A hectic summer of football continues this weekend with the start of the 2024/25 Premier League season.
After the European Championship, Copa America, and for some the Paris Olympics, it's back to club football for Premier League players, starting on Friday night when Manchester United host Fulham at Old Trafford.
Will Manchester City extend their record and make it five titles in a row? Can anyone stop Erling Haaland from a third successive Golden Boot? Which three clubs will be doomed to relegation?
Ahead of the new season, The National has provided a few predictions.
Steve Luckings, Sports Editor
Champions: Manchester City. Early season fatigue could be a factor. More worrying is a potential hefty points deduction over 115 alleged breaches of financial rules, all of which City deny. City had 11 players involved Euro 2024 action, and with only one new addition to the squad (Savinho), City could be slow out of the blocks. But if one team is capable of putting together a double-digit win streak down the home stretch, for the title, it's City. Plus they have Haaland.
Top four: Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham
Relegated: Ipswich Town, Southampton, Leicester City
Surprise package: Everton. The spectre of another points deduction hangs over the club, but the Merseysiders would have finished a comfortable 12th last season without the eight-point penalty. Assuming they avoid a similar fate, Everton could finish in the top half of the table for the first time since 2020/21.
Disappointment: Chelsea. A new manager and a raft of new signings – where have we seen this picture before? The answer is, of course, Chelsea. The squad is bloated but, save for Marc Cucurella, Cole Palmer, and maybe a fit Reece James, who are the guaranteed starters who will form the backbone of Enzo Maresca's team?
Player of the season: Martin Odegaard (Arsenal). Everything good the Gunners do goes through Odegaard. Has the vision and passing range to unlock any defence. Arsenal's puppet master.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). Sixty-three league goals in two seasons since joining from Borussia Dortmund. It's not beyond the realm of reason Haaland will pass the 100-goal mark this campaign. The apex predator.
Player to watch: Leif Davis (Ipswich Town). Broke the Championship record for assists last season with 20. From left-back.
Jon Turner, Deputy Sports Editor
Champions: Arsenal. Call it a gut feeling, call it the human brain's inability to compute a team winning five Premier League titles in a row, but this season feels primed for an Arsenal triumph. The squad looks in great shape and Mikel Arteta's talented crop of youngsters will be another year older, better, and more experienced.
Top four: Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham
Relegated: Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Leicester City
Surprise package: Crystal Palace. Losing Michael Olise to Bayern Munich is a blow, but Palace look to be building something exciting under Oliver Glasner. In Marc Guehi, Adam Wharton, Eberechi Eze, and Jean-Philippe Mateta they have a strong spine and could make an outside push for Europe.
Disappointment: Manchester United. Completed some decent business so far this summer to address problems in defence, but the squad still feels short of the quality needed to sustain a top-four challenge. Missing out on the Champions League again would be a major disappointment. Still doubts about the manager, too.
Player of the season: Bukayo Saka (Arsenal). Arsenal's star boy had a magnificent 2023/24 season and will only get better this campaign. His goals, creativity and leadership will be key to the Gunners winning the title.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). In terms of goalscorers, the Norwegian is in a league of his own.
Player to watch: Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace). Wharton adapted seamlessly to Premier League football following his January move from Blackburn Rovers, and with Palace looking an exciting prospect under manager Glasner, the 20-year-old midfielder is set for a big season.
Ian Hawkey, European Football Correspondent
Champions: Manchester City. Not quite the same old story, because City begin this defence of their title with what they promise will be a robust defence against Premier League charges of alleged historic breaches of financial rules shadowing them. On the field, they still have the efficiency, depth and flair to gather more points than anybody.
Top four: Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Newcastle United
Relegated: Ipswich Town, Leicester City, Brentford
Surprise package: West Ham United. Buoyed by demonstrable progress over the past three years – a European title and two other runs deep into Europe – under David Moyes, they can push on under a worldly new manager, Julen Lopetegui, and a centre-forward, Niclas Fullkrug, who looks made for the Premier League.
Disappointment: Chelsea. Somewhere in all the comings and goings of players and coaches there is a bold, future-looking strategy at Chelsea. Whether it is the right one for gathering trophies is very unclear indeed. Hard to see how the 2021 European champions regain top-four status.
