Don't Screw This Up : The Consistency of Inconsistency

(Image Source - BBC News)

Speculation season is ripe - which top 4 premier league team is likely to relinquish its status? With a third of the season played, Arsenal's stuttering form which sees them occupy 4th place tied on points with 5th place Aston Villa has led to contemplation of a thorn amongst the top four - could this really be the year? Let's not get carried away, the talent within the big four is far superior than the rest of the league yet each year, an outsider tries to trespass the pastures of the the big boys merely to crumble its base. Over the past 5 years, only has Everton managed to scupper this monopoly thanks to a poor domestic campaign from Liverpool coupled with a fantastic European campaign which led to a climatic 2004/05 Champions league final victory against AC Milan. Thanks to the ever-fickle UEFA, a rule change thrust Liverpool into preliminary qualifying rounds of the Champions league while Everton was left less than amused with a win or drop into the UEFA CUP tie against Spanish side Villarreal.

Since this glitch in an otherwise stable programming schedule, Everton along with Tottenham have done their best to maintain the status-quo by fumbling the ball seconds before the final whistle. While the argument about the wealth and purchasing power of the top four cannot be under-estimated, the recent take-over of premier league teams by wealthy foreigners might spring a glimmer of hope. The 2008/09 premier league season is shaping up to be a cracker - relegation battles are rife, the title race is as close as ever, referee's are doing their best to steal the headlines - yet the talking point seems to surround what top four pretender might actually become a contender. On paper, the top four should be safe but since the game is not played on paper, hope beckons for the chosen few.

Before the beginning of the season, most pundits (rightfully so) had high expectations of Tottenham cracking the monopoly - the duo of Keane and Berbatov along with the recent acquisitions of Modric, Dos Santos, Bentley and Gomes - looked a promising squad. Well that never materialized thanks to the sheer absurdity/tom-foolery of the Tottenham board of directors which led to the sale of the striking duo of Keane (Liverpool) and Berbatov (Man Utd) accompanied with less than adequate replacements threw a spanner into Tottenham's chances. The possibility of a salvaged season was quickly lost with a shambolic start to the season resulting in the sack of Manager Juande Ramos and Director of Football Damien Comolli. Quickly doing his best NOT to shoulder the blame, chairman Levy appointed Harry "Saviour/Traitor" Redknapp who had miraculously turned Tottenham's fortunes albeit only for a short period. The saying "nothing is impossible" surely can be rubbished concerning hopes for Champions league football for Tottenham yet Europe's forgotten competition (UEFA CUP) still remains a possibility.

Perhaps the best manager outside the top 4 is arguably David Moyes - the 45 yr old Scot has worked wonders at Everton despite limited transfer funds. The aforementioned lack of cash has seen Everton stumble back and forth only to remain comfortably on the shoulders of giants. A good 2007/08 domestic season was quickly squashed thanks to a poor transfer campaign - the £15 million purchase of Standard Liège midfielder Marouane Fellaini along with a £5 million purchase of injury prone Louis Saha definitely wasn't the blueprint. A disappointing start to the season has seen early season hopes of participating in next year's Champions league fade. Still, it might not be all lost. If rumors are true, the acquisition of CSKA Moscow foward Vagner Love should result in a lethal partnership with Yakubu but the seriousness of a top 4 challenge might be far fetched.

Surely the most interesting transfer during the summer was done at the highest level - the sale of Man City from now fugitive Thaskin Shinawatra to Arab mega billionaires lifted the reputation of the Eastlands club. Armed with a blank check, the new owners whizkid want-away superstar Robinho to less than familiar settings. Along with the earlier arrivals of fellow Brazilian Jo, Chelsea bench-warmer Wright Phillips along with Kompany and Zabaleta, the prospect of European football with Mark Hughes at the helm seemed very plausible. Surely the Robinho's magic would melt off like hot butter amongst his fellow teammates. The salivating attacking prowess if Robinho, Jo, Elano and Wright Phillips would wreak havoc amongst their opponents yet Man City finds itself languishing mid-table thanks to a less than astute defense. Dressing room quarrels (Elano Vs. Hughes) along with speculation about the manager's future doesn't bode well for City's ambitions. Since money is no object, a spending spree in the current global credit crunch sould see Man City acquire re-inforcements thus giving bookmakers daily headaches over the plight of The Citizens. The phrase "watch this space" is the perfect motto for the Eastland club.

