Five things: Schism, Jamie, James, Tony, Robbie

1. Rafa creates a schism

Rafa Benitez is not going through anything right now that his peers haven’t already endured.  An historical look through the message boards and football websites will show many calls for the heads of Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger during their teams leaner days.  Manchester United went three seasons without a title from 2004 to 2006 – something many fans of any top four club would struggle with (just ask present-day Arsenal fans).

Calls for popular managers to leave often creates a schism in the fan base and that in itself can be destabilising on match days if things are not going too well.  Although I didn’t hear them myself, I can only imagine there was a typical smugness on radio phone-ins in the wake of Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Manchester United on Sunday evening as fans loyal to Rafa Benitez informed those more cynical ones that they had told them so.

Meanwhile a life long Liverpool supporting friend of mine was renewing his conviction that Rafa should go even in light of the win.  Of course fans on “both sides” are right in the sense that one win (or defeat) should not in isolation change their position.

We all know fans can be wrong anyway.  Martin O’Neill was initially not a popular manager at Leicester when they were in Division Two.  The same goes for Mick McCarthy at Wolves at the start of last season and Tony Pulis at Stoke.  Those who doubted each of those men were wrong.  It’ll be fun discovering whether its the loyalists or the cynics who are right this time around – if Rafa is given the time to settle the argument.

2. Jamie sees red but not, um, red

Jamie Carragher probably should have been sent off for his foul on Michael Owen in last Sunday’s game.  When suggested to him that it might have been a red card in a post-match interview, the defiant Jamie shook his head, addressed the reporter and asked “Why? Did you think it was?”  Rather than stand toe-to-toe with Mr Carragher the reporter timidly responded that it was for others to debate.

The producer probably ensures that reporters don’t get too confrontational with players and managers in post-match interviews.  But it is confrontation which is exactly what these toothless conversations need.  How much fun would it be to see Nick “Touchline” Collins fix JC a stern look and tell him that it was – to most observer’s eyes – a red card.  How entertaining would it be to see flames fire out of my television as Fergie’s tiresome rant against the referee following last weekend’s defeat is met by a stony silence and a “yeah, but your team were brutal today.”

And if feeling especially brave he could say “oh and way to go on the Carrick and Berbatov bargains”, hand the microphone to Fergie and do a slow hand clap.  It would stop me flicking over to Futurama at the final whistle anyway.

3. St James Park renaming

George Caulkin is a bit angry.  Writing in The Times he reiterates his call for Mike Ashley to leave Saint James’ Park (fair enough) and writes some colourful prose about passion and community and all that.

On the subject of Ashley selling the naming rights to Saint James’ Park, he writes:

“This is about the most iconic structure in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, a building which looms above the city and, even after the Chinese water torture of the last few years, a club which burrows its way beneath a people’s skin. It is about a region and history and tradition and heritage, things that cannot be wiped out with the flourish of a cheque-book.”

Yeah.  You know, I’m not all that moved by tradition and heritage but I know that some people get very sensitive about these things.  And I’m not even slightly qualified to go in to a philosophical debate about a human condition that could fill a library.  But I don’t think it matters all that much.  Ashley renames it for ten years and the fans continue to refer to it as Saint James’ Park.

The only question is: is it worth it?  Arsenal pocketed £100m for a 15 year deal with Emirates.  Newcastle might struggle to net £5m per season for a similar deal.  Is that worth the obvious unrest it would cause with those faithful Geordies?

Mind you the whole thing could be a smokescreen to bury the news that he’s appointed perennial coach Chris Hughton as manager; a move I don’t think is going to get them anywhere.

4. Mowbray’s goodwill running out

Will Celtic panic?  I hope not.  We’ve seen the Old Firm get jumpy before (John Barnes, Paul Le Guen) and Tony Mowbray is feeling the pressure after only nine league games in Scotland.  In spite of being top of the league, results have been less than stellar – and, criminally, Celtic have just two wins from nine home in all competitions.

We know football fans are impatient but fans of formerly-successful clubs are more so.  A small group of reactionaries chanted “sack the board” this week and the crowd will quickly turn on him (rather than the players perhaps) if he does not start winning games at home.  Getting knocked out of the UEFA Cup in the group stages (which could be confirmed next week) will pile more pressure on.

Mowbray has a solid management record with Hibernian and West Brom but arguably this is the most challenging job of them all.  While public criticism of players has made a bit of a rock for his back, he should be at least given the time to succeed or fail: no one achieves anything either way in nine league games.

5. Arsenal are rubbish

Robbie Keane reckons that Spurs are better than Arsenal.

“If you look at the last four or five years, for some reason Arsenal just always got ahead of us slightly,” Keane said. “But if you look now, I think it’s certainly even and if you look at the squad maybe, the bench that we have, I think that our bench is probably a little bit stronger than their bench.”

That “some reason” is that Arsenal have a quality manager, coaching team and scouting network that, while producing no trophies, has produced an exciting team and transfer surplus.  Spurs simply don’t have the formula right, involving themselves in self-destructive transfer brinkmanship and then resorting to panic buys like that of Russian striker Roman Pavlyuchenko.  And bringing in ‘Arry of course.

If Keane’s argument is that Spurs have stronger individuals in, say, five or six positions, that might be the case.  And, indeed, the bench is perhaps individually stronger, especially in light of Arsenal’s long term injury problems.  But in reality the numbers don’t work that way and I’m sure the league table will once again clearly show that Arsenal are still significantly ahead of their North London rivals next May.

Five things: Crouchy, Allen, Rafa, Boro, Rowlands

1. Return of the Robot

Should players never be allowed to party?

Tottenham players Peter Crouch and Jonathan Woodgate were pictured dancing to what looked like two complete different songs last weekend, leaving manager Harry Redknapp a bit miffed.  Redknapp does not mind players having a few quiet drinks but does not want them “rolling out of nightclubs at three in the morning“.

As a friend pointed out to me, it hardly seems fitting that a player who can’t get in the first team and a player recovering from injury should be out on the batter.  But the players – who were in a group with Robbie Keane, Jermaine Jenas and their significant others - maintain that they did not drink excessively.

So where should the line be drawn when it comes to young men enjoying themselves?  Redknapp seems a pretty fair bloke and, although somewhat rigorous, is not a total authoritarian a la Big Phil.  The players would do well to heed his warnings (which he made in the past after Ledley King got himself in bother) and knuckle down for what is a big season for all of them domestically and internationally.

Still, the picture is hilarious.

2. Martin Allen on gardening leave

Speaking of nightclub shenanigans, Cheltenham manager Martin Allen was asked not to come to work on Tuesday by the League Two club after a reported “incident”.

A doorman, who refused Allen entry to the Thirteen Degrees nightclub told a local paper: “There were racial undertones in the kind of language he was using and he referred to me as a black b******”

We’re not sure if Allen is alleged to have called him a “bastard” or a “bollocks”. Or a “bitch”. But either way it doesn’t sound very nice. The Cheltenham manager has not made any comment as of yet but if there’s any truth in the report then he’s in a lot of trouble indeed. There is no excuse for making racist comments.

Well there is I suppose – if you’re racist.

3. Results matter for Rafa

Four defeats in a row means that Rafa Benitez is under more pressure than ever at Liverpool.  He is looking increasingly resigned in interviews these days, relenting from his usual approach of lashing out at the referee, the linesman, the FA, his opponents or Alex Ferguson, and actually offering sincere, humble analysis of there being “too many mistakes” and much “disappointment”.

