Gunning for a repeat

Arsenal looks to hold off strong Man Utd challenge again

LONDON (AP) -- Having broken Manchester United's stranglehold on the Premier League and winning the FA Cup as a bonus, Arsenal faces an even tougher job this season. Doing it again.

Alex Ferguson's Reds wound up with no trophies last season, and Arsene Wenger knows that Roy Keane, David Beckham and Co. will come back snapping and snarling to try to regain a title they won seven times in the previous nine seasons.

Ferguson has spent 30 million pounds (US$45 million) on England centerback Rio Ferdinand to strengthen a defense that tossed away more than 15 points last season with blunder after blunder.

He also accused some of his big names of going soft when they thought he was about to retire.

Signed up for another three seasons, Ferguson should have them fired up as the new season opens Aug. 17.

But Wenger should be ready for them as Arsenal previews its team on Sunday against Liverpool in Cardiff, Wales, in the traditional final practice match before the real openers the following weekend.

The Gunners manager has hired one of Brazil's World Cup winning stars, Gilberto Silva, at a fraction of the cost -- 4.5 million pounds (US$6.75 million) -- that United paid Leeds United for Ferdinand.

With Tony Adams on the brink of retirement, he also hired another lanky defender in Pascal Cygan from French club Lille.

Striker Thierry Henry has agreed to a new 5-year contract and the Gunners are confident that countryman Patrick Vieira will sign a 2-year extension. That means everyone is available to try to make it two titles in a row, something the Gunners haven't done since they won three straight in 1933, '34 and '35.

"Maybe because United made one big buy they are super favorites again," Wenger said. "Personally I believe a team grows together and has to built slowly and that it what I have tried to do.

"I believe it is more down to us than it is to them. We feel very confident. The players are up for their defense of the championship and I'm confident we will do it again."

In the debate about which team is better, Ferguson points to the fact that his own team have been winning the title in clusters.

"They've been our main challengers for the past six or seven years. But we've got the players who have actually done it in terms of winning the trophies. So our players win the argument in terms of ability," Ferguson said.

"The question mark is: Have our players stopped? Have the Arsenal players gone ahead of them? It's a hard business being at the top and only the best can do it which is why it's such an important season for us.

"We have shown in the past when we have had a bad season we respond and now the players have to respond again."

Last season United finished outside the top two for the first time in a decade as Liverpool jumped into second for an automatic place in the Champions Cup group stage.

Gerard Houllier's club hasn't won the league title for 12 years -- an embarrassing length of time for a proud team that dominated in the late 70s and early 80s as well as winning four Champions Cup titles.

The Frenchman has been busy in the transfer market buying names who could prove difficult to pronounce for fans brought up on the likes of Kevin Keegan, Ian Rush and Michael Owen.

El Hadji Diouf, who starred for Senegal at the World Cup, has arrived at Anfield along more France-based players, Salif Diao, Bruno Cheyrou and goalkeeper Patrice Luzi as Houllier, a former French national team coach, aims to end that barren spell in the league.

"I have a team who, if they want something, they get it," Houllier said. "They can be awesome at times, unstoppable. We are not the best yet, we know that. We've got a lot of improving to do. But the foundations -- the will and the skill -- are there. I can't say we will win the championship. All that I can say is that is our priority."

The likelihood is that these three clubs will once again be fighting for the title and, despite the bookmakers favoring United, Arsenal has the confidence to hold on to its title.

The Premier League falls into a number of little leagues.

Behind the top three come Newcastle, Leeds and Chelsea all trying to make it the big four.

Bobby Robson's Newcastle relied a lot of Alan Shearer's goals last season and, despiting adding midfielder Hugo Viana from Sporting Lisbon and promising defender Titus Bramble from relegated Ipswich, could struggle if the former England captain loses form or gets injured.

Leeds will have former England coach Terry Venables in charge but has lost its top defender in Ferdinand and, like Chelsea, is so much in debt that it is can't recruit any big name replacements. Claudio Ranieri will rely heavily on the goalscoring prowess of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsen.

These three could be looking over their shoulders at the likes of Tottenham, Middlesbrough, Blackburn, Manchester City, Aston Villa, Southampton, West Ham and Everton.

While Glenn Hoddle has made no major transfer moves, Boro's Steve McClaren has been a busy man, buying Italian under-21 star Massimo Maccarone from Empoli, hiring Cameroon midfielder Geremi from Real Madrid on loan and persuading Brazilian World Cup player Juninho to play for club for the third time.

Manager Graeme Souness has pledged himself to Blackburn for another five seasons, Kevin Keegan has spent 20 million pounds (US$30 million) to ensure that attack-minded Man City doesn't go down again while another former England coach, Graham Taylor, has made some small changes to the Villa lineup.

Gordon Strachan has instilled confidence in a Southampton squad which should make sure it doesn't have another relegation fight to deal with. The same applies to Glenn Roeder at West Ham, especially as Paolo Di Canio is still around alongside Joe Cole.

David Moyes has added some zip to an Everton team that had been stuck in a rut, hanging on to too many veterans. Joseph Yobo and former Arsenal goalkeeper Richard Wright could prove key purchases.

Jean Tigana's Fulham could have a difficult season having so far failed to match its potential.

A group of small deals, including hiring Japanese World Cup player Junichi Inamoto, will shake up the squad but, instead of looking like a title chasing club, as envisaged by owner Mohamed El-Fayed, the Cottagers may be struggling to avoid the drop.

Which is what West Bromwich Albion almost certainly will be doing.

Celebrating its return to the top flight for the 16 years, the Baggies are hot favorites to go straight back down.

With little money to spend on transfers, torn apart by an acrimonious boardroom split and with the players upset that a bonus deal has been ripped up by the new management, Albion isn't exactly ideally equipped to handle Manchester United at Old Trafford in its opening game. With games against Leeds and Arsenal to follow, it doesn't look too good for Gary Megson's team.

Big spending Birmingham, which like West Brom is also returning from the soccer wilderness, likely will also spend most of the season in the bottom three. And it's Charlton, Bolton and Sunderland that could be joining them.

 

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