At the start of the season the Hayters TV team made our predictions for who we think will finish in the top four and who we think will get relegated.
And with half of the season now gone, we’ve decided to revisit our predictions and make some new ones based on what we know now.
It could be that the fifth placed team also makes the Champions League this season but as it stands, we’ve made our prediction for the top four.
Here are our predictions from the start of the season…
Hayters TV predictions: Who we think will finish top four
Hayters TV predictions part two: Who we think will go down
While some of our predictions look on course to come true, some certainly do not, so here’s what we think will now be the outcome at the top and the bottom come the end of the season…
Nick Callow
1 Man City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Tottenham
I said before that the only thing that can stop City will be a definitive FFP investigation and punishment. I stand by that. I also have been proved correct to state Arsenal are still young and a year or two away from being ready to win. Liverpool and Tottenham, however, have been a surprise and replace Man United and Newcastle in my top four predictions. Villa, who are not that good, could even pip them to fifth.
18 Burnley
19 Sheffield United
20 Luton Town
I stand by my prediction that Luton and Sheffield United do not have the resources or squads to compete. I had Bournemouth dropping too, but they have proved me wrong (I think) and I now believe Burnley are going straight back down with the other two promoted sides.
Gerry Cox
1 Man City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Aston Villa
Manchester City and Liverpool are the two most well-balanced sides across defence, midfield and attack and have experience of winning the PL. It was only a poor run of form from Christmas to Easter that prevented the Reds from finishing in the top four. Arsenal are weak in goal and attack, and heavily reliant on Saliba, Saka and now Rice. Villa have carried on last season’s excellent form and have to be serious contenders for a top 4 finish unless they get the sort of injury problems their rivals (Spurs, Man Utd, Newcastle) have suffered.
18 Sheff Utd
19 Luton
20 Burnley
Dan Ludlam
Embed from Getty Images1 Liverpool
2 Manchester City
3 Arsenal
4 Aston Villa
Liverpool’s new dynamic midfield has been extremely fun to watch so far this season. Combined with their usual flair up top I feel Jurgen Klopp will have enough to second a secure Premier League title of his tenure. Manchester City will come on strong in the second half of the season but will ultimately come up short, while Arsenal’s mid-season blip will leave them with too much to do.
Unai Emery’s Aston Villa masterclass will see them finish in the Champions League spots, capping a magnificent season at Villa Park. Chelsea finishing in the top four was a terrible pre-season call with Mauricio Pochettino’s side struggling for consistency. There have been signs of improvements in recent matches and I still believe they will return to European competition in some capacity next season.
18 Brentford
19 Burnley
20 Sheffield United
Dan Bennett
1 Man City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Tottenham
My prediction of Manchester United finishing second was way off given that their big summer signings have not worked out as I thought and they are now out of my top four altogether. I still think Manchester City will put a run together in the second half of the season with Kevin de Bruyne and Erling Haaland back and Liverpool, who I originally had fourth, have surprised me so far. I had Arsenal finishing third in my start of the season predictions and I’m sticking with and based on their first half of the season, I think Spurs will have enough to get Champions League football next season.
18 Luton Town
19 Burnley
20 Sheffield United
It might be a boring prediction but I think the bottom three as it stands will go down. I did have Everton going down at the start of the season and with their points deduction there’s a chance they still could but I think they’ve shown more than enough to stay up, with Burnley instead going down. They just have not adapted to the Premier League well at all.
Andrew Smith
1 Liverpool
2 Manchester City
3 Arsenal
4 Tottenham
At the start of the season, my predictions for the top four were drastically off compared to what I think now. Jurgen Klopp’s incredible job in his first rebuild at Liverpool has made me think Liverpool can go all the way with Manchester City not at their usual best. The further decline of Chelsea and Manchester United has also opened up avenues for Aston Villa and Tottenham.
I do expect Pep Guardiola’s side to embark on a traditional streak of wins to close the gap on Liverpool, but I feel if Klopp can keep his squad fit then it will be a second Premier League title for the German. Arsenal have already made considerable groundwork in the league so they should comfortably secure top four, but the title is still a way off and I feel the squad needs some new additions in the summer to mount another challenge.
Aston Villa have been the surprise package of the season, but I just feel once Spurs get players back, in particular James Maddison and Micky Van de Ven, then they will improve drastically and push for the remaining top-four spot.
18 Luton Town
19 Burnley
20 Sheffield United
It’s always an easy bet predicting the newly promoted teams to go straight back down but at the halfway point it looks as if that’s to be the case. Vincent Kompany’s exciting brand of football that he adopted from Pep Guardiola had me thinking that Burnley could position themselves higher up the table but so far, I’m yet to be convinced.
Sheffield United are yet to break double digits in terms of points and Chris Wilder has an almighty job on his hands to keep the Blades in the top-flight. Luton and Rob Edwards have touched the hearts of all football fanatics since their unprecedented promotion and having provided stern tests for Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea at Kenilworth Road, the hope is that home performances can somehow salvage the points to stay another season in the top-flight.
