Premier League 2018-19: BBC Sport pundits pick champions and top four

[PeeEyeEmPee]

What is the Liverpool hype based on its utterly bizarre. Klopp has never taken them above 4th and the only decent team they beat all last season was city which was the basis of their “cup run”. They won 2 games out of 10 against the top 6. Keita and Alisson are the only players that will improve their 1st xi and that’s on paper as neither have ever kicked a PL ball. Also Salah had a freak season. There’s absolutely no way he is getting 30 goals again. So they’ve instantly lost 15 goals before the season even starts. When you strip away all the “booooooom” hype nonsense there’s no foundation for the hype. I think 2nd will be much like last season close between us Liverpool United.

Your logic is that they’ve “only” bought in 2 players to improve their first team? Well it’s flawed for a number of reasons. Firstly they’ve also bought in Fabinho, and he is top-drawer. Secondly, defence was their issue last year, and they’ve now addressed those issues at GK, CB, and CM. Thirdly, who is improving our first team?

I’m more than happy to pile in on Liverpool and their fans wherever warranted, but anyone not thinking they are going to be significantly improved over last season is seriously deluding themselves.

 

[Danny1]

Personally cant see us getting near top 4 this year. Liverpool and Chelsea have improved massively and City & Utd are better than us. We will be scrapping for 5th & 6th with Arsenal and possibly a surprise team.

One injury to a key player and we will plummet down the league. Suicidal not to strengthen a squad that desperately needs it to keep up with rivals. Oh well here I am hoping a few kids get some games this year.

 

[Saoirse]

Personally cant see us getting near top 4 this year. Liverpool and Chelsea have improved massively and City & Utd are better than us. We will be scrapping for 5th & 6th with Arsenal and possibly a surprise team.

One injury to a key player and we will plummet down the league. Suicidal not to strengthen a squad that desperately needs it to keep up with rivals. Oh well here I am hoping a few kids get some games this year.

City I agree. The others I'd all argue though.

Liverpool are very good on paper - but arguably underachieved last season. It never seems healthy for a team to rely on an individual as much as they do Salah (similar to when we had Bale at his best but the rest of our play suffered). And expectations are sky-high - 4th wouldn't be regarded as good, they want a title challenge and they want a trophy. That's a lot of pressure on a team that had a poor record in the big games last season and a manager with a history of just falling short. They're the most likely to finish Top 4 after City, but you couldn't rule out them cracking.

United have vastly superior resources to everyone bar City, but have underachieved ever since Sir Alex left. They have problems at centre-back compounded by injury and have so far failed to get the player they need there. But worse, they have Mourinho just at that stage where normally the toys go out the pram and somebody's season goes down the pan - and he's already gone full moody and been fighting his own players through the press before a ball has even been kicked.

Chelsea? Well if you think we've had a bad summer, just look at Chelsea to remember the grass ain't always greener. Their owner is disinterested and has been banned from working in Britain with relations between us and the Russian regime he's rather close to near an all-time low. Their stadium is cancelled. They couldn't even get in a manager in time to start pre-season and were stuck with the dead man not just walking but at the helm, let alone players. The guy they've finally got is an eclectic PR disaster who scream dressing room fallout waiting to happen - especially with the notoriously fragile egos at that club. They've just lost a world-class goalkeeper and are having to spend twice as much on a largely unproven replacement. Their star man in Hazard is there for now, but only has two years left on his contract and is far from guaranteed to sign a new one. This isn't exactly screaming well-run, coherent football club.

We're not in the position we hoped to be in, clearly. But things aren't disastrous, far from it. We are in a stronger position than we were this time last year - the same squad plus Lucas Moura and Josh Onomah. Everyone is settled and we'll see how the likes of Llorente, Lucas and Serge improve having had a pre-season - remember that even Sissoko went from disastrous to simply mediocre with the benefit of one last year! And there are positives too - we desperately need to give our talented youth players a chance and have paid the price for not doing that before with losing the likes of Griffiths and Bennetts.

I would honestly be surprised if both United and Chelsea finish in the Top 4. I expect us to finish 4th, ahead of one of them and behind the other. And I'd argue 3rd is as likely as 5th. Stability and sensible management goes a long way, and that's an advantage we have right now - which still feels very weird saying about Tottenham! COYS

 

[TottenhamMattSpur]

Liverpool are going to be massively better than us this season.
Just stop kidding yourselves.

They were shit hot going forward last season but suspect at the back.
They have sorted that out in every aspect. They will be the team challenging City.

United, technically should be better than us, they have added and they may even steal FROM us yet. The hope with them is that the Mourinho saga get's more intense it totally screws their season up. But then they'll come for Poch.

Chelsea, despite all the BS on here about Abramovic losing interest, just blew £70m at the drop of a hat for his brand new top of the range manager. They also dropped £50m on Jeorghino (sp) and have so far, kept Hazard and Willian. They will be a whole world better than last season where Conte was deliberately derailing them to get himself sacked.

Arsenal - total unknown quantity - may well be a force, no one knows.

Everton - have added decent players and a few of them. I rate Silva, I think they'll be up in the top 6 somewhere.

It's about time we stopped this ridiculous arrogance that we're just good and will just finish in the top 4. We won't "just do it" if we stand still.

I think a lot of you will be eating your words by the end of this season.

 

[SPURSLIFE]

I think it will be difficult for us this season. We have no real cover, should they get injured for Kane or Eriksen the two most important players in our side and we needed to bring in a couple of quality players. Grealish and Zaha would have been ideal. The other problem is that most of the "middle to lower" sides have strengthen and could nick unexpected points off us. We also don't know how the players and Poch will feel about no signings. They may feel that the club are not ambitious and it could effect their play. I'm still looking forward to the season but not with the same optimism as the last couple of years.

 

[archiewasking]

Honestly, at this moment in time, I feel we'll struggle to keep 6th, never mind top 4. The two Manc clubs, Pool and Chelski are nailed on, imho. The first three are a given, I think. Then look at Chelsea's midfield versus ours. Jorginho, Kovacic, Kante, Hazard, Willian, Loftus-Cheek. Us:- Eriksen, Dele, Winks, Dembele, Wanyama, Lamela, Sissoko. Aside from the first 2 (and even Dele disappears regularly in games). the next 4 are either crocked or semi-crocked, and the last one, for all his willingness, is just not of the necessary level. I could throw in Dier as well, but he might well end up at CB and he's always got a brainfart up his sleeve. If we hang on to MoPo and our best players, all well and good. I still think we will be battling the Goons and Everton, maybe even Fulham / Wolves / the Hammeroids for just the Europa League spots.'