Ahead of the start of the Premier League, Greg Lea looks at 10 players to keep an eye on in the 2016/17 Premier League season.
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Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City
Manchester City’s sustained dip in form in the first few months of 2016 was widely blamed on the announcement that Pep Guardiola would replace Manuel Pellegrini as the club’s manager this summer, but perhaps the knee injury De Bruyne sustained in January was the more significant factor in the downturn in results.
Technically gifted, the Belgian playmaker is the type of player who will thrive under the management of Guardiola, who could help to take his game to another level at the Eithad Stadium this term.
N’Golo Kante, Chelsea
Kante has already gone down as one of the best signings in Premier League history after his performances in his first and only season at Leicester City last term, with Chelsea hoping he can have a similar impact at Stamford Bridge.
The midfielder topped the tackle and interception charts in 2015/16 while also contributing to many Leicester counter-attacks with his driving runs forward; while Kante’s role may be a little different in a team that will dominate possession in a large number of their matches this season, his dynamism and defensive qualities will undoubtedly serve Chelsea well.
Michael Dawson, Hull City
Hull’s chances of surviving in the Premier League appear to be rather slim at present, with no manager in place and only one new signing – 18-year-old goalkeeper Will Mannion from AFC Wimbledon – completed by the start of August.
Experienced centre-back Dawson will therefore be vital if last season’s Championship play-off winners are to avoid an immediate return to the second division: the former Tottenham Hotspur man, who spent almost a decade at White Hart Lane before joining his current club in 2014, was Hull’s Player of the Year during their last campaign in the top flight and will need to be at his very best this time around too.
Mousa Dembele, Tottenham
Dembele was outstanding as Tottenham pushed for the Premier League title last time out, with the central midfielder’s power integral to the high-tempo and energetic style of play promoted by manager Mauricio Pochettino.
A young Tottenham team could find things a little tougher this season as they attempt to balance the dual demands of Premier League and Uefa Champions League football, which means experienced players such as Dembele will be expected to come to the fore.
The Belgian will miss the first four matches of the season through suspension but will surely be in Pochettino’s starting XI whenever fit and available thereafter.
Andre Gray, Burnley
Eyebrows were raised when Burnley splashed £9 million (Dh43.6m) on Brentford striker Gray 12 months ago, but 23 goals in Sean Dyche’s side’s promotion-winning campaign soon made the club-record deal look like a bargain.
Although Burnley were unable to avoid relegation in their last stint in the top flight in 2014/15, Dyche looks set to keep faith with the same approach and once again rely on the players who got his team into the Premier League in the first place.
Gray will be the man Burnley look to for goals, and whether or not they are able to finish outside the bottom three could depend on how well the centre-forward adapts to life in the top tier.
Kasper Schmeichel, Leicester
It is unclear exactly what Claudio Ranieri’s target is this year but Schmeichel will be a key part of his Leicester outfit regardless.
The goalkeeper was briefly linked with a move away from the Premier League champions a few weeks ago but remains at the King Power Stadium ahead of the new campaign, when Leicester will seek to defend their title as well as competing in the Champions League for the first time, with Schmeichel poised to bring his quick reflexes and sharp shot-stopping to the continental stage.
Joel Matip, Liverpool
Liverpool will have to tighten up at the back if they are to qualify for the Champions League this season, a fact which Jurgen Klopp seems to have recognised and acted upon with the acquisitions of centre-halves Ragnar Klavan from Augsburg and Matip from Schalke.
The latter, who arrives at Anfield on a free transfer after his contract with the Bundesliga outfit expired at the end of June should have little trouble coping with the physical demands of the Premier League.
Alvaro Negredo, Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough have taken a proactive approach in the transfer market so far, signing more players (eight) than any other Premier League side by the end of July.
The addition of Negredo was one of the club’s most eye-catching deals, with the former Manchester City striker moving to the Riverside on a season-long loan from Valencia.
The Spaniard has had a tough time in the last few years but could excel as a big fish in a small pond, with Middlesbrough fans hoping he can replicate the form he displayed in the first half of the 2013/14 campaign with City, when he netted 23 times in 33 outings.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Manchester United
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has inevitably taken the vast majority of headlines relating to Manchester United’s completed transfer business so far this summer, but the addition of Mkhitaryan could turn out to be the more important deal over the coming months.
The attacking midfielder was superb for Borussia Dortmund last term, scoring 11 goals and supplying 15 assists in the Bundelisga for Thomas Tuchel’s side, and will add a dash of invention and creativity to a United team that often lacked any sort of spark in the final third under Louis van Gaal in 2015/16.
Mesut Ozil, Arsenal
Ozil looked certain to break Thierry Henry’s Premier League assists record (20 in a season) in 2015/16 when he directly set up his 18th goal of the campaign against Manchester United in February, but a return of just one assist in his final 10 appearances saw the Germany international fall just short.
Ozil still had a terrific year at the Emirates Stadium and will arguably be even more essential to Arsenal in the upcoming campaign, with Arsene Wenger’s men in danger of being overtaken by upwardly-mobile competitors Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea.
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