Football needs to be careful. We all love the drama of a good transfer deadline day and that feeling when your club lands a great player is brilliant but the whole situation is becoming scary.

As I sit and write this, Fernando Torres is moving for nearly £50 million and Andy Carroll is the subject of a bid of nearly £40million. Not to mention the Darren Bent transfer last week.

The so called people’s game is moving closer to the edge by the month. The average fan can not help but feel that they are becoming less and less relevant to the running of their club. Actually, that is not quite true, their wallets are still very relevant but beyond that, one has to doubt. The influx of billionaire owners means that even the old reliance on ticket sales is lessening.

This is not an article moaning about the financial behaviour of clubs, there are enough of them already. This is an external processing of serious worry that I have for the future of the game.  The success of football was built on a connection between clubs and fans and while this has almost entirely disappeared over the past twenty years or so, the situation is now becoming ridiculous.

How can fans still feel part of their club? How can they honestly believe that they are at the centre of the owner’s minds anymore? I honestly believe that radical changes are going to have to come in before the bubble bursts. A salary cap, greater financial equality and more investment in lower leagues are all needed.

Unfortunately all of the above are very unlikely. A salary cap would see many players leaving for Europe unless it was brought in there as well. The big clubs, which hold all the power, are not going to pass any rules which see their financial potency diluted. As for investment in the Football League, the chances of foreign owners suddenly embarking a round of philanthropy are very slim.

As fans we are faced with a difficult question, would we trade the big name, high wage players for a more equal, more sustainable league? Would we suffer a dip in the quality of play in the league for a league where we could see more clubs challenging for the top places? It is a dramatic suggestion and a choice that, in all honesty, nobody wants to make but it is one that could well be facing the game in years to come.

What do you all think? What, if anything, needs to be done to improve the future outlook of the Premier League?

Today’s video features Manchester United players in an ad for a popular vodka. Poor Rio barely gets a touch though. Thanks to Off The Post for the good find.

Here’s the links:

• Ray Wilkins speaks [Vital Football]
• Everton secure young midfielder [Guardian]
• Pardew leads manager race [Soccer News]
• Mike Ashley’s Pardew checklist [Transfer Tavern]
• True form of EPL teams [Bleacher Report]
• Weekly gossip [Sinnacle]
• 10 most underwhelming managers [Telegraph]
• The Hawthorns [Stadium Journey]
• Fantasy home vs. away [Tikabooson]
• Mike Ashley comic [Three Match Ban]

Feel free to follow me on Twitter and let me know if you’d like to suggest an article, video or photo for inclusion on the Premier League Links Of The Day.

Our second installment of ‘Premier League Links Of The Day’ is here! Today’s video features Dimitar Berbatov and his thoughts on his recent five goal performance.

Here’s the links:

• EPL’s 10 dirties players [Bleacher Report]
• Adrian Durham’s team of the week [Talk Sport]
• Carroll has the X-factor [Mirror Football]
• Clint Dempsey backs Mark Hughes [F & H Chronicle]
• Aaron Lennon’s unbelievable week [Tottenham FC ]
• Liverpool players adjusting to Hodgson [Liverpool FC ]
• Ashley Young makes a blooper reel [Goal]
• Bolton vs. Blackpool match highlights [101 Great Goals]

Feel free to follow me on Twitter and let me know if you’d like to suggest an article, video or photo for inclusion on the Premier League Links Of The Day.

Watching your side lose is never a pleasant experience but watching them be thrashed by your fierce local rivals is a leading contender for one of the worst ways to spend an afternoon alongside shopping during the sales or watching anything involving Piers Morgan.

As a Sunderland fan, yesterday’s match was probably the worst Tyne-Wear Derby in my lifetime, worse even than the 4-1 defeat in Alan Shearer’s last game in 2005. I know that it is only three points and that there is a chance in January to at least restore some local pride but yesterday was horrible. And I completely blame hope.

