Let battle commence

FINAL TABLE
1 Man Utd, 2 Chelsea, 3 Arsenal, 4 Leeds, 5 Liverpool, 6 Middlesbrough, 7 Spurs, 8 Aston Villa,
9 Sunderland, 10 Newcastle, 11 Everton, 12 West Ham, 13 Leicester, 14 Coventry,
15 Southampton, 16 Derby, 17 Man City, 18 Bradford, 19 Charlton, 20 Ipswich.

ARSENAL
IN: Danilevicius (Lithuanian trialist), Demel (Nimes), Lauren (Mallorca), Pires (Marseille)
OUT: Bothroyd (Coventry), Petit (Barcelona), Overmars (Barcelona), Suker (West Ham), Winterburn (West Ham)
You wouldn't instantly write Arsenal off for this year's championship on the basis of two key players being sold I remember Man United embarking upon a similar selling spree in 1995 and then proceeding to win the Double but it's hardly the most encouraging sign for their supporters.
The suspicion persists that the Gunners had got the best out of Petit and Overmars already, and that neither player was fully committed mentally to the club, but the fact remains that there are now two large holes in the club's starting XI (which over the past three years has virtually picked itself).
Pires, a World Cup winner with France in 1998, will fill one, slotting in for Overmars on the wing, but the Cameroonian midfielder Lauren is more of a right-sided player than a replacement for Petit. But we should expect more signings by Wenger.
Injuries, Olympic call-ups and other factors see Arsenal begin the season with just one recognised striker, Thierry Henry (who Barcelona are now after). I wonder what Wenger thinks now about selling Davor Suker to West Ham?
PREDICTION: 3rd

ASTON VILLA
IN: Alpay (Fenerbahce), Ginola (Tottenham), Hitzlsperger (Bayern Munich), Nilis (PSV Eindhoven)
OUT: Byfield (Walsall), Carbone (Bradford), Draper (Southampton), Watson (Everton)
There probably isn't another team in the Premiership that's endured such a miserable build-up to the new campaign as Villa. Half the team seems to want to leave, the chairman has issued his familiar pre-season edict of success at all costs, and the past six weeks have been spent jetting around Europe in a futile, time-consuming attempt to make it into the UEFA Cup.
Although selling the ludicrously overrated Benito Carbone was a good move, John Gregory has his work cut out to even get Villa into the Inter-Toto placings again this year. Ginola and Luc Nilis are both way past their best, and there's no guarantee that there'll even be room for the former in the team, should Paul Merson recapture his form of last season.
It's not all bad. New signing Alpay impressed hugely for Turkey at Euro 2000, and with Dublin, Merson, Boateng, Barry, Taylor and (for the moment) Ehiogu and Southgate on the books, no-one can accuse them of being a poor side. But psychologically, Villa look a shadow of the team that, two years ago, looked as though they might seriously test the hegemony of the big three.
PREDICTION: 8th.
BRADFORD CITY
IN: Atherton (Sheff Wed), Carbone (Aston Villa), Hopkin (Leeds), Nolan (Sheff Wed), Petrescu (Chelsea), Ward (Blackburn)
OUT: Dreyer (Cambridge), Mills (Portsmouth)
Only a congenital curmudgeon with the soul of a tapeworm (or a Liverpool fan) would have suppressed a smile at the sight of Bradford's final-day escape last season, when a David Wetherall header and a defensive performance of breathtaking determination secured their Premiership status.
This was down to the cussedness of former boss Paul Jewell, who packed his side with veterans like Wetherall, Gunnar Halle, Stuart McCall and Lee Sharpe in an attempt to beef up his otherwise callow side. New boss Chris Hutchings has spent the summer following suit, with Peter Atherton and Dan Petrescu representing the best of his acquisitions. It's hard to see lightning striking twice, though, especially with the temperamental (and generally ineffectual) Carbone now on board. I give it four months before he jumps ship.
PREDICTION: 18th.

CHARLTON ATHLETIC
IN: Jensen (Bolton), Johansson (Rangers), Kishishev (Liteks Lovech), Roberts (Middlesbrough), Shields (Dunfermline)
OUT: Barness (Bolton), Jones (Reading), McCammon (Brentford), Royce (Leicester)
Charlton look seriously ill-prepared for their second shot at the big time. Their big signing Johansson, a #3.75m white elephant from Rangers, isn't a top-class finisher, and that'll probably prove their undoing. Teams who come up from the Nationwide and stay up don't tend to do it by way of defensive parsimony and clean sheets.
If they're going to have any chance at all, the Addicks will rely heavily on John Robinson, a Welshman who can score goals from midfield; Claus Jensen, a Dane of similar stock who arrived from Bolton in the summer; and Radostin Kishishev, a Bulgarian international defender whose unpronounceable name belies his fine technique. Even the efforts of those three, though, won't save Charlton from the drop.
PREDICTION: 19th.

