Chelsea: Bold predictions for all things Blue in the 2019/20 season

5. How will the three ex-Blues manager in Serie A fare?

George: Antonio Conte will win Serie A because that’s just what he does. Carlo Ancelotti still needs another season to undo the damage Maurizio Sarri left at Napoli (he only just got the smell of cigarettes out of the upholstery this summer) before he can properly challenge for the title, and will finish third. Sarri will be gone by Christmas, enough time for Juventus to recover a creditable fourth-place finish under Louis van Gaal.

Scott: Inter Milan will win Serie A because I love Antonio Conte. Napoli will finish second because I respect and appreciate Carlo Ancelotti. Juventus will finish 20th because I despise Maurizio Sarri and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Barrett: Sarri will win because Juventus did such good business this summer, no one else can compete with them. Inter Milan will finish second because Antonio Conte is the best manager I’ve ever seen and, despite their weird amount of issues, he’ll get the most out of them. Finally Napoli will finish third and Carlo Ancelotti will continue to enjoy his Amalfi Coast retirement.

Travis: Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan and Maurizio Sarri’s Juventus go neck and neck into the spring before Inter pulls ahead to win the title. Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli to play the spoiler but they settle for a close third place.

Sourav: Sarri – 1st, Conte – 2nd, Ancelotti – 3rd.

Abhishek: Antonio Conte will guide Inter to their first title in a decade while Carlo Ancelotti will finish a creditable second. Maurizio Sarri will find himself out of a job by December, when Cristiano Ronaldo tells him where to shove his cigarettes in the aftermath of a 4-0 loss to Sampdoria.

Nate: Sarri / Juventus – 1st; Conte / Inter – 2nd; Ancelotti / Napoli- 3rd. Bonus: All three leave / are fired by the end of the season.

Olaoluwa: I’m going to be dead wrong, but this might just prove that having a good squad does not guarantee success. First through third, in order: Antonio Conte’s Inter, Sarri’s Juventus, Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli.

Karan: Maurizio Sarri and Juventus have Cristiano Ronaldo leading the attack and Matthijs de Ligt and Giorgio Chiellini in defense. Juventus should win the league as Sarri’s predictable tactics and formations bear fruit for a league title. Antonio Conte has tons of Serie A experience both as a player and manager, and his great defensive tactics will land Inter in third. Napoli will hunt the title with Konstantinos Manolas joining Kalidou Koulibaly on defence.

Kevin: Antonio Conte to win Serie A. Having enjoyed a season off at Chelsea’s expense he’ll be well prepared to take Inter all the way. Carlo Ancelotti will do enough with Napoli to keep his job, but not enough to win anything. Sarri won’t finish in Serie A. He’ll be fired long before the season’s end.

6. Which Premier League teams will be relegated?

Scott: Brighton, Norwich City, Sheffield United.

Travis: Newcastle, Sheffield United, Norwich.

Nate: Sheffield United (by a long shot), Brighton (should’ve gone down last year), Crystal Palace (not Glad All Over at all)

Sourav: Brighton, Sheffield United and Newcastle.

Gabe: Brighton, Sheffield United, Newcastle. Brighton should’ve gone down last year, Sheffield aren’t flashy and don’t seem prepared and Newcastle is a train wreck.

Kevin: The three B’s will go down this season: Burnley, Bournemouth and Brighton.

Barrett: Newcastle, Newcastle and then Newcastle. Shame on them. What an unbelievably excellent fanbase they are and they deserve so much more.

Karan: Newcastle, Sheffield United and Norwich. With Rafael Benitiez gone and no Salomon Rondon, the Magpies will find it tough to stay in the league. Premier League standards will prove to be too big of a step up for Sheffield United and Norwich.

Olaoluwa: Norwich, Sheffield United, Brighton.

Abhishek: Brighton, Sheffield United and Burnley.

7. Who will be the first Premier League manager sacked?

Abhishek: Dean Smith. Aston Villa will receive the shock of a lifetime when they realize that the Premier League is even tougher now than it was when they were relegated. Smith will be handed his P45 around Christmas, with Villa stuck at the bottom of the table. John Terry will take over as interim manager and guide the Villains to the safety of 17th place.

Sourav: Steve Bruce of Newcastle.

Gabe: Let’s go out on a limb and say Sean Dyche.

Scott: Chris Wilder will be sacked by Christmas for never leaving last place.

Karan: No Premier League manager will be sacked. Yes, kind of a hot take but the newly promoted teams like Norwich and Sheffield would probably not sack their managers even though they’ll be fighting for survival. Newcastle, Brighton and Southampton have new managers and I don’t see them delivering such an early sack.

Olaoluwa: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Because why not?

Travis: Steve Bruce would be the obvious answer, but that would require some level of caring by Mike Ashley. Marco Silva will be first out if he cannot bring together all the new signings and improve on last season’s general morose.

Kevin: Eddie Howe. A combination of being at the club too long and lack of motivation will cause the Cherries to have a downturn in form. Howe will feel he’s done all he can but won’t quit. Being in the bottom three towards the end of the year will see him fired.

Barrett: Steve Bruce.