Could this be the most thrilling EPL season yet?

We are counting down to the start of what many people are predicting will be the greatest English Premier League (EPL) season ever. With at least seven clubs justifiably feeling they could be champions next May, the race for glory is genuinely wide open. Ahead of the big kick-off, our EPL expert analyst ADRIAN CLARKE (sports [at] mediacorp.com.sg) looks into his crystal ball and makes his predictions for the coming campaign.

TRENDS FOR 2016-17

It is hard to recall the last time a Premier League side adopted a back three as their chief formation, and there is an argument to say no one has truly mastered it over the course of a season in English football.

Falling out of fashion, just 35 of the 760 starting XIs selected by managers in the previous campaign deviated from a traditional back four.

That is set to change.

Why? Major tournaments always shape the way domestic managers think going into a new campaign, and impressive performances by Wales and Italy this summer will have prompted a rethink.

During pre-season, Watford, Manchester City and Everton have experimented with wingbacks and a trio of central defenders, and if any of them look good playing that way in the early weeks, it will be a trend that catches on.

With new, stricter rules in place to outlaw backchat to referees (and the ugly sight of players swarming around the officials, foaming at the mouth) I am also cautiously optimistic that player behaviour will improve in 2016-17.

We saw noticeably less play-acting and monkey business at the Euros, so fingers crossed that a change in attitude will rub off in the Premier League. It is high time the game cleaned up its act.

TOP TACTICIANS

The planet’s greatest players are still magnetically drawn towards the glamorous carrots on offer at Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich — but with the exception of Carlo Ancelotti, the Premier League now boasts all the best bosses.

Managers do not perform nutmegs or score goals, but I am almost as excited to see how they fare this term.

All the newcomers bring something unique to the table.

Antonio Conte (above. Photo: Reuters) is a master tactician at the top of his game. Delivering passion, energy and brainpower in spades, Chelsea seem to have chosen wisely.

Ask 100 top young players who their dream boss would be, and I would hazard a guess at least 95 would pick Pep Guardiola (above. Photo: Reuters). His innovation and desire to produce previously unthinkable tactics will be an education to watch.

When you add Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp, Ronald Koeman and Mauricio Pochettino into the mix, it is clear this will be a campaign overflowing with tactical intelligence.

But the brilliance is not confined to the big guns. Look at some of the unfancied sides.

Watford’s Walter Mazzarri is a 3-5-2 man with a good record in Italy; Southampton’s Claude Puel trusts promising kids and preaches gorgeous football; while newly promoted Middlesborough boss Aitor Karanka is a studious tactician that could be destined for the very top.

It is highly implausible all five will be a roaring success, but none of them look like duds.

YOUNG PLAYER TO WATCH

Which whiz kid will see his career take off this term? I am happy to hang my hat on a title winner you may not know too much about — Leicester City’s Demarai Gray. Signed from Birmingham City in January, the 20-year-old had to make do with the odd late cameo last season, but he is developing so rapidly that Claudio Ranieri will not be able to keep him on the periphery much longer.

Gray (above. Photo: Reuters) is a speedy winger, with the tricks and technique to accompany his pace. He will score goals, help take the sting out of the game by holding on to the ball when they need him to, and he is not work-shy when it comes to tracking back either.

If he displaces Marc Albrighton in the Foxes side, I think Gray could be a full England international before the season is out.

Manchester City new boy Leroy Sane and Arsenal’s Alex Iwobi are two other youngsters to keep an eye on. Blessed with great talent, they also have a strong enough mindset to star at the very highest level.

BEST NEWCOMER

Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic will generate loads more headlines, but I have a hunch Henrikh Mkhitaryan will outshine their exploits this season.

The Armenian (above. Photo: Reuters) is not flashy, but he is someone Manchester United fans will quickly learn to appreciate.

In terms of being the right fit, he is just what the doctor ordered at Old Trafford.

Able to receive possession in tight areas, Mkhitaryan’s sharp touch and turns will set United on the attack so much faster than they played under stifling Louis van Gaal.

He will bring goals (probably 8-12 a season) and assists (10-plus), pepping up a midfield that has been pedestrian for way too long.

Who else will prove value for money?

I like the look of Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka. He is hard, vocal, and possesses a dreamy left foot, so I can see the Swiss midfielder dominating opponents alongside the irrepressible Santi Cazorla this season.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Kevin de Bruyne created 81 chances in 25 matches for a poor Manchester City side last season. Working with a superior coach, surrounded by better young players, and now acclimatised to the Premier League, I am picturing the Belgian taking his game to a whole new level in 2016-17.

There are three of four men ahead of him in the ante-post betting market, but the City midfielder is my tip to be named PFA Player of the Year.

De Bruyne’s balance is a joy to behold.

Drifting effortlessly past defenders, and at ease on either foot, he has the quality to hurt opponents with shots, crosses, dribbles or passes from anywhere inside the final third. He is the new baby-faced assassin.

While City are finding their feet under the new regime, De Bruyne, along with star striker Sergio Aguero, will be someone Guardiola relies upon, and I think he will rise to that challenge.

Now 25, he is entering his peak years and can be City’s new main man.

TOP PROMOTED TEAM

Only one of the three clubs promoted from last season’s Championship are acting like they belong with the big boys, and that is Middlesbrough.

