Hi guys I was just thinking. The new season is approaching and I was debating in my mind who will be the biggest title contenders, and who will be the favourites to win the League, and I realised that this season it is harder to predict than ever. Thinking mainly about how the main 6 teams finished last season, and their summer transfer activity and preparations I came up with these opinions. But first I will straight away be open and mention that I am a Liverpool fan (even though its obvious from my picture any way). Manchester United: United won the league last season, and it was a record 19th league title for them. One thing pundits kept saying was that United had not hit top form, and how they were amazed at how a team that is player below par in so many games is staying so comfortably at the top of the league. It was very interesting to watch. But with teams around United improving they will surely have to hit top form if they are going to win it again. Their summer activities have included signing Ashley Young and Phill Jones, strengthening there attack, strength and pace with Young, and gaining a strong asset for the future in Jones. But I still see United as being rather weak in central midfield, so will that be shown up more this season? Chelsea: Chelsea started last season brilliant, cruising past every team and looking like the new kings of football, every one was loving Chelsea, apart from one man.... Lee Dixon. All season Lee Dixon was saying 'I just cant see Chelsea one the league', and right now that man looks like a genius, because one day Chelsea fine form just stopped. This lead to a terrible run of form which saw them slip heavily down the league. A late resurgence helped them scrape second, but with a bit of fortune. But things have changed at Chelsea with a new man in charge. Villa Boas is a very young manager, but has a great record. Before he got the job I backed Chelsea for a mid table finish, but now I am not so sure. Manchester City: They have the players, they have the manager, they have the money, they have the stadium and they have a large fan base. But they are also the most hated team in the world, and will be the team every one wants to beat next season. City had a rocky season last time out, but finished in an impressive 3rd place, as well as getting the FA Cup. City certainly have the squad to compete, but have been held back by a lack of belief in the past. Can they beat that now? Arsenal: I said a while ago I think Wenger has taken Arsenal as far as he can, and with a rough pre season carrying on, and no one knowing what will happen next, Arsenal are vulnerable. The Fabregas situation reminds of Liverpool with Alonso, which was dragged out painfully to long. I feel that paid a big factor in Liverpool's awful season in 2009-2010. But a new striker and the fact that Nasri is staying will be a boost, so we will just have to wait and see. Tottenham: Tottenham haven't really been major contenders in any recent years, but they have been in the Champions League, and are considered as Big 6. Tottenham had an up and down season. They started greatly but couldn't keep it up enough. Constant talk of 'will he stay or will he go' with Modric will have been an unwelcome distraction, so a lot will depend on how they have recovered from that. If they can sign Lorrente though, they could have a deadly attack, with his aerial ability fitting great with Bale and Lennons wing play. Liverpool: Liverpool had a season of two half's last season. The first half of the season was pretty awful, and the team struggled to even get going. But the second half of the season, after a change of manager, was just one great crescendo of form, and by the end of it they were looking like a top team again. Liverpool have improved the team well with signings like Downing, Adam and Henderson, and width, balance and depth to the squad, and hopefully better delivery to the strikers. Key players Lucas and Suarez have had a busy summer with the Copa America, But with no European football or games on a Thursday they have the advantage of added rest time. The defence has been wobbly in pre season, but the attackers have been scoring for fun. Its anxious times at Liverpool, but this time its feeling a little bit better. Conclusion: This is harder t predict than ever before, but lets just hope for some great football at the very least.
I'm going to predict Chelsea to win it by a small margin next season, Villas Boas is a brilliant manager and in my eyes is destined for greatness. Despite the fact Chelsea haven't really strengthened during the Summer (so far) I think if Villas Boas can get Torres firing and get the players working with Torres instead of against him then they'll have a number of players that could easily get 15+ goals in a season. The only problem I see is that when it comes to facing the top sides, Chelsea don't really have the passion and commitment to put that little extra in. If they want to walk away with it this season, they're going to have to really put something extra into some matches, because relying on consistency won't hold against the top teams. Man Utd will be up there as always, and even despite the strength of their midfield they'll be contenders. The problem I see, is little to no spark. They need a midfield spark, something to really ignite the team and I don't think they've found it. I also can't describe what that spark might be, but if you watch them you'll able to see there is something missing and it was exploited against Barcelona. City will be contenders if they keep Tevez happy and Aguero scoring. If they lose Tevez then I can only see them staying at 3rd or even dropping down to 4th/5th, because whilst people rate Aguero, I still don't think he has the type of play needed to match Tevez. In my opinion these 3 teams will be the top contenders, and Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool will be battling it out for 4th. Unfortunately for Arsenal, I can see Liverpool pipping them to 4th, which will surely mean the end for Wenger, much to the delight of some Arsenal fans.
