⚽ Premier League 2025/2026 Discussion Thread ⚽

[Abbatty]

Chelsea have appointed a talented manager like Alonso. Now they should give Alonso the  freedom to buy players and build the squad. Chelsea spent a lot of money last  season on buying players. They may need to  spend a big amount this season too. I think chelsea management  will spend a lot this season. Alonso is talented  and hardworking. We will definitely see an improvement in chelsea's performance next season.

The board will give him that freedom indeed! At least that was we were told earlier in the news... Chelsea owners shouldn't act on their own anymore.

Because they are just infamizing this team.    They know nothing about football really. They are looking at it just like a business model that's it!

If Xabi Alonso is given the control of signings at least they can get stronger for real.

Before Alonso put a pen on paper to be a Chelsea he told them his terms and condition and allowing him to have a say in the club signings was part of it. After several protest by the fans last season about how the club is being run the board have finally agreed by to allow most decisions to be taken by the manager. I believe Alonso will do well T Chelsea, he his talented and student of Guardiola also.

Well every manager needs time and I really hope Alonso won’t take much time to settle in at Chelsea. Chelsea is a very demanding team and I believe Alonso will be up to the task.

[Localhostspeed]

Chelsea will just focus on the premier league next season without playing champions league or Europa League competition. Let just see what xabi Alonso will be cooking after the World Cup is over.

Chelsea was a strong team and it seems always like they want to be on their previous and strong position . The new coach xabi Alonso will try to get the team in their back era and make them to perform strongly and efficiently.  And I think if Chelsea team will sign new and talented players it will be very beneficial for the team as they can stand in top positions. And it will be a good decision if they focused on only one goal because in this way they can fully concentrate and bring improvements in the team. And xabi Alonso is a reliable coach he is very experienced and i how he will manage to do the great with team. They very firstly need to overcome such main factors which are responsible their decline in the performance because without doing this maybe things not get easier

I think the management was disappointed how they bounce back with Maresca only to go back to their previous form. Remember that Chelsea had one of their biggest set back between 2023 and 2024, it was 2025 that they had some improvement, made it to the top of the league, won the club world cup but unfortunately that didn't last long, the finish league was as if they weren't the favorite that won the club world cup, everything was against them.

Under the leadership of Xabi, there is going to be improvement, let's forget about what happen in Real Madrid, it was never his fault and if it was I believe when Arbeloa came as replacement, the team should have done better. To some extent, they almost did better but it was obvious that some players were the downfall of the club. Xabi stepped aside to let them do what they want, he did incredible things in Leverkusen, he can do better here in Chelsea too.

[Not your key not your BTC]

Another transfer is done by Tottenham! De Zerbi wanted the defender van Hecke from Brighton and they bought him right away for £52m.

https://x.com/FabrizioRomano/status/2066932361866969202

How do you see this deal? He had a quite decent season there. De Zerbi also worked with him at Brighton of course.

That must be one of the reasons he wanted to see him in his new team. Tottenham really need a huge upgrade in their defense...

It seems Tottenham is truly committed to making major changes to improve their performance next season. That’s why they’ve been so active in the transfer market this time around. Signing van Hecke is a smart move, as Tottenham’s defense has indeed been very fragile. De Zerbi recognizes van Hecke’s potential, and he’s expected to strengthen Tottenham’s defense even further by forming a strong partnership with Romero.

It is very necessary for them to be active in the transfer market because already they have seen how they narrowly survive to be named among the team that will be playing Premier League next season, I'm quite impressed with the performance of their new coach which I'm beginning to have confidence in him because he's able to make Tottenham appear in the Premier League next season. I don't consider total to be Ableton team and I'm so confident that they will improve because I think by now they might have learned their mistakes.

Perhaps Tottenham is beginning to realize the mistakes they made last season. That’s why they’ve been very active in the transfer market and have overhauled their squad so the team can once again compete at the top of the standings. De Zerbi is a good coach, and Tottenham recognizes this because he was able to save the team from relegation. If De Zerbi is given time and the management meets his demands, I’m confident that he’ll be able to lead Tottenham back to competing at the top of the table, or at the very least, get them back into European competition.

[dezoel]

I don't see anything bad with Manchester United decisions most teams are reluctant to strengthen direct rivals especially when the players still has the quality to make a difference against in the future that's a common practice in football match not something unique to Manchester United as for Rashford if a suitable transfer doesn't happen he cancan still be useful to Manchester United squad.

I agree with you, especially regarding Marcus Rashford. Even if Marcus Rashford stays at Manchester United, he's a player who can be useful to this squad. We all saw how well he performed with Barcelona. He can do the same with Manchester United. He gained different experiences in the challenging atmosphere of Spain and will return to the Premier League as a more technically gifted player.

I do not think so, not because of talent level or anything like that, Rashford is of course a good player and as we have seen in the England game recently, he is very talented.

