Ars
enal
The big question for Arsenal this year, once again, is will they finally end their trophy drought? They have brought in some decent talent – Lukas Podolski is a proven goalscorer and I can see him succeeding in the Premier League. He scored twice in the recent friendly against his old side FC Köln which is already promising. Santi Cazorla is a good addition in midfield. He is not quite a David Silva or a Juan Mata but he adds definite creativity and versatility. Olivier Giroud is a bit of an unknown quantity, as many strikers from the undoubtedly weaker French Ligue 1 are when they come to England – we will have to wait and see if he can transfer his goalscoring form to the Premier League or just become another Marouane Chamakh. Despite the new additions however, Arsenal’s future lies in the hands of the players they already had. Robin van Persie’s move to Manchester United now looks like it might go through, and with the Dutchman scoring such a large portion of Arsenal’s goals last season to lose him would be a massive blow. Alex Song was another of the Gunners’ best players last season and he is interesting Barcelona, whilst Jack Wilshere is not due to return from injury until October. If Arsenal do break their trophy duck this season, it won’t be in the Premier League, but there are reasons for fans to be positive and Champions League qualification is certainly on the cards.
Prediction: 4th
Aston Villa
Villa struggled to a 16th place finish last season and look like they might struggle to do much better this time around. Alex McLeish was largely blamed for the club’s poor fortunes last season but in truth the squad is also lacking in a big way. Paul Lambert has come in from Norwich to replaced the axed McLeish and will be expected to turn the club around, but with no significant additions to the squad thus far he may face an uphill struggle to climb back up the league table. The likes of N’Zogbia and Ireland are going to have to fire in midfield, and the same can be said of Bent and Agbonlahor up front, but Villa’s weakness is in their strength in depth, with many of their youngsters not quite cutting it at this level yet.
Prediction: 15th
Chelsea
Before the start of the season every club’s fortune hangs on a number of ‘ifs’. However, at Chelsea, this could be more the case than anywhere else. They have undoubtedly strengthened in the area they were most lacking – creativity in the final third, and Eden Hazard, Oscar and Marko Marin, along with Juan Mata, will all be expected to provide for Fernando Torres, who, with Didier Drogba departed, is now the undoubted focal point of the Chelsea attack. I think Torres will be up amongst the top scorers this season – he looked good towards the end of the last campaign, won the golden boot at the European Championships, and scored a confident goal in Sunday’s community shield. All three of Chelsea’s new additions are very young and have no Premier League experience, but they have the quality to succeed and provide for Torres. They still need to strengthen in other areas however, and this is where the ‘ifs’ come in. Mikel, despite being outstanding in Munich, is not consistently good enough and is prone to giving the ball away cheaply, whilst Michael Essien is not the player he was. This leaves Chelsea in need of a defensive midfielder – someone who can win the ball and feed the attacking talent in the final third. A right-back is also a priority and a right-winger and a striker would also be good additions. Hulk would cover both areas but Victor Moses looks a more likely signing. If Chelsea buy in these areas I think they will really challenge for the title and finish top two, but even with the current squad they should see a great improvement on last year’s campaign.
Prediction: 3rd
Everton
Even with their inability to compete in the transfer market Everton will always be okay so long as they have David Moyes at the helm. The Scotsman has worked wonders for years with a limited squad. He looks set to go into this season with a group of players of similar strength to the last campaign. Jack Rodwell is a loss, joining Manchester City for around £12m but there is hope that Moyes may be allowed to use some of the funds to bring others in. Steven Pienaar looked like he was back at home during his loan spell last season and he has now rejoined the club from Tottenham on a permanent deal. Toffees legend Tim Cahiil has decided to swap Merseyside for New York but at 33 most Everton fans feel it was time to say goodbye to the Aussie, whilst Steven Naismith has come in from Rangers. He could partner Nikica Jelavic, who was in vital goalscoring form for the club after his January arrival last season, up front. Overall this should be another safe mid-table finish for Everton, though they are unlikely to match last season’s 7th place finish due to other clubs strengthening.
Prediction: 8th
Fulham
Fulham are another side who will go into the season with a similar strength squad to 2011/12. Star man Clint Dempsey, underrated for so long until his goal scoring burst last season, may leave the club – Liverpool and Everton are reportedly interested and the American was left behind when they left for their training camp in Switzerland earlier this month. Dixon Etuhu and Danny Murphy have also departed whilst Croatian striker Mladen Petric has come in from Hamburg and Hugo Rodallega has also joined after leaving Wigan. As a result Fulham now look quite strong up front, as they still have Bryan Ruiz, Orlando Sa and wanted man Moussa Dembele to add to these new attacking options. They should be in for another comfortable mid-table finish.
