An uncluttered, if uncertain, new season in the Premier League season kicks off this weekend. Welcome back, once again, to the new positive abnormal.
For the best part of thirty years, the English Premier League has been defined by its uncluttered power chords, beautifully slick in presenting itself as a place of endless growth, certainty, color, a footballing cloud city, out there floating above the mess of the everyday.
Heritage and pedigree and the sense of an actual earthed and functioning football culture are all what adds up as the core of the Premier League’s annihilating riches— it’s selling point to the world for a quarter of a century now.
But it is a fragile balance, with clear danger of tilting too far the other way— just ask the rest of Europe how good the Premier League is for competitive balance.
A rare uncluttered season feels like an opportunity to build once again; and for now, at least, a run of clear road in what is an increasingly muddled and diffuse middle distance is what has waits ahead.
But what it lays down as a sight for sore eyes is it’s pulsating, exhilarating and flamboyant bravado it never falls short displaying immediately the first blast of the referees whistle sounds out.
Defending champions and treble-winning Manchester City launch proceedings in what one could say is their chase of an unprecedented fourth straight English top-flight title. Still riding the wave of euphoria from bagging the club’s first-ever Champions League to go with Premier League and FA Cup glory, Pep Guardiola’s side travel to promoted Burnley, now managed by former City captain Vincent Kompany.
Last season’s runners-up Arsenal who led for much of the campaign, host Nottingham Forest in Saturday’s lunchtime kickoff.
Third placed at the final whistle last May Manchester United, will have to wait until Monday for their opening game at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Elsewhere, last season’s fourth-placed Newcastle United are at home to Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
Liverpool, fifth last season, are at Chelsea on Sunday where former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino will be making his league debut for the home side, who finished a disappointing 12th last season.
Promoted Sheffield United are at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday while Luton Town are at Brighton & Hove Albion for the Hatters’ first game in the top flight since 1992, pre-Premier League.
Everton host Fulham also on Saturday, with West Ham United travelling to Bournemouth.
It feels like it finished yesterday but we start again. I don’t think it will be possible to do what we did last season, it’s once in a lifetime. I said to the players forget about it”
“We climbed the highest mountain last season but we have come down that mountain now. We start from the same as everyone else, with the same intention and there will be a lot of difficulties to climb the mountain again.” Said City boss Pep Guardiola.
For now the Premier League can look straight ahead down the track at the prospect of an uninterrupted season, with just a few misgivings about external disruptors, altered gravity, coming powers. Perhaps the presence of some new money might even be a good thing, a chance to lance some of the entertainment-ball fluff.
