Aston Villa's brave tilt at a top-four place will run out of steam in the closing weeks, allowing Arsenal to salvage something from a troubled campaign. At the bottom, West Brom will drop back down to the Championship with little more than a whimper, while Stoke's appalling away form will prove to be too much of a hurdle to overcome.

Blackburn Rovers will do just enough to claw clear of danger. However, West Ham will lose its Premier League status while staring at a gloomy financial future.

Yahoo! Sports' predicted finishing order

1. Manchester United

2. Liverpool

3. Chelsea

4. Arsenal

5. Aston Villa

6. Everton

7. Tottenham Hotspur

8. Newcastle United

9. Fulham

10. Bolton Wanderers

11. Hull City

12. Wigan Athletic

13. Manchester City

14. Sunderland

15. Portsmouth

16. Middlesbrough

17. Blackburn Rovers

18. West Ham United

19. Stoke City

20. West Bromwich

In its first two seasons, Toronto FC has enjoyed spectacular success in attracting sellout crowds, matched only by the team's ineptitude on the field. However, the Canadian club is determined to reverse its playing fortunes in 2009 and took a big step last Friday by acquiring Dwayne De Rosario from the Houston Dynamo.

DeRo has been one of Major League Soccer's outstanding players for several seasons and the Canada international looks to be a perfect match for TFC.

Toronto's magnificent fans deserve a winning team and the club appears committed to improving the soccer product next season. De Rosario is on a $400,000-a-year contract, so he does not count as a designated player, leaving team management free to sign a marquee superstar if it wishes.

But just how much impact can De Rosario have, especially with Toronto playing in the tough Eastern Conference?

Share your thoughts below on how TFC will fare next season.

Barcelona's bid for an MLS expansion franchise will be monitored closely in Europe. If the project gets the go-ahead and is a success, then more big clubs are likely to follow.

That scenario would raise some key issues for the league, which currently plans to expand to 18 teams by 2011 and then consolidate.

While one European spin-off team could certainly be of benefit, would any more be unhealthy for MLS? Is there any way MLS could possibly be able to say no if a huge club like Manchester United or AC Milan came knocking, even if further expansion did not fit in with the league's current policy?

Which international clubs would you like to see in MLS? And where would be the best North American city for them?

Share your thoughts below.

His reward? One of the biggest positions in world soccer, even though the Madrid giant is suffering tough times following a miserable start to the season.

But the fact remains that Ramos' reputation in his homeland, where he led Sevilla's march up the Liga table, still is intact and really has not been tarnished by his troubled time in the English Premier League.

He has been offered a six-month contract and is seen as a safe pair of hands to get the club through the rest of this season. If he performs well, a longer term deal could beckon. If not, no harm done.

Ramos' first task will be to instill some confidence into a squad that has stumbled from one poor performance to another. The level of play being produced by Barcelona would indicate that the Spanish league title is already out of reach. Most Real fans would settle for an injection of pride and passion into their sorry team.

So is Ramos the man to resurrect Real? Or will his methods be as ineffective at the Santiago Bernabeu as they were at White Hart Lane?

Share your thoughts on this attempted solution to the Real Madrid crisis below.

The United States' long-held dominance of women's soccer has come under serious threat in recent years, with Germany and Brazil putting on the heat. But increasingly it seems that the biggest danger in future years is likely to come from the unlikely source of North Korea.

The reclusive communist nation has little history in men's soccer – apart from a shock 1-0 victory over Italy in the 1966 World Cup – yet its women are prospering at all levels.

After winning the Under-17 Women's World Cup last month, the North Koreans have another chance to send a message about their growing strength in Sunday's U-20 Women's World Cup final.

The United States has been strong throughout the event, with star striker Sydney Leroux scoring her fifth goal in the 1-0 semifinal victory against Germany. However, will it have enough left in the tank to see off the emerging North Koreans and prevent a further power shift in the youth levels of women's soccer?

Share your thoughts on the tournament so far and the U.S.'s chances of victory below.

Roy Keane was always his harshest critic as a player and adopted the same approach in management.

His decision to step down as Sunderland boss on Thursday was sudden, but not especially surprising given the Irishman's highly-competitive nature.

For a while, after leading the club out of the Championship and back into the promised land of the Premiership, Keane emerged as a legitimate contender to replace Sir Alex Ferguson when he finally decides to quit Manchester United.

