Birmingham City winger Sebastian Larsson believes his club’s status in the Premier League is almost guaranteed.But the Sweden star, who scored his third goal in four games with the equaliser against Wolves in Sunday’s derby, is taking nothing for granted.
The draw for 10-man Blues kept them four points clear of the drop zone on 39 points and protected their five-point advantage over Wolves.
“We’re not thinking that way, that we’re safe,” Larsson told the Birmingham Post.
“But I am extremely confident about what we are going to do for the rest of the season and that we will get the points we still need. I don’t think we’re going to go down.”
“But we can’t count ourselves safe, not at all. We’re not going to be relaxed, we’re going to keep going and work hard to pick up the points we need.”
“We’ve got a bit of a lead, there are a few teams below us, and only three games left now.”
“We hoped we would have beaten Wolves and that would have been it.”
“But it’s one game less, we’ve picked up another point and we should be fine if we keep working hard, we shouldn’t be in any trouble.”
Birmingham manager Alex McLeish said he was disappointed that midfielder Craig Gardner was booked for retaliation and had no complaints about a second yellow card for diving which meant City played the last half an hour with 10 men.
“I was more annoyed at the first yellow card Craig got. Reacting to the tackle, it put him under pressure and he was then treading on thin ice,’’ McLeish said.
“The simulation, he went down. He had been booted two or three times before that and maybe he was diving out of the way.”
“We don’t condone the diving element and the referee acted correctly.”
Birmingham travel to Newcastle on Saturday, host Fulham at St Andrew’s on Sunday, May 15 and visit White Hart Lane to tackle Spurs on Sunday, May 22.
Liverpool full back Jose Enrique has stated that despite Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Manchester United, the club are still in the race for Champions League qualification.
The defeat at Old Trafford means that the Merseysiders are four points adrift of Arsenal in fourth place, but the Spaniard feels that this deficit can be clawed back.
“We lost against United but the truth is that we have to win more games at home,” he told the club’s official website.
“We are still in the race to be in the Champions League next season.
“It’s hard but Chelsea and Arsenal have lost many points too. Chelsea lost this weekend and we can’t forget Newcastle.
“It’s really important that we have to play these teams at home and we’ll have another man – you play with 12 with our fans.
“It is hard to beat Manchester United at home but against teams like Blackburn and Swansea at home we need to win the points.
“There are many games left and we have to beat many teams to try and be there.
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“You never know in football – that’s why everyone likes it. But we’re still in the race,” he concluded.
I’m feeling depressed today. I’m seriously wondering if I can bring myself to splash out next week to renew my season ticket. I said I wouldn’t engage in public naval contemplation about me and Arsenal this time last year but I just can’t help myself.
Some of my depression and sullen aspect is to do with Arsenal. I’m still very angry about the ticket price rises. We don’t need them and it takes the pressure off the club delivering improved commercial income which is where new money needs to come from. I certainly will struggle to find the additional £130 by next Thursday with all the other calls on my declining income. The board just isn’t justified in imposing the increases in a time of economic hardship. I’ve clearly mistaken them for people who care.
The mega-money struggle for the club’s future is also getting right on my wick. Alisher Usmanov has now upped the ante on Stan Kroenke, offering £14,000 a share to Stan Kroenke’s offer of £11,750 a pop. Sorry, mine’s still not for sale. There is a worrying trickle of the eight percent or so of shares to Usmanov now that can be seen by looking at the PLUS Markets website. Usmanov now has to instantly notify each additional share purchased during the period of Stan Kroenke’s offer which is mandated by City takeover rules. I hope any shareholder who wants or needs to sell offers their share to Arsenal Fanshare first.
I’ll be honest. I wish I’d never heard of either Kroenke or Usmanov. The fact that I have is directly the responsibility of the board and former board members David Dein, Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith and the late Danny Fiszman. I said when the board created 9.9% of new shares in the club and sold them to Granada TV (now ITV plc) that there was a danger that they’d created a Trojan Horse in the ownership structure. I take no pleasure in saying that I turned out to be right.
The board had the opportunity to do something special. Something uniquely Arsenal. Instead they chose to enrich themselves. This hasn’t benefitted the club by one penny. They did what so many others have done at big English clubs. They cashed in. We’re now in the ironic position of relying on an Uzbek naturalised Russian multi-billionaire to keep the club public and stop an American billionaire Stan Kroenke from taking the club down the path already trodden by Manchester United and Liverpool. As long as Usmanov hangs on to his 27.37% and slowly rising stake then Kroenke can’t take the club private and do what he will with it financially.
