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Sunday, 1 September 2013

Premier League 13/14 - Thoughts So Far

Now I know I haven't blogged much lately, or Tweeted either for that matter. I really do need to Tweet more, but I've always been more of a Facebook fan... Anyway, so we're into the third week of games in the annual EPL season, and the title contenders are taking shape.

Prior to the start of the season, everybody was talking about Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea filling the top three spots; and to a great extent, they still are. Though United are still without any major summer signings, and an injury to Carrick in the heart of midfield could spell disaster for the rest of the season. As a United fan, I finally know what it's like to support Arsenal and see your transfer budget still sat in a corner rather than being spent on exciting new players. We're now linked with players like Fellaini and Herrera, which feel a bit second or even third best, after nothing came of targets like Fabregas and Modric.

United still have players like van Persie though, who could still pull more than his weight and have a massive impact on their season. And they're also a team who have been there done that, and know how to win. Chelsea meanwhile have an adundance of midfielders and not too much up front, and while I personally can't see them finishing top; second or third is a real possibility. Also Juan Mata, arguably Chelsea's best player last season, has barely featured yet. Manchester City have looked good in pre-season,though stuttered against Cardiff, and could have been upset by Hull this weekend if they'd have taken more of their chances - I'm looking at you, Aluko! Their defence looks frail without Kompany, and I'm unsure how many of their new signings will flourish. Negredo looks like he knows where the goal is, but their many forwards doesn't guarantee any of their strikers a starting spot, especially when Jovetic is fit as well. Though they are still helped out by players like Yaya Toure, who is the engine of the team.

Two teams who also have top four aspirations are Liverpool and Tottenham. Sturridge looks like he'll bag twenty goals this season, especially with players like Aspas and Coutinho around him. Brendan Rodgers acted extremely quickly in the transfer market; identifying players and then snapping them up early in the window. They look solid this season, even without Suarez; though it'll be interesting to see how their form lasts, and how any injuries impacts their squad.

Tottenham may be losing Bale, but boy have they been busy making sure they can cope with his absence. They've scraped through their first couple of games - needing a couple of cool penalties from Soldado to see them across the line; but they look solid at the back, despite selling the emerging talent of Steven Caulker. Expect them to feature prominently in the race for the Champions League spots.

And then you have Arsenal of course, who have suffered a surprise loss at the hands of Aston Villa already. Obviously Arsene Wenger has money to spend, but who is left to spend it on? They've also been hit with injuries to players like Podolski, whilst missing out on potential signings like Gonzalo Higuain and Luiz Gustavo; but I expect Giroud to notch up a few goals this season. His scoring instincts were good last season, though he couldn't always apply the right finish. This season he's firing from the off.

If I had to predict at this point, I think the top five spots will be very close with Arsenal sixth; possibly:

Manchester United
Chelsea
Manchester City
Liverpool
Tottenham
Arsenal

Monday, 24 June 2013

Saints Row 2 Review

Hi everyone,

Sorry I haven't posted much here on my blog lately. I've been mega busy with my YouTube channel over the last few months, including giving my channel a facelift, setting up the HD capture card and putting some clips together for a channel trailer - which is still a work in progress.

Meanwhile, I have found the time to write a new game review - of Saints Row 2. Since SR3 was announced not too long ago, I thought I'd go back and take a look at my favourite game in the series.

http://www.gamesreviews.com/pc/pc-reviews/06/saints-row-2-review/