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The Premier League season kicks off on 10 August and, with the World Cup behind us, we may once again turn our attention to domestic football.
With managerial changes, stunning transfer recruitment, and an aura of eager anticipation, here's a look at how the Top 6 are shaping up so far, and what we can expect from them this season.
Arsenal
Arsene Wenger stepping down at the end of last season marked the end of an era for the Gunners. They embark on the same conquest as they always have, only this time they have a new leader.
Unai Emery leads this Arsenal side into the new season, and he will be eager to replicate the success that he achieved at Sevilla where he won three Europa League titles in as many seasons.
Arsenal were guilty of making the same old mistakes in previous seasons, and Emery’s recruitment this season has looked to put that to an end. Wenger took measures to add potency to his attack last season, with Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan joining the club.
He also persuaded Mesut Ozil to renew his contract, and the quartet will be looking to unleash havoc on Premier League defences this season.
The coup of Bernd Leno and Sokratis from the Bundesliga highlights the fact that Emery won’t be tolerating any slackness or lethargy, with Petr Cech showing some signs of ageing, and Shkodran Mustafi’s transfer fee being brought up on regular intervals towards the end of last season, owing to string of casual defending and high profile errors.
The pair will have to be at the top of their game if they are to cement their spots in the XI this season around.
The capture of Lucas Torreira represents a major upgrade in the middle of the park, for Granit Xhaka was as close as Arsenal got to an out-and-out defensive midfielder. Their setup employed two central midfielders in a holding midfield role but neither were defensively too proficient, meaning Arsenal were caught out quite often.
Torreira plugs that gaping void in central midfield, with a very good skillset of winning the ball and passing ability. The one drawback with him is his lack of aerial ability, and teams are likely to employ the long ball tactic against Arsenal to get in behind their midfield.
Arsenal were usually either breathtakingly intricate or comically errant. There’s nothing in between. Emery will be looking to wipe out the latter half from this very promising Arsenal side and, if he is able to find the balance and the ideal set-up early, Arsenal could be on their way back to the Champions League.
Chelsea
Chelsea and Antonio Conte parted ways this summer to nobody’s surprise with Maurizio Sarri inevitably replacing the Italian. This season will be a defining one for Chelsea.
Sarri plays a style of football that may be considered diametrically opposite to Conte’s. As a result, he requires the players suited to playing his way, much like it was the case in Pep Guardiola’s first season at Manchester City.
However, with there being a slight issue with Roman Abramovich’s visa, many have thought the Russian billionaire owner may be open to letting go of his stake in the club, with Jim Ratcliff being presented as a buyer with considerable financial power and serious interest.
With Chelsea having failed to qualify for the Champions League this season, they are immediately feeling the repercussions, as the top dogs around Europe come swooping in for their stars.
Willian and Eden Hazard have been subjects of great interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively.
Having only signed Jorginho and Rob Green, and with Thibaut Courtois and Alvaro Morata’s futures up in the air, one wonders what players Chelsea will start the season with, and more importantly, with what morale.
Conte’s final season was engulfed in malcontent and disgruntlement. It is imperative Sarri’s starts with an optimism of Carpe Diem.
As things stand, Chelsea are crying out for an out-and-out goalscorer, with Morata having failed to adjust to life in England. Jorginho and N'Golo Kante can anchor the midfield excellently while Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta looking solid as full backs.
However, a dynamic creative midfielder, a fresh centre-half and a goalscorer must be procured for Sarri to work with to get immediate results.
If the former Napoli boss is able to replicate his awe-inspiring style of football this season, Chelsea’s fortunes could take a sizeable leap forward. If not, then this may well be the last season the likes of Hazard, Courtois and Kante put on the blue kit at Stamford Bridge.
No pressure, Maurizio!
Liverpool
Liverpool reached the Champions League final last season and this summer Jurgen Klopp has invested very heavily in his squad to ensure that they can go one step further this season.
For the German manager, this proves to be a defining season in his career. Liverpool have been arguably England’s most dynamic side with him at the helm, but they have got nothing to show for it yet.
A very leak defence and goalkeeping unit held Liverpool back last summer, as their attack, in contrast, fired on all cylinders last time around.
Also read: How Jurgen Klopp created the best attacking trio in Europe
Around Roberto Firmino, Klopp has evolved a system that allows him to sustain an extremely high pressing style for the vast majority of the 90 minutes. And now with the added steel in Fabinho and the dynamism and ball carrying ability of Naby Keita, the Liverpool side looks utterly fearsome on paper.
With Virgil Van Dijk anchoring the heart of the Reds' defence, and one of last season’s best goalkeepers in Alisson Becker guarding his goalposts, Klopp has absolutely no excuses not to deliver silverware this season.
Manchester City looked near invincible last season, and it was Liverpool who broke that cloud. This season, the latter must go even higher. It was the dropped points against the lower clubs last season, and the lack of that ‘something extra’, which condemned winnable games to unacceptable draws.
Oddly enough, a lot of Liverpool’s dropped points came when they were had near-exclusive possession of the ball. They aren’t as threatening when they have all the possession as against when they get the ball against the run of play.
