Premier League 2008/2009 Preview Part.2 (C-H)

13 Aug, 2008 Jonathan F England, Europe, Latest, Premier League

Chelsea
(Last season – 2nd)

Last season Chelsea were knocked out during the early rounds of all domestic and European cup competitions and had to battle and scrape for points all year long before eventually managing to avoid relegation on the final day. Such underachievement was deemed unacceptable by the hierarchy at the club, and subsequently manager Avram Grant was sacked. Wait a minute. Champions League final? What? Within two points of winning the league? You mean John Terry missed a penalty to hand the Blues the biggest prize in club football and then bawled his eyes out? No chance…really? Oh.

It shows just how far Chelsea have come under Roman Abramovich that a manager can take the club the furthest they have ever been in Europe’s premier competition and finish second yet still be unceremoniously dumped within days of the season ending, but such is the all-consuming, rampant lust for trophies at Chelsea headquarters these days. There is no margin for error.

As remedy to a summer of disappointment and ‘what ifs’ Luiz Felipe Scolari has been appointed new Chelsea manager and handed the task of wrestling the title from Manchester United’s grasp. In terms of squad reinforcements his only signing so far has been Deco from Barcelona (Jose Bosingwa had already joined before Scolari’s arrival), but rumours of a world record bid for Kaka persist as does yet another summer ‘will-he-won’t-he’ saga, this one involving Robinho. Bosingwa’s arrival from Porto shores up the only obvious hole in the back four, completing a defence that excels in both depth and quality, and if the Blues’ pre-season results and summer transfer targets are anything to go by Scolari is looking to produce a more expansive, attacking side. Nicolas Anelka will be overjoyed at the opportunity to play as a striker again, as he demonstrated with four goals in a friendly against AC Milan, while players like Florent Malouda and Andrei Shevchenko have been handed a clean slate and the chance to prove themselves after indifferent spells last year.

Quite how the midfield will shape up remains to be seen, but Scolari certainly has an abundance of fine options. Should he revert to 4-4-2 one imagines the central midfield berths will be occupied by Michael Essien plus one of Michael Ballack, Frank Lampard and Deco, but he can chop and change as and when necessary. All four are supremely gifted and reliable players.

Irrespective of signings, keeping hold of both Lampard and Didier Drogba for another season can also be seen as a coup for Chelsea. Lampard appears to have spurned Inter Milan and Jose Mourinhio’s advances, at least until next year, while keeping hold of Drogba is a welcome bonus. As he trudged off the field having been sent off in Moscow many felt it would be his final act in a Chelsea shirt.

Overall, Chelsea have arguably the best squad in the Premiership with quality in all areas of the pitch and an experienced, World Cup winning, strong character to guide them. They should take some stopping.

Ins: Jose Bosingwa (FC Porto, £16.2m), Deco (Barcelona, £8m).
Outs: Steve Sidwell (Aston Villa, £5m), Ben Sahar (Portsmouth, loan), Ryan Bertrand (Norwich, loan), Slobodan Rajkovic (FC Twente, loan), Claude Makelele (Paris St Germain, free), Khalid Boulahrouz (Stuttgart, £4m), Tal Ben Haim (Manchester City, undisclosed).

Everton
(Last season – 5th)

In 2007/2008 Everton looked like the one team that could genuinely break the ‘Majestic Quartet’ dominance and qualify for a Champions League spot. For a long time they managed to hold off city rivals Liverpool and occupy that coveted fourth place. Then in mid-March they went out of the UEFA Cup to Fiorentina on penalties and the energy exerted fighting on two fronts began to take its toll. Injury to important players did them no favours either, and by the end of March they had taken just one point from nine, lost a vital Merseyside derby and relinquished their grip on fourth. They would not gain it back. Finishing fifth may have been a pleasing enough achievement, but the lesson learnt was that they needed a far bigger squad to make further progress.

Fast-forward to August then and at the time of writing, with just over two weeks of the transfer window remaining, Everton have signed nobody. Such a lack of transfer activity at Goodison Park this summer has manager David Moyes worried and with due cause, for without any squad reinforcements it is very difficult to see his side repeating their fifth place finish, let alone improving on it.

