2011-2012 SeasonPreview

Yet again the speculations are high and the beginning 2 weeks have been of great turbulence, both on and off the pitch. The longest running transfer saga of Fabregas returning to the ‘club he supported as a boy’, finally came to an end. The opening weekend marred by civil protests and riots in London and other areas of England haven’t really helped and its almost perturbing that Spurs haven’t played a single match despite first 2 weekends being over. Nevertheless, the season is in fact up and kicking and here are my predictions for the upcoming campaign.

Champions:

Man United: Can’t see anyone else tipping them off. Last season, despite being one of the weakest United sides of recent history, the comfort in which the title was eventually won, alarmed pundits all across about the dipping quality of English teams. United are still to forget the pain inflicted upon them by the great assembly of Players in Barcelona and the departure of old dogs such as Van der Sar, Neville and in particular Scholes has created a void which will take time to fill. Although the recent signings will try to put up a performance themselves but it won’t be easy at the Trafford. De Gea, Jones, Young, Cleverly and Welback will need to outperform themselves to be a United player. Schneider’s signing could be pivotal for the season. Still can’t see them matching Barca unless some real injection of talent comes. Easy league title but the Champions League Title will keep eluding them this year too.

Runner Up:

Chelsea: For all their oil based money, the blue half of Manchester will finally succumb to the huge expectations. Chelsea with a manager who is being compared to “the chosen one” himself looks a man with an intelligent head above his shoulders. Despite the rejection of Modric’s bid twice, Chelsea aren’t still out of the transfer market and with signing of Mata complete, Roman is still leaving his checkbook open for more spending. El Nino needs to hit form soon and the aging legs of Lampard and Terry will be put to test. Malouda, Kalou and Anelka have to prove their worth against the millions of Citeh. Semi Finals in UCL is on the cards if the last week of transfer market is taken care of. Will finish 2nd above city by 5 points.

3rd Place:
Manchester City: Being in the shadow of their neighbors has been a painful experience for the citeh, and the inflow of huge amount of Douche by the Emirates, they look poised to challenge for the tital. The addition of Aguero can be a killer blow for all the opponents and Tevez more or less looks likely to stay. Hence with a frontline of Tevez, Aguero, Dzeko, Ballotelli and the sure shot dispensable Bellamy, Adebayor and Roque, can make even Madrid eat their pants. Despite such a flattering strike force, the man they need to shine is Silva. Their aim of playing in the UCL has finally been fulfilled and they are going to be a serious title challenger but a post Christmas pressure will lead to an eventual slump and take them behind Chelsea in the table. The addition of Nasri might be a key factor and the Community Shield loss to United will ask questions about the strength in character.

4th Place:

Tottenham Hotspur: The last season proved to be a mixed affair with gigantic wins again both the Milan Giants followed by an almost average performance in domestic league. A lot will depend on whether Harry can keep Luka and get rid of squad players such as Krankjar and Crouch. Playing in UEFA Cup will make the season tiring. A domestic cup is also on the cards but besides that they will do wonders to finish in top 4. Diarra is on his way to the Lane while Adebayor signing is also reaching a conclusion. Besides that Harry has a good squad to shrug off the challenge from Pool and Wenger’s lads.

5th Place:

Liverpool: King Kenny’s reign has come at a cost of more than 100 million spending on Carroll, Suarez, Downing, Henderson, Adams, Enrique and Doni. But still they didn’t look much of a title challenger all weekend. Sunderland matched them at most fronts. The only consolation was Adams and Downing not fazed by the strong demands of home fans and Suarez continuing to be as brilliant as ever. Things might get better when Gerrard returns, but it still will be a lot of work to do before a team can be formed out of the squad. This is not the winning time but more of a rebuilding time. A league cup/ FA cup might come home for Anfielders. But they will remain knocked off their perch for some years to come

6th Place:

Arsenal: Perhaps the most disturbing season for Arsene Wenger awaits. Last year, their chase for 4 trophies vaporized within a month and this season the slump keeps continuing. With Fabregas finally making a move from a talismanic captain to a bench-warming role and Nasri almost sure to go for higher wages tournament being held in Man City, Wenger’s problems just keep growing. So much hush about buying Samba, Cahill, Jagielka bit nothing coming out of it. They have a severely depleted squad putting huge pressure on Walcott, Wilshire and Persie. Vermalean looks to be commanding but a serious need for his partner still awaits. More enforcement needed in attack too else top 4 may elude them for longer than just this season. The crowd has finally lost its faith and patience in Wenger who seems to be building a team for future for a very long time now. 6 years of dry spell hasn’t really helped.