That most alluring of feelings is what football fans breathe. The hope that this season might be the one, the hope that today we might just beat them. It is the reason we all get so excited in the middle of August and on the first weekend of January. Hope is the reason that we keep following our team, even though all logic suggests that we have no chance.

Yesterday I honestly hoped that we could beat Newcastle. I woke up fairly positive, we have the better side, we were seven unbeaten and had the second best defence in the league. Surely we could at least expect something out of the game? By the time the final whistle had blown I had left the pub I was watching the game in with the feeling that I had been duped.

Hope, and the subsequent theft of it, can make football fans do some strange things. I have seen grown men cry because they honestly believed that now was their time. I have seen people swing from feelings verging on hero worship to hatred in the space of 90 minutes. As is so often the case, football brings to the surface emotions and processes that society often teaches us to quell. We watch football as an escape from real life and when that dreamlike state is threatened then we struggle to cope.

As I walked out of the pub where I watched yesterday’s game I was in a bit of a daze. The transition back into the real world was an uncomfortable one, far removed from the hopeful way in which I escaped it. My vision of the perfect Sunday afternoon had been laid before me before being snatched away and trampled all over.

Does this mean that I care too much? Does the fact that I was genuinely shocked that my team lost to a team that I have seen them lose to on a number of occasions mean I am going slightly mad? I don’t think so. I think that sometimes the best part f football can also be its downfall. The hope, the escapism is all well and good until it goes horribly wrong. But then again, it can’t be all that bad can it? After all, I will almost undoubtedly be watching my team again next weekend and I am certain that yesterdays trick by hope will have been forgotten and I will enter again into that slightly surreal and certainly irrational world that is being a football fan.

LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 01: Footballer Andrew Cole arrives for the Prince's Trust Celebrate Success Award at Odeon Leicester Square on March 1, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Andrew “Andy” Cole (he wants to be called Andrew) is one of the iconic players of the Premier League, a legend at two clubs, one of which is Newcastle.

Like he needs an introduction from me. If you’re here, you probably know who the hell Andrew Cole is.

With Newcastle having confirmed promotion last week from the Championship, a number of notable personalities have been asked to offer advise on how Mike Ashley’s crew can avoid the yo-yo, stay up top.

Cole’s prescription? Solid, but also indicates he is watching a different Premier League than I:

I am delighted that Newcastle have secured promotion back to the Premier League, and the Championship title too – that on Monday at Plymouth – but I fear that unless they spend some serious cash they’ll be going back down.

Why? Because their squad could not hack it the last time they were in the top division, which led to relegation last year. And that squad was weakened as players were sold off. So why on earth would anyone assume that the players they have now – a good squad by Championship standards – will be good enough to keep them up?

First, I need to acknowledge Cole makes a great point: This squad may be worse than last year’s talent-wise. Why should a lesser team be expected to do what the better team could not, he implicitly asks.

Because Newcastle’s failings were never about talent.  Newcastle was a leaderless disaster last season, derailed by the infighting that led to Kevin Keegan leaving the club. Lack of talent did contribute to the Toon’s relegation in the sense that a more talented team could have overcome those failings, but Newcastle was not one of the three least talented teams in the Premiership. Not by a long shot. Hence, their success in this year’s Championship, where they have been better than the “good” team Cole describes. This is a great Championship club.

But the Toon’s talent this year or two years ago is not the point. At best, it’s only half the picture.  The Toon doesn’t need to have a more talented team than the Newcastle United of 2008-09. They need to have a better team than three other squads that will be in the 2010-11 Premiership. And that’s where Cole has got this all wrong.

West Ham has been Championship-caliber terrible, but they’re going to survive.

Wigan is poor. They’ll stay up, as will Wolves, Bolton and Blackburn. None of these teams are appreciably better than Newcastle. They may finish higher or lower than the Toon next year, but unless there are major shake-ups, it won’t be because of talent. It will be because of how they play as a team – what they do as a squad to transcend their talent and move away from the drop.

