EPL Season Thread...

[Chief Rum]

I have no idea if anyone will post in this at all. I just know that the Tim Howard thread seemed to be the "English football" thread last season, and I figured, like hockey, we could use a new one.

So I am posting in here. I just finished watching a replay of the Community Shield, so I thought I would throw out some thoughts. Something to note--I am relatively new to the football scene in England, so forgive me if I say anything that just sounds like complete rubbish to a true fan.

--I thought Howard looked pretty good in goal when his defense played well. He seemed a bit unsteady, though, as if he wasn't in complete control.

--Who needs Ljungberg, Pires and Vieira? Reyes, Pennant and Fabregas looked great.

--Pennant is going to be kicking himself for a while for missing that wide open goal. It couldn't have been more open.

--Howard's save on Henry's kick that set up Pennant's blown shot was brilliant.

--I have never seen Rio Ferdinand play. I just know he's supposed to be very good. And I know it's not fair to rate Man Utd's defense against a team with as many weapons as the Gunners. But, good Lord, do the Devils need Ferdinand back. I thought their backline played horrible. Howard was left to dry on the Gilberto goal, there weren't enough defenders around to help him on the Reyes goal, and the third Arsenal goal was an own off of Silvstre. Ugh. When is Ferdinand eligible to return? October?

--Diego Forlan, with those dreads, has to be the ugliest man on Earth, or at least east of Mike Ricci.

--If Fabregas plays like this, I don't think Arsenal is going to worry about Vieira leaving.

--It was nice to see Gaël Clichy play, since he is a member of my Tamworth Lambs in my CM03/04 dynasty. I had never seen him live or in a pitcure yet (and that's still the case for most of my "real" players).

--First time I ever saw Thierry Henry, too. Didn't know he's black. So sue me. He looked like he was already in mid-season form.

--I thought Alan Smith looked pretty good in his debut, too, but, Man Utd, is really going to miss Ruud if they don't get more offense going.

--Poison Chalice, lol. The announcers made mention of that, and I had never heard that before. Apparently only one Community Shield winner has gone on to win the league in the last ten years (Newcastle in '94-95, I think). Does this mean Arsenal, coming off of the best club season in league history last year, is doomed?

I would give a go at predictions, but I don't know nearly enough about the EPL right now to even try. You more knowledgeable fans are welcome to give it a go, though,a nd maybe as I pick up on some things, I'll give it a shot.

Oh second question. Anyone think my Boro can make a run at the top five of the table? I love some of the signings we made this offseason.

CR

[SirFozzie]

Go Cambridge United!

[RPI-Fan]

Johnny Spector's prospects for cracking the first XI at 18 years are looking better and better...

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by RPI-Fan

Johnny Spector's prospects for cracking the first XI at 18 years are looking better and better...

He didn't embarass himself out there today, but then he didn't face Arsenal's top players, nor was he on long (late sub). I really couldn't offer an opinion of him just yet. As for his age, if Fabregas can be that solid at 17, why not Spector?

CR

[McSweeny]

go Nottingham Forest!

[RPI-Fan]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

He didn't embarass himself out there today, but then he didn't face Arsenal's top players, nor was he on long (late sub). I really couldn't offer an opinion of him just yet. As for his age, if Fabregas can be that solid at 17, why not Spector?

CR

1) Spector is a defender, not an attacking middie.
2) He looked just as good in the CWT.
3) ManU's defense is, as you said, crap right now. He's rapidly approaching John O'Shea, who has been shite lately.

[Chief Rum]

Gotchya on the second two. As for the first, I know Spector is a defender. If that's a reference to defense being harder for younger players to learn, than I accept one as well. If it's because you didn't think I knew Spector was a defender, you're wrong.

CR

[RPI-Fan]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

Gotchya on the second two. As for the first, I know Spector is a defender. If that's a reference to defense being harder for younger players to learn, than I accept one as well. If it's because you didn't think I knew Spector was a defender, you're wrong.

CR

Sorry if I came off like a jerk there - list form was just the easiest way for me to get my points across.

Yea', I'm sure you knew he was a defender. Was just remarking that it's a lot easier to blossom as a young player in an offensive role than it is on defense.

[Chief Rum]

Naw, don't worry, didn't see you coming off as a jerk at all. I just thought maybe you were correcting me on something I got right (I hate that ). As I surmised might be the case, you were just noting the differences between defenders and midfielders developemnt, which I admit is a subject I don't know much about.

