Let's discuss how other teams have improved (or not) compared to last season. Numbers at the end of each paragraph represent last season's position / my prediction for this season:
Top 6 teams:
Man City – added even more creativity with Mahrez, should also improve at LB with Mendy back from a long-term injury (last season this was probably their only real weakness). Need cover for Fernandinho, but otherwise looking very strong. Pep won't allow complacency. 1/1
Arsenal – the late Wenger-era stagnation is over, but the fresh winds of change under Unai Emery will probably guide them to the shores of solid European middle-to-upper classdom (think Sevilla or post-Klopp Dortmund) rather than to the coveted upper echelon of the game. Signings like Bernd Leno, Sokratis and Torreira finally address the obvious weaknesses in the squad, but again this is no more than mid-upper level European quality as most of the newcomers couldn't be said to outgrow the clubs they came from. However the quality of the attacking talent left by Wenger is on par with almost anybody in the league: Aubameyang, Lacazette, Ozil, Mkhitaryan, Ramsey... and that's Arsenal big hope this season – that patching up the obvious issues in the back and the midfield will allow the top-class attacking quintet to shine. I think long-term they will slide to relative mediocrity as almost all of their best players are nearing the end of their prime and their contracts and won't be replaced like-for-like, but this season will probably be their best for a while. 6/3.
Spurs – I don't really get why people often cite "new stadium" as the reason why they won't do well. Is this really that big of a factor? They have not improved, but should still be good for 70-75 points. Let's see what happens on the deadline day though; Levy usually leaves his business (buying or selling) very late. 3/4
Man United – probably a mess. Mourinho will go down in flames. 2/5
Chelsea – Sarri-ball is the closest thing in the world to Klopp-ball and in fact I would guess Klopp borrows more ideas from the Italian tactician than vice versa. However, Klopp's big advantage is his personality; he is able to implement those ideas in a very, shall we say, human and flexible way whereas Sarri is a more of a tactical ideologue than a leader of men. Having him in the EPL trying to re-create his Napoli side on English soil is probably one of the most intriguing story-lines of the season – but I suspect Chelsea and Sarri are a wrong fit for each other: a non-English speaking manager who needs time and trust to put his ground-breaking ideas into practice, a notoriously impatient owner and a dressing room rife with unchecked player power plus a few big names who seem to be on the verge of leaving. The squad seems poorly balanced for Sarri's 4-3-3 tactical system and there are too many question marks – even Jorginho, who I generally like, seems less of a threat at Chelsea than he would have been at United or City. Even if all of this doesn't immediately crash and burn, there will be too many drastic changes and question marks over key players for any kind of consistency. 5/6.
Top 6 teams:
Man City – added even more creativity with Mahrez, should also improve at LB with Mendy back from a long-term injury (last season this was probably their only real weakness). Need cover for Fernandinho, but otherwise looking very strong. Pep won't allow complacency. 1/1
Arsenal – the late Wenger-era stagnation is over, but the fresh winds of change under Unai Emery will probably guide them to the shores of solid European middle-to-upper classdom (think Sevilla or post-Klopp Dortmund) rather than to the coveted upper echelon of the game. Signings like Bernd Leno, Sokratis and Torreira finally address the obvious weaknesses in the squad, but again this is no more than mid-upper level European quality as most of the newcomers couldn't be said to outgrow the clubs they came from. However the quality of the attacking talent left by Wenger is on par with almost anybody in the league: Aubameyang, Lacazette, Ozil, Mkhitaryan, Ramsey... and that's Arsenal big hope this season – that patching up the obvious issues in the back and the midfield will allow the top-class attacking quintet to shine. I think long-term they will slide to relative mediocrity as almost all of their best players are nearing the end of their prime and their contracts and won't be replaced like-for-like, but this season will probably be their best for a while. 6/3.
Spurs – I don't really get why people often cite "new stadium" as the reason why they won't do well. Is this really that big of a factor? They have not improved, but should still be good for 70-75 points. Let's see what happens on the deadline day though; Levy usually leaves his business (buying or selling) very late. 3/4
Man United – probably a mess. Mourinho will go down in flames. 2/5
Chelsea – Sarri-ball is the closest thing in the world to Klopp-ball and in fact I would guess Klopp borrows more ideas from the Italian tactician than vice versa. However, Klopp's big advantage is his personality; he is able to implement those ideas in a very, shall we say, human and flexible way whereas Sarri is a more of a tactical ideologue than a leader of men. Having him in the EPL trying to re-create his Napoli side on English soil is probably one of the most intriguing story-lines of the season – but I suspect Chelsea and Sarri are a wrong fit for each other: a non-English speaking manager who needs time and trust to put his ground-breaking ideas into practice, a notoriously impatient owner and a dressing room rife with unchecked player power plus a few big names who seem to be on the verge of leaving. The squad seems poorly balanced for Sarri's 4-3-3 tactical system and there are too many question marks – even Jorginho, who I generally like, seems less of a threat at Chelsea than he would have been at United or City. Even if all of this doesn't immediately crash and burn, there will be too many drastic changes and question marks over key players for any kind of consistency. 5/6.
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