Premier League Predictions
The new season is here (well this evening at least), and after all the talk, all the speculation and planning and pre-season boring games, and preparation of FPL teams and refreshing transfer news sites, the kick-off for the opening game of the season sees the talk turn to the pitch. A chance to see how teams set-up, how the results come in for the early stages and how the table begins to take form as clubs and fans panic and make rash decisions following some odd early results.
As a result of all of this hype and excitement, we’ve locked in our final predictions ahead of the new season. Looking at 10 categories for team efforts, individual accolades and a few fun ones thrown in as well, we’ve put in our early guesses at how the league could pan out. With an exciting year of football to come, this year could see a bit of craziness and fun which makes this year an iconic year of top-flight football, or maybe all of our predictions are way off the mark by Christmas and we have to admit all our inaccuracies once again.
As always, if you have any thoughts on the new season, get in touch with us and let us know your predictions for each category by leaving a comment, following us on Bluesky (@NextGoalWinner) or Instagram (@NextGoalWin) and check out our YouTube channel (@NextGoalWinner).
Winners: Liverpool
While this pains me as a fan of Manchester United, I can’t see Liverpool falling away this year despite the talk that some believe their defence maybe needs a refresh. I fully expect them to add a centre back and Alexander Isak before the transfer window closes, and while this might not allow them to compete on all fronts again with a squad stretched around the 4 competitions, I think the league form will remain at a very high level.
I understand why some may question Liverpool more after the Community Shield showing, but when they get into gear, gel as a squad and add the extra power of Isak and maybe a player like Guehi, I think they’ve improved or refreshed in all key areas of the pitch, and will enjoy a very fruitful season of success.
My other contender was going to be Chelsea as I think their Club World Cup showing and busy transfer activity have also seen improvements in their options, while City are always going to be a threat especially after last years slight drop off. I do think Arsenal may be one of the first to drop away despite their recruitment, but overall I think we will have a 4-way title race going through till at least February/March before teams start to drop away, and Liverpool will be at the top come the end of the year.
CL Qualification: Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Arsenal, Man Utd
Having mentioned 4 of the 5 qualifiers in the last prediction, I believe that Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal will all qualify comfortably for the Champions League, leaving 5th spot up for grabs between the likes of Newcastle, Aston Villa, Tottenham, Manchester United and several others who could put up a fight. I have gone with Manchester United as my pick as I think their signs of improvement are higher than the other sides mentioned and I think Newcastle and Villa may drop-off slightly.
At time of writing, Manchester United have added a new front-3 and a left back rotation player for the future. However, there seems to be a growing link for one of the best midfielders in the league (in his position) in Carlos Baleba and United could well make a big move late on to acquire his services. There’s also talk of Donnarumma and a rotation striker such as Calvert-Lewin. IF we assume (capital IF) those deals go ahead, or at least 2/3 of the deals are completed, I think United with no European football will have a strong chance of gelling, improving on the pitch and allowing Amorim to flex his tactical muscles to get the team into 5th this season. It will be tough, and reliant on those late acquisitions, but I can see it happening.
With regards to the other clubs mentioned, I think Tottenham are having a good summer, and could be the biggest competitor for the 5th spot, but I think injuries still seem to be a concern and possibly they could lack a bit of leadership and time to adjust to Thomas Frank’s system. I also think, like the others to be mentioned, they will have a lot of attention on the extra 8 games minimum in the European competitions, and they will want to go heavy into that after seeing what Aston Villa and Arsenal managed last year. Newcastle I am a bit concerned for as they are about to lose Isak, have struggled to recruit, and if you look at the squad last season, to bringing in just Elanga and maybe Jackson/Wissa, I think that’s a concern given their additional games also to come. I think their wide players and midfield are great, but this summer has been poor. Finally, Aston Villa I think could see a drop off after pushing heavily last season. I think Emery is a great manager, but they lack a little up front with only Watkins leading the line, and we could see them go far in the Europa League which could see them fully turn their attention to winning a trophy in Europe as we enter 2026.
