A More Competitive Premier League to Come
March 18th 2008 22:51
As I said, there’s no real surprise that they’re the three teams we’re talking about, though Chelsea have stealthily one-nilled their way into contention, but we could see the lowest points tally for a Premier League winning side in quite some time. All of the so-called Big Four have slipped up far too many times this season to be called dominant and some people are even suggesting this might be the beginning of the end for the dominant quintet.
I would agree.
I certainly can’t see anybody but Man Utd, Arsenal or Chelsea winning the league in the next three or four seasons, but I do see the gap between the Champions League group and the rest of the pack slowly eroding away.
For example, though Everton have always had a disproportionately good record against their Merseyside rivals, Liverpool, the canyon of quality that separated the two teams could not be denied. Now, however, there is little to choose between the two sides and some would even argue that Everton have greater strength in depth. If trends continue, and there’s no reason they shouldn’t whilst the vastly underrated David Moyes is in charge at Goodison, we should see Everton finishing higher than Liverpool in the league over the coming years.
Manchester City, with the bundles of cash that new-owner Thaksin Shinawatra has promised and successful club manager Sven Goran Eriksson at the helm, will feel that finally they can make a push for the UEFA Cup and, in time, the Champions League. Ditto Portsmouth. Ditto Blackburn.
Aston Villa have always been knocking on the door of success and Big Four (Five, Six or Seven) status, but have never quite managed it. That said, there is no doubt in my mind that Martin O’Neill’s three year plan, given the right funding, is to cement Villa as a top four club. I wouldn’t bet against him either.
And what of Tottenham Hotspurs? They have an excellent new manager and if they can rid their crippling inconsistency, they can and will be there, or there abouts, too.
Obviously we can’t have ten teams in the top four, and some of the above mentioned clubs will surely fall by the wayside (my money’s on City), but United, staring at a possible future without Alex Ferguson, Arsenal, with a manager unwilling to match the top prices in Europe, Chelsea, with their unconvincing victories, and Liverpool, with their off-field boardroom saga continuing, must all be looking over their shoulder and sleeping less easy than they were only a couple of years ago.
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Comment by Pooks667
Random Rantings
You're right about liverpool though, as soon as Benitez gets fed up of having gillette or whoever breathing down his neck and goes where he's appreciated liverpool will be challenging city for that coveted 10th spot.
Comment by Wooderbeen
The Daily Sydney
The State Of The Game
1-0 wins are still wins, but not entirely convincing ones.
I agree Arsenal should only get better and will always be there or there abouts.
Suggesting United won't miss their most successful manager of all time is, frankly, poppycock.
And yes, Liverpool will struggle.
I thank you.
Comment by paul hart