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There is a chance though that Usmanov’s further purchases may dry up the remaining available shares to such an extent that public trading on the PLUS market is no longer viable due to a lack of shares. That wouldn’t mean that Arsenal Fanshare couldn’t continue. It would mean that this would be by the grace and favour of Messrs Usmanov and/or Kroenke. Not a position I want us to be in.
My preferred option for Arsenal Fanshare was always to buy new equity in the club. This would mean my and every other AFS member’s contributions going directly into the club’s working capital rather than to existing shareholders. That hasn’t come to pass yet. I hope that it does.
In the meanwhile we reliant on billionaires who live in Moscow and Missouri thousands of miles and many time-zones away for the future direction of the club. This is good because? There are those who believe that Usmanov is the man for Arsenal because of his tens of billions. Not me. I want Arsenal to build on strong sustainable financial foundations. Not the whims and caprices of men with no previous connection with Arsenal. Usmanov constantly protests that he loves Arsenal. I suppose it’s conceivable but frankly I doubt it. It strikes me more as an ego-driven trophy purchase, just like many rich men take beautiful trophy wives whom they trust so much they insist on detailed legal pre-nuptial agreements.
Usmanov was given a pardon for alleged offences for which he was imprisoned, serving six years of an eight year sentence on charges of fraud and embezzlement when Uzbekistan was a constituent republic of the old Soviet Union. The pardon was issued by the newly independent Uzbek government which has literally boiled opponents alive. Usmanov may or may not have been guilty of the offences for which he was imprisoned. I wouldn’t take the word of a politically directed Soviet court that he was guilty. Neither would I take the word of the Uzbek government that he was innocent and worthy of pardon however. We’ll likely never know the truth.
My other cause of my agitation is more general. I find the empty, materialistic, self-absorbed, ego-driven lives of so many of the game’s current crop of professionals profoundly depressing. I’m no saint. I enjoy material wealth too. I’m not addicted to empty consumption however. I like to stimulate my mind as well as my bank balance. Driven on by the spivs that leach on all too many top players they constantly circumnavigate the globe in search of ever more lavish financial rewards.
I blame nobody for improving themselves financially but is it really important to be earning £160k a week rather than £100k? Does it make the players happier? I doubt it. It is a short career and players are entitled to do the very best for themselves. I’m just not so sure I want to continue contributing to people who earn millions a year and often put it to no good use for themselves or others.
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Greed has become rampant in football. I hate it. Just look at the recent news at Queen’s Park Rangers. Ticket price rises of forty to sixty percent. The club’s response to protests? Tough. If you don’t want your seat, somebody else will have it. Never mind if you were there when Rangers lost to Vauxhall Motors in the FA Cup in 2002. Never mind if you followed QPR in the old Third Division. We don’t give a monkey’s. Show us the money or piss off!
All in all, I’m tempted to become an armchair Arsenal fan and watch the odd match live when it suits me, and take in some Barnet and AFC Wimbledon games. I’m fed up with my loyalty being ruthlessly exploited for every last penny in my pocket.
Article courtesy of Vic Crescit at Arsenal Insider
Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas has insisted that Florent Malouda won’t be leaving the club according to Sky Sports.
The French wingers future at Stamford Bridge was the subject of speculation after the arrival of Juan Mata from Valencia.
Villas-Boas’ interest in signing Porto’s left sided player Alvaro Pereira further fuelled talk that Malouda would be sold.
However the new Chelsea boss has declared that he has no intention of selling the 31-year-old.
He told Sky Sports: “As we are speaking about the number of goals and assists that Mata has made at Valencia, let’s speak about the number that Malouda has made for Chelsea.”
“We can’t let ourselves sell talent of this quality.”
Juventus have been touted as a possible destination for the former Lyon ace after it was suggested they were set to make a bid.
The Serie A club are in the market for an experienced wide midfielder and the French international is thought to be their top target.
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Malouda may find first team opportunities hard to come by should Villas-Boas brings in the players on his shortlist.
Along with Pereira the Portuguese coach is still chasing Tottenham’s Luka Modric and is mulling over a revised bid of £30 million for the Croatian.
Newcastle welcome Everton to St James’ Park for Saturdays lunchtime kick off with aspirations of extending their unbeaten Premier League run to 14 games – their best run of form in 61 years.
It’s another game and another ‘big test’ for the Magpies according to anyone and everyone who believe the fixture list has been fortunate to the Geordies. Alan Pardew’s side continue to confound their critics with team spirit and a disciplined approach on the field putting the club back into the headlines for all the right reasons. They haven’t tasted defeat in the league since they were beaten 3-0 by Liverpool in May with that run propelling them up to third in the table. Pardew’s men have yet to fully win over the press with each game being billed as ‘their next big test’ with the notion that they are only sitting so high because they haven’t played any of the so called ‘big teams’ yet. It’s wrong to say that the Magpies don’t merit their position as they had played five of last season’s top 10 prior to Monday night’s win over FA Cup finalist’s Stoke City. No team had came away victorious from the Britannia Stadium during the current campaign with the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea both unable to break the Potters home resolve. Bodies were put on the line and work rate was the ultimate winner as tore a page straight from the Stoke textbook with Argentinian pair Fabricio Coloccini and Jonas Gutierrez both putting in commanding displays. Finding the net hasn’t been an issue either with Demba Ba, who was turned down by the Potters in January, scoring his second hat trick of the season to move onto eight goals in five games and prove that their is life after Andy Carroll. If they avoid defeat on Saturday they will be the first time they’ve gone unbeaten in their opening 11 league games since 1994/95. Pardew may have to make some minor tweaks to his side with Cheick Tiote still struggling with a knee injury whilst winger Gabriel Obertan is out for a month with a toe infection.
That’s a run Toffee’s boss David Moyes will be hoping to bring to an abrupt end as they look to bounce back from a the 1-0 defeat to Manchester United last week at Goodison Park. For all the effort put in against the Red Devils they have a real problem converting chances to goals with the lack of a recognised striker hindering their chances and both Louis Saha and Tim Cahill out of form. Interestingly enough Ba was target for Moyes before he moved to England and you could say it’s now a case of what might have been. The Senegal striker has scored two less than Everton have managed to muster all season long and their plight is highlighted by the fact their goals have come from eight different scorers. With no money to spend in the transfer window Moyes has had to rely on loans and free transfers to replace captain Mikel Arteta. One temporary signing that has lifted spirits is Royston Drenthe with the Dutchman’s pace and skill in the final third giving the Toffee’s an extra edge whilst Marouane Fellaini is rediscovering his form. Unfortunately it’s not been enough and with five defeats in their last six they make the trip to Tyneside with confidence low and rapidly receding. Matching last season’s 2-1 win in the North East will be a tough task especially with Cahill, Phil Neville and former Magpie Sylvain Distin all doubtful.
Key Players
Demba Ba – For a free transfer and a striker with a history of knee problems Ba has been a revelation since his move to Newcastle. Eight goals in five games including two hat tricks display his predatory instincts whilst his strength and work rate up front have made Andy Carroll a distant memory for Toon fans.
Royston Drenthe – The Dutchman has added a touch of class to the Everton attack with his speed and skill making him a dangerous proposition to any defence. Moyes will ideally like to see him attack the out of position Ryan Taylor but could deploy him on the left to cut inside on Danny Simpson.
Prediction: 2-0
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Demba Ba has been on lethal form for Newcastle, scoring 8 goals in 5 games including two hat tricks Ba’s goals have come from just 17 shots, making him the most lethal finisher in the Barclays Premier League with almost 50% of shots resulting in goals Louis Saha’s return has been a welcome one for Everton’s struggling front line, and the French striker scored his first Premier League goal of the season in the 3-1 victory over Fulham Saha has already got more shots on target in his 358 minutes of action than any of his team mates with 10 shots on target (and 5 off target), averaging an effort at goal every 23 minutes 52 seconds
The ‘Wenger Out’ brigade have resurfaced in recent weeks. You hear it in pubs, at the games, on the Internet – some people have had enough. The fact that just before Christmas the very same people were saying they had never lost faith in him, even after Old Trafford, is neither here nor there. Football is a fickle business to be in, managers understand that and although I do fully support Wenger I also reject the claims that all who doubt him don’t know what they are talking about, and that those fans are ungrateful. People give Arsenal fans a lot of stick for complaining about Wenger but I doubt you see any Spurs, Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea or Liverpool fans supporting their manager if he went as long as Wenger has without a trophy. The fact that Wenger still has so much support is testament to the respect the fans have for the manager and the gratitude for all that he has done for the club from the fans.
Like I said, I don’t want Wenger to leave; however there will come a point when the fans will have to accept that our slide down the table can go no further. At first it was frustrating that we were not winning the league, then it was frustrating that we were not serious contenders, last year a collapse lead us dangerously close to finishing outside the Champions League places and this year we are battling for fourth. Every few years the expectations of Arsenal fans go down, just because the decline is gradual, it doesn’t mean it is not real.
I don’t think deadlines or ultimatums are helpful, however it has got to the stage where Wenger could be approaching the most important six months of his Arsenal career. You could argue that us coming third or fourth this year doesn’t really matter, that we can simply rebuild next year if we finish outside the top four. Maybe that is true, but I think that if we finish outside the top four this year then it could be the first time that Wenger is really undoing some of the work he has done at the club. Wenger and the board also have to realise that to go without Champions League football next year will encourage a whole new section of the fans to turn against both the board and the manager.
This is an important point as well. With Kroenke having seen what happened at Liverpool with Hicks and Gillett, or how quick the United fans were to turn on the Glazers he will be concerned with how the he and the Arsenal board are being perceived. I don’t think an angry reaction from the fans would see Wenger sacked but I do think that it may have an influence if the board ever had to make that sort of decision. In the past, despite not winning trophies, Wenger’s job has been safe because he has continuously made money for the club whilst guaranteeing them Champions League football. If that trend starts to fade then the board will be in a position where they have to put sentiment aside and consider the Frenchman’s future.
Players around Europe are aware of what is happening at Arsenal. The other risk that Arsenal are running at the moment is that soon they may be unable to attract big players. This is already the case to an extent but the situation will deteriorate with Arsenal’s standing in English football. Clearly Wenger has been unlucky with injuries to key players and Barcelona consistently poaching key men from the team. The rise of Chelsea and Manchester City has also weakened his crusade. However, ultimately none of that really matters. Arsenal are where they are and there is no point blaming our position on external factors. You have to take your own mistakes in to account if you are to progress and this is exactly what Wenger needs to do over the next six months. Wenger should not leave; he is still a great manager who encourages attacking football and nurtures young players extremely well. However he is not perfect. He has obvious glaring flaws that he needs to address and as much as he has an admirable philosophy he needs to understand that the club is bigger than him, that our longevity is more important than his pride. To be fair our transfer dealings in the summer suggest that he has accepted that but more needs to be done if Arsenal are to return to where they belong. The second half of the season will be a telling half, it could be the biggest of Wenger’s career.
Follow me on Twitter @H_Mackay
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Bayer Leverkusen and Hannover will be desperate for a slip-up from runaway Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund this weekend.Dortmund are 12 points clear of second-placed Leverkusen with nine games remaining, while Hannover are 14 points off the pace in third.Juergen Klopp’s Dortmund side seem certainties to win the title, and would surely need a calamitous form slump to miss out on claiming their seventh Bundesliga championship.They travel to the Rhein-Neckar-Arena on Saturday to take on ninth-placed Hoffenheim, who will be keen to atone for their 2-0 defeat at bottom-placed Borussia Monchengladbach last weekend.Hannover begin the weekend’s games on Friday when they travel to Cologne, hoping to build on their 3-1 win over Bayern Munich last Saturday, while Bayern – who announced that coach Louis van Gaal’s contract would not be renewed at season’s end – welcome Hamburg on Saturday.Also on Saturday, 10th-placed Schalke will look to gain some confidence from their 3-1 Champions League win over Valencia on Wednesday when they host Eintracht Frankfurt.Relegation strugglers Wolfsburg host Nuremberg at Volkswagen Arena, with the visitors looking for full points in their bid to secure European football next season, while Kaiserslautern will look to move out of the drop zone when they welcome eighth-placed Freiburg.Werder Bremen are also in trouble after a dismal campaign – sitting just three points clear of the bottom three – and they host Borussia Monchengladbach at the Weserstadion, with three points vital for both teams.On Sunday, Leverkusen have the chance to make up some ground on the leaders when they travel to fourth-placed Mainz and St Pauli will be keen to make amends for Saturday’s 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Nuremberg when they host Stuttgart.
