The year ahead (January-June)

2013 is upon us, and what with it being the start of the year I thought there would be no better time previewing the next 12 months of the sporting calendar. This year might not be likely to reach the golden highs of 2012, but there are still some amazing highlights to look forward to with this post covering the first six months.

Later on this month, the first tennis Grand Slam event of the year takes place as Andy Murray seeks to add an Australian Open title to his US title he won in September 2012. The winner of the previous two Australian Opens has been Serbian Novak Djokovic and will be looking the make it a three-in-a-row this time around whilst Roger Federer will be looking to add to his record haul of 17 Grand Slam single titles. Missing from the party though is the clay expert Rafael Nadal, who won the Australian title in 2009, after the Spaniard withdrew due to a stomach virus. Defending champion Djokovic is the bookie's favourite to win another Australian Open, but I believe in the Scot. Murray has always been there or there abouts in Melbourne and the confidence he took from his Olympic success to go on to win his first Grand Slam in New York is still present.

February sees the beginning of rugby's Six Nations, with this year's tournament carrying extra importance for players of the home nations with Lions tour to Australia later in the year. Last year's Grand Slam champions Wales haven't won a game since the tournament, a slump which saw them slip to 9th in the world. Fly-half Rhys Priestland has been ruled out of the tournament already, which could hit Wales' hopes of defending their title but they have been boosted by news that influential flanker Dan Lydiate, who broke his ankle in September, may be able to feature in the tournament after making a remarkable recovery. Under Stuart Lancaster, England have been improving over the last 12 months and their victory over New Zealand last time out will give them confidence going into a competition they could well win, with perhaps France being their biggest rivals. Scotland may surprise a few people,as they are playing without much expectation after a horrible end to 2012 and may be inclined to throw the ball around a bit more than they do. After a much improved performance against Argentina, there are many thinking Ireland could do something in the tournament, but I for one am not part of that group. Coach Declan Kidney made one change for the team, and granted Craig Gilroy done well, but he will think that after beating a fatigued Argentinian side everything is now rosy. It could be a tough spring for the boys from the Emerald Isle.

Arguably the biggest events in March and April are both to do with horse racing, with the Cheltenham Festival taking place in the third month of the year and Grand National less than a month later. Unfortunately my horse racing knowledge isn't the best, and for fear of embarrassing myself I'll leave the previewing of these events to those more in the know. The only thing is for certain is that I will, more than likely, be severely out of pocket by May.

May is also the month where the football season comes to a head. Manchester United, currently seven points clear at the top of the Premier League, will more than certainly still be involved in the title race and for my money will probably be crowned league champions of England for the 20th time. The month will also see two cup finals played at Wembley, the FA Cup final and the Champions League final. The FA Cup is often unpredictable and many fancied teams can be swiftly knocked out by opposition who have been touched by the magic of the cup so I feel there would be little use in trying to predict the winner. For the Champions League, however, I really fancy Borussia Dortmund. Already a fair distance of top spot in the German League, that should allow them to focus most of their energy on winning Europe's top prize and with a talented squad at Jurgen Klopp's disposal, many are tipping them to challenge Europe's best.

June sees the start of the aforementioned Lions tour, and I think there is a solid chance the world's most famous tourists can win their first series for 16 years. I know it's a long way off and a lot can change, but here's my starting XV if the first game against Australia was tomorrow:
1)   Cian Healy (c)
2)   Dylan Hartley
3)   Dan Cole
4)   Geoff Parling
5)   Richie Gray
6)   Dan Lydiate
7)   Steffon Armitage
8)   Toby Faletau
9)   Mike Phillips
10) Jonny Sexton
11) George North
12) Jamie Roberts
13) Manu Tuilagi
14) Tommy Bowe
15) Rob Kearney
Some would say this is a physical XV, but I would use the term "dynamic". Some may also question the choice of Healy as captain, but in my opinion he has come so far over the past two seasons and has become a leader at both club and international level, and his performances are of such a quality that they should inspire those around him to similar heights.

