BPL Pre-Season Preview (4)

Tottenham Hotspur

Player Watch:

1. Dimitar Berbatov: Forward

- Kinda expected isn’t it? Scoring 23 goals in 49 games for Spurs last season, he was more or less the only fixture upfront as Defoe and Keane were rotated. Tall and lanky, he possesses brilliant skill and balance for someone of his physique. Could move on to a bigger club next season if Spurs underachieve this season.

2. Younes Kaboul: Defender

- Bought at £7million, the French U-21 skipper has to justify his price and billing. Much needed purchase to add depth in a position that has only two other decent players in Ledley King and Michael Dawson. Could dislodge Dawson from the first team if he shows more pace and composure than him.

3. Robbie Keane: Forward

- He is not a fixture in the first-team but delivers every time he plays. Highly intelligent, mobile and often comes up with brilliant goals and assists. Possesses decent leadership qualities as well and is capable of driving the team forward through both words and actions. I personally rate him very highly.

Lacks: Creative midfielder

Strengths: Speed on the wide, intelligence while going forward.

Prediction: Will make it a very close race for 3^rd/4^th place.

Reasons: Excellent first team that only lacks creativity from the middle of the park, Didier Zokora (or recent acquisition Boateng) has to step up and be counted. Squad rotation system employed by Jol may not be worth while but he has to keep the whole stable of players happy.

Chicken Soup for the Team: Needs consistency on the road

Parting Shot: Has a real exciting bunch of young players, but the lack of experience and leadership could pose a problem. To dare, however, is to do.

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Arsenal

Player Watch:

1. Robin van Persie: Forward

- The man to lead the frontline for Arsenal next season. Could be too heavy a responsibility but he will relish it. A Thierry Henry without the charisma and leadership. Lacks the presence to operate alone but Adebayor could help out there. Needs to stay fit for Arsenal to make a serious challenge for Champions League

2. Cesc Fabregas: Midfielder

- He is only 20 but will already be making his 4^th season appearance for the Gunners, simply amazing. Plays like a seasoned veteran, could be the man to lead the team to greater heights if Arsenal manages to keep him and Arsene Wenger. Not much can be said, just watch him play and you will know what I mean.

3. Eduardo da Silva: Forward

- The Official Henry Replacement Guy. Has massive boots to fill, and his diminutive size could deceive. A goal scoring machine at club and international level, his goals will be much needed if Arsenal were to compete for the top places. The physicality of the English game should not be a problem.

Lacks: Experience, leading figure upfront

Strengths: Speed and off-the-ball movement

Prediction: Will make it a very close race for 3^rd/4^th place.

Reasons: Youthful team may not be able to concentrate throughout games or for entire season, Jens Lehmann’s temperament and inconsistency, lack of leading figure up front

Chicken Soup for the Team: Experience is sorely needed, especially up front. Cesc may have something to say about that though…This is a team for the future, but could spring some surprises now.

Parting Shot: Has to look for a new first team goalkeeper soon. The challenge for the club is to retain the services of Fabregas and Wenger.

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Liverpool

Player Watch:

1. Steven Gerrard: Midfielder

- Ever tireless and dangerous going forward, he is obviously Liverpool’s key man next season. He needs to stay fit if Liverpool were to challenge the top 2 places. Excellent at what he does, he is a lad with very very few shortcomings. Will be interesting to see where he fits in Benitez’s new game plan.

2. Andriy Voronin: Forward

- He has made an impression in pre-season with solid performances, but is yet to be proven. Has upstaged big name and big money signings Babel and Torres, grabbing the headlines, and he was acquired free. There will be stiff competition for first team places next season, but each has their own strengths and would be tactically employed accordingly.

3. Xabi Alonso: Midfielder

- This midfield maestro pulls the strings for the team. Suspect on the tackle but can devastate opposition defenses with his pinpoint visionary passes. Quite an obvious favourite of Benitez.

Lacks: Depth in defense, needs another winger to service the likes of Torres and Crouch. A team/manager that is required for Premier League success.

Strengths: World-class backbone.

Prediction: 3^rd/4^th place is more or less secure. Can they challenge the top 2? Unlikely…

Reasons: Reina’s inconsistency, lack of defensive cover in times of injury

Chicken Soup for the Team: Another centre-defender will come in very handy. If Torres lives up to his big name, the gap between 1^st and 3^rd may not be that far after all.

