Things you can do for a better 2016 and beyond

Starting the year with a bang!

Rich Dad from Robert Kiyosaki's books said the difference between the rich and poor is that the rich use leverage. Leverage as he defines it, means doing more with less. Timothy Ferriss from his world changing book 4 Hour Work Week proved in many ways so much can be done if we leverage on our minds and knowledge we acquire. He has changed the way I looked at productivity forever. I like the example how Rich Dad described how people spend the extra hours to save hundreds on their grocery bills by analysing the weekly specials for groceries. It does seem like a good idea (I actually do it), what can be wrong with spending less on the same quantity of supplies? It isn't wrong but there is not much leverage in doing that. Can I actually save more ? Yes and No. Yes, by using that same time to do something else. And No, you probably found the lowest price and the savings have peaked. The real issue is how people are pouring time and resources but not getting enough returns for their time. For example, how about using that same time looking for a 'undervalued' property? With market knowledge, you may be able to find a property of let's say 10% lower than its 'real' market value. If the property is 'worth' $1million, perhaps you just 'saved' $100,000. But people prefer to leave it to the 'experts' and spend their hours looking for the best deal on items like the ones on Groupon. Hence sometimes we got to think, is it penny wise, pound foolish?

Leverage isn't just about money and can be a lot more. Taking the plane instead of driving may cost more, but the time saved is something that cannot be bought, that's leveraging to save time. The theme today is about time, how we spend our time defines our lives. Our comfort zone can leave us doing very little and our minds will in time give us plenty of reasons to be unproductive, leaving us to feel better of ourselves. If you look back in the last few years and can only think about a handful of things that you can be proud of, maybe you haven't leveraged on your time enough. Nobody in this world has the extra hour in a day so within the given 24, how much have you done? Put aside work, what have you done that you can proudly tell people or even proudly remind yourself? Rich Dad says people get rich at home, not at work. And yet, rich does not necessarily point to only money. Rich can also mean feeling the sense of fulfillment of what you value. So by no particular order, here are 10 things I think people should do for a more fulfilling 2016 and beyond.

1) Exercise and eat healthy
People who know me can easily associate me with being more health conscious compared to the average human being (although I might not be on the best side of the health charts). They tell me I only live once so I shouldn't think too much about what I eat. That will hold true in the short term. Having a longer view, you only live once, so don't mess it up with poor decision making. I've seen so many people regret things they have done in the past and there was no chance to recover from it. Knowledge and resources about good health are free over the internet, so the access to information is not the problem. The problem is getting people to understand the implications with their actions before it's too late. There are countless of articles about having a healthy intake. Don't worry, eating healthy and paying more attention to your food is not going to make you less happy, take my word for it. A little less fat, oil and sugar is going to make you happier than you know. Making it a habit of taking control of what you eat will feel effortless as time passes. The theme of food these days is to 'eat clean' and that's a great way of improving the quality of our intake. The same holds for exercising, there is no need to explain the benefits of exercising but the push to get people to do it. Exercise can take so many forms and is not necessary expensive. Last but not least, all will not be good without enough of the ZZZs. Staying healthy will be make everything better, yes, everything.

2) Be able to explain your financials in one minute
Savings, investment, insurance, loans, credit cards, emergency fund, retirement, good debt, bad debt
If you know what the above items mean, congratulations, you have paid some attention or immersed yourself with knowledge. But let's go one step further, can you locate all of the applicable items to you easily? Now that's where people get stuck. In her book Women & Money, Suze Orman says a person's life can be defined by how well they organise their belongings. If their things are in a mess, it probably reflects their life. That statement made such an impact on me that I made big changes after that. The idea is to clear all the clutter in life and consolidate all your important belongings, only then you'd be in a position to make a good plan. When your things get organised and you'll find new spaces in your life, house or room, that's when you will realise you've been surrounding yourself with a lot of deadwood and preventing better and newer things from coming into your life.

To do list
- If you have more than 5 bank accounts, it's highly likely some of them are inactive. Close all of them which you have not used in the last 6 months.
- Know every investment you have and consolidate all the latest statements to know the current market value. Reviewing your position and investment strategies comes next.
- Gather every insurance policy you have and summarise all the benefits and current cash value of each policy. Pay extra attention to insurance policies you are STILL paying every year. Seek the help of a financial planner or a knowledgeable person to evaluate whether what you are paying for is still relevant and sufficient with your current state. Review all policies every five years.
- Know exactly how much you are owing on every loan you have. Compile all the latest statements and know the latest balance. Have a look whether the current interest rate you are paying is competitive. Ensure all your loans are promptly paid. For 'bad debt' (as defined by Rich Dad) loans, if you happen to have any, pay extra attention to it. Try to restructure them to obtain the best effective rate. Review your commitments to see whether they are still manageable.
- Treat credit cards like bank accounts, cut up those you have not used in the last 6 months (of course remember to call up your bank). Less statements, less junk mail, less charges, less cards in your wallet, less security worries and more space in your mind for better things. Know your latest balance on your existing cards and make sure they are fully settled by the due date.
- Suze Orman defines an emergency fund as 8 months of your living expenses, including your loan installments . If you have that already, good on you. If you don't, it's time to build one.
- Compile all the statements of your retirement funds and know exactly the latest balances of the last 12 months. Review your retirement contributions yearly.

Taking control of your financials and facing the reality will give you the best chance to improve your financial position regardless where are you now. Time to get organised and you can definitely describe your financials in less than one minute!

3) Network
If there's is a recipe for success, networking will be very high up the list. If there is a way of getting up the 'ladder' in the corporate world, politics or society, networking would be most pivotal to getting there. Today, the internet is the most powerful tool in the world because it connects the entire world. By being the largest network in the world, the ability to leverage on it creates unlimited potential. Like how politicians attempt to network with people during their political campaigns, it's pretty obvious what they are trying to achieve. But networking doesn't have to be for a specific purpose, it can be something open ended. Some people boast about how many Facebook friends they have, but how many of them have they spoken to in the past year? Or how many of their phone numbers do you have? That number probably comes to half the 'actual' network that person has. Networking provides opportunities and references which makes life a lot easier. Think about the successful people that made it where they are because of one person in their life. It's only possibilities with networking and it's your effort to make it happen.

4) Read, more
The newspapers are a requirement so that's not sufficient to go further. Warren Buffet learned investing from Benjamin Graham's The Intelligent Investor and the rest is history. Successful people read lots on their way to success and still do when they become successful. It is by no means a perfectly lit path to success after reading, but the enrichment from the content will get you far ahead and quicker. I've personally have been inspired by some fantastic books in the last few years. My best tip is to summarise the takeaways from books after intervals and that allows you to keep the positives you have read. Have a read at books that can bring you forward and get you to the next level. It's truly one of the biggest open secrets out there.

5) Learn a new skill
Sometimes what we don't know can be a source of our weakness and confidence. If one day at work they organise a salsa dancing competition, how would you feel? For a person like me who has zero dancing capabilities, I would be terrified and be feeling insecure. For people who are self-conscious (like me), I would be in a mental struggle. But what if you spent a month learning to dance factually learned how to? That feeling of accomplishment can be very positive for yourself mentality. Using a different part of your brain and having an additional skill will give you a feel good factor for a long time. When you reflect on it in the future, you'd be so glad you did it. Whether it's public speaking, playing a music instrument or even getting your car into a side parking, think about how good you'll feel once you could do it. Learning to cook and learning to change a guitar string by watching videos are some of things I've experienced and felt good about in recent years. There are many things you can do where failing doesn't cost much, so go for it!

