Written by Jason Wu, and Marc Yip

It is highly impossible to predict the winner of the Premier League as it tends to be extremely competitive. For several years, there have been many underdogs stories that seemed impossible at first. Nobody could predict Leicester City’s 1st place finish in 2015, and now the premier league is just midway, so the official winner has not been decided. However, taking recent trends, team performance, and statistics of the last seasons into consideration, we (the authors) can predict teams that can challenge the title. In the last couple of years, Manchester City has dominated the Premier League, making it look like a “farmers league”.

1. Manchester City

Let’s talk about last year’s champions, Manchester City. City is strong on many sides: their great offence and solid defence. For example, scoring 96 goals in the 2023-24 season, with their main man  Erling Haaland at the peak of his career. Their midfield, led by Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, and Rodri, helps in creating chances and keeps control in most games. The back guard has been tight, with Ruben Dias creating an unstoppable duo with Ederson. Quantitatively speaking, Manchester City holds the most possession in a game, with its passing accuracy at around 65-70% in most games, which enables them to dominate the game and outclass mediocre teams. However, they conceded 10 more goals in 23-24 compared to the 22-23 season. Their weakness at the moment is the lack of ability to defend from counterattacks. Their best player from last season, Rodri was out for this entire season due to an ACL injury, which caused them to concede 19 goals in just half the season. That’s as many goals conceded as they did the entire season in the 22-23 season. Despite these problems, they still have the potential to challenge the title if they make the right transfer decisions.

2. Liverpool

Liverpool, on the other hand, are a very likely title contender, as they are strong on many sides. Let’s talk about their entire squad, starting with the Goalkeepers. Now after the injury of Alisson, Kelleher decided to step up and present at least 3 big saves per game (source: Fantasy Premier League). Defensively, VVD and Konate at the back are the best duo aside from Gabriel and Saliba. People and Liverpool fans can definitely trust the wing-backs as they can be both defensive and aggressive. With the cooperation of the defensive-like Andy Robertson and the attack-favored Trent Alexander Arnold, these two can do great jobs together. Not to mention the rise of Conor Bradley, who was unfortunately injured recently Liverpool’s midfield has proved to be consistent and supportive for the front four to run around. The Gravenberch, and Mac Allister duo as CDM (Center defensive midfielder) proved to be the best duo in their position for Liverpool. They can either be great chance-creators or ball holders, which they have been absolutely sensational at. 

The four attacking players are absolute beasts, especially Mohammed Salah, who has stated himself as the best player in the league, scoring 13 goals and 8 assists only in 14 matches. However, the main problem for Liverpool right now is a striker that can finish. If Liverpool can improve their striker position and centre-back position in the upcoming transfer window, they will likely secure a title.

3. Arsenal

During the last few years, Arsenal has managed to get really strong. The Gunners, with Mikel Arteta coaching the team, have improved by finishing runners-up at the end of the 2022-23 season and fighting for first position in the ongoing season. Arsenal’s squad is young, and full of energy and creativity, with players like Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and the main man himself, Martin Ødegaard. Arsenal now scores with their corner tactic, which has been proven to be significantly effective, tilting 29 goals in their past 14 game weeks. They have gotten more solid and can easily win or draw tough matches against other top teams, which makes them a real threat to Liverpool. This alone gives them a solid chance to win the league.

Arsenal need to hold up consistently during a very long season, which is something they struggle with. Toward the tail end of the last season, they suffered a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa. Their other crucial objective is to sign a striker, potentially the next Aubameyang. If Arteta can solve this problem and improve the team more during the transfer window, Arsenal could make a strong push for the title.

4. Chelsea

Now, Chelsea. Yes, Chelsea. It is quite shocking that they could place this high. With the rise of basically everyone in the team, they had collected numerous wins and succeeded in many games. Now let’s talk about why Chelsea has a chance of winning the league. Number 1, Easy fixtures. According to the Premier League official fixture website, Chelsea has good fixtures ahead for 6 game weeks! This means that they will face easy opponents like Wolves and Crystal Palace where they can collect their win easily. The hard fixtures for Chelsea only start in February, so they can win easy – points right now. The next factor is going to be the great squad depth. Anyone who started to watch Chelsea after the Todd Bohely takeover probably knows that they have a lot of players. According to data, they have 43 team members in the Chelsea squad. This indicates that Chelsea would not be affected by injuries and packed games unlike many other clubs, which gives them a great advantage in winning the league.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Liverpool is the clear favourite for the 2024-25 Premier League title because they have been exceptional and consistent lately. However, Arsenal, Manchester City, and possibly Chelsea could compete with them if they fix their problems and stay in good shape during the season. No forecast is ever chiselled into stone in the rigorous competition of the Premier League. However, based on current statistics and trends, Liverpool’s experience, quality, and tactical nous make them stand out as the favourite to win.