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Wayne Rooney looking out for himself?

What is Wayne Rooney thinking? He’s going toe to toe with one of the most ruthless managers in the game, one who cares not a jot for a player’s reputation, status or even, in the end, his ability. There will only be one winner and it will be Sir Alex Ferguson.

Ferguson made the decision, based on Rooney’s poor form, lack of fitness and personal problems, to take him out of the limelight. He ‘invented’ an ankle injury to do so, which he has done in the past with little or no argument from the player in question, but for some reason Rooney took it upon himself to announce that he has no such injury and can’t understand why his manager said he did.

Inventing injuries for media consumption is perhaps not the way to go about these things but the reasoning for it was sound. Rooney needs a break for a number of reasons and there’s very few Manchester United fans who have said different in recent months. Clearly Rooney disagrees as you would expect from a man who just loves to play football.

What the striker needs to understand, though, is that he is a player and Ferguson is the boss. You do what the boss says or you run the risk of paying the penalty. That penalty, if you believe the media, is the Old Trafford exit. There’s more to this than a disagreement between player and manager over whether or not he should play though.

It is reported that talks on a new contract have broken down and with just 18 months left on his current deal that will be a worry for Ferguson and the United board. They won’t want to lose Rooney on a free to anyone, so a fast resolution or a fast sale is the only outcome.

I got this in my inbox the other day:

Rooney is generally unhappy right now. Home situation, teammates who he thinks aren’t pulling their weight for different reasons (Rio’s injuries don’t convince Rooney, Scholes is delusional about his age, Carrick has lost his spine, Anderson only thinks about getitng laid, Evra is still screwed up by the WC), guys who aren’t performing (Chicharito tries hard but not contributing enough, Evans confidence shot, Van der Sar too old) he just feels the team is a mess and he has spoken to the senior players he likes (Berba, Vidic, Fletcher, Giggs) but found little support. And little support from SAF too. That said, I don’t think the situation is beyond repair. I think real problem is his contract. An intermeidary claiming to represent his agent has approached a number of clubs (including City) alerting them to the possibility he may come up for sale. That information was given to me directly from City themselves.

This, the email claimed, comes from a representative of a first team player. Make of it what you will, these things have to be taken with a pinch of salt but I’m a firm believer in the old adage that there’s no smoke without fire.

Then we have Roy Keane talking on Sky Sports News about the situation, telling Rooney to look after himself, that he was told a “pack of lies” when his time was up at Manchester United and various other claims. The trouble is, his comments have a ring of truth and if Rooney has been lied to then he won’t take kindly to it. Even if it’s true, not even Roy Keane will tell you he won that battle. Ferguson always wins. The contract is a real sticking point, clearly, but what the issue is there is hard to say. Money just doesn’t seem like the sort of problem that would concern Rooney but what else could it be?

Whichever way you look at it, the situation will come to a head fairly soon and it will be Ferguson that wins – either by talking Rooney round and getting him back on the right track at Old Trafford or by a sale netting millions and a settled dressing room once more.

The suggestion that he would move Manchester City is, surely, ridiculous. Rooney would be well aware of the backlash he would receive if that was his destination of choice and there’s no way United would let one of their best move across town to their fiercest rivals and potential title challengers. Yet Rooney has the power here, doesn’t he.

If money talks for Rooney these days then City will be a very attractive proposition and, with his current contract so close to being up, he could hold out for that move, ensuring United are forced to sell before losing him anyway for nothing.

It’s a sorry state of affairs for Rooney and United and quite how it has come to this is a bit of mystery. For me, as a United fan, I can only say that Rooney should buckle down, focus on his game, regain his form and recognise that he is privileged to be at Manchester United. He should also realise that as much as he may disagree with Ferguson’s actions with regard to him personally, they were taken with his best interests at heart. As far as his opinions on the team goes, frankly I run out of patience here. Ferguson is the boss and that is the end of it.

Wayne, we love you at Old Trafford, we really do. But you’re one man, you’re not performing and you are NOT bigger than this club. Focus on your game and score us goals, it’s all we ask. Or, if you really can’t do that and you want to leave, then f*ck off now. The club doesn’t need you spitting your dummy and we will be better off without you if you don’t want to be here.