Prediction: 11th
Liverpool
The big talking point surrounding Liverpool this season is how Brendan Rodgers will get on in one of the biggest jobs in English football. He is a manager that has earned a lot of respect with the way he went about his time at Swansea City and may well be just what Liverpool need – a bit of fresh blood after the failed experiment of going back to club hero Kenny Dalglish last season. Dalglish won Liverpool the League Cup, but his performance in the league was just not good enough and I think that, in time, Rodgers will turn that around – although a top four finish may be too much to ask this time around. Joe Allen, although very expensive at £15m, is a good signing – he is a young player who knows Rodgers’ style and could play an important part in any success this season. Ex-Chelsea forward Fabio Borini has come in from Roma to provide options up front whilst Rodgers is also reportedly keen on another young striker – Barcelona’s Cristian Tello. None of the departures should hurt Liverpool too much – Maxi Rodriguez and Dirk Kuyt, the most high profile of which, were reduced largely to bit-part roles last season. It is important, if not imperative, that Liverpool start the season well. A good start will see the crowd really get behind Rodgers and his project whilst a poor one will lead to a type of pressure this young manager has not yet experienced.
Prediction: 5th
Manchester City
Champions in the most dramatic of circumstances last time out, City now know how to win a Premier League title. They will go into this season as deserved favourites, contrary to what Roberto Mancini might tell you, and their squad is so strong that it is hard to see past them to do it all over again. Mancini has recently hit out at the club’s Sporting Director Brian Marwood for the lack of signings this summer – City now look set to miss out on Daniel Agger with Robin van Persie having already slipped from their grasp, but they have brought in Jack Rodwell. The young Englishman may struggle for a place in such a strong first team, and it is hard to see where rumoured interest Scott Sinclair would fit into their plans too. However if they manage to offload a few unwanted players; the likes of Edin Dzeko, City will make a couple more additions to their squad before the window closes. Not that they really need it – they are a strong enough group as they are. Sergio Aguero will most likely build on his excellent first season at the club, whilst City will hope David Silva is back to his best and Samir Nasri continues his good form. The title is theirs to lose.
Prediction: 1st
Manchester United
Manchester United’s summer transfer headline has so far been the signing of attacking midfielder Shinji Kagawa from Borussia Dortmund. Like Chelsea, United were lacking in this area and they have moved to strengthen in the window. Coming from the German Bundesliga, it shouldn’t take Kagawa too long to get used to the physical side of the Premiership and I think he will be important for United this season. He often pulled the strings in Dortmund’s title winning side and whilst doing the same for United in his very first season is a big ask, he will certainly provide a positive attacking influence. The Robin van Persie transfer saga continues to drag on, and whilst Arsenal are understandably reticent to sell their star player to such bitter rivals, a fee has been agreed and it now looks as if the deal is about to go through. A strike partnership of van Persie and Rooney is one sure to have any Premier League defence quaking in their boots, and that’s not forgetting Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez as other options too. It is important for United that Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick are in form in the centre of midfield, for that is their weakest area. The return on Nemanja Vidic from injury is a great relief whilst young defenders Phil Jones and Chris Smalling will continue to develop. They will battle with Chelsea and Manchester City in the top three but ultimately I can’t see them pushing City as close as they did last season.
Prediction: 2nd
Newcastle United
Alan Pardew’s side had an outstanding season last time around. Their fifth place finish was far and beyond what people expected of them at the start of the season, but this will now mean the pressure will be on to do similar this time. I can’t see them challenging for the top four again this season as Arsenal will be a bit too strong for them and Chelsea are much improved, but I do think they will maintain their spot in the top six. Papiss Cisse will begin a high profile first full season at the club following his blistering scoring run after signing in January this year, whilst Newcastle will hope that Demba Ba will stay and recreate his own scoring form from earlier in the season. If both fire simultaneously they will be very dangerous, though Cisse’s arrival often saw Ba pushed out to an unfavoured left forward position. Cabaye, Tiote, Coloccini, Krul and Ben Arfa will continue to be vital players whilst Romain Amalfitano has come in from Reims to add another attacking option. I see them battling with Liverpool and Tottenham for a Europa League spot and a decent cup run could also be on the cards.