ATP World Tour Finals

Today sees the start of the ATP World Tour Finals, which will be played at London's o2 Arena for the fourth time. At the time of writing, Andy Murray is moments away from playing the first singles match of the tournament against Czech star Tomas Berdych. The US Open champion is the second favourite to win the tournament behind Novak Djokovic, despite the pair facing each other before the weekend. This is because the tournament begins with a group stage rather than a standard knock-out draw. The groups are split in to two groups of four, with each player playing their group rivals once. The top two players from each group then qualify for the semi-finals, where the knock-out tennis begins.

As mentioned, Murray is opening the singles draw of the tournament against Tomas Berdych. The home support for Murray will be expecting an opening win, but it might not be so easy as Berdych leads the Brit in head-to-head matches 4-3. The Olympic champ, though, did win their last encounter en route to his success at Flushing Meadows in September. Later on in the same group, Group A, Djokovic takes on France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Whilst the result will probably result in a win for the top seeded Serb, the crowd tonight will be in for great entertainment as both players have a habit of getting the crowd involved. From Group A overall, I would expect both Djokovic and Murray to eventually progress given the season's the two players have had compared to their group rivals. Having said that, I could also easily see Tsonga coming through this group as the atmosphere within the London venue may spur him on to play great tennis.

Group B contains second seed Roger Federer, Spaniard David Ferrer, 2009 US Open winner Juan Martin Del Potro and Serbia's Janko Tipsarevic. This, in my opinion, appears a very straightforward group. Federer obviously has enough talent to dispatch every member of this group with consummate ease with Del Potro finishing second. A few people may be scratching their heads as to why I haven't tipped Ferrer to qualify after his win in Paris yesterday, but he is the only player at this week's tournament to have made the semi-finals in Paris last week. Two days rest before going straight into battle and playing elite level opponents from the outset is not enough, even for a player of Ferrer's calibre.

My draw for the semis, then, probably see Djokovic, as Group A winner, take on Del Potro leaving Andy Murray to fight it out with Federer. From these two semis, I'd be likely to go with a Djokovic-Federer final much to the disappointment of the home crowd. If that is the final, my choice of champion would depend on how the two players reached the final but given the Swiss star has longer odds, I'd probably back him in the hopes of collecting more winnings from the bookies.

Also being played at the o2 Arena this week is the men's doubles tour ending championships, which contains another Brit for the crowd the cheer on as Jonathan Marray takes part alongside the man he won the Wimbledon men's double title with, Dane Frederik Nielsen. Not much is expected of the pairing, but I'm sure they will both enjoy the week and the crowd's undoubted support. 

Premier League Preview

The new season is almost upon us and undoubtedly has a tough act to follow. The 2011/12 season was voted the best of the first 20 Premier League campaigns. The title remained undecided until virtually the last kick of the season as Sergio Aguero secured Manchester City's first Premier League title. The big question ahead of the new season is obviously if the Citizens can defend their title. In terms of the squad that one last year, only one big addition has been made in the shape of midfielder Jack Rodwell. I've always been a big fan of the former Toffee but he has had his fair share of injuries, but hopefully those are behind him as he looks to kick on with his career. Last year's runner-up Manchester United have a very strong squad to challenge their city rivals and go one better this year. Everyone is well aware of the talent imminent signing Robin van Persie has, but Shinji Kagawa is also a player of genuine class who can really help the Red Devils at vital points in the season. Chelsea may not have challenged for the title last year, but the Champions League win is bound to give them confidence ahead of the new campaign. Summer signings Eden Hazard, Marko Marin and Oscar all have huge potential which Chelsea fans will be hoping to see over the course of the year, but for me their key man could be Fernando Torres, who seems to be edging back to the player he used to be. An on-form Torres could easily replace the void left by former striker Didier Drogba, so Blues fans may not have so much to worry about. At this stage its too tough to call who will win the title. Everyone has a bad run at some point in the league, and it could well come down to when each team has their bad patch. If I had to pick one, I probably would have picked Chelsea a week ago. Now that RvP is heading to Old Trafford, they have the top two scorers from last year and  would be my pick for the season ahead.

