Slow starts, set pieces, striking options: One big issue for each Premier League club to solve
Premier League clubs are well into pre-season with many going on money-spinning international tours while others play friendlies closer to home.
However a club prepares, the memories (good and bad) of last season remain while thoughts turn to the upcoming 2024-25 campaign.
The new season kicks off on August 16 when Manchester United host Fulham, which gives managers limited time to iron out any issues in the coming weeks.
Here, we are focusing on one big issue for each Premier League side to sort out.
Read what our writers think needs sorting and then leave your views below.
Get the latest transfer news on The Athletic…
Left flank
Picture Arsenal at their free-flowing best and instantly you go to the right flank, specifically Ben White, Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka. On the opposite side last season, it felt like a lottery to see who would be left-back, left-midfield or left-winger.
Jakub Kiwior, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Takehiro Tomiyasu rotated in defence while Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard switched on the wing. The cohesion of Zinchenko, Martinelli and Granit Xhaka the season before evaporated and Arsenal looked much less fluid.
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They made significant progress defensively last season and, by settling on Kai Havertz as his main striker, Mikel Arteta found the unpredictability in attack he wanted.
But in a team that feels almost complete, the only question marks remaining over starting positions lie on the left.
Jordan Campbell
Zinchenko failed to hold a starting place last season (Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Backups in two key positions
A theme of Villa’s summer business has been to add depth in central midfield and across the attacking positions. Few managers in world football have better first-choice options in goal and up front than Unai Emery with Emiliano Martinez and Ollie Watkins.
But the concern on all supporters’ minds is, what happens if either gets injured?
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The drop-off between Martinez and Watkins and their replacements is vast. Both will have a shortened pre-season due to international commitments, too. Emery trusts backup goalkeeper Robin Olsen but the Sweden international has flaws in his presence and distribution. Cameron Archer and Jhon Duran are young, promising forwards, but their futures are uncertain and represent a drop-off from Watkins.
Jacob Tanswell
Porous defence
Defending crosses and corners has long been an issue that has plagued Bournemouth, dating back to the Eddie Howe era. However, they conceded just 10 goals from set pieces last season, the sixth-lowest in the Premier League.
However, they shipped 48 goals from open play last season, the sixth-highest, suggesting stability is an issue.
This was partly to do with head coach Andoni Iraola’s front-footed out-of-possession system, which leaves plenty of space in transition if opponents break the first phase of pressure.
Even a steady improvement would bring considerable value to the progress made under Iraola.
Jacob Tanswell
New full-back
Rico Henry and Aaron Hickey missed most of last season through injury, prompting Thomas Frank to use midfielders Saman Ghoddos and Vitaly Janelt as emergency full-backs.
Henry has been one of Brentford’s best performers in the Premier League over the last few years but will need time to rediscover his best form after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL) in his left knee. Hickey required surgery on his hamstring before suffering a setback.
Brentford desperately need a new full-back so Mads Roerslev is not their only backup option. The defensive chaos caused by these injuries had a huge impact on the team last season and they flirted with relegation.
Jay Harris
Set pieces
Only four teams scored fewer than Brighton’s eight goals via free kicks and corners last season. Even when measuring by goals per 100 set pieces (to account for teams having more than others), Brighton’s modest total of 3.8 placed them joint-12th with Tottenham Hotspur.
Fabian Hurzeler has added Marco Knoop to his backroom team from his former club St Pauli. Knoop was the Hamburg club’s defensive set-pieces coach and their goalkeeper coach.
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Hurzeler says: “Set pieces are a game-changer. They are a match-winner. This would be part of my identity.”
Roberto De Zerbi’s side were the draw specialists of the Premier League last season with 12, at least two more than any other team. More goals from set plays could turn stalemates into victories.
Andy Naylor
Brighton’s new manager, Fabian Hurzeler (Cathrin Mueller/Getty Images)
Enzo Fernandez
In his first press conference as Chelsea head coach, Enzo Maresca was eager to downplay any dressing-room ramifications of Enzo Fernandez singing what the French Football Federation (FFF) labelled a ‘racist and discriminatory song’ with his international team-mates after Argentina’s Copa America final win over Colombia.
Fernandez has apologised, Chelsea are investigating and internal punishment could follow — but there are no signs his six French team-mates have accepted the 23-year-old’s expressions of remorse.
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All six — as well as Romeo Lavia, born in Belgium to parents of African heritage — unfollowed Fernandez on social media after the incident, with Wesley Fofana publicly condemning the video as an example of “uninhibited racism”.
That situation is unchanged, and the dressing-room dynamic when Fernandez joins Chelsea in the United States on July 29 could be challenging for Maresca.
Liam Twomey
Strengthening the squad
There is a lack of depth out wide and in attack. Sam Johnstone and Dean Henderson will compete for the starting goalkeeper spot, Chadi Riad’s arrival improves Palace’s centre-back options and Cheick Doucoure is returning from injury in midfield. Beyond that, Oliver Glasner’s squad is thin.
