Manchester United Transfer News: How Robin Van Persie to Man U Shakes Up EPL

The transfer of Robin van Persie from Arsenal to Manchester United just made the Red Devils the favorites to win the Premier League title this season. If you don't believe me, consider this very simple math:

Last year, Manchester United finished tied in points with Manchester City, but lost the league title to their Manchester rivals on goal differential (plus-61 for City, plus-53 for United). Robin van Persie led all EPL players with 30 goals in league play. Manchester United now has van Persie and his goal-scoring ability.

See how this works?

Okay, okay, so it's not that simple. But you can't tell me that a team featuring Wayne Rooney and RVP in the attacking third—with all of the other talent the Red Devils have across the pitch—won't be the favorites now.

This deal isn't perfect for Manchester United, of course. As David Ornstein of BBC Sports reported on Twitter, Man U gave up big money to land van Persie:

"

BREAKING: Man Utd agree £24m deal to sign Robin van Persie from Arsenal. 4-yr deal, terms & medical in next 48 hours #bbcfootball #afc #mufc

— David Ornstein (@bbcsport_david) August 15, 2012"

Scratch that: They gave up big money to land an injury-prone striker who had the offense run through him at Arsenal and has only had one great season (along with two good ones) for the Gunners.

There are always two sides to every story. Speaking of which, how will this move affect Arsenal? 

For the time being, I think it's safe to say the Gunners are long shots for the league title. While I think the addition of forwards Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud should help alleviate the loss of RVP, the thought of having all three on the squad was intriguing.

They're still dangerous, and certainly talented enough to finish in the top four this season. New addition Santi Cazorla should thrive in Arsenal's system, Gervinho should continue to improve in his second season at the Emirates, Theo Walcott could be primed for a breakout year and, at some point, the Gunners will get young star Jack Wilshere back from injury.

Plus, with the added money they've gained by moving van Persie, one hopes they'll add some more talent either before the August 31st transfer deadline or in January. It sure would be nice if they could finalize the Nuri Sahin loan that has been floating out there for some time now.

Still, the main focus has to remain on a Red Devils team that now has a slew of talented forwards in Rooney, RVP, Danny Welbeck, Javier Hernandez and even forgotten man Dimitar Berbatov (though he's probably a goner). How to mix and match all these players up top will be an interesting conundrum for Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United this year.

Which leads me to the tweet of the day, from Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl:

"

So how many Mexican journos am I going to do mixed-zone jujitsu with tonight to see how Chicharito feels about Van Persie joining United?

— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) August 15, 2012"

For Manchester United, it's a great problem to have. For the rest of the EPL, it's just a problem.

Nothing is ever guaranteed. But today, I don't think there is any question that the Red Devils just became the favorites to win the league title.

Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets are gold like the Team USA women.