Arsenal
2007-08 RECORD League3rd FA Cup5th round Carling CupSF Champions LeagueQF
Manager Arsène Wenger. Part professor of passing, part prima-donna of petulance, Wenger’s aura of infallibility has evaporated quicker than you can say ‘£3.4m for Denilson’. The disgruntled parting shots of the summer departures suggest all is not well
Chop rating Arsène Wenger 0/5
New faces Amaury Bischoff (Werder Bremen, undisclosed), Samir Nasri (Marseilles, £15.8m), Aaron Ramsey (Cardiff, £5m)
How they play No team will play the beautiful game more beautifully, particularly when Cesc Fabregas is on song and striker Emmanuel Adebayor is concentrating. Yet, this young team is one that quite clearly needs somebody to lead by example and the self-absorbed William Gallas was the least effective captain since Thierry Henry
Player to watch Fabregas. That’s the Fabregas who thrilled us during the first half of last season when he bestrode midfield like an Iberian colossus; and not the Fabregas of the second half of last season, who was about as useful as a wet weekend on Majorca
Tabloid favourite Tomas Rosicky, who was last heard of landing himself and his Czech Republic teammates a hefty fine for the Hotel Praha scandal. The national captain and five teammates were caught at 5am discussing the previous night’s game. With six prostitutes
In an ideal world Champions
In the real world Champions League
Official website www.arsenal.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS
Goalkeepers1 Manuel Almunia, 21 Lukasz Fabianski, 24 Vito Mannone Defenders3 Bacary Sagna, 5 Kolo Toure, 6 Philippe Senderos, 10 William Gallas, 20 Johan Djourou, 22 Gael Clichy, 30 Armand Traore, 31 Justin Hoyte Midfielders2 Abou Diaby, 4 Cesc Fabregas, 7 Tomas Rosicky, 8 Samir Nasri, 15 Denilson, 16 Aaron Ramsey, 17 Alexandre Song, 27 Emmanuel Eboue, 28 Amaury Bischoff Forwards9 Eduardo, 11 Robin van Persie, 12 Carlos Vela, 14 Theo Walcott, 19 Jack Wilshere, 25 Emmanuel Adebayor, 26 Nicklas Bendtner
Players inSamir Nasri (Marseilles) £15.8m, Amaury Bischoff (Werder Bremen) undisclosed, Aaron Ramsey (Cardiff) £5m Players outAleksandr Hleb (Barcelona) £11.8m, Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos) £1m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Barack Obama Good on style; suspect and short of depth visa-vis defence
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 4th Putting the Emirates stadium before investment in players will continue to cost them
TITLE ODDS 4/1

Aston Villa
2007-08 RECORD League 6th FA Cup3rd round Carling Cup3rd round
Manager Martin O’Neill. Had a difficult summer, paying £5m for a Chelsea reserve and £2m for a 37-year-old and handling the Gareth Barry situation with less than his customary aplomb. Benefits from a kindly owner, but could do with a trophy, hence Villa’s Intertoto entry
Chop rating Martin O’Neill 1/5
New faces Curtis Davies (West Brom, £8m), Brad Friedel (Blackburn, £2m), Steven Sidwell (Chelsea, £5m), Luke Young (Middlesbrough, undisclosed), Nicky Shorey (Reading, undisclosed)
How they play At times last season (4-4 at Chelsea, 4-0 win at Blackburn), they looked like real contenders. At others (0-2 at home to Wigan, three hidings by Manchester United) they were exposed by their naive, thin squad, but if Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor keep flowering, they may make the great leap forward
Player to watch Ashley Young. A sluggish start after joining from Watford suggested the Premier League was a step too far. Once he found his feet and his footballing soul mate in John Carew there was no stopping his rise to the England squad
Tabloid favourite Ashley Young. Here’s a piece of advice: if you’re a nationally known footballer, it’s probably not a good idea to pleasure yourself whilst chatting to a woman you’ve never met. Especially if you’re communicating via webcam and it’s the night before an England game. The tabloids might just be watching
In an ideal world Champions League
In the real world Uefa Cup
Official website www.avfc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS
Goalkeepers1 Brad Friedel, 13 Stuart Taylor, 22 Brad Guzan Defenders 3 Wilfred Bouma, 5 Martin Laursen, 15 Curtis Davies, 16 Zat Knight, 29 Stephen O'Halloran, Luke Young, Nicky Shorey Midfielders 4 Steven Sidwell, 6 Gareth Barry, 18 Wayne Routledge, 19 Stiliyan Petrov, 20 Nigel Reo-Coker, 26 Craig Gardner, 27 Isaiah Osbourne, 28 Shaun Maloney Forwards 7 Ashley Young, 9 Marlon Harewood, 10 John Carew, 11 Gabriel Agbonlahor, 14 Nathan Delfouneso, 17 Moustapha Salifou
Players in Curtis Davies (West Brom) £8m, Steven Sidwell (Chelsea) £5m, Brad Friedel (Blackburn) £2m, Luke Young (Middlesbrough) undisclosed, Nicky Shorey (Reading) undisclosed
Players out Luke Moore (West Brom) £3m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Margaret Thatcher The glory years are increasingly sepia-tinged LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 7th stronger for the acquisition of Friedel and Sidwell
TITLE ODDS 200/1

Blackburn Rovers
2007-08 RECORD League 7th FA Cup3rd round Carling CupQF Uefa Cup1st round
Manager Paul Ince. An unknown quantity outside the basement, but in serving his apprenticeship, he did rescue Macclesfield and then led MK Dons to the League Two title. You wouldn’t bet against the man who pretended he hated being called Guv’nor
Chop rating Paul Ince 4/5
New faces Robbie Fowler (Cardiff, free), Paul Robinson (Tottenham, £3.5m), Julio Santa Cruz (Cerro Porteno, undisclosed), Danny Simpson (Manchester United, loan), Carlos Villanueva (Audax Italiano, loan)
How they play If Robinson is a fair swap for Brad Friedel, they’ll miss David Bentley like they’d miss a kidney. Chilean playmaker Villanueva surely isn’t the answer to their midfield creativity problem, while Fowler isn’t the answer to any question, unless Villanueva needs a flat to rent. They may well be forced to take the direct route
Player to watch Roque Santa Cruz. The Paraguayan’s 19 Premier League goals kept Blackburn competitive last season. Will need a creative provider
Tabloid favourite Benni McCarthy. His somewhat laissez faire approach ensured he spent much of last season on Mark Hughes’s bench. He spent the summer signing a contract until 2011, and berating the South African FA. Cheerily admits to visiting Amsterdam sex clubs and getting his 10-year-old brother to find internet porn for him while at Ajax. Lucky (in a way) he’s in Blackburn
In an ideal world Uefa Cup
In the real world Mid-table
Official website www.rovers.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Paul Robinson, 32 Jason Brown, 33 Frank Fielding, 34 Gunnar Nielsen Defenders 2 Andre Ooijer, 3 Stephen Warnock, 4 Christopher Samba, 6 Ryan Nelsen, 13 Zurab Khizanishvili, 15 Aaron Mokoena, 26 Eddie Nolan, 28 Tony Kane, 29 Martin Olsson, 35 Dean Winnard, Danny Simpson Midfielders 5 Tugay Kerimoglu, 7 Brett Emerton, 8 Johann Vogel, 12 Morten Gamst Pedersen, 14 Steven Reid, 19 David Dunn, 21 Sergio Peter, 22 Keith Treacy, 36 Josh O'Keefe, 37 Rostyn Griffiths, 45 Bryan Hodge, Carlos Villanueva Forwards 9 Roque Santa Cruz, 10 Benedict McCarthy, 17 Maceo Rigters, 18 Paul Gallagher, 27 Matt Derbyshire, 30 Jason Roberts, 38 Jamie Clarke, Julio Santa Cruz, Robbie Fowler Players inPaul Robinson (Spurs) £3.5m, Carlos Villanueva (Audax) loan, Danny Simpson (Man Utd) loan, Robbie Fowler (Cardiff) free, Julio Santa Cruz (Cerro Porteno) undisclosed
Players out Peter Enckelman (Cardiff) free, Brad Friedel (A Villa) £2m, David Bentley (Spurs) £15m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Dennis Skinner Bolshy northerners who like to get their own way
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 12th Paul Ince has it all to prove as manager, and a trial for the has-been Fowler does not augur well
TITLE ODDS 500/1

