A WAY Too Early EPL 2012/13 Season Preview

[Ed.'s note: Another soccer blog?!?!?!? Yes. Another one. I'll make this country love this sport or die trying.]

With the 2012-13 English Premier League fixture list being released and the transfer window now open, it’s time to throw out all common sense, switch off that part of your brain that tells you to be cautious, look into a crystal ball that could be better titled “hopeful delusion” and make a way too early prediction for the upcoming season.

Below, I’ve stuck out my neck and named some of the moniker games on paper as well as predictions that will come back to haunt me, such as the golden boot winner, manager of the year, UEFA Champions League spots, and the team that will walk away with the big prize come May 19.

First, let’s look at some of the games that you might not want to miss. 

 

The season opens Aug. 18 with Manchester City beginning their title defense against newly promoted Southampton. Everton hosts Manchester United — their last encounter ended in a late season draw that ultimately resulted in United’s bitter rivals walking away with the trophy. If Tottenham GM Daniel Levy can hang on to midfielder Luka Modric and find a striker, then Andre Villas-Boas’ opener as manager against a fun to watch Newcastle United looks promising.

Sept. 15 sees QPR host Chelsea in a rematch of an ugly game in 2011 that got Blues’ Captain John Terry a court date. Stoke City host Manchester City in the Sky Blues first real test of the season. While Sept. 22 sees Brendan Rodgers in his first Liverpool-United derby and Sept. 29 sees Chelsea go to north London to take on rivals Arsenal.

Oct. 27 has bad blood written all over it — the first Merseyside Derby takes place at Goodison Park, Liverpool will face Swansea City as the Swans face their old manager for the first time, and Norwich City travels to Villa Park hoping to take down their old manager Paul Lambert and Aston Villa. 

 

The first North London Derby of the year is set for Nov. 17 when Spurs travel to the Emirates to battle their hated rivals.

Southampton will face Reading, a team they should be familiar with, Dec. 8 when the two former Championship teams meet for the first time that season. Oh, and there’s the little to-do between the reigning champions and their neighbors in the first rematch since last season’s two epic Manchester Derbies.

The annual Boxing Day fixtures are headlined by a London Derby between Arsenal and West Ham United and Newcastle away at Old Trafford. The usually congested holidays continue with Everton hosting Chelsea Dec. 29 and Southampton vs. Arsenal on New Year’s Day.

Tottenham and Arsenal square off again at White Hart Lane March 2 and the second sure-to-be-endlessly-hyped Manchester Derby takes place April 6.

The last day sees Manchester City taking on Norwich City, United away to West Bromwich Albion, the Gunners at St. James Park (I don’t care what sponsor name the stadium will have by then), Chelsea hosting Everton, QPR at Anfield, and Spurs hosting Sunderland.

Golden Boot Winner: “So who’s going to score these goals that will make these games so interesting?” you ask. It’s hard to doubt Robin Van Persie considering his scorching form last year, but it’s safe to say last year was an anomaly for the man made of glass. Plus, he’s probably going to have to adjust to a new team. I really think City's Sergio Aguero will set the league on fire after adapting to his first season in the EPL. He made me a big believer even before his last day heroics that brought City the title. I think he’ll end the season with the metallic footwear.

PFA Player of the Year: All that said, Player of the Year will go to Man U's Wayne Rooney. Yes, I hate to hear it as much as you do, but I expect Wazza to grow with his ability to influence games by creating and leading, not just scoring. And look for him to singlehandedly drag United to near the top of the table much as he did in 2009-10.

Manager of the Year: If Paul Lambert is handed some cash to throw around at Aston Villa, that young team crying out for strong leadership can turn some heads next season. I fully expect him to right the ship and walk away with Manger of the Year honors for doing so.

Biggest Disappointment: Brendan Rodgers will be expected to improve on last year, and I’m a big fan of what he did with Swansea, but it’s still the same players for the Reds. The histrionics of Suarez, an aging Steven Gerrard, aimless Jordan Henderson, and lolloping Andy Carroll are square pegs in his round hole of beautiful football. Liverpool will still underachieve.

