Season 2013-2014 Preview

As the transfer window slams shut for 2013, football on-field finally regains its spotlight. The transfer window was introduced 10 years ago to encourage planning and to prohibit clubs from using their financial power to their advantage to cover short term problems. The deadline of the transfer window remains controversial as it only closes some 2 weeks after the season starts which still allow teams to strengthen after the first few games . Doing things in a last minute manner is not actually a bad habit but it's how we humans work, we become more productive as the clock runs down. This season was no different with a host of transfer activity done in the final few days. In a frantic last day, as usual, transfer records were again broken, much to the dismay of advocates for financial fair play.

Gareth Bale's £86mil move to Real Madrid was the highlight of the summer, followed by big money moves of Edinson Cavani and Radamel Falcao to PSG and Monaco respectively. It was no surprise more money was spent in a transfer window than ever before. PSG continued to be big spenders following their moves for Ibrahimovic, Thiago Motta and Javier Pastore last season. Newly promoted Monaco's new found wealth also saw them put in an unmatchable offer for Falcao. Man City, who stuffed up badly in the last transfer window, wasted no time in spending over £100mil notably on Fernandinho, Negredo, Navas and Jovetic. A rather 'quiet' off-season for Chelsea still saw over £60mil spent, with Schurrle and Willian being the big signings.

Spurs were the biggest surprise this summer with a big splash on players like Soldado, Paulinho and Lamela. The sale of Bale made them the Premier League's biggest spenders. You would be forgiven if you thought Spurs' spending of £106mil made them the top spenders in Europe, but they were to be denied by the majestic Real Madrid, who wouldn't let anyone steal their limelight of mind-blowing transfers, picking up Bale, Isco and Illarramendi notably for an astronomical total spending of £157mil. The sale of Ozil to Arsenal also marked a record selling price for a Real player and the introduction of Arsenal to the league of top spenders with their £42mil deal to bring in the German international. It easily surpasses their club record, price for a German International, and even puts them above club records set by Man Utd and Man City for their signings of Berbatov and Aguero. The most expensive player bought by a Premier League club to date is still Fernando Torres by Chelsea for £50mil. On a side note, the third most expensive player in history Kaka, returned to AC Milan for free, representing a cost of at least £15mil each season for his services at the Bernabeau.

The transfer market frenzy would have no doubt continued to raise the bar at the highest level, which leaves the mid and lower clubs wondering whether there would ever be a chance to catch up. Football is no different to capitalism, money wields power and moves the game, unfortunately. The financial fair play rules hasn't seem to deter clubs from spending huge sums of money. I am wondering how is it possible clubs are going to comply with cap on losses.

For Arsenal, all Gooners have been looking for redemption and new blood this summer. The proclaimed £70mil transfer budget excited many including myself. Having been disappointed so many times after putting so much hope on us making a big transfer over the years, I had to be skeptical whether it was one of those seasons. Time went by and for large parts of the summer we only had an unknown Yaya Sanogo as our signing, who didn't cost anything. Right till the day when the season started, we only had two signings on a free. But a tipping point occurred, we won a massive game against Fenerbahce and a few players in the team found their form and played some fabulous football. Right on the final day of the transfer window, we sealed our biggest transfer in history. It wasn't a name which had much association to us all this while, but we knew we got our hands on a fantastic player.

On the balance of the squad, I think out midfield is our biggest strength this summer. A mix of speed, creativity, intelligent passing and experience will definitely create some huge waves this season. Cazorla, Wilshere, Ozil, Ramsey, Flamini and Arteta will give us a lot of versatility to play with in the middle. It is going to be exciting how far these players are going to bring us. On the wing, Walcott, Chamberlain, Podolski and Gnabry is going to threaten defences as well as contribute to the goals tally.

Our defence and striking options remain unchanged which I think we could have done more. I believe we are short of one central defender, having lost Squillaci, Djourou and Miquel. We also don't have Alex Song anymore who fits in perfectly when needed. Only 3 recognized centre backs looks a bit thin for me. The understanding between Mertesacker and Koscielny has improved tremendously over the last season, leaving the once guaranteed starter Vermaelen in a very unusual deputising role. I am not sure how we have afforded the risk. Fingers crossed our defence will have their best season yet.

