Until the start of the new "Premier" league season, there is just over a month left, and the past year was truly intriguing. Positions of clubs on the tournament table changed drastically, club revenues increased even more, and top-level players and coaches arrived. For these and many other reasons, the English Championship was once again the most watched in the world, so it is really interesting to remember the 2016-17 season and reflect on the reasons why some teams performed better than others. The most popular Lithuanian football news portal Eurofootball.com will help you do this. First part of the review: London is blue.
Liverpool's "Everton" dream of competing with the strongest clubs in England and playing in the UEFA Champions League. The strategist acquired from "Southampton," Ronald Koeman, was tasked with exactly that. His first newcomers were defensive midfielder Idrissa Gueye, "Swansea City" captain Ashley Williams, and Yannick Bolasie acquired for £25 million. At the beginning of the season, the "Toffees" had a favorable schedule, starting with four straight wins. However, they only managed to win once in the next 10 matches, making it clear by December that the club needed reinforcement during the winter transfer window. On January 12th, another defensive midfielder, Morgan Schneiderlin, was lured from "Manchester United," forming a strong duo with the already excellent Gueye. Both the arrival of the Frenchman and the other newcomer, Ademola Lookman, coincided with another good streak for "Everton." By March 18th, they had only suffered one defeat, with Romelu Lukaku scoring practically non-stop. The form of Lukaku and the excellent play of the whole team in attack allowed the "Toffees" to firmly establish themselves at the top of the "Premier" league table. Koeman's 7th place players did not let their position slip from their hands and finished the season 15 points ahead of "Southampton." Indeed, "Everton" players already seemed like a higher-level team than other mid-table teams, and many victories, especially after New Year, were achieved quite easily. However, out of 12 matches played against higher-placed teams, the "Toffees" only won two, so to move up to the elite, they need to perform better in the key matches.
Having reached the highest division through the Championship playoffs, Hull City footballers fought hard for survival. However, it was clear from the start that achieving this goal would be very difficult, and the club could only buy midfielder Ryan Mason as a serious purchase. Although not much was expected of them, August was wonderful for the "Tigers" - an unexpected victory against the champions "Leicester City," a win against "Swansea," and only a 1-0 loss to "Manchester United." All this seemed too good to be true, so Hull welcomed the New Year with just one more victory, and after a few months under the leadership change from Steve Bruce to Mike Phelan. Mike Phelan also left his post after the defeat against "West Bromwich," and Marco Silva, who took over at that time, faced a very tough task, as the team was in 19th place. The Portuguese coach began his work with a victory against "Bournemouth," but not long after, leaders Robert Snodgrass and Jake Livermore left Hull, who had to be replaced by loaned players. As time went on, the "Tigers" rose and even achieved a victory against "Liverpool," and by the 31st round, after beating "Middlesbrough," they had climbed to 17th place. However, the fight for this position proved to be very tense. It was even too much for Hull City footballers. They still couldn't keep up with their main competitors, and in the 36th and 37th rounds, they were defeated by "Sunderland" and London's "Crystal Palace." Thus, the "Tigers" eventually returned to where they had been almost the entire season, finishing 18th. Their downfall was due to a poor defense, which allowed them to concede 10 more goals than the second-worst defense, "Swansea."
In August, "Leicester City" stepped into the arena still living in a dream world - the team's jerseys were adorned with the golden "Premier" league logo, they were waiting to compete in the UEFA Champions League, and significant sums were spent on new players, with £13 million for Nampalys Mendy, £16 million for Ahmed Musa, and £28 million for Islam Slimani. However, the "Foxes" likely forgot that to remain the strongest, they needed to continue to play well, and victories wouldn't just come on their own. After a very organized performance in 2015-16, Claudio Ranieri's players suffered a defeat to newcomers Hull in the first match and conceded four goals to Liverpool at the beginning of September. That wasn't all - in the same month, Manchester United hit Leicester's net four more times. Losses and draws continued - after the first "Premier" league round, Leicester was in 15th place. It seemed that they had reached rock bottom, but after five more consecutive defeats during which they didn't score a single goal, the club leaders sacked Ranieri. By that moment, the "Foxes" were playing just as poorly as they were playing well during their victorious season. Incredibly, assistant coach Craig Shakespeare, promoted to the role, managed to breathe new life into the team, and they achieved five victories under him. The coach revived the Jamie Vardy and Shinji Okazaki duo, and the "Foxes" scored a total of 13 goals in these matches. Later, towards the end of the season, there was a more turbulent period, but Shakespeare's changes were enough for a calm finish in the middle of the tournament table. The goals of the next season for Leicester City are not yet final. Undoubtedly, Riyad Mahrez, one of the leaders, wants to leave the team, but its status has clearly changed. By successfully completing the transactions during the transfer window, we may see a truly competitive Leicester club again.
Jurgen Klopp's first full season in the Liverpool ranks promised a lot. The strategist from Germany was able to assemble a team according to his wishes and supplemented it with Joel Matip, Loris Karius, Ragnar Klavan, Sadio Mane, and Georginio Wijnaldum. The latter two players were crucial in the new "Reds" system. After a win against Arsenal, the club had to acknowledge Burnley's advantage in the second round, but no one could defeat them during the fall, so by November, they even reached the top of the tournament table. The only defeat Klopp's players suffered was against Chelsea, but the results continued to be excellent, especially against top-caliber teams. Liverpool was the opponent that the league leaders were most afraid of, but for the second season in a row, the "Reds" failed to have the right attitude in matches against smaller teams. Although they didn't lose to Chelsea either, the Mersyside club did not focus on fighting for the title against teams like Swansea or Hull City. Eventually, Liverpool at least won the race for a place in the UEFA Champions League and finished fourth, being able to improve their results next season. This season, the "Reds" attacked really vigorously, and it wouldn't be unfair to praise not only the excellent attacking players of this team but also the midfielders who made a significant contribution to the attack. The main strength of Liverpool was that many players could score - Philippe Coutinho and Sadio Mane scored 13 times each, Roberto Firmino 11, Adam Lallana eight, James Milner and Divock Origi seven each, while Georginio Wijnaldum added six goals. Of course, the list is not exhaustive, and the team still has reserves such as Daniel Sturridge or the recently acquired Mohamed Salah.
Manchester City invited Pep Guardiola to create a revolution in English football, as he did at Barcelona. The "Cityzens" immediately signed Ilkay Gundogan, Nolito, Leroy Sane, Claudio Bravo, the "new Gerard Pique" John Stones, and several young players. The mood in Manchester was such that a new era had arrived. Guardiola continued to be praised when "Man City" started the season with six wins, remaining in the first "Premier" league place until the 10th round. However, the team's defensive problems were evident even when they won, and when the attack started to struggle, the "Cityzens" victories came to an end. Even after December defeats to Chelsea and Leicester, Guardiola's players dropped to fourth place, and in the 21st round, they lost 4-0 to Everton. After that match, a temporary rise began with the arrival of Gabriel Jesus for £27 million sterling, but after three victories won in February, only five points were scored in the next three games in March. At that time, Jesus was injured, and Sergio Aguero, who didn't have the best relationship with Guardiola, couldn't compensate for the team's poorly functioning defense. In the end, Manchester City won six out of the last eight season matches and finished third by a hair's breadth. The "Cityzens" midfield is truly dominant, and the team made the most passes into the season. Adding Bernardo Silva to the team makes it very difficult for opponents to compete with. It is clear that this team has endless potential, and Guardiola is already taking steps to find top-class defenders.
