As I await my last feature to voice for Premier League Preview, it’s good to see my pre-season title tips Man City and Spurs going well. I still believe that Spurs will push City come May, especially if the Wembley hoodoo they appeared to crush in the Champions League against Dortmund, stays crushed. City are full of goals but there are cracks at the back and Spurs have the best defence of the two. Man United are the popular choice but Stoke proved they are fallible and Paul Pogba’s absence until the end of October could knock them out of their stride.

As for the bottom, I’ve already thrown doubt on my own suggestion that Swansea will drop this season. They look dogged under Paul Clement despite a defeat last time out. I think Roy Hodgson is a sensible and pragmatic choice for Crystal Palace and he will help them escape the bottom three. Despite good recent results, I still think Brighton and Newcastle will struggle and surely West Ham’s lowly league position is temporary given the talent they have in their squad.

Watford have been the biggest surprise. Marrying 15 different nationalities is no mean feat and a home game with City could be illuminating. Still unbeaten they have players like Will Hughes still to make an appearance in the Premier League.

One prediction that looks a bit wayward at this stage but one I’m sticking to…. Leicester City will finish above Arsenal. I know it doesn’t look good now, but Craig Shakespeare’s Foxes have met a lot of top sides so far and they are in a false position. They have the feeling they had under Ranieri I feel, and I have faith. My faith in Arsenal’s lack of leaders, lack of driving force in midfield and porous defence is less robust. We’ll see.

The thought that people fear dying LESS than they do standing up and making a speech or presentation in front of an audience seems ridiculous – but it is true.

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This is not just an event for rookies in public speaking, You will learn something however experienced you are.

My specialist subject of media training does prompt some interesting thoughts and can put people off, simply because they don’t understand  how media training can actually help them, and how it is relevant for them.

So in recent months I have talked more about communications training. For sportsmen and women this is how they talk to their fans through social media, through TV, through Radio and newspapers. For people in business, especially senior executives, it is more about how they talk to their teams, how they inspire people to follow their example – how they talk to potential clients to attract business in and set the tone for the company they represent.

The means of media training for all our clients is very similar in that we analyse the look (how they dress and body language, smile, eye contact), the sound (their tone and style of delivery) and then deal with the message they want to get over, providing a structure and lots of ideas based on their own personal experience and stories they can tell.

We urge people to show passion and enthusiasm for what they do – show they love their job, something which is truly infectious.

And we also use video extensively for interviewing on key messaging and show clients what the look and sound like. They see themselves as others do.

Media Training is not rocket science and while our methodology has been developed over many years, it works. Our workshops prove that media training is not just about how you deal with the media, it is teaching life skills that are invaluable in everything you do. Explore this website to find out more.

Is anyone else worried about tonight’s game at Wembley? I have a ticket and I am sure Gareth Southgate will not choose the team I want to see.

Frankly it is a thankless task he has and not everyone will like his starting eleven. We are not party to what he is seeing in training or the dressing room. However, here’s how I see it…

My captain first. I have no problem with Henderson or Kane but Kane is a certain starter, Henderson is not and that should decide the long term choice. Joe Hart is out of form and I like Jack Butland, who should have played v Malta and here.

Centre backs: Keane and Maguire my long term choice but Cahill’s experience and organisation skills will help against a savvy Slovakia and Jones looks different class under Mourinho this season. Stones not even considered.

Full backs, Walker and Bertrand with Dier protecting defence.

Kane must start with Rashford, who looks electric this season and will soon be as big physically as Lukaku but quicker.

With Henderson, Alli will play at 10 and how I wish Lallana was available. He is key to opening up a stubborn defence. Please no more Raheem Sterling, talented but does not deliver. I would not play Oxlade- Chamberlain in that midfield either. Danny Wellbeck for me is far more disciplined and scores more and choosing him in a 4-3-3 would signify attacking intent for a crowd desperate to be entertained. Jesse Lingard is also a big match player who is clever.

Southgate will probably play safe and he knows a 1-0 win will suit, virtually guaranteeing qualification, but given the lack of invention and creativity against Malta are we confident? No, me neither! 

So have minds been changed about the destiny of the Premier League title this season in the first three weeks? This I am not sure about, having backed Manchester City, thinking that Tottenham would run them close. But here is what I have learned.

