Shifty's Season Preview Part 3

Bolton Wanderers

Not entirely different from their Lancashire rivals, last season Bolton were solid, pragmatic, not the prettiest but effective to an extent. It would be wrong to say that Gary Megson divides opinion among Bolton fans: they all hate him. Their style has not evolved from the Sam Allardyce era, yet they have slid down the table. While they should be safe from relegation this season, it's hard to see them making any serious challenge for a top 10 place. However, they have made a couple of decent acquisitions: Sean Davies and Zat Knight are both established Premier League performers, while Paul Robinson and Sam Ricketts both gained praise for their performances as full-backs in what were otherwise hopeless defences last season at West Brom and Hull respectively.

Verdict: The Trotters look set to continue trotting along somewhere between mid-table and 17th. Their only hope of success would appear to be a decent cup run, but given Megson's disdain for the cup competitions last season, this seems unlikely. Ho hum

Burnley are a Premier League team. No, really

Unlike Alan Shearer, one can proclaim Owen Coyle as the messiah without some halfwit immediately correcting you and instead declaring him a very naughty boy. His work on a limited budget and small squad (2 of whom being Steve Caldwell and Graham Alexander, and Brian Jensen is anything but small) could be compared to making however many loaves of bread and fresh haddock being distributed among 5,000. This summer Burnley have adopted a transfer policy seemingly based around recriuting young, talented players with the energy to compliment the guile of the likes of Robbie Blake and industry of Wade Elliott. Last season's cup runs show that Burnley will have nothing to fear against many of the Premier League, and any side who go to Turf Moor not fully on their game can expect to be turned over by a side that will no doubt be backed by a fervent home support, who may well have taken a layer of skin off their hands by now, through constantly rubbing them with glee at the fixture list, which gives them a first home game against Manchester United.

Verdict: On paper, they could really struggle. But then again, we all said that this time last year about Hull and Stoke. A lot will depend not on how their younger players, such as Steven Fletcher, Chris Eagles, Martin Paterson and Brian Easton, adapt, but whether or not the veterans of last season's epic campaign can withstand the rigours of the Premier League. In terms of betting, their games could well be among the most open, high-scoring, in the league. Keep an eye on that over 2.5 goals figure for their games.

CSKA London
Another new season, another new era at Chelsea. This time, Carlo Ancelotti is the man in charge, and while the playing squad has not undergone much revision, expect to see a different style from Ancelotti's side. Gone is the 4-5-1/4-3-3 of Scolari and Hiddink, set to be replaced by a 4-4-2 diamond. How they adapt this style for the Premier League and the Chelsea players will be intriguing to watch, especially considering that, under Ancelotti, AC Milan played this system at about 3mph. Of the 3 new signings, Yuri Zhirkov and Daniel Sturridge look well-equipped to shine when called upon, while this writer wants to find out who Ross Turnbull's agent is. Defensively, any more mistakes and questions will have to be asked about Petr Cech's condition, while Ricardo Carvalho's likely retention is key to their chances. Right-back could be a concern, though: Ancelotti appears not to be totally convinced by the defensive qualities of Jose Bosingwa, while Branislav Ivanovic was completely done by Nani in last weekend's Community Shield.

Verdict: The fixture list is reasonbly kind to Chelsea at the start of the season, and so they can be expected to be near the top early on. It remains to be seen, though, how they will cope without their African contingent when January comes. Expect either the Premier League title, the Champions League title, or Ancelotti to be sacked