report on premiership from last year

2nd January 2009

2008/09, The Best Season Ever?

We have only just entered the New Year, yet it seems as though we are already in the midst of the greatest Premier League season to date. Unlike previous seasons, the Big Four have not been flexing their muscles in the imperious manner that we are used to, which has made for some fascinating results, making the league table a lot tighter. Ambitious teams such as Tottenham and Manchester City, who both harboured Champions League prospects at the beginning of the season, are unexpectedly languishing near the relegation zone. We have also seen the surprise package of the season, Hull City, maintain a top ten position in the Premier League, with the tigers sinking their teeth into Tottenham and Arsenal in two of the most spectacular results of the season. There have also been the customary managerial sackings that have dogged the Premier League for the last few years, with names such as Juande Ramos and Paul Ince getting the chop.

Every team in the Premier League seem to have their own story this season, whether they are tales of triumph or failure, the continuous narrative of this fantastic league has thrown up many twists to thicken an epic plot. And of course, Manchester City suddenly became the richest football club in the galaxy, and purchased one of footballs most valuable stars, Robinho. So what better way to look at these thrilling stories than by telling them team by team.


Arsenal

The Gunners have been far from at their best this season and at times have looked very poor defensively. The shock defeats at home to Aston Villa and Hull highlighted these frailties, and the once impenetrable centre back partnership of Gallas and Toure has wilted of late. They have had a few setbacks, including “GallasGate”, where the moaning former Chelsea man had his captaincy stripped off of him for chastising his team-mates, and subsequently had to watch the youthful and exuberant Cesc Fabregas take up the mantle. However, they have showed their character and quality with fantastic victories over Manchester United and Chelsea.

Predicted finish: 5th


Aston Villa

The Villains have been playing some of the best football in the league this season, and are the team that looks most likely to achieve the unthinkable, and break into the top four. With the pace and power of Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor, Villa have been ripping teams apart with their counter attacking play, which Arsenal found out to their dismay when Villa defeated Arsenal 2-0 at the Emirates. Their charismatic manager, Martin O’Neil, has also installed incredible belief into his Villa side, which is demonstrated by the amount of dramatic last minute goals they have scored this season, none more so than Ashley Young’s goal in the 4th minute of injury time at Everton, where Joleon Lescott had equalised in the 93rd minute for the home side in Villas thrilling 3-2 win at Goodison Park. So by the looks of things, the big four better watch out!

Predicted finish: 4th


Blackburn Rovers

It has been a very tough season for Blackburn thus far, and they are in the midst of a tough relegation scrap. Their talismanic striker, Roque Santa Cruz, has been plagued by injuries and has been the subject of a much speculated transfer to Manchester City. After a great 3-2 victory at Everton on the opening day, things began to turn sour for Paul Ince’s side and Rovers found themselves in the unfamiliar position of 19th. Blackburn’s poor form culminated in Ince being sacked in early December, but he was swiftly replaced by ex Bolton Wanderers manager Sam Allardyce, who recorded an impressive 3-0 home victory over Stoke in his first game in charge. Since “Big Sam” took over the reins at Ewood Park, Blackburn have been undefeated in the league, and they look as though they have the stomach for a gruelling relegation battle.

Predicted finish: 16th



Bolton Wanderers

After the Wanderer’s great escape last season, Gary Megson’s men have been extremely inconsistent this campaign and are again scrapping for survival. Bolton endured an extremely poor start to the campaign, winning only two games in the opening three months of the season, against West Ham and Stoke respectfully. However, Bolton eased their relegation plight in November, recording four victories from their five games, including their tremendous 4-1 away victory over Sunderland, which was the catalyst in Roy Keane resigning from his managerial post. But as is the story of Bolton’s season thus far, December saw them slip back into the relegation fight after only gaining 3 points from a possible 15. Although Bolton lack the solidity and consistency which was their trademark under Sam Allardyce, they have experienced players such as Kevin Davies and Jussi Jaaskelainen, who know what it takes to survive in this league, and when Johann Elmander returns to full fitness, he may be that little bit of quality that can save them from the drop zone.