It’s no secret that his squad has some fairly ordinary players but most of these players played roles in the all-conquering Liverpool side of March-through-May last season and I didn’t hear many complaints then.

The unfortunate thing for Rafa is that his impressive spine of Reina, Carragher, Mascherano, Gerrard and Torres has been decimated this season.  The absence of the latter two combined with the poor form of both Carragher and (a distracted?) Mascherano has weakened his team so much that their inherent weaknesses have become amplified.

There’s a lack of presence with the hard-working Dirk Kuyt, Yossi Benayoun and Martin Skrtel, a lack of quality about Leiva Lucas and Andrei Voronin, too much inexperience in Emiliano Insua and David Ngog and too many question marks over Ryan Babel and Albert Riera.

The only way Rafa can fumble through this season and regroup again is to win games.  But the fact that he really only has two top class players at his disposal after five years means that he is the architect of  the current precariousness.

4. Gibson to entice the crowds back

Sacking Gareth Southgate after a home win that left them one point off the summit of the Championship might seem like odd timing from chairman Steve Gibson.  But after seeing the lowest ever league attendance at the Riverside witness the victory last night it was clear that the notably-loyal Gibson felt he had to make a business decision.

A clearer picture emerges when you consider that they were the first goals and points in four home games.  In the eyes of many Middlesbrough fans, faith in Southgate waned well before relegation from the Premier League was confirmed last season.  The failure of big money strikers Mido and Afonso Alvez saw Boro net only 28 times in 38 games; that failure more or less sealing their fate.

Gordon Strachan is the favourite to take over but I think Gibson needs to follow the lead of Leeds United, Leicester and West Brom who put their faith in what seem to be smart, tactically-astute managers Simon Grayson, Nigel Pearson and Roberto Di Matteo respectively.

That’s not to say Southgate wasn’t a gentleman and a credit to football.  He was.  Unfortunately he just does not seem to have the “it” factor – or “X Factor” as they call it now.

5. World Cup play-off analysis

Patrice Evra, Bacary Sagna, Lassana Diarra, Franck Ribéry, Theirry Henry, Nicolas Anelka, Karim Benzema.

Kevin Kilbane, Paul McShane, Keith Andrews, Darron Gibson, Martin Rowlands, Glenn Whelan, Leon Best.

You get the point.

Five things: Trap, Barnes, McParland, Rio, Rooney

1. “Disgraceful” play-offs for Ireland

I wouldn’t say Ireland particularly deserved to beat a tidy but unambitious Italian side at Croke Park on Saturday night but it was still a huge disappointment not to be able to hold on to a 2-1 lead for three minutes.  Mind you considering the luck that manager Trapattoni has enjoyed during the campaign it’s probably best to get hit with a sucker-punch now than in the 90th minute of the play-off.

Eight years ago Ireland went through the 2002 qualifying campaign undefeated against Holland and Portugal, winning seven of their ten games and conceding just five goals in what was an outstanding effort.  This Irish squad employs just five players from that era with the likes of Niall Quinn, Stephen Staunton (ahem), Roy Keane, Matt Holland and Mark Kinsella all having retired.  I think this underlines the scale of adjustment forced on subsequent managers in a relatively short period of time.

But at the same time Trapattoni has made a rock for his own back with his persistence in selecting all three of the limited Darron Gibson, Glen Whelan and Keith Andrews while ignoring Andy Reid.  I also am bemused that he has no time for Clinton Morrison (6 goals in 9 games this season – the same number scored by his Coventry team-mate Leon Best) while continuing to select Shane Long and Caleb Folan (0 goals between them).

Ireland have been turgid in this qualification group only really coming to life in the two games versus Italy and as much as I respect and admire the man I still have a huge question-mark over Trap.  Having said that the floating image of “The Gaffa” quickly remind me of where we’ve come from and that I should be thankful for small mercies.

2. Sacked: The John Barnes Story

I only ever saw John Barnes play in the flesh once, in Chris Hughton’s Ireland testimonial in 1995.  I had always admired him on the TV but to see this guy live was a real experience.  It may have been a friendly and distinctly uncompetitive but there was something quite poetic about the way he stroked the ball around and the presence he carried on the pitch.

However, his management career has been disastrous with both Celtic and Tranmere disposing of him very quickly ten years apart.  At Celtic he lasted for 29 games and although he only lost 8 of them (recording a 65% win rate), this is Scotland we’re talking about.  An embarrassing and infamous 1-3 reverse to Inverness Caledonian Thistle sealed Barnes’ fate at Celtic.  He recorded just 3 wins in 12 games at Tranmere with some fans claiming that the tactics were incomprehensible and he used his press conferences to blame the players.  He was sacked last week.

In between he had a nice little job as Jamaica national team manager where he won 7 and drew the rest of his 11 games in charge.  His gamble to walk away from the sun-soaked beaches of his hometown of Kingston for Prenton Park last summer might be the last mistake he gets the opportunity to make in management.

At some point you need to acknowledge that you may not be cut out for something.  Clubs make hasty decisions of dispensing with managers all too often.  But just maybe this time both Celtic and Tranmere got it right.  Not being privy to what goes on behind the scenes who knows what the feedback from players and staff were about Barnes? It’s about more than the results.

3. County making all the wrong noises

Also given his cards last week was Notts County manager Ian McParland.  From the moment Sven Goran-Eriksson arrived it was likely that the manager would be out on his ear sooner rather than later.  There has been understandable sympathy for him with commentators pointing out that County – 19th and 21st in the last two seasons – sit in fifth place just four points off the lead.

But with ambitious owners (whoever they may be) and a Serie A-winning manager overseeing the football management of the club, three consecutive draws against middling-to-poor sides in eight days was not going to impress the men upstairs.  The early season form that saw them thump Bradford, Macclesfield and Dagenham & Redbridge and Northampton had promised much but last week’s action seem to suggest that ejecting McParland was always on the agenda once they felt results gave them the mandate to do so.

Clubs like Hull and Wigan climbed quietly through the leagues in recent years and both have prospered in the top flight.  Notts County appear to be making all the wrong noises right now.  It would be a shame to see such a famous club flounder (David Platt??) and result in their wealthy backers losing interest.

4. Defensive concerns for Capello

It always seems to be a quiet football week when the internationals are on.  Hence the English media have been creating a bit of a fuss over England’s defensive and attacking options.  Phil McNulty discusses the disquiet over the form of central defender Rio Ferdinand following yet another of his all-too-frequent defensive errors against Ukraine.  Personally I think there is some truth in it but also no surprise.  Ferdinand is an accomplished, athletic player whose career copybook has been blotted by public relation misjudgments (parties and contracts) and similar misjudgments on the pitch.

He’s 31 next month and as his reliability continues to be called in to question, you have to wonder who is going to step up as an able replacement whether a Rio absence is enforced or by design.  Jonathan Woodgate and Ledley King can’t be relied upon due to fitness issues and Matthew Upson, who seems to be next in line, has not yet proven his international credentials.  Incidentally he is also 30.  The next World Cup may see John Terry grooming Gary Cahill or David Wheater if they progress enough in the next four years.  In the meantime Capello does have a weakness in the backline to address.

5. “One man team” dilemma for Capello?

Not every commentator is using such strong language as Paul Wilson in the above piece but Kevin McCarra makes a similar point in his piece this week – without Rooney England are just not as good.  While It’s true to say that if you take out most team’s best player then they will suffer but perhaps it is more true for this current England team.