Is Newcastle, as currently constructed, that far behind Birmingham – newly promoted and in the top-half of the table? Perhaps, but the gap is not so big that some Roger Johnson-esque signings can’t rectify. It takes skill to find those players, not money.

And lest we forget West Brom’s coming up, too, as will the winner of the playoff. Newcastle, closing in on 100 points in the Championship, has shown themselves a ways ahead of those two clubs.

If Newcastle were in the Premiership this season, they would already be safe. They would be somewhere between Bolton and Blackburn, right next to … looky here, Sunderland. At least, that’s my read of their team, the Premiership.

And next year, though they will be newly promoted, West Ham will be playing catch-up to United. Will Roberto Martínez’s style have set-in at Wigan? If not, the Latics will be chasing the Toon, as will Wolves, if they don’t bring in some help for Kevin Doyle.

If Chris Hughton keeps this team playing as it has this year, survival will not be a problem.

No, Mr. Cole, e Toon need not reflexively spend money, though we know they have it. Perhaps wait until January 2011 and see how things go. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by just how easy it will be for Toon to stay up.

For me, there is only one English goalkeeper that can be England’s number one for South Africa next summer and that man is Paul Robinson. After being so badly treated at Tottenham under Juande Ramos and unfairly blamed for giving away a soft goal for England against Croatia, Robinson has finally got back to his best. He was hung out to dry by Steve Mclaren after Gary Neville’s wayward back pass bobbled over his foot.

Everyone conveniently forgot the string of saves Robinson had made to keep England in a game they were a poor second best in that night. Right now, he is playing better than any of his counterparts, with probably the exception of Steve Harper at Newcastle United and Joe Hart at Birmingham City. Forget the Robert Green argument, he’s nowhere near good enough.

Of the goalkeepers available to Capello, Robinson is head and shoulders above all others and has been for the best part of a year. David James is injured and playing for a team in free-fall, both on and off the pitch. Robert Green is bang out of form and consistently makes mistake after mistake. He also has a tendency to try and deliberately foul players whenever possible.For all his bravado and wearing “England’s number 6″ on his gloves, he’s not good enough. He’s always been poor coming off his line and his aerial ability is not the best.

Poor old Ben Foster has suffered from some rather unnecessary criticism but still can’t shift the dreadful Thomas Kuszczak from between the sticks at Old Trafford.There is no doubt that the lad can go a long way in the game, but he’s suffering from a crisis in confidence at the moment, but he’s still a better goalkeeper than Kuszczak.

Scott Carson still suffers from a lack of concentration at West Bromwich Albion and still seems to bear the scars from the defeat to Croatia in November 2007 at Wembley. For all his shot stopping ability, Carson can still make some all mighty howlers from out of nowhere and seems to have fallen away from anywhere near the England team.

Poor old Chris Kirkland simply can’t keep fit, whenever he gets on a great run of form, his long standing back injury seems to flare up and take out of the side. Despite the 9 goal mauling Wigan Athletic suffered at White Hart Lane, it’s no exaggeration to say it could have been twenty if it wasn’t for Kirkland. He showed such promise at Coventry but injuries blighted his time at Anfield and he’s never been able to shake the tag of being injury prone.

Other than Robinson and Hart, the other stand out candidate for the three places in South Africa for me is Steve Harper at Newcastle. He’s now getting the opportunity to show just how good a goalkeeper he actually is week in week out after Shay Given left last January for Manchester City. Whilst most people would have been itching for a move, Harper has shown incredible loyalty to Newcastle over the years.

After 16 years service, with 12 of those as Given’s back up, he’s incredibly only played 151 games for Newcastle, with 86 of those appearances coming in the last four seasons. He has constantly served the club with pride and is now in the form of his life. Whilst others may have viewed Given’s depature as a real blow, having a player of the ability of Harper would certainly soften the blow.

