Line-Ups

Spurs: Vorm; Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose; Dembele, Dier, Winks, Eriksen; Moura, Kane

Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Milner, Wijnaldum, Keita, Salah, Firmino, Mane

Set Up and Approach

Spurs

For the second game in a row Pochettino set up with his midfield completely incorrect for the task at hand. He opted for a narrow 4-1-2-1-2, with Demeble at the base and Eriksen at the point of the diamond, the focus appeared to be on keeping possession and slowly picking Liverpool apart, but the midfield of Liverpool were simply too smart for that.

All four midfielders in the diamond struggled in their roles. Dembele, who was intended to protect the defence and carry the ball into Liverpool territory, looked very leggy. Dier couldn’t deal with tracking the forwards of Liverpool and his passing was awful, highlighted by the golden chance he gave Salah when he split his own defenders apart. Winks showed good feet, but lacked the match fitness that playing against Klopp’s side required. Finally, Eriksen could barely get into the game, there were no pockets of space that he loves to play in, largely because of Liverpool’s compact midfield, and also because Spurs had little width and no Dele Alli to ghost between the lines and create room.

Relying on the wing backs for width was another poor stroke by Poch. Trippier and Rose both struggled to deal with the sheer pace of Mane and Salah, and the excellent movement of Firimino; because of this there was very few opportunities for them to soar forward and supply the forwards as they usually like to do.

Set piece defending has to be mentioned. They conceded two against Watford by either not picking up the correct man, or by being weak in the aerial challenge; the same happened this week. Vertonghen was simply grabbing Van Dijk and failing to give Vorm room to catch the ball, all whilst Dier was marking and holding his own man (Trippier) with neither of the twosome following Wijnaldum as he peeled off to head in. A comedy of errors and Spurs really need to work on this otherwise smaller teams in particular will target this and take points away from Wembley this season.

Finally, where was the supply for the forwards meant to come from? There was no width, no space created and nobody able to run between the lines and challenge the Liverpool back line. Moura and Kane didn’t even get close to a sniff, which is in part down to the away side’s solid defence, but also down to the blunt tactics from Pochettino.

For me Spurs really should have gone 4-2-3-1, with Winks dropping out, Dembele and Dier sitting alongside one another in front of the back line, and either Son or Lamela on one side, Eriksen through the centre, and Lucas Moura on the other. This would have given the full backs a little more cover, and would have stretched the midfield three of Liverpool, who were simply to disciplined to picked off due to fatigue or lack of concentration.

Liverpool

Same old, same old for Liverpool, 4-3-3 with a look to catch their opposition on the break with their pacey forwards, and it worked. Mane and Salah were wasteful in their decision making and finishing, but when carrying the ball, they were putting fear straight into the hearts of the Spurs defenders.

I mentioned it before, but Liverpool’s defensive set up was so disciplined, Van Dijk commanded the back line expertly again as Gomez and Alexander-Arnold made some lovely tackles in top notch performances. On the few occasions Spurs tried to slip a ball into the feet of Moura and Kane, Van Dijk or Gomez were right on their backs, which restricted Spurs to just 3 attempts on target all game.

The midfield three were key to this also; Milner, Keita and Wijnaldum covered the most ground of all players and consistently slipped back into position to prevent any space for Eriksen. When they won the ball back it was all about sending a quick ball through to the forwards and rushing up to support them, Wijnaldum looked like he was given was a lot more opportunity to roam up the pitch and thrived in the holes between Vertonghen and Rose.

Whilst Spurs obviously wanted to dictate the play at home, Klopp’s side simply would not allow it. Firimino was always hassling and terrorising the back line, and the midfielders caused so much trouble for Dier, who looked very nervous. It was their classic high press, and Tottenham just didn’t know how to escape. Instead of Spurs being in charge, it was Milner who was controlling the tempo, carefully picking a sideways pass when necessary, but mainly looking forward and creating chances. Klopp made a great choice selecting him ahead of Henderson.