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As a born and bred Manchester United supporter I find it a little bit difficult to view our blue neighbours in an unbiased manner and I reckon that will come across in my own views of Manchester City’s potential and probable performance this season. I am going to try, however, to at least forget my own allegiance and assess them as a neutral…

The first thing I’ll say is that given the amount of money City have spent, some of it well, some of it not so well, they HAVE to be focussed on winning the title. I don’t believe that Champions League qualification is enough for a club that spends well over £200 million – plus wages. It wasn’t for Chelsea and it shouldn’t be for City.

So right off the bat let me say this – they will NOT win the title this season. As much talent as they have in that bloated squad, they are still not good enough to challenge Chelsea or Manchester United and it remains to be seen iif they are good enough to finish ahead of Arsenal.

That said, there is no doubt at all that City have taken huge strides in the right direction. While the 0-0 draw with Spurs showed that this team needs time to gel and that they haven’t quite got the mix right on the pitch, the 3-0 destruction of an ailing Liverpool was a sign of what they are capable of doing.

Consistency is always key to challenging for the Premier League title. Chelsea and Manchester United, through experience as much as talent, have it. Arsenal, through inexperience as much as lack of talent, have lacked it in recent seasons. City have never had it, at least since the Premier League was created.

They have addressed the talent, no-one can argue against that, but consistency and real belief is not there – yet. City will still travel to a far-flung football outpost like newly promoted Newcastle and drop silly points in my opinion. If anything, it’s against the top three they will show their improvement, taking points you wouldn’t normally expect them to.

I’ll get to where I DO think they will finish later. Right now I want to look at the signings they’ve made over the summer and the one area I think is their biggest weak link.

The players City have signed that I think will do a very good job for them are Yaya Touré, David Silva and Jerome Boateng. Touré already has a wealth of experience at the very top of the game and should find it relatively easy to settle into the hustle and bustle of the Premier League. He looks a little below fitness at the moment, but that will come with games and it seems Roberto Mancini is going to give him those.

Silva will find it much harder to settle I think. His style of play will have to adjust to be a bit more robust (hey, that rhymes!) but if or when he manages to do so, he’ll shine. The problem he has at the moment is that Mancini doesn’t seem keen to throw him in from the start.

Boateng is more one for the future I imagine, not to mention injured, but he does look a talent. A very good long term investment for City.

I also have high hopes for Aleksandar Kolarov at left back as well actually. This guy is tough and skillful and he is one player I wouldn’t mind having at Old Trafford, though only as back up for the outstanding Evra, of course! It’s a shame he’s injured at the moment, I’d like to see more of him.

Those signings I just don’t get are Mario Balotelli and James Milner. The former is supremely talented, no question, but who needs that sort of disruptive influence knocking around the dressing room? And as for Milner, as a big fish in a comparatively small pond in Aston Villa he was good. At City, amongst the likes of De Jong, Touré et al, I just don’t think his somewhat limited skills will make much of an impact. I’ve been wrong before and his start so far has been good but over the course of a season I just don’t get it. I certainly don’t get the price they paid – it’s ridiculous and purely down to the fact he’s English. For Villa, it was a dream deal, especially picking up Stephen Ireland in the process.

Back to Balotelli though – can Roberto Mancini, who does know him well, get him focussed less on himself and more on his game and his club? I have my doubts. And it’s here we find City’s weakest link – the manager. For some reason I can’t quite put my finger on, Mancini does not strike me as a top class manager. When Chelsea spent millions they grabbed Jose Mourinho and he had the capability to mould a bunch of mercenaries into a team, a real, proper team. I don’t see that in Mancini or in City.

Like Hughes before him, I don’t think Mancini will see out the season at City unless he’s in the top two by Christmas and that, as I’ve said, is beyond them for now. Sheikh Mansour, who would have been pleased when he paid his first visit to the City of Manchester stadium this past Monday, is clearly not a man blessed with patience, or Hughes would still be there. Top four is the bear minimum, top two MUST be the target.

Mancini will find the City hot seat that much hotter if he fails to be challenging for it come January. Then he’ll be out in the cold.

So where do I think City will finish this season? Well, and here’s where my bias does come out, I can’t see them finishing higher than fourth. The thing about City is that they ALWAYS endeavour to scupper whatever plans they have. Last season, with a Champions League spot relatively firmly in their grasp they managed to mess it up and hand it to Spurs by losing to their rivals.

Even if, by some miracle, they are in with a shout of the title come January they will find a way to throw it all away and when they do it will be in such spectacular fashion that they drop to fourth, possibly even fifth if Spurs manage to retain the form they showed last year or the likes of Everton or Villa mount a challenge for the CL spot.

