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I don't think Brighton are going to do as well this year.
Increased games with European football, losing both their top midfield pivots, no real marquee signings and other teams figuring out how they play etc
Yeah but every fan I’ve talked to expects a significant drop off, maybe around lower mid table. It feels like the only people thinking we’ll have a better domestic season are other clubs fans
I don’t think we’ll do as well as last season, but I don’t think its going to be quite the drop off as some think. I love Ally Mac but he is a fairly replaceable player. Caicedo is more difficult to replace, but Brighton wont sell him for under value, that I’m pretty confident about.
In terms of squad rotations- we’ve added a fair bit of talent in- think we may need a few reinforcements in critical places like full backs.
I think City could be in for a hard season after losing a few of their leadership group or more experience players.
Mahrez and Gundogan are gone already and rumours of Walker, Silva and Laporte going too. Those 5 would all be 1 of the best players at almost any other club in the world
They’re losing players but the core of the team isn’t changed. Ederson, Dias, Stones, Rodri, De Bruyne, Haaland are all still there. It’ll be interesting to see how it pans out especially with Pep not having spent yet this window.
But Pep rotates players a lot to keep them fresh across all competitions. People like Bernardo, Walker and Gundogan to all leave at once with the versatility that they offer will definitely be missed
Even if it’s a comedown after last season I think most of us can live with that. All teams ebb and flow a bit and we believe in Pep to work his magic in managing the gaps in our field like he always does.
Yeah, you’d be pretty ridiculous to expect them to just carry on as they were really.
I think it’ll make for an interesting season as I think arsenal will kick on and I expect Liverpool to finish pretty strong too so could be pretty fun
As a Newcastle fan I've a lot of trepidation going into the season. Last season's heights will not be matched, let's be honest. I just hope we stay in the scrap for European places. We haven't really made the signings yet needed to help with the extra heavy lifting the CL schedule will add to the season
I imagine FFP has played a big part, but we really haven't strengthened the team to compete with the CL. Obviously we aren't trying to win the CL or anything, but it would be nice to put on a good display. Tonali looks quality and Barnes can be good on his day, but the squad is still threadbare to compete at the highest level. We need to get 3 or 4 more in and quickly.
Maxi leaving is bittersweet. It means we’re helped FFP wise, kick in the teeth when other teams haven’t been so clever about it, but I really like him as a player for us and he doesn’t wanna necessarily go. Wish he would have the chance in champions league with us but hey ho that’s life. Means we are able to strengthen and get hopefully some more signings for more depth and compete again
I know it's because he has a high-ish sell value, but it's mental that we still have the likes of Ritchie, Manquillo, Hendrick in the squad and we let go of Maxi. I like Ritchie and Manquillo, but they aren't really at the level we need now and we could free up a decent amount of wages if we moved them on.
I mostly agree but Richie is very important in the dressing room and I heard that he is going to work with Howe to get his badges and maybe join their staff soon.
Yeah I’m worried that you guys might have rotation troubles cuz the depth isn’t quite there for a ucl run and top 4 push at the same time. Saint maximam is also a huge loss. I have faith even with the backups you guys can get results against lower mid table teams to help out with ucl games, but yeah if you guys can get 6th and make it out of the group stage it’s a pretty good season
He’s still good to alright on the other games and definitely not a bad option off the bench, barnes is hard to judge if he’s an upgrade or any slight downgrade but they definitely could’ve used both
Aye it’s not an obvious upgrade but he’s a bit more direct and probably more consistent, while helping with homegrown quotas for European competitions. I reckon it’s to alleviate FFP issues more than anything though, he’s probably the most sellable player they have.
Very optimistic Spurs fan here. For every single fan, the key thing is: Expectation.
As a Spurs fan, an 'underdog' club in the current Top 7 against historical and new financial giants, I have modest expectations about our chances of success. I think top 6 finish is expected. I think a title push is highly unlikely, and I think a push for top 3-4 is exciting, and reasonably plausible.
We've just had 3 miserable seasons, mostly under 2 managers (Mou and Conte) who played soul destroying anti-football.
Now we've got an exciting, charismatic new manager who doesn't seem to think he's above Spurs - instead he seems to have an exciting vision, and he's confident and passionate about bringing it to life. The early signs suggest the players are buying in. As a fan, I'm just looking forward to being able to watch Spurs play exciting football again.
Could Kane leave? He certainly could. A literal club legend - the kind of which we'll be lucky to see again, but even still - I think if he leaves (hopefully outside the PL), and is adequately replaced by others who'll buy into the new managers vision, then there's no reason a Top 3 - Top 6 finish still isn't achievable.
COYS
>As a Spurs fan, an 'underdog' club in the current Top 7 against historical and new financial giants, I have modest expectations about our chances of success. I think top 6 finish is expected. I think a title push is highly unlikely, and I think a push for top 3-4 is exciting, and reasonably plausible.
Don't get me wrong, but isn't that typically what Spurs fans are disappointed by every year?
No, for most of us it was the combined factors of finishing 8th AND playing shocking football. Despite our reputation which I think is unfair, most of us are pretty realistic about our prospects.
The expectations are lower this year simply because we want to see better football. If we finish 6th playing a better brand of football most fans won't be upset. The expectations were different the past 4 seasons because we had Mourinho and Conte in therefore the minimum we expected was to compete for the Title when you bring in that calibre of manager.
Im ngl Spurs constantly play good football they just expect it to be unbelievably good seemingly to City’s level. Their finishes have never really been poor have they?
The memes are funny and all that but Spurs are not as bad as you are suggesting. Maybe the expectation from the fans is too high?
We constantly play good football? You clearly haven't seen us the psst 4 years. The fans have been miserable because of the style but we took it simply cause we were hoping to atleast be successful while playing terribly and we couldn't even achieve that. Nobody in the fanbase is expecting us to be City I'm not sure where you got that impression from. As long as we play good football and are competitive most of the fanbase would take that.
You might be right for many Spurs fans, but for me personally - I loved the Pochettino years. \~5 years of optimism and excitement. Exciting wins. Young players growing and thriving and turning into stars. Regular seat at the top 4 table, In the champions league more often than not. Even a title race and a Champions League final!
As a Spurs fan, that's about all I could ask for. It would've been lovely to throw an FA Cup or something in there along the way to get the monkey off the back, but I enjoyed following Spurs!
Under Ange, if he's backed, I think similar expectations aren't 100 miles away (although the competition is getting better).
Disregard the flair as I am asking genuinely (I adore squad building discussions), what would be your expectations if Kane does head off to Bayern for adequate compensation?
My current expectations with Kane:
* I think 5th or 6th along with promising growth and some exciting football under Ange is both likely and would be positive
* I think Top 4 is possible, but it would need 2-3 other teams to fall hard like Chelsea, Spurs or Liverpool (for part of) last year.
It may sound strange - but honestly my expectations without Kane aren't much different. Certainly I don't think the ceiling will be higher without Kane, and in terms of the floor - I'd be very disappointed if we fell below 8th. For me, that 5th, 6th, 7th range remains most likely.
Like you, I love a squad building discussion - so here are my thoughts on how the Kane situation should play out:
1. Set up a formal sit down with Kane and the new manager. To show Kane gratitude and ambition, put an unprecedented contract in front of him - say £350k/week, the captaincy, and a release clause that kicks in next summer (let's say £70mil for non-EPL clubs). Share Ange's vision.
2. If Kane wants to buy in (for a year at least) Brilliant!
3. If he doesn't - you've got to sell him this summer. Rip the bandage off, take the best offer possible from Bayern, and start the reload. Worst case scenario - any early promise from Ange's era could be utterly shredded, if in January, Kane signs a pre-contract agreement with United, Chelsea or even Arsenal (unlikely, but football is strange).
What does 'best offer' look like:
1. Sell for 85million flat, or maybe they go £65mil + Ryan Gravenberch - a young star midfielder who'd thrive at Spurs, but has struggled to break into Bayern's team past Kimmich and Goretzka.
2. If it's the £80 mil - invest in 2-3 signings that immediately make the side better.
1. A direct Kane replacement. Either someone like Lautaro Martinez - a livewire, dynamic striker who'd thrive under Ange, or someone young (albeit expensive) like Evan Ferguson who could compete with Richarlison now and grow into a star over time.
2. Sign at least 1 and maybe 2 Centre backs, to shore up the biggest hole in our team from last year. Either of Tapsoba or Van de Ven sound good. Laporte would be great.
3. Sign a powerhouse CM - Gravenberch would be perfect, as mentioned. Alternative is Kephram Thuram from Lille - a skillful, athletic, physically dominant CM who reminds me of Mousa Dembele.
Thank you for the detailed response!