6) Invest smart
The world revolves around money and undoubtedly having an extra digit in your bank account can change your life. Investing should not be confused with gambling although both carries risk. The biggest reason anyone should invest is to achieve financial freedom or at least financial security. There is no superior investment in this world, only superior investors. Asia's queen of property Renesial Leong is a great example of how wealth can be accumulated through real estate. She doesn't believe in the stock market, but does it mean it's not a good place? Well no. In fact, many billionaires in this world made their fortunes from listing their companies in the market. Of course, to them listed or not doesn't bother them too much as long as the business is doing well. Investing carries risk and that puts a lot of people away. From my point of view, risk of investing can be managed through proper education and experience. It's the investor who is risky, not the investment. People like Yap Ming Hui has pushed for money optimisation, which is the heart of financial planning. In short, money optimisation is to maximise your dollar given a certain amount of risk and that can even prevent any losses. Investing by using the proper tools and skills will reduce risk to manageable levels, while being able to generate most optimised returns. So if you intend to have fruits in your garden, it's time to plant the seeds and take good care of it. 

7) Understand people
People skills bring people from good to great. Humans are by far the most complicated living creatures to understand because everyone is so different, even twins can be quite different. The skills of understanding people starts with empathy - the ability to share someone else's feelings. Empathy is the foundation of communication. I've learned from John Maxwell how people successfully communicate and how it made them great and effective leaders. Having the ability to understand people will get you closer to people and will give you a better perspective of YOURSELF. You'll start to understand which areas you are good and weak at. Taking steps to change yourself and understanding others for the better will ultimately lead you to having good people in your life. (This helps you with number 3 as well). Everyone Communicates, Few Connect by John Maxwell is a fantastic read to improve on this aspect.

"People don't know how much you know until they know much you care.". - John Maxwell

8) Be generous
It may sound counter-intuitive, but giving, not receiving, makes you happier. Firstly, a word about giving. Think about a type of business, what is the key function of that business? It's providing something, and that's giving (I didn't say for free). Let's say the business is a restaurant and it serves decent food for good value and serves hundreds of patrons a day, wouldn't 'giving' make the owners happy people? If the Apple iPhone inventors decided to keep the phone to themselves and be the few 'cool' ones on earth, how would their life turn out? Luckily for their generosity, everyone now knows Apple in a non-fruit definition. Being charitable, a form of giving, means we don't hope for anything in return, but rather we seek the satisfaction and happiness in giving. Giving is something that has to come from the heart, it needs to be real. When companies do CSR activities, people will think whether they are doing it for a good cause or trying to improve their image. But regardless which way it is, the act of giving is already a good step. For those of us who are lucky to be where we are, how about making an impact by giving back to cause that we care about. Not everyone in this world is naturally generous, but it doesn't take one to give back.


9) Bring those dreams back
If there is a reason why we don't do things what we love, I can assure you one of the answers is not having the time. Dreams will remain dreams if we do nothing about it. Do yourself a favour and write down or even draw out what you dream of. Do you dare to describe your dreams? If you can't, then achieving it will have zero chance. Think about your childhood or even times that have passed, is there anything you've always wanted? Like a trip to Maldives or meeting someone famous. You'll be surprised that you could struggle to put a list out because you never put enough believe in it. Time to remind yourself of your dreams and take action! 

10) Practice Buddhism
For the benefit of doubt, I used the word Buddhism instead of meditation because Buddhism is a 'state of mind' or a 'way of life'. To my understanding it does not relate to a religion. Robin Sharma's The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari taught me about building spiritual strength and how we take control of our minds to achieve happiness in life. The 'state of mind' achieved by Siddhartha Gautama (also known as Buddha) remains the pinnacle of what the people practicing Buddhism are trying to achieve. The state of Enlightenment is achieved through the practice and development of morality, meditation and wisdom. Only our actions, what we say and what we do, can determine whether we are practicing Buddhism, not merely how consistent we are with our prayers (That's my view).  In short, always do what is right in life and meditate for good spirituality.

Bonus: Be Thankful

The past few years in our lives would be very different if we compared with different people. What I realise over the past few years is how infrequent we take the time to count our blessings and express our gratitude towards people who have helped us along the way. We've seen so much agonising and horrific events taking place in this world. It's become too easy to take what we have for granted. Let's take the time to be grateful with what we have and make the extra effort to show people that we appreciate and are thankful to them.


It has taken awhile for me to learn life lessons along the way and I'm glad to be quoting from some of the best lessons I've acquired along the way. I hope the ideas I have put forward will be of good value to you. Have a great 2016! Thank you for reading.

~deyao~

Season Preview: 2015-2016. What to expect this season.

When August comes, girlfriends and wives of men would be thinking, "Here we go again, did 3 months go by that fast?". They know Saturday, Sunday nights and some weekday a.ms would be very different again. "Sometimes he would spend the whole Saturday evening glued to the TV, doesn't a football match last only 2 hours?". Yes it does, but there's early kickoff at 8.30, normal kickoff at 11 and late kickoff at 1.30. When asked what can be done to appease his other half, a radio listener said what it took was to build a "solid foundation" throughout the day, so when it was time at night to escape to the football world, the transition would be easier. Asia has god to thank for probably the best time zone for watching football. No wonder Asia is indeed the main audience of the Premier League.

Last season, we saw a very consistent Chelsea grab top honours. Being one of the two teams to have successfully defended their title (2005 and 2006) in the Premier League era, it would be a huge achievement to see it done again. The last team that did a back to back was Man Utd in 2008 and 2009. Of course, the Premier League isn't about predictability, and their journey to retain their title this season is not going to be a straightforward task. This summer's transfer window again produced some staggering numbers with likes of City and Utd leading the way on the big deals. The Premier League clubs led the way in Europe, splurging on an estimated £1billion in 2015, a new record. Most of the biggest deals this summer involved Premier League clubs which will be covered later. Some notable transfers outside England would be Arda Turan to Barcelona, Douglas Costa and Arturo Vidal to Bayern Munich, Geoffrey Kondogbia to Inter Milan and Jackson Martinez to Atletico Madrid. No new 'Galacticos' this year.

The Premier League still prides itself as the most exciting league in the world despite the recent slump in representation in the latter stages of the Champions League (CL). The new draw format in the CL sought to give advantage to the teams who are winners of their league. I don't think it has made the intended impact as there are usually two clear stronger teams in each group. The four English teams would be expected to make it to the last 16 based on the recent draw.

Only one combination of team finishing positions will be correct come end of the season, let's see how far mine goes this season. By the order of finishing last season, here are how each team stands this coming season.

Chelsea - Could Be Feeling The Blues

Getting to the top is tough, staying on top is even harder. Chelsea has one man who can do it, Jose Mourinho, the football genius who is one of the most colourful characters we have in the game. He was the first to bring success to Stamford Bridge, he left and went on the manage two big clubs, and he has come back and won it again. Roman's multi billion dollar empire also helped along the way. Last season was quite clear cut, Chelsea bought some fantastic players and they played a great season of football. Players like Hazard, Matic, Fabregas, Costa and a rock solid defence led by John Terry played starring roles in their superb title winning performance. Chelsea this season still looks the same, but would they be good enough to hang on with their rivals having strengthened considerably?

To find fault in the Champions is hard. But after a long hard look, perhaps there are some weaknesses that Chelsea need to deal with this season. In defence, the ever reliable John Terry is counting down his finest days and question marks will be raised whether he still has enough in him to play at this level. His deputy is Kurt Zouma, who is about 14 years his junior. Is he the best guy Chelsea could have? I think there will be parts of the season he would be called upon and there will be a stress test on the Chelsea backline. That will be a key factor in the title race.

There is nothing to comment about their midfield plainly because it's absolutely brilliant with some of finest in the world. Now here is where it gets a bit interesting. Chelsea has four strikers, Costa, Remy and the new arrivals Pedro and Falcao. Costa is proven quality and needs to replicate his goals contribution again this season. There were issues with his fitness last season so Chelsea would be praying hard that he appears on the team sheet throughout the campaign. Pedro, the new £21m signing (quite a bargain) who has an incredible CV comprising of his record breaking success with Barcelona and Spain. He would be a key player for goals this season and should not be needing too much time to deliver for a player at his level. Not being a natural striker, he could be playing just behind the main striker. Remy and Falcao will both be huge gambles this season. Remy has yet to prove that he belongs at a top team despite having a decent record with QPR and Newcastle. On the other hand, it was a surprising move for Falcao, who had a torrid first year in England. He was one of the top strikers a few years back but isn't his recent form a better indication? Jose seems to see something we don't and let's hope he's right.

