It is refreshing to see so many 'new' faces in the last four and as long as no one calls it the 'People's Final,' I am not particularly bothered who wins.

But the best thing about having Portsmouth, Cardiff, Barnsley and West Brom in the semi-finals is that Manchester United and Arsenal are not there.

I have no particular leaning towards either side, nor do I have anything in particular against either club.

But their moaning managers are getting right up my nose.

As the spirit of football was receiving a shot in the arm at the weekend Alex Ferguson, Cristiano Ronaldo and Arsene Wenger were up to their old tricks in front of the world's media.

The Manchester United boss, rather than point to all the chances his side created and missed, complained that the referee was biased towards Portsmouth after giving them a penalty.

How dare Martin Atkinson do such a thing? A letter to the FA protesting that a visiting side being awarded a spot kick is just not on would surely be appropriate.

Ronaldo went down following a shoulder to shoulder clash with Pompey defender Sylvain Distin. The Portuguese winger even suggested he was scared to run past defenders now and claimed that he was in danger of ending up like Eduardo.

He clearly had not been watching when his teammate and new best friend Wayne Rooney dived in, studs up, to challenge Niko Kranjcar.

And after failing to break down a stubborn Wigan Athletic defence on Sunday, Wenger moaned about the pitch rather than his players' inability to adapt to the surface, something footballers up and down the country have to do on a weekly basis.

The JJB Stadium surface has not been right for some time as Latics boss Steve Bruce has pointed out on several occasions.

But surely if the likes of Clichy, Fabregas and Flamini are good enough to win away to European Champions AC Milan, they have the game to beat Wigan.

None of the moaners will be missed when the semi-finals come round next month.

GREAT Britain won three silver medals at the World Indoor Athletics Championships on Friday, but you would never have know it.

While the publicity surrounding Dwayne Chambers' second place was almost wall to wall, in athletics terms, there was little hullabaloo about decent performances from Kelly Sotherton and Jeanette Kwakye.

Kwayke missed out on gold by 0.02seconds in the women's 60m sprint while Sotherton was 15 points short in the pentathlon.

But it was Chambers, fuelled by the drugs controversy surrounding him, who grabbed the nation's attention.

Chambers' presence in Seville certainly divided the sporting world with many athletes and coaches believing he had served his time while others argued that allowing him to compete for Great Britain was inexcusable.

You pays your money and takes your choice on that one.

I just wish Sotherton and Kwakye had received the plaudits their efforts deserved.