Thursday 2 June 2011

End Of Season, Start of Transfers...

So with now no club football on our television screens for the next two and a half months, why does it seem that this is one of the busiest times in football?

Amid the corruption claims that surround FIFA at the moment, and International football still ongoing, clubs across the continent are as busy as ever already building what might be a Championship winning side next season.

Stories such as the future of Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas almost bore sports readers now, because what people want is new material, and whether he stays or goes, the formalities are all the same. The same could be said about Karim Benzema's future, who in the past seasons has been linked with moves to England, as well as Kaka, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Dani Alves.

However the saga behind Dimitar Berbatov is pretty fresh, and rather intriguing. Who would have thought the joint top scorer of the Premier League would be on his way a month ago? However the exclusion of the striker within the Champions League final squad has seen him linked with Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and even Newcastle United.

The future's of West Ham players may be a big talking point, with Scott Parker and Demba Ba the most sought after players following their relegation to the Championship. However with Sam Allardyce now installed at the helm, maybe his wise words can persuade them to stay and win promotion. Parker's been heavily linked with North London clubs, Arsenal and Tottenham, and Ba seems to be the striker everyone wants with rumours linking him with Newcastle, Sunderland and Everton being talked about.

In terms of players being brought in from around the continent, Tottenham seem to be the club heavily linked with foreign players. After finishing outside the Champions League places, Harry Redknapp will need to strengthen. A lot of his squad have been linked with moves away, however, Spurs continue to be linked with centre midfielder Lassana Diarra, Espanyol's Pablo Osvaldo and recently, Gonzalo Higuain, though the legitimacy of these stories and debateable.

However what it does look like, is that the top flight again may be hard to predict. Manchester United will strengthen, despite winning another title. They have recently lost Paul Scholes to retirement so finding a suitable replacement will be a priority, as well as replacing the outgoing Berbatov. Chelsea will want to find a goalscorer, and it looks likely one of their current crop will have to be sacrificed. However their main issue at the moment is securing Guus Hiddink as full time gaffer. Manchester City will want to build on their FA Cup success with even more additions. With the almost infinite money they possess, they have been linked with almost everyone, from Wesley Sneijder to Gary Cahill. Arsene Wenger has be urged to change his transfer policy and so links to Benzema and Alex Oxlaide- Chamberlain keep appearing in gossip columns, and Liverpool's constant link with Aston Villa's Ashley Young keeps everyone guessing as we might be able to see a potent from line from The Reds next season.

Early betting prices are already predictable, but come a month or so, when signings have been made, it might be worth putting a cheeker £10 on someone who isn't the favourite because you never know with the Premier League, or at least go each way with an outsider because some of the prices you could get are pretty good.

Early Prices - Premier League winner 2011/2012 (02/06/2011)

Man Utd - 19/10 (Betfair)
Chelsea - 147/50 (Betfair)
Man City - 4/1 (Boylesports)
Arsenal - 15/2 (Victor Chandler)
Liverpool - 12/1 (Betfred)
Tottenham - 50/1 (Skybet)

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