6 Premier League pre-season predictions that went horribly wrong
The Barclays Premier League is, undoubtedly, one of the most competitive leagues in world football. It doesn’t matter whether you are challenging for the ultimate glory or battling to get away from the relegation zone- the pressure in the first tier of English football can get too hot to handle at times.
The 2015-16 season of the Premier League has been, in many ways, like that of a well thought out movie script.
The defending champions lingering at the bottom half of the table for the most of the season, the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City not being able to live up to their fans’ expectations, the unbelievable rise of Leicester City, Aston Villa getting relegated after 28 consecutive seasons in top flight English football and clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham finally proving their worth after quite a while- no one, even in their wildest dreams, couldn’t have imagined a season like this.
Here are the top six English pre-season predictions that went horribly wrong:
1) Chelsea to successfully defend its Premier League title
Jose Mourinho’s men ended the 2014-15 Barclays Premier League season on a high. Propelled by the likes of Eden Hazard, Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Branislav Ivanovic and of course John Terry, the Blues went on to win 26 of their 38 league matches.
Earlier last year, in mid-January, Chelsea, by far, had the best attack in the Premier League and it, very well, lived up to its standard. Not only that, having conceded just 32 goals in the 38 matches that it has played, Chelsea’s defence, too, looked as strong as ever.
The London-based club turned Stamford Bridge into a fortress winning 15 of their 19 home games last season, drawing the remaining four. The club ended the season eight points ahead of the second-placed, Manchester City.
Therefore, it wasn’t really a surprise when the football pundits touted Chelsea to be one of the title contenders before the start of this season along with clubs such as Manchester United, Manchester City, and Arsenal.
However, the Blues started their 2015-16 Premier League campaign poorly, winning just three of their opening ten matches. On 17 December 2015, the club sacked its legendary manager, Jose Mourinho. Currently, Chelsea are languishing in the 10th spot of the league table with five more matches to go.