EPL News Round-up

What's new in the EPL this week?

Alex Ferguson has been handed a five-game ban by the FA following his criticism of referee Martin Atkinson. I like this move by the FA. I get a little tired of managers blaming any loss their team suffers on the performance of the referee when everyone knows how hard that job is. Of course the ref is going to make mistakes, there are 22 players out there on the pitch who are trying to cheat, dive and influence the referee in some way. I wish it wasn't like that but, let's face it, that is a big part of professional football these days.

Fergie wouldn't be whinging if his team had gained an advantage through poor refereeing. In fact, more often than not it is Fergie who gains the advantage, so I'm glad the FA gave him this ban. Perhaps they could duct-tape his mouth up too.

Adam Johnson looks like he is set to return for Manchester City. This is great news for The Citizens and for England fans. The sooner he gets back on the pitch the better.

Nani is still pissed at Jamie Carragher for the nasty tackle he received in Manchester United's 3-1 loss to Liverpool a couple of weeks ago. I guess he has every right to be angry, the tackle was pretty awful but I think he could let it go. It didn't seriously injure him (he was back on Tuesday night to feature in United's Champion's League clash with Marseille) and Carragher did apologise.

I'm not a fan of Nani, he prances round like a fairy half the time, but I do agree with him when he asks the referees to be fair. Carragher should have been sent off but there is far too much inconsistency with how the refs deal with bad tackles.

Bale is back

Gareth Bale is back! This is excellent news for everyone. He was playing so well up until his injury so I hope he gets back to his best as soon as possible. It's a shame he will, like Ryan Giggs, waste his international career with Wales but I guess you can't have it all.

I'll have a wee look at some of this weekend's upcoming games shall I?

SATURDAY:

12:45 Tottenham vs West Ham

Nice London derby to kick things off on Saturday. West Ham have been pretty good recently but I can't see Tottenham losing this one. Maybe a draw, but I reckon Spurs will win.

15:00 Aston Villa vs Wolverhampton

Bent and Young have been so good playing up front for Villa that I cannot see how Wolves will contend with them. However, Villa are suspect at the back (the Bolton game anyone?) and Wolves have the physicality to cause any team problems.

15:00 Blackburn vs Blackpool

Blackpool will be looking to get back to winning ways now they have dropped firmly into the relegation battle. Blackburn are just one place above Blackpool on the same points so this game is easily a six-pointer.

15:00 Man Utd vs Bolton

Man Utd have lost their last two Premiership games in a row and Bolton are never an easy team to play. I can see this one being close but Man Utd's home advantage might see them through.

15:00 Stoke vs Newcastle

This is going to be a tough game for Newcastle. Stoke are very physical and will put plenty of balls into the Newcastle box. I'm not totally convinced by Newcastle's back four so I think they will concede. Can Best and Lovenkrands do enough up front for the Toon? I don't think they can.

15:00 West Brom vs Arsenal

This should be a walk in the park for Arsenal but as any Gunner fan will know, these games never seem to be easy anymore. With Man Utd involved in such a tough game against Bolton, Arsenal should be looking to win this game comfortably to keep the pressure on the Red Devils.

15:00 Wigan vs Birmingham

Wigan desperately need the points, as do Birmingham, who need to shake off that Cup winning hangover quickly if they want to stay in the Premiership. This one should be a cautious game so I can't see too many goals.

17:30 Everton vs Fulham

It has been the same story for both of these teams all year. You never know which team is going to turn up. The really good one or the really poor one. I guess the lack of consistency is the main reason why they are both languishing in mid-table obscurity. I literally couldn't hazard a guess at what will happen in this game.

SUNDAY:

13:30 Sunderland vs Liverpool

I can see Liverpool keeping up their current good form with a win at the Stadium of Light. Suarez looks a fantastic player and I can't see the Sunderland defence coping with him.

16:00 Chelsea vs Man City

This is a huge game for the end-of-season bragging rights. Which of these teams is going to finish third? It should be, I stress should be, a fantastic game. I'm going with Chelsea.

The Race for the Europa League!

First off, I have to apologise to all you EPL fans out there. I have been favouring the NHL a little too much recently but there has been a lot going on. If you are intrigued about the NHL but you don't know where to start, then head over to NHL.com and check it out. Right now is the best time to have a look as we near the business end of the season!

Ok back to football.

For many teams who cannot hope to compete for the Premier League title or a Champion's League spot, the prize at the end of the season is a position that will qualify them for entry into the Europa League.

The battle for a Europa League qualification spot is quite exciting to watch as it tends to concern around 10 teams in the League. Only a maximum of 4 teams can qualify for the Europa league and only one of those teams is guaranteed entry. More rules on the qualification process can be found here: Europe League Qualification.