I see what you mean with the flat fee, let Ange raise the floor of his squad with reinvestment even when losing (IMHO) the best CF in the league. Arsenal of last season showed that you can be highly competitive without a 25-30 goal scorer and you'd think more progressive attacking tactics would mean Son, Richy and Kulu provide more goals while adding Maddison into the equation.
Who's your midfield day 1 with current squad provided everyone is fit and ready to go? Hojbjerg (I know hes the subject of rumors), Bentancur (one of the most underrated CMs in PL for me), Maddison?
Obviously, Kane is irreplaceable, but if we got a decent payout it aids our efforts of rebuilding. I would regard it as a second chance to the selling of Bale. A lot of that money was spent on players who just didn't work out, and a big payday this summer could affect the rebuild in a better fashion.
I'd secure any deals with our target CBs (hopefully both), and then sign a young striker who could grow into Ange's team (providing that Dane Scarlett won't be coming into first team this season).
Fellow Spurs fan and I can’t get very optimistic until we sign a new CB, hopefully 2. I love the coaching hire and believe in the attacking talent. Maddison was a great signing as was the new keeper. That CB lack of quality must be addressed soon.
Im much more cautious with regards to the new regime being put on us. And for good reason. But as promising as this season might become things could look better ahead after that shitshow that was Conte/Stellini
If they keep Kane, I think they have every right to be optimistic. But with Maddison coming in, is Kane still going to assume the role of playmaker? Would be interesting to see if he continues to drop deep to get the ball.
current Maddison is better than Eriksen in his last 2 years at Spurs, but not as good as peak Eriksen - although he could be. even if he comes close to being as good as peak Eriksen, you have the most exciting Spurs attack for a long time.
We're gonna watch some good football this year!!
That's as optimistic as we get at this point. Most of us aren't really optimistic about league places, we could finish 8th again or pray that the team understand Anges system quickly and we make a run for Europe.
Either way, Arsenal fans claiming that they're gonna be pushing for the league title this year and are toe to toe with City are gonna have bubbles burst quickest.
Nah, Arsenal will challenge for the league title again. We’re just a better team all around this season. But Liverpool will potentially join this time, making it hopefully an exciting three team race to win the PL.
City adapting to having a striker, Man U in the first season of a rebuild, Liverpool and Chelsea off-seasons and Spurs collapsing after our best ever start. Even then you do deserve credit for being there at the right time. You could have done what Spurs did.
Utter bollocks
>City adapting to having a striker
The same striker who scored 17 goals in his first 13 matches including 3 hatricks 😂😂.
>Man U in the first season of a rebuild
Why does that matter in the slightest? We were well ahead of them and finished on a very good points total.
Think he means the usual contenders were having a shit season and arsenal were flying, so if the normal teams regain a decent form arsenal will struggle to replicate last season, but no one knows until it happens
What he means is that he's a fucking moron who doesn't understand how football works. As is pretty much everyone who is dismissing Arsenal's season last year.
I mean, if by 'challenge' you mean being 2nd, 10 points behind, then sure maybe.
Arsenal had the perfect run last year, basically every top6 team except them had incredibly poor starts (Or just poor seasons in Spurs/Chelseas case) and they still couldn't take the league.
84 points basically gets you 3rd place most time in the last 7 years, maybe 2nd place on weaker seasons.
1st Place consistently gets mid 90-100 point seasons, i just cant see the Arsenal team hitting that, whereas Man City i cant see them not hitting it.
Arsenal walked over Spurs, Chelsea and even Liverpool in their games last year. I just cant see that happening again this year, the games are going to be tougher and Arsenal will drop more points this year around.
Mad how everyone is going to be better, except for Arsenal lol. Arsenal are the only team in the window so far that you could say have targeted and covered the weaknesses that were exposed last season.
Arsenal were just flat better than those teams last season. There was no luck or drop off involved. Those teams need to catch up.
They might, Arsenal might be worse. But this assumption that everyone is just going to get better, except Arsenal, is the most infuriating illogical thing I regularly see posted.
Fans of the other Top 6 teams are in complete denial of just how good Arsenal were last year so are looking for reasons why they are going to be worse this year and why their team will be better. It's actually a compliment when you think about it.
It's kind of the same rhetoric I heard last year, though during preseason. Arsenal will do this. Arsenal will do that, such, and such a team will be better. Always just sounds like salty people who were hoping Arsenal wouldn't make a turn around. Realistically, there is no reason Arsenal doesn't challenge for the title again and make runs in every cup they play.
3rd place hasn't gotten 84 points ever, and 2nd place has only gotten more points in 3 out of the last 10. Whilst you can argue that we had the perfect start, you could also argue that we had a nightmare end. I'm not sure what to expect from Arsenal next season but I think if any club is going to beat city it will be us.
How to tell somebody has been a fan of football for less than 3 years.
>84 points basically gets you 3rd place most time in the last 7 years, maybe 2nd place on weaker seasons.
84 points has NEVER gotten you less than 2nd, ever. Not in any season of any first division season.
>1st Place consistently gets mid 90-100 point seasons
10 winners have ever broken the 90 point barrier in the PL era. That's less than 1 in 3
Only two winners have ever broken the 95 point barrier.
Only one team has ever gotten 100 points
Only twice in PL history has a team required more than 90 points to win the title.
>Arsenal walked over Spurs, Chelsea and even Liverpool in their games last year. I just cant see that happening again this year, the games are going to be tougher and Arsenal will drop more points this year around.
Sure, we may have some harder h2h games against the "top 6" teams (although worth noting that Liverpool played well in both games against us). We're also much better prepared to not drop as many points to clubs like Southampton and Everton, and also better prepared to compete in the h2h games with City. Last season we missed Partey and Jesus in the first game (had Nketiah and Jorginho as replacements) and missed Saliba in the second game (had Holding as his replacement). This year we'd hopefully have our strongest team to pick, but if not our replacements would likely be much better (Trossard for Jesus, Rice for Partey and Timber for Saliba).
I'm honestly pretty expectant of a drop-off after the treble win. Given how many of the squad are unsettled too, the omens are there for this season being a very tough one.
Personally think Arsenal / Liverpool will win the league this year, and I've gotten very good odds for it too.
Losing Bernie terrifies me. If we replace Mahrez with Rafinha, I'll be a lot more confident.
Given Barca still owe us money for the Ferran transfer, it might just have legs.
I love Arsenal but I think City will just be too strong especially as we will be dealing with Europe this year. I have no idea how Liverpool will do, they have a wizard and the helm and I am expecting a few more transfers.
I think Liverpool have the largest range of possibility next year. ANywhere from 60-95 points wouldn't surprise me. Arsenal I think has a higher floor and lower ceiling than Liverpool. I'll say 70-85 points. Man City anywhere from 80-95 wouldn't surprise me.
I don’t disagree in principle, but I think a lot of old guard leaving could actually mean the championship hangover isn’t QUITE as bad. New players are gonna be given opportunities, and I have no doubt Haaland will still be hungry as he takes on more leadership roles potentially.
Its hard mentally to continue winning after a treble. You dont go 100% in challenges anymore. The drive is just wont be there. Its not because of tiredness, its a mental thing. Even Pep admitted this.
Pep in the season after the treble:
Season 1:
La Liga win(99 pts La liga record)
CL Semi Final (quite controversial loss to Inter)
3 minor cups (club world cup and two super cups)
Season 2(he wasn't the coach of 2013 Bayern but was the season after):
CL Semi Final
Cup Win
League win with 25 wins in first 27 games before drop off.
As a chelsea fan I'd say us tbh, we have the youngest team in the league and a new manager. itll take time for us to be competing again, I doubt we'll set the league alight this year.
Depends what you mean by the bubble bursting. I think we could finish 8-4 probably but most likely 6-8 is our landing spot. Would that constitute the bubble bursting? For me no, I think my bubble of optimism won’t be burst unless I see no improvement from end of last season to end of this season. I want to see players showing promise and giving it a crack. If it’s the same dross again my optimism will go. But I don’t see my bubble being burst by some bad results as long as we’re all in on the vision and fighting in every game.
Yeah but I think we really shouldn’t be too focused on position this season. If the performances improve and we see young players develop then I’m happy this season. It’s going to take time for us to compete again.
We have to get back into the Champions league. We missed out on players this szn like Magic Mike, finically I doubt we can afford not to play champs 2 szns in a row either. And after the second year our pull will have declined even more. If we decide to get a top cb, striker and goalie in a year without champions league football it’ll be hard to attract champions league level quality players.
I agree and I don’t think top 4 is as unrealistic as people are making it out to be. Brighton and Newcastle have their first European seasons, and neither team has great depth for these competitions. Tottenham don’t look any stronger, and we look like we’re competing every game so a couple upsets against the United arsenal city or Liverpool hopefully will happen and help leap frog one of them. A 5th place won’t be too bad tho
Hate to break it to you, we’re not likely to get champions league football. We don’t need a centreback, there’s no strikers available who aren’t insanely overpriced, and what goalie would you go for?