There is also the issue of Champions League qualification. I believe Chelsea, City and United will finish in the top three, meaning there is one more space available from the league. I would hope my beloved Tottenham can mount another serious challenge for the spot as in previous seasons, but I am concerned. Ahead of our opening fixture, there are only two strikers in the squad - Jermain Defoe and Harry Kane. Defoe is a great goal scorer - as seen against Italy last night - but I can't pick up a newspaper these days without reading a rumour linking him with a move away from the club. Kane is a player with real potential but he's too young to pin all our hopes on. The rest of the squad is good enough to challenge, but we need at least one more striker. Emmanuel Adebayor's diva attitude appears to have scuppered a move for him, the move for Leandro Damiao seems to be taking an eternity and Fernando Llorente is on the verge of moving to Juventus. All three were targets, and all three would have been brilliant. Hopefully we can secure a striker before the transfer window shuts. Arsenal will also be looking to qualify for the Champions League this year and the loss of RvP is a huge dent to their chances. However, its not all doom and gloom. New signing Olivier Giroud helped fire Montpellier to a league title over oil rich PSG in France (apparently its like Stoke winning the title over Manchester City). Lukas Podolski is a player that is used to both pressure and the biggest stages. And Santi Cazorla is a talent either out wide or in the middle. Granted the influence of RvP may be hard to replace, but those three players can really help Arsenal secure fourth. Some also believe Liverpool, now under the guidance of Brendan Rodgers, can also challenge for Champions League qualification. Rodgers set Swansea up brilliantly in their first season in the Premier League, and if similar tactics were given to a squad with more talent, success is possible. New signing Fabio Borini can give Liverpool something they've lacked since Torres - a natural finisher. Joe Allen can also help with a few assists from midfield, and the potential loan signing of Nuri Sahin will be great business for Liverpool, especially if he brings the form he showed whilst at Borussia Dortmund. Again, this is extremely tough to call but my biased heart says Tottenham, so I hope it's right.

The other big issue in the Premier League is relegation. As always, the favourites for relegation include the new boys and Wigan. All the new boys can feasibly go down. West Ham didn't have the best of seasons in a league many pundits expected them to dominate. Southampton have added only a few players to their squad which could lack depth, and goalkeeper Kelvin Davis had a torrid time during his last season in the Premier League with Sunderland. And Reading rode into the Premier League on the crest of a wave with a storming run at the end of the season. Will the form be there come Saturday? Wigan are perennial relegation candidates but always seem to have a way of avoiding the drop. In previous seasons under Roberto Martinez, they've looked dead and buried yet somehow stay up - they're like the relegation equivalent of Manchester United, coming alive at the right time. I wouldn't be surprised if no one has been relegated until the final day of the season.

Prediction
1) Manchester United
2) Chelsea
3) Manchester City
4) Tottenham
5) Arsenal
6) Liverpool
---------------------------
18) Wigan
19) Southampton
20) Reading

This Olympic post is sponsored by...

With little over two weeks to go until Danny Boyle turns a part of Stratford into a farm, the British public are struggling to avoid anything to do with the Olympics. Everywhere you turn is another reminder that the greatest show on Earth will be in London from the 27th July. And its only going to get worse, with BBC One and BBC Three almost only showing the Games for the two week period. As a sports fanatic, I'm not really fussed by most of this. For me, it's great to be swept up by all the trappings of a once-in-a-lifetime event, an Olympic Games on my doorstep. I enjoy reading articles in the papers of medal hopes and watching TV shows that are related to the Games; it's interesting to understand everything that goes into the Olympics. The one thing that does annoy me, though, is how companies are using the Games as a corporate vehicle.

The likes of Coca-Cola, McDonalds and P&G have spent well into the billions to sponsor the most watched sporting event. In return, the IOC has allowed them to use the Olympics as part of their advertising campaigns. You can't go one single ad break now without London 2012 being mentioned.  It makes the Games seem like some corporate vehicle, helping companies profit from being associated with something huge. Coca-Cola and McDonalds, for example, enjoy suggesting that you can lead a healthy lifestyle with their products, and generally include the Games in this when they come around. We all know how unhealthy McDonalds can be. After all, a Big Mac would be legally classed as a dessert due to the sugar content if it weren't for the gherkins. But these companies are by far not the worse offenders in my books - at least they actually paid for the right to use them.

