The surprise up front is not from a player being left out but one being included – Andy Carroll gets the nod after a mixed season with Liverpool. Jermain Defoe is another gamble in my eyes, as he’s not had a decent showing for England in a long time. Having said that I’m not sure who I would have taken instead and it’s very easy for us all to sit back at home and criticise the decisions. If we were all that good at picking teams and organising tactics, we’d be the football managers, not them.

In all honesty, the important thing now is not the players individually but how they connect and play as a team. It’s a cliché I know but it’s so true and it seems to be one of the things we’ve really lacked in recent years. Maybe Roy Hodgson hasn’t necessarily concentrated on who’s in top form but which collection of players he thinks will work the best together. That would be a different, smart approach to take and I will of course be watching with interest to see what happens for England in Euro 2012.

And if you’re anything like me you’ll need a reminder of England’s Euro 2012 fixtures, so here are the dates for the first three group games:

• Monday 11th June, 5pm – France v England
• Friday 15 June, 5pm – Sweden v England
• Tuesday 19 June, 7.45pm – England v Ukraine

There’s inevitably loads of muck being thrown around by United and City supporters but I’m not interested in that – it’s only football, after all, and it would be boring if we just won everything. It gives us something to come back and fight for next year. Some of my mates who are die-hard United fans would hate me for saying this but I actually think it’s a good thing City won.

So, moving on, it’s less than a month until the Euro 2012 competition starts, with England’s first game against France on Monday 11 June. It is obviously going to be a bit ‘in at the deep end’ for the new manager, Roy Hodgson, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a problem in itself. Time will help in the long run of course but he must know roughly the players he’s going to use and he’ll know their strengths and weaknesses. It’ll just be a case of seeing how well they play alongside each other and their individual attitude and approach to international football. That’s been England’s biggest problem for me over the years – the players just don’t seem comfortable within themselves when they get on the world stage.

Anyway, that gives me effectively a month off football so I’m going to indulge a few of my other passions, one of which, a little by default, is cars. I’ve been looking at used cars for so long I think I’ll be disappointed if I ever do decide on one because it will mean I won’t be able to go and look at them anymore. Maybe I should open a used car dealership? Hmm… anyway, I’m looking at leasing Peugeot 107 deals this week, so I’ll see how that goes.

As it’s an away game on Sunday, up in Sunderland, we won’t be going to the actual match so I think we’re going to watch it at my place. We’d normally consider going to a pub I think, especially as it’s the last game of the season, but it’s so important we’re going to want to concentrate and listen to everything that’s going on, and that would never happen in the pub. I’ll fill the fridge up and get some decent snack food in then we’ll just have to sit it out and see what happens – and keep an eye on the Man City result as well, of course.

Oh, and I’ve gone with the prediction from the last post and placed a bet on it – Man City to win 2-1 at QPR and us to draw 1-1 with Sunderland, giving Man City the Premier League title. I figured if Man United don’t win the Premier League, at least I might win some cash to soften the blow a little.

With FA Cup Final finished, I had no choice but to focus on the Premier League finale. Man United and Man City both had their penultimate games on Sunday and we both won, meaning we’re still level on points. With just one game left each, both taking place next Sunday, it really has gone down to the wire. We’re level on points but City have a much better goal difference than us so we really need them to lose or draw and for us to win to make certain of it. If we both win, we’d have to do it by at least a nine goal margin, depending on how many they won by, to take the title, so you have to say that Man City are the favourites. I’d rather take my chances going to play Mega Jackpots online than put any money on the Premier League title but I thought I’d have one last go at a prediction, to see if my lack of success might work the other way.

So I predict that Man City will win 2-1 at home to QPR and we will draw 1-1 away to Sunderland, meaning City take the title. And I’m really hoping that, like all my other predictions, this one won’t turn out to be correct.

It’s Chelsea v Liverpool in the final this year and I have to say my money is definitely going to be on Chelsea. They’re having a great run of form at the moment and even Torres has started scoring again, so you’d have to back them over Liverpool, who have been a bit erratic recently. If Chelsea win this and then the Champions League final as well it would be an amazing end to a turbulent season for them and you’d have to say Di Matteo should be in the running for the manager of the year award. Some people might be surprised to hear me talk like that, as a United supporter, but I’ve always said I’m a fan of football first and foremost and I always give credit where it’s due, even if it is to our rivals.

Anyway, my FA Cup Final prediction is for Chelsea to win 3-1. I might even put an extra bet on for Torres to score the first goal.