Prediction: 6th
Norwich City
Norwich have seen a big boost and a big blow of equal measures this summer. The prolific Grant Holt, seemingly set on a move away from the club at the end of last season, reversed his decision and decided to stay. However, manager Paul Lambert has departed to Aston Villa, whom Norwich finished four places above last season. Chris Hughton, though, is a very able replacement. Despite Alan Pardew’s success since taking over at Newcastle many still feel that Hughton’s dismissal from the club was extremely harsh. He did a good job with Birmingham last season and I hope he succeeds at Norwich. His problem comes in that Lambert was such a big part of the Canaries’ success – he brought them all the way up from League 1 to the Premiership and it could be said that he has been the driving factor behind the club’s good fortunes over the last few years. As good a manager as Hughton is, I can’t see him getting Norwich close to their 12th place finish last season – as is often the case with sides who enjoy a good first season after promotion. I can see them in a close relegation scrap this season, but I think they’ll just about survive it.
Prediction: 16th
Queens Park Rangers
As expected, wealthy QPR have made several additions to their squad already this summer. Samba Diakite’s loan move has been made permanent, whilst Park Ji-Sung, Robert Green, Junior Hoilett, Fabio, Andrew Johnson and Ryan Nelson are all good signings who vitally all have Premier League experience. Park has been the most celebrated signing, coming from Manchester United, but I can perhaps see Hoilett making the best impression, whilst Robert Green is a definite improvement on Paddy Kenny, who has left for Leeds. QPR will miss Joey Barton much more than the Premier League will whilst he serves his ban, whilst they will hope Adel Taarabt will perform better than he did for the most part of last season – he himself will be keen to prove he is the star he believes himself to be, rather than the man who was left on the bench at times last season. QPR will not come as close to relegation as they did last time, and I see them consolidating their Premier League survival with a decent mid-table finish.
Prediction: 10th
Reading
The Championship winners enjoyed a surprisingly good first season last time they were promoted, but they will find it much more difficult this time around. Their best signing of the summer is Russian striker Pavel Pogrebnyak, who enjoyed some time with Fulham last season. He scored six times in 12 appearances for the Cottagers and Reading will be hoping he can replicate that sort of form this season – their top scorer last season was Adam le Fondre with just twelve goals. Danny Guthrie and Chris Gunter are two more decent signings whilst the Royals have held onto their key players from last season. However, the question still remains whether they are good enough to keep themselves in the Premier League. With the gap between even 8th and last in the Premiership so small now I think Reading will struggle.
Prediction: 18th
Southampton
Another promoted side, and another I think will struggle this season. Though this was a good Championship side Nigel Adkins has not really strengthened the squad and he will be up against it to keep them up. Promising young defender Nathaniel Clyne has joined from Crystal Palace and whilst he looks a prospect he is not yet the sort of player who is going to keep them in the Premier League. Steven Davis from Rangers will be of perhaps more immediate benefit but as it stands it is the likes of Ricky Lambert and Adam Lallana who will once again be the Saints’ key men. Premier League stalwarts in the past, those days for Southampton are now over and of all three promoted teams I think they look the most likely to head straight back to where they came from.
Prediction: 20th
Stoke City
Tony Pulis’ side are the perfect example of how to keep a promoted side in the Premiership. Though much maligned for their style of play Stoke have been one of the division’s success stories of the last few years, and I cannot see them heading back to the Championship any time soon. Though last season’s 14th place finish was their lowest since promotion to the league in 2009, it was fairly comfortable, and I would expect them to finish in a similar position this time around. Michael Kightly has joined the club from Wolves for an undisclosed fee and will compete with the likes of Jermaine Pennant and Matthew Etherington for the wide positions. Their job will be to cross the ball in to last season’s top scorer Peter Crouch, who should lead the line once again. One of Stoke’s major strengths comes in their defence – Ryan Shawcross, Matthew Upson and Robert Huth are all experienced Premiership centre-backs and are arguably the bedrock for the club’s success so far.
Prediction: 14th
Sunderland
Sunderland’s fortunes skyrocketed after the appointment of Martin O’Neill last December – he turned around their miserable campaign to such a point that there was even talk of a push for European football at one point. There are too many stronger sides for this to be a realistic possibility this season but I do think that O’Neill can take them into the top half. The most recent talk involving Sunderland and the transfer marker has been centred around Wolves’ Steven Fletcher. The nature of the market now is that British players are far overpriced, and it is reported that Sunderland will have to pay £15m to land the striker. It seems like a lot, it is, but if the deal goes through I can certainly see him proving worthier of his price tag than the likes of Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing. He is a proven goalscorer at Premier League level and would make up for the loss of Nicklas Bendtner who was a success during his loan spell from Arsenal last season. The Black Cats have a good crop of current players – Stephane Sessegnon the best of the lot, and should have a solid if unspectacular season.
