At the Start of the Season
The chance of survival for three promoted sides in the Premier League 2022/23 season does not allegedly vary, considering their activity in the current transfer window.
EPL new season has just begun as their matchday one completed last weekend. Interestingly, the three promoted clubs this season, Fulham, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest, had different results from one another. Marco Silva’s men only secured one point, while The Cherries picked up three points at their home turf. On the contrary, the Forest was beaten on the road. Steve Cooper’s side’s defeat appears to be somewhat surprising given that they, along with Fulham, have been some of the busiest Premier League teams in this summer’s transfer window in order to revamp their squad.
Spending the most in the transfer window does not necessarily guarantee their bright future in the top tier. Last season, Brentford was the only surviving team despite spending the least on signing new players (€33.03 million), among the three promoted sides. Norwich splashed €63.55 million whereas Watford spent € 43.50 million for their reinforcement. Ivan Toney and co were able to finish 13th in the final standings while the fellow promoted sides sat at the bottom two. How about this season? Which club(s) have the biggest chance of survival to keep their Premier League status?
The Chance of Survival for the Promoted Sides Could be Relatively Equal
Fulham
Fulham’s chance to survive in the Premier League this season has been tipped as slim. However, it could change after their promising result, holding Liverpool to a 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage. Alexander Mitrovic’s brace put them ahead twice before Darwin Nunez proved his worth, scoring one and assisting Mo Salah. Tim Ream and co were quite fortunate, as Luis Diaz and Jordan Henderson’s attempts only hit the goal frame.
This season the club which has a reputation as a ‘yo-yo’ team have spent €38.60 million so far for signing Swiss international Kevin Mbabu, Portuguese defensive midfielder Joao Palhinha, left winger Manor Solomon from Shakhtar Donetsk, Andreas Pereira from Manchester United, goalkeeper Bernd Leno and the centre back Shane Duffy. Should Justin Kluivert agree to move to Craven Cottage this month, he will be a great addition to the squad. As long as The Cottagers manage to be consistent throughout the season with the same form as last weekend, they have a chance to stay in the top flight, though finishing in the top half of the table would still pose quite a challenge.
Bournemouth
The Cherries is the only newly promoted side who snatched a victory at the opener. Scott Parker’s men were able to defeat Aston Villa 2-0 last weekend through Jefferson Lerma’s powerful shot in the six-yard box and Kieffer Moore’s header. It was a convincing start for a team which only spent € 26.90 million. They have captured Marcus Tavanier from Middlesbrough in the transfer window plus four other new figures for free or on loan, including former West Ham men Ryan Fredericks as well as Marc Ter-Stegen’s deputy in Barcelona, Neto, between the sticks. Recently, they even completed another transfer, the defender Marcos Senesi from Feyenoord.
Bournemouth might face a setback when the congested fixtures begin and possible injuries in their squad as they seem to lack depth with players who have similar quality. Nevertheless, they still have a chance to survive although The Cherries would have to be involved in the relegation battle first.
Nottingham Forest
Last but not least, The Forest is the one expected to fly high this season with a number of important signings such as Nigerian international forward Taiwo Awoniyi, Liverpool right back Neco Williams, the former Bayern man Omar Richards, Wayne Hennessey and two names from Manchester United, Dean Henderson and Jesse Lindgard. Overall, they have splashed € 94.75 million in the current transfer window alone.
Unfortunately, those new signings were not able to make an instant impact. Steve Cooper’s side suffered a 2-0 loss against Newcastle United. The former coach of England U17 who lifted the FIFA U17 World Cup trophy back in 2017 would have to strive to combine them with the key men in the old squad to create harmony and solidity for their domestic campaign. That could take some time. Consequently, Nottingham Forest are likely to struggle first in the first half of the season before finding their consistency after the new year. They might only finish below 15th but eventually manage to stay in the top tier.