Champions League knockout draw produces a repeat of last year's final!

The draw for the first knockout phase of the 2010-2011 Champions League (CL) has once again produced some mouth watering encounters between teams with with recent past history.

The most amusing match is between the current champions Inter Milan & the team they beat in the final in May, Bayern Munich. On the other hand, Barcelona will meet Arsenal, the team they demolished last year & beat in the final a few years ago. And Real Madrid will have to get past Olympique Lyonnais, the team they were expected to beat but in fact lost to in last year's quarter finals. The following are my predictions for the quarter finals (teams in bold to win)

• Barcelona vs Arsenal: Whilst there is no doubt Arsenal are a much better team this year, so are Guardiola, Messi & this year's Barcelona team. This makes this encounter of two teams with attacking styles the most mouth watering encounter of the round.

However, Barcelona showcased their prowess in the 5-0 demolition of Mourinho's Real Madrid team in the "La Liga Clasico" two weeks ago. In fact this Barcelona team is probably one of the greatest European teams of all time. The only problem in the make of the team last year was Ibramovic. He has now moved back to Italy where Milan's style is more suitable to him & in his place, arguably the best goalscoring forward in the world, David Villa has completed the magical puzzle that is the wonderful Barcelona.

Barcelona are the overwhelming favourites to win back the Champions League.

Bayern Munchen vs Inter Milan: Last year's Champion League finalists, Bayern & Inter have both been struggling this season in their respective domestic leagues.

Inter are not the same compact counterattacking unit they were under Mourinho last year, and Benitez is not the CL winning coach he was a few years ago either & has simply lost his touch. On the other hand, Bayern have been stuttering without the influential injured Robben & with a very long injury list from 11 tired players returning from the semi final & final of the World Cup.

However, whilst Benitez seems to be incapable of filling Mourinho's big shoes, Van Gaal can look forward to revenging the May final's defeat with an injury free squad which will include Robben, Klose, Ivic & Badstuber. In fact Bayern can once again be one of the dark horses of the tournament as long as they can solve their problematic central defensive issues.

• Real Madrid vs Olympique Lyonnais: Lyon, the perennial CL quarter finalists surprised everyone by defeating Real Madrid in the quarter finals last year & reaching their first ever semi final. But the galacticos of Real Madrid, under the polarising yet brilliant Mourinho are a different proposition this year & should easily dispatch of Lyon. (although I must admit predicted the same last year too!)
• Tottenham vs AC Milan: This is the best AC Milan team since they won the CL by beating Liverpool a few years ago. Ronaldinho seems to have rediscovered his passion for the game & Ibrahimovic has settled in well. However, Spurs have won many hearts with their gallant display in both legs against Inter Milan & could be one of the surprise packs of this year.
• Manchester United vs Olympique Marseille: I think this is one of the weakest & worst Manchester United teams under the long reign of Sir Alex Ferguson. However, they are too strong for a gallant Marseille side & should go through.
• Chelsea vs Copenhagen: Chelsea were the runaway leaders of the EPL & all of a sudden they lost the influential John Terry & more importantly the irreplaceable Frank Lampard to injury, and as a result have lost their way. Copenhagen on the other hand have been one of the surprises of the season & the first Danish team to make it to the knock out stage of the CL. However, with Lampard back, I expect Chelsea to once again mount a serious challenge in both EPL & CL.
• Shaktar Donetsk vs Roma: Shaktar are simply too strong for Roma. On the other hand, except for a come from behind 3-2 win against Bayern Munich, Roma have been unispiring.
• Schalke vs Valencia: Schalke have had a shocking run in the Bundesliga but possess enough quality & in Raul one of the all time greats of the CL, to progress past Valencia.

Champions League football first knockout stage is always full of goals & surprises as well as plenty of great football & bag full of goals. This year's is no exception & we can expect many predictions turn out to be wrong! Let's wait & see!