Predicted finish: 15th


Chelsea

At the beginning of the season the Blues were the early pace setters in the Premiership, producing some dazzling football under the guidance of Luiz Felipe Scolari. Chelsea trounced Portsmouth 4-0 on the opening day at Stamford Bridge, and new signing Deco, was instrumental in Chelsea’s attacking verve. However, the Blue’s astounding home record was vanquished by their great rivals, Liverpool, after Jose Bosingwa deflected Xabi Alonso’s tame shot past Petr Cech. One frequently used cliché is that you wait a long time for a bus to arrive and then two arrive in quick succession, and it can be applied once more to Chelsea’s home form, after Arsenal dealt the Blue’s another blow, by coming from a goal down and eventually winning 2-1 at Stamford Bridge thanks to Robin Van Persie, whose double sealed the victory for the Gunners, his first goal looking suspiciously offside. Strangely, Chelsea’s home form has been poor thus far, which is in stark contrast to their record breaking away form, winning every game on the road, until their 0-0 draw at Everton on 23rd December and conceding just one goal in the process. Although Chelsea have not maintained their early season form, you can never rule them out of the title race, but they have to show the strength and the mentality of grinding out results, which they became synonymous with under Jose Mourinho. This is why in my opinion, they will be the biggest threat to Manchester United, despite Liverpool’s early season form.

Predicted finish: 2nd



Everton

The Toffee’s have become top six stalwarts under the guidance of David Moyes, but in the early part of this season their usually impressive home form was nothing short of dreadful, with their first home victory coming against Fulham on November 1st. On the contrary, their away form has been fantastic, having only dropped two points on the road in the opening three months of the season, and those two points that were dropped was as a result of a 1-1 draw away at Arsenal. David Moyes’s team have been ravaged by injuries, especially in the striking department where at one point, all of the Toffee’s senior striker’s were out through injury, so tenacious midfielder Tim Cahill had to fill the void with the gigantic Marouane Fellaini acting as the support striker. This unlikely strike partnership inspired Everton to go on an impressive run in December, including a 0-0 at home against Chelsea and their last gasp victory against Manchester City in which Cahill scored the solitary goal in a vital 1-0 victory. Lately, the Toffee’s have got back on track and appear to have regained the solidity and incredible work ethic that we have become accustomed to seeing from David Moyes’s side. They are a very hard team to beat, and I would not bet against them mounting a charge for the Champions League, and bringing the dominance of the top four to a sticky demise!

Predicted finish: 6th


Fulham

The Cottagers escaped by the skin of their teeth last year, after securing their top flight status with a dramatic 1-0 at Fratton Park, so it was essential for Roy Hodgson to steady the ship and ensure that Fulham’s Premiership status would not again be compromised. In the summer, Fulham re-built their squad, selling veterans such as Brian McBride and replacing them with quality players like Andy Johnson, who was bought from Everton for around £8,000,000 in order to bolster a lacklustre Fulham front line. However, Johnson sustained an injury in pre-season, which may have been a contributing factor as Fulham crashed 2-1 at newly promoted Hull, the shock result of the opening day. But the Cottagers form has improved, and they have been more solid defensively so far this season. This was demonstrated when they put together a sequence of four 0-0 away draws in a row, including battling displays at Liverpool and Aston Villa. In correlation with Fulham’s defensive solidity, Andy Johnson has returned to fitness and has scored some vital goals. Although Fulham are not very prolific in front of goal, they have enough quality to grind out results, and their home form is second to none. But their away record has to improve if they want to maintain their mid-table position.

Predicted finish: 11th


Hull City

The Tigers have been this seasons surprise packages, bringing a refreshing twist to an already flavoursome Premier League cocktail. Phil Brown’s team got off to a tremendous start, defeating Premier League stalwarts Fulham 2-1 after going 1-0 behind in the first 10 minutes. But as well as maintaining a decent home record, it was their away form that really caught the eye. Back to back victories away at Arsenal and Tottenham, shook the Premier League to its core, with both games featuring wonder goals from their tiny Brazilian, Giovanni. Purchased on a free transfer from “money bags” Manchester City, Giovanni looks to have been one of the bargains of the season. Hull’s first away defeat of the season came at the home of the champions, Manchester United, where the Tigers clawed their way back from 4-1 down to 4-3, emphasising that Phil Brown’s men have the never say die attitude to maintain a top half position. Unfortunately for Hull, the Tigers seem to have been tamed, and their early season bite is no longer there. However, they were lucky that they got off to such a good start, and the confidence that they would have taken from this should be enough to keep them up.

