England

I very rarely write SF because I don’t think I’ve good enough to compete with the likes of the brilliant hard SF writers I admire, like Iain Banks and Paul McCauley, but once in a while I come up with a nice idea that I think will make a good story. This is the case [...]

Stamford Bridge side ready to fork out £30m+ for Old Trafford star. Check in to Chelsea vs Everton Chelsea have set their sights on Man United striker Wayne Rooney and Blues owner Roman Abramovich refuses to be put off by the Old Trafford side's insistence that the 27 year old will not be sold. The Sunday Mirror believe that Abramovich is willing to spend upwards of £30m to win the race to sign Rooney and is keen to make sure that his West London side are at the front of the queue if the Premier League title holders fail to persuade Rooney to withdraw his transfer request. Chelsea will match Rooney's £250k a week salary as Abramovich fights tooth and nail to bring in the Man United man as he looks to bring in some much needed attacking prowess. Incoming Man United boss David Moyes will look to persuade Rooney to change his mind but given the fractious relationship between the pair, that dates back to when the former Everton youngster left the Goodison Park side in contentious circumstances, such an attempt seems doomed to failure. Rooney has played a less pivotal role in this season's Premier League title success than in previous triumphs and has been used in a more withdrawn attacking role to accommodate Robin Van Persie. Chelsea are in desperate need of a prolific forward, with Fernando Torres continuing to fail to deliver at least in Premier League terms, the Spaniard managing to score regularly in cup football but going some 16 top flight league games without a goal. Demba Ba has also proved something of a disappointment since his January move to the club, scoring just twice since signing in January. Rooney may be keen on a move back to a central striking role, after all he did manage a career best of 34 goals in that position last season, and has managed just 12 Premier League goals this season in his supporting role. Wayne Rooney is Man United's fourth highest goal-scorer of all time having scored a total of 197 goals for the club. He has been withdrawn from the club's squad for the final game of the season at West Brom.

Check in to Newcastle United vs Arsenal Arsene Wenger saw his most effective goal-scoring option leave for Man United last summer, much to the disarray of Gunners supporters who had seen another established first team player make an all too predictable exit, and the Arsenal boss opted to bring in Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podoslki to help make up for the loss of the Dutchman. Though both players have made an impact in their first seasons at the North London club their combined total of 22 goals from 65 appearances, compared to Van Persie's 25 goals from 34 Premier League starts for Man United, Wenger is still missing a truly prolific marksman to spearhead his attack. Here are five possible summer signings who could help fill the void. 5. Wilfried Bony (Vitesse Arnhem) For all the big names that have been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium in recent months, Wayne Rooney being the most recent that turned heads, Arsene Wenger is better known for bringing in lesser known names for a fraction of the price some big-name stars would cost. With that in mind a move to Ivory Coast international Bony may be a possibility. The powerful 24 year old forward has been a massive success since moving to the Dutch Eredivisie from Sparta Prague two and a half years ago, netting 12 goals in his first full season in Holland and an astonishing 31 top tier goals this term. Strong running with a physique that could lend itself to life in the Premier League, Bony may be an option worth considering. 4. David Villa (Barcelona) A known Wenger target and a player, though older than a usual Arsenal signing, who can still make an impact at the highest level. Arsene Wenger had initially hoped to bring in the former Valencia man to the Emirates Stadium in January but Villa had opted to fight for a regular berth in Tito Vilanova's first team set-up but has continued to find himself out of the Barcelona manager's starting eleven and is now ready to leave the Nou Camp. Villa has been handed just 14 La Liga starts thus far this season but has still managed to net nine goals whilst the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Pedro have tended to get the nod ahead of the 31 year old marksman. David Villa is the Spanish national team's record goal-scorer and the striker is keen to retain a spot in Vicente del Bosque's plans and as such needs to be playing regularly, this is of course all the more relevant given the 2014 World Cup finals are around the corner. A good short to mid-term solution. 3. Christian Benteke (Aston Villa) The young Belgian has something that no one else on this list of possible signings has, a proven Premier League goal-scoring record. The 22 year old has managed 19 top tier goals for an Aston Villa side who have been at the wrong end of the table for almost the entire campaign, imagine what he could do for a top four chasing side! Paul Lambert won't want to lose the former Racing Genk man but if Arsenal were to mount a concerted effort to lure the big striker then the Midlands side could struggle to retain his services. Wouldn't cost a fortune, perhaps no more than double the £7m Aston Villa spent on his services a year ago. 2. Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina) Depending on which report you read you may be led to believe that Arsenal have pretty much already sewn up the signing of the Montenegro international and the Fiorentina man could well be a perfect player to fill the Robin Van Persie void. 26 goals in 57 Serie A appearances in his last two seasons is a good, if not spectacular, return but the young attacker offers a lot more than just goals and has grown into a central striking role and could perhaps move up another gear if he were to make the move to the Premier League. The 23 year old would appear to be the most likely of the five on this list to join Arsenal and appears to be a signing Gunners fans would welcome. 1. Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid) Of the players named on this list the Argentine has th

There is rarely any competition for space on the "beaches" uncovered at the Thames low tide.