European season update: Mourinho is working his magic at Real Madrid whilst Barcelona continue to shine

On the eve of the "Classico" in La Liga in Spain between Guardiola & Messi & co(Barcelona) & Mourinho & Ronaldo & co (Real Madrid), the two teams:

a) are the most attractive to watch in Europe
b) have many of the best players currently playing in Europe
c) have arguably the most effective two coaches in Europe &
d) are most likely to win the 2011 Champions League

Whilst the likes of Inter Milan (current Italian & European champions), Manchester United, Chelsea, Bayern Munich & Arsenal are stuttering in one or more fronts, both Real Madrid & Barcelona are smashing their way through both the Spanish Premira & Champions League.

The much polarising Mourinho has taken his mojo with him from Inter Milan to Real Madrid & after a slow start to the season, Ronaldo & co have now become a free scoring team. Mourinho however is also enjoying the convenience of coaching this latest "Galacticos" ensemble in its second year. He has however lost none of his unprofessional arrogance as was evident in the Champions League match against Ajax last week when two Real players got themselves sent off, according to many as a result of a tactical decision by Mourinho.

Barcelona on the other hand still continue to set the benchmark standards of beautiful, attractive & attacking football & in my view will be able to yet again impose themselves on Real Madrid & win the classico on Monday morning. They are also my tip to lift the Champions League this year.

Elsewhere meanwhile, in Italy, whilst AC Milan & its aging stars are playing a more cohesive football than they have done in the past few seasons, the European Champions Inter Milan are drifting away under the now fading leadership qualities of Rafa Benitez. Rafa's career is beginning to resemble that of Goran Erikson. Erikson was a cutting edge coach in Italy's Serie A when he was lured in a big money signing to manage England. He never reached or recovered his magical Italy days & subsequently faded to obscurity. Rafa did very well in Spain & luckily managed to lift the coveted Champions League at Liverpool. But his methods are becoming less & less effective & his player transfer policy & managements leave a lot to be desired.

In England, I believe all big three, ie Manchester United, Chelsea & Arsenal will stutter from time to time & won't be able to match Barcelona or Real Madrid. Manchester City meanwhile, with all their money have been ordinary & the wonderfully exciting Tottenham team deserves to progress in Europe & win a place in the Top 4 again to do even better next year.

Amongst the rest of the big clubs, the Champion League finalists Bayern Munich are still suffering from Robben's absence & the hangover of having provided 11 players in the semi finals of the World Cup, resulting in tiredness & injuries.

However, Bundesliga is retaining its comfortable position as the League with the highest average attendance per game in the world & as the most competitive in Europe. Whilst the Spanish La Liga is in my view the most attractive football league to watch, & the English Premier League is fast & exciting, these leagues are realistically can only be won by a handful of teams, Barcelona & Real in Spain, & Manchester United & Chelsea (and Arsenal?) in England.

Bundeslia on the other hand is yet again an open ended competition this year with a multiple of teams seriously challenging, something that is unheard of in other major European Leagues

Nevertheless, the 2010-2011 European season so far seems to belong to Mourinho & his Real team, and Guardiola & his Barcelona stars. As fans & spectators, we are lucky as both play attractive attacking football.

The new European Football Season promises another exciting year ahead

It's only a few weeks since Spain won the World Cup in South Africa. Nevertheless, the Domestic Leagues in Europe are in full swings again. The qualifying matches for Euro 2012 have already started & the first matches of Champions & Europa Leagues have also been completed. Another exciting season is well on the way.

In the European scene the main question yet again is whether the free spending Real Madrid & their brilliant new coach, the annoying & arrogant yet masterful Jose Mourinho can put an end to the domination of Pepe Guardiola & his brilliant ensemble of superstars of Barcelona.

Mourinho is undoubtedly a masterful operator & as was evident in teh Champions League match vs Ajax has already done well by bringing his old general Carvallio as well as the young German World Cup stars Ozil & Khedria to Real Madrid.



On the other hand, Guardiola has cunningly replaced the ineffective Henry & Ibrahimovic with the best striker in the world David Villa. With the likes of Villa, Messi, Puyol, Alvez, Piquet, Iniesta & Xavi (in my view, overall the best player in the world by a mile) Barcelona rightly deserve to be considered the best & should overcome Real's threat once again this year.