Of all the top four pretenders yet to be contenders, Aston Villa has to be the biggest of them all. The premier league table with Villa in 4th place is stuff dreams are made of but while this may be a case of wishful thinking, a good summer transfer campaign along with a role-model club owner has got the pulses racing. While Aston Villa's form isn't stellar, the recent victory against Arsenal has cast Villa into the role of party crashers. Martin O'Neill has done a fantastic job during his time at Villa - hastily punching above your weight isn't O'Neill's philosophy - thus building an all around solid team is sure to reap merits. While no "superstar" arrived in Aston, new arrivals in the form of James Milner, Carlos Cuellar along with American safe-hands Brad Friedel and Brad Guzan has put some quality into the side. While Villa's squad should bring European football next season, Martin O'Neill's best hope lies in the inconsistency of 4th place Arsenal. While the Gunner's cannon barrel stutters, a villain uprising might just be enough to depose Arsenal off its perch yet Villa's lack of consistency along with Arsenal's inconsistency is the perfect setting for a climatic ending in the race for 4th spot.

Bluffed : Russian Roulette at its Worst!

(Image Source - Sky Sports)

While Robinho’s self sulk led to a less than acrimonious departure from Real Madrid to cash abundant Chelsea Man City was the highlight of a Ronaldo to Real Madrid saga transfer window, perhaps the most significant move was the one that almost never happened. No not Ronaldo, Russia’s golden boy Arshavin filled the gossip rumors for the latter part of the summer. A superb UEFA CUP triumph with club side Zenith St.Petersburg accompanied with two man of the match displays against Sweden and Holland at the Euro’s elevated Arshavin’s status from continental fame to house-hold name - surely this has got to be the fastest rise in fortune. His performance in the Euro quarterfinal against Holland was Maradona-esqe – club scouts pulled their thinning hair out while club chairmen signed blank checks. Despite a relative anonymous display against Spain in the semifinal, the flame had spread.

Within the next week, every big European club was linked to the Russian playmaker – Barcelona, Arsenal, Bayern, Juventus, Real Madrid and Chelsea (though the latter gets linked to every player). While the west couldn’t stop raving about the artful dodger, back east Zenith decided to engage in a game of Russian Roulette with its prized asset.

Following his professed love for Spanish giants Barcelona, the Catalan club tabled a bid of €10mil which was quietly swept under the rug by Zenith – surely the 27 yr old playmaker’s value was triple that amount. Playing hardball with Arshavin’s suitors was fast becoming chic and stylish – bids after bids were reportedly turned down. Resigned to losing Arshavin, Zenith splashed out a Russian transfer record €30mil for 24 yr old Portuguese born Dinamo Moscow playmaker Danny – it seemed the auction was coming to a close. Dismayed by Zenith’s antics, Arshavin did his best to push through a transfer even if Europe’s big boys had dropped their interests. With 2 weeks left in the transfer window, English premier league club Tottenham emerged as favorites – truth be told, they were the only suitors at this period. The €25mil price quote proved to be an expensive gamble – would Arshavin adapt to the physicality of the English game or would he be the second coming of Rebrov.

With negotiations between suitor and parent club headed nowhere, Arshavin issued numerous public attacks pleas towards Zenith in hopes of a transfer yet the €25mil Russian roulette game rolled on with no end in sight. Following the transfer of fellow country-mate Pavlychenko to Tottenham coupled with the exit of Tottenham fowards Robbie Keane and Man Utd bound Berbatov, it seemed inevitable that the lethal striking partnership that put the Swedes and Dutch to sword would be reignited at White Hart Lane but a last minute Texas style hold-em poker bluff by Tottenham left Zenith with egg on its face – the club was stuck with a €30mil replacement signing along with the unhappiest footballer in Russia.

With the winter transfer window approaching, the Arshavin saga rages on – the player has publicly stated he wants out of Zenith and he might finally get his wish sooner than later. Several clubs have had less than stellar starts to their season, a knock down price Arshavin – thanks largely to Zenith – looks like a good investment. While the playmaker might be Cup-tied in Europe, there should be an array of suitors lining up to snatch his signature once the gates of the winter transfer season swing open.