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?

Will it be another Spanish summer? Or is there hope for England yet?

No, I’m not talking about winning the World Cup; instead I’m talking about the glamorization of La Liga more and more at the expense of the Premier League.

With the three biggest summer signings wrapped up or to be soon (David Villa and Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona, Jose Mourinho to Real Madrid), the likelihood of an electrifying superstar coming across the Channel looks increasingly remote.  Instead, it looks all the more likely that Cesc won’t be the only departure.

Granted, Chelsea and Manchester United will probably not lose any crucial players, meaning the EPL’s best teams will not get worse.  But it is not clear that they will buy the classiest of reinforcements, especially as the Chelsea management has indicated a greater role for youth players next season.  Manchester United will surely look to strengthen the thin front line that arguably cost them the title this season, but again, it is not certain whether this means simply a back-up striker who scores more consistently than Berbatov, or a genuine hitman to partner Rooney up top.

The other probable bright spot in England’s summer is Manchester City, who can splurge on world-class and create a truly competitive squad.  If they can successfully exploit Liverpool’s financial weakness and the precariousness of Tottenham’s Champions League place, they will surely compete in the 2011-12 edition of Europe’s most prestigious club competition.

But who will they acquire?  Liverpool might have to offload some of the Mascherano-Gerrard-Torres spine, but the Reds will be hesitant to sell world-class players to teams who are directly competing with them for a Champions League spot.

Reports suggest Mourinho wants Gerrard at his new project in Madrid, and should the legendary skipper bail on Anfield, Florentino Perez certainly has the cash to bring him to the Bernabeau.  Besides, everyone else in Europe wants Torres and Mascherano.  Further, the Argentine has been suggesting he wants to leave since last summer.  Unless Manchester City or another club really overpay for them, these stars, if sold, probably will not end up in the EPL.

Robinho probably will not end up in England because the Citizens can afford to offload him at a cut price to a continental team that will not threaten their league ambitions.  Unless, of course, Robinho has a superb World Cup and can convince Mancini to let him stay on to complete the Man City revolution that he started nearly two years ago.

Realistically however, the biggest stars who might end up in England are a few of Spain’s stars and some of the Italian Serie A’s best young players.  Who are these would-be EPL protagonists?

Atletico Madrid’s Sergio Aguero is the only legitimate superstar who has a good chance of going to England.  Chelsea have been linked with him, Man City would surely buy him (because, why not?), and as mentioned above, Man United would love two world-beating forwards with which to terrorize both Europe and England.  His price might put off everybody but the Citizens, however.

Valencia have a duo in Ever Banega and David Silva who would be welcome in any team, but it remains to be seen how willing the leadership at the Mestalla is to sell after losing their offensive pillar in David Villa.  Plus, as good as the two are, they are not world-class just yet.  A big move to truly competitive teams might see them hit that level and affirm their potential though.

The Serie A has a host of young stars in players like Pato, Hamsik and Kjaer – arguably the future of their respective positions – and it is possible that some will be sold this summer.  Hamsik has a prohibitive price of 40 million euros on his head, Kjaer claims he wants to stay in Palermo but will most likely end up elsewhere in Italy, which leaves Pato.

“The Duck” might fancy a reunion with Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea, but as Milan rightfully view him as their future, I am not so convince they’ll ditch him for a price Abromovich is willing to pay.  As usual, City can splash out enough to pry any of these players away, but it remains to be seen if they leadership really feels the need for another Mardid-lite summer spree.

Ibrahimovic might also leave Barcelona (as a swap for Cesc, perhaps), but given the huge amount the Catalans paid for him, I believe he will stick around to earn his price tag for at least another season.  Plus, crucial goals against Arsenal and Real Madrid to name two showed he is not a complete flop, just not worth the ludicrous amount Barcelona invested.

And so that leaves the Blancos’ rejects, possibly including Kaka, Benzema, van der Vaart, and maybe their superstar Gonzalo Higuain (who, in a warranted complaint, wants a new contract of greater value).  Further, Mourinho recently praised both the Frenchman and the Brazilian, suggesting he wants to try  bringing out the class that made Madrid pay big bucks for the duo last summer.  Unless Real Madrid again decide to ridiculously unload world class talent, in 2010-11 we might be witnessing the same class of EPL stars as last season, if not a class-act or two fewer.