Key Points

1. Fatigue and sloppiness: It’s been heavily mentioned that Kane looks tired and may need a rest, but the whole Tottenham side looked knackered yesterday. Their movement was sluggish and their passing was sloppy as they looked mentally drained. How often do you see Trippier just switch off like he did? Or Kane fail to even get close to the goal? Or Dembele fail to connect passes and lose physical battles? They had players go deep into the world cup, signed nobody, and it shows. They need a rest, but there’s no time for that.
2. Formations: Liverpool went for their tried and tested option and completely overran Tottenham’s new approach. Pochettino knew Klopp would employ his high intensity style and miserably failed to stop it, they needed to stretch Liverpool to break through them because if you simply try to run past Van Dijk and company, you’ve got no chance.
3. Taking chances: Liverpool created so many chances and really should have put the game to bed with a comprehensive 3 or 4 goals, rather than hanging on at the end. Had Salah and Mane been as decisive as Firmino they really could have ran away with it, and put down the firmest marker of the title challengers so far, instead they almost drew the match; for what it is worth I thought there was no chance of it being a penalty in quick time, but on the replays it is quite clear Mane catches Son. Spurs will get one back at some point in the season though, swings and roundabouts and all that.
4. Substitutes
   1. Lamela > Dembele, 60 mins: Dembele had one of his most forgettable games in a Tottenham shirt and was rightfully withdrawn. Lamela maybe should have started to provide some width and penetration. Didn’t do too much from open play but took his goal very well.
   2. Son > Winks, 73 mins: Another played who maybe should have started, for the same reasons as Lamela. Showed the usual tidy close control and at least tried to take some players on. Should have won a penalty in the last minute too.
   3. Henderson > Firmino, 74 mins: Frimino was replaced due to an eye injury, Klopp put Hendo into midfield and moved Keita forward, presumably to continue the pressure on Vertonghen and Alderweireld. Henderson was his composed self and played some tidy passes to relieve the late pressure on his defenders.
   4. Wanyama > Dier, 83 mins: Dier was poor throughout and should have been subbed, but not for Wanyama, with them chasing the game at 2-0 bringing on Sanchez and moving to a back 3 with wingbacks would have made more sense.
   5. Keita > Sturridge, 83 mins: Sturridge actually looks fairly sharp and fit despite not getting any goalscoring opportunities. Shouldn’t have turned his back on Lamela’s strike though.
   6. Alexander-Arnold > Matip, 90 mins: Klopp’s usual late game timewaster, but it rarely works out well and keeping the defence the same would have been less disruptive than forcing Gomez with.

Key Players

1. Milner: The man just keeps getting better. Surely he solidified his place in the side with a colossal showing at Wembley. He covered more ground, moved fastest, made the most passes in the opposition half, had the most crosses and created the most chances. What more could you ask from your captain than a sublime man of the match performance.
2. Wijnaldum: Another man who will be looking to keep his spot. He took his goal well but did so much more. He kept Eriksen silent and made clever passes all day as well as getting higher up the pitch than usual. Overall he was exactly the sort of player Pochettino could have done with in front of his back 4.
3. Vorm: The goalkeeper made two key errors and looked shaky from about 20 minutes onwards, he also doesn’t offer the same calming aura to his defence that Lloris does. They need the French captain back badly.
4. Van Dijk: Every time Liverpool play he’ll likely be mentioned amongst the top players, a unit in the air and unthreatened on the floor; the best centre back in the Premier League for sure.
5. Alli: Dele Alli was key to Spurs without even playing, because it was so clear how much they missed him. There was no link between midfield and striker, and nobody to create areas for Eriksen, Kane and Moura to be effective. It’s constantly said how much Spurs struggle without Kane, but similar can surely be said for Alli.

Final thoughts and the next fixture

Spurs: They need a rest, but they cannot simply afford that. Maybe start Son for a couple of games to lighten the load on Kane, get Wanyama in there, and rotate the fullbacks as the England starters both struggled. Their next game is on the road to Brighton, who could get some joy against a tired Tottenham midfield in a similar fashion to how they picked off Manchester United.

Liverpool: Klopp’s side just need to keep doing the same thing, they’re already firm title contenders without having to play at the peak of their powers. They play Southampton next who they should brush aside with relative ease, with Chelsea away following that, which could easily be the game of the season.

Setup and Approach

Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace set up in a 4-4-1-1 formation, with Zaha playing a loose role behind Benteke, allowing him to switch sides of the pitch with ease. The aim seemed to be to feed into Zaha and Benteke quickly to try and get in behind the Liverpool defence with some quick dribbling a tight passing, which proved quite difficult.

Second half they focussed a lot more on switching the ball from flank to flank in order to create space for the fullbacks (Wan-Bissaka and Van Aanholt) who both pushed very high and created some chances for the men in the middle with some solid deliveries.