That is the way of City and, though none of their supporters will openly admit it, it has always been that way. In private the fans all know it. They have every right to be excited at the moment, and hopeful too, this is their best chance and it’s a damn good one. But it’s City and at the back of their minds they will have that fear that, once again, City will find a way to throw it all away.

Will the banner at Old Trafford tick over to 35 years? That remains to be seen. A Cup would be enough to banish that constant reminder for good. And a Cup is well within their grasp. Not the League Cup, unless they really focus on it which they won’t. But the FA Cup? Yes, definitely a possibility. And for City, despite the understandable expectation for the League, it would be a major achievement.

That’s this season. In the next three to four years they damn well should win the League with the amount of investment that’s gone in over at Eastlands and the time to allow those superstars to become a team. I even, regrettably, expect it. IF they find the manager with the right credentials that is…

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It’s the $64,000 question. What does the season hold for City?

Or about $640 million to be more accurate. You’d be better off asking me who will win the World Cup in 2070 (China) or for Saturday’s winning lottery numbers (3,7,15,22,31,42 – not sure about the bonus ball).

For the first time since football began (1992), it’s almost too difficult to predict. Undoubtedly the aim for City is the top four as a minimum requirement. But I reckon most City fans would take 17th if we won a cup. I doubt our owners would though.

Title winners? I can’t see it myself. City still lack the mentality more than anything – we haven’t been there and done it before (not in colour anyway). We haven’t been challengers. Yes, some of the players have, but cityitis will soon sort that out. And all the while we have to incorporate a whole new raft of new players. The law of averages suggests they won’t all be a roaring success, immediately.
Or maybe the mentality problem is with the fans, and people like me. I just can’t predict success, I’ve had too many false dawns in the past. Better to predict nothing, sit back, and enjoy the ride.

Meanwhile, pre-season has been rather unproductive. Don’t get me wrong, I take little interest in pre-season results, and see it as little more than building up fitness, but as we approach a tricky start to the Premiership season away to Spurs, some of our new signings have barely played for City, whilst the rest have been trekking round the world on a corporate jolly. Tevez and Silva had little time on the pitch against Valencia, so are unlikely to feature heavily against Spurs. Add a ludicrous round of mid-week internationals, and we go into the new season relying on much of the old guard. I realise now “the brand” is important, but a bit more of our squad playing together would have been nice. A minor quibble though, to be honest, and Redknapp himself faces the same problem choosing 11 players that he hasn’t laid eyes on all week.

Throughout the summer the City message boards have been alive with talk of the “wow” signing. A football message board during a transfer window is a wind up merchant’s paradise, and so it proved, as endless, tedious threads were started alleging we were in discussions with Ronaldo, or that Messi had been seen at the airport or Ribery has been ushered into COMS via a secret tunnel that ran all the way from the town hall. I only made one of those up by the way.

Either way, I think we can all agree that City’s obscene spending spree has killed football. Of course, news of Liverpool possibly being taken over by a billionaire and spending big was met with elation and without a hint of criticism by all at Talksport and Radio 5, but then I remembered – they were quite good twenty years ago, so that’s OK.

But the signings so far really excite me. The current pursuit of James Milner (hopefully concluded by the time you read this, but probably not) has been met with disdain by some, because suddenly going after the current young player of the year is simply not good enough (a highly-rated foreigner is much better). How far we have come, how short some people’s memories are. I still remember the relief on hearing we had squeezed through the signing of Benjani. Or on hearing that we were after Mido on transfer deadline day thinking “hmm, he could do a job..”, something I convinced myself when we re-signed Paul Dickov.
Needless to say, most Villa fans have now decided Milner is rubbish. So is O’ Neill. Some things never change.

David Silva, Yaya Toure and Kolarov are three signings that take us up another level. Two good, young players and one highly-experienced player who should be in his prime. And I will be glad if we never make a galacticos signing. Previous attempts suggest we have dodged a few bullets – Ronaldino, Kaka and Terry are shells of the players we thought we would get. No, buying up-and-coming young players is definitely the best policy for me.

So what does the squad look like as we begin another season?