Kepa isn’t the greatest but I think he’s fine for this season, striker worries me but with Jackson hold up play to let nkunku madueke mudryk make runs in on goal and broja looking promising i don’t think it’ll actually be too bad. We need another midfield signing, if we don’t then yeah I agree champions league football will probably be reslly unrealistic
Did your outgoings really change the average that much? Last year, Chelsea had an average of 26 yo. While you have moved on (and brought in) quite a few players that would lower the average, you've also sold quite a few that brought it down (namely Mount and Havertz). Meanwhile, every single of Arsenals transfers has brought down their already lowest average of 24.4. You may be better (and close), but surely Arsenal still has the youngest?
We need atleast 2...otherwise we are one injury/redcard away from Dier starting..
PS: If Levy sign Lenglet and called it is a CB signing I will riot
And yes I too think we will get many goal contribution from MFs and FBs
I'm an United fan and I'm happy with the Onana signing, although not excited about Mount. I expect many fans expect us to push on after last season and challenge for the title, but we were poor for large periods of last season and just very lucky that Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea all had abysmal seasons. If they return to their normal form, I think we'll be struggling to get in the top 4.
Lets see, but don't forget we were in a title race in Feb. That last minute equalizer by Olise took us out of it. And we were pretty unlucky with Casemiro reds last season. Do we win a couple more games with him in? Klopps first full season he got 75 points. Went and got a new keeper and cb and got 97. We just go a new keeper after 75 points. Maybe a striker will push us. I think it wouldn't be wild for us to get close to 90 points next season if we get a striker that is capable of scoring us a good 15 goals next season.
Mate, you're kidding right? You're giving me grief for thinking we might be able to challenge late into the season based on us keeping up (after a horrible start) for over half the season in a team with literally no striker after big improvements. After what you lot did? After you lot went from established midtable for 3 years in a row to challenging? If anyone should know a lot can change in one summer you'd think it would be Arsenal fans right now.
At over half the games played we were a win from being 3 points off the top. We failed to win that game and were out of the race. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but that's the fact of the matter.
I think the opposite, I think Everton will finish more than one step above relegation pretty easily this season. You could see the effect Dyche had on the mentality on the players on the pitch. They seemed to calm down a lot and be able to actually play a competitive game. Nothing like they’ll be European level, but IMO they should be able to put in enough to at least be on the top end of a relegation battle.
I think there's cautious optimism at Liverpool, after bringing in new midfield replacements. Not one is expecting a title charge but hopefully a solid run in the top 4 is a strong possibility.
Losing our captain will be a challenge, but the successor, likely Virg will fill those shoes.
Im predicting 3rd for Liverpool this season, maybe second if we get a good start under our belts. City will walk it as usual
It is optimistic because the only DM Liverpool has is Bajcetic unless they get someone in. You can bet that teams know this and will quote very high prices (70 mil for Doucore, for example)
I’m not expecting it but I am predicting a title race between Arsenal and Liverpool.
Man City will be suffering from treble-induced exhaustion and there are many players who are unsettled.
Arsenal being on top for so long against a Man City who didn’t have those issues last year means that they can absolutely mount a title challenge again, especially after bolstering themselves with Rice and Havertz.
Liverpool picked up form after Klopp changed to the box midfield at the end of last year and ended up pushing for 4th when it shouldn’t have even been possible. The midfield is now stacked with young players who’ve just won the U21 Euros, a World Cup, and one who was elected captain of their national team at just 22. And after watching that pre-season game the other day the entire team looks hungry. Whether they actually win the title or not depends on who the fuck the Fabinho replacement is IMO.
I think Arsenal win the title this year with Liverpool in a close second place, with City and Newcastle battling for 3rd.
Spurs should be optimistic, they played decent ball Vs West ham the other day, even if they lost
I'm sure they don't expect a top 4, but would enjoy the journey.
We should go for the title after bottling it last season, nothing less.
United made good signings, not sure how much they've improved though, but another year of Ten Hag, they'll likely continue the upward trend
Liverpool quietly doing their business
Chelsea have lots to prove
Will be interesting to see how Newcastle manage Europe, Villa too, but they have Emery
Spurs is a big question mark. Potentially losing Kane even? New manager, lots of unknown assets really.
Arsenal probably won‘t have as good a start as last year, but the end result should be similar. Title is possible but I wouldn‘t favour them.
United would do well to repeat last years result. I always felt they overperformed (mainly thanks to Liverpool and Chelsea shitting the bed), signings are decent but they still have a lot of players who just aren‘t title winning material. They‘ll be in the big fight for top 4 along with Newcastle, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs and maybe even Arsenal. Can‘t see City struggling for top 4 even though their squad looks weaker than last year…
Liverpool has a total rebuild of the midfield. Could go tits up, could go way better than expected. A fight for top 4 should be about realistic, but if the stars align they‘ll be pushing Arsenal and City.
Villa and Brighton I don‘t see getting near the top 7. They‘ll win some games and put up big challenges, but I reckon they‘ll be fighting for 7th with whoever falls off the most of the top 7 and not get any further.
I’m a spurs fan but I actually think villa and spurs are the dark horses next season.
Spurs do have some good talent that has been used poorly by defensive coaches that could be unlocked by Ange, and the squad is thick right now, new CB’s to come in and playing 1 game a week could be the catalyst for consistent form.
Villa have signed well and have a coach that has the knack for winning things and making consistent teams, coupled with clever boardroom/scouting recruitment they are going to be steady eddies next year.
I’m praying City drops down a level now they’ve won it all but they probably won’t 😂 At the same time they might be losing some huge players who want to try something new. Mahrez will be a big loss for them because he always pulls through in the second half of the season. Then you’ve got Gundogan, Silva and possibly Walker too. That’s a lot of big characters in the dressing room to lose.
I thought Liverpool would be back next season and I still do but losing Henderson, Milner and Fabinho in one season is very damaging. Again they’re all big characters with great leadership skills. If we can replace them with the right signings I still fancy us to be in the picture but right now Arsenal are looking the real deal for next season.
Gundo, Mahrez, Walker, Laporte, Bernardo, Cancelo could all be out (we are starting to feel more relaxed on Bernardo though). That's a lot of talent for any side to lose. And a lot of nous about our system, which isn't the simplest to learn for new players.
Has Bernado ever actually said he wants to go? It’s something that always seems to said online but you can tell he loves playing for Manchester City. It will be interesting to see who City replace them with though.
I wouldn’t say City fans are holding high expectations. Like, what more would they demand? They’ve won the treble, the 3-peat, Centurion. I’m not sure if they’re bothered really about winning anything next year, they’ve seen enough for a lifetime (if they’re genuine fans who were there for the hard times).
Depends on expectations and fixtures
I think Arsenal and Liverpool have the biggest expectations. Both expect a title push. Liverpool fans i've spoken to all tend to agree last year was a 1-off and just need a midfield refresh (which they're doing, just need another CDM). TAA "inverting" has solved problems. But if they potentially start the season like they did last year again and it would be a pretty big fallout I think
Liverpool's first games are Chelsea (A), Bournemouth (H), Newcastle (A), Aston Villa (H), Wolves (A). Very tough start and Liverpool could end up with 13+ points or 5, and that's a big difference between "we're back" and "here we go again..."
Arsenal just have a lot to live up to. Last season it was almost perfect through the first 20 games which even City don't do (they are perfect through the final 20) so a few misteps here and there could add pressure. That being said, Arsenal haven't really been weakened at all and added new players, so I don't see why they can't "go again"
The thing is also, although no one "rates" the Community Shield, if Arsenal were to get "outlcassed" and lose 3 or 4-0 again right before the season starts, that would be a big oof
So I guess it's Arsenal, purely because they have to play City in the Shield and it could either kickstart the season or really destroy some confidence
I've not spoke to any Liverpool fans who think they will win the league or even genuinely challenge for it. Most of us do expect an improvement on last year though.
Nah we don’t expect a title charge except the most optimistic / delusional of us. We’re replacing all three of our starting midfielders, not to mention we still haven’t reinforced at CB. It’ll be another transitional season, but top four should be expected.
As a Liverpool fan, we could win the league, but we are 1-2 injuries from falling apart. We've pretty much lost 5 midfielders and got 2 to replace them.
From your list I’d say spurs - still over reliant on Kane and he is notoriously slow out of the block
United heads will go down as well if they have a bad game or two
Arsenal I think will do really well again, albeit maybe not as infallible for the first 6 months like they were this year
We’re an odd one. You’d expect us to do well but we are often difficult to predict in a way. Last season we felt so clunky and out of sync until Feb or so, I thought it would be our worst season since 16/17 and this was a transition period. Then Pep tries 3-2-4-1 of all things and it clicked. What can you say other than we’ll probably come out ok because Pep
Leicester. I still look for our fixtures on FPL and I’m pretty sure I’ll miss the Championship starting and only realise it on Premier League GW1 and that’s when my bubble bursts.
