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After a long wait that stretched to close to 3 months, the Premier League is finally back! Last season saw so many records broken and new ones set.
Reigning champions Manchester City set the records for the highest number of goals scored by a team in a single league season, highest points tally, longest winning run, the highest number of passes in a single game as well as the highest possession percentage in a Premier League game.
On the wrong side of things, Arsenal became the only club in the country not to register a single point on the road in 2018 until the last day of the season.
For the first time since 2001/2002 when Bolton Wanderers, Fulham and Blackburn Robbers survived relegation after being promoted, Huddersfield, Newcastle and Brighton & Hove Albion all avoided the drop.
After close to 22 years as Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger left his beloved Arsenal and Unai Emery, the new 'head coach' rather than a manager, took charge of the north London club.
Antonio Conte was sacked after two years at Stamford Bridge, with his compatriot, Maurizio Sarri appointed to replace him. The Italian has been lauded by football purists as a true student of pure football, having guided Napoli to being the closest challengers to the indomitable Juventus in the Italian Serie A.
Pep Guardiola led such praise. In reaction to news of the Italian's imminent appointment as new Chelsea boss, Guardiola said:
“He’s one of the absolute best,” Guardiola told RMC Sport.
“If he comes to the Premier League it’d be a pleasure to face him.”
After treating us to so much entertainment, so much drama, we can't wait for the new season to start as we look forward to a season that promises to be one of the most open in Premier League history. Who is better prepared? Find out:
#1 Manchester City
Last season: Champions
Transfer activity:
Ins:
Riyad Mahrez (£60m)
Claudio Gomez (Undertermined)
Philippe Sandler (£2.2m)
Outs:
Most notable - Yaya Toure
Pre-season preparation games:
21st July, lost 1-0 to Borussia Dortmund
26th July, lost 2-1 to Liverpool
29th July, beat Bayern 3-2
5th August, play Chelsea in the Community Shield.
Manchester City won the league last season in breathtaking, swashbuckling style, breaking and setting all sorts of records. They scored a record 106 goals last season, with the closest to them being Liverpool, who finished 4th, with 84.
Ironically, the team who finished 2nd, Manchester United, scored 68 goals, 38 less than their eventual conquerors. Such was City's dominance that their 100 points tally was the highest ever, with the second in the table finishing on 81 points, 19 adrift of their so-called noisy neighbours.
With attacks orchestrated by the magical Kevin de Bruyne, the ingenuity of Brazilian Fernandinho, the mastery of David Silva, the astonishing Leroy Sane` and the hugely improved Raheem Starling, Pep Guardiola's men were no match for anyone.
This season though, things may not be as rosy as they were last season. Unlike last year when Pep had a fully uninterrupted preseason to fine tune his team, that hasn't been the case this time though.
Most of his players played important roles for their respective national teams in Russia. As a consequence, they have reported late for preseason, with less than enough time to recover from their World Cup exertions. This will definitely have a domino effect in the league as fatigue could catch up with them.
Evidently, their pre-season preparation has been less than ideal, featuring many youngsters with no chance of being part of the 1st team. Perhaps this explains why they have lost 2 of the 3 friendly games they have played this summer.
In terms of their transfer activity, not much has happened as Riyad Mahrez is the only established star to arrive at the Etihad with the other two, Claudio Gomez and Philippe Sandler, being clear unknowns and are not expected to feature prominently in the first team.
City thought they had concluded the protracted negotiations with Napoli for Jorginho, only for Chelsea to steal him from their grasp when it became clear that Maurizio Sarri was heading to Stamford Bridge.
That said though, Pep Guardiola's men remain the bookmakers' favourites to retain the title. They have managed to retain all the players they wanted and are still capable of pulling off a major transfer coup before the window slams shut on August 9th.
#2 Manchester United
Last season: Runners-up
Transfer activity:
Ins:
Fred (£52.4m)
Diogo Dalot (£19.5m)
Lee Grant (£1.5m)
Outs:
Michael Carrick, Daly Blind, Sam Johnstone, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson
Pre-season preparation games:
20th July, drew 1-1 against Club America.
22 July, drew 0-0 against San Jose Earthquakes
26th July, drew 1-1 against Milan, but went on to win 9-8 on penalties.
28th July, lost 4-1 to Liverpool
1st August, won 2-1 against Real Madrid
5th August, play Bayern Munich
Manchester United finished last season without winning a single trophy. Jose Mourinho got stick from a number of pundits, fans and United legends alike for his defensive brand of football.
They scored 68 league goals, the lowest by any of the top 6 teams in the Premier League. That was a slight upgrade on the tally they registered the season before when they found the back of the net a miserly 54 times.
Anthony Martial, who started the season in blistering form, fell off the rails, especially following the arrival of Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal in January this year.
