Photo by kigaliwire

In 1992, when the Premier League was formed, the clubs began to take advantage of lucrative television rights and broke away from the Football League, which had existed since 1888.

When fans worldwide saw Brian Deane score the first Premier League goal in the 2-1 win by Sheffield United over Manchester United, little did any one predict that this league’s popularity would stretch as far as a small town in East Africa named Rweshera.

For example, Tumwine Bosco, a peasant who earned less than $1 a week, caused outrage in the village where he chased his wife from their marital home because she insisted that Manchester United played better football than Arsenal. After three days of dialogue. The Elders and Bosco agreed to take back his wife on one condition. That his wife apologize to him, acknowledge that Arsenal was better than Man United and, from then on, she must become a Gooner. True story.

There are plenty more stories like that.

But, first, some background. In Africa, it’s a Known fact that an average male aged between 16-25 knows at least the starting eleven of his favorite club in England. Research goes on to show that this same age category may not be able to identify players representing his national team.

A 2008 Target Group Index research study by Consumer Insight revealed that most Africans spend their free time watching television. About 77 per cent of Ethiopians watch TV in their free time, while in Uganda, it’s 60 per cent and 45 per cent in Tanzania. Kenya, Angola and Burundi tie at 45 per cent. This might be one of the causes for the unfamiliarity of their national team players because the local leagues are not shown on television.

The survey further revealed that 61 per cent of respondents said they visit pubs in their free time, and 75 per cent said they drink to socialize and relieve stress. Consumption, the study said, is more prevalent among people aged between 18 and 34 years who account for almost three quarters of the total population of drinkers. That is the age most passionate about soccer. And drinking where live matches are shown is for most, an ideal way of socializing.

Why the attraction to the Premier League and not La Liga? One big difference is the inconvenient start-times of the Spanish league fixtures, which means its league matches are screened at midnight when most fans are already drunk by then and are staggering home, if not asleep.

The popularity of the English Premiership thus rests on media promotion, and competitiveness of the top teams. And realizing the global marketing potential, teams resort to selling jerseys and other kit.

However, the impact of the Premier League in Africa has left many dead. Different countries have had their share of bizarre cases and here are some that caught my eye:

• Just in March 2010, a fan stabbed Abubakar Baishe, 19, in the stomach. The two schoolmates were arguing over league standings during a Manchester United versus Liverpool match that was aired on television in Lamu, Kenya.
• In Ogbo town Nigeria, a bus driver and Manchester United fan ran over fans celebrating Barcelona’s 2-0 win over Manchester United during the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final. Four were killed and 10 seriously injured.
• In Uganda, a Manchester United fan beat his wife senselessly in 2008 because she had washed his prized Man United jersey on the day of a crucial encounter.
• Young Islamist masked militants raided a cinema Hall in Howl Wadaag district of Mogadishu where a Manchester United against Arsenal FA semi-final match was being screened in 2008. Abdullahi Madehey, an Arsenal fan, died from gunshot wounds during the attack. Arsenal is the most popular club in Somalia.
• In the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final between Chelsea and Manchester United, seven fans died in Nigeria after clashes between rival supporters.
• In 2009, Suleiman Omondi, 29, took a rope and hanged himself at the balcony of his house in a Nairobi estate after Arsenal’s 3-1 loss to Manchester United, according to the girlfriend and neighbors. Omondi could not even wait for the Champions League semi-final match on Tuesday night between the two teams to end before snuffing out his life as Arsenal’s defeat was inevitable after Man United’s two goals during the first eleven minutes of the game. Omondi allegedly expressed his disappointment at the way Arsenal had been outclassed in the semi-final clash.

In Africa, where I live (Uganda to be precise), a typical weekend for a soccer fan comprises of placing his bet for the day and heading to a “sports” bar.

Fans spend hours swilling copious amounts of alcohol, eating nyama choma (roast meat) and pork as they root for what most call “my team.” At the end of the match they slowly walk back home in groups as they analyze the match until the next fixture. The emotional ones stay behind to fight battles on behalf of “their teams”.

For some, Premier League football is the most important thing in their lives. For others, Premier League football is more important than their life.

Photo by Probek

Three-quarters of the Premier League’s clubs will need to significantly reduce their spending on players’ wages if they are to qualify for European competitions after Uefa’s “financial fair play” rules are introduced. The European governing body’s executive committee is set to approve the regulations, which will require clubs to breakeven, and not make persistent losses, from 2012-13.

In 2008-09, the most recent year for which the Premier League’s 20 clubs’ accounts are published, 14 made substantial losses. One other, Blackburn Rovers, made a £3.6m profit but were subsidised with a £5m loan from the club’s owners, which will no longer be permitted. Most clubs in the Premier League are funded by owners, most spectacularly at Chelsea and Manchester City, where Roman Abramovich and Sheikh Mansour subsidised losses of £47m and £93m respectively. Owners will, according to the rules, be permitted to invest in clubs, via permanent shares rather than repayable loans, to build solid infrastructure such as training grounds or youth development facilities, but not overspending on wages or transfers.