There are still people who argue that Rooney is overrated and not world class – an opinion that I find utter garbage.  Many football opinions are tainted by over-subjectivity: Frank Lampard is accused of being both a fatso and world class while Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player in the world and a big-game bottler.  People see what they want to see.

But I think you would have to be a little myopic not to acknowledge that Rooney is a far superior player to any other English striker.  Michael Owen is the last top class striker that England had but his best days seem to be behind him.  Emile Heskey, Darren Bent, Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch are useful players but not in the same class as Rooney.  Outside of the Manchester United forward (and leaving aside the currently unselected Michael Owen) none of the current England strikers have excelled in top European competition or international football.

I think Wilson and McCarra’s point is that if you’re lining up against France in the World Cup semi-finals and you’re bringing on Defoe or Carlton Cole to find you a goal while top European players like Henry, Benzema and Anelka lay siege at David James/Ben Foster/Robert Green/Paul Robinson, then there is certainly some food for thought.

England better hope he stays fit … and keeps his cool.

Five things: County, Sol, Wiley, Rafa, FIFA

Luvfooty brings you what we hope will be at least a new weekly feature where we make a brief analysis of five current football stories out there.  We’re good like that.

1. Notts County reveal the man who wasn’t there

Pakistani businessman Anwar Shafi has denied any involvement with League Two side Notts County in spite of being quoted on their official website ten days ago as confirming his “significant holding”.  Today the club released a statement – ignoring Shafi’s denial – on behalf of the Hyat and Shafi families who are part of the Qadbak trust who own the club.  They spoke of “distorted and misleading stories” and “salacious nature of the intrusive inquiries”.  They also said they would continue to conduct their affairs with “discretion and privacy” – which is hardly going to help.

Their executive chairman Peter Trembling (insert own joke) described the media attention as “scandalous”.  He said the owners are “extremely angry” and found the attention “demoralising”.

Well it’s a pity about them.  Rightly or wrongly, when a mysterious investment group pours money in to a fourth division football club, hires one of the most highly paid managers in the world and invests unprecedentedly in players (although we’ll get on to that point next), eyebrows are going to raise and the media machine have every right to poke their nose in and find out what is going on.

Trembling talks about the possibility of a “vendetta” and “maliciousness” in the media.  But all the club have to do to put an end to it is reveal who the investors are.  This is a takeover that still hasn’t been ratified by the Football Association and until it is then there are still questions to be answered (even after ratification the stories will continue – look at Chelsea).  In the midst of numerous investigations about corruption in football these are very valid questions.  If they have designs on climbing through the divisions in the next five years then they better get used to the attention.

2. The Solman – Money grabber or just demented?

My Spurs-centric views will probably always colour my opinion of Sol Campbell.  The pragmatic and unemotionally involved will always say he was entitled to string Spurs along in 2001 before joining rivals Arsenal for nothing.  That’s one view.  The other view is that the anger and vitriol that remains to this day at Spurs is fully justified.

In isolation one might be willing to glaze over those events.  But in 2006 Sol walked out on Arsenal during half-time of a 2-3 defeat against West Ham following a very poor first half performance.  At the end of that season, in spite of making a comeback and scoring in the European Cup final, he announced he was leaving for a “fresh challenge” and publicly spoke of his interest in playing abroad.  In spite of signing a three year deal in 2005, Arsenal released him from his contract at the age of just 31.

He didn’t quite get as far as France, landing instead at Portsmouth.  After three relatively successful seasons there he left last summer when his contract expired with talk again of interest across Europe.  His decision to join his old England manager Sven Goran-Eriksson Notts County for a reported £40,000 a week (£33,000 of it relating to an “ambassadorial role” it says here) raised eyebrows – not least because Campbell had spoken of his desire to play a part in the 2010 World Cup finals.

Anyway the point is that Sol Campbell has been portrayed by some as being disloyal, a trouble-maker and a money grabber.  I don’t think this is the case at all.  I think Sol is quite the opposite.  Yes, he a little self-absorbed but this is amplified by a highly sensitive disposition which has seen him “lose his nerve” a few times.

He never moves very far from his comfort zone.  He wanted to win trophies but wasn’t going to do it at Spurs.  He would have had his pick of top European teams in 2001 but chose to move to a club a few miles across town.  In one way it was brave but in another it was cowardly.

He left Arsenal after the West Ham shambles (perhaps indicative that he was never captain material) but, again, rather than picking a top European club where he would have continued to play European Cup games, he chose the comfy bosom of Harry Redknapp at Portsmouth.

He got one game in to his five year Notts County contract before walking out, citing unkept promises, saying that big names such as Roberto Carlos were promised but never materialised.  Oh, and Benjani.

Sol has continually made life difficult for himself with questionable decisions.  I don’t think he is especially greedy but he certainly seems a bit demented.

3. Alex and the “unfit” ref

There was much mocking of Rafa Benitez (more on him in a bit) when he whipped out his spectacles last January and read a list of charges from an A4 sheet of paper detailing Alex Ferguson’s constant bickering and undermining of referees (which anyone with a modicum of impartiality would agree with).  Ferguson added another line to the charge sheet this weekend when he criticised referee Alan Wiley as being “unfit” after United drew 2-2 at home to Sunderland.

While he did have reason to be critical of Wiley for not adding on a minute or so to compensate for United’s injury time equaliser, it did seem somewhat disingenuous for him to publicly berate a referee who has passed all the fitness tests that were put in front of him.

Ferguson could have chosen to have his point recorded privately by the fourth official but obviously the comment was calculated to deflect from his own side’s disappointing result.

I’m all for banning managers who undermine officials but at the same time it should apply across the board (albeit with repeat offenders being more heavily punished).  Sam Allardyce attacked referee Peter Walton for not giving his team a penalty in their ludicrous 2-6 reverse at Arsenal and he apparently will not be charged.

While he did somewhat self-righteously say that he is “100% right” he also added that he had to make the point in public because “unfortunately the system is not working so I have to be heard”.

He’s right…the system isn’t working.  But I’m not sure that diminishing the role of the referee is going to fix it any time soon.

4. Liverpool owner blames the manager

Rafa Benitez put on a brave face after back-to-back defeats against Fiorentina and Chelsea.  The results not so much damaged their challenges in the European Cup and Premier League but more so damaged the credibility of his team.  It’s way too early to say that Liverpool won’t challenge for the title or the Champions League but it has done the fractious relationship with his board no favours.

Co-owner George Gillett said of Liverpool’s progress: “Now if it’s not getting better, it’s not Gillett and [co-owner] Hicks, it’s the manager, it’s the scouting. You have to make sure you balance out your analysis. There was plenty of money, so if you have any complaints, take a look at the ins and outs.”

Liverpool fans loyal to Benitez will dispute Gillett’s claim that £128m has been invested in the last 18 months (he could be including wages, catering and goldfish in that total for all I know).  But at the same time they have to be somewhat unimpressed with the transfer policy that the manager now apparently has sole control over since the departure of chief executive Rick Parry.

Questions continue to be raised about the form of Jamie Carragher, the failure of Ryan Babel to perform and the quality of Lucas Leiva and Emiliano Insúa.  Benitez’s team look very beatable if Gerrard and Torres are off colour and it seems that the latter is still easily bullied out of a game (compare his performance against Chelsea last week to his two-goal triumph last February).

It’s too early to say there is a problem at Liverpool (although they have already lost more league games than they did throughout the entirety of last season).  But this year Rafa (like Arsene) has the billionaire-shaped shadow of Manchester City peering over his shoulder and failure to finish in the top four is unthinkable – never mind winning the league.

