What To Expect From Chelsea This Season

With Mourinho back at the helm after six years away in Europe, Chelsea will be looking at silverware this season. Of course, they are a team that looks for silverware every season, but the fans might feel that this is their year. Under Mourinho's management in the past, Chelsea were arguably the strongest domestic force in the game - winning two Premier Leagues, one FA Cup, two League Cups and one Community Shield all in the space of three years. The one thing they lacked under Mourinho (the first time) was European success, something they have found in his absence. In 2012, under the management of Roberto Di Matteo, The Blues managed to win the Champions' League, beating Bayern Munich in a dramatic penalty shoot out. Also, last season they won the Europa League under the management of Rafa Benitez. However, Mourinho has tasted Champions' League glory - once with Porto in 2004 and again with Inter Milan in 2010 - and so Chelsea will be hopeful he can lead them to more European trophies. 

Chelsea's domestic form last season was sound, as they achieved - on the whole - what was expected of them. A 3rd place finish, three points ahead of 4th place Arsenal and three points behind 2nd place Manchester City, is what Chelsea fans have come to terms with as being plain sailing for the London side. However, Chelsea's stats probably warranted a better finish than they got, as they scored more goals than anyone except Manchester United and ended up with the best goal difference of anyone other than Manchester United. So if the stats put them second best behind the 20 time champions, why did they finish 3rd? There was only one game in it between them and Manchester City. Could Jose Mourinho be the man to come in and get them that one game? Could he even achieve more than that? 

His transfer activity certainly suggests that, with Chelsea bringing in several quality players so far this summer. Some of those signings include Andre Schurrle, Willian, Kevin De Bruyne and veteran of the game Samuel Eto'o. It is clear from these types of signings that Mourinho wants to bolster Chelsea's attack and that he feels the way to win the title is to score more goals than everyone else in the league. To an extent he is correct, however a good defence is vital in the Premier League. 

Chelsea's start to this season has been a good one, with wins over Hull (2-0) and Aston Villa (2-1) and an away draw at Manchester United (0-0) - which is a good result for anyone - they currently sit at the top of the table. Their next six fixtures - Everton (A), Fulham (H), Tottenham (A), Norwich (A), Cardiff (H) and Manchester City (H) - shouldn't provide too much of a challenge (on the whole) for the Europa League champions. Games like Tottenham away, however, may be tricky as Spurs have been one of the league's highest spenders this season and are starting to look like a quality side. Manchester City at home will be another hard game, but home advantage should prevail.

So in conclusion, Chelsea look like challenging for the title this season under Mourinho, as he tries to implement his European style of football into The Blues. Their new signings should go a long way to helping them climb up the table and I think that in May we'll be seeing Chelsea in either the Champions' place or second place. 

  

What To Expect From Cardiff City This Season

The new boys of the Premier League - playing in the top flight for the first time since 1962 - Cardiff City look like a team who may be able to hold their own in England's best league. Malky Mackay's men managed to win the championship last season, totalling 87 points and winning 25 matches along the way. They finished eight points ahead of second place Hull City and lost only nine games, joint with Brighton as the team who lost the least games. 

Cardiff's most recognisable players are Craig Bellamy and Fraizer Campbell, two strikers who have experience in the Premier League. Added to that, Cardiff have spent a total of £20,500,000 in the summer, bringing in players that include Gary Medel, Steven Caulker and Andreas Cornelius. So there is quality all over the Cardiff City squad for Mackay to select for each match.

Cardiff's start to the season has been a mixed bag of joy and despair, with their first match - away at West Ham - ending in a 2-0 loss. However, their first home game - against 2011-2012 champions Manchester City - ended spectacularly with a late double from Campbell that handed them a 3-2 victory against the highest spending team of recent years. 

Cardiff City's next six games - Everton (H), Hull (A), Tottenham (H), Fulham (A), Newcastle (H), Chelsea (A) - should provide quite a challenge (on the whole) for the newly promoted side. Games like Everton, Tottenham and Chelsea will be especially difficult considering the quality of the three teams. However, games like Hull and Newcastle should provide entertaining scenes as both teams will be similarly matched as far as skill goes.  

