JOE completes its series of Premier League previews with a look at newly promoted West Brom, as well as Wigan, West Ham and Wolves.
By Conor Hogan
West Brom
Last Season: 2nd in the Championship
Transfers in: Boaz Myhill (Hull, £1.5m) Nicky Shorey (Aston Villa, £1m) Gabriel Tamas (Auxerre, £800,000) Steven Reid (Blackburn, free) Pablo Ibanez (Atletico Madrid, free)
Transfers out: Jonathan Greening (Fulham, free), Borja Valero (Villarreal, £4m), Joss Labadie (Tranmere, free) Bojan Valero (Villareal, £5million)
Overview: West Brom fans are used to it at this stage. Since 2002, the Baggies have had four promotions and three relegations. They are the definition of a yo-yo club.
The board try and run their club ‘the right way.’ Once relegated, the Albion don’t sell off their best players. This ensures they have a competitive Championship team. Once promoted again, however, they don’t break the bank to stay up.
This strategy has ensured that the club has no debt, though it certainly adds to the frustration of their supporters. This season will be no different. Unusually for a newly promoted team, they have actually made over £6million in profit so far from their transfer dealings. None of their new signings have cost over £1.5million
West Brom’s two top scorers last term, Chris Brunt and Graham Dorrans, were midfielders and they are sure to be reliant on them. Their most prolific striker in 2009/2010 was Roman Bednar, who only managed ten. The Czech could only score six in his last campaign in the Premier League.
The Baggies squad doesn’t look any stronger than their last campaign in the top flight when they finished in last place. The only reason they’ll improve on that position this term is because Blackpool have such a weak squad.
One to watch: Scotland International Graham Dorrans was a target for many Premier League clubs last season. The Guardian described him as “the best all-round midfielder seen at West Brom since Bryan Robson,†in 2010.
Fantasy football goldmine: Chris Brunt-£5.5million. Nine goals and three assists for West Brom in 2008/2009 earned the Northern Irishman 121 points. Very reasonable price.
JOE prediction: 19th
West Ham
Last Season: 17th
Transfers in: Pablo Barrera (Pumas UNAM, £4m), Frederic Piquionne (Lyon, £1m), Thomas Hitzlsperger (Lazio, free) Tal Ben Haim (Portsmouth, loan) Winston Reid (FC Midtjylland, undisclosed)
Transfers out: Bondz N’Gala (Plymouth Argyle, free), Guillermo Franco (Released), Ilan (Released), Josh Payne (Released)
Overview: Gianfranco Zola is a lovely fellah, but let’s be honest, he isn’t a particularly good manager. Davids Sullivan and Gold didn’t make it any easier for him with their constant undermining, though his 29% win percentage speaks for itself.
West Ham stayed up with 35 points last season, the lowest total to survive in Premier League history. In most seasons, they would have been relegated, but luckily for them Hull, Burnley and Portsmouth played in the same division.
New manager Avram Grant was probably the only manager in the top flight to have a more stressful time than Zola last year. Despite the inevitable relegation, he managed to enhance his reputation immensely. Leading Pompey to an FA Cup final was an extraordinary achievement.
West Ham have the bones of a good team. Rob Green was first choice goalkeeper for England at the start of the World Cup (though maybe we shouldn’t talk about that). Matt Upson and 26-times capped American, Jonathan Spector should be a solid centre-back partnership. Valon Behrami and Tottenham target Scott Parker are fine midfielders, and Mark Noble and Jack Collison have bags of potential.
Up front, Carlton Cole is finally living up to expectations, while Piquionne or Yakubu (if he is signed) are decent potential partners. Under Grant, this term, West Ham are unlikely to be in any danger of relegation.
One to watch: Versatile Welsh international Jack Collison can play in any position across the midfield. The 21 year-old showed incredible mental strength in a man of the match performance against Millwall on the night of his father’s death. “Jack is unbelievable – he’s getting better and better,” ex-Hammers manager Gianfranco Zola said.
Fantasy football goldmine: Frederic Piquionne-£5.5million. This might seem a strange one, but the New Caledonian notched up nearly 100 points last campaign playing for the team who finished bottom of the league. He’s also £1million cheaper than Carlton Cole.