Spending a large chunk of cash on quality players, it is clear the North-east outfit — for so long a staple of the Premier League — do not intend falling through the trap door again, any time soon.

The recruitment has been terrific.

Striker Alvaro Negredo is a big name that might just relish being the club’s star-turn, and former Ajax prodigy Viktor Fischer has a good platform to reignite his career.

In goal, Victor Valdes will be hungry to show he is not washed up, and I feel the former “Bulldog of Bergamo”, Marten de Roon, could prove to be one of the signings of the season. The defensive midfielder’s tackling and interception stats with Atalanta in Serie A last season were off the scale.

In total, nine newcomers have been signed so far by Aitor Karanka, with others sure to follow.

The basis of a solid side was already there, anyway.

Well disciplined, and managed by a Spaniard that will not take silly risks, ’Boro conceded only eight goals in 23 home games last season, which included 15 clean sheets.

They are hard to beat, and should not be involved in any kind of dogfight.

BIGGEST OVERACHIEVERS

Southampton is a club that loves to defy expectations. I think they will prove the doubters wrong once again this season.

The way they regenerate each year is quite remarkable.

In the past three summer windows, the Saints have sold Victor Wanyama, Sadio Mane, Graziano Pelle, Nathaniel Clyne, Morgan Schneiderlin, Luke Shaw, Dejan Lovren, Calum Chambers and Adam Lallana for a combined total of £182.5million.

It is some talent pool that has left the building, along with head coaches Mauricio Pochettino and Ronald Koeman.

Yet, thanks to smart scouting and a stubborn refusal to lower their targets, Southampton keep on bettering their previous efforts.

There was not much of a fanfare to greet new boss Claude Puel on the south coast, but the Frenchman could turn out to be a genius appointment.

He transformed Nice from also-rans to top-six contenders in the space of three years, playing a delightful brand of fast-paced passing football. His side will press ferociously hard, and keep the ball better than they did under Koeman.

I expect the Saints to go marching on. Again.

UNDERACHIEVERS

An FA Cup Final appearance masked the fact that Crystal Palace had been hurtling down a slippery slope. From being nailed on for a top-eight finish, just two wins from their final 10 matches left the Eagles hanging on grimly for survival.

Negative momentum like that is not easy to shift.

Winger Andros Townsend, goalkeeper Steve Mandanda and defender James Tomkins look decent enough acquisitions on paper, but until at least one front-line centre -forward arrives at Selhurst Park (Christian Benteke and Saido Berahino are their main targets), they look light on goals.

Alan Pardew did not make the shortlist for the England job and he will know he cannot afford too many off days in the early weeks.

When Palace were plummeting last term, he did not know where the brake was, and sections of the support grew frustrated at the lack of a Plan B or C.

He has always been an incredibly streaky manager. When Pardew’s sides are on fire, there is often no stopping them — but the slumps that follow can be long and painful.

The Eagles should not get relegated, but I would not be overconfident about their prospects either.

WHO’S GOING DOWN?

Hull City is a club in disarray. Before a ball has been kicked, they feel like certainties for the drop.

Owner Assem Allam is in poor health and desperate to sell the club, so no funds have been released to buy players in the transfer window.

Instead, their top talents have been sold off, and it is reported the Tigers have only 13 senior players fit for selection against Leicester City this weekend.

They do not have a proper manager in place either. Since Steve Bruce walked out on them last month, various candidates have been spoken to, but not appointed.

Burnley are tipped to join them in the bottom three, but in boss Sean Dyche and striker Andre Gray, I believe they have enough to survive. Instead, I am predicting that Watford and West Bromwich Albion will endure a season of struggle.

Tony Pulis dines out on never being relegated, but the recent change in ownership at the Hawthorns is an ominous sign. Low morale among the support, ugly football and an inability to attract star names mean it will not take much for the new owner Lai Guochuan to pull the trigger. Pulis may not see the season out.

As for Watford, it feels like there has been too much change again this summer. Sooner or later, the constant turnover has to bite them on the backside, and this could be the year.

AND THE CHAMPIONS WILL BE …

If you ask me who will be this season’s champions every day for five days, there is a possibility I would choose a different winner each time. It is near on impossible to separate the big boys this year.

The Guardiola effect, coupled with their financial clout, sways me — just — in Manchester City’s direction, but they will be a work in progress until Christmas. If they do land the crown, I suspect it will be done so with a late charge.

Arsenal are being written off by most, but if they add a striker and a centre-back, it is nonsense to rule them out. Cohesive and settled as a squad, continuity could work in their favour.

There is no doubt Manchester United will be significantly better under Jose Mourinho. Their four new signings are top notch, and we will see more power and passion from them as they seek to bring back the glory days.

While a lack of European football will help Chelsea and Liverpool focus on the league, I just cannot find any reasons to believe Spurs will have a big enough downturn to see them usurped. In fact they look stronger, so another top-four finish is well within their reach.

England is unlikely to provide the European club champions again this season, but if there is one domestic division you simply cannot miss, or take your eyes off, it is the Premier League.

It is a seven-way shoot out for the title, and none of us knows which direction the race will take us.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

TODAY's EPL expert Adrian Clarke is a former Arsenal player who has played at every level of the English game. Now an experienced sport journalist, he writes for several well-known football websites. Follow him @adrianjclarke