7th, 8th and 9th:

Everton, Wolves and Villa: In no particular order. Calling Wolves a top 10 contender in itself a bold move but I can see them tipping off Villa and Everton in this particular run. Their last year survival was a miracle of some sort but they have really built strongly after that with good sums at disposal of Mic Mac. Everton as usual will be doing wonders against top teams with uncharacteristic defeats against the minnows and Villa need a lot of reshaping after departure of their 2 best players in Downing and Young. N’Zogbia seems to be a good buy though and Villa will be up there among top 10 throughout the season

10th, 11th, 12th and 13th:

Newcastle, Fulham, Stoke and West Brom: in no particular order:. Fulham are playing in Europe again and that might take a toll on the players. Despite having a good squad, they might just find it hard to go through the season with ease as they might have to play more than 14 games if their Europa run continues. Dempsey, Zamora, Johnson will have huge part to play. Coming to Newcastle, the departure of Enrique to Pool and Nolan to West Ham has left voids and the bad boy in good form – Barton isn’t really a toon lately but Newcastle have shown character, after a dismal season, they started brilliantly against Arsenal and a strong win against fierce rivals Sunderland has already got Ashley sipping more beers. Stoke again have been the best promoted team in last 5 seasons, their adventures in Europe telling the story of not just survival in top flight but how far they have come of age. In Pulis they have one of the best managers around. Their accolades also included an FA Cup final appearance and they will be back in their Britannia ‘Arena’. They are almost impossible to beat at home and a good away run might even see them breaking into top 10. Signing Shane Long was a shrewd move by Roy Hodgson who seems to relish the chance of upgrading mid table teams. He did it with Fulham and he is all set to do it with the Baggies. West Brom are going to be too good to fall into the relegation battle and a good run in a cup is expected. This campaign will mostly go into consolidation for Hodgson and 2 years down the line a consistent top 10 finish may be guaranteed but again this is EPL we are talking about.

14th, 15th, 16th and 17th:

Sunderland, Bolton, QPR and Norwich: Black Cats have lost perhaps their best young talent to Liverpool and this season will be a test of Bruce’s character. Though apparent lack of quality might hinder their progress. The departure of Bent to Villa has been a huge blow and signing of Brown, Oshea and Wickham might prove decisive. Should finish above Bolton though if Owen Coyle can get the best out of Davies, Taylor and Jussi then things may just change. If last season was any symptom then Bolton after losing 7 out of their last 9 league games were worst performers after Christmas except for Hammers. Not a lot of additions in the squad and seems like heading for narrow escape from the drop zone and a very dull season. QPR backed by huge sums of money did well to hold on to the Charismatic Taraabt and look a good outfit, though the opening day mauling by Bolton made a harsh welcome to the premiership life. Will be tough but they will stay up. They have more quality on the pitch compared to fellow promotion holders. Paul Lambert made a remarkable transformation at Norwich by getting them to the Premier League and looks focused enough to keep them there. Although in EPL your focus can be the last thing that can help you survive. They will have to fight till the last day of the championship to retain their league status but somehow I see them holding off the challenge from Wigan and survive

18th:

Wigan:

Wigan have stretched their luck too far and too often. A number of miraculous escapes on the final day of the season have seen them survive the top flight for a tad too long. This year I guess their luck has finally ran out. Martinez stayed but NZogbia didn’t and Cleverly went back to Manchester United, totally baptized. Rodallega and McCarthy will be crucial for them but somehow they will fall short this time round

19th:

Swansea City:

Brendan Rodgers has been one of the most prodigal coaches that the nation has seen for some time. Back to back promotions and now into the league through play offs. The Welsh team are living a dream. George Graham, Lita and Wayne Routledge will be the focus players who will need to give their best if the swans have any chance to stay in the top flight. Although in the end it might just prove a task too tough. They will be more like the Blackpools of last year, brave and lovable yet might slip down.

20th:

Blackburn Rovers:

Blackburn made a late escape last season as Steve Kean struggled throughout the latter half of the season. Little has happened this season except the flabbergasting rumors of Kaka, Ronaldinho and Robinho signing for them (Quite a Brazilian flavor for Indian owners). The departure of Jones to United was devastating. And if their defensive giant Samba is to leave, the final nail in the coffin will be stuck. Can’t see Steve Kean getting past Christmas without sacking. Might turn out one of the most horrific season ever for the once championship winners in times of Shearer.

