GARETH BARRY MOVES TO MANCHESTER CITY LATEST PREMIERSHIP ODDS

The first genuinely large transfer of this year's English Premier League season has just been completed with Aston Villa's Gareth Barry moving to the Middleeastlands to play for Manchester City. Manchester City's odds to win next year's Premier League season now sit at 38.0. I expect that Barry will add some midfield dynamism but the big question for me is whether he will still be motivated to play with his reported £100,000 pounds a week wages. I know the Arabs like to throw some money around up there, but I think that's a bit of a silly price for somebody who did not have a good 2nd half of the season. I find it somewhat amusing that City have all this big talk about signing massive names and they've been making lots of noise over the past few months? But reality always seems to hit in once somebody actually signs on the dotted line. Remember how City were going to sign Kaka? They wound up with Craig Bellamy. They've been harping on and on about trying to sign Lionel Messi- they sign Gareth Barry. I guess it takes more than ambition to run a successful football club, and I really don't see Barry as the type of player who will earn you extra points. What City need is another world-class goalscorer, a tighter back-line and quality wingers. Stephen Ireland has been retained and that's a tidy piece of business in my opinion and if they can sign Carlos Tevez then I think that will be a real coup for them. I don't see Tevez going, myself. Despite the signing of Gareth Barry (presumably from right out under the nose of Rafa Benitez) City's odds on winning the league next year haven't moved on the Betfair markets. Although they are considered completely safe from relegation. Manchester United - 2.76Chelsea - 4.0Liverpool - 4.1Arsenal - 9.8Man City - 38.0Tottenham - 150.0Aston Villa - 210.0Everton - 220.0Portsmouth - 520.0West Ham - 920.0Fulham - 1000Wigan - 1000Stoke - 1000Bolton - 1000Blackburn - 1000Sunderland - 1000Hull - 1000Wolves - 1000Birmingham - 1000Burnley - 1000