Arsenal

Manager: Arsene Wenger

Key Dude: Probably Alexis Sanchez again. He’s pound for pound as good a creative footy player as anyone else in the Premier League.

Best Signing: Granit Xhaka is a both a ball-winning and a ball-distributing central midfielder. Exactly what fans have been demanding for years now, he comes in from FC Basel and looked the goods at the Euros for Switzerland.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Interesting to see what happens with Theo Walcott. If he wants regular games he’d better be gone by the end of deadline day.

What to Watch For: Same old Arsenal. Too many attacking players to count but debates about whether they have the goal scorers to make it matter. Granit Xhaka is a wonderful addition, he could really turn this midfield into a force… though the defence needs work and quick.

Expectations: I mean, they finished second last time so hard to see how they improve on that given they aren’t gonna win. Finish above Spurs, make the Champions League quarters and have a proper run at one of the cups. Oh, and attractive, flowing football, naturally.

The Big Question: Is 12 years without a title too long? Yeah, probs, but that doesn’t mean the streak will end.

Bournemouth

Manager: Eddie Howe

Key Dude: Callum Wilson would have been this guy last season so after missing most of the last gig with injury he gets the nod again.

Best Signing: Their signings have been so interesting, going after a bunch of young players all in their teens or very early 20s. Lewis Cook was superb for Leeds last season in the midfield and has breakthrough potential all over him.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Jordon Ibe was gonna be the new Raheem Sterling for a while there. If that was anything more than just optimistic Liverpool fans chattering then we’re soon gonna find out. Matt Ritchie was pretty decent and Ibe needs to replace that.

What to Watch For: The Cherries are smart, ambitious and they play good football. A small team finding ways to hang with the big guys. Defence is still a huge issue but lots to admire here.

Expectations: Settle somewhere in between 10-15 and avoid relegation with a month or so to spare. Something along those lines.

The Big Question: How hard does the second season syndrome strike?

Burnley

Manager: Sean Dyche

Key Dude: My main man Andre Gray, who will score goals goals goals.

Best Signing: I’ll let you know when they make one of note. Joey Barton has left for Rangers and with bugger all coming in, they’re possibly worse in the Premier League than they were in the Championship. Jon Flanagan on loan, maybe?

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Not George Boyd, he’s as consistent as they come. Johann Berg Gudmundsson would be one, he played for Iceland at the Euros and has come in from Charlton on the sly. Sam Vokes is another who did solid at the Euros.

What to Watch For: The defending Championship champions come up with a squad that isn’t too far removed from the one that went down the year earlier. That was a great thing for their promotion efforts… hard to say if that’s still the case for their top flight survival hopes.

Expectations: Seventeenth place or higher. Could be difficult.

The Big Question: Can Andre Gray do what Danny Ings didn’t and keep this team above water?

Chelsea

Manager: Antonio Conte

Key Dude: Eden Hazard was the best player in England two years ago but after that trash he served up last season it’s hard to tell with him anymore. Looked sharp at the Euros though.

Best Signing: You can’t really go wrong with N’Golo Kante, the most dependable midfielder in the league last time out and they got him for a good price. Even if they don’t get another striker, they should be all good with Costa and Batshuayi.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: That’d be that lad Diego Costa, who sometimes looks like the smartest forward out there with the way he finds himself in those poaching positions and other times looks like the dumbest man alive, ignoring the game to play schoolyard bully. It’d really help the Blues if he was back to his 2014-15 form, which to be fair goes for the whole team.

What to Watch For: That’s the theme here, Chelsea trying to restore themselves to the force they looked when they strolled to the title. Antonio Conte is a wonderful manager who’ll keep them set at the back in the least. He’s also a man who demands a lot from his players and that trend back towards the Jose style of things will either be boom or bust. Six months of Guus Hiddink patching up the confidences will have done plenty to help.

Expectations: Get back into Europe. The Champions League could be hard to manage given how everyone’s trying to fit through that door, but a lot of people have forgotten about Chelsea. Could even be dark horse title contenders.