Champions League:

Favourites: Barcelona

main Challengers: Chelsea, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Real Madrid & Bayern Munich



Here are my prediction for the other 3 major leagues in Europe:



In England, Chelsea have formed a great team capable of winning the EPL & even the Champions League this year.

Manchester United are suffering from lack of funds to nuy> new players &; with Rooney out of form & in strife in his personal life, will find winning major trophies difficult once again.

Arsenla will be brilliat at times but not good enough to go all the way.

Manchester City's big spending is still hap hazard & will not dent the Chelsea/Man Utd grip.

Spurs will find the challenge of European football too demanding on their squad & will not cope in all fronts.

Liverppol will be in a transition phase for the next few years & unable to mount a serious challenge whilst under current ownership.



My prediction: 1. Chelsea 2. Man Utd 3. Arsenal 4. Manchester City

Relegation candidates: Wigan, Wolves, Blackpool & Bolton



In Italy, the European Champions Inter Milan will not find life under the former Liverpool Manager, the now hapless Rafa Benitez as easy as they did with Mourinho. However, with Juventus still in the doldrums & the rest such as Roma & AC MIlan inconsistent, Inter should once again win Serie A this year, as they have done so in the past few years. Nevertheless, the defence of their European crown will be unsuccessful. Their main threat will be their somewhat rejuvuniated city rivals AC Milan.



In Germany even with the long term injury absence of Robben & with their rivals attracting some of the Europe's superstars to the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich with their Barcelona like style of play will win the league & challenge for European honours again.



All in all, another exciting European season is under way & it should be full of thrills & unpredictable results.

A wrap of the European Season & the start of my World Cup Blog!

Another exciting European season is over & we are heading to the World Cup in less than two weeks!

As the above photos suggest I made the 18,000 km (36,000km all up) trip to Madrid from Sydney Australia & sadly witnessed my beloved Bayern Munich lose to the tactically superior Inter Milan in the final of the Champions League at the magnificent Santiago Bernabau Stadium.

Now to a review of my pre season predictions:

1. I correctly predicted Bayern, Barcelona & Inter Milan would win their domestic leagues & they all did


2. I also passionately blogged about Perez & his second coming in building a team of "Galacticos"! I predicted (and prayed) that his mega money would not (at least this year) win Real Madrid anything! With Mourinho joining Real, their fortunes might change, but for the sake of the game let's hope not!
   

Here's a link to my post about Perez & his spending spree @ Real Madrid in the pre season:

http://ricksamimi-football.blogspot.com/2009/10/sequal-galacticos-2-has-so-far-fared-no.html

3. Somewhat in a biased but nevertheless informed way, I tipped Bayern Munich as one of the dark horses of the Champions League....and they only came short at the last hurdle :(

4. I initially predicted a Liverpool-Chelsea-Man Utd-man City finish in the EPL, but later on blogged & suggested Ancelotti was going to win the Premiership with Chelsea. However, I totally miscalculated the demise of Liverpool & Tottenham gallantly pipped Manchester City to the post & won the crucial 4th place.

Here's a link to my post on Chelsea:

http://ricksamimi-football.blogspot.com/2009/12/ancelotti-is-proving-his-genius-stroke.html

I also predicted Hull, Burnley & Wolves as relegation candidates in the EPL. Two out of three! Wolves survived the drop, somewhat more comfortably than predicted.

However, my & I imagine many other pundits' most crucial tip was Barcelona winning the champions League. But like Chelsea before them & Bayern in the final, Messi & co found the well organised Inter Milan defence almost impenetrable & lost to Mourinho's side in the semi finals.

Now to the start of my World Cup blog: I will start by quickly look at the usual suspects:

I have already mentioned in one of my earlier posts that Germany will have a very difficult World Cup ahead of them, although Germany should never be underestimated (7 times finalists & 4 times semi finalists). Injuries to Ballack, Adler, Rolfe, Tresch & Loew's stubborn refusal to recall Frings & Kuranyi will make matters even more critical for the team. Nevertheless, as he mentioned himself, Loew & his team can learn from Bayern's achievements this year.