On a side note, Chelsea has about 33 players loaned out this season. It remains a mystery whether they could have monetised some of the players and further improved their squad. Players like Cuadrado, Moses and Salah could have raised over £30m between them. Time will tell whether it could cost them.

Backbone: Nemanja Matic, Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas
Exciting prospect: Pedro

Verdict: Runners up. Retaining their title remains a realistic target. I think the depth in their back four could be called into question this year and they might face challenges in answering them. They are depending on Costa to deliver at least 20 plus goals who needs to get the ball rolling after a slow start. Undoubtedly still one of the best in Europe but the odds are slightly against them.

Man City - Major Warning From The Eastlands

After a rather subdued transfer window last season, the Arabs have reopened the flood gates in style, even the current low oil price regime have not held back their ambitions. Notably with the signings of Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling, Nicolas Otamendi and Fabian Delph, they have forked an estimated £150m this close season. For people who think money can't buy the title, Man City has followed the footsteps of Chelsea and risen to become a top European powerhouse. Football has undeniably become a game of money buying success. It's not guaranteed but it goes a very long way for sure.

City probably has the most depth and quality defensively. Their defensive midfield itself has Yaya Toure, Fernandinho, Fernando and Delph which is a good problem of too many choices. A slight off season for the back four last season warranted a new signing and in came Otamendi , regarded as one of the best in La Liga, arrived to prop up the back four. Their improved defence this season would be vital to be in contention for the title. Offensive wise, they did let go of a few big players like Dzeko, Milner, Negredo and Jovetic. In return, they've 'updated' the list of biggest transfers in the Premier League history by bringing in Raheem Sterling from Liverpool, coming just a few million shy of the record set by Torres. But Man City were not done and went for the home run, shattering that record with a mind boggling £54m fee for Kevin De Bruyne from Wolfsburg. De Bruyne just had a sensational season in the Bundesliga and that would have been priced in by a good margin. Only sold for £18m not too long ago, tripling of his market value however would take time to justify. The signings combined with their already star studded squad with likes of Silva, Nasri, Navas and Toure, would be kept a watchful eye by the rest of Europe.

Despite the big signings, there is still a great deal of burden on Sergio Aguero, who will continue to shoulder the need to bring in 25-30 goals. The only other natural striker would be Wilfried Bony who has yet to show any meaningful returns for his big transfer.

Backbone: David Silva and Sergio Aguero
Exciting prospect: Kevin De Bruyne

Verdict: Champions. Their new signings has re-energised the whole team, added another level of quality and a show of serious intent to wrestle back the title. They have done the best business in Europe and are my team to beat. This could be their best European campaign since the current owners took over.

Arsenal - Same Old Arsenal

It might have been an impeccable pre-season for Arsenal, making a clean sweep of all 3 trophies they competed for, even upsetting league champions Chelsea for the Community Shield. First match into the new season, it was back to reality. Defeat to West Ham indicated Arsenal were still pretenders for the title. It's the same old Arsenal again this season, still lacking a quality centre back and striker. It's not been addressed during this transfer window, making Petr Cech the only significant signing the whole summer. With the goalkeeping woes settled for now and the emergence of Coquelin to do the hard man job in the middle of the park, Arsenal would be considered an improved outfit, albeit by a small margin. Forget about title credentials this year, it's about battling to stay in the top 4 to secure European football.

It's been sheer frustration being a Gooner this summer, there was not one hint of us strengthening the obvious weak spots in the team. Giroud is as close as pleading for someone to back him up and we really need a top class striker who can do the job when Giroud is rested or injured. Benzema was never on the cards and it is hard to believe no other player in this world could meet our quality to budget ratio. That leaves Walcott, Welbeck and Joel Campbell as alternatives to Giroud, which to me are pretty weak choices to have for a top team. Walcott's best position is not up front, Welbeck is out till December and Joel staying was unexpected. A very risky move by Wenger that will only have savings financially to justify his choice. The midfield might be the pride of Arsenal, but there are still dead-weights like Flamini, Rosicky, Arteta and Wilshere, who you would not even bother imagining them in a champion's line up. It's puzzling why we are keeping players who are not good enough for us. Defensively it's also a worry, with Mertesacker lacking consistency and pace, Chambers not ready and Gabriel still finding his way, leaving only Koscielny as the most reliable among them, same old Arsenal?

The few bright spots would be Alexis, Ramsey, Chamberlain, Ozil and Cazorla who will be the key players for us this season. It's one of the most exciting combinations we had in midfield for a long time and we''ll be counting on them to deliver. The lack of activity in the transfer window will cost Arsenal dearly, the reluctance or rather the failure to continue improving the team to keep up with their rivals would undoubtedly extend the league drought and put the team in danger of missing out of Champions League qualification for the first time in 18 years.

Backbone: Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla
Exciting prospect: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Verdict: 4th. At worst 5th. The several unresolved gaps will continue to haunt Arsenal. Periods of inconsistency would again be prevalent, leaving the optimists to continue their wishful thinking.

Man Utd - Van Gaal's Revamp Taking Shape

 

The Red Devils are back on the ascendancy, largely due to their ruthless and impetuous manager, Louis Van Gaal.  The start to his tenure was met with massive headwinds as he battled to turnaround a team that were champions a year ago but yet had sunk below unimaginable troughs the following season. Of course the void left by Sir Alex Ferguson was too much to handle for his successor, David Moyes. Fast forward another season, Utd are back in Europe and are looking to contend for honours again.

So where has Van Gaal got it right? The answer is in the very first sentence. The way he has cut losses, corrected mistakes without wasting time and making good football decisions. He has shown that he is absolutely not be messed with judging by the way he has handled player disputes. Whether it was dealing with one of the best keepers in the world (De Gea), their record breaking signing (Di Maria) or players who were unhappy with his style (Valdes), he has shown that he is ready to burn bridges and not think twice about it. His ruthless and speedy 'chop and change' has sent mediocre and uncommitted players packing and leaving the real deals to deliver the results. So far, that intensity of management has definitely won over the majority of the fans. Players like Fellaini and Ashley Young have seen their faltering careers being revived.

Following last season's monstrous spending, this season is a strong follow up. Depay, Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Darmian, Romero and Martial altogether cost close to £126m. Net spend was lower due to significant sales proceeds. Schweinsteiger probably is the biggest name of the lot being a World Cup winner. He's at a prime age and his experience would be very valuable. Depay, the Dutch rising star, will add a lot of spark for the Devils with his trickery and pace. The confident and skinful lad will be wearing the iconic number 7. Their best signing to me would be Schneiderlin, who will look to be Carrick's eventual replacement in the middle.

Their biggest signing Anthony Martial was a shocking signing, like a certain Colombian last year, was to me an unusual choice and exorbitant fee (£36m) for a 19 year old. I was rather surprised Man Utd didn't go for a more experienced striker which would be a quicker fix, something they desperately need and could afford, maybe Harry Kane or Sadio Mane? Whether a Henry or Rooney in the making, it's still a strange decision considering Man Utd being in dire need for a ready solution. Their inability (or deliberate attempt on stalling) to sell De Gea was also very questionable as he could very likely leave for free and sign a pre-contract with a new club in 4 months!

The huge sum spent this season haven't showed sufficient strengthening having offloaded several big players like Di Maria, Chicharito, Van Persie, Januzaj and Evans. I don't think Utd has done enough in the transfer window given the financial power and the money they have raised from selling those players. Although there's still plenty of quality in the team with Mata, Rooney, Herrera, Young and their new signings, they would not be mounting a serious title challenge this season.

