A top three place beckons for Chelsea, according to our predictions.
Where will your side finish in 2012-13? With the season just one week away, our pundits have put our heads together to give you a comprehensive set of predictions.
Opinions and analysis on all 20 Premier League clubs are given here by 12 of our writers and pundits here at HITC Sport. On the basis of the predictions from our ‘daring dozen’ we have calculated how the table will look come next May.
How does it work? All the predictions are totalled together, the team with the lowest score will finish 1st, and the highest will finish 20th. Here are the predictions for your club.
Verdict- Chelsea will finish in: 3rd
Highest prediction: 2nd, Lowest prediction: 5th
Dan Coombs: 4th; Chelsea fans will expect a title challenge, but this will be a long tough season for them. Roberto di Matteo has a big job on his hands moulding the talent at his disposal, but a concern has to be a lack of options up front, and if Fernando Torres does not fire as expected then too much could be asked of their midfield. They will improve from sixth to fourth, but beyond that is a big ask, and Di Matteo could find himself replaced by a ‘bigger name’ next summer.
Vic Daniels: 5th; Di Matteo will lose his magic touch, and will be out by Christmas.
Mathew Nash: 3rd; Star Player – Eden Hazard, Top Scorer – Fernando Torres. Will have a good season, off the back of Champions League glory last year Di Matteo brings a team ethic of Mourinho’s ilk and new signings galore will help the cause. I think the star man will be newboy Eden Hazard who should make an immediate Premier League impact; with Fernando Torres also having, finally, a good season. Arsenal however will provide stern opposition.
Tomo Taka: 3rd; Chelsea have spent heavily following their Champions League success as Roman Abramovich overhauls the ageing squad into a youthful, exciting one. The undoubted quality of Chelsea will see them finish in the top four but how will Roberto Di Matteo fare in a full-season at the club? The team will need time to gel and a shaky start may just cost the team a chance to challenge for the Premier League. Their best player will be Juan Mata. Mata won Chelsea’s player of the season award last year and will outshine Hazard and Marin this coming year as they adapt to the Premier League. Oscar will be important for the future but at just 20-years-old there are doubts that he will be starting every game. Their biggest concern will be the process of gelling as a team. Early signings from pre-season show a lack of cohesion in their play with Hazard and Marin yet to fully shine. The team are struggling to adapt to the style implemented by Di Matteo to draw the best performance out of Chelsea’s new attacking weapons and if Di Matteo does not get results, he could be the first managerial sacking of the Premier League season.
Jake Lane: 4th; No-one predicted the sixth-place position Chelsea stumbled to in the league last season and after strengthening their midfield considerably this summer, expect them to finish higher but not by much. Their understandable desire to defend their Champions League crown could yet again hinder their league performances and they are likely to miss talisman and Champions League hero, Didier Drogba.
Nigel Owen: 2nd; In March, Chelsea’s season was in tatters, and failing to qualify for the Champions League was a genuine possibility. What Roberto Di Matteo did in the next 2 months is now written in Chelsea folklore, and he will blend the ‘old guard’ with the new much better than Andre Villas-Boas did, with the support of key dressing room personalities such as John Terry and Frank Lampard from the off. They did still finish 6th, 25 points behind the top two, but I don’t see a dip this year like the 3 wins from 12 games that preceded the Portuguese manager’s exit. Abramovich’s cheque book has spent well this summer, spending more than United, City and Arsenal have put together so far, but on three quality players, although I do think they will still miss Drogba’s presence at times. The key to them becoming the challenger to City’s future domination will be John Terry. Whatever you may think of him as a person, he is a leader on the pitch, and if he stays fit, doesn’t get bogged down by the FA case over the Ferdinand affair, and can help fine tune Cahill’s undoubted talent, then Chelsea’s defence will be tighter and stop giving away as many points as they did late on under Villas Boas.
Surya Solanki: 2nd; The Blues have made some vital and important signings. With midfielders like Mata, Hazard, Oscar, and Lampard among their ranks, they should be able to get into the top-two this season. The only reason they might not be able to win the title is because of the uncertainty of how the new players will gel into the team.