The failure to sign Higuain or Suarez during the summer puts a great deal of reliance on Giroud as the only dependable outright striker. We do have Sanogo or Bendtner on the squad but I don't think they are anywhere near what is expected of an outright striker in a 4-5-1 formation. I've got mixed feelings when Bendtner came back to the squad as his Arsenal career was almost certain to have been over. Probably a combination of his wages and fitness made clubs unwilling to pay beyond a few million pounds. It seems like a year in Italy has changed the big Dane and made him a better and more responsible player. Having been a rarity of returning to the club after a loan spell elsewhere, maybe he still has more to give to the club. I still remember some very important goals he scored for us. Hopefully he does contribute to our season.

Players to watch: Ozil and Gnabry
Key player: Cazorla

Rivals
It's going to be another intense battle this season. There's been talk there might be a six-horse race. Let's look at the other five

Manchester United
The big story of the summer was definitely the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, who has set a benchmark for every manager in the world. It was a rather weak transfer window for the champions, with Zaha and Fellaini being added to the squad. The latter arrived right on deadline day. Wayne Rooney looked certain to leave all summer, but a kiss and make up with David Moyes has totally changed things. Plus, who is going to pay him $250k a week elsewhere? There is a saying "why change a winning team?". But football today demands enhancements as your rivals are going to get better every year. Man Utd relied heavily on on Van Persie last season, is there anyone going to step up this season? David Moyes has got the season of his life and we'll see how he manages the biggest club in the world.

Players to watch: Zaha and Januzaj
Key player: Van Persie

Manchester City
They broke a 44 year duck last time out but a rather inconsistent season from the Citizens left them well beaten. A decisive and aggressive transfer window this off-season makes them the favourites for the title, on paper at least. The firepower available in the Eastlands makes them the team to beat. Players like Silva, Yaya Toure, Aguero with their new signings will no doubt be one of the most feared in Europe. Their defence also looks pretty solid especially with the consistency of Kompany and Zabaleta. The question left is whether Pellegrini can use his experience and bring them a notch higher in the league and Europe.

Players to watch: Negredo and Fernandinho
Key player: Yaya Toure

Chelsea
It's not surprising Roman got rid of another manager. But I am totally surprised he reappointed Jose Mourinho, despite the fact of him having served the longest during Roman's tenure. The saying that second marriages seldom succeed has got me questioning whether there is really no one else that qualifies to be Blues' manager. I respect Jose on his success in winning the Champions League with different clubs and also breaking the stranglehold by Manchester United and Arsenal on the league. His impact has been long term and Chelsea continues to be title contenders today (Of course credit also goes to the source of the transfer funds). I think Chelsea has already got a fantastic team but maximising the utility of their players will be key to any success this term. World class talent like Hazard, Mata, Oscar, Ramires and Torres gives them every chance for silverware. It is up to Jose to successfully mix and match all the talent he has to add to his already illustrious CV at Stamford Bridge. 

Players to watch: Eto'o and Schurrle
Key player: Mata

Tottenham
The departure of Gareth Bale would have usually reduced the odds of Spurs competing for the title, but the opposite has happened, Spurs have a fantasic opportunity this season considering the players they have brought in. There are some really talented players like Eriksen, Townsend and Dembele who will make Spurs bigger contenders than ever. Now that AVB has put together a wonderful team like this, we will see if they can qualify for the UCL once again.

Players to watch: Eriksen, Soldado and Lamela
Key player:

Liverpool
People might think I'm crazy to include Liverpool as title contenders. Although they might be weakest among the six, a decent start to the season has caught many people's attention, even without Luis Suarez. The Reds have got an outside chance for the title this season but top four is a definite possibility. With players like Coutinho,Suarez and Sturridge, we could be looking at best finish from the Reds in years.

