:00:00. > :00:41.Good afternoon the Premier League is back and so is Match of the Day Two
:00:42. > :00:47.Extra. And we are joined by Philip Neville and Matt lawton. We are on
:00:48. > :00:54.BBC1 on five live and on the BBC sport web-site and there is plenty
:00:55. > :00:59.to discuss on this opening weekend. Including of course Louis van Gaal's
:01:00. > :01:04.defeat as Manchester United manager in his first match with Swansea. We
:01:05. > :01:13.have reaction to Palace coming so close to getting a point at Arsenal.
:01:14. > :01:22.That is Spurs' late win under Mauricio Pochettino. Manuel
:01:23. > :01:26.Pellegrini begins his defence of the title against Newcastle and
:01:27. > :01:34.Liverpool play Southampton. The events at Old Trafford dominate the
:01:35. > :01:45.back pages today. The Telegraph is saying, false start, our confidence
:01:46. > :01:50.is smashed says van Gaal. The Sunday Mirror say show me the money. The
:01:51. > :01:56.Sup says Manchester United confidence is smashed to pieces. The
:01:57. > :02:01.Mail say stashed up, but -- smashed up, but their main picture is of
:02:02. > :02:11.David Moyes. They have interviewed him. We want you to get involved. If
:02:12. > :02:18.you're surfing Twitter you can find a picture of Swansea celebrating
:02:19. > :02:24.their win at Old Trafford and Chelsea players getting ready for
:02:25. > :02:30.the game. Whatever takes your fancy. First the game at Old Trafford.
:02:31. > :02:35.First we will hear from Louis van Gaal. What is your verdict on
:02:36. > :02:42.today's game? Verdict? I don't think that I have to speak about the
:02:43. > :02:49.verdict. It is very disappointing that we have lost our first home
:02:50. > :02:57.match, because we don't reach the level we can bring. I think we were
:02:58. > :03:03.very nervous. In the first half. But in the second half, we never played
:03:04. > :03:10.as a team. And therefore I am responsible, because you have to
:03:11. > :03:15.play in the structure and they didn't do that so much. You cannot
:03:16. > :03:21.bring it in your first home match, that is also disappointing for the
:03:22. > :03:24.fans. That's a pity. Philip Neville, did anything about Manchester
:03:25. > :03:30.United's performance surprise you yesterday? No, this was a team and a
:03:31. > :03:36.set of players that finished seventh. You don't just go from that
:03:37. > :03:42.to a Championship performance. They were without experienced players.
:03:43. > :03:48.And I think yesterday was only confirmation that Manchester United
:03:49. > :03:54.needs to invest and invest heavily. Did anything surprise you Steve? No,
:03:55. > :03:59.the optimism was based on bringing in a successful manager. But the
:04:00. > :04:05.team is the same team that finished seventh last year and there hasn't
:04:06. > :04:11.by any concrete changes. I heard John Murray read a text from a
:04:12. > :04:18.listener who said all that United have done is put lipstick on a pig!
:04:19. > :04:24.If Ashley Young at left-back is lipstick on a pig, I guess it is. I
:04:25. > :04:29.think it was difficult, you could see him struggling, the sort of
:04:30. > :04:35.started 3-5-2 and then went to a back four. I don't think Paul
:04:36. > :04:41.Scholes' comments after the game would have helped him. But Scholes
:04:42. > :04:45.was right their success has been based on 4-4-2. It is the exciting
:04:46. > :04:52.style they like to play and as Scholes said, slow, boring. Slow,
:04:53. > :04:56.boring. If you look at all the back pages, you know it is all about van
:04:57. > :05:02.Gaal slamming some of the United players for a lack of confidence,
:05:03. > :05:06.wanting money. If in the first game of last season, David Moyes had put
:05:07. > :05:10.Ashley Young at left-back, do you think the headlines would be backing
:05:11. > :05:16.the manager in the same way? I don't think. Putting Ashley Young at
:05:17. > :05:22.left-back, you're breaking the tradition of the club. He is looking
:05:23. > :05:28.at the squad and probably 3-5-2 is the best way. But it didn't work
:05:29. > :05:36.yesterday. Why is 3-5-2 the best way? The best players are your
:05:37. > :05:42.centre forwards with Rooney, van Persie and Mata. To get them in the
:05:43. > :05:47.same team it means you have got to play with 3-5-2 with wingers as your
:05:48. > :05:51.full-backs. He has had a look at the squad in pre-season and they had a
:05:52. > :05:57.fantastic pre-season, yesterday was a wake up call. There is still a lot
:05:58. > :06:01.to do. Do you think because there has been so much coverage of how
:06:02. > :06:07.United were going to play, do you think that was a bonus for Swansea,
:06:08. > :06:10.who could, who had as much of a pre-season as they wanted to to work
:06:11. > :06:15.on, knowing that United would play a certain way. Because it has been
:06:16. > :06:19.signposted so much? Phil's probably more qualified to tell us if it
:06:20. > :06:26.helps managers knowing the way a team is going to play. I watched
:06:27. > :06:30.Scolari win a World Cup when everyone knew how he was playing and
:06:31. > :06:34.he let everybody in the training sessions each day. I think they
:06:35. > :06:40.played badly and while I have highlighted tactical changes and
:06:41. > :06:44.Ashley Young at left-back, there is a dearth of quality. It underlines
:06:45. > :06:49.the difficult job that fifl was involved in trying to do last
:06:50. > :06:53.season. There has been a decline in standards at that club -- fifl was
:06:54. > :06:57.involved in trying to do last season. There has been a decline in
:06:58. > :07:02.players. There are good players at the club. How many? There is a lot.