Predicted finish: 13th


Liverpool

Unlike previous years, the Reds are right in the thick of this seasons fascinating title race. In the past, Rafa Benitez has been accused of caring more about the Champions League than the Premier League, but this year has been different, and the Kopites sense that they can finally lay their hands on the coveted Premier League trophy. Liverpool made their best ever start to a Premier League season, inflicting defeats on fierce rivals and Manchester United and Chelsea, ending the Blue’s incredible home record which had lasted 86 games. Although Liverpool’s star striker, Fernando Torres, has had trouble with injuries this season, their talismanic midfielder Steven Gerrard has again been at the top his game, grabbing crucial goals and spreading the ball around the pitch majestically. Summer signing Robbie Keane, has struggled to find his form since his move from Tottenham, scoring only five Premier League goals so far, which has put a lot of pressure on Gerrard and Torres to deliver the goods. You have to give Liverpool a lot of credit, they have given themselves a fantastic opportunity to win their first league title for 19 years, and have put Chelsea and Manchester United under extreme pressure. But the problem that Rafa Benitez’s side have, is that they do not have enough match winners. Liverpool rely too heavily on Gerrard and Torres to win games, whereas Manchester United and Chelsea have five or six players that can consistently deliver. The Red’s also have no one in their squad who have experienced winning the title, whereas Chelsea and Manchester United’s players been there, done it and bought the T-Shirt. Taking these factors into consideration, Liverpool will come close, but their two big rivals will just be too strong for them.

Predicted finish: 3rd


Manchester City

Now what hasn’t been said about Manchester City this season! The Citizens have dominated the column inches since their dramatic take over on transfer deadline day. Before this unforeseen transformation of becoming the richest club in the world, new manager Mark Hughes had a fairly substantial transfer budget to work with, and the return of Shaun Wright Phillips from Chelsea looked as though it would be City’s stand out signing. But that was until samba superstar Robinho arrived at Eastland’s for a British transfer record of £32.5 million pounds. But although Robinho has scored an impressive 11 Premier League goals, Manchester City have flattered to deceive, especially away from Eastland’s, where they have only won one away fixture all season, an impressive 3-0 victory at Sunderland which was before Robinho and the Abu Dhabi groups arrival! However, City have at times produced some breathtaking football at home, including their exhilarating 3-0 victory over Arsenal, which was one of the best performances in the Premier League this season. There is no doubt that City have quality players, but they lack the ability to grind out results when the going gets tough, and in order for them to be a top side, Mark Hughes will need to install a mental toughness within his squad. It is inevitable that City will spend a lot of money in the January transfer window, but it is vital that Mark Hughes brings in players who are able to deal with the physical nature of the Premiership; otherwise they will struggle for a top ten finish.

Predicted finish: 9th


Manchester United

Despite the Red Devil’s rather lethargic start to the season, the English and European Champions are beginning to regain their form. Sir Alex Ferguson has built a formidable squad over the last five years, and the summer signing of Dimitar Berbatov has given his side an extra touches. Although the ex-Spurs hitman has not been prolific in front of goal, his classy touches and creative brain has provided mesas Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez with some vital goals, and helping the Champions to creep up on Chelsea and Liverpool. After Manchester United’s dour 2-1 defeat at Anfield, various pundits and bookmakers were writing them off for the title, due to the fact that Liverpool and Chelsea’s early season form had been far superior to United’s. But everybody should have learned by now, that you write Manchester United off to your peril. Apart from their unfortunate defeat to Arsenal in November, Manchester United have been their usual imperious selves. They have had to grind out a lot of results this season, but at times they have torn teams apart with astounding ease, which was emphatically demonstrated as they destroyed Stoke 5-0 at Old Trafford. But to the glee of Sir Alex Ferguson’s men, both Liverpool and Chelsea failed to stretch further ahead of United when the European Champions were at the World Club Championship in Japan, and the 10 times Premier League Champions have begun to gain on the two early Premier League pace setters. United can smell blood, and their title charge is ominous for Liverpool and Chelsea.

Predicted finish: 1st


Middlesbrough

The 2008/09 season has been difficult so far for Middlesbrough. Boro’s form so far this season has been in-different, even though they did make a promising start. They recorded two home victories over Tottenham and Stoke, and they also came within four minutes of snatching a famous win at Anfield, but were thwarted due to Steven Gerrard’s 95th minute winner. But since then, Boro have not shown the fighting spirit that they have shown in past relegation battles. This was typified when Chelsea battered Boro 5-0 at the Riverside, and their attacking prowess that day was nothing short of embarrassing. There is no doubt that manager Gareth Southgate will get his players up for the relegation scrap, but for me, their squad lack consistency and too many players go missing in vital games. Boro are in big, big trouble.