Bolton Wanderers
2007-08 RECORD League 16th FA Cup3rd round Carling Cup4th round Uefa CupLast 16
Manager Gary Megson. Megson’s was not, it is fair to say, an appointment that was universally lauded in and around Bolton. Nevertheless, they somehow survived in the top flight after going unbeaten in their last five games. Clean slates all round
Chop rating Gary Megson 3/5
New faces Johan Elmander (Toulouse, £10m), Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham, £5m), Mustapha Riga (Levante, undisclosed), Danny Shittu (Watford, £2m)
How they play With commendable spirit, if last season’s barnstorming finale is any yardstick. Now, though, they have lost El-Hadji Diouf and much depends on the striking Swede, Elmander, who after a scoreless and unimpressive Euro 2008 seems staggeringly overpriced at £10m and who, tellingly at 27, is a stranger to the big stage
Player to watch Kevin Nolan. The one Wanderer who is guaranteed to look the part in the Premier League, come rain or shine. As inspirational a figure in the dressing room as he is on the pitch. In truth, he has his work cut out for him because Bolton will need all the inspiration they can get
Tabloid favourite Ian Walker. Signed in 2005, yet to start a Premier League game, but he has managed to find time to dump his former Page 3 wife for Las Vegas stripper Samantha Thurman, who describes herself as ‘very open-minded’ on her Facebook page
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Survival
Official website www.bwfc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers 1 Adam Bogdan, 12 Ian Walker, 22 Jussi Jaaskelainen, 26 Ali Al Habsi Defenders 2 Nicky Hunt, 3 Jlloyd Samuel, 5 Gary Cahill, 8 Joey O'Brien, 10 Abdoulaye Meite, 15 Gretar Rafn Steinsson, 28 Jaroslaw Fojut, 31 Andrew O'Brien, Danny Shittu Midfielders 4 Kevin Nolan, 6 Fabrice Muamba, 7 Matthew Taylor, 11 Ricardo Gardner, 19 Gavin McCann, 23 Blerim Dzemaili, 25 Tamir Cohen Forwards 9 Johan Elmander, 14 Kevin Davies, 17 Mustapha Riga, 18 Heidar Helguson, 20 Ricardo Vaz Te
Players in Mustapha Riga (Levante) undisclosed, Dan Shittu (Watford) £2m, Johan Elmander (Toulouse) £10m, Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham) £5m
Players out El-Hadji Diouf (Sunderland) £2.5m, Andranik Teymourian (Fulham) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . John Prescott Northern bruisers. Don’t travel well
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 17th Relegation material since Allardyce’s departure but may just survive again
TITLE ODDS 2000/1

Chelsea

2007-08 RECORD League 2nd FA Cup QF Carling CupR-up Champions League R-up
Manager Luiz Felipe Scolari. Had he played his cards less adroitly, he could be managing England. Instead, he’s bagged the top job. His remit: to do better than trophy-winning Jose Mourinho and finals-reaching Avram Grant and to do it in style. Nothing too difficult there, then
Chop rating Luiz Felipe Scolari 13/8
New faces Jose Bosingwa (FC Porto, £16.2m), Deco (Barcelona, £8m)
How they play Of late, rather attritionally. In the future, they will be more swashbuckling than Errol Flynn playing Indiana Jones. This, at least, is what Roman Abramovich thinks (and expects). He’s banking on Scolari to make the difference this year and he may not be disappointed
Player to watch Michael Ballack. It’s taken long enough, but finally Ballack is controlling Chelsea’s midfield and once again looking like one of the best players in Europe. If only he had more than one striker - and a wantaway striker at that - to aim for. Still, if he and Deco click they’ll take some stopping
Tabloid favourite Ashley Cole. He left Arsenal because they offered him only £50,000 a week; he married that woman from Girls Aloud dressed as a criminal from Miami Vice. And then he cheated on her with a hairdresser. The tabloids may be sifting through his rubbish as we speak
In an ideal world Champions
In the real world Champions
Official website www.chelseafc.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Petr Cech, 23 Carlo Cudicini, 30 Rhys Taylor, 40 Henrique Hilario Defenders2 Branislav Ivanovic, 3 Ashley Cole, 6 Ricardo Carvalho, 17 Jose Bosingwa, 18 Wayne Bridge, 19 Paulo Ferreira, 26 John Terry, 33 Alex, 35 Juliano Belletti Midfielders5 Michael Essien, 8 Frank Lampard, 10 Joe Cole, 12 John Mikel Obi, 13 Michael Ballack, 15 Florent Malouda, 16 Scott Sinclair, 20 Deco, 24 Shaun Wright-Phillips Forwards7 Andriy Shevchenko, 9 Franco Di Santo, 11 Didier Drogba, 14 Claudio Pizarro, 21 Salomon Kalou, 39 Nicolas Anelka
Players in Deco (Barcelona) £8m, Bosingwa (FC Porto) £16.2m
Players out Steven Sidwell (Aston Villa) £5m, Claude Makelele (Paris St-G) free, Tal Ben-Haim (Man City) undisclosed
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . David Cameron Resident in West London, backed by big money, but short on substance
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 1st With a better manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, and a clever playmaker in Deco they can go one better
TITLE ODDS 13/8

