Frankly, Mr. Shankly wouldn't be pleased: How Liverpool is seeking to destroy competition in the English Premier League

By Robert Lawson, International Sports Reporter

"The socialism I believe in is everybody working for the same goal and everybody having a share in the rewards. That's how I see football, that's how I see life."

- Bill Shankly

In a move that's already generated a whirlwind of controversy, Liverpool has announced that they are seeking changes to the Premier League's current broadcasting deal (worth £3.2 billion in total to all Premier League clubs for 2010-13). Specifically, the club wants to see larger clubs receive an increased share of international television revenues.

Taking a longer view, the endgame for Liverpool seems to be the installation of a new television rights system, one where larger clubs are free to negotiate their own television deals with prospective rights-holders.

Such a system is currently in place in Spain, where clubs such as Real Madrid and Barcelona negotiate massive television contracts and to enjoy the riches they provide, while minnow clubs are left to fend for themselves on the scraps.

As the argument goes, this type of system would allow a club such as Liverpool (or Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, etc.) to generate a massive increase in revenues from television and other media; leverage the club's profile in emerging markets (e.g., Asia); strengthen its competitive advantage vis-à-vis other clubs when it comes attracting investment (e.g., sponsorship agreements); and, ultimately, enhance the club's capacity to compete with other large European clubs when it comes to purchasing top talent.

Some Liverpool supporters may react to this announcement with unbridled enthusiasm, gleefully rubbing their hands together at the prospect of massive revenue increases, commercial expansion, and, hopefully, attracting the world's best players to Anfield.

Others might heed the words of much loved former manager Bill Shankly, quoted above, and wonder whether reaping the putative rewards is worth the cost.

Introducing a television rights model such as the one prevailing in Spain would surely diminish the already considerably reduced capacity of smaller clubs (think Stoke City, Bolton, Wigan, West Bromwich Albion, Norwich, even Everton) to compete in the Premier League, not to mention extend the widening gulf between the Premier League and the lower divisions.

It would be hard to imagine clubs such as Derby County and Nottingham Forest achieving success under such a regime. To be sure, it's hard enough to imagine the success of smaller clubs as it is, when television rights revenues are centrally distributed in a fixed manner, with clubs guaranteed a certain share of overall revenues. If clubs such as Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal were permitted to go their own way, any illusions of future competition that remain would be shattered completely.

Put bluntly, the wealthy and powerful clubs could and would leave their more modest brethren firmly behind.

But consider this: As I'm sure the great Bill Shankly would point out, without genuine competition between clubs in the Premier League it really isn't much of a league. It would become a playground for the rich.

Sure, the rich clubs would continue to go through the motions, filling out the fixture calendar with perfunctory visits to the Britannia or the Reebok. Yet the only matches to matter would be those played among the big boys.

The English Premier League would quickly begin to resemble La Liga -- and would be much worse for it, in my view.

Ironic that such an endeavour would be spearheaded by a club made famous around the world by an ardent socialist whose approaches to football management and life make him a figure of worship on Merseyside to this day.

Sad, too.

Previewing the 2011-12 English Premier League season

By Robert Lawson, International Sports Reporter

(Ed. note: What's past is prologue, as the good bard said. For Robert's recap of the 2010-11 season, see here. As for his preview, it's tough not to see Arsenal near the top, as I've been a life-long Gunners supporter, but, then, I suspect he's right that they'll prove to be something of a disappointment this year, not least because they're just now retooling for the post-Fabregas era. -- MJWS) 

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. With the exception of matches cancelled in the aftermath of riots that spread throughout England over the last week, the 2011-12 English Premier League is set to begin on Saturday and, though it pains me severely to admit it, it is a near certainty that Manchester United will be champions once again. 

Manchester United to Repeat as Champions

Edwin van der Sar, Gary Neville, and Paul Scholes have retired, and Wes Brown and John O'Shea, deemed surplus to requirements, were sold on to Sunderland, but United surely look even better coming into this season. Ashley Young will provide added depth on the wing and youngsters such as Tom Cleverly (who looked terrific in the second half of last weekend's Community Shield) and Danny Welbeck could force their way into the reckoning for places. The possibility of adding Wesley Sneijder into an attack that already includes the likes of Rooney, Berbatov, Nani, Young, and Javier Hernandez is a terrifying prospect for any back line in England.

The only possible concern for Sir Alex Ferguson is the distraction of winning in Europe but, truthfully, it's never been much of a bother before and it won't be now. Indeed, I fully expect United to make it to the semi-finals of the Champions League, at least, while coasting their way to a twentieth English title. 

Champions League Places

To be sure, Manchester City are building a squad capable of challenging their local rivals for the title. After picking up the F.A. Cup and finally qualifying for the Champions League with a third place finish last season, City went out and bought Sergio Agüero from Atlético Madrid for £38m and Gaël Clichy from Arsenal for £7m to strengthen an already formidable squad. While the future of want-away Argentine Carlos Tevez remains uncertain, it is hard to imagine Roberto Mancini not getting City into second place this season. But there's still some distance to go before they're champions.

