EPL 2015/16 - Game Week 1

The long suffering wait is over. EPL is back in full season soon. The hibernation is over. Who will win the league? Who will be among the top four? Who shall be relegated and how will the new boys fare? Club bosses are like the banks, if you come with success or as a big name, you get to have all the money.

Manchester United v Tottenham - United opened the match of last season with a loss to Swansea. Louis van Gaal has by now spent if not squandered some 250 million pounds on new players and he has to succeed. If given the same money, could David Moyes do the same or better. Life is never fair. Am I convinced that they win the title this year? No. They have only Rooney up front and he was not even playing striker last season and their defence is suspect. Meanwhile, Harry Kane single-handedly gave his team 24 points with his goals, more than any one last season. If you saw his goal against MLS recently, it showed his class all over, pulling a defender away to one side and in that same movement fired to score a goal to the other side. Brilliant. Rooney has scored more goals on opening day than anyone else in the EPL. You are almost guaranteed of 2 goals here.

United have changes but nothing was done to addressed their leaky defence. De Gea is distracted and Luke Shaw could be something when fit. Watch out for Memphis Depay. Tottenham is a delight when in full flow and Lloris had a good season while I am impressed with Eric Dier but tend to let in easy goals. I would expect Eriksen, Chadli and Harry Kane to have a good season. Pochettino has stability to work on more than Louis van Gaal. Both sides drew their matches mostly in 2013 and 2014 with each having won a match each. Its opening day, The theatre of dreams adds pressure. I expect only a draw as the home side is not settled. 2-2.

Bournemouth v Aston Villa - Many promoted teams in past seasons went back down immediately. It is hard to play attacking soccer when you face the big boys. Swansea was one of the rare ones that adapted well and more than survived but it is a reasonable opportunity to face Aston Villa who struggled last year and though Tim Sherwood has them improved and survived, they are likely to struggle again. I have not seen Bournemouth in action but home advantage counts and Villa will struggle after having lost Benteke and Delph. Who will get them the goals regularly? Much as you may like Tim Sherwood, it may be tough for Villa. 1-0.

Norwich v Crystal Palace - The Canaries are back and they are hosting a Crystal Palace side that at times play quite incredibly well last season. Chamakh and Murray are just into their 30s leading the front line. Zaha at 22, looks powerful at times but it was Bolasie that impressed the most towards the end. Palace can be tough and physical. I'll choose a close win simply because Palace can play and have been around longer. 1-2.

Leicester City v Sunderland - The Foxes finished the previous season brightly to live to fight another day. The just have a good pre-season but the Black Cats are much the same and will probably struggle again this season. Last year both their encounters ended 0-0 but I expect the home side to win this time. 2-1.

Everton v Watford - Everton is a much better team than their position suggested. While Watford are an unknown quality, they can surprise a little but it is hard to think that the home side could not contain them to win soundly. In 5 matches stretching back to 1988, Watford lost all their games to Everton. Roberto Martinez should have found a solution to their defence by now. So it is 2-0 for me here.

Chelsea v Swansea - Chelsea did not have the best pre-season, they did not add on to their squad significantly but they are still the team to beat simply because they are mean. Ageing John Terry remains their backbone, Cesc Fabregas rules the middle, Eden Hazard makes things happen and Diego Costa when fit is their top scorer. Tibault Courtios keeps things neat as their last line and Ivanovic has been consistently topping the charts at right back not to forget Matic the key man between their defence and attack. DO not read too much into their pre-season results. They are still the team to beat especially if Mourinho could revitalise Radamel Falcao, once Europe's deadliest reduced to just another player at Manchester United. 

Swansea are the best example of how to adjust to the top level and more than survived. They were adaptable and they can play. Unfortunately their record against Chelsea have been poor. Played 5 lost 5 and in their previous 2 meetings the scoreline got bigger and uglier. 2-0.