Basically 5^th place is guaranteed a spot in the Europa League. Whoever finishes 6^th usually qualifies also with 7^th and 8^th being circumstantial.

Now, who is currently in the race to play against some of Europe's best teams next year? Well, we have Chelsea, who are favourites to finish 5^th with 45 points, then we have Liverpool (39pts), Sunderland (37pts), Bolton Wanderers (36pts), Newcastle United (35pts) and Stoke City (33pts) all within six points of each other. On the outside looking in we have Blackburn Rovers, Blackpool and Fulham. Arguably even Everton, Birmingham City and Aston Villa still have a long shot at getting in as they are only nine points behind 6^th place Liverpool.

The race for qualification is very tight this year but I think Liverpool have to be considered the favourites for 6^th and Sunderland favourites for 7^th. As a Toon fan that is a very difficult thing to say but after looking at the facts and the rosters it is clear that Liverpool and Sunderland have the most complete teams.

Liverpool are favourites for 6th place.

Newcastle are capable but they have a very small squad and will be too weak to challenge if they suffer anymore injuries. Bolton are very solid and tough to beat but they don't have the quality that Sunderland and Liverpool possess. Stoke are much the same as Bolton insofar as they are a solid side that can win if they stick to their formula, but don't have the quality to change things when their formula isn't working. Because of that I don't see Stoke qualifying either.

There is a possible fourth Europa League spot and if the Premier League does get it this year (see Europe League Qualification) then I would fancy Newcastle to qualify in 8^th.
 

Playing in the Europa League gives teams a chance to play against some of the biggest teams in the world and gives them a shot at winning one of the most coveted trophies in football. It also means more money, which can lead to better players and more success...

Who do you think will qualify this year?

Thursday Poll: NHL and EPL

 

Who will win the Premier League?

Who will win the Pacific Division?

Transfer Deadline Day: EPL

The January transfer window slammed shut at 11pm last night but not before we had seen some huge transfers. Liverpool were arguably the busiest of all Premier League clubs as they try to re-build their squad. Chelsea were also fairly busy and both the blues and the reds spent a record amount of cash. West Ham managed to strengthen their side, as did Sunderland.

Over 200 million pounds was spent in January, which dwarfed the paltry 29 million that was spent at this point last year. Some of the biggest signings included Bent (£24 Million) from Sunderland to Aston Villa, Dzeko (£27 Million) from Wolfsburg to Manchester City, Torres (£50 Million) from Liverpool to Chelsea, Luiz (£21.5 Million + Nemanja Matic) from Benfica to Chelsea, Carroll (£35 Million) from Newcastle to Liverpool and Suarez (£23.5 Million) from Ajax to Liverpool.

Statistics of note:

Andy Carroll's transfer fee is the most expensive between Premier League clubs in history (for a British player) after he was sold to Liverpool by Newcastle for a princely 35 Million.

Fernando Torres broke the Premier League transfer record after signing for Chelsea for 50 Million

Darren Bent is has cost more money than any other player in Premier League history if you count the costs of all of his transfers. If you think that is an odd one, bear in mind that no striker (other than Rooney and Drogba) has scored more goals in the last 5 seasons than Darren Bent.

Winners:

Liverpool – Potentially gone from bad to good overnight with the additions of Suarez and Carroll. Could be a devastating partnership. If they had managed to secure the services of Charlie Adam then it would have been the icing on the cake.

Chelsea – Managed to bag a fantastic young talent in David Luiz and finally got their man in Torres who we all know is an excellent player. Torres and Drogba up front? Terrifying.

Aston Villa – They have paid a lot for Bent, maybe too much, but they have a bona-fide goal scorer now and that is what they needed more than anything else. They should be OK.

Tottenham Hotspur – 3 Million for Pienaar? What. A. Steal.

West Ham United – Robbie Keane and Wayne Bridge bring plenty of talent and experience to a side that desperately needs it.

Losers:

Newcastle United – The 35 Million will help ease the pain but Newcastle have lost their best player and future talisman. With Ameobi as their best back-up striker, things might become very difficult for the Toon. Staying up is more important than ever now so that the 35 million can be put to use in the summer to bolster this team.

Everton - Losing Pienaar for such a small return is going to sting. They didn't pick anyone up to replace him either.

Stoke City – Stoke haven't really lost here, but fans of the Premier League have. John Carew's arrival at Stoke can only mean more of the same boring long ball, physical football that we have come to expect from Tony Pulis' side. Let the yawning commence.

Well that's all folks from an exciting transfer deadline day. It could be the biggest transfer period for a long time as well with those new rules coming in for the 2012-13 season so I hope you enjoyed it.

Did your team win or lose during the window? Let's hear some of your thoughts!

Saints' starlets attracting attention.

