As the new Premier League season approaches, The National Sport’s deputy editor, Thomas Woods, offers 10 bold predictions he can see unfolding in the season ahead.
1. Chelsea won’t win the league if Eden Hazard misses 10 games or more
This should be the season where Hazard puts himself in the same category as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. His progression at Chelsea has been similar to Ronaldo’s at Manchester United — Hazard arrived three seasons ago but it was last season where he really found consistency and became the focal point of Chelsea’s side, winning the PFA Player of the Year award.
Ronaldo, over a longer period of time at United, slowly turned from an inconsistent flair player into the club’s main man, culminating in his 42-goal 2007/08 when United did the double.
If Hazard continues his upward trajectory then 2015/16 could be his version of Ronaldo’s 2007/08. We might not see 42 goals but replicating his last season with Lille — 20 goals and 16 assists in the league — is realistic.
The one issue for Chelsea in all of this is that seemed dependent on Hazard last season; when he was off-colour they seemed to lack a spark. That is not to say they are a one-man team. Their back five is probably the best in the league and Cesc Fabregas played a fine supporting act to Hazard last season, particularly at the start.
But it does at times seem as though the whole team runs around Hazard — Willian, Oscar, even Diego Costa, they are all supporting actors waiting to be fed their lines by the star man.
Hazard has barely been injured in his career but if he were to go down this season for an extended spell of time it could be enough to knock Chelsea off their throne in what is expected to be a tighter title race.
Premier League season shapers: Chelsea's Eden Hazard, the superstar who stayed in England
2. Wayne Rooney will break the 20-goal barrier
Rooney, who turns 30 in October, has played 13 seasons in the Premier League yet only twice has he scored 20 goals or more in the top flight: 26 in 2009/10 and 27 in 2011/12.
Since joining Manchester United he has always broken double figures and his tally in the past three seasons — 12, 17, 12 — has to do with shifting positions and Robin van Persie.
But the stage is now set for Rooney to be United’s central striker and the goals should flow. Louis van Gaal seems likely to play 4-3-3, with Rooney down the middle.
United’s transfer business has added creativity to the centre of the pitch and the likes of Juan Mata, Memphis Depay and Ashley Young are there to feed Rooney.
And if United succeed in signing Pedro from Barcelona, he would play on the right rather than down the middle so Rooney really should challenge for the league’s top scorer.
Season preview: So far so good for Man United but still short of being champions
3. Liverpool to finish 25 points off top spot again
For all the optimism around Liverpool after a major transfer outlay, it is hard to see where they will make up the ground on their rivals for the Uefa Champions League spots.
They have lost their best player for the second consecutive season, in Raheem Sterling, following Luis Suarez the year before, and the influence of Steven Gerrard is gone, too. A central defence which had as many woeful days as it kept clean sheets (12) remains.
And it looks like Brendan Rodgers could field an all-new front three from some combination of Christian Benteke, Roberto Firminio, Danny Ings and Jordan Ibe. They will take time to gel.
Liverpool spent last season battling with Manchester United over fourth spot, yet their rivals are the only other side from last season’s top four to have made the same kind of changes as Liverpool.
The biggest unknown for Liverpool is the fitness of Daniel Sturridge. Liverpool would not have splashed out on Benteke without major doubts over Sturridge’s fitness, which is a shame; the England striker is a step above anything else they have.
The title race looks set to be extremely competitive and if Liverpool cannot hit the ground running they could be left behind by October.
Season preview: Brendan Rodgers reshuffles the Liverpool squad and tries to reset
4. Andre Ayew will score 10 goals in his first season
Outside of the big-money moves, Swansea City’s signing of the older of the Ayew brothers could prove to be the best business of the transfer window.
It is hard to believe Ayew is just 25, given his 65 caps for Ghana, and Swansea are getting a player of pedigree coming into his prime. He was one of Ghana’s best players at the 2014 World Cup, scoring twice, and again starred as Ghana made the African Cup of Nations final in January.
For the past five seasons with Marseille, Ayew has scored between six and 11 goals and it is reasonable to expect he will reach break double figures in a Swansea side which is made for him.
A robust wide player, he will take one of Swansea’s wing positions in a 4-3-3 and, as the likes of Nathan Dyer, Scott Sinclair and Wayne Routledge have in recent seasons, will get plenty of chances inside the area.
Season preview: Swansea City face tough task to improve on last season
5. West Ham to finish in bottom six
West Ham have spent £23 million (Dh131m) on new players this summer, but it is a departure that will prove most significant. Winger Stewart Downing was West Ham’s star man last season and he will be sorely missed.
Three question marks surround the club.
First, how long will their new players, led by ex-Marseille man Dimitri Payet, take to get used to English football.
Second, will any of their strikers stay fit for a season? Enner Valencia is out for 12 weeks, Diafra Sakho has back issues and Andy Carroll is never fit.
Third, new manager Slaven Bilic is unproven, with no Premier League experience. His record at Lokomotiv Moscow and Besiktas yielded no silverware and West Ham have been burnt before appointing former players as manager.
Season preview: Slaven Bilic takes new-look West Ham into a new era
6. Harry Kane to beat last year’s goal total
Kane’s breakthrough season saw him score 21 goals in 34 games. One common opinion is that he may have had his best career season already, but at Tottenham he has a 4-5-1 formation set up around him and little competition for his place. Goals beckon.
Premier League season shapers: Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur's young hotshot
7. Leicester City to finish bottom
As remarkable as Leicester’s survival was last season, they also went spells of 13 and eight games without a win. They are now without the manager, Nigel Pearson, who inspired that survival as well as Esteban Cambiasso, the veteran midfielder who ran the team. New manager Claudio Ranieri will have to work with pretty much the same squad that swung from one extreme to the other last season.
Season preview: Ranieri tasked with re-instilling Leicester fighting spirit
8. James Milner will be make the shortlist for Player of the Year
One of the reasons Manchester City signed Milner from Aston Villa was his impressive form from central midfield. At Liverpool he will get the chance to play that position once more. Free from the “Mr Versatile” tag that hurt his City career, he will thrive.
Premier League season shapers: Liverpool's James Milner, the underestimated star
9. Raheem Sterling will win Young Player of the Year award
Manchester City certainly will give Sterling the game time, having spent £49m on him, and he has the skills to deliver plenty of goals and assists in what will be an exciting link-up with Sergio Aguero and David Silva.
Premier League season shapers: Manchester City's Raheem Sterling, the big money mover
10. Stoke City in the top eight
Mark Hughes did his best work as a manager at Blackburn Rovers, where he mixed clever signings with getting the best out of underrated players. At Stoke he has an experienced, settled squad and has added quality in the likes of fit-again Bojan Krkic and another ex-Barcelona man, Ibrahim Afellay.
Season preview: Stoke City set for a solid season despite losing key players
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @NatSportUAE