Uefa has taken more than three years to develop the rules since the organisation’s president, Michel Platini, warned of the “danger to football” posed by debt, overspending and “rampant commercialism”. They will be phased in, with club owners allowed to subsidise €45m (£38m) losses over the three years from 2012-13, reducing to €30m intotal over the next three years.

The truth is, the economies of the other leagues are torn to shreds and bursting at the seams. The Germans’ foresight and willingness to act unprompted puts to shame the inclination of the other leagues to turn a blind eye, cross their fingers and hope. In fact, to describe the financial state of European football as a mess would be a gross understatement.

The model in the Bundesliga means that the clubs are debt-free and can pass on the benefits to the fans, who pay as little as £11 to go and see the mighty Bayern play. Season tickets are similarly much cheaper and to become a “member” at Schalke for example will set you back a mere £86. You can’t even accuse them of having such cheap prices to simply get bums on seats. According to Deloitte’s Annual Review of Football Finance in 2009, the German top division had an average of 8,000 more people per game than their English counterpart, while the Premier League suffered a loss in revenue over the same period. UEFA is all too aware of this. As of the start of the 2012 season, new rules will be in place which, the governing body hopes, will curtail this culture of “spending at will” within the current elite. Plans were announced in 2009 to give the continent some time to basically pull its finger out and get its finances in check. These clubs are a long, long way off meeting the criteria.

Serie A has plans to emulate an English idea. In May 2009, 19 of the 20 league sides voted in favour of separating from Serie B and forming a breakaway league, similar to the English Premier League. Italian sides came under fire after only Udinese reached the quarter-finals of a continental competition in their 2009 UEFA Cup campaign. The clubs argued that they were unable to compete with the wages in England and Spain. Lega Serie A went live on July 1st, 2010 and on the same day, Lega Calcio folded; leaving the top sides free to sign their own TV contracts and establish their new division. They’ll have to wait two years however, as the defunct Lega Calcio had already signed €1.7bn worth of deals with Sky Italia, Mediaset Premium and Dahlia TV. The Serie A clubs do have control of the income and what’s rather concerning is that it is up to them to decide how much of the money, if any, should filter down into the leagues below them.

Of the Premiership clubs, Owen has been linked with moves to Aston Villa, Everton, Man City, Tottenham, Arsenal and a return to Liverpool. Rumours emerged last week of a pay as you play deal from Celtic that included massive goal bonuses and then there have been a few smaller cries of offers and interest from abroad. Personally I think moving north of the border at this stage of Owen’s career would be suicide, especially on a pay as you play deal. Owen is too good for the SPL right now and can still achieve a lot at a higher level. Of course the prospect of Champions League football might appeal but it’s not like he’d ever win that particular competition with Celtic.

Aston Villa is a potential destination which may be favourable to Owen as he would have the opportunity to link up with Emile Heskey once more, something that Owen has always prospered from. John Carew is also of the Heskey mould and could provide a similar foil for Owen. Everton may not be the most popular club for Owen to align himself with given his history but could be what it needed to push the Toffees to the next level. These two seem the most likely of choices as Spurs have already got three strikers in the form of Jermain Defoe, Robbie Keane and Darren Bent that can offer what Owen does. Man City are being linked with every Tom, Dick and Jose so their name was destined to crop up on the list of suitors but the actual chances of them signing Owen are slim. Mainly because he wouldn’t cost an outrageous transfer fee and it seems that City don’t deal in the bargain bin anymore.

Arsenal and Liverpool aren’t likely to be interested either. Owen isn’t really the kind of player Arsene Wenger likes (i.e. English), and would rather blood someone like Carlos Vela who, given Arsenal’s tight budget, wouldn’t cost the club anywhere near the amount Owen’s wages would. As for Liverpool, Rafa Benitez is hardly likely to re-sign a player who was shown the door almost immediately after Rafa took over at Anfield.  I would like to see Owen try again abroad, although I can understand the player’s reluctance given his stint on the Real Madrid bench in 2004/05. Perhaps Italy would be a more viable option should Owen’s prospects be limited domestically as the Italian style may just suit his game more. Newcastle still remains an option if they stay up and it wouldn’t surprise me if Alan Shearer was to remain as manager, then Owen might just be inclined to stay put.

Towards the end of this month, the Premiership team of the year will be announced along with the PFA players’ player of the year. In anticipation of this, I have decided to select my own best eleven of the season and invite you to do likewise. So here goes:

Goalkeeper:

Edwin Van Der Sar

It’s difficult to look beyond someone who didn’t concede a goal for over three months of the season. At the age of 38, he has defied his years, proving that he still has the ability to be considered one of the top keepers in world football and the desire to win medals. Although he does have a remarkable defence in front of him, it is partly his concentration levels that are so commendable. The fact that he spends the majority of games with nothing to do, only to be called into action late on and oblige with both routine and magnificent saves is why he is still a major attribute to Manchester United. His meticulous preparation, years of experience and composure in nervy situations provide the platform for young players like Jonny Evans to come straight into the first team and look like he’s been there for years.

