Reuters Soccer Blog

Premier League predictions, week one … the reckoning

How did you get on? I expect it was better than most of us… As a look back to Friday lunchtime’s post will attest, our efforts at predicting the score on the opening weekend of the Premier League covered few of us in any glory.

A lot of people overestimated Chelsea and underestimated Arsenal, but the general feeling that Liverpool would come unstuck at Spurs proved well founded.

As a general guide, I’ve given one point for a correct result — except for those who had Chelsea or Man Utd winning by a hatful — and five points for a correct score. There were precious few of those. I’ve totted it all up very roughly, but the score so far looks more or less as follows…

Owen Wyatt, Miles Evans – 10 points (FROM A POSSIBLE 50!!), Patrick Johnston 9, Kevin Fylan 8, Simon Evans 7, Paul Radford 4, Mike Collett and Mitch Phillips 2.

That includes a bonus point for me as the only person to predict a goal for Hull City. Fair? Well, maybe. Anyway, appeals welcome, as every time I add it up it seems to come to something different. The problems of an arbitrary scoring system…

Let us know if you did much better/worse… and Tune in later for more predictions…

Vlog on the Pitch: the great Spurs buyback programme

Could Robbie Keane be the next former Spur to return to White Hart Lane? And what’s behind the signing of Carlo Cudicini?

Join Owen Wyatt, Jon Bramley and Tom Newey for answers to these questions and more in the latest exciting edition of Vlog on the Pitch…

The Carling Cup is different, that’s why we love it

In September, Mitch Phillips argued here that the League Cup should be shuffled off into retirement. Who could argue for prolonging the life of this tired, unwanted “third competition”? Well, actually, after this week’s action, I would.

Arsenal and Tottenham, who together served up such a thrilling 4-4 draw when they met in the league at the end of October, were at it again separately this week, playing the same direct, fearless, attacking football despite featuring much changed line-ups.

The two ties they were involved in provided nine goals and four came from English strikers. That’s the same number as English forwards scored in all last weekend’s Premier League fixtures, and two more than the weekend before.

Add this to the encouraging performances from British youngsters like Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Lennon and Michael Dawson, and at least Fabio Capello and John Toshack can raise a pint (of Carling) to the League Cup.

The very fact that top teams field reserves and youngsters sees the League Cup get a lot of stick but suppose for a minute everyone put out their best sides and the top four all made it through to the quarter-finals: would that make it a better competition? Don’t we see enough of these games in the Premier League and FA Cup?

This week, the League Cup brought us British players excelling at top clubs, bags of goals and a big upset against the Premier League leaders at Stamford Bridge. Who could ask for more?

Old Trafford is just the place for a maverick like Berbatov

Manchester United has proved the natural home for maverick showmen in the past and Dimitar Berbatov can become a worthy successor to those who have graced Old Trafford before him.

The 27-year-old Bulgaria captain, who joined United after two memorable years at Tottenham Hotspur, should instantly win over United fans who have previously worshipped strikers like Denis Law, George Best and Eric Cantona.

Berbatov has outstanding balance and control, is capable of devastating finishes and boasts the deftest of touches. He displayed all those qualities in Tottenham’s thrilling 6-4 Premier League win over Reading last December when he scored four times.

Among his goals was a superb shot on the turn, executed in a way that made it look simple when it was anything but, and he blasted home another shot that nearly took the net off its supports.

Read Mike Collett’s full appreciation of Berbatov’s talents on our main website here.

PHOTO: Dimitar Berbatov looks back during Bulgaria’s friendly against Bosnia in Zenica August 20, 2008. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj

Bentley takes another step towards filling Beckham’s boots

He has the same initials and plays in the same position so David Bentley will hope that his 15million pounds transfer to Tottenham will help him dislodge David Beckham once and for all from the England team.

The 23-year-old has never seemed short of confidence and the midfielder declared that he was ready to step up “to the next level” by leaving the homely surrounds of Blackburn Rovers after just two years for a return to London’s bright lights.

Bentley, of course, began his career in the youth ranks at Arsenal, leaving the club after becoming frustrated by his lack of first-team opportunities. It is not often Arsene Wenger errs in his handling of young players but Bentley may come back to haunt the Arsenal manager if he shines for their north London neighbours.

“I grew up there but it is not a problem for me. My heart is at Tottenham now,” Bentley told reporters after signing in at an otherwise nervous White Hart Lane.

Bentley supported Spurs as a boy and said he dreamed of emulating the feats of Paul Gascoigne in the white of club and country. Being at Tottenham has never harmed a player’s England prospects in the past and Bentley is determined to grab his opportunity.