Everton
2007-08 RECORD League 5th FA Cup3rd round Carling CupSF Uefa Cup Last 16
Manager David Moyes. A long-time maker of silk purses from sows’ ears, even Moyes is worried after a disastrous close-season that saw the resignation of their chief executive, trouble over their new home, their chairman agreeing to sell the club and no new faces
Chop rating David Moyes 1/5
New faces None
How they play Same as last year since the personnel are almost the same. Keen, but unattractive. Everton live in a world where results are ground out, especially when they hit the road, defences are watertight and, now that Andrew Johnson’s finally escaped to London, far too much of the goalscoring burden depends upon Yakubu
Player to watch Yakubu. Perhaps after spending most of the summer on honeymoon, his mind might not be wholly on the task at hand and after being fined £80,000 and dropped for going Awol after the African Cup of Nations, his relationship with Moyes may be fraught. But he’s a goal machine and how his club needs him to produce
Tabloid favouritePhil Neville, because he and his fragrant wife Julie let them into their lovely 27-room former home, with its six bedrooms, fitness room, cinema, four-bedroom staff house and nine acres. And it’s so classy even the iron gates and the carpets say ‘P&J’. Aaah
In an ideal world Top half
In the real world Top half (just)
Official website www.evertonfc.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers12 Iain Turner, 24 Tim Howard, 30 John Ruddy Defenders2 Tony Hibbert, 3 Leighton Baines, 4 Joseph Yobo, 5 Joleon Lescott, 6 Phil Jagielka, 19 Nuno Valente, 34 John Irving, Lee Molyneux Midfielders7 Andy van der Meyde, 10 Mikel Arteta, 17 Tim Cahill, 18 Philip Neville, 20 Steven Pienaar, 21 Leon Osman, 26 Jack Rodwell, 32 Dan Gosling, John Paul Kissock Forwards14 James Vaughan, 22 Yakubu Ayegbeni, 27 Lukas Jutkiewicz, 28 Victor Anichebe
Players in None
Players out Jamie Jones (Leyton Orient) free, Andrew Johnson (Fulham) £10.5m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Alistair DarlingA little bit dour, a little bit frugal, a little bit grey, a little bit short of ideas
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 10th David Moyes admits they are well below strength. Signing Moutinho would supply a lift TITLE ODDS 200/1

Fulham
League 17th FA Cup3rd round Carling Cup3rd round
Manager Roy Hodgson. Another uncelebrated appointment, another master of the miraculous escape and another call for clean slates. He’s offloaded some deadwood and if those who’ve arrived are hardly world-beaters, they should have enough to survive
Chop rating Roy Hodgson 3/5
New faces Zoltan Gera (West Brom, free), Andrew Johnson (Everton, £10.5m), Toni Kallio (Young Boys, free), John Pantsil (West Ham, £1.5m), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, free), David Stockdale (Darlington, undisclosed), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg, undisclosed), Andranik Teymourian (Bolton, free), Bobby Zamora (West Ham, £4.8m), Pascal Zuberbuhler (Neuchatel Xamax, free)
How they play Hodgson’s faith in flair was rewarded as Fulham survived. Acquiring Gera and Johnson suggests business as usual, but they look weak defensively
Player to watch Jimmy Bullard. His return from career-threatening injury was, perhaps, the chief reason for Fulham’s survival. Now with a proper preseason behind him, his midfield string-pulling and wicked way with a free kick will warm the Fulham faithful’s cockles through what promises to be a cold winter
Tabloid favourite Danny Murphy. He’s married to former Hollyoaks actress Joanna Taylor, but they may struggle for scandal: ‘Neither of us is into clubbing any more,’ she gushes. ‘The Danny I know is a normal guy who does a job he loves and is a great dad and husband. He adores our daughter and is a very hands-on dad’
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Survival
Official website www.fulhamfc.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers Antti Niemi, Mark Schwarzer, David Stockdale, Pascal Zuberbuhler DefendersChris Baird, Brede Hangeland, Aaron Hughes, Toni Kallio, Paul Konchesky, Adrian Leijee, John Pantsil, Fredrik Stoor, Moritz Volz MidfieldersAndranik Teymourian, Leon Andreasen, Jimmy Bullard, Simon Davies, Steven Davis, Clint Dempsey, Zoltan Gera, Seol Ki-Hyeon, Danny Murphy, Alexey Smertin ForwardsDavid Healy, Collins John, Andrew Johnson, Eddie Johnson, Diomansy Kamara, Erik Nevland, Bobby Zamora
Players in Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough) free, Bobby Zamora (W Ham) £4.8m, John Pantsil (W Ham) £1.5m, Pascal Zuberbuhler (Neuc. Xamax) free, Andrew Johnson (Everton) £10.5m, Zoltan Gera (West Brom) free, Toni Kallio (Young Boys) free, David Stockdale (Darlington) undisclosed, Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg) undisclosed, Andranik Teymourian (Bolton) free Players out Hameur Bouazza (Charlton) loan, Nathan Ashton (Wycombe), Dejan Stefanovic (Norwich) both undisclosed, Tony Warner (Hull) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Gordon Brown Still hanging on
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 15th Hodgson has made 10 signings, including a proven goalscorer in Everton’s Andy Johnson
TITLE ODDS 2000/1

Hull City
2007-08 RECORD League Promoted FA Cup 3rd round Carling Cup 3rd round
Manager Phil Brown. The first man to take Hull to the highest level and therefore a local hero until the Humber silts up. If City’s unlikely ascension exorcised the demons of Brown’s disastrous tenure at Derby, a season of torrid toil might just let them back in again
Chop rating Phil Brown 3/5
New faces George Boateng (Middlesbrough, £1m), Craig Fagan (Derby, £750,000), Anthony Gardner (Tottenham, loan), Geovanni (Manchester City, free), Peter Halmosi (Plymouth, £2m), Bernard Mendy (Paris St Germain, free), Tony Warner (Fulham, free)
How they play Quite enterprisingly, all things considered, but Geovanni aside, their new men don’t look Premier League quality and their failure to permanently woo Fraizer Campbell from Manchester United looks ominous, but not as ominous as it will look in November
Player to watch Boaz Myhill. The California-born Wales international goalkeeper will certainly be Hull’s busiest employee outside the ticket office. Calm, agile and brave, he will need all these qualities if he’s to keep his side up
Tabloid favourite Dean Windass. Hopefully he’s evaded the clutches of Leeds United to rejoin the Premier League as a 39-year-old. Famously forthright of opinion, he enjoys a pint or two and is no sylphlike figure, but his goal and performance in the playoff final took Hull up
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Relegation
Official website www.hullcityafc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers 1 Boaz Myhill, 12 Matt Duke, 26 Tony Warner, 43 Tom Woodhead Defenders3 Andy Dawson, 5 Wayne Brown, 6 Michael Turner, 15 Bernard Mendy, 21 Samuel Ricketts, 29 Matt Plummer, 30 Anthony Gardner, 35 Liam Cooper, 38 Joe Lamplough, 39 Steve Gardner Midfielders2 Nathan Doyle, 4 Ian Ashbee, 8 Nick Barmby, 11 Bryan Hughes, 13 Ryan France, 16 Peter Halmosi, 19 John Welsh, 20 George Boateng, 22 Dean Marney, 27 Nicky Featherstone, 31 Will Atkinson, 32 James Bennett, 36 Jamie Devitt, 42 Nick McNamara Forwards7 Craig Fagan, 9 Dean Windass, 10 Deiberson Geovanni, 14 Richard Garcia, 18 Caleb Folan, 37 Bill Law, 40 Ryan Kendall
Players in Craig Fagan (Derby) £750,000, Geovanni (Man City) free, Bernard Mendy (Paris SG) free, George Boateng (M’bro) £1m, Tony Warner (Fulham) free, Peter Halmosi (Plymouth) £2m
Players out Dave Livermore (Brighton) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Sir Alec Douglas-Home They’ve finally reached the top, but not for long
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 20th A 4-0 preseason defeat by Crewe does little to dispel the feeling they are out of their depth
TITLE ODDS 5000/1