My prediction: Quarter Finals

Amongst the other big teams, England, Italy & Argentina seemingly have easier paths to the second round:

• Italy's team is however too old & Lippi's reliance on many of the fading stars will prove fatal. France on the other hand have lacked clear tactical directions under Domenech & owe their qualification to that dubious handball by Henry.

My prediction: Round of 16s for both team

• England on the other hand have flourished under Capello & as long as they sort out the following three major issues they will go a long way
  

a) Goal keeping issues. James is well past his best & Hart & Green are unproven at any level!

b) How to tactically accommodate both Lampard & Gerrard in midfield

c) Over reliance on injury hit Rooney! He can not emulate Maradonna winning the Cup for Argentina!

My prediction: Semi Final

• Argentina have massive technical ability & with Messi & others at least on paper have one of the top teams in this year's World Cup. However, Maradona is not the right tactical coach for such talented team & most likely will make naive mistakes as he did eg in the 1-6 drubbing by Bolivia in the qualifiers. However, Argentina will probably meet Germany in the QFs & go to the semi finals.

My prediction: semi final or final

• Spain & Brazil are my tip to reach the final. On paper they, alongside Argentina have the best squads in the tournament. On top of that both Spain (in particular) & Brazil (at times) are capable of playing attractive attacking football

My prediction: Spain vs Brazil final, Spain to win

My dark horses for the tournament: As per usual Germany, and yet again Holland. In Sneijder & Robben Holland possess two of the best "match winners" (alongside Messi of Argentina) in the world & if Holland manage to avoid the infighting they are notoriously well known for, they may at last lift the Cup!

I will be posting regular posts on my blog during the World Cup.

Champions League quarter final pairings: What to expect?

The Champions League final will be held in Madrid in May. Sadly however, the start studded Real Madrid will not be there to win the title at their Bernabeu Stadium! The star studded but at times misfiring Madrid side lost to the gallant Lyon side who despite going to the return leg with the narrowest of margins never lost their self belief.

Whilst I wrongly underestimated Lyon's depth & predicted Madrid would easily go through, I can still save face by referring to my several blogs at the beginning of the season when I claimed Real were a collection of great but selfish players who would not be able to deliver Mr Perez instant gratification, at least in the first year of his reign. The fact that Real have given Barcelona & the out of this world Messi a run for the Primera in fact comes as a surprise!

My other major flop for the round was Chelsea's loss to the arrogant master tactician, Jose Mourinho & his Inter Milan side. Mourinho simply rubbed salt to the Chelsea supporters' wound by reminding what they are missing out of since his departure!

Overall, this year's quarter finals amazingly are littered with surprise qualifiers. The elimination of giant former winners AC Milan, Juventus, Liverpool & Real Madrid as well as Porto & the newcomers Chelsea mean that the less fanciful CSKA Moksva, Bordeaux & Lyon have made the quarterfinals easier to predict, at least on paper!

The most exciting match up is undoubtedly Manchester United vs Bayern Munich. Manchester United comfortably disposed of a misfiring AC Milan whilst Bayern at the just scrapped past a gallant & unlucky Fiorentina side on away goals rule due to a masterful goal by Arjen Robben.

The last gasp heartbreaking final win by Manchester United in 1999 & the subsequent home & the subsequent quarter final home & away win by Bayern on their way to win the CL in 2001 means these two teams have an unbreakable history. Also, in Robben & Rooney, I believe we will witness the second & third current best players in the world going to the battlefield.

My Prediction: If Bayern's defence holds off Rooney & co in the first leg in Munich, Bayern may go on to win the tie. Otherwise, Manchester United are the favourites to go through.

Barcelona vs Arsenal: Arguably the two most skillful & entertaining club sides in the world repeating their CL Final encounter of a few years ago. With Messi in his current form speeding towards the super stardom legendary status, Barcelona are favourite to take advantage of Wenger's side's occasional lapses & go through.

