Premier League preview - Ronaldo returns after Man City miss out on Kane

 

▪️ ARSENAL @Arsenal
Last season 8th FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Quarter finals Europa League Semi finals
Last major trophy FA Cup 2020
Ownership Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (USA)
Head coach Mikel Arteta (since December 2019)
New signings Nuno Tavares, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Ben White, Martin Odegaard, Aaron Ramsdale, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Painful and embarrassing. That could be the only assessment of last season for Arsenal who finished eighth for a second year in a row. Worse still, this time there was no FA Cup success to secure European football - and the summer has not exactly lifted the mood at the Emirates. Increasingly, it is only the youngsters Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe who provide hope of any progress in this part of north London - and the big signing of centre-back Ben White already looks extremely overpriced at £50m. Mikel Arteta - humiliated by predecessor Unai Emery in the Europa League semi finals - faces an early exit if the Gunners do not start firing on all cylinders soon. 
▪️ Prediction [11th]

▪️ ASTON VILLA @AVFCOfficial
Last season 11th FA Cup Third round League Cup Fourth round
Last major trophy League Cup 1996
Ownership Nasser Sawiris (EGY) and Wes Edens (USA)
Head coach Dean Smith (since October 2018)
New signings Emiliano Buendia, Ashley Young, Danny Ings, Leon Bailey, Axel Tuanzebe*
This is not quite the Team That Jack Built - but honest Aston Villa fans will admit the Birmingham-born 25-year-old will be a massive miss following his British record £100m transfer to Manchester City. If nothing else, the beating heart of this squad has been ripped out - and that is not something which new signing Emi Buendia, as talented as he is, will be able to replace. Ollie Watkins, an England squad member this summer, will still score enough goals without Grealish - and, with the support of John McGinn and new face Danny Ings, Villa should stay clear of trouble. Sadly, for supporters of the Second City club, though, there will be no Grealish-inspired push for Europe in 2021-22.
▪️ Prediction [12th]

▪️ BRENTFORD @BrentfordFC
Last season 3rd in Championship (promoted) FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Semi finals
Last major trophy None
Ownership Matthew Benham (ENG)
Head coach Thomas Frank (since October 2018)
New signings Kristoffer Ajer, Myles Peart-Harris, Frank Onyeka, Yoane Wissa, Alvaro Fernandez
Brentford finally made it to the Premier League following several successive promising Championship seasons - although the Bees still needed to rely on the playoffs for promotion. That is not to take away anything from Brentford, the 50th club to achieve a place in the top division in the Premier League era after decades of toil - and, even recently, several squad rebuilds. Ivan Toney led the line brilliantly last season with 31 goals in the Championship - and, aided by the attacking philosophy of Danish head coach Thomas Frank, the 25-year-old has more than a fair chance of also making an impact on the top division. Nevertheless, the Bees' concern surely must be the lack of experience throughout their squad which collectively had only played 19 minutes of Premier League football before the season.
▪️ Prediction [14th]

▪️ BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION @OfficialBHAFC
Last season 16th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Fourth round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Tony Bloom (ENG)
Head coach Graham Potter (since May 2019)
New signings Enock Mwepu, Kjell Scherpen, Jeremy Sarmiento, Kaoru Mitoma, Marc Cucurella
Neil Maupay was Brighton's top scorer last season with just eight league goals, a statistic which will surprise nobody who saw the Seagulls play. Indeed, the sheer profligacy of Graham Potter's men became something of a running joke as they regularly frustrated the geeks obsessed with XG, i.e. the number of goals which they were expected to score. The problem appeared to reach a critical point in the relegation clash in February against West Brom in which Brighton contrived to miss two spot-kicks - although, eventually, the south coast club did enough to survive and line up for a sixth straight Premier League campaign. None of their summer signings so far is a striker, however - and this oversight certainly points towards another long season at the Amex Stadium.
▪️ Prediction [15th]

▪️ BURNLEY @BurnleyOfficial
Last season 17th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Fourth round
Last major trophy First Division 1959-1960
Ownership ALK Capital (USA)
Head coach Sean Dyche (since October 2012)
New signings Wayne Hennessey, Nathan Collins, Jacob Bedeau, Aaron Lennon, Maxwel Cornet, Connor Roberts
Turf Moor was not a happy place last season. Not only was the tight, old-fashioned ground missing its usual Lancastrian roar due to the coronavirus restrictions, a takeover saga left head coach Sean Dyche less than impressed after he was left in limbo last summer and beyond. Eventually, the change in ownership went through in December and the Clarets' poor early form improved sufficiently for them to line up among the elite of English football again. Still, though, Burnley were terribly shot-shy, scoring a measly 33 league goals on their way to 17th place despite main striker Chris Wood managing to get into double figures with 12. So far, the new owners have not exactly splashed their cash and little has changed from a squad which struggled badly at times year.
▪️ Prediction [16th]