JOE prediction: 14thWigan
Last Season: 16th
Transfers in: Mauro Boselli (Estudiantes, £6m), James McCarthur (Hamilton, undisc), Antolin Alcaraz (Club Brugge, undisc), Ali al-Habsi (Bolton, loan)
Transfers out: Titus Bramble (Sunderland, undisc), Tomasz Cywka (Derby, free), Mario Melchiot (Umm Salal, free)
Overview: The Latics were a model of inconsistency in 2009/2001. Not once did they register back to back victories. They followed up a 3-1 win over Chelsea with a 2-1 loss to Hull.
They preceded a 1-0 win over Sunderland with a 9-1 pasting at the hands of Spurs. A 3-2 victory against Arsenal was succeeded by a 3-2 loss to West Ham, while their 1-0 success against Liverpool was followed up with a 4-0 loss against Bolton Wanderers.
Wigan’s capriciousness made them a bookies nightmare. Any team that can defeat two of the top three and four of the top seven, shouldn’t also lose cup games at home to League Two sides, have the worst goal difference in the division, and stay up by the skin of their teeth with the most goals conceded of any surviving team since the Premier League started.
There were times, like when they lost 4-0 to bottom club Portsmouth, where they looked like the worst team to ever play in the top flight, and improvement will be needed if their five year adventure in the Premier League isn’t to come to a crashing halt. Wigan have three very good players in Hugo Rodallega, Charles N’Zogbia and Maynor Figueroa, and all three have been targets for bigger clubs.
They have also utilised their famed South American scouting network yet again and have made two interesting signings. They are Club Brugge’s Antolin Alcarez, who played in the World Cup for Paraguay, and Argentinean Mauro Boselli from Estudiantes de la Plata, a man who has scored 32 goals in two seasons in the Argentinean League.
The rest of the squad is relatively weak and threadbare, however. Victor Moses, James McCarthy and new signing James McCarthur are three players with plenty of promise, though far from the finished article. It should be tight, but we think this could finally be the year when Wigan fall through the trap door of the Premier League.
One to watch: Irish international James McCarthy struggled to break into Wigan’s starting eleven at first, but made the position his own towards the end of the season. Still only 19, the midfielder has bags of potential.
Fantasy football goldmine: Charles N’Zogbia-£6million. Five goals and seven assists last year earned the Frenchman 146 points.
JOE prediction: 18th
Wolves
Last Season: 15th
Transfers in: Steven Fletcher (Burnley, £6.5m), Jelle van Damme (Anderlecht, £2.5m), Steven Mouyokolo (Hull, £2.5m), Stephen Hunt (Hull, £3m), Adlene Guedioura (Charleroi, undisc, from loan)
Transfers out: Jason Shackell (Barnsley, undisc), Chris Iwelumo (Burnley, undisc), George Friend (Doncaster, undisc), Andrew Surman (Norwich, undisc), Mark Little (Peterborough, free)
Overview: Wolves’ final points total in 2009/2010 didn’t accurately reflect just how well they played. In other seasons, they could have ended up as that unlucky team who doesn’t deserve it but ends up going down anyway.
Last season’s bottom five were dreadful, however, and in the end Wolves finished in 15th position, comfortably eight points ahead of the drop zone. They know that there aren’t going to be three teams as poor as Burley, Hull and Portsmouth this season, though, and that there is an area of the pitch where they must drastically improve if they are to stay up.
They need to score goals. Last term they only managed 32, the worst return of any team in all four divisions. Kevin Doyle did a heroic amount of work up front on his own and was their top scorer with nine goals. The only other player to score more than three goals for them, however, was Jody Craddock.
Mick McCarthy has acted on this problem and paid big money for Burnley striker Steven Fletcher. He has also purchased Ireland midfielder Stephen Hunt, who impressed with six goals for relegated Hull last year. In a time when so few teams are spending money, captures like these could just about save Wolves from the drop. It will be a much tougher league than last year, however.
One to watch: Scottish striker Steven Fletcher impressed a lot of people last season, scoring 12 goals in all competitions for a poor Burnley team. He’ll have to do a lot to live up to his £6.5million price-tag though.
Fantasy football goldmine: Kevin Doyle-£5.5million. While not exactly prolific, the Wexford man’s outstanding performances last campaign earned him plenty of bonus points.
JOE prediction: 17th
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