Lyon vs Bordeaux: The all French tussle will produce the first French side in the semi finals of the CL since Monaco reached the final & lost to Mourinho's Porto a few years ago. Lyon have been a consistent performer in the CL League & go the battle with the confidence boosting elimination of Ronaldo & Co of Madrid. On the other hand, Laurent Blanc has built a masterful compact unit at Bordeaux capable of many surprises. I believe Bordeaux will continue their dream run to the semi finals.

Inter Milan vs CSKA Moskva: Whilst CSKA have quietly enjoyed good solid performances & slightly easier draws to get to the quarter finals, they are also a great team which fully deserve their position at this level. On the other hand, hats off to Mourinho for getting Inter Milan through the battle with Chelsea. I still feel uncomfortable about Inter & believe CSKA are capable of causing a huge upset!

No matter which team you are following, the quarter finals will be as exciting as ever. Let's just hope they do not get too tight & defensive. The away goal rule is making home teams timid & nervous & has a negative impact on the game as a spectacle.

Champions League knockout stage in 2010 promises to be exciting as well as intriguing

UEFA Champions League (CL) knockout stage kicks off on Tuesday 17th Feb 2010. As the world's richest and most watched annual sporting tournament, the real excitement starts in the round of 16 as the knock out stage commences.

In the absence of any form of salary cap system in Europe, the disparity amongst football teams in the CL is becoming more & more evident by the fact that most of the same usual suspects reach the quarter finals, ie teams from the powerhouse nations in Europe.

This year is no exception. The surprise casualties of the group stage were past winners Liverpool & Juventus, both of which are also having a relatively lean domestic season as well. the other surprise is the timely return to form of another former winners Bayern Munich.

Here are the round of 16 encounters & my predictions:

• Olympique Lyonnais vs Real Madrid: Whilst my pre season prediction that Real Madrid will need time to mould their star studded team to a force is still a valid point, Real are far too good for a mediocre Lyon that are a shadow of the perennial quarter finalists of the last few year. This is regardless of whether the recently back from injury Ronaldo or the out of form Kaka are present to help them.



• AC Milan vs Manchester United: This is a far more intriguing contest with the added spice of David Beckham's return to Old Trafford in Milan's colours. I am not a fan of either team this season (or any season for that matter!) & like many others believe selling Ronaldo has substantially weakened Manchester United, even though Rooney is playing the best football of his career. Milan on the other hand have dipped in form again after a mid season revival led by the resurgent Ronalidino. I think Manchester United will survive & pip Milan to the quarter finals. However, I don't think the eventual winner of this year's Cup will be either of these two teams
  
• Bayern Munich vs Fiorentina: A classic case of reversal of fortunes. Fiorentina played great football in the group stage & topped their group which included Liverpool. Since then however, Fiorentina's form in Serie A has dipped & Mutu has got suspended. On the other hand, Bayern were seemingly down & out & had to win their last match in Turin to qualify for the knockout stage. They fell 0-1 behind in the match, but in perhaps the best match of the current season ended up winning 1-4, their best ever away win against a top Italian side. Since then, they have had 12 consecutive wins in all competitions & scored 40 goals in the process. With Ribery rumoured to be starting against Fiorentina & Mutu suspended, Bayern should be win reasonably comfortably. If they can maintain their current form, they may even be an outside chance to win the CL this year! (Disclaimer: For those of you who don't know, I am a life long Bayern supporter!)



• Porto vs Arsenal: At the beginning of the season I predicted arsenal's attractive & flowing style lacked the experience factor. This is showing & I believe Porto, another former winner, whilst upstaged by Benfica in their domestic league this year, are too tricky & experienced for Arsenal & will win this close tussle.
  


• Stuttgart vs Barcelona: Barcelona will comfortably win against out an out of sorts but reviving Stuttgart & remain my tip to win the CL back to back. Pep Guardiola has done a magnificent job even if I believe Ibrahimovic is not suited to Barcelona's & Spanish football & is over rated.