That is not the reason why I believe he would not be good there, the reason why I believe he would not be good there is because he doesn't really love United anymore and wants out, and when a player doesn't like his team, he doesn't play with 100% and he doesn't give himself to the club, which makes him look worse than he really is.

[Supreme Donvic]

Chelsea have appointed a talented manager like Alonso. Now they should give Alonso the  freedom to buy players and build the squad. Chelsea spent a lot of money last  season on buying players. They may need to  spend a big amount this season too. I think chelsea management  will spend a lot this season. Alonso is talented  and hardworking. We will definitely see an improvement in chelsea's performance next season.

The board will give him that freedom indeed! At least that was we were told earlier in the news... Chelsea owners shouldn't act on their own anymore.

Because they are just infamizing this team.    They know nothing about football really. They are looking at it just like a business model that's it!

If Xabi Alonso is given the control of signings at least they can get stronger for real.

Before Alonso put a pen on paper to be a Chelsea he told them his terms and condition and allowing him to have a say in the club signings was part of it. After several protest by the fans last season about how the club is being run the board have finally agreed by to allow most decisions to be taken by the manager. I believe Alonso will do well T Chelsea, he his talented and student of Guardiola also.

Well every manager needs time and I really hope Alonso won’t take much time to settle in at Chelsea. Chelsea is a very demanding team and I believe Alonso will be up to the task.

His a very good coach and if Chelsea has decided to give him power to have or make some decision in the team then I'm sure that he's going to succeed and do very well, one of the problem of Chelsea is that the management usually want to interfere with the team and this has been their problem and no coach will do better in a situation where the management are always interfering in matters that are not their responsibility, some people may be thinking because he did not do well in Real Madrid that he will also not do well in Chelsea but one thing you should understand is that when he was Real Madrid he did not have total control of the team the management were the ones making the important decisions in the team and that was what made him fail.

[Volgastallion]

Im reading some crazy news about the transfermarket and to be fair im not liking them at all, i read some crazy numbers for players that are good but come on man they cant have that value, for example Anderson the midback of Nothingham Forest how he can be worth 120 millions, it doesnt make any sense at all, he is a good player a nothing more he is in a team who fight for relegation be serious.

[FanEagle]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

[Oluwa-btc]

Im reading some crazy news about the transfermarket and to be fair im not liking them at all, i read some crazy numbers for players that are good but come on man they cant have that value, for example Anderson the midback of Nothingham Forest how he can be worth 120 millions, it doesnt make any sense at all, he is a good player a nothing more he is in a team who fight for relegation be serious.

If defensive midfielders like Caicedo and Declan Rice where gotten from such high valuations, why wouldn't Nottingham Forest do the same for Elliot Anderson?!
I don't think he is worth that but since he's British alongside his work rate both in the Premier League and Europa League Competition,,then he needs to to leave that way.
I believe Manchester City will not double down from getting him this very transfer. I think it is the very reason Manchester United backed down from chasing him. The unnecessary back and forth bidding for a player they'd never get eventually.

[9ja Amaka]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

The premier league is definitely one of the toughest league if not even the toughest,  because the league comes with a lot of surprises,  like you mention Wolves getting a win against Arsenal who ends up becoming the champion. I think Alonso is a decent coach,  but he will definitely need time to adjust to the premier league. I don't expect him to come win the premier league immediately or to get the ground running either,  but I expect him to improve with time, but the only issue is if he will be giving the time to do that at Chelsea. As we all know Chelsea don't seem to be patient with coaches,  so that might be a big problem for him, especially if they raise the bar too high for him.

[jakdanyel]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

Xabi Alonso will face extra difficulties because of Chelsea's terrible transfer moves in the past.    That would really need some time to handle.

However if the owner listens to Xabi Alonso and do what he asks for then Chelsea can start recovering in time. Otherwise I don't expect much progress...

In case of leaving Chelsea in the future I just hope his next station would be Liverpool.

[Warkop]

Im reading some crazy news about the transfermarket and to be fair im not liking them at all, i read some crazy numbers for players that are good but come on man they cant have that value, for example Anderson the midback of Nothingham Forest how he can be worth 120 millions, it doesnt make any sense at all, he is a good player a nothing more he is in a team who fight for relegation be serious.

It is no wonder that English clubs are always generous with players like this, it is as if they are gambling with their own purchases. It is indeed very unreasonable if that really happens, 120 million could buy several good players and could even bring in more top players.

[ArabBTC]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

Xabi Alonso will face extra difficulties because of Chelsea's terrible transfer moves in the past.    That would really need some time to handle.

However if the owner listens to Xabi Alonso and do what he asks for then Chelsea can start recovering in time. Otherwise I don't expect much progress...

In case of leaving Chelsea in the future I just hope his next station would be Liverpool.

