Season 2007/2008 Preview

Like a child at Christmas Eve, the hour is finally upon us. Tomorrow, I drive Danny up to his first home for the grand opening fixture at Sixfields against Swindon. As clocks strike three across the land, terraces and tiers great and small will get things underway. It’s a cheesy way to describe the start of the football season alright, but at the risk of incurring the wrath of hyperbole, it looks set to be an absolute cracker.

Picking up my flatmate’s copy of FourFourTwo, you begin to realise how much has happened since it all came to a crescendo in May. All eyes are on Chelsea and Manchester United for the main battle. The onus this year seems to be on who’s going to pick up the most injuries – have we really got to the point where there’s so little to choose between these two that it all comes down to the toss of a coin? I’d like to think that there’s more to it than that. Surely these teams have shown they have bad days, or even a run of poor form, that keeps the title so tight. Liverpool are serious contenders this year – in Fernando Torres they have the complete squad now. They’ll be able to push for the title this year. Provided they don’t pick up too many injuries.

At the risk of upsetting the red northern half of London, Arsenal may struggle this year. Unless Arsene Wenger can produce miracle from the likes of Cesc Fabregas, they may find themselves lacking. I’m reminded of the also-rans Chelsea squad of the late nineties – ability to produce wonders in the big games, but giving a half-baked performance against teams you’d normally expect them to beat. To that end, I expect a tough challenge for the fourth Champion’s League place – Tottenham being the favourites to step up to the plate. Everton may have a strong squad, but I think Newcastle will have a stronger campaign. Bringing up the list, West Ham should be this year’s surprise team if they can get their act together. And provided they don’t pick up too many injuries.

At the wrong end of the table, the three plucky hopefuls recently promoted face the inevitable battle of slotting in to 17^th place. The respite for them is that there are some contenders for the drop. Last season’s great-escapers Wigan face a fight without the excellence of Paul Jewell at the helm, and Fulham’s treacherous end to the season could well be a sign of things to come.

Finally, Carlos Tevez has finally got clearance to play for United by the Premier League. The bitter irony of this saga is that Sir Alex isn’t going to play him against Reading.