▪️ CHELSEA @ChelseaFC
Last season 4th FA Cup Runners-up League Cup Fourth round Champions League Winners
Last major trophy Champions League 2021
Ownership Roman Abramovich (RUS/ISR)
Head coach Thomas Tuchel (since January 2021)
New signings Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Bettinelli, Saul Niguez*
It all went horribly wrong, quite quickly really, for Frank Lampard in the dugout at Stamford Bridge last season. Club legend Lampard was appointed to great fanfare in the summer of 2019 - and had a solid enough first year, guiding the Blues to fourth position and a place in the FA Cup final. But, with the transfer embargo lifted, far more was expected from Chelsea in 2020-21, especially given the investment in their attack with the arrival of German pair Timo Werner and Kai Havertz. Instead, Werner found it tough to adapt to the Premier League - and, defensively, Chelsea rather fell apart. Thomas Tuchel took over in January and immediately improved the organisation of the team in a half-season burst which culminated in Chelsea achieving European Cup glory for the second time in nine years. Building on from that, the Blues have again strengthened their attacking hand by re-signing Romelu Lukaku for £103m from Internazionale. With the arrival of the Belgian, Tuchel will expect his team to mount a serious challenge to the Manchester clubs and Liverpool.
▪️ Prediction [3rd]

▪️ CRYSTAL PALACE @CPFC
Last season 14th FA Cup Third round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Steve Parish (ENG)
Head coach Patrick Vieira (since July 2021)
New signings Marc Guehi, Michael Olise, Joachim Andersen, Conor Gallagher*, Jacob Montes, Remi Matthews, Will Hughes, Odsonne Edouard

All change at Selhurst Park as Crystal Palace welcome a new head coach for the start of a season for the first time since 2017 following the rather wonderfully surprising appointment of Patrick Vieira. Of course, we all know what happened then - Frank de Boer turned up in the dugout, lost four games without seeing as much as a goal and was promptly sacked. Roy Hodgson took over his boyhood club and repaired his own reputation somewhat after his spell with the England national team ended dreadfully - with the Eagles never less than steady for the vast majority of his tenure. Vieira has enjoyed some success already in the transfer market, attracting Danish international Joachim Andersen and Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher - but he only needs to ask predecessor de Boer what will happen if Palace cope badly with a change again.
▪️ Prediction [13th]

▪️ EVERTON @Everton
Last season 10th FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Quarter finals
Last major trophy FA Cup 1995
Ownership Farhad Moshiri (IRN)
Head coach Rafael Benítez (since June 2021)
New signings Andros Townsend, Demarai Gray, Asmir Begovic, Salomon Rondon*
A strange and unsettling pre-season in this part of Merseyside has only increased the pressure on a Toffees team which has underperformed in recent seasons. First, former Liverpool head coach Rafael Benitez received rather less than a hero's welcome at Goodison Park when he was appointed as Carlo Ancelotti's replacement on 30 June - and then, in July, Everton admitted they had suspended a first-team player pending a police investigation over suspected child sex offences. Even the proposed move to a new ground in the Docklands area suffered a reputational blow when the plans were met by stern criticism from UNESCO, which subsequently removed the city of Liverpool from its list of World Heritage Sites. On the pitch, Dominic Calvert-Lewin will be determined to back up the breakthrough campaign which he enjoyed last time out - while Benitez will, as usual, take criticism of his style on the chin if it leads to an improved defensive record.
▪️ Prediction [7th]

▪️ LEEDS UNITED @LUFC
Last season 9th FA Cup Third round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy First Division 1991-92
Ownership Andrea Radrizzani (ITA)
Head coach Marcelo Bielsa (since June 2018)
New signings Jack Harrison, Junior Firpo, Lewis Bate, Amari Miller, Kristoffer Klaesson, Daniel James

Marco Bielsa did not disappoint as he took his forward first approach into the Premier League last season. Better still for Leeds United, it actually worked out well for the Argentine - at least in the primary aim of keeping the Whites in the top flight. Patrick Bamford, in particular, had a cracking campaign up front and scored 17 league goals as the West Yorkshire club recorded a  finish in the top 10 places in the English top division for the first time since 2001-02. In excellent summer news for Leeds supporters, Bamford agreed this week to a new five-year contract - and with his poaching ability, Bielsa's men will bloody a few noses again this season. Indeed, they could easily improve on last season if they even get a little bit better at the back from set-pieces - after all, not including penalties, those situations cost Leeds on 15 occasions during 2020-21, the most in the Premier League.
▪️ Prediction [10th]

▪️ LEICESTER CITY @LCFC
Last season 5th FA Cup Winners League Cup Third round Europa League Last 32
Last major trophy FA Cup 2021
Ownership Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha (THA)
Head coach Brendan Rodgers (since February 2019)
New signings Ryan Bertrand, Boubakary Soumare, Patson Daka, Jannik Vestergaard, Ademola Lookman*

