The End Is Near
Okay peeps, I'm going to do something a little different this week and predict how the Barclays Premier League table will look at the end of May when all is said and done. In reverse order then:
20th Aston Villa
Obviously. No further analysis is really necessary, other than to note that this Aston Villa team are genuinely one of the worst in Premier League history. It's impossible to see them finishing anywhere other than dead last and equally impossible to see them getting anywhere near 25 or 30 points, let alone the 40 that might be required for them to stay up. This one should surprise nobody.
19th Norwich
A lack of fire power, a lack of a convincing defence and a real lack of leadership. This Norwich team do not convince me in any area of the pitch. With just two points to speak of from their last ten games (albeit one of those an impressive point last time out against Manchester City), it's difficult to see where this Norwich team are going to get their next win from. They have four absolutely huge games coming up, as they play West Brom, Palace, Sunderland and Newcastle. All of these are very winnable games, but simply put, I think the other two teams in the dogfight are stronger than Norwich, and although I think it will be close, I think ultimately, they're going down.
18th Newcastle
Very, very tough to call between the two North East clubs, especially since the introduction of Rafa Benitez, but I'm not sure that he'll have enough in the tank to save Newcastle. They look horribly deficient, full of lazy and mediocre players and although they do have some significant firepower, that firepower has failed miserably to turn up on a regular basis. And I'm not sure that Benitez knows quite what he's walked into, and he doesn't have relegation experience.
17th Sunderland
Naturally, if I think Newcastle and Norwich are going down, then Sunderland are going to finish just above them. I think that they have the goals in Jermain Defoe to keep them in the Premier League, and with Sam Allardyce, they have a manager who is extremely experienced at this sort of scrap. Defensively, all three teams are about as bad as each other, but I think Sunderland are a better all-round side and will have the firepower and the nous to escape the drop.
16th Crystal Palace
Palace are in freefall, with no team doing worse than them in 2016, not even Norwich. I don't think that any of the teams below them will secure enough points to take advantage, but I can't see Palace picking up too many more points, as they have a tough run in and are sorely lacking in form. Hopefully, Pardew can keep his team in the Premier League, but if they keep playing poorly then they could be pulled into the scrap.
15th Swansea
Since it looks like they won't go down, Swansea's form has been pretty average. Although they secured back to back wins against Arsenal and Norwich, both of those teams had their problems and I think that Swansea are not really looking up the table much to be quite honest.
14th Bournemouth
Bournemouth are in a really good run of form, but they have some tough games coming up and I expect that the run in will see them slide slightly back to 14th, which to be quite honest, would represent an exceptional season for the club, who could easily have been looked at as relegation candidates at this stage of the season.
13th Watford
Another team who will be pleased with a midtable (or slightly below) finish will be Watford, who are another side whose form has slid since the turn of the year, with Premier League survival all but secure. Nevertheless, they have some real quality in their side and I expect them to halt the slide and finish roughly where they are now.
12th West Brom
Another year and another midtable finish which will please Tony Pulis no end. West Brom have never looked in danger of being relegated but also never looked in danger of breaking the top ten, and as such, I can't see them finishing much higher than 12th.
11th Chelsea
Slightly controversial, but Chelsea have a lot of tough games to come that I can't see them winning. They're very comfortable where they are, but I can't see them making any huge inroads in the final table. To be honest with you, between Everton, Chelsea and Stoke was tough, they're all going to finish around 10th. A shocking season from the Blues.
10th Everton
Not much to say here beyond a disappointing season for Everton but I think that they're slightly worse defensively than Chelsea, who are in better form, so I think that they'll finish 10th. They do have slightly more firepower than Stoke, but expect this to maybe be the other way around.
9th Stoke
Despite still having a few good teams to play, Stoke will inevitably pick up some more points, and hopefully finish ahead of Everton and Chelsea. Nevertheless, I can't see them finishing in the top eight from here.
8th Southampton
Reaching the business end and despite a strong season from Southampton, I think that the teams ahead of them are simply stronger. They still have to play three of the top four, plus Liverpool and Everton, so an eighth place finish wouldn't be the end of the world for them, when all is said and done. the competition is just too fierce.
7th Manchester United
A team crippled by injuries, running on fumes and struggling for rhythm, I can't see Louis Van Gaal's team finishing in the top six. Teams around them have more momentum, better individuals and more to play for. I expect United to fall away in the last few games, especially with some tricky fixtures to come.
6th Liverpool
As much as I want us to make a decent fist of a top four charge, I just think that there's too much inconsistency in our team and that the teams above us cannot continue to play as badly as they have in recent weeks (City and Arsenal). They must find their form sooner or later and I think that a poor start to the season and a couple of fixtures where we'll drop silly points in the run in will cost us and we'll fall short. Not a good season, but not as as bad as it threatened to be.
5th West Ham
For similar reasons, I also don't think West Ham will make the top four. They have every chance, if they can get some big results against the likes of Arsenal who they have still to play, of putting the pressure on, but Arsenal and City have decent run ins and simply cannot keep performing as badly as they have been recently.
4th Arsenal
I think that they'll be run close, but I think that Arsenal have too much quality and too many reasonable fixtures left to drop out of the top four. That said, I also don't think that they're playing well enough, have enough momentum or that Leicester or Spurs will drop enough points for them to challenge for the title, and this would represent a disappointing season for Arsene's men.
3rd Manchester City
City and Arsenal are in a really similar boat here, but I think that City have individuals capable of making things happen in a way that Arsenal don't, even if Arsenal have an overall better squad. I think City have left themselves too much to do to make a good fist of the title now, but they should have enough quality and find enough form to secure a top four place.
2nd Tottenham
I must have been listening to Dan Lipman for too long because I'm a real fan of Pochettino's Spurs. I think that they'll make a bloody good fist of the run in to be honest, I think that they'll win a lot of big games and really push Leicester. But ultimately, I just think that they have too much to do, I think that they've left themselves too few games and crucially, I think that they could end up just running out of gas towards the end.
1st Leicester City
With all of my heart, as much as any neutral does, I want Leicester City to win the Premier League. They have done all of the hard work, won some sensational games, blown teams out of the water along the way and thoroughly deserved to be where they are. But more importantly, six clean sheets in their last seven home games means that they're doing what they need to do at this stage of the season, in tough games against teams scrapping for points. They're grinding out results time and again against teams that they could easily lose to, and they're showing no signs of buckling. They're very nearly there now.
The Hard and Fast Section
- What a volley from Okazaki. Priceless.
- India capitulated against New Zealand. This should be good.
- Francis banned for 8 weeks. Good.
- Lennon has left Bolton. Merry-go-round.
No comments:
Post a Comment