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In this episode, Santiago and Asa preview the 2023-24 #PremierLeague season.
Contributors
Santiago Leon – @sleon
Asa Smith – @TLsTDs
Manchester City
Lost mainstays Ilkay Gundogan (to Barcelona) and Riyad Mahrez (to Saudi Arabia) this summer, the Sky Blues are the Prem’s best team by a considerable distance.
Guardiola added Croatian stars Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic, will be the domestic competition and the opportunity to make history it offers.
Pacqueta?
Liverpool
Losing heart and soul captain Jordan Henderson to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq hurts. But Liverpool is improved overall thanks to the addition of World Cup-winning Argentinean midfielder Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton and playmaker Dominik Szoboszlai from Germany’s RB Leipzig
Arsenal
Bringing in Kai Havertz, Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber, Mikel Arteta’s roster isn’t quite as deep as the two clubs’ listed above (or perhaps even next two below). Arteta will have to rotate his squad — which will be without injured star striker Gabriel Jesus for at least the first few weeks — more than he did last season, when the London club led the title race for longer than any team not to win i
David Raya might join?
Manchester United
The Red Devils are clearly on the right track under second year manager Erik ten Hag. United finished third and won the EFL Cup and last year. They’ve successfully recruited striker Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta, goalkeeper Andre Onana from Inter Milan and midfielder Mason Mount from Chelsea.
Newcastle
The arrival of Sandro Tonali from AC Milan and Tino Livramento from Southampton should make the Magpies even stinger this season, which is crazy; Not even mighty Man City conceded fewer goals than the 33 allowed by Eddie Howe’s squad in 2022-23.
But it’s probably not realistic to expect striker Callum Wilson, who turns 32 in February to equal or better his career high 18 goals from last season, when Newcastle finished in the Champions League places for the first time in two decades. Juggling both competitions will be a tricky balancing act for Howe, too.
Chelsea
Moises Caicedo
The Blues — who are reportedly on the verge of landing U.S. captain Tyler Adams — have the talent to finish far higher. Under new coach Mauricio Pochettino, they could.
But after a disastrous 2022-23 campaign that ended with Chelsea an astounding 12th just two years removed from a European title, even sixth place would be a massive improvement for a club that has spent lavishly on players in recent years without any clear plan on how to use them.
Tottenham
That Champions League final in 2019 seems a long longer than four years ago for a club that finished mid-table, behind Brighton and Aston Villa, last season. If they still end up this high after potentially selling Harry Kane to Bayern Munich (multiple outlets reported Thursday that Spurs and Bayern had agreed on a transfer fee) it would be a triumph.
Fulham
It’s probably not realistic to expect the Cottagers to match the 10th place finish they managed last season – especially if they end up seeing leading scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic and veteran midfielder Willian depart for the Saudi league.
Everton
After surviving the drop on Decision Day last season, the Toffees will look to climb the table this year with the well-regarded Sean Dyche now fully entrenched as the coach.
Nottingham Forest
Adds Matt Turner
Newly Promoted Clubs
Burnley
Sheffield United
Luton
Table
1 Arsenal
2 Aston Villa
3 Bournemouth
4 Brentford
5 Brighton & Hove Albion
6 Burnley
7 Chelsea
8 Crystal Palace
9 Everton
10 Fulham
11 Liverpool
12 Luton Town
13 Manchester City
14 Manchester United
15 Newcastle United
16 Nottingham Forest
17 Sheffield United
18 Tottenham Hotspur
19 West Ham United
20 Wolverhampton Wanderers
PREDICTIONS
Arsenal v Nottm Forest
AS: ARS
Bournemouth v West Ham
AS: BOU
Brighton v Luton
AS: BRI
Everton v Fulham
AS: FUL
Sheffield Utd v Crystal Palace
AS: DRAW
Newcastle v Aston Villa
AS: NEW
Brentford v Tottenham (Sun)
AS: TOT
Chelsea v Liverpool (Sun)
AS: CHE
Man Utd v Wolves (Mon)
AS: WOL
