English Premier League Preview 2012/13

Flashy: This Glitter is more than just Gold!

Apparently, this is the year when the world should have ended, we survived! For me, FIFA 13, The Dark Knight Rises and the new football season is all I wanted to take care in summer of 2012. I’ve seen the “magical” Dark Knight Rises, it’s amazing. FIFA 13 is going to release on 28^th September, so excited for that one as well but as a football fan, nothing beats the arrival of new football season. 18^th August is the date that must have been uttered over and over again by the football fans nowadays because they knows what excitement and drama brings the best league in the world. Yes, for me, like many, PL is the best league in the world. Spanish premier League is certainly more technical and skillful but nothing beats the last seconds title clinching drama that happened last year. I really feel for Manchester United fans who had the title in their grasp, went all the way to their respective freezers for celebration beverages but when they returned, everything turned into misery in a matter of 2 minutes.

Congratulations to Manchester City for winning the title after many decades, five of them i think? For any neutral, it was a joy, it really was! What Aguero did against QPR will be highlighted for many years to come, this was one of the greatest moment in PL history (in which Fergie failed). Look! I m not against the success of Ferguson for Manchester United but it is great to see other participating in the victory parade of the PL title. I don’t want to see Spanish League-isque competition where top two teams are 30 points adrift of the closest competitor. However, I do agree with Jose Mourinho that top two of Spanish League are the top two in Europe by a long way. Elite Premier League teams lost their quality with departure of top players such as Cesc Fabregas or Cristiano Ronaldo. This season, the quality seems to be coming back with arrival of top talents as Santiago Cazorla, Shinji Kagawa, Eden Hazard or Lucas Podolski.  Surprisingly, Manchester City, the money baggers didn’t contribute to any of those signings. Will this come to haunt them this season? Well, time will tell but I will give you my insights of the potentially top 4 teams of how they might perform in this exciting season. Everyone has a right to disagree with me but please one at a time. :)

1. Manchester City.

Along with Chelseafc, another killer of the modern club football, cash cow for even their bench players, Manchester City is the flavor of the month for many new football fans. Still, as an Arsenalfc fan, it’s hard to hate them that much. They have toppled Manchester United for 'deserving' title. They made a mockery of Ferguson in such a majestic way; I won’t forget his expression post Sunderland game, priceless!  Above all, the quality of PL jumped to new levels after those brilliant moments. Although, I must and do hate them for making a joke out of the transfer market. They have inflated the market to new heights and there has been some ridiculous price tag for most of the professional players nowadays.

'Strong' duo leads again: Yaya Toure and Vincent Kompany

I am actually shocked that City has invested zero for the first team. Injury-prone Jack Rodwell, a  £15m summer signing who is only good enough to fill in City's bench role, for now. Perhaps, with Kolo Toure nearing the end of his career, City could have done much more with more strong players at the back. Jolean Lescott and the brilliant Vincent Kompany will not play every game and the other options for Manchester City are pretty average at times. Steven Savic will be as good as Sebastian Squillaci when he gets old, he is not good enough to make it for Manchester City and their pursuit for Daniel Agger suggests that.

Manchester City will again rely on the commitment of Carlos Tevez, who has stamped his loyalty for another ONE month at least. You never know what you will get from the Argentine off the pitch but on it? he is still one of the best in the business and if he is up for it, Manchester City will surely have a flyer. Yes, i do bank on him this season and i think he will show 'real' commitment this season. I do agree with Roberto Mancini about his disagreement with some board official over the lack of transfer activity. Look! even for a world class squad you need to fill in with more quality signings and Manchester City is not in an ideal position for having a 'clean' squad. Players like Emmanuell Adebayor are still glued with the club on  £150,000 a week salary that forces the club not to move freely in the market, so City should have forced these deadwood out and made way for few more quality signings. As i write this thing, City are in for Daniel Di Rossi, who i think is an ideal signing for the club, much better choice than Daniel Agger. Di Rossi is a leader like Kompany, who can play as a DMF or center back that City needs right now. City has still the most potent attacking option in Premier League with the likes of Mario Balotelli, Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez and Edin Dzeko in their wonderful attacking lineup. So, i am going to make a very tight call here. I think Manchester City are still 'strong' enough to do it. Now, they know how to actually win the title but this season they will know how to defend this prestigious trophy but it will be another massively tight fight with Manchester United.