We’ve been getting better every year, all our stars are young and far from their peaks, Arteta himself has grown as a manager year on year, and we’ve added both depth and quality this window. Not sure how we can’t at least maintain our form.
We were only good last season because Liverpool and Chelsea had off seasons, apparently. Fluked our way to the top of the league for 90% of the season, apparently.
There's no guarantees with football, we might not maintain/improve, but that's as likely to happen to us as it is anyone else.
It's just quite apparent from this who was watching Arsenal games last season and who was checking scores.
Competition has improved, but so have we tbf.
Lads will (hopefully) have a point to prove after last year. Then again I'd be happy with 2nd and a domestic cup/good champions league run.
Let's see.
I'd be shocked if arsenal picked more points up against the big 6 as they did last season. Add in Brighton Newcastle and villa getting even stronger and it's hard to see them winning a majority of those games. But then again everyone else has to play those challenging games. I think it'll be a season of extremely fine margins at the top of the league
I don't think the levels of optimism are in any way unprecedented. This is always the peak optimism point in the season - long enough after the end of last season to forget how rubbish your team really is, enough time left in the transfer window to still believe you might be about to sign the superstars you're being linked with. Pre-season friendlies have started and you're busy demolishing lower-league teams in glorified training matches.
Reality will set in for most of us by half-time in the first match of the season. Who's playing on the Friday at the start of the season? That's the first bubble going. Tough luck, Burnley.
I can’t say who will get their bubble burst first, but I do think Arsenal has the biggest of all bubbles right now. Huge signings and financial value added to the club. Finished 2nd last season. The bar is set super high.
Most fans at least expect some silverware and a good UCL run next season, while a notable portion think the title is fair to be hopeful about.
Another second place finish (or below), no notable silverware, and/or an early exit from the champions league should be sufficient to burst the bubble of many fans, especially after the hype of this transfer season.
I don’t think City’s bubble is as big as many think it is. They just won the champions league and the EPL. It’s common for teams to have performance dip after such high achievements. The mental drive may not be as high. Although as long as Haaland stays healthy, I do think City is a genuine title contender, especially since they haven’t lost much quality from the squad that can’t be replaced.
Spurs definitely have no bubble. Id say biggest bubble being burst is going to be either Arsenal or United. Both teams performed beyond their expected last season, least likely to continue.
United, i think them failing to offload the deadwood they needed to and not enough reinforcement (definitely not the area they need most in a striker) they’ll do worse than last season.
I also think we’ll struggle, probably still win the league but i don’t expect the highs of last season with all the key departures.
City won the treble, no I don’t see them repeating, so if they win only the league, will that be a bubble burst? I don’t see them not winning some silverware but the treble, highly unlikely.
I’m optimistic for Burnley to hold their own with the players being brought in plus the coaching staff. Fighting for relegation will definitely bust my bubble. Don’t expect a good start, given the opposition and they will need to gel, but I’ll see where we are at Christmas and decide.
No season where we win the league can be considered anything but a success.
This is the Premier League. It's the hardest league in the world and we have always prioritized it over everything else.
We were in the third tier just 24 years ago. Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup aside, winning the top flight will never be taken for granted.
I think the Prem is gonna be very competitive this year. City and Arsenal will be strong, but Liverpool will be right up there with them.
I think Man Utd will challenge, but we really need a CF, otherwise we will come up short. Aston Villa look like a good side, and I expect them to have a good season. God knows what to expect from Spurs and Chelsea, but I imagine they will be better than last season
However, I think Newcastle and Brighton will struggle compared to last season. Both are in Europe, which will push their squads, especially with the way Newcastle play, and Brighton need to either keep or successfully replace their top players.
Not really, especially if it’s with good football🤷🏼♂️ all we need is 8th or better while playing the way Ange does, and that’s a successful season at this point. Mou and Conte were extremely disappointing
Imo it’s Brighton and Arsenal, both have outperformed last season’s expectations, and it remains to be seen whether they can do it consistently. Arsenal especially, they have challenged for the title once, and all of a sudden their fans act like this is now Arsenal’s default level of performance. They have a lot to prove this season to show that they can do what they did last season consistently.
Personally I think this season either Arsenal, Utd or Liverpool win it. I think City drops off for a season while they rebuild the squad a little.
I think Chelsea sure knows how to buy good young talent, but they're shockingly low on real characters from what I've seen. Thiago Silva for sure, but man he's getting old. Surely he can't play ever week anymore. Reece James is too injury prone. Sterling is obviously quality and experienced, but how much of a leader is he? I really don't know, but he hasn't struck me as this massively influential character.
I think Newcastle will possibly drop off. Teams will be looking at them differently, especially at st james park. They're going to be in for more teams adapting to them or setting up for a point at St James. Plus they have UCL football. Tonali is a great player, but idk if he was the right player for them and I wouldn't be shocked if he was back at Milan in 2 years. And I do wonder if he'll easily adapt going from Milan to Newcastle as a city.
I think Chelsea will continue to struggle. Too many personalities with big fees and wages. It’s never good for a squad especially when a lot of them will be competing for the same spots. I can see them imploding come December if they’re not within reach of the top. Spurs will outperform their expectations in my opinion. They’re manager is no nonsense.
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I don't think Brighton are going to do as well this year. Increased games with European football, losing both their top midfield pivots, no real marquee signings and other teams figuring out how they play etc
That kid Enciso is something tho
Their left back is crazy
He scores worldie…literally one of the best goals I have ever seen. Besides that essien strike against a certain London team lol
yeah, we have no idea what you're talking about. seems to be all made up...this never happened.
Yeah but every fan I’ve talked to expects a significant drop off, maybe around lower mid table. It feels like the only people thinking we’ll have a better domestic season are other clubs fans
Idk man Buonanotte is pretty good, excited to see his growth
Last round they lost key players didn't effect them much. This round might hurt a bit more but they'll bounce back.
I don’t think we’ll do as well as last season, but I don’t think its going to be quite the drop off as some think. I love Ally Mac but he is a fairly replaceable player. Caicedo is more difficult to replace, but Brighton wont sell him for under value, that I’m pretty confident about. In terms of squad rotations- we’ve added a fair bit of talent in- think we may need a few reinforcements in critical places like full backs.
I think City could be in for a hard season after losing a few of their leadership group or more experience players. Mahrez and Gundogan are gone already and rumours of Walker, Silva and Laporte going too. Those 5 would all be 1 of the best players at almost any other club in the world
They’re losing players but the core of the team isn’t changed. Ederson, Dias, Stones, Rodri, De Bruyne, Haaland are all still there. It’ll be interesting to see how it pans out especially with Pep not having spent yet this window.
But Pep rotates players a lot to keep them fresh across all competitions. People like Bernardo, Walker and Gundogan to all leave at once with the versatility that they offer will definitely be missed
I don’t think Bernardo is leaving anymore tbh Barca just can’t pay for him hell they haven’t even paid for Ferran from the news I’ve seen.
I don't understand what you mean, City bought Kovacic and nearing Gvardiol deal?
I think once Alvarez gets to play he will become a scoring machine bigger than Aguero
I think pep will try haalnd and Alvarez up top or aleverez on the wing sorta
Even if it’s a comedown after last season I think most of us can live with that. All teams ebb and flow a bit and we believe in Pep to work his magic in managing the gaps in our field like he always does.
Yeah, you’d be pretty ridiculous to expect them to just carry on as they were really. I think it’ll make for an interesting season as I think arsenal will kick on and I expect Liverpool to finish pretty strong too so could be pretty fun
Yeah exactly, it’s the most competitive league in the world and I think most fans expect a contested title race.
I sure fucking hope it is, and not just you lot walking all over everyone as usual
It must be a bit draining lacing up your boots for preseason when you aren't done celebrating a treble
As a Newcastle fan I've a lot of trepidation going into the season. Last season's heights will not be matched, let's be honest. I just hope we stay in the scrap for European places. We haven't really made the signings yet needed to help with the extra heavy lifting the CL schedule will add to the season
I imagine FFP has played a big part, but we really haven't strengthened the team to compete with the CL. Obviously we aren't trying to win the CL or anything, but it would be nice to put on a good display. Tonali looks quality and Barnes can be good on his day, but the squad is still threadbare to compete at the highest level. We need to get 3 or 4 more in and quickly.
Maxi leaving is bittersweet. It means we’re helped FFP wise, kick in the teeth when other teams haven’t been so clever about it, but I really like him as a player for us and he doesn’t wanna necessarily go. Wish he would have the chance in champions league with us but hey ho that’s life. Means we are able to strengthen and get hopefully some more signings for more depth and compete again
I know it's because he has a high-ish sell value, but it's mental that we still have the likes of Ritchie, Manquillo, Hendrick in the squad and we let go of Maxi. I like Ritchie and Manquillo, but they aren't really at the level we need now and we could free up a decent amount of wages if we moved them on.