While the EPL is still one of the strongest leagues in the world, the distance between it and the top (La Liga) will probably grow this summer, not to mention the cause for greater concern: that the distance between it and the “lower” Italian and German leagues may actually shrink.

And so, even those who dismiss Arsenal’s, Chelsea’s and Manchester United’s premature exits to Barcelona, Inter and Bayern Munich respectively as flukes, this summer might go some way to making it more than just a blue moon affair.

It’s funny how karma works.  Chelsea took an inhumanely stern line with Adrian Mutu, and now FIFA has taken a stern line with them.

The Blues have been found guilty of “inducing” French midfielder Gael Kakuta to break his contract with Lens in 2007.  FIFA has forbid them to participate in the next two transfer windows, barring them from signing a player until 2011.

Chelsea was also fined €130,000.  Kakuta has been fined €780,000 and banned for the next four months.

Kakuta is the brightest star in Chelsea’s academy.  He’s an attacking left-winger, who was the youth team’s top scorer and academy player of the year.  He was named in Chelsea’s Champions League squad before the ruling.

Chelsea have been found guilty of malfeasance in the transfer market before.  The Premier League fined Chelsea £300,000, Jose Mourinho £200,000 and Ashley Cole £100,000 in the tapping up scandal of 2005.

The Blues have ten days to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.  It’s probably a safe bet they will do so.

Is the penalty too harsh?  Can Chelsea compete for the Champions League, or even the Premier League without bringing in fresh talent?

With four Fantasy Premier League gameweeks already down, managers are starting to get an idea of whose scoring points – and whose not. With the forwards scoring points, the summer transfer window closing soon, and a two week international break upon us, there are a number of factors to take into consideration over the next fortnight.

Read here to find out how you can join the EPL Talk Fantasy League.

Scoring Strikers

Early evidence is showing the more expensive strikers are delivering the most points. The top five forwards currently total a price tag of 52.2, which shows if you don’t have at least one “big” striker your team is missing out. Didier Drogba has been on top form so far, as have Chelsea who sit unbeaten on top of the league table. The Ivorian has netted three goals in the opening four games, as well as making three assists. Drogba’s price tag has risen to 10.8, which shows there are a lot of managers keen to bring him in. If you want to add a top striker to your squad, the Chelsea man should be your number one target.

Alternatives to Drogba may include Manchester City’s £25million man Emmanuel Adebayor. Not a lot of managers expected the former Arsenal forward to do as well as he has done for City so early on, but the Togo international has a new air of enthusiasm and hunger about him.  So far he’s scored three goals in his three Premier League games, and could be a snip at 10.0. If you want to go slightly cheaper than that, look no further than Jermain Defoe who has scored four goals this season. His price tag has gone up 0.4 to 8.9, so is certainly a good option if you can’t stretch for the more expensive front men.

The two most expensive strikers are Wayne Rooney and Fernando Torres, who as you would expect are scoring goals. Rooney has been immense for Manchester Utd so far in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, and has taken on the scoring duties with four goals to his name. Fernando Torres is also delivering goals with three so far, but at 11.0 and 11.5 respectively, these two might be beyond your reach if you’re squad is without a big forward at the moment.

Transfer Rush

With the closing of this summer’s transfer window rapidly approaching, there’s going to be a raft of comings and goings in the League over the next few days. During the week Everton signed Sylvain Distin from Portsmouth. The defender’s price has dropped to 4.9, so if Everton can steady the ship he’ll be a great scorer and much cheaper than any other of Everton’s defensive options. Stoke City have brought in Robert Huth and Tuncay Sanli from Middlesbrough. Stoke’s defense have been big scorers this season – averaging 21.5 between the four who have played after just five games, so at 4.5 Huth should be able to get quite a few points on the board. Tuncay scored seven goals last season, and has netted twice for Boro in the Championship this season – his 6.0 price tag will appeal to many managers for their midfield.

Aston Villa’s defense hasn’t scored well thus far, but the additions of Richard Dunne (5.0) and Stephen Warnock (4.9) to their back line may keep out the goals. Portsmouth have already added to their team since the takeover with the arrivals of Michael Brown and Tommy Smith, so expect more signings at Fratton Park over the next few days. West Ham have spent big on a new striker from Italy, Alessandro Diamanti. They’re desperately short of fit strikers, so he should get some action up front and might be a surprise signing if you want to take the risk.

