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English Premier League Preveiw

Something for everyone

Quazi Zulquarnain Islam
Best player in the world? Check. World Cup winning manager? Check. Rising upstarts? Check. Billionaires with cash to burn? Check. Unparalleled wages? Check. End to end football? Definitely check
Welcome to the English Premier League.
It has been gone for less than two months (with a very exciting Euro 2008 in between) but regular fans are already missing the daily adrenaline provided by what is quite easily the biggest league in the world.
So when the Premiership embarks on what's to be its 18th installment tonight at the Emirates
Stadium, the powers that be can afford to crack a little smile.
Never before has league football managed to capture the hearts of so many, across such a vast distance or demographic. A lot of it is down to superb marketing - viewers from Lima to Lisbon to Tokyo will be tuning in to watch their favourite teams battle, but a significant portion is also due to the simple fact that the English Premier League is now home to the brightest stars of world football (what that has to do with money is a different story altogether).
During the late 80’s and early 90’s. Italy was (he place (o be in. Spain took over that mantie during the late nineties and the early years of the millennium but the unofficial crest of 'biggest league in the world' now lies firmly in the usually barren trophy closet of the FA. (So much for intangible assets!)
How so you ask?
Results on the pitch are the .obvious answer. Manchester United are defending European Champions and the final of the Champions League, the premier club competition in the world, has been contested at different times in the last four years by -- Liverpool (twice), Arsenal and Chelsea.
Results don't come by themselves. You need the players for success, and the EPL certainly has that in abundance.
Case in point, Cristiano Ronaldo. A worthy contender to the title of the best player in the world, the cheeky Portuguese chose to remain at Manchester United after flirting with a move to Real Madrid for much of the summer. That should certainly be good news to the Old Trafford faithful but it remains to be seen whether the
42 goals that C'Ron banged in from all comers last, season help him with the backlash that is sure to follow.
If not then Manchester Utd fans could do well to pin their hopes on the mercurial talents of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez - the Argentinean having finalised a move to the Red Devils from his previous loan deal.
It was the only piece of transfer activity that manager Alex Ferguson has been involved in all season and save for an expected late move for Spurs striker Dimitar Berbatov it looks like all the business he will be doing.
The same cannot be said of Chelsea (Can it ever?). Defying the credit crunch the Blues have spent copiously to bring in right back Jose Bosingwa and more interestingly the nifty playmaker Deco from Barcelona.
But their biggest coup was roping in Brazilian World Cup winner Luiz Felipe Scolari to fill in
the void left by Jose Mourinho — a gap that proved too much for Avram Grant to fill.
Big Phil will be no stranger to the pressure and although it remains to be seen how he will go about fitting Frank Lampard, Michael Essien, Deco and Michael Ballack into the same midfield, the Brazilian disciplinarian is certain to do things his way. The winds of change are certain to blow at Stamford Bridge.
Sadly, with that we come to the end of our genuine title contenders.
As it has been for the past few seasons, Liverpool have again flattered to deceive and the failure to bring in a central midfield pass-master alongside Javier Mascherano may yet again prove their undoing in the league. Even
the special talents of Fernando Torres, the drive of Steven Gerrard and the generous probing of big money capture Robbie Keane are almost certain to fall short and leave Rafa Benitez empty handed once again.
The same can be said of Arsene Wenger who still has to address a hole the size of a London double-decker in his midfield -- a part of the pitch commanded comfortably by Alaiksandr Hleb and Matthieu Flamini last season. Youthful exuberance will play their role in an early season peak but count on Arsenal to peter out when push comes to shove. Samir* Nasri though could prove to be an eyecatching sideshow if die slight exMarseille man can adjust to the pace and power of England.
Beyond the big four though, the league still looks wafer thin. 'Although stronger than most of their relative leagues as far as financial muscle is concerned (the likes of Spurs can beat Barcelona to
a player), the English have struggled to translate that into results in Europe or against the Big Four.
There is Newcastle, with their plethora of problems for whom Kevin Keegan will at best be looking at a mid-table slot. Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth looks a safe bet on paper but will struggle to impose themselves against big sides. Mark Hughes has shifted to Manchester City but even with new signing Jo it will be a long hard season for them. As sad as it may sound, in a league crying out for competitiveness the rest are just there to make up the numbers.
But there is hope in the form of Tottenham Hotspur.
The team from London has
long been a fashionable location for foreigners and with ex-Seville man Juande Ramos at the helm and a summer overhaul that saw the likes of Luka Modric, Giovanni dos Santos and David Bentley switch to the Lane plus the impending arrival of Andreas Arshavin, Spurs look the best bet to crack into the fabled 'Big Four'.
Don't count on it though.