At the forefront of any great TV soap is a well known opening sequence with a recognisable theme tune and at the end is of course the dramatic ending where the theme tune once again kicks in.
From time to time a show may slightly change the opening sequence or the theme tune, for example when the Millennium dome was built in London Eastenders had to place it in their opening sequence.
One final thing that soaps are well known for is the return of old characters just when the plot line seems to be getting a little boring. We've seen people disappear off the edge of the cliff only to come back years later, a person shot 'dead' only to reappear and some flee for the mysterious land of Manchester but find the lure of London too strong.
In the soap world that is the Premier League we often get rid of characters as they get relegated, only to return via promotion. Sunderland, West Brom and Birmingham are amongst the serial leavers and yet they always come back for more. But the Premier League very rarely gets rid of characters only to bring them back when the story line is boring, perhaps because the story line is rarely boring. But if there's one man who could make it even more interesting, well... welcome back Patrick!
Yes, for those of you who don't know, Patrick Vieira is back in England and back in the Premier League, and I for one couldn't be happier. In the pomp of his career Viera was THE force to be reckoned with. He marshaled an Arsenal side that had grit, determination, aggression (sometimes too much), and most importantly a side who won silverware. In fact it's always struck me as no coincidence that the last kick of a football the big Frenchman took for Arsenal was the winning penalty against Manchester United in the 2004/05 FA Cup final, Arsenal's last piece of silverware.
Vieira is a born winner and a born fighter and for those reasons he's possibly the ideal signing for new club Manchester City. It is obviously difficult to tell right now if the French captain can keep up with the pace of the Premiership 5 years after leaving it, especially as he's not played much for Inter Milan in the last two seasons. But his experience and determination to win could be the kind of push City need in their push toward silverware and the top 4.
The big question, other than whether or not Vieira is past it, is where exactly will he fit in. City have clearly had some problems this season, although perhaps not as many as we're often led to believe. But surely these problems have been in defence and not in midfield or up front. Expensive Summer signings Kolo Toure and Joleon Lescott have been way below par as has Wayne Bridge, leaving City's back line to consist of, well just Shay Given really. In Vieira's position the Citizen's already have Nigel de Jong- one of the Premier League's best performers, Gareth Barry and Vincent Kompany, three good, expensive and much younger players than Vieira.
Could the big Frenchman about to move position into central defence? Surely not. Especially judging on his loss of any pace he might once of had, not that I'm sure he ever had much, it's unlikely. More to the point, judging on his collection of red cards down the years and the fact at centre back he'd be last man it's certainly not a good idea.
Of course Vieira is famous in these parts not just for his red cards and his collection of medals, including a World Cup one, but also for his on screen love affair with another big character from the Premier League soap drama, and a man who for sentiment alone is unfortunately no longer acting- Roy Keane. Who can forget them almost coming to blows in the tunnel at Highbury as Keane tried to protect Gary Neville from Vieira. Like I said, unfortunately Keane is no longer in this soap as he resides in the Championship version and the reason it's unfortunate is because, for all it's current drama, the Premier League's lack of big characters.
The reason I welcome back Vieira is, successful or not, he's sure to add some more drama. And you can never have enough drama- cue music!
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