It will be close this season, I can see Liverpool getting 4th, with Chavs, UTD and City pushing for 1st.
I am not sure about Chelsea. I can see them doing great things, but if one thing goes wrong it could all fall apart. Their ageing squad has also grown injury prone. City's season will rest a lot on how much they believe in themselves. Not just the players, but the fans, coaching staff and office people.
Chelsea or utd to win the league this year. I will say Chelsea to win though, I think Villas-Boas will get done what is needed, but fail in Europe as ever. Utd will only be a point or two behind I feel and will leave us, City, Arsenal and Tottenham going for 3rd and 4th, of which I fancy city to miss out on top 4 this year with Tottenham.
Interesting analysis and I wouldn't argue too much with it. At this point, it seems like the majority of contenders have not addressed their major issues via purchases except for Liverpool. From that you can see that I do believe that Liverpool will be contenders this season. Note, I did not say we will win it but I truly believe we will be there and there abouts.
Although Villas Boas has a great track record I am still fairly skeptical about him, he could continue his fine form as a manager or the pressures of the PL can implode on him. Dunno about Chelsea yet.
Chelsea or City to win it, United are weaker than last season..The loss of VDS and Scholes will be too much. Sneaky feeling that either Everton or Newcastle could go down.
Utd to win it for me. I think overall they are slightly weaker than last year as it stands, as no way will De Gea be as good in his first season as VDS was in his last. Also they have lost Scholes, and Giggs is a year older (i know this has been said for years) which i think weakens them significantly in the middle, especially when it comes to those games that Utd pull out the bag because they have that experience of winning. Ashley Young in my opinion strengthens an area of the team that was one that needed the least strengthening in the league. They've signed some very good players, but without a new centre mid i don't see them being better than last season, i just don't see the other teams making the step up to shake them from the top. As for us, 4th is the base camp and then we can see if we can scale higher. The fact we don't have Europe could be a big factor for us. I think if we sign a defender or two, then we're Champions League football , and the other 2 top players that will enable us to get from challenging for the League properly. I'm still hugely optimistic though and would love to see us in the mix at Christmas!
For me I think Chelsea and manures seasons could go either way. Will the Chavs be able to get the best out of Torres (is his best even still there to be got?) and will Luiz prove to be more sideshow than main event? A young manager is always going to need a solid start or pressure will mount rapidly so he will need to be able to bond with his big ego driven players pretty damn quickly. Likely title contenders. Will De Gea settle at Mold Trafford quickly because if not we may see manure more vulnerable at the back as VDS kept them in many games last year or will it just be the case that with so many attacking options any vulnerability at the back will be negated by simply scoring more goals? Either way definate title contenders. Citeh have definately added quality with Aguero although if Tevez does go before the end of August then they will need their other strikers to hit better form than they showed last season. Solid at the back and with Yaya, De Jong and Barry in centre mid they have a lot of strengths now although again Mancini is another manager who will definately come under pressure if results aren't right early season. Likely title contenders. Arsenal we all know will still have the capabilities to win games and win games big when on form but I still think that they will be much weaker if Fabs and Nasri were to leave. Add to this the fact that even with a great start they now appear to have such a mental fragility during the second half of the season that if Wenger doesn't strengthen at the back they are the most likely of last seasons top 4 to drop out of it this season. Spurs may not lose Modric this transfer window but even if they don't then they will be haunted by the prospect of him leaving sometime soon and with this potentially being Second 'and 'arrys last season before taking the inevitable England offer that will come his way then I see a downward spiral taking hold at White 'art Lane this season. Top 6 but not top 4 imo. Liverpool are still a work in progress and as yet we just don't know how this squad will gel. I think we can all see the back 4 needs additional quality adding to it and as yet we are still waiting to see if Carroll can achieve his full potential and whether Kenny can keep getting the best out of the likes of Kuyt and Maxi to compliment the new boys and allow them time to settle. We now have a stronger squad than we've had for quite a while but it's just a question as to whether the first team will be strong enough and gel quickly enough to compete all season long at the very top. If it is then we are definate top 4 candidates.
