English Premier League: Tracking the Change in Team Fortunes in Last Two Years
Many people are complaining about the fall in the quality of football in the English Premier League in the last two years.
These two years have been years of upheaval in the English Premier League. The fortunes of most teams have changed over this two-year period, a very short period of time.
There have been departures of certain influential players as well as arrivals of some. The playing form of a large number of top players have changed considerably. The top players two years back are not the top players currently.
The following list looks at some of the top teams and the changes in quality and fortunes they have experienced: ranked in reverse order of the quantum of change that the team has seen.
6. Arsenal
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Arsenal is probably the only top team not to have a considerable change in fortunes in the last two years.
The only major arrivals and departures were in the defense with Gallas leaving and Vermaelen, Squillaci and Koscielny arriving in the center of defense.
The departure of Adebayor was compensated by the arrival of Chamakh. The addition of Alex Song also led to Arsenal having that extra defensive protection in the midfield. Hence, the overall quality of players did not suffer.
What has worked in Arsenal's favor is that they started the rebuilding process a couple of years earlier in 2006 with selling of Ashley Cole, Sol Campbell and Thierry Henry and the gradual integration into the first team of players such as Fabregas, Nasri, Van Persie and Clichy.
They now possess two of the best young midfielders in the form of Fabregas and Nasri. The form of any of the major players has not suffered either.
The only reason that Arsenal seem to miss out on the League every year seems to be the absence of experience and a good goalkeeper.
This team certainly does not seem to be in any crisis and the only way seems to be up.
5. Manchester United
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Manchester United see themselves comfortably on the top of the Premier League table once again. However, most experts agree that they have not played the best football this season.
United seem to be at the top by default because almost all the other title contenders have faltered more than once this season.
United have certainly lost a great amount of quality in the last two years with the departures of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid and Carlos Tevez to local rivals Manchester City. Scholes and Giggs are not getting any younger, either.
Some of the youngsters have definitely stepped up for United though. Nani, after a dreadful start to his Manchester United career, has definitely matured into one of the best wingers in the league.
Rooney, with the departure of Ronaldo, stepped up to take over the goal scoring in 2009-10 season and in the current season when he was out of form, Berbatov stepped up. Even Carrick and Fletcher seem to have improved a lot.
Though they seem comfortable at present, United would need quality reinforcements to come into the squad for the future.
The old stalwarts (Scholes, Giggs and Ferdinand) would ultimately depart. That would be required before the ultimate departure of the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson, as a new manager would not be able to win the league with the present resources.
4. Chelsea
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Chelsea seemed to be doing well in the last two years until their shortcomings were exposed in the last three months of the current campaign.
Over the last two years, Chelsea had great quality in all departments of the game: a forward line led by Drogba, one of the most intimidating mid-fields, and great defense led by Terry and Carvalho and complimented by Cech.
Chelsea, over the past few years has been characterized by its ability to win close matches, and a large contributor to that was the experience it possessed, whether on the field or on the bench.
For some reason though, Chelsea decided to let a lot of experience leave in the summer of 2010, with Ballack going to Leverkusen, Deco to Fluminense, Carvalho to Real Madrid and Joe Cole on a Bosman.
They seemed to cope well with the departures at the beginning of the season, especially due to the great form of Malouda and Drogba. They also brought in the highly rated Brazilian midfielder, Ramires.
However, lately, the lack of depth in the Chelsea squad was exposed. With Lampard and Terry injured, they did not have enough quality players to replace them on the field.
Furthermore, Ramires has also flattered to deceive this season. Chelsea lost their advantage of having someone like a Ballack or a Deco to come off the bench and make an impact or a Carvalho to marshal the defense in the absence of Terry.
Roman Abramovich does need to bring in quality players if he still wants his team to be the best in the country. If he does not act fast, Chelsea may lose the elusive top four spot, a spot for which Manchester City and Spurs have become strong contenders.
3. Manchester City
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Not an unexpected entry on the list, Manchester City is the most "changed" team, not only in the Premier League, but probably on the planet.
With an owner with deep pockets, Mancini goes on a shopping spree every six months but now seems to have a solid team in place to challenge for the title.