Liverpool
2007-08 RECORD League 4th FA Cup5th round Carling CupQF Champions LeagueSF
Manager Rafael Benitez. The stunningly successful acquisition of Fernando Torres took attention away from some of Rafa’s more bizarre decisions, but if Robbie Keane proves to be an expensive luxury, distant rumblings of discontent may become seismic
Chop rating Rafael Benitez 3/5
New faces Diego Cavalieri (Palmeiras, £3.5m), Philipp Degen (Borussia Dortmund, free), Andrea Dossena (Udinese, £7m), Robbie Keane (Tottenham, £20.3m), Emmanuel Mendy (Murcia Deportivo, free), David Ngog (PSG, undisclosed)
How they play Hoping Steven Gerrard gives the ball to Torres worked surprisingly well and if Gareth Barry arrives, their ball-playing options double. This season rests upon how Torres and Keane link, but David Ngog already has Anfield agog
Player to watch Torres. The best striker in Europe was a revelation in his first season out of Spain. Assuming (not an entirely foolish assumption) he avoids a second-season dip and assuming Keane is a more lethal foil than Dirk Kuyt and Peter Crouch (the jury has not even been selected on this one), he’ll continue to punish all. And possibly sundry too
Tabloid favourite Jermaine Pennant. He’s not been arrested or imprisoned for a few weeks now. He’s not been exposed for cheating on a girlfriend, being addicted to video games and having a dad allegedly running a drug-dealing ring either. So perhaps he’s not an accident waiting to happen
In an ideal world Champions
In the real world Champions League
Official website www.liverpoolfc.tv
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Diego Cavalieri, 25 Pepe Reina, 30 Charles Itandje, 40 David Martin Defenders2 Andrea Dossena, 3 Steve Finnan, 4 Sami Hyypia, 5 Daniel Agger, 12 Fabio Aurelio, 17 Alvaro Arbeloa, 23 Jamie Carragher, 27 Philipp Degen, 37 Martin Skrtel, 39 Stephen Darby, 44 Robbie Threlfall, 45 Mikel Dominguez, 48 Emiliano Insua, Emmanuel Mendy Midfielders8 Steven Gerrard, 14 Xabi Alonso, 15 Yossi Benayoun, 16 Jermaine Pennant, 19 Ryan Babel, 20 Javier Mascherano, 21 Lucas Leiva, 34 Jay Spearing, 35 Ray Putterill, 36 Ryan Flynn, 47 Damien Plessis Forwards7 Robbie Keane, 9 Fernando Torres, 10 Andriy Voronin, 18 Dirk Kuyt, 24 David Ngog, 38 Craig Lindfield, 42 Nabil El Zhar
Players in Philipp Degen (Dortmund) free, Andrea Dossena (Udinese) £7m, Diego Cavalieri (Palmeiras) £3.5m, Robbie Keane (Spurs) £20.3m, Emmanuel Mendy (Murcia) free, David Ngog (PSG) undisclosed
Players out Anthony Le Tallec (Le Mans) undis, Harry Kewell (Galatasaray) free, Peter Crouch (Portsmouth) £9m, Danny Guthrie (Newcastle) £2.5m, Scott Carson (West Brom) £3.25m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Martin McGuinness Not as feared, or as fearsome, as they used to be JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 3rd Rafa Benitez’s job depends on an improvement in the league, and Keane and Torres can provide it
TITLE ODDS 15/2

Manchester City
2007-08 RECORD League9th FA Cup4th round Carling CupQF
Manager Mark Hughes. Turned Wales and then Blackburn into contenders, but at City the stakes are somewhat higher and the penalty for failure is death. Career death that is, of course. Nothing fazed the Old Trafford legend as a player or manager, but don’t expect prettiness
Chop rating Mark Hughes 3/5
New faces Tal Ben-Haim (Chelsea, undisclosed), Jo (CSKA Moscow, £18m)
How they play Hughes’s teams are geared to defence, but Sven-Göran Eriksson’s squad was built for offence. Ben-Haim, who struggled to get in Bolton’s, let alone Chelsea’s, starting XI, is a most peculiar acquisition and 21-year-old Olympian Jo is a huge and expensive gamble
Player to watch Richard Dunne. For all Eriksson’s tendency to swashbuckle, he built his team around Dunne. Surely Hughes – who, strangely, never quite plugged the hole in Blackburn’s central defence – will do the same thing. A traditional centre-half, Dunne is majestic in the tackle, terrific in the air, impossible to shake off, difficult to bypass and a leader of men
Tabloid favourite Thaksin Shinawatra. No matter what spin he chooses to put on things, it has not been a good close-season for Manchester City’s Supreme Leader. His fragrant wife Pojaman, her brother and her secretary were jailed for tax fraud, he is on trial for corruption and a cool £800m of his assets are frozen. His stay at Eastlands may necessarily be brief
In an ideal world Champions League
In the real world Top half
Official website www.mcfc.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers 1 Joe Hart, 16 Kasper Schmeichel Defenders2 Micah Richards, 3 Michael Ball, 4 Nedum Onuoha, 5 Vedran Corluka, 15 Javier Garrido, 18 Danny Mills, 22 Richard Dunne, 26 Tal Ben-Haim, 30 Shaleum Logan, Sam Williamson Midfielders6 Michael Johnson, 7 Stephen Ireland, 11 Elano, 17 Martin Petrov, 19 Gelson Fernandes, 21 Dietmar Hamann, 25 Nery Castillo, 29 Kelvin Etuhu Forwards 9 Valeri Bojinov, 10 Rolando Bianchi, 12 Darius Vassell, 14 Jo, 20 Felipe Caicedo, 24 Ched Evans, 27 Benjani Mwaruwari, 28 Daniel Sturridge
Players in Jo (CSKA Moscow) £18m, Tal Ben-Haim (Chelsea) undisclosed
Players out Andreas Isaksson (PSV Eindhoven) undisclosed, Sun Jihai (Sheff Utd) free, Geovanni (Hull City) free, Georgios Samaras (Celtic) undisclosed, Matthew Mills (Doncaster) £300,000
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . David Miliband Incredibly ambitious upstarts, not especially loved
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 9thThey have a good new manager, Mark Hughes, and a promising reinforcement up front in Jo
TITLE ODDS 200/1