The Portuguese tactician's tactics completely discombobulated many who couldn't understand why he wasn't unleashing his attacking army to bulldoze teams, especially at home. Martial, Marcus Rashford, Juan Mata and Henrikh Mkhitaryan found themselves warming the substitutes' bench more often than not.
The Armenian was finally jettisoned to Arsenal in a deal that saw Sanchez move the opposite direction. Such an approach devoid the Red Devils of enough goals to win football matches.
Their top scorer, Romelu Lukaku, scored only 16 league goals, with Rashford and Jesse Lingard trailing him on 13 apiece. Considering that City scored 106, United's goals were clearly not enough to enable then genuinely challenge for the title.
In terms of the transfers, Mourinho moved fast to bring in Fred and Diogo Dalot before the World Cup, with Lee Grant coming in a little later. But the Portuguese is clearly not happy with his club's transfer dealings, telling the press how he submitted his 5-player shortlist weeks ago, but nothing was happening.
He, however, remains hopeful that he will be able to bring in at least one player before the start of the season.
United's pre-season has not been very good, drawing 3, losing 1 and winning 1 of the 5 games they've played to date, although their situation is also very similar to City's, with a majority of players still away on holiday.
Anthony Martial left to attend to his pregnant wife, albeit unceremoniously, with stories surrounding his possible departure emanating from his decreased minutes on the pitch that even denied him a place on the plane to Russia where his nation became world champions.
Mourinho surely needs to put his act together, build around Alexis Sanchez, who has looked lethal following his visa issues, to offer a better challenge for the title next season.
#3 Tottenham Hotspur
Last season: Third
Transfer activity:
Ins: None
Outs: None.
Pre-season preparation:
18th July, beat Southend 6-0
26th July, beat AS Roma 4-1
29th July, drew 2-2 against Barcelona but (lost 5-3 on pens)
1st August, beat AC Milan 1-0
4th August, play Girona
Tottenham Hotspur have been improving since Mauricio Pochettino took over at White Hart Lane in 2014. They have not spent huge sums of money on players, but invested in their youth set-up that has produced some good players, the best of them being Harry Kane.
They have also done well in their scouting that has seen then sign the likes of Dele Alli, Kieran Trippier, Eric Dier, et al, players who have been excellent servants for them.
One of the most important elements that has eluded them so far is the trophy-winning mentality. Tottenham have always been found wanting whenever it has come to winning trophies.
Playing very well and entertaining is one thing and winning trophies is another. On the eve of the World Cup in Russia, Arsenal legend Tony Adams questioned the winning mentality of the Spurs players, who had contributed the most in terms of the England squad.
Perhaps he was right, as England failed to beat Belgium twice and also fell to Croatia when it mattered most.
Currently, Spurs have not been able to add to their squad despite the league starting in a few days' time. Their manager has been lamenting the decision to close the window 20 days earlier than the rest of Europe despite his club having been one of those to vote in favour of closing the transfer window before the start of the season
Their pre-season has been successful given the calibre of teams they've played and the results attained, though most of their key players have been absent through extended holidays resulting from their participation in the latter stages of the World Cup.
Pochettino needs to stop lamenting, delve into the market, buy a few very good players to add to what he already has, instil that elusive trophy winning mentality into his players and transform his team into an outfit capable of winning the league. Without that, Spurs are in real danger of being referred to as a stunted team.
#4 Liverpool
Last season: 4th
Transfer activity:
Ins:
Alisson Becker (£55.57m)
Fabinho (£40m)
Naby Keita (£53.3m)
Xerdan Shaqiri (£13m)
Outs:
Most notable: Emre Can
Pre-season preparation:
7th July, beat Chester 7-0
10th July, beat Tranmere Rovers 3-2
14th July, drew against Bury 0-0
19th July, beat Blackburn Rovers 2-0
22nd July, lost to Borussia Dortmund 3-1
26th July, beat Man City 2-1
28th July, beat Man United 4-1
4th August, play Napoli
7th August, play Torino
Liverpool impressed last season when they went all the way to the UEFA Champions League final where they lost to Real Madrid. In the league, they were not as impressive as they lost needless points, especially to the so-called small teams.
That was because Jurgen Klopp failed to find a solution to the teams who set up to frustrate them by playing behind the ball. Perhaps, the German also didn't have the players endowed with the tactical accomplishment to manage and close out games, with many runners, but with no one to retain possession a little longer.
The signings Klopp has made this summer look to have solved that problem, especially that of Fabinho, who will be able to control the tempo of the game, keep possession, know when to move the ball forward, when to pass and when not to.
He, along with Naby Keita and Jordan Henderson, could form a fearsome three that might just cure Liverpool's woes. A good goalkeeper earns the team between 15-20 points, and as we saw in this year's Champions League final, the man between the sticks can make or break a team.
In Alisson, Liverpool have themselves a great goalkeeper who will decide a few games with a piece of wonderful goalkeeping. No doubt, Liverpool have had a fruitful window.