Backbone: Wayne Rooney and Daley Blind
Exciting prospect: Memphis Depay and Anthony Martial

Verdict: At best 3rd, at worst 4th. I think defensively there is a concern there. There haven't bought a centre back and if Romero is to replace De Gea as first choice, that could lose them some points. A gamble with Martial to bring in the goals with no fully recognised striker other than Rooney. They could still clinch 3rd as Arsenal and Liverpool have their own problems.

Liverpool - Ready to reclaim a European berth?

Being a Liverpool fan is tough, they went through a period without the Champions League, then came back to win it and are out again. Then there is also the league which they last won in 1990. Their 2005 success in Istanbul remains their sole bragging right for many years to come, to Man City and Arsenal fans at least. Liverpool has no doubt been through many challenges, back when Rafa suddenly lost it, Kenny Dalgish's short stint, the battle of ownership of the club, lost of big players, big flop signings and Brendan Rogers' turbulent administration currently. Last season saw Captain Supremo Steven Gerrard bid farewell after an amazing 18 years with the club. A host of under performing players and tactical errors capped off a season to forget, especially the last game against Stoke.

This year, they sold yet another huge player in Raheem Sterling for a colossal £49m. So how have they done this time around? I think they brought in some interesting and much better players this year. Among the notables would be Benteke, Firmino, Milner, Ings, Clyne, Gomez and Origi. To me it's a big improvement compared to last season and less riskier as most of them have experience in the league. Benteke, Origi, Ings and Sturridge are definitely going to spruce up the goal tally this season, something very lacking last season. Benteke being the most experienced, will get the goals if given proper service. Long term absentee Sturridge would be hoping to get back on track. Milner will bring much needed experience and steel in the team with Coutinho, Henderson, Emre Can and Lallana forming a very decent midfield. The Reds would be most excited with their new £29m signing Firmino, who will attempt to bring back the energy and temperature at Anfield. 

The centre back positions would be a potential problem this season and it's surprising Rogers hasn't spent much after their lackluster campaign. Lovren will be looking for a better season while Sakho and Gomez will be looking to upstage veterans Skrtel and Toure. It's going to be a uphill battle for the Reds. Can they make a breakthrough with their refreshed squad?

Verdict: 5th. Liverpool are still in a transition and would find it tough to have a crack at the top 4 who have much more established squads. The gap between them and Arsenal have narrowed. Small chance for 4th

Backbone: Philippe Coutinho and Jordan Henderson
Exciting prospect: Roberto Firmino

Prediction
1) Man City
2) Chelsea
3) Man Utd
4) Arsenal 
5) Liverpool

That wraps up my analysis on how I think the teams will end up this season. It would be a bonus if I get it right. What's important is we enjoy another amazing season of football ahead. For the love of football, may the best team win.

Thanks for reading

~deyao~

Season Review 14-15

I still find it amusing how the Football Writer's Association gives out awards about a month before the season actually ends, or the Man of the Match (although usually a player of the home team) being announced 5 minutes before the start of added time. I know a month's extraordinary effort would probably not make a difference in the outcome, but can't they wait for it to actually end? As for the man of the match, what if a player does a Mané and scores a hattrick in a matter of minutes. That's just for pondering. A week to go before the end of the season (at this point of writing), most important deciders have been settled, only to see whether Hull or Newcastle gets relegated and a fight for the last Europa league spot. (This was written over the course of a few weeks).

It's the second season now Arsenal did not lose a big player, or rather we lack a player that a 'bigger' club actually wants. The voicemail of the Arsenal's CEO would probably go like this 'You have reached Ivan, please be informed we are sold out on good players'.  This is also my acceptance that we are not a top 5 club in the world as much as I wish we were. Two English teams (I mean the two blue teams), two Spanish teams and a German team are ahead of us and that's the truth. The strain on our finances due to the Emirates Stadium looks like something we can worry less about these days, reportedly due to renewal of our shirt sponsors Emirates, our new kit sponsor Puma, Asia tours during the off season and not so proudly, our notoriously expensive match day tickets. That has allowed us to spend a massive £70million during summer transfer window plus Gabriel in January. We broke our transfer record during the previous season and this season we made Alexis our second most expensive buy. 

My prediction of Chelsea winning the title wasn't surprising. My warning of Jose losing the plot again due to his outspokenness was spot on with his scathing attack on refereeing decisions, but his team held up very well at the end and never really allowed any team to encroach their 8 point margin for the run in. Chelsea bought title winning players and it mattered. An outstanding season from Hazard made the key difference in the title race. Defending champions Man City lost a lot of their x-factor this season especially at home. The lack of transfer window activity and the lost of form of some key stars like Kompany gave them some poor results. Nevertheless, the sheer quality from the prolific Aguero and evergreen Silva kept them close to the summit. Sophomore year for Pellegrini has taken a setback so they would be looking at a few new signings to get back on track. 

Meanwhile, the 'new' Manchester United hit their targets of finishing for 4th. After a disappointing start to the season, the turnaround and tweaking of the squad by LVG made reaped rewards. The team with the highest average variation in player selection at least gave LVG a good clue of his best eleven. Their form in the middle of the season did give glimpses of the old United. United's huge spending in the summer has made the intended impact, leaving the Champions League proper a whisker away with one last hurdle in August. Liverpool, the closest contender last season, slumped to fifth. By summing up their unimpressive transfer window, under performing new players, lack of consistency and injury to Daniel Sturridge, they capped off an underwhelming finish, not the send off Stevie G was expecting. Suarez joining Barca and lifting to elusive Treble while Liverpool spending their fortune on half a dozen of average players, a season to forget for the Kop faithful.

Have we come closer this year? I think we have. Last year we were wiped out by March but this year we kept the pressure on Chelsea until April, although it wasn't that close at the end. When we were counting down on the last 8 games or so, there were opportunities for Chelsea to slip up. But like the games against Hull where they survived a fightback, at QPR where they scored late on and beating Man Utd despite allowing them to dominate the whole match, they persevered and were worthy winners. Had they dropped 2 points in those matches and we somehow managed to beat them, it would be a whole different story. And that's precisely the point, we screwed up badly early in the season and they never really did. I would rate our title challenge this year a 6.5/10 compared to the previous season of 6.0/10, mainly due to the fact we were for most periods the closest contenders. A 6.5 is an improvement but regaining the title we last won more than a decade ago is still some way off.

(At this point of writing Arsenal have won the FA Cup) In the previous seasons, I have rated our season based on different models.
2011-2012: Good, OK, Ugly. 
2012-2013: What Went Wrong and What needs to Done. 
2013-2014: Signs that we could have won it and where it was lost.
After giving it some thinking, I am going to pull one out of the Management textbook. Inspired by the BCG matrix, here's how it looks like.  

This is how the model would rate our players this season
Stars - Top performers, outstanding players.
Cash Cow - Doing OK to justify their value. Expected performance.
Question Marks - Resources poured in but returns have been paltry, borderline performers, lack of play time.
Dogs - Poor. Sell them right away

Stars

Alexis Sanchez, Santi Cazorla, Hector Bellerin and  Francis Coquelin

Alexis has been the outright winner of our best player of the season. Power, pace, energy, inspiration and goals, all the ingredients you need from a top player. He has been absolutely superb for most of the season. Believe it or not, his goal against Besiktas recouped a good portion of the cost we paid for him. His skills on the ball, venomous strikes and great pace, produced some magical football and stunning goals for us this year, not to mention his tracking back as well. One of the signings of the season. Santi has played another brilliant season for us. His control of the midfield, assists and possession has again been of the highest standards. Less goals this season but still a top performer.

Now for the surprises of the season, Hector Bellerin and Francis Coquelin. Hector for one, was not expecting much first team football, but due to Debuchy's prolonged absence, Jenkinson being loaned out and Chambers shifted to centre back to cover injuries, suddenly became a starter on numerous occasions. Still at a tender age of 19, but has already made great strides. His confidence, pace and attacking abilities has made him a standout fullback. Another one that slipped away from Catalunya and bound to make it big. 

