The Premier League season has just wrapped after months of enthralling drama. 20 teams have competed for the title in England and my predictions from before the season started have aged differently depending on the side, and detailed below is my reaction to my initial thoughts from August.
20. Predicted – Leeds United
Actual – Wolves
In my initial predictions, I had criticized the transfer happenings of Leeds United, citing their reinforcements as insufficient. But just 3 days later the biggest signing of their entire season occurred with the unlikely transfer of Dominic Calvert-Lewin to Leeds from Everton. Even if I hadn’t known how simply unbelievable the English striker would have been, his signing transformed Leeds and were the reason they didn’t finish so low, with him netting 14 goals in the Premier League alone. Daniel Farke also emerged as a fantastic manager as he helped the team recover from a slump earlier in the season to get them comfortably safe and clear of relegation. It was ultimately a relatively common prediction to have Leeds United go straight down, but it was undeniably a poor opinion that has aged poorly as they remain to play in the 2026-27 Premier League season.
19. Predicted – Burnley
Actual – Burnley
Another promoted team that I saw likely going down due to inability to compete with established Premier League clubs, except that I actually nailed it. They had an eventually worse transfer window than Leeds, but at the time were looking a bit better due to bringing in some veterans like Kyle Walker and Martin Dubravka, but it was quite clear to many that Burnley was going straight back down. I will give myself credit due to the fact that I was under the impression that they wouldn’t go rock bottom like many thought. It’s a rare perfect prediction, as there are very few table predictions left that I predicted perfectly, much less near accurate.
18. Predicted – Brentford
Actual – West Ham
I thought, like many, that Brentford selling their star players would hinder them but their response to the loss of their stars was outstanding, gaining European football and with their new manager Keith Andrews bursting onto the scene, they were bound to stay up. Unfortunately, I didn’t see the vision with the project and couldn’t make sense of the sale of their stars, but ultimately they knew what they were doing and finish almost 10 places above where I predicted. Fair play.
17. Predicted – Sunderland
Actual – Tottenham
I think I deserve credit for predicting Sunderland to stay in the Premier League. They were many people’s ‘almost’ club who would fight yet still get relegated, but I believed in the project being built and I saw the recruitment that varied enough to provide experience, quality and youthful promise. It goes without saying that surely no-one predicted Sunderland to finish in a European position, beating the likes of their bitter rivals Newcastle while finishing above them, Chelsea (twice) and get points against Manchester City and Arsenal. The dream season was almost impossible to see coming, but I must say I did see Sunderland coming out on top in the relegation battle, but now it is clear they were never even in it.
16. Predicted – Bournemouth
Actual – Nottingham Forest
I didn’t fully believe in Bournemouth, especially when they pulled a Brentford and sold their stars to gigantic footballing institutions like Real Madrid and PSG. The decimation of their defense via departures of Illia Zabarnyi, Milos Kerkez, and Dean Huijsen left me to believe that they wouldn’t be able to lock down the elite attacking forces of the Premier League. In actuality, their reinforcements did the job as Truffert showcased himself as one of the leagues best left backs and Petrovic in goal did his job wonderfully, improving on Kepa’s previous campaign at the club. In my defense, after I published my predictions, they reinforced with Diakite in defense and added Amine Adli from Leverkusen. Ultimately they exceeded my expectations and qualified for European football in exceptional style, going 18 games unbeaten at the end of the season.
15. Predicted – Fulham
Actual – Crystal Palace
Another team I didn’t believe enough in, Fulham finished 4 places higher than I had projected. They had only signed a backup keeper at the time I had made predictions, but ultimately even by the time the window had closed they had only brought in a handful of younger attackers. Ultimately I still don’t really understand why Fulham didn’t finish lower than they did, but good runs of form throughout December to February or so put them in a strong position to get European football, even if they fell away near the end of the season. It will be interesting to see how they build off the back of their 25/26 finish.