Medals count - the Olympics have been ample demonstration of that - so former Stocksbridge Park Steels striker Jamie Vardy must still be pinching himself. After all, the incredible 2015-16 Premier League title win has now been followed up by an FA Cup win at Wembley in May. Conversely, in the league, the Foxes fell out of the Champions League places in the last week of the campaign for the second year in a row so there are reasonable doubts over just how far this current Leicester team can go. Except for Liverpool, the teams who finished above Brendan Rodgers's men have all made big signings - although, at the same time, none of the teams below have made particularly great strides. Consequently, this all points to a strong Leicester outfit holding firm in fifth but still not breaking through.
▪️ Prediction [5th]

▪️ LIVERPOOL @LFC
Last season 3rd FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Fourth round Champions League Quarter finals
Last major trophy Premier League 2019-20
Ownership Fenway Sports Group (USA)
Head coach Jürgen Klopp (since October 2015)
New signings Ibrahima Konate

Liverpool produced a weak title defence and relied on a late season run of form - eight wins and two draws - to rescue a season which appeared to be drifting towards a finish in the Europa League places at best. Instead, the Reds finished third after that late run having spent much of the campaign bemoaning a lack of home fans, injuries and VAR decisions, factors which were not exactly unique to Liverpool during 2020-21. True, the early season injury to Virgil van Dijk was probably decisive enough in itself for Klopp's men to concede the title - but the problems eventually stretched well beyond the injury to their key defender. Beyond Mo Salah, who had another excellent season in front of goal, Liverpool struggled in attack, and full-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson were blunted by injuries and patchy form. Surprisingly, there has not been an influx of squad-boosting signings to Anfield this summer - and, as such, it is difficult to see the 2019-20 title winners managing a much closer challenge to the two Manchester clubs this time.
▪️ Prediction [4th]

▪️ MANCHESTER CITY @ManCity
Last season Champions FA Cup Semi finals League Cup Winners Champions League Runners-up
Last major trophy Premier League 2020-21
Ownership Abu Dhabi United Group (UAE)
Head coach Pep Guardiola (since July 2016)
New signings Jack Grealish, Scott Carson, Metinho, Kayky

Manchester City do not miss out on their man often - but, with Harry Kane now confirmed as committed to Tottenham Hotspur for the summer and Cristiano Ronaldo moving to Manchester United, the defending champions find themselves in the bizarre position of being short of options up front. Gabriel Jesus and Ferran Torres have shown plenty of promise already - but neither will ever come anywhere near to the feats of Sergio Aguero at the Etihad Stadium. After all, Man City have made it no secret this summer that they wanted to recruit a top-level striker - but, while the creativity ranks have boosted by the arrival of Jack Grealish from Aston Villa, a long-term implementation of the false nine tactic would be an especially brave tactic in competitions as competitive as the Premier League and the Champions League. Of course, Man City come into this season on the back of a first-ever appearance in the Final of the European Cup - and, while it is impossible to know for sure, the obviously conditional commitment of Kane to Spurs suggests a Champions League-winning team may have had just that bit more of a pull. As it stands, that remains the golden duck for the Abu Dhabi United Group but this looks like Pep Guardiola's most difficult season yet at the Etihad.
▪️ Prediction [2nd]

▪️ MANCHESTER UNITED @ManUtd
Last season 2nd FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Semi finals Champions League Group stage Europa League Runners-up
Last major trophy Europa League 2017
Ownership Joel Glazer and Avram Glazer (USA)
Head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjær (since December 2018)
New signings Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane, Tom Heaton, Cristiano Ronaldo
Pity poor Manchester United, hamstrung by the Glazers on board and their transfer spend on a couple of players of only £107m this summer, having previously splurged similarly eye-watering amounts on Paul Pogba in August 2016 and Harry Maguire in August 2019. True, there are legitimate concerns about the club being saddled with the external debt of their American owners - but it seems unlikely that, if Man United were still a winning machine like they were under Sir Alex Ferguson, the protests - which, without sanction, caused the Liverpool match on 2 May to be postponed - would have reached anywhere near the same scale. Instead, Red Devils fans are frustrated by the lack of a trophy in four seasons and the lack of a Premier League title since Ferguson retired at the end of 2012-13. His immediate successor David Moyes found the job too big for him before Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho both lacked the attacking style with which to over-power their opponents. Solksjaer has brought back some of that style but has repeatedly failed to deliver tactically so far on big occasions. If the Norwegian fails again this time with this expensively-assembled team, it might well be time for yet another change in the Old Trafford hot-seat.
▪️ Prediction [Champions]

▪️ NEWCASTLE UNITED @NUFC
Last season 12th FA Cup Third round League Cup Quarter finals
Last major trophy UEFA (Fairs) Cup 1969
Ownership Mike Ashley (ENG)
Head coach Steve Bruce (since July 2019)
New signings Joe Willock
Steve Bruce probably survived lockdown more comfortably than most people with the coronavirus restrictions keeping the crowds away from St James Park. In fairness, Newcastle United also survived comfortably enough in the end despite a horrific winter run of just two wins in 21 league and cup games - and, in fact, the Magpies flew up to a finishing position of 12th, having spent only 20 minutes in the bottom three throughout the whole season. Much credit for that deserves to go to January loan signing Joe Willock who closed out the campaign by scoring in seven successive matches to equal a club record held by Alan Shearer - and the 22-year-old Londoner Willock has now signed permanently following a predictably protracted transfer saga. No other major players have arrived on Tyneside, though - and that leaves a thin squad just as vulnerable to injuries and illness as it was in 2020-21.
▪️ Prediction [19th]