In terms of their preseason, the Reds have had a great preparation. They've played more games than any of their rivals and produced some eye-catching performances which will put them in good stead going into the new season.
If Jurgen Klopp finds a way to beat the small teams, Liverpool could have a very big say in where the title will end up in May next year.
#5 Chelsea
Last season: 5th
Transfer activity:
Ins:
Jorginho (£50.81m)
Robert Green (Free Transfer)
Outs: Most notable: none
Preseason preparation:
23rd July, beat Perth Glory 1-0
28th July, drew 1-1 against Inter Milan
1st August, drew 1-1 against Arsenal (lost 5-6 on penalties)
5th August, play Man City in the Community Shield
7th August, play Lyon
Chelsea have had a turbulent time this summer, all of which emanated from the managerial fracas involving Antonio Conte. Conte clearly annoyed his bosses when he accused them of not matching his ambition in the transfer market.
That came on the back of the same man disowning the sale of Nemanja Matic to United the previous season. All those served to hammer the last nail in his coffin as Chelsea manager. That wouldn't have been big business as many managers have come and gone, but the way it was handled was not good enough.
The best case scenario would have been to sack him immediately when the season ended, bring Sarri in so that by the start of preseason, the former Napoli man would be in place from day one.
That did not happen, Sarri came in late and some of the preparation was done by a man who knew he was going to be sacked. This is why Chelsea have had the fewest preparation games(3) with the 3rd coming just last night against Arsenal. Clearly, that is scanty!
In the transfer market, according to Sky Sports, Chelsea were interested in signing Jean Michael Seri, but didn't have the manager in place to run the rule. Fulham stepped in and signed the player before Chelsea knew it.
Jorginho, who admittedly is a very good player, came in, but that is all, for now at least as 38-year-old Rob Green will only offer backup to whoever will be their Number 1 as Thibaut Courtois continues to be linked with a move to Real Madrid.
There are rumours of Inter Milan's Mattias Vecino being discussed as a possible signing. If it happens, he will be a good addition, but he will need time to bed in, so will any players who would come from outside the English shores.
Talk of replacing Alvaro Morata with Gonzalo Higuain have died a natural death as the Argentine looks to be on the verge of completing his move to AC Milan as Leonardo Bonucci heads back to Juventus in a sensational swap.
All of that means that Maurizio Sarri will have to make do with the much maligned Alvaro Morata, who scored just 11 league goals last season. Sarri has quite a handful to do in his first season in charge.
#6 Arsenal
Last season: 6th
Transfer activity:
Ins:
Bernd Leno (£22.28m)
Sokratis Papastathopoulos (£14.26m)
Stephan Lichtsteiner (free)
Lucas Torreira (£26.73m)
Matteo Guendouzi (£7.13m)
Outs:
Most notable: Per Mertesacker, Jack Wilshere, Santi Cazorla
Pre-season preparation:
14th July, beat Boreham Wood 8-0
19th July, beat Crawley Town 9-0
20th July, lost to Brentford 2-1
26th July, drew against Atletico Madrid 1-1 (lost 3-1 on penalties)
28th July, beat PSG 5-1
1st August, drew against Chelsea 1-1 (won 6-5 on penalties)
4th August, play SS Lazio
There is a new dawn at Arsenal since for the first time in 22 years, we're going to see a new man in the dugout at the Emirates. Arsene Wenger stepped down at the end of last season and Unai Emery was appointed to replace him.
Since taking charge of the club, the Spaniard has been making remarkable changes in Arsenal's approach to games, adopting a more tactical approach and putting more emphasis on the defensive side of the game - the absence of which led Arsenal to concede goals for fun last season.
He has also worked on aspects such as the positioning of the players, the pressing of the opponent without the ball, being proactive with the ball rather than being reactive.
The training regime has become much more physically demanding than before and games are going to be preceded by thorough preparation. All of that has been evident in the games they have played in pre-season.
In the market, Unai Emery intended to have his business done early to enable him to have time with the new signings and integrate them seamlessly.
With the exception of Lucas Torreira, whose nation, Uruguay, reached the quarter-finals in Russia and Stephan Lichtsteiner who exited the World Cup at the round of 16 with Switzerland, the rest of the new arrivals have had a full pre-season with the rest of the team.
Arsenal sent only 7 players to Russia, which made the rest of the players available to Unai Emery from the start of July. Therefore, as other teams are fretting with players suffering from the skirmishes of the 2018 World Cup, Arsenal have enjoyed the luxury of having most of their key players available.
Thomas Tuchel warned rival teams in the Premier League of the threat Arsenal could pose. In his post-match interview after his team were ruthlessly hammered by the Gunners in Singapore, he said:
"It could give (Arsenal) a big advantage. Chelsea had few international players when they became Champions two years ago. It is a big advantage. It is very complicated for us. To manage is almost not to manage."
He could be right, Arsenal don't look ready to win the league just yet, but they could get the kind of results that may surprise many.
