EPL, England, Features, Ian John, Leagues, Regions POSTS

EPL Season Preview : Part Two

Published by Ian John on August 7, 2010

Blackpool
Manager: Ian Holloway
Players In: None
Players Out: Stephen McPhee (Retired), Ben Burgess (Notts County)

After the miraculous promotion to the top flight last season, achieved via the play off final at Wembley, it is fantastic to see Blackpool back in the top tier of English football once again. Ian Holloway has achieved one of the greatest feats of the modern era in leading Blackpool into the top flight but the odds on them remaining in the division are going to be long. With their chairman finding new signings hard to acquire, Holloway looks like he will start the season with near enough the same squad that won them promotion. Admirable loyalty to his team, but perhaps foolhardy not to have strengthened to give them a chance to stay up. They will probably go down but be prepared for some of the best post-game interviews with Ian Holloway. They will be a breath of fresh air in the Premier League this season and I hope they stay up, but I fear that they will struggle.

+POINTS : They have an excellent manager, the squad has been kept together from last season. They do seem to have goals from midfield with Adam in particular looking an astute midfielder capable of playing at the highest level. Financially the club will be set for many, many years to come.

-POINTS : With no new signings it is hard to see how this squad can stay up in the highest division. They’ll charm many but I feel on the field they may well come up well short.

Bolton Wanderers
Manager: Owen Coyle
Players In: Martin Petrov (Manchester City), Marcos Alonso (Real Madrid), Robbie Blake (Burnley)
Players Out: Zoltan Harsanyi (Released)

Owen Coyle did well to steer Bolton to safety after his ‘defection’ from Burnley last season. In the end it proved a wise move by the former Bolton player as the Clarets tumbled out of the league and Bolton remained in the top flight. Coyle has been prudent in his signings but has made three excellent signings in Blake and Petrov, who both have Premiership pedigree and plenty of experience and the young Alonso who could well prove to be one of the shrewdest signings of the Premier League season given the glowing report he has earned at Real Madrid. It’s hard to make a case for Bolton pushing into the top half of the table under Coyle but I think they won’t struggle as much this season, as they did the last.

+ POINTS- Three very shrewd signings for a small amount of money has enriched an already decent squad. Coyle seems to be able to get the best out of his teams, especially early on in the season. This looks arguably the best Bolton squad for some time.

- POINTS – They haven’t added enough quality players to make themselves real candidates for the top half. Their overall position may not improve much as a result this season, but they should be safer than they were last.

Chelsea
Manager: Carlo Ancelotti
Players In: Yossi Benayoun (Liverpool), Tomas Kalas (Sigma Olumuc)
Players Out: Joe Cole (Liverpool), Michael Ballack (Bayer Leverkusen), Tomas Kalas (Sigma Olomouc-loan), Miroslav Stoch (Fenerbahce), Rhys Taylor (Crewe-loan)

It’s been a busy pre-season for champions Chelsea, first Michael Ballack and Joe Cole left for pastures new, and a couple of youngsters also left the club. In came Yossi Benayoun from Liverpool for £6 million and so far despite rumours of deals for several big names, Carlo Ancelotti has kept his money in his pocket. Ramires looks set to join sooner, rather than later, from Benfica but big money moves for Kaka or Fernando Torres have failed to materialise. Ancelotti will keep faith with most of the squad that won last season’s league title and they will of course be challenging hard once again, but this is a weaker squad than last season and I think over the gruelling season, especially after a World Cup, that may play into the hands of their chief rivals in the long run. Don’t expect Carlo to be so reticent to spend in the winter should their season not be going quite as planned over the first few months.

+ POINTS : Benayoun is a a tricky addition to the squad and should do them well. The nucleus of last years title winning squad remains, barring Ballack’s departure and as such they will be very strong once again. They have money to spend to rectify things if need be too.

- POINTS : What amounts to Joe Cole and £6m for Yossi Benayoun seems an awfully lop-sided deal to many Chelsea fans. The squad is not getting any younger and as yet, young replacements for the ageing stars are still to either prove their worth, or arrive at the club. The squad isn’t as strong as last season and that may have an impact over the course of a long and arduous season.

Everton
Manager: David Moyes
Players In: Jermaine Beckford (Leeds United), Magaye Gueye (Strasbourg), Jan Mucha (Legia Warsaw), Joao Silva (Desportivo Aves)
Players Out: Dan Gosling (Newcastle United), Lucas Jutkiewicz (Coventry City), John Ruddy (Norwich City)

The Dan Gosling issue apart, Everton have enjoyed a relatively quiet pre-season on the departure front, although there are continuing rumours that Barcelona are keeping tabs on Mikel Arteta. Moyes has spent what little money he has had wisely. Beckford is a gamble but one worth taking given his record in the lower leagues, Gueye, Mucha and Silva will add much needed depth to an already talented squad and this means Everton should be in a better position to push on towards the European places over the coming season. The Champions League places may be beyond them, but the Toffeemen should be in a strong position to qualify for the Europa Cup at the very least.

+ POINTS : A good squad has been added too with some good strong signings and nobody has, as yet, left the club. This means the toffee’s should be in a stronger position this season. Beckford’s signing will give the club a lift and he has the ability to score the goals and be a little more robust than the talented but fragile Louis Saha.

- POINTS : Everton haven’t had the money to make the major signings needed to push them into top four contention. Moyes instead has had to buy shrewdly and he has done so once again. The lack of finances and the longer term issue of the new ground remain key problems that underpin any development Everton can make as a club. Until they are resolved, Moyes will always be fighting with one hand behind his back.

Image Courtesy of ***shel cmt*** on flickr.com

Readers Rating: