What did Leicester City’s title win of 2015/16 tell us? It showed us that team spirit over world class individuals is key, it showed us that having a concrete, watertight game plan is far more advisable than chucking 4-2-3-1, 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 into the air and hoping for the best. But most pertinently, it taught us that the likes of Arsenal, Manchesters City and United and Chelsea need to improve dramatically to close the gap.
So which of these titans has made the most definitive moves this summer?
Manchester City
Having been installed as the bookmakers’ favourites for the title, Manchester City will need to improve dramatically on their dismal 2015/16 campaign in which they finished some 15 points behind Leicester.
They can have hope however, in that they performed remarkably well in the Champions League to reach the semi-final, while in new boss Pep Guardiola they have a man who has become accustomed to winning silverware when the pressure is at its greatest; firstly at Barcelona (14 trophies including three La Liga titles) and then at Bayern Munich (seven trophies, three Bundesliga wins).
The Spaniard has already made his mark at the club, banning junk food (which should be a given, shouldn’t it?) and banishing any players considered overweight to train with the under 21s; a fate already betrothed upon Samir Nasri. Guardiola has also trimmed the fat from his squad, with Edin Dzeko and Martin Demichelis shown the exit door and midfield trio Fernando, Fernandinho and Yaya Toure likely to be given less game time following the signing of Ilkay Gundogan.
Following the former Borussia Dortmund man in is Nolito, that skilful Spaniard who enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at the age of 29 in 2015/16, while talented young pair Leroy Sane and Gabriel Jesus may need a season to bed in to what is a wholly new football climate. Guardiola’s transfer dealings haven’t been completely bombproof – he now has a third erratic centre back in John Stones to compliment Eliaquim Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi, but his new employer is certainly stronger today than they were 12 months ago; the minimum expectation from a title contender.
With 13/5 still available with Betfred and other bookies, backing Man City to be Premier League champions this term is a smart bet, and given the ‘unknowns’ at their main rivals one which we heartily recommend.
Manchester United
Time is a great healer, so they say, and it has certainly worked for Jose Mourinho, who less than a year after being bombed out of Chelsea following a disastrous start to the 2015/16 campaign is back with another cushy job in the hot seat at Old Trafford.
The Special One could be a dangerous animal with a point to prove, and his signings to date look canny: Henrikh Mkhitaryan is an outstanding player, Zlatan is goals and Eric Bailly will add some much needed pace and power to their back four. Oh, and we forgot to mention £85 million Paul Pogba….
There remains a certain amount of vulnerability – Antonio Valencia is not an adequate full back, and the defensive midfield shield looks about as resolute as wet cardboard (Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini and Morgan Schneiderlin) – but like their Mancunian rivals, United are in far better shape now than they were 12 months ago. They should go close, but perhaps not quite close enough.
Chelsea
What a dramatic turnaround it would be for Chelsea to win the title given their failings last season. The players looked disinterested and discombobulated under Mourinho, but the appointment of happy-go-lucky Guus Hiddink changed things around relatively speaking and the Blues regrouped enough to nick a top half finish.
New boss Antonio Conte comes in, and he will instantly need to improve a side that lost as many games as it won last term and who ended the campaign in disastrous fashion with one win in six. He’s got the pedigree: he achieved wonderful things at Juventus, and moulded Italy into a decent unit at Euro 2016, but this could be one of his toughest tasks in management yet.
The signing of N’Golo Kante is surely a masterstroke, and Michy Batshuayi looks to have the all-important physical credentials – as well as the technical ability – to succeed in English football’s top flight.
But defensive frailties remain, and while Conte is smart enough to tackle these head on he simply hasn’t called in the cavalry: messrs Ivanovic, Cahill and Terry will still be at the heart of their backline, and it beggars belief that the Italian hasn’t tried to strengthen a department that shipped 53 goals last season – more than Watford, West Brom and Swansea. That could prove very costly in Chelsea’s planned assault on the title.
The Others
It might seem unfair to lump Arsenal in the ‘others’ file given that they finished second last term, but let’s be honest: that was a weak division, and while the big guns have strengthened in pre-season Arsene Wenger has again failed to really do anything of note in the transfer market. Naivety, bullishness or incompetence? Take your pick, but the Gunners price of 13/2 is embarrassingly short.
Leicester, as reigning champions, come under scrutiny, but with a potentially exhaustive Champions League campaign to come can they really compete domestically with such a thin squad? The loss of Kante is devastating, and a mid-table return would be the expected goal.
Liverpool have somehow crept into the title picture under their ‘messiah’ Jurgen Klopp, and two cup finals aside just look at their numbers in the Premier League under the German: W13 D9 L8. Does that look like title-winning form to you?
The only other contender worthy of consideration in this market is Tottenham, who fell away alarmingly at the end of 2015/16. Even so, despite failing to win in their last four they still finished four points clear of the rest in third. They have had the summer to regroup, and under the wily Mauricio Pochettino they can expect to go well once again. With SkyBet and bet365 both paying out on three places at 1/5 odds, backing Spurs each way at 10/1 looks a viable investment.
Recommended Bets:
Man City to win the Premier League (13/5 with Betfred)
Tottenham to win the Premier League – each way (10/1 with SkyBet)
