An exhilarating and captivating 2023-24 Premier League campaign saw Manchester City crowned champions for an unprecedented fourth season in a row, finishing two points clear of their nearest challengers Arsenal in second place.Liverpool were forced to settle for third in Jurgen Klopp’s final season at Anfield, while Aston Villa completed the top four and have secured Champions League qualification for the very first time.Tottenham Hotspur will compete in the Europa League next season after finishing in fifth place, and they will be joined by Manchester United, who despite slumping to an eighth-placed finish have qualified for Europe after beating rivals Man City in the FA Cup final.That result means sixth-placed Chelsea drop down into the Europa Conference League, while Newcastle United missed out on European qualification altogether despite finishing seventh.Star-studded Galacticos 2.0, Yamal-led Barca and Cholo’s rebuilt Atleti – best La Liga ever starts tonight!David Moyes could only steer West Ham United to a ninth-placed finish in his final campaign at the London Stadium, while an impressive run of form from Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace saw them climb into the top 10 on the final day.Brighton & Hove Albion, Bournemouth, Fulham, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Brentford and Everton all finished in the bottom half of the table, the latter securing 15th spot despite being deducted a total of eight points for breaching financial rules.Nottingham Forest were also docked four points from a similar offense, but they retained their top-flight status after finishing in 17th place, five points above 18th-placed Luton Town, who have returned to the Championship along with Burnley and Sheffield United.Leicester City are back in the top tier of English football after they clinched the Championship title at the first time of asking, and they are joined by Ipswich Town – promoted to the Premier League for the first time in 22 years – and playoff final winners Southampton.International football was the primary focus for most players during the summer months, with Euro 2024 and the Copa America two high-profile tournaments that captivated fans from across the globe, but their attention has now shifted to the eagerly-anticipated 2024-25 season.Ligue 1 preview: PSG rule but who will come in second?The Premier League have confirmed that the opening fixture of the 2024-25 season will take place on Friday, August 16, 90 days after the conclusion of the 2023-24 campaign.It has also been confirmed that the final round of matches in 2024-25 will be played on May 25, and as is always the case, all 10 fixtures will kick off simultaneously.In a bid to address the congested fixture schedule during Christmas and New Year, the Premier League have stated that arrangements will be made to give clubs additional rest time over three of the festive gameweeks, with no team playing within 60 hours of another fixture.For the first time since 1995, a Premier League fixture was played on Christmas Eve in 2023 when Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Chelsea 2-1 at Molineux. However, there will be no festive fixture on December 24, 2024.The 2024-25 season is made up of 380 matches in total and is currently scheduled to include 33 weekend fixtures, as well as four midweek rounds of matches and one Bank Holiday gameweek, although this is subject to change over the course of the campaign.The league which belongs to foreignersThe Premier League released the full 2024-25 fixture schedule for all 20 teams on June 18, confirming that FA Cup winners Man United will play host to Fulham for the opening game of the new campaign on August 16, This fixture kicks off a first weekend which also sees newly-promoted Ipswich welcome Liverpool to Portman Road in what will represent Arne Slot’s first league match in charge of the Reds.Reigning champions Man City will begin their quest to win a record-extending fifth successive Premier League title at Stamford Bridge, where they will lock horns with Chelsea, now managed by former Cityzens assistant coach Enzo Maresca.The first major derby of the 2024-25 campaign takes place on the weekend of September 14, when Tottenham Hotspur play host to North London rivals Arsenal, with the reverse fixture to come in mid-January.Man City and Arsenal – last season’s top two – will battle it out for the first time on the weekend of September 21 at the Etihad Stadium, before the two title rivals square off again at the Emirates Stadium in the first week of February.Arch rivals Man United and Liverpool will face off in a blockbuster battle at Old Trafford in the final week of August, before the Reds host the return fixture at Anfield in their first game of 2025.Premier League vs Man City: The Cityzens face relegation in court!In addition, the first Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool takes place on December 7 in what will be the final league match between the two clubs at Goodison Park, before the Toffees move into their new stadium the