The Big Question: Remember when there used to be a Big Four?

Crystal Palace

Manager: Alan Pardew

Key Dude: Yannick Bolasie until he signed for Everton. Considering how crap they’ve been without him in recent times it’s a shame he’s going, the guy’s a wonderful player. Yohan Cabaye takes over as key dude now.

Best Signing: They haven’t made it yet. Andros Townsend is a decent addition, James Tomkins will fill a role and Steve Mandanda will be a reliable keeper for them. They desperately need a striker though… Christian Benteke, perhaps? Saido Berahino?

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Wilfried Zaha has had an odd career, that’s for sure. On his day he’s a blistering threat and off it he looks like he just can’t, he just can’t, he just can’t control his feet.

What to Watch For: Alan Pardew doing silly things, a team with a strong defence struggling for creativity but plugging away with a couple good old fashioned wingers. There aren’t many more like them – if they get the striker they’re after it could click.

Expectations: Top half of the table. The cup run last term will have gotten fans dreaming too… hopefully enough to ignore their horrific league form post-Jan.

The Big Question: Which is the legit Crystal Palace, the one that made the FA Cup Final or the one that while that was happening, completely limped to the finish of the season?

Everton

Manager: Ronald Koeman

Key Dude: Depends if Romelu Lukaku is still there or not, just in case let’s go with Ross Barkley. He was ignored (along with John Stones) at the Euros, not playing a minute. Superb player though.

Best Signing: The Toffees are another club that are still working on it, though Idrissa Gueye was a rare bright spark for Aston Villa and chuck him in with some decent teammates, he could have some N’Golo Kante potential about him. He was one of the few to rival Kante’s tackles and interception numbers in 2015-16.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: The bank balance. Now that John Stones has left for City (and if Lukaku for Chelsea) then they simply have to be replaced, no excuses. Those two are too important to the Toffees otherwise. Ashley Williams fits that bill too, he’s one of my favourite players. Good get.

What to Watch For: Part of the appeal of Koeman is that he brings defensive stability. That’s something you couldn’t ever say about Roberto Martinez (new Belgium coach, how about that?). The squad isn’t especially deep but there’s a strong starting XI in there. It’s about time that Everton got themselves back up the table.

Expectations: Another cup semi-final and a top eight finish will be a solid platform for the Koeman era. But after last season, any improvement in style probably takes priority so long as they can edge a spot or two higher in the league as well.

The Big Question: Can their new Director of Football Steve Walsh, the man who scouted half the title-winning Leicester team, bring the same magic to Merseyside? Everton have always been a pretty solid recruiting side, going back to Moyes.

Hull City

Manager: They don’t have one.

Key Dude: Tom Huddlestone is a decent player, their defence will be the main strength though. Curtis Davies is a beast of a player.

Best Signing: They haven’t made one. Not ‘they haven’t made a best signing’, but they haven’t made a signing at all. Not a single incoming transfer. It’s part of why Steve Bruce left.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Abel Hernandez was bought to try keep them up last time and he was very average. But a season in the Championship showed that he’s too good for that level, so if he can supply a few goals then that’s always helpful.

What to Watch For: Let’s get this straight. Their manager resigned and is yet to be replaced. They have had so many injuries through pre-season that at times they could barely field a starting XI and yet they haven’t made a single signing. Go on and try find a team that’s had a more chaotic lead in to a season, just you try.

Expectations: Relegation, to be honest. There won’t be too many Hull fans feelings right now that survival for another year is most likely beyond them.

The Big Question: What the hell is going on?

Leicester City

Manager: Claudio Ranieri

Key Dude: The same old crew but Jamie Vardy stands above. Goals are the great currency.

Best Signing: Absolutely love Ahmed Musa for this team. He’s strong and fast and he’s versatile. Some super options there for Ranieri – who himself has re-signed for another three years.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Well the main thing is how they replace N’Golo Kante so it’s either Andy King or it’s Nampalys Mendy. Probably the latter, though either way there are some huge boots to fill.