Chelsea should finally see some return on the investment made last season in Fernando Torres. The hiring of former Porto boss André Villas-Boas is an unusually smart managerial decision by owner Roman Abramovich but this is for all intents and purposes the same team from last year. While I would expect Villas-Boas to extract more from this squad than Carlo Ancelotti did, third seems the limit and the likely destination.

Liverpool owner John W. Henry has sanctioned a massive outlay on players since Kenny Dalglish was appointed manager mid-way through last season with the expectation that it will result in a return to the Champions League this season. Fortunately for him and Liverpool's increasingly anxious supporters, I think King Kenny has done enough to satisfy the yearning at Anfield to be back among the top four. Adding Luis Suárez (recently named player of the tournament at the Copa América) and Andy Carroll in the January transfer window and then Stewart Downing, Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson this summer into a midfield already bursting at the seams with Raul Meireles, Lucas Leiva, Alberto Aquilani, Maxi Rodriguez, Jay Spearing, and Steven Gerrard (still recovering from injury) is not enough to propel Liverpool into genuine contention for the title but it should see them to a reasonably comfortable fourth place finish. The back four has been a glaring weakness but adding left back José Enrique from Newcastle will help considerably. For what it's worth, Liverpool's competition this year will be much weakened Arsenal and Spurs, not the likes of United, City, and Chelsea. 

The Comfortable Middle

Spurs look to continue their drift out of the "big four" this season having brought in no new players. Indeed, manager Harry Redknapp is likely to spend most of his time and effort this season coddling want-away midfielder Luka Modric, whose head has been turned by neighbours Chelsea, and warding off would-be suitors from around Europe for Gareth Bale.

There seems to be no signs of Arsenal's dreadful finish in the second half of last season abating anytime soon. With Clichy already out the door, Niklas Bendtner half-way out and players already resigned to losing two of the club's best players, Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas, the prospects of improvement seem grim. The signing of highly touted 17-year-old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain from Southampton may help down the road but seems unlikely to yield immediate dividends.

After the top six the quality in the English top flight drops off markedly. The likes of Everton and Aston Villa have once again failed to make the necessary investments to improve their squads.

Everton have once again merely consolidated but Villa's loss of Downing and Young, in particular, will limit the effectiveness of striker Darren Bent. Indeed, Villa seems headed for another frustrating season where goals are hard to come by. The purchase of Charles N'Zogbia from Wigan will help but it's difficult to imagine anything but a mid-table slog this season.

Sunderland, Fulham Stoke, and Bolton will once again provide a few hiccups for the Premier League's big boys but appear no closer to moving beyond their comfortably established mid-table status. 

The Relegation Candidates

Blackburn, Wigan, Newcastle, Wolves, and all three of the Premiership's promoted clubs (Queens Park Rangers (QPR), Norwich, and Swansea) will vie for survival this season.

Newcastle looks set to plummet into the relegation zone with a mass exodus of players over the last six months. Manager Alan Pardew has already lost Andy Carroll, captain Kevin Nolan, and José Enrique, and now has to figure out whether he can keep Joey Barton around. One wonders what he'll have left to work with when the season begins on Saturday.

Blackburn and Wigan, in particular, appear to be sinking like a stone and I could easily see one, if not both, relegated.

Wigan survived by the skin of their teeth last season but I can't fathom manager Roberto Martínez achieving the same outcome this time without N'Zogbia around any longer.

Blackburn are a total shambles on and off the pitch and survival for another season looks impossible to me.

All three promoted clubs have done little to nothing to improve the sides that got them out of the Championship (second division). Fortunately for them, with Blackburn and Wigan looking so abject in comparison, there's a golden opportunity for two of these clubs to avoid the immediate dispatch back down.

In the end, I think it will be Blackburn, Wigan, and Swansea relegated to the Championship when all is said and done. 

Summary of Predictions 

Champions: Manchester United.

Champions League: Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool.

Relegation: Blackburn, Wigan, and Swansea.

F.A. Cup: Liverpool

League Cup: Manchester City

First Sacking: Steve Kean (Blackburn)

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Photo 1: Wayne Rooney et al. celebrate for Manchester United. 

Photo 2: Manchester rivals Nemanja Vidić (United) and Mario Balotelli (City).

Photo 3: Three new Liverpool players -- Charlie Adam, Jordan Henderson, and Stewart Downing.

Photo 4: A displeased Arsène Wenger, Arsenal's manager.

Photo 5: Luka Modrić and Gareth Bale in happier times at Spurs.

Recapping the 2010-11 English Premier League season

By Robert Lawson, International Sports Reporter

Ed. note: As I noted in my introduction to Robert's introductory post last week, we'll be doing a bit more sports here at The Reaction -- some baseball and football in particular, but also international sports. (But without losing our focus on U.S. politics, which will only get more intense as we enter the crazy primary season this fall, with the votes in Iowa and New Hampshire soon upon us in the new year.)

