Manchester City: Previewing the 2019-20 Premier League

What Teams Figure to be contending for the Europa League and Champions League Spots in the Premier League this season?

In the second-to-last tier, we look at the teams that figure to be in contention for the Premier League’s European Qualification spots.

Arsenal

It’s been an exciting summer for Arsenal Football Club.

Arsenal landed one of the best wingers in the world by scoring NIcholas Pepe from Lille for £72.00 million, a club record fee. They also bought, but loaned out extremely promising center back William Saliba, signed well-regarded left-back Kieran Tierney, got David Luiz to strengthen the center of their defense, and got talented midfielder, Dani Ceballos, on loan from Real Madrid.

With those new signings coming in, Arsenal have done well to replace departures in Aaron Ramsey, Danny Welbeck, and Laurent Koscielny, and to strength the team as a whole. Their attacking line of Alexander Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Pepe is, on paper at least, a rival to any front-line in the league. Their midfield is excellent as well, especially with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Mesut Ozil, and players like Lucas Torreira, who they bought last year, having had a season to acclimate.

The big weakness in this side, as was the case last season, remains the center of their defense. David Luiz will not move the needle much in this regard. His value comes more from his distribution and aerial skills than from his ability to defend well in the open field. They remain weaker than the rest of the “big six” in this spot, even if they’ve gotten much better at full-back.

This team has the capability of finishing in the top four, and probably should based on talent. However, their defense will likely remain just weak enough for them to fall short of being a viable title contender.

Chelsea

Chelsea may be finally moving to give their abundance of incredible youth a shot this coming season.

Their big summer signings were bringing back talented United States winger/midfielder, Christian Pulisic, from loan after buying him in January, and midfielder Mateo Kovacic, who they had on loan last season.

In the departures, they sold their key player for most of this decade, Eden Hazard to Real Madrid, and sold David Luis to Arsenal.

Chelsea have, despite those losses, one the best rosters in Europe. Their back four and goalkeeper spots are occupied, at the starting level and in the rotation spots, by world-class talents. Their midfield is extremely deep too with N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Ross Barkley. Mason Mount should figure to be a fantastic creative option for them this season too, especially with Loftus-Cheek recovering from a serious injury.

The one spot where they’re obviously weaker than their closest competitors is up front. Their most promising young talent, winger Callum Hudson-Odoi, is recovering from an Achilles tear. At striker, Michy Batshuayi and Tammy Abraham possess immense talent, but neither is currently a top talent in that position.

Chelsea should figure to be in the race for the top four, but the uncertainty regarding how their front-line will perform is the one thing holding them back from being considered a serious title challenger this season. If Batshuayi realizes his potential, they could push for a title-run.

Everton

Everton have had an incredible summer in the transfer market. Though they saw several good players leave, they managed to land some of the best talents in Europe to replace them.

Moise Kean, one of the best young strikers in Europe, was signed for just £24.75 million. Everton also managed to secure Andre Gomes, who was great for them last season, on a permanent transfer, as well as the talented Jean-Philippe Gambin in the defensive midfield.

They also added to their depth by landing Fabian Delph on a permanent deal, and right back Djibril Sidibe on loan.

Everton are loaded with talent across the pitch. With Keane added to the front line, they boast one of the best front threes in Europe potentially with he, Bernard, and Richarlison to with new signing Alex Iwobi. Their midfield is also solid, especially in the defensive midfield spots.

The one thing that could be Everton’s undoing this season is the center of their defense. Though Yerry Mina and Michael Keane are both very good, they’ve left themselves with just one clear-cut option behind them in Mason Holgate. If either player gets injured, they could be facing a legitimate crisis in defense that will require them to move some of their midfielders or full-backs into the role.

Everton have serious dark house potential to break into the top six. We’ll see if they can put it all together.

Leicester City

Leicester City are another team who possesses an immense amount of talent across the pitch.

Their summer moves weren’t all that wild. They did well to secure Youri Tielemans on a permanent deal, and also managed to bring in solid forward, Ayoze Perez, and midfielder, Dennis Praet. They did, however, sell their top defender, Harry Maguire, to Manchester United for a world record fee for a defender.

In the forward and midfield spots, Leicester may be even better than Everton. They now boast two solid strikers in Perez and Vardy. They retained Harvey Barnes, Demarai Gray, Marc Albrighton, James Maddison, Hamza Choudhury, and Wilfred Ndidi too.

Their full-back spots also remain on pair or better than many of the big six with Ricardo Pereira and Ben Chilwell.

Leicester’s major weakness, like Everton, is the center of their defense. With Maguire gone, the team will be reliant on two young players, plus average veterans like Jonny Evans and Wes Morgan, to hold down the fort. They may be the weakest in central defense of any of the top ten teams.

If they can realize their attacking potential, though, Leicester could make a push for a top five finish this season, even if they experience significant issues in defense. Their midfield and attack is one of the better ones in the EPL.

Manchester United

Things aren’t looking that much better for Manchester United these days. Despite spending eye-watering amounts of money to catch-up to their cross town rivals, it sure feels like Manchester United is no closer to doing that than they were five years ago.

United landed two of the better players to move this summer in right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and center-back Harry Maguire. However, they also saw Romelu Lukaku depart for Inter Milan. It was a relatively tame summer for a team that felt like it needed to strengthen a lot further.

Despite their troubles, United still have one the most talented rosters in Europe. Their front-line options of Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford, Alexis Sanchez, and Jesse Lingard are solid. The first two, in particular, still have incredibly high ceilings.

In defense, they have two of the best full-backs in the league in Luke Shaw and Wan-BIssaka, and a third talented player in Diego Dalot who’s only begun to tap into his immense potential. With Maguire, they should have a better center defense than they’ve had in several years, especially if Victor Lindelof builds on his strong second half from last season. They could be a formidable pairing.

Their midfield of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Fred, Juan Mata, Andreas Pereira, and Scott McTominay, however, is very underwhelming. For all of the money they’ve spent in this side, their midfield remains considerably weaker than any of the other big six clubs. Titles are won and lost in midfield. The fact that several teams of lower stature boast better talent than them in these spots, is a quite an indictment on this team.

United could push for a top four place. However, it seems more likely than not that this team will be sitting outside the UEFA Champions League yet again.

West Ham United

West Ham United are the final team to feature in this tier, but their inclusion shouldn’t be a surprise.

In the summer market, West Ham have added two great talents in forward Sebastien Haller and midfielder Pablo Fornals. Those additions give West Ham one of the strongest potential Starting XI’s in the league.

West Ham have no obvious weaknesses on paper. Lukasz Fabianski is a solid keeper. They can field a back-line of Aaron Cresswell, Fabian Valbuena, Issa Diop, and Ryan Fredericks. Their midfield has Declan Rice, Manuel Lanzini, Fornals, and Jack Wilshere. Up front, they have Felipe Anderson, Andriy Yarmolenko, and Haller.

If West Ham’s talent can click, they’re the team that has the best chance to take a leap into the top four out of the non big-six teams. For as good as Everton, Leicester, and other are, West Ham has the best roster of them all.