Prediction: 9th
Swansea City
Swansea were a breath of fresh air last season. Promoted from the Championship, the Welsh club were determined to continue playing their exciting and attractive brand of football against the big boys. They were rewarded with the praise of pundits and fans across the country, and more importantly, an 11th place finish. However, the summer has seen the Swans lose arguably their three best assets. Manager Brendan Rodgers, who was the inspiration behind their style of play, has been lured by the temptation of a big job on Merseyside, and midfielder Joe Allen, who featured for Team GB at the Olympics, has followed him out of the club. Gylfi Sigurdsson has also opted not to turn his successful loan move into a permanent switch, instead choosing Tottenham. New manager Michael Laudrup is now left to try and keep the club up and he has so far brought in three players unknown to English football; Chico of Genoa, Michu of Rayo Vallecano and de Guzman of Villareal. It is unlikely Swansea will find this second Premiership season as enjoyable as the last, though a lot may depend on what Laudrup decides to do with the money from Allen’s transfer, and indeed, if he can keep last season’s form alive. I think he could find it difficult, but Scott Sinclair, Leon Britton, Michel Vorm, Danny Graham and Nathan Dyer still remain at the club and are talented players, so their season could go either way.
Prediction: 19th
Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs Chairman Daniel Levy is known for being one of the best in the business, but the way he has worked this summer has not been too impressive. The sacking of Harry Redknapp, the club’s most successful manager in over 20 years, was harsh. Yes, they should have held on to the third place that would have seen them qualify for the Champions League, and Spurs and Redknapp have themselves to blame for their absence in the competition as much as they do bad luck at Chelsea’s victory in Munich. However, I believe Harry deserved the chance to start afresh this season with the distraction of the England job now a thing of the past. Instead, Levy has put his faith in Andre Villas-Boas, the same man whose nightmare time at Chelsea saw him sacked midway through last season. I’m sure AVB is a good manager – he had great success at both Academica and Porto, but he is going to have to learn from his mistakes at Chelsea, and learn fast. Tottenham are far more suited to him as a club and I think in time he will do well there, but I do not think he will be able to match Harry’s top four finish from last season. Part of the reason for this is that the squad looks weaker. Levy is also partly to blame with the Luka Modric fiasco, which I think will end in him getting his way and leaving the club, whilst they have also failed thus far in bringing in a striker. Spurs will still hope Emmanuel Adebayor will join on a permanent deal but there are stumbling blocks. The two players they have brought in, defender Jan Vertonghen and attacking midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson both look to be good signings but I see Spurs scrapping more with Newcastle and Liverpool than with Arsenal and Chelsea this season.
Prediction: 7th
West Bromwich Albion
West Brom’s season hinges on how Steve Clarke will perform in his first ever season as a manager. He is well used to the number two role, having done the job for a long time at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho and also at Liverpool, and whilst he has none of the experience of Roy Hodgson, who led the Baggies so well last season, I think he will do a good job as their number one. Ben Foster from Birmingham is a great signing whilst Argentine Claudio Yacob has come in from Racing Club and Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea on a season long loan. Lukaku will feel he has a point to prove after feeling snubbed by his parent club last season, and I would not be surprised to see him go out and score a host of goals for West Brom this season. They finished 10th last season, and it is unlikely that Clarke will be able to better that in his first campaign, but I think he will keep the club safely in the Premier League.
Prediction: 12th
West Ham United
Of all this season’s promoted team I feel West Ham have the best chance of staying in the league. Sam Allardyce, though not the most popular figure at the club, knows how to keep this sort of side up, and despite his notorious claims that he would be best suited to a job at the likes of Real Madrid, I feel this is the sort of challenge at which he excels. They have brought in some good players – former Bolton ‘keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen will replace Robert Green, whilst Malian striker Modibo Maiga looks promising and Alou Diarra and Mohamed Diame will both add some fight and stability to their midfield. Crucially for the Hammers, they have a comparatively easy start to the season, not facing one of the league’s top sides until they play Arsenal on 6th October. If they can make the most of this and get off to a good start then I think they will be alright this season.
Prediction: 13th
Wigan Athletic
Predicting Wigan for relegation is the fashionable thing to do. They have been one of the favourites every season since their promotion in 2005 yet every time they have managed to find a way to stay up. That in mind, I’m going to say they’ll do it again, but like last season, it may have to be a close run thing. Wigan will be delighted not to have lost manager Roberto Martinez to Liverpool or Aston Villa. He has brought in defender Ivan Ramis from Mallorca as well as bleached blonde striker Arouna Kone from Levante and young speedster Ryo Miyaichi on loan from Arsenal. This suggests that they may give in to Chelsea’s pressure and let Victor Moses go, but Wigan should cope without him. Their highlights of last season were undoubtedly wins against Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool, but it is their rivals, teams like Swansea, Southampton and Aston Villa who they are going to need to beat to ensure a ninth successive season in the top tier of English football.
Prediction: 17th