The 2022-23 Premier League — England’s top flight soccer competition and widely regarded as the best soccer league in the world — is six game weeks into its season. After a transfer window that saw English clubs spend a record-breaking $2.05 billion on new players, fans are in for what could be a historical campaign.
Rather than having a defined set of elite teams destined to engage in a race for the title, this season presents the prospect of a closely fought league campaign until the last matchday.
Recently promoted from the Championship, Nottingham Forest signed a stunning 23 players, signaling their intent to establish themselves as mainstays in the Premier League for years to come. However, gelling that many new faces together over a season with a ridiculously large number of games over a short span could prove difficult. As of now, they’re in the 19th position, and could be set for a fight to survive in the division. Should they not, they will return to the second tier.
Manchester City, Last year’s champions, has started strong, adding Norwegian goal machine Erling Haaland from German club Borussia Dortmund in a $55.03 million transfer. Haaland has gone on to score nine goals in City’s opening six games, spearheading their star-studded attack in tandem with the likes of Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden. With 14 goals in just 10 games, Haaland could easily break the record for most goals in a single Premier League season, currently held by Liverpool talisman forward Mohamed Salah with 32.
Seemingly perennial underachievers, Arsenal has opened the season well, getting off to a 5-game wintning streak before facing a reality check in the form of a 3-1 loss against archrival Manchester United. The additions of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko have added quality and depth at striker and fullback, respectively. With Europa League games to worry about in tandem with weekly Premier League matches, Arsenal’s inexperienced squad could struggle to cope with the sheer amount of games they have to play.
Manchester United has managed to recover after a diabolical first two games: They lost to Brighton, then got clobbered 4-0 at Brentford. The aftermath of the latter defeat spurred United’s season on, leading them to make transfers for world-class Brazilians Antony and Casemiro. Recently, the Manchester club have been in better form, following up the 4-0 loss with four consecutive victories.
London rivals Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have had quite differing starts to the campaign; the former controversially, and perhaps hastily, sacked coach Thomas Tuchel after a couple of unprecedented losses, most notably to Croatian team Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.
Tottenham, on the other hand, has begun the season sharply, getting key results and is currently perched at a healthy second position. Tuchel’s sacking raised eyebrows among many, with a large number of those in the game arguing he should have been given more time after delivering Chelsea a Champions League trophy not too long ago.
Rounding up the traditional Big Six of the Premier League is Liverpool. The Reds have endured a topsy turvy opening; they’ve shown their brilliance in attack with a 9-0 victory against underwhelming Bournemouth, but also have exposed their vulnerabilities in midfield and defense with draws to midtable Crystal Palace and a weak Everton.
This season could provide fans with the prospect of a wide open league, with no clear favorite. The teams outside the Big Six have spent a whopping $1.4 billion this summer, more than the total outlay across Spain, Germany and France’s domestic leagues combined.
Leeds United is a team to watch this season. American manager Jesse Marsch has set the league by storm, and USMNT internationals Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams have more than made a great impression, cementing their spot as a likely top-half unit.
Newcastle United was recently purchased by one of Qatar’s richest sheikhs, leading it to have lumps of cash completely unseen in the club’s history. With their recent spending spree that has included purchases on star midfielder Bruno Guimaraes and elegant striker Alexander Isak, they are aiming to break out of the midtable spots and into the top echelon of the division.
With this much engrossing action after just a couple of weeks of play, and the prospect of a riveting title race and spine-tingling relegation battle, this Premier League season is worth tuning in to.