Paul Moore: 2nd; Roberto Di Matteo has won the Champions league; he’ll try his hardest to win the Premier. With a mix of old and new I think they’ll run United close but will just miss out. This maybe Frank Lampard’s last season as a Chelsea player and I think he’ll get player of the season for them. The new recruits will take time to settle and that will cost points hence finishing second.
John Aggrey: 4th; Will end up fourth because; Two things come to mind, Striker issues and managerial issues. I so far have no problem with the Chelsea midfield, strong in defense and with Drogba gone, are you gonna rely on Torres daily? Di Matteo is a great manager if the post AVB time is to be put under the microscope; actually even better than all EPL coaches. Two titles in a very short time and as caretaker manager is impressive and was rightfully handed a permanent job at that Stamford Bridge dugout. Their star man should be Ramires. If his form last season is anything to go by, then the Brazilian should dictate proceedings at the Bridge. I fail to single handedly give it to him considering a player like Mata too is in the side, they should go hand in hand but a top three finish would just be too much to expect from this side. Biggest Challenge will be blending the squad and maintaining the winning mentality the side enjoyed at the end of last season.
Naveenan Thanendra: 4th; IN: Hazard, Marin, Oscar. The summer transfer window has been particularly fruitful for last seasons of FA Cup and Champions League winners. From the outside looking in, you would expect bright times ahead for Roberto Di Matteo, but he has set the benchmark high, very very high for himself. While Torres becomes the central figure in Chelsea’s forward line which is boasting a plethora of attacking talent, the combination of time it takes to gel, the loss of Didier Drogba and the vacancy at right back means that a top four place is probably the realistic goal for Chelsea this season.
Keval Shah: 3rd; Realising the squad needed a revamp, Chelsea have spent big this summer evoking memories of when Roman first took over at the club. The signings of Hazard, Oscar and Marin will give an all-star look to the Chelsea midfield and if they can sign a right back, I fully expect them to push the two Manchester clubs all the way. Furthermore, Fernando Torres will be glad to finally see the back of Didier Drogba, and I anticipate a much improved season for the slick Spaniard. The real challenge for Di Matteo will be in handling all these highly paid superstars, however good old Robbie is nothing if not a man-manager.
Khiam Barry: 4th; Having had a full pre-season as manager with his team, Roberto Di Matteo will have had time to put across his game plan. Chelsea will be solid and look to veteran players such as Terry and Lampard to help out the younger players such as Hazard etc. Fernando Torres will be full of confidence following his Euro 2012 winning campaign and will be the main man up front following Drogba’s move to China.
Connor Jipps: 4th; Fresh off the back of a summer of celebrating Champions League and FA Cup glory, Chelsea have wasted no time in securing a batch of Europe’s top talent. Eden Hazard’s move from Lille was a real statement of Chelsea’s intent for the season with the Belgian highly sought after and choosing the Blues ahead of both Manchester clubs. His record is undeniably impressive in France and at the age of just 21 he has the world at his talented feet. Marko Marin will improve the options in the squad whilst Oscar has shown in the Olympics why many are comparing him to former Ballon D’or Winner and Brazilian counterpart Kaka. After the disappointing and expensive outcome of Andre Villas-Boas’ appointment last season, Roman Abrahmovich has shown faith in interim coach Roberto Di Matteo by handing the Italian the first team reins. Under Di Matteo, Chelsea proved hard to break down but attacking play was limited as a result. It remains to be seen whether this style of play will be altered to suit the new attacking additions to the side, or whether Di Matteo will continue to play cagey football. Midfield options are impressive but with such talent, there will almost certainly be player opposition to Di Matteo’s team selections, a key aspect of AVB’s downfall. I think Chelsea will have enough to return to the top four, but I predict it will be a tough battle and the Blues may have to settle for fourth rather than a title challenge. Drogba will be a big loss in terms of both goalscoring and dressing room presence, and Torres now needs to step up in his make or break season.
Full predicted table: (1) Manchester City, (2) Manchester United, (3) Chelsea, (4) Arsenal, (5) Tottenham, (6) Liverpool, (7) Newcastle, (8) Everton, (9) Fulham, (10) Sunderland, (11) Aston Villa, (12) Stoke, (13) QPR, (14) Swansea, (15) West Ham, (16) West Brom, (17) Norwich, (18) Reading, (19) Wigan, (20) Southampton.
Where do you believe Chelsea will finish next season?
image: © Jason Bagley
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