The Champions from last season are more likely to get stronger this season, Jose Mourinho has the uncanny knack of pushing his team in subsequent seasons to achieve perfection and Chelsea would be looking to do just that when the Premier League starts in August.
Last season it was expected that Manchester City and Liverpool would provide some sort of challenge in the race for the title, but City slipped away at the half way mark while Liverpool had a season to forget. Manchester United, who have been the most consistent team in the history of the Premier League were in transition and for Arsenal, it was a season of ‘what could have been’, based on their brilliant end to the season but the rather slow start to their campaign.
The transfer market might still be in its infancy, but every club is preparing to work had and improve their chances of doing well, while Chelsea do have a strong squad, they would also be looking to bring a few players in and mix things up. The new Premier League TV deal has also bulked up the coffers for quite a few clubs and we look at those brave teams who would be trying to dethrone Chelsea this season.
Manchester City
The Blue side of Manchester looked heavily disjointed and disturbed when playing last season, Yaya Toure didn’t provide them the spark all season and Sergio Aguero’s injuries did prove to be insurmountable for a club that has spent so lavishly on building a championship team. Manuel Pelligrini could be on his last chance with the club and the only way to save his job would be to either win the Premier League or the UEFA Champions League.
City would have to invest wisely to challenge Chelsea, they need to bring in a lot of new faces but with the money of Abu Dhabi behind them and the FFP relaxed this year that should not be a problem. Pelligrini would have to drill his XI really well and that is something we would have to keep an eye out for, would the Chilean be controlling City or would they be controlled by the big egos at the club?
Arsenal
The Gunners could have made a great run for the title if only they started the campaign like they ended it. Arsenal do have one of the strongest squads in the Premier League and with the imminent signing of Petr Cech from rivals Chelsea, they could have found the final piece in their jigsaw to conquer the Premier League.
Arsene Wenger will be hopeful of having a fully fit squad this season and with Alexis Sanchez shining for the team last time around, he could be the most important factor this season. Arsenal will probably make a couple of other signings to strengthen the team, it is expected that another midfielder will join the club and if they can sign a world class striker to play with Giroud, we could see the trophy at London but this time for the club in red.
Manchester United
The other club from Manchester should not be taken lightly this season, while last season it was a transitional period, Louis Van Gaal did make them tough to defeat, even though they didn’t play the best brand of football but it is all about the result and that got them into the Champions League.
Van Gaal would be looking to buy a few players who fit the team well and with a huge war chest to fund that, he could be looking to win the Premier League or at least challenge for it. The club already signed one of the most promising players currently in Memphis Depay and that could only be a start for a team that looks to get back to winning titles, as they did under Alex Ferguson. Last season was just the trial period; this season could be the real deal for the record Premier League winners.