English Premier League 2024-2025 Preview

Is it mid August already? Been so much soccer the last few months with COPA America, Euros, and the Paris Olympics, that the time has flown by. Yet here we are on the cusp of another EPL season. In fact a number of European leagues started last weekend but the EPL isn’t far behind opening up this Friday with Manchester United hosting Fulham. Followed by a full slate of matches Saturday and Sunday culminating with the EPL version of “Monday Night Football” with Leicester City hosting Tottenham.

As for most seasons, the powers that be have made some tweaks to the rules although this year nothing really major.

1. Since inception the number of substitutions allowed in a match were capped at 3. Of course, post pandemic this was changed to 5. However, the rule on the number of players allowed to warm up along the side lines during the matches was never changed. Its been 3 for the entire time. So to keep up with the actual number of subs allowed, managers can now have up to 5 players warming up along the sidelines. Frankly, I didn’t even know this was a rule! But still makes sense to have these aligned.
2. For a number of years now, soccer across the globe has been working to get the actual minutes played in a match closer to the 90 minutes of the clock. This has been accomplished by the referee adding minutes at the end of each half to account for injuries, substitutions, and after goal celebrations. Last season the extra time ended up adding about 12 minutes in total and the FA decided that may be a bit too much. So beginning this year extra time for after goal celebrations won’t begin to accumulate until 30 seconds of celebration. To allow for a “natural amount of time for teams to celebrate a goal.” I have long been a fan of the approach to get the playing time closer to the clock minutes. However, like most things humans do, in attempting to real this goal the pendulum may have swung too far the other way. Did you notice for example the amount of extra time added at the end of the second half for the Olympic gold medal match for the women? 10 minutes and then that was extended by 3 more. That was nuts.
3. If you recall, last year the EPL implemented a system of ball replacement wherein 15 cones were stationed around the field with a ball on each cone. When a ball was kicked out of play, players were encouraged to retrieve a ball from the nearest cone if the out of play ball was not nearby (such as when its kicked into the stands). The ball assistants job was to retrieve those balls and then place them back on the empty cone. While that worked fine they have tweaked it just a bit this year. The ball assistants are now allowed to give a ball out of play behind the goal to the goalkeeper for a goal kick. This won’t change timing much but will cut out a bit of dead time. The thinking here is that there is no real advantage for a ball assistant to give a ball back directly to the keeper. Much different than a home ball assistant giving a ball to “his team” for a quick restart but being slower to do so for opposing teams. If you watch CONCACF matches much you’ll know exactly what I am talking about.

So lets dive into the 20 teams making up this years EPL and how we expect them to do. Note, however, that there are still several weeks left in the current transfer window so some significant roster moves are still likely to happen.

Arsenal

Last Season Prediction – 2nd

Last Season Actual – 2nd

Last season was on so close for Gunner fans but the just couldn’t quite push Manchester City off the title spot. But there was some very good news for them last year. They played well from start to finish. No collapse. No stretch where they hurt themselves. They simply just didn’t quite have enough in the tank. They needed to make two big improvements, a stout defender and a #9 that can score goals. Well so far they have gotten one bringing in LB Riccardo Callifiroi from Bologna. Now lets see if they can find a goal scorer to pair with Bukayo Saka.  Even if they don’t they should be again near the top of the table come seasons end.

Prediction – Same as last year’s. 2nd but if Man City falters even a bit look out.

Aston Villa

Last Season Prediction – 9th

Last Season Actual – 4th

What a job manager Unai Emery has done in his two seasons at Villa. Bringing them out of relegation concerns two seasons ago to a 4th place finish last year and the sides first ever spot in UCL this fall. And there isn’t any reason to think that they won’t have another strong season. Players and fans alike are fully behind Emery and ownership is giving him the tools he needs. Now there is no question that Villa will miss MF Douglas Luiz who moved to Juventus. But to counter that and their aging roster they have brought in 6 players 23 or younger with the most notable being Everton MF Amadou Onana and Chelsea D Ian Maatsen. Onana will give them some middle of the field force they are losing in Luiz. Onana is not only a physical presence in the middle but he has some solid ball handling skills and is well suited for the attacking style AV plays. He’s a good fit.