International Break

Premier League football is disrupted next week due to World Cup qualifiers and international friendlies. As the argument against international games go, there is always the chance of injury for some players. But it’s also a great opportunity to scout your options, as most will be on duty for their nations. A number of England players will be in action next Saturday against Slovenia, followed by Croatia on Wednesday. If one or two can impress in these games their form might continue into gameweek five and get you points. The Republic of Ireland will play Cyprus, followed by South Africa on Tuesday. Shay Given, Robbie Keane, Kevin Doyle and Damien Duff will all in action, so be sure to watch out to see if they impress.

Arsenal play Manchester City in a fortnight. Cesc Fabregas may be back by then, so see how he performs as Spain take on Belgium and Estonia in their qualifying campaign. Andrei Arshavin has scored twice in his last two games, he might take that form into Eastlands after playing Liechtenstein and Wales with Russia. Manchester Utd play Tottenham at White Hart Lane, and both teams will have a number of players on duty over the week. Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Wayne Rooney and Ben Foster will all be representing England, while Dimitar Berbatov will be keen to impress against his old side after playing Montenegro and Italy.

And of course, there is the chance of one of your players getting injured so watch out for the and icons on your team page.

You can read more from Kevin and others at his new football website, Back Page Football, to contribute get in contact with him there, or add him on Twitter.

Click here for Part 1

Last season, Gerrard and Torres missed substantial chunks of play. And Liverpool suffered for it. When they were both fit, Liverpool hit some astounding results: v. Real Madrid: 4-0; v. Chelsea 2-0; v. Villa 5-0; and @ United 4-1!!! They even managed strong results against big sides with one or the other missing from the starting lineup. Prior to the above results, they beat United, Madrid and Chelsea by slimmer, yet equally satisfying, margins. But few Liverpool supporters could cling to sanity with Gerrard or Torres out for too long. The real nausia was when, without one or both, Liverpool crashed upon the wall of smaller teams who were playing for a draw. In those moments the lack of Gerrard and/or Torres were as missed as the empty space left in one’s chest after you’ve been shot… by a bazooka.

At this point, Gerrard might be the easier one to cover. (Yes, it feels blasphemous to say this, but since no red streak of lighting has come from the heavens to strike me dead, I’ll keep typing). Say Stevie G needs time off due to injury or he sees a straight red card after he shows Drogba what it really takes to go down just outside the box. (And yes, I’m still bitter about the Olympic-quality diving in the last Champions League quarter-finals). Rafa can feasibly put Kuyt, Benayoun or even El Zhar behind Torres. If he needs to. Not ideal, but manageable.

The real problem at this point, would be losing Torres for any amount of time again. In the favored (and effective) 4231 formation, who goes up front? Kuyt alone?  N’Gog alone? Bring back Voronin? (Can you smell that? That’s a writer putting on the breaks. Sorry about that). Babel can do it if absolutely needed, but I am almost certain he’ll be sold before the transfer window ends.

Rafa should bring on a talented striker to cover for Torres. But who would come to play off the bench? If Rafa finds someone as good as he needs, that player is already too good to be a squad player. If N’Gog picked this season to really blossom into greatness, that’d be perfect. He’s young enough to be content come off the bench for a season. Willing to live in El Niño’s shadow for a while. Getting the job done as needed. That’s wishful thinking to the extreme. I know.

What Liverpool needs is one more attacking player with proven goalscoring ability. Rafa has always loved versatile attackers. Luis Garcia. Dirk Kuyt. Ryan Babel. Harry Kewell—whoa, hear me out…

A pre-injury-marathon Kewell would be perfect right now. Rafa inherited Kewell from Gerrard Houllier, but Kewell’s fitness and productivity were apparrently relegated along with Leeds United. Kewell stayed up in the Prem. His footballing went down to the Championship and later League One. It was stashed in a locker at Elland Road for years.

But the potential of Kewell was spectacular. If he’d played for Liverpool like he had at Leeds, he would have been devastating in two or three different positions. Liverpool need to find someone along those lines. Only fit. Ryan Babel came with that potential, but since Riera arrived, Babel just can’t get enough pitch time to flourish.

The ideal purchase would be a starting attacking mid (a Maxi Rodriguez, a David Silva) who can start wide right or wide left and make that spot their own. But they’ve got the finishing quality to move to the middle if Torres comes out. A striker-winger almost. But the dude isn’t competing for place because he’s already a starter. If Torres is out, Dirk Kuyt and Player X can work together in a 4411 or 442, depending on the new player’s specific abilities. Notice how vague I’m staying on Player X. Because who knows what Rafa is thinking right now as he scours the market behind closed doors! If Torres is in (hopefully always), Niño’s got Riera-Gerrard-Player X or Player X-Gerrard-Kuyt behind him. God, I miss Luis García.