The main s**t-stirring in the media has been about how to keep all these players happy, these monstrous egos, because as we all know from reading the papers, City have 15 strikers, 8 defensive midfielders and 10 centre backs. Whilst normally I would lay into such tiresome criticism, I do agree it will be a major job for Mancini to get the rotation right, and keep the troops happy. We all know what delicate flowers footballers are. Already, and the season hasn’t begun yet, Hart and Given have made public noises about not being prepared to sit on the bench, whilst Bellamy has had his six-monthly strop, suggesting he is ready to start the season at a new club, as is the tradition.

Given above all though should know better than to vent frustrations, however eloquently expressed, in public. Very unprofessional indeed. And as for Bellamy…(more later).

Of course, it seems to be par for the course to assess teams as if no one ever got injured and as if City only played one game a week. The reality will of course be very different. With three average-good cup runs we would play around 55 games, and could theoretically play over 65 (unlikely as that may be). More than ever, football is a squad game. This is why Mancini wants two players in every position.

If I could pinpoint one area of weakness, then central defence would still be my prime concern. Boateng looks a great prospect but isn’t quite there yet – and will he be played centrally or at right-back? Toure has never convinced (me), Lescott needs to stay fit and have time in the team, whilst Onuoha, Richards and Bridge just aren’t doing it, and Nedum has been shipped on loan now to Sunderland. Onuoha and Richards still have time on their side though, so should not be sold permanently, though Richards needs to concentrate on being a footballer, and Onuoha needs to take any concerns to the manager, not broadcast them on Soccer AM. The right back area is an area of uncertainty, but all the signs suggest we have solved our left-back problem with the signing of Kolarov. I have high hopes for him.

The midfield is strong, has depth, and is full of options. Yaya Toure is far more than the defensive midfielder that the press have made him out to be. He can easily be an effective box to box player (and am sure he will be), a man pushed out of Barcelona by a Catalan, and Catalans always take priority at Barcelona. He even showed against Man United he is equally capable of doing a job at centre half.

Silva excites me more than anyone, as attacking players inevitably do. Great skill, great control, just great – one of the unluckiest players in the world to be a Spaniard in 2010 when the midfield is so overloaded with talent. I just hope he adapts to his new surroundings.

And the great thing about the purchases is that we now have players who can play in various positions, giving the team great flexibility. Silva could play on either wing, though would probably prefer to be central behind a striker. Toure could play in defence at a push, as a defensive midfielder, or as mentioned, as a box to box midfielder.  Milner is highly versatile as i am sure you will all know. Out wide, central, even full back.  Lescott and Boateng can play central or left back, Richards central or right back, and so on.

Upfront, we are strong, with the expectation of at least one extra new player by the end of August. Dzeko would have been great, but seems unlikely. Balotelli, if captured would probably play out wide but provides depth upfront, something Santa Cruz, Jo etc do not do (well, except on Football Manager 2010). He may not be an automatic starter just yet though. Questions inevitably have been raised about his attitude whilst being often subjected to racial abuse in Italy, but Mancini knows him well, and he seems ideally suited physically to the demands of the premier league.

There is a general expectation that City will take the form of a 4-1-3-2 in matches at Eastlands and 4-2-3-1 away from home. We will see. Elsewhere though, loads of questions remain – who will be sold, who will be loaned out, who makes the 25-man squad, homegrown rules need to be met (we do that comfortably), will Robinho get his move to warmer climes, or should we make a stand, who takes the right-sided berths? Oh, and a note to Bellamy – feel free to sod off to Celtic as soon as possible.

Finally, the enigma that is Stephen Ireland. It seems clear now he has little future with us, and should be off to Aston Villa. This has not gone down well with many City fans, who think him superior to Milner, but in terms of attitude, commitment and desire, there is simply no comparison, and it seems this has sealed Ireland’s fate. Either way, Mancini has seen much more of him than we have – we must trust he has good reason to break ties with such a skilful, yet inconsistent player.

So what do others think? Football365 says:

But with regards to the question of whether City can last the course as title contenders then the doubts have to centre on the aforementioned absence of a top-class defender, the impression that City lack an on-field leader, and the likely incompatibility of regular rotation with the need to mould a team that adds up to the sum of its parts. It also goes without saying that the odds on City triumphing would be significantly tighter if only they had recruited David Villa, Fernando Torres or Edin Dzeko, but Emmanuel Adebayor registered 14 goals from just 25 starts last term and Mancini evidently has a great deal of faith in the potential of Mario Balotelli.