5. Shay no fan of “disgusting” FIFA

On radio last night Shay Given was not backwards at going forwards when he said that FIFA’s “u-turn” on the World Cup qualifying play off system was “disgusting”.  Given the poor performance of nations like Portugal, Czech Republic and France (with even Germany under pressure to win their group) it does seem that the scales have been belatedly tipped in favour of the larger nations with the news that the top four ranked teams will be kept apart.

The 2006 play-offs were played on a seeded basis (six teams in two pots) but this time around FIFA had left their options open for some unknown reason, indicating that the draw would be open.  This late change will endear them to the money men in Zurich, Frankfurt, Paris and (ironically) Lisbon but maybe not the players and officials in Dublin, Sarajevo and Oslo.

From my Irish point of view it is a disappointment (but not as much of a disappointment as Trapattoni’s insipid Irish midfield is).  I would certainly feel sympathy for lower ranked teams like Bosnia and Slovenia who have put themselves in with a shout of reaching the World Cup Finals.  Nations like them they must feel like Homer did in that Simpsons episode where, fuelled by the Power Sauce bar, he thinks he has climbed to the top of The Murderhorn mountain only to find that he’s actually got another few thousand feet to go.  D’oh!

When will David Beckham go away?

If David Beckham were a rock star, he would be Robbie Williams: popular with the masses and always hogging the spotlight but doing so on the back of society’s superficial fixation rather than actual talent.

It seems every few weeks the story about where Beckham is going during the Major League Soccer close season rears its head (the BBC usually affording it top billing on their lowest common denominator Football home page).

When answering media questions on his future, it would be nice if he’d show some self-awareness and put the club that pay his massive salary first by suggesting that he is only concentrating on LA Galaxy and not getting bogged down with the far less important issue of getting to the World Cup with England.

Only it seems the most important thing to Beckham is to take centre stage at the World Cup in front of the world’s media given the general global indifference that accompanies his US career.

Beckham’s footballing skills can be subjectively debated forever (and I have steadfastly been underwhelmed for over a decade).  But it’s his self-indulgent Hollywood lifestyle, vulgar underwear adverts and vacuous, monotone rambling that has worn me down.

Will David Beckham ever truly go away or are we going to have to put up with him in the Sky studios on a Sunday afternoon telling us that everything is “good, ya know”?

Tottenham transfer window round-up: “Meh”

In a blog earlier this week I bigged up Tottenham’s chances of netting Niko Kranjcar and Martin Petrov while nervously hoping that we’d avoid an ‘Arry brain-fart and sign David James.  Two from three ain’t bad.

£2.5m? Really?

Kranjcar was signed for a curiously small £2.5m while David James remained at Portsmouth as he was apparently not the subject of an “official” approach which is football talk for “‘Arry gave us a shout but we told ‘im to sling ‘is ‘ook”.

The talk of a move for Martin Petrov gathered pace all week but – depending on what you read – he either failed a medical, could not agree (70k per week) terms or the transfer was kyboshed by Chairman Daniel Levy.  The common view is that Petrov would have been a waste of money given the signing of Kranjcar but I’d argue that Tottenham are long-overdue a natural left-sided player for the left hand side of the pitch.  Having said that, if it was a straight choice between Kranjcar and Petrov, then the former represents the best value.

Perhaps most disappointing was the failure to get rid of David Bentley and, to a lesser extent, Jermaine Jenas.  In Bentley’s case I see no reason for him to still be at the club.

A year ago I wrote: “I have never got the David Bentley thing and was quite horrified when we spent a ludicrous amount of money on a player who can’t deliver a corner kick past the first defender.  He seems more obsessed with his tan and haircut than anything else and unlike Michael Carrick, we won’t be making a profit on this guy.“

In Jermaine Jenas’ case we probably need him to make up the numbers but my list of disparaging comments over the years probably shows that I’ve remained consistent about the guy: (“Jermaine Jenas is not the right man for that job (and some might say any job)”, “Playing Jermaine Jenas there ranks, at best, as outright optimsm from Ramos/Poyet”, “…with Jermaine Jenas having yet another mediocre season”, “At Tottenham he seems particularly ordinary in just about every respect. He has no presence, can’t tackle, loses the ball too frequently and when he isn’t scoring there is not much else to his game”).  You get the point.

It’ll be a disappointment if Jenas comes back in to the team to play with Wilson Palacios when fit.  I’m not overly-convinced that Tom Huddlestone is dynamic enough for the top level but I’d still prefer him in the side to the serially disappointing JJ.

Overall it was a pity not to see a central playmaker come in alongside Kranjcar – unless he himself becomes that player when Luka Modric returns to fitness.

T-1 and counting: Tottenham transfer rumours

With one day left in the Premier League transfer window and Spurs losing Huerelho Gomes, Ledley King and Luka Modric to injury, it seems ‘Arry Redknapp will have to dip in to the transfer market a couple of times today or tomorrow.

Unsurprisingly he is rumoured to be returning to his former club Portsmouth for Niko Kranjcar and David James in an £8m double-bid. Kranjcar is a very tidy attacking midfielder who could be the playmaker that Tottenham desperately need in the centre of midfield. I have concerns with Modric playing in a central pairing given his lack of ‘presence’.  This, however, doesn’t address the glaring problem the club still has on the left but I’ll get to that.

David James is a clown and sadly I think if he comes to Spurs then he’ll retain the “number one shirt” even after Gomes returns to fitness.  Gomes is by no means perfect but he has improved immeasurably in the last 12 months.  I think he’s undoubtedly a better keeper than James but he won’t get a fair crack of the whip under Redknapp who will guarantee James a first team place.  Cudicini has looked very shaky in his limited outings since his signing so there is no doubt that Tottenham do need someone.

I should be more positive about the move to sign Martin Petrov for £3.5m from Manchester City.  He’s a natural left-sided player and is regarded for his pace and crossing.  He would certainly be an improvement on our other left-sided options even if I’m not overly-impressed with his contribution in a City shirt since his 2007 move.  My enduring memory of him is the red card he received for kicking Leon Osman in a league defeat to Everton last year and he’s also had his fair share of injury problems.  Providing we don’t pay him what he gets at City (rumoured to be £70k per week which may have played a factor in him turning down Spurs two years ago) then it seems a good deal.

The club have just announced a “link up” with Brazilian club Internacional and it was hoped that it may have helped Spurs land midfielder Sandro.  The media, however, are reporting that the bid has been turned down and Sandro will remain with Internacional.  I’ve never seen him play but I’m reliably informed that he’s rather good even if he may not have been ready for first team action yet.

Rafael van der Vaart won’t be joining Spurs it seems.  A player of his quality would have been a hell of a capture for Redknapp but according to Sky Sports he will be retained following the departure from Real Madrid of Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben last week.

Summary:

Petrov: Looks most likely

Kranjcar: Would be a good buy

James: Likely if he’s first choice

Sandro: Seemingly not

van der Vaart: highly unlikely

Spurs v Liverpool, the TV perspective

An opening day victory shouldn’t mask a Spurs performance that, while decent, was made look a lot more efficient than it was by Rafa’s unmotivated Liverpool side.

There’s little doubt that Spurs were the better team and deserved the points but it’s the weaknesses still prevalent in the team that give cause for concern.

I don’t know how Ledley King keeps going in spite of not training, but he does.  He and new signing Sebastien Bassong

Cult hero in the making?

were solid against what were disinterested looking opponents in the shape of Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard.  It’s a long time since a seemingly fully-fit Gerrard looked so out-of-sorts but he made close to no impression on the game.

