We are nearing what promises to be an absolute roller-coaster of a Premier League season. There are plenty of storylines surrounding it: can Pep Guardiola go back-to-back? Will Jose Mourinho break his third-season syndrome? Who will win the league within the Premier League and finish seventh? We answer all of those questions in our Premier League predictions for the upcoming season.
Agree? Disagree? Let us know where you think these teams will finish.
2018-19 Premier League Predictions
1st - Manchester City
The blue side of Manchester will win back-to-back championships, as Pep Guardiola continues his dominance at the top of English football. City won’t be as good as last season, but it will still win the title relatively comfortably. Pep hasn’t upset his team balance with too many signings, but Riyad Mahrez will be a great option to have up his sleeve.
2nd - Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp has seemingly found a goalkeeper that can catch a ball, signing Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson. Naby Keita and Fabinho have also arrived to give Liverpool a great chance to challenge for the title. The injury loss of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was a big blow to the team, but even without him, they should be able to make some noise this season in England and in the Champions League.
3rd - Chelsea
Call me a football romantic, but I just love the way that new coach Maurizio Sarri plays the game. His style will be a breath of fresh air in the Premier League, and having signed a key player in Jorginho, he is embedding his style of play into the team. Many fans think that this will be a transition year for Chelsea, but I disagree. Chelsea will shock a lot of people.
A glimpse: The sarrismo build up#cfc #sarristuff #Sarriball pic.twitter.com/lXhX3vkhxn
— Sarri Stuff (@SarriStuff) July 24, 2018
4th - Manchester United
Jose Mourinho’s third-season syndrome is going to happen this season, although not to the extent of his most recent season at Chelsea. Fred and Diogo Dalot just don’t seem to be signings that will spark the potential of this team. Granted, they did finish second last season, but they never really seemed to click at any point. I just can’t see United challenging for the top.
5th - Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs will be playing in their new stadium this season, but it will be a slow start from which they won’t properly recover. Considering the number of players they had at the World Cup, it will take a while for everyone to be at peak fitness levels, so expect a few rough results early. Once they start putting things together, then watch out.
6th - Arsenal
Sorry Arsenal fans, but Unai Emery is going to have trouble in his first season managing in the Premier League. Much like when Alex Ferguson left Manchester United and David Moyes didn’t do much, it will be the same case for the Gunners. They have made some good signings, but Arsenal fans need to give Emery time this season. Rome wasn’t built in a day!
7th - Leicester City
Granted, the top six each season are going to be the same teams, just in different positions. From seventh place onwards, it’s a whole different league. Leicester City wins the league of rejects, despite losing Riyad Mahrez to Manchester City. Claude Puel had the Foxes playing some great football toward the end of last season, so it’s hard to see them not continuing to build on that form when this season is up and running.
8th - Everton
Marco Silva finally got the job he wanted. If Silva can get Gylfi Sigurdsson involved and firing on all cylinders, this could be a very, very dangerous team. Expect plenty of goals from this Everton side, but its defense could be one area that lets the side down.
9th - West Ham United
Manuel Pellegrini is a fantastic appointment for the Hammers, and he has done very well in the transfer market. Pellegrini has already won the Premier League before, so he knows what it takes for a team to succeed in the league. But he doesn’t have players like Sergio Aguero at his disposal. Instead, he has Andy Carroll.
10th - Newcastle United
The Magpies will be hoping Rafa Benitez stays at St. James’ Park, because without him, this squad is bang average. Benitez proves why he is still a top manager, achieving another 10th-place finish with Newcastle despite Mike Ashley continuing to be a tight-arse owner.
11th - Wolverhampton Wanderers
Basically Portugal in orange, Wolves are looking to make their mark on their return to the Premier League. Nuno Esperito Santo led team out of the Championship at his first attempt and will once again see success with his side. With a blend of experience, pace and, well, Portugal, Wolves will finish well ahead of the other promoted teams.
12th - Bournemouth
Eddie Howe is a magician. Bournemouth is a bang-average team, and the fact that he has survived three seasons in the Premier League with that team is nothing short of remarkable. Much like last season, there won’t be a large gap between 12th and 17th, but the Cherries will scrape a few results to put them in a good position to finish the season.
13th - Southampton
Don’t worry Saints fans, you won’t be as close to relegation as last season. Mark Hughes manages to guide Southampton to a 13th place finish. Nothing special, nothing flashy, but he gets the job done. Don’t expect a whole lot from this team, it will be a pretty average season for all involved.
14th - Burnley
If you love a proper English, gritty team, then you are either a Burnley fan or you should be. Despite a seventh-place finish last season, Burnley will drop off significantly. A thin squad will be stretched even more, largely due to Burnley having to contend with European commitments this season.
15th - Crystal Palace
Roy Hodgson steered Crystal Palace to safety after a calamitous start under Frank de Boer. Wilfried Zaha played like a man possessed and will yet again be the go-to guy. An 11th-place finish last season won’t be the case this season, but at least they’ll stay up again!
16th - Fulham
It really depends on which Fulham team decides to come out and play. If it’s the pre-November team from last season in the Championship, then this will not be a good season. If it’s post-November, then this should be fun. I’m thinking it will be a mix of both, but this is the Premier League and not an away day to Ipswich Town. They scrape by. Just.
17th - Watford
The Hornets will be struggling for the entire season, but find just enough breathing space to keep them away from being relegated. Javi Gracia has never achieved a winning percentage of over .500, so I really don’t know why Watford decided to appoint this guy in the first place. This team just annoys me. This team only has eight English players too, which should never be the case in England. There should be way more, and Watford’s international players aren’t too good anyway.
18th - Brighton and Hove Albion
Brighton returns back to the Championship after a two-year stay in the Prem. There just isn’t enough quality in Chris Hughton’s side to remain in the Premier League. He has never really shone as a Premier League manager except for his stint at Newcastle. It’s hard to see how Brighton can keep itself up this season, and I for one just don’t see it happening at all.
19th - Huddersfield Town
Aside from a flying start last season, Huddersfield Town was a very poor side. Much like Brighton, it just doesn't have the quality of players needed to maintain its top flight status. The team scored the lowest amount of goals and finished with the worst goal difference out of everyone in the Premier League. Huddersfield was fortunate several other teams were shocking last season, but the fairytale story of Huddersfield will come to an abrupt end at the conclusion of the 2018-19 Premier League season.
20th - Cardiff City
Neil Warnock is a good Championship manager but a horrific Premier League manager. I’d be shocked if he’s still in the Cardiff City dugout by the end of the season. The team scrapped its way to an automatic promotion, but will be easily caught out by teams who play a much better brand of football. I can’t see Cardiff finishing anywhere other than dead last.
The18 Recommends For You
