Week 15 games of the EPL

The weekend games were filled with surprises. Surprises that we are
already used to. This season has been all about the "big teams" not
showing consistency in their games.
Stoke City entertained Man City, in what eventually became Stoke's
best game of the season so far. Stoke had better chances, played
better and could have ended the game as early as the first half. Man
City couldn't find their rhythm, resulting to them being out played by this stoke side. Though some key players for Man City couldn't play
due to injury (Kompany, Toure  and Aguero) but that shouldn't have
stopped them from winning a game like this.
Arsenal returned back to winning ways by putting Sunderland to the
cleaners. After a disappointing November for the gunners, they are now back, getting the job done. Though Arsenal has serious injuries
concern to some notable members of them team, but it never stopped the likes of Campbell, Giroud and Ramsey from giving them maximum points.
Man Utd continued to be shy in front of goal, after they played out a
goalless scoreline with West Ham. Though West Ham have been tagged the giant killers this season after defeating the likes of Arsenal,
Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea. United could have done better
considering the poor run of form West Ham were coming to this game.
United's performance this season has been below par. With this kind of
result, more pressure will be on LVG.
West Brom held the consistent Tottenham to a 1-1 draw. The returning Dele Alli gave Tottenham the lead, but could not hold up for a win.
Chelsea FC continued in their bad run of form after they conceded a late goal against lowly rated Bournemouth. They have remained
consistently inconsistent in the cause of this season. Defending they
won last season is almost out of reach and securing a place in next
season UEFA Champions league might be due to their performance in this year's edition of the competition.
Southampton held Aston Villa to a 1-1 draw. The form of Southampton
lately has dropped. Newcastle United did the unthinkable against Liverpool. Liverpool's performance has been impressive lately under Klopp. Newcastle pull a surprise by defeating Liverpool 2-0.
Stoke City 2-0 Man City
Arsenal 3-1 Sunderland
Man Utd 0-0 West Ham
West Brom 1-1 Tottenham
Chelsea 0-1 Bournemouth
Southampton 1-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle 2-0 Liverpool.
Man City and Liverpool are our biggest losers for this week, while
Arsenal are undoubtedly our biggest winner.
Can Leicester City finish in the top four?

Week 14 games of the EPL

Prior to the week 14 games, several top managers were in the news for one reason or the other. Pellegrini had to deal with the rumour of Pep agreeing to join City, putting a dark cloud over his position at the club. LVG was not happy with his players after playing a goalless draw with PSV mid-week, also considering the displeasure from the fans concerning his style of football. Would Sanchez be rested for the
clash against Norwich by Wenger, while Mourinho hit back at Drogba.
Man City returned to winning ways when they took on Southampton.
City lost their last two games in all competition and needed to make a
statement, which they did emphatically against Southampton. Goals from De Bryne, Delph and Kolarov sent them back to the top of the League.
Leicester City vs Man Utd was the biggest clash of the the weekend,
because it is the top of the table clash and the prolific Vardy was
gunning for a record. Vardy lived up to expectation, by converting his
chance to eclipse the long standing Van Nistelrooy record of scoring
10 consecutive goals in 10 matches. Vardy made it 11 against Van's
former club. The game didn't record many goals like the previous season. It ended a goal apiece.
Tottenham vs Chelsea was another interesting tie we were looking
forward to, but it ended in a barren draw.
Norwich held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw with Arsenal losing 3 players to injuries. Sanchez was one of the injured, while Wenger has been receiving some backlashes from his fans for not giving him a deserved rest.
The resurgent Liverpool did the needful against Swansea City, scoring a single goal and recording another maximum points to keep their ambition alive.
Man City 3-1 Southampton
Leicester 1-1 Man Utd
Tottenham 0-0 Chelsea
Norwich 1-1 Arsenal
Liverpool 1-0 Swansea
Southampton are our biggest loser of last season top 7, while Man City
returned to the top and they are also our biggest winner with  2 goal
difference.