Its Chelsea for me to be crowned Champions. Man United will be there or thereabouts,but the thing for me that will prevent them from winning it will be their lack of a central midfield(this will be found out) and their lack of a keeper that is experienced in the premiership. I reckon Giggs' problems will also rear their ugly head again, it has died down,but it hasn't gone away. Expect more fireworks in November. I reckon Liverpool along with Man City and Man United will contest 2nd and 3rd and 4th.Spurs and Arsenal will contest 5th and 6th.
Good lord the OP is deluded. A midtable finish? The last time we finished midtable was over 15 years ago. We've had Grant in charge yet still finished 2nd
Judging by your form during some points of last season you were nearly dropping down to a mid table finish, so it's not as ludicrous as it may seem. Personally I never had you down for a mid table finish, I still pip you to win in this season, but I feel some new faces could only improve your side.
Ze Liverbird. Chelsea's form last season can be described in 3 parts, the beginning,the middle,and the end.The beginning was title winning,the middle was mid-table and the end was title winning. They collected more points in the last 18 games than anyone else. They started the season like a train. However what let them down was the middle when from what I can remember they collected something like 12 points from 10 games. Now that is as you correctly said mid-table form.
I am very confident about Man Utd's title chances and would put us as favourites (currently). I think De Gea will fill the void left by Van De Sar but I do worry about our midfield, I really hope we still sign another central midfielder.
You're going to be there or thereabouts,but you must improve your somewhat dreadful away form and 5 wins out of 19 is dreadful. I don't think you will have a season again when you will win 18 out of 19 home games.
We also accumulated more points in the 2nd half of the season than any other team. We were poor from November - Beginning of January, that's it. Liverpool were just as poor from August - October, by the same token it would be like me saying I expect Liverpool to be in a relegation battle.
No idea who will win the title it's going to be tight this coming season A top 3 finish for us or maybe dare i say it 1st-2nd
It looks like everybody is expecting a really tight season at the top. Football, being the game that it is, is likely to surprise us all and one team will run away with it. I have absolutely no idea who that side will be if that does happen as there is just too much going on - and not going on. For me, the only thing that really matters is how Liverpool perform this season. For the first time in a long while, I am excieted about our prospects for the coming season. I truly believe that we now have a squad of players that are playing for each other and appear to be enjoying playing with whomever is on the pitch - they have confidence in each other. Add to that the fact that we are returning to our normal pass and move style and we can see good things coming. Our bench is not there merely to "plug a hole" or "do a job", they all bring with them the possibility of changing the game. Perhaps, a part of that is John Henry's influence. If you think for a moment about the NFL. There a player can sit on the bench for most of the match and maybe even the majority of games. However, he is expected to be 100% and to deliver immediately when called upon to do so. This is exactly what Liverpool players need to be like even if they are selected for the bench. We still haven't really seen what this squad will be like when we have both Gerrard and Suarez available to us. We saw Lucas back in the 2nd half yesterday. I felt that he brought onto the pitch an aura that he began to display last season. Spearing had done well in the 1st half but Lucas just showed his ability to cover and pass in such a way that the other midfielders had more time and space in which to play - and 10 yards further up the pitch. The great thing is that we have fundamentally changed. Even without these players on the pitch we were looking to win the game and not merely hoping to do so. We are no longer a 1 or 2 man team. I'm not deluded enough to think that this is the ultimate squad, it most certainly is not - with the number of young players that are coming through and owners who have a clear investment strategy. Having said that, it is a squad that does have the potential to firstly challenge at the top of the league and to win it. To win it this season however, I think we will need to see a another 'strange' season like the last one in which our success was assisted by the hick-ups and failures of others.