The ruts Liverpool hit, as I’ve mentioned, were points dropped against the defense-minded sides. Breaking down the ten-men-behind-the-ball types has not been Liverpool’s forté in quite some time. But with Glen Johnson in and Albert Riera looking up for it, Liverpool can break out the True Width™. Against the sides that stay back, Johnson can get forward, shifting the side into more of a 353, with Kuyt (or Silva, or Rodriguez, or ?) cutting in toward the box to help Gerrard and Torres. The width coming from the back will allow the Reds to spread defenses thin while adding more playmaking in the danger area. They had this in mind last season, but Johnson will be far better at this than Arbeloa.

You could see the frame of this in the 3-2 win at Pompey in Feb. Five starting defenders but Arbeloa and Dossena charged down the wings with three defenders hanging back. Pompey took the lead twice, but didn’t really know how to handle the formation. This wouldn’t work all the time, but it has a lot of potential for breaking down the sides who stay back and play for a draw. And Johnson can always shift to a deeper spot when it isn’t working. Versatility, baby.

Last season was about the best season Liverpool have had in 18 years. If you had told me last August that’s how 08/09 was about go to, I might have asked what medications you were mixing and, more importantly, did you have extra. But the season was mostly fantastic and the title was in sight deeper into the campaign than it’s been in almost two decades. The Reds just need little adjustments. Glen Johnson was one adjustment (if we can call £17m little). I think Liverpool are one more from getting it right.

Gutted: n. 1) A feeling of intense desolation, akin to the feeling of having one’s insides ripped out. 2) A sweet colloquialism that should be adopted into American parlance along with the words “wanker”, “bullocks” and “knackered”. Example: Ethan Armstrong will be gutted if Liverpool FC sell Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid.

Here it is: if Liverpool stay fit and don’t lose Xabi Alonso, they’ve already got the winning formula.

The recent £17m move might be the key to solving their big problem: Glen Johnson will be instrumental in helping the Reds dissect the ten-man defenses of Stoke, West Ham, Fulham, (and I presume…) Wolves, Birmingham, Burnley, etc. If Liverpool could have figured out how to get through such throngs of penalty area loiterers last season, they would have won the title with room to spare.

Also, from what I’ve seen of summertime Riera, it looks like he’ll come back with the bristling promise he displayed last fall. He looks good. He stalled last winter. But he’s allowed one first season rut. Now it’s time to get to work turning defenders and launching in balls. Get to it, Albert. I know you have it in you.

So, between Johnson and Riera (with help from Insua/Aurelio) Liverpool will have a solid wide game on both sides. Something Zenden and Pennant didn’t bring. Kuyt does a fine job turning people, but doesn’t have the speed of a winger. Sometimes he has a cross. But now, I see the Dirk making sweet interchanges with Johnson who will be charging in from backfield like Napoleon storming across a continent. I’m seriously getting excited about this. Especially Johnson.

Liverpool should go in for one more quality signing (more on this in part 2). But the most important thing is they don’t sell Xabi Alonso. Mascherano either.

At this point, I don’t think either of them will go, but I can’t muster the confidence to believe Florentino Pérez isn’t in his office, right now, watching highlights from May’s 2-6 spanking: when Barça obliterated Real at Real. He hurls the remote through the television. He stands on his desk and, à la Gary Oldman in The Professional, he screams: “Bring me everyone!!!!”

Boom. £100m. Xabi and Javier move to Madrid. (Hey… that’d be a good name for a Spanish-language bromantic comedy…)

Seriously though: please stay, amigos.

These two are the core of this team. With them controlling midfield, Steven Gerrard knows he can burst forth and tear apart defenses. The back four know they’ve got a first wave of defense (largely in Mascherano) to break up attacks before they need to worry. Stick Lucas in for either Alonso or Mascherano, and the captain won’t soar with the same confidence, the centre-backs won’t feel as covered. Mascherano’s a brick wall. Alonso’s a seer. Strength and vision. These two are the Liverpool midfield. Irreplaceable. Unless, of course, Real wants to do a straight swap, one of them for Kaká… What say you, Señor Pérez? No? It was worth a try.

