Why Arsenal Will Win The Premier League

If Manchester Utd, City or Chelsea where currently sitting in the position that Arsenal find themselves in, 4 points ahead of second place, then people would be saying that they are in with the best shout of winning the title and that only their own mistakes would be the reason for them missing out on it. However, with Arsenal top of the league, people are still saying they are not favourites to win the Premier League this year, it is almost assumed that they are going to mess up somehow at some point. Manchester City are even still odds on to win the league despite being 4 points behind the Gunners.

However, I am not sure why this is. Of course there is the obvious fact that Arsenal have not won any silverware for eight years, however, with Aaron Ramsey bang on form and Mesut Ozil seeming to bring the best out of everyone, more and more people are coming round to the idea of the London team lifting the title.

Where Arsenal have failed in the past is when it comes to beating teams they really should be beating, they often drop points. At the very start of the year they lost 3-1 to Villa and people believed the tradition would continue, however after their 3-0 win away to Cardiff, a different tune is being sung.

Let's not forget, Cardiff beat Manchester City and achieved a draw with Utd. Southampton beat Utd and Liverpool but both of these teams suffered in the hands of Arsenal. And the win over Cardiff was nothing short of a hammering, and what's more, in style.

This was Arsenals third clean sheet in four league games, showing their defensive problems appear to be over. Their midfield is incredible, I would say the best in the Premier league especially with Aaron Ramsey being in the form he is in currently. Arsenal have now also scored 27 goals this season, they appear to be the real deal.

A lot of the recent success can be put down to Mesut Ozil. This signing has done so much for Arsenal, firstly because he is a wonderful player and has been assisting for fun since signing the dotted line, but also for the change of mood he brought to the club. He excited fans, the other players and has made everyone up their game. Fans had long been crying out for a big name signing after selling Fabregas, Nasri, Van Persie etc. and now they have one, Arsenal appear to have turned a corner.

It is true that Arsenal have not really had to face the toughest of opposition, although they did pick up a win over Liverpool, they lost to Utd and still have to play the likes of Tottenham away, Chelsea and Manchester City in which their season could be turned around completely. However, they have shown they can do the business against the big boys having dominated their group in the Champions League, containing last years runners up.

Arsenal have 11 different scorers this year, joint most with Everton, which shows they have a good team. Often it is the teams who share the goals around who do well, unlike teams such as Liverpool (Suarez) and Manchester Utd (Rooney) who look to one man to score all their goals. However it is undeniable that Arsenal need to sign a world class striker.

Giroud has put in some good displays this season, but he is not as prolific as you would expect of a title winning striker. The only back up Arsenal have is Walcott, Podolski and Bendtner, none of these have set the Premier league alight. If Arsenal were to sign a Rooney or a Suarez they would have a terrific chance of wining the Premier League, this would make a statement that they are in this to win and they are going to achieve that goal.

While there is still a long way to go, I think Arsenal have shown enough for people to take them seriously as title contenders. I may eat my words come May when they are celebrating a fourth placed finish, however I feel Arsenal can for the first time in years, realistically win the title.

Seven Days Of Christmas Sackings

25th November - Guy Whittingham: Portsmouth (17th, League 2) 

Guy Whittingham was the first victim of this mass manager sacking week after being in charge of Portsmouth for just over a year. Whittingham was originally appointed as a temporary manager after Appleton left for the Blackpool job, however after impressing he was given the job. He lead Portsmouth to a bottom of the table finish in league one, meaning Portsmouth are now in division 2, although to be fair this was with a minus ten point penalty to deal with and the club had just come out of a 14 month spell in administration.

Portsmouth are only 6 points above the league 2 relegation zone and after a fourth successive defeat, relegation from the football league altogether just could not be risked.


27th November - Richie Barker: Crawley Town (15th, League 1) 

Scoring just one goal in seven games was enough o get Crawley Town boss Richie Barker the sack. Barker had been in charge for just over a year after taking the role following Steve Evans departure to Rotherham. Last season Crawley Town finished 10th in league one but they were expecting to be improving on that this year. Despite only scoring one goal in seven, the Red Devils are actually unbeaten in their last four games, however Barker could understand that goalscoring was a problem.