CR

[Crapshoot]

I posted this at primer, but I think its appropriate here:
I think Arsenals’ biggest problem is that they have absolutely no defensive depth- now that the Trabelsi move fell through. You have Cambell, Toure (who I think might take a John o Shea like step-back) Lauren, and Cole - and no one really behind them. Pascal Cygan doesnt exactly inspire respect from opposing strikers. Clichy is interesting, but him and Senderos have little to no experience. For all Wenger’s buys, I think a CD would be a nice pickup- a Ehigou type, or even a Josemi type- especially at the price. Carrick would be a nice signing for midfield depth- but that defense scares me.

Better team than Man U no doubt- Viera's better than anyone MAn U has in the center, and Henry's better than Ruud. However, Man U has depth,and might just outlast them IMO-at defense, they go Neville, Neville, O Shea, Silvestre, Heinze, Ferdinand and Brown- far more than Arse. In midfield, Arsenal has Flamini, Carrick Hopefully, Ludgenberg, Pennant, Pires, Viera, and Van Pierese- compared to Keane, Giggs, Ronaldo , Fortune, Djemba-Djemba, and Scholes, that's pretty even. Up front- you got Van Nistelrooy, Saha, Smith, and Forlan vs Henry, Reyes, Bergkamp- about even, - though again, depth favors Man U.

Seriously- on the best 11 , Ill take Arsenal all year- given the inevitable injuries, Im tempted towards MAn U.

[Crapshoot]

Edit- forgot Pique in defense, hows highly rated by all accounts- and Liam Miller in the midfield, who they signed from Celtic.

[3ric]

Go Liverpool!

A Rafael Benitez-coached team with Cissé-Owen-Baros as attackers sound really scary...

[andy m]

shame liverpool have a weak defence then.

good to see some americans attempting to show a nice and basic beginners grasp of the english league here. remember though: basing your knowledge of players on what you have learned from playing championship manager is not a good idea.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by andy m

shame liverpool have a weak defence then.

good to see some americans attempting to show a nice and basic beginners grasp of the english league here. remember though: basing your knowledge of players on what you have learned from playing championship manager is not a good idea.

Now, now, no need to make generalized assumptions here, especially where not true. I didn't watch the Charity Shield on a computer-generated 2D pitch, but on an actual TV screen with real players.

I readily admit my knowledge is tiny compared to lifelong fans, but that doesn't mean I lack the ability to differentiate between the game on TV and what I get from CM.

I will gladly take whatever wisdoms you true fans are willing to impart, but really, if you feel you have to tell us Americans not to base what our knowledge of players off of CM (rather than it being understood), that rather shows you have very little regard for our discerning abilities, doesn't it?

I feel we're a little bit more intelligent than you give us credit for.

CR

[Katon]

Originally Posted by Aadik

I posted this at primer, but I think its appropriate here:
I think Arsenals’ biggest problem is that they have absolutely no defensive depth- now that the Trabelsi move fell through. You have Cambell, Toure (who I think might take a John o Shea like step-back) Lauren, and Cole - and no one really behind them. Pascal Cygan doesnt exactly inspire respect from opposing strikers. Clichy is interesting, but him and Senderos have little to no experience. For all Wenger’s buys, I think a CD would be a nice pickup- a Ehigou type, or even a Josemi type- especially at the price. Carrick would be a nice signing for midfield depth- but that defense scares me.

Better team than Man U no doubt- Viera's better than anyone MAn U has in the center, and Henry's better than Ruud. However, Man U has depth,and might just outlast them IMO-at defense, they go Neville, Neville, O Shea, Silvestre, Heinze, Ferdinand and Brown- far more than Arse. In midfield, Arsenal has Flamini, Carrick Hopefully, Ludgenberg, Pennant, Pires, Viera, and Van Pierese- compared to Keane, Giggs, Ronaldo , Fortune, Djemba-Djemba, and Scholes, that's pretty even. Up front- you got Van Nistelrooy, Saha, Smith, and Forlan vs Henry, Reyes, Bergkamp- about even, - though again, depth favors Man U.

Seriously- on the best 11 , Ill take Arsenal all year- given the inevitable injuries, Im tempted towards MAn U.

Forlan over Solskjaer up front for Man U?

In any case, I think you're overestimating Man U's depth slightly. Having bodies is useful, certainly, but some of those players are just bodies: Forlan, Djemba-Djemba, Bellion . . . if they get into a match, you're going to notice a significant dropoff. There are very few spots in Man U's lineup where they can see their starter injured without a major loss of quality. Look at Chelsea last year, for example: we had plenty of players who could play on the left wing or in goal, but we had nobody who could play nearly as well as Carlo Cudicini and Damien Duff, so when they got injured we had serious problems. I'd actually rate Arsenal's depth higher than Man U's in midfield and up front, just because there isn't as much of a drop. Of course, Arsenal have no cover at the back, so overall I'd still give Man U a slight edge.