:07:03. > :07:08.There is a nervousness. Particularly playing at Old Trafford, when teams
:07:09. > :07:13.come, they fancy winning. That has never been known. I think what we
:07:14. > :07:19.found out last year is that it has to be major investment and not just
:07:20. > :07:30.players, run of the mill players, but world class, two, three, maybe
:07:31. > :07:33.four world class players. There are Are the quality players
:07:34. > :07:36.underperforming. Van Gaal was saying they won't playing with their
:07:37. > :07:41.brains. Why are experienced players who have won a lot of trophies
:07:42. > :07:47.making wrong decision at crucial times? I think when van Gaal goes
:07:48. > :07:53.into a club, it does take two or three months to get used to his
:07:54. > :07:58.philosophy. Playing 3-5-2 is a change. A lot of players have won
:07:59. > :08:03.league Championship medals. But it will take time and the next two
:08:04. > :08:13.weeks are a massive, massive era for the club. We will talk more about
:08:14. > :08:20.Manchester United and Swansea today. The first game of this Sunday is at
:08:21. > :08:26.Anfield, Liverpool against Southampton. Steve Borrow is
:08:27. > :08:32.commentating on this. I would imagine there is real excitement
:08:33. > :08:35.arounden field -- around Anfield. Yes Luis Suarez is gone, but there
:08:36. > :08:41.are exciting players who have come in? You're right. I have been
:08:42. > :08:44.talking to a few of the fans and the supporters love nothing more Nan a
:08:45. > :08:50.new signing. Liverpool have had more signings than anyone can probably
:08:51. > :08:57.remember in recent history. Yes, the biggest player has left. That is one
:08:58. > :09:03.of fascinating conundrums of the season, how Liverpool cope, Brendan
:09:04. > :09:07.Rodgers said they scored without Luis Suarez. But how will the
:09:08. > :09:12.psychological effect be different. When you talk to defenders when Luis
:09:13. > :09:19.Suarez was on the pitch, there was a difference. How will they line up
:09:20. > :09:22.and the new faces fit in. Lovren is probably I think the most important
:09:23. > :09:27.signing that they have made. He was the play hear the they were crying
:09:28. > :09:33.out for in the last few games of the season, where they conceded goals at
:09:34. > :09:38.Crystal Palace. A leader, Brendan Rodgers says he feels he has
:09:39. > :09:42.replaced Jamie Carragher. So I think he is the most important
:09:43. > :09:46.acquisition, but we know what they were capable of and they conceded
:09:47. > :09:51.more goals than Chelsea and Manchester City and Lovren will help
:09:52. > :09:59.them. There is a sprinkler right behind him. I can't be the only one
:10:00. > :10:03.thinking I hope it hits him! As far as Southampton are concerned, in
:10:04. > :10:14.some ways the pressure is off them today. It is unknown territory. I
:10:15. > :10:19.will split the fee if it does come off. Ronald cue mavrn could have --
:10:20. > :10:23.Koeman could have up to five new faces, including Shane Long. No one
:10:24. > :10:30.expects them to get anything today. The difference last season I -- is
:10:31. > :10:34.every manager knew Southampton would give you a game. They have lost five
:10:35. > :10:38.players and it will be interesting to see if they can get the new
:10:39. > :10:43.players to hit the ground running. It is a big ask and a big task to
:10:44. > :10:48.follow from eighth last season. But today they can play with freedom as
:10:49. > :10:52.long as they don't concede early. No one expects them to get anything.
:10:53. > :10:58.Even around Anfield expects Liverpool to get off to a winning
:10:59. > :11:04.start. Annoyingly they turned the sprinkler off just before the
:11:05. > :11:08.interview. He left us quickly at the end. Steve, Southampton, you have
:11:09. > :11:17.seen them pre-season, you were impremssed with what you saw. Yes, I
:11:18. > :11:26.saw them at Brighton and I was impremgssed with Tadic. -- impressed
:11:27. > :11:32.with Tadic. He was the best player in the Dutch league. Pelle has added
:11:33. > :11:37.to that. Shane Long, whether you think it is worth ?12 million. He is
:11:38. > :11:40.a difficult player to play against. You ask any defender. They have now
:11:41. > :11:51.got I think a better goalkeeper. I have not seen a lot of Fraser
:11:52. > :11:54.Forster, I think he was better than Boruc. And they had unity in the
:11:55. > :12:01.game with Brighton. It was almost as if they had been through the debris
:12:02. > :12:05.of June and were left with a smallish group of players, who were
:12:06. > :12:09.going, there is only us left, let's bond together and they played well.
:12:10. > :12:14.I'm worried about Southampton. I saw it a bit with Liverpool, not
:12:15. > :12:19.Liverpool, Tottenham when they brought in so many players and it is
:12:20. > :12:24.very difficult to integrate a lot of players in a short space of time.