Defensively Palace sat pretty deep first half, with Milivojevic and McArthur sitting in front of the back line. Tomkins and Sakho dealt very well with Firmino and Salah in particular as a result, hardly giving them a touch for long periods of the game. Salah almost exclusively found joy on the break when space finally opened up as Palace had to push for a goal at set pieces.

Overall the Eagles moved the ball around very nicely, making little pockets of space for the wide men. They can certainly be proud of their performance and more in the same vein will see them pick up plenty of points at home this season.

Liverpool

The away side set up in the same style as the previous week against West Ham, with no change in personnel in their usual 4-3-3 formation. Firmino would drop deep to pick up the ball against as Liverpool would look to create zones for Keita and Mane too relish in, which worked to joyous effect against the Hammers.

Like Palace, Klopp also pushed his fullbacks high up the pitch to overlap and try and get in behind the deep line of the home side. The inverted wingers would also look to cut in and run at the centre backs, which worked a treat when Salah won the penalty.

Defensively their plan was to get tight to the trickier players (Zaha, Townsend, Schlupp) and magnetise Van Dijk to Benteke whenever the long ball was played neutralising the aerial threat with extreme effect.

Second half was all about not making mistakes at the back, staying calm, and breaking on Palace as Hodgson’s side advanced up the pitch in an attempt to draw level. This worked a treat as they found a late second goal and drew a red card out of Wan-Bissaka.

Liverpool have often been accused of struggling in such frustrating games previously, but they showed excellent professionalism and returned to the north with a well earned three points.

Key Points

1. Fullbacks – All four fullbacks really proved their worth last night. They all had the same role, to get forward, try and get in behind, and try to deliver with quality when close to the box. Wan-Bissaka and Robertson were most effective at this; the Liverpool left-back can count himself unlucky to not have secured an assist after a lovely weighted ball to Salah on the break. Defensively they were sound too, Bissaka made a wonderful challenge in the box against Keita and Alexander-Arnold was calm and collected, even when Palace attempted to overload him with the trios of Zaha, Schlupp and Van Aanholt; he had an understated but fantastic performance.

2. The battle for the skies – Virgil Van Dijk was a monster last night, and was a key reason why Liverpool won the hard fought fixture. He won all his attempted tackles, made eight clearances and most importantly when up against Benteke, won 9 aerial duels successfully eliminating the effectiveness of the home side’s long balls. It’s also worth noting how composed Joe Gomez looked in the back line, which at 21 years of age, may be down to Van Dijk’s leadership.

3. Breaking away – Liverpool utilised the break perfectly, as they have done for years. Salah barely got any joy in the first half, but he was racing against centre backs instead of trying to dribble past them, he was much more effective. Palace on the other hand hardly got any breaks, due to Liverpool’s ability to drop back quickly with Milner and Wijnaldum in midfield.

Key Players

1. Van Dijk – As mentioned, he didn’t put a foot wrong and was the certain MOTM. Fast becoming one of the best centre backs in the world.

2. Wan-Bissaka – Played well above his age and deal with Robertson, Keita and Mane exceedingly well. The red was almost unavoidable and shouldn’t take away from what was otherwise a sound showing.

3. Alisson – In other years, Liverpool may have lost this game to due shaky goalkeeping. He made a solid save from the Milivojevic free kick and another from the Benteke header, which ended up being offside. On top of that, he was cool as ice with the ball at his feet, and played some lovely passes out to the midfield to relieve the pressure on the defence.

4. Sakho – Sakho showed brilliance and calmness almost all game. But a wild pass early on almost put his side behind, and his clumsiness in the box against Salah lead to the penalty and allowed Liverpool to play in a much more comfortable fashion second half.

5. Keita – So smooth on the ball, with a fantastic range of passing. He started controlled the tempo of his team’s attack well but did struggle following a rough knee to the head from Benteke.

Final Thoughts

Liverpool left Sellhurst with a well-earned and deserved three points thanks to their consummate professionalism and strong defence in the second half. Salah looks a little rusty but will surely explode into life before too long. Palace can considered themselves unfortunate in defeat as they played some lovely stuff and should pick off most lower teams at home this season; on another day, and had the calls fell differently, they could have taken something from Liverpool last night.