Manchester United

2007-08 RECORD League 1st FA CupQF Carling Cup3rd round Champions LeagueWinners
Manager Sir Alex Ferguson. Last season could hardly have gone better and the 66-year-old bruiser’s elbows still seem sharp, but the absence of incomers, Wayne Rooney’s curious summer and the mind-numbing Ronaldo saga suggest a certain indecision at t’ mill
Chop rating Sir Alex Ferguson 0/5
New faces None
How they play How the best team in the land are meant to play: with a certain style, flexibility and panache, plus the ability and desire to scrap when necessary and a complete absence of mercy. That doesn’t change, even when Louis Saha gets a game. No new signings, though, and even a team that won the Premier League and the Champions League can always use some improvement
Player to watch Cristiano Ronaldo. Now that the Portuguese superstar seems to have decided to grace us with another year of his permatanned presence, perhaps we can all settle down and admire a man who scored 42 goals last season and isn’t even an out-and-out striker. No matter what you feel about him, a genuine great is among us
Tabloid favourite Wayne Rooney. Another quiet summer for the lad from Liverpool then: there was the in-no-way-taste-free wedding, the cigarette-friendly honeymoon, the discussions with the Metropolitan Police about his spitting and the ‘mystery virus’
In an ideal world Champions
In the real world Champions League
Official website www.manutd.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers Ben Foster, Tom Heaton, Tomasz Kuszczak, Edwin van der Sar DefendersWes Brown, Fabio Da Silva, Rafael Da Silva, Jonny Evans, Patrice Evra, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, John O’Shea, Mikael Silvestre, Danny Simpson, Nemanja Vidic MidfieldersMichael Carrick, Fangzhuo Dong, Darren Fletcher, Ryan Giggs, Owen Hargreaves, Lee Martin, Nani, Ji-Sung Park, Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes ForwardsAnderson, Fraizer Campbell, Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha, Carlos Tevez, Danny Welbeck
Players in None
Players out Ritchie Jones (Hartlepool) free, Chris Eagles (Burnley) undisclosed, Tom Heaton (Cardiff) loan, Fabian Brandy (Swansea) loan, Danny Simpson (Blackburn) loan
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . George W BushThe most powerful of them all. Yet power does not breed universal adoration
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 2nd Can Ronaldo repeat last season’s heroics? If not, they’ll need Berbatov to hold off Chelsea
TITLE ODDS 11/8

Middlesbrough

2007-08 RECORD League 13th FA CupQF Carling Cup3rd round
Manager Gareth Southgate. A less loyal chairman than Steve Gibson might have bade him farewell, but Southgate’s teams always try to do the right thing and there were flashes of promise last season, especially when Afonso Alves arrived
Chop rating Gareth Southgate 3/5
New faces Didier Digard (Paris St Germain, £4m), Marvin Emnes (Sparta Rotterdam, £3.2m)
How they play They’ve shed some (but far from all) dead wood, but remain overly reliant on Stewart Downing. For obvious reasons, Teesside never attracts Europe’s finest, but injury-prone midfielder Digard struggled in PSG’s worst-ever team last season, while super-fast winger Emnes’s Sparta Rotterdam just managed to avoid relegation in the Netherlands
Player to watch Alves: scored six goals in seven starts last season and made the Brazil side. After a succession of forwards from Hamilton Ricard and Jamie Moreno to Mido and Jeremie Aliadiere failed, Alves might be the special one
Tabloid favourite Mido. That the 25-year-old is already on his eighth club tells its own peripatetic tale, while his injury problems, bad attitude (Martin Jol, his manager at Tottenham, pronounced him ‘disrespectful and irresponsible’) and unathletic tubbiness have made him far from universally loved. He won’t take not being selected well
In an ideal world Mid-table
In the real world Mid-table
Official website www.mfc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers21 Ross Turnbull, 22 Brad Jones, 32 Jason Steele Defenders 3 Andrew Taylor, 5 Chris Riggott, 6 Emanuel Pogatetz, 14 Robert Huth, 26 Matthew Bates, 29 Tony McMahon, 31 David Wheater, 38 Seb Hines, 40 Jonathan Grounds Midfielders4 Gary O'Neil, 8 Didier Digard, 15 Mohamed Shawky, 19 Stewart Downing, 20 Julio Arca, 28 Adam Johnson, 35 Graeme Owens, 36 John Johnson, 41 Joshua Walker Forwards9 Mido, 10 Jeremie Aliadiere, 11 Marvin Emnes, 12 Afonso Alves, 17 Tuncay Sanli, 42 Tom Craddock
Players in Marvin Emnes (Sparta Rotterdam) £3.2m, Didier Digard (Paris St-G) £4m
Players out George Boateng (Hull City) £1m, Mark Schwarzer (Fulham) free, Lee Cattermole (Wigan) £3.5m, Luke Young (Aston Villa) undisclosed
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Wendy Alexander They will be forgotten the moment they’re gone
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 13th Gareth Southgate must reward the patience of his chairman. Mido and Aliadiere do not inspire
TITLE ODDS 1000/1

Newcastle United

2007-08 RECORD League 12th FA Cup4th round Carling Cup 3rd round
Manager Kevin Keegan. The former messiah was both astute and realistic to dampen expectations for his second coming, slowly turning round what was in danger of becoming a situation as out of control as Bigg Market on a Saturday night. Now comes the real test
Chop rating Kevin Keegan
New faces Danny Guthrie (Liverpool, £2.5m), Jonas Gutierrez (Real Mallorca, undisclosed)
How they play With less zest than Keegan teams of yore, but now that their still-overmanned ship has steadied, his natural instincts may take over. Midfielder Guthrie was so-so on loan at Bolton last year. Meanwhile winger Gutierrez, nicknamed Spiderman for the mask he once donned after scoring, has already made the Argentina side and may well sizzle on Tyneside
Player to watch Michael Owen. That he started Newcastle’s last 17 games suggested his fitness is solid. That he finished top scorer suggested he’s finally stopped mourning his leaving of Liverpool. An Indian summer looms, especially if Gutierrez turns out to be a haymaker
Tabloid favourite Joey Barton. A man for whom the question, ‘Fancy spending a night in the pub drinking your own bodyweight in lager, followed by a McDonald’s and a fight, Joey, lad?’ might best be answered by a ‘No thanks, I’d prefer a quiet night in, old chap’
In an ideal world Uefa Cup
In the real world Mid-table
Official website www.nufc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Shay Given, 13 Steve Harper, 34 Fraser Forster, 40 Tim Krul Defenders3 Sanchez Jose Enrique, 6 Claudio Cacapa, 21 Habib Beye, 27 Steven Taylor, 30 David Edgar, 35 Ben Tozer, Sebastien Bassong Midfielders7 Joey Barton, 8 Danny Guthrie, 11 Damien Duff, 14 Charles N’Zogbia, 16 James Milner, 18 Jonas Gutierrez, 20 Geremi, 22 Nicky Butt, 25 Abdoulaye Faye, 31 Frank Wiafe Danquah, 38 Kazenga LuaLua
Forwards9 Obafemi Martins, 10 Michael Owen, 17 Alan Smith, 23 Shola Ameobi, 36 Mark Viduka, 39 Andrew Carroll, 42 Ryan Donaldson
Players in Jonas Gutierrez (Mallorca) undisclosed, Danny Guthrie (Liverpool) £2.5m
Players out None
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . John MajorSupposedly one of the greats, but we all know that isn’t the case
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 11th Another season of turmoil is on the cards. What price Keegan to walk again?
TITLE ODDS 300/1

