| ARSENAL (2001-02: First place) |
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| Tough to improve on a league and FA Cup double-winning season in which Arsene Wenger's classy side finally found the necessary grit to become champions. Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg and Giovanni Van Bronckhorst are still out with long-term injuries and long-serving defender Tony Adams is gone too, prompting Wenger to buy Frenchman Pascal Cygan and
Brazilian World Cup winner Gilberto Silva. With the prolific Thierry Henry and combative captain Patrick Vieira out to make amends for France's World Cup failure, Arsenal should be good for a top-two finish for the sixth season in a row.
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| ASTON VILLA (Eighth) |
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| Villa failed to sparkle after former England manager Graham Taylor replaced John Gregory mid-season, and it will be no easier this time after the departures of Paul Merson and George Boateng. Much will depend on whether the youngsters -- Darius Vassell and Peter Crouch up front, and German midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger -- can find the consistency to go with their undoubted talent. Sweden's battling World Cup striker Marcus
Allback, brought in from Heerenveen, will also be one to watch
but another mid-table season is on the cards.
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| BIRMINGHAM CITY (Promoted) |
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Steve Bruce's success in securing promotion has been rewarded with 15 million pounds-worth of close season signings, including Senegal's World Cup skipper Aliou Cisse, Ireland striker Clinton Morrison and spicy Welsh midfielder Robbie Savage. They will have to gel quickly if Bruce is to keep City away from the danger zone and avert a swift, and costly, return
to the first division.
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| BLACKBURN ROVERS (10th) |
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| After a roller-coaster season in which they won the League Cup but flirted with relegation, Graeme Souness is looking to former Manchester United strike pair Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke to keep Rovers out of trouble. The competition for places will keep striker Matt Jansen on his toes, while the blossoming Damien Duff and England hopeful David Dunn should add enough punch from midfield to keep them well away from the drop zone.
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| BOLTON WANDERERS (16th) |
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| Unlikely to repeat its remarkable table-topping run at the start of last season, Bolton looks set for a long battle against relegation despite having held on to France's attacking midfielder Youri Djorkaeff, who steered it away from the first division, and signing Nigerian midfielder Jay-Jay Okocha.
Michael Ricketts will lead the charge up front, but will need more support than he received at times last season.
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| CHARLTON ATHLETIC (14th) |
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| No big names, but well-drilled by manager Alan Curbishley, Charlton will again be a tough side to break down, particularly in the numerous London derbies -- as champion Arsenal found to its cost in a memorable 4-2 drubbing at Highbury last season. Charlton will look to Jason Euell, scorer of 11 league goals last term, and South African pair Mark Fish and Shaun Bartlett to help it finish in mid-table this time around.
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| CHELSEA (Sixth) |
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| With no funds for new players, manager Claudio Ranieri's main achievement has been to hold on to prolific Dutch striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, scorer of 29 goals last season, and partner Eidur Gudjohnsen, who added 23. A Champions League slot was only scuppered by unexpected defeats to the likes of Charlton (twice) and Southampton, but it may not elude it this
time. An improvement is also expected on its early UEFA Cup exit to Israeli outsider Hapoel Tel Aviv last season.
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| EVERTON (15th) |
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| David Moyes saved Everton from relegation last season, after replacing Walter Smith as manager, and should keep it up again. The early spotlight will be on new Nigerian defender Joseph Yobo and goalkeeper Richard Wright, who is looking to improve on an unhappy spell at Arsenal. Everton needs old
warhorses Kevin Campbell and Duncan Ferguson to remain injury-free in the club's 100th season in the top flight. Chinese loan pair Li Weifeng and Li Tie will be worth watching but mid-table looks to be the best Moyes can hope for.
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| FULHAM (13th) |
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| A lack of goals was manager Jean Tigana's bugbear last season as strikers Louis Saha and Barry Hayles struggled with the step up from the first division. Being forced to play its home games at Queens Park Rangers's ground due to stadium redevelopment plans won't help Tigana's team. On the positive
side, Fulham can play neat possession football and if ex-Arsenal
midfielder Junichi Inamoto shows the attacking flair he gave Japan at the World Cup, it should avoid another slump towards the relegation zone.
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| LEEDS UNITED (Fifth) |
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| With the exception of England defender Rio Ferdinand, new manager Terry Venables has taken over a squad that was top of the Premier League on New Year's Day before a collapse in form. If former England manager Venables's experience can bring the best out of playmaker Harry Kewell, held back by injuries last season, volatile striker Alan Smith and combative midfielder Lee Bowyer, Leeds could have a Champions League place in the bag. However, it must start the first two or three months of the season without England striker Robbie Fowler after hip surgery.
