After many years of witnessing Manchester City dominate, then Liverpool and Arsenal successively win the championship, the Premier League enters the 2026-2027 season with a completely new situation. Many factors appearing at the same time make the championship race more balanced and unpredictable than ever.
New breeze on the coaching bench
One of the biggest changes coming from top teams is the appearance of a series of new coaches.
After a decade of resounding success with Man City, Pep Guardiola has left the Etihad Stadium. His successor is Enzo Maresca, former assistant to Guardiola and also just left Chelsea at the beginning of the year.
Chelsea also entered a new era when they appointed Xabi Alonso. The Spanish strategist once helped Bayer Leverkusen win the Bundesliga with an unbeaten record before going through a challenging period at Real Madrid.
Meanwhile, Liverpool chose Andoni Iraola to replace Arne Slot after the 2025-2026 season. Michael Carrick and Roberto De Zerbi have also only recently led Man United and Tottenham for a short time.
That means 5 out of 6 traditional "big guys" of the Premier League will enter the new season with different coaches than at the beginning of last season. Only Mikel Arteta continues to lead Arsenal.
Saliba's injury could affect Arsenal
Arsenal is considered the number one candidate for the throne as they are the reigning Premier League champions. However, William Saliba's long-term injury could become a heavy blow to their ambitions.
The French center-back suffered a back injury during the 2026 World Cup and will be sidelined for a long time. Last season, Saliba played 50 matches in all competitions and together with Gabriel created the most solid central defender pair in the Premier League.
Since Saliba debuted for Arsenal in 2022, the "Gunners" have won nearly 69% of the Premier League matches when he appeared. This number has decreased to less than 48% when the 25-year-old center-back is absent.
This is a significant loss in the context that Arsenal will face Aston Villa and Chelsea right in the first rounds.
A dense schedule will be a challenge for Man United
Man United benefited greatly last season when they did not have to divide forces for European competitions. The "Red Devils" only played 40 matches in all competitions, the fewest since the 1914-1915 season, and finished the Premier League in third place.
Meanwhile, Chelsea had to play 59 matches while Tottenham played 52 matches, causing both teams to be greatly affected in terms of fitness and injuries.
The 2026-2027 season will bring a new challenge to Man United when they return to the European arena with 8 other Premier League representatives.
To prepare for a dense schedule, the Old Trafford team has added Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans to increase the depth of the midfield. However, will these additions be enough to help them maintain competitiveness on many fronts?
Chelsea and Tottenham ready to create a surprise
The two teams expected to make a difference in the championship race are Chelsea and Tottenham after an ambitious transfer window.
The Blues have turned Morgan Rogers into the most expensive English player in history with a fee of 117 million pounds. Chelsea have also completed the deals with Marco Palestra and Maxence Lacroix, and are about to finalize contracts with Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson.
Not to be outdone, Tottenham spent about 237 million pounds this summer. The North London team continuously broke transfer records when bringing in Mateus Fernandes for 85 million pounds and Sandro Tonali for 100 million pounds. Besides, there are contracts Jan Paul van Hecke, Marcos Senesi, Andrew Robertson and Martin Dubravka.
