Ahead of a Premier League campaign, the best chance of tactical intrigue is usually provided by a managerial arrival from abroad seeking to introduce foreign concepts. From Arsene Wenger’s focus on speed and Jose Mourinho’s transitions emphasis, to Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3 and Pep Guardiola’s possession play, the English top flight has become reliant on overseas coaches for tactical ingenuity.



This campaign might be different, though, because the three promoted sides are strategically intriguing, with intelligent young coaches – two of them English – who use well-defined systems. They have all improved their squads in the transfer market, but key features of last season’s approaches will remain for 2019-20.



Sheffield United: Overlapping centre backs



Last season’s recipient of the League Managers Association’s manager of the year prize was not Guardiola, who took Manchester City to the first-ever...