14. Predicted – West Ham
Actual – Leeds United
Ultimately, West Ham is the worst of the best. They likely didn’t deserve to be relegated like Burnley and Wolves did, but just couldn’t scrape together results quickly enough to give themselves a chance. Ultimately I believe that not believing in their personnel hurt them, with players like Hermansen not getting minutes until too late amongst other issues. It will be interesting to see how the club responds to their relegation as they are favorites to go straight back up and win the Championship. Many players did their job to help West Ham with Jarrod Bowen slinging in goals all season, Konstantinos Mavropanos often being resolute and contributing in goal scoring situations and Mateus Fernandes being a standout in the middle of the park. Ultimately, they will likely get picked apart in the summer and a brand new West Ham will rejoin us for the 2027-28 season.
13. Predicted – Wolves
Actual – Everton
Wolves were unable to get a solid footing at the start of the season and were always punching up, not even gaining their first win for months into the season. The promising Jhon Arias was not fully trusted and eventually departed in the winter window, to bigger and better things where he’s tearing it up in Brazil like he was beforehand. Wolves simply didn’t have a Premier League quality team and when it came to beat the teams around them in order to get a leg up, they couldn’t even do that. Notable wins over Liverpool and draws to Arsenal and Manchester United showed enough glimpses, but it wasn’t sustainable enough to warrant a non-relegation place and they will have to recoup in the Championship with the hopes of rebounding back into the top flight.
12. Predicted – Everton
Actual – Newcastle
I was pretty close to be fair. Everton only needed a point on the last day to get 12th place, but ultimately the points raised about the manager and transfer window of the toffees reflected in their league performances. They had many influential matches such as the 3-3 draw with Manchester City that marked the beginning of Arsenal’s claiming of the title, alongside allowing Spurs to win 1-0 on the last day to keep them in the Premier League. Ultimately a mediocre campaign leaves more to built upon next season.
11. Predicted – Nottingham Forest
Actual – Fulham
I believed in Forest especially after their charge into European football last season, but ultimately they simply couldn’t handle midweek football in the Europa League. Their charge to the Semi-Finals of the competition was admirable, but ultimately unrealistic to win and they could feel the flames of relegation licking at them throughout the campaign, but ultimately keeping hold of their stars allowed them to stay up and that was about it, definitely not enough to claim 11th place.
10. Predicted – Crystal Palace
Actual – Chelsea
I believed in Crystal Palace, perhaps too much so. Without being harsh, they underperformed in points in the league this season, but to their credit will play a European final against Rayo Vallecano shortly after this article is published which is the entire point of their campaign. Oliver Glasner prioritized the right things and as a result has put the club on the cusp of European glory and back to back trophy-lifting seasons after centuries of crickets. It wasn’t a bold take to suggest Palace would be in this position after their admirable campaign last season, but the prediction definitely was too optimistic.
9. Predicted – Brighton
Actual – Brentford
Brighton outdid themselves. I saw them finishing top half but I only was 1 place off their actual finish. They had the tools necessary to fill the gap of struggling teams and have always been in and around high midtable. The Seagulls had a bit of an uneventful season out of Europe for the second year running, but were able to churn out results and grind out their way to a Conference League finish. It’s curious to see how they approach the competition next season, as they don’t have a filled out squad like Chelsea did when they won it and as a result might have to prioritize it over Premier League performances unless they recruit a multitude of players without selling too many first-teamers.
8. Predicted – Tottenham
Actual – Brighton
Who could have seen Tottenham finish 17th again. Many saw their lowly finish a result of focus on the Europa League and a blip in the grand scheme of things, but they’ve managed to go back to back. Of all of the big clubs in the summer, Tottenham especially looked promising with Frank coming off a resoundingly positive campaign with the Bees at Brentford and huge signings like Mohamed Kudus came in the door to make the most of their new changes. A lack of stability, injury crisis and poor ownership combined to make another horror show for the Tottenham. To give myself credit, I did see Tottenham finish outside the European places, which might have been seen as radical before the campaign began.
