1- Chelsea: The additions of Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa have given the Blues an immediate boost. More is yet to come from this squad who has yet to solidify why will start from a deep pool of players.
2- Manchester City: Manchester City were my favorites to win the title two weeks ago, but Chelsea’s ruthless span of football and solidarity in the second half put them ahead of a City side which allowed a great deal of pressure from Newcastle.
3- Liverpool: More is also yet to come from this squad who have yet to feature Mario Balotelli, Lazar Markovic, Alberto Moreno and Emre Can. Expect minor changes to the squad as they look to reek havoc at the Etihad Stadium on Monday.
4- Arsenal: Sluggish at times, but the return of Mesut Ozil will galvanize the Arsenal attack. Alexis is still settling in, as are the players returning from World Cup layoffs. Still in need of a couple more players before the window closes. Everton will be eager for a result following their draw with Leicester, but it would be a massive result away from home for Arsenal if they were to win.
5- Tottenham: Is there the start of a new revolution at Spurs? Eric Dier’s winner off of Harry Kane’s sublime pass could be symbolic of improvements in North Londoners. Spurs play host to QPR on Sunday, who will be chomping at the bit to erase the home defeat to Hull City at Loftus Road.
6- Southampton: Tadic and Bertrand formed an exceptional partnership down the left, and Schneiderlin logged an impressive display in an opening loss at Anfield. Another hard fixture awaits as West Brom visit Saint. Mary’s.
7- Swansea: Soaked up pressure for much of the day but capitalized on two scoring chances. Dealt Manchester United an opening blow in the league and should pick up all three points when they play host to Burnley this weekend.
8- Manchester United: Highlight of the match for me was watching Louis Van Gaal graciously sign those kids’ match day programs. Reinforcements are on the way but a stern test away to a hungry Sunderland side awaits. Marcos Rojo has been ruled ineligible for Saturday's clash, further complicating the situation for the Red Devils.
9- Everton: The loss of Ross Barkley shook the Merseyside club in the days leading up to Saturday, but Roberto Martinez is more than capable of turning things around. They will be tested as they were against Leicester City when Arsenal come to town on Saturday.
10- Hull City: An opening win at Loftus Road saw the Tigers emulating manager Steve Bruce’s fiery approach he displayed as captain for Manchester United decades ago.
11- Aston Villa: Winning at the Brittania Stadium against Stoke City is much harder than it sounds, and things are looking up for Aston Villa who just added Colombian Carlos Sanchez. Sanchez, nicknamed ‘the rock,’ could feature right away against visitors Newcastle who showed promise in week one.
12- Sunderland: Gus Poyet’s men delivered a hard-fought point at the Hawthorns as they look forward to hosing Louis Van Gaal and Manchester United at the weekend. Coming off their season-defining win against the Red Devils last Spring, the Black Cats will be hungrier for more in week two.
13- Crystal Palace: Deserved a point against Arsenal in a game which saw Jason Puncheon sent off late and a stoppage-time winner from the impressive Aaron Ramsey. Similarly, West Ham were unlucky in week one and should make up for an exciting affair.
14- Newcastle: Fought valiantly against Manchester City and were unfortunate not to have grabbed equalizer. Sergio Aguero’s late goal sealed a cruel fate for the Magpies who look to turn the tables on hosts Aston Villa.
15- Leicester City: Everton were in for a long day when they played hosts Leicester City, who showed fight and spirit which culminated in a 2-2 draw. It doesn’t get any easier in week two which sees them travel to Stamford Bridge for Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas’ home debuts.
16- West Brom: Saido Berahino was one of the stars of week one for a West Brom team which looked unusually weak in defense. Sunderland really brought it in week one, and now the Baggies must head south where the resilient Saints await.
17- West Ham: One could argue Sam Allardyce should have put on an extra striker a man up. Maybe, maybe not, but Big Sam wasn’t happy to see his outstanding defense let Eric Dier slip through for the winner at the death. West Ham are in for another fight when they play a spirited Crystal Palace side.
18- Burnley: Showed spirit against Chelsea, both in the opening sequence and parts of the second half. A rough draw in week 1 sees them travel to Swansea as underdogs to an impressive side who won at Old Trafford on Saturday.
19- Stoke City: Losing at home to Aston Villa won’t sit well with Mark Hughes and his men. They go into a difficult matchup with Hull City, but expect a fight from the strong and resilient Potters.
20- Queens Park Rangers: Harry Redknapp is back. Awesome. In other news, Loic Remy has re-joined his parent club which lost to Hull City 0-1 at home last weekend. QPR must now march into White Hart Lane for Tottenham’s home opener and hope they can come away with a point.
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