CHELSEA
IN: Gudjohnsen (Bolton), Hasselbaink (Atletico Madrid), Kneissl (Eintracht Frankfurt), Panucci (Internazionale, loan), Stanic (Parma)
OUT: Casiraghi (released), Clement (West Brom), Deschamps (Valencia), Forssell (Crystal Palace, loan), Sutton (Celtic)
Chelsea did the right thing this summer by concentrating their spending on the forward line. Hasselbaink looks like an excellent acquisition after the season he's had in Spain (even if #15m is a massive fee for someone who couldn't even make his country's Euro 2000 squad), while Gudjohnsen has been the best forward in the Nationwide League for the past two seasons. With the forceful Stanic taking up residence in one of the attacking midfield roles (perhaps at the expense of Poyet), and the ineffectual Deschamps and Sutton now gone, Chelsea now appear to have more bite about them than they have for some time.
If there's one thing that will put paid to Chelsea's hopes of the title, though, it's their centre-back pairing. Frank Leboeuf simply does not cut the mustard as a top-class defender and never has, while Marcel Desailly increasingly seems to be saving his best for his national team.
PREDICTION: 2nd.

COVENTRY CITY
IN: Bothroyd (Arsenal), Guerrero (Deportivo Montagua), Thompson (Liverpool)
OUT: Brightwell (Walsall), Burrows (Birmingham), Keane (Internazionale), McAllister (Liverpool), Ogrizovic (retired), Whelan (Middlesbrough)
Having brought in some #16m from the sales of Robbie Keane and Noel Whelan, Coventry urgently have to get the finger out and spend some of it on a new striker. At the time of writing, their only recognised forward is the enterprising but hardly coruscating Australian, John Aloisi.
The loss of Gary McAllister will place more responsibility on Mustafa Hadji, who was as good as expected last season and may be used in a more central role this year. Other than Hadji and keeper Magnus Hedman, though, there's precious little class sprinkled about the Coventry squad and no evidence to suggest that they'll finish anywhere other than lower mid-table, as usual.
PREDICTION: 14th.

DERBY COUNTY
IN: Blatsis (South Melbourne), Bragstad (Rosenborg), Higginbotham (Man Utd), Kinkladze (Ajax), Mawene (Lens), Valakari (Motherwell)
OUT: Beck (Lille), Bridge-Wilkinson (Port Vale), Dorigo (Stoke), Fuertes (Lens)
Surprisingly for a team who appeared to have turned the comfortable mid-table finish into an art form, Derby took until mid-April last season to extricate themselves from the relegation dogfight thanks chiefly to the goals of Craig Burley, their best player and midfield talisman. They'll rely on
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him and on Georgi Kinkladze, whose loan move from Ajax has now been made permanent. Another bonus is the signing of Norwegian international Bragstad, a fine defender whom they poached from under the noses of Celtic.
PREDICTION: 16th.

EVERTON
IN: Alexandersson (Sheff Wed), Ferguson (Newcastle), Gascoigne (Middlesbrough), Gravesen (Hamburg), Nyarko (Lens), Pettinger (Scunthorpe), Pistone (Newcastle), Watson (Aston Villa)
OUT: Barmby (Liverpool), Collins (Fulham), Hutchison (Sunderland), Regan (Barnsley), Ward (Barnsley)
Everton start with virtually a new midfield this year, with Mark Pembridge the only member of last season's quartet still on the books. Ghanaian Alex Nyarko, a #4.8m purchase from Racing Lens, is the real find of significance, an energetic player who has looked impressive in his performances against Arsenal over the past two years.
Aside from the re-purchasing of the, eh, ungainly Duncan Ferguson, the other additions are Denmark's Thomas Gravesen, who reportedly went berserk kicking Blackburn players during a pre-season friendly, and the talented Swede Niclas Alexandersson. Gazza, now a slightly sad sideshow, will add a few flicks and tricks, but no more. Whatever about the past-it Collins and the overrated Barmby, Everton will miss Hutchison and his goals hugely.
PREDICTION: 11th.

IPSWICH TOWN
IN: Abidallah (Ajax), Branagan (Bolton), Graaven (Ajax), Reuser (Vitesse Arnhem), Scales (Tottenham)
OUT: Axeldahl (released), Stockwell (Colchester)
Though they may be somewhat easier on the eye, Ipswich are basically this year's Watford. They lack quality in virtually all areas, and that their most gifted player, Martijn Reuser, was recently released by a mediocre Vitesse Arnhem side speaks volumes.
Veteran centre-half John Scales is the one player they possess with substantial Premiership experience, which makes you wonder why manager George Burley didn't do a Bradford and fill his team with gnarled old pros. Keeper Richard Wright, last seen scoring a bizarre own goal in England's friendly against Malta, will be a busy man all year.
PREDICTION: 20th.

