Man Utd favourites to defend their title

By Ben James Aug 7, 2007, 13:42 GMT

London - The English Premier League season begins this weekend with a host of questions hanging in the air. Can Manchester United defend their title? Will Chelsea regain their crown? Can Arsenal compete without Thierry Henry? Or will Liverpool finally produce a first genuine title bid since their last victory in 1990?

United, the outstanding team of last season with a flair unmatched, will start as favourites after some shrewd summer acquisitions. But their rivals have not been resting on their laurels in the transfer market and are queuing up to pounce on any mistake.

At the other end of the spectrum, for some sides the fight to stay up will begin on day one, while for Sunderland and their manager Roy Keane, it will be a case of seeing how far they have come.

The protracted transfer of Carlos Tevez from West Ham to United captured most of the headlines in the summer but the signings of Owen Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson should not be understated.

Ryan Giggs, one of the veterans of United's line-up, urged a small note of caution though to those who think the club will be going hell for leather in every match this season.

'Tevez brings an extra dimension,' Giggs said. 'We've got plenty of attacking options but we don't want to get carried away. Defences win championships. It won us the championship last year and that gives the platform for these players to go on and produce the skills they have.'

In fact, United's only problem could yet be in defence with their left-back, Gabriel Heinze, seemingly intent on pushing through his move to Liverpool, a desire that has met with predictable disgust from their manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

United beat Chelsea on penalties to win the Community Shield last weekend but they know they can't afford to allow the Londoners a sniff of the title.

Jose Mourinho and his side will still be smarting from losing their crown in May and the signings of Florent Malouda, Claudio Pizarro, Tal Ben Haim and Steve Sidwell will only strengthen their chances.

Mourinho must hope that Didier Drogba's knee injury is not too serious and that the Ivorian does not miss too much of the opening salvos of the season. He was the star of the show for them last season and he and Malouda could yet form a devastating partnership.

Malouda looks capable of filling the boots of Arjen Robben, should the Holland winger leave for Real Madrid and though the line-up may not be decided, we can expect to see a more attacking Chelsea this year with a reversion to the 4-3-3 system.

Behind the top two, Liverpool and Arsenal, third and fourth again last season, have a lot to prove.

Liverpool, with the backing of their new American owners, have spent big this summer, notably in the form of Fernando Torres, who cost them more than 20 million pounds (40 million dollars) from Atletico Madrid.

Torres, Yossi Benayoun and Ryan Babel are the new big names at Anfield while their top players have signed on for extended contracts, increasing stability and competition for places this year.

Arsenal have to adjust to life without Henry after the Frenchman, whose skills have lit up the Premier League for the best part of a decade, left for Spain.

In his absence, the likes of Robin van Persie and Emmanuel Adebayor will have to stick their necks out, while Cesc Fabregas will run their midfield. On paper, they look strong again and Arsene Wenger says he is not worried about where the goals will come from.

'Robin's responsibilities have got higher now,' Wenger said.

'Thierry has left, Before it was all on [Thierry's] shoulders, now it is more on Robin's. I want him not to worry about that, just play good football, enjoy it and not be injured.'

The race for European places is sure to be intense with Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and even West Ham, who avoided relegation on the last day of the season, all having spent big in the summer.

All three look stronger for their outlays, with Newcastle's new forward line of Michael Owen, if he can stay fit, and Mark Viduka, one to watch this term.

Newly-promoted Sunderland fans will be hoping Keane can continue to enjoy the effect he has had on his players as they return to the top level.

The Irishman worked wonders last season as they stormed to promotion but having missed out on several players in the transfer market, they will do well to avoid the relegation dog-fight.

'This club have got used to going up and down and it's not good enough,' Keane said. 'It's not what I want, or the players or fans. For a club this size to struggle to stay in the Premier League is wrong. We should be competing with the best.'

Birmingham City, who together with Derby County, joined Sunderland in winning promotion last season, have spent plenty of money this summer but both will do well to retain their status in the top flight.