Michael Owen
Michael Owen has predicted how the 2026-27 Premier League table will look in full come next year, and he's made several bold calls involving Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, and a newly-promoted side.
The season gets underway this Friday (August 20th) when defending champions Arsenal host EFL Championship winners Coventry City at the Emirates. While the transfer window remains open until September 3rd, most clubs have done the majority of their business, and squad assessment is the main factor in determining how teams will fare.
There are always twists and turns throughout a 38-game campaign, making it difficult to predict the table. In eight months' time, Owen might look back and regret one or two of his predictions.
Relegated (20-18)
Wolverhampton Wanderers head coach Gary O'Neil on the touchline
Only one promoted team suffered relegation last season, as Burnley were sent straight back down alongside West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers. Owen isn't optimistic that the latest newcomers will fare as well as Sunderland, who qualified for the Europa League, and Leeds United last term.
The legendary former Liverpool and Manchester United striker reckons Hull City and Ipswich Town will fail to stay up. He said during a segment with the Premier League's media team: "Sorry Hull... Fulham, you're going down, unfortunately, you lost your manager... Ipswich, you're going down too."
Hull are the bookies' favorites to finish bottom of the Premier League this season after achieving promotion as play-off winners. The Tigers finished sixth in the Championship, the lowest of all participants in the play-offs, and as such, many feel they lack experience and a strong enough squad to compete under Sergej Jakirovic.
Relegation is also expected from Ipswich, both by Owen and bookmakers, although the Tractor Boys have the benefit of experiencing top-flight football in the 2024-25 campaign. They have a new manager in charge following the appointment of Gary O'Neil as Kieran McKenna's replacement, and he saved Bournemouth from the drop back in 2022-23.
Alvaro Arbeloa looks on during a Real Madrid match
Alvaro Arbeloa
One of Owen's most contentious predictions is that Fulham would be one of his three relegated teams. The Cottagers have been in the big time since 2023 and have turned to Alvaro Arbeloa as Marco Silva's successor off the back of a rather unconvincing spell as Real Madrid interim boss.
18 Fulham 11th (Premier League)
19 Ipswich 2nd (EFL Championship)
20 Hull City 6th (EFL Championship)
Mid-table (17-9)
Granit Xhaka in action for Sunderland
Newcastle United manager Matthias Jaissle poses with the home kit on the pitch following his introductory press conference
Oliver Glasner
Moving on to lower and upper mid-table, Owen believes Sunderland 'will struggle' but just have enough to save themselves. The Black Cats are headed into a Europa League campaign and midweek football could prove problematic for Regis Le Bris' side.
Owen has backed Coventry to be one of this season's surprise packages after an impressive past season in the Championship. Frank Lampard's transfer chiefs have been busy strengthening his squad, spending over £100 million on players such as Gustavo Hamer and Carl Rushworth.
Losing Oliver Glasner could be an issue for Crystal Palace and the former England frontman reckons they will repeat their 2025-26 finish in 15th. He expects Leeds to do one place better than last term and Bournemouth to drop way down from sixth to 12th after replacing Andoni Iraola with Marco Rose.
Owen thinks Nottingham Forest will be 'alright' in 11th while Brighton & Hove Albion are tipped to finish in the middle of the pack. As for another of his former clubs, Newcastle United, he believes they will improve on last season despite losing Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon.
9 Newcastle 12th (Premier League)
10 Brighton 8th (Premier League)
11 Nottingham Forest 16th (Premier League)
12 Bournemouth 6th (Premier League)
13 Leeds 14th (Premier League)
14 Brentford 9th (Premier League)
15 Crystal Palace 15th (Premier League)
16 Coventry 1st (EFL Championship Champions)
17 Sunderland 7th (Premier League)
Europa/Conference League (8-6)
Enzo Maresca
The biggest shocker is Owen's prediction for who will claim the Europa League and Conference League football next season. If England is awarded five Champions League spots again, eighth place will qualify for Europe's third-tier competition, and he has gone with Everton.
David Moyes' Toffees have been relatively quiet this summer and came off the boil during the second half of last season. It would be a massive achievement for the Merseyside outfit but Owen sees Manchester City and Aston Villa dropping into the Europa League.
Villa, whom Owen claims have 'overachieved ', have lost Morgan Rogers and Youri Tielemans but replaced them with Yohan Manzambi and Joao Gomes. They are also set to sell Ezri Konsa to Arsenal, which could have a massive impact just days ahead of the season.
As for City, missing out on Champions League football could prove costly for new manager Enzo Maresca. After a poor showing in the Community Shield, some believe history is repeating itself, and the Pep Guardiola-less Citizens are set to nosedive, much like Manchester United in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.
6 Man City 2nd (Premier League)
7 Aston Villa 4th (Premier League)
8 Everton 13th (Premier League)
Title winners and UEFA Champions League
Mikel Arteta (Arsenal)
Morgan Rogers (Chelsea)
Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi smiles during press conference
The biggest climbers on Owen's Premier League predicted table are Tottenham, who avoided the drop on the final day last season. He not only thinks Roberto De Zerbi's side will be battling in the top half but expects them to land fifth amid spending over £237m on a rebuild that includes the club-record £100m arrival of Sandro Tonali.
Manchester United are backed to remain in the Champions League positions but fall to fourth in Michael Carrick's first full season as permanent head coach. He is tipping Liverpool to improve under Iraola, despite a lack of business at Anfield, perhaps convinced that Alexander Isak will return to his best.
Owen reckons Chelsea will have a 'good season' under Xabi Alonso after finishing 10th last term. He thinks they will be runners-up, and the Blues have focused more on experience this window, with Maxence Lacroix, Jordan Henderson, and Danny Welbeck arriving alongside £117m club-record signing Morgan Rogers.
Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs
Arsenal will be crowned champions again if Owen's mystic powers come to fruition and Mikel Arteta's men looked the real deal in their Community Shield win over City. They have also added Guimaraes to an already star-studded midfield and could finish the window with a marquee attacker amid links with Galatasaray's Victor Osimhen.
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Rank Team 2025–26 Season Finish
1 Arsenal 1st (Premier League Champions)
2 Chelsea 10th (Premier League)
3 Liverpool 5th (Premier League)
4 Man Utd 3rd (Premier League)
5 Tottenham 17th (Premier League)
Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo.
Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo.
Michael Owen's Predicted 2026-27 Premier League Table