following season. The reverse fixture at Anfield is scheduled for the first week of April.Man City and Man United will butt heads for the first Manchester derby at the Etihad in mid-December, before Old Trafford stages what could prove to be a pivotal contest between the two English giants at the top end of the table in April.The months of December and April will also see Chelsea and Spurs face off in two intriguing fixtures, with the first to be played at Stamford Bridge in December before the second clash takes place in North London in April.Birthday boy Bernardo saves City, penalties bring them the trophy!Meanwhile, newly-promoted duo Leicester and Ipswich meet at the King Power Stadium in the penultimate week of the season in what could turn out to be a battle to avoid relegation.The final weekend of the 2024-25 season will see Man City and Arsenal travel to Fulham and Southampton respectively, Liverpool play host to Crystal Palace and Man United welcome Aston Villa to Old Trafford, while Spurs face Brighton & Hove Albion in North London and Newcastle United take on Everton on home soil.Under the tutelage of manager Pep Guardiola, who confirmed at the end of last season that he will staying at the Etihad Stadium for at least one more year, Man City remain the team to beat in the Premier League having won six of the last seven titles, accumulating over 90 points in five of those seven seasons.The Citizens have been a dominant force on the domestic front for some time, breaking numerous records along the way, and one of the secrets behind their success is Guardiola’s ability to continuously adapt his philosophy and work around mini-rebuilds that have occurred each season, replacing key cogs in his machine with shiny new ones that seamlessly slot into place.##EDITORS_CHOICE##Disrupting the relentless rhythm of Man City could prove challenging for any of their nearest rivals next season, but if their extremely high standards are to drop in some form next season, then that could allow Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal to pounce.The Gunners pushed the Cityzens all the way in the 2023-24 title race, which was taken to the final day, but they ultimately came up short and were forced to settle for a second successive second-placed finish.Nevertheless, given the progress they have made under Arteta, Arsenal will be regarded as one of the favourites to knock Man City off their perch. The addition of Italian defender Riccardo Calafiori is a promising one, but signing a world-class centre-forward and maybe a fresh face in midfield could help in their long-awaited quest for top-flight glory.Liverpool are the only team to get the better of Man City over the last seven Premier League seasons – winning the title with 99 points in 2019-20 – and after nine memorable years under the guidance of Klopp, a new era under Arne Slot is on the horizon.Slot, who won the 2022-23 Eredivisie title in his penultimate year as Feyenoord boss, has enormous shoes to fill at Anfield, but the Dutchman is inheriting a Reds squad packed with talent and potential to thrive in 2024-25, one that has the capabilities of challenging for top spot.The Premier League is BACK, and we’re bringing the noise. It’s time for #TheKickOff 🔊 pic.twitter.com/bbqm7xTRgn— Premier League (@premierleague) August 12, 2024 A return to the summit of English football is what Manchester United have craved ever since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013. Eleven seasons have since passed and on each occasion they have finished behind bitter rivals Man City, ending the 2023-24 campaign a whopping 31 points adrift of their noisy sky blue neighbours.Manager Erik ten Hag has committed his future to the club by signing a new contract until 2026, while several off-field changes have taken place in a bid to return the Red Devils to its former glory, most notably the arrival of minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who now has full control of football operations at Old Trafford.Despite spending over 1.64 billion euros on transfers over the last decade, Man United have not come close to winning a Premier League title, and Ratcliffe has insisted that Red Devils supporters “have to be a bit patient” and ready for the “long journey” ahead before they can mount a serious challenge for top spot – a return to the Champions League will be an immediate priority for Man United next season, though.Which match at the start of the new season will produce drama similar to this @Arsenal v @LFC classic? 