Week 12 games of the EPL

In the week 12 games we didn't record more goals, as compared to some previous weeks. After going 3 games without recording a goal, and was about making it 4 before Wayne Rooney showed up. This has been the story of Manchester United in the past few weeks of games. United took on West Brom at Old Trafford. United were given the lead by their new shinning light in Lingard, while Juan Mata scored the second from the spot to end the game 2-0 in favour of the Red Devils.
Even though we expected Southampton to defeat Sunderland, we never expected it to be this close in terms of score line. Despite
Sunderland defeated Newcastle in their derby, Southampton are in a
good run of form. Southampton won 1-0 away from home.
The poor form of Chelsea continued when they were hosted by Stoke
City. Chelsea having lost 6 games in the league prior this game, were
hoping to win the game to kick start their own season, but it wasn't
meant to be as Stoke who had earlier dumped them out of the Capital one cup, defeated them again in the League 1-0.
Table topper Manchester City  could not breakdown the defense of Aston
Villa to the surprise of many. Before the game, it wasn't a question
of would City win? It was a question of how many goals would they
score. City couldn't get the services of Aguero and Silva, they still
lost their second striker Bony to injury in the course of the game.
The game eventually ended in a stalemate.
Liverpool welcomed Crystal Palace to Anfield. After defeating Chelsea
in their last league game, we knew Palace were going to give them a
run for their money, which they did, by defeating Liverpool by 2-1 at
Anfield. Thereby delegating Klopp to his first defeat.
The north London derby has always been a clash with great excitement.
Arsenal hosted Tottenham, with Tottenham hoping to get a positive
result for their poor record against Arsenal. Kane gave Tottenham the
lead, but they couldn't hold on for a win. Substitute Gibbs gave
Arsenal a point in the derby to finish 1-1.
Man Utd 2-0 WBA
Sunderland 0-1 Southampton
Stoke 1-0 Chelsea
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
Liverpool 1-2 Crystal Palace
Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham
Now we take a look at our biggest loser and biggest winner. It was a
close one between Liverpool and Chelsea for the biggest loser, we pick Chelsea for not having a goal, unlike Liverpool. Our biggest winner is Man Utd.
Can Utd sustain this momentum?

Week 10 games of the EPL

The giant killers have done it again. After defeating Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City. Chelsea were the latest big team to be defeated by West Ham United, thereby compounding the woes of Jose Mourinho, after struggling with Chelsea this season. A late Carroll goal ended the game 2-1 in favour of West Ham. The next game would determine whether Mourinho remains the boss at Chelsea.
When Arsenal are in such great form, they are practically unplayable.
Mid-week, they defeated almighty Bayern. Everton knew before the game that they stand no chance of winning, a draw would have pleased them.
Tottenham thrashed Bournemouth 5-1, with Harry Kane bagging a hat-trick. The much anticipated and over hyped Manchester derby didn't live up to its billing, as the game ended in a stalemate, to the disappointment of many, despite being the most expensive Manchester derby ever.
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool recorded their third consecutive draws.
Benteke came off the bench to give them the lead, but a late equalizer
from Mane gave Southampton a point.
West Ham 2-1 Chelsea
Arsenal 2-1 Everton
Tottenham 5-1 Bournemouth
Man Utd 0-0 Man City
Liverpool 1-1 Southampton
Tottenham Hotspur were the biggest winners of this week while Chelsea
are the biggest losers for their loss.

Week 8 games of the EPL

The week 8 games would usher us into yet another international break.
Everybody wants to end on a high, but only few teams in the top seven
of last season could record a win.
Man City laid down the marker with a resounding 6-1 annihilation of
lackluster Newcastle, who held Chelsea to ransom last weekend. Last season top scorer, Kun Aguero scored five goals in the encounter, making him the fifth player in the league history to score five goals, and holding the record for the fastest.
Chelsea on the other hand were humiliated in front of their fans by
Southampton. Chelsea were given the lead through the trademark free kick of Willian, but couldn't hold on to their slim lead. Southampton came from behind to defeat them 3-1 at Stamford Bridge.
It was a Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool. It was a
clash between an inform Everton and a Liverpool who hasn't lost in the derby of recent memory. Though we expected lot of goals, we only got
goals from Ings and Lukaku, thereby ending in a 1-1 draw.
The biggest game of the weekend, was between Arsenal and Man United. It was a stroll in the park for Arsenal, to the surprise of many. United were shocked by Arsenal when they ended the game before it even started. Arsenal were 3goals up as early as 20 minute. It was a game dominated by Arsenal, and the inspired Sanchez did the damage.
Tottenham held Swansea to a 2-2 draw. Harry kane scored an own goal, after goal from Erikson had brought them game level. All thanks to Christian Erikson for scoring his second goal in the game to save Kane and Tottenham's blushes.
Man City 6-1 Newcastle
Chelsea 1-3 Southampton
Everton 1-1 Liverpool
Arsenal 3-0 Man United
Swansea 2-2 Tottenham
With City, Southampton and Arsenal all recording wins while Chelsea and United losing their games, we would select our biggest winner and loser. I don't see any reason why Man City wouldn't be our biggest winner with such goal margin,  5 goals difference, while the other Manchester is our biggest loser, with -3 as goals difference.
Thumbs up to City for going into the break on top of the league.