Defence:

Phil Jagielka

A superb season has seen him rewarded with an England call up. Everton pride themselves on having a solid core and while others have taken the plaudits, Jagielka quietly goes about his business, keeping many a top class striker firmly at bay. His ability on the ball is infallible has been consistently good under pressure. He too has that urgency and desire to not lose a goal and in the mould of John Terry and Jamie Carragher, will throw himself in front of anything to ensure that his side do not concede.

Nemanja Vidic

Vidic has been absolutely outstanding for the majority of the season. It will be highlighted that he had a shocker against Liverpool recently but that should not take away from the fact that he has been world class yet again. He is not only vital to United in a defensive sense but his goal threat is sensational. Important ones against Chelsea and Inter Milan have seen him become very much a potent threat from set pieces while his no nonsense attitude at the back makes him a striker’s worst nightmare.

Brede Hangeland

What a find by Roy Hodgson. From leaking goals left, right and centre to being the clean sheet specialists in the Premiership, Hangeland is very much the heart and soul of Fulham’s team. They have built a solid unit around his old school style of defending as he provides a presence that the West London club severely lacked. It is likely that he will move on to a bigger club in the summer and it is clear for all to see as to why he is so coveted.

Joleon Lescott

Another consistent season for the versatile defender who still remains potent in front of goal. He has followed up on his two previous impressive seasons for the Toffees with yet another, this time being more of a feature at centre back than left back. Nonetheless, he still seems to be a key member of Everton’s team and at 26, must only be scraping the surface of his talents and has his best years ahead of him.

Midfield:

Frank Lampard

This man doesn’t know how to have a mediocre season, even when all around him are. His knack for not just scoring but doing so at crucial times never ceases to amaze. Despite the addition of yet another ‘world class’ midfielder in the form of Deco, Lampard continues to remain Chelsea’s only undroppable, unstoppable midfielder and Ballack and the aforementioned Portuguese playmaker could take a leaf out of his book.  Another aspect of Lampard’s game that deserves the utmost respect is the fact that he is always available for selection, regardless of the competition. Whether it’s the league cup third round at home to a lower league side to the champions’ league final, Lampard wants to play. For me Lampard is the main reason why Chelsea are still in the title race.

Xabi Alonso

For a player who was supposedly surplus to requirements last summer, he has more than proved his importance and class. It’s no coincidence that his best form for probably two years now has coincided with Liverpool mounting their most serious title challenge for years. Alonso’s range of passing is undoubtedly breathtaking at times, while this season he has also chipped in with some vital goals, something that has been severely lacking in his game in previous campaigns. Another factor that has been impressive about Alonso is that he appears to have more resilience about him, not going missing in games that aren’t going according to plan.

Stephen Ireland

Considering all Manchester City’s money and their foreign imports, it has been Stephen Ireland who has been their most consistent performer over the season. He has responded to the influx of talent that surrounds him and puts some of them to shame with his tireless performances week in week out. Goals have been the most notable addition to his game but his overall influence on the team has been superb. At home, Man City have looked great more often than not and Ireland slots in nicely with assists and general midfield play that is easy on the eye. But it has been away from home, where City have struggled, that Ireland has come into his own. 
Whereas some players have shied away from a scrap and a battle on unfamiliar turf, Ireland has dug in and led by example with a never say die attitude that is starting to look like it might pay dividends for City. His game has matured this season and he has certainly risen to the challenge of the investors that want to make City a massive club. Judging by his performances, if the good times are just around the corner, Ireland definitely wants to be a part of it.

Ashley Young

He has been one of, if not the most exciting player to watch this season. He is a breath of fresh air and doesn’t know when to quit. Take the game versus Everton just before Christmas as a perfect example. Just when it looked as though Everton had salvaged a point courtesy of a ninetieth minute equaliser, Young literally goes up the other end of the pitch and scores a crucial winner.
His pace is electric, his skills and technique are sublime and his finishing is getting better by the chance. He is also one of the top providers of goals and delivers a dangerous set piece that no defenders find easy to deal with. Villa have played with no fear this season and he has been the personification of this bold approach that Martin O’Neill has endorsed.

Forwards:

Wayne Rooney

Finally, some consistency and a solid goal return has seen Rooney take a massive stride towards becoming the player we all knew he could be. For years I believe Rooney to have been overrated but this year he has added regular goals to his game, an attribute which was sorely missing. Last year he was over shadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo (although who wasn’t?) but now Rooney is starting to show why he is most effective at the top end of the pitch, providing the kind of goal return of a striker (almost one in two in all competitions). And his desire to get in the box more hasn’t deterred his work rate defensively as he still goes chasing back seventy yards when losing the ball. Also his skill and long range passing is now proving to be more productive rather than for show. By far his best season and at 23 has much more to come.

Kevin Davies

A somewhat controversial choice but he has had his best season in front of goal and has always in my opinion been underrated. He does the same job for Bolton that Emile Heskey does but includes goals in his game as well. The only reason Davies never receives international recognition is because he has never played for a fashionable club.  He has scored four times the amount of goals Heskey has this season and has been Bolton’s catalyst for years now. Davies has been this season’s highest scoring English forward in the Premiership and although he isn’t most people’s cup of tea, he is very effective.

