Man City are in the upper echelons for the forseable future, with the squad they currently have being relatively young and with the resources to add real quality this summer on top, they ain't going anywhere but up for years.
Man Utd too, unless their debt repayments cause them issues (which I can't see happening due to their commercial income and gate / tv money) will remain in the mix, as they will take it personally that City have taken the title and want to re-assert themselves.
Chelsea, could have to rebuild a huge amount of their team in the next season, but that job has been made a lot easier through the prestiege of being the European Champions now (and their wages they pay helps too)
Arsene has dodged a bullett, for if we had come 4th and missed out on the Champions League money of circa £30 m, (due to special circumstances) the pressure on him to quit or improve the team would be far more than it now stands.
We
should have the foundations to carry on being top 4 but ,much will depend on RVP and this summers transfer business being succesfull and also the board / manager not being complacent but showing some ambition to push on.
I think the tiny totts have problems.
They will have to sell Bale / Modric -(he could have been at Chelsea winning that trophy if he had forced the issue), not sure they would wallow around for another season.
King is shot to bits now and will surely retire, while Gallas is approaching that time in his career too.
Adebayor is their best striker, but is not theirs and if they could afford the fee, there is still his gready wages to cope with.
Their first choice keeper is 41 now so is hardly going to be their longterm solution.
On top of this they are going to attempt to build a 55,000 stadium in the near future, which as we are well aware, takes a lot of money away from the playing side of the busisness.
Liverpool are further away now than they have been at any point in recent times despite spending £100m in the summer and despite Micky Quinn and every "expert" scouse pundict predicting a title win.
If Suaraz departs, as has been mooted, they really are lacking in first class players all through the side.
At least their owners are willing to say that mediocrity isn't good enough and had the balls to sack "king kenny" - in my view the right option as 8th is simply unacceptable.
Newcastle may never have the kind of season they had last year again, with some players wanting moves / higher wages due to the fact that they believe they are better than the Magpies and finding it hard to hold on to them.
So the top 3 is probably assured with us trailing along in 4th.
Oh and it used to be the big 5 (us, Liverpool, Man Utd, Everton and 5pur2 in the eighties) so times do change eventually due to money.