Now, (assuming there’s no coup on Xabi and Javier), if every Liverpool starter can agree not to get injured all season, the Reds can absolutely win the title as they are. But who can depend on that? What happens if Stevie or Torres get laid up for a long stretch? I said if Liverpool stay fit. We can’t bet on that. The Reds need an insurance policy…

Tomorrow: Part 2…

Warning: Harry Kewell will come up in the discussion. No, it’s not what you think. But I’m giving you some advanced notice so we can all stay friends.

Barcelona winning everything last season could have deeper repercussions for the Premier League beyond felling Manchester United in the Champions League. They’ve awoken the sleeping spending giant that is Real Madrid. Desperate to overtake the unstoppable Barça, Real Madrid have obliterated all transfer records and don’t look anywhere near stopping. The super nova has exploded and now every big English transfer prospect looks at risk of sliding into an Iberian black hole before United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, City can grab their targets by the shoestrings and heave them across the channel.

As EPL Talk’s Rory Tevlin reported here, Real have just scooped up Lyon’s Karim Benzema who had been a big transfer target for Manchester United. Real have also been linked with Maicon (wanted by City and Chelsea), Ribery (sought by Arsenal), and David Silva (believed a Liverpool target). Just about all the top talents who have been linked to Premier League clubs seem to be on Real’s radar. Except David Villa. He will supposedly only leave Valencia for Barcelona.

I know, I know… it’s Real Madrid (cue Death Star dirge). They are supposed to buy up all the best world talent. It’s not exactly a brand new modus operandi. Real are going to snatch up your Zizou, your Ruud, your Arjen. It’s what they do. But prior to the Benzema coup, they’ve already outdone themselves beyond belief this summer alone. They spent a reported £56m on Kaká and £80m on Ronaldo. Weeks later, I am still getting over the shock of such numbers.

And this is a club in debt.  A reported €500m (£429m) in the red. But the banks won’t say no to the Spanish sporting institution who only had €91m (£78m) to spend on players when Caldéron left. They still bought Kaká and Ronaldo. And, prior to buying Benzema, they said their aim was to pick up about five more players. This mad hatter’s financial tea party sounds familiar doesn’t it? Maybe AIG should get itself on the front of Los Galacticos‘ kits now that it’s been stripped off United’s.

So Benzema’s in. Ribery’s thinking about it. And Real president Florentio Pérez seems unwavering in his determination to lure Xabi Alonso from Liverpool. Liverpool have slapped a £35m price tag on the indispensable midfielder. My concern in Real may offer enough for Liverpool to dispense with him.

The ability to lure a pivotal player away from Merseyside shouldn’t come as a surprise. As we’ve learned from the Kaká and Ronaldo moves, there is a price for everything. But this is part of a deeper, more alarming trend than big Real spending in the past.

The real[sic] problem is Real are willing to spend so much and go after near everybody in their mad scramble to re-establish themselves as Spanish top dog, one fears what big names will be left after Madrid have made their moves. With their complicit lenders behind them, there’s no ceiling in sight for Real Madrid. Even if Madrid don’t win all their targets, they can sparked outrageous bidding wars and see the prices of the best players skyrocket beyond belief. For now £56m and £80m are brief spikes. But if these trends continue, Real may push the market into a new realm of ridiculous heights. The English clubs may wrest some of these targets from Real’s grasp, but at what cost?

This is a scary development in these tough economic times.

Every year, once the season ends, the rumors really start buzzing around our heads like a dark swarm of thirsty mosquitoes. And where we should wisely swat the nasty beasts away, the depth of our summer football boredom makes us strip off our shirts, hold out our arms, and beg them to land. Give us something tangible, we ask them. But it is too early to bite, they insist.

I get sucked into it every season. This past month the inevitable buzzings over David Villa and Frank Ribéry really got me going. Imagine one of them in England? Or David Silva? Or Maxi Rodriguez? Who’s this Benzema dude? I know I know the name… IS ANYBODY GOING TO PRY ETO’O AWAY FROM BARCA EVER??

So my mind fills up with vague wisps of possibility.

But here we are, the transfer window opens. Rumors can start congealing. The flies can start landing.

Between now and the 31st of August, clubs will go from being linked to the most elusive players to really going after them. But will any of this talk turn into big name signings? We know deals have already been made, Barry, Valencia, Santa Cruz, Johnson… but who’s coming to England dammit?? I want some big continental guns to set foot in our league.