28th November - Sean O'Driscoll: Bristol City (23rd, League 1) 

The third man to go was Bristol City boss O'Driscoll who left with only two wins in 18 games and Bristol deep in to the relegation zone of League 1. Sean took over Bristol last season with the club deep in to relegation troubles in the Championship. Ultimately he was unable to save them, however now they face the same situation but a whole division lower.

Sean decided to completely change the squad around over the Summer and it does not appear to be a plan that has worked in his favour. City have one of the biggest budgets in division one and should really be pushing for promotion, however, failing to win their first 12 games has set them off on the wrong foot and the owners felt a change was needed. This is their seventh change in three years however....


30th November - David Flitcroft: Barnsley (24th Championship) 

Bottom of the league Barnsley relieved manager David Flitcroft of his duties on the final day of November, less than a year since he was appointed. The Tykes are not only bottom of the league but they also have the worst defence stats as well. Last season, appointed in January, Flitcroft managed to successfully guide Barnsley to safety where it looked they could be relegated, however with the club 6 points from safety it looks as though they may have to find someone else to do that job again this year.


1st December - Martin Jol: Fulham (18th Premier League) 

After five straight defeats, Fulham lie just inside the relegation zone of the Premier league, somewhere they just cannot afford to be. Jol has been at Craven Cottage for two and a half years and despite being a popular manager, the owners felt he had to go. Jol was very gracious in being removed stating there are "better days" ahead for Fulham. He understood the decision after his final game was a 3-0 defeat by West Ham in which Fulham failed to register a single shot on target.


1st December - Dave Jones: Sheffield Wednesday (23rd Championship) 

With Sheffield Wednesday once again in relegation trouble, Wednesday have taken the decision to remove Dave Jones as manager. The Owls had lost their last three games. Dave Jones lead the club to promotion from league 1 in his first season in charge. Wednesday are the only side in the football league who do not have a single clean sheet to their name.

Last season, Wednesday only just survived relegation finishing in 18th place and the board do not want to take another risk this year. Bottom club Barnsley made the first move by sacking Flitcroft just the day before and Wednesday quickly followed suit.


2nd December - Owen Coyle: Wigan (14th Championship)

To complete the week of managerial changes, Owen Coyle has left Wigan by "mutual consent". Wigan are the highest placed team to change their manager over this last week as they currently sit 14th in the Championship, however, having only just been relegated from the Premier league they were hoping to bounce straight back.

Wigan had a odd season last year, winning the FA Cup and therefore playing in Europe this year, however they were also relegated from the Premier League. Boss Roberto Martinez decided to leave the club and is currently having a very successful spell at Everton.

Coyle won only seven games for Wigan and they are currently 6 points off the play offs, not really promotion form. On the other hand Wigan are having a decent time in Europe and still have a chance to qualify for the last 32. It would surely be easier for them to be competing in the Championship when they are knocked out of Europe, something which Wigan probably should have thought about.

Wigan did make some impressive signings over the Summer, with Grant Holt being an example, a proven Premier League goalscorer, however they have failed to impress in the Championship as of yet this season.

Kingstonian V Lewes: Match Preview

Lewes have some severe injury problems to be dealing with before their trip to high flying Kingstonian.  first of all goalkeeper Rikki Banks should be fit despite hobbling towards the end of the game in mid week against Cray. 

Sam Gore is still out with his shoulder injury and will continue to be replaced by loanee Sam Cole. Andy Pearson was this week released by Whitehawk but may not be fit after he was taken off in mid week with an injury. Captain Jack Walder was also taken off mid week and probably will not make the game on Saturday, along with fellow midfielder Jack Dixon who was taken off with injury in the home loss to Lowestoft the previous Saturday. 

Sam Crabb is also carrying a knock but is still expected to start at right back against Kingstonian. Steve Brinkhurst is still having troubles with his knees despite scoring a remarkable over head kick against Cray, he may find two games in a week to be too much. Ross Treleaven is still out after picking up an injury in training, similar to Matt Crabb. Nathan Crabb is still available as his suspension for the red against Lowestoft does not kick in until the game against Thamesmead. 

