The Premier League’s big six are more dominant than ever, so we decided to take a look at the most intriguing 2017-18 storylines having nothing to do with them.
Sometimes it’s hard to remember the Premier League is full of stories away from the title race and the battle to finish in the Champions League places.
But just because Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool grab all the attention, it doesn’t mean there’s not a host of other interesting stories to follow.
With the new Premier League season less than a week away, here are the best stories having nothing to do with the top six.
Javier Hernandez Mark II
It’s seven years since Javier Hernandez took the Premier League by storm. Now the prolific former United striker is back, this time with West Ham.
Back in 2010, Chicharito helped fired United to the title and looked liked one of the bargains of the burgeoning decade. He’d cost the Red Devils between £6-8 million, a snip for one of the deadliest finishers in the game.
Flash forward to 2017 and Hernandez cost the Hammers £16 million after reviving his career with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen. The 29-year-old thrived in Germany after the limp end to his spell at Old Trafford.
Hernandez remains a natural in front of goal. He has a keen instinct for exactly where to put the ball when presented with a chance.
Chicharito’s arrival could make West Ham the force they promised to be after Slaven Bilic’s first season in charge. Before Dimtri Payet wanted out and Bilic spent his second campaign ruing the lack of a striker as gifted as Hernandez.
Frank de Boer
Of all the new managerial hires this summer, none should generate excitement quite like Frank de Boer. The former Barcelona and Netherlands defender surprisingly took over at Crystal Palace after Sam Allardyce announced his retirement at the end of last season.
It means the Dutchman faces a challenge implementing his Total Football philosophy at a club which regularly flirts with the relegation battle. De Boer is tasked with producing free-flowing and attractive attacking soccer, the antithesis of his predecessor.
The approach worked wonders at Ajax, helping De Boer claim four straight Eredivisie titles. Yet Ajax are a club structured to foster exciting, expansive teams built on young talent.
De Boer will still work with some talent at Selhurst Park. Winger Wilfried Zaha, along with midfielders Yohan Cabaye and Luka Milivojevic, will help De Boer implement his ideas.
So will gifted full-back Patrick van Aanholt and the underrated Jeffrey Schlupp.
Spurs center-back Jan Vertonghen played for De Boer at Ajax. He thinks his old boss may have to alter his style, per Marco Giacomelli of the London Evening Standard:
"I’m not going to say the Dutch league is naive but they all play to win. In the Premier League, you have teams with a different philosophy — sometimes that will be difficult and different."
Hopefully though, De Boer won’t listen to Vertonghen and instead insist Palace play the Ajax way. It would be refreshing to see a team without the resources of the top six still upholding the traditions of the beautiful game.
Jermain Defoe back at Bournemouth
Jermain Defoe knows all about scoring goals and Bournemouth know all about him. Defoe once “scored in a club-record 10 consecutive league games for Bournemouth during a loan spell in 2000-01,” per Press Association and Guardian Sport.
Now Defoe is back after signing a three-year deal following Sunderland’s relegation. It speaks volumes about Defoe’s ability to still find the net in England’s top flight that the Cherries were willing to hand a 34-year-old a three-year contract.
Of course, Defoe proved last season he hasn’t lost the knack. He scored 15 times despite Sunderland’s struggles supplying him with chances.
Defoe won’t have the same problem at Bournemouth. The Cherries play quality attacking soccer based on working the ball quickly between the lines.
It’s an approach ideally suited to Defoe’s pace, perceptive movement and decisive shooting.
The Premier League has been kind to veteran strikers. Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored for fun at 35 last season. Teddy Sheringham was Player of the Year at the same age in 2001.
Defoe looks set to be the next seasoned goal-getter to thrive.
Debuts for Brighton and Huddersfield
The relegation battle is always the obvious biggest storyline outside events at the top. This season’s edition could well feature Premier League debutants Brighton and Huddersfield.
Everyone expected Newcastle to make it out of the Championship last season. There weren’t many counting on Huddersfield and Brighton doing the same.
Huddersfield haven’t featured in England’s top division for 45 years. But this vintage of the Tykes are led by charismatic manager David Wagner.
The German will give Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp and Chelsea’s Antonio Conte a run when it comes to wild touchline celebrations.
Brighton haven’t played at the top since 1983. Yet in manager Chris Hughton and mercurial winger Anthony Knockaert, they have two figures good enough for the step up in quality.
Both of these newbies will provide their share of watchable storylines as they bid to survive.
The return of Rafa Benitez
Rafa Benitez is back and with a point to prove after suffering relegation with Newcastle in 2016, albeit after taking over with only 10 games left in the season. The Spaniard brought the Magpies straight back up, but he’ll have his sights set higher than mere survival.
Benitez was once one of the most highly regarded tacticians in the sport. He won the Champions League and FA Cup with Liverpool, and La Liga and the UEFA Cup with Valencia. The Reds also narrowly missed out on the title in 2008-09 on his watch, with a squad more talented than Brendan Rodgers’ second-placed team from 2013-14.
Since his first stop in England, Benitez has endured his share of setbacks. He failed at Inter Milan and was sacked by Real Madrid, though a Europa League win with Chelsea in between proved Benitez still has what it takes to win at the highest level.
One of the best things about having Benitez back is his history of animosity with some of the division’s biggest names. His ability to get under the skin of United boss Jose Mourinho is legendary. Then there are those Chelsea fans who never warmed to the ex-Valencia boss.
The presence of Klopp, Conte and Pep Guardiola gives Benitez a few more targets to aim for. Sleeping giant Newcastle is the ideal place for this irascible gaffer to rattle some of the title-chasers.
Next: The best player of all time for each Premier League team
Wayne Rooney back at Everton
Everton reuniting with their once-favorite son is the best story outside the top six this season. Not only was it gratifying to see Rooney shun the greater riches of China and MLS to return to the Toffees. He can also help an improving squad break into the top six.
Everton are best-placed to challenge the division’s ruling classes. They have a shrewd manager in Ronald Koeman.
The Merseyside club has also invested heavily and wisely this summer.
Koeman added former Ajax captain Davy Klaassen’s technical acumen to midfield. Meanwhile, snagging Michael Keane from Burnley and Jordan Pickford from Sunderland to refresh an aging defense was a masterstroke.
Klaassen and Keane join bargain buys full-back Cuco Martina and striker Sandro Ramirez.
However, Everton still need the star quality and match-winning pedigree Rooney can provide. The 31-year-old should have a sizeable chip on his shoulder after being routinely written off during the latter part of his United career.
Make no mistake, though, Rooney still oozes quality in the final third.
He was an Everton boy wonder when he announced himself by beating Arsenal in October, 2002. If he can turn the clock back, Rooney might just fire his boyhood club into the Champions League.