17 year old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

For a number of years now the Southampton FC Youth Academy has been producing some of the brightest young talents in the UK. Theo Walcott, Gareth Bale, Wayne Bridge and even the great Alan Shearer are all products of the Southampton youth system. All have since left the Saints to go on to bigger and better things in the Premiership. Walcott plays for Arsenal, Bale for Spurs and Bridge now plays for West Ham but had stints at Man City and Chelsea too. Alan Shearer initially left Southampton for Blackburn before returning to his home town of Newcastle, where he played for the majority of his career.

Anyways, enough of the history lesson. The fact is, two new youngsters, both products of the Saints Youth Academy, are being watched by Premier League clubs. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Adam “I don't-have-a-fancy-double-barrelled-second-name” Lallana are playing some great football for Southampton down in League One.

Adam Lallana (Right)

Lallana had a breakout season last year, scoring 20 goals as Saints marched towards success in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy and a 7^th place finish in the League (they started the season with -10 points). Oxlade-Chamberlain, on the other hand, is currently in the middle of his breakout season. His recent form on the wing for Southampton has been nothing short of astonishing and he deserves all the plaudits he is getting.

Despite the undoubted talent of both players, whether or not they could play in the Premier League, at least right now, is disputable. If either player moved to a club like Liverpool, Arsenal or Chelsea, they wouldn't get anywhere near the first team. They would be playing reserve team football or warming the bench. They might get 10 minutes of game time here or there in the cup competitions but they won't progress as players.

Theo Walcott made the mistake of leaving Saints for Arsenal at too young an age and sat on the Gunners' bench for two years before playing. In contrast, Gareth Bale stayed at Saints for an extra year after gaining the Premier League's attention, learned his trade by playing regularly, and is now thought of as one of the best left wingers in the world.

Southampton do not have to sell their prize players any more (thank you Markus Liebherr), but if the players really want to leave and would like to ply their trade at a higher level, they should really make sure they are ready to do so. Lallana seems to have already made his decision by signing a four-and-a-half year deal with Saints in a move that will delight the fans.

It is worth noting that Southampton have yet to recieve any offers for either player despite Lallana and Oxlade-Chamberlain being linked to Newcastle United and Liverpool respectively.

The FA Cup Fourth Round Draw

The FA Cup enters the Fourth Round

The draw for the fourth round of the FA Cup followed the game between Manchester United and Liverpool yesterday, which United won 1-0. The fixtures are listed below:

Torquay v Crawley Town or Derby

Watford v Brighton

Bolton v Wigan

Arsenal or Leeds v Huddersfield

Fuham v Spurs

Everton v Chelsea

Southampton v Manchester Utd

Swansea v Leyton Orient

Burnley v Burton

Birmingham v Coventry

Doncaster or Wolves v Stoke or Cardiff

Notts County v Leicester or Manchester City

Stevenage v Reading

Aston Villa v Blackburn

West Ham v Nottingham Forest

Sheffield Wed v Wycombe or Hereford

Some interesting ties there. Saints v Man Utd is a good one and should be a great game. Maybe Saints will be able to pull off a shock like the one in the 1976 FA Cup final? Fulham v Spurs, Bolton v Wigan, Everton v Chelsea and Aston Villa v Blackburn are all Premier League ties and will be interesting to keep an eye on too.

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Premier League Review: Boxing Day

Boxing day football carries with it a great tradition. Over the years we have seen some great games and this year was no different. There were some big results that concerned both the top and bottom of the table.

Manchester City managed to keep pace with Mancester United at the top of the League with a 3-1 away win at Newcastle. Both teams had plenty of chances but it was City, and Tevez, who proved to be the more clinical on the day. With City 2-0 up, Andy Carroll  did bring Newcastle back into the game in the 72nd minute, however, Tevez restored City's two goal advantage against the run of play 10 minutes later to take all three points.

The Red Devils picked up three points against Newcastle's big rivals, Sunderland, at Old Trafford. A routine win in which United dominated meant that Sir Alex's men are still unbeaten this year and sit at the top of the Premier League, two points clear of City, with two games in hand.

At the bottom end of the table, West Ham managed to come back from a goal down to beat relegation rivals Fulham, 3-1, at Craven Cottage. Quite how they managed that is certainly open for discussion as Fulham dominated the game for most of the 90 minutes. After opening the scoring, Fulham looked to be coasting to a sure-fire win before they conceded two very weak goals just before half time. West Ham climb off the bottom of the table following the win and Fulham joined them in the relegation places.

Tottenham and Aston Villa provided us with a great game at Villa Park. The 2-1 win for Tottenham keeps them in fourth place, only one point behind London rivals Chelsea and two points behind London rivals Arsenal. The loss was another bitter pill to swallow for a faltering Aston Villa side who had shown so much promise in recent years but seem to be losing their way under Gerrard Houllier.

