ClapAs fans prepare to return to stadiums and we gear up for the hectic winter schedule, it’s starting to appear as if this season’s Premier League title race could be far more enthralling than many had first suspected.
Reigning champions Liverpool were tipped to run away with the title and retain their crown but after a few bad results and plenty of injuries, the race has seemingly been blown wide open.
The question now is simple: will anyone be able to mount a serious challenge between now and May? If the answer is yes, the following teams will be at the front of the pack.
Liverpool
We have to touch on Liverpool themselves if only because they’ve been so intriguing to watch so far this season. Despite the many, many injuries they’ve had to endure they are still considered to be the favorites for the title – which says a lot about the sort of operation Jurgen Klopp has put in place at Anfield.
They just have to try and get through the winter in one piece but as we all know, that’s easier said than done at the best of times. They’re easily one of the best teams in world football but if they can’t prove that by putting out their best squad, they’ll be in trouble.
Chelsea
Frank Lampard’s side hardly had the perfect start to their Premier League campaign but as the weeks and months have gone on, they’re definitely showing the improvements that now make them one of the most feared clubs in European football.
As well as their well-known attacking line-up, they’re starting to put together an unbelievable volume of clean sheets. If they carry on at this pace and continue to build up even more momentum, it’s going to be hard to see how anyone can stop them.
Manchester City
Yes, they’ve had some awful slip-ups this season and yes, they’ll have to wait until next summer if they want to sign Lionel Messi, but Pep Guardiola isn’t the type of manager who will give up without a fight.
He knows that many fans and pundits are writing City off, and that’s precisely the position he’ll want the club to be in. If they can go back to being underestimated then, bizarrely enough, they stand a far better chance of walking away from this season with the title in their grasp once again.
Tottenham Hotspur
Against all of the odds and all of the critics, Tottenham Hotspur are starting to look like title contenders under Jose Mourinho. They are top of the table with 10 games on and as we look ahead to the immediate future, it’s clear to see that we’re going to get a much better idea of their credentials between now and 2021.
Even if they fall away in the final few months of the season, they’re positioning themselves as a team that could build on this progress in the years to come. There are a lot of ifs and buts involved, of course, but Mourinho seems to be as motivated as he has been in a long time.