Week 7 games of the EPL

It was goals galore in the week 7 fixtures with an average of 3 goals in the games. We take a look at the top 7 club sides of last season and the kind of results they had.
It all started with a mouth watering tie between Tottenham and Man City. The game lived up to its billing for its record of goals, but the surprising angle to it was Tottenham not only winning the game, they demolished the league leaders by 4 goals to 1. Harry Kane was also opportune to end his goal drought. Arsenal bounced back from a disappointing lose to Chelsea. Leicester City were at the receiving end of a 5-2 bashing by Arsenal, thereby putting an end to their unbeaten run. Alexis Sanchez netting an hat-trick, also ending his goal drought.
Liverpool defeated Aston Villa by the skin of their teeth. Daniel Sturridge scored a brace to give Liverpool a 3-2 win over Villa. Man United strolled to a 3 nil win over rock bottom Sunderland. Memphis, Rooney and Mata were on the score sheet, which was all they needed to take them to the top of the league. Southampton also returned to winning ways after losing to Man United last week. They defeated Swansea by 3 goals to 1. Chelsea held Newcastle to a 2-2 draw, after coming from 2 nil down to draw level.
Tottenham 4-1 Man City
Leicester 2-5 Arsenal
Liverpool 3-2 Aston Villa
Man United 3-0 Sunderland
Southampton 3-1 Swansea
Newcastle 2-2 Chelsea
Now we look at our biggest winner and loser. This is a week of winners. Though Tottenham, Man United and Arsenal had +3 goal difference, but Arsenal scored more goals, making them the biggest winner while Man City lost.
More drama awaits us in the EPL!

Week 6 games of the EPL

Week 6 games started with the derby between Chelsea and Arsenal. Chelsea continued their resurgence after a wonderful performance in the champions league. They compounded the woes of Arsenal by defeating them 2 nil at Stamford bridge, with goals from Kurt Zouma and Eden Hazard. Arsenal ended the game with 9 men after Gabriel and Santi Carzola saw red.
Man City were dazed by West Ham United, the giant killer at the Etihad stadium. Until this game, City had been maintaining a 100% without drawing, losing or conceding a goal in the EPL until West Ham happened. With all of City's quality, they couldn't overturn a 2-1 deficit.
Tottenham made it two wins out of two when they defeated Crystal Palace by Son solitary strike to earn the maximum points.
Southampton vs Man United game was a cracker. A five goal thriller it was, with United coming out winner. It was a game of sheer class, with goals from: G. Pelle, A. Martial and J. Mata.
Lately, Liverpool can't buy a win even if they have money. They surrendered a goal lead to Norwich after Danny Ings gave them the lead in the second half.
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal
Man City 1-2 West Ham United
Tottenham 1-0 Crystal Palace
Southampton 2-3 Man United
Liverpool 1-1 Norwich
Arsenal, Man City and Southampton all lose their game, and Chelsea, Tottenham and Man United recorded wins, we take a look at our biggest loser and winner. Arsenal are our biggest loser for having a -2 goals difference as against Man City and Southampton's -1. Chelsea are our biggest winner, beating Man United and Tottenham to it with +2 goals difference.
Game on!

