Johnny Phillips: Alvarez has gone but City are still the team to beat

At the top end of the table there will be more of the former and many onlookers will be hoping for a change of name when it comes to the trophy lift.

Manchester City are the title holders and the team to beat, as they have been for so long.

They are also the club who leads the way when it comes to summer transfer profits. This close-season, City have generated around £130million, thanks in no small part to the £82m banked from Atletico Madrid for Julian Alvarez.

Will Pep Guardiola live to regret the sale?

Whenever Erling Haaland was absent, Alvarez stepped in and seamlessly filled the void. The Argentine World Cup winner will be missed. But behind him, City look strong although the injury to Oscar Bobb is a blow.

While Guardiola appears relaxed with the make-up of his squad, City may well strengthen in central midfield before the transfer window shuts.

Rodri, who played 4,326 minutes last season before departing to win the Euros with Spain, surely cannot be expected to shoulder so much responsibility again after so little time to rest up.

Arsenal will surely go close once more. Their form in the latter part of last season was scintillating, winning 16 of their final 18 games.

Goals came from all around the team, with Kai Havertz playing through the middle registering 13. Bukayo Saka scored three more than the German, while Leandro Trossard – who did not always start – weighed in with 12. All three finished with their best goalscoring returns in a single Premier League campaign.

Excluding penalties, the Gunners scored 20 goals from set-pieces last season, which was a Premier League record.

And we have not even mentioned Gabriel Jesus, yet. The Brazilian started fewer than half of Arsenal’s Premier League games and played only 1,482 minutes in the league.

After such a stop-start campaign he will be hoping to make more of an impact, and the pre-season signs have been promising.

Jesus started and scored in Arsenal’s 4-1 friendly win over Bayer Leverkusen on August 7, before being replaced at half-time. He then came off the bench in Arsenal’s 2-0 Emirates Cup win over Lyon last Sunday.

Whether or not Jesus will be trusted by Arteta to lead the line from the start is up for debate, but Wolves have plenty on their plate this afternoon for the season’s opener in North London.

Liverpool have had a quiet summer but should be able to pose a title challenge under new head coach Arne Slot.

If they can steer clear of injuries, the Reds have as potent an attacking force as any squad in the division can muster.

Mohamed Salah will be looking to break the 20-goal barrier for an eighth consecutive season as a Liverpool player. The 32- year-old may well see this as a swansong given the overtures from Saudi Arabia.

With Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Luis Diaz to call upon, Slot will be relishing his first season in England.

Youngster Trey Nyoni will be worth keeping an eye on, too, when he gets his chance in an attacking midfield role.

Aston Villa made up the top four last season, brilliantly fending off challengers for the Champions League spots while competing in Europe on Thursday nights.

Unai Emery will need his players to be bang in form once more for another gruelling campaign at home and abroad, and that begins with sweeper keeper Emi Martinez who orchestrates so much of their good movement from the back.

After just one week of the Euros there was no Scotland no party for their country’s fans but that was great news for Villa supporters as John McGinn got plenty of time to rest up.

This time the midfield will be bolstered by Amadou Onana. If the Belgian international can find some consistency in his performances he will be a great addition to the squad, beefing up the defensive central areas which should give further freedom to those ahead of him.

Morgan Rogers has the potential to step up this season and it will be fascinating to watch his development.

A Manchester City academy product he seized the opportunities that came his way last season. With a strong pre-season under his belt he will surely progress further.

These are exciting times at Villa Park but, even so, a repeat of last season’s heroics will be some achievement.

With Manchester United, Spurs, Newcastle and, whisper it, even Chelsea all hoping for better showings than last season, the battle at the top end of the table has the potential to be more exciting than ever when it comes to deciding the European places.