WORTH REPEATING
It’s been a decade since a team went back to back, but club has a chance
After rewriting the record books last season, Manchester City looks to defend its Premier League title,
Soccer is back in England. Little more than four months after Manchester City won the 20172018 Premier League title, the league returns in full this weekend with 10 matches spread out from Friday afternoon until Sunday, with the piece de resistance taking place Sunday morning, when the reigning champions visit Arsenal. Much has stayed the same when it comes to the landscape; the top six remains a group that will be tough to crack. As always, the fans of the beautiful game are in for their share of ups and downs over the next nine months. Here is a look at what to expect:
STICK IT TO THE MAN (CITY)
A Premier League team hasn’t gone back to back since 2009, when Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United won their third straight title. But for City, anything less would be a disappointment. The blue side of Manchester smashed at least 11 league records last year on its way to the trophy, including most points — the first time a team hit100 points in England’s top league — the biggest titlewinning margin and the earliest title success. And they only got better in the off-season, with coach Pep Guardiola’s side adding winger Riyad Mahrez on a five-year, $100-million deal. Mahrez, best known for helping guide Leicester to an improbable Premier League win in 2015-16, will likely battle with the likes of Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling for playing time. According to FiveThirtyEight, City has a 45-per-cent chance of winning the Premier League again this season. Only four teams, outside of one-offs Blackburn Rovers and Leicester, have won the league since its inception in 1992-1993; that looks unlikely to change.
BATTLE FOR SECOND BEST
Man U, Tottenham and Liverpool rounded out last year’s top four, all qualifying for spots in this year’s Champions League, and will likely battle for the No. 2 to No. 6 spots with Arsenal and Chelsea. United comes into the season bogged down by bad news largely linked to its coach, Jose Mourinho, who made it clear he didn’t get the players — particularly a central defender — he was hoping for in the transfer window. Tottenham goes into the season banking on what it had last year, mainly Harry Kane, the World Cup’s Golden Boot winner. Liverpool hit its stride toward the end of last season and then spent the most money of any English club in the off-season, bringing in goalkeeper Alisson Becker and midfielders Naby Keita, Fabinho and Xherdan Shaqiri. The additions make them look like City’s biggest challenger.
BIG SHOES TO FILL
Chelsea and Arsenal missed out on the Champions League this year after finishing fifth and sixth respectively last season. They both have new coaches who will attempt to get them back into the top four. Maurizio Sarri replaced another Italian, Antonio Conte, and will have to deal with a Chelsea without goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who forced a transfer to Real Madrid this week. Unai Emery gives Arsenal a new face on the touchline for the first time in 23 years, taking over from Arsene Wenger.
MAKING AN APPEARANCE
The Wolverhampton Wanderers, Cardiff City and Fulham make up one of the most interesting trios to be promoted in recent memory. Between new deals for returning players, new signings and loans, Wolves locked in nearly a dozen players over the summer, headlined by a club-record $30-million move for Spanish midfielder Adama Traore from Middlesborough. Cardiff will likely struggle up a division but Fulham, too, could punch above its weight. The team from West London was reportedly the third biggest investor in this summer’s transfer window, spending $167 million, behind just Liverpool and Chelsea.