Whilst some people seem to point out that you need a great goalkeeper to win the World Cup, with the exception of Buffon in 2006, you have to go all the way back to 1982 to find a team with a world class goalkeeper that won the World Cup. Every other winner since then has had good, and in some cases distinctly average custodians between the sticks. Paul Robinson is far better than average and Capello would do well to welcome him back into the fold.  With Harper and Hart, that would be a dependable and quality set of goalkeepers to choose from.

For every Ronaldo, there’s a Shevchenko. Sometimes, great reputations come at a great cost yet fail to deliver. Shevchenko is a great player to start with. Feared throughout Europe, his performances for Dynamo Kiev and A.C. Milan saw him become one of the most lethal strikers in the world. Once he arrived at Stamford Bridge, his reputation began to fall apart.

Yet these things happen. Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, some players cannot settle. Yet others flourish when they were expected to fail. Now we look at some of the worst signings in the last ten years and ask ourselves, did Juan Sebastian Veron really cost £43 million for English clubs alone!!

Well over the years, especially as the Premiership’s international appeal has grown, we now find ourselves in a situation were probably as case can be made for a large chunk of the best players in the world currently ply their trade in England. From Rooney to Torres, Essien to Mascherano, every team offers us a plethora of international flavour. Now let’s cast our eyes over some of my selections for the worst signings this decade in no particular order.

1. Juan Sebastian Veron £43.6 million

Now Veron’s failure to cope with the Premiership is something I still can’t get to grips with. His international pedigree was assured, he’d pulled the strings for Lazio and Parma during a 5 year spell in Italy, he was a top player. The failure of the Little Witch to adapt to the Premiership still astounds me. Manchester United paid £28.1 million for him, but off loaded him 2 years later to Chelsea, were he continued to under-perform. A return to Italy at Inter Milan never saw him recapture his form and he has now returned to Argentinian football.

2. Andrey Shevchenko £30.8 million

As I’ve mentioned earlier, a striker with one of the most feared reputations in Europe caused Chelsea to change their system and lose their way a little under Jose Mourinho. Rumours abound that the Special One never wanted him at Stamford Bridge but since he joined Chelsea, his career has taken a nose dive. Even a return to A.C. Milan couldn’t recapture his glory days and he has now returned to Kiev. It was like watching a different player when he was at Chelsea, he just couldn’t cope with the game.

3. Sergei Rebrov £11 million

Oddly, Shevchenko’s strike partner failed to adapt to the English game also, but his refusal to accept black players as team mates meant that he was always going to struggle. Perhaps a little more digging in to his personal life would have avoided an £11 million mistake for Tottenham Hotspur in 2000.  Made a return to publicity when Spurs signed Roman Pavlychenko, warning him about the amount of “Non-whites” in the Tottenham area. A thoroughly horrible man, the Premiership is better for his absence.

4. Fernando Morientes £6.5 million

Another striker with a fearsome reputation who looked as if he’d been kidnapped and replaced by a stand in when he joined Liverpool in January 2005. It was especially strange as the season before, he’d had a marvelous campaign in the Champions League with Monaco and a solid reputation forged for Real Madrid and Spain. He just never got going at Anfield and returned to Spain after just 18 months.

5. David Bentley £15 million

Bentley had forged an excellent reputation under Mark Hughes at Blackburn Rovers but his spell at Tottenham has seen him under perform constantly. That goal against Arsenal was expected to be the catalyst but Aaron Lennon’s continued excellent form has seen him become a peripheral player at his beloved Tottenham. It’s simply not worked for him and the problem is no one can work out why.

6. Jean Alain Boumsong £8.2 million

This transfer still makes me laugh, as it was a ludicrous amount of money for a centre half who struggled to cope with Scottish football during his spell at Rangers. Yet, if you want someone to pay over the odds, who better than Graeme Souness to come to your rescue. Never coped while he was at St James’ Park, he was moved on to Juventus and struggled in Serie B before joining Lyon.