Predicted finish: 18th


Newcastle United

Keeping in tune with the last five years, this season has been extremely turbulent for Newcastle United. But the Toon Army got off to a fantastic start, resolutely holding Manchester United to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford and defeating Bolton 1-0 at St. James Park. But to the anger of the Toon army, adored manager Kevin “The Messiah” Keegan resigned, sighting his lack of control over transfers as his main reason for departing. Despised owner Mike Ashley and Dennis Wise (who is in charge of player recruitment) bared the brunt of the fans anger, and the Magpies were duly put up for sale. But in a twist that no one saw coming, ex Wimbledon manager, Joe Kinnear, returned to the Premiership as Newcastle’s interim manager. Since Kinnear’s appointment Newcastle’s form has been rather inconsistent, But they have picked up some impressive results, including their eye catching victory at home to high flying Aston Villa. The Magpie’s have toiled this season, but with players such as Michael Owen, Damien Duff and Obafemi Martin’s gracing their squad, they will have enough quality to stay up.

Predicted finish: 14th





Portsmouth

The first six month’s of the season has seen a transition take place at Fratton Park. Harry Redknapp, who in May guided Pompey to their first FA Cup triumph, left to take up a new challenge at Tottenham Hotspur, leaving assistant manager Tony Adams to take up the mantle. Pompey were not in great form before Redknapp departed and Tony Adams has never managed at Premier League level before, so it was inevitable that Pompey were going to be in for a tough ride. With the dangerous strike partnership of Jermaine Defoe and summer signing Peter Crouch, Portsmouth are capable of picking teams apart, as proved when they recorded a tremendous 3-0 away at Everton back in September. But, Pompey have been on a horrendous run recently, their last win coming away at Sunderland in early November. Another factor that could have a detrimental effect on Portsmouth’s hopes of survival, will be the transfer of classy defensive midfielder Lassana Diarra to Real Madrid, who joined Los Galacticos for £24 million on a pre-contract agreement in December. Although Pompey have been struggling of late, they certainly have enough quality to pull through this relegation battle, and they will just about avoid the drop.

Predicted finish: 17th

Stoke City

Like fellow premiership new boy’s Hull City, Stoke have certainly done themselves justice in the toughest league in the world. The Potters have shown themselves to be a very tough side to beat, and at the start of the season everyone knew that Tony Pulis’s side would fight tooth and nail to maintain their top flight status. Foolishly, one bookmaker stopped taking bets on Stoke being relegated, after their shambolic 3-1 away defeat to Bolton on the opening day. This seemed to galvanise Stoke, as they defeated Aston Villa at the Britannia, with a dramatic last minute winner from burly forward Mamady Sidibe. However, their main weapon has not been a striker; but instead it has been Rory Delap’s mammoth throw-in’s, which have had defences up and down the country desperately trying to find ways to negate this innovative threat. All in all, the Potter’s home form has been very good, and the main highlight of their season so far was their highly impressive 2-1 home win against Arsenal. But, they need to improve on their travel’s, as they have not won a game on the road all season, picking up a meagre 3 points in the process, and that is why I think they will just come up short this season.

Predicted finish: 19th

Sunderland

The 2008/09 campaign has provided Sunderland with some mixed fortunes so far. The Black Cat’s were unlucky not to get a point on the opening day of the season at home to Liverpool, and it was only the magical left foot of Fernando Torres that gave the Mersysider’s the victory. However the Mackem’s, then under the stewardship of Roy Keane, produced an excellent display in their next fixture away to Tottenham, overcoming the Londoner’s with a late Djibril Cisse goal, and this inconsistency has been the hallmark of their season thus far. Sunderland suffered a crisis of confidence in October and early November, and were languishing near the foot of the table. They suffered heavy beatings at the hands of Chelsea and Bolton, which forced charismatic manager Roy Keane to resign from his post. The Black Cat’s looked in trouble. But since then, ex assistant manager Ricky Sbragia has taken up the reins at the Stadium of Light, and he has utilised his experience to steady a previously rocky ship. Their up-turn in form has also coincided with the return of their talismanic striker Kenwyne Jones from injury, and he was instrumental in their stunning 4-1 away victory at high flying Hull City. Although the Black Cat’s struggled at the beginning of the season, the dangerous strike partnership of Cisse and Jones will provide enough goal’s to comfortably keep Sunderland up.