Vertigo

He was wearing that typical Che Guevara T-shirt that has never left him since he joined college. That was the one of the most convenient ways of recognizing him in a crowd of similar dumbs.

“hey, whats up with your Che Tee? “ I said slapping him on his back as he sat there in the dingiest of bars in Banaras. He was sipping on his AC Black with a small filtered Win fulfilling the smoke cravings. I had just returned from an internship in Mumbai with one of the leading Investment Banks to complete my final year in college and then get placed in an even bigger firm. I had developed quite a penchant for the high class pubs and wandering hippie girls with long hair and their liberal notions and tendencies. And in his presence I certainly felt devoid of my insecurities, elevated from his lowly life and so much more hip

He gave his usual lop sided grin, “I thought it looked cool”. He lacked an apparent irony, and no matter how innocent his reply was, I was already feeling bad. I felt intellectually hurt. I wanted him to give him a lecture about Che and what he did to the world that results in every Tom, Dick and Harry wearing one of those Viva La Revolucion T-Shirts. But then I restrained myself, he wouldn’t have understood anyways.

“hmm, seems like you are pretty cool, dude. The t-shirt matches your personality too”. There was no way even a bimbo was going to miss the sarcasm in my voice but somehow it just flew over his head.

“This is cool fashion man, something like banging head and smoking up”. That summed up his understanding of the world and spirituality brought upon by nationalist feelings of Guevara

He was one of the most confused and dumb person I had ever met in my life. The only thing that related us was that we played in the same band, and he somehow, despite being incredibly obtuse, was a gifted guitar player. Perhaps the best I have ever seen. But as it happened in due course, my ambitions started to take a toll on my recently grown passions and I had to divert from drums practice during third year of my college. Most of our band mates had dispersed, getting good internships somewhere, with him the only one left behind in college doing a project with a proff as he couldn’t score an internship. He kept creating music, smoking up and living in his cell.

And every time I met him, he would rave about some defunct heavy metal band from the 80s or some obscure 70s progressive band like Uriah Heep. During the free time during summers, he managed to gather a band of his own, which was an achievement as he was perhaps most unpopular of all the lot in a place where being in a rock band was like being part of an Oscar winning movie starring against Bonham Carter and playing Hannibal Lecter. So his newly assembled group of headbangers did the cover of Santana's Black Magic Woman each and every night. Sometimes they played it twice or thrice in a single day. And when it was not Santana, they would play, No woman No cry. I cried almost everytime out of boredom and their too small a set list.

He would pity me every now and then. “Bro, I see potential in you, you’d make up a great drummer. Just pick up the sticks and join us in the garage” He strummed a riff from Satisfaction

“But you don’t have a garage, do you? You guys practice in the common room of our hostel. And the drum kit is shabby, and moreover I have things to do friend!!”

“yeah, I mean you can practice with us as long as you are hanging around, you look a natural” I almost took offence at this as I considered him the worst judge of a person, in fact worst judge of everything. But I somehow didn’t feel like saying no to him as I wasn’t up to much anyways.

One day he took me to meet another group of Jammers who were practicing some pretty hardcore metal stuff. They all looked like descending directly from hell with their weird hairstyles and awkward jargons. Their room smelled of pot. And then one of them asked “Hey Bro, can I borrow your crybaby, your wah-wah? And the drummer handed him the foot-pedal. They told me, that following Nirvana was cool, Pink Floyd was cooler but the killer following was of Jim Morrison, it was coolest. I laughed at all their notions. It was all so kiddish and wannabe. I hated this bunch of kids with instruments in their hands, toking up and crying to change the world.

And that’s where it all started.

“Dude, I am going to play in the youth fest, we won the inter university championship and now they are calling us to Gangtok to take part in the National youth Fest. It’s going to be awsome”

I felt a bit jealous of his joy. I had never felt so happy ever in my life, but then again he was happy everytime. He was such a moron that he could not control his hormones to shed tears in sorrow and smile in joy. He was always happy in the end.

“yeah that’s cool, so when are you guys leaving?”

“well, what? Aren’t you coming along?” – He was shocked that I was not being a part of his stupid plan

“Well Dude, I got to get back to my internship in Mumbai, I just took a week’s break to come home, I have to go back in a day or two. But yeah, good luck to you and your endeavors. “

And then it happened. I came to know from my college friends that he never came back after the youth fest. It almost became a folklore in our campus about the most stupid student who ever came to our college, who turned out to be the best guitarist it had seen and who never returned back from the mystic Far East.

After doing a lot of research I found out the truth about what exactly happened while he went to the fest in Sikkim.