• Olympiacos vs Bordeaux: Bordeaux are the refreshing surprise of the current season & disposed of Juventus & Bayern in style. Alongside Guardiola, Laurent Blanc is a rising star coach. Bordeaux should win this encounter comfortably even though their form in the French League has recently been inconsistent & Olympiacos are difficult to beat in Athens


• CSKA Moskva vs Seville: This is a hard one to predict simply because both teams can and do score goals & have proven themselves to be hard to beat. Seville have a better team on paper & should prevail.
  


• Chelsea vs Inter Milan: The last & most intriguing encounter is the return of Jose Mourinho with Inter Milan to Chelsea. I must say I am not a fan of Mourinho & believe Inter Milan would currently win the Serie A even if they don't have a coach! Both teams ae frustrated with lack of European success & are hungry. How much of a distraction John Terry's personal life & Ashley Cole's untimely injury are to Chelsea is open to speculation as they have been wobbly lately & lost to Everton this week with John Terry at fault. On the other hand, Inter Milan have a lot to prove in the european stage & this plays heavily on their players' minds. I believe Ancelotti is a better tactician than Mourinho & predict Chelsea will win the battle & in doing so will start the end of Mourinho's time at Inter Milan.

Ancelotti is proving his genius stroke at Chelsea

OK! I admit! I was amongst the doubters at the beginning of the season! I suggested that it would take Carlo Ancelotti at least one season to get familiar with the peculiarity & fast pace of the EPL! Many of us have seen it time and time again, coaches & players from continental Europe failing or taking their time to settle to the English game.

But not Ancelotti! Years of learning & experience as a player for Milan & Italy, combined with his natural ability to understand & dissect the tactical aspects of the game and his Champions League winning experience as a coach have made Ancelotti a superb coach!

And this is in a year when Chelsea have in fact been outspent by most of their domestic & mainland European rivals. Ancelotti has managed to make full use of individual and collective skills of Lampard, Ballack, Deco, Malouda & Essien. With those at his disposal & Drogba & Anelka striking a deadly understanding between them, Ancelotti has made Chelsea an attractive and lethal attacking force similiar to the Barcelona of the recent times, and much easier to enjoy than his AC Milan.

Ancelotti has continued to refine the art of "Modesty in success" at Stamford Bridge that started with the Big Phil (without success) and continued with the master Hiddink. As a result Morinho bashers who couldn't stand Morinho's arrogance (and still can't at Inter Milan, I know because I am one of them) have warmed to Ancelotti & the stylish & entertaining Chelsea side.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, barcelona, real Madrid and teh rest: watch out! the Tsunami of Chelsea is coming to get you, and this year it most probably will!

Chelsea fans, your time has come to concur Europe ....with your heads high.....it will be a deserving achievement.

The 4th spot and relegation places are the hardest to predict in the EPL 2009-2010 Season

The EPL season will start in mid August. It has been another eventful off season with the biggest news in England being the departure of Ronaldo to Real Madrid and arrival of Ancelotti as the new coach at the rotating doors of Chelsea. Blogs and commentary of predictions for the new season are under way. In my view, there will be a few reasonably certainties which are easy to predict. Here they are:

Liverpool & Manchester United will be the main two contenders for the title again this year. Liverpool have lost Alonso but replaced him with the talented Aquilani. Sir Alex may have lost Ronaldo and Tevez, but has the ability to get the best out of Michael Owen. However, I think it is time for Liverpool to win the Premiership for the first time, 21 years after their last league title.

Chelsea, under yet again another (albeit experienced) coach new to the English game, and with an aging squad will be hovering around and will have a chance should Manchester United or Liverpool slip. However, I would still like to see a tactical approach to accommodate a Ballack/Lampard/Deco combination. If Ancelotti manages to do this, the effect may be irresistibly powerful.

As for the rest, and notice I did not mention Arsenal above, the following are my predictions:

1. Arsen Wenger's young Arsenal side will not have enough depth and experience to fend off the Top 4 wannabees this year like they did last year with Aston Villa and later in the season Everton.