▪️ NORWICH CITY @NorwichCityFC
Last season 1st in Championship (promoted) FA Cup Fourth round League Cup First round
Last major trophy League Cup 1985
Ownership Delia Smith (ENG), Michael Wynn-Jones (WAL)
Head coach Daniel Farke (since May 2017)
New signings Billy Gilmour*, Josh Sargent, Pierre Lees-Melou, Kenny Coker, Milot Rashica, Angus Gunn, Flynn Clarke, Ben Gibson, Dimitris Giannoulis, Liam Gibbs, Christos Tzilos, Brandon Williams*, Mathias Normann, Ozan Kabak*
Championship title followed by a rock-bottom relegation followed by another Championship title - it has certainly been eventful at Carrow Road in recent seasons. The Canaries bouncing between the divisions is nothing new, of course - they hold a joint record with West Brom for the most relegations from the top flight in the Premier League era with five - but the most recent instance was the worst of the lot, at least statistically. Head coach Daniel Farke was retained despite Norwich finishing the season by scoring just twice and losing each of their last 10 Premier League matches - and the German deserves some credit for this quick turnaround. But the departure of player of the season, Emi Buendia to Aston Villa, looks a costly loss - and there is big pressure on the young shoulders of incoming loanee from Chelsea, 20-year-old Billy Gilmour.
▪️ Prediction [20th]

▪️ SOUTHAMPTON @SouthamptonFC
Last season 15th FA Cup Semi finals League Cup Second round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1976
Ownership Gao Jisheng (CHN)
Head coach Ralph Hasenhüttl (since December 2018)
New signings Romain Perraud, Theo Walcott, Tino Livramento, Olly Lancashire, Adam Armstrong, Thierry Small, Lyanco
So it happened again. The first 9-0 defeat - against Leicester City in October 2019 - became a source of irritation to Southampton fans because of the number of times that the media mentioned the Foxes' momentous result. Now, of course, the worst way to deal with that sort of thing is to repeat it - and yet that is exactly what Southampton did at Old Trafford against Manchester United in February. Once might be unlucky but twice really is careless - and, while Austrian head coach Ralph Hasenhüttl has somehow survived both defeats, the second was so much worse because the Saints were far slower to recover from it. This summer, Danny Ings, Mario Lemina and Jannik Vestergaard have all departed St Mary's - but, while the squad was in dire need of an overhaul, those names heading for the exit were not the first which sprung to mind if Hasenhüttl's men were to see an improvement this season.
▪️ Prediction [17th]

▪️ TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR @SpursOfficial
Last season 7th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Runners-up Europa League Last 16
Last major trophy League Cup 2008
Ownership ENIC International Limited (ENG)
Head coach Nuno Espírito Santo (since June 2021)
New signings Cristian Romero, Pierluigi Gollini, Bryan Gil, Pape Matar Sarr, Emerson Royal
"He's one of our own," sing the Tottenham Hotspur fans to Harry Kane - but the England striker was ever so close to moving on to Manchester City this summer. During the stand-off, Kane delayed his return to pre-season training until 7 August - and it has all proved a rather unsettling few weeks for new head coach Nuno Espirito Santo. Of course, it will take time for the wounds which have been opened to heal - nevertheless, Kane is still a Tottenham player for now, and he remains a high quality attacker who scored 23 goals and contributed 14 assists in 2020-21. Meanwhile, Nuno is a solid, if unspectacular appointment - or at least that is how his Wolves teams played - and, rather than worry about his attack, the Portuguese will need to work on Spurs' soft underbelly which they regularly demonstrated on their way to an under-par seventh-place finish last season.
▪️ Prediction [6th]

▪️ WATFORD @WatfordFC
Last season 2nd in Championship (promoted) FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Gino Pozzo (ITA)
Head coach Xisco Muñoz (since December 2020)
New signings Danny Rose, Kwadwo Baah, Mattie Pollock, Imran Louza, Ashley Fletcher, Emmanuel Dennis, Peter Etebo*, Joshua King, Juraj Kucka*, Ozan Tufan, Moussa Sissoko

In these uncertain times, Watford provide a refreshingly consistent level of erratic decision-making made by the Hornets' Italian owner Gino Pozzo. Even in a campaign which ended in an immediate return to the Premier League, there was a now customary mid-term change of head coach with Vladimir Ivic replaced by Xisco Munoz and, in fact, Javi Gracia is the only Watford coach to have remained at the helm for longer than a single season since the end of 2012-13. Surely, Pozzo must have learned that there is little to be gained from a repeat of 2019-20 when Watford had four different men sit in the dugout - but Xisco already has a difficult task of bedding at least 10 new faces into his squad, and a slow start seems likely to proceed in bringing about only one outcome for the Spaniard.
▪️ Prediction [18th]