[MIJB#19]

I don't care who's gonna win.
I only want to see the Dutchmen play well, because I only use Dutchmen in the Yahoo Premiership Fantasy Football game.

Kluivert, Van Nistelrooij and Hasselbaink; it could be a Dutch party in the goal scorers tables at season's end.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by 3ric

Go Liverpool!

A Rafael Benitez-coached team with Cissé-Owen-Baros as attackers sound really scary...

I honestly think Liverpool will sell Baros before the year is out and go with a Cisse-Owen-Pongol rotation (they keep hinting to Barcelona that Baros is interested, but so far Barcelona hasn't taken the bait). Cisse looked sweet in the US.

Transition continues for Liverpool - Heskey (finally) out, Diouf soon to be gone, Murphy on the block, and possibly Finnan as well. I'm hoping we can bring in a creative midfielder to help out Gerrard. Early season's probably going to be rough w/ all the turnover, but should be an interesting team in the second half of the season.

[bhlloy]

Andy M - no need to be a jackass. Lot of very knowledgable American soccer fans on here.

United look like the solid #3 candidate out of the big three, defensively they are horrible and I cannot believe that Ferguson has done nothing to improve from last year (not strictly true - we'll see how Heinze pans out) Ferdinand is good but he will be rusty until Christmas at least, he's not going to save the title for them on his own. Having said that, every time United look like an inferior team they pull the title out of the hat so we'll see.

Alan Smith showed what he is - essentially a very volatile but talented player who can score some great goals. I don't think he's the solid striker United need with Van Nistelrooy out, but when RVN comes back he will be a nice #2.

Viera looks to be as good as gone with Pires giving an interview last night saying he has made up his mind to leave. I honestly don't know where this leaves Arsenal. I can't imagine a worse player for them to lose (maybe Henry).

Fabregas looked very good but there is no way a 17 year old can play even the majority of a season in the Premiership. Wenger said as much after the game that he might have a chance to feature at some point. Him replacing Viera is a pipe dream.

Which leads me to pick Chelsea as my favourites almost by default. Again they have gone and made a load of almost random signings, but they can afford to do it. Maybe not the way to build team chemistry but I think they probably have the strongest squad this year and if Morinho is anywhere near as good a coach as advertised and can adapt to the English game then I think this could be their year.

Liverpool should be much better, they hadn't responded well to Houllier in a long time and have made some nice additions. Just found out they sold Danny Murphy to Spurs which I don't understand as he's always been one of the most underrated players in the league for me.

One more thing... go Cardiff... BLUE ARMY

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by Katon

Forlan over Solskjaer up front for Man U?

In any case, I think you're overestimating Man U's depth slightly. Having bodies is useful, certainly, but some of those players are just bodies: Forlan, Djemba-Djemba, Bellion . . . if they get into a match, you're going to notice a significant dropoff. There are very few spots in Man U's lineup where they can see their starter injured without a major loss of quality. Look at Chelsea last year, for example: we had plenty of players who could play on the left wing or in goal, but we had nobody who could play nearly as well as Carlo Cudicini and Damien Duff, so when they got injured we had serious problems. I'd actually rate Arsenal's depth higher than Man U's in midfield and up front, just because there isn't as much of a drop. Of course, Arsenal have no cover at the back, so overall I'd still give Man U a slight edge.

I knew I had forgotten someone- thanks.
If you note what I said earlier, I did agree that Arsenal had the edge in midfield and up front, simply because they had the best midfielder (though he's gone as of this week to Madrid) and the best striker of the two teams, and that the front 11 quality was better for Arse.

[Crapshoot]

Meh- I see Maniche is an Arsenal uniform come next week - or at least the young Argentinian that's being talked about. Either way, its not a replacement for Viera - who's probably the best midfielder in the world today (yes, I think he's better than Zidane).

[Huckleberry]

I would just like to register my support for Manchester City. That is all.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by Huckleberry

I would just like to register my support for Manchester City. That is all.

is that support, or a deep hearted article of faith that Keegan can't possibly get them relegated given how much he's spent ?

[rufusjonz]

OMG Diego Forlan's hair looked freakin terrible!

GO Chelsea, but i hated them getting rid of Jimmy Floyd

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by Huckleberry

I would just like to register my support for Manchester City. That is all.

On paper, Man City should be an exciting team to watch: Anelka, Wright-Phillips, Fowler, Sinclair, McManaman, Reyna (homer pick), & James in goal.

Then again, they looked good on paper last year too and they appeared they headed for relegation most of the year.

[Huckleberry]

I'm just a Texan, y'all.

My support for Manchester City is based on the fact that "they" were the first Premier League team to hire me in CM. I thanked them by leading them to global domination. I'm also ecstatic about Torquay having been promoted to the Second Division this year. As for the team, we'll see. Seems to my untrained eye that Keegan ain't the brightest bulb in the box, and Anelka has been the subject of transfer rumors, hasn't he?

