The Silly Season Continues

Not much of substance to talk about really but here are a few more rambling thoughts...

1) Everton need to continue the youth movement in the back - they are apparently looking at Phil Jagielka and SHOULD be looking at Leighton Baines. Adding those two to the versatile Lescott and Joseph Yobo and you've got a pretty nice starting four in front of Tim Howard.

2) It would seem that Aston Villa have become the poor man's Chelsea - every slightly-better-than-mediocre player who is out of contract or looking to improve his financial position is having his agent drop their name because everyone knows they have money to spend. Anything not involving a right back (to replace Bardsley who is presumably going back to Old Trafford), a central midfielder (to replace the inadequate for a Top 4 finish duo of McCann and Petrov), or a goalkeeper is probably a lot of hot air unless someone else is on the way out the door.

3) I'm sort of shocked that there hasn't been more news about one or more of Liverpool's stable of central midfielders heading out the exit door. If I were any one of Villa, Everton, Blackburn, Reading, or Newcastle I'd be very excited about the possibility of prying away Alonso or Sissoko given the fact that one of those two is now the fourth choice central midfielder - hard to picture either sitting still for that.

4) Speaking of central midfield help, another potential shopping spot is The Emirates Stadium - Alexandre Song was one of Charlton's few bright spots and he'll likely not follow them down to the Championship and he is equally unlikely to figure for the Gunners with Silva, Cesc, and Diaby in the fold with Rosicky also (theoretically) a central midfielder as well as Denilson. I'd imagine he could be had for not much more than the price Birmingham paid for Muamba.

5) Maybe I'm not very bright but doesn't it seem that Manchester United is bidding against itself for Owen Hargreaves? Has any other big name club been liked to him to drive the price up? Aren't Bayern Munich out of the Champions League and presumably a little desperate for cash to retool their squad after finishing third? What exactly is driving the price up? United seemed a little desperate at the beginning of this season and Hargreaves was coming off a great World Cup showing but United have shown that they aren't in desperate straights and Hargreaves obviously wasn't enough to keep Bayern atop the league so I ask again, why so expensive? I'd think £10 million would be about right.

6) Finally, one fantasy note - it would appear that ManYoo might be in the mood to switch starting goalkeepers - next season's line-up is starting to take a little bit of shape: Ben Foster (or that guy from Celtic) in net and Alex as one defender will be a nice set of inexpensive anchors alongside whatever striker ManYoo drafts to replace Saha/Smith/Ole and the striker Chelsea buys to partner Drogba.

Hope you found us again in our new (old) home...