The Barclays is back boys, which means the managerial merry go round is about to hit the accelerator and kick into overdrive. This cruel fairground ride is bound to claim a fair share of victims over the course of the season, but who will be first? Last year Frank de Boer took home the gold in a record smashing 4(!) games; surely nobody will leave their club as fast as the Dutchman, but here’s my personal take on how each manager may fair this season.

 

AFC Bournemouth – Eddie Howe

Bournemouth are weird aren’t they. They’ve become somewhat of a Premier League mainstay, whilst maintaining the feeling of being a Championship side. I like them, they’re cool. Another cool thing is the man at the helm ‘future England manager,’ Eddie Howe.

He’s done an insanely fantastic job in getting his side to this stage and is a club legend for sure, even if the club struggle, I can’t see Howe being sacked. Stranger things have happened in football, such as Robert Green going to Chelsea, but Howe staying put seems inevitable.

Sack Race odds: 20/1 (All odds from SkyBet)

 

Arsenal – Unai Emery

It still doesn’t quite feel real to talk about Arsenal sans Arsene Wenger; he’s been the gunners’ leader for the entire span of my interest in football, but all good things must come to an end, and good things can be birthed from such endings, so in comes the Europa League specialist, Unai Emery.

Will he be sacked first? Almost certainly not, in fact, Emery seems like he is poised for success with the London club, with a host of important new signings and a proven philosophy. However, I can’t help but get flashbacks to when David Moyes replaced Sir Alex Ferguson. The burden was too large, Moyes drank from the poison chalice of management, causing his tactical brain to explode, and he never truly recovered. Hopefully for Unai, this chalice is slightly less poisonous and he can work some magic when stepping into Wenger’s shoes.

Sack Race odds: 33/1

 

Brighton and Hove Albion – Chris Hughton

What a lovely man Hughton is, he’s worked harder than anyone to make it in the Premier League. It wasn’t meant to be at Newcastle or Norwich, but little Chris has found his true love at the Amex Stadium.

Brighton sailed to a highly successful maiden season in the Premier League, and a vast amount of that credit has to go to Hughton. He changed things up by adding the likes of Schelotto over club legend Bruno, allowed Pascal Groß to work his magic feet and played to the strengths of Glenn Murray, who ended up bagging 11 league goals. Second season syndrome looms in the air, but if Hughton keeps it fresh again his love affair on the south coast will continue to blossom.

Sack Race odds: 16/1

 

Burnley – Sean Dyche

If the 2018/2019 managerial sack race is won by Sean Dyche, I’ll eat a worm. Dyche is everything that makes Burnley tick, he and the club are basically those two old fellas you see in the pub every night drinking dark mild, it’s an unbreakable bond.

Dyche is well aware of the club’s strengths, weaknesses and how to squeeze the best out of every fixture. The only issue rearing its ugly head is that of overachievement and squad depth; Europa League qualification was something nobody could have predicted for the claret side and people surely can’t expect Dyche and company to repeat the feat this year, especially with the extra burden of having to get his paper thin squad through a highly populated fixture list.

Sack Race odds: 20/1

 

Cardiff City – Neil Warnock

Neil Warnock is somehow not the favourite to depart his side quickest this season. Warnock has forever been the Premier League bridesmaid, but never the bride, as whilst he has a very impressive Championship record, he’s never cut the mustard in the top division.

He sits in the void between Premier League and Championship alongside the likes of Lewis Grabban, Dwight Gayle and Cameron Jerome, in that they’re all too good for the Championship but simply are not built for the trial and tribulations of the Premier League. Sadly for Warnock, his success will again be his own downfall.

Sack Race odds: 8/1

 

Chelsea – Maurizio Sarri

Sarriball is an interesting entity in football. It’ll entertain, it’ll win hearts and minds, but as of yet, it has failed to win a top level trophy. Will his stylish brand win one this year? I think not.

Whilst his tactics are excellent and his style is easy on the eye, it takes time to implement such a system, especially in an entirely new league. Undoubtedly Sarri needs a sufficient tenure to implement his intelligent plan, so sacking him before even giving him a hope of getting everything in place would be pure madness, even from a notoriously non-reactionary, cool headed fellow such as Roman Abramovich.

Sack Race odds: 33/1

 

Crystal Palace – Roy Hodgson

Roy the boy rides again! At the tender age of 70 (the oldest in the league) Hodgson enters his first full season with Crystal Palace after working wonders there last season. With De Boer at the wheel the club were on a highway to hell (a.k.a the Championship) but Hodgson steered them to safety and got everyone at Crystals nightclub grooving again.