And lastly, Coquelin, a player we have seen for a few years but has been very mediocre. He can't attack, doesn't defend well but possession wise is alright. But what a story this is, 'banished' to Charlton and waiting for his contract to run down. Suddenly being recalled and the rest will go down in history as one of the most unexpected turnarounds. He has been magnificent in the middle and just what we have only dreamed for years, the elusive defensive midfielder. Coquelin's revival has been a massive coup for us this season and definitely made the team better.

Cash Cows

David Ospina, Nacho Monreal, Laurent Koscielny, Mesut Ozil, Aaron Ramsey, Olivier Giroud, Danny Welbeck

A great team does not need many players to be superstars but rather they need the whole team to be 'performing'. I believe these players have performed when they played and have been good value. Ospina was injured for half the season but when called upon when Szczesny was dropped, did pretty well in my opinion. A safe pair of hands has been an issue for a long time so I'm pretty glad we've got a solid one between the sticks.

Monreal too has stepped up his game this season, very quick to cover and good options he provides us going forward. With Gibbs having lots of injury problem, glad to see Monreal establish himself in the first team. As much as I think Koscielny is not good enough for our title ambitions, he's been very consistent these two seasons. The alertness in his play has improved tremendously and we finally can see some results from our investment. Ozil just made it into cash cow status because of his contributions in the second half of the season. He has worked hard to improve his physical aspect of the game. He can be absolutely sublime with his play but still needs more steel when it gets tough. We are hoping for more returns from our record breaking outlay.

Giroud was injured for a few months but when he played, has brought in the goals and not without mentioning his assists for the team. Ramsey has not done better than his fantastic renaissance last season but still a great player to have on the team. Welbeck's tireless displays and important goals have proven vital. He hasn't quite lived up to the 16mil we paid yet but creeps into this category by the finest of margins.

Question Marks

Wojciech Szczesny, Mathieu Debuchy, Kieran Gibbs, Calum Chambers, Per Mertesacker, Gabriel, Mathieu Flamini, Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Theo Walcott, Serge Gnabry, Joel Campbell

This is where is gets tough. Do these players deserve to stay an Arsenal player? Have we already seen the best of them and still can't be convinced? Will they improve? Are they having a bad spell?

I wouldn't write off Szczesny yet because he still has many good years ahead of him. I still look back at what happened to Fabianski. It took years for him to get there and by the time he got there he was on the last year of his contract. He is no Courtois or De Gea, but I think he deserves more time. I wasn't too ecstatic when we got Debuchy last season because we were paying good money for a 29 year old. His season has been hit by serious injuries so next season has to make up for lost time. Gibbs and Chambers still have a lot to learn, I would keep them as they have showed enough promise. Gabriel, Gnabry and Joel Campbell all get waivers as we haven't seen enough of them.

Our stand in captain Mertesacker has had a steep introduction to English football but he fought tooth and nail to battle the intensity and physicality of the game. Despite his efforts I do not see him as a long term solution if we have title ambitions. I think we have seen the best of Per and I'm sorry to say he won't be good enough. I think Flamini has underperformed this season. He has lacked pace and the physicality as a midfield enforcer. I don't see him playing more than a bench role in the future.

Now for the Three Lions. We've seen Jack Wilshere since he was 16 and 7 years later, have we seen him fulfill his potential? I don't think so. Very unfortunate to be missing through injury due to a nasty tackle this season and also on many occasions in the last few years. Jack is one of the toughest question marks for us and England. We know how amazing he can be, even when he returned for the last few games he was brilliant, also scoring one of the goals the season. His frequent off field issues, poor temperament and injury record however tips the scale against him. Is he a player we can depend on as a starter for the first eleven? I'm going with yes at this point.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is a lot more straightforward. It's the frequent injuries he has encountered that has limited his presence for us, no issues other than that, a keeper for sure. Now the hardest tie breaker of the question marks, Theo Walcott. Another player with an injury record which has hampered his appearances by at 25% of his time here. Similar to Jack, I am not convinced he has improved vastly since his arrival in 2006. We've seen some brilliant football for Theo but I'm not sure enough of the last 8 years. His inconsistent form has divided opinion continuously over the last few years. When he was running down on his final year of his first contract, he was just amazing. Fast forward two years he's not been convincing. He's not a forward (despite his few successful stints upfront) and doesn't do enough as a winger. I've lacked the confidence in Theo for awhile but once in awhile he scores some important goals like the one in the FA Cup Final. This is so hard. I have to stand somewhere and I am going with letting him go as I don't think he has made the impact as much as we expected when he arrived.

Dogs
Abou Diaby, Lukas Podolski, Yaya Sanogo, Mikel Arteta, Tomas Rosicky

Abou Diaby, not the tall French enforcer as we hoped, awful injury record, definitely goes. Lukas although did play some good football for us, doesn't make the grade overall. Yaya Sanogo, not at the level we look for and I don't think we have space for him. People would disagree with me putting our Captain on this list, but with all appreciation for his service at the club and I don't see him being able to lead us to bigger things. Rosicky would at the end of day be classified as a failure signing. 8 years here but only glimpses of greatness, not enough for Arsenal's standards.

The verdict

Now that I've sorted out the fine details of our team, it's time to review what went right and wrong. Silverware is not something we get easily associated with in the last decade so retaining the FA Cup was a great achievement. The anguish we had to go through being empty handed for so long before this has been really tough, but we are definitely seeing brighter days ahead. I think our team is a "80% work in progress", probably the highest in the last five years. Of course it coincides with retaining our best players and finally spending the big bucks. For the positives, I think our midfield is one of the best in the country and with the emergence of Coquelin, has added a new dimension of tackling and intercepting, giving the other players more confidence of staying up. We are not short of big names, having players like Alexis, Ozil, Cazorla, Ramsey and Wilshere would surely make us worthy of a league title, right? I hope it's a matter of when rather than will.

Our attacking options are there and our defence is improving, so where is the remaining 20% which would 'perhaps' make us League Champions again?

5 ways to make up the 20%

1) One world class central defender and one striker

It's a longstanding problem. I am not sure whether Gabriel would do a good job next season. So if we are interested in winning the title, we need a top draw centre back even if it means spending £25million. Without Olivier Giroud, things can get really get awful.  We've seen so many players attempt to play upfront themselves and let's not kid ourselves, they don't belong up there. If the league is what we want and even if we still go 4-5-1, we definitely need another out and out striker. No offence to Theo, Danny and Alexis, but your best position is not up front. 

2) Ability to switch playing styles

By observation of Arsenal's playing style, passing our way to winning matches, although defines beautiful football, is painstaking, tedious and not the most effective. The way we play demands top fitness levels and concentration levels throughout. I've seen this many times, us playing so well in Europe and few days later looking terribly jaded in on a Saturday. Our playing style of football wears us out quickly by November when European football is in full swing and would certainly kill us by Christmas. We have done badly not because of form but rather the fatigue setting in.

Another part of our playing style will make Jose grin, the predictability of Arsenal. Let's face it, we have quite a known playing style, trying to control the midfield and dominate possession. From there 'hopefully' we translate possession into goals or none (where you would see us 'overplaying'). It's been the story for years and I try not to be convinced Wenger's philosophy is the biggest culprit of them all.  Teams generally know how to beat Arsenal but lack the players to do it. That's when you see the bigger teams like Bayern, Barca or Chelsea, able to overcome us because they know how we play. It's no secret, stifle the Arsenal's midfield and we are all yours. We need versatility and we need the surprise factor. Arsene needs to start thinking outside the box. 

