5 bold predictions for next Premier League season

If someone had predicted a year ago that Leicester City would be crowned as the 2015-16 Premier League champion, the forecast would have been met with ridicule and treated as sarcasm.

Of course, in retrospect, such a prophecy would look like the prognosis of a person who wasn't willing to be confined by the limits of tradition.

Arguably the most unforeseeable season in Premier League history reached completion Sunday, meaning supporters of clubs outside English football's "Big Five" can begin to shift their focus to the future, viewing 2016-17 as a clean slate in which anything can happen.

What does the next Premier League season have in store? Will it be as wild and erratic as the last?

Here are five bold predictions:

Leicester will qualify for the Champions League again

For whatever reason, Leicester's Premier League conquest is already being regarded as a one-off, as the Foxes are expected to crash back to reality next season. This, before Riyad Mahrez, N'Golo Kante, or Jamie Vardy have even confirmed or denied they'll be back at King Power Stadium.

Assuming Leicester maintains its core, however, there's no reason to believe that, at the very least, the Foxes will produce a top-four finish and qualify for the Champions League once again.

Leicester boasts a phenomenal squad, and don't let the haters say otherwise.

Arsenal will finish outside the top four

Not since 1997-98 has Arsenal failed to be a part of the Champions League, as the Gunners have qualified for European football's most prestigious club competition in each and every one of Arsene Wenger's full seasons in charge.

That streak will come to an abrupt end, though.

For the first time in 20 years, Arsenal will finish outside the Premier League's top four and fail to qualify for the Champions League. The collapse will cap off a season in which the calls for Wenger's head only grow louder and louder, and will unfortunately cap off a wonderful managerial spell on a sour note.

Anthony Martial will be the Premier League's top scorer

Manchester United has produced a lot of Golden Boot winners in the Premier League era, including Robin van Persie, Dimitar Berbatov, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Dwight Yorke.

Anthony Martial will join that list.

Having been acclimatised to life in the Premier League during his inaugural season in English football's top flight, Martial, who United signed for £36 million last year, will improve on his 11 goals from this campaign, scoring over 20 times and finishing as the league's top scorer.

It's worth noting that in any season where United produced a Golden Boot winner, the Red Devils won the Premier League.

Southampton will compete for the title

Only Leicester won more Premier League points in 2016 than Southampton, as the Saints tallied 39 points beginning New Year's Day and ended its season by winning four straight fixtures.

That's just the type of form that warrants a Premier League title, and there should be reason to believe that if Leicester can do it, Southampton can, too.

With a beloved manager in Ronald Koeman, a recruitment policy that attracts top talent to St. Mary's Stadium, an endless production line, and a solid core than can be built around, Southampton has all the ingredients necessary to try and bring silverware to southern England.

Chelsea will stumble out of the gates again

It's hard to imagine Chelsea could kick off next season as poorly as last year, when the Blues suffered nine defeats through their first 16 matches before Jose Mourinho and the club parted ways "by mutual consent."

Then again, it could happen.

Chelsea's squad looks nothing like the one that won the 2014-15 Premier League title, and the Blues are set to undergo an overhaul that may include the departure of John Terry. Factor in Kurt Zouma's recovery from a torn anterior cruciate ligament and a manager who loves three-man backlines in Antonio Conte, and the club may very well need some time to get things going.