Leaving aside the ineffectivness of Liverpool’s players Spurs remain a team lacking in key areas.

The lack of a left-sided player has been obvious for a number of seasons at Tottenham.  I’ve written before about the failed attempts of Martin Jol to fix it with Timothée Atouba and Reto Ziegler – both moved on quickly.  Before them Matty Etherington also failed to make a name for himself on the left side.  With Ashley Young, Martin Petrov and Stewart Downing all linked in recent months, Redknapp seems to be on the look out for someone.  But he really should have nailed it by now.

Frequently in the game, left-back Assou-Ekotto was forced to go backwards as the left-sided Luka Modric was often dragged inside.  With no width available Assou-Ekotto found himself under more pressure.  The team remains unbalanced.

In the middle it’s clear that Jermaine Jenas isn’t up to it but on the evidence of yesterday Spurs will struggle with Tom Huddlestone there; a talented player whose body seems to be set permanently to “amble”.  Hudd doesn’t read the game well enough to be one of those players who can cover a quarter of the pitch during the game yet still find himself in the right position to influence it enough.

Wilson Palacios might be one of the most effective all-round midfielders Spurs have had since the eighties but he also infuriates.  A couple of times during the game he tried a fancy back flick rather than retaining possession.  True, he chases back and more often than not will retrieve the situation but he needs to show more maturity.

Aaron Lennon, who was wonderful last year, had some great moments.  But he emphasised his greatest flaw when, after charging half the length of the field and dribbling around several Liverpool players, he fluffed his lines at the cruical moment, losing the ball on the edge of the box.  Redknapp needs to put the video on repeat and draw some lines and circles on it for his benefit.  He had three teammates within a short pass and he found none of them.

Up front we may be seeing the sad demise of Robbie Keane, a player who a number of fans may not have seen the value in buying back from Liverpool after his disappointing spell there.  He really should have had at least two goals in the first half, probably three.  And with Jermaine Defoe playing quite well and making some quality runs, it could be that Keane and Roman Pavlyuchenko (a very good finisher who suffers from a lack of pace) will be the odd pair out.

Peter Crouch made a much-cheereed return to the club where it all began for him and although he wasn’t involved much I do have high hopes for him.  The much-discussed worry is that Spurs will resort to a route one approach when other options are available and indeed that was witnessed yesterday as the otherwise impressive right-back Vedran Corluka made a couple of pointless long crosses towards him from deep that were easily swallowed up by the Liverpool defence.

All in all it was an encouraging start from a Spurs team who in recent seasons have been making a habit of taking points off the top four.  They need to get it right consistently but they’re going to need a left-sided player and midfield playmaker to achieve this.

Ratings (out of 10 – subs rated if played more than 20 minutes)

Spurs: Gomes (5), Bassong (7), Corluka (7), King (7), Assou-Ekotto (6.5), Huddlestone (6), Lennon (6.5), Palacios (7.5), Modric (6) (O’Hara 83), Keane (5) (Crouch 68 (6)), Defoe (6.5) (Pavlyuchenko 90+2)
Liverpool: Reina (8), Johnson (7), Insua (7), Carragher (6), Skrtel (6) (Ayala 75), Gerrard (5), Mascherano (6), Lucas (5), Torres (5), Kuyt (5) (Voronin 79), Babel (5) (Benayoun 67 (7))

Premier League Preview 2009/10 [Part 2]

Part two of my Premier League predictions.  Yawn, etc.

11^th Fulham

Last season: 7^th

Transfers in: Stephen Kelly (free, Birmingham), Bjorn Helge Riise (£2m, Lillestrom)

Transfers out: Moritz Volz, Julian Gray (both released)

I enjoyed Fulham’s charge to the UEFA Cup last season – even as a Tottenham fan who saw his team pipped at the post.  Brede Hangeland was the towering presence at the centre of Fulham’s defence last year and his retention might be Roy Hodgson’s best signing.

With goals hard to come by last season one might have thought Hodgson would recruit another striker in pre-season.  But Bobby Zamora has been on-form in the last month and Hodgson is banking on him and Andy Johnson netting more than the 9 goals they got last season.

New signings are midfielder Bjorn Helge Riise (brother of John Arne Riise) and Irish full-back Stephen Kelly who can play on either side.

Key to their success: I don’t think they’ll be able to compete for the top seven like they did last year but players such as Danny Murphy and Mark Schwarzer really delivered last season and if they do so again then Fulham will comfortably hover around mid-table.

12^th West Ham

Last season: 9^th

Transfers in: Herita Illunga (£2.75m, Toulouse), Luis Jiménez (loan, Internazionale,), Frank Nouble (tribunal,

I think he's mental but Zola likes him.

Chelsea), Fabio Daprelà (undisclosed, Grasshoppers), Peter Kurucz (undisclosed, Ujpest), Jack Lampe (undisclosed, Harlow)

Transfers out: Lee Bowyer (free, Birmingham City), Kyel Reid (free, Sheffield United), Diego Tristán, Lucas Neill (both released)

These are strange times for West Ham who lucked out with the impressive Gianfranco Zola last season.  Their goals came from Carlton Cole who finally realised his potential with 10 league goals and a few England appearances.  Robert Green was ever-present in goals and a stable defensive unit including Matthew Upson, handball professional Herita Illunga and the now-departed Lucas Neill helped the Hammers to 9^th.

Key to their success: The closing months of the season were very indifferent and Zola will be pinning his hopes on the talented Mark Noble and Jack Collison given the relative unknowns that have been brought in.  Luis Jiménez might be the best known but the Chilean forward made little impact at Inter.  The football will be good to watch and Zola will continue to be an delightful presence in the obnoxious world of football management.

13^th Wigan

Last season: 11^th

Transfers in: Jason Scotland (£2m, Swansea), Jordi Gómez (£1.7m, Espanyol,), James McCarthy (undisclosed, Hamilton), Hendry Thomas (free, Deportivo Olimpia).

Transfers out: Antonio Valencia (£16m, Manchester United), Antoine Sibierski, Henri Camara (both released)

Last season Wigan were happy to let their best players go for oodles of money.  Without Palacios, Valencia and Heskey it’s a very different side that will line up under new manager Roberto Martinez this year who has graduated from a successful stint in the lower leagues with Swansea.  But will Martinez be more Moyes than Ince?

Wigan were solid last season even if post-Christmas results suffered from the losses in the January transfer window.  Amir Zaki, whose unprofessional behaviour annoyed former manager Steve Bruce, scored 10 goals but did not score in 2009.  He’s been replaced by Jason Scotland and if Honduran Hendry Thomas is as successful as previous talents from the Americas like Maynor Figueroa, Valencia and Paclacios, then there will be much for the fans to enjoy.

Key to their success: Wigan are a better team than they are given credit for and with Jason Koumas, the on-form Titus Bramble and Paul Scharner, Martinez has the raw materials to comfortably keep Wigan in the Premier League.  Additional firepower comes in the shape of Jordi Gómez (who played on loan at Swansea last year and scored 12 in 44 games) and Jason Scotland (45 in 90 games for Swansea).

14^th Bolton

Last season: 13^th

Transfers in: Zat Knight (£4m, Aston Villa), Sam Ricketts (undisclosed, Hull City), Sean Davis (free, Portsmouth), Paul Robinson (loan, West Brom)

Transfers out: Blerim Dzemaili (undisclosed, Torino)

Gary Megson seems to court unpopularity but I’m not entirely sure why.  Yeah, he’s a bit gruff and he’s not likely to be an underwear model any time soon but he’s done a good job at Bolton with some canny buys (Matthew Taylor, Gary Cahill).  Zat Knight and Sean Davis may be two more intelligent buys.  They finished off last season with a series of draws which said more about their tenacity than creativity.