Ins: Jack Rodwell (£15m)

Outs:  Wayne Bridge (loan), Owen Hargreaves (released), Vladimir Weiss (undisclosed)

Star Player: Yaya Toure

Flop of the Season: Adam Johnson

Should'v Signed: Daniel Di Rossi (AS Roma), Thiago Silva (PSG), Edinson Cavani (Napoli) or Robin Van Persie (Manutd)

PL 2012/13 Prediction: Champions!  

2. Manchester United

Many clubs will envy Manchester United’s history. Alex Ferguson has done wonders for the Manchester club but time has come for the old man to show his qualities for the ultimate battle. It is funny how things have changed over the past 3 years. After surviving top challenges like Invincibles of Arsenal, Russian money laundering for Chelsea, Ferguson faces another uphill battle to topple their bitter rivals in City. Off the pitch, the club is in desperate mode, trying to sell of their ‘overpriced’ shares to generate more income. In Glazers era, Manchester United has won it all and it has everything to do with such an focused, dominating and top manager in Alex Ferguson. He has done a marvelous job for such a traditional club and made it reach new heights in the past few years.

I was really happy to see their domination cut off by Manchester City for a change and that has not gone too well for the Scottish born manager. With the signings, Ferguson has shown his intention of not letting it slip, especially from the hands of bitter rivals. After rejections from big transfer targets such as Lucas Moura (PSG) and Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Manutd has made the coup of the season in Robin Van Persie from Arsenalfc. As a Gooner, it kills me to see the Dutchman in Red color of Manchester but this is such a breakthrough signing, it can define the outcome of the title come May. However, £24m for a 29 year old injury prone, who is in the last year of his contract shows a sign of desperation as well as intent. Anyhow, I think this will work well for United. Rooney and Persie, two players with immense technique and Premier League experience can rip off the opposition defense any given weekend. I don’t like to dwell too much on Persie’s case in United post but all i can say is if he remains fit, he will be United's top scorer.

Laughing it away: Rooney and Persie could work wonders!

United has also done well with the addition of ‘exceptional’ Shinji Kagawa from Dortmund and talented Nick Powell from Crewe. A left back or a center back could have helped United as Ferdinand can’t fully support Vidic for the whole season but if they remain calm in their defense with some help of Ferguson’s hairdryer along with chin up from young players like Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, United might even see off City this time. But for  me, City is strong enough to manage their defense for another year even when they have bought lesser than expected. It will be mighty tight again, a real battle!

Ins: Robin Van Persie (£24m), Shinji Kagawa (£17m), Nick Powell (undisclosed)

Outs: Fabio (loan), Park Ji Sung (undisclosed), Paul Pogba (free), Tomas Kuszczak (free)

Star Player: Wayne Rooney.

Flop of the Season:  Johnny Evans.

Should have signed: Leighton Baines (Everton), Matt Hummels (Dortmund)

PL 2012/2013 Prediction: Runners-up.

3. Arsenal.

The second greatest thing that has happened to me in my life; first one is my soul mate. Arsenal is my love and I always try to give unbiased remarks regarding the situation of the club. People might fail to understand but who cares. Arsenal is the most organized club in European club football and their football on the pitch is mesmerizing most of the time. Last season, Arsenal’s squad was disorganized and unprepared; the entire blame should be on Arsene Wenger and most importantly the shrewd board. I can write 1000 of pages regarding the infrastructure of this club and how it should be managed out of trophy-less trouble. However, in this article, I will briefly judge Arsenal squad and situation this season. 

When I say Arsene is at fault, it has much to do with trust of his players. Whether it is Nasri, Van Persie, Adebayor or the beloved Cesc Fabregas. I won’t use the word “betrayal” in each of these cases but when you leave a club as a captain, the least you could do is ‘not to join a rival team’. Arsenal has a very long and prestigious history and it is difficult to top the arrogance and disloyalty of the likes of Samir Nasri, Adebayor or Ashley Cole but Van Persie has beaten them all without shadow of a doubt.

The way Robin Van Persie has reacted in this most coveted and highly unimaginable saga is absolutely shambolic. It’s not only about leaving the club’s squad in dismay and instability; it is more about cheating his fans and Arsene, his so called father figure. Sadly, the ex-Arsenal captain has chosen the option of being remembered as a Satan in the heart of true Gooners. I do agree with Persie’s decision of not renewing the Arsenal contract because of ‘lacking ambition’ and it was his last chance to sign for a club who will actually win after all at the age of 29 but was it necessary to join a club who won exactly the same amount of trophy as Arsenal last year? Arsenal was never going to match his £200,000/week pay cheque that has been offered by Manutd, PSG or Juventus. Arsene signed the likes of world class Santi Cazorla, Lucas Podolski and an impressive Olivier Giroud to convince Van Persie but he was already out in his head. 