I don’t really see Xabi Alonso facing so much of challenges, Chelsea squad isn’t that bad it is just poor management, in the attack they still have the likes of Jao Pedro, in the midfield Caicedo and Cole Palmer isn’t doing poorly, the Chelsea goal keeper Sanchez is also doing well i just feel why they underperformed last season was because of irregularities within the club owners and managing board, secondly Liam was not up to the standard of managing Chelsea, Chelsea have been known for having big players and coaches, those boys won’t listen to an upcoming coach like Liam, Xabi have far more pedigree than Liam, if he can first get the players to like him by showing maturity in the training ground and player selection for matches i feel Chelsea will bounce back strong, Chelsea have never been a team that is tied round any particular player, the Chelsea club already have that winning spark from the onset, it will only take a good coach to trigger it, i see Chelsea competing for the premier league next season.

[Antotena]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

How are you making conclusions yet when the season has not even started. We are in international break and between world cup for players that are called to represent their nations. I think many teams are waiting for the world cup to end before they can start to buy players which I'm Xabi will do too. If the club is not heartless and wicked, I don't think they will bring a coach without buying players, it has never been done before and get good results.

Some players have left, Cucurella us left and there are more of them that are waiting for that club. Some players don't have the opportunity to be where they want else with why Chelsea has faced this last few months, I don't think young players will want to be part of the journey anymore, it's exhausting when you have to be with your team and things are not working out but perhaps Xabi will make changes if given money to buy some players against next season.

[Distraction]

I guess this is the first transfer move by Liverpool, right? They have signed Victor Munoz from Osasuna.

How do you see his future in the PL?    Above all else I wonder if they signed him for the starting eleven.

Because you know he can play as LW and RW both. Salah is leaving. Gakpo is also not too reliable. Liverpool needs transfers for these positions. 

[qurbanshah02]

Im reading some crazy news about the transfermarket and to be fair im not liking them at all, i read some crazy numbers for players that are good but come on man they cant have that value, for example Anderson the midback of Nothingham Forest how he can be worth 120 millions, it doesnt make any sense at all, he is a good player a nothing more he is in a team who fight for relegation be serious.

The situation is similar at the moment because those who do not have much funds are forced to increase their budget so that they can get good players and their team can improve. Although the players whose value is not high are also the reason why they also need money so that they can also get some good players for themselves. Last season, every team made quite a good purchase, but at this time, every team does not have much funds and they are afraid to invest money on the team from their own pockets because they will not get much success in the title. Right now, we has heard more such news until next month and has to enjoy it. Although they also need money, that is why they have asked for such a big amount and I do not think they will pay that much money for it.

[hyudien]

I guess this is the first transfer move by Liverpool, right? They have signed Victor Munoz from Osasuna.

How do you see his future in the PL?    Above all else I wonder if they signed him for the starting eleven.

Because you know he can play as LW and RW both. Salah is leaving. Gakpo is also not too reliable. Liverpool needs transfers for these positions. 

I think Liverpool took a good step by bringing in victor Munoz, this player has speed that can be utilized by them. Especially when I checked the transfer, Munoz was bought at 40 million euros, quite cheap as a left winger with decent statistics with Osasuna. And for his future in the premier league, I think Munoz will shine. But Liverpool still need to bring in a few more players, because there will most likely be some of their main players leaving soon, one of which you have mentioned.

[Shineup]

Chelsea have appointed a talented manager like Alonso. Now they should give Alonso the  freedom to buy players and build the squad. Chelsea spent a lot of money last  season on buying players. They may need to  spend a big amount this season too. I think chelsea management  will spend a lot this season. Alonso is talented  and hardworking. We will definitely see an improvement in chelsea's performance next season.

The board will give him that freedom indeed! At least that was we were told earlier in the news... Chelsea owners shouldn't act on their own anymore.

Because they are just infamizing this team.    They know nothing about football really. They are looking at it just like a business model that's it!

If Xabi Alonso is given the control of signings at least they can get stronger for real.

Before Alonso put a pen on paper to be a Chelsea he told them his terms and condition and allowing him to have a say in the club signings was part of it. After several protest by the fans last season about how the club is being run the board have finally agreed by to allow most decisions to be taken by the manager. I believe Alonso will do well T Chelsea, he his talented and student of Guardiola also.

Well every manager needs time and I really hope Alonso won’t take much time to settle in at Chelsea. Chelsea is a very demanding team and I believe Alonso will be up to the task.

Hmm with the way things are going I don't really see Xabi Alonso doing much for that Chelsea team comes next season, now he's still thinking of how to strengthen the team while some of his best players are planning to leave the team, and now the question is which player wants to play for a team that is not playing in any of the European competitions comes next season, and the ones they've got are still leaving without having a rethink, believe me it's definitely gonna be a long long season for Xabi Alonso, I only hope he doesn't regret taking this job.