Former Lewes player Matt Somner will not be facing up against the Rooks as he has recently gone on loan to Crawley Down Gatwick, managed by former Lewes captain Steve Robinson. 

Lewes winger, Nick Wheeler is really starting to wow the fans at the Dripping Pan with his tricky performances, he has made the step up from the Ryman South look easy. The winger will need to be in top form on Saturday to get through the stern Kingstonian defence. 

The Lewes midfield is looking weak at present with the two big names: Jack Walder and top scorer Jack Dixon both out injured, under 18 player Josh Marshall was called upon against Cray in midweek and could well find himself starting against Kingstonian unless Bayan Fenwick recovers from his flu in time. 

A win at Kingstonian would set Lewes up for a promotion push going in to the christmas period. After Kingstonian Lewes play Thamesmead before they have a run of potentially difficult fixtures which will really show Lewes fans where they could end up at the end of the season, starting with Kingstonian tomorrow. However after tomorrow, Lewes will have played all of the top five away from home, with them all still to play at the Dripping Pan, they have only lost one of these fixtures (away to Dulwich.) 

This time last season Lewes only had 18 points whereas this year they are flying on 30, a huge difference for Lewes fans. It now appears that the decision the board made to remove Simon Wormull from the manager role was completely justified as Garry Wilson and Danny Bloor have done an exceptional job in transforming the team on the same budget as last season. 

Kingstonian have three home fixtures in a row coming up against Lewes, Cray and Wealdstone, they will be looking to pick up maximin points from these games if possible in order to keep their title challenge strong. Lewes and Wealdstone should prove to be the toughest tests for the K's and they will be keen to get off to a good start when they play Lewes tomorrow. 

My Prediction: 

"Garry Wilson and his team will have to come up with a decent game plan and hope they have the goalscoring form they showed against Cray when they come up what is probably the toughest defence in the league. 2-0 Kingstonian" 

A Look At Kingstonian's Danger Men

This weekend I will be travelling to the home of AFC Wimbledon, where Kingstonian FC also play their home games, to see Lewes take on the team flying near the top of the league. Today I will take a look at the Kingstonian side and see who their potential dangers are:




The Ever Present: Andre McCollin (Striker)

Andre McCollin has been a prolific striker for a while now and has been a regular in the Kingstonian side this season. With 13 wins to his name this season already and 9 goals, McCollin will be looking to add more to his tally. However 4 of McCollin's league goals came in one half against Grays and he has not scored in the league since the end of September, despite playing regularly. McCollin signed for Kingstonian from Merstham. Andre McCollin is also the penalty taker for Kingstonian.







The Goalscorer: Ryan Moss (Striker)  KEY PLAYER

Ryan Moss signed for Kingstonian from Hampton and Richmond and has since been banging in the goals for the club. So far this season he has 12 league goals, an impressive tally. The Lewes defence will have to be in top form to keep out Kingstonians impressive striker force.







The Super Sub: Charles Ofosu-Hene (midfielder)

Young midfielder Ofosu-Hene has been brought on for Kingstonian ten times this season and despite not scoring any goals, the 22 year old muscle man is seen as a bit of a game changer at Kingstonian winning 6 of the games he has been brought on in. The bulky midfielder used to play for Harrow Borough and Lewes will have to be weary of the threat he brings late in the game.






The Tough Tackler: Tommy Kavanagh (midfielder)

Tommy is one yellow card away from a one match suspension and it would be no surprise if he were to pick up that yellow in the clash against Lewes, although Lewes main yellow card man Jack Walder may be out with an injury he picked up against Cray in midweek. Tommy is the boss of his midfield and the former Sutton man is not afraid of jumping in for a challenge is the ball is there to be won. Tommy will have had a good season if he scores half as many goals as he picks up cards, something he is currently achieving with 2 goals to his name.





The New Signing: Javlon Campbell (Striker)

Kingstonian recently picked up striker Javlon Campbell from struggling club Thamesmead. Javlon had an impressive start to his Kingstonian career notching a hatrick against Walton and Hersham, in the last couple of games he has been used as another super sub. Campbell has a real potential to change the game, he has a lot of pace about him and a knack for scoring goals.