1. Manchester United are proving an awesome unit and the Matic signing has clearly reinvigorated Paul Pogba. While Lukaku gives them the cutting edge to bully the lesser teams, there are a lot of other players in form. And the way they dismissed Leicester City, who were my tips for the top six, was seriously impressive. United look so much better than City right now and even if they can sign Sanchez from Arsenal, City still do not look like the finished article. I have been disappointed by Pep Guardiola’s impact at the Etihad so far.
2. Nothing changes at Arsenal. Except they are not playing Champions League and I think they are struggling for a top 6 spot this season. They are in need of a new manager – I still believe that with a new boss they could prosper. This is a team without direction, with no selection nous, and the players are totally demotivated. As I predicted that Leicester win on the opening day of the season was a serious smokescreen.
3. I am already reviewing my prediction that Swansea will go down. They seem to be coping well with the loss of Gylffi Sigurdsson and I have seen enough talent in that team to get them safe. Brighton look to be in trouble, and Chris Hughton’s record of keeping clubs up is not good. However, he is a fantastic guy, I loved him at my club Norwich and wished he had not been so negative, especially away from home. Let us hope the Seagulls fly high soon.
4. The reports of Stoke’s demise under Mark Hughes were premature. Some nonsense was talked about Mark Hughes. They have overachieved every year under the Welshman and the sale of Marko Arnautovic for £28 million looks good business.
5. Favourite players so far: Harry Maguire at Leicester – soon to be an England regular and so much better in defence and attack than John Stones. Marcus Rashford: Jose Mourinho has worked him out and how to get the best out of him. Lightning quick, he just has to add 20 goals per season and he’ll be an England regular too. Trent Alexander-Arnold: I should not put too much on the lad at this stage and he did not feature against Arsenal but he delivers a killer dead ball and reminds me of Beckham at his best. Very exciting prospect for Liverpool.
6. Chelsea are again looking a big threat to the Manchester clubs and with Morata starting so well, I have changed my mind on them as well. The Burnley defeat was as deceptive as Arsenal’s win over Leicester and Conte’s pledge of loyalty to the club will galvanise them after the international break.
7. Finally a club local to me West Ham. For goodness sake lay off Slavan Bilic, at least until he’s had a chance to play one or two games at home. He seems to have bought well and he turned it round well last season, he will do it again.

As Premier League clubs approach transfer deadline day, these are my 6 top transfers of the window.

This blog has been prompted by the signing of Oliver Burke from Leipzig to West Bromwich Albion. I think Tony Pulis has been very cute with this one. He’s one of the most talented players to come out of Scotland for years and helped Leipzig to second spot in the Bundesliga last season after a surprise move from Nottingham Forest to Germany having come through the City Ground academy. Burke will be better for the experience and the winger looks a snip at £15 million.

Tottenham are always smart in the transfer windows and Daniel Levy is careful not to spend unnecessarily, so forking out £42 million for Davinson Sanchez must have been well thought out. I think he is a brilliant addition. He was remarkably good in the Europa League Final for Ajax against Manchester United and his pace off the mark and calm head on young shoulders will enable Mauricio Pochettino to go three at the back if he chooses. With Sanchez on board I expect Spurs to feature in the title race this year.

Another team gunning for the title is Manchester United and Zlatan Ibrahimovic is back, effectively for nothing and a massive pay cut of £225,000 per week. His re-signing is a no-brainer and who is to say Lukaku won’t get injured this season? Or Marcus Rashford? It could be just the January push United need after an arduous Christmas and there is the Champions League campaign to consider too.

Another August recruit is Gylffi Sigurdsson, and that 50 yard strike for Everton in the Europa League in Split last night shows that he can come up with magical moments which make the difference. I definitely see Everton as top 4 material and this battle for Champions League spots this season is fascinating. He will score 15 goals from midfield and Ronald Koeman has admitted he wants the Icelander to plug some of the goal gap left by Lukaku.

But I have saved best for last. Harry Maguire now of Leicester City. I have already been so impressed with him at both ends of the pitch and it is great news for England that Gareth Southgate has called him up already. He will score goals but despite his price of £17 million he is one of those John Terry type players who will be a rock in the centre of defence and lead by example. Power allied to a fierce will to win singles him out as a game-changer.

I also have a sneaking feeling that – when fit – Kelechi Iheanacho will be a world beater for Leicester and I think they are one of those teams bidding for the top 6 this season, although they will need him to be scoring either in tandem with Jamie Vardy, or when the Englishman is injured or suspended.

