Don Robbie

By Oli Dickson Jefford It has been a quiet transfer window for the ‘Top Six’ so far, with none of Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham or  Chelsea having signed a single player yet.   But elsewhere  there have been some interesting moves made, with no team causing a stir quite like Aston Villa.   The second city club managed  to seal the loan signing of Philippe Coutinho, ahead of the likes of Arsenal,  while they also brought in Lucas Digne from Everton for £25m ahead of a raft of clubs.   A loan move for Roma defender Robin Olsen and the £2.5m signing of former Dundee United youngster Kerr Smith are further statements of intent  under new boss Steven Gerrard .   Just over a decade ago Villa were regulars in the top half and often pushing for European football, though a decline over the past decade saw them spend multiple seasons in the championship.   However, their intentions of returning to the top half a...

By Oli Dickson Jefford It has been almost 30 years since the old First Division merged into the Premier League, a moment that changed football both across the UK and the globe. The Premier League has made superstars of its biggest players and managers and turned its clubs into some of the biggest teams in the sporting world. The past 30 years has delivered some classic encounters, more often than not fuelled by some key rivalries across both players and managers. We take a look at some of the biggest rivalries of the Premier League era. Alex Ferguson v Arsene Wenger No rivalry defines the Premier League era like Ferguson v Wenger. Between 1996 and 2004 the title was won by either Manchester United or Arsenal, with arguably the two greatest managers of the Premier League era bringing English football to new heights. United and Arsenal were each other’s biggest rivals in this era and while there was respect between the two managers, there was also a great deal of animosity. Ferguson once...

  What can Liverpool expect from their first clash against a Steven Gerrard managed side? As much as Steven Gerrard is desperate for his return to Anfield as a manager with Aston Villa not to be made about him, it is largely unavoidable. Gerrard the player spent 17 wonderful years at Liverpool winning everything but that elusive Premier League title. And it is in the very same competition that he takes his new Villa side up to Merseyside on Saturday for the first time since hanging up his boots five years ago. But what can the Liverpool faithful expect from a side managed by a club legend who is now out to get them? Fast start at Villa Gerrard has hit the ground running at Villa since swapping Glasgow for the Midlands in November. The 41-year-old quit as Rangers boss to replace the sacked Dean Smith at Villa Park and has not looked back since, winning three of his first four games at the helm. The only defeat Gerrard has tasted so far was against high-flying Manchester City last we...

The big questions as the Premier League returns By Will Reilly The international break is behind us, having provided three managerial changes in the process, but at last attention can turn back to the Premier League.  It is easy to forget that before England put ten past San Marino to book their place in Qatar, there was quite a title race going on.  Just six points separate the top five and there is even a mathematical chance that West Ham could go top of the league this weekend.  With that in mind, let’s check out the big storylines from the weekend.  Can Stevie G get off to a winning start?  Talking of those managerial changes, none caused more ink to be spilled that Steven Gerrard’s move from Rangers to Aston Villa. Dean Smith had done a remarkable job to get Villa back into the Premier League, but for a team with ambitions of the top half and possibly Europe, this year has been a step back. Now they have the Liverpool legend in charge, and if his record at ...

By Oli Dickson Jefford Having ended Celtic's ironclad grip on the Scottish Premiership in his time at Rangers, Steven Gerrard will now look to revive the fortunes of another fallen giant as he heads to the Midlands to take charge of Aston Villa.  The former England captain brought the league title back to Rangers in an historic unbeaten league campaign, but now does seem like the good time for a new challenge.  It may not be a long-term stay for Gerrard with the Liverpool job looming in the horizon at some stage, it will be interesting to see how he fares at Villa. The club sacked Dean Smith after five straight league defeats and they sit 16th in the Premier League table, taking just ten points from 11 games and sitting only two points above the relegation zone. Yet, despite Jack Grealish’s summer departure, Villa have a squad that should be competing in the top half of the table and potentially challenging for European football. Though that might be beyond Gerrard’s reach aft...

By Oli Dickson Jefford The Premier League boasts some of the best managers in the world with Pep Guardiola, Thomas Tuchel, Jurgen Klopp and Antonio Conte all in the dugouts. While these were all established names before being hired by their current clubs, all managers have to start somewhere. Of the other managers in the Premier League, there are a handful who could find themselves in a ‘top six’ job one day- here are a few of them. Graham Potter Potter forged a strong reputation at Östersunds in Sweden, and also stabilised Swansea during his time in Wales. Since moving to Brighton in 2019, the 46-year-old has continued to receive praise for maximising his squad’s potential. Brighton may have issues scoring but the side is well-organised and the Seagulls are flying high this season, sitting in the top half of the table - Potter deserves huge credit for that. He could already be a top six manager, reportedly rejecting the advances of Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy this summer. However, ...