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Ezri Konsa. picture alliance

Dark horses for Premier League title, relegation

By Hope Hisey | Last updated Aug 16, 2024 4:30 PM ET

The 2024-25 English Premier League season has started, which is good news for those eager to enjoy the best championship and relegation drama in world soccer.

Manchester City, coming off four consecutive league titles, aims to continue its dynasty. Meanwhile, Arsenal hopes to finally break through after two straight second-place finishes.

Burnley, Luton Town and Sheffield United were relegated after last season, a fate newly promoted Leicester, Ipswich Town and Southampton could face this season.

The Premier League is known for the unexpected. Here is a dark horse to win the league and one that could finish in the bottom three and get relegated:

Dark horse for the title: Aston Villa

Aston Villa finished fourth last season, its first top-four showing since 1983. In 2022-23, when it finished seventh, Aston Villa played poorly early, leading the club to fire manager Steven Gerrard and appoint former Arsenal and Villarreal boss Unai Emery.

The club hasn’t looked back since Emery’s arrival. In the 2023 calendar year, Aston Villa accumulated the most points in the Premier League besides Manchester City. Given the club’s upward trajectory over the past two seasons, it has emerged as the dark horse to take home the 2024-25 Premier League title.

Unai Emery ball. pic.twitter.com/Ks52pFaot0
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) August 7, 2024

This season’s team looks different because of the departures of Moussa Diaby and Douglas Luiz, who combined for 15 goals in the league last season. However, leading goal-scorers Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey return. Watkins tied for the fourth-most goals in the league last season with 19.

Arguably the world’s best goalkeeper, Emiliano Martinez is fronted by the steady center back pairing of Pau Torres and Ezri Konsa. Aston Villa had eight Premier League shutouts last season, which is good for sixth in the league. Two came against top finishers Manchester City and Arsenal in back-to-back games.

Emery has rebuilt his midfield with the signings of Amadou Onana, Ross Barkley and Enzo Barrenechea. Meanwhile, promising 19-year-old midfielder Kane Taylor is expected to join the team from Manchester City.

Dark horse for relegation: Nottingham Forest

The club flirted with relegation last season after a four-point deduction for violating profit and sustainability rules. It has tried to balance the books this offseason by ditching expensive, unproductive signings from the newly promoted 2022 squad.

Forest has failed to sign a set-piece coach, a position coveted by top clubs, despite being statistically the worst team in that department last season. In 2023-24, the team had the fifth-worst goals conceded in the league, with nearly a third from set plays.

After taking over last December, manager Nuno Espirito Santos has only won 26 percent of his Forest matches. The club stayed up last season only because of the failure of the teams below it.

Santos has preached stability this preseason, so it's good news that English stars Morgan Gibbs-White, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga have remained with the club so far this transfer window.

However, bottom-half clubs Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Wolverhampton showed signs of growth in the back half of last season. And newly promoted Southampton and Ipswich have already spent over $80 million each this window. Forest, however, cannot spend that much due to its irresponsible financial practices of the past.

All this portends a grim future for "The Reds."

Hope Hisey

Hope Hisey is a professional soccer player. She holds a Master of Legal Studies from the University of Arizona, specializing in sports, media, and entertainment. Her passions include football, basketball, soccer, and golf.

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