Well the Championship began last night with Blackpool beating Hull, the Bundesliga began pretty much as it had ended with Borussia Dortmund winning (3-1 at home to HSV), tonight there's the Italian Super Cup (Milan v Inter) and tomorrow the Community Shield, for which the big talking point this week was that United had sold all their tickets but City hadn't/couldn't.
I think that teams come to resemble their managers, much in the same way that pet owners and their pets end up looking alike. Arsenal are cast in the style of a man who expects his players to know that it wasn't Rimbaud who came back from "Nam," to find his buddy dead, United play in the style of a man who believes that you get nothing without hard work and City are the fat kid in the sweet shop who has filled his mouth with gobstoppers and now realises he can neither chew or swallow.
In that vein West Ham this season will play with all the elegance of a bulldog who has just licked piss off a stinging nettle. Forget the Cockney Rejects, we've become the Bolton rejects. I know managers like to sign players they know they can trust but surely Big Sam could have least gone out on a couple of dates first before going back to his old girlfriend. West Ham and Leicester seem to be most pundits favourites from promotion, with Forest and Middlesbrough thrown in as well. I think we are going to find this league a lot harder than the last time, the football isn't always pretty and sometimes you have to eschew style and just grind out results - so Sam is the perfect fit in that regard.
In the Premiership I think it will be, and I'm sticking my neck out here, United and Chelsea again. Arsenal and Liverpool have bought in new attackers when both clubs actually needed new defenders and Spuds will spend the whole season making excuses about the size of their car park or some flim-flam to divert attention away from their underachievements. Down at the bottom I'd be surprised if QPR and Wigan can stay up but I think Swansea will surprise a few people because they can actually play good football, unfortunately I think they will "do a Blackpool," and be back in the Championship by May.
3 comments:
I can't see there being much change at the top of the Premiership and I agree about Wigan : they have courted disaster for a couple of seasons and I think they could easily go down this time. As for QPR, well, I can see it all ending in tears. I'd also say there's very little chance of Neil Warnock lasting the season there, and that's a comment on QPR not him!
I think you are right about Colin, his days are numbered which is a shame because from his newspaper column it appears he really enjoys working there.
Not sure about Chelsea...Man United definitely, hopefully Arsenal can keep surprising the the pundits and remain in the top 4 (for 4 years now they 'have no chance' because of resurgent Liverpool, Spuds, etc and strong Man City)
Didn't know that about the tickets for the Charity shield!
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