:12:25. > :12:29.They were my team of the season, they played some fantastic football.
:12:30. > :12:35.I know they have lost five players, it could be six if Schneiderlin
:12:36. > :12:43.goes. How they integrate the players quickly will be the key to this
:12:44. > :12:49.season. Who do you think the biggest loss is? You know, probably Lallana.
:12:50. > :12:56.I think he is an outstanding player. It is a shame he is injured now. But
:12:57. > :13:02.yeah, so exciting and just kind of a player that represented what their
:13:03. > :13:07.ambition and their flair. The reason I ask is Will said if Liverpool want
:13:08. > :13:12.to finish top four, they need to get a higher rank of striker than
:13:13. > :13:14.Lambert. We should suggest he is not too concerned about Southampton
:13:15. > :13:21.losing Lambertment do you think Liverpool still need another
:13:22. > :13:29.striker? Yes, Luis Suarez got 31 goals. Him and Sturridge up front
:13:30. > :13:34.got 52 goals. Sturridge does get injured, he is still young. They
:13:35. > :13:38.have Champions League and I think they need a world class players.
:13:39. > :13:44.They have brought in eight good players, and they need strength
:13:45. > :13:51.in-depth. I still think they need a top striker. Fall cow, somebody of
:13:52. > :13:56.that ilk. Jamie Carragher said it is a difficult player to identify.
:13:57. > :14:03.Because Sturridge deserves to be the main striker, the players he has
:14:04. > :14:09.bout, he will play with one striker. I take Phil's point, Falcao you
:14:10. > :14:14.would bite their hapds off, but what does that Plean for -- mean for
:14:15. > :14:19.Sturridge and he would have to change the way he sets the team up.
:14:20. > :14:23.I almost think it is, Eto'o was mentioned, different players, a good
:14:24. > :14:28.striker, better than Lambert, but not someone that is necessarily
:14:29. > :14:34.going to displace Sturridge. I think he would work that out. Sturridge,
:14:35. > :14:39.the kind of guy he was in Sturridge's mind he was the main man
:14:40. > :14:43.laster season. Sturridge was not happy if he wasn't playing as the
:14:44. > :14:51.focal point of the attack. But Rodgers made it work by using
:14:52. > :14:56.sterling in various positions. So... They could get in Falcao and play
:14:57. > :15:01.them both. Are you saying some strikers would replace Luis Suarez
:15:02. > :15:07.from a goal view, but actually it is harder to replace him from a subtle
:15:08. > :15:13.of position view? Yes it is the stature of having someone up there
:15:14. > :15:18.who is world class. Lambert is a good signing. Sturridge can't play
:15:19. > :15:22.all the games with the Champions League. Lambert has been signed for
:15:23. > :15:26.the Stoke away, the Southamptons away. When you're playing teams
:15:27. > :15:30.outside the top four and he has the experience to handle that. But in
:15:31. > :15:40.the big Champions League games you need people that defenders think I
:15:41. > :15:44.will have a tough night tonight. Let's move onto someone else you
:15:45. > :15:48.have been speaking to, Jamie carried one one-day, David Moyes in another.
:15:49. > :15:55.This 3-page article in the on Sunday, he looks up lot better than
:15:56. > :16:08.he did when he left United. Does he seem so? He does, and I told him so.
:16:09. > :16:13.He looked grey, didn't he? We all did? I can remember Kevin Keegan,
:16:14. > :16:18.his head turning grey very quickly and his complexion changed and I
:16:19. > :16:23.thought watching David Moyes last season was like that -- his hair. He
:16:24. > :16:27.bounced out of his car, he has been keeping fit over the summer. Does he
:16:28. > :16:34.admit that he made mistakes question does he feel he made mistakes? I'm
:16:35. > :16:37.not sure he necessarily things he made mistakes but he would admit he
:16:38. > :16:43.would approach the job in a different way, in hindsight, but it
:16:44. > :16:46.is easy to say in hindsight. I think he felt, and again, I keep going
:16:47. > :16:53.back to fill, but we are sitting here with his assistant, I think
:16:54. > :16:56.they have all been, since April, they have picked over it and
:16:57. > :16:57.disgusted and have been trying to they have picked over it and
:16:58. > :17:01.disgusted and have been trying work out what they might have done
:17:02. > :17:06.differently and where it went wrong -- discussed it. He didn't really
:17:07. > :17:12.want to elaborate, I don't think he saw a great deal of value in it,
:17:13. > :17:17.because it is gone. The big thing for him was he did not feel he had
:17:18. > :17:20.enough time to succeed or fail, that was his line. People may agree or
:17:21. > :17:23.disagree with that, but the other thing was the nature of his
:17:24. > :17:29.departure, that was the thing that really hurt him. Is the nature of
:17:30. > :17:34.the club and the structure of the club a problem, as much as who is
:17:35. > :17:41.managing? I think when David Moyes got the job, it was a massive thing
:17:42. > :17:51.not having David microbial. Having someone like him -- David Gill, it
:17:52. > :17:54.would have been helpful. The first transfer window was a let down and
:17:55. > :17:58.we needed to bring in new players, the manager now needs to bring in
:17:59. > :18:03.new players, so they have not got over that. It was the way it
:18:04. > :18:06.happened. The last day in the job it was my darkest day in football, the
:18:07. > :18:10.way it was handled, that has been accepted by both parties, and when
:18:11. > :18:16.you sign for Manchester United, you think you will get time, because it
:18:17. > :18:21.is a club that has always encouraged longevity and that is the one thing
:18:22. > :18:23.David Moyes has always said. Would you suggest transfer windows in