Daniel Taylor over at The Guardian says:

A personal view is that they are one season away from catching and overhauling Chelsea and United but this will be the year they make it to a cup final and reach the Champions League. For now, they will have to make do with the Europa League…
But then it comes back to the fact City have not won a trophy since the League Cup in 1976. Towards the end of last season, a group of City fans tried to steal the infamous ‘ticker’ banner from Old Trafford, gaining entry via one of the stadium tours. They were foiled. Now, damn it, it’s down to the team. But if they fail, the harsh reality of this cut-throat, knee-jerk world is that Mancini will probably go the same way as Hughes.

If I was to put on some bets, I’d be quite sure of Mancini to be there still at the end of the season, us to be big scorers over the course of the nine months, not to finish in the top two, and sadly I have an awful feeling United will somehow regain the league title.

If I had to predict a finishing position for City, then my heart says 3rd, my head 4th. And one good cup run as well. The Guardian writers predict an average of 2nd, the Independent on Sunday said 6th. Sid Lowe predicts first, Robbie Savage 2nd, the BBC pundits average prediction has us as 4th. I’m buoyed somewhat by Tony Cascarino having us down for 7th – asking him his predictions is akin to taking advice off Paul Gascoigne in a hostage situation – so maybe we’ll win the title afterall.

Or get relegated.

Typical City.

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The expectations game is tricky in football at the best of times. When looking ahead at the beginning of the new season, first you look back at the previous year, then you apply any changes over the summer and you use this to try to generate an idea of what a given club should be looking to achieve. These often arbitrary targets get even more murky when you try and include cup performances as well; is finishing 8^th and winning the League Cup a bigger achievement than finishing 3^rd and getting knocked out unceremoniously in the third round to Shrewsbury at home? So playing the expectations game is tricky at the best of times. However, throw in Manchester City and it becomes nearly impossible.

It is almost impossible to look back and judge last season objectively. It was a season of incredible highs (doing the double on Chelsea, the 4-2 at Arsenal), some incredible lows (losing to Manchester United three times by conceding injury time goals, getting pipped to 4^th by Spurs in the penultimate game of the season), and some pretty average times (the eight game streak of draws).

Yet despite achieving our highest league finish, and getting within moments of reaching the League Cup final, it’s possible to feel like last season was a failure. The sheer level of investment in the club, the talent available, and, crucially, the demise of Liverpool, all factored into a feeling that this, at last, was our season. Never had the club been in such a strong position to lay claim to a Champions League place, and yet, we did not achieve it.

Nevertheless, with a fifth place finish under our belts, all eyes turned to us as the transfer window opened once again. Roberto Mancini did not disappoint, spending over £100 million on six new players. New fullbacks (easily the weakest area of our team) were brought in in the form of Jerome Boateng and Aleksander Kolarov, although both are, frustratingly, going to miss the first month of the season through injury. Yaya Toure, brother to former City captain Kolo was brought in from Barcelona, and David Silva was recruited from Valencia. ‘Super’ Mario Balotelli was reunited with the manager that had first given him his debut at Inter Milan. James Milner completed the summer spending, coming from Aston Villa in a deal that saw City academy graduate Stephen Ireland go the other way.

These new signings have an air of the exotic and the exciting, something perhaps lacking in the previous summer window. A lot of our hopes this season rest on how quickly these new players gel with their new team mates, and how quickly they adjust to the English Premier League. Nothing was quite as frustrating as watching Yaya Toure or David Silva having the ball nicked off them in the game against Spurs at the beginning of this campaign. If they reach their potential quickly though, this team could be something to see. Toure’s passing has been sublime in the games so far, David Silva has shown flashes of the brilliance he is clearly capable of, and Mario Balotelli made an explosive debut cameo midweek, scoring, getting booked and almost getting into a fight, all within thirty minutes. The counter point to this is, of course, what if they don’t? It was clear against Tottenham that they were a squad of players who had been playing together, who knew each other, and who were used to each other. As the margins get tighter and tighter in the Premier League, do we have time to wait for the £200m+ of talent to achieve their potential as a team?

With the twenty-five man squad ruling coming in, some players have inevitably seen the door at City. Fan favourite Stephen Ireland has gone to Aston Villa, and Craig Bellamy, Nedum Onuoha and Vladimir Weiss have all gone on loan to Cardiff, Sunderland and Rangers respectively. Its always sad to see players leave, but it feels almost inevitable as the football club continues to grow, especially when the move is right for them as players. None the less, I will always have a special place in my heart for the academy graduates.