He’s been there and done it all before so when it’s all said and done I wouldn’t be surprised to see Roy standing tall once again. Who knows, if he has an incredible showing, maybe he could be England manager one day…

Sack Race odds: 20/1

 

Everton – Marco Silva

I’ll save you the classic Paul Merson jokes, but Mr Silva has proven quite popular in the top division hasn’t he. Silva laid his roots at Hull, then started turning up trees with Watford, before proving to be a thorn in his own side after getting his head turned by the Ev in the winter.

Everton finally got their man and should he be able to get them playing like Watford early last season, they’ll be off to a flyer. The question mark however, is on the defensive side. Silva knows how to get his creative players into the game but his teams are often leakier than the Titanic, which doesn’t bode well for England’s world cup hero Jordan Pickford.

Sack Race odds: 18/1

 

Fulham – Slavisa Jokanovic

Are you a football hipster? Do you like walking down the river side to your favourite cereal café? Do you love nothing more than your team’s home ground to be an old hunting lodge? Well Fulham is the team for you and Slavisa Jokanovic might just be your new best friend.

Jokanovic has hauled his team back to the big time by having each and every one of his players invest in his brand of attractive, attacking football. Now with the likes of Mitrovic, Seri, Schurrle, Sessegnon and Cairney at the manager’s disposal we could be looking at the breakout team of the season and a influx of new Fulham fans from across the globe.

Sack Race odds: 20/1

 

Huddersfield Town – David Wagner

I mentioned second season syndrome before with Brighton, but the eerie stench smells much greater in regards to Huddersfield. They almost burnt out last year and despite signing some decent players (Kongolo permanently, Durm, Sobhi etc.) they are once again, a firm favourite for the drop.

The question that is begged then is this, will a bad season see Wagner be sacked in a bid to change the fortunes of the club? I would say possibly yes. Whilst before I did speak of the love towards Dyche and Howe from their clubs, in this world of money and power there is little room for loyalty in football anymore, and Wagner is a man I fear for if things begin to go south.

Sack Race odds: 16/1

 

Leicester City – Claude Puel

Tensions got nasty between Puel and Leicester last season. There were warm beginnings due to the removal of Craig Shakespeare, but if there’s two things Leicester fans do not like it’s, 1.) winning just three games in fourteen to end the season, and 2.) playing a boring style of football.

He’s certainly one of the favourites to win the sack race, despite his side being expected to finish around the middle of the table, so I would be extremely fearful for his head if Leicester don’t kick off well. After all, this is the board that sacked Ranieri after he pulled off the impossible dream.

Sack Race odds: 7/1

 

Liverpool – Jurgen Klopp

Despite Klopp being at the helm of Liverpool for less than three years, it just feels right that he’s there. Like hand in glove, bacon and egg, Northern Rail and cancelling trains; they just fit together.

They’ve signed better than any of their Premier League rivals and finally have the squad depth to mount a challenge on all fronts. Anything less than top 4 (maybe even 3) and a decent run in the Champion’s League would be a disappointment, but it seems written in the stars that Klopp will once again deliver what is expected from the Kop faithful.

Sack Race odds: 80/1

 

Manchester City – Pep Guardiola

City fans must be glad all over that they have Pep at the helm, at the City board surely feel the same. The blue half of Manchester exploded into life last season and performed to a level which many would say was the greatest showing in Premier League history.

Pep has the highest odds on winning the sack race, and rightly so, as this season they look to have even more firepower with Mahrez arriving, and further stability with Foden and Laporte vying for first team action. They’ll probably win the league again, just hopefully not at such a canter to make things interesting. For now though, his bald-fraudometer reading remains at zero.

Sack Race odds: 100/1

 

Manchester United – Jose Mourinho

From the bookies’ least fancied, to their most fancied; Jose Mourinho is on the brink of destruction at Manchester United it would seem. Mourinho’s that fella that you have in your five-a-side team who does some daft skill in his own half, loses it, you concede, but he never accepts that he’s in the wrong it up, and instead throws a paddy and blames everyone else.

He’s already fallen out with a plethora of people at Old Trafford including: Luke Shaw, Ed Woodward and even his own fans’ home support. Plus, with his reign at Chelsea ending in tears following a conspiracy and tirade against Eva Carneiro, we can expect some fireworks to fly during Mourinho press conferences this year, and further rifts between the man, the fans and the board will quite likely lead to Mourinho leaving the club before too long.