:18:24. > :18:29.general for Manchester United have been bad over the last ten years,
:18:30. > :18:32.rather than good? If you look at the start, the last Manchester United
:18:33. > :18:38.central midfielder to scored ten goals or more in a season was Paul
:18:39. > :18:44.Scholes in 2003. Frank Lampard hit double figures in consecutive
:18:45. > :18:51.seasons between 2003 and 2013. I don't think he would say they have
:18:52. > :18:54.had bad windows for ten years. My worry is that this summer's transfer
:18:55. > :18:59.window is looking very much like last summer's. Chelsea have done
:19:00. > :19:02.their business early, Arsenal have done it early, Liverpool have done
:19:03. > :19:06.it early, in the middle and are still doing it. Manchester United
:19:07. > :19:11.have done very little and I am not sure that Luke Shaw or her rarer
:19:12. > :19:23.were on the list that Van Gaal would have handed over Van Gaal before the
:19:24. > :19:26.World Cup -- Herrera. I think this is in the Independent on Sunday
:19:27. > :19:30.today, Manchester United has been a cash cow for the Glazer family for a
:19:31. > :19:33.long time and they have milked it and it is time they gave something
:19:34. > :19:39.back, and they are in urgent need of spending some money. The thing that
:19:40. > :19:43.amazes me is they are securing all of these big sponsorship deals, the
:19:44. > :19:49.most recent one with Adidas, they are paying an awful lot of money,
:19:50. > :19:52.near ?1 billion, you would think they would be sitting there
:19:53. > :19:58.thinking, any chance of actually addressing this so we sponsoring a
:19:59. > :20:03.team that is... ? So I see some pressure really starting to come on
:20:04. > :20:07.people. If the scouting system strong enough, the recruiting
:20:08. > :20:12.process? The structures are all in place. I think when you have a
:20:13. > :20:17.manager like Sir Alex Ferguson, he was so dominant, he identified the
:20:18. > :20:20.players and he went and got them. If you look at his reign, every two,
:20:21. > :20:25.three or four seasons, he would spend a lot of money, even going
:20:26. > :20:31.back to Mike Phelan, Neil Webb, Gary Pallister, Paul Ince, when he
:20:32. > :20:34.rebuilt his team, he always bought four or five players and United are
:20:35. > :20:41.at that stage where they need that Ahmad to galvanise the team. But
:20:42. > :20:44.could you not by some at ?8 million or ?10 million which or do you
:20:45. > :20:49.always have to spend ?40 million players? United has spent ?100
:20:50. > :20:55.million in the last two transfer windows. I think they need to spend
:20:56. > :21:00.50 or ?60 million on one individual players. They used to be ?30 million
:21:01. > :21:04.players, the ?8 million players are now ?20 million players, it is the
:21:05. > :21:08.way the market has gone. I think it is time to rebuild. A couple of
:21:09. > :21:12.years ago, we bought Robin van Persie, he won Man United the
:21:13. > :21:17.league, now it is two or three more players. And do you think
:21:18. > :21:21.yesterday's result, losing at home to Swansea, does it make a tangible
:21:22. > :21:25.difference to how difficult it is for United to move in the next
:21:26. > :21:28.couple of weeks, do target become more expensive because clubs who
:21:29. > :21:34.might sell realised that United's need is getting greater by the day?
:21:35. > :21:40.Is it harder to convince them to come? I don't think it is harder to
:21:41. > :21:44.convince them, you have a ?1 billion sponsorship deal, people know there
:21:45. > :21:50.is a pot of gold waiting to be spent, but in the next two weeks, we
:21:51. > :21:57.have to go and do it. I want to ask what David Moyes' future is, if you
:21:58. > :22:00.say, we can buy any player in the world, people will put their prices
:22:01. > :22:07.up. Where does David Moyes go next, do you think? I think he goes
:22:08. > :22:11.abroad. I don't think there are too many opportunities in England that
:22:12. > :22:14.would necessarily interest him. I think there was definite interest
:22:15. > :22:18.from Crystal Palace, but I don't think he is ready, with the greatest
:22:19. > :22:21.respect to Crystal Palace, I don't think he is ready to drop from
:22:22. > :22:28.Manchester United to Crystal Palace just yet. And so I think he goes
:22:29. > :22:33.abroad. We will talk Crystal Palace in a moment. We have a tweet saying
:22:34. > :22:39.Luis Suarez, Liverpool can't cope without him and with all of these
:22:40. > :22:44.signings, they will be a Tottenham all over again. Let's get the team
:22:45. > :22:49.news from Anfield. As expected, Liverpool start with
:22:50. > :22:52.only one of their three summer signings from Southampton, Dejan
:22:53. > :22:57.Lovren is in to bolster a defence that conceded 50 goals last season
:22:58. > :23:08.and without Luis Suarez, that is an area that must improve if Liverpool
:23:09. > :23:12.are to challenge again. Manquillo starts, on loan from Atletico
:23:13. > :23:21.Madrid, Luke in midfield and Lambert is on the bench. Sam Adelaide
:23:22. > :23:26.Southampton have debuts for Fraser Forster, Shane Long is on the
:23:27. > :23:29.bench, while Morgan Schneiderlin, who has now apparently accepted he
:23:30. > :23:34.has to stay at Southampton, is in the team. Thank you very much for
:23:35. > :23:39.that. In the cricket, by the way, India are 6-0 in their second
:23:40. > :23:44.innings, trailing England by 332 runs, it is on Radio 5Live sports
:23:45. > :23:48.extra. Let's go to one of the other big talking points of the opening
:23:49. > :23:52.weekend, Crystal Palace, not necessarily their defeat at the
:23:53. > :23:55.Emirates, but who is going to be their new manager. After the match,
:23:56. > :24:00.co-chairman Steve Parish spoke to Gary Lineker.
