Comment: EPL’s finest vie for England’s biggest prize
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham can beat any club team on their day.
All six teams have a fair shot at winning the league title and even the much coveted top four Champions League spots are not a surety for any team.
After an atypical anti-climactic 2012-2013 season, the English Premier League is back to its competitive best with only six points separating the top eight teams.
Often dubbed the most exciting league in the world, the Premier League’s main selling point is its competitive nature. While no Ballon d’Or winner plies his trade in the league, its ‘big six’ is far more exciting to watch than that of any other European league.
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham can beat any club team in the world on their day. All six teams have a fair shot at winning the league title and even the much coveted top four Champions League spots are not a surety for any team.
Arsenal currently sit top of the table with a two-point lead, despite their recent defeat at Old Trafford. The signing of Mesut Ozil, the best attacking midfielder in the world this side of Andres Iniesta, has galvanised the whole squad, with Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey in the form of their lives.
However, up front, Arsenal are overly dependent on Giroud, with hapless Niklas Bendtner as the club’s second-choice striker.
If Arsenal manage to stay top of the league come January, they will have a chance to lure a world class striker. Boasting one of the league’s best midfielder, Arsene Wenger’s experience and a new striker as Giroud’s deputy, it would be folly to bet against them.
Liverpool are two points behind Arsenal and boast the best strike partnership in the league in Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge.
However, like Arsenal, Liverpool have no strength in depth and their bench looks devoid of any game changers.
Brendan Rodgers’ preferred 3-5-2 formation accommodates the two strikers without compromising on midfield dominance but has failed in big matches, with defeats against Arsenal and United exposing its imbalance. Rodgers recently claimed that he is aiming for a top four finish, but with perhaps some choice signings in January, Liverpool may well consider themselves genuine title contenders.
Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea sit in fourth place but have failed to impress, relying more on luck than the brilliance of their attacking midfield triumvirate in order to score goals.
While the ‘Special One’s’ arrival has rejuvenated Chelsea’s old guard in Frank Lampard and John Terry, he desperately needs Spaniards Fernando Torres and Juan Mata to start firing in order to challenge for the title.
Meanwhile, despite a poor start, United sit five points behind Arsenal and have gained a head of steam after navigating through their early run of tough fixtures.
David Moyes needs to start getting the best out of his strikers, especially with the recent injury to Michael Carrick exposing the lack of midfield creativity. Moyes has gotten a lot of stick recently and winning the title would be the perfect way to silence critics.
However, he may need to delve into United’s transfer kitty and buy a world class creative midfielder in January.
Manuel Pellegrini’s City are playing their best football, but their recent away form has been nothing short of horrendous. City have clearly missed their defensive stalwart Vincent Kompany, especially considering the frequency with which dominant performances have resulted in losses. However, Pellegrini needs to take heart from the forms of Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri.
Tottenham, despite spending over €100 million in the summer, have flattered to deceive on a consistent basis and have scored the least number of goals of any team in the top 10, less than half of what league leaders Arsenal’s tally. They are the least favourite of the traditional big six to win the league and would do well to finish in the top four to gain a Champions League spot.
At this moment, it looks like all it will take is one major injury or excellent signing to decide the title. No pressure.
The writer is a sub-editor at The Express Tribune
Published in The Express Tribune, November 22nd, 2013.
Often dubbed the most exciting league in the world, the Premier League’s main selling point is its competitive nature. While no Ballon d’Or winner plies his trade in the league, its ‘big six’ is far more exciting to watch than that of any other European league.
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham can beat any club team in the world on their day. All six teams have a fair shot at winning the league title and even the much coveted top four Champions League spots are not a surety for any team.
Arsenal currently sit top of the table with a two-point lead, despite their recent defeat at Old Trafford. The signing of Mesut Ozil, the best attacking midfielder in the world this side of Andres Iniesta, has galvanised the whole squad, with Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey in the form of their lives.
However, up front, Arsenal are overly dependent on Giroud, with hapless Niklas Bendtner as the club’s second-choice striker.
If Arsenal manage to stay top of the league come January, they will have a chance to lure a world class striker. Boasting one of the league’s best midfielder, Arsene Wenger’s experience and a new striker as Giroud’s deputy, it would be folly to bet against them.
Liverpool are two points behind Arsenal and boast the best strike partnership in the league in Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge.
However, like Arsenal, Liverpool have no strength in depth and their bench looks devoid of any game changers.
Brendan Rodgers’ preferred 3-5-2 formation accommodates the two strikers without compromising on midfield dominance but has failed in big matches, with defeats against Arsenal and United exposing its imbalance. Rodgers recently claimed that he is aiming for a top four finish, but with perhaps some choice signings in January, Liverpool may well consider themselves genuine title contenders.
Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea sit in fourth place but have failed to impress, relying more on luck than the brilliance of their attacking midfield triumvirate in order to score goals.
While the ‘Special One’s’ arrival has rejuvenated Chelsea’s old guard in Frank Lampard and John Terry, he desperately needs Spaniards Fernando Torres and Juan Mata to start firing in order to challenge for the title.
Meanwhile, despite a poor start, United sit five points behind Arsenal and have gained a head of steam after navigating through their early run of tough fixtures.
David Moyes needs to start getting the best out of his strikers, especially with the recent injury to Michael Carrick exposing the lack of midfield creativity. Moyes has gotten a lot of stick recently and winning the title would be the perfect way to silence critics.
However, he may need to delve into United’s transfer kitty and buy a world class creative midfielder in January.
Manuel Pellegrini’s City are playing their best football, but their recent away form has been nothing short of horrendous. City have clearly missed their defensive stalwart Vincent Kompany, especially considering the frequency with which dominant performances have resulted in losses. However, Pellegrini needs to take heart from the forms of Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri.
Tottenham, despite spending over €100 million in the summer, have flattered to deceive on a consistent basis and have scored the least number of goals of any team in the top 10, less than half of what league leaders Arsenal’s tally. They are the least favourite of the traditional big six to win the league and would do well to finish in the top four to gain a Champions League spot.
At this moment, it looks like all it will take is one major injury or excellent signing to decide the title. No pressure.
The writer is a sub-editor at The Express Tribune
Published in The Express Tribune, November 22nd, 2013.