![]() The Gunners' pick-up of Jesus from City already looks to be a stroke of genius as the young Brazilian forward has been scoring for fun in pre-season (including a hat-trick in a 6-0 romping of Sevilla), and the club will be gunning (heh) for a return to Champions League football, where they haven't featured since 2017.Īlthough they finished fifth last season, the vibes from Arsenal have been good, particularly as they've further integrated some of their best young players into the squad. ![]() Sam: Liverpool, City, and Chelsea - yes - though I think the battle for fourth will be tight between Tottenham and Arsenal. Simon: Add Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham to Manchester City and you've got your top four for me.Ĭhelsea have done decent business in the transfer window, particularly the acquisition of Raheem Sterling from Manchester City.Īt Spurs, Antonio Conte has been given more leeway to craft a team that he feels he can work with, which should be enough to secure them Champions League football again this season. Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham have had strong pre-seasons and recruited well, but Manchester United still seem to be figuring stuff out behind the scenes, so they're probably a ways to go yet before challenging for anything beyond the most meme-able Premier League team. Importantly, they've retained Golden Boot winner Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, and Roberto Firmino - players who are already familiar with Jurgen Klopp's heavy-metal football - meaning there's not so much pressure on new signing Darwin Nunez to hit the ground running.īut another reason why I reckon this season is a bit more open is that other clubs are looking decent, too. If you compare City's situation with Liverpool, while they have lost Mane, the majority of their released players were peripheral at best. Haaland may take some time to adjust to Guardiola as well as the Premier League in general. We've seen new recruits like Jack Grealish take a full season before they start to "fit" into the team, so I'd say even big signings like Haaland may not have the immediate impact some are hoping for. I don't think City are outright favourites in the same way they were last season, largely because of two things: first, the players they've lost compared with the ones they've gained, and second, how long it takes new recruits to adjust to Pep Guardiola's style.Ĭity have basically signed positional replacements after losing Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, and Fernandinho - players who were regular starters and were already acclimatised to the 4D chess Guardiola often deploys on the field. Sam: Look, Simon, I respect you - but you're wrong. Liverpool losing Sadio Mane will be tough to handle, although should Darwin Núñez land on his feet, that will offset Mane's loss. ( Getty Images: DeFodi Images/Kieran Galvin)Ĭity have won four titles in the last five years and that's no accident, but they have switched a few things up personnel-wise, which might make things interesting if the new boys - read Erling Haaland, Kalvin Phillips and Julian Alvarez - fail to gel in the same way that departing stars Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Fernandinho. ![]() Liverpool FC, City's nearest rival, defeated them to win the Community Shield last month.
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