Predicted finish: 12th

Tottenham Hotspur

At the beginning of the season, Tottenham were harbouring Champions League aspirations after acquiring a number of quality players, such as Luka Modric and David Bentley. But instead, the Lilywhites have found themselves in the midst of a relegation scrap. Juande Ramos’s lacklustre Londoners gained only 2 points in the league during opening three month’s of the campaign, and they have evidently lacked the class and guile that Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov bought them, before they were sold off to Liverpool and Manchester United respectfully. An agonising 2-1 defeat away to Stoke, culminated in Juande Ramos’s sacking, and the immediate appointment of Harry Redknapp from Portsmouth, and after only a day in the hot-seat, Spurs finally got that elusive win, with a 2-0 home victory over Bolton. The Redknapp factor lifted the team, and after their fantastic comeback at Arsenal in an epic 4-4 draw, the ex West Ham manager was being hailed as a messiah by the White Hart Lane faithful. But Tottenham’s remarkable crusade under Redknapp, which included being the first side to beat table topper’s Liverpool, fizzled out in December, suffering late defeats at Newcastle and West Brom. Despite Tottenham’s poor start to the season, Redknapp has inherited a squad that is full to the brim with quality players who are capable of producing something special, and it is a certainty that Spur’s will go on a spending spree in the January transfer window. Overall, I think Spurs will begin to gel in the second half of the season, and I fancy them for a top ten finish.

Predicted finish: 7th

West Bromwich Albion

Last years winners of The Championship, West Brom, have struggled to transfer their excellent form of last year into the Premiership. The Baggies have been playing expansive football under the guidance of Tony Mowbray, but they have struggled with the physical aspects of the Premier League. Their opening two fixtures against Everton and Arsenal, both ended in defeats, and things were looking bleak for the Baggies. But West Brom fought back, recording eye catching victories at home to West Ham and away to Middlesbrough. However, just as West Brom began to put a decent run together, they had to face Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea in quick succession, and were scythed down emphatically by all three sides. Although many pundits had written off the Midlands side, the Albion stunned Manchester City and Tottenham with two late victories at the Hawthorns. But despite West Brom’s brave attempts for salvation, they will not be good enough to survive.

Predicted finish: 20th

West Ham United

It has been a rather strange season so far for West Ham. They got off to quite a good start, gaining six points from three games with two victories at home to Wigan and Blackburn. But the wheels soon started to fall off West Ham, when Alan Curbishley left the club due to his lack of control over transfers. Succeeding Curbishley at Upton Park was Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola, which left many Hammers fans disgruntled as ex West Ham superstar, Paolo Di Canio, was their preferred choice. The day before West Ham visited West Brom, their sponsors XL collapsed, falling victim to the recession. As a result the Hammers kit men had to cover the XL logo with maroon duck tape, as their was no spare kit! After a peculiar couple of weeks, Gianfranco Zola got off his managerial career off to a perfect start, beating Newcastle 3-1 at the Boleyn Ground. However, the Irons went on a terrible run of form throughout October and November, culminating in West Ham finding themselves in the bottom three. But after their great escape in 2006/07, there is substance to this West Ham side. After grinding out a vital 1-0 at Sunderland, Gianfranco Zola’s produced a rugged display at Anfield, drawing 0-0 with an unimpressive Liverpool. Although they succumbed to a disappointing defeat at home to Spurs, West Ham carried on their rich vein of form throughout the rest of December, drawing 1-1 away to Chelsea, as well as defeating Stoke and Portsmouth. West Ham have turned the corner during the last month, and Gianfranco Zola has got his team playing some beautiful football. I fancy the Hammers to finish in the top 10.

Predicted finish: 10th

Wigan Athletic

In his first full season as manager of Wigan, Steve Bruce is doing a sterling job. The Latic’s were extremely unlucky to lose their opening two fixtures against West Ham and Chelsea, with all three goals that they conceded coming in the opening ten minutes. One of the bargains of the summer was Egyptian striker Amr Zaki, who arrived on loan from Zamalek and has formed a deadly strike partnership with the re-born Emile Heskey. Both Heskey and Zaki were on the score sheet in the 5-0 battering of Hull at the KC stadium, one of the stand out performances of any side this season. Steve Bruce has built a very well balanced side, with the rock solid Wilson Palacios holding things together in midfield and speedy wingers Antonio Valencia and Ryan Taylor providing the ammunition for mesas Zaki and Heskey. The latics have found themselves in the top seven, and December saw them pick great wins against Newcastle and Bolton, cementing themselves as one of the most Premier Leagues most in-form sides. Although bigger clubs are sniffing around their prized assets, such as Palacios and Heskey, Steve Bruce has an eye for talent and will replace quality with quality. The sky is the limit for the Latics.

Predicted finish: 8th

That concludes my mid-term assessment of the season so far. This season is shaping up to be the best yet, as every single team have something to play for, and I am tremendously excited about the drama that will unfold between now and May.