[Router Help]

Reyna has looked great so far in preseason.

[scooter]

I saw Chelsea here in Seattle as a part of the CWT this summer. Their passing was very good. I also thought at the time that they could use another central defender and they must have been listening because they picked up Carvalho who looked very good at Euro. Many weapons and good depth at most positions - I think they could be a match for anyone this season.

That being said, both Chelsea and Liverpool will be starting with a bit of a disadvantage with new coaching setups. I think this could get them off to a slow start, which may decide the championship.

[condors]

While i believe Chelsea Manutd and Arsenal will be in a dogfight for the title Newcastle, Liverpool and any number of teams could be battling for the 4th place.

I watched the Charity Shield game Manutd has serious issues with thier backline. Any Arsenal player with any kind of pace and courage who challenged the defense to make a play they failed (although neville and fortune we doing ok along the wings but oshea and silvestri in the middle were horrible which is why Gary Neville was moved in from the right)

I am not hopefull of thier chances right now but i will hold off on judgement till Heinze and Ferdinad are back there

[condors]

i just wanted to add i am very thankfull that i could get fox sports world as it was not an option last season for my cable company.

[Katon]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Which leads me to pick Chelsea as my favourites almost by default. Again they have gone and made a load of almost random signings, but they can afford to do it. Maybe not the way to build team chemistry but I think they probably have the strongest squad this year and if Morinho is anywhere near as good a coach as advertised and can adapt to the English game then I think this could be their year.

The signings don't strike me as "completely random". Let's compare the players going out with the players going in:

Out                        In
Sullivan                   Pidgely
Ambrosio                 Cech
Melchiot                  Ferreira
Desailly                   Carvalho
Petit                       Smertin
Veron                     Tiago
Gronkjaer                 Robben
Crespo                    Drogba
Hasslebaink              Kezman

Pidgely and Smertin were technically part of the club last year, but they were out on loan the whole time, so they are in effect new players. Every player in the 'in' column is a direct replacement for one of the exiting players; with the arguable exceptions of Smertin and Drogba, they are a clear improvement. Doesn't strike me as being particularly random.

rufusjonz: how'd you pick Jimmy as a favorite player?

[bhlloy]

Random in the sense of signing top players from around Europe with no thought of whether they will fit in or not. Random in the way of yet again having a squad of 20-25 superstars and waiting to see which ones will pan out and which ones won't. Look at the players on the out list... Veron and Crespo were big name signings only a year ago and Mutu is on his way out as well. Any other club wouldn't be able to afford to take this hit and miss approach to signing players but Abramovich's pockets are so deep it doesn't matter.

Smertin is a good one as an example, he was signed as a favour to one of Abramovich's friends in Russia, then Ranieri couldn't find a place in his squad for him so he was loaned out to Portsmouth for the year. £4.5 million pounds as I recall for a player they didn't want or need.

Just doesn't strike me as a way to build team chemistry. Cost them the title last year as they started slowly (even Ranieri said this)

Anyway I think Chelsea start as my favourites, but a turnover of a complete management and coaching staff and 8 first team players is not a good thing. Some of the replacements are very questionable... Cech is an upgrade at keeper, Carvalho is a quality CB and Robben is ahead of Gronjkaer. The rest of the guys on that list... probably not a clear cut upgrade.

[Katon]

Kezman over Hasslebaink is very much a clear-cut upgrade, and given that Veron just can't get adjusted to the Premiership I think you have to call Tiago an upgrade too. If we'd had Ferreira playing instead of Melchiot during the CL semifinal, we might well have won the entire competition. Pidgeley is also less panic-inducing than Sullivan, although third keeper isn't normally a terrifically important position.

Let's move this debate onto more specific grounds, since a thorough defence of every single player we bought would take too long. What players strike you either as being of questionable quality or as being bought with no thought for how they'll fit in?

I'd also disagree with the notion that it was our poor start which cost us the title. We didn't have a poor start. We were right up there at the top until Christmas, when we had our traditional bad patch and fell a bit behind. We then more or less kept pace with Arsenal until after the CL tie, when the entire squad fell flat simultaneously.

[bhlloy]

The only players on that list that I can honestly say are top of Premiership quality are Cech, Carvalho and maybe Robben although he is young. Kezman - top talent but the list of foreign strikers who are top talents in other leagues and can't do anything in the Premiership is too long.
Everyone thought that buying Mutu would make Hasselbaink obsolete last year because Mutu was a can't miss buy and Hasselbaink was... well actually a proven Premiership goalscorer. I think he's given an unneccesarily bad rap but that's another subject.