What to Watch For: A constant reminder that there is still hope for the romantics out there – money doesn’t rule everything in football in 2016. Just most of it. Leicester also buck the trend in not giving two goddamns about keeping possession, instead attacking hard in the transitions. They score some wicked goals too, shouts to Riyad Mahrez in particular.

Expectations: Mate, nobody knows. Could range from narrowly dodging relegation to winning the Champions League.

The Big Question: You already know what it is. Can they do it all over again?

Liverpool

Manager: Jurgen Klopp

Key Dude: When you get a manager with as much personality and a very defined philosophy they tend to be the key dude themselves, see Pep Guardiola. But picking a player, Roberto Firmino is a marvellous one and I only hope he isn’t undermined by Sadio Mane and Georginio Wijnaldum coming in.

Best Signing: A few of them have been very questionable – Liverpool’s favourite thing to do is buy players who only play well against them – but Joel Matip on a free is one that nobody can argue with. Really impressive defender and exactly what they needed.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: You know who it is. Daniel Sturridge tends not to be the easiest player to fit into a system, he’s a little more into doing his own thing, so he’s hardly Klopp’s ideal striker. But he’s the best one they have and on his day he’s among the best in the Premier League.

What to Watch For: The many touchline emotions of Jurgen Klopp. The many flappy hands of Simon Mignolet. The many wild and occasionally incredible shots of Coutinho. The many step overs that lead to nothing but are still exciting of Adam Lallana. Look, Liverpool are always an entertaining team and this season you can expect the ol’ Gegenpress to take hold a bit stronger. Oh, and the way that Jordan Henderson runs is hilarious.

Expectations: Top six minimum, top four would be magic. And a cup win. Like, not a final and a loss but an actual cup win. Silverware.

The Big Question: With no European footy to distract (or to keep them off the training field that Klopp uses so well)… are we due another title run? Haha, nah, but all goods, see ‘Expectations’.

Manchester City

Manager: Pep Guardiola

Key Dude: Despite this fully stacked squad, they’re still going to rely on Sergio Aguero’s goals.

Best Signing: Gotta say Ilkay Gundogan looks like a steal with the way he’s snuck under the radar. Fits a need too, which is always handy. Getting some more passing into that midfield. John Stones was expensive but is also a square peg for a square hole.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Most people assumed Yaya Toure was on the way out but here he is still there and apparently with a role to play. Could be a career resurgence in the making, you never know. Keeping Sergio Aguero and Vincent Kompany fit is massive as well.

What to Watch For: Pep vs Jose, that’s always been fun. Although just seeing Guardiola adapting to the English game is enough in itself, he did so in Germany with Bayern and will do so with City too. This won’t be a case of a rock solid philosophy being implemented without budge. Getting Pep was the final step of the Make Manchester City A Superpower plan. Let’s see how that goes now.

Expectations: Win the league, win a cup, maybe even win the Champions League. In the very least, win the Manchester Derby and finish ahead of United. Pretty football will please the fans as well.

The Big Question: Are they favourites? Does that even matter? Is John Stones now a guaranteed England starter for the next 10 years?

Manchester United

Manager: Jose Mourinho

Key Dude: A few days ago Zlatan Ibrahimovic was the key dude, what with being the signified face of the new era – a team that Mourinho promises will stop hesitating to shoot – but no, let’s be honest, it’s Paul Pogba.

Best Signing: Since we’ve already mentioned two of them, Henrikh Mkhitaryan was the best player in the Bundesliga last season. If he’s lucky he’ll slide under the radar more than Memphis was allowed to do, though with his ability he might not need to.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Wayne Rooney might be the best player of all time who 50% of people don’t even think is a good player. And now that he’s old enough for everyone to agree he’s been pretty useful, that 50% are assured that Rooney’s washed up. You can blame Louis Van Gaal for the Rooney of the last few years, now we get to see whassup.