LEEDS UNITED
IN: Dacourt (Lens), Viduka (Celtic)
OUT: Heland (Man City), Hiden (Salzburg), Hopkin (Bradford)
As was the case a year ago, Leeds haven't made the signings required to elevate themselves to Arsenal's level, let alone Manchester United's. Olivier Dacourt is basically a replacement for the perennially crocked David Batty, and his presence probably won't improve Leeds' poor disciplinary record (he received two red cards and 12 bookings at Everton in 1998-99), while Mark Viduka, a virtual unknown before his year-long stay at Celtic, may be exposed as a mediocrity when deprived of the time and space he received in Scotland.
Unlike the other big teams, Leeds don't seem unduly bothered about lasting a long time in the Champions League (by the time you read this, they'll have played their qualifier second leg against 1860 Munich, whose late away goal at Elland Road may have proved crucial). This could give them an advantage on their rivals in terms of the title race, but realistically O'Leary's side will be looking to consolidate rather than improve this year.
PREDICTION: 4th.

LEICESTER CITY
IN: Akinbiyi (Wolves), Benjamin (Cambridge), Davidson (Blackburn), Rowett (Birmingham), Royce (Charlton)
OUT: Arphexad (Liverpool), Zagorakis (AEK Athens)
There s a possibility that Leicester will react to Martin O'Neill's departure by spiralling down into the bottom six, but I doubt it. Only the reserve goalkeeper Arphexad and midfielder Zagorakis have left, so the essential core of the side is still the same as before, especially now that Neil Lennon has turned down Celtic in favour of four more years at Filbert Street. They'll preserve their Premiership status with ten points to spare, in the process condemning us to another year of ugly football and horrifically lengthy cup runs. More's the pity.
PREDICTION: 13th.

LIVERPOOL
IN: Arphexad (Leicester), Babbel (Bayern Munich), Barmby (Everton), Diomhde (Auxerre), McAllister (Coventry)
OUT: Babb (Sporting Lisbon), Bjxrnebye (Blackburn), Boardman (Burnley), Maxwell (Stockport, loan), Thompson (Coventry)
Liverpool ended the 1999-2000 season with the best defensive record in England, but few were fooled. Instead of losing the crunch games 4-3, as they had in Roy Evans' time, they started losing them 1-0.
Their disintegration at the end of the season, when they took two points from 15, was due to their failure to put the ball in the net. With Fowler injured, Owen subdued, Camara erratic and Heskey plodding, Liverpool scored just 51 league goals last year 46 fewer than Manchester United and on all available evidence, a once formidable attacking side is now sadly diminished.
Markus Babbel, who came on a free from Bayern Munich, should slot in nicely alongside Hyypia and Henchoz, in what is turning into one of the better defensive units in Europe. Otherwise, Gerard Houllier's summer spending has been slightly baffling. At 36, McAllister doesn't have much left to give; Diomhde was one of the less impressive people on France's World Cup team two years ago; and whatever else Nick Barmby might be, he certainly isn't a title-winning signing.
PREDICTION: 5th.

MANCHESTER CITY
IN: Heland (Leeds), Howey (Newcastle), Wanchope (West Ham), Weah (Milan)
OUT: Russell (St Johnstone)
City s ambition of ending their 11-year streak without a Manchester derby win can probably be put on hold for another season. This is the poorest City side to achieve top division status in decades, and even with four decent new signings as reinforcements, there's no way they won't be sucked into a relegation battle.
Of the players that were already at Maine Road, only goalkeeper Nicky Weaver, midfield terrier Ian Bishop and our own Mark Kennedy (the team's finest performer last season) can have any pretentions to being Premiership quality. Look through the rest of the squad and you'll see what I mean: the likes of Lee Crooks, Jamie Pollock, Shaun Goater and the awful Danny Tiatto won't be turning up in too many end-of-season XIs next May.
City's fanatical home support will be worth extra points to them, but it's probably between them and Bradford for the final relegation spot, with the ingredient-X provided by Wanchope, Kennedy and Weah giving them a vital edge.
PREDICTION: 17th.

MANCHESTER UNITED
IN: Barthez (Monaco)
OUT: Culkin (Bristol Rov), Cruyff (Alaves), Curtis (Blackburn), Higginbotham (Derby), Taibi (Reggina), Wheatcroft (Bolton)
Sadly for anyone who'd like a halfway interesting championship race this year, United's superiority looks so overwhelming that I expect them to again wrap up the title by early April. It would require several of their normal starting XI to sustain long-term injuries for the other sides to have a chance.
In real terms, they won the title without a defence last year, and it would be naive to imagine that Sir Alex Ferguson won't try to sign either a centre-half or a left-back in the opening weeks of the campaign, to add to his capture of Fabien Barthez. United simply have way too much firepower for the rest, and won't be stopped.
PREDICTION: 1st.