Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has publicly played down the notion that former boss Ciro Ferrara was to blame for the Bianconeri’s poor form. Ferrara was sacked by Juve and replaced by Alberto Zaccheroni, and Buffon insists it’s down to the players to get results.

“The new coach presented himself in a proper and professional way. Zaccheroni seems to be a practical person,” said Buffon. “He has the right approach and is humble.

“Ferrara was our point of reference, and the decision was the right one. It was not the right way to send off our former tactician, because other than being our coach, he was a friend, who taught us a lot about football.

“He had all the patience, and I am sure that this experience will serve him well in the future.

“I think that it is the players that have to win the matches – if they have the quality – even if there is no coach.

“The team was on a negative trend that whether the players were changed or not, the same result was the conclusion. As always, the coach is the one who pays for it, but it isn’t his fault.

“We have not been lucky these last few weeks,” said the Italian.

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Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is facing pressure from all directions. Ever since bouncing back into the Premier League title race, his young Gunners are being questioned about their credentials to finally last the course of the entire season, particularly given the tough string of fixtures ahead. While his side responded with a fighting display at Villa Park, the resulting goalless draw was enough for Villa boss Martin O’Neill to suggest that Wenger’s judgmental comments off the field are getting the better of the Frenchman.

After all, Wenger had infuriated O’Neill by referring to his side as a long ball team ahead of the clash in The Midlands. Back in North London a few weeks ago, Arsenal crushed Aston Villa 3-0 in a dominant display that inspired the wounded Villans to a seven-game unbeaten run. After their latest success, an impressive 2-0 win at Craven Cottage, Villa will certainly feel that they are responding very well to Wenger’s accusations of their game as one-dimensional.

For Wenger, though, O’Neill and his side is certainly not the only subject of concern. With the prodigal midfielder Jack Wilshere loaned to Bolton Wanderers, the Emirates chief was expected to announce stronger reinforcements. However, following his failure to effectively pursue the likes of Bojan Krkic, Marouane Chamakh, and Andre-Pierre Gignac, Wenger indicated that the transfer activity is most likely over for his side.

Considering the forthcoming pressures that await Arsenal in a long title race, The Professor is now being criticized for the umpteenth time due to his repeated failure to strengthen an injury-hit roster. Unsurprisingly, Wenger even had a response to all this pressurizing talk about his side’s chances in the title race. According to Arsene, the outcome of the game against Manchester United on Sunday is not going to play a decisive role in determining the course of the remainder of the season.

Therefore, he has urged for calmness ahead of the mouthwatering clash with Sir Alex Ferguson’s Red Devils by deeming the game as not a must-win fixture. Technically speaking, he may be right in saying that three dropped points will not spell an end to the Gunners’ season. But given the extremely competitive nature of this season, one poor result against a direct rival will leave a young team like Arsenal absolutely demoralized.

Recent history has shown that once Arsenal loses one big game towards the business end of the season, the entire season collapses within no time. Subsequently - at the end of each of the last four seasons - Wenger is often asked to compose a squad that has ample experience to respond to demoralizing losses rather than packing the entire roster with sensational young players who fail to deliver at the highest level.

Yet, every season Arsenal fans are left with no option but to remain optimistic about the capacity of their maturing unit of players. As one of these Gooners myself, I can’t agree more; if Wenger won’t make any major signings with all the pressure we have already put on him, why pressurize him more during the most sensitive part of the season?

Yesterday’s big news was the High Court’s decision to lift a gag order won by John Terry in the case of his scandal with Wayne Bridge’s former girlfriend. Bridge was distraught at the news of his former teammate – and captain – having an affair with his former girlfriend, especially considering Terry is married and has two children.

Terry’s confirmed affair with his former teammate’s girlfriend – who is also the father of Wayne Bridge’s child – has thrown the England camp into turmoil. Questions are flying around the media about whether the two will be able to be on the same pitch, or even the same squad, together.

There’s no debating why Bridge should be so angry and distraught at these events. Terry has proven that even as a club captain he cannot be trusted to look out for his teammates, and his dishonesty is only one more incident in a long list of mess-ups.

In December of 2009 it was discovered that Terry was selling unauthorized tours of Chelsea’s training grounds for £10,000. Additionally, Terry has come under heavy criticism in the past for two other known affairs. Perhaps one of the most high profile Terry incidents was when he was found mocking American tourists in a pub less than 24 hours after the September 11th attacks.

Football fans will also remember the more recent incidents involving Terry’s parents. His mother was caught shoplifting £800 of goods, and his dad was caught in a sting operation dealing cocaine.

All of these events show what a complete and utter disgrace Terry has been off the pitch. It’s only a matter of time before his teammates stop trusting him and start turning on him, and in a World Cup year that’s the last thing that fans of the Three Lions want.