Can Tottenham Win Silverware?

Tottenham currently sit fourth in the Premier league, level on points with Chelsea and Liverpool, a decent start to the Premier league season as they find themselves above last years top two, the Manchester clubs.

However, Tottenham will not win any trophy this year in my opinion. The reason for this is their lack of ability in front of goal. So many times this season already they have relied on a penalty to see them win the game 1-0, even against teams that they should be beating comfortably. When the penalty does not come, they are dropping points that they should be winning. This was shown at the weekend when they came away with a 0-0 draw against Everton. Their ability to keep the opposition out is undeniably going well, however to challenge, Spurs have to get their shooting boots on.

Tottenham have only conceded five goals in ten games which shows just how good they are defensively, however they are scoring at a rate of less than one goal a game, a poor ratio.

On paper, the Spurs side is full of attacking talent, despite the well documented departure of key player Gareth Bale in the Summer. Even the Tottenham defence has an attacking mentality about it, Jan Vertonghan proving time and time again that he has what it takes to get forward and score goals last season. Tottenham are also the owners of the new kid of the moment, Andros Townsend who seems to be at the top of his game at the moment.

Spurs spent big over the summer to ensure that they would not miss Bale as much as the potentially could have, such as on Brazilian baller Paulinho and star striker Soldado, neither of whom have been firing for Tottenham like AVB would have hoped.

During the first half of the 0-0 draw with Everton, Spurs had 58% of possession meaning they had plenty of opportunity to create chances, with that amount of the ball there is no question that they should be scoring more goals.

Seven of Spurs ten first half shots came from outside of the penalty area, a stat which perhaps shows that despite their possession they are failing to create any clear cut chances.

So What can Tottenham do to improve their chances? First of all I feel that their more creative players such as Christian Eriksen need to be given more time to play, they need to be starting if Tottenham want to win games, creative players are always going to create chances and set up goals, just take a look at the impact Mesut Ozil has had at Arsenal.

The other thing they need to do is to give Soldado more chances, he has proven in La Liga that he can be a lone striker and score goals, however his Spurs team mates need to allow him opportunities to do this, although that doesn't mean that he is doing nothing wrong, a lot of work is needed from him to adapt to the Premier League.

The problem is that Tottenham's wingers, Townsend being a key example are playing on the side of their weak foot. Therefore the preferred option form them is to cut inside and take a shot at goal themselves rather than feeding in a decent ball for Soldado, hence the stat about shots from outside the penalty area. Maybe if Tottenham played wingers who were the right foot for their side of the wing the they would create a few more chances for their lone striker to latch on to.

The majority of Soldado's 25 goals last season came from pull backs and a close range finish for him. Spurs have the tricky wingers in order to create these chances, they have the most amount of dribbles in the Premier league this season, and yet they are not taking advantage of this.

Many people have been quick to say that Soldado is completely at fault for Spurs lack of goals, however I would argue that playing Defoe, Spurs would have no more goals than they have at the moment. Tottenham need to learn from the likes of Arsenal (Ozil), Chelsea (Hazard) and Liverpool (Suarez) and use their creative players such as Eriksen to heavy effect, it will allow them to be more free and score more goals.

O'Neil and Keane an Irish Dream Team

It is soon expected to be announced that former Villa and Sunderland boss, Martin O'Neil is to be named as the new manager of the Republic of Ireland, along with ITV pundit and former Ipswich boss, Roy Keane as his assistant.

The country failing to qualify for the World Cup in Brazil at the end of the season lead to former manager Giovanni Trapattoni leaving his role. This will be O'Neil's first ever managerial role in international football.

Hiring an Irish management team is the key to this appointment, O'Neil will understand the culture and tradition of Irish football and will have a drive to see the team do as well as they can, he knows they want to be competing in international tournaments.

There have been questions as to his managerial ability after his last stint at Sunderland, after a great start, turned sour and he was relieved of his duties, however you only have to look at the decline at Villa after he left to see just how much of an impact he can have at a club.

An advantage for the Irish FA is that the pair are both out of work and so could step straight in to the job with no compensation due, unlike there would be had they decided to appoint Mick McCarthy to the role.

