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Who Will Get Top Four: The Race To A Champions League Spot

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Who Will Get Top Four: The Race To A Champions League Spot

 

Who will get top four: Predictions

The Premier League has kicked off with a bang. We are now starting to see how teams might shape up over the course of the season. It was Liverpool who were crowned champions of England last season, with City, United and Chelsea filling the gaps in the top four.

As the transfer window draws closer to the end, Prem teams are scurrying to fill the missing pieces in their squads. With lots of talented new additions getting involved in games already, the top four race will certainly be spiced up for the upcoming campaign.

It may be possible that we see an unlikely contender push their way to compete amongst Europe’s elite. Everton, Leicester and Wolves have all recruited well this summer and will aim to push into the top four. But as every, this season will certainly be full of twists and turns that will impact the final league table come the end of the season.

 

Who are the contenders?

City and Liverpool are in no doubt the favourites to lift the 2020/21 Premier League title. After being a stretch ahead of other teams in recent seasons, it may take a couple of years before teams rival the top spot. Across many football fans it is expected that these two clubs will fight for the title again this season.

Both clubs have looked to bolster their squads in the transfer market as well. The additions of Nathan Ake and Ferran Torres to Manchester City will add more depth to an already strong squad. While the arrival of Thiago from Bayern Munich and Diego Jota from Wolves will help improve the quality of Liverpool’s team.

Looking at the other clubs, it will be exciting to see who will stand out and get top four. Other teams may even push to compete at the top with the likes of City and Liverpool this season.

Chelsea: Last season- 4th

Prediction- 3rd

Possibly the running favourites to gain a top four place again this year, Chelsea will look to utilise their new signings to make their mark. After a transfer ban last season, Owner Roman Abramovich and manager Frank Lampard have spent big to compete this year.

Spending over £200m on the likes of Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell and Hakim Ziyech, quality has certainly been added to their squad. A solid campaign last season was riddled with problems that Frank did well to keep under control.

After the sale of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid, along with the transfer ban, it seemed like a tough challenge for the new manager. But by utilising their youth players to mount a top four challenge, Chelsea were able to grab a 4th placed finish.

Similar cracks from last season were breaking through the surface however, in their 2-0 loss against Liverpool at the weekend. With a couple of their new signings out injured at the moment, fans will hope there is not much to worry about for now.

His main task will be getting all his new players firing in their first season at Chelsea. With investing a lot of money, also comes with the challenge of getting new players playing well together as a team.

It may take a while for Frank to figure out his best squad and let his new players find their feet in the Premier League. Nonetheless they have the backing from their owner and the belief from their fans that they can do very well this season.

Now a much strengthened team, with a lot more class, they will be serious contenders to even compete with the likes of City and Liverpool. Lampard will have high pressure to perform this year however and not just do well in the league but fight for silverware too.

 

Tottenham Hotspur: Last season- 6th

Prediction- 4th

Before last week it seemed like Spurs fans didn’t have much hope for this upcoming campaign. However, chairman Daniel Levy has turned their season around with a big move in the transfer market.

The return of Tottenham hero, Gareth Bale, on a season long loan is music to Spurs fans ears and will no doubt motivate their side. As well as this, the £21m signing of Sergio Reguilon will add to their back four and boost their top four hopes.

Manager Jose Mourinho will be delighted with his new players as well as other additional signings. They’ve invested £14m on Wolves right back Matt Doherty and £15m on Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg from Southampton.

They had a difficult season last term, with the sacking of fan favourite Mauricio Pochettino coming before the Christmas break. They also had to deal with major injuries to Harry Kane, Heung-Min Son and Moussa Sissoko. After Jose took over however, he managed to turn their season around- taking them from 14th to 6th.

They performed poorly in their opening day defeat to Everton in a dull 1-0 last weekend. However Spurs showed what they can do in a better display at Southampton on Sunday, as forward Son scored four goals.

Mourinho will need to find a way to fix their problems at the back, with gaps often left open in the full back positions. As well as this, they will need to utilise the strengths of Bale, Kane and Son up top. If they can get them firing, they will provide a real threat against other teams in the push to see who will get top four.