Player to watch: Sturridge and Coutinho
Key player: Sturridge

It's going to be another blockbuster season coming up. Next May marks ten years since the season of the Invincibles, the last time we won the title. It has been a very difficult period being a Gooner, seeing us lose some great players and missing out on silverware on many occasions. We only dream of the day where silverware will have our names engraved on it once again. Sport is another example of life, you don't give up no matter what. We will continue fighting to bring back the glory days

~deyao~

Season Review 2013

Another great season of football has just ended, much lesser late drama compared to last season but it was pretty much top draw all around. A season of great significance, especially for the Red Devils faithfuls who endured one of the worst heartbreaks in Premier League history, losing on the finest margins ever seen in the history of the 21 year plus league. To regain the title must have been very special taking into account the misery they suffered a year ago. The title was 'sort of' decided by the transfer window, with Manchester United making the decisive move for Robin van Persie, who made the difference. It was a poor year for English football, with no participants in the last eight of the Champions League, not seen for a very long time. The national team also seems to be heading nowhere.

On the other hand, Bayern Munich also redeemed themselves after the worst possible loss in a CL final - on their home ground and it was again very late on (1999 against Man Utd). It must have been a major relief for Arjen Robben, who played a big part in the final.

Before I head to Arsenal, I would like to pay a tribute to Sir Alex Ferguson for his magnificent contribution to Manchester United and football. It is safe to say he is the greatest ever in the footballing world and I say this sincerely as an Arsenal fan. I would have had a different opinion in 2004, but I think it's a clear one now. It has been a great rivalry over the years and there's no argument who came up on top, especially towards to the end. Will David Moyes be able to continue the legacy left by the great Scot? I'll leave that to my season preview in a couple of months.

To North London. Another battle that has gone down the wire, not for the title, but for 4th. How different things have been for Arsenal, with the champions tag in distant memory.  A hard fought season for us, especially with the loss of Van Persie and Alex Song, clearly 2 of our biggest stars. A lost of 30 plus goals and a protection to our back four, I would have thought top 5 would be realistic. Having such expectations, 4th place seems like quite an achievement. No wonder we celebrated like that at St. James' Park on the final day (pic). And yes, it's as though we won something (shake of the head). Looking at how we dealt with the loss of our big players, grinding out some marginal 1-0 wins and being against the odds towards the end of the season, it was a 50/50 in terms of 4th placing. Thinking about the games against West Brom (Mertesacker sent off), Norwich (Controversial penalty awarded in the 85th minute), the 2 games against QPR, we won by a really fine margin. What a huge relief! Well, Spurs also had relied heavily on Gareth Bale, to "bale" them out over and over again, right until the last day. One point may be the difference, but the rewards are vast. A ticket to Europe's premier competition differentiates your spending power, "attraction" power to top players and of course the glamour of playing in the UCL. It was important indeed.

So let's have a look what went right, what went wrong and what needs to be done.

What Went Right
If you ask anyone , a top team being trophyless is a failure, and I agree with that. Despite that, we did a few things to save our season. I mean, we must have done more right than wrong to end up above Spurs, right?

The signings were key to me. I think we brought in 3 quality players (although it could have been better) who made quite a difference especially Super Santi Cazorla. Virtually an unknown to most in England, he made his stamp as early as the first game. As early on as that, he made a great impression with a string a solid performances. His intelligence, composure and talent very quickly made him our most important player . When we won our first game of the season against Liverpool, he made it instantly to our good books. His form did turn quite a bit in the middle, probably due to fatigue, but his overall contribution proved very vital to our season. Player of the season and definitely our signing of the season.

Giroud and Podolski were a bit different. They did well about half the time, which meant on some days you felt they were good players and the other days you thought about better players we could have signed. Giroud came with the reputation of being the French league's top scorer so he was a proven player to some extent. He did struggle with the intensity and physical aspect of England but it was a commendable first season. Podolski on the other hand is capped over 100 times by Germany and was already a household name. I think Podolski has a fantastic attitude judging by the way he pumps up the team and plays his part defending. Performance wise, I thought his level of consistency was very average. In some games, I thought he was very lost and out of the game. He has yet to meet my expectations.