Along with the rumors of Liverpool raiding Valencia CF, Manchester United scooping up Benzema, Arsenal pouncing on Ribéry and Eto’o going everywhere... there’s that equally persistent and vexing buzz that suggests they are all staying put. Oh, what horrible anti-climax that would be! Ribéry re-signing. Maxi doesn’t want to leave. Villa will only move to Barcelona. Since the Champions League, doesn’t it seem like everybody is going to Barça? Except for Eto’o of course.

Will the market please make up it’s mind?

I have this feeling most of the links to these big names, these proven international stars are going to fizzle out. I can see Liverpool snagging a Valencia player, but not Villa. Maybe David Silva or Juan Mota (the other two of his countrymen Fernando Torres named as good Anfield targets after Spain’s 35-match unbeaten streak). I can see Ribéry staying put.

Though I’m still waiting for the rumors to start sticking to the ground, I have this feeling more of less proven players will be coming our way.Bigger gambles on players who have shown glimpses of brilliance in international matches worked fairly well in the last couple of windows. Looking for the next star. In these tough economic times spending £12m on a potential star and hoping he exlodes into being seems the route to ride for English clubs. Raiding the Russian league has already shown promise through the likes of Skrtel, Pavlyuchenko and Arshavin. Are there more gems hiding out at CSKA Moscow? At Zenit St Petersburg? Or will anyone go after some of the South African players who put up a great fight in the Confederations Cup? Will more sides follow Fulham’s lead of luring cheap Americans to England?

I’m still holding out hope for some fresh talent from Spain. Clubs like Valencia and Atlético Madrid are looking for funds. Valencia are in outright financial distress. Atlético are rumored to be hungry for cash to scoop up a new attacking midfielder. There’s plenty of talent to pillage. Go get ‘em, gaffers.

In the end I’m just ready for something. Anything. I’ll take aging strikers on their way out. Diminutive midfielders who will crash against English defenses. Drunken, blind goalkeepers. Okay. Not really. But I’m eager for these rumor-insects to stop their buzzing. Land on something, you filthy beasts: sink those teeth in!

The buzz coming through the ever-dubious transfer wires claims that Liverpool are close to signing Glen Johnson from Portsmouth.

Rumors are homing in on a £17m move which includes the £7m Pompey still owe the Reds for Peter Crouch. Johnson is a fine player, full of skill, energy and guile, and his addition to the side could be just the sort of tweaking Rafael Benitez needs to push Liverpool up that final rung on the Premier League ladder.

But even if Benitez can secure Johnson’s services over the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City, he should hold onto Alvaro Arbeloa like a skydiver clinging to his reserve parachute.

Arbeloa’s name arises alongside Andrea Dossena’s as potential transfer window counterweights. The sale of either full-back could be used to soften the financial blow of the swoop for Johnson.

But despite Johnson’s superior quality in the right-back position, Arbeloa is too utile to lose.

Maintaining depth is as important to Liverpool’s title hopes as picking up new quality. While Arbeloa’s best position is right-back, he can also cover as a centre- or full-back if needed. He’d never be a top choice over Carragher, Skrtel, Agger, Aurelio or Insua. But keeping him would insure Liverpool have all their defensive options covered if long-term injury strikes their back line yet again.

Yes, sell Dossena to rase some cash. Even if no other left-back comes to Anfield, Aurelio and Insua can both serve well enough in that position. But the right side has not been so well covered.

Philip Degen struggled with injury last season and as a result, when first choice Arbeloa was out, Jamie Carragher was deployed in the right-back role, and though he’s played that position effectively in the past, his fading speed keeps him from being an ideal backup. Even Javier Mascherano took up the right-back mantle for an outing when the defense was spread thin.

Benitez should be able to get more for Arbeloa than he can for Dossena since the Spaniard made a greater contribution to Liverpool’s fine season than the Italian. Nevertheless, however many pounds can be brought in for Arbeloa’s sale is not worth the piece of mind Liverpool can enjoy knowing he’s there to come off the bench or cover for an injured or resting defender when they need him.

A deeper back line could make all the difference as Liverpool look to put their miserable collection of draws behind them and stamp some dominance on the league.

Arbeloa showed fantastic growth last season. At the year’s beginning, Benitez told us more attack and service would come from the full-backs and Arbeloa answered the call with verve. He created plenty of danger down the side, pushing past defenders to find lanes of service. He even had a cracking goal. A curling left-footer again West Brom in November.