As an Arsenal fan, I thank Persie for ONE great season in his eight year long haul and he should thank Arsene for giving him free wages while he was being treated week in week out in the medical room.  All I can say is a prick is a small word of Robin Van Persie, I just hope he suffers.

One for the watch: Little magician Santiago Cazorla!

As for Arsenal squad, the team is better prepared this season despite Robin Van Persie’s departure. One thing is for sure; Arsenal will rise in the leadership of a ‘true’ fighter in Vermaelen and players like Wilshere and Arteta will take charge. It’s great to see Arsene Wenger handing no.10 jersey to Jack Wilshere, it shows the confidence in him that he truly deserves. Of the new arrivals, Santi Cazorla will be Arsenal’s main man this season; it will be a treat to watch him play along with Jack Wilshere, who is expected to return in October this year. However, Arsenal still could sign some more names with the likes of Sahin being linked to replace Wilshere until he comes back; that will be a massive coup but they need to beat Liverpool who wants him as well. Santiago Cazorla is a natural two footed player who is in the same league as Spain’s top brass. People talk about Mata’s quality but this guy is on another level and has a fantastic attitude off the pitch. Just pick him for your fantasy football league and you can thank me later. Song might fly off to Barcelona as I write this article but it won’t be a major blow IF Arsene signs a really good defensive midfielder in form of Toulouse midfielder Etienne Capoue or Rennes’s Yohan M’Vila.  Arsenal will be strong this season but recent coup of cash cow Chelsea could see Arsene fighting for Champions League this season. This year Arsenal will be closer to title rivals and could even surprise many. The departure of a 'traitor' in Robin Van Persie will surely effect Arsenal season this year but they will get very strong in a year or two.

Ins: Santiago Cazorla (undisclosed), Lucas Podolski (undisclosed), Olivier Giroud (undisclosed) 

Outs: Robin Van Persie (Manutd), Benik Afobe (loan), Manuel Almunia (released), Denilson (loan), Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad), Ryo Miyaichi (loan)

Star Player: Santiago Cazorla.

Flop of the Season:  Marouane Chamakh

Should have signed:  Yohan M’Vila (Rennes), Steven Jovetic (Fiorentina), Nuri Sahin (Real Madrid)

PL 2012/2013 Prediction: 4^th. (dark horses)

4. Chelsea.

It’s amazing how Chelsea survived last season. They didn't only survive but starting a new beginning after the Champions League heroics. It was unimaginable for them to win that cup after they fired yet another manager, this time a record £13m manager signing in history of this beautiful game. It was not just against Barcelona and Bayern Munich; people forget that Napoli and especially Benfica were unlucky against the blues in the end. Didier Drogba carried the whole team through that difficult phase as he has always done with Chelsea. He has been a colossal for Chelseafc and even a certain £50m has failed to replace the Ivory Coast legend. It was fairy tale ending for a disastrous Chelsea who finished 6^th last season but still qualified for Champions League as the cup champions.

This season Chelsea has done extra-ordinary with some terrific ‘quick’ signings. Also, these signings are young and hungrier. The club has shown their intent by throwing £25m on Brazilian sensation Santos, £32m on Belgium whiz Eden Hazard and a cheeky £7m on impressive and flashy Marko Marin. Chelsea might have a very strong young talent in midfield and wings but they still lack a player to finish off chances. In my opinion, Fernando Torres has been poor and it has nothing to do with his footballing technique. The Spaniard is technically sound and quick enough to see off those half chances but he is not mentally strong to even match the ability of Didier Drogba in front of goal. Chelsea needs a finisher and if they don’t do it, they will suffer and find it difficult. As an Arsenal fan, Didier Drogba has been their most potent talent, best player in ChelseaFC ‘brief’ history. They will find it hard to replace him; Chelsea knows that now after they signed Lukaku and loaned him out after one year. The Belgian has great talent but he is far from being ready, so I’ll give him time as Drogba also showed his charisma for Chelsea when he turned 27.

Pressure will mount: Eden Hazard.