One of the biggest decisions Roberto Mancini had to make at the start of the season was which out of Joe Hart and Shay Given would start in goal at White Hart Lane. He selected the young (presumptive) England number 1, and his choice was immediately vindicated as Hart made three or four world class saves to earn a draw. This decision was very tough, but the manager definitely made the right call. Both are world class goalkeepers, albeit with different strengths and weaknesses. However, Shay Given has maybe four or five seasons left in him, whereas Hart has closer to twenty. By handing him the jersey in that first game, Mancini made a statement about Joe Hart’s future, and I couldn’t be more pleased for him, or for the club.

So, after evaluating all that, am I any closer to knowing how I expect City to do this season? No. Some members of the football press seem to think title challenge, but I think that’s at least a season or three away. Fourth place, and Champions League qualification are generally regarded as minimum, and, given the level of investment, and the names on the team sheet, not an unreasonable one. Much of it depends on factors out of our control. Liverpool seem rejuvenated under Roy Hodgson, they will surely expect to improve on last seasons dreary seventh place finish. Will this be the year the young gunners at Arsenal come into their own? With three cups to fight for, we could end up playing in the region of sixty games this season, how will that affect the squad? However, these factor pale in significance compared to the simple question of how quickly can the players gel?

My expectation is a top four finish, and a strong run in the cups, but almost anything is possible, especially when we are talking about Manchester City. All I know is, its going to be one hell of a ride, and trust me when I say, you won’t want to miss a moment of it.

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Well, ok, Chelsea are Premier League champions and FA Cup holders – but that counts for nothing THIS season.

For Roberto Mancini’s Manchester City and Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea, pre-season friendlies have proved a bit more than disappointing.

Just last night City were well beaten by Borussia Dortmund (3-1) while Chelsea slumped to defeat by Hamburg (2-1). Germany is still not a nice place for English clubs to go. But the story goes deeper than that. Chelsea lost to Eintracht Frankfurt (2-1) last Sunday and on the same day City lost 3-0 to Inter Milan.

Sure, it’s only pre-season and fitness and experimentation are the watch words, but you do wonder what psychological impact losing so often has on the players. Especially players unfamiliar with each other, as is the case at City more than Chelsea.

I have no doubt that both clubs will be up there at the top of the Premier League this season (though in City’s case, I still don’t believe they can really win the league), but there are very visible chinks in their respective armour that the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United will be keen to exploit.

Compare and contrast these club’s pre-season results with City and Chelsea and it’s a whole different story. United won 7-1 last night, albeit against much weaker opposition in a League of Ireland XI, while Tottenham defeated Benfica 1-0 and Arsenal’s last run out was a 3-2 victory over Celtic (who crashed out of the Champions League last night, by the way, losing on aggregate 4-2 to Braga) as they won the Emirates Cup.

Fact is, it doesn’t matter how much you spend, you need a manager capable of turning mercenary players into a team, as Mourinho did with Chelsea’s first expensively assembled squad and as Ancelotti has done since. You have to doubt Mancini’s ability to do the same with City.

Money doesn’t buy you happiness, shrewd management does. That’s why Spurs, United, Chelsea and Arsenal will once again be the teams to beat this season – and City will learn a very harsh lesson, with Mancini ending up the ultimate casualty.

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But I’m just not feeling it. The ONLY thing that’s ‘good’ about this upcoming season is that the annoying international match always scheduled for this time of year takes place BEFORE the season starts. About time.

Now I know once the Community Shield kicks off the excitement will begin to build, the problem these days is that the constant media coverage of transfer news and, more pertinently, the constant rumour-mongering is deadening the senses.

Oh, for the days when you first knew about a player signing for your club when they held the damn press conference. It was exciting. That’s all ruined now by the speculation – with so many rumours flooding our eyes and ears, you know one of them is going to be correct and it’s a pretty safe bet which one, usually.

Enough about that though, it happens every year and it’s not going to change now. It shouldn’t really affect what used to be a growing excitement about the first day of the season, should it. Yet that isn’t there either. Now maybe it’s my natural pessimism about the chances my own club (Manchester United) has of success this year – that could certainly be the case.

It seems to me that we’re standing still and allowing the rest to catch up with us, not least our bitter rivals, Manchester City. The first eleven they COULD put out this season is frightening. The only consolation I have is that this is City, hence they will find some way of cocking it up. They always do. Oh, and the fact Mancini does nothing for me as a manager – gone by Christmas if I was to guess.