:24:01. > :24:07.Why do you think he was so frustrated, to have to move on? I
:24:08. > :24:09.don't know. For me, it is very important that we have good
:24:10. > :24:13.communication and I think the communication was difficult, so it
:24:14. > :24:16.is difficult for me to tell you. There are lots of things in the
:24:17. > :24:22.press about transfer problems, we never had a problem, I never tried
:24:23. > :24:26.to impose a player on any manager. We were given targets and before
:24:27. > :24:30.that we were given, the sporting director and I got two and we were
:24:31. > :24:36.given another list recently that unfortunately we were told the
:24:37. > :24:39.players were not available from the clubs. There was never any friction,
:24:40. > :24:43.the stories about me wanting certain players and Tony not wanting them is
:24:44. > :24:48.not the case. My job is to get the done when the manager has decided
:24:49. > :24:51.what they want to do. From what Tony achieved last season, we have every
:24:52. > :24:56.faith in him picking the right players. None of that has been a
:24:57. > :25:00.problem, but he seemed to get increasingly frustrated through the
:25:01. > :25:03.summer and whatever it was, you have to ask him. For me, it is about
:25:04. > :25:09.looking forward. We have achieved so much over the four years, it is
:25:10. > :25:12.another important week for me, where I have to do my job and make the
:25:13. > :25:15.right decision about the future of the football club. I am always
:25:16. > :25:19.looking for a manager who will work with me over a long period of time
:25:20. > :25:24.but they have to buy into the things we want to do at the football club
:25:25. > :25:27.and the other investments we have to make. The club has been
:25:28. > :25:31.underinvested for 20 years, so we cannot wave a magic one. We have
:25:32. > :25:34.things in the pipeline, a new training ground, extending the
:25:35. > :25:40.stadium, but the money has to be spread around. Having said that, we
:25:41. > :25:43.agreed a big transfer budget, so it is a good opportunity for somebody
:25:44. > :25:47.to come in and help rebuild the club and make it even bigger.
:25:48. > :25:51.The full eight and a half minutes of that interview is on the BBC sport
:25:52. > :25:57.website, and he said in the interview we would have just the two
:25:58. > :26:04.Tony Pulis. -- have two Aske. His people have denied a claim made in
:26:05. > :26:09.the interview that he may have been seeking work elsewhere and in fact
:26:10. > :26:12.went to seek an extension to his contract at the end of the season
:26:13. > :26:18.and were continuing right through to this week. The suggestion he had
:26:19. > :26:23.other things lined up is "utterly ridiculous". If you know Tony, and
:26:24. > :26:26.have Tony works, Steve, one of the things he looks at is long-term
:26:27. > :26:31.planning and building a club up, so they have the right facilities, the
:26:32. > :26:35.right training, the right ground, even to the extent of the size of
:26:36. > :26:40.the physio room so there are not too many players who think they can get
:26:41. > :26:44.treatment because they have an eagle here or there. It is about the
:26:45. > :26:50.long-term and if he did not think he had the long-term backing...? I had
:26:51. > :26:54.a couple of breakfasts with Tony in Brazil in the World Cup and he was
:26:55. > :26:58.talking about how much he enjoyed the season, he had a great time. He
:26:59. > :27:02.possibly took a bit of persuading to take the job in the first place but
:27:03. > :27:06.he really enjoyed it. Things had gone fantastically well for him. He
:27:07. > :27:12.had been recognised by everybody as to what a great job he had done,
:27:13. > :27:19.Manager Of The Year and everything, but he was talking about the
:27:20. > :27:23.infrastructure of the club and saying it was a championship club in
:27:24. > :27:25.the Premier League and it needed to change. It can't change overnight, I
:27:26. > :27:28.think he understood that, but it does need to change if Crystal
:27:29. > :27:31.Palace are going to be viable as a long-term Premier League
:27:32. > :27:35.proposition. You can only assume he didn't feel that was happening not
:27:36. > :27:39.quickly enough or wasn't that to happen at all. I find it
:27:40. > :27:42.incredible, 48 hours before the start of the season, he has gone
:27:43. > :27:46.through the whole summer, pre-season, building his team to
:27:47. > :27:52.play Arsenal yesterday and four Tony Pulis to walk out, he is an ambition
:27:53. > :27:56.manager -- ambitious manager but he is also loyal to his club so for him