▪️ WEST HAM UNITED @WestHam
Last season 6th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Fourth round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1980
Ownership David Sullivan (WAL) and David Gold (ENG)
Head coach David Moyes (since December 2019)
New signings Craig Dawson, Alphonse Areola*, Pierre Ekwah Elimby, Armstrong Oko-Flex, Kurt Zouma, Nikola Vlasic, Alex Kral*
Where did that come from? Following his widely derided return to the London Stadium, and an unconvincing 16th-placed finish in 2019-20, David Moyes caused one of the biggest surprises of last season by leading West Ham United into the top six for the first time since 1998-99. The Scotsman may still have a dour personality but this current Hammers vintage play some delightful football with Saïd Benrahma and Manuel Lanzini ably assisting the main threat provided by Michail Antonio. Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice ensure the skillful play has a gritty underlay - and Rice, in particular, developed well during 2020-21 with the help of regular football. The extra games provided by the Europa League from September will likely stretch this Hammers squad to the maximum - but, for Moyes, it was a welcome return to the right end of the table and a nice problem to have to solve.
▪️ Prediction [8th]

▪️ WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS @Wolves
Last season 13th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy League Cup 1980
Ownership Fosun International (CHN)
Head coach Bruno Lage (since June 2021)
New signings Jose Sa, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Francisco Trincao*, Yersen Mosquera, Bendeguz Bolla, Hwang Hee-chan
Continuity has been the keyword at Molineux this summer despite a change to the head coach which became more and more inevitable as the 2020-21 season wore on. In fairness to Nuno Espirito Santo, Wolverhampton Wanderers were sitting in seventh after beating Arsenal 1-0 at the Emirates on 29 November - but, in that game, the Old Gold lost the services of main striker Raul Jiminez for the remainder of the season following a sickening clash of heads. Thereafter, Wolves were never quite the same - but their Mexican main man Jiminez is now back fit and ready to resume his role under new head coach Bruno Lage who has been brought in from Benfica. It is perhaps no surprise that Wolves scouted Portugal for their new man with no fewer than nine men in the current first-team squad sharing that natifonality - and, as such, Lage should have few problems bedding in his football philosophy at the West Midlands club.
▪️ Prediction [9th]

*refers to loan signing

Premier League preview: Know your place

▪️ ARSENAL @Arsenal
Last season 8th FA Cup Winners League Cup Fourth round Europa League Last 32
Last major trophy FA Cup 2020
Ownership Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (USA)
Head coach Mikel Arteta (since December 2019)
New signings Pablo Mari, Cedric Soares, Willian, Gabriel Magalhaes, Dani Ceballos*, George Lewis, Tim Akinola, Salah-Eddine, Jonathan Dinzeyi
Those long-suffering Arsenal fans had another FA Cup to celebrate - a fourth in six years and record 14th overall - as Mikel Arteta picked up the pieces following Unai Emery's largely unimpressive tenure. But, despite their Wembley success, the Gunners merely bounced around the mid-table places throughout the campaign, and so it was really quite remarkable that skipper and talisman Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang managed 29 goals in all competitions. Willian has now arrived from Chelsea to provide another attacking option with his wages no doubt covered by the 55 staff who were made redundant during this coronavirus pandemic. Expect a modest improvement at the Emirates. 
Prediction [5th]

▪️ ASTON VILLA @AVFCOfficial
Last season 17th FA Cup Third round League Cup Runners-up
Last major trophy League Cup 1996
Ownership Nasser Sawiris (EGY) and Wes Edens (USA)
Head coach Dean Smith (since October 2018)
New signings Matty Cash, Ollie Watkins, Ben Chrisene
Aston Villa must still feel rather blessed to be taking their place in the Premier League this season considering they would, most likely, have been relegated if the goal-line technology had been switched on against Sheffield United in the first game to be played after lockdown. Villa made the most of their extremely good fortune to overtake Watford in the final week to secure safety but Dean Smith will certainly be looking for a more comfortable ride this time around. Coincidentally, the new campaign begins with another home match against the Blades.
Prediction [16th]

▪️ BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION @OfficialBHAFC
Last season 15th FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Tony Bloom (ENG)
Head coach Graham Potter (since May 2019)
New signings Joel Veltman, Adam Lallana, Zak Emmerson, Jensen Weir, Lars Dendoncker
Brighton scrambled just above the 40-point mark to maintain their record as the only current club in the top flight not to have been ever-present in the Premier League era and yet never having gone down. At the same time, though, the Seagulls are yet to win 10 games in a single season and they have so far recorded two finishes in 15th and a narrow escape in 17th in 2018-19. Now, as many bottom half dwellers have found to their cost in the past, repeated seasons of struggle cannot be sustained forever - and, unless Neil Maupay fires on all cylinders, the Amex Stadium-based Seagulls will be in danger of running out of credit.
Prediction [19th]