What to Watch For: The conflict between LVG and Jose’s strategies. Jose Mourinho in general. Handshakes and angry press conferences. Zlatanising. Pogbooming. Daley Blind’s hair. Oh, and Phil Jones of course.

Expectations: Jose says win everything they possibly can, so that’s the goal then. Realistically, getting into the Champions League – whether by a top four finish or a Europa League triumph – and an FA Cup defence would appease.

The Big Question: It’s been almost 80 years since Manchester United last picked a matchday squad without an academy graduate in it… how long ‘til Jose ruins that?

Middlesbrough

Manager: Aitor Karanka

Key Dude: Daniel Ayala is a superb defender, easily capable of rising to the Premier League challenge. Boro are well stocked, to be honest.

Best Signing: A few years ago Alvaro Negredo was bagging goals (sometimes) for Manchester City and now he’s been convinced to join the Boro Brigade (on loan). So has Victor Valdes, but for a free transfer. And Viktor Fischer is a really promising fella as well. Mate, while the other two promoted teams have slept, these guys are getting things done.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Without a doubt, it’s a matter of how many of the guys that have done so well in the Championship are able to steady themselves here. Guys like Grant Leadbitter, Jordan Rhodes, David Nugent, Adam Clayton, George Friend and a few others. Some have had chances before the jury is still out.

What to Watch For: This is a team that should have been promoted a year earlier but they’re probably better now for that. They play attractive footy, though weren’t always allowed to by packed defences last time, and their manager is a bit of a madman – he sort of resigned last season amidst a fallout with the dressing room but that got sorted out.

Expectations: Avoid relegation. But I reckon they could sneak a cup run as well.

The Big Question: Can the best defence in the Football League last term (a mere 31 goals conceded) maintain in the top flight? Also, is Jordan Rhodes as slow as he looks and does that even matter?

Southampton

Manager: Claude Puel

Key Dude: Virgil Van Dijk didn’t take long to settle into the PL. One of the best centre backs in the league, no doubt about it.

Best Signing: Nathan Redmond as a straight replacement for Sadio Mane makes a lot of sense. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has plenty to prove after being touted as a next big thing under Pep at Bayern, only to fall off the scene.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Here’s hoping Jay Rodriguez can stay fit. Between Oriol Romeu, Jordy Clasie and Hojbjerg, there’s a fair bit of slack to be picked up now that Victor Wanyama has left a year after Morgan Schneiderlin did. Central midfield could be a soft spot, perhaps. All three of those guys have big raps though, plus young lads James Ward-Prowse and Harrison Reed are fire.

What to Watch For: Puel brings to Southampton his own ideas and while he also loves to play the odd youngster, like their last couple bosses, he doesn’t so much care for a 4-2-3-1. He’s more about the diamond midfield and by the looks of it that means Charlie Austin, Shane Long and Nathan Redmond rotating up front ahead of Dusan Tadic. Dunno about you, but I’m keen for a slice of that. Add in a typically forceful defence and you’ve a very good team.

Expectations: The top seven could be ruthless this time around, but a top ten finish without too much compromising outta be enough. Certainly no lower.

The Big Question: Can the yearly improvements continue? Seven years in a row they’ve upped their previous year’s league finish.

Stoke City

Manager: Mark Hughes

Key Dude: Xherdan Shaqiri scored that unbelievable goal for Switzerland, his was a transfer that truly signalled a changing of the times at Stoke. The Stokalona thing is a few steps off fruition but it’s a lot of fun.

Best Signing: Next step in Stokalona is finding a midfield that isn’t Glenn Whelan and Charlie Adam. How about Gianneli Imbula and Joe Allen then? Yeah, marvellous. Allen is the premier footballing chicken farmer on the planet and what better man for a battler club trying to be Barcelona than the Welsh Xavi?