:27:57. > :27:59.to walk out, the circumstances must have been quite severe. He must have
:28:00. > :28:03.seen a lack of ambition going forward and I know the chairman came
:28:04. > :28:07.out last night, I think it was probably damage limitation on his
:28:08. > :28:10.behalf, but I think Crystal Palace have lost the manager that would
:28:11. > :28:14.probably guarantee keeping them in the Premier League. He wants
:28:15. > :28:19.everything done the right way. It strikes me, I think you are right,
:28:20. > :28:23.two days before the start of the season, but the frustration is
:28:24. > :28:26.transfer related. It is three weeks before the end of the transfer
:28:27. > :28:30.window and there is clearly some sort of power struggle. They have a
:28:31. > :28:33.director of football there, I don't know how the dynamic really works,
:28:34. > :28:39.but there were suggestions friction towards the end of last season and I
:28:40. > :28:45.think Pulis was getting frustrated and it has to be player related, I
:28:46. > :28:48.think, signings related. Ian Moody is the director of football, head of
:28:49. > :28:53.recruitment, which means Malky Mackay is evens favourite for the
:28:54. > :28:56.job, because of their work relationship at Cardiff. Do you see
:28:57. > :29:04.him as the favourite and agree with the bookies, Matt Lawton? Well, Tim
:29:05. > :29:07.Sherwood is being mentioned as well. I just think if Steve Parish is
:29:08. > :29:12.looking at that, I think Tim Sherwood was quite impressive last
:29:13. > :29:17.season. Surely the Pulis experience tells you that experience is the
:29:18. > :29:22.thing that might keep a team like Crystal Palace in the Premier
:29:23. > :29:28.League. Personally, looking at the situation at West Ham, I would give
:29:29. > :29:32.Sam Allardyce a call. Through David Gold, you couldn't just give Sam
:29:33. > :29:39.Allardyce a call, that would be tapping up! Absolutely, sorry! Very
:29:40. > :29:45.naive to suggest that. Would you go experience over bright young thing?
:29:46. > :29:49.I think experience always tells in the end but I would like to see
:29:50. > :29:52.Malky Mackay back. You look at the players and the style of football
:29:53. > :29:57.that Tony's players at Crystal Palace have, Malky Mackay is the
:29:58. > :30:02.perfect fit. Arsenal were hit and miss but they picked up the three
:30:03. > :30:12.points and Calum Chambers was probably the most positive. Fans
:30:13. > :30:18.voted him Man of the Match. Umentd I thought he could be England's right
:30:19. > :30:22.back for years to come. But he could be England's centre-half. I think he
:30:23. > :30:28.is a tremendous footballer. We have got more texts and tweets coming in,
:30:29. > :30:35.Ryan says, Manchester City will be champions and Chelsea second.
:30:36. > :30:40.Liverpool will come fourth. Let's focus on Manchester City. They start
:30:41. > :30:47.their title defence away at Newcastle today. It is the 4 o'clock
:30:48. > :30:51.game. Here is Manuel Pellegrini. To win here the first year the Premier
:30:52. > :30:55.League and the cup, both things in the same year, of course it is a
:30:56. > :31:02.proud for me. But more proud is the way we play. For me it is important
:31:03. > :31:06.to win titles, but more important is the way you win. The way to do it is
:31:07. > :31:11.in the way we did last season. We will continue playing in the same
:31:12. > :31:17.way. For me the most important thing is to retain our title and to
:31:18. > :31:22.improve in Europe. In your first few games, you played three of the top
:31:23. > :31:28.teams, you play Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea. How important is it
:31:29. > :31:33.going to be to make sure you do well in those games. Last year we didn't
:31:34. > :31:40.do it well in the first game. We lost a lot of points especially
:31:41. > :31:49.playing away and we won the title. It is important to start a strong
:31:50. > :31:57.team and win the first game. Manuel Pellegrini there. India are a wicket
:31:58. > :32:02.down at the cricket. And now to St James' Park and talk to Guy mow
:32:03. > :32:07.bray, who is doing the game for us. City your title favourites? They're
:32:08. > :32:12.not actually. I have gone for Chelsea. I think with the avded
:32:13. > :32:17.strike power -- added strike power and Jose Mourinho meaning business
:32:18. > :32:21.and City focussing on the Champions League, I think Chelsea may nick it.
:32:22. > :32:24.But that said, you could put any of the top six anywhere from one to
:32:25. > :32:28.six. Particularly before a ball has been kicked. But City will be up
:32:29. > :32:34.there challenging. I wonder about today. They weren't good last week.
