20- Norwich
It has never been in doubt for me. No matter how they try, who they recruit, Norwich City are always relegation favourite and it’s not changing this year as well particularly as they’ve lost their best player in Emi Buendia. They’ve made some really exciting signings though, Rashica, Gilmour and Sargent some few players to watch.
19- Watford
Proper appreciation to Xisco but I don’t see Watford surviving relegation this season. What they did in the Championship make them a team to watch but I feel they won’t be more than that. The Nigerian trio of Troost Ekong, Etebo and Emmanuel Dennis make them a team to watch for me.
18- Newcastle
No new signing from last season’s 12th placed finish. A bold call as they have a great team but I wouldn’t put relegation past the Steve Bruce led team. This might backfire but I’ll put them 18th.
17- Brentford
So much talk about Thomas Frank’s team and particularly on Ivan Toney’s quality and they’ve lived up to the tag so far. I see them escaping relegation by a whisker and it’d be fun to see how they play going forward as I like what I see so far.
16- Southampton
I personally think they’ll do very well, but seeing how the Hassenhutl boys lost form last season, I’d be careful with my judgement. They replaced Ings with Armstrong but it remain to be seen whether he’ll replicate Ings goal scoring prowess. Tipped Che Adams for a big season last year and I have same judgement now too.
15- Burnley
Broke their transfer record for Cornet after finishing 17th last season. As usual Sean Dyche as always will overachieve with their squad. Will have them solid as usual. Comfortably above relegation zone but quite not good enough for a midtable finish
14- Crystal Palace
Optimism around their fanbase with the excitement of the unknown giving them everything to live up to. New CB pairing coupled with other young and exciting recruitments makes them a team to watch out for. I’m putting them 15th because I don’t have expectation from/for them.
13- Wolves
Good club with a great mixture of youth and experience. A new manager in the league, Bruno Lage will have to make every game count if they’re going to be this high. Trincao could be good with more games while channelling Adama’s strength to productivity is another important part of their season.
12- Brighton
They only had a good enough squad to survive last season and they did just that. They were good at the back and they’re still very good which is key for them. Sarmiento, Cucurella and Mwepu are great additions and if they finish more clinically unlike last season, it’s going to be a good season for Potter’s boys.
11- Leeds United
Expecting a drop off from their 9th position finish from last season, they weren’t as good in the second part of the season as they were when the season started and haven’t done much business. No big departure from last season but I think Bamford might not score as many as last season and that might lead them to mid table.
10- Aston Villa
With Grealish gone, they’ve lost the identity of the club. As a one man team, replacing Grealish with 3 quality signings is so impressive in my opinion but with at least 4 of their summer signings becoming starters, I don’t see Villa doing better than 10th. Still intriguied on how Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins will play together.
9- Arsenal
Last season was not impressive, added quantity more than quality in the transfer window and most likely are not ready to compete for European places this season. The position will definitely improve massively if Aubameyang return back to top form and might also be lower if they don’t have Partey fit for 75% of the season. Arteta is in charge, I’ll say Trust. The. Process!
8- Everton
Going with heart over logic here but why not? I mean we’re surely not lacking in quality and we only missed out on Europe on the last day of the 20/21 season. Signing Leicester reject Demarai Gray for £1.5m seems to be the bargain of the season for now. The squad lacked pace and with Townsend and Gray brought in despite the obvious lack of spending power is impressive. James Rodriguez stayed back and his quality is unquestionable, Gbamin back to full fitness and Doucoure in a more advanced role. Rafa Benitez’s track record speaks for itself and by the end of the season I hope I don’t look back at this in shame 😂
7- West Ham United
Last season, I was tipping them for relegation and putting them 7th just after 12 months indicate how fast things change in football. Their recruitment last summer was spot on with both Coufal and Soucek adding the needed bite to the team while the return to form of Pablo Fornals couldn’t have come at a better time. This summer, they’ve added Zouma, Vlasic and returned to Czech Republic to add a third Czech player to the duo of Coufal and Soucek. Antonio going from strength to strength, Benrahma finally showing why he was so highly rated in the Championship and making sure they didn’t lose Declan Rice over the summer. They’re definitely my team to watch.
6- Leicester City
They’ve taken last season’s injury woes into the new season and Brendan Rodgers has his work cut out having to field different team every gameweek. Having to start the season with 3 long term injuries to your CBs with 2 of your full-backs having injuries from last season will be too much on bigger clubs not to talk of a club of Leicester’s stature. However, the addition of Patson Daka and Ademola Lookman in attack is interesting for me with Vardy and Seniorman both still firing strong. 6th place finish for me.
5- Tottenham Hotspur.
With Harry Kane staying, Cristian Romero’s signature makes perfect sense for Tottenham considering the fact that they have a very erratic defence. With a great start to the season, it’s more or less clear how Nuno will set his team. Bar any major injuries, I envisage a rather surprising season for Spurs because Harry Kane will want to make a statement of quality on the pitch. I’m excited to watch Oliver Skipp week in week out now. Their UECL campaign will pose great threats to this though as they’ll be travelling to distant locations and that might derail their season.
4- Liverpool
Before Chelsea & United got Lukaku and Cristiano respectively, in personal spaces, I’ve always reiterated my opinion that there will be major competition for the league from a Liverpool without multiple major injuries and with Virgil van Dijk back. The only factor counting against Jurgen Klopp’s charges and that’s making me put them 4th is the visible lack of great options off the bench and that will hurt them considering the star quality they will cede during the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in January.
3- Chelsea
If you ask for my prediction in the next few hours, I might have Chelsea swapped to 2nd and Man United to 3rd but I personally think there will always be increasing pressure on Thomas Tuchel throughout the season to build on the Champions League triumph and return the league to Chelsea given their investment over the past two summers but with Lukaku leading the charge, they should have no problem with that. They have the momentum from winning the Champions League, they have a squad overflowing with talent and they have an elite manager with a plan. The major reason why I’m putting Chelsea at 3rd is because of the multiple competitions they’ll be competing with while they’ll lose their goalkeeper for at least 2 weeks in January (AFCON). Like in the case for Manchester United, I feel Chelsea can also compete for the league and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if they win.
2- Manchester United
Cristiano. Varane. Sancho. Three crucial additions while keeping Pogba and without losing any of their other first teamers. They could even do one better and win the league but with Ole still at the wheel and without adding a defensive midfielder, I feel they’ll come short by few margins.
1- Manchester City
The automatic pick for this spot for me, even without the addition of a center forward to join Jack Grealish in supercharging their ranks, is Manchester City. The title should be a natural consequence of their spending married with an excellent manager and structure over the years. Anything less than first place is, let’s not pretend otherwise, failure for Pep Guardiola’s charges.