Well, Robert knows his international sports, and here's his recap of the 2010-11 English Premier League season. His preview of the 2011-12 season, which starts on Saturday, will appear over the next few days. Stay tuned for that -- and then for posts throughout the season. I'm sure you'll like his stuff, on "football" and on so much else.

-- MJWS 

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English football fans rejoice! In my first full post as International Sports Reporter, I'm going to recap last year's English Premier League season. This will help set the stage for my preview of the upcoming 2011-12 Premiership set to begin this weekend.

Last season, much to the chagrin of Liverpool supporters, Manchester United finally fulfilled Sir Alex Ferguson's long-standing vow to "[knock] Liverpool right off their fucking perch" by winning their nineteenth league title (Liverpool have won eighteen). Fortunately for the red half of Merseyside, United weren't able to move closer to the club's English record five European Cups, having lost in the Champions League final at Wembley to Barcelona in May (leaving them stuck on three).  

After a few years of exorbitant spending by Sheikh Mansour and the Abu Dhabi United Group, Manchester City finally won a trophy (the F.A. Cup) and qualified for the Champions League, a benchmark that even the richest clubs must meet to attract the world's top players. Although talisman Carlos Tevez appears to be no longer willing to stomach another season in Manchester away from his family in Argentina, the Sheikh's seemingly bottomless bank vaults should ensure City's quest for the title will continue.

Much to the satisfaction of those of us who've grown weary of the English media's incessant fawning over Arsene Wenger's commitment to developing players from within and his insistence on playing "beautiful" football at all costs, Arsenal's continued to win nothing. Trophy-less though they may be, the Gunners did secure a Champions League place again (albeit in the play-off round), so I suppose that's some solace for the supporters.

Meanwhile, 2009-10 champions Chelsea, despite buying Fernando Torres for £50 million from Liverpool in January, surprisingly failed to win a trophy for the first time since 2007-08, though they, too, secured a Champions League place with a second-place finish.

Tottenham's time in the Champions League places proved ephemeral, though Spurs did manage to pip Liverpool for a spot in this year's Europa League competition. Last-minute addition Rafael van der Vaart, bought for £8 million at the end of the 2010 summer transfer window, was an immediate success and seems to have resurrected his once-promising career at White Hart Lane. (I suppose these two sentences point in the direction of an imminent departure.)

As for the club close to my heart, Liverpool withstood a tumult of turmoil over the course of the first half of the season (during which they were, at times, barely above the relegation zone) and managed to finish sixth. While perhaps disappointed with the lack of a European place and the mid-season departure of Torres, the second half of the season offered ample evidence for supporters to feel optimistic going forward. Off the pitch, the club's longstanding ownership difficulties were finally settled with the purchase of the club by Fenway Sports Group, led by Boston Red Sox owner John W. Henry. On the pitch, legendary player/manager "King" Kenny Dalglish returned to manage the club after Roy Hodgson was sacked in early January and forwards Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll were brought in to fill the void left by Torres. (Suarez, in particular, was one of the best players in England over the last half of the season.)

Fellow Merseysiders Everton once again managed to be a thorn in the side of many top clubs yet still failed to find their way out of the mid-table mire, finishing seventh. As difficult as it is to admit for a Liverpool supporter, David Moyes has done an outstanding job during his tenure as manager of the self-proclaimed "People's Club" given the paltry level of investment in the squad. One does wonder though how much longer he's willing to put up with the empty pockets routine before he gets fed up and chases a bigger opportunity.

Fellow mid-tablers Aston Villa finished... you guessed it, mid-table (ninth). They did break the bank though for striker Darren Bent from Sunderland with a successful £18 million bid in January. Bent scored nine goals during the second half of the season with Villa but it's hard to imagine him continuing that torrid pace now that he won't have Ashley Young or Stewart Downing putting balls into the box for him any longer.

2009-10 Football League Championship (second division) winners Newcastle and runners-up West Bromwich Albion both managed to stay up despite sacking managers mid-season, finishing twelfth and eleventh respectively.

Birmingham City followed up the euphoria of a League Cup win at Wembley in February with the ignominy of relegation in April. Joining the Brummies in the Championship this year will be Blackpool and West Ham.

Down in the The Championship, Queens Park Rangers and Norwich both won automatic promotion to the Premier League while Swansea returned to English football's top flight for the first time since 1983 with a play-off victory over Reading at Wembley. The Swans will be the first Welsh club to play in the Premier League since it was formed in 1992.

Will any of the Premier League's new clubs avoid the drop this season? Will Manchester United repeat as champions? Will Liverpool make it back into the top four? Will Arsene Wenger finally have to admit that Arsenal are failing not because of unfair refereeing but because they're simply not good enough? Will Everton win a match before Christmas? Will Newcastle have any players when the season starts? I'll let you know what I think later this week.