The Premier League Title Race
The Premier League Title Race: Is it going to be a 4 Horse Race?
“In the Premier League you never really know what is going to happen. There is very little between the teams.” Luis Suarez
As the 2021-22 edition of the Premier League is underway, with 6 games played by each team so far, people have begun placing their bets on who they think will win this season. The Premier league this year is so exciting and the teams are so good that it is going to be hard to predict which team is going to win. This season may be a tightly contested four horse race between the current PL champions Man City, the champions of Europe, Chelsea, the 2019/2020 PL champions Liverpool and 13 time PL champions, Manchester United.
Manchester City’s title defence:
The champions of 2020/21 Premier League, Manchester City have established themselves as the team to beat in England having won 3 PL titles in the last 4 seasons. With new summer signing Jack Grealish, one of the best players in the premier league last year, they have added to their plethora of attacking options. Under Pep Guardiola’s management, Manchester City have developed a successful possession based style of play, with a focus on keeping the ball for as long as possible through short passing and immense work rate to regain ball possession. City also make use of the wings for width and their attacking midfield to create chances. De Bruyne is probably one of the best Central Attacking midfielders on the planet. Phil Foden is a generational talent, an exciting talent that has become a player for the England national team. With Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva, the wings are pretty sorted. Bernardo Silva is a versatile player who can play in the midfield as well as the wings.
This is just a glimpse of the squad depth. There are options in the midfield and defence too, with top quality players like Ruben Diaz, Fernandinho, Rodri, Gundogan, Cancelo, Kyle Walker, John Stones and Laporte. Man City did not sign Harry Kane to add a world class striker to the star studded squad but the striker up front, Gabriel Jesus is capable of scoring enough goals for the side to continue their dominance in England. With a recent victory against Chelsea, the team must be high in confidence and we can expect the team to kick on and push for the title this year as well. The game at Anfield against their title rivals Liverpool this weekend could prove to be an early title decider.
Liverpool’s push for the PL title
After winning the premier league in 2019-20, Liverpool struggled with key injuries last season and fought back to reach the third spot. This season however, Liverpool’s talismanic defender, Van Dijk is back to push for another PL title. Liverpool possibly have the best playing 11 in the league with exciting players like Jota, Mane and Salah up front. They also have Fabinho, Henderson and Thiago, a midfield which is capable of going toe to toe against any team in the league.
Jurgen Klopp has established himself as one of the best managers in Europe with his heavy metal football. The management gave Klopp enough time to build a world class team. Klopp maintains a consistent 4-3-3 formation, a system that works irrespective of the personnel.
The only weakness that one can see in this side is their lack of squad depth and reliance on key players like Mohammed Salah, Mane and Van Dijk. Salah is at the top of his game, breaking records and scoring 5 goals in 6 appearances so far. Liverpool are on a roll right now with a great goalscoring form and this team could end up winning the premier league if they manage to keep this consistency and keep their key players fit.
The most balanced team and the Champions League Winners: Chelsea
The European Champions should be considered in the title race this season as they have the most balanced team right now. They have a great overall squad with options in attack as well as in defence. The forward line looks stronger now with Lukaku. With the likes of Havertz, Loftus Cheek, Barkley, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson Odoi, Reece James, Chelsea have young and energetic players who can suit Thomas Tuchel’s pressing style of football. The great thing about Chelsea is that there is just the right mix of youth and experience in this squad. The youth is supported by leaders like Thiago Silva and Azpilicueta, seasoned campaigners, strong at the back. Jorginho is an intelligent midfielder, with a wide range of passing. Kante has the ability to pass, carry the ball forward as well as win the ball back. This could be the key midfield partnership for Chelsea.
Mendy is a good goalkeeper and his shot stopping ability has helped him establish his position as the No.1 for the team. The defence and midfield of Chelsea seems pretty consistent and solid. What is amazing about this squad is that there are other options too like Christensen, Ziyech, Barkley, Werner and Saul. If Chelsea manage to play a good system that suits Lukaku, they can score goals, win football matches and challenge Liverpool and Man City for the title.
The resurgence of the mighty Manchester United
The most successful team in England with 20 English League titles including 13 Premier League titles, Manchester United have strengthened their squad this year. United made good signings in the summer transfer window. They signed Raphael Varane, a world class centre back, Jadon Sancho, the promising young winger and Cristiano Ronaldo, the forward often regarded as one of the greatest players to ever grace the beautiful game. Harry Maguire, the captain of Manchester United has given the team the much needed defensive stability last season. Rio Ferdinand and Vidic were key to the success of Man Utd in the past and every successful team needs a good centre back pairing. This season Varane and Maguire will try to form a partnership that can help United relive their old glory days.
Sir Alex Feguson in a special Man Utd podcast said "You saw on that Saturday that it was like Caesar entering Rome after victory. I came, I saw, I conquered. It was fantastic.” Cristiano Ronaldo after breaking all the goal-scoring records joined United for a new challenge, to help them win a trophy after a long draught. So far other than one premier league game, he has scored in every game that he played. Ronaldo is now the perfect centre forward. He can score headers, finish like a poacher, dribble and make runs on the break. At the age of 36, Ronaldo still has an incredible amount of fitness and speed. His winning mentality, that aura will make the other players in the team lift their game.
Pogba and Bruno are key players in the midfield for Man Utd. The attacking midfielders have a great vision with a match winning ability to score goals. This team is capable of winning the title with attacking options like Greenwood, Rashford and Lingard. United have two amazing Goalkeeping options with De Gea and Henderson. The only weak link in this team seems to be the central defensive midfield(CDM) position. They cannot go toe to toe against the best teams like Man City or Liverpool but they can be deadly in their counter attacks. They should be considered as a challenger for the title and this is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s best chance to win a trophy with the club as a manager.
Any Other challengers?
Although Leicester City are not far behind, their squad is highly dependent on the likes of Vardy, Maddison and they do not seem equipped to pull off a title challenge like they did in their fairytale season. Meanwhile Tottenham, Arsenal, Everton, West Ham and Aston Villa have decent sides who could compete and even defeat the top sides but their squads do not seem as strong and as capable as the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea or Man City.
Nice one. I have a feeling that Chelsea's season will implode.
ReplyDeleteThanks a ton for reading my article. Yes, perhaps Chelsea's season could implode but they have a squad under Tuchel that seems well equipped to at least grind out results even if they do not play at their best and that puts them in the mix for the title race.
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