Summary
Micah Richards has shared his thoughts on each Premier League team ahead of the 2025/26 season.
Burnley is expected to stay up due to its strong defensive system.
Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea will fight for the crown.
Popular pundit Micah Richards has provided his predictions for each Premier League club for the 2025/26 season. Liverpool will be looking to defend their title and expand their lead as the most decorated club in the country, while the promoted sides will be seeking to defy the trend of newly arriving teams struggling to survive. However, in football’s homeland, nothing is assured.
Alan Shearer recently predicted the entire league table, while AI made its own guesses on who the top scorers may be. Richards, who formerly played in the Premier League for Manchester City and Aston Villa, has now joined the debate.
While he hasn’t given an exact prediction for each team’s finishing position, he did recently share his thoughts on how each club’s season could unfold during an episode of The Rest is Football podcast, where he joined Shearer and Gary Lineker to discuss the potential trials and tribulations of the new season, which begins on August 15.
Richards’ Predictions for Each Premier League Club in 2025-26
Arsenal: Challenging but not champions.
Richards spent a lot of time applauding Viktor Gyokeres’ signing and underlining Kai Havertz’s effectiveness as an attacking midfielder. However, he is not certain that will be enough to propel the Gunners over the finish line after three straight second-place results. “I believe they have one or two injuries and are back to where they were last season. So, I’m going to say challenging but not champions,” he explained.
Aston Villa – sixth or seventh
Following a slow off-season in which the club battled to navigate PSR regulations, Aston Villa has only made two signings: Yasin Ozcan and Evann Guessand. With no major exits, the trio of commentators believed that Unai Emery’s team will continue to perform well, keeping them in and around the Europa League rankings thanks to an assault led by Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins.
Bournemouth – Just below tenth.
Bournemouth have suffered significant losses this summer, with Milos Kerkez and Dean Huijsen both departing, leaving their defence looking shaky to say the least. However, Richards feels that under Andoni Iraola – one of the league’s finest managers last season – Bournemouth should maintain a consistent position “just below halfway.”
Brentford: Relegation struggle
Richards is concerned that too much change too soon would plunge Brentford, who were so stable under Thomas Frank, into a relegation struggle under new manager Keith Andrews. “They have to be in the relegation battle for me because you’re starting over brand new,” he remarked, referring to the departures of Frank, Bryan Mbuemo, and Yoane Wissa.
“You can always change players as long as the managers remain the same, but you can’t change both. It’ll just be difficult.”
Brighton & Hove Albion: Bottom half
Despite being obviously thrilled with the signing of Maxim De Cuyper, Richards is unsure whether Brighton will have enough to compete for European football in the 2025/26 season. But only time will tell if the Amex Stadium’s apparently limitless supply of quality at all levels of the club can come up big again in the face of scepticism.
Burnley – Staying Up
Over the last two seasons, all six Championship clubs that were promoted have been relegated, but Richards believes Burnley’s defensive organisation provides them with the tools to defy this trend. “I believe they are staying up, guys. “I believe they’re staying up purely because of their defensive structure,” he added confidently.
“We all know that losing Trafford was huge, but if you watched Burnley in the Championship, you’d see them score a goal and then sit back in shape. I think Alan has a valid point: I’m not sure they can score enough. That’s my one concern, but we’ve seen it with Everton time and time again: they just fight their way through.”
Chelsea is challenging for the crown.
With Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro leading Chelsea to a Club World Cup success this summer, Richards predicts that the Blues will fight for the title, but he also feels that their lack of defensive strength will cost them the trophy since they frequently “over-commit” on attack. Enzo Maresca’s team conceded the second fewest goals last season, but they have since lost Levi Colwill to an ACL injury and are in desperate need of reinforcements.
Crystal Palace – Similar place, or just below
Crystal Palace, who recently won the FA Cup and the Community Shield, will have to settle for Europa Conference League action next season after losing their appeal to be promoted back into the Europa League. With more games to go, Richards has taken a conservative approach, forecasting that the Eagles would finish 12th or somewhat worse than last season. “I just think they could struggle with strength in depth if they’re going to Europe,” was his complaint.
Everton – They will be fine.
Richards’ words about Everton were unclear, but his forecast that they will be “just fine” suggests he expects the Toffees to finish in the middle of the table. He cited David Moyes’ familiarity with the squad as a key factor, though many believe they can go on after moving to a new stadium, securing new ownership, and fielding a side that combines a solid defence with Jarrad Branthwaite returning to fitness, a midfield featuring Iliman Ndiaye and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and an attack that will be bolstered by the arrival of Jack Grealish.
