Another year, another premier league season arrives as we look ahead to the upcoming season which has the potential to be a classic and could be one of the tightest ones in recent memory as the top clubs will be vying for top honor’s and looking to be labeled as England’s best club. Following a grueling season that included international competitions such as European Championships, Copa America, etc., teams will be looking to get in shape during the preseason in what is a short turnover from when the last Premier League season ended. Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, and Chelsea are all capable of winning the title, making it fatal four-way for the Premier League crown. Further down the table, I expect a mid-table tussle between Arsenal, Everton, Leeds, and West Ham as a push for European football will be the target in mind for these clubs. Expect a lot of twists and turns this season.
Winners – Manchester City
Manchester City were heads and shoulders above the rest last season as they waltzed their way to a 5th title (2nd in three years) after embarking on a 15 game-winning run. City have not rested on their laurels as they’ve added Jack Grealish to their side which provides a wealth of attacking options and still looking to bring in a big-name forward. With the missing spaces filled, City will have a formidable squad and will look to challenge on all fronts. Chelsea who won the Champions League last season could be City’s closest rivals as both boast the best squads in the league and went head-to-head last season with Chelsea coming out on top in 3 out of the 4 games they played. Also, they have signed Romelu Lukaku in a position that they had been struggling to fill in since the days of Costa, Drogba, etc. Liverpool has their best defenders returning and have reinforced the position with one of the best talents in Europe, Ibrahim Konate. Whilst Manchester United finished 2nd last season and have massively improved their starting eleven by signing Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, question marks over Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s coaching ability remain and having been backed in the transfer market in the last three seasons, another trophy-less campaign may spell the end of his tenure at the club. Having said this, I still expect a close title race but I still have Man City to come out on top this season.
Premier League Table prediction
1st Manchester City
2nd Chelsea
3rd Liverpool
4th Manchester United
5th Leicester City
6th Tottenham Hotspur
7th Arsenal
8th West Ham
9th Everton
10th Aston Villa
11th Leeds United
12th Crystal Palace
13th Wolverhampton Wanderers
14th Newcastle United
15th Burnley
16th Brighton and Hove Albion
17th Southampton
18th Brentford
19th Norwich City
20th Watford
Leeds and Brentford to be surprise packages of the season
You might be asking, “Why Leeds”? Weren’t they the most exciting team last season and didn’t they finish in the top half of the table? All of this is true and I enjoyed watching Leeds’s play their possession-based style of football and how Bielsa’s band of brothers proved their doubters wrong. The important thing to note will be the return of fans and Elland Road has been a point of strength for them when filled. Now it’s quashing the “second season syndrome” trouble that Bielsa and his men should be targeting as they would want to avoid the fate of Sheffield United who vanished quicker than a one-hit wonders music career. A few signings that wouldn’t go amiss but expect Leeds to light up your screens once again.
Brentford are finally in the top flight after several near misses and I’m excited to see what they can bring to the Premier League. They’re an attack-minded side that successfully mix a strong pressing game with a patience possession-oriented game. It will be interesting to see whether they stick to their philosophy as we’ve often seen teams struggling to implement their style of play when promoted from the Championship e.g., Norwich 19-20. Whatever happens, expect the bees to claim some top clubs this season.
Relegation candidates
As with the title race, it is probably to early say which teams are likely to drop down to the championship. Many teams are adding to their squad as they look to avoid the dreaded drop and finish higher up in the table. To avoid relegation, you’ll need to take points from the teams around you and try to nick a result against the bigger sides, which is easier said than done. With that being said, I expect the newly promoted sides Norwich, Brentford, and Watford to be relegated. I don’t think Norwich’s squad isn’t as good as their last that won the Championship, only to finish bottom of the Premier League and to make matters worse they’ve sold their best player Emi Buendia to Aston Villa. As for Watford, they are in a similar situation to Norwich. Relegated in 19/20, Watford have returned to the top flight with more or less the same squad that got them relegated last time around and I see this season ending the same. They’ve recruited well, adding young talent to the squad, giving them an outside chance of staying up. However, I think the lack of creativity and Watford’s impatient board will cost them. As I mentioned earlier in this article, Brentford could be the season’s surprise package and out of the three, they are the only ones I have some hope for. In terms of personnel, I think Ivan Toney will be key in scoring the goals again this season but ultimately their defense may prove to be their Achilles heel as I don’t think they have enough quality in that position.”. Come to the end of the season, this may come back to bite me but you can’t always be right, can you?
Other Predictions
Top Scorer – Harry Kane
POTY- Kevin De Bruyne
YPOTY- Kai Havertz
Golden Glove – Mendy/Martinez
