For Premier League fans across the world, the opening weekend’s kickoff is like Christmas morning, no matter how promising or gloomy the upcoming season may be for their team. The Premier League giants face another season of high expectations and global pressure, while the rest of the league play catch up to their high-spending opposition.
Focusing on the ‘Top Four’ for now, each side constantly faces different challenges every calendar year. While some teams like Liverpool and Chelsea have much brighter outlooks than they did just 12 months ago, the Manchester clubs are coming off disappointing campaigns and big fan bases expecting an immediate bounce-back. So what are the biggest questions each Premier League giant faces as they come into the new season.
Can Liverpool handle the pressure as clear favorites?
For Liverpool, they come into this season as the defending champions following an unexpected title win in what was supposed to be a transition year for the club. Dutch manager Arne Slot came in from Feyenoord to replace club legend Jürgen Klopp, and immediately won the Premier League in four less years than it took the German.
But now Liverpool are in a position they haven't been in a very long time, Premier League favorites. Even during Klopp’s tenure at Anfield, Liverpool were never seen as the favorites due to Pep Guardiola’s Man City dynasty. But now, thanks to Slot’s Liverpool taking the league by storm and a transfer window that Liverpool fans have never seen before, the targets are fully on their backs. Can Liverpool now repeat in what has been a dramatic summer following their Premier League dominance, or will the weight of expectations cause them to collapse under the pressure?
Can Arsenal finally break through?
Speaking of collapsing under the pressure, it was another season of coming up just short in the title race for Arsenal. While their European campaign did prove that progress is being made, they looked farther off the pace domestically than they have in the past. Their open-play creativity is their biggest red flag, while set-pieces and defensive stability remain their strong suits.
The Gunners finally splashed the cash on a true number No. 9, Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres made the big money move away from Sporting, and returns to the Premier League a proven goalscorer. But is he the answer to finally break Arsenal’s trophy duck, or will it be another season of being just shy of title glory for Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal?
Can Manchester City replace the legends of the past?
Manchester City are coming off of one of their most turbulent seasons in over a decade, but still managed to finish just two points off second place. However, Pep Guardiola’s side did go trophyless for the first time since his debut season in Manchester. But the big difference this time being a clearly aging squad.
Kevin De Bruyne and Kyle Walker left City this summer, and the other stars of their past generation in İlkay Gündoğan, Bernardo Silva, Ederson, John Stones, and Mateo Kovacic are all on the wrong side of 30 and showed clear signs of slowing down last season. City attempted a mini-rebuild in the January transfer window, but the big signings came in the summer.
Rayan Cherki, Tijani Reijnders, and Rayan Ait-Nouri joined the club and will look to fight for a place in the first team immediately. All three have been touted as potential superstars of the future for many years, but the big challenge with City is managing the transition of the previous treble-winning squad to the one of today. With Guardiola’s reluctance to move on from the old guard and his poor youth management in recent years, will the new kids on the block be able to pick up the mantle from their aging stars of the past?
How far can Chelsea carry their momentum?
Chelsea come into this season with a swagger and confidence not seen since the months following their Champions League victory in 2021. Fresh off a Club World Cup, Conference League, and top-four finish, the Blues continued to add quality to their squad that now has very high expectations.
There are a lot of similarities in the buildup to Maresca’s second season as there was to Mourinho’s in 2014-15, but the big difference is Chelsea have just gone through an unprecedented pre-season and are coming off only three weeks of rest. They’ve already lost center back Levi Colwill to a long-term injury, and now have to face Champions League opposition and they need to keep a strong lineup for the majority of those games. So after a whirlwind pre-season, will Chelsea’s lack of rest and jump in competition swallow their title aspirations?