Newcastle v Southampton - The Magpies may have a few interesting players and appointed Steve McClaren as manager who from his Dutch experience will surely introduce a few Dutch players or from the Dutch league. You must remember how they escaped death last season. The Saints were for me the most surprising side under Ronald Koeman as he made them a very good team. They have stability and play as how a really good team should. The last time Newcastle won a match against Southampton was in early 2013, drew one and lost the rest. The problem for the Magpies was last season they could hardly score. I'll give them a goal here but the Saints to win. 1-2.

Arsenal v West Ham - The Gunners have good reason to feel confident. A really good season last year, a good pre-season, a happy unchanged and fully fit team and if things are kept this way, they could be firing on all cylinders. We have been getting glimpses of that plus they could score from anywhere and now have learnt how to defend well and with Petr Cech commanding at the back with his vast experience, they have bought more than a keeper. In 14 years they have lost only once in an opener and if you saw how they played Chelsea in the Community Shield last week, some may think the Professor has found the solution to great thins to come. The Gunners has great fire power and, speed and invention - Ozil, Cazorla, Wilshere, Giroud, Walcott, Alexis Sanchez and watch out for Oxlade Chamberlain. He is going to be some player.

The Hammers will try hard as this is a London derby. They have finally gotten rid of Sam Allardyce and replaced him with Bilic. They have a good goalie in Adrian and other interesting players like Cresswell, Noble, Sakho and would be helped if Andy Carroll is not injured and playing well. West Ham somehow are rather poor on opening day. On the basis of what I saw of Arsenal when they visited Singapore, I would say a clear and comfortable win is on the cards. 3-0.

Stoke v Liverpool - Liverpool's most crazy defeat at the end of last season by 6-1 must be fresh in their memory. Not a lot have change at Stoke but Liverpool will look very different. Mark Hughes has done very well at Stoke while Brendan Rodgers looking clever at times have no more time for experiment. Liverpool was poor in defence but nothing much was fixed except Clyne coming over from Southampton and he is more accomplished than Glen Johnson. I think Rodgers must play Joe Gomez rather than persist with Moreno who was a weak link last season and for goodness sake, he has to stop playing Emre Can as a defender. Emre Can can be an important player for the Reds. Adam Lallana looked sharp in pre-season, Coutinho will carry their inventive edge and now can be shared by Firmino. 

Jordan Henderson have proven himself and will make an excellent captain. Ibe has been a revelation and James Milner will give them steel and versatility. Danny Ings is a good forward with Christian Benteke a monster. Can he fit the Liverpool play and when will Sturridge be back? I think that Benteke has the attributes to be an awesome striker and he could succeed in a big way here. At least, it is looking good on paper and better than last year. Liverpool need a very good start or lots of questions will be asked. Stoke is physical and will pose a challenge at home. I expect Rodgers to throw all in for a winning start for they have a very challenging schedule ahead to face Arsenal, Manchester United, Everton Chelsea and Tottenham early on in the season. They just might. 1-2. 

WBA v Manchester City - The Baggies under Tony Pulis are quite a team. They are having a good pre-season but then it is difficult for most EPL teams to play Manchester City who has added Raheem Sterling for pace and Fabian Delph for bite. However, City has an ageing defence and a less consistent midfield. The last 5 times they met were all wins for City so this will probably be no different. 0-2.

Looking at the crystal ball, who do you think will win the title and who will be in the top four? Isn't it Chelsea's title to lose? We know how good and mean they are but others are catching up. It is going to be harder for them this season. They are capable of winning it again but all their key players must be injury free and at the top of their game. Manchester City has added more pace in Stirling. Their defence have been leaky so Joe Hart needs to put on another great season. A lot has to depend on Sergio Aguero and David Silva. Yaya Toure was as dominant last term.They will need a big performance to win the league, even to maintain second.