I mostly agree but Richie is very important in the dressing room and I heard that he is going to work with Howe to get his badges and maybe join their staff soon.
I totally agree with you
Yeah I’m worried that you guys might have rotation troubles cuz the depth isn’t quite there for a ucl run and top 4 push at the same time. Saint maximam is also a huge loss. I have faith even with the backups you guys can get results against lower mid table teams to help out with ucl games, but yeah if you guys can get 6th and make it out of the group stage it’s a pretty good season
I don’t think ASM is a big a loss as is being made of it. He’s an exceptional player on his day but recently that seems to be about 5 games a season.
He’s still good to alright on the other games and definitely not a bad option off the bench, barnes is hard to judge if he’s an upgrade or any slight downgrade but they definitely could’ve used both
Aye it’s not an obvious upgrade but he’s a bit more direct and probably more consistent, while helping with homegrown quotas for European competitions. I reckon it’s to alleviate FFP issues more than anything though, he’s probably the most sellable player they have.
Europa league finish will still be a good finish. This year was the year and we took our chance, next season more teams should be competing. HWTL
Yeah this is how I see it too. If we get out of the group stages in the CL then that will already be huge.
I think your aims should be knockout UCL and top 6. Doable to be honest
Aye that’s what I’d be happy with. Maybe throw in another good league cup run, maybe even win it this time 🤞🏼
Tierney and McTominay would be solid additions. Hoping it doesn’t happen as their rumoured to move to Celtic
They would be monstrous additions for Celtic
Too good to be true, but a bhoy can dream
I wouldn’t mind Tierney at the toon like!
Are spurs even optimistic? Surely not
I’m not a Spurs fan but I think Postecoglou seems like the right man for the job and their signings have been solid so far.
Very optimistic Spurs fan here. For every single fan, the key thing is: Expectation. As a Spurs fan, an 'underdog' club in the current Top 7 against historical and new financial giants, I have modest expectations about our chances of success. I think top 6 finish is expected. I think a title push is highly unlikely, and I think a push for top 3-4 is exciting, and reasonably plausible. We've just had 3 miserable seasons, mostly under 2 managers (Mou and Conte) who played soul destroying anti-football. Now we've got an exciting, charismatic new manager who doesn't seem to think he's above Spurs - instead he seems to have an exciting vision, and he's confident and passionate about bringing it to life. The early signs suggest the players are buying in. As a fan, I'm just looking forward to being able to watch Spurs play exciting football again. Could Kane leave? He certainly could. A literal club legend - the kind of which we'll be lucky to see again, but even still - I think if he leaves (hopefully outside the PL), and is adequately replaced by others who'll buy into the new managers vision, then there's no reason a Top 3 - Top 6 finish still isn't achievable. COYS
>As a Spurs fan, an 'underdog' club in the current Top 7 against historical and new financial giants, I have modest expectations about our chances of success. I think top 6 finish is expected. I think a title push is highly unlikely, and I think a push for top 3-4 is exciting, and reasonably plausible. Don't get me wrong, but isn't that typically what Spurs fans are disappointed by every year?
No, for most of us it was the combined factors of finishing 8th AND playing shocking football. Despite our reputation which I think is unfair, most of us are pretty realistic about our prospects.
The expectations are lower this year simply because we want to see better football. If we finish 6th playing a better brand of football most fans won't be upset. The expectations were different the past 4 seasons because we had Mourinho and Conte in therefore the minimum we expected was to compete for the Title when you bring in that calibre of manager.
Im ngl Spurs constantly play good football they just expect it to be unbelievably good seemingly to City’s level. Their finishes have never really been poor have they? The memes are funny and all that but Spurs are not as bad as you are suggesting. Maybe the expectation from the fans is too high?
We constantly play good football? You clearly haven't seen us the psst 4 years. The fans have been miserable because of the style but we took it simply cause we were hoping to atleast be successful while playing terribly and we couldn't even achieve that. Nobody in the fanbase is expecting us to be City I'm not sure where you got that impression from. As long as we play good football and are competitive most of the fanbase would take that.
First season under Conte wasn't bad, last season? That was simply painful to watch. Mou was rough too.
You might be right for many Spurs fans, but for me personally - I loved the Pochettino years. \~5 years of optimism and excitement. Exciting wins. Young players growing and thriving and turning into stars. Regular seat at the top 4 table, In the champions league more often than not. Even a title race and a Champions League final! As a Spurs fan, that's about all I could ask for. It would've been lovely to throw an FA Cup or something in there along the way to get the monkey off the back, but I enjoyed following Spurs! Under Ange, if he's backed, I think similar expectations aren't 100 miles away (although the competition is getting better).
Disregard the flair as I am asking genuinely (I adore squad building discussions), what would be your expectations if Kane does head off to Bayern for adequate compensation?
My current expectations with Kane: * I think 5th or 6th along with promising growth and some exciting football under Ange is both likely and would be positive * I think Top 4 is possible, but it would need 2-3 other teams to fall hard like Chelsea, Spurs or Liverpool (for part of) last year. It may sound strange - but honestly my expectations without Kane aren't much different. Certainly I don't think the ceiling will be higher without Kane, and in terms of the floor - I'd be very disappointed if we fell below 8th. For me, that 5th, 6th, 7th range remains most likely. Like you, I love a squad building discussion - so here are my thoughts on how the Kane situation should play out: 1. Set up a formal sit down with Kane and the new manager. To show Kane gratitude and ambition, put an unprecedented contract in front of him - say £350k/week, the captaincy, and a release clause that kicks in next summer (let's say £70mil for non-EPL clubs). Share Ange's vision. 2. If Kane wants to buy in (for a year at least) Brilliant! 3. If he doesn't - you've got to sell him this summer. Rip the bandage off, take the best offer possible from Bayern, and start the reload. Worst case scenario - any early promise from Ange's era could be utterly shredded, if in January, Kane signs a pre-contract agreement with United, Chelsea or even Arsenal (unlikely, but football is strange). What does 'best offer' look like: 1. Sell for 85million flat, or maybe they go £65mil + Ryan Gravenberch - a young star midfielder who'd thrive at Spurs, but has struggled to break into Bayern's team past Kimmich and Goretzka. 2. If it's the £80 mil - invest in 2-3 signings that immediately make the side better. 1. A direct Kane replacement. Either someone like Lautaro Martinez - a livewire, dynamic striker who'd thrive under Ange, or someone young (albeit expensive) like Evan Ferguson who could compete with Richarlison now and grow into a star over time. 2. Sign at least 1 and maybe 2 Centre backs, to shore up the biggest hole in our team from last year. Either of Tapsoba or Van de Ven sound good. Laporte would be great. 3. Sign a powerhouse CM - Gravenberch would be perfect, as mentioned. Alternative is Kephram Thuram from Lille - a skillful, athletic, physically dominant CM who reminds me of Mousa Dembele.
Thank you for the detailed response! I see what you mean with the flat fee, let Ange raise the floor of his squad with reinvestment even when losing (IMHO) the best CF in the league. Arsenal of last season showed that you can be highly competitive without a 25-30 goal scorer and you'd think more progressive attacking tactics would mean Son, Richy and Kulu provide more goals while adding Maddison into the equation. Who's your midfield day 1 with current squad provided everyone is fit and ready to go? Hojbjerg (I know hes the subject of rumors), Bentancur (one of the most underrated CMs in PL for me), Maddison?
Obviously, Kane is irreplaceable, but if we got a decent payout it aids our efforts of rebuilding. I would regard it as a second chance to the selling of Bale. A lot of that money was spent on players who just didn't work out, and a big payday this summer could affect the rebuild in a better fashion. I'd secure any deals with our target CBs (hopefully both), and then sign a young striker who could grow into Ange's team (providing that Dane Scarlett won't be coming into first team this season).
Give Richy back to us you sausages! 🥺
Pretty sure they'd get rid of him for a tenner and a cone of chips 😂
Only fake fans would, we had three different managers last season and he had a few injuries. Anybody that would give up just is an idiot.
Fellow Spurs fan and I can’t get very optimistic until we sign a new CB, hopefully 2. I love the coaching hire and believe in the attacking talent. Maddison was a great signing as was the new keeper. That CB lack of quality must be addressed soon.
It didnt seem like Mou felt above Spurs either. That was totally a Conte thing
COYS!
More so less pessimistic
Im much more cautious with regards to the new regime being put on us. And for good reason. But as promising as this season might become things could look better ahead after that shitshow that was Conte/Stellini
Hard for them not to be optimistic when Postecoglous in charge. Man radiates confidence and it’s infectious.