Sack Race odds: 5/1

 

Newcastle United – Rafa Benitez

Poor old Rafa. He’s always a gentleman and shouldn’t have to put up with the farcical nonsense that is Mike Ashley. He worked wonders keeping his paper thin side in the Premier League last season and he should have been rewarded with some impressive new recruits. Ashley being Ashley though (Newcastle haven’t broken their transfer record since signing Michael Owen in 2005) means that instead of quality new faces Benitez has been forced to search the bargain bins at Poundland yet again.

For all of the above, I personally believe Rafa will be the manager to leave his club first. He won’t be sacked, surely Mike Ashley isn’t that stupid, instead Rafa may well step down. The man is simply too wonderful a coach to put up with the endless idiocy he’s been served up in the North East, and instead he should seek healthier options elsewhere.

Sack Race odds: 8/1

 

Southampton – Mark Hughes

I fully ate my words last season, when Hughes took over at Southampton I thought they were doomed, but he actually did a decent job and kept them in the league thanks to a few tidy results. I can’t help but not like Hughes though, maybe it’s his arrogant personality, maybe it’s that he cares way too much about handshakes, who knows.

The Welshman’s issue this time round is the lack of new arrivals and the constant question of, where will the goals come from in this Southampton team? Will Charlie Austin be able to stay fit enough to kick it in the net? Wil the loan of Danny Ings be a success? Will Nathan Redmond finally be able to understand that you can run, kick and breathe all at once? Find out on this year’s edition of the Prem.

Sack Race odds: 12/1

 

Tottenham Hotspur – Mauricio Pochettino

First things first, Daniel Levy got a taste of his own medicine and completely fluffed this transfer window. After years of squeezing every penny out of teams to get a stellar deal, here’s a comprehensive list of Spurs’ 2018 summer signings: nobody.

Pochettino would be safe at Spurs regardless of league position, but this shambolic transfer window means that he will get even more leeway in what is expected to be a disappointing league season following years of success. Plus, with Real Madrid plucking Lopetegui over Pochettino recently too, I don’t see any reason why Poch would depart the new White Hart Lane in the near future.

Sack Race odds: 50/1

 

Watford – Javi Gracia

I actually had to Google ‘who is the Watford manager?’ only to be greeted with the completely forgettable answer of Javi Gracia. Outside of a 4-1 win against Chelsea, his run at the helm of the Hornets has had very little sting behind it, which likely will continue through 2018/2019.

Without a doubt Gracia will be relying on his defence in order to keep his team up, and salvage his own job. Last season their top scorer was Abdoulaye Doucouré (who I cannot believe wasn’t snapped up) with 7 goals, and their blunted strikeforce consists of a fat guy on £100,000 per week (Deeney), a fat guy with a poor injury history (Okaka) and a skinny guy who’s Premier League goal ratio is 1 in every 4.5 games (Gray).

Sack Race odds: 8/1

 

West Ham – Manuel Pellegrini

West Ham live in a constant state of insanity. Their board have consistently lied to the fans about plans, both on the pitch and in terms of the stadium change, leaving many long-time Hammers fans disgruntled with their beloved team.

Stability may have arrived in the backroom however, as experienced head Manuel Pellegrini, who must have rocks in his head to take this role, takes to the hot seat at the London Stadium. Pairing such a successful manager with a plethora of exciting signings: Wilshire, Yarmolenko, Anderson, Sanchez and Perez amongst others, means that West Ham should be able to secure an impressive finish this time round.

Sack Race odds: 18/1

 

Wolverhampton Wanderers – Nuno Espírito Santo

Rounding off our band of merry men we have another gentleman who may become a victim of his own success. Wolves are back in the big time after six years of absence, and they’ve gone super-size on their transfer dealings, assembling arguably the most luscious squad a promoted side has ever forged.

I question whether Nuno as the managerial nous required to cut it in the top division, and considering the fact that Wolves have gone all in this summer, they could end up searching for a more prestigious manager if a fast start escapes them. Fun fact though, Nuno was born in São Tomé and Príncipe, which is cool.

Sack Race odds: 18/1

There you have it then folks, the Premier League sack (or leave you club because of gross mismanagement) is on. My front runners have to be Warnock, Mourinho and Benitez, but I’d love to here who’s job you are fearful for this time round.