“It is entirely in my hands – it is up to me to perform,” said a player whose impressive dead-ball skills and passing range from the right have earned him six England caps already.

Vlog on the pitch – Why is Benitez looking closer to home?

Robbie Keane’s arrival at Liverpool and the long pursuit of Gareth Barry suggest Rafa Benitez is looking more at British Isles players than in the past.

Vlogonthepitch host Owen Wyatt went to his local pub to canvass the opinions of two Liverpool fans.

If Barry does eventually sign, will the new approach from Benitez help Liverpool compete more in the Premier League or might it cause them to suffer in Europe?

Let us know your views.

Reality to bite for Spurs again?

As a new Premier League season comes into focus and the skies of expectation position themselves above White Hart Lane, it’s nearly time for another thrilling adventure for Spurs fans.

The summer’s rebuilding is virtually complete and soon the manager and the team will have to start delivering. With the increased likelihood of Berbatov and Keane sailing off into the distance, it’s already a worrying time.

There will be no hiding place for Ramos this term, no more excuse that he inherited a team. It’s now his team, shaped and prepared by him, and fans will demand results.

A good start to the season will be vital, so wins against Middlesbrough and Sunderland are default requirements, before Ramos’s men face the far tougher challenge of Chelsea.

Winning the Carling Cup last season was something but Spurs need to build on that achievement. That means a decent European campaign and a real crack at fourth place or better (which is, of course, exactly what we said 12 months ago).

Will it be the same old story come the end of the season?

PHOTO: Tottenham Hotspur’s Dimitar Berbatov poses for the media after winning the Bulgarian Soccer Player of the Year award. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov

Which Euro 2008 players are on the move?

As the dust settles on Euro 2008 and attention turns to transfer market, it will be interesting to see how many of the top performers from the tournament will be on the move in the coming weeks.

If Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Manchester United generated endless speculation at the start of the Euros, the finals ended with other names enjoying newly-acquired prominence. 

Andrei Arshavin’s form for Russia has already prompted a paper mountain of speculation about his future, with Barcelona the dream destination of the Zenit St Petersburg forward. Euro 2008 top scorer David Villa is also expected to be leaving Valencia – even if his four goals for champions Spain will have inflated the Mestalla club’s asking price considerably.  

Another name to consider from UEFA’s 23-man team of the tournament is Spartak Moscow striker Roman Pavyluchenko – scorer of three goals for Russia – who according to one British newspaper on Tuesday is now on the radar of Manchester United. 

England may not have been present in Austria and Switzerland but the Premier League boasted six players in the team of the tournament and more may be headed to Europe’s most lucrative league before the start of the season.

At almost 32, Spain’s fine holding midfielder Marcos Senna may be tempted away from Villarreal for a potential last big pay day, while it would have been negligent of scouts to ignore the players that took Turkey to the last four – Galatasaray wide man Arda Turan, in particular.    

In some cases, players already had their transfers tied up before stepping into the Euro shop window. The 16.6m pound deal Tottenham sealed for Dinamo Zagreb’s playmaker Luka Modric certainly made sense when seeing him perform so impressively for Croatia.  

Wheel comes full circle from Molineux to Moscow

I was standing by the side of the M1 in front of my broken-down Morris 1100 on a hot afternoon in May 1972 with only one thought in my mind. And it wasn’t how to get my car fixed.

It was how was I going to get to Molineux, still 75 miles away, for the first leg of the UEFA Cup final between Wolves and Spurs.

Luckily my companion knew a lot more about cars than I did and after a nervous wait, we were on our way again to an historic first — the first European club cup final between two English teams.

For in all the hype surrounding this week’s all-English Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea, that first all-English European final has largely been over-looked.

That is no real surprise in today’s world of mega-Champions League hype, but what IS more of a surprise is that there has been no all-English final in any other European club competition since then.

Eventually we made it to Molineux in good time for the first leg of the very first UEFA Cup final which Spurs went on to win 3-2 on aggregate.

Vlog on the pitch – What will be the big close season transfers?

After Manchester United beat Chelsea to the Premier League title, the Londoners hit back by signing Porto’s Jose Bosingwa in the first big transfer of the close season (although he can’t play in next Wednesday’s Champions League final obviously).

Vlog on the pitch regulars Owen Wyatt and Jon Bramley are joined by Tony Donovan to discuss last weekend’s final day of the English league season and look ahead to what could be the main transfers in the summer window.

Berbatov to United or Chelsea? Anelka on the move again? What about David Villa coming to England?

Let us know your thoughts. Leave comments below or make your own video, load it up to youtube or wherever tagged “vlog on the pitch” and if we like it, we’ll put it up here.