Biggest Surprise: IF Everton can avoid their annual slow start, AND they can hang on to Marouane Fellaini ANNNNNNNND get Steven Piennar back from Tottenham… The Toffees can challenge for a Champions League spot.

Major Managerial Casualty: Arsenal's Arsene Wenger. I know, he’s untouchable, but their inability to win a trophy (again) and falling out of the Champions League spots combined with no real ambition in the transfer market and a revolting fan base will mean the axe finally falls and the Gunners make a serious run at a relaxed, rejuvenated Pep Guardiola. 

 

Cup Winners: Carling – Man City, FA - Everton

EPL Title: It’s wide open and really hard to call, especially since the carousel hasn’t stopped spinning…Heck, stopped spinning? Euro 2012 means it hasn’t even really got going, yet. But I think City will assert their dominance in the same way Chelsea did in 05-06. Iwrote that the touchline spat between City Manager Roberto Manciniand United Legend Sir Alex Ferguson was a turning point for the NoisyNeighbors and I stick by it. Their inferiority complex is done and dusted. Look for their talent and depth to overwhelm the league this season.

UEFA Champions League Spots: Man City, Man United, Chelsea, Newcastle

Relegated Teams: Norwich City, Reading, Wigan Athletic

Saying goodbye is hard to do

As an American sports fan, my obsession with fútbol is only rivaled by my obsession with football.

And although football fans here would have you believe otherwise, the sports are not that far apart.

For example: this spring, the football team I support here, whose colors are blue and white, had to say a painful farewell to one of its legends — something that the football team I support across the pond, that also wears blue and white, is still trying to come to grips with.

When the Indianapolis Colts released their longtime, certified Hall of Fame Quarterback Peyton Manning, it was as much a celebration of everything he gave the franchise as it was an emotional, unfathomable goodbye.

Last week, I got déjà vu as Chelsea FC said, “So long,” to striker Didier Drogba.

The contributions these two figures made to their respective teams are similar — they came in with big expectations, and not only lived up to them but propped their teams up for success that hadn’t been seen in decades.

In the case of Manning, his resume reads a Super Bowl win, two conference championships, seven division titles, and status as a regular contender for the playoffs if not the Super Bowl itself. While Drogba’s trophy case holds a UEFA Champions League title, three league titles, four FA Cups, and two Carling Cups.

They also were alike in that they never shirked from the big moment, instead, rising to the occasion when it mattered most.

Manning made countless comebacks and put up huge numbers as the team was built around him. Drogba…well, just see the end of this season for a brief synopsis of what he has done throughout his eight seasons at Chelsea.

Their departures were even similar. The writing was on the wall for months as the teams began distancing themselves from the stars and fans braced for the worst. Their departures probably even came down to money — Manning's long term contract meant Indy would have had to pay him $28 million if they optioned him for another year and Drogba wanted a two-year contract that CFC was reluctant to give while he could reportedly earn up to £200,000 a week in China.

But at the same time, Manning left somewhat unceremoniously. After missing all of last season with a neck injury, his team slumped to a NFL-worst and caused the franchise to embark on a rebuilding project and released him in the process. Drogba left at the top, after dragging Chelsea back into the Champions League match against Bayern Munich before demanding the last penalty kick and converting it to win the club's most coveted trophy.

In the wake of their departures, I looked back and realized they also differed on the amount of impact they had on me. True, Manning is my favorite athlete. I have an authentic jersey with his name and number sewn on it (that gift singlehandedly saved my Christmas). But…I had been following the Colts long before Manning arrived.  Pardon the symbolism, but there were many jerseys with different names and numbers on it before Peyton Manning’s.

However, as I began to watch and fully appreciate soccer, Drogba, not a team, caught my attention. His power, pace, and ruthlessness in front of/bearing down on goal was a spectacle. He was THE player to watch.

Needless to say, but the first soccer shirt I ever owned was emblazoned with his name and number.

To appreciate his unique combination of skills is to understand how unique it is to find a “big man forward” that can master the art of holding up the ball, heading, and shooting with power and precision.