His performance was at prime of its beauty, the town was dancing to his songs. He played Freebird, Roadhouse Blues, Communication breakdown and Comfortably Numb there. He was the overnight superhero of the place. The band won the competition and he was awarded the best musician award. All of a sudden he was feeling light, he had money, he could do things that he wanted to.

He even planned upon buying another Che Tee and Adidas Shoes, that always eluded him because of his low pocket money; There was so much he could do now.

“So dude, how do you plan to spend this money?”

“Well! I thought over it. I am gonna travel with the money. Will try saving some if I can and will be back in a month”

“But what about those Adi Shoes? And what about college? This is final year mate, you are going to get placed”

“Well I thought about that as well. I don’t really need shoes right now, these sneakers are doing well and moreover College has been over for me long time back. I am not going to pass anyways, leave apart getting a job. My college is over”

He emphasized on the word ‘over’. He wanted his emotions felt.

“So where are you planning to go? Have you thought anything?”

“nah, haven’t planned, but yeah will be hitch hiking mostly. Will travel on foot and will explore Indo-Tibet regions of North East mostly”

“well, then cya soon mate, you really ROCKED”

And that was the last conversation anyone ever had with him. After he set on his travels, he never returned, although he became a legend in college as “the ultimate traveler” and a several other names.

Time kept flying and hence changed things. I got a big job and started a family in Seattle. His disappearance became a lost strand of thought in some distant memory. And then one good day, I drove out of my workplace into a highway jammed with cars. The noise was unbearable making my insides feel hollow. I had an unfamiliar feeling of déjà vu. I felt lost in place and time. There was a thunderstorm arriving from far east, and it made my heart ache. It reminded me of him, the one who got lost. I suppressed a sudden desire to turn my car and try and follow the source of the storm. It felt impossible to extricate myself from the turbulence surrounding me.

“honey, it’s me. Hey listen I got something to tell you. There was this friend of mine”….and I explained everything to her. And then I told her my hopeless quest to find him. She was aghast at the idea but then later on she felt the desire, the unrest that I had been going through and reluctantly agreed. I told her that if I don’t find him in a week, I will return back to the so called Normal Life I was leading.

The thing called Internet which was just a myth five years back had reached a new level of penetration among general population and we the tech savvy, well informed generation knew how to use it.

And then there was a thing called Google. It was modern Day version of God, Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omniscient. It knew everything. I tried different searches regarding story of a college guy who got lost in the jungle and after 3-4 tries, there he was, distinctively recognizable. He hadn’t changed a bit in last 5 years, he looked the same with his stupid grin of his. But what struck me, and struck me hard was that he was some Lama in a Sikkimese Monastery. From what I knew about Lamas was that they were people very high up the hierarchy among Buddhist Monks, perhaps highest.

2 days later, I was riding down a dense forest lane when the truck suddenly slowed down. I looked at the driver, old and ornery, he started to inspect the rear tires.

“well, you do have a spare one, don’t you?”

He glowered at me and then went to the side of the truck and squatted there. Deliberately, he took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and started to smoke.

I realized after quarter of an hour that he was not going to move so I decided to cover the remaining distance on feet unless off course I could find another lift.

And then I shaded my eyes and looked at the horizon. Far off, I could see a colorful flutter of flags of a monastery. My curiosity was reaching a climax, it was almost unbearable to quench my desire to know. I didn’t know what exactly I was seeking, I had just been running, felt like I had even lost interest in meeting an old friend, the one who got lost. How ironical it was, the one who got lost was the one who knew it all and here I was apparently having everything and still so lost.

When I entered the meditation hall, it was covered in saffron and gold. And there he was, surrounded by a big entourage. I had to suppress a desire to laugh when people started rustling and bowing around him.

“Lets talk about life”

And all the whispers died down instantaneously. There was a serene calm about the way he spoke.

And then he kept speaking. I felt embarrassed by the simplicity of his ideas. I just wondered, what would I have been doing had I been at home, probably checking stock quotes, having a beer, watching a life sucking sitcom, a movie, football… everything just felt apart by his ideas. I had felt so complete in my assurance, about my own superiority. In intellectual as well as material sense and particularly in comparison to the least intelligent person I had ever met in my life.

And then he spoke

“Compassion is something intrinsic to all sentient beings” and everything around us dissolved. And that was when I started feeling awe and shame. Compassion was the word….

Vertigo

And then clarity.

I decided to meet him after the session and discuss how has life been…

I thought it would be a good life now, good enough!!!!