Andre the Giant Battle Royal moved to Wrestlemania 31 Kick-off Show by WWE

courtesy of wwe.com

Andre the Giant Battle Royal moved to WWE Wrestlemania 31 Kick-Off Show

WWE has moved the Andre the Giant Battle Royal to the Kick-Off show at Wrestlemania! (Click on the link above) We are not sure if this is to be considered a good move on the part of the WWE, but fans on the official site have voiced their disgust in the latest development leading to Wrestlemania 31. It's safe to say that the IC ladder match may have played an important part in this move by WWE, by not cluttering their biggest event with too many 'non-singles' matches, but whether it will go over well with the fans on Sunday night is yet to be seen.

Talents such as Ryback and the Miz, Mark Henry, Mizdow and a host of others will unfortunately be denied the opportunity to experience their true Wrestlemania moment this year, but WWE seem to have much bigger plans in store, especially with the announcement of Brock Lesnar's contract extension with the company, so expect numerous promos and some 'awesome sauce' this Sunday night!

We will keep you posted on any further WWE news leading to Wrestlemania and beyond!

Arsenal out of Champions League but still in trophy hunt!

There are a few talking points in relation to Arsenal's disastrous 2014-15 Champions League campaign, with their collapse to French giants Monaco being the biggest of all. The gunners did their best to overturn a 3-1 first leg deficit when they defeated Monaco away from home 2-0, but alas the gunners were once again victims of the away-goals rule and saw themselves exited from the tournament in as early as the round of 16 for fifth successive year! The harsh reality is as simple as this, Arsenal were never going to win Europe's premier prize, thus the pill wasn't as hard to swallow as it should have been. but being in a tournament for 17 consecutive seasons does suggest however that a lot needs to be done to fix this team.

Per Mertesacker, the vice-captain who at times seems clueless on the pitch, should be reprimanded a million times over for his at times chaotic contributions that have seen Arsenal suffer defeat due to defensive complexities! Per, at one point, was the ideal signing that Arsenal needed just a few seasons ago when he signed for the team, but that slowly has converted into a mistake that should have never happened, and now it's time maybe for Mertesacker to finally go! Koscielny has been the rock of defense over the past few games, and he's not only been tasked with the job of covering his half, but also at times covering the gaping hole left by Mertesacker on more than one occasion. Arsenal are in dire need of a new CB, and this has to be on Arsene Wenger's to-do list come this summer! Something simple as defensive complacency will once again prove to be the club's Achilles heel, as it has been for many seasons.

Olivier Giroud must be commended for his effort as the main striker, as he scored against West Ham this past weekend, and on Tuesday night against Monaco in scintillating fashion! Giroud was again on target in Arsenal's 2-1 win at Newcastle, scoring both goals to increase the Gunner's chances for Champions League qualification. The team is once again ready and fully prepared for an epic end of season, as Wenger and his men aim for a second successive FA Cup victory! Will we however see some fantastic summer signings after the season wraps up?

In reality, good performances will take Arsenal so far, but a fantastic performance and some superb additions to the club will make a better team become the best! Wenger will need to recapture his glory days, or what's left of it, by signing the players he need, and releasing the players that need to finally go, but Gunner fans, march on, up up Gunners!

'Dat Guy' Welbeck is Arsenal's man of the week!

Danny Welbeck's sublime finish proved vital in Arsenal's 2-1 away victory over arch-rivals Manchester United, and what a heck of a show it was! Despite valiant efforts from Wayne Rooney and Ashley Young, United weren't strong enough to see off the Gunners who staked their claim to being favorites to retain their FA Cup title. The atmosphere in Manchester was far from hostile, as match-winner and former United boy Danny Welbeck received mainly cheers with a few jeers on the side from the home supporters, but that didn't change the outcome of a fantastic evening for Arsenal!

Back in August, Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal made it clear that Welbeck wasn't good enough to feature in his team, that he wasn't a requirement that suited his standards, thus replacing the United native with the superb loan capture of Colombian hitman Radamel Falcao, a player many perceived to have been more than a fantastic upgrade to Welbeck's talents! Today, Van Gaal's gamble not only costed him the respect of his fans and the media, but more importantly it costed him any chance of winning a single trophy this season! Danny Welbeck has seen to it that this was the case, as his celebration after his brilliant goal was the highlight of sports tabloids and also proved to be another nail in the coffin of Van Gaal.

Welbeck has finally provided hope to Arsenal supporters, that there may finally be something special about this young lad after all! Welbeck has often come under intense scrutiny regarding his performances, which at times proved his inability to perform as a top-class striker many have been hoping he would become, thus often leading to questions about him being the right fit for Arsenal and manager Arsene Wenger. On Monday night, any such feelings may have been quelled for the time being, as Arsenal and its fans can finally parade down the streets of London and give themselves a pat on the back for finally breaking the 'United' curse over the last twelve games, a curse that has so long taken a toll on the pride and egos of Arsenal fans! The team should be applauded for their valiant effort, as it proved successful; and the time for Arsenal to rise more than ever, is now.

