Premiership Poaching Players-Guilty or Not?

Headlines were made with the schocking announcement that Chelsea have been banned from registering players for 1 year. FIFA announced the punishment after deciding that Chelsea had induced Gael Kakuta to leave his club, Racing Club de Lens, in breach of contract in 2007.
While this incident was big news, and with Chelsea sure to appeal, we'll be hearing a lot about it for the foreseeable, the underlying issues is actually far more important.
Crucially, clubs in mainland Europe can not offer youth players professional contracts until they are 18. Players often sign pre-contract agreements, which essentially commit them to the club, with the full contract kicking in when the player reaches 18. Another option is paying youth players by the month, but that is more common in lower league teams, and with players that are not considered good enought to be worth a full contract. In England however, the situation is different, with clubs allowed to offer youth players professional contracts from the age of 17, as well as a host of other incentives that can be very enticing for young players and their families.  All of England's top clubs take advantage of this, with Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester United all guilty of taking the pick of a clubs youth system, and paying miniscule compensation, often less than 500,000 Euros.
English clubs have of course consistently denied any wrongdoing, claiming that because of the English laws limiting their recruiting, they are forced to seek elsewhere for top young talents. Clubs in England are in fact not allowed to incorporate players from further than 70 Kilometers away in to their youth academies. While this seems minor, it can be quite a problem for teams like Liverpool, for whom much of their potential recruiting area is ocean.
That said, it is disingenuous to use that as an excuse for systematically hoovering up all the best talent in the world without paying adequate compensation. In the long term, it is in the best interest of the fans that the young talent is spread around, rather than being developed only from a select group of ultra-clubs. Of course, clubs that have the opportunity to grab all the talent will do just that, unless laws are put in place to make sure that adequate compensation is required. It is in their best interests to do whatever they can to succeed, and rules or fairness be damned. The financial rewards that a talented youngster can bring, as well as the sporting rewards, are well worth any minor tap-on-the-wrist that the clubs may receive, and that needs to change. UEFA needs to act, and act now. Strong action will be better for European football, and strong action might help bring UEFA some genuine respect from fans and clubs.

Transfer Roundup

An inside source at Liverpool says that Ribery and his agent were both served tea today at 4 pm after arriving from Germany. The alleged transfer is set to be announced tomorrow, with the fee being a flat 45 million Euros. Hicks and Gillet's contacts in Germany were supposedly instrumental in enabling this very surprising transfer.

Chelsea are finalizing the 52.3 million Euro transfer of "Kun" Aguero, after Ancelotti's personal visit to Spain to talk to the player and his agent convinced Kun that a transfer to Chelsea would be the right step, instead of waiting another year before leaving Atletico.

Manchester United have turned the tables on Real Madrid, grabbing Casillas for a goalkeeper record sum of 48.7 million Euros, with additional bonuses and incentives potentially taking the total outlay to an incredible 60 million Euros. Alex Ferguson was supposedly so incensed at Real's tortuous pursuit of Ronaldo that he decided to embarrass the club by grabbing one of their biggest and most prized assets. He also had to use one of his famous bottles of red wine in order to soften up Florentino Perez, and even then he had to include the future 120 million Euro transfer of Nani to Real, to go through in 2011, when Nani has replaced Messi as the world's best player!

Arsenal have confirmed signing the rights to the Paris, Lyon, and Marseille sperm banks, in order to tie up the French foetus pool for the next four generations.

Gunners Misfire, Dire Red Devils Escape

Manchester United came from behind to record a thoroughly undeserved 2-1 win over Arsenal at Old Trafford.