Walking through the shopping centre in the Olympic Park the other day, it was ridiculous to see so many companies that hadn't paid for sponsorship using the Olympics in a non-explicit manner. Subway, for example, have leaflets featuring four Olympians and their favourite 'sub'. Nowehere on the leaflet are the Olympics mentioned, but anyone with common sense would swiftly realise that Subway are trying profit from public support for the Games. Boots also had posters of Jo Jackson and Hannah Miley, both of whom are Olympic swimmers, in their shop window. Again, no mention of the Games but its not hard to see what they are doing. The use of the Olympics by these companies is completely devaluing the history of the Games. A once great sporting event slowly being turned into a money-spinner by large companies. I wouldn't be too surprised if in the future events themselves are actually sponsored. I can't wait to see the final of the Coca-Cola 100 metres...sigh.

Tour De France So Far

With just over half the tour and 11 stages remaining, this year's Tour de France is beginning to hot up. After a few medium-mountain stages in the first week, today sees the first fully fledged mountain stage. These stages go a long way to shaping the final general classification due to the time riders can make up over their rivals when climbing. Given his previous track pedigree, Bradley Wiggins was never previously considered a climber and despite working hard before the start of this cycling season, questions still remained over his ability to go uphill. The Brit, though, has swiftly dispelled those rumours by winning the Criterium du Dauphine, the Tour de Romandie and Paris-Nice this year, the first time anyone has won them all in the same year. Not even the great Eddy Merckx achieved it. It appears Wiggins is in good shape to stay with his rivals throughout the mountains by himself, but his Team Sky team-mates will also be a huge help to him. Richie Porte, best young rider at the 2010 Giro d'Italia, and Michael Rogers, three-time world time trial champion, help Wiggins at the bottom of the climb. But his biggest help comes from Chris Froome, runner-up at last year's Vuelta A Espana and a potential Grand Tour winner. Froome is a talented climber and will be there to ensure Wiggins gets up all the climbs in a good position. The well-oiled Team Sky could be the reason why Wiggins will be in the maillot jaune come July 22. And with the stages that are left, I fully believe there will be the first British winner of the Tour de France.

The points classification will go a little quiet for a few days during the mountain stages as the sprinters are not known for their climbing ability. So far, Peter Sagan has fulfilled potential in his first Tour by winning three stages and be the current leader of the points. The challengers to him appear to be Matt Goss, former lead-out rider for Mark Cavendish, and Andre Greipel, former team-mate of Cavendish. Even though both Goss and Greipel have good lead-out trains to get them to the line, Sagan seems to have the ability to find the right wheel to follow when he doesn't have a train. For that reason alone, I think Sagan will stay in green. A quick note on Cav, though, who went into this Tour saying he only wanted a stage win and wasn't worrying about the green jersey. During the first week, the Manx Missile challenged during the intermediate sprints, which is often only contested by riders going for green. Safe to say Mark is in a good competitive mood ahead of the Olympics.

The only big classification yet to take shape is the King of the Mountains, and that's because there haven't been many mountains to climb. Currently leading the standings is Sweden's Fredrik Kessiakoff, who is surely going to lose the polka-dot jersey by end of stage 10. As I mentioned earlier, Chris Froome will be Wiggins' assistant going up climbs, and for that reason alone I wouldn't mind having money on the Kenyan-born rider winning this classification. The defending King of the Mountains has already pulled out of this tour and many of the other climbers are carrying knocks after all the crashes that happened during the first week of the tour. Cadel Evans' history in mountain biking may also help him reach the top of the KOTM classifications, but I'm sure he'd rather have a second yellow jersey.

Redknapp's Replacement

Following the shock news that Harry Redknapp has apparently left Spurs, I felt it was only right as both a Spurs fan and a trainee sports journalist to run the rule over those in the running for the Spurs job.

