Six Way Too Early Predictions After First Premier League Weekend

Oh, the Premier League is back alright.

We’ve been treated to weeks of previews through preseason and the annual curtain-raising Community Shield at Wembley Stadium between the champions and FA Cup winners, but the first weekend of proper action reminded us that there’s nothing quite like the real thing itself.

A routine opening night on Friday was followed by beatdowns and surprises on Saturday and Sunday. What has been lauded as the most unpredictable Premier League in years certainly delivered on that front, with preseason projections quickly being edited and altered in the bid to save face.

And after the opening weekend, there’s scope for some knee-jerkin’. Here are six way-too-early predictions for the 2026–27 season.

Arsenal Will Canter to Premier League Glory

Bukayo Saka — Business as usual. | John Walton/PA Images/Getty Images

It was a distinctly relaxed Emirates atmosphere on Friday night, as the champions started their title defense with a 3–0 victory over Coventry City.

While only Manchester CIty have retained the Premier League since 2009, Mikel Arteta’s Gunners seem primed to go back-to-back for the first time in 92 years. This was business as usual for Arsenal, who suffocated and probed until Coventry wilted in their first top-flight match in 25 years.

This was the welcome to top-flight soccer that Frank Lampard feared for his players, and he ultimately would’ve been content with surrendering just three. Arsenal were simply on another level.

The champions haven’t yet evolved as some thought they might this summer, but the additions the club has made will improve an already imposing starting lineup. Christos Tzolis is Leandro Trossard with an extra burst, and we haven’t properly seen how Bruno Guimarães will alter Arsenal’s midfield.

Their depth across the pitch is incomparable, and given the unknowns that surround their most likely challengers, Arsenal, with the pressure eased after getting over the hump last season, are bound to enjoy themselves.

Aston Villa Are the ’Big Six’ Wannabe In Trouble ... Not Newcastle

Many assume that Unai Emery will just find a way. Aston Villa have been dogged by financial trouble over the past couple of years, yet any roster building issues were masked by the master tactician on the sideline.

But Emery has his work cut out if he’s to retain Villa among Europe’s elite. Their core has been gutted in the transfer market, and although the club have bought well to mitigate key departures, there’s a bedding-in process that needs time.

Sunday’s defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion was horrific. Down 4–0 inside 31 minutes, the most humiliating of opening-day outings was on the cards, especially after new signing João Gomes was sent off before halftime.

The scoreline thankfully didn’t worsen, but Villa’s collapse on the south coast highlighted the size of the task Emery has. Their starting lineup will look drastically different in short order, but they’re relying on several fresh faces to hit the ground running. That’s hardly a guarantee.

On the contrary, Newcastle United emerged from their opening game with newfound optimism. Plenty have assumed trouble on Tyneside after a deflating summer, but Matthias Jassle is a man with a plan, and the vertical Magpies are bound to bloody a few noses this season.

Written off by the majority, Newcastle exceeded expectations against Liverpool on Sunday. A Dominik Szoboszlai penalty meant two points were snatched from their grasp at the death, yet Jassle’s impact has already been felt. There’s a clear identity, and the new manager’s style should work hand-in-hand with the vociferous Toon Army.

Mamadou Sangaré Is the Signing of the Summer

The Premier League has been intent on eating itself in recent windows, with clubs paying despairingly inflated fees to sign players with experience of the English top-flight.

Flyers on the continent’s brightest talent are taken less frequently, but there’s still scope for huge payoffs. Brentford have seemingly struck gold with Mamadou Sangaré, who was hardly an ’unknown’ commodity after starring for a Lens team that challenged Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 last season, yet wasn’t on the radar of the English division’s top dogs.

That oversight could prove costly, because it seems inevitable that the Bees will end up selling Sangaré for a ridiculous price. In a world where Sandro Tonali is apparently worth $133 million, Brentford’s club-record $52 million deal is an absolute steal.

Sangaré has already received lofty praise from his new teammates. Caoimhín Kelleher believes he’s “superb,” while Keane Lewis-Potter described the young midfielder as a “joy to play with.”

The sky is the limit for the 24-year-old, who lit up the Gtech Community Stadium in the face of the aforementioned Tonali in Brentford’s 3–0 beatdown of Tottenham Hotspur.

At Least One Newly Promoted Team Stays Up

Oli McBurnie — Man Utd were "mauled by the Tigers". | George Wood/Getty Images

We feared for the newly promoted teams, we really did. While the novelty surrounding Coventry’s Premier League return could work in their favor regarding a survival bid, Ipswich Town and Hull City have already been condemned to a swift second-tier return, particularly the latter.

And after Coventry were thoroughly outclassed on Friday night, it looked like the preseason narratives would merely be emboldened after the opening weekend.

But Hull and Ipswich turned up.

The Tigers roared in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off, with Sergej Jakirović outwitting Michael Carrick on the touchline in a 2–0 defeat of Manchester United. Ipswich then struck late to beat last season’s surprise package, Sunderland, 2–1 at Portman Road.

It’s going to be a huge task for both clubs to retain their top-flight status, and they ultimately may not have enough. However, their opening performances suggested that the pair will at least be competitive, and tough units to beat on home soil.

Fast starts are imperative for newly promoted teams, and Coventry will hope to swiftly find their feet after a daunting opener.

Sunderland Primed for Stark Decline

Brian Brobbey, Granit Xhaka — Sunderland were beaten at Ipswich Town. | Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

So, if at least one of the new boys stay up, who could be this season’s Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United?

Tottenham Hotspur were severely undercooked in west London on Saturday and stung by the rampant Bees. Still, we can’t expect Spurs to be in the relegation scrap again, especially with expensive attacking additions to come.

Nottingham Forest have Oliver Glasner’s presence and no distraction of European soccer on the schedule working in their favor, while Leeds United look poised to build on a positive 2025–26.

You fear for Crystal Palace. Everton might also get stuck, and then there’s Sunderland and the feared second-season syndrome. Are the Black Cats the next Sheffield United?

The Blades took the division by storm in 2019–20, with Chris Wilder’s overlapping center backs lifting the newly-promoted side up to ninth. The following season, though, Sheffield United finished bottom with a measly 23 points. The novelty dissipated, and teams knew what to expect.

Régis Le Bris’s ideals hardly caught the rest of the divison off guard, but Sunderland haven’t done all that much in the summer window, and the underlying metrics suggest last season’s Europa League qualification was overperformance. Extra games and travel on the continent could also take a toll.

Only four wins separated them in seventh and West Ham in 18th last season. A deserved defeat at Ipswich will raise alarm bells for the season ahead, with a venture into Europe likely to be Le Bris’s primary focus.

Martin Odegaard Wins Player of the Year

Martin Ødegaard — Arsenal’s captain looks rejuvenated. | John Walton/PA Images/Getty Images

We’re assuming Arsenal waltz to glory, which probably means the player of the year awards—dished out by the PFA, FWA, Premier League—will head to north London, too.

The last three winners of the PFA award who didn’t also get their hands on the Premier League trophy either matched or broke the single-season assist record or won the Golden Boot.

While Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka are popular picks, Martin Ødegaard is back, baby! The inventive Scandinavian has been a leading figure in Mikel Arteta’s project, yet there was a sense that Arsenal had won without their captain last season, such was his dwindling influence due to injury.

But Ødegaard looks like a playmaker possessed again. The cheekiness of his pomp has returned, evidenced by his ever-so-slick finish in the Community Shield. He forced home his first league goal of the season on opening night, too.

If the goal contributions surge to 2022–23 and 2023–24 levels (41 across two league seasons), then Ødegaard is a prime candidate to claim the various individual honors.

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