Portsmouth

2007-08 RECORD League 8th FA CupWinners Carling Cup4th round
Manager Harry Redknapp. A European jaunt ought to test Redknapp’s considerable belief in his own abilities – don’t expect him to field a reserve team – and a quiet summer suggests he believes he has roughly the right squad. At 61, the beaches of Dorset may soon begin to beckon
Chop rating Harry Redknapp
New faces Omar Alieu Koroma (Banjul Hawks, undisclosed), Peter Crouch (Liverpool, £9m), Glen Little (Reading, free), Ben Sahar (Chelsea, loan)
How they play They struggled for goals last year, so Redknapp has rerecruited the beanpole that is Crouch to play alongside Jermain Defoe and Little, from Reading, to serve them. Pompey look to be pretty sound defensively, but they lack midfield guile, which is a shame because if they could create more chances the front men would put them away. Still good enough to aim for the top six, though
Player to watch Crouch. Frustrated at spending so much time warming the bench at Anfield last season, but he still scored regularly. He was reluctant to leave Anfield, but knew he wasn’t really wanted by Rafael Benitez and he should revel in a team that will be built around him and his eager sidekick Defoe, another striker who felt unloved before moving to the south coast Tabloid favourite Defoe. That’s tabloid love-rat Jermain Defoe to you, even after one of his conquests claimed that he enjoyed wearing her bra on his head and ‘warmed up’ by performing naked handstands
In an ideal world Uefa Cup
In the real world Uefa Cup
Official website www.portsmouthfc.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 David James, 21 Jamie Ashdown, 31 Asmir Begovic Defenders2 Linvoy Primus, 4 Lauren, 5 Glen Johnson, 7 Hermann Hreidarsson, 15 Sylvain Distin, 16 Noe Pamarot, 20 Martin Cranie, 23 Sol Campbell, 24 Richard Duffy, 35 Marc Wilson Midfielders6 Lassana Diarra, 8 Papa Bouba Diop, 18 Arnold Mvuemba, 19 Niko Kranjcar, 22 Richard Hughes, 25 Glen Little, 28 Sean Davis, 29 Jean-Francois Christophe, 30 Pedro Mendes Forwards9 Peter Crouch, 10 David Nugent, 14 Jermain Defoe, 17 John Utaka, 26 Ben Sahar, 27 Nwankwo Kanu, Omar Alieu Koroma
Players in Peter Crouch (Liverpool) £9m, Ben Sahar (Chelsea) loan, Omar Alieu Koroma (Banjul Hawks) undisclosed, Glen Little (Reading) free
Players out Sulley Ali Muntari (Internazionale) £12.7m
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . George Galloway A little bit wide boy, a little bit market trader, destined not to make much of an impact in Europe
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 6th Winning the FA Cup was a step forward. With Crouch competing up front, they won’t lack goals
TITLE ODDS 250/1

Stoke City

2007-08 RECORD League Promoted FA Cup 3rd round Carling Cup 1st round Manager Tony Pulis. The uncompromising old pro’s turbulent managerial career (sackings for gross misconduct and ‘failing to exploit the transfer market’) is at its peak in taking a far-from-flamboyant Stoke to the Premier League. Only survival would top that
Chop rating Tony Pulis 2/5
New faces Dave Kitson (Reading, £5.5m), Seyi Olofinjana (Wolves, £3m)
How they play It’s tin-hat time. Defensively functional, they bash it towards Ricardo Fuller and Mama Sidibe and play the percentage game. All right, so it isn’t pretty, but it worked a treat last season. What Kitson will make of it remains to be seen
Player to watch Liam Lawrence. The home fans love him. Stoke’s fountain of creative intent, the Manchester United supporter impressively scored 14 goals from the wing last season and his crossing accuracy and breezy way with a dribble might just stop Premier League supporters from having 90 minutes of neck ache whenever the Potters arrive in town. Or not
Tabloid favourite Vincent Pericard. Jailed last year for perverting the course of justice after he claimed to police that his stepfather, who had not visited Britain for fully three years, was behind the wheel of his car when he was caught speeding at 103 mph. Prison wasn’t entirely wasted upon him. ‘It is a society of criminals,’ he sagely noted upon his release
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Relegation
Official website www.stokecityfc.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers 1 Steve Simonsen, Thomas Sorensen, Danzelle St Louis-Hamilton Defenders 22 Lewis Buxton, 5 Leon Cort, 20 Ritchie De Laet, 31 Carl Dickinson, 2 Andy Griffin, 17 Ryan Shawcross, 30 Ryan Shotton, 28 Andy Wilkinson Midfielders 24 Rory Delap, 14 Salif Diao, 7 Liam Lawrence, 16 Dominic Matteo, Seyi Olofinjana, 27 Demar Phillips, Jimmy Phillips, 14 Danny Pugh, Anthony Pulis, Tom Thorley, 6 Glenn Whelan, 38 Nathaniel Wedderburn Forwards9 Richard Cresswell, Marc Grocott, 10 Ricardo Fuller, Dave Kitson, 8 Jon Parkin, 15 Vincent Pericard, 34 Adam Rooney, 11 Mamady Sidibe
Players in Dave Kitson (Reading) £5.5m, Seyi Olofinjana (Wolves) £3m
Players out Russell Hoult (Notts County) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Gerald Ford Reached the top, but nobody quite knows how
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 19th A team of long-ball grafters, in marked contrast to West Brom, who came up with them TITLE ODDS 5000/1