3) Less injuries

By far one of things that traumatizes me in my life as a supporter. I remember most of them all too well. Robert Pires injured at Newcastle and was never the same player again, Dan Smith on Abou Diaby, Shawcross on Ramsey and Martin Taylor on Eduardo. Football is a physical game and injuries are all part oft the game but unfortunately it's been too often one of the reasons why we have not been better. Wilshere, Walcott, Chambo, Ozil and Giroud have all had spells on the sidelines this season. Had they played I am very sure our points tally would have improved. We can't avoid injury from tackles but we really could beef up is our training and treatment regime to reduce fitness related injuries and the duration of layoffs from injuries.

4) Upping to urgency

Another of my biggest frustrations of our team is our lack of urgency or the apparent lack of hunger. This would have to touch on the mental aspect of things. How often has it been when we are 1-0 up, we shift the gears down and let the other team play? Then we concede and start playing again. How often has it been when we only see the hunger in our play when we are counting down the minutes to the final whistle?. This has to stop immediately. We are not Chelsea, a long way to go actually, from being the team that's able to just sit back and protect their lead and doing it quite successfully. We seriously need to put some urgency in our game and kill off matches or else we can forget about being champions again.

5) Bringing back the fear factor

The Invincibles era would probably be Wenger's greatest achievement if he continues to do what he does today (at this point of writing). The key points of that historic season was quality all around the team and Highbury being a fortress. Today, we are not a team to fear, teams coming to the Emirates look for points and take the game to us. I mean Arsenal's passing is one of the best in the modern game but the goals to possession ratio is likely one of the lowest. Allowing Arsenal to pass the ball around is not dangerous if you cover well in the final third and that's precisely where we've failed on so many occasions. It's time to improve on our direct approach, put more shots on goal and focus on the game's result rather than trying to play within our style. Remove the emphasis on the beautiful football and start grinding out the 3 points like it matters.

Final words
Football is competitive, margins are small and so many teams look at the same trophy and imagine their names carved on it. It's a cruel game, teams go all out but there is only one winner. I think our team, despite going through a lost decade, has successfully sustained our position in Europe's elite through rigorous budgeting and visionary management. Football as a sport is still a business at the end of the day which means the business' finances also has to be kept in check. I don't think we are any closer to a £86m Bale, £60m Di Maria or a £60m+ Pogba, but there is plenty of room for improvement we can make by playing within our means. Let's see what the transfer window has in store for us. Have a wonderful summer, till then.

Thanks for reading

~deyao~

Lessons Learned from My First Job

When I first joined the bank, I had to write a weekly summary about my learning points for 8 consecutive weeks during training. I definitely learned something every week but did I need to put it in a report? At the start it felt like a chore, but after the next few weeks, I started to appreciate that being able to put things in writing enforced what I learned. Our minds and body are the most powerful tools ever created, even we ourselves may not understand how far we can go. Remember that many points in life where you thought something was not possible and you did it at the end? We can be trained and conditioned to so many things and that's why I believe we should always give things a shot if there is a fraction of a chance we can do it. All successful leaders have gone through rough patches and huge failures that at the time may seem like what their lives were destined to be. But there was one ingredient in their DNA that gave them a chance; believe. I still consider myself nowhere in my career but I understand the world a lot better these days so I am going to put down what I've learned.

1) A good attitude is key
Having a good attitude not only benefits the organisation, it benefits yourself. Being positive and being open to changes is probably the most powerful attribute anyone needs to have. Based on my observation, without looking at technical knowledge, this is what defines someone. With those characteristics, you will learn and grow tremendously in most things you do. Put it simply, if one day the organisation decides to downsize its workforce or promote someone, what are the factors do you think they will consider?

Jack Welch, the legendary former CEO of GE, says he categorises leaders into 4 quadrants, according to their results and how well they lived GE's values.
Q1: Performing and have good values
Q2: Not performing but have good values
Q3: Performing but have bad values
Q4: Not performing and have bad values

Q1 and Q4 are plain obvious choices, Q1 will stay and Q4 will go. But Q2 and Q3 are right in the middle, so who does he keep or promote? Based on his book "Winning",  he would prefer Q2, because these are the people who have a better chance of getting into Q1 in the future with more mentoring and coaching. He says Q3 are the most difficult people to get rid off mainly because they are performing but chances are they will always remain in Q3. There is no hard and fast rule about this. So if you are looking to excel in your current or future job, put some thought into living the company's values at work. Of course, having a good attitude at work will be part of that equation.

2) Think like a boss, but you don't need to act like one
If your goal in the future is to become a boss, you need to adopt some traits from your current boss. I am sure every boss has some aspects we don't think is best, but we have to admit some values and characteristics they have, puts them where they are today. Whether it's their ability to manage a team, being understanding, taking their time to guide you or purely because they can talk their way out of anything, there is definitely something we admire even for the worst bosses.  I think it's important to take time to understand how our bosses think, what they like or dislike and the reason behind it and maybe even what inspires them. Then try putting yourself in their positions and predict a course of action or outcome they would make in different situations. This may seem like a simulation today but it may be steps taking you to the next level by thinking this way.

3) Be likeable or at least try
Likeability is something that can create situations that don't make sense. Likeability itself is very subjective. There are people who may be so unlikeable in one place but is really loved in another. There are people who are not very good at their job but get promoted faster. Being in any organisation, we need to shape ourselves into the our workplace which means possibly making changes to ourselves. There is a common saying is always be yourself no matter what. Of course quotes like this are never absolute. There are people who are stubborn, always resistant or prefer to fly solo. You can't have these people "always being themselves". If you feel there is some part of you that falls into this category, take time to understand likeability. I know some people will be asking whether it is called "sucking up to the boss". Yes and No. Yes, you need your boss' seal of approval if you are working under them but at the same time going a great extent to impress the boss may actually raise suspicion. If what you are doing doesn't seem genuine from the heart, your boss will see through you and that's a no-no. What should you do? Take the effort to understand the people around you, communicate and take time to strengthen relationships at work. Those extra steps will be noticed very quickly and you'll be surprised what far you can go. 

4) Be critical
You might feel like sometimes you are working like a robot, but you aren't one. Although the orders come from above, the onus are still on the people who do the actual job. Directions from above may come in 3 short sentences like reduce cost by 20%, freeze hiring or improve lead time by 3 days. How it is executed depends on the people working on it. Whether you are a leader or not, always be ready to question and be critical of decision making. Yes, bosses make the ultimate decision at the end of the day but they are rarely the people who do the actual work. Good leaders will always be open to suggestions and critical thinking, logically because people below have the actual experience and more brains work better than one. In a rapid changing environment, organisations today know they cannot run the business like they did 10-20 years ago, they need their people to think on their feet and respond quickly to the market. If you have the aim of going further, ask more questions, give more suggestions, critically evaluate decision making and of course think of ways to create value.

5) Work as a team
Working as team does not just mean doing your own part. There are few jobs in the world that outlines every role in the employment letter. In every job you'd be ask to do things like photocopying, shift boxes, organise events or carry out special projects, out of your normal job scope. But beyond the additional tasks you do, how are you contributing to the team? To me, working in a team is something that builds character as you not only focus on doing your part but think about achieving the ultimate goal in the future, which is for the team to succeed. Most leaders in the world are not born with leadership skills but rather they have developed them very early in their lives. Playing a sport is a perfect example how even young children get to learn about teamwork and leadership. Most team sports elect a leader or captain and that person is not only talented but has the leadership skills to drive the team forward. Some of the members of the team may be envious of the captain's position but some are more than happy not to be elected. At work it's actually the same, not every one wants to be the leader. Jeff Bezos warns about loneliness being at the top with only a handful of "same level" people to hang out with. Although you might not have acquired the leadership skills now, understanding your role and being a team player will get you there. But of course, if you want to shine above others, it's time to take the lead.

