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2020/21 Premier League predictions: Ask Colossus
As another football campaign dawns on us it’s time for our 2020/21 season predictions. We’ve asked five Colossus staff members to give their verdict on the season ahead. Joining us is Ed Acteson who serves as Chief Editor of the Colossus Blog, the Community & Syndicates Manager Jess Laney, Chief of Staff George Heap and two members of the Betting Operations team and frequest contributors to the blog, Alex Davies and Jack Nunn. Which of our team will prove themself a font of footballing knowledge and who will hang their head in shame? Read on for our 2020/21 Premier League predictions.
Ask Colossus: 2020/21 Premier League predictions
Who will win the 2020/21 Premier League?
EA: Liverpool. They were streets ahead of the rest last season and should have broken the record points total. If they sign Thiago Alcantara they will be unstoppable.
JL: The Man City juggernaut will carry on mercilessly and Liverpool, bearing in mind their performance two seasons ago, have now reached the end of their cycle (injuries and transfers will impact).
GH: Man City but more by default as I think Liverpool will drop back to the chasing pack a bit, and City can effortlessly hit 85+ points without firing on all cylinders.
AD: Liverpool. Although City will strengthen, Liverpool were so far clear last season it’s hard to see why they won’t win it again. If they sign Thiago from Bayern Munich, they really will be a force.
JN: Man City. I feel that Liverpool might suffer a bit of a title hangover after having an extremely intense last 2 years. City will be fired up to improve on last season’s poor effort and should get back to their brilliant best.
Who will make up the rest of the top four?
EA: I’ve been stunned by Chelsea‘s transfer business and have them second. Man City will finish third after an underwhelming summer and United to end up fourth unless they seriously pull their fingers out and sign Sancho, in which case they might leapfrog City.
JL: Arsenal, Man Utd and Liverpool will finish second, third and fourth respectively. Arteta, aka junior Guardiola, will have goals and more organisation. Man Utd will carry on where they left off but lose the biggest matches. Liverpool will start to drop points and a lack of confidence will set in.
GH: I’m reluctant to answer this before the transfer window closes! With current squads Liverpool in second, Chelsea in third and Man Utd in fourth.
AD: Man City will still be second best by some way. United will have to settle for third and big spenders Chelsea will likely finish fourth again.
JN: Liverpool in second, then Chelsea and then United. Liverpool and City were so far ahead last year it’s hard to see either slipping out of the top two. I do believe that Chelsea will close the gap after making some impressive signings, while United’s improving young talent and their good end to the season gives hope they will finish in the top four again.
Which three will lose the Premier League relegation battle?
EA: West Brom and Fulham seem nailed on to head straight back down and West Ham are in complete disarray so expect them to have a meltdown.
JL: Southampton, Burnley, Sheff Utd. If Ings doesn’t score, the Saints don’t get points. Dyche has reached the end of his tether and, similar to Bournemouth, their run with a small squad will come to an end. The Blades will suffer second season syndrome with no crowds and a keeper who was relegated last season.
GH: Fulham, WBA and Sheffield Utd. I think Palace will struggle but Eze looks a good player and I think Zaha stays. They’ll have enough to stay up. Newcastle and Burnley also to be in the scrap.
AD: West Brom finished last season weakly and I think they will struggle this season. West Ham flirt with relegation every year and this might be the season they come unstuck. Fulham also need to do some serious business before the window closes too or they could be in for a long season.
JN: West Brom, Aston Villa, and Crystal Palace. West Brom are yet to add much quality to what was a good Championship side but one that struggles in the Premier League. Villa were quite poor last season and possibly lucky to stay up given the teams below. Palace ended the season very poorly, have an ageing squad and are yet to add and significant signings, with the exception of Eze.
Name the Golden Boot winner
EA: Everyone seems to fancy Timo Werner but no overseas player has ever won the Golden Boot in their first Premier League season. I’m tempted to go for Aubameyang but instead I’ll go for Mo Salah to win it for the third time.
JL: Arsenal will score plenty next season and Aubameyang will always be on the teamsheet and never rotated.
GH: Aubameyang. The only player in the Arsenal squad who would walk into the rest of the top 6.
AD: If he stays, Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng should be right up there again. He has quickly established himself as one of the best strikers in the world and is unplayable on his day.
JN: Harry Kane. Despite only playing 29 games last season finished 5 goals off the top. If he can stay injury free he’s in for a good season.
Best signing of the season
EA: I think Newcastle signing Ryan Fraser on a free could be a masterstroke. With Allan Saint-Maximim reaking havoc on the opposite side, Fraser will have plenty of space to put in the type of crosses that saw him reach double figures for assists two years ago. He’ll link up well with Callum Wilson again.
JL: Gareth Bale when he moves to Man City.