As any accountant will tell you – you must always keep your receipts. It was a dictum adopted religiously by the staff at London oldest ironmongers R. M. Presland & Sons, in the Hackney Rd since 1797 and still trading today as Daniel Lewis & Co Ltd, where this cache of receipts from the eighteen-eighties and nineties was discovered recently. One hundred and thirty years later, they may no longer be of interest to the tax man, but they serve to illustrate the utilitarian beauty of nineteenth-century typographic design and tell us a lot about the diverse interrelated  trades which once filled this particular corner of the East End. You may also like to read about At London’s Oldest Ironmongers

Land's End to John O'Groats is a classic cycle touring route. But it was also the blue riband distance among the long distance record-breaking heyday of the 1930s to the 1960s. In 1954 Eileen Sheridan, a diminutive cyclist from Coventry sponsored by the huge Hercules Bicycle Company, set a new record that stood for decades. Now 89, Eileen recounts a truly epic journey and tells the story of how she became one of the most successful, best known, and best paid cyclists in Britain.

A quartet the Stamford Bridge side could sign with the transfer funds said to be made available to the incoming Blues boss this summer. Check in to Chelsea vs Everton Chelsea will reportedly target three or four players with an estimated £100m transfer warchest being made available to whomever replaces Rafa Benitez, with that in mind we look at four players the Blues could sign with the money available, additions that could well help the West London club mount a genuine Premier League title challenge whilst re-asserting themselves on the Champions League stage following their fall at the first hurdle of the competition this season. Radamel Falcao (Atletico Madrid) Estimated value: £50m Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich will want to bring in a 'Marquee' signing or two to help erase the memory of what has all in all been a poor season for the former Champions League title holders. Radamel Falcao could be the ideal man to lead the Chelsea attack, the Colombian is quick and a big physical presence who could thrive in the Premier League. Talk of a possible move to Monaco for the 27 year old may be a tad premature, Abramovich will certainly be keeping tabs on the Atletico Madrid goal machine. Falcao netted 36 goals in his first season at the Vicente Calderon and has amassed 34 in just 40 appearances in all competitions this term and given Atletico Madrid's history of selling star players there could well be a good chance they will elect to cash in on the former FC Porto man. Abramovich may opt to use former Atletico Madrid man Fernando Torres as a makeweight in any such move, killing two birds with one stone. Luke Shaw (Southampton) Estimated value: £10m Ashley Cole isn't getting any younger and 17 year old Luke Shaw could well be the ideal long term replacement for the England veteran and happily for Chelsea it turns out that the Southampton man is a big Blues fan! Shaw has excelled since breaking into the Saints first team this term and has already received an England Under 21 call-up and would surely be tempted by a possible move to Stamford Bridge. Southampton may well be loathed to lose the youngster but have in the past accepted offers for previous top talents like Gareth Bale, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott so there is every chance that a good offer would be accepted by the St Mary's side. Marouane Fellaini (Everton) Estimated value: £24m The powerful Belgian could perhaps act as a good replacement for Frank Lampard. Yes the Everton man is not exactly the same style of player as the England midfielder but like the Chelsea record goal-scorer the 25 year old provides goals from the centre of the park, supporting the strikers every chance he gets. David Moyes leaving Goodison Park could well lead to interested parties looking to take advantage of any uncertainty and Fellaini has previously made it clear he wants Champions League football and a move to Chelsea may well be a distinct possibility. Andre Schurrle (Bayer Leverkusen) Estimated value: £16m The young attacker is reported to have agreed terms with Chelsea and the £20m rated forward is expected to complete a move to the club pending an agreement on a fee for the 22 year old's services. Some sources believe that the addition of Chelsea's Belgian international Kevin de Bruyne into the bargain could be key though this source states that a straight cash deal may suffice. Schurrle has had an excellent season at the BayArena this term, scoring and assisting with regularity and in the process helping his side to secure a Champions League spot for next term. The adaptable attacker would fit well alongside the likes of Juan Mata and Eden Hazard, the German international is comfortable on the ball and can play in a number of attacking areas and adheres to Roman Abramovich's youthful transfer policy.

Spurs target could be set for a move to France. Check in to Tottenham Hotspur vs Sunderland Big-spending French outfit Monaco could hijack Tottenham's move for Porto midfielder Joao Moutinho, according to Le 10 Sport. The Portuguese playmaker was a target for Spurs last summer and could be again this year as they continue to seek a long-term replacement for Luka Modric, who was sold to Real Madrid at the start of the season. Andre Villas-Boas is a fan of the 26-year-old, and worked with him for one season when he was Porto manager, as the two enjoyed great success, winning the treble. However, Monaco are keen to spend a lot on some big name players in this transfer window as they prepare for life in Ligue 1 next term. They have already been linked with the likes of Carlos Tevez, Radamel Falcao and Dani Alves. They could also move for Spurs striker Emmanuel Adebayor, and it is understood that the Togolese forward is surplus to requirements after an indifferent season at White Hart Lane. Spurs may also not be able to afford the £33million asking price for Moutinho, unless they sell star player Gareth Bale to Real Madrid or Manchester United this summer.

By all accounts this is the home kit the Old Trafford side will be performing in next term. Spotted on EPL Talk. Check in to West Bromwich Albion vs Manchester United

Parc des Princes send off was an emotional one for the 38 year old England midfielder. Check in to Lorient vs PSG David Beckham en larmes pour son dernier match avec le PSG au Parc des Princes by Gentside