Thanks for reading

~deyao~

Season Preview 2014-2015

This summer went past pretty quickly, with the World Cup taking centre stage. There was no short of football during the summer “break” as the world experienced the best show on earth in Brazil. It was the ever consistent Germans that deservedly won it. Before that we saw Man City regain the title after a close fight with Liverpool and Chelsea. Liverpool almost ended their two decade wait for the league title, but one particular slip up was a costly one. Chelsea on the other hand had a sterling record against the big teams, but their lack in consistency against the smaller teams decided their fate. Maybe Jose’s usual “speak his mind” interviews also caught up with him. After the first half of the season, Man City’s fate was pretty clear, if they won the title, it would be because of their home form. And if they lost, their away form was the reason. In the end, the Citizens’ near impeccable record at the Etihad made the vital difference in the title race. Their persistence in the final sprint also made them worthy winners. Meanwhile on the other side of Manchester, United experienced a huge contrast in fortunes as they struggled with the departure of their greatest ever manager, SAF. A lowly finish at 7th was something not imaginable for many years. Tottenham made waves when they inherited a huge cash pile of £86m from the sale of Gareth Bale, but their inability to gel the team quickly enough was behind their casualties of two managers.

In the red part of North London, sighs of relief was all around as the running clock of our infamous trophy-less streak finally came to a halt. Our FA Cup triumph was very much overdue to all the fans who have endured some of the worst times in history. It has been traumatising to lose finals, see big players leave, horror injuries and some pretty damn awful displays. The way the final was won reminded us how difficult it was to become top again, but most importantly how this team has progressed over the years. I’m not going to reiterate how our season went after my post in June.

Looking forward to the new season, we've seen some big changes already. Some of the notables are the appointed of Van Gaal as Man Utd manager, smashing of British transfer record by Di Maria, massive loan deal for Falcao, the sale of Luiz Suarez by Liverpool, the return of Cesc Fabregas to England and the effect of Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules on Man City and Chelsea.  It’s going to be another remarkable season so let’s see what the title contenders have in store for us.

Man City – Well equipped to retain the title

It will be maintaining status quo for the team from the Eastlands as they seek to defend the title once again. The £49M ceiling imposed as a result of FFP has given them lesser flexibility compared to the previous years. The arrival Mangala, Fernando and Sagna were their big signings as they sought to further improve their defensive lines.  With already abundant of talent in offensive options, there was no need to strengthen further. Negredo’s late exit was surprising considering the impact he made last season. City’s need to comply with the FFP also saw them go on an extension spree as they tied down key players like Aguero, Silva,Yaya Toure and Kompany. Failing to meet the limits by UEFA could see them face further sanctions and even the possibility of disqualification from European competitions. The Citizens are looking strong for a finish in the top 2 with their fantastic squad in terms of talent and depth. The picture below just shows how much they have in the bag (minus Negredo)

Verdict: Poised for a top 2 finish

Key players: David Silva, Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero

Chelsea – Big signings to flourish

The trend shows that teams with the best transfer moves in the summer are usually favourites to win the title. City’s £100M splash at the close of the previous season has again vindicated the theory. This season, Chelsea are frontrunners for the title as they have spent big and well while they were too working around their own limits due to FFP. The offloading of Juan Mata, Kevin De Bruyne, David Luiz, Romelu Lukaku and Fernando Torres this year has boosted their coffers for big spending. The signing of Fabregas, Diego Costa, Didier Drogba and the return of Thibaut Courtois has given this team a huge elevation and made them main contenders for the title. Fabregas is proven quality at this level and is the best possible replacement to Lampard. Costa would add to Chelsea’s much needed firepower in front of goal after lacklustre attempts by Torres and Eto’o last season.   Jose’s mind games like the “Little Horse” could not overcome or distract the mental steel of Pellegrini last season. Perhaps if he focuses more on what happends on the pitch and improve their consistency against their smaller rivals, they could very well be the best challengers to end the 4 year domination of the Manchester giants.

Verdict:  My favourites for the title (Yes I do support Arsenal)

Key players: Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa

Liverpool – Oh no, not a repeat of the Spurs syndrome?

They were close to winning it last season. Gerro’s rallying cry and tears was almost the image which depicted how he finally won it, almost. There is no doubt Gerro’s unbelievable loyalty towards the Kop makes him deserving of his first Premier League title. That night in Istanbul might be his greatest feat in his career, but the Premier League is one he has yearned for a very long time. Ending his club’s and own wait would be have been special, but the margins in football today can be cruel. 

So Liverpool lost their best player of last season, so what’s next? Has their £75M been well spent? To many people like me, we emphasise on the need for a “marquee” signing, a big name that will instantly bring results to the club. Their spending has been on Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Alberto Moreno, Javi Manquillo (loan), Emre Can, Lazar Markovic, Rickie Lambert and the most high profile of all, Mario Balotelli. It does look like what Spurs have done, spreading their windfall on many players. The Reds will argue they have also bought a lot quality, but are these players good enough to make them serious title challengers? I think Brendan Rogers has put himself in a tougher predicament than he should be by taking a gamble on some of these players. But bringing the Reds back to the top 4 would buy him some time. The backbone of the team would still be Gerrard, Sterling, Sturridge and especially Coutinho who will be the driving force behind the team. Even without Suarez, I can still see enough big game players to give them a solid top 4 finish. It will be interesting how their commitments in Europe affect their title chase. 

Verdict: At best for 3rd place, at worst 5th.

Key players:  Steven Gerrard, Daniel Sturridge and Philipe Coutinho

Manchester United – King Louis takes over the throne 

The United fans were divided over the appointment over LVG, questioning the lack of time given to David Moyes, who probably had more sleepless nights than he could ever imagined. He was handpicked by SAF to succeed him but it didn’t take very long for them to decide it was time to go. Managing arguably the biggest club in the world, Moyes failed to garner the support of the OT supremos during his reign. Their lowly finish in the league on the back of a record 11 defeats was deemed a bridge too far to see imaginable success. I have to say Moyes did improve as the season went but the damage was actually inflicted before it all started. He requested for Fabregas, Thiago Alcantara and Kroos during the summer, but none of them materialise. Instead he got Fellaini, a trusted talent but had his worst season in England. He masterminded the comeback against Olympiakos but had no favours when drawn against Bayern Munich. It was a 50/50 decision in the end, but some disastrous home results probably tilted the decision to sack him. The fans even flew a plane to push for his exit.

Moving forward, LVG is one of the best there is in the game. His successful tenure in Bayern and the Holland national team has quickly put him in the spotlight. He carries a very strong reputation of being no nonsense, get down to work guy and carries a certain chutzpah which will be all necessary ingredients to overhaul this damaged battleship. His ability to command authority would be something probably Moyes lacked. The way he has gone right down to business after the World Cup just shows his eagerness to deliver. Reportedly given £200M to spend, he has not held back his ammos, landing Shaw, Herrera, Rojo, Blind and the big hitters Di Maria and Falcao. It sure does show an incredible line up of attacking options which are sure to torment defences. Goals are going to come but the big question is whether the defence will hold up. The lack of replacement for Rio Ferdinand and a lack of protection to the back four might work against them.

At this point of writing, Van Gaal might be having a slow start, but if you go back to his Bayern days, you’ll know that his best days are coming.

Verdict – A fight for top 4 finish

Key players – Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata and Angel Di Maria

Arsenal – Still missing a few jigsaws

To my beloved Arsenal. Summer started brightly as deals were closed earlier than previous seasons. Alexis, Chambers and Debuchy in. Joel Campbell was back from a three year loan. Then, Khedira was linked to Arsenal. Hey, were things finally starting to look up? From then on, nothing happened. It was almost common knowledge how we needed to replace Vermaelen, get another striker and very critically, a defensive midfielder. But days passed and we could only hope Arsene will surprise us soon, we waited and waited. By the last days we knew any hopes of a big deal were gone and we only made a last gasp move for Danny Welbeck from our old foes Man Utd. I am very disappointed, because there are clearly weaknesses in this team that needs urgent attention. This team is no better than last season. When we play Chelsea or Liverpool team again, I can’t imagine enduring another mauling again. I can’t understand why we haven’t plugged these holes. If we are still haggling over a few million pounds, I seriously think the CEO and the rest of his people should be given the boot. The transfer dealings by them have been shambolic, weak and disastrous. These guys have been in business for years, surely they can’t be that ignorant? Would they have bought if Giroud wasn’t injured? We had the whole summer and plenty of action in Brazil to look for some good players, the negotiators have not delivered and it’s not going to be long before questions will be asked about this team which we will fail to answer.

