August is upon us and that means…the big European leagues are back and, with fans back in the grounds, the 2021/22 seasons promise to be bigger and better than ever!
It will be an emotional return for many fans and the players will respond, many of who starred during a brilliant Euro 2020 competition and the Copa America. Last season saw late twists and turns in La Liga and Ligue 1 which went the distance and had dramatic finishes.
We’re set to go again, and I’m ready to make my predictions of who will win the big five leagues this time. Here goes…
Premier League: Sky Blues to make it four in five
I can’t look past Manchester City for the Premier League title after they won it in such style last season and might just be about to complete a double signing of Jack Grealish and Harry Kane. Grealish is set to complete a medical and Kane has clearly fallen out with Spurs. If both deals are completed I’d say that City will storm the league and make it four wins from five.
Runner up: Chelsea
Following the arrival of Thomas Tuchel as head coach Chelsea were transformed into European Champions and they look best equipped to push the Sky Blues this season, with the German contingent now in their second season, expect fireworks from Timo Werner and Kai Havertz.
Dark Horse: Leicester City
Can Leicester City possibly repeat their amazing Premier League triumph of 2016 again in 2022? The Foxes have been agonisingly close to Champions League football for two years running; occupying a top four spot for the entire season in both 2019/20 and 2020/21 before slipping out on the final day. They deservedly beat Chelsea in the 2021 FA Cup final as Youri Tielemans scored a beauty of a strike.
La Liga: Catalans can edge out the Madrid giants
Even though the club is cash-strapped, like many other around Europe, I’d still make the Blaugrana the team to beat and they are marginal favourites to do so. Even without Lionel Messi, there’s a plenty of quality running through the team. Samuel Umtiti and Gerard Pique are one of the best centre back partnerships in football while Ansu Fati looks a real talent going forward.
Runner up: Atletico Madrid
Los Rojiblancos did so well to win a first title in a decade and they will run Barca close again, and I think Diego Simeone’s team will have enough to push Real Madrid out of the picture.
Dark Horse: Sevilla
Over the past two weeks of the 2020/21 La Liga season everyone had their eyes on a three way battle between the two Madrid clubs and Barcelona, but Los Sevillanos were in the hunt too. With striker Lucas Ocampos leading the line they will be a force to watch again this term…don’t rule them out.
Serie A: The Old Lady to retake Italy
Nobody outside Milan expected Juventus to miss out on a tenth successive league title, but they did, and that will have hurt the Old Lady. I expect the Turin side to hit back hard and take the title back.
Runner up: Inter Milan
I Nerazzurri are not about to give up their title easily though after their Serie A 2021 results in the second half of the season were simply sensational. But with inspirational boss Antonio Conte gone they may not have the same edge this term, though with the likes of Romelu Lukaku in the team they will still have plenty of bite.
Dark Horse: Atalanta
Atalanta have been one of the most attacking sides in Europe in recent seasons, with Colombian strike duo Duvan Zapata and Luis Muriel ripping up the league. They finished third last term and Gian Piero Gasperini will have his side primed for another assault on the title.
Bundesliga: Dortmund to loosen Bayern’s grip
Here I’m going to stick my neck out and predict Europe’s big upset at SBOTOP odds of 7.90. While BVB have developed some exciting young stars, 32 year old skipper Marco Reus has been a mainstay at the club and he could lead BVB to glory after a fast finish to last season.
Runner up: Bayern Munich
Die Bayern are at 1.15 to win a tenth successive Bundesliga and I just wonder whether, having watched Juventus fall at the tenth hurdle; the same fate awaits the Bavarians. It’s going to happen sometime and why not this year?
Dark Horse: Borussia Monchengladbach
New head coach Adi Hutter has inherited a strong side with Swiss duo of keeper Yann Sommer and striker Breel Embolo both impressive at Euro 2020 and attacking midfielder Jonas Hoffman a real talent. Hutter led Eintracht to fifth last term earning a move to a sleeping giant and he’ll relish the challenge.
Ligue 1: Summer recruits return PSG to summit
The billionaires of Paris were stunned by Lille last year and responded by signing Sergio Ramos and Gigi Donnarumma. Enough said!
Runner Up: Monaco
Former FC Bayern head coach Niko Kovac led Monaco to a third placed finish last term and they look best equipped to challenge the Parisiens this time around . Captain and striker Wissam Ben Yedder has scored 38 goals in 63 appearances for Monaco and at 34, former Barcelona star Cesc Fabregas is still a class act as an advanced midfielder
Dark Horse: Lille
Nobody expected Lille to win the 2020/21 French title but they did it in style and, inspired by the brilliant striker Burak Yilmaz, they will fight hard to defend their title.
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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