With the World Cup done and dusted, football’s attention returns to the club game – and nowhere captures the eye more than the richest and most competitive league in the world: The English Premier League. Champions Arsenal overcame three successive runner-up finishes, and the Gunners are now the team to be shot down. Manchester City appear the main threat, but the post-Pep Guardiola era got off to the worst start with a 3-0 thumping by Arsenal in the Community Shield.
Manchester United are resurgent, and Liverpool start the season under a new coach after a disappointing title defence last term, while Chelsea have spent heavily under new coach Xabi Alonso. Here is Al Jazeera’s guide to the five clubs who could shape the title race. For years, the question was whether Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal could finally get over the line, and the answer was loud and clear last season.
The Gunners conceded only 27 league goals, lost five matches and finished seven points clear of Manchester City to claim their first league trophy since 2003-04. Rather than stand still and be content with what’s been achieved, Arsenal have strengthened from a position of power, and they appear to be following a familiar blueprint: Keep the core of a winning team intact and add quality reinforcements – the same formula that helped Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United and Guardiola’s Manchester City build eras of sustained dominance. The arrival of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle adds another proven midfielder to a group containing Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard and Martin Zubimendi, while Christos Tzolis gives Arteta another attacking option from the left.
Arsenal’s greatest weapon is their balance. They can dominate possession, defend deep, win ugly at times and remain exceptionally dangerous from set pieces and counterattacks. David Raya, William Saliba and Gabriel provide an impregnable backline rivalled by none; Rice gives them athleticism and authority in midfield; Odegaard offers invention; and Bukayo Saka remains one of the league’s most decisive attacking players.
Guimaraes’s arrival could turn an already formidable midfield into an exceptional one. As with all newly crowned teams, being champions brings a different kind of pressure. Opponents will approach the Gunners differently, and every draw or defeat will inevitably lead to doubts about whether they can retain the title.
Their dependence on Saka for attacking inspiration almost cost them dearly last season. They need goals and creativity consistently from across the front line. Saka remains the attacking reference point, and Rice has become equally fundamental to Arsenal’s identity, but it’s fair to say all eyes will be on new signings Guimaraes and winger Tzolis, who was the standout player in preseason games.
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