GH: As a United fan I hope the answer turns out to be Jadon Sancho but, for now, I’ll go for the obvious one of Timo Werner at Chelsea. He’s made for the league and I’m pleased he did not end up at Anfield.
AD: Leeds spent big on Rodrigo from Valencia and his goals could prove vital this season. He has a decent strike rate in La Liga and if he is able to transfer that form to the Premier League, Leeds should have a successful season.
JN: I think Nathan Ake for Man City. A good defender and brilliant on the ball, will really suit City and the way they play.
Worst signing of the season
EA: Imagine trying to replace Vincent Kompany with a 5 foot 9 centre back whose team conceded 65 goals last season. Nathan Ake is a bizarre purchase.
JL: Chelsea will not gel, Timo Werner will flop and Frank Lampard will be found out as the kid with all the expensive toys and no idea how to play them.
GH: Rodrigo Mereno at Leeds. They desperately needed a goalscorer so appear to have splashed the cash on a 29 year old who has barely scored a goal in two seasons. Shout out for Thiago Silva at Chelsea. He can hardly be a flop as a free transfer but a soon-to-be-36-year-old playing a high line in the Prem!?
AD: Everton are splashing the cash but they have a history of poor signings for big money and I can see James Rodriguez being another in that category. He had a stunning 2014 World Cup which earned him a big money move to Real Madrid but never really scaled the heights again and he is arriving on a downward curve. I think he may struggle.
JN: Timo Werner‘s record up to now has been great but that was in the Bundesliga. I could see him not adapting to the Premier League.
Which manager will lose the sack race?
EA: Who is in charge of Watfor… Oh. In that case it’s between David Moyes and Roy Hodgson and I’ll pick the latter. As a Palace fan I witnessed the car crash that was our end to last season. One point from eight to finish the season. A poor start and he’s out.
JL: Leicester’s impending mid-table mediocrity will not go down well and Brendan Rodgers will be sacked in November. For Henry’s hand on Carragher’s thigh, think Ian Wright on Lineker’s.
GH: Scott Parker at Fulham. They were pretty tedious style wise in the Championship which is unusual for Fulham. I think they will get found out quickly in the Prem and they are not shy of pulling the trigger.
AD: West Ham seem to be teetering on the brink of a crisis after Mark Noble’s comments and it is not hard to envisage David Moyes leaving if they have a slow start. They are very hit and miss and Moyes may pay the price if they don’t hit the ground running.
JN: Roy Hodgson. A poor end to last season for Palace means a slow start here might mean Roy comes under pressure.
Who will win the 2020/21 FA Cup?
EA: Man City for me. The cups will be even more about your reserve team than normal this season and City’s is better than most.
JL: Tottenham. Mourinho will demand a Cup
GH: Man United. Ole will know he needs a trophy this year as the Champions League and Prem will be a step too far.
AD: Arsenal love the FA Cup and I don’t see why they can’t give it another good go this season. They were excellent when beating Chelsea in the final a few weeks ago and were impressive in the Community Shield too so they could be in for a bright season.
JN: Jurgen Klopp might see it important to win the FA Cup in his time at Liverpool in a quest to conquer all major competitions. He might give it more importance this year.
Who will win the 2020/21 Champions League?
EA: Serie A is rapidly improving as a competition again. Inter Milan are a superb outside bet but I’ll go for Juventus as Ronaldo and Suarez is a marriage made in shithouse heaven.
JL: Man City should have won it last season and Guardiola will be emboldened by leading the Prem instead of being scared to lose.
GH: They got close last year so I’ll go for PSG. Neymar and Mbappe with a full season behind them can get it done.
AD: It was a surprise to see them knocked out in the last 16 this season but Liverpool should be able to mount a serious challenge on all fronts this season and I can see them having another successful season in Europe’s premium competition.
JN: Bayern Munich. They were so far ahead in Europe last season it is hard to see them not at least going very far again next season.
And finally, who will be the Euro 2020 champions?
EA: I’d love to be chanting ENG-GER-LAND but given the behaviour of half of our squad abroad in recent weeks I worry that we’ll lose players to prison. Portugal are annoyingly good in international tournaments and have some superb players.
JL: France – the generation continues.
GH: Portugal. If we have crowds, the latter stage home advantage could be massive for an exciting England front line but I love the look of this up and coming Portugal squad with the talisman upfront. Also think the Italians will go well but their strike force were in peak form for a tournament this summer, next year might be a step too far.
AD: France are the world champions and I expect them to win the Euros. Their squad is frightening on paper and with players like Mbappe, Pogba, Griezmann and rising star Upamecano in their ranks, they are capable of beating anyone.
JN: Belgium. I believe they have the best squad in Europe with lots of experience in major competitions now. If they can learn from previous disappointments, they can have a great tournament with a number of players at their peak.
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