[DubemIfedigbo001]

Chelsea will just focus on the premier league next season without playing champions league or Europa League competition. Let just see what xabi Alonso will be cooking after the World Cup is over.

Chelsea was a strong team and it seems always like they want to be on their previous and strong position . The new coach xabi Alonso will try to get the team in their back era and make them to perform strongly and efficiently.  And I think if Chelsea team will sign new and talented players it will be very beneficial for the team as they can stand in top positions. And it will be a good decision if they focused on only one goal because in this way they can fully concentrate and bring improvements in the team. And xabi Alonso is a reliable coach he is very experienced and i how he will manage to do the great with team. They very firstly need to overcome such main factors which are responsible their decline in the performance because without doing this maybe things not get easier

I think the management was disappointed how they bounce back with Maresca only to go back to their previous form. Remember that Chelsea had one of their biggest set back between 2023 and 2024, it was 2025 that they had some improvement, made it to the top of the league, won the club world cup but unfortunately that didn't last long, the finish league was as if they weren't the favorite that won the club world cup, everything was against them.

Under the leadership of Xabi, there is going to be improvement, let's forget about what happen in Real Madrid, it was never his fault and if it was I believe when Arbeloa came as replacement, the team should have done better. To some extent, they almost did better but it was obvious that some players were the downfall of the club. Xabi stepped aside to let them do what they want, he did incredible things in Leverkusen, he can do better here in Chelsea too.

The management is very wrong to have any disappointment with the life quality squad they provided Maresca. They were doing well with the a bit quality players available until injury struck. Palmer, James, Fofana and Chalobah were injured at the same time and it was obvious there was no replacement for these players and that was the start of the bad form, the bench was not any strong to keep up good performance in matches, they made a more fatal mistake by changing coaches and disorganizing the players some more. The low quality in the players were affecting Maresca at some point and he was confused on who amongst them can fit in with his type of play, but none was showing promise and the form kept deteriorating.

Xabi is good coach, but if Chelsea management doesn't change their player wages structure and allow him to buy well seasoned players that can win trophies just like was done under Abramovich, he might not achieve much honestly.

[Nightwatchmare]

I don't see anything bad with Manchester United decisions most teams are reluctant to strengthen direct rivals especially when the players still has the quality to make a difference against in the future that's a common practice in football match not something unique to Manchester United as for Rashford if a suitable transfer doesn't happen he cancan still be useful to Manchester United squad.

Manchester United contract with Rashford stands until 2028, until it expires, he is a property of the club and the club owns him, if clubs are not ready to sign him, he would return to the club, if lucky have a big of playing time or just add to the club number, but for a player like Rashford, despite his recent underperformance shouldn't be sitting as a bench warmer.

I know clubs that will be able to make use of the player, even in the Premier League, there are clubs lacking wingers.

Yes Manchester United contract with Marcus Rashford runs until 2018, Manchester United is still responsible to pay him for the remaining years in his contract, so him will not even mind if he remains at Manchester United because whether Michael Carrick give him playing time or not Manchester United will pay him for doing nothing. However, if Manchester United does not want him to remain at the club because of his wages they will lower his release clause so it could be easy for him to leave just for them to remove the burden of paying his high wages.

[Humblevirus]

Xabi will definitely have hard time adjusting for the first few months, premier league is not like any other league and winning there is tough, Arsenal became the champions, and yet they failed to beat Wolves who was last, that's the level of competition there and Xabi never faced such a thing before, he managed two teams, and in one of them it was a simple league like Bundesliga, only team they needed to do better was Bayern, and Bayern was so bad that they became third place that year.

So the only other team was Real Madrid, who was one of two teams that would win the league, either Barcelona does or real does, and he failed and he got fired. So premier league will definitely be a tough thing for him without a doubt.

Premier League is one of the most competitive leagues, but that is not enough proof that Xabi Alonso may have a hard time at first. It is possible that if he has a good squad, he may not face the challenges many people are expecting. I believe Chelsea will sign players before the beginning of the season, so it is better for us to wait before drawing conclusions.Xabi Alonso is a very good coach, and we all know that. Being sacked at Real Madrid does not automatically make him a bad coach. He had a great season at Bayer Leverkusen despite not having many world class players in the squad. The reason he was unable to do well at Real Madrid was largely because some players had issues with one another.

Even now, if Real Madrid do not get a manager who is very strict and willing to deal with players who cause problems, they may continue to face the same challenges and their performances may not improve.Sometimes, it is very difficult to predict what will happen at a club because many factors determine a club's success. Can we look at what is happening at Manchester United recently? How many coaches did Manchester United sack before Carrick? Yet, we can all see how Carrick is doing so well at Manchester United without facing many of the challenges that previous coaches faced in their first few matches at Manchester United.