He’s not the best in the world, but he’s been a dependable caretaker in the back, he’s threatening when he gets forward, and he did well enough last year to help keep the Reds in the race longer than they’ve been in a long, long time.

If anything, the real problem will be convincing Arbeloa to stay. Just as Liverpool couldn’t keep Crouch playing in the shadow of Fernando Torres, if Arbeloa loses his starts to Johnson, the lure elsewhere will be strong for the 26 year-old Spanish international. Real Madrid is rumored  to have a renewed interest in their former player. Though, he’d be competing with Sergio Ramos who’s already kept him out of many a Spain start.

But if there’s any chance of Arbeloa staying, Benitez should pursue it. Arvalo’s quality and drive are something Liverpool need to maintain in reserve if they want the depth to challenge for multiple trophies over multiple years. It may take convincing Arbeloa he can be a part of something bigger than regular starts: overturning Liverpool’s two-decade title drought. I know that’s not as alluring as being first-choice elsewhere, but Benitez should still try his best to keep Arvalo Arbeloa with Liverpool. Raise the money through other sales.

It wasn’t so long ago, I was completely outraged by Chelsea FC’s spending. 16.6m for Mekelele. 24.4m for Essien. 19.8m for Carvalho. 24m for Drogba. As a business, the club could sustain a 140m loss on a year because Roman Abramovich was there to bankroll the transfers. This was bad for football. The value of players skyrocketed. The old high water marks were obliterated. Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinze Rummenigge lamented the damage Chelsea spending was doing to European football. Wrecking the balance. Hogging the resources.

Now, with Manchester City as the new fat cat in town, I almost can’t remember why I was so mad at Abramovich.

Last winter rumors of Kaka coming to City abounded. The press figured City’s transfer offer to be as high as 130m. Thankfully it was turned down and Kaka stayed at Madrid Milan, but the fact City were willing to splash that much out on one player is scary.

City have already set a new British record when they spent 32.5m to buy Robinho from Real Madrid last summer. And they were reportedly talking about shelling out 60m to secure David Villa’s services from Valencia last winter. Villa made it clear then he wanted to stay. Now that Valencia is in serious financial trouble, one wonders if an expensive move may be made after all.

With all the money City are willing to spend it is almost refreshing to see them only pay 12m for Gareth Barry (the remainder of his contract was estimated at about 10m when I last wrote about him potentially leaving Aston Villa), but of course the fact they can offer him a meaty salary factors heavily into his move.

As when City coaxed West Ham’s prolific Craig Bellamy away for 14m, the promise of City’s future has its lure for players like Barry.

City are not looking to merely follow the Abramovich model. They are looking to crumple it up into a ball and leave it behind them in the dust, while the rest of us wonder… what were we so mad about c. 2006?

Abramovich’s past transfer coups are dwarfed by the prospects of 130m for Kaka and 60m for Villa. At some point City will make good on such offers. At some point a club is going to succumb to the lure of big money and sell the top class player for the outrageous sum and the glass ceiling (already raised so high by Chelsea) will come a’ tumblin’ down.

With the Abu Dhabi United Group behind City and with Abramovich’s wealth hurt by the global economic crunch, the Russian oligarch is slipping from his status as wealthy arch-villain into a role of, well, normal owner. He is not expected to spend anything near the amounts he dropped on the market in his first years at the helm. As Chelsea’s stars age, they seem like a club again. Not a superclub.

But the Chelsea spending model was largely a means to launch the club as a global brand. This has worked. Even if Abramovich curtails his upside-down business model and allows Chelsea to climb back into the positive in the books without his cash injections, the club is in a position to thrive and remain a force in domestic and continental football do to the exposure of the talent they brought in and the trophies they won since Abramovich took over.

This is now City’s aim. Using big name players and the potential marketing power of having the name “Manchester” at their disposal, City can make their way into a higher level of global recognition.

With no spending ceilings in place, there’s no need for pragmatism for business or concern for the damage the outrageous transfer fees can do to the sport.

The scary question is: what other investors will follow this absurd model? What other clubs will raise the bar beyond belief? And how high will the bids go?

In five years 32.5 for Robinho may not seem so crazy when the figure has been eclipsed by the next Chelsea FC or the next Manchester City. I cringe at the prospect.