One thing to consider is as to whether the Republic of Ireland even have a squad which is capable of competing at a high level, their best players are all reaching an age where they are past their best and it does not seem that new talent is being brought in to the squad to replace them, perhaps that is something that O'Neil will have to look at if he is looking to make this a long term project.

When O'Neil started at Sunderland, they went on a terrific run, a long honeymoon period, that would be of no use to Ireland who need someone for the long run to develop them as a team in order to make sure they qualify first for the next Euro's and then for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, this has to be a target for them.

Martin O'Neil is a very optimistic person, even when his Sunderland side were struggling in a relegation battle with a very tough run in, he was very upbeat about his sides chances, he has confidence in his own ability which in itself makes the players feel more positive and confident going in to games.

I feel that O'Neil will make a decent manager for Ireland, while the players available to him will make his task very difficult, I think he has enough experience to bring the best out of the Republic of Ireland and so is the correct choice for the job.

The Weekends Big Clash: Arsenal V Liverpool

Tuesday night and Arsenal had been dumped out of the League cup by Chelsea, despite running strong in the league it has been questioned as to how Arsenal would be able to compete against tougher opposition. Although Arsenal played a unquestionably weaker side it was still a wake up call to some that winning the league is not going to be an easy task. However manager Arsene Wenger was still confident, playing down the league cup as a competition worth being in:“The mood is very strong, very united and very focused. We know where our priorities are - the Premier League and the Champions League. We are in a strong position in the league and that is why we are positive right now.

“It was a disappointment on Tuesday, I cannot deny that, and we want to come back in a very strong way. But this is a big game for us in a completely different competition and we want to respond well.”

Liverpool have also made a great start to the league, their strike partnership of Sturridge and Suarez is quickly becoming one of the greatest partnerships in Europe with both players in top scoring form. Liverpool are looking like a side who can really challenge for the top four and will present Arsenal with their toughest test in the league this season. 

In team news, Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta is available for selection again after sitting out his one match suspension, however, Mathieu Flamini, who has become a key component to Arsenal's midfield, is still out with a groin problem. A huge boost for Liverpool is that Coutinho is included again in the squad for the first time since a shoulder injury he obtained playing Swansea back on the 16th September. 

There are so many players in this game in top scoring form, however that does not mean there will definitely be goals, I feel these teams could cancel each other out as it is a game that neither side will want to lose as, although the season is never won in one game, it could go a long way in being a confidence boost or drop. 

Arsenal will need to put any thoughts on their looming away game to Dortmund to the back of their mind on Saturday to ensure they can put in a performance giving them all possible chances of beating Liverpool. Wenger realises that the game is of "massive importance" for Arsenal as they enter a huge week of games: Liv (H), Dortmund (A) and M. Utd (A). This next week will certainly show us all as to whether Arsenal truly are title contenders or not. 

The key to winning this game will come to who can keep the oppositions in form strikers quiet.“One of the targets of our game is to keep these two players quiet because they are certainly among the top strikers in the Premier League,” said Wenger.

“I'm convinced that Sturridge has exceptional talent. He can be creative, make goals for himself, dribble and finish well.”

A win would go a long way for either side to prove just how much of a force they are this season, the Premier league is as competitive as it has been for a long time which is exciting, lets just hope for a good game, although I do feel both teams will cancel each other out too much leading to a boring 0-0 draw, although my predictions are rarely correct... 

Ian Holloway: Gone too soon?

Today it is being reported that Crystal Palace boss Ian Holloway has left the club, either by mutual consent or being relieved of his managerial duties, with Palace sitting in the relegation zone after a 4-1 defeat by Fulham on Monday night, a game in which Palace had taken the lead.

Holloway's job has been in question for a while, the only points they have won this season came in a win against Sunderland, who are currently bottom of the league with only one point to their name. Sunderland have also decided to change manager, appointing former Brighton boss Gus Poyet.

Not many people gave Palace much hope of surviving in the Premier league this season, considering they do not have the funds or squad that looks like being able to compete, even Holloway said it might come down to whether there are three teams who happen to be worse than them, although at present it looks as though there may only one.