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| LIVERPOOL (Second) |
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| Gerard Houllier, back at the helm after life-saving heart surgery last season, has used his French connections to strengthen the squad by signing Senegal pair El Hadji Diouf and Salif Diao and Frenchman Bruno Cheyrou. The real key though is whether England duo Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard can avoid the nagging injuries that have often held them back in the past. Germany defender Markus Babbel makes a welcome return after
missing most of last season through illness. Another top three
finish is on the cards, possibly with a domestic cup to boot.
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| MANCHESTER CITY (Promoted) |
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| After an entertaining return to the top flight in which City scored more than 100 goals and rattled up 99 points, manager Kevin Keegan has been on a spending spree designed to keep them up. Striker Nicolas Anelka joins from Paris St Germain after a loan spell at Liverpool, as does his former PSG team ate Sylvain Distin and ex-Manchester United goalkeeper Peter
Schmeichel. A mid-table finish and some good results against bitter rival United should satisfy City fans in their last season at Maine Road before they move to a new stadium.
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| MANCHESTER UNITED (Third) |
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| Defensive howlers blighted United's hopes of a record fourth consecutive league title last season but the arrival of England defender Rio Ferdinand should remedy their only weakness. Goal machine Ruud van Nistelrooy will be refreshed after watching the World Cup on TV, likewise captain Roy Keane after a controversial end to his Ireland career. There may be no
stopping Alex Ferguson's side and with the Champions League final being staged at Old Trafford, their dominance may not be confined to the domestic game.
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| MIDDLESBROUGH (12th) |
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| The return of Brazil's World Cup-winning midfielder Juninho for a third stint at the Riverside, plus the signing of exciting Italy Under-21 striker Massimo Maccarone should give 'Boro the kind of firepower up front they sorely missed last term. George Boateng and Geremi, signed from Aston Villa and on-loan from Real Madrid respectively, will further strengthen a team that ought to capture a UEFA Cup place -- providing manager Steve
McClaren's men do not start and finish with four straight defeats like last season.
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| NEWCASTLE (Fourth) |
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| Inspired by 23-goal Alan Shearer, French winger Laurent Robert and Welsh striker Craig Bellamy, Newcastle enjoyed a fine campaign last season that will be tough to match, even for wily manager Bobby Robson. The former England boss, who has added Sporting Lisbon midfielder Hugo Viana and Ipswich defender Titus Bramble to his squad, will look forward especially to the club's Champions League campaign. Domestically, it is hard to see Newcastle challenging for the title but it could be their season to win a cup for the first time since 1955.
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| SOUTHAMPTON (11th) |
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| Another successful battle against the drop is in prospect for Southampton, which has finally bid farewell to the playing skills of Matt Le Tissier. Gordon Strachan's side rely heavily on the goalscoring and goal-making of Marian Pahars, but James Beattie, with 12 league goals last time around, could be the real revelation this season rather than elusive Ecuadorean
striker Agustin Delgado. Strachan will also count on bustling midfielder Chris Marsden repeating a fine season at St Mary's.
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| SUNDERLAND (17th) |
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| After narrowly avoiding the drop last season, Peter Reid faces a tough task in keeping his job and his team in the top flight. Too reliant on frontman Kevin Phillips, and with no new blood in the attacking department, Reid's side will again find goals difficult to come by. Claudio Reyna is a creative force in midfield, while at the back Irish defender Phil Babb has joined
from Sporting Lisbon. But the first division is beckoning.
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| TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR (Ninth) |
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| Glenn Hoddle's side played plenty of stylish football last season but was let down by its away form, which was a poor match for its performances at White Hart Lane, plus the shortcomings of main striker Les Ferdinand, notably with three misses in its League Cup final defeat to Blackburn Rovers. The
midfield has been beefed up by four signings, the most exciting being ex-Liverpool skipper Jamie Redknapp. But without a splash in the transfer market for a striker to help skipper Teddy Sheringham, a UEFA Cup place will continue to elude it.
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| WEST BROMWICH ALBION (Promoted) |
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| Survival will almost certainly be beyond a side that specialized in 1-0 victories last season in division one and which lack the funds for new players of genuine class. The signing of Preston skipper Sean Gregan will aid the defense but boardroom rows and a dispute over player bonuses have not helped manager Gary Megson. A strong favorite to finish bottom.
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| WEST HAM UNITED (Seventh) |
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| Manager Glenn Roeder has one of the most exciting squads in the league with Frederic Kanoute, Jermain Defoe, Joe Cole and Michael Carrick complementing the experience of Paulo Di Canio and Trevor Sinclair. The signing of Ireland's Gary Breen will strenghten the defense and West Ham's neat passing game could scoop it a UEFA Cup place this season, particularly if Cole can add finishing to his unquestioned ball skills.
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