A saving grace? Liverpool are no closer to winning that 19th title than they were the last time they won it. Further away in fact. Lovely.

Chelsea haven’t done too much, but they didn’t need to – age is being cited as their potential downfall. Not seeing that THIS season myself. Arsenal continue to rebuild and will push the top two, whoever they may be. It is not a forgone conclusion it will be Chelsea and Man Utd yet again.

Not with City and now Spurs assembling really good squads. So yeah, maybe it’s that.

Or maybe I’m just getting old and (more) cynical, wondering what the point of it all is? Which may have you asking why I wrote this article in the first place!

Well, I’ll be at Old Trafford a week on Monday to watch us take on Newcastle and I strongly suspect that buzz will come flying back then. I wanted to record the lack of it now to compare it to. Because what happens ON the pitch is so much more important to me than what goes on OFF the pitch and it’s THAT that gets me down. I cannot be bothered with it anymore. Just give me the Beautiful Game, in all its magnificence and leave the rest of the crap to those more willing to play in it.

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Ford Super Sunday will feature Liverpool versus Arsenal from Anfield on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports HD1, while the first Monday Night Football welcomes Newcastle United back to the Premier League as they visit Manchester United at Old Trafford, also on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports HD1.

Not a bad weekend of football, especially for High Definition viewers.

FULL LIVE SKY SPORTS FIXTURES

DATE	GAME	KICK-OFF
AUGUST
Saturday 14	Tottenham v Man City	12.45pm
Sunday 15	Liverpool v Arsenal	4pm
Monday 16	Man Utd v Newcastle	8pm
Saturday 21	Wigan v Chelsea	5.15pm
Sunday 22	Fulham v Man Utd	4pm
Monday 23	Man City v Liverpool	8pm
Saturday 28	Blackburn v Arsenal	12.45pm
Sunday 29	Bolton v Birmingham Aston Villa v Everton	1.30pm 4pm
SEPTEMBER
Sunday 12	Everton v Man Utd Birmingham v Liverpool	1.30pm 4pm
Monday 13	Stoke City v Aston Villa	8pm
Saturday 18	Stoke City v West Ham	12.45pm
Sunday 19	Man Utd v Liverpool Chelsea v Blackpool	1.30pm 4pm
Saturday 25	Man City v Chelsea	12.45pm
Sunday 26	Wolves v Aston Villa Newcastle v Stoke City	2pm 4.10pm
OCTOBER
Sunday 3	Chelsea v Arsenal	4pm
Monday 4	Wigan v Wolves	8pm
Sunday 17	Everton v Liverpool Blackpool v Man City	1.30pm 4pm
Monday 18	Blackburn v Sunderland	8pm
Saturday 23	Tottenham v Everton West Ham v Newcastle	12.45pm 5.30pm
Sunday 24	Stoke City v Man Utd Man City v Arsenal	1.30pm 4pm
Sunday 31	Bolton v Liverpool Newcastle v Sunderland	1.30pm 4pm
NOVEMBER
Monday 1	Blackpool v West Brom	8pm
Saturday 6	Bolton v Tottenham	12.45pm
Sunday 7	Arsenal v Newcastle Liverpool v Chelsea	1.30pm 4pm
Tuesday 9	West Ham v West Brom	8pm
Wednesday 10	Man City v Man Utd	8pm
Saturday 13	Aston Villa v Man Utd	12.45pm
Sunday 14	Everton v Arsenal Chelsea v Sunderland	2pm 4.10pm
Sunday 21	Arsenal v Tottenham Fulham v Man City	1.30pm 4pm
Monday 22	Sunderland v Everton	8pm
Saturday 27	Aston Villa v Arsenal	12.45pm
Sunday 28	Newcastle v Chelsea Tottenham v Liverpool	1.30pm 4pm

Sporting Fare - Serving up the world of sport...with a twist!

That’ll make for a nice return to the top division for West Brom. The same goes for Championship champions Newcastle, who travel to Old Trafford for a reunion with Manchester United while Blackpool get their first ever taste of Premier League action at home against Wigan. The Tangerines will be well pleased with the tie at Bloomfield Road as it gives them a great chance of getting some points on the board early.

