Manchester City might have just won the league for the fourth year in a row, but the 2024/25 season was full of surprises and we expect plenty more from August when the next EPL campaign kicks off.
With Aston Villa making a shock rise to the top four, and poor seasons from Manchester United, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, it’s anyone’s guess who’ll be competing for those treasured Champions League spots.
A host of managers have been sacked already – Mauricio Pochettino and Roberto De Zerbi look set to be joined by Erik Ten Hag imminently – while Jurgen Klopp has already decided to leave his beloved Liverpool after 9 years.
The upcoming season is likely to be turbulent, so we’ve made some big calls on likely scenarios come 2025, as well as predictions on which players are going to be making headlines.
City fail to make it 5 from 5
Pep Guardiola’s ‘Unstoppables’ were on an unbeaten streak of 35 games before that disastrous F.A. Cup final against Manchester United. But a string of draws against Chelsea, Liverpool, Spurs and Crystal Palace in November and December was almost enough to give Arsenal the trophy. It’s not unlike them to fly close to the sun, but anyone can see that this year was a close call in the run-in.
Arsenal took it to the final day, and there were just two points in it at the end. It seems likely that Mikel Arteta’s Gunners will pip them to the post come next August. They are on the lookout for a new striker, and given their form of late, it’s likely to be one of the biggest stars around, with Osimhen being the likely candidate.
But their squad is starting to carry the depth needed to challenge for the title, with Trossard and Nketiah making a real impact off the bench all season, while Tomiyasu and Zinchenko comfortably swapped in and out when necessary. Declan Rice has quickly settled as the heartbeat of the team, and Kai Havertz made an unexpected run of form in the latter half of the season following raised eyebrows at his £65m fee from Chelsea.
Liverpool might have dropped off and it looks unlikely that they will look like contenders again anytime soon with Mohammed Salah on his way out, and Darwin Nuñez failing to find consistent form. But should Arsenal and City struggle, it’s possible that under new management they could find a second wind in the post-Klopp era. Don’t forget they were in the running until late in the season this year.
One thing’s for sure, City didn’t look their indestructible best this year and with Guardiola’s contract up at the end of the 2024/25 season and Kevin De Bruyne starting to look old and tired, there might be darkness at the end of a long tunnel for the players.
Olise hits the big time
Michael Olise had quite the season at Crystal Palace, despite missing much of it through injury. In Palace’s stretch of good form during the run-in, Olise featured heavily, playing a key part in supplying their goal machine, Jean-Phillippe Mateta with assists.
At the ripe age of 22 years old he looks to be a perfect cash-in for Palace as they seek to capitalise on what has been a strong season for the small club. Rumours are coming at a weekly rate from Manchester United, who look to sign the player following the failure of Mason Mount to settle, no thanks to a 5 month calf injury.
Olise’s control of the ball both when dribbling and playing short, attacking passes makes him a lethal addition to any squad, and it’s certain that his 10 goals in just 19 appearances are an extremely attractive selling point.
We expect a transfer fee of at least £50m given his youth and experience at both Crystal Palace and Reading. But even if he stays with the Eagles, he’s sure to be lighting up the
Premier League next season.
Manchester United begin to look dangerous again
Alex Ferguson’s shadow still looms large over United, primarily because they just haven’t found any success after he left in 2013. 11 years is not a long time in football, especially when you consider he was manager for 27.
The Glazer family have become increasingly to blame, with the club’s stadium, training ground and upper management in disarray. But with the recent development of Sir Jim Ratcliffe taking over a minority investment in the infamous club, things have begun to look up for the long term, with huge plans for a new stadium making headlines earlier this year.
This hasn’t translated to the pitch just yet, although one could count this year’s F.A Cup win as a big boost. What seems unlikely is that the club will forever dwindle and struggle, so the question is, when will they begin to find their winning formula?
Endless questions over the manager can be debated to no end, and while no big stars wanting to sign for the club is an issue, when there are kids like Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo coming through and shining extremely bright, it’s easy to see things might soon change at the club.
New signing, Rasmus Hojlund missed much of the 2023/24 season through injury, as did much of the squad, so all eyes will be on Old Trafford come August when all their players are back to full fitness.
Southampton find their top-flight boots again
Southampton are a club who have seen it all in the last 20 years. They’ve played in the Europa League twice, been relegated to League One and promoted to the Premier League twice.
After beating Leeds United in the Championship playoff final at Wembley the Saints are now hoping to make this third return to the EPL a permanent one. And it certainly looks to be going that way, with the stability and consistency that they have found in their playing style since taking on manager, Russell Martin, one year ago.
Martin is known for his stint at Norwich City as a defender from 2010 to 2018, and at only 38 years old he’s still fresh to managing, but what he has built at Southampton looks classy and a great fit for the Premier League.
Prioritising possession and passing, Martin has encouraged his players to have confidence in an almost Guardiola-esque fashion. They have dominated many of their games thanks to two Manchester City players who have lit up the squad on loan – Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Ché Adams.
The former has now signed for Southampton and looks to maintain Southampton’s form going into the
24/25 EPL season. We expect them to handle the recent trend of high defensive lines and possession focused play well, particularly against the lower ranked teams. They may not finish in the top half, but they’re sure to stay up and perhaps for another long stint.
Nicolas Jackson finds his feet
It’s easy to sit back and criticise Nicolas Jackson, when he’s missed so many sitters. It’s a trait which has sparked many a troll video on social media, but when you consider that this is not just his first season at Chelsea, but in the Premier League too, his underlying stats begin to look throughly impressive.
17 goals (in all competitions) in a debut season for any striker would be reasonable, especially given the couple of years Chelsea have had under new ownership and cycling through managers like there’s no tomorrow.
You have to remember that Jackson is only 22 years old too, and one can’t help but think how he would have settled had he come into the Premier League at a more stable club like Arsenal or Manchester City.
It looks like Cole Palmer is going nowhere, and with that kind of service, we can expect Jackson’s tallies to start shooting up even further.
An exciting season ahead
With the high number of managers on the move the
2024/25 Premier League season looks to be a lively one, alongside the wildcard promotion of Ipswich Town and return of Leicester City. After seeing Luton Town bring a burst of charisma and charm it’s been a welcome reminder that money and big signings aren’t what make the English top-flight exciting.
