Finally, our dream ending is here

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First things first. Manchester United and Chelsea will end the season as two heavyweights duking it out. I, for one, love it. No, I'm not thrilled about an all-English final. I believe in parity, and clubs from one country dominating a competition as important as the Champions League doesn't promote that.

But I do love drama. Just over a year ago, we were all salivating over the possibility of the same two clubs slugging it out not in one, not two, but three competitions: the Premier League, the Champions League and the FA Cup.

It wasn't to be. Both were upended in the Champs League semis, Man. United shredded by Kaká and eventual champ AC Milan, Chelsea falling for the second time in three years to Liverpool. They ended up splitting England's top two trophies, but it just wasn't the same.

Now we've got our dream ending. The Red Devils and Blues are tied on points for first in the EPL, and they've got a date in Moscow. Love 'em or hate 'em, it's going to be a fantastic finish. Or, if you're like my friend Simon and are a Liverpool fan, you can spend May 21 "washing your hair."

Speaking of Liverpool, we have to drop the hammer on the losing semifinalists. Both the 'Pudlians and Barcelona will finish out 2007-08 season the same way they finished last year: trophyless. At this advanced stage of the season, you either win something, stay in the running for something or go home. And for Liverpool and Barça, the action on the pitch is the least of their problems.

Send the usual complaints and offers from Nigerian heirs to me in the box above. Our next installment, on May 15, will be coming to you straight from Barcelona. For my sake, let's hope the depression in the Catalan capitol will have worn off by then.

Note: All rankings, records and statistics are through April 30.

World Soccer Power Rankings

1 Previously: 1	Manchester United Yes, Gianluca Zambrotta served up the winning goal on a platter, but it's still heart-warming that Paul Scholes -- a onetime phenom who was part of Alex Ferguson's Golden Generation of United youth players -- was the hero against Barça. Scholesy almost became a forgotten man at Old Trafford this season. His rocket that put Man U back in the Champions League final was a vintage highlight clip. And it'll be fitting when he takes the field in the final, after missing out on United's last appearance in 1999 through a yellow-card suspension.
2 Previously: 2	Chelsea Frank Lampard's emotional return and winning goal a week after his mother died was the story of the day for sure. But the images of Avram Grant collapsing to his knees as time ran out vs. Liverpool on Wednesday said it all: Win or lose in the final, the dragon is nearly slain. It's funny, because the Blues haven't played that much differently under the Israeli manager since that smooth-talking Portuguese dude hit the road. (Save for more minutes for Michael Ballack -- and if you think the Russian upstairs had nothing to do with that, I've got a club looking for investors.)
3 Previously: 6	Inter Milan In the battle of (mostly) unchallenged likely champions, we're giving Inter the nod over Real because, well, Inter has fought off stronger challenges from the contenders. And despite the usual soap opera goings-on at the San Siro, the Nerazzurri got it together before their lead evaporated and have lost only once in nine games. Clinching their third straight title against archrival AC Milan on Sunday would be a nice way to close out.
4 Previously: 3	Real Madrid So Real is about to clinch its 31st La Liga title -- is this the worst title-winning team in Spain in recent memory? At least last season, we had the Galáctico generation riding off into the sunset as champs. This year it feels more like Real is the last one standing after a pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey competition. Barça didn't seem willing to mount a challenge, Sevilla couldn't balance European play, Valencia is an utter mess and Villarreal -- bless their hearts -- just doesn't have the horses to keep it going. At the very least, we've got whipping boy Raúl -- still one of our favorites here in Rankingsville -- putting together one his best seasons at age 30.
5 Previously: 7	AS Roma A pending change in ownership is never a welcome distraction in midseason, and the saga in the Eternal City is unsettling. Even if Hungarian-born American billionaire George Soros has pulled out of his bid for the club, it looks clear that the Sensi family no longer has the resources to keep Roma competitive. Even some fans are starting to believe it. Still, another failed title run aside, the Giallorossi can still end the season with a Coppa Italia title, which should be their main priority.
6 Previously: 10	FC Porto The Portuguese champs' insurmountable lead is now 23 points! If do-it-all winger Ricardo Quaresma isn't playing for a mega-club next season, Porto will have pulled off perhaps the biggest coup in Europe by keeping its dynamic star. Yes, Quaresma did time at Barcelona when he was a teenager, but he's far more crafty, patient and dangerous at 24. And look at him scoring cheeky goals like these.
7 Previously: --	Flamengo Amazing that we've never found room for Brazil's most popular club here. But the team that has produced dozens of one-named stars like Bebeto, Júnior, Zico, Leonardo, Zinho and Adriano is rolling again, 90 minutes from winning its 30th Rio State Championship and one of the teams to beat in the Copa Libertadores. True, Club América is a shadow of its dominating self this year, but heading into the Estadio Azteca (114,000 hostile Mexican fans at more than 7,000 feet above sea level) and stealing a win with two late goals in the final four minutes is ice cold. Side note: For a team with this many scoring threats, is taking a flyer on recovering Ronaldo and his, um, extracurricular activities worth the risk? I'd say O Fenômeno is about as likely to realize his dream as I am allowed to use the words "tranny hooker" in an SI.com headline again.
8 Previously: 9	Bayern Munich Tough one here. We move Bayern up a spot for essentially sewing up its 21st Bundesliga title (and thankfully, a spot in next season's Champions League). But how should we treat its continued lack of urgency in the European competition it is in this season, the UEFA Cup? Its 1-1 draw with Zenit St. Petersburg in the first leg of the semifinals last week was uninspired and sloppy, and never has Bayern looked as lost without Luca Toni. Thursday's second leg will be telling. Hurry up with that extended vacation, Jürgen Klinsmann.
9 Previously: 8	River Plate Uh-oh. All of a sudden, River has lost two games in 10 days -- its first defeats of '08. The loss at Rosario Central in league play wasn't so bad; los Millonarios are still tied for the Argentine Clausura lead. But they dropped their Copa Libertadores round-of-16 first-leg matchup to fellow Argentines San Lorenzo Wednesday night, clearly looking ahead to the superclásico with Boca Juniors on Sunday.
10 Previously: --	Pachuca Alright, hear me out here. Los Tuzos, back on here for the first time since last September, have had a forgettable season in Mexico and don't have the quality squad of '06-07 that went smashing through seemingly every competition in which it participated. Still, they successfully defended their CONCACAF crown on Wednesday, booking a return trip to the Club World Cup. Make that two Champions' Cups, two Mexican league titles, a Copa Sudamericana and a SuperLiga title to add to the trophy room in Hidalgo over the past two years. If we routinely give the Asian and African club champs a free pass on here, Pachuca certainly earns one this week. Besides which, you should start paying attention, if for no other reason than to see what becomes of Pachuca's resident Mexican-American, midfielder José Francisco Torres -- U.S. national-team boss Bob Bradley says the Texan is on his radar.
Honorable mentions: São Paulo, Fiorentina, Rangers, Fluminense, Juventus, Cruzeiro, Estudiantes de La Plata, PSV Eindhoven, LDU Quito, Celtic, Olympiakos, Kashima Antlers Dropped off: Liverpool, FC Barcelona