I think in terms of defence it gets slightly confusing and sensitive. We did have some good defensive displays with the "new" partnership of Koscielny and Mertesacker. Not much of a positive point here, it's still a big work in progress.

What Went Wrong
For a season that is deemed a failure, this is the most important column. I will separate it into five

1) Transfer Policy
The number one reason why we are not competing for honours, our very own transfer policy. If what is said is true, the availability transfer funds was never a problem. The CEO or chairman always comes out saying "We have the funds if required". This leaves me to conclude we have been disastrous in terms of bringing in players. Potentially our best defensive signing Vermaelen is suddenly looking to be average, which leaves the rest of the signings to be unthinkable. Our most expensive player in history (at this point of writing) Arshavin, has turned out to be a failure. We are clearly doing many things wrongly to end up here. Are the scouts to be blamed as well? Yes.

From Santos, Squillaci to Gervinho, what kind of scouting do we actually have? This has been an outright horror show in terms of spotting for talent. We have gone for players in the range of 6mil to 13mil pounds, that's not going to get you anywhere near to challenging fortrophies. I am not in favour of anything Wenger has said in the last few years because the end result hasn't been up to standard for a club like ours. The cost of these bad transfers is to be blamed our failures regardless of what the people in charge say. The transfer policy needs to change immediately if things are going to change.

2) Defence
This has been an outstanding problem since Sol Campbell moved past his peak believe it or not. The number of disastrous performances by our defence has haunt us every season and this one was no different. From the days of Silvestre, Squillaci, Djourou to Gallas, there is no sign a we could ever find a Mr. Reliable equivalent to the John Terry of Chelsea or Rio Ferdinand of Man Utd (less now). So much of trial and error, even with our current defensive line up. Thinking about Vermaelen, Mertesacker and Koscielny, their level of consistency is certainly not up to standard most of the time. Competition these days are so intense and one bad game will screw you badly. Looking at our Champions League games against Milan and Bayern Munich, one bad game defensively screwed us real bad. How do you expect to come back from 4-0 in the first leg. Games in the league are separated by a few points, throw in a a few bad defensive displays and you're out. Steve Bould was supposedly brought in to sort this problem out but so far we are still very fragile and vulnerable, totally unacceptable! We need a massive shakeup.

3) Under-performing players
Apart from Arsene Wenger, I think many players have let us down. From our lacklustre defence to the player's lack of conviction in games. Time and time again we see Arsenal letting the lead slip by not closing out the match or defending properly, it's been a pure frustration.

On the keepers end, we have yet to see Szczesny become our safe pair of hands. He has shown a lot of potential early on but has failed to perform consistently. I think at times he has become overconfident and things has turned on him. The physical side is still his biggest hurdle on becoming a good keeper. Lots of room for improvement.

For me the midfield has let us down tremendously. Yes we lost Fabregas, Nasri and Song, which is one of the reasons. But players like Gervinho, Walcott, Chamberlain, Rosicky, Wilshere, Diaby and Ramsey. It's either they are injured or they are not performing which is a big problem. Our midfield has relied so heavily on Cazorla and Arteta and I really hope Wenger sees a need to clear out some players. We need to 'extract' more from our current players and this has to be done now.

4) Management
Ever since David Dein left us, I feel like there was no one to support Wenger directly, have a close relationship with him to run the club in its best way. When Ivan Gazidis arrived, he came with a good reputation for his contribution in the MLS which made sense he was going to bring the club to the next level. I actually think he has done a terrible job. I don't think he has done enough in terms of transfer dealings which has caused us to lose out on some top players. Being the CEO, he seems to have taken a less active role by delegating responsibilities to scouts and other personnel. I personally think he should be more hands-on in terms of transfer dealings. To me he lacks the negotiation skills and understanding of the Arsenal fans. That really bothers me. The way the Nasri and Fabregas saga turned out, I really question the competence of Gazidis. We were literally being held hostage in both transfers. We had no "hand to play" when it came to Nasri as it was to sell him now or lose him for free. A ridiculous predicament to be in. As for Fabregas, Barca told us it was maximum 40mil euros and we obliged. Some better negotiation would have got us more. But one thing we did right was the sell on clause, which makes Fabregas very hard to sell for Barcelona.