When I was due to appear on TV for the first time I needed some advice from my late father who’d worked in television from behind the cameras nearly all his working life. His advice: make sure you have tidy, clean fingernails. I knew also he was very big on keeping shoes clean and polished so I was already ahead of the game there.

However the fingernails comment didn’t seem to be the comprehensive advice I was looking for. But you see for my dad the first impression was everything. And I’ve come to realise that in TV or when you’re meeting someone for the first time, you are judged on that first impression so you have to make it count.

The little things do matter. Your hair, your smile, the way you walk, shake hands, what you wear are all so important.

There’s a warmth you can create and a professional look you can show without even opening your mouth.

So I went on telly later that week and I looked the part. I’d done my fingernails by the way! And I ended up doing 13 years as a presenter and reporter on TV.

But I always remember that lesson whatever I have done in business and in my broadcast training of current presenters and reporters.

Don’t create distractions, be yourself, but look the part and you’re on the road to communicating effectively with your audience.

Training is something we all have to do at some stage in our careers. For some of us it’s an ongoing process and often makes the heart sink because that training is not stimulating enough.

As a trainer myself I’m conscious of how people might start glazing over in my workshops, particularly now a lot of my Sports Broadcasting and Broadcast Journalism training is with 18-21-year-olds.

The way I combat that is twofold. PowerPoint or Keynote presentations are a good way of me keeping on track and covering the ground but I don’t write what I say. One word or a phrase allied to an image is the way I stimulate learning. Pictures are far more memorable than words. Video embedded into the slides works even more effectively.

Secondly it’s not the training that’s important, it’s that the students learn. So lots of practical exercises and topical examples of people doing things well or not so well are key to my strategy. Everyone gets a say – I encourage discussion and debate and very often the students’ feedback gives me a new perspective on how to teach more effectively.

So for your training sessions, think: 1) Use images and video – not words – to get your message across. 2) Get people doing something so they learn more effectively. Make it a workshop not a seminar!

It is funny what can put you off of working with a company, admiring what a company does, feeling that these are people you can work with. I have just completed my judging of the forthcoming Hertfordshire Digital Awards  on September 21st and you would be surprised what put me off and impacted on my choice of 1 to 7.

Headline text can carry great impact – but since my days as a sub-editor on the Eastern Evening News in Norwich I learned a few rules like: don’t put long sentence headlines in capitals because they are more difficult to read. Capitalised text needs to be short and sharp. And when they contain basic spelling errors or missing words, as some did, then they drop much nearer 7 than number 1.

I am always impressed with the look of a website and that is not always about lots of vibrant colours. Sometimes just two colours can carry great impact. My business is all about getting that First Impression right and that is what so many web developers forget. You need to catch the viewers’ eyes and keep them engaged. Colours are key, design is crucial so everything is organised. Long, involved statements of what your company stands for are wasted words.

This exercise of website judging is a little like some of the media training I do. People will talk about how “professional” they are, how “passionate” they are about their business, how they are a “market-leader” in their field. These broad brush statements mean nothing unless you back them up.

There might be a statistic or a testimonial from a client that says everything about your “professionalism”.

“Passion” is vital for every business but you could show that rather than just say it with a well-crafted video with soundbites from the boss and other key personnel. That way you can see the passion oozing out, you can feel their enthusiasm and suddenly they are people who can align yourself with.

And while it is fine to say you are a “market-leader” how about using one or two powerful statistics about your company which shows that, rather than just saying it.

One big scoring area at these digital awards ceremonies which I host in Cambridgeshire, Surrey, Essex, Kent and Sussex as well as Hertfordshire is the imagery. You cannot underestimate the power of good quality photography and when the images are a bit grainy, blurred, copy and pasted from another source, it undermines your product or service.

There was one brilliant website that I loved, but two key spelling mistakes undermined all that good work and if this company cannot check its own website what is to say they will not have an attention to detail when they work with you.

I also like the idea of capturing photos of real people, your people on the website, rather than dashing looking actors and beautiful actresses. Mind you, when you are entering awards, please make sure that your Meet the Team tab is linked to a team where the photos are actually there. There was one which had all the names but none of the pictures attached. Such a shame.

However, having said all this, the majority of finalists were excellent and judging was difficult. I learned so much, as I always do, about what works well and it was an exercise in getting new ideas, seeing new trends. I looking forward to interviewing the winners next month.