It’s advantage United, Silva’s not gold, Torres hits back!

FOOTBALL – With games fast running out (only seven left) and rivals City failing to make it 21 successive home PL wins by drawing 3-3 with Sunderland, Manchester United are now favourites to win their 20th ‘League’ title in 104 years.

With several City players out of form, Spaniard David Silva’s one of them, and others arguing with each other, I feel it’s all over bar the shouting unless United stutter badly.

Arsenal came a cropper at QPR but Chelsea won 4-2 at Villa Park, Fernando Torres netting his first Premiership goal for six months, three days after setting up Salomon Kalou’s winner in the Champions League clash with Benfica.

Hopefully last night Chelsea clinched a semi-final clash with Barcelona.

Elsewhere in the Premiership, Tottenham, joint third again, beat Swansea…

Everton upset WBA to leap-frog Liverpool who had ‘keeper Pepe Reina sent-off when losing at Newcastle… bottom club Wolves looked doomed after losing their relegation battle with Bolton…

Wigan clipped Stoke 2-0… and Manchester United won 2-0 at Blackburn on Monday.

Soccer Shorts

* Despite a 3-0 loss at Blackpool, Southampton still lead the Championship by two points from Reading; it’s Charlton, Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday 1-2-3 in League One, while Swindon, beaten by Chesterfield in the FL Trophy final eleven days ago, are top of League Two with Torquay second.

* Celtic need one point at Kilmarnock this weekend to win the SPL title.

* Real Madrid lead Barcelona by six points (78-72) with eight La Liga games remaining.

Lionel Messi hit his 50th goal of the season for Barca in a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao.

* Both FA Cup semi-finals will be at Wembley: Chelsea-Tottenham on 14 April and Everton-Liverpool 24 hours later.

* Bolton’s Fabrice Muamba is making excellent progress… amazing considering he was ‘dead for 78 minutes’.

* Aston Villa’s ‘Stan’ Petrov has been diagnosed with leukaemia. We wish him well.

* Southampton have been handed a £33m gift. The family of the club’s now deceased former Swiss owner, Markus Liebherr, who loaned the Saints the money, said the loan has been turned into shares, leaving the club free from any debt to the Liebherrs.

* Ex-Millwall star Barry Kitchener has died from cancer, aged 64.

He made a record 602 appearances for the Lions between 1967 and 1982.

ROUND-UP

• The county cricket season started just as England lost the first Test against Sri Lanka by 75 runs.

Set 340 to win, the tourist collapsed from 233-4 to 266 all out. Only Jonathan Trott (112) showed any resilience.

The second Test is underway.

• Matt Neal (Honda Yuasa Racing Team) won round one of this year’s British Touring Car Championship. • Last week Novak Djokovic and Agnieszka Radwanska (23) won their respective singles finals in Miami. It was Radwanska’s ninth WTA title.

• Former UK number one snooker player Tony Knowles (56) could be making a comeback.

• In rugby, Harlequins beat Saracens 24-19 to go top of the Aviva Premiership and Huddersfield lead Hull in the Super League. Meanwhile, Cardiff Blues suspended Gavin Henson for ‘being drunk on a plane’.

• It’s the Cambridge-Oxford university boat race this weekend. • Formula One’s Eddie Jordan is now an OBE.

• Ex-world darts champion Jocky Wilson has died, aged 62.

• Four New Orleans Saints players have been suspended by the NFL for allegedly receiving huge payments for committing ‘outrageous fouls and using foul tactics.’

Three coaches are also in trouble.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Sir Winston Churchill described golf as ‘an ineffectual attempt to direct an uncontrollable sphere into an inaccessible hole with instruments ill-adapted to the purpose.’

• When wrestler Giant Haystacks went to the loo on an aircraft travelling to Calcutta in 1978, he got stuck there! When the plane landed, firemen had to use a welding torch to cut him free!