With the 2024/25 Premier League season less than two weeks away, our writers make some predictions for the upcoming campaign.
Who will win the title?
Adrian Clarke: Manchester City will be favourites to win their fifth consecutive title, but I do feel it could be Arsenal’s time to be champions. The team has improved under Mikel Arteta season after season, and if that happens again the Gunners will reach 90+ points. With a few additions and fire in their belly, I fancy Arsenal to end their wait for the title.
Adrian Kajumba: Surely Man City cannot do it again. There has to be a drop-off at some point after what is now four Premier League titles in a row. Meanwhile, Arsenal are the coming force. After two title-race test runs in 2022/23 and 2023/24, this campaign will be their time.
Alex Keble: Arsenal. Surely Man City will run out of steam eventually and with Pep Guardiola refusing to be drawn on his future uncertainty may cause performances to wane. That is especially likely with Ederson rumoured to leave and Guardiola confirming that Savinho will be the only major signing. That means issues in central midfield will persist, a stark contrast to Arsenal strengthening their own weak spot with the arrival of Riccardo Calafiori. If Arteta adds a striker, Arsenal will quite simply be a better team than Man City.
Ben Bloom: If this is to be Guardiola’s final campaign in charge there will be even greater incentive for a true Premier League great to bow out on a high. It’s not an interesting prediction - and a couple of clubs are capable of running them close - but, as ever, it will be a surprise if Man City don’t win.
Verdict: Champions
Clarke: Arsenal
Kajumba: Arsenal
Keble: Arsenal
Bloom: Man City
Who will finish in top four?
Adrian Clarke: Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Spurs. I see the title race being more of a two-horse race this season as Liverpool adjust to Arne Slot’s rebuild at Anfield. I do feel that Tottenham Hotspur have a great chance of landing top four this season, but Ange Postecoglou will want more players to come in before the end of August that suit his style.
Adrian Kajumba: Arsenal, Man City, Man Utd, Spurs. Manchester United will not be as inconsistent and hit with injuries as they were during 2023/24 which will make a big difference. With Spurs having the foundations of last season to build on under Postecoglou, at this stage, I’d tip them to finish fourth ahead of their potential competition.
Alex Keble: Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Aston Villa. More upheaval at Chelsea, another turbulent season for Man Utd (if pre-season is anything to go by) and the potential for a difficult second season for Postecoglou – whose lack of a "plan b" means Spurs risk being found out – points to a repeat of last season’s top four.
Ben Bloom: Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool. While I can’t see anyone beating City to top spot, I expect the battle for the top four to be incredibly close. Chelsea have an interesting new head coach in Enzo Maresca and some steadily improving strength within their head-spinning depth. It may well take time to gel but I can see them going well. Arsenal and Liverpool have proven themselves at the top table on multiple occasions.
Verdict: Top four
Clarke: Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Spurs
Kajumba: Arsenal, Man City, Man Utd, Spurs
Keble: Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Villa
Bloom: Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool
Who else will qualify for European competition?
Adrian Clarke: Man Utd, Chelsea, Aston Villa. It feels as if United and Chelsea have too much ground to make up on last season's top performing sides to go higher than 5th, but their respective squads are strong. Erik ten Hag's side do show promise on occasions to produce a tactical win, as they did against Man City to win the FA Cup, and once the Blues' players become comfortable with Maresca's style changes they will be fine. Balancing UEFA Champions League football with domestic action will make it tougher for Villa to challenge right at the top.
Adrian Kajumba: Chelsea, Newcastle, Liverpool. There is change at Chelsea but they are used to that and having to adapt to it. That is not quite the same at Liverpool who will no longer have the reassuring presence of Jurgen Klopp at the helm following his departure after nine years. A season of transition for Liverpool under Klopp's successor Slot would be no surprise. Newcastle would have wanted European football but they can use not having any to their advantage in the Premier League. The demands of Champions League football impacted Eddie Howe's side last season and the same could now happen to Aston Villa in the upcoming campaign.
Alex Keble: Newcastle, Man Utd, Spurs. Newcastle came roaring back in the second half of last season and should perform strongly unless they lose Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak – which isn’t looking likely now.
Man Utd will surely improve after making two excellent signings, Leny Yoro and Joshua Zirkzee, while more summer upheaval at Chelsea (coupled with a quiet window) should keep Spurs ahead of them.
Ben Bloom: Man Utd, Newcastle, Spurs. A distinct divide has emerged between the top eight and the remainder, which means one team must miss out on (the chance of) European football. Unai Emery has worked wonders, but Villa may well struggle to match recent heights. Man Utd weren’t far off the top four last season despite being generally awful and have made a couple of interesting signings. Newcastle can benefit from no European football.