Sunderland

2007-08 RECORD League15th FA Cup3rd round Carling Cup2nd round
Manager Roy Keane, for all his brutal honesty, bought to survive in the top flight last year. Mission accomplished, he and Sunderland now need to progress, but it’s not going to be easy. That Manchester United job might become available too soon for him
Chop rating Roy Keane 1/5
New faces Pascal Chimbonda (Tottenham, undisclosed), Nick Colgan (Ipswich, free), El-Hadji Diouf (Bolton, £2.5m), Steed Malbranque (Tottenham, undisclosed), David Meyler (Cork City, undisclosed), Teemu Tainio (Tottenham, undisclosed)
How they play Curiously. Aside from freakishly conceding seven at Everton, they were defensively solid and hard-running in midfield. That their top scorer, Kenwyne Jones, managed just seven explained where their problems lie
Player to watch Diouf. The spitting Senegalese almost single-handedly kept Bolton up last year, and perhaps Keane saw something of himself in an indispensable maverick. Whatever happens, his stay on Wearside will be eventful
Tabloid favourite Michael Chopra. It should have been a glorious summer. He married his childhood sweetheart and Wags Boutique star Heather Swan on Friday June 13 in a £250,000 ceremony before 200 of their friends. By Saturday June 14, they were bickering and he left their Italian/Caribbean honeymoon to return to the northeast. He’s now renting somewhere and this one may run and run
In an ideal world Mid-table
In the real world Survival
Official website www.safc.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Craig Gordon, 13 Darren Ward, 24 Trevor Carson, 32 Marton Fulop, 46 Nick Colgan Defenders2 Phil Bardsley, 5 Nyron Nosworthy, 15 Danny Collins, 21 Pascal Chimbonda, 22 Danny Higginbotham, 25 Jean-Yves M’voto, 27 Russell Anderson, 29 Peter Hartley, 30 Paul McShane, 33 Michael Liddle, 35 Michael Kay Midfielders4 Teemu Tainio, 6 Dean Whitehead, 7 Carlos Edwards, 8 Steed Malbranque, 10 Kieran Richardson, 12 Liam Miller, 18 Grant Leadbitter, 19 Dwight Yorke, 20 Andy Reid, 26 Dickson Etuhu, 28 Graham Kavanagh, 34 Jack Colback, 36 Nathan Luscombe, 37 Robbie Weir, 38 Jamie Chandler, 41 David Meyler, 42 Jordan Henderson, 43 Conor Hourihane Forwards11 El-Hadji Diouf, 14 Daryl Murphy, 16 Michael Chopra, 17 Kenwyne Jones, 23 Roy O'Donovan, 31 David Connolly, 39 Martyn Waghorn, 40 David Dowson, 44 Anthony Stokes, 45 Rade Prica
Players in Nick Colgan (Ipswich) free, Pascal Chimbonda (Spurs), El-Hadji Diouf (Bolton) £2.5m, Steed Malbranque (Spurs), Teemu Tainio (Tottenham), David Meyler (Cork City) all undisclosed
Players out Andy Cole (Nottingham F) free, Greg Halford (Sheff Utd) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Harriet Harman Oddly appealing to look at, but ultimately lightweight LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 14th Chimbonda, Tainio, Malbranque and Diouf will improve them
TITLE ODDS 1000/1

Tottenham

2007-08 RECORD League 11th FA Cup4th round Carling CupWinners Uefa CupLast 16
Manager Juande Ramos. If he arrived in grubby fashion, his commitment to Tottenham’s freeflowing ways and the Carling Cup helped, as did players’ comments about fitness and diet under Martin Jol. If Dimitar Berbatov stays and the new arrivals click, he’ll be secure
Chop rating Juande Ramos 1/5
New faces David Bentley (Blackburn, £15m), John Bostock (Crystal Palace, £700,000), Giovani dos Santos (Barcelona, £4.7m), Heurelho Gomes (PSV Eindhoven, undisclosed), Luka Modric (Dynamo Zagreb, £15.8m)
How they play Typically, with spirit up front, creativity in midfield and frailty in defence. Yet, the whole package rarely gels. Modric and Bentley need a hardman chaperone and Ramos may regret not tending to his defensive wounds
Player to watch Berbatov. For all his wantaway sulking, Berbatov still turned in a 23-goal season. The summer may not have helped this moodiest of Bulgar’s moods, but his eye for goal and glorious sense of invention should remain intact
Tabloid favourite Bentley. Not a man to keep his counsel if things are not going his way. The man with a gambling problem told Arsène Wenger he wasn’t playing him enough at Arsenal and fled Highbury for the bright lights of Blackburn. After refusing to play for England Under21s because he was too tired, he decided that Blackburn were too small for him before heading south
In an ideal world Champions League
In the real world Uefa Cup
Official website www.tottenhamhotspur.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS
GoalkeepersBen Alnwick, David Button, Heurelho Gomes, Oscar Jansson Defenders Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Gareth Bale, Michael Dawson, Dorian Dervite, Gilberto, Chris Gunter, Alan Hutton, Younes Kaboul, Ledley King, Ricardo Rocha, Paul Stalteri, Jonathan Woodgate, Lee Young-Pyo MidfieldersDavid Bentley, Kevin-Prince Boateng, John Bostock, Hossam Ghaly, Tom Huddlestone, Jermaine Jenas, Aaron Lennon, Luka Modric, Jamie O’Hara, Danny Rose, Adam Smith, Adel Taarabt, Andros Townsend, Didier Zokora ForwardsDarren Bent, Dimitar Berbatov, Tomas Pekhart, Giovani dos Santos
Players inJohn Bostock (C Palace) £700,000, David Bentley (Blackburn) £15m, Giovani dos Santos (Barcelona) £4.7m, Heurelho Gomes (PSV) undisclosed, Luka Modric (Dynamo Zagreb) £15.8m
Players outRobbie Keane (Liverpool) £20.3m, Paul Robinson (Blackburn) £3.5m, Steed Malbranque (Sunderland), Teemu Tainio (Sunderland), Joe Martin (Blackpool), Tommy Forecast (So’ton), Pascal Chimbonda (Sunderland), all undisclosed
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Tony Blair Making promises is never a problem. Fulfilling them is another matter entirely
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 5thThe recruitment of Bentley, Modric and Gomes bodes well, with the promise of more to follow
TITLE ODDS 50/1

West Bromwich Albion

2007-08 RECORD League Promoted FA CupSF Carling Cup3rd round
ManagerTony Mowbray. A nononsense defender as a player, Mowbray has taught The Hawthorns to appreciate the beautiful game. Being the most likely new blood to survive the transfusion into the big league should not overly trouble him
Chop rating Tony Mowbray 2/5
New faces Roman Bednar (Hearts, £2.3m), Scott Carson (Liverpool, £3.25m), Marek Cech (FC Porto, £1.4m), Graham Dorrans (Livingston, £100,000), Kim Do-Heon (Seongnam, £550,000), Luke Moore (Aston Villa, £3m), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen, £2.3m)
How they play Like Black Country angels. And their signings – Bednar was on loan last year – should help, even if Moore, who didn’t feature for Aston Villa after New Year’s Day, seems to be overpriced. Cech and Zuiverloon should add defensive muscle but Albion still look vulnerable
Player to watch Chris Brunt. An old-school, toothpick-shaped winger who, you suspect, would play with his socks rolled down if it were still allowed. Instead, he will tease, torment and tickle every full-back in the Premier League
Tabloid favourite Carson. The keeper is still unforgiven for his Croatia calamity, but he had a solid season for Aston Villa last year. One mistake doesn’t make a bad goalkeeper and he’ll have many opportunities for redemption this season
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Relegation
Official website www.wba.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Dean Kiely, 13 Luke Daniels, 19 Scott Carson, 26 Michal Danek Defenders2 Carl Hoefkens, 3 Paul Robinson, 4 Marek Cech, 5 Leon Barnett, 6 Neil Clement, 18 Pedro Pele, 22 Gianni Zuiverloon, 23 Miguel Tininho, 24 Shelton Martis, 25 Jared Hodgkiss Midfielders7 Robert Koren, 8 Jonathan Greening, 11 Chris Brunt, 14 Kim Do-Heon, 17 Graham Dorrans, 20 Andrade Filipe Teixeira, 27 James Morrison, David Worrall Forwards9 Roman Bednar, 10 Ishmael Miller, 12 Craig Beattie, 15 Sherjill MacDonald, 16 Luke Moore, 21 Bartosz Slusarski
Players in Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen) £2.3m, Graeme Dorrans (Livingston) £100,000, Marek Cech (Porto) £1.4m, Scott Carson (Liverpool) £3.25m, Roman Bednar (Hearts) £2.3m, Luke Moore (Aston Villa) £3m, Kim Do-Heon (Seongnam) £550,000 Players out Martin Albrechtsen (Derby) free, Curtis Davies (Aston Villa) £8m, Kevin Phillips (Birmingham) free, Zoltan Gera (Fulham) free
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE..... Ronald Reagan People like them, but they’re not sure why
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 18thTony Mowbray will stick to his beliefs but with Kevin Phillips gone, it may not be enough TITLE ODDS 2000/1