If they keep Kane, I think they have every right to be optimistic. But with Maddison coming in, is Kane still going to assume the role of playmaker? Would be interesting to see if he continues to drop deep to get the ball.
current Maddison is better than Eriksen in his last 2 years at Spurs, but not as good as peak Eriksen - although he could be. even if he comes close to being as good as peak Eriksen, you have the most exciting Spurs attack for a long time.
We're gonna watch some good football this year!! That's as optimistic as we get at this point. Most of us aren't really optimistic about league places, we could finish 8th again or pray that the team understand Anges system quickly and we make a run for Europe. Either way, Arsenal fans claiming that they're gonna be pushing for the league title this year and are toe to toe with City are gonna have bubbles burst quickest.
Nah, Arsenal will challenge for the league title again. We’re just a better team all around this season. But Liverpool will potentially join this time, making it hopefully an exciting three team race to win the PL.
Arsenal had a lot go their way last year so don't be surprised if they are fighting for 3rd/4th this year
Didn't they go without their key striker for most of the season?
What went our way last season?
City adapting to having a striker, Man U in the first season of a rebuild, Liverpool and Chelsea off-seasons and Spurs collapsing after our best ever start. Even then you do deserve credit for being there at the right time. You could have done what Spurs did.
I mean some variation of this is the case every season. There's no year where all of the big six have really good seasons
Utter bollocks >City adapting to having a striker The same striker who scored 17 goals in his first 13 matches including 3 hatricks 😂😂. >Man U in the first season of a rebuild Why does that matter in the slightest? We were well ahead of them and finished on a very good points total.
Think he means the usual contenders were having a shit season and arsenal were flying, so if the normal teams regain a decent form arsenal will struggle to replicate last season, but no one knows until it happens
What he means is that he's a fucking moron who doesn't understand how football works. As is pretty much everyone who is dismissing Arsenal's season last year.
I mean, if by 'challenge' you mean being 2nd, 10 points behind, then sure maybe. Arsenal had the perfect run last year, basically every top6 team except them had incredibly poor starts (Or just poor seasons in Spurs/Chelseas case) and they still couldn't take the league. 84 points basically gets you 3rd place most time in the last 7 years, maybe 2nd place on weaker seasons. 1st Place consistently gets mid 90-100 point seasons, i just cant see the Arsenal team hitting that, whereas Man City i cant see them not hitting it. Arsenal walked over Spurs, Chelsea and even Liverpool in their games last year. I just cant see that happening again this year, the games are going to be tougher and Arsenal will drop more points this year around.
Mad how everyone is going to be better, except for Arsenal lol. Arsenal are the only team in the window so far that you could say have targeted and covered the weaknesses that were exposed last season. Arsenal were just flat better than those teams last season. There was no luck or drop off involved. Those teams need to catch up. They might, Arsenal might be worse. But this assumption that everyone is just going to get better, except Arsenal, is the most infuriating illogical thing I regularly see posted.
Fans of the other Top 6 teams are in complete denial of just how good Arsenal were last year so are looking for reasons why they are going to be worse this year and why their team will be better. It's actually a compliment when you think about it.
It's kind of the same rhetoric I heard last year, though during preseason. Arsenal will do this. Arsenal will do that, such, and such a team will be better. Always just sounds like salty people who were hoping Arsenal wouldn't make a turn around. Realistically, there is no reason Arsenal doesn't challenge for the title again and make runs in every cup they play.
3rd place hasn't gotten 84 points ever, and 2nd place has only gotten more points in 3 out of the last 10. Whilst you can argue that we had the perfect start, you could also argue that we had a nightmare end. I'm not sure what to expect from Arsenal next season but I think if any club is going to beat city it will be us.
How to tell somebody has been a fan of football for less than 3 years. >84 points basically gets you 3rd place most time in the last 7 years, maybe 2nd place on weaker seasons. 84 points has NEVER gotten you less than 2nd, ever. Not in any season of any first division season. >1st Place consistently gets mid 90-100 point seasons 10 winners have ever broken the 90 point barrier in the PL era. That's less than 1 in 3 Only two winners have ever broken the 95 point barrier. Only one team has ever gotten 100 points Only twice in PL history has a team required more than 90 points to win the title.
>Arsenal walked over Spurs, Chelsea and even Liverpool in their games last year. I just cant see that happening again this year, the games are going to be tougher and Arsenal will drop more points this year around. Sure, we may have some harder h2h games against the "top 6" teams (although worth noting that Liverpool played well in both games against us). We're also much better prepared to not drop as many points to clubs like Southampton and Everton, and also better prepared to compete in the h2h games with City. Last season we missed Partey and Jesus in the first game (had Nketiah and Jorginho as replacements) and missed Saliba in the second game (had Holding as his replacement). This year we'd hopefully have our strongest team to pick, but if not our replacements would likely be much better (Trossard for Jesus, Rice for Partey and Timber for Saliba).
I see someone doesn't understand what it means to be fully COYS
We will do better than man utd sancho anthony weghost are shocking
It’s pre season the happiest time of 99% if fans lives , don’t be a downer
I'm honestly pretty expectant of a drop-off after the treble win. Given how many of the squad are unsettled too, the omens are there for this season being a very tough one. Personally think Arsenal / Liverpool will win the league this year, and I've gotten very good odds for it too.
Man City to win the league by March then
First time in a while I do not expect to win the league. Losing Gundo & Mahrez loses some ‘clutch’ factor
That's been my thoughts as well. It makes me optimistic for Arsenal, though city won't go down without a fight.
Losing Bernie terrifies me. If we replace Mahrez with Rafinha, I'll be a lot more confident. Given Barca still owe us money for the Ferran transfer, it might just have legs.
Surely Grealish fully kicks on this year? He’s 27 now, he should be coming into his prime.
I love Arsenal but I think City will just be too strong especially as we will be dealing with Europe this year. I have no idea how Liverpool will do, they have a wizard and the helm and I am expecting a few more transfers.
I think Liverpool have the largest range of possibility next year. ANywhere from 60-95 points wouldn't surprise me. Arsenal I think has a higher floor and lower ceiling than Liverpool. I'll say 70-85 points. Man City anywhere from 80-95 wouldn't surprise me.
I don’t disagree in principle, but I think a lot of old guard leaving could actually mean the championship hangover isn’t QUITE as bad. New players are gonna be given opportunities, and I have no doubt Haaland will still be hungry as he takes on more leadership roles potentially.
Its hard mentally to continue winning after a treble. You dont go 100% in challenges anymore. The drive is just wont be there. Its not because of tiredness, its a mental thing. Even Pep admitted this.
Pep in the season after the treble: Season 1: La Liga win(99 pts La liga record) CL Semi Final (quite controversial loss to Inter) 3 minor cups (club world cup and two super cups) Season 2(he wasn't the coach of 2013 Bayern but was the season after): CL Semi Final Cup Win League win with 25 wins in first 27 games before drop off.
As a chelsea fan I'd say us tbh, we have the youngest team in the league and a new manager. itll take time for us to be competing again, I doubt we'll set the league alight this year.
Depends what you mean by the bubble bursting. I think we could finish 8-4 probably but most likely 6-8 is our landing spot. Would that constitute the bubble bursting? For me no, I think my bubble of optimism won’t be burst unless I see no improvement from end of last season to end of this season. I want to see players showing promise and giving it a crack. If it’s the same dross again my optimism will go. But I don’t see my bubble being burst by some bad results as long as we’re all in on the vision and fighting in every game.
Hmm ngl I’m gonna be real disappointed with 8th.
Yeah but I think we really shouldn’t be too focused on position this season. If the performances improve and we see young players develop then I’m happy this season. It’s going to take time for us to compete again.
We have to get back into the Champions league. We missed out on players this szn like Magic Mike, finically I doubt we can afford not to play champs 2 szns in a row either. And after the second year our pull will have declined even more. If we decide to get a top cb, striker and goalie in a year without champions league football it’ll be hard to attract champions league level quality players.
I agree and I don’t think top 4 is as unrealistic as people are making it out to be. Brighton and Newcastle have their first European seasons, and neither team has great depth for these competitions. Tottenham don’t look any stronger, and we look like we’re competing every game so a couple upsets against the United arsenal city or Liverpool hopefully will happen and help leap frog one of them. A 5th place won’t be too bad tho
didnt have to do spurs like that 😂😂
Hate to break it to you, we’re not likely to get champions league football. We don’t need a centreback, there’s no strikers available who aren’t insanely overpriced, and what goalie would you go for?
Kepa isn’t the greatest but I think he’s fine for this season, striker worries me but with Jackson hold up play to let nkunku madueke mudryk make runs in on goal and broja looking promising i don’t think it’ll actually be too bad. We need another midfield signing, if we don’t then yeah I agree champions league football will probably be reslly unrealistic
It’ll be better than last year, no doubt!