Apparently, Eden Hazard has been the star signing for Chelsea but he is struggling to live up to his billing judging by preseason games. I am sure he will get better but Chelsea needs to give him more time then they actually think. I watched all the Brazil games in Olympics for scouting Neymar but I hate to admit it is Oscar who impressed me the most. The guy is technical sound, quick and has fantastic decision making ability. A world class box to box player in the making who will eventually replace Frank Lampard this season. Even for £25m, Oscar is a terrific signing for Chelseafc. The squad looks better equipped with some flashy young players to work on quick counter play but it also depends on how they develop THAT understanding to work it out in the end. Chelsea might still experience instability because Roberto Di Matteo is not big enough to manage the egos of John Terry and ‘almost finish’ Frank Lampard. RDM had an unbelievable success in such a short span but it was Drogba who made it all possible for Chelsea.

Ins:  Oscar £25m, Marko Marin (undisclosed), Eden Hazard (£32m), Thorgan Hazard (undisclosed)

Outs: Bosingwa (QPR), Salomon Kalou (loan), Romelu Lukaku (loan), Bruma (loan)

Star Player: Oscar.

Flop of the Season:  Michael Essien.

Should have signed:  Edinson Cavani (Napoli), Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid), Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina), Dani Alves (Barcelona)

PL 2012/2013 Prediction: 3^rd.

5^th Liverpool.
6^th Tottenham Hotspurs.
Hope you liked it all. Opinions are always welcome here. Cheers!

                                                

Epl 2010-11 preview

JT’s FOOTBALL WORLD

Epl 2010-11 Preview

                                                          Will Chelsea hang on to it?
                                                     

BY Junaid Tariq (JT)..Being a hard core football fan there are things that you would want to do like fantasizing scoring at least 90% of a big tournament goals with hot girls watching the game or winning all seasons in fifa 10 as a manager or writing a blog about your own perceptive about the football world. I have done the first two things so I thought, why not completing the ultimate madness of any football fan. I am an arsenal fan so people have the right to judge some of my statements regarding my beloved club and “some” of its rivals. Epl season is drawing near and I dearly wanted to give an insight of what I think clubs will achieve this season. Well, I may not be egoistic as jose mourinho or intelligent as wenger or successful as sir alex ferguson or even fussy as harry redknapp but I will try to give my all modest predictions and preview of the clubs preparation and chances for new season. Before jumping onto main theme I want to congratulate Manchester united for trouncing Chelsea, which was a bit of surprise to me as I predicted a Chelsea win but then again I thought what was I thinking?! Chelsea, without Petr Cech should even envy Arsenal’s goal keeping options. So, I could be wrong with my predictions.

Without any doubt Epl is the most competitive league which sometimes is funnier than expected. Last season was the most exciting with top four losing almost everything away from home, with beach ball teaching Darren bent how to score a goal against ever impressive Pepe Reina. One thing is for sure that Arsenal’s 03-04 “unbeaten” run will remain intact and with Manchester City Jumping in “big boys” ship it will be most competitive than ever. So, here is my preview of the forthcoming epl 10-11 season numbered from highest to lowest (upto 6th) league position last summer.

                                        Losing Pace: John terry might find it hard this season

1. Chelsea

I have a feeling that Carlo Ancelotti “loves” to work with old horses even if they slept with the black beauty of their team mates. Ac Milan was the most handsome club until 2002 but now thanks to Carlos it has turned into old people home because they didn’t care for young blood. Same thing is happening in Chelsea, with an average age of almost 30, the old legs might begin to show this season. With the sales of impact player such as Joe Cole and experience powerhouse as Ballack and Belletti, it might be difficult for Chelsea this season. Yes, Chelsea might have £20m less losses this summer because of dropped wages overall but there performance on the field might drop as well. Mr. Chelsea i.e John Terry (hate that he has got my initials) has already exposed his dropped pace in preseason so the defense looks fragile. Its

a big loss for Chelsea that they sold Ricardo carvalho, who I think is their best defender and But Chelsea didn’t sell Ashley cole, who being a wimp off the field is still one of their most effective player . Remieres might come in from benfica but I don’t think he will be able to cover the holes in defense this season. Essien will make up for his last season absence and star for “old” Chelsea but they still might fall short.



