The summer so far - Sunderland

Sunderland have been one of the most active clubs in this summers transfer window, making some heavy strides forward and picking up some very experienced players. Finishing 10Th last season was probably a bit under par for the Black Cats as they faded away towards the end of the season. This was certainly hugely to do with the injury problems the club was having, so a much deeper squad was certainly prime on the list for manager Steve Bruce. Bruce has certainly started to achieve this with his summer spree so far, acquiring the likes of Seb Larsson from Birmingham and Manchester United duo Wes Brown and John O'Shea.



I believe the start Bruce has made this summer has been fantastic and he has done a great job to prize the 2 experienced players above from United. They will really help to stern up the team and give a winning mentality to the rest of the squad with a huge amount of experience too. Seb Larsson is also a great acquisition from relegated Birmingham. Since leaving Arsenal, Larsson has performed consistently well for Birmingham and possesses a huge amount of ability in being a creative force in a team. The one thing he will do is to replace the departed Jordan Henderson who left to Liverpool for a huge transfer fee. He is ready made to play on the right side of midfield and he has so much ability from a dead ball situation as well.

The Black Cats have also acquired David Vaughan from relegated Blackpool. Vaughan had a very good season for Blackpool and plays with a very workman like attitude and helped inspire Blackpool's exciting season, despite there final day drop. These players are important for Sunderland next season, but I do not believe that will be the end of it.
Bruce and chairman Niall Quinn have worked hard to bring in Connor Wickham from Ipswich, one of the most sort after young talents in the country. It will be very exciting to see how he gets on competing week in week out in the Premier League.



Sunderland should have plenty of money to spend after the January sale of Darren Bent and Hendersons departure to Liverpool this summer combining a total close to £40 million. The 5 main signings that have come into the club this summer have all come at a very low price and have not made hardly a dent in the £40 million figure. I am expecting a couple of big signings still to come in, but the question is, who? What big names can Bruce attract to the Stadium of Light, considering there is no European football on offer at all? N'Zogbia is one that has been mentioned, which would be a good signing. The main area that needs to improve for me is the forwards. With no Darren Bent and also no Danny Welbeck this year, that leaves a huge void at the top of the field that needs filling. A lot of weight and pressure on the shoulders of Asamoah Gyan and new signing Connor Wickham, but their needs to be depth in the squad at the top of the field.

Sunderland fan's who do you think should be brought to the club? Are you thinking like me that your team will be competing further up the table next year and hopefully challenging for a Europa League place? Let me know your views

The summer so far - Aston Villa

One of the most talked about teams of the summer by far. New manager in charge, departure of key players, and also linked to some good players too. Even though it has been described as tough times at Aston Villa, it must also be pretty exciting for them with a complete change around of personnel. The loss of Ashley Young to Man Utd and Stewart Downing to Liverpool will be tough for some fans to take. But those signings alone brought in £40 million to the club, which for any team, let alone Aston Villa, this is a lot of money. It's important for Randy Lerner to re invest this money and give it to Alex McLeish in order for him to re build the side and certainly give some much needed strength in depth too. This to me was Villa's problem last term, their lack of depth. They did very well to cope and it also gave the opportunity for some bright young players to get their chance in the first team, like Barry Bannan and Cieron Clark. Also, the emergence of Marc Albrighten was another bright spark in the Villa squad last term.



First signing was a much needed one to replace the departing Brad Friedel. Villa have certainly successfully acieved this by signing Shay Given, who a couple of years ago was rated one of the, if not the, best keeper in the Premiership. He is experienced, agile and is a fantastic shot stopper. Villa fans couldn't have hoped for a better replacement between the sticks. Now on to the replacements for the wide players and one name keeps cropping up in the papers and on the sports news, Charles N'Zogbia. I believe he is a very talented player when given the freedom to play further forward. He was a huge reason why Wigan kept their Premier League status last term, with his ability to run with the ball and strike it so cleanly with his left foot. We shall have to watch this space to see if this transfer will develop.



The replacements are important for Aston Villa, as is the form of the current squad next season, in particular whether Darren Bent will continue firing on all cylinders. But McLeish must bring in some additional players and bolster the suad up as much as possible. Villa are a team that should be competing closer to the top of the table and certainly challenging for 5th, 6th and 7th. The league will be far more exciting this coming season if Villa can improve their squad just like teams around them last season are doing so. Sunderland are a prime example of this.

Villa fan's would love to hear from you and get your opinions. Is McLeish the right man? What players do you want coming into your squad?