That possibility ended emphatically on Thursday. So which, if any, of Ferguson's former players can now step into the breach at Old Trafford when the time comes?

Still in the running ... maybe:

Steve Bruce. Took Birmingham out of the Premier League but has seen his career bounce back with Wigan and would be high on the list of candidates if Ferguson departed soon.

Mark Hughes. Arguably the most successful of Ferguson's former players now in management. But by accepting the top job at local rivals Manchester City may have ruled him out of ever leading United.

Paul Ince. Entered this season as one of the brightest young managerial prospects in the game, yet has struggled with Blackburn and has his job under threat.

Out of the frame:

Bryan Robson. A great United captain, a poor top-level manager. Dramatically kept West Brom up in 2005 but otherwise unsuccessful.

Roy Keane. Appears to have convinced himself he is not suited to management after quitting Sunderland.

Steve McClaren. Former Fergie assistant manager enjoyed some success with Middlesbrough before making a total mess of the England job.

So who should be the man to follow one of the greatest managers in soccer history? Is any of the former United players up to the task? Or would it take a big personality, like a Jose Mourinho, to make a success of the role?

Share your thoughts below.

Another round of bidding for the European Championship, another spate of double- and triple-teaming from smaller nations ill-equipped to stage one of soccer's showpiece events.

When is UEFA going to learn its lesson?

Euro 2008 was a wonderful tournament, featuring incredibly high-quality matches and a worthy victor in an outstanding Spain team. But what a shame that more fans could not see the event in person. Six of the eight stadiums in Austria and Switzerland only held the bare minimum 30,000-seat capacity, forcing thousands of supporters desperate to see their teams to watch on television.

Given their limitations, Austria and Switzerland did a pretty good job, yet already the cracks are showing in the organization of Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine.

That event was denied to Italy mainly due to the match-fixing scandal that rocked Serie A two years ago. But thanks to a series of troubles surrounding the readiness of stadiums and the necessary hotel infrastructure to host a successful event, Poland and Ukraine are already doing a fine job of breeding concern and mild panic at UEFA.

Now, with thoughts already shifting to Euro 2016, we are likely to again be consumed by a series of hastily constructed alliances. Scotland-Wales-Northern Ireland is one. Sweden-Norway, Hungary-Romania and Russia-Finland are also expected to table bids.

Staging the Euros appears to be turning into a consolation prize for nations that will never be capable of holding a World Cup, but it shouldn't be that way. Not every time at least.

In 2016, the Euros will expand to 24 teams and will be further established as the second-best soccer competition on the planet. If a joint bid wins the rights for 2016, then 20 years will have passed since Euro 1996 in England with only one sole host – Portugal in 2004.

Sadly, it is unlikely to change any time soon. UEFA president Michel Platini is a political animal and knows the value in keeping his support base among the smaller European nations happy.

So where would you like to see Euro 2016 held? Could Scotland-Wales-Northern Ireland work? Or another joint bid? Or would it be better in a single nation like France, Spain or Turkey with the necessary infrastructure in place?

Share your thoughts below.

Once again it seems that the Argentinean media has been far more keen for Guillermo Barros Schelotto to return to his homeland than the player himself.

As soon as the Major League Soccer season was over, the 2008 league MVP was being linked with a switch back to former club Boca Juniors in the South American media. The same thing happened 12 months earlier, with reports that Schelotto was deeply unsettled with the Columbus Crew and was looking for an exit route.

That, of course, was before he produced one of the finest seasons in MLS history and turned the Crew from rank outsiders into the best team in the league.

Now, predictably, and despite repeated Argentinean rumors to the contrary, Schelotto will return to Columbus for another season.

If he can reproduce the form of his spectacular 2008 campaign, then the Crew will be hot favorites to retain the trophy. However, he will be approaching his 36th birthday at the start of next season. Can he still be the dominant force in the league?

Share your thoughts on the MLS maestro below.

No arguments with the winner of the Ballon d'Or award to celebrate the European Footballer of the Year – Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo's remarkable achievements over the past year made him a deserved victor and the first Manchester United player to be given the accolade since George Best in 1968.

