Michael Owen Predicts Final 2025/26 Premier League Table

Summary

• Michael Owen has predicted the 2025/26 Premier League table in full.
• Crystal Palace, West Ham, and Bournemouth forecasted to hover around mid-table positions.
• Liverpool is predicted to dominate the upcoming season, aiming for a treble and defying all expectations.

Michael Owen has unveiled his full prediction for the 2025/26 Premier League table ahead of the opening weekend. The world’s most-watched football league is back, and anticipation is running high. Many believe Liverpool’s heavy summer spending will see the Reds retain their title in emphatic fashion. Another common assumption is that all three newly promoted clubs will go straight back down.

Of course, football is rarely ever that simple. From first place to 20th, the season always has the potential to deliver surprises. But that hasn’t stopped former players and pundits from making their forecasts, each hoping to prove their football knowledge outshines the rest.

In a recent feature on the Premier League’s official website, a group of pundits were challenged to predict the final table, choose a top goalscorer, highlight potential shock outcomes, and share various other bold calls. Owen, in particular, could make headlines with his striking claims about both Tottenham and Liverpool.

Relegation

If Owen’s predictions come true, this season would mark the third consecutive campaign in which all three newly promoted teams drop straight back to the Championship – a worrying indictment of the widening gulf between England’s top two divisions. The only real surprise, perhaps, is that he has Burnley finishing rock bottom.

Last season, Burnley and Leeds United both racked up 100 points in the Championship, with Leeds taking the title on goal difference. Defence was a standout strength for both sides – Burnley conceded just 16 goals in 46 matches. But with Leeds and Sunderland strengthening more impressively over the summer, Owen clearly believes Scott Parker’s men could be the ones to struggle most.

At the other end of the survival scrap, Owen tips Brentford to finish 17th, just avoiding the drop. The Bees have endured a turbulent off-season, losing manager Thomas Frank to Tottenham and top scorer Bryan Mbeumo to Manchester United. A potential move for Yoane Wissa to Newcastle before September’s deadline could further weaken them. Owen has them finishing just below Wolves, whom he places 16th following the departures of Rayan Ait-Nouri and Matheus Cunha.

Mid-table

After lifting two trophies at Wembley within a matter of months – the FA Cup and the Community Shield – Crystal Palace enter the new season as a potential dark horse for many observers. Traditionally, they’ve made 12th place their home in recent years, a running joke among fans, but Owen predicts a slip to 15th. He likely looked at an underwhelming transfer window and the added strain of Europa Conference League fixtures as punctuating factors.

Owen has West Ham pegged for 14th – exactly where they finished last season – while Bournemouth are tipped to land in 13th, a step back after flirting with European qualification last term. Fulham, meanwhile, are predicted to stagnate under Marco Silva, holding steady in 12th.

Perhaps the most deflating forecast is reserved for Nottingham Forest fans. Owen places them 11th, despite their remarkable home record last season – they conceded fewer goals at home than any other Premier League side – and an ambitious ownership that funded their Europa League qualification campaign. Forest supporters, buoyed by memories of the club’s glory days, will be hoping last year’s success was the start of something bigger. But in Owen’s eyes, their fairytale 2024/25 season might prove to be a one-off.

Race For European Places

Brighton & Hove Albion’s production line of talent seems endless. Whether replacing progressive managers or selling on young stars, the Seagulls always seem to find equally capable successors. That conveyor belt of quality, Owen believes, should be enough to secure them 10th place this season.

Everton, meanwhile, are tipped for Texan horizons. Under new American ownership, in their first full season since David Moyes’ return, and playing at a brand-new stadium, the Toffees are predicted to finish ninth. Their attack looks to be set to raise a few levels by the quality of Iliman Ndiaye – the jewel in the crown – alongside the arrival of Jack Grealish on a loan-to-buy deal from Manchester City and Thierno Barry, fresh from scoring 11 goals for Villarreal in La Liga last term. On Everton, Owen said:

“I think there’s a feel-good factor around the club. I can see them being in the top half and possibly challenging for Europe.”

Despite the ongoing saga of Alexander Isak – arguably the only world-class player outside the Premier League’s ‘big six’ – going on strike to force a move to Liverpool, Owen still believes Eddie Howe can steer Newcastle to eighth. Aston Villa, hampered by a quiet, PSR-restricted summer, are predicted to finish seventh, but Owen has his former club Manchester United overtaking them for sixth.

The Red Devils have reshaped their forward line with Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo all arriving. Yet, doubts linger over their goalkeeper, defence, and midfield, while their manager’s guarded outlook adds to the uncertainty. And in the post-Ferguson era, United’s big spending has often promised more than it has delivered – a cautionary note heading into 2025/26 as those packed into the Theatre of Dreams continue to build castles in the air in their hopes of the return of their glory days.

Top Five

Even bolder than his Man United claim, Owen predicts Tottenham will climb a staggering 12 places to break into the top five and secure Champions League football. Under Frank, the Lilywhites will be far more structured, and with the transfer window still open, there’s every chance Eberechi Eze and Savinho could walk through the same doors already passed by Mohammed Kudus and Joao Palhinha.

That would leave Spurs just behind an unchanged top four from last season: Chelsea – whose fans are the most confident of success according to a recent survey – snatching fourth, Manchester City’s rebuild starting at a more measured pace as they reclaim third, and Arsenal settling for a fourth straight runners-up medal.

Owen may have been effectively ostracised by his boyhood club Liverpool, with his ties at United and Real Madrid leaving him feeling unwelcome at Anfield, but he has gone gung-ho with his predictions for the Reds. With nearly £300 million spent this summer, he tips record signing Florian Wirtz to be playmaker of the year, scooping his third consecutive Player of the Year award after two in the Bundesliga. He also backs Mohamed Salah for a record-breaking fifth Golden Boot, Arne Slot for Manager of the Year, and Liverpool for a treble.

“I think they’re streets ahead at the moment. I know Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League last season and beat them on the way there, but I’d have Liverpool as favourites to win it this season. They’re also my Premier League favourites and I think they could win three of the four competitions they’re in.”

Already England’s most decorated club, another glittering campaign could see the Reds extend their lead over Man United even further. After years of cautious net spending, FSG finally look ready to turn Liverpool back into a bastion of invincibility – and that’s bad news for anyone else with silverware on their mind.

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt (correct as of 15/08/2025)