Since the turn of the year, Aaron Lennon has been in outstanding form. His club exploits have been rewarded with not just an international call up, but a place in the starting eleven in England’s last two matches, the latter being a competitive qualifier. This is just rewards for Lennon as he has been absolutely sensational recently and much credit must go to Harry Redknapp who has made the youngster begin to realise his potential.

For Tottenham he has been consistently terrorising full backs this season, most notably giving Patrice Evra (arguably the world’s best left back) a torrid time in the Carling Cup final last month. Lennon too has added goals on a more regular basis and, perhaps more importantly for a winger, an end product in terms of crossing. It’s never been doubted that Lennon possesses the ability to take on players but what has let him down in seasons’ past is that he has frequently failed to produce a telling cross. However, he has upped his game in that department and proved that he could realistically become a top class winger.

Maybe the signing of David Bentley was a stark warning to him that his place at Spurs was in jeopardy. Possibly he needed a manager like Redknapp who will put an arm round him and tell him that he is the best, instilling much needed confidence in the young man. Lennon has been the subject of some harsh criticism for someone so young; he is still only 21. Because Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have set such exceptional standards, it seems to be that all other wide players are compared and therefore deemed not good enough in comparison. These players are rare commodities and it simply isn’t feasible for Lennon or most others for that matter to be thought of under the same rules.

Lennon’s two recent international caps have defined for me why he has come such a long way and although still a raw talent to an extent, showed why he has plenty more to come. Neither the Slovakian nor Ukrainian left side could handle him. He caused panic and chaos amongst both defences and particularly in the Ukraine game, his withdrawal killed any tempo or dynamism to England’s attacks.  It was also apparent that he can pick players out more methodically when in crossing positions, rather than just hitting across the box in hope.

Although his finishing has also improved, Theo Walcott would still have the edge in that department but in terms of all round game I think Lennon is the best option for England on the right wing. He stretches defences and has better control when on the ball as well as having the odd trick up his sleeve, something that Walcott doesn’t seem to possess. It would be nice to see Lennon retain his place in the side but I get the impression that he is just keeping it warm for Walcott. The best Lennon can do is maintain his good form and take it from there. It could be worse though, he could be in the international wilderness like Ashley Young.

I’ve wondered for a long time what it is that managers see in Stewart Downing, particularly England managers. Since his first call up in February 2005, Downing has been pretty much been a regular in the England squad, but why? I don’t understand how one player can have gained 22 caps without ever making an impact in any of those games. People criticise the manner in which David Beckham has accrued caps in recent years to tie him level with Bobby Moore but at least he has made an impact for his country at some stage of his career. In his ten minute cameo appearances, David Beckham provides more goal scoring opportunities than Stewart Downing could ever dream of.

For his club, Downing is undeniably a good player but as soon as he puts on an England shirt he seems to lose the ability to take on full backs and get crosses into the box. There is a reason though why Tottenham wanted to buy him. At Premiership level, he scores and creates goals on a regular basis and has one of the best deliveries in the league. Although his form in front of goal hasn’t been as good this season, he is still a class operator down the flanks and can give the best full backs in the world a torrid ninety minutes. He must be exceptional in training as well, why else would Fabio Capello openly say that he has been most impressed by the winger?

Downing has all the natural attributes to be a top player but let’s face it, he only gets into the England squad because he is left footed. It is well publicised that England have always struggled in that position and a naturally left footed winger is hard to come by. But that doesn’t justify continuously playing someone in that position who has had numerous opportunities and never really impressed. Not when Ashley Young is looking on from the bench, or worse, watching at home on his television having been overlooked yet again. From Young’s point of view he must be wondering what more he has to do to get a game for his country.

Granted, Downing had a decent game against Germany last November but one performance in twenty two is just not acceptable. Not when Andorran and Macedonian full backs are marking him out of a game. If Downing was right footed, he wouldn’t get a sniff. He would find himself in the wilderness with the likes of David Bentley. If Downing replicated his ‘Boro form for England then by all means he should be considered but after four years now, each time he has played for England it has become increasingly clear that he just isn’t up to the job. This has been shown up by the manager’s choice to not play him in crucial competitive matches as he is too inconsistent compared to someone like Joe Cole who can be relied upon. But surely his consistent inclusion in the squad is only giving him the false perception that he is producing the standard of performance that is required.

Capello has stated that he only picks players who are playing regularly and more importantly playing well so this would explain why Downing is constantly selected but I for one think it’s time to leave him out for a while. There are other options that haven’t been explored and the only thing that Downing has proved in my opinion is that he is not the answer.

They seem to have been mentioned on here quite a lot recently but since the inception of the Premiership in 1992, the dominant force in English football has undisputedly been Manchester United. Over the years they have had a number of fantastic footballers on their books but who have been the best? Below I have attempted to put together a best eleven of the Premiership Years (also stating the season that I believe each player was at the height of their powers). There are going to be one or two notable absentees but here goes:

Goalkeeper: Peter Schmeichel (1995/96).
This was the easiest choice of all eleven as Schmeichel is probably the best goalkeeper of all time. United haven’t exactly been blessed with an abundance of talent in this area since The Great Dane left the club in 1999. Edwin Van Der Sar has become the closest thing to a replacement that Sir Alex has found for Schmeichel but without a doubt, he would be my choice of keeper for any fantasy team.