In a longer-term time frame, if The Bluebirds continue to use the underdog mentality to their advantage in the big games and use their experienced squad against the more evenly matched teams, Cardiff should be able to finish in a decent position come May. Almost like Norwich did a few years ago, if their fresh style of play can continue to be a shock to the systems of the more established Premier league sides, they may finish around 14th or 15th this year.  

  

What To Expect From Aston Villa This Season

A side who managed to avoid relegation last season, Aston Villa will be hoping to recover and do better this season. Villa were one of three teams who finished the campaign on 41 points, which is only five points above Wigan, who finished 18th and were relegated. Last season, Paul Lambert's side managed to lose the majority of their games, coming second best in 17 of their matches. 

However, since the end of the season, things have started to look up for The Villains. They managed to retain the services of star player Christian Benteke, who had put in a transfer request and was being linked to Tottenham Hotspur. They have also brought in some new players - Luna, Okore and Tonev to name a few.

The start of the current season has really been more of the same for the Midlands team, they are currently 9th in the table with one win and two losses. Their opening day win against Arsenal at The Emirates came as a shock to many, with Benteke taking centre stage as usual. Since then Aston Villa have suffered narrow defeats at the hands of Chelsea (2-1) and Liverpool (0-1), this should be considered as a good start for what is, in reality, a mid-table team.

With Aston Villa's next six fixtures - Newcastle, Norwich, Man City, Hull, Tottenham and Everton - looking like a mixed bag of challenges, Paul Lambert will be quietly confident that his side can take a few scalps. As long as Benteke is in top form (as he usually is), the likes of Hull, Norwich and Newcastle should not provide much difficulty for Villa.

For me, Aston Villa are a typical mid-table side. They have a star player, as most teams do, backed up by some quality from other areas of the pitch (Agbonlahor, Ireland). I think that Villa will return to form this season and finish in a decent position, probably in the top ten but if not, just outside that area.      

What To Expect From Arsenal This Season

A club with what is, on paper, one of the strongest starting elevens in the Premier League, Arsenal should be expecting to get into the top four comfortably. However, amid signs in recent years that Arsene Wenger has been losing his managerial genius (most effectively used in the early 2000s), Arsenal fans and football fans alike have witnessed the painful transition from title challengers to Champions' League play-off participants.

This isn't intended as a jab at Arsenal, it's just the harsh reality of their situation. Last season's fourth place placement for The Gunners was only just achieved by a slight points margin in front of Tottenham, when in theory they should be easily getting into the top four. Quality players like Podolski, Wilshere (although he is regularly injured), Walcott, Arteta and Cazorla should have all but ensured Arsenal's automatic qualification for a group stage place in the Champions' League, so what went wrong?

For me, Arsenal's problems lie in two main areas, the defence and the sub's bench. With a first choice back four of Sagna, Vermaelen, Koscielny and Gibbs, Arsenal can't realistically expect anything better than a fourth place finish this season. The only notable names on Arsenal's substitute bench are Aaron Ramsey and possibly Per Mertesacker, neither of which are quality players. In a League where teams like Chelsea can have a player of Juan Mata's quality on the bench and still play well, and where Manchester City can leave a player like Aguero or Silva out and play well, it is essential to have a strong bench.

So what will Arsenal be expecting from this season? Sadly, it'll be the same as always in recent years - snatching fourth place. Even this early in the season, it doesn't take a genius to realise that Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea will most likely take up the top three. That leaves Arsenal, Tottenham, Everton and Liverpool to battle for one place. 

I think that although Arsenal do have a good starting team, they are not progressing as fast as their Premier League rivals and that will mean that they will fall behind in the race for fourth place. It's my opinion that Arsenal just don't have what it takes to get fourth this season, but I hope they prove me wrong and start getting back to their old ways. However, how many of us can really see that happening?