Fans will surely try to defend Terry for his on-pitch performances, but there is no way to excuse his numerous off-pitch antics.

Bolton have landed Arsenal’s promising 18 year old midfielder Jack Wilshere on loan for the remainder of the season. Owen Coyle is delighted to land the England youth international following another frugal loan deal for Vladimir Weiss from Manchester City.

“Jack is a talented, young, hungry player who I think has got a really bright future,” said Coyle.

“Jack has got an abundance of quality and will enhance our squad.

“It is similar to the deal with Vladimir in terms of the belief that I can help the player, and the player can help this club.

“The deals suit all parties concerned if the boys go out and deliver on the pitch.”

Some members of the media have been tipping Wilshere as an outsider to get on to England’s World Cup roster. Although the chances are small, many people are drawing comparisons with Theo Walcott’s spot in England’s last World Cup squad.

Wilshere debuted for Arsenal at just 16 years old and has one career goal for the Gunners.

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West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola has expressed his disappointment in former teammate Eidur Gudjohnsen after the Icelandic striker made an 11th hour move to Tottenham instead of the Hammers.

“I am disappointed with Spurs and disappointed with Gudjohnsen. I was expecting good behaviour from him,” Zola said.

“They keep telling me that football has got like this right now and I keep saying that when I’m dealing with people, I always expect for the people that I have got in front me to behave in a certain way – with respect.

“Okay, that wasn’t the case here. But we move on. We have a lot of things to achieve here this season and we can still achieve them anyway.”

Zola wants Benni

After missing out on his former Chelsea teammate, Zola has turned his attentions to want-away Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy.

“The deal is not done yet but it’s very close,” said Zola.

“He is a player who will fit in with our philosophy very much. Hopefully it will be all right.”

“Mido and others are names that are circulating but as far as I’m concerned, Benni is the only one close to us.

“He’s the only one I want to talk about. I am sure the club will be linked to many names but Benni is the real target for us.”

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Ricardo Carvalho was full of confidence after helping Chelsea to secure a 3-0 win against a Birmingham team who started the match on a 15 game unbeaten run in all competitions. Chelsea produced a master class of attacking football throughout the 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge and, while the defense didn’t have a lot to deal with, Carvalho and his teammates at the back did a good job to help goalkeeper Petr Cech keep a clean sheet.

Florent Malouda was on hand to score Chelsea’s opener within the first six minutes and Carvalho believes that being able to start games in such a confident manner is handing Chelsea the initiative in the title race. The defender believes that the team are scoring at crucial moments in games. He added that Chelsea’s character is now really starting to shine through after “too many draws in the previous months”.

Chelsea are certainly playing with a greater and more effective level of penetration and they are also benefiting from having players across the pitch who are capable of creating chances in attack. This was evident against Sunderland, when John Terry played a beauty of a pass to Ashley Cole, who slotted the ball home like a distinguished international striker. Carvalho has been quick to praise Terry’s talent and believes it is important for defenders to build attacks “from the back”.

Ultimately, Carvalho and his Chelsea pals just want to win trophies and taste success in all the competitions they can. If they carry on playing like this, such an aim shouldn’t be too difficult to achieve.

Indeed, the odds FA Cup bookmakers are offering suggest Chelsea should win that particular trophy and some sports betting experts believe they could be on for the double this season.

With Robinho finally getting his wish to leave the Eastlands on a six-month loan deal to Santos, a bigger issue could be forthcoming at the City of Manchester Stadium. Despite manager Roberto Mancini’s repeated encouragement for Robinho to stay at the club, the Italian’s failure to promise first-team football to City’s record signing proved the decisive factor in the Brazilian star’s departure. Now, with three long days before the close of the January transfer window, more faces could follow Robinho out the door in pursuit of playing regularly ahead of this summer’s World Cup in South Africa.

Striker Benjani has been linked with a move away already while a lack of first-team football in the coming months could force a few others to reconsider their futures as well. For instance, when Michael Johnson returns from injury, he will be battling for playing time in a midfield that is already packed to its maximum capacity. Similarly, when Roque Santa Cruz returns from his latest injury setback, City will have too many strikers to choose from once again.

In the defense, Jolean Lescott would want to come back and start in order to secure a spot on the flight to South Africa with Fabio Capello’s England squad. Vincent Kompany and Kolo Toure will surely give Lescott a run for his money, which could mean curtains for one of those players by the time the transfer window reopens in the summer.

As a result, Roberto Mancini will have more to think about than just the embarrassing 3-1 destruction at Old Trafford that saw his side exiting the Carling Cup in midweek. He will have another shot at getting to Wembley via the FA Cup but more importantly, he needs to make sure his team stays focused on building up the club rather than thinking about quitting.