Chelsea? Arsenal? Soccer Saturday pundits offer Premier League predictions
Saturday 8 August 2015 12:05, UK
The Soccer Saturday pundits have provided us with their verdicts for the forthcoming campaign, revealing their title, top four, relegation and top goalscorer picks.
Chelsea are unsurprisingly attracting the most backing for the title, although former Gunner Charlie Nicholas is clearly in confident mood, while Watford and Norwich seem to have plenty to prove wrong ahead of the new campaign.
There's also a gloomy prediction from Paul Merson for his old club Aston Villa, who he tips for a tough campaign following the departures of Fabian Delph and Christian Benteke.
Matt Le Tissier predicts:
Champions: Chelsea
Top four: Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United
Relegation: Watford, Norwich, Leicester
Top goalscorer: Olivier Giroud
Le Tiss says: "The title is between Chelsea and Arsenal for me this season but I'm going marginally for Chelsea due to the Mourinho factor. I'm also going for Leicester to take the plunge due to the upheaval in the managerial department along with two of the new boys, Watford and Norwich.
"As for the top goalscorer, I think if Arsenal are pushing close then Giroud has a great chance of being top goalscorer. I backed him for it last season and he would have been close if it wasn't for injuries."
Paul Merson predicts:
Champions: Chelsea
Top four: Chelsea, Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool
Relegation: Bournemouth, Watford, Aston Villa
Top goalscorer: Christian Benteke
Merse says: "It's going to be Chelsea or Manchester City but I don’t think there will be much in it and Arsenal shouldn't be far behind. I'm going for Liverpool to get in the top four, with Benteke scoring the goals, ahead of Manchester United.
"I'm not convinced by United's business, especially with David de Gea looking like he's going and the addition of Bastian Schweinsteiger. I really hope I’m wrong regarding Aston Villa but I don’t see how you can be in a relegation battle and then sell your two best players the next summer."
Charlie Nicholas predicts:
Champions: Arsenal
Top four: Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City
Relegation: Watford, Norwich, Newcastle
Top goalscorer: Sergio Aguero
Charlie says: "This is the most confident I’ve been going to a season for eight years and I genuinely believe Arsene Wenger has the strongest squad in the Premier League, with competition for places throughout the side. Sergio Aguero is quite rightly favourite to be top goalscorer and can’t really see Kane scoring as many.
"There's good value with Alexis Sanchez, Giroud and Theo Walcott all around 20/1. Giroud gets stick and I think he can prove people wrong and fire Arsenal to the title."
Phil Thompson predicts:
Champions: Chelsea
Top four: Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United
Relegation: Sunderland, Watford, Bournemouth
Top goalscorer: Sergio Aguero
Thommo says: "Chelsea have to be my favourites for the title. Nothing too much has changed but the one thing that could determine their season is Diego Costa staying fit, having had so many problems with his hamstring."