▪️ BURNLEY @BurnleyOfficial
Last season 10th FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy First Division 1959-1960
Ownership Mike Garlick (ENG)
Head coach Sean Dyche (since October 2012)
New signings Will Norris, Marc Richter, Will Rickard, Marcel Elva-Fountaine, Conor Barrett  
The indefatigable Sean Dyche led Burnley to their highest finish since ABBA went to the UK number one spot with Waterloo in the summer of 1974 - yes, I checked - but such relative success should not really come as any sort of surprise. Nick Pope kept 15 clean sheets last season behind a defence which is marshalled superbly by James Tarkowski while - between Chris Wood, Ashley Barnes, young Dwight McNeil, and Jay Rodriguez - there is a more than decent array of attacking talent on show. The Clarets have certainly made good progress on the pitch then - but, while it would be a terrible shame for a Football League founder club to move away from their traditional Turf Moor home, the frankly dangerous conditions in the away end badly need to be rectified for when supporters can attend once again.
Prediction [9th]

▪️ CHELSEA @ChelseaFC
Last season 4th FA Cup Runners-up League Cup Fourth round Europa League Last 16
Last major trophy Europa League 2019
Ownership Roman Abramovich (RUS/ISR)
Head coach Frank Lampard (since July 2019)
New signings Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech, Malang Sarr, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva
Frank Lampard was lauded last season despite 12 Premier League defeats, and eight losses at home in all competitions. True, the Stamford Bridge legend was always going to be given more room for error than his predecessors and he reacted to his hands being tied in the transfer market with a refreshing level of trust in his youth prospects. But, with the transfer ban now lifted, Lampard has been entrusted with millions of Roman Abramovich's Russian roubles, bringing in Timo Werner and Kai Havertz from Germany and thereby completely reinvigorating the Blues' attack. As such, even Lampard loyalists are expecting a far better season than last time out.
Prediction [3rd]

▪️ CRYSTAL PALACE @CPFC
Last season 14th FA Cup Third round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Steve Parish (ENG), Joshua Harris/David S Blitzer (USA)
Head coach Roy Hodgson (since September 2017)
New signings Michy Batshuayi*, Eberechi Eze, Jake Giddings, Nathan Ferguson
The preview for Crystal Palace could pretty much almost be copied and pasted from last year's assessment. Keep star player Wilfried Zaha at Selhurst Park and the Eagles will steer clear of the worst of the trouble. But if the main man in South Norwood gets injured - or, worse, departs elsewhere then an already poor attack will become still yet further blunted. Palace hit the net only 31 times in their 38 league games - only rock-bottom Norwich City scored fewer - although this can hardly come as a surprise given the propensity of manager Roy Hodgson to play up to three holding midfielders in the same line-up.
Prediction [15th]

▪️ EVERTON @Everton
Last season 12th FA Cup Third round League Cup Quarter finals
Last major trophy FA Cup 1995
Ownership Farhad Moshiri (IRN)
Head coach Carlo Ancelotti (since December 2019)
New signings Niels Nkounkou, Allan, James Rodriguez, Abdoulaye Doucoure
Everton have made some eye-catching moves in the transfer market this summer - bringing in World Cup 2014 Golden Boot winner James Rodriguez from Real Madrid as they attempt to arrest their slide into the bottom half of the table. If anything, though, the Merseysiders' humiliation last season was worse still in the FA Cup where they lost to a Liverpool reserve side in the third round. Now barely able to boast even being the second best team in their city, it would be no surprise if the Toffees once again come unstuck with the new clown prince Jordan Pickford in between the goalposts.
Prediction [11th]

▪️ FULHAM @FulhamFC
Last season 4th (promoted from Championship via playoffs) FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy None
Ownership Shahid Khan (PAK/USA)
Head coach Scott Parker (since February 2019)
New signings Antonee Robinson, Harrison Reed, Mario Lemina*, Alphonse Areola*, Kenny Tete
Fulham immediately bounced back from relegation by winning the playoff final for the second time in three years, beating local rivals Brentford on 4 August. Of course, when the Cottagers last went up, they spent upwards of £100m on a new starting line-up trying - and failing - to stay in the top flight. This time, there is more cohesion but, having bombed so miserably in 2018-19, Scott Parker's men will simply be happy if they inflict their bizarre neutral zone on the Premier League for more than a single season.