Key to their success: Bolton have tough players all over the pitch but they’re going to need something from their front players.  Johan Elmander arrived last year with a big transfer fee but delivered little bar a cracking double at Sunderland at the end of November.  He only scored one more goal for the rest of the season.  He needs to score as the belligerent and committed Kevin Davies is now 32.  Matty Taylor scored 10 last year from midfield but you can’t rely on him to repeat that feat.

15^th Burnley

Last season: Promoted via Championship play-off

Only room for one ginge at Old Trafford

Transfers in: Tyrone Mears (£500k, Derby), Steven Fletcher (£3m, Hibs), David Edgar (undisclosed, Newcastle), Richard Eckersley (undisclosed, Manchester Utd), Brian Easton (£350k, Hamilton)

Transfers out: Alan Mahon (free, Tranmere), Steve Jones (free, Walsall)

Owen Coyle turned down Celtic (reportedly) to have a stab at keeping Burnley in the Premier League.  Having seen his team make mugs of Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal and Fulham in the League Cup last year he might rightfully think that Burnley can be this year’s Stoke.  Last year’s top performers were Robbie Blake, Martin Paterson (12 goals), Steven Caldwell, Graham Alexander and the tricky Chris Eagles.  They will still be carrying the side this year alongside the new signings – mostly young players

Key to their success: Steven Fletcher and Brian Easton have come from Scotland and question marks remain over how they will adapt to the Premier League.  Tyrone Mears is a colourful talent who has struggled since he left Preston in 2006.  He had a short spell with West Ham and then Derby before spending a spell with Marseille.  He’ll be looking to make his mark in the Premier League along with former Manchester United reserve Richard Eckersley.  I think a combination of these hungry young players and Coyle’s wily management will keep Burnley up.

16^th Hull City

Last season: 17^th

Transfers in: Steven Mouyokolo (undisclosed, Boulogne), Seyi Olofinjana (£3m, Stoke), Jozy Altidore (loan, Villarreal), Stephen Hunt (£3m, Reading)

Transfers out: Sam Ricketts (undisclosed, Bolton), Wayne Brown (free, Leicester), Dean Windass (free, Darlington), John Welsh (free, Tranmere)

Phil Brown is another who raises the ire of many in the footballing world.  The rights and wrongs of him making his players sit on the pitch during half time of a defeat at Manchester City has been long-debated.  I fully agreed with it in the context of making a statement to both the fans and the players.  Sadly for him the continuing run of defeats in the Premier League meant that the move was met with widespread derision.

Players like Geovanni, Michael Turner and Andy Dawson came out of last season with a lot of credit.  But the limitations of Caleb Folan, and Daniel Cousin up front meant that there weren’t a lot of goals.  While George Boateng and Bernard Mendy are quality midfielders, there’s still a lack of creativity in the side.

Key to their success: Seyi Olofinjana will be a muscular presence in midfield but Hull will look to new signing Stephen Hunt to create chances for Folan and Cousin.  Jimmy Bullard’s return will help but he’s been injured since his big money move last January from Fulham.  After missing out on a string of striking targets, Brown will want to secure a goalscorer before the end of the month.  Without that striker Hull will struggle.

17^th Birmingham

Last season: 2^nd in Championship

Transfers in: Christian Benítez (£7.7m, Santos Laguna), Scott Dann (£3.5m. Coventry City), Joe Hart (loan, Manchester City), Lee Bowyer (free, West Ham United), Roger Johnson (£5m, Cardiff City), Barry Ferguson (£1.5m, Rangers), Giovanny Espinoza (free, Barcelona Sporting Club), Stephen Carr (unattached)

Transfers out: Stephen Kelly (free, Fulham)

They were too good for the Championship last year even if a poor run of form mid-season threatened to derail their promotion charge.  Kevin Phillips netted 14 times as he continued to defy his ageing body and Cameron Jermoe may not have the goalscoring nous of Phillips but he managed nine.  James McFadden and Lee Carsley are Premier League players and with the recruitment of the (multi-time retired) Stephen Carr, Lee Bowyer and Barry Ferguson, Alex McLeish won’t want for experienced veterans.

Key to their success: Who knows what Christian Benitez, Scott Dann or Roger Johnson will turn out like.  Dann and Johnson performed well for Coventry and Cardiff last season but the Premier League is a big step up.  Benitez has scored a lot of goals in South America and internationally for Ecuador but, as ever with South American strikers, he’s a gamble.  Phillips could be the difference between 17^th and 18^th place for Birmingham this year and I think they’ll stay up.

18^th Wolves

Last season: Won the Championship

Transfers in: Ronald Zubar (£1.5m, Marseille), Greg Halford (£2m, Sunderland), Nenad Milijas (£2.7m, Red Star),

Nenad Milijas - quite good

Marcus Hahnemann (free, Reading), Andrew Surman (£1.2m, Southampton), Kevin Doyle (£6.5m, Reading), Michael Mancienne (loan, Chelsea)

Transfers out: Darren Potter (undisclosed, Sheffield Wednesday); Stephen Gleeson (undisclosed, MK Dons)

Mick McCarthy was doubted by many Wolves fans before the start of last season but he and his team delivered the Championship title to the surprise of perhaps even himself.  His squad was made up of young, cheap players.  Sylvan Ebanks-Blake (£1.5m buy from Plymouth) scored 25 times while Chris Iwelumo scored 14.  The performances of Michael Kightly – who came from Grays Athletic – saw him linked with a move away this summer but thankfully for Wolves, he remains with the club.

Key to their success: Kightly and Iwelumo are out of the opening games so it will be important that new signings like Milijas and Doyle make an impact.  Milijas is a highly rated Serbian midfielder who could be Wolves’ answer to Portsmouth’s Niko Kranjcar.  So expect the links with “bigger” Premier League clubs to come thick and fast.  Doyle is a good striker who doesn’t score enough but if Wolves manage to get 10-15 goals out of him then they’re in with a fighting chance.  However, the midfield are going to have to create to help out the front men.

19^th Stoke City

Last season: 12^th

Transfers in: Dean Whitehead (£3m, Sunderland)

Transfers out: Seyi Olofinjana (£3m, Hull)

Silly me, eh?  I tipped Stoke for rock-bottom last season and I’m doing it again.  Last year they comfortably avoided relegation in a campaign that was strengthened by the January capture of seven-goal James Beattie.  Their most memorable moments came in a 2-1 win over Arsenal at the Britannia and two scoreless draws with Liverpool.

Keys to their success: If Stoke can be as committed this season as last then they probably will stay up.  But I just wonder if the hard-working, uncompromising approach which owed a percentage of their points directly to Rory Delap’s long throws can possibly pull off the same trick again.  Beattie and Fuller scored 18 goals between them last season but they will need a helping hand from Dave Kitson who has returned after a successful loan spell at former club Reading.

20^th Portsmouth

Last season: 14^th

Transfers in: Steve Finnan (free, Espanyol), Aaron Mokoena, (free, Blackburn), Antti Niemi (free), Frederic

Frederic Piquionne - class act or comedy act?

Piquionne (loan, Lyon)

Transfers out: Glen Johnson (£17.5m, Liverpool), Peter Crouch (£9m, Tottenham,), Sean Davis (free, Bolton), Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo (free, Standard Liège), Noe Pamarot, Jerome Thomas, Lauren, Djimi Traore, Glen Little (all released).