Injured Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has handed Arsene Wenger a fitness fillip ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Barcelona.Fabregas believes he will be fit to play after sitting out Saturday’s English Premier League clash against Sunderland on Saturday with a hamstring problem.The Spain midfielder starred in Arsenal’s first leg 2-1 win over Barcelona before suffering the injury against Stoke two weeks ago and missed last Sunday’s League Cup Final defeat by Birmingham City.Arsenal manager Wenger, who is already without Theo Walcott and striker Robin van Persie for the second leg of the last-16 tie, has been loathe to talk up the chances of his best player making a comeback for the trip to Camp Nou.But Fabregas said: “As far as my injury is concerned, I am feeling really good at the moment. I am doing everything I possibly can to get ready as soon as I can.””Physically I feel good and it was good to have a bit of a rest too because I am sure I will come back stronger.””It may have even been possible for me to be on the bench for today’s game (against Sunderland), but we decided together that it would be better for me to rest well instead, have a good training session on Sunday, take a look Monday and then hopefully fly to Barcelona.””I am optimistic that everything should be okay for Tuesday.”
This weekend the FA Cup semi-finals take centre stage, as Manchester United, Man City, Bolton and Stoke make the trip down to Wembley from the north-west to battle it out for a place in the final. The Manchester derby is the tastier of the two ties, but for Owen Coyle and Tony Pulis there is a great opportunity to have a crack at some domestic silverware.
In addition to the FA Cup, there are plenty of Premier League fixtures to enjoy, with lots still to be decided at the bottom of the table. There’s a classic six-pointer between Blackpool and Wigan at Bloomfield Road, while West Ham could do with three points against Aston Villa at Upton Park. The stand-out Premiership fixture of the weekend takes place on Sunday, as Arsenal take on Liverpool at The Emirates Stadium.
The race to get to the Premier League is also hotting up, with Swansea and Reading just two of the promotion contenders in action. Here’s how the country’s newspaper journalists think the matches will pan out…
Man City v Man United: It’s a cup tie, so the cliche is “anything could happen”. It’s a derby, so the next law of cliches states “the form book goes out the window”. In reality, United are playing superb football and City are struggling. Predicting anything other than a United win right now would be a brave gamble.
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Shaun Custis (The Sun)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Stoke
H
Man City
V
Man United
A
Birmingham
V
Sunderland
H
Blackpool
V
Wigan
H
Everton
V
Blackburn
H
West Brom
V
Chelsea
A
West Ham
V
Aston Villa
H
Arsenal
V
Liverpool
D
Burnley
V
Swansea
A
Reading
V
Leicester
H
West Ham v Villa: Villa got a morale boosting win over Newcastle but The Hammers just have to win this one. Home win.
Continue to the NEXT PAGE for more predictions…
Andy Dunn (News of the World)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Stoke
H
Man City
V
Man United
A
Birmingham
V
Sunderland
H
Blackpool
V
Wigan
A
Everton
V
Blackburn
H
West Brom
V
Chelsea
H
West Ham
V
Aston Villa
H
Arsenal
V
Liverpool
D
Burnley
V
Swansea
H
Reading
V
Leicester
H
Everton v Blackburn: Everton looking for bragging rights in the city and to get beyond Liverpool. I think they’ll be too much for Blackburn. Home win.
Martin Lipton (The Mirror)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Stoke
H
Man City
V
Man United
A
Birmingham
V
Sunderland
H
Blackpool
V
Wigan
A
Everton
V
Blackburn
H
West Brom
V
Chelsea
A
West Ham
V
Aston Villa
D
Arsenal
V
Liverpool
H
Burnley
V
Swansea
A
Reading
V
Leicester
H
Bolton v Stoke: Massive game for both clubs, with European football as well as a Cup Final on offer to the winners. Stoke will be the bludgeon, Bolton the rapier. But more goal threat may shade it for the Trotters.
West Brom v Chelsea: Carlo Ancelotti’s stars will be smarting from their Euro exit to Manchester United so I expect a backlash at The Hawthorns and a set-back for Albion in their fight for Premier League security.