Right Back: Gary Neville (2000/01).
The most difficult part of this selection was pinpointing the exact season as to when Neville was at his best. I have gone for the early 2000s as to when I think he was at his peak but for the best part of a decade, Gary Neville was the best right back in the league. Still an important figure at Old Trafford as the club captain, his determination and desire to play for United has seen him rewarded with a contract extension. Neville deserves this for his service to the club and has been an integral part of United’s unrivalled success.

Left Back: Denis Irwin (1993/94).
Patrice Evra was a close contender for this position but I have gone in favour of the former Ireland international purely on the basis of longevity. In his twelve years at the club, he won seven titles, three F.A Cups and a Champions’ League. Albeit right footed, Irwin was arguably better at left back where he played the majority of games for United. Irwin was not only a dependable full back but also had a knack for scoring penalties and free kicks too.

Centre Back: Jaap Stam (1998/99).
In his first season at the club, he won the treble. Intimidating, powerful and no nonsense, Jaap Stam was a centre forward’s worst nightmare. When he signed for the club he was exactly what they were missing and when he was sold (something Ferguson has since admitted his regret at doing), he was sorely missed as United leaked goals in a way they had never really done so before. Although he only spent three years at the club, Jaap Stam made a huge impression on Man United fans and I feel definitely warrants a place in this team.

Centre Back: Rio Ferdinand (2007/08).
I feel that Ferdinand has been the best centre back in the world for the last couple of years now. It took him a while to mature but seems to have been worth the wait. At the time, thirty million pounds seemed to be a very steep price tag for a centre back but Rio looks to have justified that investment and has gotten better with age and experience. Ferguson ought to think about awarding Rio with the permanent job of captain (I’m pretty sure he has).

Right Midfield: David Beckham (1998/99).
While at Man United, David Beckham twice came runner up in the FIFA World Footballer of the Year award. Although he was probably a more accomplished player and talismanic figure for both club and country in 2001, the way that Beckham bounced back from being outcast as a public hate figure after the 1998 World Cup is what most impressed me.

Left Midfield: Ryan Giggs (1992/93).
Giggs has the unique record of being the only player to have scored in every Premiership season. For as long as I can remember, Ryan Giggs has been annihilating full backs. He is the personification of loyalty and is Mr Manchester United. Over the years he has adapted his game to ensure that he can still compete at the top level and doesn’t get any less remarkable. However, it is the Giggs of the inaugural Premiership season that I would want marauding down the left wing as he was simply unstoppable.

Centre Midfield: Roy Keane (1999/00).
The PFA and Football Writers’ Player of the Year in 2000, Roy Keane was the engine room, the heart and soul of Manchester United for many a year. He demanded perfection and usually got it. The way his United career ended sours the fact that he was an immense talent and a fantastic captain. Not only is he an automatic selection but would definitely get the armband too.

Centre Midfield: Paul Scholes (1999/00).
Paul Scholes has never sought attention like many professional footballers do, but somehow I don’t feel he (or his talent) can ever receive enough praise. A truly remarkable exploiter of a football, he can dictate games with his eyes closed and has been doing so for what seems an eternity. It’s tricky to nail down the specific season that Scholes most shone for me as he has been superb for so many of them. I have gone with 1999/00 because of two special goals that live long in the memory, versus Bradford and then Middlesbrough (look them up on YouTube, both occasions United wore the less fondly remembered purple strip).

Striker: Cristiano Ronaldo (2007/08).
Well he had to be in here somewhere. You could play Ronaldo anywhere you like really and he’d still be sensational. Many would say that he is a midfielder but I would probably just tell him to play where he likes. Anyone who can score 42 goals in a season earns that privilege. His aerial ability married with David Beckham’s delivery would be an exciting prospect and I’d be intrigued to find out whether or not Ronaldo would score as many goals up front as he does from the wings. Either way, he’s in. You can’t not have the world’s best player in the team.

Striker: Ruud Van Nistelrooy (2002/03).
This was an unbelievably tough call, one that I didn’t anticipate (somewhat naively) when I began this article. Cantona or Van Nistelrooy? I only went for the Dutchmen because it’s who I’d pick to compliment the team if this were real. A born predator, he scores goals like you and I breathe. 44 goals in a season isn’t easy to ignore. Whereas Cantona was perhaps United’s most influential figure of the nineties and they wouldn’t be where they are today without him, I have to go for Van Nistelrooy just on the basis that goal scorers win a team trophies.

There is my team; some agree with me, most won’t so feel free to add your own suggestions and/or best elevens as well.