7. Albert Luque £9.5 million

Another one of Souness’ signings during his awful spell as Newcastle manager, Luque came highly rated but never saw his career take off at all in the North East. He’d had three excellent seasons at Deportivo but since his two year hell at Newcastle his career has collapsed. Another dreadful Souness signing that never recovered to show his early potential.

8. Bosko Balaban £6 million

Was highly rated when John Gregory signed him for Aston Villa but in his 30 month spell he never started a game or scored a goal. The long running joke amongst Villa fans was that they’d actually signed the wrong player but he was signed as a goal getting striker. On leaving Villa he continued to score goals but will always be remembered for the goalless spell at Villa Park.

9. Steve Marlet £11.5 million

The signing that brought the end to Jean Tigana’s reign as Fulham manager and caused a legal battle with the chairman of Fulham, Marlet was an unmitigated disaster. 11 goals in 4 years says it all and he is currently without a club. Though how he was ever valued at £11.5 million after scoring just 13 goals in 2 seasons at Lyon still mystifies me.

10. Robbie Keane £20 million

Poor old Robbie Keane thought he’d gone to heaven when Spurs grudgingly accepted a hefty bid for the Liverpool supporting Irishman. Yet, unbeknown to Keane, Benitez didn’t want him and he became a pawn in an internal battle between Rick Parry and Rafa Benitez. 6 months later he was on his way back to White Hart Lane for the remainder of the fee that Liverpool owed Spurs, so effectively the Reds paid £8 million for a 6 month loan deal. Has never looked the same player since he returned either.

11. Francis Jeffers £8 million

Arsene Wengers most expensive mistake, Jeffers was supposedly the fox in the box the Gunners needed as the long term replacement for Ian Wright. Yet Jeffers’ attitude had caused him to be gladly sold by Everton and his career has seen him fall down the leagues, failing to score or stay fit for than a month a time. A shining example of wasted potential, he scored on his England debut in 2001 and it was all down hill from there. Is frighteningly still 28, currently injured at Sheffield Wednesday.

So, any thoughts on who you feel was the worst Premiership signing of the last 10 years? Please leave your comments below.

This decade has seen the Premiership continue to grow and attract some of the worlds greatest players throughout the last ten years. By continuing to attract some of the biggest stars in the world, only La Liga can truly consider itself a rival for the quality of the players on show throughout the league. Yet who would make the best Premiership team of the decade?

Which players have consistently delivered year in, year out, or given years of sterling service throughout the decade? Well I present you with my best 11 of the last ten years, from goalkeeper to striker and I think you may be surprised with some of my choices. Once you’ve glanced through the team, let me know who you think should have been in or your best 11 of the decade.

1. Shay Given

The most consistent goalkeeper of the last ten years, with only the criminally underrated Jussi Jaaskelainen coming close for me. Seemingly trying to keep Newcastle up on his own, he served under 9 managers at St James Park this decade until he finally ran out of patience with the chaos in the boardroom and accepted a move to Manchester City. Since joining City in January, along with Craig Bellamy, he’s easily been head and shoulders above the other high profile signings at Eastlands.

2. Gary Neville

England’s most underrated player of the last 15 years and one of the best fullbacks this country has ever produced. Solid, dependable and wholly committed to Manchester United, Neville has often been in the shadow of higher profile players at United. For all the plaudits that Scholes, Giggs and Beckham received, without Gary Neville, it would have been a very different period without his consistent quality for club and country.Was clearly the best full back in Europe for a while along with Michel Salgado.

3. Ashley Cole

Yes, he’s got the personality that gets on your nerves and his autobiography was beyond deluded, but he’s been head and shoulders above most other left backs in the last ten years. Despite his issues, Cole is a fabulous full back and his duels with Ronaldo for both club and country have been more exciting than they should be. Only Patrice Evra can come close to him over the last few years. If only he could score more goals!