Relegated: Burnley, Wolves, West Ham
I do think we are about to break the 3 up-3 down trend of recent years, and while I think all 3 clubs that were promoted have interesting approaches, I think Burnley will struggle to adjust the most from what got them up last seasons to how things will be in this campaign. I also think the other 2 teams in Leeds and Sunderland are going to be helped massively by a drop-off for some of the more ‘secure’ looking teams in the league.
For Burnley, I thought last year was amazing for them, and their defensive work was remarkable, but does that translate to the Premier League after losing their goalkeeper, I’m not so sure. I think that teams who can defend in the Premier League season could have success, but I think losing Trafford makes me question what approach they will take for this season, and they won’t be able to hold out the teams they face week-in week-out in the top-flight. I believe Scott Parker may also face a similar fate as his previous Premier League efforts and face the sack in the opening third of the season, with the club possibly looking at someone like Dyche who could make a return to the club to try and turn around their fortunes.
Putting Wolves in my prediction for relegation is down to losing several key players last season, and also their survival last year being helped so much by the poor showing of other sides, and the 6 game winning run they found in 2025. While they’ve done some incomings that could fill the gaps of lost players, I think they will struggle to hit another purple patch and if the newly promoted sides step up, they could face a difficult campaign which could see the manager also under-fire.
Finally, my rogue shout for relegation is West Ham. I think they actually have a decent squad on paper, have a manager that I rate quite highly and some huge talents like Bowen in their ranks, however I can see things falling apart this season for the Hammers. I think Potter may struggle in the opening weeks of the season, and could be gone by Christmas with an ownership structure that have struggled to get a sense of calm into the club. I also think this could lead to a January move for Bowen as a team like Arsenal or possibly Tottenham make a huge move to bring over a star player from a rival club. I think they will fight hard against the relegation, but I think the likes of Leeds, Sunderland and a few others may be able to grind out results and see West Ham just fall short.
Top Scorer: Erling Haaland
I get the hype around Isak and his possible move to Liverpool, I think Salah will bang in plenty of goals, Gyokeres could get a few and Sesko, Pedro, Palmer, Ekitike, Watkins and some of the City stars could have big years ahead, however I think Haaland will have a year which by his standard may be seen as ‘average’ but that still brings a golden boot.
I think Haaland will do his thing once again, and while there could be other 20+ goal players, I think Haaland will have enough games in which he dominates and destroys, bagging 3 or so goals in games which means he will hit the inevitable accolade for top scorer this season.
Player Of The Season: Florian Wirtz
As I believe Liverpool will retain their title this season, I think I have to go with one of their many stars for player of the season, and while Salah will be amazing again, the arrival or Isak, Ekitike, Frimpong and Kerkez will all do great, and their leader Van Dijk will be top, I am going with their most notable new addition in Florian Wirtz, a move I didn’t expect to see this summer to Liverpool, but a player with the potential to become a world-beater and the heir to Salah’s throne.
In every game I watched of Leverkusen, Wirtz had consistently good performances, and while there is a transition phase to the Premier League, I think he slots perfectly into the second striker role, behind someone like Isak or Ekitike, with Salah and Gakpo out wide. It’s a perfect club for Wirtz to join as the role for him is ready-made, he is entering while the club are at the top of their game, and he is heading into a World Cup year which sees many big players hit another level as they up their performances heading into the international tournament.
I think if he matches any of his last 2 season stats in hitting 15+ goals and assists this year, helping Liverpool to the title and putting in some standout performances which he is more than capable of, I think this will give him the accolade of player of the year, and fans of Liverpool will have a new hero to fall in love with as the Salah era comes to a close.
Young Player Of The Season: Max Dowman
For young player of the season, I think this has to be a player under the age of 19, or a player making their debut season in the Premier League, as in modern football a player is considered senior by the age of 22. As a result, I’ve gone along with the pre-season hype of a player who fulfils both criteria, as 15 year old Max Dowman will get some minutes this season, and I could genuinely see him making an impact on Arsenal’s season this year.