That is not to say the Toffees have become a bad side overnight. Andy Johnson aside the majority of their key players remain, and at £10.5 million pounds the fee for Johnson was too good to turn down regardless. However, the squad is wafer thin at present and given the injury prone nature of the likes of Tim Cahill you struggle to imagine such a small pool of players being able to find the consistency to challenge the top four as they did last season. As it stands Everton risk over-reliance on certain players in vital areas; without any reinforcements Yakubu will have to carry the burden of being chief goalscorer, and with no out-and-out wingers of real quality Leon Osman, Mikel Arteta and Cahill will once again be looked at to provide all the creativity and verve. Cahill in particular. Everton collected 40 points in the 18 games he played last season, and they cannot afford to lose him to another long-term injury. Though Victor Anichebe should grow in stature and contribute more than the solitary league goal he offered last season and James Vaughan can also come in as backup, they are currently both too inconsistent to be relied on regularly. Lee Carsley’s tenacity will also be sorely missed in midfield.

Nonetheless there are positives. The defence continues to look solid and in Jack Rodwell and Dan Gosling they have bright youngsters coming through. In David Moyes they also boast a shrewd manager who excels at bringing together a tightly-knit group of players and instilling good attitude and work ethic. His presence alone should prevent any serious problems from developing.

The next two weeks will determine Everton’s prospects for the season. If Moyes can successfully bring in first-rate players like Vagner Love and Joao Moutinho, reportedly his top transfer targets, then the air of pessimism at the club will soon lift. If not though, they could f
ind themselves a lot lower down the table this time out.

Ins: None.
Outs: Lee Carsley (Birmingham City, free), Stefan Wessels (VfL Osnabruck, free), Andrew Johnson (Fulham, £10.5m).

Fulham

(Last season – 17th)

Fulham have been very busy this summer. Roy Hodgson helped the club survive by the skin of their teeth last season, with Danny Murphy’s goal at Portsmouth on the final day completing a miraculous escape from what for a long time looked like certain relegation, and the former Inter Milan coach has wasted little time in revamping the squad, advocating wholesale changes to the playing staff. So far a staggering twenty-two transfers have taken place, eleven arrivals and eleven departures – literally two whole teams.

The most high profile arrivals are in attacking areas, particularly upfront where Hodgson has spent upwards of £14 million pounds on a fresh new strikeforce. Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora looks an interesting partnership. Neither excelled for their respective clubs last season but both have ability. Johnson offers pace and more of a goalscoring threat than Fulham have had previously, while Zamora is an aerial presence in the mould of the underrated Brian McBride, who was released by the club. Fulham have probably overpaid for their services (Johnson comes in for a club record fee) but if the duo can regain some confidence and form a solid partnership together then the money paid will be worth it.

Behind them they have Jimmy Bullard and Danny Murphy to provide the ammunition, while the signing of Zoltan Gera also looks to be a clever bit of business. He scored ten goals from midfield last season for West Brom and if he can contribute similarly at Fulham it would be a welcome boost for a side that scored just 38 goals in the league in 2007/2008 at a rate of exactly one per game. They will need to improve on that tally if they are to avoid flirting with relegation again this year.

Fulham have stocked up on goalkeepers in the close season, with Mark Schwarzer, Pascal Zueberbuehler and David Stockdale all arriving to boost that particular position. Based on the evidence of pre-season Schwarzer will be first choice, but he will have to keep on his toes; any Tony Warner style howlers could see either of the other two keepers pushing for the number one jersey. Despite reinforcements in goal, the defence still appears to be Fulham’s weakest area and it looks as though Hodgson could do with one or two players of a better calibre in there if the club are to avoid shipping as many as they did last season. Hodgson has once again used his knowledge of the Scandinavian market to bring in Tony Kallio, a Finnish defender who can play left back or centre half, and Swedish international Fredrik Stoor, while John Pantsil has been recruited from West Ham, but they still look susceptible to leaking goals.

For Fulham this season a lot depends on how quickly the new players gel. They should however possess enough firepower and invention to avoid struggling as desperately as they did last year, and with an astute manager in charge fans can expect an improvement on 2007/2008’s performance.

