Source: Daily_Mail
The season starts here: Jamie and Andy Townsend answer the big questions...
Jamie Redknapp and Andy Townsend tackle the biggest questions of the summer.
Sky’s Redknapp and Townsend of ITV will be on our screens again, as well as writing their expert views for Sportsmail this season.
How will Manchester City fare? Who is the poster boy to replace Cristiano Ronaldo as the Premier League’s brightest talent? How will Wayne Rooney cope as Manchester United’s spearhead... and where would they place a £5 bet? The season starts here.
SPORTSMAIL: Has Mark Hughes built a team that can challenge for the title?
JAMIE REDKNAPP: No, not yet. We know they are coming; they’re spending money, but it takes time to win a title. Look at Chelsea. They spent well when Roman Abramovich went there, but it still took them a while to create a title-winning team.
ANDY TOWNSEND: There is no doubting their quality, but it will take time for partnerships to develop. While some players can hit it off straight away, others need games to really spark off each other. We are all trying to work out who is playing up front, but it’s at the back where City must really improve. If they get that right they could
have an outstanding season, but it will come to nothing without a back four that understands each other. I expect them to get stronger as the season goes on. This is a big squad with genuine quality and Mark Hughes’s teams are always super-fit.
Manchester City's Kolo Toure (L) challenges Celtic's Chris Killen
Follow the leader: Can £16m recruit Kolo Toure plug the gaps in City's rearguard?
So where do you chaps see the biggest threat coming to Manchester United?
JR: Liverpool have real quality, but do not underestimate Chelsea. While Liverpool have sold Xabi Alonso, Manchester United have lost Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo and Arsenal go into the season minus Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure,
Chelsea have the same team plus a fit-again Michael Essien, who is a monster.
AT: I agree with Chelsea. A Liverpool team with Alonso could have won it. That midfield of Alonso, Mascherano and Gerrard was the best of the lot for me. The Gerrard-Torres link may suffer without Alonso’s ability to tie it all together and keep the ball. Gerrard trusted Alonso, which allowed him to bomb on to join Torres. Chelsea have the best mentality of all the challengers to cope with everything and rattle Sir Alex this season.
JR: It’s good money for Alonso, though. He’s a top player but the relationship had
broken down and so it was inevitable. Last season they might have collected £18m, this season it’s £30m. It could still prove good business.
The league has lost Cristiano Ronaldo, so who is the new poster boy?
JR: Fernando Torres. He has the lot — he’s fast, powerful, scores goals and there are no weaknesses in his game. Traditional No 9s are a dying breed and he’s a master of his art.
AT: Andrey Arshavin has star quality. I hope Arsenal are strong enough for Arsene Wenger to play him as much as possible.
Liverpool's Fernando Torres (C) looks for holes in the Atletico Madrid's defence
Star quality: Liverpool's No 9 oozes class - but can he stay fit?
Ronaldo going is United’s loss, so what do we need to see from Wayne Rooney?
JR: We will all miss Ronaldo. Yes, he could be frustrating at times, but what a player to watch. Now we need to see more from Wayne Rooney. I’m a massive fan, because
this young man has so much to offer. He could allow Ronaldo to take centre stage before but now there is no place to hide. He needs to be played in his best position and he needs to run games, like Ronaldo used to. We need to see more goals from him and he has to respond to the spotlight pressure. He can. If United are to win the title, he has to win it for them. The real Wayne Rooney needs to stand up.
AT: We need to see Rooney operating down the middle more. He is easily capable of 20-plus league goals and it’s now time for him to be the main man. Yes, he will do a
great job out wide — tracking back, making tackles — but this is a huge 12 months for him in a World Cup year. Wayne, forget Berbatov, Owen and Co — go and be United’s centre forward.
If you had been in charge of Manchester United, how would you have replaced Ronaldo?
JR: I can’t tell Sir Alex Ferguson how to act in the transfer market, the man is a legend! I like the way he placed a ceiling on his bids for players such as Benzema and Ribery and would not be drawn into a price war they couldn’t win. Antonio Valencia will be exciting. He’s short of Ronaldo, but he’s quick and will do well for them. He must be allowed time to settle in, though.