Manchester United: Last season- 3rd

Prediction- 5th

Man U kicked off their season this weekend in the worst possible way. They lost 3-1 to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford, no thanks to VAR, but played poorly. It seems that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has a lot to figure out for the upcoming campaign.

They managed to grab 3rd place last season, and went unbeaten in their last 14 Premier League games. Their impressive run gave fans lots of promise for this year, but a team with a lot of quality has to do better than they did against Palace.

A team that includes Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood up top and the likes of Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes in the midfield, shouldn’t be struggling. It seems that a lot of their mistakes come from a defensive stand point. It will certainly need to be looked at if they wish to contend with the likes of City and Liverpool.

Their recent signing of Donny van de Beek from Ajax, for £35m, will definitely help Pogba and Bruno in midfield. They may need a couple more signings from this summer’s transfer window if they want a look in for a top four place.

This squad definitely has the potential to do well this season and compete with other top four contenders. However, they need to perform against all teams and not be complacent against ‘lesser’ opposition. If they have that grit and motivation to replicate the same form they showed at the end of last season, they could have a good chance.

 

Arsenal: Last season- 8th

Prediction- 6th

After winning the FA Cup last year and the community shield a few weeks ago, Arsenal look thirsty for a better season this time round. A disappointing 8th placed finish left a lot of Gunners fans frustrated with the lack of quality football. However, Manager Mikel Arteta knows what it takes to become a top side and has the players behind him to do so.

They’ve won their first two games of the season so far, and still look like a strong force going forward. Star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has now signed a new three year deal with the club, which is definitely a bonus. He has proven to be a real asset for the Gunners over the last couple of seasons and will help them mount a top four challenge.

A second loan for Dani Ceballos and the signings of Willian and Cedric Soares will be a big boost for Arteta and his side. Their main issue last season was shipping in goals, but now new centre backs Gabriel and Saliba have joined for £27m each. Fans will hope they can sort out Arsenal’s defensive problems that cost them too many easy games last season.

If they can continue the same form they’ve showed so far, then they may well be in pole position to reach top four. Arteta will have to get all of his players working as a team to defend as well as score goals. If he can do this, then they could be a big threat to opposing sides.

Outside possibilities:

Everton: Last season- 12th

Prediction- 7th

Manager Carlo Ancelotti has recruited well this summer and they have had a great start to the season. The high profile signings of James Rodriguez, Allan and Doucoure have already made a huge impact on the team.

After a disappointing campaign last season they finished only 12th place and in the bottom half of the table. They now seem like a more motivated and organised side that have a point to prove this time around.

Now with an experienced manager and a much strengthened squad, Toffee fans will have more to be excited about this season.

Leicester: Last season- 5th

Prediction- 8th

After winning their first two games confidently, manager Brendan Rodgers will look to continue their recent good run of form. They will no doubt try and mount another top four challenge after narrowly missing out last season.

They will be boosted by their new £25m man, Timothy Castagne from Atalanta and the loan signing of Cengiz Under from Roma. The Foxes now have a very strong squad and will continue to look at their star striker Jamie Vardy to help top it all of with the goals.

Opposing teams will be harder to play against this season and it’ll be tougher to judge who will get top four. But Rodgers and his squad can be hard to play against on their day, and will want to compete with the rest.

Wolves: Last season- 7th

Prediction- 9th

This Wolves team have continued to impress ever since their return to the top flight two seasons ago. Each game they seem to get stronger and their manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, has done a magnificent job.

The signings of forward Fabien Silva from Porto for £35m and Vitinha on loan from Porto, will be good additions to the squad. However the recent sale of Diego Jota to Liverpool for £45m will be a big blow to the side.

Nonetheless, this Wolves team will no doubt have another good season and will try to push into a champions league place after finishing 7th two years in a row.

 

We hope you enjoyed ‘Who Will Get Top Four: The Race To A Champions League Spot’. Who do you think will get Champions League at the end of the season? Let us know! 

 

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Joe is an aspiring sports journalist with an excellent knowledge and passion for football and basketball, with a wide-range of understanding in major sports. He studies Multi-Media Journalism at Bournemouth University and is currently completing a ‘year in industry’ placement, beginning his first 3 months here with us at Sporting Ferret! You can contact him on twitter: @joewillis_12

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