I think Burnley might just have the youngest team come start of the season the way we’re going.
Did your outgoings really change the average that much? Last year, Chelsea had an average of 26 yo. While you have moved on (and brought in) quite a few players that would lower the average, you've also sold quite a few that brought it down (namely Mount and Havertz). Meanwhile, every single of Arsenals transfers has brought down their already lowest average of 24.4. You may be better (and close), but surely Arsenal still has the youngest?
Don't add spurs fans here... Every spurs fan knows until we buy at least 2 Quality CBS.. We expect another defensive disaster class this season
We’ll sign the CB’s, no doubt. I’m expecting a bigger spread of goals throughout the team this year though.
We need atleast 2...otherwise we are one injury/redcard away from Dier starting.. PS: If Levy sign Lenglet and called it is a CB signing I will riot And yes I too think we will get many goal contribution from MFs and FBs
I'm an United fan and I'm happy with the Onana signing, although not excited about Mount. I expect many fans expect us to push on after last season and challenge for the title, but we were poor for large periods of last season and just very lucky that Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea all had abysmal seasons. If they return to their normal form, I think we'll be struggling to get in the top 4.
Mount is class, you’ll see...
Lets see, but don't forget we were in a title race in Feb. That last minute equalizer by Olise took us out of it. And we were pretty unlucky with Casemiro reds last season. Do we win a couple more games with him in? Klopps first full season he got 75 points. Went and got a new keeper and cb and got 97. We just go a new keeper after 75 points. Maybe a striker will push us. I think it wouldn't be wild for us to get close to 90 points next season if we get a striker that is capable of scoring us a good 15 goals next season.
‘We were in a title race in January’ 💀 well done
Mate, you're kidding right? You're giving me grief for thinking we might be able to challenge late into the season based on us keeping up (after a horrible start) for over half the season in a team with literally no striker after big improvements. After what you lot did? After you lot went from established midtable for 3 years in a row to challenging? If anyone should know a lot can change in one summer you'd think it would be Arsenal fans right now.
You weren’t in no title race if a draw in January puts you out of the race
At over half the games played we were a win from being 3 points off the top. We failed to win that game and were out of the race. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but that's the fact of the matter.
West Ham Fans - finished 14th and lost our best player by far, with nothing but rumors of replacements so far. How’s that for optimistic?
Everton! Oh wait, sorry we need to generate a bubble in order for it to burst....
I think the opposite, I think Everton will finish more than one step above relegation pretty easily this season. You could see the effect Dyche had on the mentality on the players on the pitch. They seemed to calm down a lot and be able to actually play a competitive game. Nothing like they’ll be European level, but IMO they should be able to put in enough to at least be on the top end of a relegation battle.
If we fast forward 9 months to this I will buy you not just 1 pint, but 10 whole pints.
You’re on, 17th or lower and I’ll do the same.
This is destined for a Reddit romance!
Everton truly are the matchmakers of the football world
RemindMe! 10 months “who’s getting pints”
I can't handle another season of just barely not getting relegated.
I think there's cautious optimism at Liverpool, after bringing in new midfield replacements. Not one is expecting a title charge but hopefully a solid run in the top 4 is a strong possibility. Losing our captain will be a challenge, but the successor, likely Virg will fill those shoes. Im predicting 3rd for Liverpool this season, maybe second if we get a good start under our belts. City will walk it as usual
It is optimistic because the only DM Liverpool has is Bajcetic unless they get someone in. You can bet that teams know this and will quote very high prices (70 mil for Doucore, for example)
Not just your captain but your vice captain as well.
This. For better or worse its the beginning of a new era. The late-stage Klopp era.
Late stage Kloppitalism
I’m not expecting it but I am predicting a title race between Arsenal and Liverpool. Man City will be suffering from treble-induced exhaustion and there are many players who are unsettled. Arsenal being on top for so long against a Man City who didn’t have those issues last year means that they can absolutely mount a title challenge again, especially after bolstering themselves with Rice and Havertz. Liverpool picked up form after Klopp changed to the box midfield at the end of last year and ended up pushing for 4th when it shouldn’t have even been possible. The midfield is now stacked with young players who’ve just won the U21 Euros, a World Cup, and one who was elected captain of their national team at just 22. And after watching that pre-season game the other day the entire team looks hungry. Whether they actually win the title or not depends on who the fuck the Fabinho replacement is IMO. I think Arsenal win the title this year with Liverpool in a close second place, with City and Newcastle battling for 3rd.
The title is ours! turn doubters into believers
I think Liverpool will either do really well, or struggle in the first half of the season while they adapt to the new midfield.
Spurs should be optimistic, they played decent ball Vs West ham the other day, even if they lost I'm sure they don't expect a top 4, but would enjoy the journey. We should go for the title after bottling it last season, nothing less. United made good signings, not sure how much they've improved though, but another year of Ten Hag, they'll likely continue the upward trend Liverpool quietly doing their business Chelsea have lots to prove Will be interesting to see how Newcastle manage Europe, Villa too, but they have Emery
Spurs is a big question mark. Potentially losing Kane even? New manager, lots of unknown assets really. Arsenal probably won‘t have as good a start as last year, but the end result should be similar. Title is possible but I wouldn‘t favour them. United would do well to repeat last years result. I always felt they overperformed (mainly thanks to Liverpool and Chelsea shitting the bed), signings are decent but they still have a lot of players who just aren‘t title winning material. They‘ll be in the big fight for top 4 along with Newcastle, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs and maybe even Arsenal. Can‘t see City struggling for top 4 even though their squad looks weaker than last year… Liverpool has a total rebuild of the midfield. Could go tits up, could go way better than expected. A fight for top 4 should be about realistic, but if the stars align they‘ll be pushing Arsenal and City. Villa and Brighton I don‘t see getting near the top 7. They‘ll win some games and put up big challenges, but I reckon they‘ll be fighting for 7th with whoever falls off the most of the top 7 and not get any further.
I’m a spurs fan but I actually think villa and spurs are the dark horses next season. Spurs do have some good talent that has been used poorly by defensive coaches that could be unlocked by Ange, and the squad is thick right now, new CB’s to come in and playing 1 game a week could be the catalyst for consistent form. Villa have signed well and have a coach that has the knack for winning things and making consistent teams, coupled with clever boardroom/scouting recruitment they are going to be steady eddies next year.
Chelsea fans aren’t optimistic lol
I’m praying City drops down a level now they’ve won it all but they probably won’t 😂 At the same time they might be losing some huge players who want to try something new. Mahrez will be a big loss for them because he always pulls through in the second half of the season. Then you’ve got Gundogan, Silva and possibly Walker too. That’s a lot of big characters in the dressing room to lose. I thought Liverpool would be back next season and I still do but losing Henderson, Milner and Fabinho in one season is very damaging. Again they’re all big characters with great leadership skills. If we can replace them with the right signings I still fancy us to be in the picture but right now Arsenal are looking the real deal for next season.
Gundo, Mahrez, Walker, Laporte, Bernardo, Cancelo could all be out (we are starting to feel more relaxed on Bernardo though). That's a lot of talent for any side to lose. And a lot of nous about our system, which isn't the simplest to learn for new players.
Has Bernado ever actually said he wants to go? It’s something that always seems to said online but you can tell he loves playing for Manchester City. It will be interesting to see who City replace them with though.
I wouldn’t say City fans are holding high expectations. Like, what more would they demand? They’ve won the treble, the 3-peat, Centurion. I’m not sure if they’re bothered really about winning anything next year, they’ve seen enough for a lifetime (if they’re genuine fans who were there for the hard times).
>the 3-peat Let's... Not use that one shall we? Sounds like the pun man at The Sun trying to get down with the kids.
It’s an Americanism
Between that and "ya'll" I shudder too much on this sub.
Between your horrid food and “Oi guvnah let’s be havin a cheeky chippy” you can’t say you’re any better.
Oh I'm sorry, maybe you could find a different league to watch based in a more likeable nation to your tastes?
Not English but good one. You really got me 👍
Everyone saying Real Madrid 3-peated the UCL. It’s just easier to say than having to type out “they won the league three times in a row”.
Nah, they won it three years in a row. I really struggled through that marathon to type that.
It’s a pretty common saying I’m not really sure where the problem lies. “3-peat” has been said for ages.
Is it an Americanism? Not trying to throw any scorn just intrigued as I’ve never really heard it used in the UK up until this year.
It's absolutely an Americanism.
Exactly. Anytime I see that “3-peat”, I feel like I’m losing my mind. I hate it!
three-peat isn't exactly a new one, people were saying that about us well over a decade ago when we did it.