Prediction – 4th

Bournemouth

Last Season Prediction – 18th

Last Season Actual – 12th

Quite the surprise finish last year for a team many predicted to be in or at least near the relegation zone. And the season started that way with the Cherries failing to win in their first 9 matches. Then couple that with a team that signed 4 players over the summer and got a whopping 13 starts from those players. So how does a team not only survive that but have a pretty solid season? Well if you are manager Andoni Iraola you throw out what you were doing are try something else. One of my main pet peeves in the sporting world is sticking to what’s not working. Try something different. Maybe it will fail too or maybe, just maybe it might work and in this case it worked in spades. But the lost top goal scorer in Dominic Solanke (21 goals in all competitions) and he will be hard to replace. One of the keys for this season will be how well they incorporate USMNT DM Tyler Adams into the team. If, and its a big if with Adams, he stays healthy he will bolster their defense big time. But he has to stay on the field to do that.

Prediction – 15th. I think losing Solanke is just too much and they drop down a bit.

Brentford

Last Season Prediction – 11th

Last Season Actual – 16th

The Bees didn’t quite generate the buzz last season they were hoping to. And the preseason hasn’t been kind losing newly signed Brazilian striker Igor Thiago with a knee injury. With Thiago out for several months that leaves the front running in the hands of Ivan Toney who has been rumored to be a potential transfer window move. With Toney’s contract up at the end of the season it makes some sense for ownership to sell Toney but if Toney leaves then they have a huge hole in the attack until Thiago returns toward the end of the year. This could be another dicey season for Bee’s fans as they may teeter around the relegation zone.

Prediction – 18th

Brighton Hove Albion

Last Season Prediction – 7th

Last Season Actual – 11th

A bit of a disappointment slipping down a bit in the table but not an bad season all in all. But the Seagulls face a new problem with the departure of manager Roberto De Zerbi.  De Zerbi led BHA to their highest ever finish (6th) in the EPL the year before so will surely be missed. But the ownership is not afraid to take some risks and they are taking one here. They have brought in Fabian Hurzeler to manage the club. Hurzeler was most recently the manager of German side St. Pauli and he got them promoted to the Bundesliga. But here’s the kicker. Hurzeler at just 31 years of age becomes the youngest full time manager in EPL history. Thankfully he inherits a pretty talented roster. And it got a big boost this transfer window brining in Yankuba Minteh (15 goals + assists last season for Feyenoord on loan from Newcastle). The 20-year old winger is a gem and while Newcastle got a nice transfer fee, they may regret letting this young winger go.

Prediction – 11th. If the team gels under their new manager they might even finish a spot or so higher. But if Herzeler gets stage fright they could drop a few too.

Chelsea

Last Season Prediction – 5th

Last Season Actual – 6th

When it comes to the Blues last season was another broken record. Spend a ton of money. Hire one of the best known names as a manager. Try a bunch of tactics and lineups. And flounder to a less than adequate finish. And this year is starting out like a rinse and repeat. Yep manager Mauricio Pochettino is out (and rumored to be in the running for the USMNT position) and Enzo Maresca is in. Maresca just lead Leicester City from the Championship back into the EPL. He’s a solid coach and is handed a really good roster. But then so has every manager at Chelsea in the last handful of years. The question once again becomes how quickly can he figure out the best approach to field a cohesive XI? The good news for Blues fans is that they have two guys upfront in Cole Palmer and Raheem Sterling that can score a lot of goals. If nothing else they will be fun to watch. How will the team fare under the new manager? Lets revisit this next May.

Prediction – 7th. I think they may be ready to turn this club around but need this season under Maresca before turning it on next season.