Ins: Jossi Benayoun, Thomas Kallas

Outs: Joe Cole, Deco, Michael Ballack, Scott Sinclair, Ricardo Carvalho, Juliano Balletti, Ben Gordon, Miroslav Stoch

Should’ve Bought: Sergio Aguero, Mesut Ozil, Begovich, David Luiz

Might Buy: Remieres

Season Star: Michal Essien

Season Flop: John Terry

Transfer Season: Below Average

Transfer Strokes: Keeping Cole (Madrid), Carvalho (Madrid)

Last Season: Champions

Season’s Prediction: 3rd

                                    Home sweet home: Rooney has all to prove again after his horrific Worldcup  


2. Manchester United

It’s amazing what Sir Alex Ferguson has achieved all these years with the red devils. Winning silverware, Swearing on the pitch, Making friends including referees, playing mind games n even giving high blood pressure to rival gaffers (ask benitez). Manchester United is certainly the most successful team in ages without even a SINGLE central midfield playmaker. They have got none, so they rely heavily on their wingers to show flair and set up goals for their impressive strikers. After the horror of WorldCup the modern Paul Gascoigne i.e Wayne rooney will try to stamp his authority as one of europe’s elite. But, this time he has much work to do than ever. Signings like Chris Smalling and talent power house “Chicharito” (yup, that’s what written behind his club shirt), manutd fans has something to cheer about but I was predicting a central attacking player signing from Alex in Mesut ozil. They might still buy but as of now there is not much change then last season Manchester united. With the likes of Ferdinand struggling (like all English players post world cup) it was very important for manutd to hang on to vidic. The Mexican “chicharito” is very good talent but I think this Manchester united season depends on the form of Wayne Rooney again, who will show his last season’s club form yet again. I predict a strong 2nd finish again by united missing out on their record 19th title.



Ins: Chris Smalling, Javier Harnendez (chicharito)

Out: Ben Foster, Zoran Tosic, Tom Heaton, Mame Biram Diouf (loan)

Should’ve Bought: Mesut Ozil

Season Star: Wayne Rooney again

Season Flop: Michael Owen

Might Buy: None

Transfer Season: Ok

Transfer Strokes: Keeping Vidic (Madrid), Signing Chicharito

Last Season: 2nd

Season’s Prediction: 2nd

                                     Captain Fantastic: Cesc Fabregas Biggest Transfer season Boost


3. Arsenal

As a huge Arsenal fan I can literally write pages for my beloved club but I won’t bore my rival supporters. I won’t lie with the fact that we are going trophyless for the last 5 years. When Patrick Veira scored that winning penalty against Roy caroll in FA cup final in 2005, I didn’t expect us to struggle to win our next silverware but you know crazy things happen in football and one should be ready for it. So, this season I prepare myself for missing out on EPL title again. I would love to be wrong but I think the squad has weaknesses and won’t just make it. I am so happy with the fact Wenger won Cesc Fabregas battle in a convincing fashion despite Barcelona woeful tactics. Arsenal was fantastic in handling Cesc situation and why should we sell him? He still has massive 5 years in his contract and Barcelona already had spent €40m on David Villa. From putting a ridiculous offer to trying to tap up Cesc, when he was in spain for Worldcup, Barcelona tried everything but knowing Wenger I was not expecting the professor to sell his best player when the ball was in Arsenal’s court. It was a masterstroke to keep cesc more than buying any player in the world. Arsenal has certainly improved offensively this season with the likes of impressive Chamakh added to enjoy his dream i.e to play in exciting EPL. The problem for Arsenal this season is the defensive reinforcement. With the likes of Gallas, Silvestre (manutd agent) and Campbell, all shown the door we have only bought Koscielny from Loreint. We need atleast one more centre half to show our ambition for next season. The major problem with Arsenal is their keeping option, even Stoke City has better keepers then us. We are being linked with Schwarzer, Lloris, Hart n 100 other keepers but nothing signed yet. I don’t like to believe that Wenger is going for Almunia, Flapianski or Mannone experiment all season. Anyhow I predict that wenger will not buy a keeper and stick with Almunia as no.1, which could make us pay dearly. Arsenal will challenge again and might get closer but won’t win this season.



Ins: Chamakh, Koscielny

Out: Campbell, Eduardo, Gallas, Silvestre, Merida, Senderos

Should’ve Bought: Sorenson, Brede Hangeland

Season Star: Samir Nasri

Season Flop: Theo Walcott

Might Buy: Spahic, Mark Schwarzer

Transfer Season: Ok

Transfer Strokes: Keeping Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona), Signing Chamakh (free from Bordeaux)

Last Season: 3rd

Season’s Prediction: 4th

                                     We are Big "four": Harry Redknapp in his most demanding season         
4. Tottenham Hotspurs

