Here’s our article where we look at 3 Premier League teams who we think could improve this season in Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.
3 Premier League Teams Who Could Improve This Season
Here we look at 3 sides who could improve this season and the reasons why
Liverpool
The difference between Liverpool’s title winning season and their 3rd place finish last season is quite stark at both ends of the pitch.
Here’s a table of basic stats taken from Understat
The attacking side
So you can see that on the attacking side of the pitch they scored 17 less goals although in xG terms this wasn’t the disaster that it looks like with Liverpool’s expected stats only 3 goals less. Shots per game even improved it’s just they put less of them on target.
Alot of this can be pointed towards Sadio Mane. On virtually the same minutes and same xG he scored 11 goals instead of 18. The man who was a perpetual lethal finisher suddenly couldn’t hit a barn door. If he gets back to anything like his usual finishing standards this will be a different Liverpool team
Add to that the long injury spell of new signing Diogo Jota who was not only their to give them an additional attacking dimension in allowing Klopp to move to 4-2-3-1 and have an additional attacker on the pitch and allow some rotation. Now fit he will be there to improve their attacking output.
The defensive side
The defensive deterioration is even easier to explain. Liverpool finished the season with 2 players in Nat Phillips and 19 year old Rhys Williams at Centre Back who had never played in the Premier League prior to that season.
That also affected the attack as Alexander Arnold could no longer maraud upfield unchecked knowing that either Van Dijk or the lightning quick Joe Gomez could cover. Alexander Arnold’s assist numbers dropped from 13 to 7 as a result and goals from 4 to 2. Injuries to Henderson and the earlier experiment with Fabinho at centre back further reduced the defensive cover from midfield.
All 3 of Matip, Gomez and Van Dijk look like they will be fit this season and Liverpool have added Ibrahima Konate. Konate is a Centre Back who has played 66 times in the Bundesliga and 13 times for the French U21 side and has Champions League experience. Liverpool will not concede 40 plus goals again this season
This has filtered through to their Betway english premier league soccer betting odds where they are 6/1 to win the league, equal with Chelsea and only behind Manchester City
Chelsea
I can explain the reason for a perceived improvement next season in 2 words, Thomas Tuchel.
You need little more explanation than this graphic
When Tuchel took over Chelsea they were in 9th place having lost 1-3 to Man City and 2-0 to Leicester in the 3 games before Lampard was sacked. While only 3 sides had scored more than the 33 goals Chelsea had at that stage Chelsea were 9th for goals conceded. While Tuchel reduced the goals scored he transformed the defence into a team that conceded the least goals while he was in charge and in xG conceded no team got within 5 goals of their stat over that period.
What’s more he did that with unfreezing a number of players that Lampard had seemingly discarded. Even Kepa and Emerson got gametime and Rudiger became the mainstay of the defence.
Chelsea ended up with a Champions League spot finishing 4th and won the Champions League final
Chelsea go into this season as a far more complete well managed squad. Should they be able to land a Lewandoski or a Haarland as rumoured then who knows what they can achieve.
Arsenal
While you may or may not think Mikel Arteta does or doesn’t have what it takes to make Arsenal a top 4 force this season you can’t deny that he has a plan even if that plan is entitled “Pep’s guide to football” that he sneaked out of the Etihad under his Pep like hoodie.
The signing of Thomas Partey and the proposed signing of Ben White is all part of an idea to make Arsenal a Man City “lite” team that presses and plays higher up the pitch. Ben Whites passing and his aggressive front foot defending take the best bits of David Luiz in his passing but also with a partnership of him and Gabriel you have 2 aggressive front foot defenders who will move Arsenal far higher up the pitch.
Partey and new signing Albert Lokonga give the team more mobility and an ability to carry the ball up the pitch and link the midfield with the attack. Xhaka who looks to be on his way to Roma will be missed for his passing but not his lack of pressing or mobility.
With Lacazette in the last season of his contract he surely will be on his way rather than allowed to go for free. This will allow Aubameyang to play centre forward where he is much more effective and make space for 3 young attacking midfielders in Pepe, Saka and Smith Rowe. All of which should improve this season given last seasons additional Premier League experience.
The perceived improvement for next season has already filtered into the Betway odds where they are 6th favourite to finish in the top 4 in contrast to the 8th place finish in the Premier League last season