As I wrote in a recent column, I gave a marginal edge to Barcelona's Lionel Messi, but either man would have been a worthy recipient of the Ballon d'Or. Tuesday's news came after a strange week for Ronaldo, in which he was sent off for a bizarre handball in United's 1-0 derby victory over local rivals Manchester City.

So what now for Ronaldo?

• Can he lead United to a third straight EPL title?

• Can he help the team regain the Champions League crown won earlier this year?

• Can he lift Portugal from its poor start to 2010 World Cup qualifying to claim its place in the tournament?

• And finally, how much longer will he remain at United?

For the record, my opinions on the above questions are: 1) yes 2) no 3) yes and 4) until next summer. Don't believe Real Madrid when it says it is no longer interested.

Share your thoughts on all these matters below.

Just a few months after Euro 2008, it is not just the Spanish national team that is flying high at the top of European soccer. Spain's leading club teams are also exerting their dominance in European competition, cutting a swathe of destruction through the group stages of the Champions League and UEFA Cup.

With one matchday still remaining in Champions League group action, all four La Liga clubs have qualified for the last 16. Barcelona leads the way with 13 points and looks in devastating form, while Villarreal's dropped points include a pair of 0-0 draws with Manchester United. Likewise, Atletico Madrid is unbeaten, having won three games and drawn twice with Liverpool, while Real Madrid's only defeats came against Juventus.

Combined, the four Spanish teams have accumulated 42 points, with the English Premier League's representatives amassing 39 and Serie A's quartet 31.

In UEFA Cup action on Thursday, it was another impressive night for the Spaniards as Deportivo La Coruna breezed past Feyenoord 3-0 and Valencia hammered Rosenborg 4-0 in Norway. Spain's third UEFA Cup team, Sevilla, had a bye week but, like Deportivo and Valenica, is strongly poised to qualify for the last 32.

So is the recent Spanish club success a byproduct of the overall level of confidence coursing through Spanish soccer? Do the performances this season indicate that La Liga is edging ahead of the EPL in terms of quality? Or is it a temporary situation?

Share your thoughts below.

The race for the two new MLS expansion franchises due to begin operations in 2011 intensified this week as representatives from hopeful consortiums met with league owners in Los Angeles.

Miami's bid, backed by Spanish giants FC Barcelona, appears to be a lock for one spot, although there is strong competition from other quarters.

Montreal dropped out of the running, leaving St Louis, Vancouver, Atlanta, Portland, Ottawa and Miami in contention.

St Louis would be a logical option, having fought a long campaign for inclusion. However, the Vancouver bid, backed by NBA star Steve Nash, is also impressive and gained momentum with Montreal's departure from the contest.

Several dynamics are at work and are of interest to MLS. The chance to team up with a club like Barcelona will surely be too good an offer to resist. Yet bringing in Portland and Vancouver would set up an intriguing Pacific Northwest rivalry, as Seattle Sounders FC joins the league in 2009.

Even Ottawa, long considered by far the outsider in the bidding process, has put itself in the mix, coming up with a highly impressive presentation on Friday.

So where would be the best two options for the league as it looks to continue its recent progress?

Share your thoughts on the ideal locations for MLS expansion below.

While Guillermo Barros Schelotto was collecting his fully deserved Major League Soccer MVP award on Thursday, the other two finalists were preparing to head overseas this offseason. Within a few hours of each other, Landon Donovan and Cuauhtemoc Blanco agreed to loan deals to take them away from the United States for a couple of months.

Donovan will join German giants Bayern Munich in January and is penciled in to return to the Los Angeles Galaxy in mid-March. The move mirrors teammate David Beckham's loan to AC Milan, but unlike Beckham, it is highly likely that the Donovan deal is a precursor to a permanent transfer either to Bayern or another European club.

Blanco has gone to Santos Laguna for the Apertura playoffs in Mexico, giving Mexican fans another chance to see one of their country's all-time greats.

By forcing through his Milan switch, Beckham appears to have set a precedent -- and the floodgates are opening. But is it good for the league? Sure, these players are maintaining their fitness levels and getting match practice during the drawn-out offseason. Yet doesn't it impinge upon the credibility of the league when three of its biggest stars are heading for the hills as soon as the campaign is over?

Share your thoughts on Beckham, Donovan and Blanco below.

Bob Bradley's shuffled squad put together a solid performance to rack up another win and bring an end to the tedious third round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2010 World Cup.

