MY BARCLAY'S PREMIER LEAGUE FORECAST.........2014-15 SEASON

MY BARCLAY'S PREMIER LEAGUE FORECAST.........

·        Why Liverpool won't win the EPL and would finish outside the top 4

·        Man United won’t win league but make Top 4, LVG best signing…

·        City second favorite to Chelsea in premiership race

The football season is set to begin in Europe's top 5 leagues (England, Spain, Germany, Italy, and France) and it’s likely to keep the game's pundits and fanatics glued to their sets as they bid to keep count of minute to minute action of the various league matches.

The affiliated raillery after rivals engage each other will also dominate several platforms including the streets, social media, radio stations et al...

In most of Europe’s leagues last season, we saw the emergence of sides who weren't the bookies favorite suddenly spring up to upset big guns in the title run with exhilarating performances.

v Liverpool making the cut for the Uefa Champions league after since the 2009/10 season and were near winners of the EPL which would have been their first time since its inception in 1992.

v Atletico Madrid winning the La Liga for the first time since the 1995–96  season and being losing finalist in the Uefa Champions league.

Elsewhere it was mere formality as the favorites went on to dominate and win the league (PSG-France/Bayern Munich-Germany/Juventus-Italy).

Well ahead of the commencement of the English League 2014-15 season, I analyze the chances of the top sides who without doubt have dominated the premier league for the past 15 years.

Manchester City: Manuel Pellegrini enjoyed a dream start to his City tenure, winning the league and cup double.

However this season promises to be a very difficult season for the Chilean.

City’s main challenger for the title this season is Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea from my viewpoint.

City has maintained almost all of its key players but will have their eyes set on an improved European adventure (that was the main reason Pellegrini was brought on board) and that diverted focus could see a Chelsea side who have been reinvigorated with some quality additions and look almost a complete side this season pip them to the ultimate.

Recent times have also shown that only the experienced sides can cope with the demands of competing for the premier league title and the Uefa Champions league crown. City has the strength in depth to do it but lack that tough mentality to carry on when the situation gets murky.

Just like last season, I see City slipping along the line in the EPL race against a much more mentally tough Chelsea side led by Jose Mourinho.

Liverpool .......although the premier league wait continues, the Reds as they are affectionately called by their ever vociferous fans will venture into the new season with a new kind of belief and relief.... They are back to Europe's best inter-club competition....

However one pain in the neck of the club is its dearth of a premier league trophy or a winner’s medal.

Last season was another of such 'so close but yet so far stories' as they agonizingly saw the title slip from their hands at the death.

Liverpool last year showed top class swift counter-attacking game blended with a high pressing style that confused most opponents making them uncomfortably succumbing to this style of play under Brendan Rogers.

The multi-million dollar question remains can Liverpool go a step further than they did last season or better yet emulate what they did last season.

With all sincerity, my infiltrated opinions on how the season is going to be for Brendan Rogers and his charges are that Liverpool will miss out on the topmost prize in the league and also looks likely to miss out on qualification for the champions’ league.

At the start of last season very few tipped Liverpool to start with greatness and such analysis was heavily backed by the fact that they were going to play a chunk of their opening games without their talismanic striker Luis Suarez who was then serving a ban.

A bright start to the season still didn't convince many and despite stumbling along the way, a win streak beginning late last year and travelling into early this year saw them shoot back into the title race until that infamous defeat to Chelsea all but extinguished all hopes of winning the EPL.

The fact is much attention was not given the team Liverpool therefore leaving them to play pressure free.

As more eyes were fixated on how David Moyes will thrive at Manchester United; how Tottenham would cope without Gareth Bale and Chelsea will be under Jose Mourinho's second stint and all that, Liverpool were enjoying their unnoticed status and utilised it effectively.

By the time all eyes went toward their direction, they started showing that they can quiver under pressure as they eventually succumbed at the last hour.

Well starting this season, that unnoticed tag has changed to a now serious title contender and coupled with that premier league jinx that needs to be broken, how will they cope now???? .

Will they quiver once again but this time at the start of the season....and my answer is yes.

Liverpool's mentality was quite questionable and hasn't improved either and it will be a factor against them not emulating their success chalked last season or even improving it.

Another key factor is Liverpool have lost goals.

Not only did Suarez flourish alone with his goals last season, Sturridge also benefited from that formidable union he had with Suarez.

The two players between them produced 52 goals between them from Liverpool's total of 101 league goals.

Sturridge himself had 21 goals and that was the Englishman's best season ever as a pro and that's where the issue lies.

Sturridge now becomes the lone target or will he be paired with Rickie Lambert....

Take away Suarez and you don't only take away 30+ goals but also assists and winning advantageous set pieces with his genius and trickery

His absence will be badly felt at the club with Sturridge the most affected.