The question I am posing is looking purely at what the UEFA Cup means to clubs from the English Premier League. Judging by recent participants and how they have fared, it appears to feature very low on most Premiership clubs’ list of priorities. Before the profile of the European Cup was sufficiently raised and rebranded as the Champions League, the UEFA Cup was almost equally as prestigious and would appeal to a number of top quality clubs from across the continent. However, with the money that has been ploughed into the Champions League and the Premiership, the UEFA Cup now seems to be nothing more than an inconvenience.

Take for example the teams fielded by both Aston Villa and Tottenham in the last 32 knockout phase of the tournament. Both clubs put out far from full strength sides in order to be defeated, thus avoiding a fixture pile up come the latter parts of the season as well as the added bonus of giving fringe and youth players some valuable European experience. Should for one reason or another, the under strength sides happen to get the better of their opposition, those players are then rewarded by featuring in the next round. However, what I fail to understand is why teams wait until they have got far in the tournament before writing it off as an unnecessary distraction and burden on their resources.

Last season Bolton Wanderers waited until the quarter final stage of the competition before submitting to Sporting Lisbon over two legs, despite some memorable and historic results against the likes of Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid. Sam Allardyce must be wondering why on Earth he worked so hard to drag Bolton into Europe, only for Gary Megson to forfeit a quarter final tie having drawn the first leg.  If anything it is an insult to the fans of these clubs who pay to watch their side compete in European competition, some of the more hardcore even travelling to some obscure places for the privilege.

I get that clubs with a small squad have to prioritise and with all the financial implications that dictate the modern game, the more lucrative option of Premiership survival takes precedence over a run in Europe but if this is the case then what are the majority of Premiership sides striving for? What is the point of a side finishing high enough in the league to qualify for Europe, to then deem it pointless and not worth the hassle? Have they ever thought that perhaps their loyal fans would like to see them compete in Europe and give it their best shot considering most of them are never going to qualify for the Champions League or win a major trophy.

It would be nice to see a team show the gusto that Middlesbrough did in 2006 when they selected a strong side and went on an exciting and unforgettable journey all the way to the final before eventually being outclassed by a strong Sevilla side. With a little bit of effort, it would be amazing to see what they could achieve (take Glasgow Rangers last season as a further example). If Premier League clubs aren’t interested in competing in Europe, then why not give up their place to a side that might actually give it a go and embrace the chance to succeed.

Of course the neglect that the tournament has been shown in recent years hasn’t gone un-noticed amongst the UEFA decision makers who first tried to shake things up by introducing a group phase to the mix. This idea backfired though and another restructuring process was brought into effect. So as from next season the UEFA Cup will be known as the Europa League, a tournament that has a similar format to the Champions’ League with the idea of boosting both the competition’s status and profitability. Whether this works or not remains to be seen.

Can anyone remember the last time Hull City won a Premier League game? December 6th at home to Middlesbrough was the last time. Since then, they have been very much in freefall.  When Hull first arrived in the Premiership, they were tipped to go straight back down but decided to tear up the script and go to well established top flight sides like Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle United and win. How dare they!

 Since then however, Hull have had a bit of a reality check. Despite two very credible draws at Anfield and Stamford Bridge, a couple of resounding batterings from Manchester City and Sunderland, accompanied with some less humiliating defeats and the odd draw have seen Hull fall into thirteenth. By all means this is a respectable position but the worrying thing for Phil Brown’s side is that they are looking over their shoulder now, rather than towards the dizzy heights of Europe that their early season form suggested.

The run of form that they are in at the moment suggests only one thing; a relegation scrap. This is the last thing that they would have wanted or expected at the time of their last league win but have struggled to maintain the kind of form that shocked the world before Christmas. Credit to Brown, he acknowledged their slump and tried to shake things up by bringing in some new faces, most notably Manucho on loan from Manchester United (to replace the outgoing Marlon King) and record signing Jimmy Bullard from Fulham. The latter however seems to have backfired for the time being as Bullard required further surgery to his troublesome knee and is out for the remainder of the season having only made one substitute appearance for the Tigers.

A problem that is still rectifiable this season though is their home form. The KC Stadium has hardly been a fortress having picked up just three wins in the league there all season. Perhaps this is because it is a welcoming venue for travelling teams with nice facilities and doesn’t boast the most hostile of atmospheres. If a team is to avoid the drop, it is often their home form that will decide it. Stoke City are a good example of a side who are making the most of their home territory and in turn made themselves very difficult to beat there. Hull’s next three home games all come against sides who are in the relegation mix and the phrase ‘six pointer’ starts to take on some real meaning. Sunday’s match against a rejuvenated Blackburn Rovers is a crucial match and a win for Hull could spark a run that results in a comfortable finish to the season and doesn’t require the need for a positive result against Manchester United on the final day. Newcastle United and Portsmouth are the following home games for Hull while upcoming trips to Fulham, Wigan, Middlesbrough and Sunderland suggest that Hull should pick up enough points to survive.

Most neutrals would like to see Hull stay up, purely because of the way they shook things up in the opening weeks of the season and think it would be a waste to then throw it all away. Hull have achieved a lot in a short space of time and sending them back to the drawing board now would be harsh. However, you only stay up if you’re good enough and time will tell.