Prediction [17th]

▪️ LEEDS UNITED @LUFC
Last season 1st (promoted from Championship) FA Cup Third round League Cup Second round
Last major trophy First Division 1991-92
Ownership Andrea Radrizzani (ITA)
Head coach Marcelo Bielsa (since June 2018)
New signings Rodrigo Moreno, Robin Koch, Illan Meslier, Helder Costa, Charlie Allen, Jack Harrison*, Joe Gelhardt, Cody Drameh, Sam Greenwood
It might have taken 16 years involving points deductions - and a three-year detour to the third level - but Leeds United have finally made it back to the Premier League. The Whites will find quite a lot has changed in the intervening years - mainly that the so-called top six now have such an iron grip, even the most inventive management will only result in limited success - perhaps a top half finish like Sheffield United achieved. Regardless of the outcome, though, Marcelo Biesla's attacking principles will provide a welcome change to much of the drudgery in modern football even if, ultimately, it exposes a certain naivety in the way he sets up.
Prediction [10th]

▪️ LEICESTER CITY @LCFC
Last season 5th FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Semi finals
Last major trophy Premier League 2015-16
Ownership Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha (THA)
Head coach Brendan Rodgers (since February 2019)
New signings Timothy Castagne
Leicester blew a big advantage, winning only four of their last 17 league and cup games, to allow Manchester United and Chelsea to overtake and deny them what, at Christmas last year, seemed like a certain Champions League place. Now, excepting the wonders of the 2015-16 title win, fifth is still a historically strong placing for the East Midlands club. Nevertheless, many supporters were flabbergasted by the manner of the collapse - and so manager Brendan Rodgers begins the new term under a fair deal of pressure. At least, for the Foxes' sake, last season's Premier League top scorer - Jamie Vardy - has now committed himself to the King Power Stadium until 2023.
Prediction [12th]

▪️ LIVERPOOL @LFC
Last season Champions FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Quarter finals Champions League Last 16
Last major trophy Premier League 2019-20
Ownership Fenway Sports Group (USA)
Head coach Jürgen Klopp (since October 2015)
New signings Kostas Tsimikas
It will not have escaped anybody that Liverpool followed up a sixth European Cup in 2019 by winning the Premier League for the first time for a 19th English title. Certainly, it appears to be the sole aim of Liverpool fans to ensure no one ever forgets it. True, the Reds title win was extraordinary and record-breaking on many counts - but it still undoubtedly lost some of its lustre when ultimately relegated Watford strolled to a 3-0 win ahead of defeats for Jurgen Klopp's men after lockdown at Manchester City and Arsenal. While the unbeaten record at Anfield has now extended to an incredible 59 league matches over a three-year period, it will be fascinating to see if the same imperfections as those shown in the post-lockdown period affect Liverpool while they are on the road to their principle rivals during the whole of next nine months.
Prediction [2nd]

▪️ MANCHESTER CITY @ManCity
Last season 2nd FA Cup Semi finals League Cup Winners Champions League Quarter finals 
Last major trophy League Cup 2020
Ownership Khaldoon Al-Mubarak (UAE)
Head coach Pep Guardiola (since July 2016)
New signings Ferran Torres, Nathan Ake, Pablo Moreno, Scott Carson*
Manchester City gave English football a taste of what it must be like to watch Celtic in the Scottish game in 2018-19, winning all three domestic trophies on offer. But, last season, Pep Guardiola's men had to settle for the League Cup only despite fielding the best player in the top flight in Kevin De Bruyne. The weaknesses appeared clear enough - the defence still misses the presence of Yaya Toure and Vincent Kompany while the back-up for Sergio Aguero in attack is not effective enough. Of course, the Abu Dhabi billions could soon fix that - but, surprisingly, this has been a relatively quiet close season so far.
Prediction [Champions]

▪️ MANCHESTER UNITED @ManUtd
Last season 3rd FA Cup Semi finals League Cup Semi finals Champions League Semi finals 
Last major trophy Europa League 2017
Ownership Joel Glazer and Avram Glazer (USA)
Head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjær (since December 2018)
New signings Donny van de Beek
Manchester United went unbeaten in their last 14 league games to recover from seventh place to the third and Champions League football for only the third time in the seven years since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson. Mid-season Portuguese arrival Bruno Fernandes proved an inspired signing, if nothing else but for his penalty taking ability as the Red Devils were given unfathomable 22 spot-kicks in all competitions. And yet, despite this, the Old Trafford trophy cabinet had no silverware added to it with three semi final defeats leaving troll-faced Norwegian manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer with a nearly man reputation to shrug off in the coming campaign.
Prediction [4th]

▪️ NEWCASTLE UNITED @NUFC
Last season 13th FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Second round
Last major trophy UEFA (Fairs) Cup 1969
Ownership Mike Ashley (ENG)
Head coach Steve Bruce (since July 2019)
New signings Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser, Jeff Hendrick, Jamal Lewis, Mark Gillespie, Niall Brookwell
 Newcastle have been distracted throughout the close season by a classic Geordie soap opera in the form of a takeover by the Saudi Arabia-based Public Investment Fund, only for Premier League chief executive Dick Masters now declared officially to have blocked the bid at the behest of Arsenal, Everton, Liverpool, Tottenham, West Ham and Wolves. Bitterness and concern have more recently given way to relief as Mike Ashley has, seemingly, sought to protect his investment from a third relegation during his 13-year tenure. After suffering the sight of £40 million man Joelinton up front throughout last season, Callum Wilson arrives at St James Park with a genuine top-flight pedigree and things could get quite exciting if he links up with Ryan Fraser like he did at Bournemouth in 2018-19. For now, though, this feels like a campaign which could go either way for the Magpies.
Prediction [13th]