Despite being an adamant hatred for spurs, I think they did not overachieve last summer. Spurs have a great squad and it’s about time that they showed any sort of metal last season. I don’t say it was a one off but 4th spot could b difficult to achieve again. Although spurs have not beefed up their squad so far, I think spurs have a decent bunch of players to push for 4th spot once again. The main problem for spurs this time is injuries to king and woodgates. If spurs don’t buy decent centre halves, they could be leaking goals for fun again. There has been no transfer activity for spurs so far having only bought sandro from internacional. i don’t care about redknap discussing about his transfer targets to media time and again, the thing is spurs has been failure this transfer market. They need defensive reinforcements more than anything. Redknap is hoping to complete at least 1 or 2 signing before 31st august because now they have to compete in more competitive champions’ league (if they get past the qualifying round). Spurs were horrible in away games. Luca Modric and jermain Defoe will be key for spurs. Robbie keane has shown some impressive preseason form but I don’t see him start above defoe and both won’t start together. Crouch might be sold to Liverpool paving way for Pavlyechenko to start with Defoe. Redknap might see his Spurs struggle this season due to rapid competition in EPL and competing big boys in ever so competitive champions league. Last season 4th spot achievement will still be remembered because they will miss it next season.





INS: Sandro

Out: Adel Taraabt

Should’ve bought: Brede Hangeland, Diego Forlan

Season Star: Luca Modric

Season Flop: David Bentley

Might Buy: Ashley Young, Craig Bellamy

Transfer Season: Failure

Transfer Strokes: keeping Modric (Manutd)

Last Season: 4th

Season’s Prediction: 6th

                                        Title Cashing in: Can Mancini's Mancity gel in time?? 

5. Manchester City

Yaya toure and David Silva are two of my favorite players. And they join the riches of Manchester city. I don’t care if a club finished 8th or 10th last season but you need to see how good they are now. And Manchester city has got the best squad right now. They got great coups in two of the world’s finest players. I don’t think they will find it hard to gel in this epl season because they are too good to struggle. One weakness that city have right now is there struggling centre halves. The likes of kolo toure and lescott are not good enough to compliment this world class misdfield. Yes, a lot of people envy city’s riches but you have to admit that mancity has got it all on the paper. City is the only club in the world who can field in 2 teams with all international players so how frightening that will be for all epl teams. Yahya toure is an unbelieveably good midfielder and Barcelona will know how stupid they were to let go of him. David Silva is a workhorse who is an ideal team player. He will provide chances for the forwards to score. If macini is able to control the dressing room and motivate his stars for new season then this might be the season when city overcome their fierce rivals united and win EPL or If not, then this could be the season when mancini get sacked after 3 months in his first full season. One thing for sure, Arab won’t quit investing in this “lucky” club. With the likes of Balotelli and James Milner to come in, I expect fortunes for city fans and enjoy their first silverware this season. Yup, I think Manchester City will be champions. “Crazy” Money do buy trophies!



INS: Yaya toure, David Silva, Boateng, Kolarov, Alex Henshall

Out: Bojinov, Gorrido, Petrov, Sylvinho, Robert Mark, Mcgiven

Should’ve bought: Dzeko, Ricardo Carvalho

Season Star: Yaya Toure

Season Flop: Gareth Barry

Might Buy: Balotelli, James Milner

Transfer Season: Impressive

Transfer Strokes: Buying Yaya Toure and David Silva

Last Season: 5th

Season’s Prediction: Champions

                                           Playing in middle: Joe cole set to sparkup the kop

6. Liverpool

Buying Joe Cole is the talk of the transfer season for Liverpool. The England playmaker was the liveliest player for Chelsea in last 4 games after coming from long term injury. Being the most skillful English player, joe cole has suddenly find hunger and it was a perfect timing for Liverpool to buy him when the club was experiencing their all time low. But is Liverpool strong enough after benitez, benayoun and possible mascherano departure? I think they are better. Obviously, it will be a huge task for the Merseyside club to challenge for the title but they have found some positives in last 8 weeks. Still, Liverpool need at least 1 more striker to support Fernando torres. If the Spaniard remains injury free and gerrard find his feet along with joe cole, I expect an improved if not the best season for Liverpool.



Ins: Joe Cole, Jovanovich, Shelvey, Wilson

Outs: Benayoun, Deegan, Riera

Should’ve bought: Bellamy, Bruno Alves

Season Star: Joe Cole

Season Flop: Lucas Leiva

Might Buy: Brede Hangeland

Transfer Season: ok

Transfer Strokes: Buying Joe Cole, Keeping Gerrard (Madrid) and Torres (Barcelona, Chelsea)

Last Season: 6th

Season’s Prediction: 5th





RELEGATION Favorites: WolverHampton, Blackpool, WestBromAlbion

Hope u enjoyed it.. keep it real : )