Aside from the fact that Falcao was demoted to the United under-21's on Tuesday, Van Gaal's arrogance proves the point that he has destroyed the United philosophy left by Sir Alex Ferguson, by failing to get the best out of his own players, a visible sign of imminent failure, and to top it off, having the player he so rejected and shipped off to his very own rivals kick him out of the FA Cup! Danny Welbeck should consider himself extremely blessed to have escaped United at a time when the club is in shambles, even worse because of a manager who is oblivious to the English game. The celebrations will be ringing right through until weekend as Arsenal once again prepare for a big test when they face West Ham at home, a game they need to win in order to maintain any hopes of Champions League football next season. Danny Welbeck should now use this opportunity to continue the momentum of Monday night, and evoke his brilliance, and prove to the world that he is indeed deserving of his place at Arsenal, and that he is ready to one day be considered among the world's best! We've had our doubts about Danny, we all have, but after such display against Van Gaal's men, he more than deserves a second chance at glory, he has earned his spot, and he will need to make toe most of his opportunity and send a message to United, the fans that even jeered him, and to Van Gaal, that he isn't finished just yet!

Arsenal will then face their biggest task come next week in their Champions League away game to Monaco, hoping to overturn a 3-1 deficit and see themselves through to the quarterfinal stage for the first time in five seasons. There's finally renewed confidence injected in this team, something they needed for a long time. Will Danny Welbeck prove his worth once again and deliver?

FC Barcelona back on top... the Catalans are finally home!

After their merciless 6-1 drubbing of Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, FC Barcelona are finally back on top of La Liga for the first time in 2015, and they have finally raised their flags! It's no surprise that the Catalans were tipped as hot favorites in their clash with Rayo Vallecano, as they strolled through the pitch at Camp Nou, leaving bodies on the floor in utter despair and desperation, as Vallecano should indeed consider themselves lucky to not have been further embarrassed than they were today.  Star player Neymar was the most notable absentee, as he picked up a one-match suspension for accumulating quite a few yellow cards in his previous games, however, he was far from needed in today's fixture! 

The beauty of Barcelona's hunger and desire for success lies within it's core, their fans! Week after week, coach Luis Enrique and his team have been hit with constant pressure from their supporters who show their passion like no other, urging the Spanish giants to get it together and fight! Lionel Messi has shown the world why he is notably one of the best players to grace the game, as his hat-trick today signaled yet another phenomenal performance from the Argentine maestro! Luis Suarez was none too shy of goals, as he himself netted a brace which all but sealed Barca's dominant win. The message again is clear, the titans are here to stay!

With 12 games remaining in the 2014-15 season, it's everything but easy for Messi and company, as they will have a daunting task of holding on to first place, with the wittiness of Diego Simeone and defending champions Atletico Madrid, and the aggression and desperation of Carlo Ancelotti and Real Madrid, Barcelona now have their work cut out for them more than ever! The beauty of the La Liga has spread more rapidly over the past two seasons, as it is finally no longer a two horse race competition. Everyone is now twice as hungry, which means the likes of Barca, Real and Atletico will have more ships attacking their turf, but at this moment no ship may be big enough to sink the Catalans! Team MSN (Messi, Suarez, Neymar) have been the talking point of the football world, record European scorers, world warriors in their own right! Safe to say, they have finally eclipsed the juggernauts of Real Madrid and their triple-threat trio of  BBC (Bale, Benzema, Cristiano) that have been  causing nothing but panic in the hearts of their opposition; but now there's finally a new spin to the tale! Should Messi and friends keep this momentum going, Barcelona are safe in their title hunt, and its going to take more than a sulky Ronaldo and a lingering Gareth Bale to take that away from them! The aim of the game is to win them all, and at this stage, the winner of this year's La Liga will be the team that has it in them to win the remainder of their 12 games, convincingly or not! Atletico's hustle all of last season was the key to their previous success, capitalizing on the errors of their rivals, but it's safe to say that this season, there may very well be no such luck!

King Messi has claimed his throne today, and today alone, as he will have a few more months left to prove to the world that his rightful place is indeed number one, and it's his job to prove to his doubters and fans that he's indeed no fluke. This surely wont be the last time that we'll hear the age-old discussion of Ronaldo vs Messi, this wont be the last time we hear the trembling fans of Madrid blasting their coach Carlo Ancelotti, and this most definitely wont be the last time we get a 'bite' out of a rejuvenated Luis Suarez, as this has proved to be one of the best seasons in La Liga, one of epic drama, action, and most certainly, one that we will most definitely dare to remember!