EPL January Transfer Window update

Headline: Joe Cole could leave Chelsea for Manchester United, Tottenham or Liverpool...

Chelsea: With Joe Cole set for a Stamford Bridge exit, Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery could back-track on his 'Spain or bust' claims and move to London.

Chelsea: Spanish wonderkid Sergio Canales could be the latest small boy to leave a decent European club for Chelsea's reserves.

Chelsea: Another exciting winger tipped with a move to the Bridge is long-term target Angel Di Maria of Benfica. There was talk of a £35m buy-out clause but sources claim they will accept £20m for the Argentina starlet.

Source:
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/football/multiplex/30940.html

"I love it here, I love it here, I love it here." - Mourinho

Jose Mourinho looks eager to move back to England next summer and he made no bones about it while speaking to Sun. He said, "I want to come back to England. I want to be back. I'm not the kind of guy to his feelings hidden. I love it here, I love it here, I love it here. I believe I will be back one day. I don't leave any club in mid-season to go to another, so until the end of the season, there is no chance I will leave Inter."

Meanwhile Mourinho's interest in England has sparked a slew of speculations about the club he will come to. Liverpool owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett are reported to have eyed Jose Mourinho as a possible replacement for Rafael Benitez. Rafa however continues to deny any news of his move away from Liverpool.

Read more:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/4861058/Liverpool-linked-with-Jose-Mourinho-as-Rafael-Benitez-replacement.html

David Villa set for Premiership. United-Chelsea likely suitors.

Valencia and Spain striker David Villa is all set to spark a bidding war between United and Chelsea. Villa, who had decided to stay at Valencia last summer due to 'family' reasons, has now expressed his desire to play in the Premiership.

So how much will he cost and who has the money? Liverpool is out of the race straight away and it would be a fight between United, City and Chelsea. All 3 clubs seem to have the pockets deep enough and it appears that United are set to offer 35 million.

Of the 3, United would be the most eager considering their lack of firepower upfront. Berbatov might be in line to be offloaded to part pay for Villa. John Terry had mentioned Villa sometime in 2008 to Abramovich and it wouldn't be a surprise if Chelsea throws in some more to take Villa away from United. City are likely to give Mancini some free hand in the summer transfer window and he will surely bid if Villa is available.

My personal view is that Villa is most suited for United and it would be a better career move considering how many more minutes he would get to play for United. At Chelsea he would risk sitting on the bench more often.

Clearly Villa is one of the premier strikers today and he would be a great asset whichever team he decides to play for. How the bidding war would turn out is going to be make headlines coming summer.

Just to add, Valencia might put few more players including David Silva and Mata up for sale considering their financial plight and that would mean more opportunities for English clubs.

http://www.clubcall.com/intl-football/villa-tempted-england-move-995728.html

Weekend confirms decline of the Premier League elite

Chelsea made a hash of the great opportunity that United had presented them on Saturday. They could have gone 6 clear of United at the top of the premiership instead they were quite lucky to salvage a point against West Ham with a fortuitous penalty. United would heave a sigh of relief with this result as the gap has not widened too much as was widely expected though they still stand 4 points adrift and that would take some catching.

It is also quite obvious now that this year’s championship is not a two team fight to the top. The challengers are looking tougher while the leaders are stuttering to make the championship race most fascinating. The way things are currently poised, the season appears to be heading towards an enthralling second half in 2010 and I am sure that it is going to be a fight till the very end this time around. Chelsea has a clear edge in the standings, they however appear to have lost a lot if it on field. The heat is on the leaders and it is how they respond that will ascertain the final standings in 2010.

You could read the match report at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/dec/20/west-ham-chelsea-match-report

Read more about the saturday games and United debacle at :
http://expresssport.blogspot.com/2009/12/united-feel-heat-at-fulham-gunners.html

Who will win Barclays Premier League ?

Few weeks back I had mentioned Chelsea as the front runners with ManU and Arsenal close behind. Over the last two weeks things have not changed too much apart from the fact that Chelsea has left the door open for those chasing them. It would be difficult for most teams barring United to catch them but the way top teams are tumbling nothing can be taken for granted.

Look at the traditional top 4 and none of them look as strong as previous years. They all look fragile and prone to a shock. As the table stands right now, Chelsea are still upfront but they do not look as invincible as few weeks back when they had threatened to run away with the title. United had the opportunity but they failed to punish the Blues after City had shocked them. While Gunners have also failed to close in with a mid week draw with Burnley, Liverpool’s season is still waiting for a fillip which I guess will have to wait until next year and by that time it would be all too little too late for them. If the reds finish in the top 4 it would be a huge surprise for me looking at the way things stand right now.

Let's look at some of the outsiders who could upset the applecart. Villa and Spurs look threatening while City and Liverpool cannot be taken for granted at any stage. Then there are Birmingham and Fulham both capable of untimely surprises for any of the top runners. The closeness of teams this season has meant a wonderfully entertaining and competitive league- especially for an outsider.

Wenger has summed it up quite nicely by stating this years’ as the most open title race -
"Yes [this is the most competitive I have known the Premier League since joining Arsenal]. It is, why? Because nobody looks to run away early in the season and there are six, seven, eight teams that can create a surprise any weekend and it is certainly the most open race," Wenger said in his pre-match press conference. "I think yes, that many [eight] can mount a title challenge."

While Wenger is upbeat about his teams title chances, Harry Redknapp has proclaimed the end of the Premier League's big four by declaring that only Chelsea and Manchester United are certainties to finish in the Champions League places this season and that the other pair of prized berths for Europe's elite tournament could be filled by any two of several teams – including Tottenham Hotspur.

Redknapp said "I've said since the start of the season that the champions will come from Chelsea or Manchester United but after that it's up for grabs," he said. "Anything is possible this season. Look at Arsenal, you would have expected them to go up and win at Burnley after beating Liverpool, but they didn't so that shows you how hard it's going to be."

Read more at:

http://goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/12/15/1689097/arsene-wenger-highlights-most-open-premier-league-title-race

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/dec/17/harry-redknapp-tottenham-manchester-city