Crystal Palace

Last Season Prediction – 10th

Last Season Actual – 10th

Last February the Eagles brought in Austrian Oliver Glasner to manage the club. And his attacking approach really fit well with the CP personnel. It didn’t hurt that 2 key players, Michael Olise and Ebererichi Eze returned from injury. So for the 4th time in their history they finished in the upper half of the table, albeit 10th is really right at the cut line. Still they played entertaining soccer and things were looking up. Then the summer transfer window hit and they lost Olise to Bayern Munich and a number of clubs are looking at Eze. But not all the transfers have been on the negative side. They have acquired forward Daichi Kamada from Lazio reuniting him with Glasner. Kamada played under Glasner at Eintrecht Frankfurt and was an assist machine. If Glasner can bring that magic out of Kamada again they won’t miss Olise near as much. Now if Eze and or Jean-Phillipe Mateta are poached away then Eagle fans will have reason to worry. As for now they are still wearing Eagle kits.

Prediction – 10th (could improve a bit but if the two aforementioned players get moved then all bets are off).

Everton

Last Season Prediction – 17th*

Last Season Actual – 15th

What an interesting year for the Toffees. Surviving a 2 different point reductions for Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) violations (totaling 8 points) and still managing to avoid relegation. Manager Sam Dyche had them playing an interesting style. A mid block happy to concede possession but not allowing penetration much into the final third. While not as defensive minded as a true low block it does limit the opposition’s attacks. The flip side is that the other team doesn’t get so far upfield that they are susceptible to counters. But Everton was very good in set pieces and happy to take a 1-0 win. Don’t expect much to change in their approach this season, although with the SPR mess behind them they may play with a bit less pressure when not trying to fight relegation. The biggest question mark going into the season is who steps up to replace the departed Onana? Those are some big shoes to fill.

Prediction – 11th  *(where they finished last season had they not got the points reductions)

Fulham

Last Season Prediction – 13th

Last Season Actual – 13th

Lets get right to the bad news. They lost one of if not their best player in MF Jaoa Pahlinha to Bayern Munich. This hurts them big time and there is no sugar coating this. They are trying to bring in Scott McTominay which would relieve this a fair bit but that hasn’t happened yet. Now the good news is they have one of the best LB in the EPL in Antonee Robinson. A very familiar name to US fans. Robinson lead the EPL in interceptions last season with 80, 15 more that the second best number. The guy is a true end-to-end player. Plays solid defense and has improved his 1v1 defending a bunch the last two years and quickly converts to an attacking winger when the Cottagers have possession. He can cross, he can shoot, and if you look up the Energizer Bunny in the dictionary you see his picture. He has a crazy motor. This will be a season of transitions at Fulham. Several older players have move on and younger guys stepping up in their place. If manager Marco Silva can mold them together they should be right near mid table again.

Prediction – 13th

Ipswich Town

Last Season Prediction – NA

Last Season Actual – 2nd in the Championship

Two years ago manager Kieran McKenna took the Tractor Boys to promotion from League One to the Championship. Then last season he got them promoted from the Championship to the EPL. This is just unheard of. Such a huge leap in difficulty to do this in just 2 seasons. If he can manage to keep the team from getting relegated it will go down as one of the most incredible feats in soccer management history. They play a very front foot oriented approach. Push numbers forward and when they lose the ball the front 4 press high and hard to try and regain possession and at least stymie any opponents quick attacks. And they are very good at it. Or at least they have been at the lower levels. It remains to be seen if they can have the same success doing this in the Premiership? The good news is that they have essentially their entire roster from last seasons and have added a handful of new faces which should improve them and at least give them more depth which is critical at the top level. But none of their additions are as important as F Liam Delap who they purchased from Man City. Delap was on loan to Hull City last season and tallied 8 goals. If he can continue to score at the EPL he will give them a shot to stay up. But odds makers have them as the clear favorite to get relegated. Can’t disagree.

Prediction – 20th

Leicester City

Last Season Prediction – NA

Last Season Actual – !st in the Championship

First the good news for the Foxes. They have brought in manager Steve Cooper who managed to keep Nottingham Forest from getting relegated. No small feat. They have some players but none that are truly difference makers and it will be a monumental task for Cooper to mold them to a unit that is better than the sum of its parts. Doable? Sure. Likely? Nope. But the bad news doesn’t end there. Leicester is under investigation for alleged PSR violations. They are already going to be fighting the relegation battle. If they are handed any points deductions it will be a disaster.