Still, onwards and upwards. We have two games left to redeem ourselves and of course we’ll have to keep an eye on City’s results. Mancini says Man United are still favourites for the title because we’ve got easier games but at this stage no game is easy. On paper, I would agree that Swansea and Sunderland are a better prospect than Newcastle and QPR, but you never know what will happen. QPR are fighting a bit of a relegation battle, which will undoubtedly inspire them, but the other three don’t really have anything to lose, which could be just as dangerous, especially if we let the nerves get to us and don’t relax into the games. The next two Sundays will be big football days for us.

Anyway, I’m trying to take my mind off football for the time being, at least until Sunday. Had a cracking weekend with the lads, out in town on Saturday and Sunday night. We went to a few bars around Manchester on Saturday then for an Indian and had a really nice steak meal on Sunday. It was good to catch up with them all – a bit like the good old days. One of them took us to the football in his Renault Grand Scenic on Monday night. It’s a decent sized car, easily fitting five of us, and would work well for all the studio equipment and stuff I have to shift around, so I might take a look at one later this week.

I also watched Bayern Munich v Real Madrid last night, which was another great game. It never feels quite right when someone has to win on penalties but they can’t play on forever. Jose Mourinho blamed the defeat on tired players, as his side had played Barcelona at the weekend in a crucial game near the end of the La Liga season. Bayern Munich, on the other hand, were able to rest their key players. I’m not a fan of managers making excuses like that – they got beaten, sometimes you just have to accept that, even if it was on penalties.

This week in the studio has been really good. Lots of people in and out and a real variety of work as well, which has made it interesting and been great experience for the student I’ve had helping me out. One more day then I’m gearing up to the Manchester derby weekend. As I’ve mentioned before, a few mates are coming back for the game and to have a bit of a party on Saturday and Sunday. We’ll all be heading to our Manchester serviced apartments on Saturday afternoon then hitting the town, going to a few bars and restaurants and maybe even a club afterwards, if we can handle it – we are all getting on a bit now. And Monday, of course, is the day of the big game – Manchester United v Manchester City, potentially crucial in deciding the Premier League 2012. Next time you hear from me, it’ll all be over and I will either be the happiest man in Manchester or… well, not.

We’ve got a week until derby day, next Monday, and I’ve got a lot on in that time, which is good to take my mind off it. The studio is full this week, for all five days, which is a bit unusual – not that I’m complaining. I’ve had to take on some help for a couple of days, when we’ve got a band in – a sound engineering student from the university is coming in to give me a hand. A bit like a placement, I suppose, but I’ll give him some cash for it – £20 a day maybe. It gives him some experience and takes a bit of work off me so I guess it’s a win-win situation. I just need to make sure I don’t have to go and see what employment law Manchester solicitors need to advise me on – I’d rather keep it casual.

I’ll watch the Champions League semi-final tonight, Chelsea v Barcelona, which should be a cracking game. Can Chelsea beat Barcelona at the Nou Camp? I doubt it and I predict a 3-1 win for Barcelona, but we’ll see. In some ways I would like to see Chelsea win it, just to show the rest of us that Barcelona can be beaten.

It’s going to be a big couple of weeks for football from now – Man United have got a home game against Everton on Sunday and I’ll be watching the second legs of the Champions League semi-finals next week, of course. Then it’s all about us against City on Monday, 30 April – the big Manchester derby. It’s possible that game will have a big influence on who is going to win the Premier League in 2012, so it’s about as important as it gets for us. Me and a couple of the lads have managed to get tickets as well; we don’t normally go to derby games but this one is just too important to miss and there are even a few lads who have moved away coming back for it. There are five of them, making it twelve of us in total, meaning our big group of mates will be hitting the town together again for the first time in years. We’ve got a couple of Manchester serviced apartments booked, so watch out if you’re in town that weekend – it could get messy!

I’m not the sort of fan to wish ill on our rival clubs – I know a lot of people will want to see Chelsea get properly beaten but I really don’t mind who wins, I’m just looking forward to a couple of good games of football and hopefully lots of goals. For what it’s worth, here are my predictions for the Champions League semi-finals:

• Chelsea v Barcelona first leg: 2-1 to Barcelona.
• Bayern Munich v Real Madrid first leg: 2-2.
• Chelsea v Barcelona second leg: 4-1 to Barcelona, making it 6-2 on aggregate.
• Bayern Munich v Real Madrid second leg: 3-2 to Real Madrid, making it 5-4 on aggregate.

So if I was a betting man I would put a bit of money on a Real Madrid v Barcelona final. I won’t give a prediction for the final result until the semi-finals have been played because you never know, Chelsea might just pull off something unexpected.