When the Premier League is boasting the betting favorites for all three European competitions well into the spring — Manchester City in the Champions League, Manchester United in the Europa League and West Ham in the Conference League — you know things are going pretty well.
When City’s and Arsenal‘s title odds are a near-perfect 50-50 a week into April, when seven teams have at least a 22% chance of landing a top-four finish, and when the relegation race threatens nearly half the league (including West Ham), you know the stakes are going to remain dramatic all the way to the finish. When even a Brentford at Brighton match is huge (and lives up to every expectation), you’re showing off, frankly.
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Everything’s coming up Premier League in 2022-23. OK, maybe not everything — Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal were all eliminated earlier than planned in their respective European competitions, and the whole “12 managers have been sacked in a single season” thing is a bit panicky and gross — but every race is gripping, nearly every team is involved in one of those races, and it appears quite a bit of European success could still be in the cards.
Is this the greatest Premier League season ever, then?
Three years ago, following Liverpool’s first English title in 30 years, I ranked Premier League seasons. Let’s revisit this approach, adding the past two full seasons to the list and speculating on where 2022-23 might land.
2T. 2018-19 (25 points), Champion: Manchester City
Liverpool nearly sets the Premier League points record but doesn’t even win the league. Instead, Jurgen Klopp’s Reds are forced to settle for winning Europe. The Champions League (Liverpool over Spurs) and Europa League finals (Chelsea over Arsenal) are both all-England affairs.
2T. 2021-22 (25 points), Champion: Manchester City
Liverpool reaches the Champions League final and comes up two goals short of the treble. City pulls off a two-goal comeback to win the title, while a Leeds-Burnley relegation battle goes deep into the second half on the final matchday as well.