My favorite example of these skills is the chest-down,touch, turn and vicious shot he put into the roof of the net against Tottehnamin this season’s FA Cup semifinal. It combined everything I love about soccer — finesse, power, and the unexpected.

More importantly, as a Chelsea fan, you knew you could rely on him. You knew that if given the chance when it mattered most, of course it would be Drogba [even my wife, who I forced to watch the Champions League Final, gathered enough about the club and player to say “Of course it has to be Drogba,” as he approached the spot in the shootout]. When all seemed lost, he rescued our hopes. He gave us belief.

And when you saw the team sheet with his name on it, you knew you would be entertained — whether it was a goal like the one mentioned above, or if it meant him rolling around on the ground, playacting for a free-kick when someone breathed too hard on him.

As difficult as it was to come to grips with Manning ending his career at another NFL team, I find it equally so to picture Drogba not lining up at Stamford Bridge next season.

The silver lining is that Manning, 36, also proved that an aging superstar could begin again (he signed with the Denver Broncos), just as Drogba, 34, showed at the end of this season that he still has plenty left in the tank to offer a team, somewhere.

And even though my blue and white jerseys with their names on them are not correct anymore, I will still wear them all the same next season.

Food finds in the S-BC

If you read our paper, you probably noticed last Monday that I've embarked on a crusade to try every local restaurant in Shreveport-Bossier and report back with how the experience is.

For someone who loves to eat, I am very excited. And for someone who loves his community and supports small businesses, I am even more excited.

I learned long ago that chains are not where it's at. No offense to them, chain restaurants are usually good and they have their purpose, but there's nothing special. It's the same thing every time.

But a locally-owned, non-chain eatery has a certain feel to it. You can't explain it, but it's there...When you order a signature dish or something you can't get anywhere else, you feel special.

The Monday/Tuesday Edition of our paper kicked off my reviews with cajun cuisine (but have failed to really even breach the tip of the iceberg) and to be honest, heading in I had no idea what I was doing. I'm not a food critic, I just love food.

So before I even got going on this idea, I sought someone who had done this before. I talked with the Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau's Chris Jay about his experience reviewing food places.

If you're unfamiliar with Chris, he's a young, enthusiastic member of the community who is always in the thick of things when it comes to having fun in Shreveport-Bossier. He also writes regular food critiques for the blog 20X49.

He gave me some great advice that I will not reveal here — a magician never reveals his secrets. But it set me along my way. And now I've set a personal goal of trying one restaurant once a week (which I'm sure my diet isn't too happy with, but hey, can you say "cheat day"?).

So keep an eye out HERE for what I come back with. And if you have any suggestions, be sure to email me at sean@bossierpress.com or comment below.

Coaches Behaving Badly

If you know anything about me, you know I'm a proud Arkansas Razorback fan.

True, I didn't go to college there, but if you're born in Arkansas, you have no choice but to support the Hogs. It's how you are raised. If you're lucky.

So it's no secret that the recently revived football program has taken a black eye over the head coach and married, father of four Bobby Petrino's secret relationship with a 25-year-old former university volleyball player that he put on the payroll.

The dirty laundry was aired out after the pair wrecked on a country road outside Fayetteville.

There is debate within Razorback nation whether Petrino should have been fired since his indiscretions were non-football related. Athletic Director Jeff Long fired him "for cause" (i.e. keeping a relationship secret and lying about it when he has a morality cause in his contract).

This fan feels that Long acted appropriately.

The team already gets downed during recruiting for Petrino's decision to abandon the Atlanta Falcons during midseason for the Arkansas job. I don't think they could've survived this.

There is no doubt he lost the locker room with this little stunt. It's better to have an interim coach who can have some order than a proven coach with players who have no respect for him or his decisions.

The consensus is that Petrino is not a good person. His work history certainly seems to demonstrate this notion. A lot of fans can stomach that when you're winning. But even winning only gets you so far.

Speaking of coaches who made mistakes and have now been cast aside.....

Oh, where to start with the New Orleans Saints. Head Coach Sean Payton's willful ignorance of former Defensive Coordinator Greg Williams' bounty program?

The remaining coaching staff's audacity to appeal their suspensions (including Payton's season-long ban and newly minted interim coach Joe Vitt's five game ouster)?