A move for Ryan Sessegnon to provide competition for Tyrick Mitchell at left wing-back fell through and Colombian Daniel Munoz — after a draining summer at Copa America — has no genuine backup on the right.
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In attacking midfield, Ismaila Sarr is set to join but is not a direct replacement for the departed Michael Olise, Daichi Kamada is new to the league and Matheus Franca, 20, is still raw. Jean-Philippe Mateta will return late after the Olympics, leaving Odsonne Edouard as the only recognised striker.
If early injuries hit Palace, their squad looks fragile. Glasner will know where they need to strengthen. Will the club heed his wishes?
Max Mathews
Calvert-Lewin’s future
There is so much going on at Everton that it feels perverse to pinpoint a single issue and the search for long-term investment is likely to define the coming months.
Then there is the future of Dominic Calvert-Lewin. The 27-year-old would be a Newcastle United player had he agreed terms on a move earlier this summer, with winger Yankuba Minteh primed to head the opposite way.
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But after the collapse of that deal, Calvert-Lewin is about to enter the final 12 months of his deal and has shown little sign of committing to fresh terms.
He remains a considerable asset. After a barren run last season, he produced a towering display in the Merseyside derby and ended the campaign looking like the player of old.
The sooner clarity comes on his future, the better. Only then can Sean Dyche properly refine his plans in attack.
Patrick Boyland
Calvert-Lewin enjoyed his best season since 2020-21 (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Fulham
A changing spine
Changes are afoot to the team’s spine. Joao Palhinha has joined Bayern Munich. Defender Tosin Adarabioyo has left for Chelsea. Willian has not signed a new contract, is not taking part in pre-season and looks likely to leave.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid, one of the group’s captains, has joined Leicester City, and another, Tim Ream, is in advanced talks with Charlotte FC in MLS.
If they all go, that is a notable change to the team’s makeup. They will need to be replaced and Fulham will have to adjust to life without some influential players. Those outgoings could shape the early part of the season, regardless of how quickly any recruits arrive.
Peter Rutzler
Central midfield depth
Ipswich have moved to address last season’s defensive concerns with the signings of Jacob Greaves and Ben Johnson — now central midfield could do with additions.
Kieran McKenna has relied on the midfield pairing of Sam Morsy and Massimo Luongo over the past 18 months.
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Injury — or a likely suspension — to either would leave Ipswich light in the middle. Such is the combative style of Morsy and Luongo, yellow cards come with the territory. They accumulated 25 between them last season, with Ipswich winning just one of the four matches captain Morsy missed.
Given the lack of top-flight experience in the squad — Axel Tuanzebe and Johnson are the only Ipswich players with more than 15 Premier League appearances — a midfielder with Premier League know-how would be a welcome addition.
Ali Rampling
Leicester City
Disillusioned fanbase
Having won the title and the FA Cup, and played in all three UEFA club competitions across seven seasons, Leicester found themselves relegated and charged by the Premier League for a breach of profitability and sustainability rules (PSR), leaving many supporters disillusioned with the running of the club.
Player of the season Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has been sold to Chelsea and some fans are sceptical about the appointment of former Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper.
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There are other questionable decisions, too, such as charging £25 ($32) for a physical season ticket, awarding Jannik Vestergaard a new contract, choosing an online gambling company as a shirt sponsor and attaching a £10 price tag to watch Shrewsbury Town online. Without a ball even being kicked, the fanbase is more fractured than ever.
Factor in the looming points-deduction and it could be an uphill battle for Leicester in the top flight.
Jordan Halford
Slow starts
Liverpool repeatedly handed opponents the initiative by being so sloppy early in matches last season. Far too often, they were left playing catch-up as careless errors and a lack of intensity were punished.
They conceded the first goal in 16 of their 38 Premier League matches and on eight occasions, they conceded in the opening 15 minutes of games — only Brentford, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Wolverhampton Wanderers (all nine), West Ham United and Sheffield United (both 12) had worse records.
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Liverpool managed to stay in the title race until April by salvaging 28 points from losing positions — more than any other Premier League side.
If they are going to be serious contenders this season, Arne Slot needs to trigger a change in mindset and consign slow starts to history.
James Pearce
New manager Arne Slot takes Liverpool training (John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Rodri relief
Who can fill in for Rodri when he misses games?
They have used two midfielders to make up the shortfall but still lost three of their four league games without the Spaniard last season. They need somebody good enough to play alongside him in midfield or replace him when he’s not around, which was the plan with Declan Rice last summer.
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Sam Lee
Manchester United
The big midfield gap
Last season, there was a pronounced gap between United’s (ineffective) high press and their low-lying defence, making it easy for opponents to move the ball between the lines. As United ceded midfield and tried to embrace the chaos, games devolved into counter-attacking slugfests.