With Hill-Wood's departure, I still don't see any changes in the management of this club. Is Stan Kroenke being 'Silent Stan' good for the club? I think he needs to do more being a director of the club rather than attend meetings. It's one of the downsides having an owner who owns many more things. Another fascinating thing about the club is we have Russia's richest man as our major shareholder. We know how rich Roman Abramovich is, but this guy is even richer? Yes he is, but he does not play a role in the club. Usmanov gives some good opinions about the club and he's probably the guy we need to drive the club forward. He is passionate about the club and he's very loaded!

5) Not placing enough importance in cup competitions
Throughout Wenger's tenure, he has not lost a lower division club, ever. It is a feat even Alex Ferguson cannot match. But this season was different, not only did the streak finally end, it happened twice. Our lost to Blackburn in the FA Cup and to Bradford in the Capital One Cup made it to some of the most embarrassing defeats ever suffered by Arsenal. You know what the worst thing is, we lost to Blackburn on our home ground and Bradford is a League Two team, which means there are 2 divisions below us! Although the reward of winning these competitions is nothing compared to reaching the next round of UCL or a top 4 spot in the league, but we fans want silverware and we need it now! It has been way too long.

It has always been Wenger's policy to field "weaker" teams in the 2 competitions which I don't agree with most of the time. But coupled with the shocking performances by us against the two teams, it made it look like we didn't take the competition seriously, eventhough we had put out a team "good enough" to win the game. It was a first team against Bradford. Very shocking indeed.

What Needs to Be Done

BUY
We need to buy, seriously. If there's anything we can do for instant impact, we need to buy top players. The youth project has failed and we need a complete change of strategy if we are going to achieve anything. It seems like huge transfer funds are finally available for us to spend and there is no better time to spend big on some quality players who will take the team forward quickly. It might be Wenger's last season, could we see things change, I hope so.

SELL
There is so much deadwood in this team and we are paying some huge wages to these players. Absolutely terrible. If I am in charge I would be in a hurry to sell them as fast as possible, free up our wage bill and bring in some new players.

Players to sell
Abou Diaby, Gervinho, Chamakh, Bendtner, Djourou (loaned out only unfortunately), Park Chu Yong, Andre Santos, Tomas Rosicky, Arshavin (done), Squillaci (done), Denilson (done)

I mean look at the amount of players in this team who are just not good enough for us. We need to sell them NOW and recoup some transfer fees and free up our cash flow.I think we could get back some 20 mil pounds and free up 360k/week in wages.(9 players at 40k a week)

Conclusion
I would have never imagined we would reach such a trophy drought years ago. Now that it has become real, big changes are needed to rescue our history for the record books. People remember teams who won and less of teams who finish runners up or play good football. We need to start winning or people will look back in time to come and see us on par with a team like Spurs (no offence). I also think Wenger's legacy would be heavily criticised despite what he has done for this team if he does not start to deliver again. Some people will point out he transformed this club from average to one of the best. But that cannot be an ongoing excuse for our prolonged failure to win trophies. We need a huge overhaul at our club and the next big question is whether it can come from within.

~deyao~

Untitled

At this point of time in life, I've been through so many challenges and the one thing that challenges me the most emotionally is dealing with departing loved ones. In recent years, I've seen numerous people (and dogs) that are related to me in a big way or less, depart. It's not an easy task to deal with such feelings for anyone, which keeps me thinking how difficult it can be for people who are worse off compared to me. It's been a tremendous battle for me emotionally these few years, and thus I really feel for people who have had it even tougher.

Many years ago, I watched an episode of As Told By Ginger, a cartoon and the main character's (Ginger) best friend's grandmother passed away. As the Ginger rewinded on a random home video taken years ago on her own late grandmother with her family, she quotes "Sometimes your family can make you really mad or feel bad, and make it hard to see the good things about them, but then one day, they're gone, and all you have left are the memories, and you see all good things and a new light, and you wished you had you had pointed them out a little more often along the way". I feel quite fortunate to learn something like that at an early part of my life through this show. An affirmation that cartoons (good ones) can be good educators to young people.