Looking at the betting market, David Moyes is the overwhelming odds-on favourite. For the job he has done with the money available to him, Moyes can only receive praise. Yes, he has occasionally spent big, but by and large he has bought players in on the cheap who have done well for Everton. With a larger budget that would be available to him at Spurs, one can only dream of what could lie ahead if the Scotsman was placed in charge. However, there is something I can't put my finger on that casts my doubts as to whether Moyes is the right man for Spurs. After so long at one club, would he easily be able to replicate success elsewhere. Just look at the case of Guy Roux in France, who was in charge of Auxerre for 44 years. He lasted less than four games in his next job. I hope if Moyes is given the job this isn't the case.

Next up is Wigan's Roberto Martinez, who narrowly missed out in the race for the Liverpool job. In the past, Liverpool were a great club, a real dominant force. In recent years, however, that reputation has wavered and I would go as far to say Spurs are perhaps currently the bigger club, must to the protest of my Liverpool supporting father. However, the fact Martinez may have been passed over for what could be seen as a lesser job causes me some concern. Like Moyes, Martinez has done well on a tight budget and could again do well with a bigger budget. But Liverpool must have had their doubts over the Spaniard as they chose Brendan Rodgers to lead the club instead. If they were worried whether Martinez was right for the job, then Spurs might have to be as well.

Scrolling through the rest of the list, none of the other leading candidates strike me as being well suited to the job. Rafa Benitez, who, on reflection, done a very good job at Liverpool but had something close to a mental breakdown during the 2008-09 season with Liverpool in a title race with Manchester United. Andre Villas-Boas, who has limited managerial experience and a nightmare spell at Chelsea. Alan Pardew, who may well have won the LMA Manager of the Year award but hardly set the world on fire when he was with Southampton in League One, a job from which he was sacked less than two years ago.

It's worrying time for a Spurs fan. A new manager needs to put in place soon to ensure a pre-season is not wasted. And one the the first tasks for the new manager will be the battle to keep hold of players like Luka Modric and Rafael Van der Vaart, both of whom have been linked with moves away from the Lane this summer. Talk about having to hit the ground running. All I can hope for is the Spurs board find the right man for the job, and find him quickly.

Weekly Round-Up (14/05/12)

Where else is there to start this week other than the end to the Premier League season? Every year, the final day is referred to as 'thrilling'. However, this year it truly was with more twists and turns than a soap opera. At the top of the table, Manchester City won the title with seconds to spare after coming from two behind in injury time to defeat QPR 3-2. What made the finale at Eastlands extra special was that their title and city rivals Manchester United had walked off the field following a 1-0 at Sunderland thinking they had won the title. When news broke of Aguero's late winner, Sunderland's fans mocked United by performing the 'Poznan'. Even though many people believe the manner in which City have won the title, i.e. buying it, is wrong, I can't help but think surely this is good for the league, adding another team to the pot of potential winners.

QPR themselves were also involved in final day relegation drama this year, with their defeat at Eastlands meaning a Bolton win a Stoke would see the Londoners relegated. The Wanderers did lead 2-1 at half-time, but the game finished 2-2, leaving Bolton to depart the Premier League after 11 years. I feel sorry for them given the injuries they have received to key players over the course of the season, but clearly the replacements just did not perform.

Champions League qualification was still up for grabs, with Arsenal, Newcastle and my beloved Spurs still vying for the final two spots. Newcastle's 3-1 defeat at Everton put pay to any chances they had, leaving it between the North London rivals to see who could watch the Champions League final without worry. A suspect goalkeeping performance from ex-Spurs player Marton Fulop pretty much gifted Arsenal a 3-2 victory at West Brom, and Spurs also won 2-0 at home to Fulham. Unfortunately, this means I will have to nervously watch the final cheering on Bayern, as a Chelsea win would see us lose the spot to Chelsea as the defending champions.

In other sporting news, it was great to see Williams back on the top step of the Formula 1 podium after what seems an eternity. After the season they had last year, it is nice to see the once-great name back where it rightly belongs. It also means that we have seen five different drivers from five different teams win the first five races this year. With such a wide open field, you can't help but think this is surely going to be one of the best seasons ever. The next race at Monaco will be interesting, a track where comeback kid Kimi Raikkonen has won before. He is in great form at the minute, so could we be looking at a sixth different driver from a sixth different team triumphing?