Register an account at William Hill using bonus code EXPERTVIP50 to receive up to $50 in Free Bets.
With the new Premier League season just around the corner, I think it would be best to welcome the newcomers to the League after we bid our farewell to Cardiff City, Huddersfield, and Fulham. It was a valiant effort from Fulham and Cardiff, but Huddersfield was a waste of space giving every team a free 3 points. I didn’t know Oprah owned Huddersfield! As three teams depart, we introduce three new teams into the Premier League shitshow. Let’s dissect these scrubs before I tell you who I think will finish better between Norwich City, Sheffield United, and Aston Villa.
I’ll start with the Championship champions Norwich City who only lost 6 games last season. Behind 29-year-old Finnish striker Teemu Pukki’s 29 goals, Norwich were the most offensive team scoring 93 goals in the season. 17 players on the roster managed to score at least 1 goal as Norwich’s midfield is their strong suit. Winger’s Emiliano Buendia, Onel Hernandez, and central midfielders Marco Stiepermann and Mario Vrancic are expected to stay with the team as they are crucial pieces for their Premier League Campaign. They hope to continue Pukki’s success in the Premier League. Norwich acquired Bundesliga striker Josip Drmic from Borussia Monchengladbach as he is looking to make his Premier League debut by playing as a backup striker for Pukki. Drmic is looking to be more successful in the Premier League than he was with his Bundesliga team. Manager Daniel Farke tends to play with 1 or 2 holding midfielders which are becoming an old trend as the counter-attack is coming back alive! As long as Pukki stays up and wide along with Hernandez, Norwich should be able to avoid relegation and even be in a Top 12 spot!
Championship second-placed team Sheffield United come back to the Premier League after a 12-year absence. They scored the least amount of goals amongst the promoted teams but make up for it by having a better defensive record than Norwich and Villa. This disproves the theory of ‘Defense wins championships’ as Sheffield came in second place, but it’s still a good stat to take into consideration. We can lay that ‘theory’ to rest. Key players to look out for in Sheffield are their center backs Jack O’Connel and John Egan as they will get extra advice from Everton legend Phil Jagielka who is on his last few sets of sprints playing in the Premier League. Captain Billy Sharp will lead Sheffield as he was their top scorer in the Championship, but the man is 33 years old and will most likely not play as much as ‘older’ strikers tend to be unsuccessful unless you are Robin Van Persie or the Ferrari himself Zlatan Ibrahimovic. That’s why Sheffield United bought Striker Lys Mousset who is a young promising talent from Bournemouth. Any player managed under Eddie Howe is a must buy as he is a great manager and the next best thing! Mousset will be a crucial offensive weapon with Billy Sharp and midfielder John Fleck who lead the team in assists last year.
And then there are the Villians of Birmingham. I’m just going to start off by saying this, Villa has spent more money this transfer window than any other Premier League team in this transfer window. Aston Villa are going for broke by spending almost $170 million by buying a new starting lineup. Aston Villa lost their best player in Tammy Abraham whose loan spell from Chelsea ended after the season. Villa look to fill in that crucial gap with Brazilian striker Wesley Moraes from Belgium giants Club Brugge. Wesley has improved year after year with his Belgium club and will be hoping to continue that trend with Aston Villa. They also managed to sign another Brazilian named Douglas Luiz who is a more tactical midfielder than your typical midfielder. Luiz switches the ball more times than you can count and is a vocal leader when he is on the pitch. Do not worry about his lack of offensive contributions, but his ‘pass to assists ratio’ is incredible and is an old school midfielder. Aston Villa is the worst defensive side of the three promoted teams allowing 61 goals roll into the net. It will be a battle for the starting goalkeeper position as Orjan Nyland’s is under threat from newcomer Tom Heaton acquired from Burnley. Villa made more adjustments in the backline buying a player from Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth by signing Tyrone Mings who had a promising career with Bournemouth and will look to positively impact Villa’s season.
All in all, the relegation battle is always intense and a must watch when the season is winding down. Although Aston Villa will be losing their best offensive weapon of Tammy Abraham, they still have that heart and dedication Jack Grealish brings game after game where I have confidence in the Villians will fight until their last breath but will not reach the promise land for a second spell, suffering heartbreak going back into the Championship. Sheffield United’s lack of experience will decide their fate. Sheffield would have to move some antiques away from their roster to bring in some young prospects. I think Sheffield will get relegated along with Villa, meaning Norwich City will have another Premier League season after this and be the better team out of the promoted teams.
Book it, Wag out!
