Jonathan Wilson, the inimitable scholar of tactical mechanics with his recent Inverting the Pyramid: A History of Football Tactics (a book I included in a piece on tactical reductionism for this website) has made a very convincing argument why English Premier League clubs have come to dominate the Champions League in the last four seasons.

As we near the end of what has been and still is an exciting season in the EPL, the various gongs and awards are being given out. As usual, they create plenty of controversy, particularly in the case of Ryan Giggs, who was named Footballer of the Year despite only starting 12 league games this season.

It's impossible to see Manchester United relegated from the Premier League...well ever, especially if Sir Alex Ferguson can deliver more success and then can pick a worthy successor to take his place once he retires. United have been so thriving so much recently, that it's difficult to imagine Ferguson letting the club's owner Malcolm Glazer in having too much of a say in who succeeds him.

After seeing both Chelsea and Liverpool lose at the weekend, Manchester City boss Mark Hughes has dismissed claims of a Premier League top four. There's no doubting that City, Everton, Tottenham, and Aston Villa are all doing their best to break up the top four's stranglehold, and recent results have indicated that things won't be easy for England's top clubs.

We still have a bit of catching up to do on Blue Hawks as we continue to review the recent football activities, but sometimes a story presents itself that demands coverage. Seems like the the boss of Premier League leading Liverpool has taken it upon himself to be the self-annoited spokesperson for the other 18 managers in the EPL by launching a full-fledged assault on Man United boss, Alex Ferguson.

I watched this one at the bar, slamming my fist down at how Reo-Coker and Barry can't seem to remember how to make a clear, decisive pass to get the ball up to Young and Gabby. Not that it would have helped much anyway—both runners seem to have run themselves out ages ago. Where is Agbonlahor's swagger?

Those of us round long enough to remember the Ipswichs, Blackburns and QPRs of old running rampant in the early days of the Premier League may have winced listening to Setanta's commentators gag with delight as Dossena's lobbed long ball made it Liverpool 4, Manchester United 1.  "This is why this is the greatest league [.

Big Story
It might be early in the season, but the obituary notices are already being written in England: the Big Four is dead. Remember the Big Five from the 1980s (Liverpool, Man Utd, Arsenal, Tottenham, Everton)?

Stuff to read while you miss the sitter of the season........... Big Four is dwindling. (EPL Talk) Rogerio Ceni scores again. (See The Cup) Reviewing The Damned United. (Unprofessional Foul) Barca still the beesneeze. (SoccerLens) A cokehead's booze line. (Dirty Tackle) Just what is Southgategate? (Fisted Away) Help name that city.

The buildup to the English Premier League season, at least in the past few years, always includes a discussion about a potential shakeup in the top four places. Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea...

That the EPL is the best championship in the world is plain for everyone to see. The teams are far and away the strongest, most physical, and quickest. With exceptions to super teams like Barcelona, the four Premier League teams involved in the Champions League can (and do) knock off foreign opposition rather easily.

. Manchester City were up against the first of the ‘Big Four' since their splash on the transfer market, and the Eastlands club came out of the encounter with flying colours. Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia bled his side when he made a mistake that saw him being marked down as the scorer, but for all the wrong [.

It's the perennial discussion, still going on: Can "competitive balance" be enforced by government decree? Andy Burnham, British Culture Secretary, thinks it can. Andy Burnham, the Culture Secretary, is calling for Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool to share their winnings in Europe with other Premier League teams.

Big result in the Premier League today as Manchester City beat Arsenal 4-2. This not only provides them with their first league win over "Big Four" opposition this season, but also keeps their 100% record in tact. Alright so they've only played 4 games, but 4 wins out of 4 is [...]

They Think It's All Over... is bemused by the scheduling of Everton's Carling Cup tie with Tottenham.

Another weekend passes us by and still the big teams are falling over themselves to not take the initiative in the Premiership title race. Of the top 6 teams, only Chelsea won making the league one on the most open in recent history. Over the past few seasons, one or two teams have really stood out come the end of October.

This Sunday was fairly familiar for me. I was sporting a cracking hangover and woke up wondering what happened the previous night. The ‘Big Clash' of the day, as usual, didn't match the hype that it was given. Patrice Evra failed to remember he's a great left-back against Chelsea and an angry Scotsmen made more comments about a referee.

It's a bit early to be making broad statements about the title challengers, but broad statements promote debate, and I'm all about the debating. This season will be a 2 horse race between Chelsea and Arsenal for the premier league.

Man Utd simply lack any flair what so ever, Liverpool sadly have blown it by not having enough players who can play football, and Manchester City don't seem to have the right manager just yet.

First of all I have to point out that Mark Hughes is yet to thank me for my tactical breakdown of how to beat Chelsea on Friday. Maybe he has my old number or something. Did my first blog predict or cause the future? Probably both...

Suddenly the fickle writers have changed their minds again.

Which sport has the best set of fans?

Football or rugby? Which are more passionate, more loyal, more knowledgeable and which generate the more infectious atmospheres?

There is only one answer as far as I am concerned and it's not the group of egg-chasing enthusiasts.

They Think It's All Over... reacts to Chelsea's recent stumbles against Manchester City and Everton.

Much of the talk surrounding the Premier League this season, as with most seasons, is about whether the big four monopoly on the Champions League places can be broken. Only time will tell whether or not Aston Villa, Tottenham, or Manchester City can capitalize on Liverpool's poor start to the season, but a perhaps more intriguing question is whether or not this would be a good thing.