The most interesting aspect of the 2-0 victory against Guatemala on Wednesday was the attacking combination of Kenny Cooper and Jozy Altidore, which looks like a decent option going forwards. Also, Freddy Adu scored his first ever senior national team goal with a nice free kick as Bradley's men clinched their fifth win in six games.

But looking ahead to the Hexagonal competition next year, where up to four out of the six remaining CONCACAF teams will book a ticket to South Africa, what have we really learned from this U.S. side?

Sure, along with Mexico, the U.S. is the dominant force in its own region. Apart from Mexico, it is hard to see Honduras, Trinidad and Tobago, El Salvador or Costa Rica mounting a serious threat to finish ahead of Bradley's squad in the six-team table.

Yet have there been any real signs that the Americans are capable of challenging for a strong World Cup finish, such as a quarterfinal place?

If the World Cup was to be held now, the U.S. would struggle to get out of the group stages. However, there are still 18 months left -- 18 months for the likes of Adu, Altidore and Michael Bradley to develop.

Share your thoughts on where the U.S. currently stands in the world pecking order below.

One of the greatest, yet most frustrating, careers we have seen in world soccer looks set to come to an end after Ronaldo admitted he is close to retirement.

The Brazilian superstar belongs in elite company as one of the finest players of the last decade thanks to his exploits for Brazil, Cruzeiro, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan.

However, we can only speculate how great he could have been if not for the cruel luck he suffered with injuries. Could he have challenged the likes of Pele and Diego Maradona as one of the best players ever, if not for repeated knee problems that blighted his career?

Some critics ripped into Ronaldo in recent years for struggling to control his weight and accused him of indiscipline and a lack of motivation. Those claims may have some merit, but if this is the end, I will prefer to remember him for his spectacular efforts in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

Written off before the tournament, Ronaldo spearheaded Brazil's charge to the title, scoring eight goals including two in the final, all just a couple of years after major knee surgery that had threatened his career.

Share your thoughts on what Ronaldo's legacy will be below.

The recent trend of celebrity ownership in Major League Soccer looks set to continue after the hopeful St. Louis expansion bid joined forces with baseball superstar Albert Pujols.

St. Louis is locked in a fight to be awarded one of the next two expansion franchises for 2011, with the Miami bid (backed by Barcelona) and Montreal also among the frontrunners.

Having Cardinals slugger Pujols, the National League MVP, as a high-profile investor can only help the chances of the consortium put together by local businessman Jeff Cooper.

Increasingly, groups hoping to land a spot in the league are seeing the value in having newsworthy names from other fields involved. Seattle has Drew Carey and Houston has Oscar De La Hoya. Barcelona's teaming with Miami turned that city's bid from an outsider into one of the favorites.

Yahoo! Sports understands the actual financial investment made by Pujols is minor, but his involvement could be a key factor for a bid that until now lacked star power.

Major League Soccer's conference finals offer some unfamiliar faces, with the four remaining teams having a combined total of three trips to the MLS Cup final.

The power would appear to be in the East, where the Columbus Crew and Chicago Fire square off in what promises to be an interesting and high-quality battle. But Real Salt Lake and the New York Bulls cannot be discounted as potential champions. They meet in Utah on Saturday.

Chicago Fire at Columbus Crew

The most intriguing subplot in this contest involves Brian McBride and his return to the club where he made his mark in MLS. However, once again it is likely to be Cuauhtemoc Blanco who has the biggest impact on the Fire as they bid for a spot in the Nov. 23 MLS Cup final.

Columbus has put together an outstanding season under Sigi Schmid, but even with the skills of Guillermo Barros Schelotto, the Crew could struggle to break down the fortress-like Chicago defense. Expect Blanco's big-game mentality to prove to be the difference in a tense and tactical encounter.

Prediction: Chicago edge Columbus 1-0 with a late winner.

New York Red Bulls at Real Salt Lake

Rio Tinto Stadium is the finest venue in MLS and is a fitting setting for the Western Conference final. But despite the homefield advantage, Real Salt Lake faces a tough task against a confident and in-form New York club.

The Red Bulls were superb in defeating two-time defending champion Houston Dynamo in the semifinals, as Juan Pablo Angel and Dane Richards hit form at just the right time. Expect New York to come out on top in an open and entertaining game.

Prediction: Red Bulls win 3-1.