May Day: Week 4 in the BPL

photo by SliceofNYC	via PhotoRee

o Chelsea and QPR may have drawn 1-1 this weekend, but the least surprising development of the day was Ranger's left back Fabio limping off the Loftus Road pitch after less than 18 minutes. You didn't think switching teams would somehow make him sturdier, did you?

o We may already have had a soft spot in our heart for Ji-Sung Park, but our respect for QPR's South Korean Captain grew by leaps and bounds when he refused to shake John Terry's hand prior to the game against Chelsea this Saturday. Taking a stand for principled people everywhere, Parky reminded us all of what's important in life: respect, a word the Chelsea Captain likely can't even spell.

o Two goals by Dimitar Berbatov in his first 90 minutes for Fulham, and let's see.....  Maybe someone could tell me what he was doing on the bench for the last year and a half...?!  And just because we can, we're handing Dimitar our Player of the Week honors to pay homage to his brace.

o Arsenal may have cruised to a 6-1 victory over Southampton on Saturday, but for us the most touching part of the entire afternoon was Wojciech Sczcesny's loving tribute to teammate Lukasz Flappyhandski, in which the younger Pole managed singlehandedly to end the Gunners' shutout streak at more than 300 minutes, all in a style all too familiar to Arsenal fans. It's nice to know that while Fabianksi may be gone, he's definitely not forgotten.

o It may only be the fourth game of the season, but all of Manchester United's pre-season signings have found the net as of Saturday -- are you reading this, Olivier Giroud? -- with both Alexander Buttner and Nick Powell adding their names to the scorer's sheet. They've joined Shinji Kagawa and Robin Van Persie, which leaves us with only one question: when will Angelo Henriquez get his first start..?

o By the way, do you think there may have been any celebrating going on in gypsy caravan party camp when Alexander Buttner scored his goal...?  Just askin'....

Week 1 in the BPL: Where the Storylines Never Change

A Behind the Scenes Look into Columnist Ed's Office
photo by Nesster	via PhotoRee

The Barclay's Premier League is back, and a new season is well and truly underway, which can only mean one thing: new names and new kits, but the same old crazy outcomes. Some observations forthwith on a weekend that was predictably uncommon, and left Swansea and Fulham in unfamiliar territory at the top of the League:

o For once I found myself agreeing with Steve McMananman, who pointed out while Arsenal have brought in a bunch of firepower to replace Robin Van Persie, they've chosen to stand pat on a defense that includes the wobbly Per Mertesacker, the shaky Kieran Gibbs and the bumbling Wojciech Sczcesny.  We've pointed it out before on these pages, Arsene, but you can't expect to win in this league without a rock solid defense. Not that you were thinking of doing that this campaign.... 

o Of course, Arsenal did manage to shut out Sunderland on Saturday, but let's remember that this was a Black Cats squad that found the net impossibly small during their run in last season....

o With all the fuss about Joey Barton, someone forgot to tell Mark Hughes and QPR that the season kicked off this past weekend. Although somehow we imagine that 5-0 home thrashings will have a way of grabbing your attention.

o It was strange to see Fabio all decked out in his natty sailor boy QPR kit. Same for Parky, as well. After Saturday's thrashing, I'm pretty certain they've figured out their newest stop is a bit closer to Siberia than it is to Manchester. And while Parky's move is sadly permanent, Sir Alex may want to re-think the Fabio loan deal: it now appears as if the only defensive experience the Brazilian will pick up at QPR is learning how to pick the ball out of the back of the net.

o I'll say it now, so you can't accuse me of an unsubtle bias later in the season: I don't like QPR after the way they handed the title to City last season -- not even one little bit -- and I hope they get relegated.

o Gylffi who?  Welcome to the Premier Leage, Michu....  It looks as if Swansea may have found a goodun'.

o Another season, another shutout for Villa, and this to a newly promoted side.  Welcome to the hot seat, Mr. Lambert. You're not in Norwich anymore....

o Just sayin', but I'm not certain that Adam Federici, Reading's goalkeeper, is ready for prime time.

o Granted it was against Wigan, but if Eden Hazard continues to look as good as he did on Sunday,  the rest of the League had better stand up and pay attention. Juan Mata may have made a decent impact on the Blues last season, but Hazard's not just about the pretty stepovers and a pass -- he seems to have a genuine knack for finding the open man in front of net. Playing largely from the right, Hazard gave Chelsea not only an extra offensive gear, but more importantly the width that the Blues have lacked the last couple of campaigns.