Wildcard’s Wildcard: The big problems last time were a lack of a proper striker, a lack of depth behind Ryan Shawcross and then Jack Butland’s injury. None of those things have been dealt with yet. Hughesy is a wildcard too, with worries about what the ceiling of a Mark Hughes managed team may be. And Marko Arnautovic is an insane person, if that counts.

What to Watch For: All of the above plus Bojan Krkic. They seriously need a striker though, as exquisite as Peter Crouch is he ain’t gonna cut it no more. Take a peek at their many attacking options and think what they could do with a speedy forward to run onto things. Saido Berahino, for example.

Expectations: Top half of the table while continuing the trend towards capable passing and encouraged attack.

The Big Question: If Arsenal inspired Barcelona, as some Gunners like to think, and Arsenal’s great weakness is the trusty rainy night in Stoke and now Stoke are trying to play more like Barcelona then… will this rip a hole in the time-space continuum?

Sunderland

Manager: David Moyes

Key Dude: He’s not getting any younger but they wouldn’t be here without Jermain Defoe’s contributions to the scoreboard. Won’t be easy to find another 15 league goals. Then again if he does then Big Sam will probably have him back in the England squad.

Best Signing: There haven’t been many and it’s hard to say too much positive about spending £8m on Papy Djilobodji after he played a grand total of one minute for Chelsea last season. Paddy McNair and Donald Love are clever acquisitions. Sunderland’s best move will come late in the window though.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: That would be the manager, Mr Moyesy. Also, I wonder if Jack Rodwell’s got more to offer. Duncan Watmore certainly does.

What to Watch For: Depends if they suck or not, because when they have they’ve been unwatchable. Sloppy mistakes and general chaos. But when they’re doing okay Wahbi Khazri is a stunner of an entertainer. Jan Kirchhoff takes no prisoners either.

Expectations: Don’t get relegated. Dear God, don’t get relegated.

The Big Question: How much of last year’s escape was down to unrepeatable Big Sammery and does the Moyesiah have that same influence?

Swansea City

Manager: Francesco Guidolin

Key Dude: They sold him. Ashley Williams. Without the lad, umm… I’m a big Gylfi Sigurdsson fan and as an Icelandic footy player, it’s been a pleasant time for him recently.

Best Signing: Oh, dude, Fernando Llorente, no doubt about it. The man’s won a World Cup.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Whoever replaces Williams in defence because they’ve tended to be a whole lot better there with their Welsh captain than without. The likes of Jordi Amat, Mike van der Hoorn and Federico Fernandez have the potential to step it up, so it ain’t all gloom – they wouldn’t have let AW go so easily if they weren’t prepared. Also great defence can be systematic, which leaves it upon the manager. Should be interesting to see.

What to Watch For: Their transfer business has ranged from hyper ambitious to entirely forlorn and it’s hard to see a pattern in some of these dealings. Llorente and Borja Bastón could add some serious flair to this team that they haven’t had since Michu was good and that’s tinglingly exciting. But yeah, that defence is a scary prospect at the other end. Might be a few 4-3s.

Expectations: I don’t like to say this but I’m a little worried about Swansea. There might not be another team out there at this stage that are every bit as easy to imagine getting relegated as it is to imagine them cracking the top seven. I’ll compromise and say mid-table.

The Big Question: A Welsh team with an Icelandic playmaker. Is that an omen?

Tottenham Hotspur

Manager: Mauricio Pochettino

Key Dude: Harry Hotspur scores the goals, Toby Alders keeps ‘em out.

Best Signing: Vincent Janssen sounds like an ideal deputy to Mr Kane while Victor Wanyama should have a fun time linking up with his old boss again. They struggled badly when Dele Alli or Mousa Dembele were out last time so he’s also a crucial one.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: I’m gonna go all in on the fans here. Their team had a chance to win the title and falling short of that is one thing but to collapse all together is another. They forced another St Totteringham’s Day. Now the Spursiness cliché remains and in this the final season at White Hart Lane, the fans will have a big say as to whether good enough is good enough or if this team can actually become a year in and out threat at the top.