7. Predicted – Aston Villa
Actual – Sunderland
Aston Villa outdid themselves this season. Not only did they bring home the Europa League and secure Champions League football thereafter, but they already got a top 4 finish. A hugely impressive campaign saw them beat Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool and more. Their season was going so spectacularly that at one point they were considered outside contenders for the title. Ultimately Arsenal’s dominance shone through, but Aston Villa’s European campaign didn’t hinder them in the slightest in the race for Champions League qualification. A massive round of applause for Unai Emery and his men as they look forward again to a monumental season ahead of them with momentum on their side.
6. Predicted – Chelsea
Actual – Bournemouth
Nobody could have seen Bournemouth at this high of a position, but what a story for Chelsea who I knew wouldn’t finish in a Champions League spot, but outdid themselves finishing narrowly in the top half at 10th, getting no European football to speak of at all. A disastrous handling of managerial happenings and a horrific transfer window melded together to create the ultimate bottling as the season drew to a close. Just a point on the last day would have brought CFC LDN into European football, but Sunderland managed to best them 2-1 in order to finish above them. A bunch of question marks remain for Chelsea at the end of this season, but perhaps Xabi Alonso can whip these bunch of underperformers into shape in the 26/27 season.
5. Predicted – Newcastle
Actual – Liverpool
Newcastle were dreadful this season. A whimpering exit in the Champions League was equaled with a whimper near the end of the Premier League campaign, letting their rivals Sunderland not only beat them in their return to the top flight, but finish 5 places above them. It’s no surprise star players are linked with moves away as the club look lost and unsure of their own future. Newcastle are a far cry from their 4th place finish in the 22/23 finish, now even more worried about their rivals snatching what was once their European position on the table.
4. Predicted – Manchester United
Actual – Aston Villa
I knew Manchester United would bounce back to Champions League. The season may not have started strong, but once ‘vibes fc’ kicked into gear, they managed to get results over the line with the power of friendship and rainbows. With Carrick permanent manager, it will be a miracle if they reproduce their impressive Champions League finish next season unless they absolutely overhaul the squad as there is an avalanche of excess weight that must be eliminated if there is to be consistency and quality performances that marry with their solid results.
3. Predicted – Manchester City
Actual – Manchester United
Manchester City were always in the conversation for a title race and return to greatness after the bump in the road last season where they had a trophyless campaign and multitude of losses. Ultimately they couldn’t compete with the Gunners, bottling it after going top against Burnley in April and Pep Guardiola will leave the Premier League with his tail between his legs after going back to back years without the league for the first time in his managerial career. Legends of the club both on the pitch and on the sidelines will all be leaving: Bernardo Silva, John Stones, Kolo Toure, Pep, and more who made the club what it is. The future is not looking as bright as it maybe looked as if it was just a bit ago, but they did well, at least, to finish in Champions League spots again.
2. Predicted – Liverpool
Actual – Manchester City
Many thought Liverpool would go back to back but I couldn’t see it. Their fraudulent transfer window, where they essentially burned money on who people thought would be good, ended up just adding pressure to a pressure-filled situation at Liverpool. Arne Slot couldn’t pull another rabbit out of the hat and Salah ran out of gas as many were fearful of, but ultimately their crumble to barely scraping into Champions League was far worse than people would have imagined. They will now be missing their Egyptian king Mohamed Salah next season on top of fellow leader Andrew Robertson which is daunting for their future, especially considering Arne Slot will apparently remain in charge for at least another campaign.
1. Predicted – Arsenal
Actual – Arsenal
This is the only real prediction that truly matters, right? Many haters slept on Arsenal, citing ‘bottlejobs’ of the past without realizing why they didn’t actually win a league title, so when the puzzle pieces all fit together, it was obvious that the gunners would take their league title home for the first time in 22 years, as predicted by myself back in August. While it wasn’t smooth sailing for them, Arsenal made it over the line, 7 points clear in fact, which could lead to the start of a dynasty with rivals crumbling at the same time across the country. They play a Champions League final later this week and it’s hard not to see them take that home too for the first time as the momentum feels like a freight train barreling towards inevitable greatness. If you are an Arsenal hater, it’s dark times for you as the gunners are here to stay.