Manchester United

The Red Devils last won the Premier League title in 2012/13 and, having finished seventh, four and fifth in the past three seasons, new boss Jose Mourinho has revealed that his main target for the season is to win it again.

The ‘Special One’ has already signed Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic on a free transfer from Paris Saint-German, Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan for a fee in the region of £26 million from Borussia Dortmund and Ivorian centre-back Eric Bailly for a fee that could rise to £40 million from Villareal and continues his pursuit of Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba. Pogba, 23, is reportedly keen to return to Old Trafford, but Juventus are seeking an additional €10 million after United submitted an increased bid of €110 million (£92 million).

Pre-season preparations have hardly gone according to plan, with a 2-0 defeat of Wigan at the DW Stadium followed by a 4-1 thrashing by Borussia Dortmund at the Shanghai Stadium and the cancellation of the game against Manchester City at the Beijing National Stadium after heavy rain made the pitch unplayable. United will fly back to Manchester to continue their preparations for matches with Galatasary in Gothenberg, Sweden on July 30 and Everton at Old Trafford on August 3.

Nevertheless, Mourinho has vowed to the club’s owners that it will take him just one season to win the Premier League title and, at a top-priced 7/2, it would take a brave man to argue with the Portuguese maestro. New signing Eric Bailly has made a promising start, Wayne Rooney has voiced his excitement at the prospect of playing alongside Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the return of Luke Shaw, out for year after suffering a double break of his right leg last September, is excellent news for all concerned.