Sport
Premier League to benefit from new crop of managers
Premier League to benefit from new crop of managers. The Premier League might struggle to attract the very best players the world has to offer, but it is the place to be for elite managers this term. Pep Guardiola has succeeded Manuel Pellegrini as Manchester City boss, while Jose Mourinho has replaced Louis van Gaal at the helm of Manchester United. The home dugout at Stamford Bridge now belongs to Antonio Conte, who Chelsea appointed as their next coach in April, and Jurgen Klopp is about to embark upon his first full season in charge of Liverpool.
Throw in Arsenal’s veteran campaigner Arsene Wenger, bright young thing Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham Hotspur and the wily Italian Claudio Ranieri, who astonishingly guided Leicester City to the title in his first year in charge in 2015/16, and the cast of coaches now plying their trade in English football is enough to whet the appetite for the season ahead.
Biggest shock of all time
Leicester’s triumph last time out was incredible and Ranieri and his players deserved all the praise they received and more, but it is not unfair to point out that they benefited from the collapse or underachievement of almost all of the division’s traditional leading lights. Arsenal failed to grasp their chance to take hold of top spot in the spring and ultimately had to settle for second; Manchester City were puzzlingly lethargic as they limped over the line in fourth; Van Gaal’s Manchester United regressed despite yet more heavy spending the previous summer; and defending champions Chelsea imploded under Mourinho and could only recover to 10th place under the interim guidance of Guus Hiddink.
This season, though, threatens to be ultra-competitive at the summit. Guardiola has brought Ilkay Gundogan, Nolito, Gabriel Jesus, Leroy Sane and Oleksandr Zinchenko with him to the Etihad Stadium, significantly strengthening what was already the best squad in the division, and United have captured Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Eric Bailly – with Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba seemingly set to follow before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.
Big moves already
Chelsea have bought Michy Batshuayi and NGolo Kante, meanwhile, with Arsenal landing Granit Xhaka, Liverpool signing Sadio Mane, Joel Matip, Ragnar Klavan, Loris Karius and Georginio Wijnaldum and Tottenham adding depth to key areas by bringing in striker Vincent Janssen from AZ Alkmaar and defensive midfielder Victor Wanyama from Southampton. Given that none of the above sides have lost any key players of note, each squad is stronger than it was last term.
Rather than players, however, it is the new managers who have prompted most of the excitement. City and United, for example, would almost certainly have performed better in 2015/16 had they been led by their current bosses, while Chelsea now have the chance to wipe the slate clean and start over with Conte after their disastrous year last time out. Liverpool stand to benefit from a full pre-season under Klopp, moreover, and Wenger and Pochettino will be aiming to kick on from last season and mount sustained challenges for the championship. There is everything to play for.
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