Verdict: Other European qualifiers
Clarke: Man Utd, Chelsea, Villa
Kajumba: Chelsea, Newcastle, Liverpool
Keble: Newcastle, Man Utd, Spurs
Bloom: Man Utd, Newcastle, Spurs
Surprise package?
Adrian Clarke: I will plump for Fulham to be the surprise package in 2024/25. I rate head coach Marco Silva highly, so if he is given the funds to revamp his squad sufficiently to cope with the loss of Joao Palhinha and Tosin Adarabioyo, they can still push on. They've signed a gem of a player in Emile Smith Rowe, the supporters will love having Ryan Sessegnon back, and by reportedly chasing Scott McTominay, he is signalling even greater intent in the transfer market. They need a bigger squad, but the platform is there to enjoy a decent campaign. A top-half finish is achievable.
Adrian Kajumba: Palace have never finished higher than 10th in the Premier League but achieving a new high this season is a realistic target. I have tipped Liverpool to claim seventh for now due to their greater experience towards top of the table but Palace may not be too far behind.
Alex Keble: AFC Bournemouth. The most remarkable thing about Andoni Iraola’s success in 2023/24 is that he did it without most of his summer signings. Alex Scott, Tyler Adams, Hamed Traore, and Romain Faivre all struggled for minutes and will bolster the team this season.
Ben Bloom: All eyes will be on Glasner after Palace’s end to the season, but I would not be surprised if London rivals Fulham and Brentford better the Eagles. Fulham have an adept coach in Marco Silva, who is excellent at getting the best out of players. Brentford did brilliantly to even stay in the top flight amid an extraordinary injury crisis and Ivan Toney’s absence. I’m convinced Kevin Schade is going to prove his worth.
Verdict: Surprise package
Clarke: Fulham
Kajumba: Palace
Keble: Bournemouth
Bloom: Fulham
Which promoted side will finish highest?
Adrian Clarke: I am going to take a punt on Ipswich Town. Head coach Kieran McKenna has passed every test he’s faced so far with flying colours and I believe he can make the Ipswich competitive. Ipswich will score plenty of goals, and because they have a young side packed with talent, I predict they will attack matches with fearlessness. Can they keep enough goals out at the other end? That’s the concern, but their firepower will help them pick up points.
Adrian Kajumba: Southampton. They should have the biggest combination of consistency and momentum following promotion plus Premier League experience of the three teams to come up.
Alex Keble: Leicester City. Losing Maresca was a blessing in disguise. His open attacking football could have made Leicester into the new Burnley, but instead they have a manager who knows how to transition to the conservative counter-attacking approach needed to stay up this season.
Ben Bloom: I covered a fair few Ipswich matches last season and my heart would love to say them, but I can’t see it happening. I haven’t tipped Leicester or Southampton to go down. Leicester currently possess the stronger squad but will have a new manager, and financial issues could well result in them losing a number of players and/or potentially suffering a points deduction. So Southampton are the safer bet.
Verdict: Best promoted team
Clarke: Ipswich
Kajumba: Southampton
Keble: Leicester
Bloom: Southampton
Bold prediction for the season
Adrian Clarke: Ipswich will score more goals than any other side in the bottom half of the table. Under McKenna I expect them to be bold, and attack-minded, especially at Portman Road.
Adrian Kajumba: Arsenal to go unbeaten in the league all season - just like in 2003/04! Their league form in 2024 was relentless. They secured results in the toughest matches, losing just once. That was one defeat too many though. With Arteta fiercely-determined to win the league, they will now not want to leave anything to chance.
Alex Keble: Another disappointing season for Chelsea. Graham Potter didn’t last long trying to patiently install a slower possession game, which Maresca is looking to do despite having no experience of managing at this level. An underwhelming window so far adds to the looming, and increasingly familiar, sense of dread.
Ben Bloom: Jeremy Doku will be nominated for EA SPORTS Player of the Season.
Given he only started 18 Premier League matches last season, few expect Doku to even play enough to be linked with such an award. But what he has shown in flickers is frighteningly good. If he can gain a regular starting spot he could tear Premier League defenders to shreds.
Verdict: Bold prediction
Clarke: Ipswich will score more goals than any bottom-half side
Kajumba: Arsenal to go unbeaten all season, again
Keble: Chelsea to have another disappointing season
Bloom: Doku nominated for Player of the Season