2022/23 Premier League Previews | Four teams and the battle to stay in the Premier League

Southampton

There’s no denying that Ralph Hasenhuttl has done a magnificent job at Southampton but even more so, the Austrian has largely overachieved during his time at St Mary’s. That was rather nicely shown last season as the Saints challenged and were within reach of a European spot for cameos of the season but because of the youthfulness of the team, they tended to be inconsistent. Just nine wins is proof of that but the fact that they also tend to go on large winless runs is more proof.

That happened at the start of a season with a seven game winless run, a six game mid-season winless run and the fact that they ended the season with just one win in their final 12 games. It doesn’t make for good reading and was probably why they finished 15th with 40 points (five points above the drop zone) alongside the fourth worst defense and a mid-table offense. That’s also probably why they didn’t consistently compete for a top table finish.

Improvements they have made:

They have also signed Sekou Mara, a talented young striker which is a very Southampton-esque move but the lack of a consistent goalscorer could hurt the team. That is if Adam Armstrong and Che Adams continue to struggle in front of goal especially with Shane Long having left for Reading. However, new players aren’t the only moves that Southampton have made as new faces have arrived in the backroom alongside the fact that they have overhauled Hasenhuttl’s coaching staff.

That should help perk the team up a bit although we’ll see the real impact that has about halfway into the season when everyone hits their stride and kicks things off.

There’s never a guarantee that a team could get relegated or survive which especially applies to Southampton because so far, it seems that Hasenhuttl’s managerial talents have kept them up. That might very likely continue but if the team does collapse, lose key stars to injury and struggle post the 2022 World Cup, there is a genuine chance they could be in a relegation dogfight. Whether things could get worse than that or not is completely up to them.

Everton 

How did Everton do in the 2021/22 Premier League season? 

A brilliant start to the season had many Everton fans wondering if a top six or even top four challenge was on the cards for their side but then their house of cards collapsed. After just one loss in their opening seven games, the Toffees would go on to win just one game in their next ten fixtures which saw Rafael Benitez lose his job. Frank Lampard replaced him and things did not improve.

Improvements they have made:

You would think that for a team that barely survived the 2021/22 Premier League season, Everton would have improved their squad and given Frank Lampard a chance in hell of fighting against relegation. But thanks to their reckless spending in the past, the Englishman hasn’t had a lot of money to work with and has been forced into selling a key star in Richarlison. Yet his €60 million fee will help plug a few holes in the financially leaky Everton and it should help add a few new faces.

Why they could get relegated at the end of the 2022/23 season

Well, for one, it’s the fact that this team hasn’t changed but if anything, they’ve become even weaker with Richarlison’s loss. He was their top scorer by some margin and given Calvert-Lewin’s injury issues, the Toffees will need goals to come from somewhere.

Fulham 

For a team that seems to be constantly yo-yoing back and forth between the Championship and Premier League, Fulham seem to be the team that can’t quite make the step up. Yet, after their 2021/22 Championship season, it has fans and critics alike hopeful again and why wouldn’t they be? The Cottagers didn’t just win the Championship last season but they absolutely tore through their opponents, scoring goals at will and ripped teams to shreds along the way.

They scored five or more goals on seven occasions last term, a tally that includes three seven goal hauls, and that meant they broke the 100 goal mark for the first time in almost a decade. Combine that with the second best defensive record, the fact that Aleksandar Mitrovic broke the goal-scoring record for a 46 game season and that the team were flying at times, it makes for hopeful reading. 

It’s been a weird summer for Marco Silva’s side because despite having lost the young Fabio Carvalho, a key component of their destructive Championship season, no replacement has been signed. Andreas Pereira has been brought in to help fill the gap alongside Manor Solomon but neither have shown the quality that Carvalho has in the past.

Joao Palhinha, on the other hand, could be the defensive midfielder that the Cottagers have been craving for years while Bernd Leno is a definite upgrade on Marek Rodak and Shane Duffy brings in Premier League experience. Kevin Mbabu also adds quality and comes into the team with a lot to prove but beyond that Fulham haven’t improved their weak areas. They have only three senior center-backs, lack depth in multiple positions and there are certain players who just don’t seem like they can cut it in the Premier league.

Marco Silva’s style of play means that Fulham played an open and attractive brand of football last season, and that normally tends to see teams get whopped in the top tier. Leeds United and Bournemouth are the few examples in the recent past that have managed to survive despite playing that brand of football but one had a world class manager to help them cope while the other tempered that openness and still managed to survive.

Combine that with the fact that the onus is still on Aleksandar Mitrovic to score goals and while he will have help, the Serbian is yet to really prove himself in the top tier. Yet even if he does score 40 goals, it wouldn’t make an ounce of difference if the Cottagers concede somewhere around double that mark.

How did Bournemouth do in the 2021/22 Championship season? 

Not only did the Cherries finish the 2021/22 Championship season in second place and with the best defensive record, but only Fulham outscored them. That combined with a super season from Dominic Solanke (29 goals) and a back-three that was steady as a rock ensured that they finished second and in an automatic promotion spot even if it was a close shave towards the end of the season. It was an impressive showing from the Cherries and rightfully earned them their place in the top flight.

Improvements they have made:

You combine that with their manager trying to make a point by naming a subs bench well below what he could have during pre-season and it wouldn’t make any supporter happy. There is also a fear that Bournemouth doesn't just lack depth but may not be able to field a proper defense after Gary Cahill and Nat Philipps left the club at the end of the 2021/22 season. Furthermore, reports have indicated that Bournemouth were expecting to sign six new faces before the season started but things clearly haven’t gone that way.

Why they could get relegated at the end of the 2022/23 season

It also hands Parker a challenge like he has never had before especially when his own team is not giving themselves a fighting chance of staying up.