Premier League Potential

The World Cup excitement, and premature blues, have come and gone leaving behind a suitable gap in which to prepare for the start of the new Premier League season. With managerial changes, player transfers and injuries to look forwardtoo, who is going to be looking strong come May?

In terms of new faces there appear to be very few who will break into the respective team starting XI’s. Arsenal have managed to hold onto influential Cesc Fabregas, whether he will continue to play as strongly for the Gunners is yet to be witnessed. The Londoners young side should be coming into their own this season, with the added bonus of an out-and-out striker in Chamakh partnering a fully fit Van Persie. The departure of Sol Campbell and William Gallas will do them no harm.

Aston Villa are on the brink of losing their main man James Milner, something which will surely be a detriment to both the team and the player himself. A benchwarming spot at Manchester City awaits. No-one is yet to be brought to Villa but once Milner’s deal goes through expect a replacement to follow. With the other teams improving all around them will a top 6 position be possible for O’Neill’s men?

One of Villa’s midland rivals Birmingham had a storming first season in the Premier League, which caused many a low score for the predictors. On-loan shotstopper Joe Hart was one of the main reasons for their success but naturally he has returned to his parent club, so Ben Foster has been snapped up from Manchester United to fill the gaping hole. To finish as high as they did last season is surely not going to happen?

Blackburn may not fill you with excitement but nor do they worry you for relegation either. Their lack of goals may prove problematic. Kalinic will probably score enough goals to retain Rovers position in the lower half of mid table.

The tangerines of Blackpool are illuminating the Premiership for a year and no doubt they will be effectively out of the Premiership before their lights go out for summer. Ex-Rangers player Charlie Adam is the tower of this side; if he gets crowded out Blackpool could be in even more trouble, not that you can finish below 20th.

Bolton are another side who will hear the calls of mid-table boredom. Manager Owen Coyle is astute enough to keep the Reebok Stadium in the top league next season. The additions of Marcos Alonso from Real Madrid, Martin Petrov from Manchester City and Robbie Blake from Burnley are probably three of the best signings this season. Holding onto central midfielder Muamba is also a large bonus.

Chelsea topped the table last season and maybe surprisingly will be fielding a pretty similar team to that of last season. New signings Yossi Benayoun and Tomas Kalas do not look like first teams regulars, whereas Ballack and Joe Cole have moved on. Will the old guard of Terry and Lampard keep this side at the top after such a disappointing World Cup?

There appears to be no new flavour in the Toffee bag either, unless Jermaine Beckford exceeds expectations. Injuries hampered the Merseyside team last season, improving dramatically when all their players were available in the latter half of the season. If all the starting XI remain fit expect a small push for a top 6 place.

Mark Hughes will have a job on his hands achieving as much as Roy Hodgson did at Fulham. The introduction of Jonathan Greening will add some creative presence in midfield, although it may already be occupied by Duff, Murphy, Etuhu and Davies. The loss of Chris Smalling to Manchester United will not aid Sparky’s cause.

Roy Hodgson’s new challenge is reviving a Liverpool side that has slummed out of the top four and into the embarrassment of qualifying rounds for the Europa League. He has managed to keep hold of his major players whilst the capture of Joe Cole on a free transfer is definitely a superb signing. However, Torres is continually injured and Gerrard is struggling to do everything himself. Expect a push for the top 4, whether they will get there is to be witnessed.

One of the sides standing firmly in their way is the cash-flowing Manchester City. The Blues have their sights set on silverware, and lots of it. It’s just a shame the player’s jewellery boxes don’t count. New signings David Silva, Yaye Toure, Alex Kolarov and Jerome Boateng will do nothing for their outgoings, or for their compliance with the new Premiership ruling of only having 25 players in the squad, with 8 of those being home-grown players. Keeping everyone happy is going to be an impossible task. Their summer signing spree is not finished yet either.

In stark contrast to their arch rivals, Manchester United have spent very little this summer. Chris Smalling and Javier Hernandez have been brought in but both have their eyes set on the future. Rooney will be looked upon to score the goals, if he misfires as he did for England the Red Devils could be struggling.

The Magpies are back in the Premiership and expect them to be there next season. They are by far the strongest of the promoted sides and will take no prisoners at St.James’s Park. Smith and Barton have enough to unsettle any visiting team, unsurprisingly though their discipline may be a concern. The signing of Sol Campbell mystifies.

Stoke will be looking to break into the top 10 this season as their large, physical style of football has firmly established them as a middle table team. Tony Pulis has worked wonders with his team and has changed his side very little over the last two seasons. Etherington and Delap will provide most of the balls for Fuller, Sidibe and Shawcross to convert.

Sunderland are one of the teams fighting Stoke for that elusive top-ten finish and this year they may be on the brink of achieving that goal. Jones and Bent will once more provide the firepower whilst Titus Bramble has been brought in to, yes this is right, tighten up the defence...The Black Cats have a strong core that should see Steve Bruce’s men do well this season.

Harry Redknapp’s side will have their sights set on the 4th Champions League spot once again this season. The distraction of being in the actual tournament may hamper their chances of remaining 4th in the domestic league, yet their large squad should help them out. Sandro is the only new signing so far, but then again they already have two full sides that would give any team a good game.

West Brom start the season just one place above the relegation zone and they shall be looking to hold onto that spot for as long as possible. Roberto Di Matteo is a quality young manager, adding a more resolute style to the team that tried to play free-flowing football in the Premiership and won only relegation. They will be there or there about come May, at the bottom that is.

West Ham on the other hand, finished last season in a nail biting 17th place but after sorting out their financial insecurities they will look to establish themselves in the middle of the table once more. The squad has too much talent to be in a relegation battle, supposedly. Parker will once more maraud the midfield with previous Premiership fan favourite Thomas Hitzlsperger – a.k.a “The Hammer” – joining the Hammers. The London side may hope Rob Green remains a safe pair of hands.

Wigan may be one of the teams dicing with death come May. At times last season they beat the top teams, at other times they were demolished or beaten by a poor outfit. Consistency is the key in this league and Wigan don’t have it. All hope will be on the new signing Mauro Boselli but how often do new foreign strikers settle easily in the Premiership?

The final team, Wolves, face a similar fate as Wigan. Every match will be a battle, with every point key to staying another year in the top league in England. Steven Fletcher has been snapped-up from relegated Burnley for £6.5million, as has Stephen Hunt from Hull City for a mere £3million. Buying previously relegated players does not bode well.

It is clear the Premiership is going to be tight this season, whether it be at the top or the bottom. It may be that three distinct mini-leagues appear within the main affair. Of course there are always teams that do better than expected, as well as the one team that struggles. Who will it be this season? You decide.