The League that matters

The Premier League is back and what a way to kick off the start off the new season with a big upset in the very first game! Well, some might not consider it an upset but rather just Arsenal being Arsenal, never the less what a dream start for newly promoted Brentford getting maximum points over London's most famous club. For Mikel Arteta, his woes have already begun, the team did do a lot of spending over the summer but for their first outing it looked like it was done in all the wrong places. As much as we can laugh about this result, to the fans and supporters of the club, it ain't no laughing matter but reality is, Arsenal need to step up or they might find themselves in heaps of trouble, one thing results like this will guarantee for the rest of us is some epic AFTV viewing. 

Last season's second place team, Manchester United have laid down quite a statement with their opening fixtures against old rivals Leeds United, Ole's men took a while to find the back of the net but it was none other than star player from last season, Bruno Fernandes who opened their account and followed that up with two more goals to give himself a hattrick in the impressive 5-1 victory at the Theatre of Dreams. Paul Pogba still remains a hot topic for the club as many questioned where his loyalties lie after he was looking to move away from Manchester but those rumours should be put to bed with an impressive performance from the French World Cup winner, getting 4 assists in the game. Unless he was putting on a show for prospective buyers? One thing is for sure, Man United have claimed stake as title contenders and are willing to prove last seasons finish was not a fluke. With impressive signings over the summer, we could just see them fighting their city rivals this season. 

Speaking of their City rivals, the team in Sky Blue had a rocky start to the campaign as they opened the season with a 1-0 loss away at Spurs in London on the Sunday. Nuno Espírito Santo men held off a rampant City in the first 20 minutes at the Spurs Stadium with Son managing to get a stunning goal in the second half which secured the London teams 3 points. It was a spirited effort from Spurs which saw them play the game without star striker Harry Kane, who is reported to want a move to Man City. After seeing his teams performance, with the new manager and fans now back at the stadium will that have him change his mind? It's tough choice for him to make, will he be willing to take the risk to stay with his boyhood club and try to win silverware with them or opt to join a club like City whom are perfectly positioned to get trophies, season after season. 

It seems London clubs are the topic of this blog post as the next team that gets a mention is Thomas Tuchel's team, Chelsea! A surprise addition to their team see's former striker Romelu Lukaku  re-join Chelsea at an exorbitant £97 Million for the Belguim striker. He had an impressive stint at Inter Milan after leaving Man United where he just didn't seem to gel with anyone and the less said about his first touch the better but Tuchel see's something in him that we all don't, lets see what he can offer Chelsea on his second time with the club. 

Liverpool didn't fair too badly on their first outing in the league for the 21/22 season after notching up all 3 points on offer as they travelled to Norwich. Star play Mo Salah got onto the score sheet and provided 2 assists as Klopp's men recorded a 3-0 win. Last seasons wonder signing Jota got the Reds off the mark after latching onto a mistimed touch from the Egyptian, while Bobby Firmino got the Reds second. The team looked impressive but most importantly solid at the back, Tsimikas who was stand in replacement for Andy Robertson had a few mishaps but was firmly put in place by a returning Virgl van Djik and James Milner. The Reds looked comfortable throughout the game, with no major signings apart form Konate as back up central defender, one wonders if they have sufficient firepower to compete against City and the rest of them? It proves to be an interesting season ahead, and I for one cannot wait to see how it plays out. 

Silly Season is Over

As the door slammed shut on the summer transfer window last night, it brought much relief to many clubs out there who were trying their hardest to hold onto their star players. Over the years the game has changed and the money has escalated, I mean it's quite ridiculous in some cases. This transfer season saw the record price for a player being smash, previously it was held by Paul Pogba who's transfer from Juventus to Manchester United cost the English club a cool £89 million but a year later saw PSG come in to shatter that price by triggering a release clause in Neymar's contract with Barcelona to lure the Brazilian to the French side for a whopping £198 million! With clubs prepared to fork our insane amounts as those, it just blew the costs per players out of proportion. 

Smaller clubs who had players who gained interest from bigger clubs had exorbitant price tags slapped to them, just so the club could make a great profit from the sale but what that actually did in most cases was scare the prospective buyers away, ultimately ruining chances for the players. Then in certain instances you get players who wanted a change, and tried forcing moves but were unsuccessful. One case which is close to home is of Philippe Coutinho wanting to switch to Barcelona. Understandable it was a life long dream for him and I agree with the player that he tried to be reasonable and respectable about it with the club but when Liverpool didn't budge, he played the transfer request card which didn't go down well with the club nor the fans, thereafter faking injury to make matters worse. 

While we might be livid with the player and can't understand why he would want to move away from what seems like an exciting future for the club, we can't tell what his ambitions or aspirations are. Like Stevie Gerrard said in an interview, it might have been a dream for him to play for Barca as a kid and they could have threatened him and said this would be his one and only chance to join. So you can sort of understand the predicament he was facing. It's quick for supporters to get angry at situations like this but this where football teachings come into it, there is no player bigger than the club. For me, it was a tough pill to swallow when I heard it but if he doesn't want to stay, let him go. Virgil van Dijk faces a similar fate with Southampton but yet with just 2 hours to go in the window, both Coutinho and van Dijk still remain servants to their club, whether it be loyal ones remains to be seen. 

While there was plenty of drama, there still was a lot of sales going on, so who do you reckon did the best business in the Premier League? Many say City, getting their players in before or during preseason, they spent a lot, got in some quality players, prices on some of them remain questionable but at the same time you got to see how the market reacts. Chelsea made some clever purchases but would it be enough for them to defend their title? I personally don't think so but they should still be putting pressure on whoever is. Spurs, finishing second last year and still have a squad which is probably the same as last years may find things a bit different this season, as it is they haven't had the greatest first 3 games but I feel their lack of desire in the transfer market may come back to bite them. Arsenal? The less said the better, for them it's all about holding down the gates and making sure there isn't a max exodus. So far Oxlade-Chamberlain managed to break-out and sign for Liverpool. A signing which confused me a bit seeing that we didn't really need him but who am I to judge. 

I personally think the cleverest deals were done by Jose, he's a shrewde guy and gets what he wants. Signing Lukaku and Matic proved to be the last pieces in his jigsaw puzzle that is Manchester United. They have been unbelievable since the first kick of the ball this season and really look like the United of old, with Zlatan declaring himself fit again and rejoining the Red Devils for one more season for "unfinished business", who knows what this team who looked destined for 6th place again can achieve. My only concern if I was a United fan, is what happens if players get injured, what then? We saw how sides could frustrate United last season and we saw how United could frustrate teams by not wanting to play football in fear of losing. Overall, this Silly Season has been one that certainlly riled up emotions from many and most of us are glad to see its over so we can concentrate on the real matter at hand and that is the football!