Week 5 games of the EPL

The free fall of Chelsea FC this season continues, thereby making this their worst start since 1986, losing thus far this season the total
they did last season. Manchester City consolidating on the perfect
record they have this season with a single goal over stubborn Crystal
Palace, with our own Kelechi Iheanacho coming from the substitute bench to hand City the maximum points, making it 15/15 points - keeping clean sheets in all the games.
Arsenal easily strolled past Stoke City at the Emirate stadium, which
wasn't much of a contest, and could have easily scored more had they
been able to convert their chances. Southampton had a goalless affair
with West Bromwich.
We had the biggest derby in England between the two most successful
club sides. Manchester United welcomed Liverpool to the theatre of
dreams. It was a drab affair till the second half of the game. United
edged Liverpool with goals from: Daley Blind, Ander Herrera, Christian
Benteke and the debutant Anthony Martial made it a memorable
encounter. Tottenham finally got their first win after five times of
trying.
Everton 3-1 Chelsea
Arsenal 2-0 Stoke City
Crystal Palace 0-1 Man City
West Bromwich 0-0 Southampton
Man United 3-1 Liverpool
Sunderland 0-1 Tottenham.
Despite the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham also recording wins, Man
United is our biggest winner for this round of games, though sharing the
same goal difference with Arsenal, but scored more goals. Liverpool
and Chelsea are our biggest losers for this week.
Can Chelsea still pick themselves up and challenge for the league?

Week 4 games of the EPL

Man City setting the pace, Arsenal with  under par performances,
Chelsea huffing and puffing, Man United not clinical in the final third
despite high possessions, under performing Liverpool, Tottenham can't win a game, and Southampton yet to impress. This has been the story of last season top seven teams in the EPL this season.
Let's take a look at the results of week 4 games.
Newcastle 0-1 Arsenal
Tottenham 0-0 Everton
Liverpool 0-3 West Ham United
Chelsea 1-2 Crystal Palace
Man City 2-0 Watford
Norwich 0-3 Southampton
Swansea City 2-1 Man United
Man United, Chelsea and Liverpool all failed to get a single point in
their games, with Man United having -1 as goal difference, Chelsea also
have -1, while Liverpool have -3, making Liverpool our biggest loser
for the week.
Arsenal, Southampton and the consistent Man City recorded maximum points. Southampton has  3 goal difference, with 1 and 2 goals more than Man City and Arsenal respectively, making Southampton the biggest winner for the week.
Can Southampton continue to impress? Can we also say that we already know where this trophy is going to by May?

The UEFA Champions League is back

Welcome to the 2015/2016 UEFA Champions League. As we all know, thisis the biggest club football competition in the world, where the bestclubs in the leagues meet to compete for the prestigious trophy.
Let's take a good look at the draws to see the teams that could likely
qualify from them.
GROUP A                 
PSG                                 
REAL MADRID                 
SHAKTAR DONETSK 
MALMO           

GROUP B
PSV
MAN UNITED
CSKA MOSCOW
WOLFSBURG

GROUP C   
BENFICA                       
ATLETICO MADRID         
GALATASARAY                   
ASTANA   

GROUP D
JUVENTUS
MAN CITY
SEVILLA
BORUSSIA BONCHENGLADBACH

GROUP E         
BARCELONA     
BAYER LEVERKUSEN 
ROMA                 
BATO BORISOV 

GROUP F
BAYERN MUNCHEN
ARSENAL
OLYMPIAKOS
DINAMO ZAGREB

GROUP G       
CHELSEA                           
PORTO                             
DYNAMO KIEV                   
MACCABI TEL-AVIV           

GROUP H
ZENIT
VALENCIA
LYON
GENT
PSG and Real Madrid would compete to top Group A. PSG look more settled than Real and with Di Maria now part of that team, I see them finishing ahead of Real. I tip PSG to finish 1st of Group A with
Madrid coming 2nd. Man Utd to top Group B is a no-brainer. The
experience of CSKA Moscow and a coordinated Wolfsburg side would give Man Utd a run for their money. If De Bruyne depart Wolfsburg, then
CSKA Moscow will nick the 2nd position.
Atletico Madrid should find Group C easy considering the kind of edge
they have over the rest of the teams in the group. I would lean
towards Benfica to finish 2nd ahead of Galatasaray. Group D is the
group of death, but my take on this one might surprise many. This is
the opportunity for Man City to step up for once. I feel City should
finish 1st and Sevilla 2nd. Juventus have sold some key players
without like-for-like replacement.
Barcelona to top Group E easily and Roma to finish 2nd with Leverkusen
giving them a scare. Bayern Munich should do enough to top Group F
with Arsenal coming 2nd. Chelsea has a relatively easy team to compete with,making them the run away winner in Group G, and Porto coming a distant 2nd. Group H is a balance group, which is there for the taking by anyone. Valencia 1st and Lyon 2nd. Congratulations to Messi for winning the best player in Europe.