You obviously are a big Chelsea fan so I'm willing to bow to your superior knowledge as I'm not even a fan of a Premiership club. I don't know, I just don't look at that list and see one world class player on there that is an absolute lock to be a star in the Premiership. Just a list of good foreign players that may well make it but may well be another set of bad buys.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Random in the sense of signing top players from around Europe with no thought of whether they will fit in or not. Random in the way of yet again having a squad of 20-25 superstars and waiting to see which ones will pan out and which ones won't. Look at the players on the out list... Veron and Crespo were big name signings only a year ago and Mutu is on his way out as well. Any other club wouldn't be able to afford to take this hit and miss approach to signing players but Abramovich's pockets are so deep it doesn't matter.

Smertin is a good one as an example, he was signed as a favour to one of Abramovich's friends in Russia, then Ranieri couldn't find a place in his squad for him so he was loaned out to Portsmouth for the year. £4.5 million pounds as I recall for a player they didn't want or need.

Just doesn't strike me as a way to build team chemistry. Cost them the title last year as they started slowly (even Ranieri said this)

Anyway I think Chelsea start as my favourites, but a turnover of a complete management and coaching staff and 8 first team players is not a good thing. Some of the replacements are very questionable... Cech is an upgrade at keeper, Carvalho is a quality CB and Robben is ahead of Gronjkaer. The rest of the guys on that list... probably not a clear cut upgrade.

I disagree. The difference this year is that all the signing do make sense and have Mourinho's stamp on them. Technically proficient pacey team players who know how to defend a lead. They replaced a bunch of underperforming solo artists and added a bunch of players who think team first. The only players that seem a bit suspect are Tiago and Drogba. Drogba if only because it cost them so much for him. Their strike force is much, much better this year than last.

[Katon]

I'm not convinced that Hasslebaink is given any worse of a rap than he deserves, but as you say that's another subject. I'm also not inclined to defend the rap without knowing what exactly the rap is, so I'll reserve comment on that issue.

To get back to the main topic, I agree that none of them are certain to be stars, but I would suggest that almost all of them - with the exceptions I mentioned earlier - are near-certainties to be better than the person they're replacing.

Cech over Ambrosio you don't seem to be arguing with, and Pidgely/Sullivan will be irrelevant barring a major string of injuries. Carvalho over Desailly, at this stage in Desailly's career, is another easy choice. I've seen Ferreira and Melchiot against mutual opposition - Jerome Rothen of Monaco - and the difference in their performance under those circumstances is a large part of the reason that Porto shut Monaco out and we conceded five in two games. Melchiot's performance against Monaco was unfortunately typical of his performances towards the end of last year. Given that Ferreira's playing for a coach who knows how to get the best out of him, he's a near-certain improvement. Veron is the classic example of what you're talking about here and Tiago can hardly be any worse-adapted to the Premiership. Robben can cross as well as beat people, which puts him well ahead of Jesper Gronkjaer already. Up front, Kezman is arguably a better bet to succeed than Van Nistelrooij was when he came over (slightly better goalscoring record, no knee injury). There's no guarantee he'll be as good as Van Nistelrooij, but he's likely to be a better player than Hasselbaink.

I'm not convinced Smertin and Drogba are better than Petit and Crespo, but there are valid reasons for those two changes. Smertin's already had a season in the Premiership, where he looked like a good but unexceptional player of the sort you often get around the fringes of top-level teams' midfields (compare him to Nicky Butt or Eric Djemba-Djemba; on last year's form, he's better than either of them), and is more reliably available than the extremely injury-prone Petit. Crespo was never going to be a major success over here as long as his wife and family were staying back in Italy, so we did need to replace him too, and Drogba looks to have more presence in the air than nearly the whole of last year's team.

[Mac Howard]

As a Man Utd fan I was very disappointed with the Community Shield performance but there are two extenuating circumstances to note. First, the missing players: Ronaldo and Heinze at the Olympics. Ferdinand banned. Van Nistelrooy, Saha, Solskjaer, Kleberson, Miller and Brown all injured. That's nine players missing, many of them first choice and the others second choice players.

Second we have had another brain storm from Alex Ferguson. He pointed it out himself as an excuse after the match without a hint of embarrassment. He complained that Neville, Silvestre and Fortune had only 5 days pre-season training each and the rest of the squad little more. Those American fans who payed a fortune to watch Utd's kids play in Chicago etc might well point out that had Alex played his first choice players then they perhaps wouldn't have been so ill prepared. Yes, nice to give them all 4 weeks rest after Euro 2004 but now, with a crucial Champions League qualifier only 2 days away, he has a squad of barely fit, match rusty players who are falling to injury like flies.