Seeing their attack, there will be a considerable number of teams who will surely park the bus against them. If Klopp is able to teach his side exactly how to break down a bus, then this season’s title race may well the closest we’ll have seen in quite some time.
Manchester City
Manchester City played arguably the most stunning football the Premier League has ever seen, as they broke nearly every record imaginable and racked up 100 points. This season, Pep Guardiola aims to retain the league and also win the Champions League.
It's something City must do to cement their legacy as one of England’s greatest ever sides. This summer, the recruitment business hasn’t been quite as efficient as it was last season, with a deal for Jorginho slipping away, and City being priced out of a move for Mateo Kovacic.
It is great that City won’t succumb to the selling club’s high asking price anymore, but we must remember that for the past few seasons a club that has won the league has had an underwhelming summer window and even surrendered the title the following season.
City’s squad still looks the most lethal and most balanced on paper, though, with the signing of Riyad Mahrez only adding to the embarrassment of riches they have in attack. Depth in defensive midfield looks to be a slightly questionable area.
But with Claudio Gomes impressing in pre-season, it may be better for the club to promote the youngsters than splash heavily on a player who may not even crack their first XI, after the season Fernandinho just had.
City’s squad showed a sense of togetherness and solidarity last season that was a huge catalyst in their dream season. There were no disputes and no contract rebellions throughout the course of the season.
They always fought till the final whistle, and often it was that last gasp burst of energy was enough to clinch all three points.
City must continue exactly what they did last season; incisive and quick passing, relentless chasing back to regain possession when it was (rarely) taken off them, and overall completeness in every single player’s display whenever they were called upon.
They only need to ensure they move forward rather than resting on their laurels and, with Guardiola at the helm, that is a guarantee. Despite not having the most supreme of transfer windows, no club in recent memory has looked as ready to defend their Premier League crown as City currently do.
Just more of the same is required. This City side, this very young City side, could scale even greater heights and achieve even greater honours.
Manchester United
The dreaded Jose Mourinho third season. Manchester United were the ‘best of the rest’ last season, as their Manchester rivals swept away every football team in the league en route to a century of points.
This season, the fans would have expected some serious recruitment, particularly in the attacking half of the pitch, which was underwhelming under Mourinho’s style last season.
Instead, they are witnessing their club targeting yet another centre-back, more players piling up on the treatment table, and a deteriorating player-manager relationship. Worryingly, this translates to United staring down the barrel of a season of potential collapse, like Chelsea did under Mourinho’s third season at the Bridge.
With Mourinho unhappy that Anthony Martial flew home for the birth of his son, Paul Pogba – if rumours are to be believed – crying out for a move back to Juventus, Eric Bailly brandished the tag of “not a leader”, every sign is there for a player revolt being orchestrated at Old Trafford this season.
Also read: Juventus to Break Transfer Record to Re-Sign Paul Pogba
Mourinho’s set target would have been to play a more attractive brand of football and also snatch the title back from City. His most pressing concern now would be keeping the squad from being dismantled and steadying the ship.
However, we must remember that this is pre-season, and it is of no serious consequence. United may emerge out of this with even greater hunger and desire to win.
Mourinho is a serial winner; he does it his way, but he gets the job done. But if the very tools he utilises turn his back on him, and if the authorities behind the scenes do not trust him to deliver the signings that he says he demanded ‘a few months ago’, Manchester United may have to wait some more before someone can restore the days of unrelenting dominance they exhibited all that time ago.
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur always seem to be on the cusp of breaking into Europe’s elite, but something ultimately happens which anti-catalyses the fact, and instead brandishes upon them a title of being 'Spursy'.
When Tottenham topped the Champions League group involving Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, the stage was set for them to shake off the dust of the past seasons and establish a new identity for themselves.
Unfortunately, they were unable to capitalise on their aggregate as well as away goals advantage and were tossed out of Europe by a rejuvenated Juventus side.
In the Premier League, a dry spell involving points dropped against Watford, West Brom, and the likes, when added to the time they took to settle into Wembley Stadium, effectively halted Tottenham’s title challenge mid-season.
The key reason for the same was that the squad was being stretched to its limit. There was no substitute for Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen, and Dele Alli. It was widely recognised that those three men defined how Spurs' matches went, and hence how their season went.
When they had to endure to the maximum, performances inexorably dropped.
As Mauricio Pochettino himself said, it was vital that signings were made early so that they could really fit into the team well in time for the start of the season. As it stands, the main elements of their squad will be returning late from World Cup exertion, and they have no new faces being brought in.
One wonders what the reason was behind Spurs not moving for Jack Grealish, and why they have waited so long to bid for Wilfried Zaha and even Anthony Martial. One possibility is that the shortage of funds owing to the renovation of their stadium White Hart Lane.
But Spurs must find ways to combat it if they want to reach the summit, where their ambitions lie. However, all this sets the tone, once more, of déjà vu.
Also read: Weakest Positions Top 6 Clubs Must Address before Deadline Day