Week 3 games of the EPL

It was a disappointing weekend for most football lovers, as most games
ended in draws. Man United kick started proceedings at Old Trafford, where they hosted Newcastle United. Man United are still lacking the cutting edge to prosecute games, the final third is not delivering the goods - and  questions are still being asked, whether Wayne Rooney is good
enough to lead the attack. Man United 0 - 0 Newcastle.
Watford held Southampton to a goalless draw, making sure they wait for their first win of the new season. Watford 0 - 0 Southampton. The only difference between Leicester City vs Tottenham's game and that of Southampton, was that there were goals, though it also finished in a draw. Tottenham has also not hit the ground running, there has been speculations about them getting the services of Saido Berahino, to ease the pressure of Kane. Leicester 1 - 1 Tottenham.
West Bromwich Albion gave Chelsea a huge scare when they came
visiting. Though captain John Terry received his marching orders after
a foul, Chelsea were still able to register their first win of the
season - thanks to Pedro.
Man City can't stop winning or should i say opposition can't help but taste defeat. Everton couldn't help their situation, when they were
taken to the cleaners by this rampant City side. Though Everton gave a good account of themselves, but couldn't stop Kolarov and Nasri from scoring.
Arsenal vs Liverpool was the biggest of the fixtures. Both teams failed to find the back of the net, after an end to end stuff.
There is no prize for guessing the biggest winner. The ever consistent
Man City remain on top with 3 points and  2 goals difference, while
Man United is the biggest loser for this weekend, considering their
opposition and home advantage.
Can Man City run away with the league this season?

Week 2 games of the EPL

The week 2 of the EPL has been full of excitement for lovers of football. We take a look at the performances of the top seven teams.
The second round of games started with Aston Villa hosting Man United,
which ended in favour of the away team, United (0-1). Southampton
welcomed  Everton in a mouth watering encounter - which yielded 3 goals in favour of the away side, to the surprise of many. Tottenham
played 2-2 draw with Stoke City, after going 2 goals up. Crystal
Palace were defeated 2-1 by Arsenal. Liverpool defeated the newly promoted Bournemouth 1 to nil.
Taking a look at the biggest winner and the biggest loser of the week
2 in the EPL. It is easy to say that Man City was the biggest winner,
not just having the 3 points, but also a  3 goals difference -  a replica of week 1. Southampton and Chelsea were the biggest losers of the week, with no points to show for their efforts and -3 as goal difference.
Can we still say early days?

Week 1 games of the EPL

After the first set of matches, our spotlight is upon the first seven
teams of last season English Premier League, taking a look at the kind of results they churned out. Knowing fully well that we can have only one of these three forms of outcome: a win, a draw and a loss. These were their results.
Man United 1 Tottenham 0
Chelsea 2 Swansea 2
Stoke City 0 Liverpool 1
Arsenal 0 West Ham 2
Newcastle 2 Southampton 2
Man City 3 West Brom  0.
Going by the order of results, Man City were the biggest winner in the
top seven. Though the likes of Man United and Liverpool also got the
maximum three points, the goals difference of  3 for City as against  1
for both United and Liverpool. Arsenal's -2 goals difference as
against Tottenham's -1, makes them the biggest loser of week 1 games
in the EPL.
Though it is early days, much is expected of teams like Southampton, Chelsea, Tottenham and Arsenal. These type of results could have a way of determining the season.

Curtain raiser

After a long wait for a new season, it is now upon us. The excitement
is here again with the best of footballing games, coming from
different countries in Europe.
The pre-season games have given the teams match fitness and help
discover some weaknesses or lapses in teams. While the transfer market is still open till the second day in September, players can still be signed to cover those areas, and fit in, into coaches philosophies.
The DFB-Supercup was won by Wolfsburg, after they defeated the league champions (Bayern Munich) on penalty shoot out, to kick start the German Bundesliga season.
PSG also defeated Lyon in the Trophee des Champions. Two nil was the scoreline to claim their third consecutive trophy, ushering the
League 1 season.
In England, the FA Community Shield will be coming up today at Wembley stadium. Arsenal and Chelsea would be clashing for the fourteenth time under Jose Mourinho, and his Arsenal counterpart, Arsene Wenger has
never tasted victory in any of their meetings. The two managers are
known for the jibes they often throw at each other, and the scenario
that played out at Stanford Bridge last season when Chelsea hosted
Arsenal.
On the pitch, the two sides have added to their squads. Arsenal have
signed the ex-Chelsea goalkeeper (Cech), and would be expected to
start against his former employers, while Chelsea have replaced the
departed keeper with Begovic from Stoke City and Drogba with Falcao.
Arsenal would have to do with Alexis Sanches, while Chelsea would also
consider resting Cahill and Costa due to injuries.
Would Wenger gets his first win over Mourinho, or would it be Mourinho
extending his lead.