Arsenal, has the third best defence last year. Petr Cech will prove an important signing. The Gunners have finally shown they have learnt how and could defend. The have the most goal scorers all over the field. They have a very settled side in high spirit and they have Coquelin. Oxlade Chamberlain has a bright future, Giroud is scoring, Walcott is fully fit and looking real sharp, if Sanchez displays the same form as last season, if Aron Ramsey picks up steam, Wilshere stays injury free, Arsenal may even seriously challenge for the title. Their quality is already there. Only chink in the armour is what if Coquelin is out? Who is there to defend ahead of the back line? The Gunners look like very good prospects.

Manchester United's Louis van Gaal are in the same boat as Brendan Rodgers. Louis van Gaal and Brendan Rodgers are playing for their jobs and reputation. The Red Devils has a talented but unsettled goalkeeper. Their defence is dodgy and they did not get Mat Hummels. There are no other proven goalscorer like RVP. but they have added quality in Memphis Depay and Bastian Schweinsteiger to provide pace and steel respectively. They are still a very good team but to win the title you need something special. There are also too many changes. Perhaps they have to wait another year or so. Fans and all expect them to challenge for trophies and improve from 4th placing. Champions League will further distract them.

Chelsea is the team to beat. They have a proven first XI that could still defend and win the title but Mourinho have added little. Radamel Falcao was once one of the world's best but he is an uncertainty. Maybe Mourinho knows how to get the best out of him. Injuries to key players could unsettle them, otherwise they knew exactly how to do it. This season it will be harder for them. They have many important players but key to them all is an unsung hero called Nemanja Matic. I can tell you that ''manja'', he is not. He was a great signing for Mourinho. He elegantly seeks and destroy before the opponents face his defence. 

Arsenal has the best chance in years to win it. Others have said it before in previous years but I did not and I am saying it this time. Petr Cech is a very useful signing to help the Gunners defence. Their defensive qualities has improved being third best last season. Wenger is also now willing to play defensive at times instead of all out attack exposing or stretching his defence. Coquelin has done a fine job but does he has any cover? A player in the mould of Matic would definitely enhance it. They have one of the finest midfield in the league. They have a team that could score from anywhere but Oliver Giroud alone is not enough. They have the quality to score from anywhere. When Alexis Sanchez, Santi Cazorla, Theo Walcott and Ozil shine, they are irresistible and unstoppable. Oxlade Chamberlain looks like an ox in the box. They have the resources and the most settled team other than Chelsea to be better than last season (in which their second half was awesome). When Mourinho starts picking a quarrel with Arsene Wenger, you know he is eyeing Arsenal as a major threat and competitor. I know it because there are people who pick on me for nothing too. 

Liverpool - Nobody except Reds die-hard fans would pick them to win. Rodgers has signed interesting and potentially excellent game changing players. Firmino for all his talent is unproven in the Premier League. They need Coutinho to find last season's form, Daniel Sturridge to be back from injury, they need to keep their defence tight and Rodgers must use Emre Can in midfield where his quality is needed not as a defender. Clyne is a solid addition at fullback. Jordan Henderson will make a great captain and his game has improved tremendously. He must dare to use youngsters like Joe Gomez (as Moreno has been a weak link) and Jordan Ibe who is bound to have a great future. Ibe can give opponents a torrid time. Finally, Christian Benteke is a great striker but he need to be injury-free and both he and Liverpool can find how to play the most suitable way. The Reds will need more time to win the title but they could win a Cup and get into Champions League first. This may save Rodgers his job.

Manchester City's Manuel Pelligrini faces the axe if City continue to slump. Raheem Stirling can be explosive but he alone can't do much even though he could offer them pace which they lack. Last season Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure were not themselves. City's defence is ageing and they have an over reliance in David Silva and Sergio Aguero. Joe Hart will need to be at his best. If all things do not come together, City may even find it hard to keep second position let alone win the title. They still do have the quality to do it though.

My humble take for EPL 2015/16 season would be:

1 Arsenal, 2 Chelsea, 3 Manchester City, 4 Manchester United and 5 Liverpool.