First Half
Manchester United and Arsenal mirrored each other, both starting lone strikers up top, with Van Persie supported by Arshavin, and Rooney supported by Giggs and Nani. Neither team managed to keep possession past their half-way line from the beginning, with passing in the final third particularly egregious. In the 10th Rooney created a chance for Darren Fletcher in the box, but he ballooned over from 12 yards. This was to be Manchester's only decent chance of the night though, with the visitor's passing becoming better and better, and with Manchester unable to gain control of the midfield, Arsenal started to create chances. Van Persie had a shot blocked by Evra, and Arshavin sent a shot fractionally wide of the top corner, after Foster had flapped at a corner. Minutes later, Arshavin again controlled the ball in the box, but was taken out by Fletcher, in what was a clear penalty. The only contact Fletcher had with the ball was with his arm, and he clearly wiped out Arshavin. The referee however, followed Old Trafford convention and deigned to ignore the clear foul. Arshavin didn't let this stop him however, and minutes later, he strode in to the box and unleashed a wonderful shot into the net, silencing the Old Trafford crowd with his trademark (slightly obnoxious) goal celebration. Perhaps Foster should have done better, but it was a beautifully struck shot, and a deserved lead for Arsenal. Manchester tried to respond, but were unable to create anything, despite concerted pressure in the last couple of minutes in the half
Second Half
Whatever one hears about Fergie's famous half-time talks, Manchester United showed no signs of a spirited comeback, and should have been down 2-0, but Foster pulled off an excellent save on Van Persie after Arshavin had again created space on the left and sent in a wicked cross. Wes Brown should have covered Van Persie's run, but the Dutchman got in behind him and looked to have an easy finish, but Foster saved brilliantly with his foot. Arsenal were playing well, taking the game to a disjointed and disorganized Manchester. Fletcher did his best in midfield, but the mediocre Giggs did little to help, and Manchester looked toothless in attack and soft in the midfield. Arsenal's oft-maligned trio of Song, Diaby, and Denilson were doing a solid job, if unspectacular. As always thogh, the laws of football were not to be denied, and Manchester were given a route back in to the game, courtesy of Almunia's idiotic (surprise surprise) decision. Giggs sent in a through ball for Rooney, and despite Rooney's run leading away from the goal, Almunia rushed out and managed to get just enough contact on Rooney to support his exaggerated fall. Rooney started falling before being touched, but Almunia failed to react to Rooney's first touch, and brought him down despite Rooney having lost control of the ball. Smart play from Rooney, who anticipated and sold the penalty, but Almunia should be replaced as soon as possible for Arsenal's sake. Rooney duly dispatched the penalty, celebrating as if he had scored a Maradona-esque goal. This incident raised temperatures on the pitch several notches, and the tension on the field was palpable. Van Persie's well-struck free kick from outside the box was pushed on to the woodwork by Foster, as Arsenal didn't let up their passing and pressure. Unfortunately for them, in the 65th minute Diaby idiotically headed Gigg's free kick past Almunia! It looked like it would be a routine clearance, but Diaby elected to try and head the ball out for a corner, but instead sent it past the stranded Almunia. The Gunners, for so long the better team, suddenly had the tables turned on them, and were chasing the game. Bentdner and Eduardo duly were brought on, and the inspirational Arshavin taken off for what seemed to be a minor injury, as Arsenal pressed hard for the equalizer. Van Persie got the ball in the net, but the goal was ruled out for an unclear off-sides call that came a little early on Gallas. Wenger, furious, kicked a water bottle, and the 4th official pedantically had him sent off. It was a bit of a farce though, as Wenger stood up with his hands out, and masses of jeering Manchester United fans behind him hurling insults. In the end though, it was Manchester United who celebrated a crucial, but completely undeserved win, over their bitter rivals.

Conclusions?
Despite Manchester's win, the match poses more questions for them than it answered. Why was 30-million-pound Berbatov left on the bench? United were toothless in attack, and one must wonder why Mr. "final-piece-in-the-puzzle" was left on the bench. The inclusion of Giggs was a specious masterstroke, as his pass and cross led to both Manchester goals, but in fact his contribution was pitiful; his passing horrific, running laborious, and overall influence nowhere near what Ferguson would want from such a senior player. Perhaps the most telling criticism is that Giggs made Nani look like Ronaldo. What about Manchester's midfield? Most fans and pundits have come to the conclusion that Manchesters midfield, shown up against Barcelona and Liverpool last year, is not as strong as the best teams in Europe. The constant injuries to Hargreaves gives Ferguson something of an excuse, but surely Ferguson isn't the type to let an excuse like that undermine his quest to truly "knock Liverpool off their f****** perch". At this point though, the lack of top class players in their midfield is the most persuasive argument against their reclaiming the Champions League and winning a fourth consecutive Premiership title. Particularly with their top match winner Ronaldo now scoring penalties (but not much else) for Real Madrid, there is a lot of pressure on Rooney to become that match winner. Unfortunately for Manchester, Rooney is no Ronaldo, despite the adulation of the English press, and Manchester will struggle to play with the best teams without the addition of a top-class midfielder. The fact that Arsenal's young and inexperienced midfield, minus their top player, more than held their own, AT Old Trafford, is another glaring indication of this weakness.

For Arsenal, the match was in many ways encouraging, as they managed to more than match their older and more experienced opponents. Unfortunately for Arsenal though, they shot themselves in the foot with horrific mistakes, the type of which they MUST eradicate. It was good experience for their young team, particularly the midfield, and will help them develop. This won't come as much consolation though, to Arsenal fans demanding a title challenge right now. If the young players can quickly take on-board the lessons learned, and improve the mental side of their game, then they can challenge this year, but that is a lot to ask. The addition of Fabregas will of course improve their midfield, but the need for a truly top-class defensive midfielder might really be apparent in the Champions League, if not against Manchester United.

Premier League Season Predictions 09/10

Premier League Winner:


Manchester United
Despite losing Ronaldo, their squad is still the best in the league. Valencia is a good buy who will fit in to a proper 4-4-2, Berbatov should thrive up front in a static role he's more suited to, Owen will provide goals when fit, and Rooney maybe will come close to fulfilling his destiny as England's best ever player blah blah blah. Their midfield isn't as good as Chelsea's, but that won't matter against most teams in the Premier League.





Top 4/CL Spots:



Manchester United




Chelsea: Will fall just short of the title, either because Drogba and Anelka just don't get enough goals, or because Ancelotti focuses on the Champions League. That said, I wouldn't be in the least surprised if they pick up the CL.




Liverpool: Losing Alonso is a big blow, particularly with the replacement being out injured for the beginning of the season. While Lucas has impressed during pre-season and clearly has potential, he clearly lacks Alonso's passing and ability to dictate matches.




Arsenal: Despite their dismantling of Everton, I don't think Arsenal have enough depth in midfield to survive the long season ahead of them. They have a very strong line-up of forwards, but the rest of their squad isn't deep enough to compete with Liverpool, Chelsea, and Man United.




Man City will be a very tough team by the end of the season, and will definitely threaten the top 4 in the future, but this year is too soon.