Sorry Alex. You didn't engage the brain cell when you came up with this pre-season

I have to agree with Katon who pointed out that though Utd may have the numbers in depth the quality falls away very quickly once you move away from the top 13 or 14 players. The Arsenal squad doesn't do that to the same extent. However I would say that the Utd first eleven is at least a match for Arsenal first eleven. Just three of Arsenal's players would interest me - Campbell, Vieira and Henry - and, with Keane and van Nistelrooy, Utd have reasonable replacements for two of those. Campbell would be welcome at Old Trafford any time - a Campbell/Ferdinand centreback pairing is as good as anything in world football.

Of course, there is still every possibility that Vieira will not be an Arsenal player this season.

I must admit that Chelsea have to be favourites for the Championship this season despite my not liking the idea that you can buy the Premiership. Mourinho has bought well and he himself will bring a steel and consistency to the team that was missing with Ranieri. There's no reason to believe that Arsenal will be any worse than last season which means that 90 points is on the cards again. Utd, providing they don't lose too much ground while so many players are out, can match both. I'm beginning to feel sorry for the other clubs as I write this

And 'boro, Chief Rum, are an interesting proposition. I like McClaren, I would rather he had come back to Utd than Queiroz, and there's some interesting additions to the squad. They could well be challenging for a European place this season.

[klayman]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Just found out they sold Danny Murphy to Spurs which I don't understand as he's always been one of the most underrated players in the league for me.

Murphy was terrible last season, playing completely uninispired at the best of times. I have no problem getting 3 million for him.

[Crapshoot]

Mac,
you recall a couple of years ago, when a certain team spent a world record sum on a defender, then followed it up by spending 20 million on a striker, and then broke the British transfer record to sign a midfielder ? I dont like Chelsea's unlimited bank accounts either- but Man U certaintly did it on their way to the treble.

[Crapshoot]

Murphy turned down the move to Spurs- if Everton can come up with the money, I expect him to end up there.

While we're on the subject of the EPL- your call for the 3 drops:
Mine:
Everton
Crystal Palace
Norwich

[Mac Howard]

Aadik. Those players were bought by Utd AFTER they had won the treble

[bhlloy]

From the Chelsea fans that I know, the impression I got was that they didn't like Hasselbaink at all and they were mighty relieved when Mutu was signed because finally they had a talented striker to replace him. Hasselbaink showed he was a better Premiership striker than him and kept him out of the side. Ditto with Crespo.

All Hasselbaink has done is score goals at a pretty consistent rate throughout his career yet the impression I get is that he never had much love at Chelsea. Maybe I'm wrong and that wasn't the mood on the terraces, but that was always what I felt was implied.

IF Kezman strikes out (he looks to be legit but strikers you just can't tell) I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you will miss Jimmy Floyd pretty badly this year.

One of the great things about a new season is optimism about your new club and new signings. I can't imagine everyone of Chelsea's panning out as is often the case with foreign players but if they do it's sure going to be a good season for you guys. Even if they don't I still put Chelsea ahead of Arsenal (minus Viera) and United (minus a lot of guys for the first month or two of the season)

Mac - Solksjaer out for the year has got to hurt. Looks like Diego Forlorn is going to play a big part again this year God help you. Time to get on your knees and pray that Ruud stays healthy.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Mac Howard

And 'boro, Chief Rum, are an interesting proposition. I like McClaren, I would rather he had come back to Utd than Queiroz, and there's some interesting additions to the squad. They could well be challenging for a European place this season.

I have quickly become a big McLaren fan. I believe he dreams bigger than the folks at Riverside are used to, and he's dragging them up with him. I think a winning tradition can be built at most major clubs, but sometimes you need that confidence to get it done. And I think McLaren does that, and he has brought in soem guys with the right attitudes, too.

Mendieta and Zenden were huge steps up for us last year, and now we're keeping Zenden. Reiziger is a big time addition on a backline that needs a little support with the captain getting up there (glad he signed his extension, though). Mendieta, Zenden and Parlour give us some legit midfield options. And our depth up front is incredible right now.

I have never been a big fan of Maccarone or of Nemeth, so getting guys like Viduka and Hasselbaink is big for us. Nemeth is perfect, I think, as a scorer/playmaker off the bench. I am concerned about what's going to happen to Juninho, though. I don't want him to leave for Celtic (doesn't seem like anyone involved--except for Celtic--really does want him to leave either).

Maccarone never has become the star he seemed like he could be. Is his transfer to Fiorentina a done deal yet? I haven't seen anything new.

I know top five is unlikely, but I think they can make a run at it, especially if some of the lower end heavyweights like Newcastle or Liverpool have poor seasons (yeah, right).

It will be exciting to see them in Europe this season.