4. Roy Keane

Love him or hate him, Keane was the ultimate midfield enforcer over the first half of the decade in the Premiership. When Arsenal and Manchester United clashed, Keane vs Vieira was always worth the waiting for. Yet, he scored more than his fair share of important goals than Vieira and Makelele who were the other two key players in a similar position. Controversial until the end, Keane has always spoke his mind, but as a player, for me he was peerless.

5. John Terry

Mr Chelsea, 100% no nonsense defending, Terry epitomises everything that defenders represent. Tough, uncompromising and occasionally has too much to say on the pitch but as captain of club and country, Terry has given everything for the cause at domestic and international level. When he retires, Chelsea will have a major job on replacing him.

6. Rio Ferdinand

Another player who’s off field antics can sometimes grate with the followers of football, but there is no doubting the quality he has as a player. The silk to Terry’s steel for England and Vidic for Manchester United, Ferdinand is the best centre half of his generation. He’s had a ropey few months struggling with injuries and the scandal that the missed drug test caused unfairly tainted his reputation for a while but only Ledley King can come close as a footballing centre half over the last decade.

7. Christiano Ronaldo

Love him or hate him, Ronaldo’s 2007-2008 season was something magical. Quite how he kept scoring at the rate he did can’t really be explained and the following season was always going to disappoint but even though his head had been turned, he still kept scoring marvelous goals throughout the season. If he can replicate his domestic form internationally, then he will be remembered as one of the greats, but he has yet to deliver for Portugal. He needs a great World Cup to cement his reputation. Pace, trickery and explosive finishing that belies his size.

8. Frank Lampard

There is a hair’s breadth between Lampard and Steven Gerrard for me but Lampard gets my nod because he creates more chances for his team mates and doesn’t have the nasty streak that Gerrard can fall back in to on the pitch. A fabulous finisher and a master of the late run, Lampard has consistently delivered season after season for club and country. Has struggled a little this season with the new system that Ancelotti has implemented at Stamford Bridge this year, but I wouldn’t back against him to score another 20 goals this season.

9. Thierry Henry

Well, at least he didn’t have as bad a year as Tiger Woods, his fellow Gillette endorsed scandal buddy but that handball has certainly tainted his reputation almost as much as his whining after Arsenal lost the 2006 Champions League. That aside, Henry was immense for the majority of the decade, even suffering from sciatica for the last few years. His partnership with Bergkamp left defenders dizzy during the Gunners pomp. Failings aside, a damn fine player and terrifying sight in full flight.

10. Didier Drogba

When Jose Mourniho signed him for £24 million from Marseille back in 2004, eyebrows were raised all over England, but he has made the critics more than eat their words. On his day, he is simply unplayable and is once again banging the goals in for Chelsea. His form dipped under Scolari and he flirted with leaving the club, but he’s still at Stamford Bridge and the Blues are far more formidable for his continued presence.

11. Ryan Giggs

What is there to say about Ryan Giggs that hasn’t been said? How good would England have been if he’d stayed true to his schoolboy football roots instead of choosing to represent Wales. Clearly in the category of the greatest players never to have made it to a World Cup, he has scored and created more goals for Manchester United than you can think of. Even now, with Ferguson wrapping him in cotton wool he still delivers. A truly remarkable player.

Notable mentions must go to the following players: Jussi Jaaskelainen, Patrice Evra, Jamie Carragher, Ledley King, Patrick Vieira, Cesc Fabregas,Michael Essien, Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Fernando Torres and Dennis Bergkamp. I don’t think anyone would come up with a similar starting 11, so comments please!

So what makes a great goal? I know it seems a easy question but honestly, what makes a goal truly great? Is it the goal that keeps a side up or a lob from the half way line? The goal that drags a side back in to a game when they’re 2-0 or a last minute winner in injury time? Everyone has a different variation on what they judge to be a great goal or what the ingredients are that makes some goals stand out above all others.