Arsenal have a track record of giving opportunities to young stars with Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly (both aged 18) being evidence of this. I think Dowman will add to that, and as we head into 2026 and Dowman turns 16, I think he will be featured more in the squad and will capitalise on his minutes and cameo appearances, leading to a few starts late in the season and give a push for the accolade.
I am cautious of adding to the pressure on a 15 year old talent who had a good summer, but I think if the young player award could be classed as ‘breakthrough’ award, then Dowman certainly is in contention for this based on what has been seen thus far.
1st Manager Sacked: Scott Parker
Given that I’ve predicted Burnley to finish 20th, I think Scott Parker will be the first manager to face the chop. With limited proven Premier League experience, Burnley’s owners may see their early struggles and difficulties to transition from last years defensive solidity to the Premier League, and could fall into the belief that another manager with more top-flight experience could help steady the ship. With Sean Dyche sitting on the managerial side-lines after leaving Everton in January, a return to the club he spent 10 years in charge of could see Burnley pull the trigger early on Parker, and Scott Parker may just become a manager known for getting teams promoted and then leaving early in the Premier League.
Overachievers: Sunderland
As one of the 3 promoted teams this season, they’ve gone big in the summer transfer window, and I think they will find themselves settled comfortably in the bottom half of the table this season. While I think there will be talk of a relegation battle for the newly promoted clubs among a few others, I think Sunderland will be the first to secure survival and eventually could finish around 15th, which given the expectation from some for instant relegation, I think 15th would be deserving of overachievement given their last 10 years of free-falling through the pyramid and all the off-field issues the club have put up with.
Underachievers: Newcastle United
It’s very tough to judge underachievers for what I think should be expected, and I’ve gone in heavy on some teams already such as Newcastle, West Ham and Burnley, but I really think Newcastle will struggle. I think their summer has been a huge shock for the club, as despite having money and wanting to spend and acquire big names, they’ve instead struggled to get anyone in, missed out on several key targets and are about to lose their talismanic striker. As a result, I think they will find themselves focussing a bit much on the Champions League and domestic cups, and will find themselves falling out of the top 4/5 battle, and instead could fall to around 8th this year, which I think is an underachievement given last years work.
I haven’t mentioned this later in the nonsense suggestion, but I could also see a world where in the new year, England have struggled to gel under Tuchel, and the FA make a big call to bring in Eddie Howe ahead of the World Cup, and if this matches with Newcastle struggling in the January window to bring in any names and the club struggling in Europe/league competition, we could see a huge change to things in the dugout, but I won’t add to Newcastle fans misery just yet with that prediction.
Notable Nonsense: Big Sam & Goalkeeper Goals
One of my predictions for most seasons is that we see a Big Sam Allardyce return as we saw in that crazy spell as Leeds faced relegation a few years back, and I think we could see another similar situation this year. I could see either Burnley or West Ham turning to Big Sam as they try and find a way to avoid the drop, and the pressure of facing a year in the Championship leads to the ownership making a rash decision to change managers and ‘break glass in case of emergency’ with the former England manager. I have a strong image in my head of Big Sam with Mark Noble as his assistant watching on as West Ham have a meltdown of a season.
My other notable nonsense I think we will see is a surge in goalkeepers scoring goals. Such a rare factor in the English game, it’s a big moment when a keeper goes up for a late set-piece and gets a goal, but I think this season we may see at least 1 keeper take a penalty, I think set-pieces will be crucial and as a chance to get a physical advantage I think keepers will be sent up late on in games. As a result, I am predicting 3+ goals from goalkeepers this season as we see a freak statistic that will make pub quiz questions for years to come.
Don’t forget, if you have any thoughts on the new season, get in touch with us and let us know your predictions for each category by leaving a comment, following us on Bluesky (@NextGoalWinner) or Instagram (@NextGoalWin) and check out our YouTube channel (@NextGoalWinner).