Parting Shot: I rate Momo Sissoko quite highly and if he were applied more often in matches, could make a difference. The question is where do you put the rest of the stunning midfield players? If Rafa Benitez has improved on his tactics employed in the Premier League, or decides to be more focused on the domestic front, things may be different.

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Chelsea

Player Watch:

1. John Terry: Defender

- Superb balance for someone as big and tall as he is, excellent in the air. Reads the game extremely well, which makes up for his lack of acceleration (I believe Alex has been brought in precisely for this shortcoming in the Chelsea defense). He however has a hard time dealing with quick players. His leadership is one of the cornerstones of success for Chelsea.

2. Didier Drogba: Forward

- I rate him as the best out-and-out forward in the league. Strong, good in the air, skilful and fast, you can’t get any better than that. He adds an intelligent element into his game by riling up/throwing opponents off their game; however his antics can sometimes get overboard and ends up getting himself into trouble. World-class player that is very well employed by Mourinho.

3. Petr Cech: Goalkeeper

- Another one in the top 5 goalkeepers’ league. His absence last season was one of the reasons for Chelsea’s inconsistency. His massive frame between the posts is as intimidating as you can get. Remaining brave in his challenges despite a horrific injury last season speaks volumes of his professionalism.

Lacks: Ball winners especially when it is Lampard and Ballack in the centre of midfield, cover for full-backs.

Strengths: Excellent defense, experience at the highest level both on and off the pitch.

Prediction: Will push Manchester United to the limit this season and could very well pip them to the title.

Reasons: A strong first eleven coupled with adequate depth in key positions

Chicken Soup for the Team: Cover for wide positions in defense will do the team’s quest for glory on all fronts much good

Parting Shot: Shevchenko has a lot to prove this season and I expect him to do just that.

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Manchester United

Player Watch:

1. Cristiano Ronaldo: Forward

- Speedy, skilful, strong in the air blah blah blah…Has everything you ever need in an attacking player, never mind the fact that he cannot defend for nuts, he has Hargreaves to do the job for him. One interesting potential flashpoint is how he would react if Anderson and Nani put in similarly brilliant performances this season. If he has matured, this will be healthy competition. If he hasn’t, this could be cause for concern.

2. Owen Hargreaves: Midfielder

- I was very reluctant to include him in this list. Big price comes with big responsibility and to fill Keano’s shoes is no easy task. He has a hell of a lot to prove to the world and is someone I consider to be over-rated. I hope he proves me wrong. United’s season could rest on the amount of faith Sir Alex puts in him.

3. Anderson & Nani: Midfielders

- I feel it is apt to place both of them together, as the 2 of them will probably for the focus of comparison throughout the season. Both cost £17million, were U-21 stars and are currently full internationals, quick and skilful and both speak Portuguese. Being able to withstand the physicality of the English game would determine if either would be a success. Their arrival will lift the attacking responsibilities that Rooney and Ronaldo shouldered for last two seasons.

Lacks: Cover in defense and in goal

Strengths: Formidable counter-attacking style, creativity and innovation when going forward

Prediction: It will be much tighter this season and could possibly be edged out by Chelsea at the very end.

Reasons: Questions in defense that were evident last season has not seemed to be solved. Van der Sar’s public announcement that he feels he is not at the top of his game and could retire at the end of the season is worrying.

Chicken Soup for the Team: They will have to score more than they concede especially against the top teams. Are you paying attention Nani, Anderson…Tevez?

Parting Shot: The timing which the Tevez issue is solved is crucial to United’s performance next season. The sooner the better, and if it drags on past the start of the season, he may only be able to establish himself in the team at the later third of the season which may be too late.

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Spurs could make the race for the 2 Champions League spots very exciting and the onus is on Arsenal and Liverpool to keep ahead of them. I still feel Manchester United and Chelsea are way ahead of Arsenal and Tottenham, but if Liverpool places more priority on domestic success this season, thing could get really interesting at the top. My heart tells me Manchester United, but my head says Chelsea. To find out what I think the end-of-season table will probably look like, stay tuned for the next and final installment on the Barclays Premier League Preview where I will make my predictions and place myself in the line of fire. Please be gentle, I'm fragile...