Chelsea Focus

Chelsea has become a force to reckon with in Europe. The acquisition of the club by the Russian billionaire, Roman Abrahmovic, and the coming of Jose Mourinho, after winning the UCL with FC Porto.
Jose Mourinho returned to Chelsea after a short stinct with Real
Madrid. The 2013/2014 season was not a good one for the club, as they went trophiless, finishing third in the league behind Liverpool and Man City.
The return of Thibaut Courtois from Atletico Madrid loan, and the
signing of Filipe Luis, Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa made Chelsea a
winning team. Defending the 2014/2015 BPL trophy which they won in a fantastic fashion would be a greater success for the club.
Now let's take a look at the team and how they are fared.
Thibaut Courtois has made the keeping position is own, even before the departure of the long serving Petr Cech to Arsenal. Asmir Begovic has been signed to replace Cech.
The defensive set up of Chelsea is one of the best in Europe. Despite
the contract extension given to John Terry, Chelsea are still interested in bringing in a long term replacement for the club legend.
Jose Mourinho has been looking towards the direction of the young
Everton defender, John Stones. Though Everton has made their
displeasure known concerning the offer from Chelsea, they also
insisted that only a record fee for the youngster can lure them to
consider their offer. After just a season at Stanford Bridge, Chelsea is considering selling Filipe Luis back to Atletico Madrid, with the
club considering getting Abdul Baba Rahman from Augsburg as his
replacement.
"I love the Eiffel Tower, but i can't have it in my garden." These
were the words of Jose Mourinho about Paul Pogba. Chelsea is a team that plays two midfielder to shield the back four and also initiate attack. To have Pogba partner Nemanja Matic in that position would be deadly combination. If the words of Mourinho is anything to go by, then we shouldn't be expecting a deal for him. A midfielder who can
readily replace Cesc Fabregas when burns out in the second half of the
season should be considered.
Going forward, though the work rate of Willian is commendable but his
contributions towards goals and assist is minimal, while Juan Cuadrado has also not replicated the form that brought him to England. There has been rumours linking Cuadrado back to Italy.
The departure of Didier Drogba has brought about the signing of
Radamel Falcao from Monaco, whose last season loan to Man United was not successful, but has been given yet another opportunity in England with Chelsea this time to prove his worth.
Can they defend their trophy?

Manchester City Focus

Winning a league is difficult, defending it is more difficult and tasking. This is a lesson Man City have learnt in a hard way. On May 13, 2012, Roberto Mancini led Man City to their first BPL trophy, which was a dramatic night for both the red side and the blue side of Manchester. Man United had already defeated Sunderland by a goal, and were ahead of City on the log. Only for a late Sergio Aguero's goal, tilted the trophy to their side on goals difference. City struggled to replicate the great form that gave them this league the following season, falling behind the leader and eventual winner Man United.
City came back better in the 2013/2014 season, they won their second BPL trophy in three years on May 11, 2014. They were also pushed to the last day by Liverpool, who also had a wonderful season by every standard.
They failed again in 2014/2015 to convince that they could retain the trophy they won the previous season. They lost the title to Chelsea, who were more like a run away champion.
This is an avenue for City to re-write their wrongs, the transfer market is open, getting in the right players who can help their quest for another league title.
The goalkeeping position has been in the safe hands of Joe Hart, who truly proved himself as on of the best goalkeepers against Barcelona last season. Willy Caballero can always debutize for him when need be.
City's defence was a major let down last season. City's captain Vincent Kompany didn't play up to the level we know, and the record signing for a defender Eliaquim Mangala was a major flop. The onus is now on the manager to work on these guys to deliver their best next season. City has a solid midfield "on paper". The absence of their midfield general (Yaya Toure) to represent his country at the Africa nations cup really affected them, and his return from the competition didn't help much, due to fatique. There were speculations linking him with Inter Milan to reunite with Roberto Mancini, and City also considering replacing him with Paul Pogba. All those rumours have been put to rest. James Milner ran down his contract with the club and also failed to renew, he has move on to Liverpool on a free transfer. City has replaced him with his compatriot, Fabian Delph of Aston Villa.
Sergio Aguero was the only stand out attacker City has, with th likes of Jesus Navas and Samir Nasri contributing little or nothing going forward in terms of goals. Raheem Sterling has been signed from liverpool to add more going forward. A certain Patrick Roberts has also been signed for the future. City will consider allowing Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic leave the club for the right price.
Can City make it three out of five?