Selling Suarez was good business for Liverpool but on the field of play it is gravely going to cost them and that is why Liverpool need an accomplished player preferably a striker to fill in the void created by his departure.

The club's inability to sign such a player will dampen the players' belief in their title winning chances and also affect team morale.

The arrival of such a signing will heighten the feel good factor surrounding the club.

Lambert is not the kind of striker who guarantees you that tally of goals and the likes of Sterling and Coutinho are fine players but not regular goal scorers and in simple terms cannot compensate for that deficiency with Suarez's absence. Lazar Markovic, Adam Lallana, Emre Can, Javier Manquillo are all players who are hungry and eager for success but will need at least 2 years to fully mature into the team to make them genuine title contenders.

This will also be a problem for Liverpool.

Last year Liverpool had a blessing in disguise of having been eliminated from all cup competitions early....and they were also not burdened with playing in Europe.

So they had their focus firmly on the EPL. It’s a different thing this season with pressure mounting on Brendan Rogers to win a trophy.

They compete in another competition now which is the UCL meaning more matches than last season. How they cope with the rigors of playing mid-week matches alongside the other competitions will mean their lean squad base will suffer a burn-out and eventually phase out of the race for the ultimate and the worse it can get will be to miss out on the top four slot.

Poor defending was also Liverpool's waterloo last season.
Too many poor back passes, conceding unwarranted goals, scoring too many goals were features of a free-scoring Liverpool side.

Scoring 101 and conceding 50 isn't that bad for any team but a title challenging team.

Of the top 4 teams last season only Liverpool conceded that much and the premier league has a tradition of the team with the best defense being huge favorites to win the title although there are very few exceptions.

Getting Dejan Lovren is a plus for their defense, but comparatively Skrtel and Sakho are my concerns. They are a time bomb waiting to explode and if it does will glaringly expose how leaky Liverpool’s defense is.

These reasons will prove decisive in Liverpool's inability to win the league and even for the worse finish outside the top 4 barring any last minute quality additions.

Chelsea looks a stronger side than they were last season.

A summer business saw the Blues acquire Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Felipe Luis, legend and veteran Didier Drogba and a return for goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

These players have a proven track record from their former leagues with the only exception being Cesc Fabregas albeit he had limited opportunities and was mostly played out of position while at Barcelona.

However his familiarity with the premiership should be an advantage for him.

Chelsea’s team has depth and is good for their campaign.  All Mourinho needs to do is to get it right with his selection and improving team confidence and aura. They are my sure bet for the EPL title and would have few troubles winning it.

Arsenal....Tell me Arsene Wenger’s side are favorites at the start of every season and I will say a big YES to it.

Sensational football has been the Gunners’ trademark every season but in the end produced series of heartaches of not winning a trophy for long.

The pain reliever however came when they won the FA cup last season and topped it up with the Community shield just last Sunday against Manchester City.

Injury to key players; inactiveness in the transfer market/failure to sign quality additions and inconsistency have played a key role in Arsenals misfortunes in previous seasons but they look different now.

They have bolstered their attacking options with the summer acquisition of Alexis Sanchez and also got on board Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers as defensive options

Arsenal, with this squad is still short of a being tagged as a real deal for the title as they fall short of a Central defender and a defensive midfielder.

I also believe they should get an established left back who is better defensive wise.

Kieran Gibbs is a good player going forward but has always fallen short of defending well in recent times and getting someone to play such a role will boost their chances.

For me Arsenal’s highest position this year will be second place but they will certainly make the Top 4 and seal Champions league qualification.

Manchester United suffered an uncharacteristic blip under David Moyes last season as the club did not only fail to defend their title but miss out on Europe altogether.

The subsequent appointment of experienced Dutch tactician, Louis Van Gaal has suddenly brought back a sense of belief that the Red Devils can return to the top 4 this season and even-although hopes are slim-win the premiership title.

Van Gaal has transformed Manchester United’s well known 4-4-2 system to 3-5-2 a set up he used well in the recently ended World Cup.

With the 3-5-2 the club has improved its passing game with them treating fans to a football delight on their pre season tour of the USA but will atill need to perfect on that.

Aiming for the title is too early in my opinion as the club lacks the needed players to take them there.

Missing out on Europe has proven difficult for them to attract big name signings but I strongly feel Ander Herrera and Luke Shaw will be able to help the cause at Old Trafford.

Juan Mata, Rooney and RVP are also players the Dutch tactician would rely on to take the club back to the top 4.

However to emerge as genuine title contenders, United will have to acquire the services of an accomplished Central midfielder, a Central defender and one wing wizard to make them look quality and be in a position to challenge the likes of Chelsea, Man City and even Arsenal.

However placing 4^th shouldn’t be out of reach for them.

Hence, my final top four teams would be:

1.   Chelsea

2.   Man City

3.   Arsenal

4.   Manchester United

I look forward to a very interesting and breathtaking season…….