Established in the Top Flight (West Ham United)

Going into the summer West Ham were thought by many to be in dire straits. They finished in 17th position, a late season swoon bringing them dangerously close to relegation. Ownership declared that every player save Scott Parker was for sale, and the firing of manager Gianfranco Zola left many with a sour taste in their mouth.

What a difference a summer makes. The ownership group, led by former Birmingham City chairmen David Gold and David Sullivan, seems to have stabilized. The underrated Avram Grant has been appointed manager, very few players have left, and several useful pieces have been brought in.

I have to admit I like the Grant hiring. I think he handled an impossible situation at Portsmouth with a lot of class, and he has shown an ability to get solid performances out of his players. A team with Grant leading them will finish where they are supposed to, based on the squad available to him. West Ham probably have the twelfth best squad in the league, and it is very likely that they will finish twelfth, provided the previously threatened fire sales do not take place.

Robert Green will still be in goal. He is a fair keeper, nothing special, adequate for West Ham's position in the table. I imagine he will be severely booed the first few matches of the season because of the part he played in England's World Cup adventure. Will it get to him?

The back-line is fairly poor. Mathew Upson is overrated because he is English, and no one else stands out. I wish I could talk up Jonathan Spector, but his performances last season at a variety of positions were not good.

The midfield is the Hammer's strength. I already mentioned Scotty Parker, and he will anchor a midfield three, probably alongside Mark Noble and new signing Thomas Hitzlsperger. There is also depth in the center of the pitch with Jack Collison, Radoslav Kovac, and Valon Behrami.

Attack is a problem. Carlton Cole will be the central striker, and he is good for 10 goals or so, but he isn't a prolific scorer, and he doesn't create goals for his teammates. Cole wil be flanked by some combination of flawed players. The candidates are Luis Boa Morte (well past his prime and injury prone), Kieron Dyer (has not played 30 games in a season since 2002-2003), Alessandro Diamanti (makes Ronaldo look unselfish), Benni McCarthy (older version of Cole), Frederic Piquionne (31 year old's career high for goals in a season is 7), and Fred Sears (only 20, but 1 goal in 60 appearances).

There are 2 attacking youngsters on West Ham's books that I do rate rather highly, but i think both are a year away from having a major role to play. One is Zavon Hines, a lightning quick 21-year-old who still needs to learn how to use his speed. The other is 23-year old Pablo Barrera, the Mexican winger who impressed in three substitute appearances at the World Cup. There have been a few Mexicans in England, but none of them have settled well. Barrera may be the first, but he is raw, and I think it will take a season for him to settle in. He will provide some entertainment, and a few moments of shear brilliance, but I don't think he will truly make an impact until 2011.

When all is said and done, West Ham United will still be in the Premier League. They may give their supporters a scare, much like last season, but I think they will ultimately be pretty comfortable. They could finish as high as tenth, or as low as fifteenth. I will make one provision to my prediction. If they sell Parker or Cole in the next few weeks, there could be big trouble. As in, praying they finish 17th trouble.

World Cup Transfers

Just as reliable as the tournament itself, is the rush of big clubs to buy up players who impressed while playing for their country.

One of the first up, Pablo Barrera, a 23-year-old Mexican winger who plays for UNAM in Mexico. Of course, Mexico have a deep pool of talented youngsters who love to attack, and Barrera didn't even make the starting XI, he was used as a substitute in three of their four matches. Yet he is still being chased by West Ham, Lazio, Espanyol, and Celtic. Barrera looks to be a good prospect, and he will not be too expensive, but he will be more than he was a month ago.

A good signing was announced a few weeks ago by Manchester City. I have to say, for all the complaints about Manchester City throwing their money around, it's difficult to point to specific signings and say they were bad. Even the ones that have turned out poorly (Robinho, Bojinov) I thought were justifiable at the time. City signed Jerome Boateng from Hamburg in Germany for about £12 million. Considering that he has played well for Germany, and Germany have been outstanding in getting to the semi-final, City saved themselves a substantial amount of money by signing him before the tournament started.

I must admit though, the Yaya Toure signing does perplex me a bit. The fee of £24 million is a little high for a holding midfielder, but not crazy, as he is a very good player. What I don't understand is why they would sign Toure when they already have Nigel de Jong, Vincent Kompany, Gareth Barry, and Patrick Vierra in the same role.

The red half of Manchester enjoyed similar good fortune, as United's signing, Mexican forward Javier Hernandez, scored two goals and showed himself to be possibly the fastest player at the World Cup. He cost £10 million, and looked like a very good prospect at the tournament. By agreeing to this deal in April, Manchester United probably saved around £5 million. Which is good, because I think the Chris Smalling signing from Fulham is an absolute waste of £8 million.

I am sure more World Cup signings will come down in the next few weeks, as the players return home from South Africa, but that is what we have for now.