Predicting what is going to happen in the Premier League run-in, Champions League and the World Cup

By Oli Dickson Jefford

After a 2021 which saw the return of fans to stadiums, a Premier League side triumphing in the Champions League and a thrilling men’s Euros, all eyes are now on 2022.

The Premier League and Champions League are in full swing and there will be back-to-back years with major tournaments with the World Cup in Qatar coming just months after a home Women's European Championships.

It promises to be another thrilling year with twists and turns and a decent helping of drama, but just who will be lifting trophies?

Here are our predictions for who will win the Premier League, men's Champions League and men’s World Cup this year.

Premier League

Until a few weeks ago it looked as if there would be a thrilling title race between Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea,

However, with the latter two sides faltering in recent weeks, Man City have surged ahead and it is hard to see anyone catching them.

Liverpool and Chelsea are still in touching distance, but with their squad depth and current momentum it is hard to see Pep Guardiola’s side losing their grip at the top of the table.

With the top three looking sorted, perhaps the biggest race now is the race for fourth. 

Arsenal are fourth currently and look the best they ever have under Mikel Arteta, though Tottenham are yet to lose in the league under Antonio Conte.

David Moyes’ West Ham are still in the hunt with their attractive brand of football, while Man Utd will want a strong second half of the season under Ralf Rangnick.

Investment in January is key for all, but if Spurs maintain their current form and bring in a new striker and centre-back they should claim the final Champions League spot.

Champions League

The Champions League is always hard to predict and there are some brutal draws early in the knockout stages.

Real Madrid and PSG were two of the favourites heading into this year's competition, but only one will make the quarter-final stage as they clash in a blockbuster Round of 16 encounter.

The form side so far have been Liverpool who picked up six wins from six in the group stage, though they have a tough tie against Inter Milan coming up.

Other main protagonists such as Man City and Bayern Munich have good knockout draws, taking on Sporting Lisbon and RB Salzburg respectively, while defending champions Chelsea take on Lille,

It is hard to assess how this will all pan out, but Bayern are in a very strong position.

Having won in 2020 and only just missing out on the last four in 2021, they have proven their consistency in recent campaigns.

Robert Lewandoski is arguably the best male player in the world and is capable of firing them to the title, while they’ll be able to focus heavily on the campaign with a comfortable lead in the Bundesliga.

PSG, Man City, Liverpool and Real Madrid are all in with a shout, but Bayern are arguably the most complete side in Europe currently and are our picks to win.

World Cup

It will be the most controversial global football event in history, with even non-football fans taking a keen interest in the events in Qatar in November and December.

Reigning champions France are among the favourites to triumph again, with perhaps the strongest squad in international football, though the defending champions have struggled at World Cups recently.

England should also contend, having reached the semi-finals in Russia four years ago and narrowly missing out on the Euros title last summer.

Gareth Southgate’s squad is young and incredibly talented, though questions remain about whether expectations could get the better of them.

Argentina’s 2021 Copa America victory was their first major title in 28 years and they should be in the mix, in what could be Lionel Messi’s final World Cup.

Brazil will look to win a record-extending sixth title and first World Cup in 20 years having surged back up the pecking order in the past couple of years.

While it will be interesting to see what impact European heavyweights Germany and Netherlands can have amid generational transitions.

Considering the difficult circumstances in terms of timing and conditions, it is more than possible that this event could also throw up a surprise winner.

With a young squad and a team likely to be able to deal with potentially hot conditions we’re going to plump for a Brazil side led by Neymar to prevail in Qatar, though it really is anyone's to win.

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