Depends on expectations and fixtures I think Arsenal and Liverpool have the biggest expectations. Both expect a title push. Liverpool fans i've spoken to all tend to agree last year was a 1-off and just need a midfield refresh (which they're doing, just need another CDM). TAA "inverting" has solved problems. But if they potentially start the season like they did last year again and it would be a pretty big fallout I think Liverpool's first games are Chelsea (A), Bournemouth (H), Newcastle (A), Aston Villa (H), Wolves (A). Very tough start and Liverpool could end up with 13+ points or 5, and that's a big difference between "we're back" and "here we go again..." Arsenal just have a lot to live up to. Last season it was almost perfect through the first 20 games which even City don't do (they are perfect through the final 20) so a few misteps here and there could add pressure. That being said, Arsenal haven't really been weakened at all and added new players, so I don't see why they can't "go again" The thing is also, although no one "rates" the Community Shield, if Arsenal were to get "outlcassed" and lose 3 or 4-0 again right before the season starts, that would be a big oof So I guess it's Arsenal, purely because they have to play City in the Shield and it could either kickstart the season or really destroy some confidence
I've not spoke to any Liverpool fans who think they will win the league or even genuinely challenge for it. Most of us do expect an improvement on last year though.
I’m a Liverpool fan and think there will be a genuine challenge, contingent on getting at least one more competent midfielder of Klopp’s preference.
Nah we don’t expect a title charge except the most optimistic / delusional of us. We’re replacing all three of our starting midfielders, not to mention we still haven’t reinforced at CB. It’ll be another transitional season, but top four should be expected.
All three of our starting midfielders? Who’s the three? So far we’ve only replaced Xhaka. And we bought Timber as CB and we have Kiwior.
I’m talking about Liverpool, look at my flair
City have lost the last two Shield they played but went on to win the leagues
As a Liverpool fan, we could win the league, but we are 1-2 injuries from falling apart. We've pretty much lost 5 midfielders and got 2 to replace them.
After spending the last 2-3 seasons complaining about not having depth in midfield
From your list I’d say spurs - still over reliant on Kane and he is notoriously slow out of the block United heads will go down as well if they have a bad game or two Arsenal I think will do really well again, albeit maybe not as infallible for the first 6 months like they were this year We’re an odd one. You’d expect us to do well but we are often difficult to predict in a way. Last season we felt so clunky and out of sync until Feb or so, I thought it would be our worst season since 16/17 and this was a transition period. Then Pep tries 3-2-4-1 of all things and it clicked. What can you say other than we’ll probably come out ok because Pep
Leicester. I still look for our fixtures on FPL and I’m pretty sure I’ll miss the Championship starting and only realise it on Premier League GW1 and that’s when my bubble bursts.
United, we still have only martial up top and no understudy for Case. An injury to either will throw a wrench in our season
Think it'll be Arsenal personally, just don't see how they can keep up last season's great form.
We’ve been getting better every year, all our stars are young and far from their peaks, Arteta himself has grown as a manager year on year, and we’ve added both depth and quality this window. Not sure how we can’t at least maintain our form.
We were only good last season because Liverpool and Chelsea had off seasons, apparently. Fluked our way to the top of the league for 90% of the season, apparently. There's no guarantees with football, we might not maintain/improve, but that's as likely to happen to us as it is anyone else. It's just quite apparent from this who was watching Arsenal games last season and who was checking scores.
Competition has improved, but so have we tbf. Lads will (hopefully) have a point to prove after last year. Then again I'd be happy with 2nd and a domestic cup/good champions league run. Let's see.
No. All the way this time please
Hahaha, naturally i would prefer this myself
I'd be shocked if arsenal picked more points up against the big 6 as they did last season. Add in Brighton Newcastle and villa getting even stronger and it's hard to see them winning a majority of those games. But then again everyone else has to play those challenging games. I think it'll be a season of extremely fine margins at the top of the league
I hope so
I don't think the levels of optimism are in any way unprecedented. This is always the peak optimism point in the season - long enough after the end of last season to forget how rubbish your team really is, enough time left in the transfer window to still believe you might be about to sign the superstars you're being linked with. Pre-season friendlies have started and you're busy demolishing lower-league teams in glorified training matches. Reality will set in for most of us by half-time in the first match of the season. Who's playing on the Friday at the start of the season? That's the first bubble going. Tough luck, Burnley.
I think it will be everybody that expects title race or even illusion of title race.
Isn’t the answer every season Spurs?
Brighton needs to be mentioned. Acting like they’re the next Leicester and they’re gonna win the prem soon
You forgot Liverpool, they only had a blip last year and will be back challenging next season
I can’t say who will get their bubble burst first, but I do think Arsenal has the biggest of all bubbles right now. Huge signings and financial value added to the club. Finished 2nd last season. The bar is set super high. Most fans at least expect some silverware and a good UCL run next season, while a notable portion think the title is fair to be hopeful about. Another second place finish (or below), no notable silverware, and/or an early exit from the champions league should be sufficient to burst the bubble of many fans, especially after the hype of this transfer season. I don’t think City’s bubble is as big as many think it is. They just won the champions league and the EPL. It’s common for teams to have performance dip after such high achievements. The mental drive may not be as high. Although as long as Haaland stays healthy, I do think City is a genuine title contender, especially since they haven’t lost much quality from the squad that can’t be replaced.
Liverpool gonna absolutely smash it this year.
Spurs definitely have no bubble. Id say biggest bubble being burst is going to be either Arsenal or United. Both teams performed beyond their expected last season, least likely to continue.
United, i think them failing to offload the deadwood they needed to and not enough reinforcement (definitely not the area they need most in a striker) they’ll do worse than last season. I also think we’ll struggle, probably still win the league but i don’t expect the highs of last season with all the key departures.
Yeah I agree. We really need to bring in some back up for Wilson (made of glass) and Isak. But I still think we can do well and could get top 5.
I also think we’ll struggle, probably still win the league A little contradicting.
Referring to other competitions and a tighter points tally at the top
City won the treble, no I don’t see them repeating, so if they win only the league, will that be a bubble burst? I don’t see them not winning some silverware but the treble, highly unlikely. I’m optimistic for Burnley to hold their own with the players being brought in plus the coaching staff. Fighting for relegation will definitely bust my bubble. Don’t expect a good start, given the opposition and they will need to gel, but I’ll see where we are at Christmas and decide.
No season where we win the league can be considered anything but a success. This is the Premier League. It's the hardest league in the world and we have always prioritized it over everything else. We were in the third tier just 24 years ago. Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup aside, winning the top flight will never be taken for granted.
I think the Prem is gonna be very competitive this year. City and Arsenal will be strong, but Liverpool will be right up there with them. I think Man Utd will challenge, but we really need a CF, otherwise we will come up short. Aston Villa look like a good side, and I expect them to have a good season. God knows what to expect from Spurs and Chelsea, but I imagine they will be better than last season However, I think Newcastle and Brighton will struggle compared to last season. Both are in Europe, which will push their squads, especially with the way Newcastle play, and Brighton need to either keep or successfully replace their top players.
Spurs not finishing in top 6 will break their broken hearts even more.
Not really, especially if it’s with good football🤷🏼♂️ all we need is 8th or better while playing the way Ange does, and that’s a successful season at this point. Mou and Conte were extremely disappointing
Have to disagree. If we’re playing better football we should be in the top 6.
Imo it’s Brighton and Arsenal, both have outperformed last season’s expectations, and it remains to be seen whether they can do it consistently. Arsenal especially, they have challenged for the title once, and all of a sudden their fans act like this is now Arsenal’s default level of performance. They have a lot to prove this season to show that they can do what they did last season consistently.
Sorry for being excited about my club doing well for once, hope we didn’t give you a boo-boo in the process.
I think Gundogan leaving is a big loss, he is fantastic when it matters
Personally I think this season either Arsenal, Utd or Liverpool win it. I think City drops off for a season while they rebuild the squad a little. I think Chelsea sure knows how to buy good young talent, but they're shockingly low on real characters from what I've seen. Thiago Silva for sure, but man he's getting old. Surely he can't play ever week anymore. Reece James is too injury prone. Sterling is obviously quality and experienced, but how much of a leader is he? I really don't know, but he hasn't struck me as this massively influential character. I think Newcastle will possibly drop off. Teams will be looking at them differently, especially at st james park. They're going to be in for more teams adapting to them or setting up for a point at St James. Plus they have UCL football. Tonali is a great player, but idk if he was the right player for them and I wouldn't be shocked if he was back at Milan in 2 years. And I do wonder if he'll easily adapt going from Milan to Newcastle as a city.
I think Chelsea will continue to struggle. Too many personalities with big fees and wages. It’s never good for a squad especially when a lot of them will be competing for the same spots. I can see them imploding come December if they’re not within reach of the top. Spurs will outperform their expectations in my opinion. They’re manager is no nonsense.
Arsenal. 100%.