk' has not really made an impact, and his happiness has been questioned at the club after he refused to shake the managers hand after being subbed. His huge pay check cause divisions in the club with players, and Russians International captain and Zenit midfielder had this to say. 

" I would understand if we got Argentine superstar Lionel Messi or Spanish midfielder Andres Iniesta, they probably deserve that price".Hulks Salary is said to be a vast 6.5 million Euros a year. The reasons for why he turned down Chelsea and Inter Milan are unknown, and I doubt his future is set in Russia. His performance today however was very good.

Have Chelsea already uncovered an unknown Brazilian Gem?

Neilton Atacante 'Next Neymar'?

He plays for Santos Juniors, he's Brazilian and he even looks a bit like Neymar. Neilton is a 19 year old forward who has similar attributes to Neymar, high aggression, very skillful and quite fast. He either plays in strike, center forward or on either wing. He made a name for himself after he scored a fantastic hatrick in a 3-2 win in the semi finals in the Copa Sao Paulo under 19s' tournament.

It is understood that Chelsea and Manchester United are closely watching the progression of this future star. The 19 year old has £5 million pound buy-out clause though Santos are fighting to not let him leave for so cheap, however, with the likes of Roman Abramavich and Sir Alex Ferguson watching him it seems his future is already being fought over as we speak. Though there is not much known about Neilton, its very likely we will be seeing him in the Premier League in the next few years, that's only if Santos can hold on to him!Nielton's hatrick  showed glimpses of whats to come if he ever does arrive in the Premier League. The pace and technical ability shown, is very similar to that used by Neymar.

Neymar Growth Stunted By Ligo Do Brazil?

Is Neymar's growth being stunted by Staying in Brazil?

With the young starlet's team Santos, not qualifying for the qualifying for the Copa Libertadores, Neymar's next few months are most likely going to be spent practicing rainbow flicks on bewildered defenders and improving on his already fantastic goal record of 54 goals in 102 appearances. However when the young Brazilian comes up against fully established teams where the defenders close down quicker and more efficiently than those in the Ligo Do Brasil, he is nearly half the threat of his usual self, especially against the recent 2-0 friendly defeat against England  The defending in the Ligo Do Brasil is undoubtedly below world standard and for a player tipped off by the great Pele as being, "the worlds next greatest player", and the step up to a top European team should be the technical and psychological boost needed for a young player with such huge potential. Neymar has showed his desire to join a European club either after his contract expires in 2014 or after the World Cup the same year."I still  dream of coming to Europe, but the right moment has yet to arrive".

With interest from the worlds best clubs such as Barcelona,Chelsea and Manchester United, the youngsters future is looking bright for the extravagant Brazilian and the possibility of him reaching or even surpassing his potential is extremely 

exciting.