Prediction – 19th

Liverpool

Last Season Prediction – 4th

Last Season Actual – 3rd

This is a tough side to handicap going into the season. They have been the quietest team in the EPL when it comes to transfers. Who have they added? Nobody. Yes thats right. Not a single addition. Sounds like bad news, huh? Well not really. They haven’t lost anyone of note either. Now THE question the Reds fans are asking is just how does the star filled roster respond to the loss of manager Jurgen Klopp who has stepped away from soccer, for a bit anyway. How will the players respond to new manager Arne Slot? Slot hasn’t shown any real indications on how he plans to tactically manage the team. His preseason matches have been fairly bland as expected. But when you have Alisson Becker in goal, Virgil Van Dijk anchoring the back line, and Mo Salah, Cody Gakpo, and Diogo Jota up top you can be they will be a tough out. Slot’s biggest issue might just be what happens if they get a bunch of injuries because as the lineup stands heading to opening day he can pretty much send out XI guys and just tell them to do their thing. Where Slot will earn his keep is managing his roster through all the matches they will play with EPL, FA Cup, League Cup, and UCL.

Prediction – 3rd

Manchester City

Last Season Prediction – 1st

Last Season Actual – 1st

Manager, Pep Guardiola has only one thing left to do. Actually that makes it sound like something has been done before that he hasn’t yet done. That’s just not correct. He is the only manager to have ever won 4 straight EPL titles. He is one of only 2 managers to win the treble (EPL, FA Cup, and UCL) in the same season. Manchester United also did this back in 1998-1999. So what is left for Pep and company to accomplish? Well a 5th straight EPL title in what is likely Guardiola’s final season. Actually there is one other thing they could do that has never been done in soccer. Ever. And that would be to win a quadruple (EPL, FA Cup, League Cup, and UCL). Possible? Yeah but highly unlikely. But then look at this starting XI and find me a weakness to attack if you are the opposing manager?

Ederson; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Nathan Ake, Josko Gvardiol; Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva; Savinho, Erling Haaland, Phil Foden. There is a reason they have won 4 in a row.

Prediction – 1st (This one is easy. I will predict they win every year until they don’t. Pep retires. Or hell freezes over).

Manchester United

Last Season Prediction -3rd

Last Season Actual – 8th

The biggest surprise from last season wasn’t their fall to 8th place. It was that they kept manager Erik ten Hag. It was a shock to most Red Devil fans, me included, however, there was one saving grace and that was winning the FA Cup. A trophy after all is what its all about. Sure they flamed out during the UCL Group Stage, dropped out of European play for this season with an 8th place finish. But they won the FA Cup. So ten Hag is back but he has to be on a short leash. Like miniscule short. If they don’t come out of the starting gate firing on all cylinders expect a change to be made before we see the first snowfall. I see 3 keys for their season. First, can F Marcus Rashford turn his career back around? He only scored 7 goals last season and they need more production from him to take pressure off Rasmus Hojland and Bruno Fernandes. Secondly, will youngsters Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho continue to improve? And lastly will keeper Andre Onana have another solid season? All in all I am optimistic for this season. But then I say that every year.

Prediction – 5th (but could push Aston Villa off of 4th).

Newcastle

Last Season Prediction -6th

Last Season Actual – 7th

How do you manage a season in which 9 players missed 20 or more matches? Simply put you don’t. Even the wealthy talent rich clubs like a Man City would struggle a bit under such circumstances but that is exactly what happed with Newcastle. And the problem was exacerbated with the extra matches they had to play for UCL. They just didn’t have the legs to hold up. Its pretty surprising that they did as well as they did. Now Magpie fans have higher hopes for this season. Thinking that can get back to European football, at least Europa League, if not all the way up to UCL. The issue is that they haven’t done much to improve their club over the summer. They are hard after Crystal Palace D Marc Guehi and he would make a terrific addition to the back line. But that hasn’t happened yet. Other teams have made moves to improve and thus far Newcastle hasn’t. Expect them to slip back a bit.

