Premier League Football

The 2024-25 season will be spoken of in Burnley for generations—though the reasons might spark heated debate at every pub and pie shop from Turf Moor to Towneley Park. On the surface, Burnley’s journey looked like a parade of milestones, setting records that redefined defensive dominance in the English Football League. Yet for much of the footballing public, it was the most uninspiring, “boring” promotion in modern memory.

The Premier League title is only days away from being won by Liverpool. Let's turn our attention to the other end of the table. After the weekend fixtures, the bottom three places are filled by Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Norwich City. Supporters of these clubs get ready for Championship football next season as they are the trio heading for relegation.

1 – Sir Alex Ferguson

The obvious choice as the most influential manager. It’s not merely Ferguson’s amazing record of having won 12 of the 20 Premier League titles, it’s his sheer longevity – having managed United for over 25 years, he pre-dates the Premier League era.

Samir Nasri, Manchester City

Fernandinho, Shakhtar Donetsk to Manchester City

Although capped only five times by Brazil, Fernandinho is a highly impressive midfielder who would bring energy and tenacity to the centre of the Manchester City side.

This weekend’s first Premier League clash is a repeat of one of last season’s outstanding matches. Chelsea’s 4-2 victory over Tottenham Hotspur was much less comfortable than the scoreline would suggest – an amazingly open, topsy-turvy game was decided in stoppage time, in Andre Villas-Boas’ first meeting against his former club.

1 – Manuel Pellegrini

Chilean coach might not yet be considered one of the world’s top managers – and with no experience of English football and no major trophies won since his move to Europe, he’s far from a guaranteed success.

Next season will be the first time in Premier League history that the three favourites have all appointed new managers in the summer – an obvious consequence of Sir Alex Ferguson’s amazing 26-year spell in charge of Manchester United.

Only United have confirmed their next manager, David Moyes, with Manchester City and Chelsea still in limbo, but widely expected to confirm Manuel Pellegrini and Jose Mourinho respectively.

10. Moussa Sissoko, Newcastle 3-2 Chelsea

Many expected January signing Moussa Sissoko to be used in a deep midfield position, with Yohan Cabaye playing at the top of the triangle – but Alan Pardew had other ideas. Sissoko was pushed forward in support of Papiss Cisse, and constantly drove Newcastle forward with powerful midfield runs.

1) The strain of the Europa League