Which EPL team should I root for?

[maddash]

So ATT U-Verse has been showing free previews of Fox Soccer Plus HD and Fox Soccer HD (which I think now comes with my package I have U200). So I might be watching more English Premier League soccer. Plus a few of my Facebook friends are always talking about the teams they follow. So I figured I'd jump on a band wagon.

Bill Simmons was in the same predicament and wrote a pretty good piece on it:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/st ... ons/060719
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/st ... s/060719_2

One exception: I don't want to root for Manchester United. I know the bandwagon for not rooting for them is twice as big as the one for them, and as much as I want to hate Rooney I sort of like him... all that said, I'm still not going to be a ManU fan.

That said, I kind of want to root for a team that has a chance. So that leaves the rest of the Big Four and a few wildcard teams.
The rest of the Big Four are:
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool

Arsenal is a pretty logical choice. Thierry Henry played for them. I hear this Walcott kid is pretty good. They play a style of wide-open offense that's fun to watch. But... everyone roots for Arsenal. And they're off to a terrible start.
Chelsea. Now there's a good team to follow. You know their going to compete. But... I don't know if I can get past their Russian oil tycoon owner.
Liverpool. I really want to like Liverpool, but they're the team I most strongly associate with hooligan fans. Still, hooliganishness aside, their fans are awesome and have that great "You'll Never Walk Alone" song.

Wildcards:
Everton. Landon Donovan played for them (on loan) and Tim Howard is their goalie. They seem to have a great farm system (I guess they call a farm team, "Academy")
Newcastle. I love their beer. Their uni's suck though (sorry, their kits suck)
Man City. Sort of the anit-ManU. Samir Nasri is French. Good. And plays for them now.

So, give me your thoughts and see if you can sway me one way or another. I'm still leaning towards Arsenal but open to suggestions.


Also, a side question for the EPL. Is there something like a signing or trade deadline soon? I hear talk about getting teams set, even though they're already like 3 games into the season. What's that all about?

[slide_into_first]

I would say Manchester City but Arsenal would be ok.

[thrill]

Just watch games that intrigue you and one will stick. Gotta be organic.

[JackofDiamonds]

While living in London, one of the friends I made was a diehard ManU fan, done deal. I have someone I can talk to about the team and have some camaraderie with as the season progresses. If your friends tend to lean toward a specific team, you could do worse than adopting that team.

It was either ManU or Charlton... I went to a few of their games while living there. No thanks, I don't need that level of sorrow in my life.

[jeffbgoofy]

I would say we are more Man U fans then anything. Just ordered my son a personalized 4th Kit.

We root for the Americans otherwise, Etherton has soem liek has been said. I also like the one team with the kewl song, might be Liverpool.

Love FSC on Saturdays if we are around the house. Have had it on Charter for a while.

[Tambourine Man]

Liverpool,ftw. I think it's Celtic that actually does YNWA better, but I was placed on the Liverpool squad at soccer camp when I was 7 and I'm stickin' with'em...My jersey is [expletive] awesome, and my rattiest go-to cap sports the Cross of St George on front and #10 on back. thrill is buying me an Ozil jersey, though.

"Owen for England!" But not Man U, A BUNCH OF WANKERS THAT LOT!

[lukethedrifter]

I'm waiting to see where my nephew ends up in a few years before I decide.

/several nice saves in his NCAA debut as a freshman but lost 1-0 in OT
//can't help myself
///actually, I really should pick a team. I need another reason to hang out with the guys and drink.
////seriously

[robbotis]

Well, I hate them for all the money they spend. But any team w/ Carlos Tevez as their 4th striker is pretty darn good. Macchester City is the most entertaining. Aguero is magic. Silva is amazing. Dzeko just scores goals. Lots of high priced talent there. They've practically knocked Liverpool out of the big 4.

Arsenal, is usually a top team, and if they sign Dempsey, you can guarantee just about every one of their games will be on either ESPN or FSC.

[thrill]

You can't be a City fan unless this song is your manifesto.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkeBPgszdoM&feature=fvst][/youtube]

or maybe this song.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcuAw77J8_Y&ob=av2e][/youtube]


Plus as supporter's songs go, Blue Moon is pretty lame.

[thrill]

One exception: I don't want to root for Manchester United. I know the bandwagon for not rooting for them is twice as big as the one for them, and as much as I want to hate Rooney I sort of like him... all that said, I'm still not going to be a ManU fan.

I want to address this real quick.

What? You won't support United because you don't want to be a front runner, but you're perfectly willing to go glory hunting with the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool or City?

That's the same thing thing. It might be worse. You want to root for a perennial contender but you don't want to root for the best perennial contender. As if supporting one of the other bourgeois big 5 clubs is worth more street cred?

Man City - Money. Pure and simple. They're good because we still use dead dinosaurs to power our cars.
Chelsea - See above. Although I must say, rooting for Roman Abramovich and his battleship equipped luxury yachts is more entertaining than Abu Dhabi royalty.
Arsenal - The pseudo-intellectual snobs choice. They're good, they're rich but they don't spend so that somehow means you're not rooting for the avarice of Chelsea and City and you're not rooting for the predictability of United. Except there's one problem with that. Arsenal and Arsene Wenger have been evangelizing the youth and thriftiness while still being able to win for over a decade now. The one problem with that is Alex Ferguson and Manchester United don't evangelize that nonsense. They just do it. They do it and they do it better than Arsenal.
Liverpool - Liverpool is a legit choice. They're fun, they've got almost unparalleled tradition and though they're on the upswing right now, it's not like this is 2006 and they just won the Champions League and you're jumping on. Problem is, as you said, their fans are abhorrent and Liverpool is a [expletive] hole. They also never come to the US.

Man United aren't the Yankees. They're the Red Sox. They spend but they spend smart (see: Rooney, Chicharito, Vidic) and they offset that cost by developing their own talent and Alex Ferguson is the GREATEST MANAGER IN THE WORLD IN ANY SPORT especially when it comes blending veterans with youth and high salaries with low salaries. Avoiding United for misguided reasons of fan integrity only to jump on the bandwagon of one of the other juggernauts is like saying you don't want to be a Lakers fan because that'd be too bandwagon only to decide you're going to be a Miami Heat fan.

In short, you need to find a team organically. Watch games, have fun and maybe one will strike your fancy. I've been watching the premiership for 6 years and I've yet to really stick with a team. For a while I liked Chelsea for Mourinho and co, but that ship sailed and for the majority of my time I've just been watching Americans abroad for my rooting fix. Maybe someday a great American player will stick at a club and that will suck me in forever, but I'm not going to force the issue, nor should you.

But if you're intent on forcing the issue, supporting anyone in the top 4 except United would be a mistake. They're great, their shirts are always cool, they play entertaining soccer, they always tour the US in the summer so you can go to games and at the end of the day, Barcelona is going to take them to woodshed in the Champions league, pull down their gorgeous white shorts and paddle them like a kid caught stealing. So it's not like they're the absolute top of the heap.