Manchester City is a strong defensive unit: with quality defenders, arguably the best goalkeeper and two defensive midfielders in De Jong and Barry.
The team certainly seems to believe in Mancini's motto of not letting the opposition score and try and sneak one yourselves to win the match.
With the addition of Silva, Dzeko and Balotelli to the talismanic Tevez, Manchester City seems to have overcome their lack of options in the final third of the field as well.
With so much money being splashed around, the Sheikh would definitely expect his team to win the league in the near future.
Looking at the progress and the state of the other teams in the league, that day does not seem to be far off.
2. Tottenham Hotspur
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The most improved team of the Premier League by far, and they did it without spending big bucks like Manchester City. The Spurs and Manchester City would probably be the only two big clubs in the Premier League who have moved forward in the past two years, all others facing some form of crisis or the other.
They probably have one of the most promising midfields in the country with Bale, Van der Vaart, Modric and Lennon.
Bale has been a revelation ever since Redknapp moved him from left back to left wing, and his pace has been a nightmare for defenders. Van der Vaart is still considered to be the signing of the year, coming at only £7 million.
The Spurs shocked everyone by finishing fourth in the Premier League last season over the more fancied Liverpool and the big-spending Manchester City.
They certainly do not look out of place in the Champions League, topping the group stage in a group containing the Champions Inter Milan.
The defense seems to be the only problem for the Spurs, with the first choice center-backs facing long-term injuries: Woodgate, King and Dawson. Once their defense gets back to shape, they would certainly become the team to beat.
The only players required by the Spurs seems to be a world-class goalkeeper and a good strike partner for Defoe. Under the leadership of Redknapp, they certainly seem to be heading in the right direction, provided they hold on to their prized assets.
1. Liverpool
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Looking at the current state Liverpool find themselves in, it would be a surprise to learn that they finished a close second in the league only two years back with 86 points, a total what might have been enough to win the league in some other years.
The problem with Liverpool seems to be over-reliance on a few players: Torres, Gerrard and Reina. Liverpool of 2008 was a very strong team with Xabi Alonso, Mascherano and Arbeloa to partner the above three. Hence, it was a squad full of quality.
Alonso and Arbeloa were sold to Real Madrid, and Mascherano forced a transfer to Barcelona. The replacements, Aquilani and Poulson, were disappointing to say the least.
Coupled with the loss of players, injuries to Gerrard and the loss of form of Torres meant Liverpool had no mentionable quality left in the squad to compete with the best in the league.
Liverpool always was among the top three teams in terms of Clean Sheets under Rafa Benitez, even in the dreadful last season. Letting go of Sami Hyppia in he absence of any great center-backs also seems to have misfired, with no one to marshal the defense in the absence of Carraghar due to injury.
The team definitely needs reinforcements in a number of departments if they want to start going in the right direction again. This might also be necessary to hold on to their best players, who would not like to stay on a team going down.
Players like Torres, Gerrard and Reina would like to play on teams challenging for honours, which they were doing two years back.
All the fans are looking at the new owners to give direction to the club. For the good of the club as well as the Premier League, everyone hopes they are able to do it.
The Others
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Sunderland and Bolton seem to the most improved teams under the leaderships of Steve Bruce and Owen Coyle, respectively.
Sunderland seems to have built a decent squad with three great forwards in Bent, Gyan and Welbeck. The midfield, led by captain Cattermole, seems to support them well.
Coyle has transformed the Bolton unit from a team relying on only long balls to a team playing with a passing strategy.
Though the team is still strong physically, their playing style is a stark improvement from their playing days under Allardyce.
Final Verdict
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The Premier League has been hit hard by the loss of a large number of top players in the last two years. Apart from the teams mentioned, almost all the traditional teams seem to be facing problems, with Everton and Aston Villa being on that list.
Only Manchester City, Spurs and to some extent Arsenal seem to be moving in the right direction.
The top players nowadays seem to prefer to stay in their respective leagues or prefer a move to other top leagues like the La Liga, Serie A or the Bundesliga.
The clubs and the Premier League certainly need to take steps to stop this disturbing trend if they want to retain the privilege of being called the best league in the world.
The views expressed about the teams may or may not be agreeable to all. Readers are encouraged to express their arguments.