West Ham United

2007-08 RECORD League 10th FA Cup3rd round Carling CupQF
ManagerAlan Curbishley. Seemed to spend last season moaning (not wholly without justification) about his injury list. This season, even if the ebola virus sweeps through East London, he can’t repeat that trick. Bizarrely, the bookmakers’ favourite for the sack. Go figure
Chop rating Alan Curbishley 4/5
New faces Balint Bajner (Liberty Salonta, undisclosed), Valon Behrami (Lazio, £5m), Orn Eyjolfsson (HK Kopavogur, free), Jan Lastuvka (Shakhtar Donetsk, loan)
How they play Unstably. Last season, they looked weak all over, but beat Liverpool and Manchester United. Their signings are unfathomable: Bajner is a hungry but 18-year-old Hungarian striker and he’s a year older than Eyjolfsson. Lastuvka is a Fulham cast-off, while Behrami is only 21 and had a poor Euro 2008
Player to watchJulien Faubert. The spring-heeled winger had a wretched, injury-ravaged first season in English football, but he’s now fully fit and a promising preseason suggests he’ll prove why Curbishley spent £6.1m to prise him from Bordeaux last summer
Tabloid favouriteCraig Bellamy. Forget his summer holidays being spent attacking a charity worker in Sierra Leone, the season hasn’t even started and the man whose ideal night out ends with him being charged with racially aggravated assault has already had a spat with Ipswich fans during a preseason unfriendly. There’s more to come, there’s always more to come with Craig Bellamy
In an ideal world Uefa Cup
In the real world Top half
Official website www.whufc.com
SQUAD ANALYSIS Goalkeepers1 Robert Green, 23 James Walker, 34 Marek Stech, Jan Lastuvka Defenders2 Lucas Neill, 3 George McCartney, 4 Daniel Gabbidon, 5 Anton Ferdinand, 6 Matthew Upson, 18 Jonathan Spector, 19 James Collins, 21 Valon Behrami, 27 Calum Davenport, 30 James Tomkins, Orn Eyjolfsson Midfielders8 Scott Parker, 11 Matthew Etherington, 16 Mark Noble, 17 Hayden Mullins, 20 Julien Faubert, 22 Tony Stokes, 26 Nigel Quashie, 28 Kyel Reid, 29 Lee Bowyer, 31 Jack Collison, 32 Kieron Dyer Forwards9 Dean Ashton, 10 Craig Bellamy, 12 Carlton Cole, 13 Luis Boa Morte, 33 Freddie Sears, Balint Bajner
Players in Orn Eyjolfsson (HK Kopavogur) undisclosed, Valon Behrami (Lazio) £5m, Balint Bajner (Liberty Salonta) undisclosed, Jan Lastuvka (Shakhtar Donetsk) loan
Players out Bobby Zamora (Fulham) £4.8m, John Pantsil (Fulham) £1.5m, Richard Wright (Ipswich) undisclosed
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE. . . Margaret BeckettAlways there. Not even they are quite sure why
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 8th Finished 10th in a season wrecked by injuries, and with everybody fit they will take some beating
TITLE ODDS 1000/1

Wigan Athletic

2007-08 RECORD League14th FA Cup4th round Carling Cup2nd round
Manager Steve Bruce. He cost Wigan £3m in compensation to Birmingham City (and then more by taking some of Birmingham’s underachievers off their hands) but more than repaid that by keeping Wigan in the top flight. He’ll be fighting again this year Chop rating Steve Bruce 2/5
New faces Lee Cattermole (Middlesbrough, £3.5m), Daniel De Ridder (Birmingham, free), Olivier Kapo (Birmingham, £3.5m), Amr Zaki (Zamalek, loan)
How they play Stoically. Defensively tight once Bruce arrived at the JJB stadium, Marcus Bent was the only Wigan player to score more than four Premier League goals last season. Much depends on Zaki (the world’s No 1 striker according to Bruce, but he selected Julius Aghahowa), who’s looked sharp preseason
Player to watch Chris Kirkland. With the England goalkeeping conundrum far from settled, Kirkland did himself several favours last season, not least by missing only one game through injury, but also with a succession of sterling, match-saving performances
Tabloid favourite Marlon King. Jailed for some nonsense involving a stolen car in 2002 and sent home from the Jamaican squad and banned for two years for indiscipline in 2006. And since arriving from Watford, he’s earned £40,000 a week but not scored in open play and the Jamaicans have dropped him
Players inDaniel De Ridder (Birmingham) free, Olivier Kapo (Birmingham) £3.5m, Lee Cattermole (Middlesbrough) £3.5m, Amr Zaki (Zamalek) loan
Players outAndreas Granqvist (FC Groningen) undisclosed, David Cotterill (Sheff Utd) undisclosed
In an ideal world Survival
In the real world Survival
Official website www.wiganlatics.premiumtv.co.uk
SQUAD ANALYSIS
Goalkeepers1 Chris Kirkland, 12 Michael Pollitt, 24 Carlo Nash Defenders2 Ryan Taylor, 3 Erik Edman, 7 Paul Scharner, 17 Emmerson Boyce, 19 Titus Bramble, 25 Mario Melchiot, 29 Lewis Montrose, 31 Maynor Figueroa Midfielders4 Lee Cattermole, 5 Wilson Palacios, 6 Antoine Sibierski, 8 Kevin Kilbane, 10 Jason Koumas, 11 Michael Brown, 16 Antonio Valencia, 18 Daniel De Ridder, 21 Tomasz Cywka, 23 Olivier Kapo, 28 Tomasz Kupisz Forwards9 Emile Heskey, 13 Amr Zaki, 14 Marlon King, 26 Rachid Bouaouzan, 27 Henri Camara
IF THEY WERE A POLITICIAN THEY WOULD BE..... Nick Clegg Nobody’s quite sure what point they serve
JOE LOVEJOY’S PREDICTION 16th Bruce did well to revive them last time, but goals will again be hard to come by
TITLE ODDS 2000/1