Thursday, December 31, 2009

Premier League 2009 and 10 Season Preview

The new English Premier League season is nearly upon us. Football fans have been waiting all summer long for the season to start, not just in England, but worldwide; with the English Premier League being the most popular and viewed football league in the world.

Manchester City have been the big spenders this summer, already bolstering their attack with the signings of Roque Santa Cruz, Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor. Desperate to make an impact this season after failing to make much of an impression last season despite the big money signings that included Robinho and Shaun Wright-Phillips. Mark Hughes is facing pressure as he knows his team must perform this season otherwise he could be out of work by the end of the season.

Rivals Manchester United have seen their squad weakened by the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo for a world record fee to Real Madrid. Arguably the best player in the world, he seems irreplaceable and United fans will be wondering how much of an effect this will have on their team this season. Their new winger is Antonio Valencia from Wigan Athletic, a proven player in the Premier League who has impressed during his time at a smaller Premier League side. Can he handle the pressure of a top 4 side? While he doesn't have a very good goalscoring record, certainly not near Ronaldo's, Manchester United have brought in Michael Owen on a free transfer to replace Carlos Tevez who they were unable to sign when his loan expired. The England international has a proven record despite struggling over recent years with injury problems. If he can shake them off, expect him to make an impact in Manchester this season.

Down in London, Arsenal and Chelsea have been reluctant to sign many new players, with the Gunners biggest signing being Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax for a fee in the region of £10,000,000. They have however sold Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure for a combined price of over £40,000,000 that should leave manager Arsene Wenger with some cash to spend. Chelsea's biggest name signing under new manager Carlo Ancelotti has been Yuri Zhirkov for CSKA Moscow, while the Italian has also brought in two young Englishmen; Ross Turnbull and Daniel Sturridge.

Last season's runners up, Liverpool have brought in Glen Johnson for what many feel to be overpriced at £17,500,000. Alvaro Arbeloa has headed off to Real Madrid, and Sami Hyypia left for Bayer Leverkusen when his contract expired.

It seems once again it could be the same top 4 teams qualifying for Champions League next season, unless Manchester City transform into competitors after their summer spending spree. We'll have to wait and see how they get on, whilst Aston Villa and Everton may miss out again without strengthening their squads dramatically this summer.

The Premier League welcomes Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City and Burnley this season following their promotion from the Championship last season. All eyes will be on those and others down the bottom as they fear the drop and the big loss of earnings that relegation brings upon three unfortunate teams.




Barrie Smith is a writer for Premiership Tips - A free sports betting tips service based in the United Kingdom.

This month, Premiership Tips have announced their new Football Betting Forum, allowing members to post their own tips, opinions and reviews in the sporting world.

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Spalding NBA Varsity Basketball (Official)

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Mancini prepares for his first Premier League game

The new Manchester City boss talks about playing two games in three days, starting with Stoke on Boxing Day. Follow us on twitter at twitter.com



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_RGffMAayI&hl=en

Premier League - Giggs Focuses in West Brom Game and the United's New Contract Offer

The 35-year-old veteran wide midfielder of Manchester United Ryan Giggs was offered a 1-year extension contract, since his current contract ends in June, 2009. Giggs expressed recently his intentions to retire at the end of this season, however, for Coach Sir Alex Ferguson and his teammates, Giggs has been an important player for the team's current success and they want him to stay one more year. Ferguson hopes that this offer will convince the Welsh player of continuing with Manchester United one more season so he can contribute with his experience and his football. For Sir Ferguson, Giggs has been incredible this season and he could win the Footballer of the Year award due to his performance on this campaign.

On the other hand, Giggs has expressed that he enjoys his new role in the team as a winger and he feels great with his team right now. Nobody knows yet what will be Gigs decision at the end of the season, but everybody hopes he will take the best one for him.

For the moment, the veteran player is focused on helping and leading the team to stay in the top of the standings. For the following game against West Brom, which is currently at the bottom of the table and is looking to survive in the top flight, Giggs stated that his team United has to see its contender as a difficult and strong one even though it is not at the top, because he affirms that at the end of the season every team is fighting for something, whether it is the championship title, not getting relegated or for a place in the UEFA Cup; whatever the reason is, each game counts for everyone.

For Giggs, West Brom is a good squad that can complicate things to United. During the last game against West Brom, even though United ended with a 4-0 victory, the result obtained does not mean that it was an easy game, by the contrary; they had to fight hard to achieve it.

"They outplayed us at times in the first half with their passing and movement and kept it at 0-0 until half-time. They're on a good run at the moment, especially at home, and they're a team that likes to play football. So it'll be a tough game. We're just focused on getting the three points and staying top. Once you hit the front you want to stay there and that's definitely our aim," stated the experienced footballer.

This game will be held on Tuesday February 27th at Hawthorns Stadium. We wish the best for Manchester United and their veteran player, who has gained a respectful image on the club and has become one of the best players in the history of English Football. Under his belt, Giggs has attained plenty of honours, such as 10 Premier League Championships, four FA Cups, two UEFA Champions League titles and two League Cups since he started his professional career at United. Giggs owns also the record of the most appearances with the Manchester United, with a total of 759.




Ally White is a top senior copy writer for the English Premier League games as well as the sports industry. Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety on your site, make sure to leave all links in place and do not modify any of the content.