After a long absence from Bleacher Report, I finally found the time to present my tenth article. The question I would like to ask all you folks out there is:

Who Will Be The Holders Of The Barclays Premier League This Season?

I know it is far too early to speculate the outcome of the Premier League, but in all honesty it’s good to know what people think about their team’s chances as well as the other competitors in the game. So to tie this article together, which of the "Big Four" stands a greater chance of winning the league? 

 

Will it be Chelsea?

Last season was a hard pill to swallow for all Chelsea players and fans alike. Even though the faith of the Premier League was in the hands of Manchester United last season, it is still fair to say that Chelsea was agonizingly close to winning the league as well.

They also made it to the Carling Cup final and were widely expected to win, but lost shockingly to Tottenham.

They still had a chance to grab some silverware and gain something from the season as they had made it to the Champions League final, only to lose in the cruelest manner during the big penalty shootout against none other than Manchester United.

Faith had truly played against Chelsea last season.

This season however, Chelsea looks to put the pain of the past behind them and start their title challenge with a roar. They appointed the notorious Brazilian coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari, as their new manager and bought Portuguese midfielder Deco to bolster the Chelsea team.

So far every thing seems to be falling into plan for Chelsea as they find themselves unbeaten in the league and lying in 3rd place with a game in hand.

Could they carry this form all the way to the end…they certainly have the depth to do so! Or will they suffer are cruel faith like that of last season?

 

Will it be Liverpool?

Last season Liverpool got off to a bad start and unfortunately never found their footing. They found themselves fighting to keep their Champions League place after facing tough competition from their closest rivals Everton.

Liverpool however had a good run in the Champions League, beating fellow Premier League rivals Arsenal in order to reach the semifinals. Things were looking good for the Merseyside team until a header from Liverpool’s own Jon Arne Rise sent Chelsea to the final.

So the 2007-08 season was not the best season Liverpool had, but a least they grabbed a Champions league spot, finishing 4th in the league. 

Liverpool is keen to make sure that they do not make the same mistakes as last season…and they surely have not! They bought Ireland’s Robbie Keane from Tottenham in the hopes that he will strengthen their attack alongside Fernando Torres. So far things are looking good for Liverpool as they are currently lying 2nd in the league and are also unbeaten.

But will this season be any different for Liverpool? They showed some intent by defeating Manchester United for the first time under Rafael Benitez and created quite a buzz, but, drew disappointingly with new boys Stoke City at Anfield. Big money signing Robbie Keane is yet to get on the scoreboard and his partnership with Fernando Torres is a bit far from a lethal strike force.

Who knows maybe things will change for Liverpool this season, but, they will have to do a lot more than beating Manchester united in order for people to deem then as genuine title contenders.

 

Will it be Arsenal?

Ah…so close but yet so far for the Gunners last season.

Arsenal had another frustrating season last season, as they started off with a bang but slowly fizzled out coming down to the end. They ultimately ended up trophy less…again.

After a promising title run, Arsenal found themselves finishing 3rd in a Champions League playoff spot, getting beaten soundly by bitter rivals Tottenham in the Carling Cup semifinal and suffering an early exit in the FA Cup.

Arsenal had an okay run in the Champions League, beating AC Milan in order to make it to the quarterfinals, but were beaten by Liverpool, who went on to the semifinals.

Arsenal starts this season with the belief that they can indeed win the league if they learn from their mistakes last season. Things are certainly pointing in that direction for Arsenal as they sit 1st place in the league at the moment, but, one can argue that this was the same situation last season as well!

Though not fully writing off the Gunners, many are quite skeptical about Arsenal taking home the title this season. They have lost experienced players like Gilberto Silva, Alexander Hleb, and Mathieu Flamini—while barely adding to the squad.

Could Arsenal hold out to the end? Or will they fizzle out again? If Arsenal does win it this season (as we gooners do hope) it will be a remarkable achievement for the Gunners!

 

Will it be Manchester United?

The Red Devils were the most successful of the lot without a doubt. Manchester United experienced a memorable double as they won both the Premier league and the Champions League, at the expense of Chelsea on both occasions. Their domestic poor cup runs were clearly forgotten as they basked in the ambiance of glory and praise.

As defending champions, Manchester United has a lot riding on their shoulders this season. Many expect them to carry their form from last season into this season and quickly shoot up the table…but we all know Manchester United never shoots out of tracks first. This is proved again as they are currently sitting in 16th place with two games in hand.

Manchester has however strengthened their squad this season bringing in Bulgarian striker Dimitar Bebatov to complement the likes of Carlos Tevez, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.

On paper they do look like the team to beat, but Manchester United has been unfortunately plagued with injuries and find themselves using a lot of their back up players at the moment. For any of the other big four Manchester look quite vulnerable at the moment and Liverpool proved this by pegging three points off the champions.

Will Manchester United defend their title again this season, making it three times in a row? Or is this slow start and growing injury list something to worry about? Things look a bit uncertain to me at the moment.

 

In Conclusion

Whoever the winner may be, what we do know is that we can look forward to another great season of the Barclays Premier League. Who knows, maybe one of the other teams will shock us and snatch it for themselves! For me, I certainly hope Arsenal can win the title this year!

What is your prediction?