Arsenal

Who Will Win The 2011/12 Title? We Look At The Five Contenders

by
Football Talk
July 16, 2011

To kick off the new 2011/12 season, get a Sky Sports HD package and enjoy the action in stunning HD TV.

The 2011/12 Premier League season is almost upon us, and the usual questions are already being asked; who will win this season’s Premier League title?

The usual suspects will be among the front runners for top spot come next spring, with any one of five clubs in with a legitimate chance of landing the silverware. We look at each potential champion as well as some of their key fixtures during the opening month of the new campaign.

Man Utd

Many fans and punters alike will look no further than reigning champions, Manchester United, who are bidding to add to their record haul of 19 titles; last season’s triumph lifting them above rivals Liverpool in top division titles. They have yet to replace legendary midfield stalwart Paul Scholes, who retired from football at the end of last season, but have added extra pace to their artillery in Ashley Young, and have signed promising Spanish keeper David De Gea from Athletico Madrid to help fill the vacant number one jersey left by retired Edwin Van Der Sar.

Add to that the signature of England U-21 captain Phil Jones, and the future looks very bright for Sir Alex’s Red Devils. The manager has also publicly shown interest in Dutch maestro Wesley Sneidjer. Were he to pull that signature off, then United really would be in the driving seat for the coming season. The players there know what it takes to see out challenging seasons and domestically at least, they will be hard to topple.

The new arrivals will need to settle quickly as United face Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea in their first five Premier League fixtures, so a tough start for the Red Devils, however all three games are at Old Trafford where United were almost faultless last season.

Chelsea

Two clubs hot on the heels of United will perhaps be Chelsea and Man City. Both have began throwing their financial weight around in the transfer market again this summer, bidding for a string of top players, but as of yet, both have failed to land any major signings. Chelsea have brought in Lucas Piazon, dubbed the “New Kaka”, although he is likely to set the world alight in his first full season at Stamford Bridge. The Londoners do have a wealth of experience in every area of the pitch though, and if they can get the under-firing Fernando Torres, back amongst the goals, they will be right up there on the final day.

The new season gets underway with an away trip at Stoke, shown live on Sky, followed by games against West Brom and newly promoted Norwich City, so many would say it’s a favourable start for the Blues and an opportunity for them to build up a head of speed before they travel to Old Trafford on the 18th September. A game not to be missed!

Man City

Manchester City have also brought in one or two signings, in the shape of Gael Clichy and Montonegro defender Stefan Savic, but again, they are yet to bring any “superstars” in. With Carlos Tevez set to walk in the other direction away from Eastlands, they will surely have to splash the cash if they are to make a serious assault on the Premier League this term. A good test of City’s credentials will be the season opening Community Shield against rivals United, the first live televised game on Sky for the new season. A win here and City will be full of confidence heading into the new campaign.

Arsenal

Perhaps the hardest team to assess are Arsenal. The simple dilemma Arsene Wenger faces is that he doesn’t know who will still be at the club come the opening game. Fabregas has long been linked with a move to Champions’ League winners Barcelona, and Samir Nasri’s future is very much in the balance with a host of clubs fighting for his services. If the boss can hold on to his key assets then the Gunners have a chance of competing at the top of the league, with the acquisition of winger Gervinho from Lille. However, the Emirate’s faithful have been left constantly frustrated with their team, who play such attractive football, but fall short when the going gets tougher later on in the season.

The Gunners have a tough start, facing away trips to Newcastle and Manchester United as well as a home tie against Liverpool in their first three games. A slow start is the last thing Arsene Wenger and his men need after their capitulation towards the end of the 2011 season.

Liverpool

Liverpool are another team who will be hard to predict this season. If recent years are anything to go by, the Scousers will be a long way off the pace, but then again, they didn’t have King Kenny, Mr. Dalglish, in charge. Since his return to Liverpool towards the end of last season, Liverpool are beginning to play the kind of football the Kop have grown accustomed to over the years. With a new mixture of youth from the club’s academy, along with the purchases of Luis Suarez, Andy Caroll, Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam, the team are on the up. Put that with Captain Steven Gerrard, and the ever-present Jamie Carragher, and there really could be a few surprises sprung at Anfield this season.

The first big test of the new-look Liverpool will be a trip to the Emirates on the 20th August to face Arsenal, prior to that is a season opener against Sunderland who have also been busy in the transfer market.

The chasing pack, including the likes of Spurs and Everton, aren’t likely to compete for the title anytime soon, but any team can really beat any other team in the division on their day at the moment, and that can only make for exciting viewing this coming season.

Let the games begin.

Enjoy Sky Sports in HD

With the new season upon us, now is the time to get your Sky Sports HD package and watch your favourite clubs live premier league and champions league games. Sky will be broadcasting an amazing 115 live Premier League games this season with all available in HD and a selection will be shown in stunning 3D. In addition, there will be 129 Champions League games on offer throughout the season, with the final round of qualifying kicking things off in August.

An amazing new feature for this season is Sky Go; a service that allows Sky subscribers the opportunity to watch all Sky channels live on their laptops, computers, mobile phone or tablets.