Man. United still No. 1, but beware

And we're back. We take breaks from this space once in awhile to accommodate the odd MLS or international piece, but sometimes it's amazing how much changes when you don't touch the Rankings for four weeks. Specifically, we're talking about Arsenal.

The Gunners were sitting tenuously at No. 2 back on March 20, fresh off getting replaced atop the English Premier League standings and staring down a six-game stretch that included three contests with Liverpool and matches at Chelsea, Bolton, and Man. United.

How did Arsenal fare? Try one win in six games, a Champions League exit and a bow out of the EPL race. Arsène Wenger's boys are still third, but that awful spell is enough to drop them off the Rankings entirely. And to think that just five months ago, everyone (us included) was seriously comparing them to the 2003-04 "Invincibles."

In any case, welcome back to Rankingsville (where our Caltrans road crew has redesigned the column!). We're getting very close to the time of year when contenders fade away, and the only clubs left worth considering are the ones that win trophies. After all, few fans go to bed satisfied with a second-place finish.

Note: All rankings, records and statistics are through April 16.

World Soccer Power Rankings

1 Previously: 1	Manchester United The world's greatest show of experience and consistency by far is up at Old Trafford, as United chases its 17th English first-division title and third European Cup. But can it do another double? Don't be so sure. In this era, it's not easy to keep it up through multiple tournaments. Consider: Of the past 12 Champions League winners, only four also won their domestic leagues (Barcelona in '06, Porto in '04, Bayern Munich in '01 and United in '99). We thought Man U was similarly primed for a double last season, and we all saw what happened against AC Milan in the semis.
2 Previously: 3	Chelsea To be sure, allowing Wigan to score in extra time on Monday was a major collapse for Chelsea. The Blues now face an uphill battle to catch Man. United, back five points with only four Premiership matches to play and a horrible schedule to finish the season. But are you like me -- actually believing this year is going to be different against Liverpool in the Champions League semis? Am I kidding myself here?
3 Previously: 8	Real Madrid Say what you will about this seemingly high ranking for Real, eliminated from contention in both the Champions League and the Copa del Rey. But the defending Spanish champs are still in first in La Liga -- granted, during one of the worst seasons in memory -- and have bagged wins when they've needed them. More importantly, no one else feels like catching them when they slip.
4 Previously: 5	Liverpool Americans aren't exactly doing themselves any favors in English soccer right now. With as many as seven current or former U.S. internationals looking destined for relegation, we don't need anything to sully our reputation. But there go Liverpool co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, feuding in public and putting their team in the line of fire. And even so, the Reds just keep winning. Latest discussion topic amongst my English and Spanish friends: With Rafa Benítez clearly a genius at knockout competitions (and apparently only knockout competitions), isn't he a no-brainer as a national-team manager somewhere?
5 Previously: 4	FC Barcelona This edition of Barça reminds a lot of the '03-04 Los Angeles Lakers, with the all-star fearsome foursome that imploded. The cast even matches up: Ronaldinho as the overweight, unmotivated and lazy Shaquille O'Neal who eventually was shipped off. Lionel Messi as young phenom Kobe Bryant, who missed significant time due to injuries and off-court controversy. Thierry Henry as Gary Payton, the sulky superstar who changed teams in search of the ultimate title but couldn't figure out how he fit into the system. Samuel Eto'o as Karl Malone, the reliable veteran trying to weather it all and simply play. Of course, the Lakers were finally done in in the NBA Finals; Barça will be extremely fortunate to get past Man. United in the Champs semis.
6 Previously: 7	Inter Milan It's going to take a Herculean effort for the Nerazzurri to stop the bleeding and hold on for the Serie A title. But recent results are encouraging now that Inter's horrid five-game winless streak -- which saw it drop out of the Champions League and shrank its domestic lead to a tiny four points -- are now in the rear-view. Much of Italy still hates Inter for its distinctly non-Italian roster. Ironic that its newest homegrown star, Mario Balotelli, isn't even technically an Italian citizen yet.
7 Previously: 7	AS Roma Let's get this straight. Roma has some fantastic players any team would love to have -- Daniele De Rossi, Philippe Mexes and Mirko Vucinic among them -- but this club is still all Francesco Totti. It moves at his whim, it wins when he plays and it's most feared when he deems it necessary to show up. His absence in both legs against Man. United was duly noted and hugely felt. Still, it looks as if the Giallorossi are headed toward a familiar conclusion to the season: an increasingly less-relevant Coppa Italia as its only spoils.
8 Previously: --	River Plate With apologies to Estudiantes de La Plata -- the first Argentine club to advance out of the Copa Libertadores group stage -- River is rolling in a far tougher group. With home-and-away wins against Chile's Universidad Católica and two thrillers against Club América, los Millonarios have kept their composure and are still sitting atop the Argentine Clausura table. In fact, they have yet to drop a game domestically and have allowed a measly two goals through 10 matches. Maybe Diego Simeone can coach in the big-time after all.
9 Previously: 10	Bayern Munich Let's not kid anyone here: Had Bayern not pulled its miracle comeback at Getafe in the second leg of their UEFA Cup quarterfinals, we could probably officially write off much of this season as an embarrassment. The Bavarian club has, top-to-bottom, the most quality of any team in Europe's version of the NIT Tournament, and bowing out to an inferior club -- down a man in the game, but clearly not lacking in heart -- would have been an unmitigated disaster. (Outgoing manager Ottmar Hitzfeld, in a back-handed congratulations to the losers, admitted as much.) That said, Luca Toni came through for Bayern again, and the club is back on track for the trophy and its 21st Bundesliga title.
10 Previously: --	FC Porto We're still disappointed that os Dragões bowed out to Schalke in the Champions League, because we would've loved to see another potential showdown with Chelsea. Still, Porto is a high-flying, entertaining gang of footballers who simply blew away the competition in the Portuguese league. The 23-time champs secured the title with five games to go and currently lead their closest pursuers by a ridiculous 18 points. There is one bit of business left to attend to: the Cup of Portugal final on May 18 against Sporting. A win would mark the seventh time the Dragons had done the double. That's some decent consolation.
Honorable mentions: Estudiantes de La Plata, Rangers, Fiorentina, Fluminense, Juventus, Flamengo, Cruzeiro, Fenerbahçe, São Paulo, LDU Quito, Kashima Antlers Dropped off: Arsenal, Boca Juniors