Manchester United Focus

Ever since the departure of the most successful league manager (Sir Alex Ferguson), United have been finding it difficult to compete at both the domestic and European level. With the appointment of a successor in David Moyes, United ended up in the 7th position, which couldn’t qualify them for any of the European competition, thereby bringing an end to his reign as the manager of the club. So many excuses were given for his failure, one of which was the lack of activities in the transfer market.
Louis van Gaal came on board after a successful outing with the Netherland national team at the world cup in Brazil. The likes of: Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera, Angel Di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Daley Blind were brought into the club, which took their spending for that summer to around €120M. United finished in the top four, which was their target for the season, but their performances weren’t “united like”. Though they struggle with injuries at some point, but a slow start had already defined their season.
The rebuilding process for the 2015/2016 season has already began with the signing of some key players.
The goalkeeping position has been in doubt since last season, when the No1 goalkeeper who was also the best player by a mile in the united squad last season (David De Gea) has refused to commit his future to the club by extending his contract which is entering into the final year. The goalkeeper has been linked with Real Madrid. Though the Spanish outfit wants him, with the departure of their longest serving goalkeeper (Iker Casillas), but are sure not ready to a huge sum for a player who is going into his last year of his contract. With United not willing to sell him cheap, and Real not meeting their asking price, they will have to wait till the end of the season to get him on a free transfer. United might also have to do without the services of their No 2 goalkeeper (Victor Valdes) who might be heading to Valencia on a season long loan, after being left out of the tour to America.
United’s defence has been a major talking point since the departure of Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja vidic. The defence was a major suspect last season. Matteo Darmian has been signed to replace Rafael at right-back, who could be on his way out of the club and a possible addition of a central defender (Nicolas Otamendi or Sergio Ramos) could partner any of Chris Smalling or Phil Jones.
A midfield set up without Michael Carrick last season, was a midfield without an anchor man, a dictator of the game. The 33year old man is prone to injury, and as such, the midfield was without a leader, causing Wayne Rooney to be deployed in that position. United have solved the problem with the additions of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin, who are coming with wealth of experiences at the local and European stages.
Going forward, United refused to make the loan deal of Falcao permanent because of his below par performance last season, and Robin Van Persie also sold out of the club. The record signing (Angel Di Maria) might also be sold to PSG. Memphis Depay has been signed to play either on the wings or with Rooney up top. Nicolas Gaitan might come in, in place of Di Maria. A supporting striker is on the card, with players like: Benteke, Kane, Lewandowski and Cavani being considered.
This is a club side on the rise.

Arsenal Focus

The London side have won the FA cup back-to-back. Therefore, becoming the most successful club in that cup competition. That being said, it’s been long we saw an impressive Arsenal side that can compete both at the league, and the European competition. Arsenal have not been afraid to splash the cash in the last two summer transfer windows, thereby showing intent of competing with other big spenders in Europe.
In 2013/2014 season, Arsenal made a statement signing by getting the services of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid, which many fans didn’t see coming, considering how they have always fare in their dealings. With the inspiration of having a marquee signing and a partnership that worked with Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal were able to clinch a trophy, after many years of being “trophiless”. Alexi Sanchez came with a bigger package from FC Barcelona, even though his transfer fee was not as huge as Ozil. Sanchez inspired Arsenal to defend the FA cup they won the previous season.
Who should we be expecting next to inspire Arsenal to greater things? Perhaps to clinch the EPL trophy to start with. To accomplish that, they would need to strengthen the team in some key areas.
Arsenal never really had much problems with their goalkeepers last season, even though Wojciech Szczesny lost his position to the newly acquired David Ospina, who had a wonderful Copa America by all standards. A good goalkeeper like Petr Cech can’t be in the market without getting “suitors”, who is arguably one of the best goalkeeper ever. Arsenal have got to let one of their goalkeepers leave, which is a reasonable thing to do. David Ospina would be allowed to leave considering his class.
The defence of Arsenal has been decent, but the addition of a new face in the central defence won’t be a bad idea, considering the age of Per Mertesacker and possible injuries to Laurent Koscielny. A loan deal for Calum Chambers would do both him and the club a world of good. A player like Stones of Everton can be considered.
The Midfield of Arsenal is arguably one of the best in the league. Arsenal have renewed the contract of their captain Mikel Arteta, thereby securing the services of one of their defensive midfielder. Arsenal has also been linked with, William Carvalho, Aturo Vidal and Morgan Schneiderlin of Southampton, with clubs like Man Utd and Tottenham also vying for the midfielder. Gunners would only consider the option of getting another defensive midfielder if they eventually sell Flamini.
Arsenal attack force has been decent, though they have three players that can play up front, they’ve always been linked to some strikers like, Carlos Bacca and Jackson Martinez, who have both joined AC Milan and Atletico Madrid respectively. Alexandre Lacazette can be the man to deliver the goods next season for them.
Who will lead Arsenal to glory next season?