There have so many life lessons on how we should "live like there's no tomorrow" and think what we would do if it was our last day. Of course it does sound a bit extreme, but it goes to tell us how unprepared we can be when the worst happens. It is by no indication you should live your life conservatively to avoid any bad things or on the other end, go all out for something on the fear you won't have a chance tomorrow. The lesson is to do your best, but remember the other important things in life (No examples, I leave that to your judgement).

It has been quite an emotional struggle for me for various reasons over the years to deal with a lot of difficult situations like I mentioned earlier. Again I go back to something that has been an "invisible hand" in helping me through these tough times. Emotional intelligence (EI) . I learnt a lot about EI back in my first semester in uni. There was a unit about EI and learning about citations (acknowledging other people's work). Although the unit was so dry and I disliked it so much, it has been very useful for me in life. EI has been a driving force for me in life, especially when handling the most difficult times. I would recommend people to develop better EI for the benefit of themselves. Emotions make or break people, so make sure it is positive for you. The most ironic part of it all, I topped the unit, not in my wildest expectations.

I've just lost my dog, Tiger, today. He's been around for over 12 years. He's been an absolutely terrific pet, he has the been the best dog we could hope for. He's lived a great life and I'm very happy to be part of it.I will miss him very much.

~deyao~

Quotes from Think Like a Champion

Mention the name Trump and it's very clear there's only one. Mention the name Trump, there's full of controversies and opinions about him. I think many people know Donald for very different reasons and have a certain like or dislike about him. From bankruptcies, real estate, The Apprentice to running for President. For me, it doesn't matter as long as I learn something from someone who is willing to tell his story.

I have learned so much watching The Apprentice and it was absolutely helpful for me while trying to kick start my career. It prepared me for so many possibilities and pitfalls which gave me the advantage of understanding how to handle difficult situations. I just read this book and I found many quotes from his book to be very inspiring and motivating. Reading never ends and I often find that I could so easily forget what I previously read. Plus, in order to read the next book, I find it almost too difficult to re-read a book.  I've re-read this book and here some are quotes I found to be really good.

Quotes
Be a team player

Keep your door open every day to something new and energizing

Being prepared cannot be overestimated, and if you want to hit it the big time running, you'd better be able to think on those feet of yours

Achievers go for the challenge, so the next deal is what they're thinking about.

Success is made up of experience, integrity and knowledge.

Developing a hobby or outside interest will complement your business bent

Mindset includes responsibility and focus

Your problems can be temporary if you keep your momentum going forward

Minimise your achievements to yourself so that you will be eager to do more

Best achievers are those who are self-motivated, who are naturally curious, and who don't need to be told what to do next

A challenge equals success just waiting to happen

See problems as opportunities

See every day as an important day for your future

Develop a thick skin, keep your own positive wavelength going at all times

Be tough, be smart, be personable, but don't take things personally

To be effective, you need to be informed

All of us have creative powers, so devote time to learn about this process

Be tough and keep your standards high, even if you have to fight the undertow

The worst things in history have happened when people stop thinking for themselves and listen to other people, and even worse, start following other people

Intrinsic value cannot be taken away or shaken, it's a form of strength that can be unbeatable.

Freedom is not the right to live as we please, but the right to find how we ought to live in order to fulfill our potential

How do we get where we want to go? It's a combination of vision, courage and discipline to realise that the possibilities are always there.

And a few questions ask yourself.

What is your creative capital?

Are you aware of your own potential?

Will you be equipped to make a difference when the time comes for you step forward?

I think the stories and recipes for success have not changed much ever before. The people who make changes and go the extra mile are unsurprisingly going to lead the way in the present and future. "See problems as opportunities" is probably one of my favourite quotes in the book. Problems gives us the opportunities to learn and move forward. In my year book awhile back, my quote is to"Never give up in life". It also made me remember the story of "Three Feet From Gold", where the hopeful miners gave up when they were in fact just three feet from gold. It really can be that close. Keep going and you might not believe what you can achieve.

Thanks for reading

~deyao~