All the signs point to doomsday for Portsmouth.  Heavily in debt and in the middle of a protracted takeover, most of their decent players have left the roost and it may not be long before the likes of David James and the above-mentioned Kranjcar.  They stumbled through last season with much credit laid at the door of Paul Hart who did his level best in difficult circumstances.

Key to their success: Without Crouch, Defoe, Johnson and Davis you would have to be concerned for Pompey.  Frederic Piquionne is an unknown quantity but if he plays like this then there may be much entertainment for everyone outside the confines of Fratton Park.

Steve Finann may be a solid buy but he’s effectively the opposite of the attacking full-back he replaced.  They need two or three more players but one fears that Paul Hart won’t last the season and morale will continue to sink.

Premier League Preview 2009/10 [Part 1]

As is traditional – sometimes – here is part one of a rundown of how I see the Premier League panning out this year.

1st Liverpool

Last season: 2nd

Transfers in: Glen Johnson (£18m, Portsmouth), Alberto Aquilani (£20m. Roma)

Transfers out: Sebastian Leto (£1.3m, Panathinaikos), Jermaine Pennant (free, Zaragoza), Sami Hyppia (free, Bayer Leverkusen), Alvaro Arbeloa (£3.5m, Real Madrid), Xabi Alonso (£30m, Real Madrid)

I quickly tipped Liverpool for the title after last season’s impressive final months where they pressed an out-of-sorts Manchester United right up until the point where Andrei Arshavin made a mockery of their defence at Anfield.

The loss of Xabi Alonso has me less certain of that outcome now and, knowing very little about his replacement Aquilani outside of his apparent injury proneness, the jury will remain out on that front.

Questions remain over Alberto Riera, David Ngog, Ryan Babel, Nabil El Zhar and Leiva Lucas but Dirk Kuyt and Yossi Benayoun played their part last season.

Key to their success: Fernando Torres must play about 30 league games, Steven Gerard must stay out of bar fights and Aquilani will have to exert his presence in midfield alongside Mascherano.  Benitez must also stop being such an arsehole.  He’s just not very good at it.

2^nd Manchester United

Last season: 1^st

Transfers in: Luis Antonio Valencia (£16m, Wigan), Michael Owen (free, Newcastle), Gabriel Obertan (£3m, Bordeaux)

Transfers out: Cristiano Ronaldo (£80m, Real Madrid), Frazier Campbell (£3.5m, Sunderland), Carlos Tevez (free, Manchester City), Richard Eckersley (free, Burnley)

Without Tevez (5 league goals last season) and Ronaldo (18 goals) it’s hard to gauge where United are going to be vis-à-vis last season.  I like Tevez but only in a mid-table, hard-working, headless-chicken type way.  I don’t think he’s any great loss to a team chasing the title.  Considering he netted just five times in the league last year it is not hard to imagine that Michael Owen is going to double that tally at least.

With Ronaldo moving on (replaced by the highly-rated Valencia) it’s possible we might see more character from a shaken Dimitar Berbatov who struggled in the second half of last season.  The Bulgarian needs the world to revolve around him and with Ronaldo not stepping on his mojo anymore it’s quite possible that Old Trafford will see the best of him.

Key to their success: Deploying Rooney in a forward role would help.  That whole “left wing” thing in the Champions League really is a waste of his brute force.  The defence is a concern for United though with van der Sar another year older and the Ferdinand/Vidic axis disturbed by injury so frequently.  Jonny Evans doesn’t do much for me as of yet and Gary Neville must be nearly 100 now.

3^rd Chelsea

Last season: 3^rd

Transfers in: Ross Turnbull (free, Middlesbrough), Daniel Sturridge (tribunal, Man City), Yuri Zhirkov (£18m, CSKA

This is Ross Turnbull

Moscow)

Transfers out: Ben Sahar (£1m, Espanyol), Frank Nouble (free, West Ham)

Hard to see much movement from Chelsea this year after a surprisingly quiet pre-season.  There were flirtations with Andrea Pirlo that went nowhere and in the end left-sided attacker Yuri Zhirkov was an £18m capture.  Outside of that there was the underwhelming signing of Ross Turnbull from Middlesbrough who last played for them in January this year in a 0-2 defeat to Chelsea.  Daniel Sturridge rejected a contract at Manchester City to move to Stamford Bridge but although he shows potential it’s hard to see him getting a look in for a few seasons.

Key to their success: Plenty of experience in what is a very stable team.  Cech, Terry, Carvalho, Essien, Lampard and Drogba is an impressive spine.  However, the team is ageing and time is running out.  It also looks pretty narrow but we’ll see what role Zhirkov plays in the first XI.

4^th Arsenal

Last season: 4^th

Transfers in: Thomas Vermaelen (Ajax)

Transfers out: Emmanuel Adebayor (£25m, Man City), Touré (£16m, Man City)

They might have pulled in over £40m for two first team players but it’s only benefiting the hard-up bankers while it sits in their current account.  I understood them moving out both players in that Adebayor had become a target for the boo boys and was itching for a move for a while while Touré was struggling to recover his form of a few seasons ago.

But I’d never understand moving a player out without a replacement in mind.  Arsene Wenger may have brought in Thomas Vermaelen but a lot of fans would have issue with most of the other centre back options such as Mikael Silvestre, William Gallas and Philippe Senderos.  Alexandre Song and Johan Djourou are two other players in the running but are they good enough?

Key to their success: Injuries are taking their toll already with Samir Nasri, Tomáš Rosicky and Theo Walcott ruled out of the opening game against Everton.  There’s plenty of quality in the first XI but I’m not sure Arsenal can compete while Wenger persists with the likes of Diaby, Denilson, Eboué, Song and Nicklas Bendtner.  I’m sure Jack Wilshere will make his mark this season.

5^th Man City

Last season: 10^th

Transfers in: Gareth Barry (£12m, Aston Villa), Stuart Taylor (free, Aston Villa), Roque Santa Cruz (£17.5m, Blackburn), Carlos Tevez (£25m, Man Utd), Emmanuel Adebayor (£25m, Arsenal), Kolo Toure (£16m, Arsenal)

Transfers out: Ched Evans (£3m, Sheffield United), Elano (£8m, Galatasaray), Daniel Sturridge (tribunal, Chelsea), Gelson Fernandez (undisclosed, St Etienne), Darius Vassell, Dietmar Hamann, Danny Mills, Michael Ball, (all released)

Lots of ins and outs at Manchester City which have been discussed to death.  In came top, top players like … Gareth Barry.  Yes, I’m not that impressed. Sure, it’s an improvement on what has come before but not one of the new players could be described as being world class.  Where is City’s Fernando Torres, Steven Gerard, Wayne Rooney or Cristiano Ronaldo?  They went for John Terry and now they’re struggling to get Joleon Lescott – and may end up with Matthew Upson.

I’m not too keen on how they’re running their mouth either.  Mark Hughes has always come across as a great guy but the way he’s conducting his transfer business through the media recently has stuck in the throat.  Just like Benitez and Redknapp, he’s not very good at it.

Key to their success: I suppose it’s going to be a case of everything just clicking or otherwise.  They’ve bought good players even if they have overpaid for them.  I’ll be more interested in seeing the likes of Stephen Ireland and Michael Johnson making progress this year.  I’ll also be interested to see what happens to Mark Hughes if City are 9^th in November.

