Premiership, Shift in power

[Goring Gull]

Obviously we still have the likes of Man Utd, Arsenal ,Chelsea and Liverpool fighting at the top, does anyoneelse thinking that in general though the make up is changing.

Finally the likes of Tottenham, Villa, Leeds and various other perenial mid table sides seem to be slipping and other teams seem to be taking the mantle of trying to get the minor european places i.e Southampton, Birmingham, Man City are getting better or come the end of the season will it all be back to normal?

 

[Marc]

Add Blackburn to that list as I think they will do well this season, I agree the 80's/90's big clubs are slipping and its great to see a new breed fo 'UEFA Cup Wannabes' battling for a top ten finish.

 

[JJ McClure]

It's no so long ago that Ipswich were "UEFA cup wannabes", and look at them now!

 

[Marc]

heh true 80's, makes me wonder about Charlton as they may end up the same way. But we need a few lower teams to make an impression for a few years, it'll liven things up anyway, also to see the likes of Spurs/Villa/Leeds to get relegated one day....that'd be fun

 

[SK1NT]

im suprised at how necastle are doin! from 3rd and the 2nd leg of the champions league last season and now 3rd from bottom without a win!

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

I agree that it's about time smug tossers like Tottenham fans got to enjoy the football experience outside of the top flite. I still say the biggest shocker in recent times is Sheff Wed - from cup finals, Premiership football and close on 40,000 crowds to Div Two, and all in the space of a few years.

 

[Shizuoka Dolphin]

There certainly is a new breed coming through - good solid teams who have gone about things the right way. It took longer, but teams like Southampton and Charlton are far more stable than the old gaurd. They may get 30000 thousand a week, but Spurs are a spent force. They needn't be, they have the resources, but unlike Southampton who have worked hard from the ground up and lived within their means, they have a hugely inflated wage bill and have about as much stability as me after ten pints of Stella.

They seem like a clumsy mess whereas these new forces look like only moving forward.

It can only be good.

 

[Pavilionaire]

Basically the Premiership is a 3-horse race, with the 4th and 5th spots up for grabs with about 10 teams having reasonable chances if they get their houses in order.

Arguably, the top flight division has never been such a closed shop, and the FA Cup is also getting that way, with the top 3 plus Liverpool owning the comp since 1996.

Man City could finish top 5, although they will never win anything with Keegan in charge.

 

[Hiney]

This time last year Newcastle were 19th so don't write them off yet

 

[Dandyman]

Why not simply expel Arsenal as the only team in the top flight who are there by virtue of bribery and corruption (5th in the old Div 2 in 1914-15) rather than having actually won their place.