Glenn Moore (The Independent)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Stoke
H
Man City
V
Man United
D
Birmingham
V
Sunderland
H
Blackpool
V
Wigan
H
Everton
V
Blackburn
H
West Brom
V
Chelsea
D
West Ham
V
Aston Villa
H
Arsenal
V
Liverpool
H
Burnley
V
Swansea
A
Reading
V
Leicester
H
Arsenal v Liverpool: Liverpool were excellent against Manchester City but have been less impressive away from home while Arsenal are regaining form.
The League Managers Association are just one of many disgruntled parties in the recent and ongoing debate about the nature of our transfer windows. The LMA have been lobbying UEFA for over two years now in the hope that they will extend the January transfer window. However UEFA argue that is an issue for FIFA and not themselves whilst there is opposition to the proposed reviews from organisations including the Premier League. LMA chief Richard Bevan told The Observer:
“Transfer windows for players do not work. Transfer windows were supposed to be reviewed by Platini in 2008 and, despite asking, we haven’t seen any review and probably it’s because the administrators around Europe don’t know how to improve what we already have. We are pushing UEFA to review. My point is: have you reviewed it? And what advice are you going to give to FIFA or to whoever it is you need to communicate?”
Platini said on the matter in 2008:
“We have to look at both the summer and winter transfer windows. The season starts in many countries in July or early in August, yet the transfer window does not close until the end of August. Then we have another window in the middle of the season.”
There are clearly issues with the current system that need to be addressed but whether the proposals on offer present the right solution is another matter. Bevan suggests that the transfer system should go back to being a ‘free-for-all’, however he does also admit that a debate is needed throughout football first. Clearly a free for all system would have its benefits: clubs would be able to address their problems as the season panned out, they could sell players if in financial trouble, and so on. However this is not the answer and there are a number of factors that need to be considered before any changes to the rules can be made.
Issues
Firstly: people like Bevan have been saying that we should go back to the way the system was before, before transfer windows. He and other supporters of this idea say that it will work because it has worked before; but football is not the same as it was before. The power of players has increased dramatically and rulings such as Bosman’s are demonstrative of the precarious position that the clubs are now in. The majority of clubs are finding it harder than ever to hold on to their players and if we were to combine the new EPPP with the idea that players could be bought and sold whenever then clubs who pride themselves on their academies are in particular trouble. Imagine Southampton producing another star of the future. Under the EPPP they would barely get any money from them and if we abolished or extended the transfer windows then said player would barely have played a few games before a larger club snapped him up.
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It wouldn’t just be the small clubs who were at risk either. It would be every club that wasn’t one of the biggest in the world. Would Arsenal have held on to Fabregas as long as they did if the transfer windows were longer than they were? Would Tottenham still have Modric? The answer to both questions is probably not; clubs like Man City and Barcelona would be able to bully clubs all year round in the pursuit of their players. Even if the clubs were able to hang on to their players the disruption it would cause to the team would be hugely detrimental. In essence even if the larger clubs did not want their rivals players they would be able to unsettle them. Sure this goes on at the moment but to nowhere near the same degree as it does during the windows. The players are too powerful and the clubs are too rich for us to abandon a system of transfer windows.
Alternatives
Some managers, such as Arsene Wenger, have suggested the abolition of the January transfer window altogether. It allows for the lesser clubs to create a sense of continuity that the January transfer window would otherwise disrupt. Would Gary Cahill’s form have subsided as much as it has if there were not possibility of him leaving in January? Doubtful. However you do have to consider that the advantage January gives clubs is that they have the option, like Bolton do with Cahill, of hanging on to him for another few months before selling them (if their contract has one year to run).
The other problem with abolishing the January transfer window is that different leagues around the world begin and end their season at different times. So for example if English teams could only buy in the summer then English clubs could never buy players from America unless the MLS clubs were willing to sell their players half way through their season.
No the answer does not lie in removing the possibility for transfers mid season. But something about January does need to be changed. Namely: a winter break. The January transfer window makes sense for those with a winter break. The most logical time for transfers would be during the summer before the season starts and mid way through the season during a break. If FIFA or UEFA changed the summer transfer window from the end of August to the end of July and the Premier League installed a season break in January then we could avoid the problems of teams having their players poached whilst the season is running but retain the ability for managers to address the problems of their teams during the season.
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