Real Madrid jump started their summer transfer activity last week with a sensational bid for Kaka, and the Spanish giants are not wasting any time when it comes to a second signing. Manchester United have joined Real Madrid in the pursuit of Wigan’s Antonio Valencia, with both sides bidding in excess of £16 million.

Steve Bruce insisted that Wigan would hold on to the Ecuadorian winger, but with Bruce now at Sunderland it’s hard to imagine Wigan could turn down so much money. Roberto Martinez will take the Wigan hotseat later this…

Looking back at last season, there were many twists and turns to the Premier League season. For Wigan, it was a rather emotional season. Rooted in the relegation battle in the fall, Wigan fans rejoiced when Steve Bruce resigned from Birmingham to take control of the Wigan reins again. Steve Bruce successfully steered the club clear of relegation, and a 1-1 draw with Chelsea in April ensured safety.

The 14th place finish was sufficient for fans and board alike last year, and more of the same was expected this season. Instead, Steve…

While Hull stole the early season headlines, Steve Bruce and his Wigan side have slowly been marching up the table. Egyptian striker Amr Zaki has led the way, and Bruce’s side currently sit all the way in 7th place. With no real consistency amongst the table this year, Wigan have a genuine chance of finishing in the top half of the table in 2009.

Why is Stoke doing so well? There’s a few reasons:

Amr Zaki

The most obvious reason of Wigan’s success is Amr Zaki. The Egyptian striker serves as a testament to…

With eight weeks gone in the 2008/09 Premier League season, it appears that the table is starting to show its true shape. The Big Four - Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Liverpool - are all hitting their strides as they start stringing together consecutive wins.

At United the trio of Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Dimitar Berbatov are firing on all cylinders as United’s goal tally accumulates. At Chelsea, injuries are being covered up by the good form of players like Salomon Kalou who has done brilliantly coming off the bench and…

With one month of Premiership action out of the way, Premiership Talk reviews all twenty teams and grades them based on their early season performances.

Sunderland

The Black Cats have quietly put together a good side up north, and fans plan on avoiding the relegation battle that they saw last season. After a promising display against Liverpool that ended in defeat, Roy Keane’s men rebounded with a fantastic away victory against Tottenham at White Hart Lane. Things were looking up, until Manchester City embarassed Sunderland in a 3-0 result. Djibril Cisse, El-Hadji Diouf…

In the Premiership, you’ll seldom hear talk of the players that helped win the trophies or grabbed the personal awards without the names Cristiano Ronaldo, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard or Cesc Fabregas cropping up at some point. However, behind these men who grab the headlines there are many players who give everything for their team. They don’t start every game, or play for lesser teams, but they are patient, determined and extremely strong willed. We look back at seven of the top unsung heroes of last season, and what we can expect of them…