:32:35. > :32:40.I know with a mix and match team at Wembley. But Manuel Pellegrini has
:32:41. > :32:46.said he doesn't feel the team is ready. Last season they lost four of
:32:47. > :32:51.their first six away games. So Newcastle haven't beaten City since
:32:52. > :32:58.2005. Maybe it is good to get them early. Alan Shearer said it is a two
:32:59. > :33:01.division league, the top seven that won't be relegated but any three of
:33:02. > :33:07.the other 13 could go down. Newcastle I assume are in that 13
:33:08. > :33:12.for shearer. Where would row put Newcastle this season? I would put
:33:13. > :33:17.them about tenth. I think they will do all right. I'm impressed with the
:33:18. > :33:22.signings Alan Pardew has made. I think they're in better shape than a
:33:23. > :33:31.year ago where they wept to City -- went to City and lost 4-0. Graham
:33:32. > :33:40.Carr has been busy, the chief scout. I'm looking forward to seeing
:33:41. > :33:46.Riviere and Cabella. The sort of players Newcastle fans want to see.
:33:47. > :33:52.And De Jong has come, the captain of Ajax. He is another very good
:33:53. > :33:56.player. What else I want to mention, the way Newcastle United do thing
:33:57. > :34:01.right when it comes to their fans and we must remember today there is
:34:02. > :34:07.a series of events commemorating the lives of John Alder and Liam Sweeney
:34:08. > :34:13.killed on the Flight MH17. There will be a series of events and the
:34:14. > :34:20.Newcastle flag the is at half-mast. We will remember them today. Thank
:34:21. > :34:24.you. The Newcastle flag at half-mast and the tribute to the fans is on
:34:25. > :34:32.the front-page of the Newcastle programme this afternoon. That game
:34:33. > :34:35.on five live from 4. One other word on Newcastle, which seems trite
:34:36. > :34:41.going back to the football, but they have had from a playing point of
:34:42. > :34:44.view and a transfer point of view a remarkably calm summer. They have
:34:45. > :34:50.done something in the transfer window. It must have been, Alan
:34:51. > :34:56.Pardew's kept his counsel on this. But they had signed nobody. A few
:34:57. > :35:00.loan signings, but that was it. He must feel a sense of freedom that he
:35:01. > :35:05.has actually able to change things a bit and bring some players in. In
:35:06. > :35:09.recent years they have gone into that one good year, one bad year
:35:10. > :35:13.thing Newcastle. I don't know whether you call last year a good or
:35:14. > :35:19.bad. They're final league position was pretty good. But there was some
:35:20. > :35:24.high profile down sides to that as well. I think they will be OK. I
:35:25. > :35:29.don't see 13 teams quite be being in the bottom half. I would say there
:35:30. > :35:37.is a top seven, a middle five and a bottom eight probably. Does that add
:35:38. > :35:42.up? This a top seven a middle five and a bottom eight. That is right, I
:35:43. > :35:50.was just checking. You just think that maybe 21 teams! As far as
:35:51. > :35:54.Manchester City are concerned, is it a two-horse race with Chelsea? I
:35:55. > :36:01.don't think. So but what I would stay about Manchester City they have
:36:02. > :36:07.the best spine in the Premiership in Joe Hart and Kompany and Aguero. The
:36:08. > :36:12.signing of keeper from Malaga is a good signing, for the last two
:36:13. > :36:18.seasons, Hart, I'm a big aed mirer of him -- admirer of him, but there
:36:19. > :36:24.have been times when he has been complacent. That may give him a
:36:25. > :36:27.jolt. Do you agree why there is an obsession, when he talks of having
:36:28. > :36:32.two players in every position, that is seen as natural. Anywhere on the
:36:33. > :36:38.pitch apart from the goalkeeper. We have seem obsessed by there only
:36:39. > :36:44.being one number one. The keeper is the one position you can't rotate.
:36:45. > :36:49.You can't? No, you can't rotate keepers, it breeds nervousness.
:36:50. > :36:54.United tried it a couple of seasons ago and if you're a defender you
:36:55. > :36:59.like your keeper that you have played behind each week. They know
:37:00. > :37:04.the voice, your eyes behind you and you need somebody to play there
:37:05. > :37:07.every week. Paul O'Driscoll said will Costa be a hit for Chelsea or
:37:08. > :37:10.just a one season wonder? I think will Costa be a hit for Chelsea or
:37:11. > :37:16.just a one season wonder? I he is probably a hit. I went to Austria a
:37:17. > :37:20.couple of weeks ago with a number of journalists to see Mourinho and the
:37:21. > :37:26.way he spoke about him and not just the player, but about the man, he
:37:27. > :37:30.thinks the guy's amazing, the way he fought his way up, established
:37:31. > :37:37.himself and had a lot of knock backs and you know the pressure he was
:37:38. > :37:39.under at Atletico after the brilliant striker that had been
:37:40. > :37:44.there. He has proved himself. I think he feels he has built for --
:37:45. > :37:53.he is built for the Premier League. I spoke to Ancelotti and he said was
:37:54. > :38:01.was brilliant. Chelsea for you? Yes. And for me. Wells for eh. India
:38:02. > :38:06.9-2. They're off for rain. But still time for Gambhir to be run out.
:38:07. > :38:10.Chelsea's game with purposely is on five live on Monday night. And then
:38:11. > :38:15.on Friday night there is a programme to celebrate 50 years of Match of
:38:16. > :38:28.the Day and the best theme tune in the business. Dah-dah-dah-dah!
:38:29. > :38:34.Dooe-dooe Dee. If you listen too that song, the thing that comes to
:38:35. > :38:40.you is... Movtd. Mplts as soon as that came on, you dropped what you
:38:41. > :38:46.were doing, straight sat down. Sniet is football, it is people, it is
:38:47. > :38:56.movtd. -- It is football, it is people, icht is Match of the Day.
