Chelsea set to reign again

Chelsea stormed the Premier League ramparts in spectacular style last season and there is nothing to suggest that the mega-rich Londoners will be anything but kings of the castle again in nine months' time.

Chelsea had waited 50 years to claim the second championship of their history but, fuelled by the money of Russian tycoon Roman Abramovich and astutely guided by Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho, they eventually won it with ease.

Their tally of 95 points from 38 games, with just one defeat and a miserly 15 goals conceded, left the trailing pack as challengers in name only with Arsenal [Images] and Manchester United [Images], winners of 11 of the previous 12 titles between them, finishing 12 and 18 points adrift respectively.

Everton were fourth, a further 16 points back, while European champions Liverpool were an almost unimaginable 37 behind the winners in fifth.

Mourinho, condemned as arrogant for daring to predict Chelsea's success, has since made all the right noises.

He says that retaining the title will be harder, that the chasing pack will improve and that Chelsea will have to sharpen their tactics to maintain their dominance.

But, for once, the more credible comments have emerged from the club's chief executive Peter Kenyon.

"The winner of the Premier League will come from a small bunch - of one," he said this week.

It certainly seems hard to see how Chelsea could be worse than last year following some solid close-season additions to their squad.

Argentine Hernan Crespo [Images], revitalised after an impressive loan season with AC Milan, and youngster Carlton Cole, also back from various loans, will compete with Didier Drogba [Images] and Eidur Gudjohnsen for the strike roles.

Winger Shaun Wright-Phillips, at 21 million pounds the biggest buy of the English close-season, gives a boost both as a provider and finisher while Spain full back Asier Del Horno's arrival from Athletic Bilbao left Mourinho to declare that he now has cover in every position.

The coach says that a repeat of last season's Premier League and League Cup double would be another fantastic year for Chelsea but the man who won the Champions League with Porto in 2004 will not be happy until he tastes success again in Europe's top club competition.

That desire seems the only real glimmer of hope available to the rest of the league, who will pray that continental distractions and perhaps international commitments in a World Cup season might undermine Chelsea's domestic concentration.

However, far from strengthening their challenge, Arsenal appear weaker after the departure of midfielder Patrick Vieira to Juventus and his Belarussian replacement Alexander Hleb, their only major buy, has a hard act to follow.

Manchester United have also been a little reticent in the spending department, with goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar and South Korean midfielder Park Ji-sung hardly likely to leave Mourinho wringing his hands in frustration at the ones that got away.

That leaves Liverpool, the European champions and the busiest club in the transfer market by far.

Antonio Barragan, Peter Crouch, Mark Gonzalez, Jose Reina, Mohamed Sissoko and Boudewijn Zenden represent more than 20 million pounds of investment and the out door has also been in heavy use with more than a dozen players, including Champions League final hero Vladimir Smicer, leaving Anfield.

Nobody else will be even considering the title, with survival the main target for probably a dozen of the 20 clubs.

Among the favourites for relegation are Wigan Athletic, who will nevertheless enjoy playing in the top flight for the first time since they joined the Football League in 1978.

The club from rugby league's heartland between Manchester and Liverpool will get an immediate taste of what is in store when they kick off their season against Chelsea on August 14.

The action elsewhere begins a day earlier, with Everton against Manchester United getting the whole thing underway with a lunchtime kickoff.

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