CR

[daedalus]

I really like Chelsea this season. I feel bad for Rinieri but, if nothing else, Mourinho seems to have two major plusses going in my opinion: he actually has the backing of ownership and he seems less prone to the constant tinkering of Rinieri. I think that will help the rotation settle in. I'm not much familiar with him but Mourinho seemed to have had a fair rotation going last year at Porto so, if he can quickly pick out who he wants in his rotation and get it established then deal with the dissenters later, I think that'll be an outstanding team. There's just a crazy amount of talent there.

One guy who doesn't seem TOO bad that's going to get lost in the shuffle there is Geremi. I think he was miscasted. I saw him used in a number of places and rarely in the spot that he seems most suited, the defensive midfield slot, which was, of course, occupied by Makelele. I won't happen in a million year but I really wouldn't mind him in that role with the Gunners.

Much as they're evil and we all know we hate them (), it feels like Manchester United are getting majorly screwed by all the international play. C Ronaldo spent much of the offseason at the Euro then had to rest and now he'll be going straight to the Olympics. That blows. Especially with Heinze going to the Olympics as well. That's two major players out of your rotation. Sucks. In United's defense (tee hee!) with regards to the Charity Shield, they do have a qualifier coming up soon and Arsenal doesn't.

I don't think they're getting a fair shake as a player in the upcoming season. Henry rates Saha very highly, RvN is, well, RvN and Smith makes a nice complement into that crew. They're getting a bit older but Keane, Scholes and Giggs are still all class. Plus, Scholes won't have international commitments to worry about anymore. I'm kinda sad that they got rid of Butts since I thought he was solid. I sort of feel like he's one of those guys, like Danny Ainge, you hate when he's on the other team but love when he's on yours. I like Fortune from the limited amount I saw him at last year's tour of the US and I think he can contribute. I also think C Ronaldo was just getting used to the premiership and started to show his quality at the end of the season. After his performance at the Euro and what can maybe be expected at the Olympic, he'll be coming into the season on a high note and rested against tired legs. I am curious as to how O'Shea will turn out this year, however. Oh, and I can't stand Djemba-Djemba. He seems to be in some horrible tackles and he whines at EVERYTHING. EVERY-F'ING-THING.

Go Gunners!

I like the team. To be honest, much as I value Paddy, at this point, I'd just rather he pack up and head to Bernabeu. I'll take the money and the Argentinian kid and go from there. As has been said, as good as Cesc has looked, if (when?) Paddy leaves, I don't think he'll be in there. At least initially. My guess would be Edu and Gilberto to open the season in the middle. I think Flamini (once all that mess is settled) and Mascherano, if (PLEASE, let it be WHEN) we get him will get the starting nod before Cesc will. Carrick as well, I believe, if rumours are to be believed. I don't know much about Carrick other than that he's left-footed and is apparently skilled. If that's the case, I think it can definitely be a positive since my theory on why the offense was so much better with Edu in the lineup last year had to do with the fact that Arsenal's offense comes predominantly from the left side (the Cole-Pires-Henry line). Too bad Ray Parlour left, he would have been great to have in this situation. I'm happy with the situation on the outside with Pires/Reyes on the left and Ljungberg/Pennant on the right. I would like that right-side spot become David Bentley's next year when he comes back. Of course, I wouldn't mind it too much if Juventus wants to give us 10 large for Freddie and we convert some of that into Shaun Wright-Phillips.

Aadik . . . Although I would love to see an Ehiogu or a Southgate come in as well, I have a tough time seeing that happening since it doesn't seem to fit very well with The Boss' modus operandi. To be honest, after all I've read, I'm pretty glad the Trabelsi deal fell through. In spite of all the talent he is said to have, he sounds like an annoying one. I'd rather not have someone I can't root for on the squad. With Paddy on his way out, Wenger probably won't chase Sagnol either. Which I'm glad of for the same reason. Right now, Clichy is Cole's second. Wenger seemed to have rated Hoyte highly enough to feel confident about letting Volz go and he's apparently the current second for Lauren. Maybe Wenger is hoping for lightning to strike twice and have Hoyte come up big in the same way as Clichy did last year? If we're lucky, maybe that'll lead Lauren right out the door. One of the American Gooners, Daniel Karbassiyoon, has been spending time at fullback. Maybe Wenger is hoping for another good conversion like with Cole. Hoyte has also been getting time in the middle along with Sanderos this preseason. They're next up on the centreback list. With Sol out for an extended period of time, we'll see if The Boss hand that spot to Sanderos or Cygan. I'm hoping for Sanderos but I think it'll be Cygan. For now. I don't know that I foresee the same problem for Toure as O'Shea had last year. I can't see Toure having issue with complacency if, in fact, that was O'Shea's problem last year as was suggested at times. I'm also still hoping we'll get a chance to sign his brother, if for no other reason than that it would be cool to have a player on the squad name YaYa. Yeah. Frankie Simek would have been next up in line, I think, behind Sanderos and Hoyte since he wore the captain's armband on the reserve squad more than a few times last year. But he apparently has some minor back problem at this time. Overall, I'm not too unhappy with this crew as is. Of course, that MAY change after bad games without Sol.