Bolton continued their very impressive season with a 2-0 win over surprise act West Brom. The Wanderers are certainly playing some decent football this year under Owen Coyle, who has yet to spend big in the transfer market. With the addition of a great finisher and some creativity in midfield, Bolton could even challenge Tottenham for that last Champion's League spot.

A full list of the results can be found below.

Sunday 26^th December:

Fulham 1 - 3 West Ham

Wolverhampton 1 - 2 Wigan

Newcastle 1 - 3 Man City

Bolton 2 - 0 West Brom

Aston Villa 1 - 2 Tottenham

Blackburn 0 - 2 Stoke

Man Utd 2 - 0 Sunderland

Arsenal v Chelsea: Preview

Wenger looks for a massive win tonight

Chelsea and Arsenal play a massively important game tonight (27^th December) at 20:00 GMT. One of these teams needs to win to keep pace with Man United (a draw helps neither side) and I would prefer it to be Arsenal. Wenger is the best manager in the Premier League, even if he is a little close minded about the weaknesses in his team. His ethics and playing style are far better than his managerial rivals at the top of the table and his team are an absolute joy to watch on their day. I'm hoping for a 2-1 home win, but Chelsea are a very strong side and could upset the Gunners tonight at the Emirates.

It's not really going to plan, is it?

This has not been a season for the favourites in football has it? We have Middlesbrough, favourites to take Championship glory, languishing just outside of the relegation zone. Southampton, favourites for League 1, are struggling to find consistency as they continue to throw away valuable points and Premiership favourites Chelsea, sitting in fourth place, have hit a slump the likes of which we haven't seen in years, and it's not even that bad of a slump. It just goes to show you that in football, things aren't as predictable as we once thought.

I guess inconsistency is rife in the lower leagues, so Southampton are just following the natural order and Middlesbrough have been simply awful this year and have no-one to blame but themselves. But why are Chelsea failing? Well, the main reason behind their current struggle is that many of the other teams in the league have gotten much better and the level of competition has increased. In the Premiership we now have “smaller” teams (hardly the right word, but I think you know what I mean) regularly beating those in the “big four” (Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and, although I don't think they deserve to be a part of it, Liverpool).

For example, Manchester City have become a massive threat to all of the “big four”. They are now the richest club in the world and, even though it isn't the most admirable way of gaining success, their money and power in the transfer market will mean it is only a matter of time before the real Manchester club wins the Premiership (Man Utd fans can send me hate mail if they want, it doesn't make it less true). It's not just Man City and their billions either.

Teams like West Bromwich Albion and Newcastle United, newly promoted from the Championship, have taken points off Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea. In years gone by this would not have happened. This is surely a sign that many of the smaller clubs in the Premiership have made some progress in recent years. Even Alex Ferguson believes this is the case. Of course, it was admit that or say that his team has gotten worse...

Everton have often been a threat, as have Aston Villa over the past couple of seasons. Big, physical sides like Bolton Wanderers, Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers have also enjoyed some success against the "big four" in recent times. Likewise, it would seem that Tottenham Hotspur, the Premiership's perennial underachievers, have finally got themselves into a position where they can challenge for a top three spot.

While we may never see a really drastic change to the top three sides in the Premiership, the higher level of competition is definitely making the title race a lot more exciting. Right now the top of the table looks enticing:

1^st Manchester United – 34pts

2^nd Arsenal – 32pts

3^rd Manchester City – 32pts

4^th Chelsea – 31pts

5^th Tottenham Hostpur – 27pts

-

9^th Liverpool – 22pts

While Man Utd do have a game in hand, it is not, as it may have been two or three years ago, a guaranteed three points. In fact, if that extra game proves to be an away game, United will be happy with just one point as they have been less than convincing away from Old Trafford's soil.

Liverpool, much like last season, are also going through a rough patch. However, unlike Chelsea, their trouble can be attributed entirely to the terrible running of the club and the average quality of the players that have been brought in. In addition, Torres and Gerrard, their only two great players (other than Pepe Reina of course) have not been that good and have had injuries to contend with. Simply put, without those two in the side, Liverpool are very, very ordinary. Hodgson has spent a fair amount of cash since his arrival on some real tripe. While Raul Meireles is starting to find his feet, Christian Poulsen has looked like a fish out of water since his switch from the slow paced Serie A to the fast paced Premiership, which is odd considering Scandinavians usually adapt very well to the English game.

Chelsea haven't imploded like Liverpool so the slump they have hit is not really their own fault. It is simply the case that everyone else is upping their game. I guess this is a change for the better for the Premiership. The more teams that can challenge for Europe and the Champions League, the better. If a couple of extra teams want to throw their hat in for the Premiership title as well, I won't complain.