AZPILICUETA: SPECIAL GAMES

Cesar Azpilicueta had yet to establish himself in the side when Chelsea won away at Tottenham back in mid-October.

He had started one game by that stage - in the Capital One Cup - and it wasn't until early November he began his first league game.

Man City, Wigan eye cup glory

At the end of a week dominated by Alex Ferguson's shock retirement as Manchester United manager, Manchester City will seek to drag the spotlight back to the blue half of the city by beating Wigan Athletic in Saturday's FA Cup final.

Victory over Wigan will give City a third major title in three seasons and salve some of the pain inflicted by United's uncontested romp to this season's Premier League title and their own abject group-stage exit in the UEFA Champions League.

Bale collects another accolade

Tottenham forward Gareth Bale underlined his desire to bring UEFA Champions League football back to White Hart Lane after he picked up his FWA Footballer of the Year award on Thursday.

Bale collected his Football Writers' Association (FWA) Footballer of the Year award at a star-studded ceremony in central London.

Less than two weeks ago, the Spurs star won the PFA Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year gongs after scoring a remarkable 30 times for club and country.