AT: You can’t replace him. Who do you buy? Messi? You can’t get him. Forget the rest. Nothing else comes close. United have always moved on. Cantona, then Sheringham;
Keane, then Carrick. Not always the same but very effective in their own right and they must do the same again.
Who is the best of the summer signings?
JR: Michael Owen. It shocked me, totally. Michael has pedigree and, while he might have got a chance every three or four games for Newcastle, he will get three or four
chances every game for United. He’ll score goals. He should forget about England for now and concentrate on a run of games for United.
AT: Glen Johnson. He will give Liverpool an extra width and dimension flying on from right back.
Manchester United's Michael Owen (L) shoots at goal during their friendly soccer match against Valencia
Goal machine: Owen gets Jamie's vote as the pick of the summer signings
Who is the best bargain buy?
JR: You can’t get cheaper than a free transfer and Owen’s buy could be another Fergie masterstroke.
AT: Yeah, Owen for me, too. For wages-only in the team that creates more chances than anyone? A no-brainer.
If you had an unlimited budget, who is the one player you would buy from an English club?
JR: Torres. He’s the right age, he has class and is a brilliant, brilliant player.
AT: I’d go for the other one in the partnership, Gerrard. Interesting that we have both picked Liverpool players. If they have the best two players, they really should be pushing harder for the title.
If you were Arsene Wenger, how sweaty would you be as City keep spending?
JR: Wenger has more teams to worry about than just Manchester City. A few clubs — City, Everton, Aston Villa and Tottenham — will fancy overtaking Arsenal. Of course, they have good young players and they will be attractive going forward, but I worry about them at the back. That is their weakness. It’s a big season for Thomas Vermaelen, who has been signed from Ajax. Arsenal will need him to be strong, but is the Dutch league any preparation for a defender coming into the Premier League? We’ll see.
AT: Wenger has incredible belief in his players and his own principles. He never wavers, never doubts that his team can achieve and we all admire that, but he knows that if City start well — and their fixtures are kind — they could threaten his place in the top four. The City v Arsenal games could be very significant.
You guys are lucky, you get to see so many games through your TV work, but if you could have a ticket to only one game, which would it be?
JR: The Champions League final. It’s the game of the season. If I am picking a domestic game, it would be Liverpool v Manchester United, for the ferocity of the game. It’s the one I most enjoyed playing in.
AT: Real Madrid v Manchester United in the Champions League at the Bernabeu. Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema, Rooney, Rio, Scholes. Anyone else fancy that?
Lionel Messi of Barcelona scores the second goal
Showpiece event: Lionel Messi gives Barcelona a two-goal cushion in Rome. With this season's final at the Bernabeu, what odds Real Madrid to steal Barca's crown?
If Stoke and Fulham were the surprise packages last season, who will it be this time?
JR: If any of the three promoted sides stay up that will be a surprise, but Portsmouth’s problems might just help them. It’s sad to see what is happening there.
AT: Little old Burnley — as long as their spirit remains strong and their confidence doesn’t get shattered by defeats that will inevitably come. I think Owen Coyle can keep them up. If they thought the Championship was physical, then they are in for a shock. They will now be playing against quicker, more powerful, more gifted players who can snap you in two and play.
In a World Cup year, name one potential emerging contender for Fabio Capello’s squad.
JR: Can I name two? I really like the look of Fabian Delph, Aston Villa’s new signing. I’ve seen him play a few times for Leeds and there is a touch of the Steven Gerrards
about his play. It’s a big jump from League One to the World Cup, but watch out for him — he’s an exciting prospect and a clever buy for Martin O’Neill. Now, I know everyone is talking about this lad, but Jack Wilshere is a special boy. He’s the talk of the town because he can run with the ball and has a delivery at the end of it, too. He has real composure. In fact, it’s an area where Theo Walcott needs to improve.
AT: The fascinating aspect of this World Cup year will be Owen at United. If he scores goals, can Capello ignore him and at whose expense?
We're giving you £5 to place a bet. Where’s your money going?
JR: Liverpool for the title.
AT: Portsmouth look like a club in big trouble. A fiver they go down
