Premier League Preview: 10 Things to Look Forward to this Season
The Barclays Premier League is back! With the new season kicking off this weekend here are 10 things we can look forward to seeing over the next 9 months…
#10 New signings
Each club has strengthened in the off season and it’ll be interesting to see which new players can make an impressive start for their new club. There’s plenty of hype around Diego Costa at Chelsea, Ander Herrera at Manchester United and Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal. Liverpool raided Southampton for Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Rickie Lambert and we’ll see if the trio can continue their sublime form from the previous 2 seasons. Frank Lampard’s loan move to City won’t impress Chelsea fans, but his replacement Cesc Fabregas could light up Stamford Bridge. The transfer window doesn’t shut for another 2 weeks either so expect plenty more big moves to come.
#9 3-5-2
Liverpool and Hull experimented with it last season and now Manchester United and QPR are both setting up this season with a 3-5-2 formation. It doesn’t suit every team, but if proved to be an effective system we could well see more sides adopting the formation.
#8 Chelsea challenging
Jose Mourinho was keen to exclude Chelsea from last year’s title race, but this season he’s going for the Premier League crown. He’s brought in Diego Costa and the reliable Didier Drogba to solve his striker conundrum, and Cesc Fabregas will fill the hole left by Frank Lampard. Favourites with the bookmakers, will Chelsea lift the title in May?
#7 Vanishing spray
Having been used in South American football for numerous years and the success it had at the World Cup, vanishing spray is being introduced into the Premier League as a tool to help referee’s prevent the wall from creeping forward at free-kicks.
#6 High profile assistant managers
Simply there to assist or readymade replacements for when the manager loses his job? Teddy Sheringham and Roy Keane have been brought in as assistant managers at West Ham and Aston Villa respectively, and Harry Redknapp has added former England manager Glenn Hoddle to his coaching team. Ryan Giggs also steps up to the plate as Louis van Gaal’s assistant at Manchester United.
#5 Teams coping having lost their stars
How will Liverpool react to the loss of Luis Suarez? How will Southampton and Swansea fare after their player exodus? Only time will tell.
#4 The future’s bright the future’s Oranje
After the disaster that was David Moyes’ 10 months in charge at Manchester United, there’s renewed optimism around Old Trafford after Louis van Gaal’s arrival. Will one of Europe’s most successful managers bring Champions League football back to Old Trafford or will it be another season of disappointment for United’s fans.
#3 Managerial Departures
Tony Pulis has surprisingly become the first managerial casualty of the season without a ball even being kicked. 12 managers left their clubs last season, and in the climate of modern football, you can expect more of the same.
#2 More competitive than ever at the bottom
It’s difficult to predict the 3 clubs destined for the drop and this season could be even closer than last year in the fight for survival.
#1 More competitive than ever at the top
7 teams are going for 4 places and only 6 are guaranteed European football next season. You feel any one of 5 teams can win the league, although Chelsea and Manchester City on the face of it appear to be the favourites. One thing’s for sure, it’s going to be the closest season at the top yet.
Premier League Launch: What a Difference a Year Makes
What a difference a year makes! The Premier League had it’s annual launch event this morning. A quick look at the 4 managers who were at the event last season says everything about the lifespan of a Premier League manager…
5 Premier League Managers who could be Sacked this Year
The average lifespan of a football manager isn’t very long in the modern game. With huge money at stake for staying in the division, owners love to point the blame at the manager and hope their dismissal will turn the club’s fortunes around. 12 managers were sacked last season, with Fulham even making 2 dismissals. Which 5 Premier League managers are most likely to get the chop this time round?
#5 SAM ALLARDYCE
‘Dull, long ball football with no attacking threat’ was the phrase West Ham fans were throwing at Sam Allardyce’s tactics last season. Jose Mourinho even described it as ‘19th century football’! When the hammers lost every game in April last season it looked like Big Sam was on the way out. Instead the owners stuck by him but have demanded ‘more entertainment’ this season and a top 10 finish. Teddy Sheringham has been brought in to help Allardyce as an attacking coach, but if they don’t improve on their 11 wins from last season, the West Ham boss could well be shown the exit door.
#4 PAUL LAMBERT
Paul Lambert goes into his 3rd season at Aston Villa knowing that this could be his last. After 2 seasons finishing in 15th place, fans, pundits and the owners will be looking for the club to push on. It certainly hasn’t been easy for the Scot during his 2 years at Villa, with a young, inexperienced team to manage. He also lost his main man last season as Christian Benteke suffered through loss of form and injury. Last year’s good start, which began with a 3-1 win at the Emirates, was followed by only 6 other league victories. Villa were also humiliated by a 2-1 defeat to Sheffield United in the FA cup- a competition Lambert described as a distraction he could do without.
Similar to Sheringham at West Ham, Roy Keane has been brought in by Villa to assist Paul Lambert, meaning a readymade replacement is already there should Lambert be axed.
#3 SEAN DYCHE
You’d think that after the success Sean Dyche has brought to Burnley he will keep his job safe no matter how they do this season, but history tells us otherwise. 8 of the 15 managers that have won promotion in the last 5 years have lost their job the following season. Burnley are the bookies’ favourites to be relegated this campaign, and the owners may well hit the panic button if they get off to a poor start.
#2 GARRY MONK
Despite being given a 3 year contract a few months ago, does Garry Monk have the experience and expertise needed to be a top Premier League manager? Monk won 5 games since he took over last season, but also suffered 6 defeats from his 14 games in charge. If you think the club are too loyal to dismiss Monk then just remind yourself that the owners sacked Michael Laudrup last season, a year after he had guided the Welsh side to their first major trophy after their League Cup victory.
Vorm, Davies and Michu have all left, and if Wilfried Bony also moves on, it may not only be the big name players who make their Swansea exit this year.
#1 ALAN PARDEW
Alan Pardew is the 2nd longest serving manager in the Premier League behind Arsene Wenger and has had some success whilst managing Newcastle United. In 2012 he took them into Europe, was named Premier League manager of the season and subsequently rewarded with an 8 year contract.
Whilst 15 wins and a 10th place finish last season doesn’t appear disastrous on the face of it, Newcastle slumped to 15 defeats from their final 21 fixtures last season. This led to huge resentment from fans, most notably in a 3-0 win over Cardiff in May.
A controversial figure at times, last season saw Pardew handed a 7 match touchline ban after headbutting Hull’s David Meyler. He also notably pushed an assistant referee in a match in 2012 between Newcastle and Tottenham. You feel he may be one more controversial incident away from being given his marching orders.
ADAM LEAH 