Well, I’m going to give you my ten goals of the decade, which you may agree with, but probably won’t. Yet that’s one of the great things about football, we all have different opinions and views of the same incident. Hopefully you can view these goals without blinkers of your favourite team and simply judge them on the goal itself. OK, ready? Then we’ll begin.

Goal Number Ten: Thierry Henry v Spurs November 2002

Another North London derby, another Arsenal win but this for me is one of the best goals that this decade saw in the continuing battle between Arsenal and Tottenham. A wonderful solo run and finish saw Henry begin to show the form that was to torment defenders the length and breadth of Europe for the remainder of the decade. A truly great individual goal.

Goal Number Nine: Dietmar Hamann v Portsmouth March 2004

There looked nothing on when Michael Owen swung the ball back in from the left wing but Didi Hamann was running in to hit this strike beautifully from the edge of the box. One of those wonderful volleys that occur every now and again, I doubt Hamann has ever scored a goal better than this in his life.

Goal Number Eight: Shaun Bartlett v Leicester April 2001

What a strike this was for Charlton Athletic. A wonderful cross field pass from Graeme Stuart that the South African Shaun Bartlett hit first time to fire it past the goalkeeper and into the bottom corner. A fabulous hit, set up by a fantastic pass.

Goal Number Seven: Dennis Bergkamp v Newcastle March 2002

What a wonderful piece of skill this is. From Pires’ crossfield pass, Bergkamp flicks the ball one way and rolls around the defender the other and then slides it past Shay Given. A delightful bit of skill from the Dutch master.

Goal Number Six: Xabi Alonso v Newcastle November 2006

Alonso seemed to be one of those players that could try and score from inside his own half more than most. This strike against Newcastle left Steve Harper scrambling to get back, but to no avail. Perhaps more impressive than the similar goal he scored against Luton Town in the F.A. Cup, it will live long in the memory for its precision from distance.

Goal Number Five: David Bentley v Arsenal October 2008

Probably Bentley’s high point during his difficult spell at Tottenham, this wonderful hit saw him control the ball on his chest and volley the ball in to the Arsenal net from 50 yards out. A sublime strike that shows the quality he has, but he simply hasn’t delivered at White Hart Lane. The only benefit to Spurs would seem to be the consistent quality that Aaron Lennon now shows week in, week out since Bentley joined.

Goal Number Four: Wayne Rooney v Newcastle April 2005

Everyone knows the power of Wayne Rooney but this goal shows it for me like no other. Like something from a video game, Rooney spanked the ball in midair at what seems 100mph. The only thing that surprised me was that it didn’t burst the net. A wonder goal from a player that on his day is unplayable.

Goal Number Three: Glen Johnson v Hull City October 2008

Well, it is always special when a full back scores a screamer, Stuart Pearce built a career on smashing the ball in the back of the net, but this was a fantastic strike from Johnson. It impressed me, because he runs on to the ball, controls it with two defenders closing in and smashes it home with his left foot. An outstanding goal.

Goal Number Two: Paolo Di Canio v Wimbledon April 2000

Now this goal summed up the genius of Di Canio in one swift moment. A flying volley that saw him use his left leg to propel him upward for a smashing volley with the right foot past Neil Sullivan, it was a divine finish from one of the Premiership’s most enigmatic players. A truly great goal.

Goal Number One: Robin van Persie v Charlton September 2007

This for me, is one of the best goals I’ve ever seen. A simply breathtaking goal that showed fantastic technique, athleticism and an eye for goal that Marco Van Basten would have been proud of. Everyone knows the qualities that van Persie offers the Gunners, but niggly injuries have held him back from showing the Arsenal faithful his full potency.

So there you have it, my favourite ten goals from the last decade of Premiership football. Leave me some comments, or memories of your favourite goals over the last ten years.

The weekend promised excitement, drama and last-minute heartache with several sides still fighting for survival at the season’s very end. Sunderland, Hull, Newcastle and Middlesbrough were all on the edge of the cliff. Some already hanging off the side. Others teetering on the brink. In the end, four losses would keep all sides in their places. Newcastle and Middlesbrough join West Brom in relegation to the Championship. Sunderland and Hull survive by the slimmest of margins.