The question is simple. Can Michael Owen still perform at the highest level? While many would say no, he’s past it, he’s too injury prone and when he is on the pitch he doesn’t do anything anyway, I tend to disagree. Yes Michael Owen is injury prone, it’s been well documented. Over the course of his career he has had some nasty injuries as well as picking up a succession of niggles and strains. But generally he has been unfortunate. The prime example of bad luck was sustaining severe knee ligament damage while on international duty at the 2006 World Cup when a minute into England’s group encounter with Sweden, he awkwardly twisted his knee and subsequently found himself sidelined for the best part of a year.

Ever since he first injured his hamstring in 1999 while playing for Liverpool, Owen has had injury after injury that has plagued his career. But here is why I still think Owen isn’t past it. When fit, Owen scores to put it simply. And I’m not just talking about the occasional tap in against weak opposition. When it matters Owen scores big goals in big games both domestically and internationally. I still think he is the best choice up front for England and think he would be worth taking a gamble on when his Newcastle contract expires in the summer.

Owen is the type of striker that is fast becoming extinct. He is a poacher, nothing more. For much of the game, he will be quiet and won’t really contribute a lot to general build up play in the way that modern strikers do such as Wayne Rooney. However, when the ball gets played into dangerous areas, he comes alive and is far more effective than most. One reason that he is effective is because he actually gets himself into the six yard box rather than still hanging around on the edge of the box or further away, still admiring the pass he made moments before.

Now don’t get me wrong, I think Rooney is a world class player but he doesn’t possess that knack for goal scoring that Owen does. In fact, very few players do. Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Filippo Inzaghi are other examples of strikers who thrive on scoring goals and little else. Like the aforementioned, Owen is a potent finisher who has proved time and time again that he only needs half a yard to punish a defence. Where as many strikers rely on their physical stature or blistering pace to get themselves a goal scoring opportunity, Owen’s sharpness of mind puts him one step ahead. This is the reason that many of his goals come from headers, because he reads the situation and gets across his marker before they’ve even had time to think.

From an England point of view, I think that Owen is a must for South Africa 2010, providing England qualify. It appears that Fabio Capello is uncertain about Owen and needs more convincing but I think he is undoubtedly the best option.  Rooney and Heskey seem to be certainties for the squad, as does Walcott but considering the latter is more of a winger now, that would probably leave open two more places for strikers. Out of the possible contenders for the places, Owen’s goal scoring record outweighs the others by far.  He has forty goals for his country in eighty nine appearances and has scored in every knock out game for England that he has played in. Someone like Defoe can score goals against weak nations such as Kazakhstan but is he really going to cause the Portuguese any problems? Even coming off the bench, I think when in desperate need of a goal Owen has to be the choice. In a tight match where chances are scarce, left foot, right foot or head, Owen is the person I would want to see presented with the opportunity to score as he is the most likely of all English forwards to put it in the net. To summarise, I think Owen is a long way off being ‘past it’ and as he has proved so many times before, those who write him off can do so at their peril.

With the title race effectively coming down to just three realistic contenders now, there is only one spot remaining for qualification into next season’s Champions’ League. Currently, Aston Villa are sitting fourth on 48 points, with a nice five point gap separating them from Arsenal who are in fifth. Although Villa have accrued the same number of points as Chelsea, I just don’t see them being able to last the distance and put in a genuine title challenge. Although it would be nice for a wildcard like Villa to shake things up at the very pinnacle, I think it’s too soon for them to be contenders.

So back to the original point, Aston Villa remain in pole position to take the last Champions’ League spot from seasoned campaigners Arsenal. Domestically, it would be fantastic to see someone else muscle in on the big four but would it be beneficial for the Premiership’s European status? Currently the league stands as the best in the world as the Premiership’s four regular competitors for Europe’s elite prize have all reached the final in the last three years. In comparison to other leagues, where Real Madrid (the world’s most successful club arguably) struggle to make the quarter final stage each year and Italian sides feature on a sporadic basis at best, the Premiership provides serious challengers season after season.

The inclusion of Aston Villa in the Champions’ League at the expense of Arsenal could have a detrimental effect on England’s dominance of Europe. Whereas English teams stroll through to the latter stages, Villa could be drawn against an experienced European side (Valencia for example) in the third round qualifying stage and subsequently find themselves in the UEFA Cup, much like Everton did in 2005. And then, even if they did qualify for the group stages (which for the record would be a massively commendable achievement), I fear that they would struggle to make any impact on the competition.

Arsenal being in the UEFA Cup wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing as they would probably be considered among the favourites to lift the trophy, should they still have their current crop of players. However, would their stars like Fabregas, Adebayor, Van Persie, etc, really want to hang about when a host of top European sides could offer them an escape, and could Arsenal turn down big offers without the financial rewards that come with Champions’ League football? I doubt Arsenal would sell these players to domestic rivals so other leagues would then reap the benefits of their clubs purchasing some of the Premiership’s most exciting players.