Prediction – 8th

Nottingham Forest

Last Season Prediction – 14th

Last Season Actual – 17th

Forest set a record last season amassing the fewest points ever for a team not relegated. How’s that for a record….lol! Now to be fair to Forest fans that includes being docked 4 points for PSR violations. So they were a tad bit better than their points indicated. But just barely. A strangely managed club is Forest. Fighting to avoid relegation and having trouble scoring they brough in M/F Gio Reyna to bolster their attack on a loan from Dortmund for the last 3 months of the season. He was with the club for 16 matches and here’s how they used him. Not on the game day roster 3 times, on the roster but did not play 4 times, and played in 9 matches for a total of 230 minutes. Weird as heck use of a quality player. On the plus side their new manager is Nuno Esperito Santo and he’s a pretty good one. Winger Jota Silva, CB Elliot Anderson will add some much needed talent . Probably not enough to move the needle much but should be enough for them to not be fighting relegation again this year.

Prediction – 16th

Southampton

Last Season Prediction – NA

Last Season Actual – 4th Championship

Realistically for manager Russel Martin, the goal is to survive. To avoid relegation. They are a young and exciting team to watch. They play full on attacking soccer with abandon. The problem is a young team with a young manger, neither with much EPL experience is not the best recipe for success. So my suggestion for Saints fans? Enjoy each game as a single entity. Looks for some bright stars for the future. Don’t get caught up in the angst of a relegation battle because its likely to happen. Enjoy this as a season of growth. And you never know. The games aren’t played on paper.

Prediction – 18th

Tottenham Hotspurs

Last Season Prediction – 8th

Last Season Actual – 5th

Last season, the first under Ange Postecoglou really a tale of 2 seasons. For the first 10 matches they literally seemed unbeatable and Spurs fans were thinking about all kinds of trophies. Their frenzied attacking style was causing all kinds of issues for opposing defenses. But then that frenzied attack seemed to become more frantic and less controlled and the side only earned 40 points in their final 28 matches just 9th in the EPL over that span. This will be the defining season for their manager. Will the team play like the first 10 or the final 28? They have some pieces for sure and are very fun to watch. But they also need a bit more control of the ball in the midfield. Not every minute should be 100mph toward the opponents goal. There’s a time and place for everything. If they learn better when to play crazy attack and when to chill a bit they could have a very strong season.

Prediction – 6th

West Ham United

Last Season Prediction – 12th

Last Season Actual – 9th

What’s not to like about a good old fashioned name like the Hammers? The phrase be careful what you wish for just might apply to this side. Under previous manager David Moyes fans were less than thrilled with his fairly boring defensive approach to things. Well he’s out. That’s the good news. But newcomer Julen Lopetegui isn’t known for an attacking style either. He sets his team up for a possession oriented approach much like Gregg Berhalter did with the USMNT. its effective and it tends to be boring. But fans need to ask themselves what is more important? Do you want to play an open attacking style when you don’t have the level of talent as some other teams? Or do you want to play possession? In the end what’s more fun? Lose 4-2 or win 1-0? Perhaps they can have their cake and eat it too. A couple of signings over the summer have set up the team with more talent especially in the attack now lead by F Niclas Fullkrug whom they brought in from Dortmund. The defense will be anchored by a strong CB pairing in Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo. If things break well they could sneak back into a spot in the Europa League. A UCL spot is probably too far of stretch goal.

Prediction – 9 (But don’t sleep on this team. They may be sneaky good).

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Last Season Prediction – 15th

Last Season Actual – 14th

The Wolves surprised many last season bringing in a new manager right before the season. Expectations were pretty low for Gary O’Neil but Wolves fans quickly learned to like this guy. He had them playing superb soccer for much of the season until a last collapse dropped them down a bit. The only earned 5 points in their final 10 matches. But also have to point out that he came to the club with no preseason and literally had to learn his players on the fly. Every injury resulted in a new lineup and tweaks that had to be made. Losing Max Kilman will surely hurt the defense but thus far O’Neil has shown an ability to mold his team and tactics to fi the next match in front of them. Not having a specific “style” also presents challenges for opponents since they don’t really know what to prepare for from the Wolves. Requires the Wolves players to be very soccer intelligent and attentive in training sessions. And so far they have shown they can do this. I think they take another step or 2 forward this season.

Prediction – 12th

So off we are on Friday and as in years past the EPL will be shown on the NBC family of channels, meaning mostly streaming on Peacock.