5 WWE Superstars who could defeat Sami Zayn to become the Intercontinental Champion

2020 has perhaps been the best year for Sami Zayn. After a few months of creative limbo, Zayn finally found his footing on SmackDown as the manager of Shinsuke Nakamura, before becoming the mouthpiece of the group known as The Artist Collective.

At the Elimination Chamber, the Liberator won the Intercontinental Championship (his first title on the main roster) and even retained the title against Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 36.

While Zayn's heel character, along with the whole Artist Collective shtick, has made the Intercontinental Championship picture more interesting, a change of guard is sure to shake things up on the Blue brand, making the show must-see.

So, without further ado, presenting to you the five superstars who can win the Intercontinental title from Sami Zayn:

Honorable mention: Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan has been responsible for some of the most intriguing storylines on the Blue brand since his comeback. Be it his time as the Planet's champion, his feud with Bray Wyatt for the Universal Championship, or his alliance with Drew Gulak, Bryan has delivered with every storyline.

Bryan is a magician in the world of WWE, and he can surely work his magic with the title to make it relevant again. So, there's no doubt that WWE will go forward with Bryan winning the Intercontinental title.

But then again, stars like Bryan have already established their legacy, and they do not need titles to make themselves relevant. Plus, there is another major storyline in the wings for Bryan; the eventual breakup and feud with his mentor Drew Gulak. While the title will only add to this impending rivalry, it doesn't need one. Expect Gulak to come out a bigger star out of his feud with Bryan, following which he can go for the title.

Bryan, on the other hand, can elevate yet another wrestler who has not been in the limelight, like Chad Gable and Mustafa Ali.

With the honorable mention out of the way, let us begin.

#1 Mustafa Ali

WWE did sow the seeds for a feud between Mustafa Ali and then-Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura, but the rivalry never materialized. The 'Heart and Soul of SmackDown' has been missing in action for the last few months, but there have been rumors that he's the man behind the recent glitches on SmackDown. The man was involved in the Otis/Mandy/Ziggler storyline, revealing that Sonya Deville had conspired with Ziggler against Mandy and Otis. While none of us have seen the face of the man behind the glitches, the person's physique is quite similar to that of Ali's.

WWE needs to book Ali well for the audience to take him more seriously. What better way to have Ali return than by having him win the prestigious Intercontinental Championship? Ali doesn't even need backup to nullify the numbers advantage that the Artist Collective has. If he is indeed the man behind the glitches, he can easily have the Artist Collective turn on each other and break them up like he did with Fire and Desire. It won't take much for him to defeat a lonely, dejected Zayn to win the title.

Well, speaking of the Artist Collective...

#2 Cesaro

While he is a former United States Champion, Cesaro has never won the IC title......

When was the last time that Cesaro held a singles title? We wouldn't blame you if you didn't know the answer, as it was way back in 2013 when he was the United States champion. Since then, Cesaro has only held the tag titles and the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal trophy. These achievements don't do justice to the talent that Cesaro has, and the Swiss Cyborg has, in all rights, earned a run with a title. Even 'The Man' Becky Lynch agrees with this.

The best way to do this will be for Nakamura and Zayn to have tensions with Cesaro, possibly based on the fact that he is the weak link of the stable. An enraged Cesaro can then fight Shinsuke Nakamura first, before moving on to Zayn and defeating him for the Intercontinental Championship. The group can implode completely too, with the rivalry between the three superstars culminating in a triple threat title match between then, possibly at a big stage like SummerSlam.

The Cesaro Section will surely be happy.

#3 Big E

Big E is a former Intercontinental champion.....

I can say for sure that the E in Big E stands for entertainment. Just look at his career trajectory -- from being the monster who held the NXT and Intercontinental Championships, to becoming a comic character that the fans love, he has always been entertaining. Big E is a future Hall of Famer, but he hasn't reached his full potential yet in the singles division. Kofi Kingston's run as the WWE Champion has proved that the stable can be involved in the singles division and it's time for Big E to go solo. Also, New Day has been a staple of SmackDown's tag team division for more than two years now, and them moving over to the singles division will be a nice change for the trio, allowing other teams to be involved in the tag team division.

Big E vs Sami Zayn will be as unorthodox as a rivalry can be, with the heel being the underdog this time around. The Artist Collective can play to the numbers advantage a few times to help Zayn retain the title. A returning Xavier Woods could even the playing field, leading to E winning his second Intercontinental Championship.

#4 Jeff Hardy

Jeff back into the title picture? Of course!

It has been rumored for a while you know that WWE is looking to push Jeff Hardy to prevent him from joining his brother Matt in AEW. Thus, a run with the Intercontinental Championship is not as unlikely as it seems. Even during his previous stints with the company, it was Jeff who was the main eventer, not Matt. Though he is 42 years old, the Charismatic Enigma has not caught the rust of age and can still hang on in the ring with the top guys of the business. Zayn's in-ring skills are second to none either, meaning that we are going to be in for a match of the night contender when these two collide.

Jeff has been on the shelf for quite some time ever since he returned to WWE in 2017, and a suitable way to compensate for that might be having him defending the title in open challenges week in and week out.

One thing is for sure, Jeff Hardy as Intercontinental champion will be Best for Business.

#5 Roman Reigns

He's not a good champ, he's not a bad champ, he's the champ!

Here comes The Big Dog! You all may be thinking about how Roman Reigns is out of action right now, and when he does return, he will straight away be involved in the main event scene. But what if WWE went a different route?

Remember when Daniel Bryan defied the odds to become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion at WrestleMania XXX? He relinquished the title and then moved to the mid-card, winning the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 31. Reigns has had a similar fate too, with him relinquishing his Universal title in October 2018, and pulling out of WrestleMania 36 match due to health issues, for no fault of his own.

So, do not be surprised if The Big Dog enters the Intercontinental title picture upon his return. With the consensus that things will be back to normal by the time SummerSlam comes around, expect the Big Dog to make a surprise return and defeat Sami Zayn to become the new Intercontinental Champion. The two men can feud throughout the summer, with The Usos and The Artist Collective being added to the mix as well.

Reigns could drop the title possibly at the next year's Royal Rumble event, before moving up to the main event scene. With the Big Dog as champion, WWE will surely pull out big rivalries and open challenges to build Reigns' credibility, which will also benefit the title.

A win-win situation for involved, except Sami Zayn.

Which Superstar, in your opinion, should dethrone Sami Zayn for the Intercontinental title? Be sure to voice your opinion in the comments box.