We’re two games in to the new Premier League season, so it’s time for a major overreaction to what we’ve seen so far from Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and co.
It was an intriguing summer as a number of managerial changes were made at the top, while a host of exciting new signings arrived to the Premier League, unless your name’s Tottenham Hotspur.
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But plans can come crashing down pretty quickly after a couple of bad results, and we believe two managers’ jobs may be in danger already, while we’ve already decided which new-boys are destined for stardom and which ones are flops.
So without further ado, here’s our seven knee-jerk predictions for the season after just two games played…
Jose Mourinho OUT
This isn’t exactly that knee-jerk – it HAS to be coming, doesn’t it? After a difficult summer with well-documented friction over transfers, some poor pre-season results, and now an unconvincing first two games in the league, it’s surely third season syndrome once again for Mourinho.
Manchester United take on Tottenham next in what looks a challenging fixture, and anything other than a win will really set alarm bells ringing as it will closely resemble that nightmare start made by Chelsea under Mourinho in 2015/16.
To be honest, this looked the wrong choice by United from day one, with the Portuguese not really wedded to United’s values of promoting youth, playing attacking football and building true team spirit. It’s all turned really sour of late, and this can only end one way – don’t be surprised if he’s gone before October.
Zinedine Zidane IN
Talk is already hotting up about United thinking ahead to Mourinho’s potential departure, with former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane interested in replacing him and confident he’d be the club’s first choice were the 55-year-old to leave, according to the Mail.
It’s clear the Frenchman would be a perfect fit – his Real Madrid sides played attractive but efficient football, stepping it up in the big games to win three Champions League titles in a row.
Zidane was also a legendary player, so his big profile is a perfect fit for United in their attempt at becoming the new Galacticos post-Fergie.
It’s also been suggested he’d be ideal to get the best out of struggling French duo Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial – two talented young players that the club won’t want to shift just because they don’t track back enough for Jose’s liking.
Unai Emery to be Arsenal’s David Moyes
Now this is a bit harsh considering his first two games were Manchester City at home and Chelsea away, but hey, that’s what knee-jerk reactions are about.
Just as David Moyes had an impossible job being the first United replacement for Ferguson, Emery faces a huge task to turn things around at Arsenal after 22 years of Arsene Wenger.
A few new signings have come in, but how much time would Emery realistically need to build a squad full of the kind of characters he wants, and with players ready to adjust to his vastly different tactical approach?
The fixture list has been unkind on the Spaniard, but in modern football that can make or break it for managers. No one gets 22 years anymore, and most don’t even come close to two or three, so if these early defeats dent the already-fragile confidence at Arsenal while most of their rivals look so significantly improved, this could well be another season out of the top four. Given that that has to have been a priority for the new man in charge, we expect that could mean the chop before the season’s out.
Three-horse race for the title
With regards to the title race, we think things may be a bit closer this time than last season.
Manchester City should still be favourites, though Kevin De Bruyne’s injury makes things a little more interesting. Yes, this is a squad packed full of world class talent, but don’t underestimate the Belgian’s importance to Pep Guardiola’s side.
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Elsewhere, they continue to rely on an injury-prone Sergio Aguero, an ageing trio in David Silva, Fernandinho and Vincent Kompany, and a Leroy Sane whose confidence will surely have taken a hit after missing out on Germany’s World Cup squad.
Liverpool, meanwhile, have improved immensely, not just this summer, but after their slightly rocky start to last season. Just look at these stats since their 4-1 defeat at Tottenham last season:
Liverpool’s defensive stats since getting beat 4-1 at Wembley by Tottenham pic.twitter.com/qXQmZiVOtL
— LFC News (@LFCNews747) August 22, 2018
Virgil van Dijk made all the difference after his January move, and Alisson is clearly a major upgrade on Simon Mignolet and Loris Karius in goal. On top of that, they have more craft and creativity in midfield with the signing of Naby Keita (more on him in a bit) to go behind that front three that ripped teams to shreds last season.
Okay, so none of this is that controversial, but we’d also throw Chelsea into the mix as serious title challengers. Recent history shows they tend to have a great season followed by a crap one, and Maurizio Sarri is a very exciting managerial appointment.
They probably could have done with more in the transfer market, but Sarri is innovative enough to work with what he’s got, and if anyone can turn Alvaro Morata into a goal machine, it’s him.
Even if City win the league again, as is likely, it’s not going to be a 19-point gap again. Guardiola won’t have faced competition quite like this anywhere else, and we’d say this will go down to the final two or three games, with Liverpool and Chelsea sure to be close behind.
New signing for Player of the Year
Mohamed Salah did it last season, and we wouldn’t be too surprised if another new signing did it this time around.
One contender could be Keita at Liverpool, who just looks an insane talent:
https://twitter.com/AnfieldHQ/status/1032907854062264320
Jorginho also looks a superb purchase for Chelsea, though no-thrills players like him perhaps tend to be overlooked. Then again, N’Golo Kante won it in 2016/17, so it can’t be ruled out.
Riyad Mahrez at Manchester City might also be a contender. The Algerian has won it before and if he can have that kind of impact at his new club, he’s as good as any attacking player in Europe.
Kepa to be biggest flop
One signing we’re calling out straight away to be a flop is Chelsea’s new goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The 23-year-old is pretty much the definition of a panic buy, arriving late on as a replacement for Thibaut Courtois without too much planning seeming to go into this expensive addition, making the inexperienced shot-stopper the most expensive player of all time in his position.
The Spaniard kept a clean sheet on his debut against Huddersfield but was unconvincing in the 3-2 win over Arsenal. It’s early days yet, but we get the feeling this one just isn’t going to work out. The price tag and the pressure that comes with it is huge, he hasn’t had a proper pre-season to settle in, and the defence in front of him isn’t necessarily the most convincing either. Tough times ahead for Kepa.
England’s next star duo
Kevin De Bruyne’s injury presents a real chance for Phil Foden at Manchester City, and that’s already led to talk of an England call-up in the near future, according to the Sun.
We’d also throw James Maddison into the mix. The 21-year-old looked one of the best players on the pitch on his Premier League debut away to Manchester United, and is one well worth keeping an eye on at Leicester City this term.