On the bright side, our new signings will add a new dimension to this team. Debuchy is fitting in well, Chambers is impressing while Alexis is adding another wave of excitement to this team. With Walcott, Joel Campbell, Gnabry, Oxlade-Chamberlain all having a point to prove, there will be a lot of pulsating attacking football by us. The fab midfield of Cazorla, Ozil, Ramsey and Wilshere will be key to our team. On the downside, the missing jigsaws will continue to haunt us and again leave us fighting for 4th.

Verdict – A fight for top 4 finish

Key players – Aaron Ramsey and Santi Cazorla

I think by now my predictions are pretty clear. May the best team win.

1) Chelsea
2) Man City
3) Liverpool
4) Arsenal
5) Man Utd

Thanks for reading

~deyao~

The Long Wait Is Over

The long wait is over, finally. It has been 9 long years since we had anything to do with silverware. It wasn’t the league title and sure wasn’t the Champions League this time, but the FA Cup became our salvation and we can finally breathe more easily now. The end of this painful streak really means a lot to every Gooner. Looking back to our glory years from 2001 to 2005, you would have never thought things could unfold like this. We would have thought the Champions League was close (It was actually very close in 2006) and we would get our fair share of silverware in the coming years. It has been 10 years since we were called the Invincibles. I am very proud of that moment, but time has gone too long for us to be looking back at that to recall our last league title, which still is today.

If you are celebrating like this one day later, this is how much it means.

We have endured a very challenging period with the big reforms in this club from losing captain after captain, managing our debt from the Emirates Stadium and failures from countless trial and errors with players. When Patrick Vieira slotted in the winning spot kick and hoisted the FA Cup in 2005, you would never have imagined we had to wait so long for a trophy again. Things changed at the club, the Invincibles were practically at their peak of their games. Players like Patrick Vieira, Sylvain Wiltord, Sol Campbell, Fredrik Ljungberg, Lauren, Robert Pires, Edu and Dennis Bergkamp were at the trough of their careers and we were definitely unprepared for the massive exodus that followed in the coming years. The transition period, as I call it, started in 2005 when little known Cesc Fabregas burst into the scene after the departure of Patrick Vieira and effectively assumed the role as ‘the’ central midfielder. It was an exciting period as we tried to blend the team with experienced players and youth, all with the aim of playing with a highly restricted transfer budget. Just a year later, the riches of Abramovich finally made its mark and really tipped the balance for the first time since the inception of the Premier League. Chelsea were Champions for the first time since 1955, we dropped out of the top 2 for the first time since Arsene Wenger took charge in 1996 and barely qualified for the Champions League, with help from the mysterious food poisoning that hit Spurs on the final day. The following years saw even more takeovers and new money pumped into the game and that changed the landscape of the game forever. It has been a rough ride for this club and winning this trophy hopefully sets us on an ascendancy for more success.

This was our best chance for the title in years and in February we were one of the top 3 contenders to win the title. We had to get through March, a period where we would play matches that decided our fate. March defined our season and the outcome didn’t match our hopes. In fact, March was such a bad month that we needed to slug it out with Everton in the run in to claim 4th place. We have been in pole position two similar times to win the title in recent years and they share a common theme; a major injury. We were huge contenders in the 2007-2008 season. But that one faithful afternoon in February which I still remember clearly, Eduardo broke his leg from a nasty tackle at Birmingham and we drew that game. William Gallas sitting on pitch after game was a reflection of our season where this very match really screwed us. From then on, we were hit so bad psychologically that we never quite recovered. That curse happened again in 2010 when we had a good chance at the title with the most favourable run in of all the top teams. Another day which I remember very well, Aaron Ramsey broke his leg from a heavy tackle from Shawcross at Stoke. We did go on to win that day, but another dark day at Birmingham a few games later ruined our season in heart-breaking fashion.

This was a season of hope for us to finally win the title and here’s how it could have worked for us and where it failed.

Signs that we could have won it

1) Midfield prowess
We had one of the most exciting team of midfielders in years. Our midfield consisting of Cazorla, Wilshere, Ramsey, Ozil, Walcott, Arteta Rosicky and Flamini gave us so much versatility and options in our game. Their contributions in terms of goals were also something we were really lacked in the past. Aaron Ramsey was playing the best football in his life which was fantastic to see, considering the circumstances he's been through.

2) Defence partnership
Putting aside the weakness they showed when they first arrived, Koscielny and Mertesacker formed a formidable partnership in the middle, a very unlikely event a few years ago. There were some lapses in some games but this partnership was much better than previous seasons.

3) Putting away the weaker teams
Our record against the teams outside the top 5 was pretty much impeccable, that type of consistency that champions have.

4) Quick recovery from defeats
After the 6-3 hammering against Manchester City, our following results were nothing less than impressive. We then completed the calendar with a good streak of wins. A characteristic of champions; they bounce back quickly.

5) Inconsistency of our rivals
Manchester United was pretty much out of the picture for the first time as long as I can remember. Manchester City was giving every visitor to the Etihad a lesson in football, but their away form was nothing short of the opposite. Chelsea too was playing some strange football. They manage to end the great streak at the Etihad but played out some very weak matches against the lower teams. Before their great resurgence in February, Liverpool also had a mediocre season. The title was there for the taking, but…

6) The last minute goal from Bendtner
This guy shouldn’t even be here in the first place, but nobody in this world would meet our valuation for a player who “should be playing for Real Madrid or Barcelona and is worth every penny of his fifty two thousand quid a week salary” (Quoted from him). During the frustrating game against Cardiff, we couldn’t find a breakthrough all day. Guess what, he pops up and smashes in the winner, the sort of event that makes you think that God is indicating to you that the title might be yours.

Where it was lost

1) Poor record against our rivals
A one line summary should sum it up. Record against Manchester United, City, Liverpool and Everton. One win.

2) Huge losses against Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Everton
You don’t get thrashed if you are going to be champions and definitely not four times in one season. The mauling at Anfield was the biggest sign at that time and when Chelsea hit six past us, our worst fears were crystallised.

3) Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott’s injury
When Ramsey held his thigh and signalled that something was wrong at Upton Park,  I almost knew it was going to happen considering the hectic fixtures he just went through. His prolonged absence cost us the title. Theo’s major injury also cost us a great deal as he was having a very fine season.

4) We couldn’t beat Manchester United in their worst state
The game against them at the Emirates was one that we were favourites to win, something of a rarity even on our home ground in the past few years. Instead, we played out a goalless draw.

5) Last minute goal conceded against Swansea
Flamini’s late own goal compounded our misery and summed up our season; all our hard work throughout the season undone by the month of March.

6) Defensive midfield frailties
Wenger hasn’t replaced Alex Song and it cost us especially in the big games when more protection to the back four was needed.

7) Kim Kallstrom being our only signing in January
Bringing in a quality player in January could have made this team even better and provided the extra oomph in a season where we needed to sustain that level of quality in our game. Instead, we brought in this guy who “was going to be injured for 2 months” after signing for us. One of the poorer judgements in Monsieur Wenger’s illustrious career. Kim’s stint however had a silver lining, his conversion in the penalty shootout in the FA Cup semifinal played a part en route to the final.

If you would to look at this season positively, it would be the big improvement compared to the previous season. We did better defensively and were consistent in good parts of the season. There are still several shortfalls we need to look into like over-stretching the squad too much especially in November and December, the injuries that hit us and the need to further strengthen our defence. We have taken some huge strides this season, so let's continue building on this.

~deyao~