Hull City: Early Form Rewarded

Hull’s explosive first half of the season (2o points from their first nine matches) was rewarded yesterday despite a 1-0 loss to Manchester United. The results of Newcastle and Middlesbrough allowed Hull supporters to forgive Phil Brown and Co. for the disastrous spell that eventually displaced their early good form. Hull only won one of their last 22 matches.

The Tigers defied expecation at the start of their campaign, recording wins against Fulham, Newcastle, Arsenal, Spurs, West Ham and West Brom all before the end of October. They dazzled further in November when they scored three goals at Old Trafford. They still lost to hosts Manchester United, but after being 4-1 down at the half, scoring two more goals against the Champs and bringing a point within view, showed the true grit of Hull City.

A lengthy slump aside, Hull deserved to stay up after their fierce start to the season. Now the question is: can they find that form again next year?

Death By Own Goal

One devastating moment from yesterday’s match at Villa Park sums up Newcastle United’s season. Villa’s Gareth Barry took a speculative shot from distance, firing the ball into traffic. United’s Damien Duff stood his ground, but was crushed when the ball ricochetted off his shin and careened into the net.

1-0 was the final score. And since other results meant Newcastle only needed a draw to survive, that one moment encapsulates the pain and frustration forced upon supporters as Newcastle’s latest campaign comes to an ugly close.

The Magpies will go down after 16 years in the top flight. Though they’ve had their rough patches, Newcastle always seemed to climb out of trouble and endure. But too many managerial changes and not investing enough in defense led to the fall.

Shearer should not be criticized. If he’d had more time to work out a system with the players (and if he’d had the brilliant goalkeeping of Shay Given at his disposal), it might have been a different outcome.

Duff, gutted from yesterdays events, vows to stay with Newcastle and fight for their promotion next season. Newcastle faithful wait to hear what Shearer’s plans are.

Gareth Southgate’s Nightmare

Middlesbrough have had their troubles since their last promotion to the top flight in 1998. We smirk when we think of 2006, when a fan stormed the pitch and threw his season ticket at Steve McClaren in frustration. But despite various problems, Boro spent the last ten years making themselves a Premier League mainstay. They usually finished mid-table, but even when they dipped lower, they secured enough points to keep from sweating over the drop.

But this season the problems became insurmountable. Former Boro hitman, John Hendrie blames poor transfer window moves and lack of firepower. Boro were the lowest scoring side in the league. Whatever the root cause, Boro simply could not climb out of the ditch they dug themselves.

But Gareth Southgate is expected to stay on as manager and despite the fear of losing some big players, Middlesbrough should have a good enough chance at returning to the top flight.

Sunderland Survive

The Blackcats put their old yo-yoing ways behind them as they prepare to enjoy a third consecutive season in the Premier League. Despite their survival, manager Ricky Sbragia stepped down after Sunderland’s loss to Chelsea. Read more here. Sbragia took over the post when Roy Keane left in December.

Sunderland announced today they will not be signing 27-year-old striker Djibril Cisse who spend the season on loan from Marseille. It will be intersting to see who Sunderland bring in to manage and play for the next season.

With Boro and Newcastle relegated, Sunderland will be the only side from the north east in the Premier League.

Conclusion

The season was very tight for a long time with many upsets and surprises. It took a while for the European hopefuls to pull away from the relegation zone denizens. Unlike last year, when Derby County clinched relegation early, this season’s bottom teams had their chances going into the final weekends. It is sad to see two mainstays go down, but that’s part of the life-cycle of the Premier League. Wolves, Birmingham and Burnley will come up to try and stake their claim on top flight football. Newcastle, Boro and others will fight in the Championship for a fresh chance to rise.

The rest of us will spend the summer scouring transfer rumors and analyzing friendlies and internationals while we wait for the league action to start anew.