Or the incredibly damning audio that surfaced of Williams encouraging his players to target heads on players with concussion history and tear ACLs in players' knees?

It baffles me that any fans could be upset about this.

The argument that the game is fast, hard hitting, and all coaches encourage their defenses to be aggressive doesn't apply in this sense. Williams paid money to his players for big hits or injuries to opposition. He encouraged players to try and end careers.

It's disgusting. And it looks like the only career that was ended by all of this was his. Fortunately.

And in a society that doesn't believe in consequences anymore, I'm glad the NFL is trying to send a message. Because changing the culture of the game to reduce dangerous concussions will be met with opposition and growing pains.

Ones that make the aches in north Arkansas seem minuscule by comparison.

But these coaches on two different levels of the game have paid for their arrogance.

Nike & Apple

Look at this recent commercial from Nike:



Now, think about that. This ad is promoting a product called the Fuelband. It's basically a watch with a calorie counter and pedometer.

Does a product like this exist already? Yes. Does it look as cool or is it marketed as well? No.

And I can tell you, I'd rather have the Nike product over any other similar product. Why? Because it's cool.

And that's the lesson to take away. Nike makes the consumer want their products, which are essentially not any different than their competitors', over similar sports wear and shoes because Nike products carry an air of "look at me" with them.

They look good, are marketed great, and have a cool factor that you don't get from other sports companies.

They're the Apple of sports.

Ignoring that these are highly successful companies started by two west coast entrepreneurs who have had their share of major setbacks/doubt and are environmentally conscious, think about it — Apple and Nike make great products. They're marketed well. And some are innovative.

But above all else, they're cool. They're a status symbol.

People who swear by Microsoft have iPads and iPhones. You can get a Droid phone or tablet that is just as powerful, reliable, and fast as any Apple product. But it's missing that certain something.

These two different companies are lauded as the front runners in their fields because of their vision and ability to market their products.

The iPad is the worst name ever. It sounds like a technologically savvy feminine hygiene product. But did/do people, including yours truly, want one? You better believe it. Do I want a Fuelband? Yep. But I just admitted it's a watch. But it's a cool watch.

And why do I think it's cool? Because it's Nike? Not necessarily. I don't follow blindly and I'm not 100% brand loyal. I think it's cool because of its design and how its marketed [I'm smart enough to know that I'm foolish enough to be suckered in by a cool commercial (knowing it's a cool commercial and appreciating it for being well done makes me think they deserve my money more, I guess)].

At the bottom of these two companies are the essentials to success: vision and execution. They know they have a "wow" factor and don't settle for anything that doesn't excite. They expect to be the best. And people are drawn to that.

2012

It's a new year with new possibilites and new beginnings.

Everyone gets a clean slate and we have that mindset. It's a time for setting the standard for what we want to do the next 365 days. Notice I didn't say the word "resolution." I've found it has a bit of a stigma with it. It causes some brains to shut off. So I just think of it as a goal — it's a little easier to start with.

I'm all for setting goals. For the first time in a long time, I've set myself what people would consider the r-word of losing weight, but the goal to begin eating better. I don't have an end game to lose a certain amount of weight, merely to stop eating out so much and stop eating such large portions.

It's all about setting the bar at an accomplishable height. Sure — go big or go home, shoot for the stars, enter cliche here — but I know myself and I have to begin with something that is reachable. I think I can do it and I will look forward to the benefits of it along the way.

Alongside personal goals, I have business ones. We are the alternative, and I want to drive that home. Tired of bad news? Turn to us. Tired of seeing the same stories? Here we are. Want to know what's happening in your neighborhood? Look no further. I want us to grow, get better at what we do, and get more recognition. All achievable, but beneficial goals.

Lastly, I have spiritual goals. I want to get closer to God and become a regular at my church. The holidays, with all the traveling, have caused me to miss the last few services and I feel bad about it. I know I can do it. And as I learn and grow, I will get closer to my savior and shepherd.

If you haven't thought about what you want to accomplish, take a few seconds to figure it out.

You have 364 days and counting.