The Premier League big boy’s 2010 pre-season results: Did they mean anything?
Football fans are missing Premier League football so much they're starting to pay too much attention to pre-season results - or are they?
Forums and phone-ins have are beginning to get clogged up with worried Chelsea fans wondering why new boss Andre Villas-Boas can't inspire more than a 1-0 win over Malaysia XI, a team Liverpool thumped 6-3 last week.
Meanwhile, some Spurs supporters are scratching their heads over losing to a South African team who share a name with Leeds rock band, Kaiser Chiefs.
We've dug out pre-season results from 2010/2011 to find out what, if any, bearing they had to Man United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City and Spurs' start to the season 12 months ago...
CHELSEA
Pre-season:
Crystal Palace 0-1 Chelsea
Ajax 3-1 Chelsea
Frankfurt 2-1 Chelsea
Hamburg 2-1 Chelsea
First five Premier League games:
Chelsea 6-0 West Brom
Wigan 0-6 Chelsea
Chelsea 2-0 Stoke
West Ham 1-3 Chelsea
Chelsea 4-0 Blackpool
Verdict: Pre-season means nothing!
Chelsea lost the last three of their four friendly games, the only victory coming against Championship strugglers Crystal Palace, yet momentum didn't prove a problem when the big kick-off came around, brushing aside West Brom and Wigan 6-0 in their first two games, scoring 21 in their first five and collecting maximum points.
LIVERPOOL
Pre-season:
Grasshopper 0-0 Liverpool
Kaiserlautern 1-0 Liverpool
Borussia Moenchengladbach 1-0 Liverpool
First five Premier League games:
Liverpool 1-1 Arsenal
Man City 3-0 Liverpool
Liverpool 1-0 West Brom
Birmingham 0-0 Liverpool
Man United 3-2 Liverpool
Verdict: A sign of things to come!
Liverpool's disastrous first half of the season under Roy Hodgson confirmed the fears of pre-season sceptics concerned by the club's failure to score against Grasshopper, Kaiserlautern or Borussia Moenchengladbach. Progress in the Europa League did little to convince these fans that Woy was the real deal either, although they'll be pleased with the ten goals scored in their first two friendlies under Kenny Dalglish this time round.
MAN UNITED
Pre-season:
Man United 3-1 Celtic
Philadelphia Union 0-1 Man United
Kansas City Wizards 2-1 Man United
MLS All-Stars 2-5 Man United
Chivas 3-2 Man United
League of Ireland XI 1-7 Man United
First five Premier League games:
Man United 3-0 Newcastle
Fulham 2-2 Man United
Man United 3-0 West Ham
Everton 3-3 Man United
Man United 3-2 Liverpool
Verdict: Pre-season means nothing!
They may have lost to Kansas City Wizards and a Mexican side called Chivas, but United were unbeaten for the first 24 competitive games of the season, won the Premier League title back from Chelsea and reached the Champions League final.
MAN CITY
Pre-season:
Portland Timbers 0-3 Man City
Sporting Lisbon 2-0 Man City
New York Red Bulls 2-1 Man City
America 1-1 Man City
Inter Milan 3-0 Man City
Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Man City
Man City 2-0 Valencia
First five Premier League games:
Spurs 0-0 Man City
Man City 3-0 Liverpool
Sunderland 1-0 Man City
Man City 1-0 Blackburn
Wigan 0-2 Man City
Verdict: Pre-season means nothing!
City were hammered by Inter Milan, lost to New York Red Bulls and Sporting Lisbon but they made a solid start to the season, qualified for the Champions League for the first time ever and won the FA Cup.
ARSENAL
Pre-season:
Barnet 0-4 Arsenal
Sturm Graz 0-3 Arsenal
SC Neusiedl 1919 0-4 Arsenal
Arsenal 1-1 AC Milan
Arsenal 3-2 Celtic
Legia Warsaw 5-6 Arsenal
First five Premier League games:
Liverpool 1-1 Arsenal
Arsenal 6-0 Blackpool
Blackburn 1-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 4-1 Boton
Sunderland 1-1 Arsenal
Verdict: Pre-season means nothing!
Arsenal lifted the Emirates Cup for the fourth year running, beating Celtic and avoiding defeat against AC Milan, but anyone who thought this would lead to some 'real' silverware were mistaken when the Gunners choked against Birmingham in the 2011 League Cup final. It was all down hill from there, so perhaps Arsene Wenger should consider losing this year's pre-season tournament? And maybe, just maybe...
SPURS
Pre-season:
Bournemouth 0-4 Spurs
San Jose 0-0 Spurs
Spurs 2-1 New York Red Bulls
Sporting Lisbon 2-2 Spurs
Spurs 4-1 Villarreal
Benfica 0-1 Spurs
Spurs 3-2 Fiorentina
First five Premier League games:
Spurs 0-0 Man City
Stoke 1-2 Spurs
Spurs 0-1 Wigan
West Brom 1-1 Spurs
Spurs 3-1 Wolves
Verdict: Pre-season means nothing!
Harry Redknapp's only friendly defeat last year was a 4-1 hammering at the hands of European opposition in Villarreal, despite Spurs enjoying their best success during 2010/2011 in the Champions League. They also beat the New York Red Bulls where Man City failed, but couldn't get the better of City themselves in the Premier League opener, finishing behind them in the race for a Champions League spot as well.
FINAL VERDICT: PRE-SEASON RESULTS MEAN NOTHING!
Chelsea may have looked uninspiring against Pompey and Malaysia XI, but talkSPORT suggests on the whole, pre-season results mean very little. QPR won 13-0 early this week but will more than likely see Christmas before recording as many goals in the Premier League, while you wouldn't bet against Chelsea finding the net 13 times in their first three games.
We suggest all fans patiently wait for the big kick-off before casting too much doubt on their team's chances this season. And don't forget, you can listen to live and exclusive commentary of Newcastle v Arsenal on the first day of the new campaign on talkSPORT 1089/1053 AM: August 13, kick off 17:30.
If it's anything like last year's 4-4 blockbuster, we're all in for a real treat. Not long now!
Have you been encouraged by your team's pre-season results so far? Let us know by leaving a comment below...