▪️ SHEFFIELD UNITED @SheffieldUnited
Last season 9th FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Third round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1925
Ownership Prince Abdullah Bin Mosaad Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (KSA)
Head coach Chris Wilder (since May 2016)
New signings Aaron Ramsdale, Wes Foderingham, Ethan Ampadu*, Jayden Bogle, Max Lowe, Oliver Burke
Second season syndrome is a bit of a football cliché considering the first year up is still the most difficult for most promoted teams - but, after breezing through their first season back in the Premier League, Chris Wilder's men will surely find a repeat performance beyond them. After all, form rather deteriorated in the period after lockdown - and, even when they were flying, the Blades were often too easily blunted by their opponents. Certainly, much stranger things have happened in 2020 than Sheff United falling from a place top half to a relegation struggle - even if the South Yorkshire club, in contrast to others, can count on backing from Saudi Arabia without Premier League interference.
Prediction [18th]

▪️ SOUTHAMPTON @SouthamptonFC
Last season 11th FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Fourth round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1976
Ownership Gao Jisheng (CHN)
Head coach Ralph Hasenhüttl (since December 2018)
New signings Kyle Walker-Peters, Mohammed Salisu
Southampton took a refreshing approach to their struggles last autumn by keeping faith in manager Ralph Hasenhüttl. The move to stick paid off as 2019 summer signing Danny Ings hit great form to finish with 22 league goals and elevate the Saints to a creditable 11th-placed finish. The 2020-21 season promises to be more successful if Southampton avoid another bad start - and any more 9-0 home defeats. Aye, *that* defeat was always going to be mentioned somewhere in this piece...
Prediction [8th]

▪️ TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR @SpursOfficial
Last season 6th FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Third round Champions League Last 16
Last major trophy League Cup 2008
Ownership ENIC International Limited (ENG)
Head coach José Mourinho (since November 2019)
New signings Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Joe Hart, Matt Doherty
Tottenham failed to hang onto the coat-tails of the top four last season so are back to Thursday nights in the Europa League only 12 months after an appearance in the Champions League final. There was slightly improved form after Jose Mourinho arrived - and Harry Kane's goals will no doubt keep Spurs somewhat competitive. But impatient fans, eager for a first trophy since 2008 beyond the Audi Cup, will not be happy as it stands with the lack of a marquee signing in the close season.
Prediction [6th]

▪️ WEST BROMWICH ALBION @WBA
Last season 2nd (promoted from Championship) FA Cup Fifth round League Cup First round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1968
Ownership Lai Guochuan (CHN)
Head coach Slaven Bilić (since February 2019)
New signings Matheus Pereira, Cedric Kipre, Grady Diangana, Callum Robinson
West Brom boinged back to the big time after just two years in the summer - though it would be far from an understatement to suggest they made hard work of it. From a position of control in their own destiny, the Baggies ended up stumbling over the line, taking just three points - all from draws - out of last 12, and ultimately relying on Brentford bottling it. The Bees duly obliged as the prospect of a first top-flight season since 1946-47 created pressure on the present-day team which they could not overcome. Slaven Bilić simply cannot rely on Premier League clubs being as generous as that.
Prediction [20th]
 
▪️ WEST HAM UNITED @WestHam
Last season 16th FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Third round
Last major trophy FA Cup 1980
Ownership David Sullivan (ENG) and David Gold (ENG) Head coach David Moyes (since December 2019)
New signings Tomas Soucek, Ossama Ashley
West Ham unsurprisingly continue to suffer the effects of having had their soul ripped out following their ill-fated move to the London Stadium - and the surprise return of David Moyes was the clearest sign yet that the Hammers have completely lost their way. To be fair to Moyes, dour though he is, the Stratford-based club stayed up without having to deal with final day nerves. But, while Karren Brady calls the shots alongside her smut trader friends David Gold and David Sullivan, it is difficult to envisage West Ham ever amounting to much.
Prediction [14th]

▪️ WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS @Wolves
Last season 7th FA Cup Third round League Cup Fourth round Europa League Quarter finals
Last major trophy League Cup 1980
Ownership Jeff Shi of Fosun International (CHN)
Head coach Nuno Espírito Santo (since May 2017)
New signings Marcal, Matija Sarkic, Fabio Silva, Vitinha*
Measured by all metrics except league placing, Wolves improved on their 2018-19 performance in 2019-20 as they matched their seventh-placed finish. However, this time, the Cup win for Arsenal means there will be no Europa League at Molineux in the coming campaign. In fairness, that might be no bad thing for Nuno Espírito Santo's exhausted squad, considering the Europa qualifiers right at the start, and then the coronavirus pandemic, extended the Midlanders' season to an amazing 383 days. Indeed, the much-reduced schedule should allow the undoubtedly morally squeaky clean Chinese-backed Old Gold to continue knocking hard at the door of the top six.
Prediction [7th]

*refers to loan signing