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It’s not only the reverberations of the massive shock of 2015/16 that gives us the impression that we’re in for a special season.
It’s probably the main reason, but there are many factors involved in building up to a perfect storm of unpredictability – the feeling that anything can happen.
Manchester City are rightfully considered by the bookmakers to be the favourites to win their third Premier League title. The Citizens have acquired one of the finest managers in world football and have improved their already-impressive squad. However, their title challenge hinges on their ability to bring in at least one new world-class defender as cover for Vincent Kompany.
Chelsea have all it takes to stage one of the great comebacks of English football. A new manager hailed for his tactical awareness and man-management skills and enough money to bring in quality players means that they are in a position to put a disastrous 2015/16 behind them.
Leicester City’s championship-defending campaign will be hampered by the loss of N’Golo Kanté and will derail entirely if Riyad Mahrez also departs. New midfielder Nampalys Mendy could prove an adequate replacement for the former, but there aren’t many players of Mahrez’ quality who could be tempted to move to England’s East Midlands.
Tottenham Hotspurs’ challenge will come down to their ability to maintain their notoriously fragile composure. There’s more than enough quality and depth in their young squad to mount a challenge, but consistency and adequate cover for an overused Harry Kane is crucial. The speed at which Vincent Janssen – last season’s Eredivisie golden boot winner – can adapt to the English game is therefore crucial for them.
It may sound like an oversimplification, but Manchester United’s challenge is going to come down to Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Red Devils were ineffective in attack last year. In retrospect it’s easy to see why. During the second half of the season, Louis van Gaal dropped Wayne Rooney into a midfield role and, while he wasn’t ineffective there, it meant that for a large part of their campaign, United played with either Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial up front. Two players who both made their debuts in 2015.
Arsène Wenger’s ability to get the best out of a team that’s not overflowing with marquee players will again be what separates them from other challengers. Arsenal fans will again be clamouring for some pace up front to complement Olivier Giroud’s impressive finishing abilities. However, Gunners’ CEO, Ivan Gazidis, has already claimed that he would prefer to employ the Leicester City approach of identifying remarkable talent in the lower divisions than bringing in star players.
It’s been a while since Liverpool fans have been as excited about an upcoming season as this one. Charismatic, tactically astute and trusting of youth players, Jürgen Klopp is a breath of fresh air at the Kopp, and the quality of football he managed to get out of a demoralised squad is remarkable.
At the other end of the table, there are often one or two surprise packages among newly promoted sides. Steve Bruce’s departure from Hull City, though, understandably renders the Yorkshire side unlikely to be one of these. Expect them back in the Championship next season.
For Sunderland, the last quarter of 2015/16 was all about Sam Allardyce. The manager was a colossus in the media.
His confidence and combativeness inspired his side to a remarkable escape act. It’s difficult not to see his departure for the England job as too big a blow to recover from. – TEAMtalk Media