Ins: John Pantsil and Bobby Zamora (West Ham, £6.3m), Tony Kallio (Young Boys Bern, undisclosed), Andranik Teymourian (Bolton, free), Zoltan Gera (West Brom, free), David Stockdale (Darlington, undisclosed), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, free), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg, undisclosed), Pascal Zuberbuhler (Neuchatel Xamax, free), Andrew Johnson (Everton, £10.5m).
Outs: Dejan Stefanovic (Norwich, undisclosed), Nathan Ashton (Wycombe, nominal fee), Elliot Omozusi (Norwich, loan), Ricardo Batista (Sporting, undisclosed), Tony Warner (Hull City, free), Carlos Bocanegra (Stade Rennais, free), Brian McBride (Toronto, free), Philippe Christanval, Jari Litmanen, Simon Elliott, Kasey Keller (released), Hameur Bouazza (Charlton, loan).

Hull City

(Last season – promoted)

If Rodney Marsh was still a panelist on Soccer Saturday I can imagine exactly what he would say about Hull City. It would be something along the lines of, ‘I tell you what Jeff, there is absolutely no point in Hull being in the Premiership. We may as well have a nineteen team league. In fact I tell you what, if Hull stay up I’ll shave my head/bare my backside in Hull town square/give up my Porsche to a Hull season ticket holder.’ He would be disgusted.

Hull City will make their first ever appearance in top-flight football this season after manager Phil Brown steered them up through the playoffs against all expectations. It is refreshing to see different teams coming up to compete with the elite of the Premiership, and many will wish them well. But the reality is it could be a long, hard season for the Tigers.

I do not expect them to do a Derby (poor Derby, entering the English language as a byword for miserable failure). Thus far Phil Brown has bought quite solidly with limited resources. Geovanni, brought in from Manchester City will be looked to as the creative hub of the team and he should relish the more regular first team action his move should guarantee, while George Boateng is an experienced midfielder and a leader which could be vital if as expected the club find themselves in a relegation scrap. A return to the Premiership for Nick Barmby means everything to him, and his sheer enthusiasm should also prove inspirational to those around him.

The problem for Hull though is that last season a major reason for their promotion was down to the form and goals of two players, Frazier Campbell and Dean Windass. The former is now back at Manchester United following a loan spell while the latter is, with the greatest respect, not good enough for the Premier League. Windass proved an inspired signing for Hull in the Championship, particularly when you consider that Phil Brown plucked him from the fourth tier of English football. The 39-year old was happily seeing out his playing career at Bradford City when his hometown club came knocking at the door and this remarkable fairytale was completed when he scored the winner in the playoff final against Bristol City back in May. But realistically, at nigh on 40 it is hard to see the Yorkshirema
n having what it takes to help the Tigers avoid relegation. Caleb Folan and Craig Fagan will be relied on for goals, but I do not envisage the duo having enough goals in them to keep Hull safe from the drop. The manager could certainly do with reinforcements in attacking areas.

Hull start the season with home games against Fulham and Wigan and a trip to Blackburn Rovers. It is important they make the sort of start that offers the fans some sort of encouragement. Otherwise next season ‘doing a Hull’ could be failure’s new nickname.

Ins: Peter Halmosi (Plymouth, £2m), George Boateng (Middlesbrough, £1m), Tony Warner (Fulham, free), Bernard Mendy (Paris St Germain, free), Geovanni (Manchester City, free), Craig Fagan (Derby, £750,000), Anthony Gardner (Tottenham, loan).
Outs: Michael Bridges (Carlisle, loan), Henrik Pedersen (Silkeborg IF, free), David Livermore (Brighton, free).

Chelsea, England, English Premier League, Everton, Fulham, Hull City, Previews

Hot Prospects: 13 English young players to watch in 2012
29 Dec, 2011 guest 7 Comments
John Terry? Right now he’s the least of our problems…
26 Oct, 2011 Greg Theoharis 4 Comments
Playing the long game: Andre Villas Boas and Chelsea
14 Oct, 2011 guest 1 Comment

Share This Post!

About Jonathan F

The boss of this here... Creator and Editor of Just-Football.com and world football analyst, watcher, freelancer and all-round enthusiast. Write for FourFourTwo, have also written for ITV, When Saturday Comes and others. Open to offers.

Comments are closed.