The Gunners have not signed any new quality "experienced" players. No matter how entertaining the young players will play under the guidance of the magnificent Wenger, Fabregas, Arshavin, Gallas and other senior players will not be able to fully eliminate the lack of consistency which will catch up with Arsenal this year and they will lose them their "top 4" mantle for the first time in many years.

The fact that Wenger this week made the highly unusual statement ..."qualification for Champions League is not essential to Arsenal's finances"...shows nerves are already twitching at Arsenal!

2. Everton and Aston Villa will still be competitive but Moyes and O'Neill will still need to resort to getting the best out of their limited squads and hope injuries do not wreck their season.

This year Everton will need Moyes' magic and luck to reproduce a Top 5 finish. Aston Villa meanwhile will need O'Neill's magic but to also get over the loss of influencial Gareth Barry to Manchester City.

Both teams will be in the Top 8 by the season's end but will they be able the crack Top 4?

3. Manchester City, with all their money, are only managing to sign left overs from the big European Clubs' wish lists. I am not however suggesting the likes of Barry, Tevez, Santa Cruz, Robinho, Given, Adebayor, Bellamy etc are not great players. But none are in the "Galactico" level of popularity to give the Club the worldwide exposure which the new owners of Manchester City are hoping for.

a) Whilst I respect and like Mark Hughes, I am also not sure if he is the right person for such a difficult position and doubt whether he will manage to stay in the job till the end of the season. He did a great job of making Blackburn a competitive team. But what is being ask of him here is not exactly in the same level as his achievements up to now.

b) It is no longer easy to simply become a global name overnight by throwing money around as it was when Abramovich took over Chelsea,

c) Chelsea was already a semi glamorous Club due to its location in London and the likes of Guillet, Viali and Zola, and winning the Cup Winners Cup in the late 90s by the time.

d) However, the main problem with Manchester City is that even if they overcome everything else and Hughes moulds the players into a compact unit, Manchester City will always have to deal with the huge shadow over their head in the form of Manchester United.

4. That leaves the London trio of Spurs, West Ham and the much improved and impressive Fulham to fight for the remaining Top 10 finishes.

5. The relegation battle this year will potentially be the most exciting of all time! I make this claim, because two of the main contenders for relegation last year survived the battle! This makes the field of candidates for relegation the largest in the living memory:

Hull and Stoke are still in the EPL this year but will have to count on every point to survive again. However, they have immediate EPL experience in their survival battle to count on, whilst the newly promoted Wolves are yet to survive the EPL more than one season and it remains to be seen whether Birmingham will be as gritty as they were under Steve Bruce in their last successful spell in the EPL.

Burnley are making their EPL debut and first appearance in the top flight since 1976, but are a Club with rich footballing history, one of the founding English League Clubs and one of the few who have won all four major English League Championships.

To add to the above list, it takes a bad start, a few injuries to crucial players, and a loss of confidence for the likes of Sunderland, Portsmuth and Wigan to find themselves struggling. At the end, most of the usual strugglers have a better chance of taking valuable points from their relegation rivals this year than at anytime in the past as the bottom teams are more evenly matched this year.

It is hard to predict the teams most likely to be relegated, but I think Burnley, Hull and Wolves will be the most likely, closely followed by Stoke City.

This brings me to the end of this post, and the time to predict the hardest of them all this year: Who will end up as the fourth team and get the potential lucrative entry to the Champions League:

A glance at the respective squads and level of experience of the contenders tells me that if Mark Hughes and his team get it right, Manchester City on paper has the capacity to make the leap forward into Top 4. Everton and Aston Villa simply do not have the depth in their squads to match Manchester City. However, any slip from Manchester City or any of the other pretenders, and Wenger and his young squad will steal the 4th spot again.

At any case, another exciting EPL is awaiting us. It's a league which in terms of technical and tactical ability is far from the best in Europe. That accolade goes to Spain, and then Germany in my view, especially considering that EPL laggs behind Spain and Germany in average goal per game and average attendance per game (although it sometimes beats Spain in attendance averages).

Nevertheless, EPL is the most exciting and popular football league in the world and makes compelling viewing. Enjoy! and may your team does well, as long as Liverpool wins the title this year! :)