What to Watch For: There’s no shortage of theatre when it comes to Spurs. The rivalry of almost-but-not-quite with Arsenal, the young English core, the sexy football they play, the intelligent manager, the culture shock of a club stuck between playing for fifth and playing for fourth. It’s all there.

Expectations: Aim big, Tottenham. 30 goals in all comps for Kane and a top four finish.

The Big Question: Is this Harry Kane for real or is he a one season wonder? No, wait, that was last time’s question. Ah… okay this one. Is the fitness and effort Pochettino demands of his dudes at least partially to blame for their collapse and if so how does that bode for a Champions League campaign where squad rotation doesn’t fly as smoothly as in the Europa League groups?

Watford

Manager: Walter Mazzarri

Key Dude: Troy Deeney is the captain, the most reliable striker and the heart of the club. And this is a club that needs its heart, with so much Pozzo-ing going on.

Best Signing: Jerome Sinclair was a sneaky one but an applaudable one too. Christian Kabasele and Brice Dja Djedje need to be decent at the back for the sake of this team.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: The midfield, which was average under Quique Sanchez Flores and who even knows now? Etienne Capoue was much more rubbish than they’d hoped, while Mario Suarez didn’t quite settle coming in during January. The form of those two could be pivotal.

What to Watch For: It used to be the immaculate Sanchez Flores but he got the flick for their useless second half of the season (as if the first half didn’t even count). Harsh, but the Pozzos have squeezed in their buddy Mazzarri who should do better with the defence, though after such a promising start to their Premier League tenure this side is back at square one in hoping to scrape through without relegation.

Expectations: Don’t go down, don’t let these new boys be wasted signings.

The Big Question: Given Mazzarri reckons he invented the three man defence, with Antonio Conte also a fan, are we going to see a Watford-led trend this season?

West Bromwich Albion

Manager: Tony Pulis

Key Dude: Darren Fletcher is healthy these days and while he’ll never be back to the player that once single-handedly beat Arsenal in the Champions League semis in 2009, he’s still got it all up top and that experience and knowledge is what managers dream of in players.

Best Signing: Matt Phillips is a fine addition, he’ll do well. A shame he’s the only addition to date. I sorta reckon Diafra Sakho’s failed medical might have saved them though.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: The young lad Jonathan Leko threatens to add some actual flair to a Pulis team, which is no mean feat.

What to Watch For: Centre backs upon centre backs, with a compact formation and a favouring for set pieces. Look, you know how Tony Pulis rolls. Expect to see a hyper fit team that works hard and draws 1-1 a lot.

Expectations: <15 and with a large profit for Saido Berahino.

The Big Question: How much is Tony P willing to risk to make this team more creative? They’ll always be a structured team but that doesn’t tend to lend itself to goals, which he knows the team needs more of.

West Ham United

Manager: Slaven Bilic

Key Dude: You already know that it’s Dimitri Payet – free kick extraordinaire and playmaker deluxe.

Best Signing: There’s a real argument that West Ham have been the best recruiters of the last couple years. Leicester may argue. This year’s crop include Sofiane Feghouli, Andre Ayew and Havard Nordtveit. I’m a big fan of Feghouli myself.

Wildcard’s Wildcard: Arthur Masuaku is coming in new and will need to cover for Aaron Creswell for the rest of 2016, a tough ask when the Hammers really don’t have another option there. Gokhan Tore will be curious if he gets a run.

What to Watch For: A huge new stadium that’ll seat 60k with a West Ham team there that all of a sudden can actually demand that sort of crowd. It’s been fun recently, Payet’s vision and his dead ball strikes make him necessary viewing every week. Slaven Bilic is a popular manager as well, the kind of guy that’ll draft a brilliantly tactical approach for a game and then get sent off for yelling at a referee on the same day.

Expectations: Top eight should be attainable if things go well.

The Big Question: Andy Carroll’s season. Number of goals scored vs number of games missed by injury, which number is higher?