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“It was quite easy to see that they were better with the ball than without it,” one performance analyst told The Athletic in May.
United should be better this season, but there are still tactical improvements to make. Restore a sense of control to United’s play. Plug the gap. Protect the ball. Play to your level.
Carl Anka
Newcastle United
Reassure everyone
With the signings they were making, it was obvious Newcastle risked losing their foothold in the middle of an ascent — and that is exactly what happened. They slipped to seventh, so no European football qualification and no comforting cup final.
But that was just the jab. The sucker punch came from a PSR cavity that left the club publicly sweating the balance sheet and measuring up their best players for market. Plus there was an unexpected succession drama in the boardroom. “A very difficult summer” is how Eddie Howe described it, in a very un-Eddie Howe way.
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Something had changed. Momentum was lost. To recover, the talent needs convincing and Howe needs settling. Spending would do it: expensive, first-team arrivals, with Howe’s stamp of approval on their contracts. As Logan Roy said in Succession, “Sometimes it is a big d*** competition.” This summer, Newcastle need to show everyone — current players, coveted players, fans, commercial partners and the manager — what they’ve got.
Andrew Hankinson
Nottingham Forest
Conceding from set pieces
It became a repeated theme of last season that, every time Forest lined up to defend a set piece, reactions would range from fear to a sort of bleak fatalism: let’s just accept our fate. Those fears turned out to be true on 22 occasions: nobody in the Premier League conceded more goals from free kicks and corners than Forest, points carelessly thrown away that could have made the end of their campaign much less nervy.
The good news is Forest think they might have solved that issue, albeit in quite a rudimentary way. What do you do when you keep letting in goals from set pieces? You buy a 6ft 8in (203cm) goalkeeper and a centre-back who seems to love heading the ball as much as his new club loves signing players. Time will tell whether Carlos Miguel and Nikola Milenkovic cure this ailment, but you can’t quibble with the logic.
Nick Miller
Goalscorers
How can Russell Martin maintain Southampton’s free-scoring form from last season?
Of their top eight league scorers in 2023-24, Che Adams (15 goals) and Stuart Armstrong (five) left at the end of their contracts and loanees Ryan Fraser (six) and Joe Rothwell (four) returned to their parent clubs.
Last season’s top scorer Adam Armstrong will start confidently after hitting 21 goals, a marked improvement on the four he scored across the previous two seasons for Southampton in the Premier League. Fans will hope to see more of Ross Stewart after his injury-hit season in his first year at the club.
There is time for recruits to arrive, but while Martin’s style of play provided plenty of goals in the Championship, the challenge is to show it works in the Premier League too.
Nancy Froston
Tottenham Hotspur
Tightening up defence
Ange Postecoglou turned Spurs into an entertaining, free-flowing side during his first season and transformed the mood inside the club after a dismal end to Antonio Conte’s reign.
Most fans would like an upgrade on Richarlison but the real issue they need to solve is their defence. Spurs conceded 61 times last season, the same number as fourth-placed Aston Villa but significantly more than Liverpool (41), Arsenal (29) and Manchester City (34).
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Postecoglou will never change his philosophy, which involves taking risks on the ball, but small tweaks can be made to ensure they are more compact. In Destiny Udogie, Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, the right ingredients are all there, it is just about perfecting the blend.
Jay Harris
Postecoglou has improved the atmosphere at Spurs (Lucy North/PA Images via Getty Images)
West Ham United
Attacking options
Centre-forward is the one position the club has continuously struggled with in the transfer market, so technical director Tim Steidten and new head coach Julen Lopetegui are prioritising signing a striker this summer.
The futures of Michail Antonio and Danny Ings are uncertain and the club missed out on signing Youssef En-Nesyri, who joined Turkish side Fenerbahce.
Lopetegui remains hopeful of signing first-choice target Jhon Duran, the 20-year-old from Aston Villa. Their interest in Duran dates back to January when Villa rejected a loan offer that included an option to buy.
Although he is mostly unproven in the Premier League, Lopetegui sees rich potential in the Colombian.
Roshane Thomas
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Nelson Semedo’s future
For the second summer running, the full-back’s future is one of the biggest quandaries facing Wolves, but it is against a very different backdrop this time.
Last season, there was a debate within the club about whether to activate an option to keep Semedo — one of the highest earners at Molineux — for a further two years or to let him leave on a free transfer after several seasons of underachievement following his £27.5million arrival.
After an excellent season, the debate is about what to do as he enters the final year of his deal. Wolves would love to tie him down but his wages are above their targeted level so he would need to agree to a pay cut.
They could look to sell him and capitalise financially or let him play on with his deal ticking down. There are no easy answers.
Steve Madeley
(Top photos: Getty Images)
