Football Corner

After two months, the transfer window has today slammed shut. What a transfer window, eh?

Obviously the big spenders in the Premier League were Manchester City, spending over £115 million. Mark Hughes was certainly given to freedom to spend money left, right and centre, building almost a fantasy football team in the process.

It seems the majority of football news in Europe has surrounded Real Madrid this summer. The Spanish giants have spent nearly a quarter of a billion pounds on the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Kaka. Many football betting experts believe Real may be the team to beat in the Champions League this season and personally, I agree with them.

Elsewhere in the transfer window, Tottenham completed a transfer deadline day deal, bringing Portsmouth midfieder Niko Kranjcar to Fratton Park. Kranjcar became the second Portsmouth player to join Harry Redknapp at Spurs, following the arrival of Peter Crouch earlier this summer.

Many leading figures in the game have questioned whether or not Manchester City can win the Premier League title this season. Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has already dismissed City's chances, however both Harry Redknapp and Martin O'Neill think Mark Hughes' men are contenders.

With the players they have signed over the summer (Gareth Barry, Roque Santa Cruz, Emmanuel Adebayor, Carlos Tevez etc;) you would think that they must be contenders, however it is how they gel together is the main thing. If they lose two or three games on the trot, suddenly pressure begins to mount and the players begin to lose interest, so it is vital Hughes keeps all of his players happy.

So, can City really challenge? I'm still undecided, however one things for sure, I wouldn't be gambling against it.

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