6^th Everton

Last season: 5^th

Transfers in: Jo (loan, Man City)

Transfers out: Lars Jacobsen (free, Blackburn)

The battle lines are drawn in Hughes versus Moyes.  In reference to the long-running Man City move for Everton defender Joleon Lescott, Hughes said: “We are still trying to speak to the people who will ultimately make the decision over whether or not the deal continues.”

Meow.  Moyes responded: “I hear City think they are talking to people who make the decisions here.  Well, that’s me.”

A lot might hinge on how this plays out.  Lescott is an important player for Everton but letting him go to their rivals would be a double whammy for Moyes.  Year after year he struggles to bring players in but continues to conduct miracles.  If the club sell Lescott over his head then he should walk out, simple as.

As for Lescott, well he has no reason to want to go to Manchester City having been happy to sign a four year deal last year.  Why didn’t he just sign a two year deal or not sign a deal at all and chance his arm at the end of his current deal?  The players like the security of a long-term, lucrative contract but then like to have their cake and eat it too.  Put him in the reserves until his contract runs out.  Let him take it to the Court of Human Rights or whatever.

Elsewhere, Everton are unchanged.  It’s a small squad but well organised and managed.  Unfortunately they are no closer the top four than they were last season.

Key to their success: Being more than the sum of their parts is what got them through last season and it’ll be the same again.  Louis Saha needs to stay fit and the midfield duo of Arteta and Cahill need to keep chipping in with the goals.  But I do worry that they’ll have enough this year.

7^th Aston Villa

Last season: 6^th

Transfers in: Stewart Downing (£12m, Middlesbrough), Fabian Delph (undisclosed, Leeds), Habib Beye (£2.5m, Newcastle)

Transfers out: Gareth Barry (£12m, Man City), Stewart Taylor (free, Man City), Zat Knight (£4m, Bolton)

There are a few discontented voices doing the rounds at Villa Park at the moment.  It might seem a bit ungracious coming from fans who had to endure the Graham Taylor and David O’Leary years but this is a well-known by-product of relative success.

Villa were a shambles in the last three months of the season with their only wins coming narrowly at home to relegation candidates Hull and Newcastle.  While O’Neill has built a good side there’s something a bit “also-ran” about some of the players he has chosen.  Steve Sidwell, Zat Knight, Marlon Harewood, Stewart Downing, Nigel Reo-Coker, Curtis Davies and (yes, current England international) Emile Heskey are not top four quality talents.  And – although it may be paper talk – links to utter mediocrity like Jermaine Jenas and David Bentley don’t dilute that view for me.

Key to their success: The point I’m trying to get across is that in amongst the few quality talents like Ashley Young, Brad Friedel and John Carew there are a lot of players just not up to it.  The move for Fabian Delph might be inspired but probably not enough to push Villa in to the top four.  I like the club and would love to see them legitimately challenge but I think the ship may have sailed and expectations are now unhealthily high.

8^th Sunderland

Last season: 16^th

Transfers in: Frazier Campbell (£6m, Man Utd), Darren Bent (£10m, Tottenham), Lorik Cana (£5m, Marseille), Lee

Lorik Cana. Total hardass.

Cattermole (£6m, Wigan)

Transfers out: Greg Halford (£2m, Wolves), Michael Chopra (£4m, Cardiff), Dean Whitehead (£3m, Stoke)

This is my wild card prediction for next season.  Steve Bruce hasn’t always impressed me – his latter days at Birmingham were fairly poor.  But at Wigan, in spite of losing his best players to bigger clubs (Ryan Taylor, Emile Heskey, Wilson Palacios), he managed to keep the ship steadied and safely in the Premier League.

This season his challenge is different, namely guiding a so-called bigger club  who have undergone a rollercoaster few seasons under Roy Keane, to safe waters.  It’ll be his aim to find mid-table with Sunderland this year and further trimming the squad of superfluous talents like Paul McShane, David Healy and Daryl Murphy.  Basically Irish players.

Key to their success: The Kenwyne Jones/Darren Bent double-act will be crucial with Bruce needing about 12-15 goals from each striker.  He’ll probably get goals from midfield too with Kieran Richardson and Steed Malbranque capable wide players with creative guile.  At the back he will probably mould a better unit than either Keane or Ricky Sbragia were able to but I still think he needs a centre back.  The midfield partnership of Lee Cattermole and Lorik Cana should offer more protection to that troubled back four in the meantime.

9^th Tottenham

Last season: 8^th

Transfers in: Kyle Naughton (undisclosed, Sheffield United), Kyle Walker (undisclosed, Sheffield United), Peter

What is this??

Crouch (£9m, Portsmouth), Sebastian Bassong (£10m, Newcastle)

Transfers out: Didier Zokora (£8.5m, Seville), Chris Gunter (£1.75m, Nottingham Forest), Darren Bent (£10m, Sunderland), Gilberto (released)

I am a fan of Tottenham.  I’m not a fan of ‘Arry Redknapp.  I make no apologies for it.

Since he arrived less than a year ago he has brought Robbie Keane, Pascal Chimbonda, Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch back to the club.  In the case of Keane and Chimbonda it seems to have been a mistake.  In the case of Defoe and Crouch, well, the jury is out.

The signing of Kyle Naughton looks to be good business in the little bit I’ve seen of him.  But I remain disappointed that he can find no place for Giovani Dos Santos, Adel Taarabt or young players who have looked solid in pre-season like Jake Livermore.

Yet Jermaine Jenas still gets a game.

Key to their success: Last season was relatively successful for Redknapp but I remain unconvinced that he has got it right this summer.  Where is the left midfielder?  Who will partner Wilson Palacios in midfield?  If he persists with Modric on the left and Jenas in the middle then I don’t think Spurs will make any ground on the top four this year.  Good to see Crouch at the club and I don’t buy in to this “his presence forces you to play direct to him” complaint.  If your players are wily enough then they will exploit any gaps that Crouch’s presence helps expose – that’s the theory anyway.

10^th Blackburn

Last season: 15^th

Transfers in: Lars Jacobsen (free, Everton), Steven N’Zonzi (£500k, Amiens), Gael Givet (£3.5m, Marseille), Nikos

His name is Gael

Giannakopoulos (£50k, Asteras Tripolis), Elrio Van Heerden (free, Bruges), Nikola Kalinic (Hadjuk Split, £6m)

Transfers out: Matt Derbyshire (£3m, Olympiakos), Roque Santa Cruz (£17.5m, Man City), Aaron Mokoena (free, Portsmouth), Andrew Ooijer (undisclosed, PSV)

Sam Allardyce rescued his reputation at Blackburn last season following his disastrous spell at Newcastle.  His renaissance of the club was done with pretty much the same resources that previous incumbent Paul Ince had and really just underlined how out of his depth the former manager was.

There have not been wholesale changes this time around either.  Gael Givet has come in permanently from Marseille following a loan spell and Hadjuk Split front man Nikola Kalinic has signed up for £6m.  French midfielder Steven N’Zonzi is dubbed the “next Patrick Vieira” (these dubbings never get boring) and Elrio Van Heerden is an established South African international.

Keys to their success: I’m not sure why I rate Blackburn under Allardyce so highly.  I think it may be partly to do with the fact that the rest of the division is decidedly unimpressive and Allardyce himself usually makes the best of meagre resources.  There is no Roque Santa Cruz this year but there wasn’t most of last season either.  Let’s see if Benni McCarthy can keep scoring and Steven Reid and Keith Andrews form a surprisingly effective midfield partnership.