The tie of the opening weekend is undoubtedly Arsenal versus Liverpool at Anfield. Liverpool, presumably with a new manager in place, will look to get off to a good start to provide the foundation for a more successful season than last year but they won’t find it easy against Arsene Wenger’s men. Expect this one to move to the Sunday for Sky coverage.

The two teams that battled it out for fourth place last season, Tottenham and Manchester City, get to resume their rivalry early as City travel to White Hart Lane in a potentially mouthwatering clash that could also be chosen by Sky.

Premier League Opening Day Fixtures

• Aston Villa v West Ham
• Blackburn v Everton
• Blackpool v Wigan
• Bolton v Fulham
• Chelsea v West Brom
• Liverpool v Arsenal
• Man Utd v Newcastle
• Sunderland v Birmingham
• Tottenham v Man City
• Wolves v Stoke

Full club-by-club season fixtures here.

Sporting Fare - Serving up the world of sport...with a twist!

But in a transfer market where David Villa can be bought for £34 million and Barcelona are rumoured to want Cesc Fabregas for upwards of 45 million Euros, is he really two thirds the player Villa is? Or half a Fabregas? We don’t think so. Not even close. Not yet.

We’re baffled, then, by the £20m bid from Manchester City. We understand Aston Villa’s decision to reject it. They know Manchester City have an almost bottomless pit of wealth, thanks to their mega-rich benefactors, and they will try to squeeze as much out of them as they can – assuming Milner decides to leave, of course.

Chelsea are rumoured to be preparing to enter the bidding as well, backed by their own mega-rich benefactor, Roman Abramovic. With that sort of interest you can see the price for Milner approaching the £30m mark easily.

Even though English players come at a premium that figure is staggering for a player who just isn’t what you would term world class as yet.

Milner’s career started at Leeds United. He made his debut in 2002 at just at 16, then the youngest to appear in the Premiership. He then became the youngest to score in the Premiership until Everton’s James Vaughan broke that record. When the Yorkshire side went into decline and financial trouble, Milner was sold to Newcastle, where’d he’d make over 100 appearances.

A loan spell to Aston Villa – Milner didn’t enjoy life under Graeme Souness – looked like it would result in a transfer but the move failed and he returned to Newcastle, now managed by Glenn Roeder. In 2008 he handed in a written transfer request and was finally signed by Aston Villa for £12m.

That figure makes today’s asking price seem reasonable, perhaps. But we thought back then it was a lot of money.

However, Milner has flourished under Martin O’Neill, justifying that transfer fee to some extent. Whether on the left wing or in central midfield, Milner’s style of play makes him a great team player who provides valuable and frequent assists. Already an established international under-21 player, he has now progressed to the full England team and looks set to play an important role at this year’s World Cup in South Africa for Fabio Capello. Especially if Gareth Barry, his former team mate at Villa, fails to win his battle for fitness.

It sounds like we just made the case for a £20m plus transfer fee, doesn’t it. But we haven’t. We acknowledge that Milner is a good, good player. For us, though, a player commanding a fee of such size should be a proven international and appeared regularly in European competition. Milner doesn’t fit that bill – yet.

Youth also plays a part in setting your value and at 24 Milner is the right age, with his best years just around the corner. We assume that’s what Manchester City and Chelsea are prepared to gamble on – that he will get better over the next three or four seasons and become that proven international in the process. Hell of a gamble at that price though.

What this does prove is that we were right when we said that Manchester City’s failure to get into the Champions League would mean they’d have to set their sights lower than they would have liked in the transfer market. As good as Milner may become, we don’t think he was the man they had in mind when they were winning the race for the last Champions League spot. City would have been looking to the European mainland, to Italy, Spain and Germany.

Instead, they’re having to settle for a homegrown talent that hasn’t reached his potential yet. We hate to say we told you so, but…

Chelsea’s alleged interest is a little stranger. They do have the clout and the money to buy whoever they like. Champions of England, recent Champions League finalists, Double winners, packed with talent already – they should be a club any player in Europe with ambitions to win things would want to join. Yet here they are, looking to get into a bidding war for a player not yet proven outside of the Premiership.

A gamble for both clubs but one that could pay off. We do know this though – both clubs will be hoping to get him to sign before the World Cup kicks off. Because if he goes to South Africa and has the tournament of his life you can bet Martin O’Neill will be rejecting bids of £30m in July. And should that happen, we’ll quite happily accept that it’s no longer a gamble.

Sporting Fare - Serving up the world of sport...with a twist!