:38:57. > :39:01.You can see match of the day at 50 on Friday. Back to the present day
:39:02. > :39:08.and let's hear from three other Premier League managers who won
:39:09. > :39:15.yesterday. First, the now English speaking Mauricio Pochettino. It is
:39:16. > :39:22.important win. I would say congratulations to my players,
:39:23. > :39:27.because it was a very great performance. After the penalty and
:39:28. > :39:32.the sending off of Kyle, it was a difficult game, but we played like a
:39:33. > :39:37.team. This is the important thing and we deserve in the end to win. We
:39:38. > :39:41.had to play better second half. But you can never question the
:39:42. > :39:45.commitment of them. That is what they have achieved, because of that
:39:46. > :39:49.there is a great togetherness which they don't give up. And in the end
:39:50. > :39:52.we could have won comfortably. The first goal always is vitally
:39:53. > :39:58.important. We have got it and we have had two or three chances to
:39:59. > :40:04.maybe clinch the game and make it more comfortable towards the end. It
:40:05. > :40:09.got a bit hectic. I thought we were excellent. We had a ten minute
:40:10. > :40:12.period where we couldn't get out of our own half. After that, I thought
:40:13. > :40:17.we were excellent and we had chances to win a few games. I thought we
:40:18. > :40:23.were a threat all afternoon. Solid performance. The back four were
:40:24. > :40:28.outstanding. Sissoko I thought for hi debut was fantastic. Vlaar has
:40:29. > :40:34.only played 45 minutes since the World Cup and Hutton and Senderos
:40:35. > :40:40.were fantastic. I thought they were massive performances in that fwam.
:40:41. > :40:44.-- game. Stoke/Villa was the last game last night and considering
:40:45. > :40:49.people were talking about Stoke being a top half side and people
:40:50. > :40:57.tipped Villa in the bottom three that, win has gone under the radar a
:40:58. > :41:01.bit. Alan Hutton and Charles N'Zogbia started the game. I don't
:41:02. > :41:05.think Charles N'Zogbia had a squad number last season and Hutton was
:41:06. > :41:09.playing for Scotland and nobody else. How they have come in, fair
:41:10. > :41:13.play, whatever the problem was it has been dilt with. -- dealt with.
:41:14. > :41:19.What else dud you learn from yesterday? The vanishing spray
:41:20. > :41:23.didn't work well at Arsenal. I think what we learned is it is going to be
:41:24. > :41:29.competitive. I think particularly at the bottom half of the table, like I
:41:30. > :41:33.agree with Alan there could be 10 to 13 teams could get relegated. I know
:41:34. > :41:38.it is the first game, Stoke were the team that will surprise people. That
:41:39. > :41:42.was probably a poor result for them yesterday. But I'm looking forward
:41:43. > :41:46.to seeing the big boys in the next two days. You don't want to judge
:41:47. > :41:49.anything on the opening day of the season. But Hull can be interesting
:41:50. > :41:52.this season, season. But Hull can be interesting
:41:53. > :41:55.this he has had a good summer in the transfer market, Steve Bruce. It is
:41:56. > :42:03.how they deal with the Europa League. Yes, that will take its
:42:04. > :42:11.toll. But Steve Bruce did a brilliant job. Why doesn't he get
:42:12. > :42:15.linked with bigger jobs. The England job? I think he is should be the
:42:16. > :42:20.next time the England job is up. He should be in the mix. He never
:42:21. > :42:26.played for England, which was an injustice. I think he would be quite
:42:27. > :42:32.good in that role. Hull need to replace Long before the end of
:42:33. > :42:37.August. But yeah, I think Steve Bruce, every where he has gone, he
:42:38. > :42:43.has done a good job. And Leicester, they drew with Everton and Nigel
:42:44. > :42:47.Pearson isn't part of that, of the three promoted sides are they the
:42:48. > :42:51.best equipped or QPR? I think Leicester at the moment, they were
:42:52. > :42:56.impressive yesterday. The energy they showed in the second half in
:42:57. > :43:03.particular and they got 100 points in t Championship, that tells you
:43:04. > :43:07.that almost guarantees you Premiership safety. Funny how these
:43:08. > :43:13.things work out. Chris Wood may not have been playing for them if he had
:43:14. > :43:20.gone to Wolves. Yes I believe Derby and Fulham were looking at him.
:43:21. > :43:28.Nigel Pearson said he was staying. I was impressed with Leicester. Colin
:43:29. > :43:34.says it is sches's -- Chelsea's title to lose. Ronny said no one
:43:35. > :43:39.seems to be considering that van Gaal picked that team to fail so get
:43:40. > :43:44.the Glazers to open their wallets. That is why he is talking about
:43:45. > :43:49.confidence after the first game. Thank you to my guests. Match of the
:43:50. > :43:55.Day Two back tonight and on Five Live you can have your say on the
:43:56. > :43:57.big talking parts as part of new Sunday Social. We will see you next
:43:58. > :44:20.Sunday lunch time. MUSIC: "Black Skinhead"
:44:21. > :44:24.by Kanye West