Jack Kelly
Embed from Getty Images1 Manchester City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Aston Villa
Manchester City look like a tiger ready to pounce on any mistake made my those around them. A full available squad in January could be a huge advantage over the other teams at the top as they have some absentees during AFCON. Not to mention, Kevin De Bruyne’s return alongside Erling Harland could take City to the next level. Liverpool have a fighting chance but some defensive issues make me feel that the title may be a stretch too far. Arsenal have faltered of late, and if they lose key games against the top teams in the second half of the season, it is game over. Villa have been so impressive, and finishing in the Champions League places is an incredible achievement.
18 Burnley
19 Luton Town
20 Sheffield United
All three of these sides have shown some fight. It took a while to get going but they have made people sit up and take notice. Everton’s 10 point deduction has played a part, but all three promoted sides have shown signs of life. However, I think there is too much quality above them, and ultimately, this could be a step too far for all three. If they can make the most of January, it gives them a chance and all three are not completely washed away. But Everton, Nottingham Forest and Brentford seem like they can pull away, leaving these three exposed to the drop.
James St Denis
1 Man City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Aston Villa
Despite their recent slip-ups and injuries to their best players, Man City still look the team to beat. Arsenal looked the team to beat up until recently, but with a catalogue of injuries, don’t look the team they quite were. Liverpool will be Man City’s closest challengers now, with the Reds getting better with each passing week, but Mohammed Salah’s absence will be a huge blow. Newcastle’s drop off has been surprising, again injuries playing their part in Eddie Howe’s tight knit group. Aston Villa look the real deal and on current form, you wouldn’t put it past the Villains snatching a place in the top four.
18 Luton
19 Burnley
20 Sheffield United
The three promoted sides remain the favourites to go down. Luton have surprised everyone and look the best placed to capitalise on any slip-ups from above. Burnley are improving but will not have enough in the tank to scrape their way to safety. Sheffield United are the only one in this trio to have changed managers, but despite also improving, a lack of quality and depth will ultimately lead to their demise.
Embed from Getty ImagesStan Smith
1 Manchester City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Tottenham Hotspur
Even though this season has seen some of the worst runs of results for Pep Guardiola in England, Manchester City are still within touching distance of the league leaders. With De Bruyne and Haaland set to return to action in the coming weeks, Guardiola and City will be looking to secure a historic fourth successive Premier League title in May. This summer Jürgen Klopp rejuvenated Liverpool’s midfield and the Reds now find themselves at the top of the table. However, this current Liverpool side still looks a far cry from the Liverpool of a couple of seasons ago and with Salah heading away to AFCON, his absence is likely to be felt.
This season has been somewhat strange for Mikel Arteta’s side, who topped the league on Christmas Day and yet found themselves in fourth place by New Year’s Day. Despite some large summer acquisitions, it seems that the Gunners are struggling to reach the same levels that they hit last season, as they are scoring less goals and find themselves 10 points worse off. Ange Postecoglou’s new look Tottenham side impressed everyone in the early months of the season. Key injuries hampered their early form but their team has done well to remain close to the top of the table during a troublesome period for them. Maddison, Van de Ven, and Romero all look set to return by the end of January, with captain Son Heung-Min returning early in February.
18 Luton
19 Burnley
20 Sheffield United
Sheffield United have struggled just as much as people expected them to and Burnley’s 101 point Championship side have looked out of their depth. With some shrewd recruitment, Luton have impressed most out of the newly promoted sides but for any meaningful change at the bottom of the table they would have to catch the sides above them. Everton would be pushing for the top half of the table without their points deduction, Nottingham Forest have seen an upturn in results since Nuno Espirito Santo has taken charge, Brentford will be bolstered by the return of Ivan Toney, and Crystal Palace simply have too much Premier League quality to be caught.
Embed from Getty ImagesNazira Yusuf
1 Manchester City
2 Liverpool
3 Arsenal
4 Spurs
Even though they’ve had a tough start to the 23/24 campaign, Pep Guardiola’s side are starting to get their mojo back. The return of Kevin de Bruyne, Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku from injury will be vital additions to their squad and City are known to go on winning streaks. After a promising start to the 23/24 campaign and only losing one game so far this season, it’s proving to be a season of promise under Jurgen Klopp after revitalising their midfield in the summer. But losing their top goalscorer Mohammed Salah in January and possibly some of February for AFCON could result in them falling short for the title.
Mikel Arteta’s side looked like they were going to run away with the league after starting so well but it looks like history is starting to repeat itself with Arsenal drifting away due to missing that centre forward who can bag them 15-20 goals. Ange Postecoglou has proved the doubters wrong at Spurs and even though they’ve had so many injuries of late, they still remain around the top four conversation which is where I think they will finish.
18 Luton Town
19 Burnley
20- Sheffield United
I’ve really enjoyed watching Luton Town so far this season, they’ve been refreshing to watch with their style of play and the additions of Andros Townsend and Ross Barkley. Rob Edwards is doing a fabulous job by making Kenworth Road a difficult place for opponents but the lack of scoring goals will cost them. Burnley have played well in a few games this season but the amount of goals they are conceding in every game is what will cost them their place in the Premier League, and even though they sacked their manager Paul Heckingbottom and brought in Chris Wilder, Sheffield United will still go down because they just don’t have the quality in their squad.
Embed from Getty Images
