Premier League Prophecy: Potential Awards, Top Four and the 3 unlucky Relegated Sides!
“Individual Awards”
Golden Boot: Romelu Lukaku
Chelsea fans will witness a different Lukaku to the one who left them in 2014, he is a different animal now.
He is the full package, he possesses pace, power, much improved ball control, great hold up player and ruthless eye for goal. He’ll face competition from Harry Kane if he joins Manchester City but I think he’ll just pip it.
Playmaker Award: Bruno Fernandes
This is the hardest one to call as there is so many potential candidates.
Firstly there is the assist king in De Bruyne, there is Jadon Sancho who stacked up incredible assist numbers in the Bundesliga and then there is Fernandes who is the man who makes things happen for Manchester United. I just think Fernandes’ relentless desire to create chances will ultimately be the difference, he also rarely misses a game.
Golden Glove: Ederson
Manchester City will be so strong again defensively so the only potential rival for this award is Mendy at Chelsea. Chelsea are very strong at the back under Tuchel so I expect them to keep a number of cleans sheets.
Best Player: Joao Cancelo
Now this is an impossible one to call, it could easily be Fernandes, De Bruyne, Grealish, Kane, Kante, Salah, Mane or Dias to just name an elite few.
I expect Manchester City to win the league which is why I believe it will go to one of their players.
Cancelo may not even secure a regular starting place with very strong competition in Walker but if he can win that battle, he possesses everything to set the league on fire. He is solid defensively but he is exhilarating going forward at his best, the perfect modern day full back.
Other Awards:
Breakthrough Player: Billy Gilmour
Dark Horse: Said Benrahma
“Top 4”
Champions: Manchester City
It’s hard to look past the Premier League champions - the signing of Jack Grealish with Harry Kane to potentially follow, has elevated them to a level which could prove to be untouchable.
The back 5 that moulded into being the strongest and most reliable in Europe last season, gives them the perfect foundation. Players like Grealish, Phil Foden, Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling give them with an array of attacking talent and with Rodri providing the bridge between attack and defence, City have the complete balance. They will be so hard to beat but the competition is stronger this season as their rivals have also spent big and recruited smartly.
Runners up: Chelsea
At the end of last season Chelsea looked a far more organised team under Tuchel and the turnaround in quality of performances was astonishing.
They went on to win a remarkable Champions League title, defeating their league rivals Manchester City in the final.
With the return of now world class goal machine Lukaku about to be completed, the European champions now have a goal scorer too. That is a frightening thought when you consider just how good they were in the second half of last season and they now have Lukaku who helped Inter Milan to a shock Serie A title last season.
Third Place: Manchester United
The signings of Varane and Sancho were both essential to any possible title charge, particularly as their title rivals have inevitably strengthened. You can’t challenge for a title without keeping up with the other challengers, in fact you run the risk of moving backwards. Both signings are brilliant and Manchester United will be a better team this season
Fourth Place: Liverpool
Expect Liverpool to bounce back strong, not just because of the return of talisman Van Dijk but because the 2019/20 Premier League Champions reminded everyone of their credentials at the end of the last campaign. They showed their class when they needed it most to secure Champions League football. If Salah, Mane and Jota are all in form and new signing Ibrahima Konate can bind with Van Dijk to form a formidable partnership, Liverpool will be a dangerous team once again.
“Relegated Sides”
18th Place: Southampton
This could easily be Brentford, Norwich or Crystal Palace but I just think with the sale of Danny Ings, Southampton will struggle for goals. Che Adams is their only obvious hope and I just feel like they will struggle in the same way they did at the end of last season. Newly promoted Brentford look exciting so could cause a few upsets to secure their safety and Norwich look so much stronger now than they did after their promotion two seasons ago. The sale of Buendia is a big blow though, so they will be looking for other avenues to provide creativity for Pukki up front. Billy Gilmour is a great addition on loan and I believe he will excel in their midfield.
19th Place: Brighton
Losing White to Arsenal can’t be understated and with no replacement so far, they could well be leakier at the back. They also have the same issue in attack which saw them create and then miss so many chances last season. The style of football under Potter is great to watch and he could keep them up but he has very little at his disposal to work with unless they have a busy end to their summer transfer business.
20th Place: Watford
Newly promoted Watford have some exciting talents, with Sarr being the standout but I’m unconvinced they have enough to stay up. Sarr has been heavily linked with a move away to Spurs too which if it happens would put a nail in the coffin of any potential to stay up.