Madrid Focus

For every unsuccessful season in Real Madrid, someone has got to pay. Carlo Ancelotti had to pay for the failure of the 2014/2015 season. With the appointment of a new manager (Rafael Benitez), they have to get their squad back to the right frame of mind.
Madrid have to get their signings spot on for the new season, and early acquisition and sales of players before or at the early stages of the preseason tour would do them a world of good before the season proper.
With the departure of Sami khedira, Javier Hernandez, and possible departure of some key players, it is only important that Real Madrid replace these players.
There has been a strong speculation linking iker Casillas with FC Porto and a possible acquisition of David De Gea of Manchester United or Kiko Casilla of Espanyol if the deal for Casillas eventually materialises.
In the defensive set-up, Real has signed up Danilo from Porto and their No 1 right-back, Carvajal has extended his contract with the Los Blancos. The future of Sergio Ramos has not been sorted out, with the defender wanting out of the club, there are other defenders that has been linked to the club, to replace Ramos: Nicolas Otamendi and Garay both Argentine International have been linked to possibly partner Pepe next season. Real are also willing to let go of their back up left back Fabio Coentrao.
With Sami Khedira  joining the UEFA champions league finalist (Juventus) on a free transfer, Real have to replace him, with the likes of Illaranmendi and Lucas Silva not experienced enough to replace him. Real has to look elsewhere for a Midfielder, with name of players like Paul Pogba, Aturo Vidal and Grzegorz Krychowiak readily comes to mind.
Real’s attack is still one of the best in Europe. Benitez has been swift to add Lucas Vazquez to their squad. Since Hernandez has returned back to his parent club (Man United), a second striker should be on the card, like Loic Remy or Edin Dzeko.
With Rafael Benitez at the helms of affair, we shouldn’t expect anything shot of rotation.

Transfer Window

July 1st is here! It is all about the summer transfer window being swung open.Long before the season was over,many club sides have been eyeing some prospect to add to their respective club sides,with some notable names taking the headlines for quite some time. Paul Pogba has been taking the lead on the list of players most sort after in Europe, with the likes of Barcelona, Man City,PSG and Chelsea all vying for the signature of the youngster. Some few club sides have kick started their transfer dealings early while others are still watching the market.Liverpool has acquired the services of five players and are ready to make it six in the next few days with the signing of Nathaniel Clyne for around 12.5 million. LVG has gotten the services of Memphis Depay for Man United for 25 million and the deal for Morgan Schneiderlin is in the pipeline while waiting to see what will be the future of their No1 (David De Gea). Chelsea are eyeing Begovic of Stoke City as the replacement for the departed Petr Cech. Arsenal have concluded the signing of Petr Cech while negotiating the sale of David Ospina. Man City have been trying to reach an agreement with Liverpool over the signing of Raheem Sterling, who as refused to extend his stay in the club.
Outside England, the coach of FC Barcelona has made known his desire to add a midfielder to his ranks,as a replacement for the departed Xavi, and all fingers are pointing towards one player,Pogba. Real Madrid on the other hand want to replace under performing Casillas with De Gea and also seek a way of keeping their talismatic defender Segio Ramos. Bayern Munich are about completing the signing of Douglas Costa and also boost their midfield. As the transfer market is about to open officially, we can only but expect movement of players.