When Paddy leaves and Mascherano comes in, I wouldn't be surprised to see Wenger hold and start the season as is before making a big move in January again since that will give him a chance to see how the season develops. I would like to see somebody who can play both centreback and right back so I don't have to suffer through more of Lauren's "defense".

Alright, I'd be happy with Gallas.

[Chief Rum]

Stay away from Ehiogu and Southgate!

CR

[daedalus]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

Stay away from Ehiogu and Southgate!

Alright, alright . . . keep Ehiogu, then.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by daedalus

Alright, alright . . . keep Ehiogu, then.

Grrr.

Like Arsenal really needs the help anyway (compared to the Boro at least).

CR

[condors]

I really don't understand some transfers

I see that newcastle and aston villa are interested in buying james beattie for around 6 million. If i am Southampton i tell them to get lost. Beattie has been a quality striker and frankly i thought he should have ended up in old trafford in the last offseason (although i am happy with saha and smith) I don't think Southampton can get a better player than Beattie with that 6 million and i don't think they have a better striker in house. Now i may overate Beattie but i think he is a top 10 EPL striker if he stays healthly will probally be in top 5 in goals again.

I see some decent players get sold for 2-4 million all the time and while they may not be stars they are solid first teamers for the club, now if a team drops a division i understand selling off players but why do midtable teams sell first teamers and weaken the squad for no gain. Its not like southampton is going to enter the owen chase if they sell beattie today

[Katon]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

From the Chelsea fans that I know, the impression I got was that they didn't like Hasselbaink at all and they were mighty relieved when Mutu was signed because finally they had a talented striker to replace him. Hasselbaink showed he was a better Premiership striker than him and kept him out of the side. Ditto with Crespo.

All Hasselbaink has done is score goals at a pretty consistent rate throughout his career yet the impression I get is that he never had much love at Chelsea. Maybe I'm wrong and that wasn't the mood on the terraces, but that was always what I felt was implied.

IF Kezman strikes out (he looks to be legit but strikers you just can't tell) I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you will miss Jimmy Floyd pretty badly this year.

One of the great things about a new season is optimism about your new club and new signings. I can't imagine everyone of Chelsea's panning out as is often the case with foreign players but if they do it's sure going to be a good season for you guys. Even if they don't I still put Chelsea ahead of Arsenal (minus Viera) and United (minus a lot of guys for the first month or two of the season)

Mac - Solksjaer out for the year has got to hurt. Looks like Diego Forlorn is going to play a big part again this year God help you. Time to get on your knees and pray that Ruud stays healthy.

The first thing to note about Jimmy's game is that it consists entirely of scoring goals. He doesn't harass defenders, he doesn't win headers, he can't hold the ball up. He just scores goals. This was all very well when he was scoring goals for fun and we couldn't afford someone who could score and contribute to the team, but neither of those is true any more. Yes, Jimmy was our leading scorer last year, but he only scored one of those goals against teams in the top half of the Premiership. Add in non-qualifier CL games and his total number of goals against quality opposition rises to a mighty two - the same as Wayne Bridge. Jimmy couldn't pose a threat against the top teams and, as a result, he wasn't played against them. The only big match in which I remember Jimmy playing was the second leg of the CL semifinal, when Claudio was fighting for his job and falling back onto last year's team hoping for a miracle. In our most important matches, in the Champions' League or against Arsenal, Jimmy was fourth choice up front. It's kind of hard to figure out who our starters were up front last year, given that Claudio rotated them even more than the rest of the squad, but Jimmy wasn't one.

Also, we do actually have a Plan B up front: Mikael Forssell. Last year, he was one of the three or four best strikers in the Premiership; we have an option to recall him from Birmingham in January and if he plays anywhere near as well this year I would expect us to exercise that option.

[Desnudo]

Michael Owen to Real?

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlin...306609&cc=5901

Does Real Madrid think through their purchases or do they just buy whoever's good and available?

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

Michael Owen to Real?

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlin...306609&cc=5901

Does Real Madrid think through their purchases or do they just buy whoever's good and available?

They buy 'galacticos' (sp?). Basically buy up all the super star names they can and hope they can form them into a team. It's almost as much marketing as it is on the field strategy to get some of these guys.

If Owens plays this afternoon though (in the CL) chances are the deal is off as he will be tied w/ Liverpool for euro play.