Leeds United – Relegation, but a slim possibility of survival.
Richards had a mixed opinion on Leeds United, another freshly promoted team. He acknowledged the trend of promoted clubs getting relegated, but believes Leeds and Burnley may have a chance to avoid this fate. He praised their defensive resilience in the Championship, saying that if they can retain it in the Premier League despite the substantial increase in quality, they may “nick points” and stay in games. He did, however, include Leeds in his “relegated bunch” in the end.
Liverpool are the champions once again.
Florian Wirtz was the name on everyone’s lips as Richards boasted about their potential to be unbeatable next season if they can make the most of their new record signing. “I believe he has all of the tools to unlock all of the doors. So, certainly, I have to think Liverpool will win,” he remarked, despite their disappointing Community Shield final performance against Crystal Palace.
Manchester City – Rodri’s unfitness is a problem.
Richards said that if Rodri had been fit, he would have projected his former team to win the league again, as they had in the four seasons preceding Arne Slot’s arrival. While he believes Rayan Cherki and Erling Haaland are on top of their game, he is less convinced about their defence. He did not indicate where he thinks Pep Guardiola’s team to finish, but he did express concern for the Cityzens, particularly in transition.
Manchester United: Top six
Manchester United’s worst Premier League finish under Ruben Amorim occurred last season, but with new arrivals Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo, Richards believes the Red Devils will finish in the top six. His primary concern is with the formation, feeling that their emphasis on attack may expose weaknesses elsewhere.
Richards argues that Amorim might address these concerns by continuing to rely on Bruno Fernandes to keep the club ticking in possession rather than pushing him out wide, as well as adding Carlos Baleba from Brighton & Hove Albion to provide midfield energy and defensive protection.
Newcastle United – eighth or ninth
Newcastle United may struggle in the 2025/26 season without Alexander Isak and with the transfer market pulling power of a little fishing hook. However, Richards expects that they can still finish eighth or ninth, without providing a rationale. This is most likely due to their good home record and a squad that includes Dan Burn, Bruno Guimaraes, and Anthony Gordon.
Nottingham Forest – Mid-table
Richards, Shearer, and Lineker all agreed that Nottingham Forest’s form will likely decline significantly following their fairytale run last season, when they defied relegation predictions and qualified for the Europa League. “I think they had a fantastic season last year as a club. It will be difficult to reproduce it. So, yeah, middle of the table for me,” Shearer responded, to which Richards answered, “Me too.”
Sunderland: Relegation
The Black Cats have made ten first-team additions this summer in an attempt to avoid signing the dreaded dotted line, but Richards believes the sheer quantity of new faces will be their undoing. “Relegated only because they’re bringing in so many players in such a short period of time to get them to gel and know exactly what they’re doing,” the coach added.
“I think they had a good go. Fair play to them, but I fear that might be too much for them, so they’re going down, unfortunately.”
Tottenham – Top six
Though Tottenham are anticipated to go a completely different way under Thomas Frank, who will undo the damage done by Ange Postecoglu’s devil-may-care attacking attitude and establish a more defensive approach, Richards believes he can restore the north London club. He has included them in his top six, but he also stated that it will be a “jump into the unknown” for them.
West Ham – Same position as last season.
West Ham finished 14th last season under Graham Potter, who took over for Julen Lopetegui in the offseason. Much of their finest football came towards the conclusion of the season, with Jarrod Bowen ending the 2024/25 season in better shape than anybody else in the division. Add in Niklas Fullkrug’s strong preseason, and they could be a dark horse. However, Richards disagrees, citing the fact that they are still far too simple to play against.
“I believe precisely the same as last season. I believe they can score but struggle to defend at times, he remarked. “It’s too simple to score against them, but the manager has had a complete preseason now. Let us see what he can do. However, I believe they are still too easy to play against. So, certainly, I believe they’ll finish in the same place as last season.”
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Relegation struggle
The loss of Matheus Cunha could be the Wolves’ biggest headache this season. While Richards praised Jorgen Strand Larsen as a striker capable of replacing the void, he believes inconsistency will be an issue, but solid play in patches should keep them in the Premier League.
“I truly appreciate the manager, his confidence, and his words. “I’m not sure if the players are good enough to do what he wants,” he said. “I think they do it in little patches, but I think the struggle I think it’s going to be a relegation battle for Wolves this year.” Watch the entire podcast episode below:
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