All I’m getting at is that a team such as Arsenal not qualifying for the Champions League could have long term consequences, not just for themselves, but for the Premiership as a whole, as a spectacle. Would someone like Adebayor really want to stick around at Arsenal for a season that doesn’t involve playing in the biggest European competition? The prospect of this happening would really test the loyalty and allegiances of a Fabregas, a Van Persie, who could have their pick of clubs across the continent. I for one would like to see Villa break the top four this season, but not at the longer team expense of the quality of football and footballers that are witnessed each week in the Premiership. However, if Martin O’Neill were to sign all of Arsenal’s top players in the summer and keep them in England, then by all means Villa, go and win the league for all I care. Now that would be impressive.

When Manchester City signed Shay Given from Newcastle on Sunday, most at Eastlands will have been pleased by this capture. But not quite everyone.  Given will instantly become City’s first choice goalkeeper, displacing Joe Hart. This in turn will leave the young goalkeeper as nothing more than a bench warmer, at least for the remainder of the season. He hasn’t been as impressive this season but who can blame him when he surely must have been unsettled for months at the prospect of losing his place to any of the big name keepers that were linked with City, not to mention the indifferent form of his teammates.

Hart could learn a lot from someone like Shay Given who is extremely experienced and more importantly, someone who has been a brilliant keeper for at least a decade now. But any mentoring from the Irishman would only go so far, as the best way for any player to learn is to be playing. The more games he accumulates at the tender of age of 21, the better he’ll be for it. There are also longer term repercussions for Hart too.

It has been well documented that Fabio Capello does not select players for the England squad that have not been playing regularly. Now he may feature in the squad for the friendly against Spain on February 11th but beyond that, it is difficult to see how Hart will gain a place in the squad for qualifiers later this season if he is not playing regular club football. There are a number of English keepers who play every game for their club and thus would be more deserving of a place in the squad.

David James currently has the England number one jersey locked down for now, but at his age Capello must also be looking towards the future as I doubt James will be around for the Euro 2012 campaign. Therefore, if Joe Hart has any aspirations of claiming the position, he needs to be playing week in week out, just to give himself the chance of being noticed. Yes, time is more than on his side but I feel that he is England’s most promising keeper and would personally have no objections to throwing him in as number one now. If he responded well to the challenge (unlike Scott Carson has previously), you could then easily have a keeper who would be first choice for his country for the next fifteen years.

It would be in Hart’s best interests to move on and find regular football elsewhere come the summer. There would be no shortage of Premiership clubs that would be interested in his services and could get him for a decent price. Even if he was to move to a smaller club, impressive form there wouldn’t hinder his international chances and could even land him a move to a side that regularly competes in Europe (with the smaller club making good profit on their investment). I hope that Hart has the ambition to be more than a number two and can go on to realise his potential, if not at City, then elsewhere.

When the transfer window was brought in to the Premier League (being the last of the major European leagues to take up this format) it was met with a very mixed reception. Although it makes for some interesting television in the final few days, particularly in the January version, I believe that the transfer window has had more negative connotations than good.

Clubs who have had a good start to the season and are somewhat over achieving according to many pundits often find themselves being robbed of their finest assets come January. Wigan are a prime example of being this year’s victims of their own success. They are a relatively small club in comparison to some of the other (often self proclaimed) big clubs in the division and a good first half of the season has led to them having to endure their top performers, in the guise of Palacios and Heskey, getting poached. Granted they received a nice transfer fee for the former and were resigned to losing the latter in the summer anyway, but those players could still prove to be the difference come May, especially if the Latics find themselves in a relegation scrap.

Then there are the clubs who have started badly but expected much more. They bustle in and throw their weight around, paying over the top transfer fees and signing some average players on big contracts and bigger wages in order to galvanise their season. Birmingham in 2005 thought it would be a good idea to pay Brentford half a million pounds for DJ Campbell, a striker who cost them fifty thousand the previous summer and scored a decent number of goals in League One.  But then having been handed the task of saving Birmingham from inevitable relegation, he subsequently flopped as The Bees laughed all the way to the bank.

And then there are some completely strange deals that occur. Take for instance the recent re-signing of Pascal Chimbonda by Tottenham. The moody Frenchman is one of four right backs on the club’s books, Hutton, Corluka and Gunter being the others. Who needs four right backs? I get that two of them are versatile but it’s not like Spurs are improving the quality of their squad by signing an irrational full back who throws his dummy out of the pram on a regular basis.

For me, the transfer window sparks nothing more than chaos, panic and pandemonium across the country, especially for Premiership teams. Clubs are trying to accumulate a squad large enough to cope with any eventuality, rather than just doing the business that is needed at the time. I don’t really see what was wrong with just putting a deadline on all dealings for the end of March. Why restrict clubs to buying and selling players to certain times? If anything, it poses a legal question due to the restriction of trade. Perhaps by getting rid of the window, players wouldn’t have as much power by holding their club to ransom and then heaven forbid, contracts might actually mean something once more. It may even restore honour and integrity to the game…no ,no, that’s too farfetched. Smaller clubs however, may at least be able to stand up for themselves and keep hold of prize assets as they won’t have so many clubs throwing crazy money at them for their top players.

Of course that would involve Fifa having to step in and make a decision so in the meantime I will continue to breathe normally rather than holding it in.