Player of the season: Rodri (Manchester City). The fulcrum of City, and of Spain’s European champions, has been vocal about the fatiguing effects of the modern schedule. Opponents can only long for the day Rodri actually shows them and his consistently high, decisive level dips. It rarely does.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). Having had a summer of relative rest – Norway were not involved in the Euros – expect Haaland to assume his dominance of Premier League penalty areas, with an exciting new source of supply from in-coming winger Savinho.
Player to watch: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool). For the best part of seven years, Salah has become the gauge of Liverpool’s confidence, of their trophy credentials. Now without the totemic Jurgen Klopp and with a growing sense Salah may be tempted to leave next year, Liverpool will lean on him especially … while knowing the Egyptian legend is at a crossroads.
Stuart James, Sports Sub-editor
Champions: Arsenal. The Gunners have taken Manchester City to the wire for the past two seasons – and the gap is closing. In 2022/23, they finished four points adrift, while last season it was just two. In 2022/23, they collapsed to a 4-1 defeat at the Etihad as their nerve failed at the crucial moment. Last time out, they won 2-0 at the Emirates before drawing 0-0 away, showing they now have the self-belief to overcome Pep Guardiola’s side. The one area of concern is the lack of a prolific striker.
Top four: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United
Relegated: Southampton, Nottingham Forest, Brentford
Surprise package: Ipswich. After back-to-back promotions, Kieran McKenna’s exciting team are bursting with confidence. While they will still need to strengthen, Omari Hutchchinson making his loan from Chelsea permanent and the additions of former West Ham right-back Ben Johnson, highly rated defender Jacob Greaves, Aro Muric and Liam Delap look like shrewd business.
Disappointment: Chelsea. While they still have deep pockets, Chelsea have underwhelmed since the departure of Roman Abramovic and the arrival of Todd Boehly and Co, finishing 12th and sixth in the top flight, respectively. The constant managerial chopping and changing doesn’t help. Italian Enzo Maresca is the latest man in the hot seat following the departure of Mauricio Pochettino after just one season.
Player of the season: Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United). The Argentine, who is still just 20, had a superb season last time out and will get even better this campaign.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). Who else? With no Harry Kane to give him a run for his money and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah not quite the force of old, the Norwegian, who won the Premier League’s Golden Boot race by seven goals last time out, looks a shoe-in once more.
Player to watch: Savinho (Manchester City). The Brazilian, who joined City from Troyes for £30 million in July, has already shown he’s a big-match player, dispatching his penalty in the Community Shield shoot-out against fierce rivals United with cool composure.
Andy Lewis, Assistant Sports Editor
Champions: Arsenal. If they can once again get up near the 90-point mark that might be enough this time around.
Top four: Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United
Relegated: Nottingham Forest, Leicester City, Southampton
Surprise package: Brighton. Had a dip last season but expect them to be upwardly mobile again.
Disappointment: Chelsea. Crippling dysfunction shows no signs of ceasing.
Player of the season: Bukayo Saka (Arsenal). Makes the difference for an outstanding team.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). A quiet summer will be to his and City's benefit.
Player to watch: Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal). The Italian can solve a problem position for the Gunners.
Andy Mitten, European football correspondent
Champions: Manchester City. The team have won the last four. What has changed since? Pep Guardiola is still there, his players too.
Top four: Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United
Relegated: Nottingham Forest, Leicester, Southampton
Surprise package: Ipswich Town. Kieran McKenna is an excellent manager who has already proved that with successive promotions. Staying up will be enough of a surprise.
Disappointment: Wolves. Manager Gary O’Neill isn’t the issue and in Matheus Cunha he has a top forward, but Max Kilman and Pedro Neto will be losses and I’m not convinced the owners are as invested as they were.
Player of the season: Rodri (Manchester City). He’s the most important player for the team who’ll win the league. Best advised to otherwise keep his head down and not make any more political statements on the status of Gibraltar.
Top goalscorer: Erling Haaland (Manchester City). Again. The players around him will create so many chances – and he knows how to finish them.
Player to watch: Rasmus Hojlund (Manchester United). United need to score more and should do with the Dane getting better service in his second season.
