Needs For Teams (BPL Edition Part 3)

Welcome to the third instalment of the Needs for Teams segment on our blog. Sorry for the lack of articles recently. We have been able to post because we have all had exams. Today is the third of the series and we are sticking with the Premier League but this time doing another 5 teams. This is mainly focusing on the teams that finish in and around the lower mid-table. Before we begin, make sure to return in two more days where I do the next 5 teams in the Premier League. So lets begin!

Crystal Palace:

Crystal Palace have had an amazing return to England’s top flight finishing in 11th with 45 points. Since Tony Pulis has taken over from Ian Holloway, Palace have gone from strength to strength. Their more open style of football saw them beat the likes of Chelsea. Anyway, more to the point. Who do they need? They have a vast amount of wingers including Gayle, Puncheon and Bolasie. So I can see them going for more dominant players such as centre-mids or centre-backs. Leroy Fer from relegated team Norwich City would be a good option as he has the capability to both attack and defend. The 24 year old could add stability to the Palace midfield. Now for a centre-back. Maybe someone like Ashley Williams from Swansea who is reportedly looking for a move away from the Swans. He would fit in nicely being a commanding centre-back and he would join fellow countryman Joe Ledley.

Swansea City:

Swansea had a fairly decent season finishing comfortably in 12th with 42 points. Well, decent enough for a team that sacked their manager halfway through at least. So who do they need? I would say a goal keeper but they recently signed Łukasz Fabiański from Arsenal. So maybe a commanding centre-back and possibly a pacey winger. For a centre-back, maybe Steven Caulker? The Cardiff City player has only been playing in Wales for one season but Cardiff got relegated possibly prompting a move elsewhere. However I am not sure if it is a wise move moving between the two Welsh giants. So maybe instead Fabricio Coloccini from Newcastle. The Argentine has been linked with a move away from the club for a while. A winger. Tom Ince? He hasn’t signed for Inter yet so maybe he’s a decent shout. Or more realistically Nathan Redmond who showed positive signs last season for relegated team Norwich City.

West Ham United:

West Ham had a disappointing season finishing in 13th with 40 points. At the start of the season I would have guessed that they would have finished in 10th. But 13th is still a comfortable finish above the relegation zone. So who do they need? A clinical striker because they missed Andy Carroll when he was out injured. Well I don’t need to take a guess because Mauro Zárate has already been confirmed as West Ham’s new signing! He scored 19 times in 29 games last season. Great buy Mr Sullivan and Mr Gold. Also West Ham may need a holding midfielder. They have been linked with former Hammer and Napoli’s Valon Behrami who played 58 times for the Irons between 2008 and 2011.

Sunderland:

The Black Cats had a strong end to the season after spending most of the campaign at the foot of the table. They finished in 14th with 38 points, 5 points above the drop zone. Who do Sunderland need? I would again say a wide midfielder and/or an attacking midfielder. However they have already secured the services of Jordi Gomez for next season. So instead maybe a commanding centre-back. Again I’ll say Swansea’s Ashley Williams who may be looking for a way out of the Liberty Stadium. Apart from that they may be looking for a striker and a holding midfielder. If they could loan Borini back to the Stadium of Light again that would be amazing for them as he impressed last season. Also if they did want to sign a holding midfielder, Jake Livermore would be a perfect loan option.

Aston Villa:

Finally we will move onto the last club. The Villans. They finished 15th this season, level on points with Sunderland with 38 points. They had a season to forget as nothing too special happened. However they did not get relegated so there is a positive amongst the negatives. Villa have a young squad and I think that they need to buy experienced players during this summer. Despite saying that, Andros Townsend would be a good buy for them, providing width and pace to their attack. A centre-midfielder in Leroy Fer would be a decent buy as he would be cheap, coming from a relegated team. Even Jack Rodwell from Manchester City, but I doubt Villa would be able to pay his wages. I would recommend an experienced centre-back. Maybe someone like Michael Turner or Sébastien Bassong who would add experience to their back-four.

That concludes this edition of ‘Needs For Teams’. Thank you for reading. The next episode should be up in the coming 2-3 days. These take an incredibly long time to write as they are quite long. Anyway, thank you again.

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Can England Win The World Cup?

Can England replicate this success?

Every four years an English fan will say ‘This is our year, we will win the World Cup.’Over recent years it seems to me as though we just say that to bring moral hope not because we actually have a passion to win. Look back to 2002. England struggled to qualify for the World Cup. It took the passion of the entire team, mainly David Beckham, to overcome Greece to get to the World Cup. That is the passion England lack.

Let’s be honest. The only player that shows passion for our country is Steven Gerrard. He is a well deserving England captain.

However, this year I believe that England actually do have more of a chance. Do I think that we can win our 2nd World Cup this year? No is my answer. No for a few reasons.
We do not have that one player who can change a game. We have a team full of good players. There is no stand out great, amazing, Ballon d’Or player. Our team is better than Portugal’s and possibly Argentina’s but they have Ronaldo and Messi. Holland have Robben. France have Ribery and this list can go on. Whereas we have Rooney… or Gerrard…
Both are undoubtedly the best English players in recent years but neither of them are Ballon d’Or quality.

Where do I think England could reach? If I’m optimistic I would say the semi-finals. If I’m realistic I would say quarter-finals if we are lucky because as of late, even that is a difficult task.. Then again football at times is about luck, but most of the time it’s about pure skill to beat the opponent. However the World Cup does bring out the best of players and maybe it is an English player’s turn to shine in front of the world. Maybe Joe Hart can replicate Gordon Banks and not Rob Green. Maybe Daniel Sturridge can replicate Sir Geoff Hurst and not Tim Flowers. Don’t know who Tim Flowers was? You probably wouldn’t. He played 11 times and scored 0 goals for England, yet he was picked to go to France ’98…

So why do I say the semi-finals? Well we have a good core of young players such as Henderson, Sterling and Wilshere. Then we also have the key experience in the likes of Gerrard, Lampard and Jagielka. Also, unless I’ve missed something I haven’t heard a lot of ‘Oh yeah, this is our year’ and all of that nonsense. I think this year we are renowned underdogs. Being the underdogs as Atletico Madrid experienced means that you can surprise people. No-one expects much from you so you have nothing to lose. Go there, give it your best shot possible and maybe bring home the FIFA World Cup itself.

I don’t see why we can’t go there and win. Look at our team!

Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster, Ben Foster, Joe Hart
Defenders: Leighton Baines, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka, Glen Johnson, Phil Jones, Luke Shaw, Chris Smalling
Midfielders: Ross Barkley, Steven Gerrard, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Frank Lampard, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Raheem Sterling, Jack Wilshere
Forwards: Rickie Lambert, Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Welbeck.

The majority of players either play for the same team or have grown up through the youth ranks together. This shows the unique bond between all of our players. Out of every team in the world, our national team only contains 9 teams. 8 top teams from England and the best team in Scotland. Our main attackers all play for the same club. The chemistry between the players is immense. Hopefully it sparks them to do well in the tournament that starts in a mere 14 days.

So once again I’ll reiterate my thoughts. England can easily reach the quarter-finals if they put their mind to it and maybe with a bit of luck reach the semis. I think the final is just out of our reach but I’m excited for this years World Cup. Anything can happen.

They look ready. Let’s “Rock an’ Roll” COME ON ENGLAND

 

This year is our year…
COME ON ENGLAND!
ENG-GER-LAND, ENG-GER-LAND, ENG-GER-LAND…….

Thank you for reading this article focusing on England’s chances this summer. We hope you enjoyed it.

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