🎆#TheKickOff pic.twitter.com/n4lHCzWoga— Premier League (@premierleague) August 14, 2024 Another big-spending Premier League giants that has endured a few seasons of turbulence are Chelsea. Following a disastrous 12th-placed finish in 2022-23, the Blues made a relatively slow start to life under Mauricio Pochettino this term, but the Argentine’s youthful squad clicked towards the end of the campaign en route to securing European football for next season.That positive end-of-season run was not enough for Pochettino to keep his job, though, as the decision was made for the 52-year-old to depart on mutual terms, with Enzo Maresca having since taken the reins.A challenge for the 2024-25 title may be a tall order for Chelsea, but securing Champions League football is a realistic aim, especially if they can keep the majority of their star players fit and recruit wisely to strengthen the spine of their squad.Both Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa emerged as surprise title contenders in the early stages of last season, before falling away during the second half of the campaign, and although both clubs have aspirations of maintaining their positions at the top end of the table, they will enter 2024-25 as big outsiders for the title.Take a look at the points totals that have seen Premier League champions crowned in previous seasons 📊Read all about these landmark points tallies as we build up to #TheKickOff 🔗 https://t.co/Nj6piG7xVI pic.twitter.com/AewQCEdGAH— Premier League (@premierleague) August 13, 2024 The stats boffins OPTA are well known for their computer simulations, and as always ahead of the new season opener, they offer a glimpse into how the new campaign could play out. They have City winning the league in 82.2 per cent of scenarios, with the chances of them finishing in second and third place at 13.8 and 3.5 per cent respectively. That means Guardiola’s men have just a 0.4 per cent chance of finishing fourth.According to the supercomputer, Arsenal’s most likely finishing position is second, with a 48.8 per cent chance compared to just a 12.2 per cent chance of winning the league.Liverpool are the only top-flight side still yet to make a signing but in Opta’s simulations, they end up in third place most often, 40.2 per cent of the time to be exact.They have also been given a slim chance of winning the league at just 5.1 per cent. Last season’s top three along with Chelsea and Newcastle are the sides with a greater percentage chance of lifting the title than 0.1.The battle for the final Champions League spot looks like it will be an interesting one with four teams separated by just eight per cent. Chelsea have been given the nod at 19.5 per cent, with the Magpies at 17.5, Manchester United at 12.9 and Tottenham on 11.8.Interestingly, United are one of only three clubs that finished in all 20 positions in Opta’s 10,000 simulations. The Red Devils remarkably have a 0.3 per cent chance of finishing 18th and getting relegated, according to the supercomputer.𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐠𝐮𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: 2024-25 📈The Opta supercomputer has just played out the 2024-25 Premier League season 10,000 times, so it’s time to reveal the results.Here are Opta’s pre-season Premier League projections…— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) August 12, 2024 Aston Villa, who occupied that position last term, find themselves way down in eighth, while West Ham, who have heavily invested in their squad under new boss Julen Lopetegui, are more likely to finish below Crystal Palace.At the foot of the table, Opta have found that the three promoted sides are most likely to make an immediate return to the Championship. Their multitude of simulations could not find much difference between their final finishing positions.Southampton finished bottom 28.6 per cent of the time compared to Ipswich’s 27.4 per cent and Leicester in 23.4 per cent of the 10,000 simulations.By contrast, Nottingham Forest – who have been given a final finishing position of 17th – finished 20th in only 9.2 per cent of the time.Rounding out the final few places were Brighton, Fulham, Everton, Brentford, Bournemouth and Wolves. These cluster of teams were not easily separated with differences of less than one percentage point among the group in various positions.The Seagulls under their new head coach Fabian Hurzeler – the youngest manager in Premier League history – have been tipped to finish 11th.Hopefully, this will be enough for you to step into another blockbuster campaign ‘educated’. Arguably the best league in the world opens its curtains tomorrow evening so it would not be out of place to cite the famous boxing announcer Michael Buffer – LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE!20 clubs.20 stadiums.20 unique atmospheres.Enjoy a look at all of this season’s Premier League grounds from above. 👀 pic.twitter.com/isxkN5SneN— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) August 14, 2024 ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 1Friday22:00: (1.62) Man.Utd. (4.20) Fulham (5.80)Saturday14:30: (8.50) Ipswich (5.50) Liverpool (1.33)17:00: (1.22) Arsenal (7.25) Wolverhampton (15.0)17:00: (2.70) Everton (3.15) Brighton (2.75)17:00: (1.40) Newcastle (4.80) Southampton (7.75)17:00: (2.45) Nott.Forest (3.40) Bournemouth (2.85)19:30: (2.50) West Ham (3.45) Aston Villa (2.75)Sunday16:00: (2.55) Brentford (3.35) Crystal Palace (2.75)18:30: (4.20) Chelsea (3.80) Man.City (1.90)Monday22:00: (5.20) Leicester (4.00) Tottenham (1.65)***odds are subject to change***
