Melo, Zhirkov and yet another "next Thierry Henry"

After a slight lull in the transfer activity of the major clubs we get back here with THREE new signings which I feel are review worthy.

1.Felipe Melo to Juventus

Let us start with my second love, Juventus. Secco had proved himself worthy of the scorn of all Juve supporters with his dealings in the past (Poulsen, Nocerino...the list is long), but since Amauri last season he has steadily improved his record. It had become a well known fact in world football that Juventus required a reinvention in their midfield and some new defenders. Some in come Diego and Felipe Melo.

From yet another Brazilian football player, Melo has come a long way to establish himself as a tough tackling, no nonsense defensive midfielder and a pretty good one at that. His Confed Cup dislpays, though few, were above par. Two seasons back, I saw a few highlights of his games in an Almeria jersey and I did predict this guy has potential. Fiorentina was a good platform to show the same and a move to Juventus seems beneficial to both the player and the team.

I rate this transfer as 7.5/10 especially sweet for a ManUtd fan because if he had instead moved to Arsenal, I believe he would have been the missing piece there. But well, thanks to Wenger's stingyness everyone is happy .

2. Yuri Zhirkov to Chelsea

Chelsea have been quite silent so far in the transfer market (you can hardly consider Turnbull and Sturridge to be "big" signings), so this is their first "REAL" transfer of the season. Left sided midfielder/defender/attacker Yuri Zhirkov. How good is he? Not bad but not great, but that is my opinion from his limited displays for Russia in the Euros. Hiddink says he is great, so let us take his word on it.

But the more important issue is whether Chelsea really needed him? With Malouda coming back to form and Ashley Cole being quite a fixture in the starting XI for Chelsea, it seems highly likely that he will end up a bench warmer.

I rate this at 6.5/10 because the player could be good, even great, but what use is it if he doesn't play. Chelsea's top transfer priority should be a striker and I hope Ancelotti is more creative than Pato.

3. Gabriel "new Henry" Obertan to ManUtd

An out of the blue signing for the Red Devils and their third of the season, Gabriel Obertan would be familiar with all Football Manager managers. He is a wonderkid in the game. I watched a recent match footage of UEFA Euro u21 touranment match between England u21 and France u21 where France scored two goals of which Obertan scored one and created the other.

The lad is quick (really quick), can play on either wing, up front or in the hole, wears no 7 for the u21 side ( :D ) and has quick legs (does stepovers, flicks, tricks...you know the works). Frankly, I am excited by this signing but the downside here is the "unproven" tag. He comes from Bordeaux but spent the second half of last season on loan at Lorient making only 15 appearances (not all starting).

This would be a 6/10 signing, low simply because not much is known about him, but high because he comes cheap (tabloids claim around 3-5m pounds) and I personally think ManUtd's scouts have spotted a jewel.

Truly Silly Season

Bah, Really?, Puzzled, Shocked, Angry, Deflated and then finally reconciling myself with the fact. This was the sequence of my reaction to the news of Michael Owen to Manchester United. Let us look at this transfer from an unbiased view (if possible). First the cons (if feel easier to list them):

• He was good.
• He gets injured often and stays out for long periods of time.
• He was a scouser. (this con is purely from a manutd fan's point of view)
• He was a target for Hull City.

And what are the pros:

• He will be content staying third choice and won't cry like Tevez.
• He knows his way around the Premier League defences.
• He might score against Liverpool at Anfield. (again purely from a manutd fan's pov :D)
• He's free.

This transfer is a master stroke if you are a fantasy manager playing football manager 09 beacause if he stays fit (and thats a big if) he will surely get you goals, but in the real world even if he stays fit( still a big if) there is no assurance that he will get goals. I think SAF was so angry with Madrid that he decided that he will not let them grab all the headlines for silly season 09 and it must be said that owen's move causes more ripples than Madrid's 200m pound (and increasing) spending so far.

The transfer has potential to succeed, Owen scored 10 goals in 31 appearances last season compared to Tevez's 15 goals in 51 appearances and Owen was being supplied by Newcastle's midfield which makes his goal tally carry more weight. The speed with which the deal happened shows that Utd actually wanted Benzema and Owen was the backup plan. And United have had old players in that "other" striker role (Larsson, Solksjaer, Sheringham).

I rate this signing as 4.5/10 and there is a probability that I may be proved wrong (how I hope I am ) but there is an even greater probability that Owen's injury record becomes the major news and not his goal scoring ability.

Kick Off

Its summer. One of the most dreaded times in the life of any football fan. No football to watch, and insane amount of transfer rumors which are bound to keep you in a frenzy. I am yet another one of those beleaguered football fans, so I thought why not voice my opinions on the transfer activities of the summer. With Perez back in the spotlight, and Madrid rebuilding their infamous ""Galactico"" era this has to undoubtedly be the most frenetic summer seen in some time.

The most interesting signing made by Madrid is not that of Kaka or Ronaldo or even the more recent Benzema but is the one of Raul Albiol. Now, many ""experts"" believe that the main cause of the downfall of the first Galactico era was Perez's undermining of the role of defense in winning trophies (remember Makelele?), so to see him investing in arguably one of Spain's best and young central defenders is puzzling. My knowledge on Albiol is based on his recent showings for Spain ( in the Confed Cup) and to and extent from FM and I would say that he has a bright future ahead. Madrid's attacking might was never questioned last season and CANNOT be questioned now, but their defense has always been suspect with the slowing Cannavaro, the erroneous Pepe and well Heinze (having him in the back line is tense for any manager). Now with Cannavaro gone, and Albiol and Garay (remember him??) coming in, it is an open question whether or not the credit for a clean sheet would go solely to Casillas or not.

Albiol is a good defender and has experience of playing in the La Liga and Madrid required a defender. Top notch signing : 9/10.

The other signing I want to talk about is Manchester United's first of this season- Luis Antonio Valencia. A speedy tricky right winger who came for surely more than 15m (Wigan said it was a club record). This guy has been linked with United since last summer, so a lot of thought has gone into this transfer. Of what I have seen him in Utd v Wigan matches, it is sure that he is quick and can cross. With Ronaldo gone and everyone expecting Rooney to play a central role this season, the United squad needed a winger for which he fits perfectly. Papers reported that Utd had to beat off competition from Madrid (not the one which bought Faubert but the newer one) for his signature, so this lad sure is worth it. Only time will tell if he will be a squad player or a dazzling winger (the kind we are used to seeing at the Theater of Dreams).

Good player but needs to be seen how good he will be at Utd and the cost is a negative: 6.5/10

I think thats enough for the first post. I think I will talk on Benzema on the next and one more signing which I have to decide (or you can suggest).