Holloway strengthened where he could, bringing in former Arsenal striker Chamakh, however they also missed out on key target Darren Bent who decided instead to move to Fulham. Bent would have added the goalscorer that Palace need in order to have a better chance of competing.

Being honest, Palace still look like a Championship team which will do extremely well to stay in the division no matter who the manager is, however the argument is as to whether Holloway is actually to blame for this, would other managers have been able to put together a better squad with the same budget and reputation of Palace?

Holloway is well known for his witty press conferences but there has been question as to whether he is really just a funny man or a football manager, a reputation he wanted to change this season. Last time Holloway was in the Premier league he was in a similar situation with Blackpool who were eventually relegated on the final day of the season after a great season that nearly saw them stay up. This season his Palace side have not got off to the same start and so have made it harder for themselves but not impossible.

Holloway only took over Palace midway through last season, continuing their brilliant form and guiding them to promotion via the play offs, including knocking arch rivals Brighton out in the semi finals. Since then they have lost key man Wilfred Zaha to Manchester Utd, considerably weakening their squad despite the step up, Palace do not appear to have replaced Zaha with the funds they recieved for him.

Holloway's tactical ability was highlighted as Palace beat Watford in the play off final at Wembley despite being given no chance by pundits and spectators. However this year Palace are still yet to keep a clean sheet.

In my opinion, Holloway is still the right manager for Palace, I don't think they would be able to attract anyone better for the job than him so to sack him would be a bad move for me and I can't see Palace having any chance of staying in the Premier league.

Premier League Table This Time Last Year

We all know that Manchester United ended up lifting the title last year, but at this point the league leaders by four points were Chelsea, proving that a good start such as Arsenals is no guarantee that you will be up there come the end of the season.

POS		LP	CLUB	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS
1		(1)	Chelsea	8	7	1	0	19	6	13	22
2		(2)	Manchester United	8	6	0	2	21	11	10	18
3		(3)	Manchester City	8	5	3	0	17	9	8	18
4		(4)	Everton	7	4	2	1	14	8	6	14
5		(5)	Tottenham Hotspur	8	4	2	2	15	12	3	14
6		(8)	West Ham United	8	4	2	2	12	9	3	14
7		(6)	West Bromwich Albion	8	4	2	2	12	9	3	14
8		(9)	Fulham	8	4	1	3	16	11	5	13
9		(7)	Arsenal	8	3	3	2	13	6	7	12
10		(11)	Swansea City	8	3	2	3	14	12	2	11
11		(14)	Liverpool	8	2	3	3	10	12	-2	9
12		(10)	Newcastle United	7	2	3	2	8	11	-3	9
13		(12)	Stoke City	8	1	5	2	8	9	-1	8
14		(13)	Sunderland	6	1	4	1	5	7	-2	7
15		(19)	Norwich City	8	1	3	4	6	17	-11	6
16		(15)	Wigan Athletic	8	1	2	5	8	15	-7	5
17		(16)	Aston Villa	8	1	2	5	6	13	-7	5
18		(17)	Southampton	8	1	1	6	13	24	-11	4
19		(18)	Reading	7	0	3	4	8	14	-6	3
20		(20)	Queens Park Rangers	7	0	2	5	6	16	-10	2
POS		LP	CLUB	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS

This is how the table will look at the end of the season if results go the same way for the teams in their respective positions currently:

1. Chelsea
2. Liverpool
3. Arsenal
4. Hull
5. Tottenham
6. Man. City
7. Swansea
8. Everton
9. Newcastle
10. Southampton
11. Stoke
12. Man. Utd
13. Villa
14. Norwich
15. Fulham
16. West Brom
17. West Ham
18. Cardiff
19. Crystal Palace
20. Sunderland

If you swap the positions of Hull and Manchester United and perhaps do a bit of tweaking to the top 6 then the table does not look too dissimilar to how it could finish.

Manchester United are now eight points off leaders Arsenal, not too many points at this stage that it would be impossible to catch up, but it does seem a very difficult task, particularly in David Moyes first season as Utd boss. However, to see Utd finish out of the top 4 would be a great thing, but not something that we will see for a long time still.