State of Affairs: The Football ecosystem
What a season it has been! Arsenal are somehow in pole position for the title, Chelsea are floundering at the minute, and despite Liverpool’s impotence they beat United 7-0…
Let’s revert back to the preseason predictions I made for the Premier League. I need not say that I got a few teams terribly wrong, but given the bizarreness of this year I should be somehwat excused.
Manchester City
Liverpool
Tottenham
Chelsea
Manchester United
Arsenal
West Ham
Leicester
Aston Villa
Wolves
Southampton
Newcastle
Brighton
Brentford
Crystal Palace
Everton
Leeds
Nottingham Forest
Bournemouth
Fulham
In fact, and I probably shouldn’t admit this, but out of the twenty teams I correctly positioned ONE team, which was Leeds United in 17th place. I was one position off with my Man City, Tottenham and Bournemouth picks, a couple positions off for Aston Villa and Everton, and shockingly miles apart where I placed Leicester (seven places too high), West Ham (nine places too high), and Fulham (13 places too low!!).
It’s clear that West Ham and Leicester outperformed last season. The former certainly peaked with the majority of their players punching above their weight, whilst the latter fell over a cliff with their outdated squad. No summer acquisitions proved to be an issue for Leicester as the squad became stale and teams became accustomed to their style of play.
For the sake of objectivity, I must give a shout-out to Arsenal. They signed well (quite astonishing for Pep to let Jesus and Zinchenko join them unless he wanted to help out his boy Arteta out…..), they have played consistently, and have yet to buckle under the pressure, albeit from a slightly diminished City side. With twelve games to go, they are in pole position for their first league title in twenty years. I repeat- 20 years. With Gabriel Jesus back in training, that should give them a final push as the season draws to a close. They will need him back and it appears Arteta’s satisfaction with Nketiah is dwindling. Irrespective of what does he does it seems he will remain under appreciated. If Arsenal can navigate a tricky 10 day period with games at Man City and Newcastle alongside a home fixture against Chelsea without a loss, I think they will win the league.
In respect to Man City, the season has had a strange feel to it. The signing of Haaland was expected to make the league a foregone conclusion alongside proginding the final piece to their Champions League jigsaw. Even though he has shattered goal scoring records with minimal duress, there has been quite a lot of criticism with their style of play. He has also been questioned at times as the source of their shortcomings given his somewhat limited play outside of the six yard box. I think it is ridiculous to blame him for their lack of fluency this season. Could it not be that they are adjusting to the loss of players such as Sane, Sterling, Jesus and the like over the last few years?
Overall, if they perform to their full capacity they can easily catch up with Arsenal, but it may be the Gunners year after all.
Now to resurgent Manchester United. In Ten Hag we trust.
What a turnaround it has been. He has transformed underperforming, seemingly demotivated players into a functional team, albeit with the help of a few shrewd signings and barring some terrible losses (we need not go into more information).
Casemiro has proven how invaluable he is to us. When he performs we do not lose, when he is absent or ineffective we get battered. I’m pleased about the resurgence of players such as Rashford, Shaw, Dalot, and practically the entire squad. It is a testament to good coaching and an indictment on the previous managers. It is clear to see the ineptitude of training that occurred in years gone by. With our first trophy in six years, an FA Cup quarter final and Europa League last 16 second leg to play, we should aim to win both tournaments. We will probably not win the Premier League and it seems our top four spot is secure, so we should push for those two cups. Winning begets winning, so we should ride the momentum and see how far it takes us. Summer recruitment will be key as we look to buy a striker as our number one priority. I think we will go for Goncalo Ramos; something tells me Oshimen is not Ten Hag’s style of striker, whilst Kane would be demand the English player premium. The future is bright at Old Trafford, the haters are already preparing to rise up again.
Chelsea and their sixty new signings have yet to spark into form. The appointment of Potter was a good choice- now it is up to Boehly to give him the time he needs. If I were him I would reassure Potter that he has two guaranteed years to prove himself, after which he will then be judged. Good coaches are a dime a dozen- when you have one don’t write them off too soon, especially as he is just beginning to mould his clay. He needs time to rip away and reshape the jagged pieces of the Chelsea squad, some of which they are looking to dispose of. Come the start of next season he will have a less bloated squad, he will have known those he trusts, and he would have removed those no longer fit for purpose. This is a dangerous project being built- all teams are wisely trying to kill them while they are down. The win against Dortmund may have saved Potter his job and bought him some much-needed time.
Last and indeed least, I believe it is the beginning of the end for Liverpool. Infact it is more like the middle of the end and the battering of United will not paper over the cracks. It is time Klopp found a new mission; perhaps the Germany job will be most fitting for him as they are in urgent need of a rebuild. He has achieved everything possible with Liverpool, bringing them back to the upper echelon of European football. However, with an aging squad and rinsed tactics, akin to Pep maybe it is time for a change. Barring the Christian walk, all great things must come to an end. No matter how hard you fight against it, the time will surely come. Leave on a high note Klopp- go and redeem your country.
Notable mentions to Newcastle (Howe and Joelinton in particular), Fulham (Pereira and William), and Brighton (the whole squad) for their exploits thus far. All three managers are excellent coaches who have demonstrated an ability to improve players and play tactically astute football.
In closing, here are my picks for the top four, FA Cup, Europa League and UCL winners:
Top Four:
Arsenal
Man City
Manchester United
Liverpool
FA Cup winner: Manchester United
Europa League: Manchester United
UCL: Bayern Munich
The pleasure is mine, speak soon.
To a simpler life;