Premier League Season Preview
Host Jordan Hession and analysts Cole Koffler, Connor Donohue and Aidan Torok preview the upcoming Premier League season for the first time in CommRadio history.
This Saturday marks the start of the English Premier League’s 2020-21 season. Liverpool, the defending champions, will look to defend its first title since 1990. Last season, Liverpool raised the bar, losing only three games in the regular season. It may seem that the defending champs will continue their dominance this season, but other teams in the league have been strengthening their rosters to compete. First, let’s take a look at which teams are going to give Liverpool the most difficulties this season.
Tottenham Hotspur will rely on Jose Mourinho’s outstanding coaching to help the squad finish in the top four this season. With another uneventful offseason, the Spurs will also have to work with the stars they had in the previous season to carry them to victory. They should be able continue counting on Harry Kane’s reliable goal scoring, and Son Heung-Min’s streaks of brilliance will also be an important factor.
Chelsea had the most impressive offseason, adding Timo Werner, Thiago Silva, Hakim Ziyech and, arguably the most important piece, Kai Havertz. After a solid first season, former player Frank Lampard will look to improve his coaching ability. Christian Pulisic will notably look to continue his hot streak after the COVID-19 restart. Chelsea should have no trouble finishing in the top three and will have a good chance at taking the title if the new players are able to compete at a high level in the Premier League.
Manchester City will have title aspirations again due to consistent coaching and great depth within the squad. A few additions such as Nathan Ake and Ferran Torres will help build on the strong roster. After striking out with Lionel Messi, Manchester City has turned their attention to signing a superstar center back Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli. Sergio Agüero and Kevin De Bruyne will use their leadership look to build off last season’s successes.
Other teams that will be able to contend for the top four in the Premier League include Leicester City, Manchester United and Arsenal. Leicester City didn’t have any big offseason moves, but it does hope to return to its consistent play that it had before COVID-19. Manchester United finished third this past season but also did not have any overly impressive offseason moves, allowing other teams to improve. Man U hopes to build off of the momentum brought by Bruno Fernandes late in the season. Finally, Arsenal made some small offseason moves, getting Willian from Chelsea and other defenders to help solidify the defense. Arsenal will have to rely on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s scoring to help his team win games this season.
When looking at all of the rosters of the top teams in the Premier League, it is safe to say that the top three teams will most likely be Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City. The fourth seed is up for grabs to pretty much every other team. It will be a battle, but in the end, Tottenham will secure the fourth spot. It is easy to say that Liverpool is the favorite to win the title again this year, but Manchester City looks like the better team on paper. While Manchester City did not have an impressive offseason, the depth, coaching and consistency will contribute to taking home the 2020-21 Premier League title.
Austin Groft is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email atg5271@psu.edu.
About the Contributors
Jordan Hession
Junior / Broadcast Journalism
Jordan Hession is a junior from Annapolis, Maryland majoring in broadcast journalism. Jordan is the co-host of CommRadio’s longest running live radio show The Sin Bin with Kyle Cannillo. In the summer of 2020, Jordan interned at SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio as a sports programmer. When Jordan is not discussing sports, he is writing various articles for collegiate and professional sports leagues and teams. Jordan has a love for all sports but has a genuine passion to spread ice hockey and baseball globally. Away from broadcast journalism, Jordan enjoys lifting weights and cooking. Jordan’s role models in the broadcast journalism industry include Doc Emrick, Gary Thorne and Mike Lange. In the future, Jordan sees himself working as a producer or host in sports talk radio and potentially television. To contact Jordan, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Cole Koffler
Sophomore / Broadcast Journalism
Aidan Torok
Sophmore / Broadcast Journalism
Aidan Torok is a sophmore from West Caldwell, New Jersey majoring in broadcast journalism at Penn State. He produces content and does play-by-play announcing and beat writing for the CommRadio sports department. If you’d like to contact him, email him at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Connor Donohue
Junior / Broadcast Journalism
Connor Donohue is a junior from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey majoring in broadcast journalism with a minor in sports studies. He is a writer, podcast host and play-by-play commentator for the CommRadio sports department. He is the host of CommRadio’s weekly Premier League podcast alongside Cole Koffler, Matthew McLaughlin and Juan Mendez. He has also made appearances on State College Saturdays. He hopes to be a play-by-play broadcaster in his future career. Follow him on Twitter @ConnorDonohue00. To contact him, you can send him an email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Austin Groft
Senior / Broadcast Journalism
Austin Groft is a senior student from Lancaster, Pennsylvania majoring in broadcast journalism at Penn State. He is a play-by-play announcer for CommRadio and Big Ten Plus. Austin also is a reporter for the Centre County Report and After the Whistle. To contact Austin, email him at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
