As we are in the midst of yet another two-week international break 12/38ths of the way through the English Premier League season (which Men in Blazers’ Michael Davies would insist we point out reduces to 6/19ths), we at The18 decided to look at the top five things that we have learned about the league so far this season.
1. There Will Be a New League Champion (and Likely a New Champions League Participant)
With Chelsea’s inexplicable collapse (believe me, I’ve searched for explanations), there will be a new league champion this season. In fact, with the club currently sitting 16th in the table, it is likely that not only will Chelsea not repeat as champions, but they will have a very difficult time finishing in the top 4 to qualify for next year’s Champions League. Unless of course, they go on and win the Champions League this season to secure a position in next year’s competition like they did in 2012. Hey, stop laughing.
Manchester City is currently top of the table, ahead of Arsenal on goal difference, with Cinderella-story Leicester City in third, and Manchester United in 4th. Most pundits do not expect Leicester to keep pace, but there is a great opportunity for Tottenham, Liverpool or even West Ham United to grab that final Champions League position. Liverpool has its new rock star manager (more on that below) and West Ham United has a much stronger bench than in previous seasons, but Spurs have not lost since the opening fixture of the season and were the better team for most of the match against Arsenal this past weekend. At the moment, Spurs seem the most likely to crash the Champions League party next season.
With Harry Kane regaining his form from last season, Spurs look poised to challenge for the final Champions League spot. Photo: Twitter
2. Patience Is Not a Virtue
We are not even one-third of the way through the season and Sunderland, Liverpool, and Aston Villa have already made managerial changes. And with recent worrying runs of form, Chelsea, Newcastle, and Swansea all appear to be on the verge of sacking their managers should the losses continue to pile up. That would be six of the twenty clubs in the league potentially changing their managers by the end of the calendar year.
With the amount of money at stake at both ends of the table, with the top clubs fighting for entry into the Champions League and the clubs at the bottom fighting to keep collecting their Premier League checks, every club is in win-now mode. Unlike in the United States, there is no such thing as a “rebuilding year” and a prolonged dip in form could cause the manager to lose his job, no matter what he has previously accomplished for the club (see Mourinho, Jose).
3. No One’s Perfect
With only two points separating first place from fourth, everyone is tightly bunched up coming out of this international break. All of these top contenders have flaws and no one has distinguished themselves as the frontrunner for the remainder of the campaign. Arsenal has played incredible football for large parts of the season, dismantling Manchester United and defeating Bayern Munich in the Champions League, but they have been inconsistent (they are currently last in their Champions League and they lost to Chelsea) and they have certain depth issues thanks to a rash of injuries. Manchester City is also suffering from the injury bug, as Sergio Agüero has missed four matches with a hamstring injury picked up while playing for Argentina and now backup striker Wilfried Bony has also suffered a hamstring injury. City was also unable to beat lowly Aston Villa last weekend, who had lost their previous seven league matches.
Manchester United’s dull, plodding form this season has been difficult to watch, but also difficult to beat. They have been scoring just enough to win but to be serious title contenders they are going to have to increase their attacking efficiency. Their 17 goals in 12 matches are only the 8th most in the league so far this season. That will have to improve if they are to make a true title challenge.
And as for Tottenham, well…as Sir Alex Ferguson once famously said, “Lads…it’s Tottenham.”
4. The Transfer Window Will Disappoint
As of January 1, the transfer window…will be open! Throughout January, everyone will read the same ridiculous rumors about which clubs are bidding for which superstar players, as the clubs attempt to stay in the Premier League or push on for the title. After not adding a single outfield player last summer, will Arsenal finally make the move its supporters have been dying for and add a defensive midfielder? Despite the hype, big players rarely move during the January window because the prices are elevated, with the notable exception being Fernando Torres’s record-breaking move from Liverpool to Chelsea in January 2011. And look how well that worked out. So while there will be a lot of noise about Paul Pogba moving on from Juventus or whether Chelsea will truly try and clear out the “bad apples” from its squad and add new players such as Gonzalo Higuain, most likely the moves that will be made will be from clubs trying to stave off relegation, such as Bournemouth.
5. Jürgen Klopp Is a Rock Star
From the fawning reaction to his introductory press conference to his boisterous goal celebrations, and his decisive victory over Chelsea, the new Liverpool boss could do no wrong through his first few weeks at the club.
Jurgen Klopp celebrates the good times. Photo: Mirror
Right up until the Reds lost to Crystal Palace and Klopp expressed his dismay at the Anfield supporters that made for the exits following Palace’s go-ahead goal in the 82nd minute. Klopp said, “After the goal on 82 minutes, with 12 minutes to go, I saw many people leaving the stadium. I felt pretty alone at this moment. We decide when it is over. Between 82 and 94 [minutes] you can make eight goals if you like. Big decisions are made in moments when you are tired. Tonight it feels so bad because it was absolutely not necessary.”
There is no question that Klopp is a first-class manager, but it is equally apparent that Liverpool do not have the same caliber of players that the top title contenders possess. Will the Anfield faithful have the patience to give Klopp the time he needs to meld this club into a title contender as he did in his previous stop at Borussia Dortmund, or will they grow impatient if the club continues to hover near mid-table? The same question can be asked about the media, who may cease their flattery if the draws and losses continue to pile up. Somewhere out there the B-Rodge is asking that same question…
While we think we know a lot about what will happen next in the Premier League, history indicates that we really have no idea. And that is why we get up early on the weekend to watch.
The Premier League returns on Saturday, November 21st with the marquee matchup of the weekend being Manchester City vs. Liverpool at 12:30 EST.
Follow Mike Smith on Twitter @thefootiegent
