Pulse Sports predicts the three teams to get relegated this season

With the Premier League set to return on Friday, August 5, the competition to prove mettle will arise again. Underdogs will look to outdo the big teams, and the big teams will hope they can put these small sides in their place.

But while all these might be important, what matters, in the end, is the ability of a team to win the league, or better, remain in the league.

In a roundtable chat with the Pulse Sports team of reporters and editors, the agreement was simple: that those who will be unable to withstand the pressures that come with playing in the Premier League will be mostly newly-promoted sides. 

While seven predictions rolled in from Joba Ogunwale, Izuchukwu Akawor, Solace Chukwu, Tosin Abayomi, Damola Ogungbe, David Ben and Tunde Young, one thing remained a constant. Bournemouth.

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Joba: "Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest and Leeds United. I think two of the newly-promoted sides will find it hard to cope with the quality of the Premier League while also believe Leeds’ lack of quality signing will cost them."

Izuchukwu: "Fulham, Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest. I expect all Promoted sides to return to the Championship. Promoted teams always find it difficult to adjust to life in the PL and that will give those three problems."

Solace: "Fulham. They always go down, so they are an easy pick to do so again. However, there is more to it than history. They have not moved the needle with their signings, and there are doubts in my mind over whether Aleksandar Mitrovic can finally find goals in the Premier League.

"Add Bournemouth to that. They have done well to return to the Premier League, but this is as good as it's going to get for them. They simply have not done enough to strengthen their team, and there is little to suggest the squad that executed the Championship is strong enough to stay up.

"This final spot is a toss-up between Everton, Leeds and Nottingham Forest, but ultimately I have gone for Everton. Their squad is starved of quality, and in Frank Lampard, they have a manager whose ability is in question and who never seems to take responsibility. They barely escaped last season, and I think their flaws may finally catch up with them."

Tosin: "Bournemouth will go down because they had no business coming back in the first place. Leeds United lacks quality and by half of the season should be gassed with their style of play. Brentford had a good time last year. Unfortunately, reality will set in."

Damola: "Bournemouth are almost certain to go down again. They have tried to be conservative in signings this summer with only Marcus Tavernier arriving for £11.9m and two free transfers. However, the quality within their squad is still not Premier League quality. 

"Nottingham Forest will also go down but ironically for the opposite reason as Bournemouth. They have gone with a mass, scatter-gun approach to their signings which rarely works in the Premier League. 

"The third team to relegate would be between Brentford and Brighton. Both teams look suspiciously weak going into the season and they might not survive the rigours of the Premier League this time around. If you had a gun pointed to my head, I'd say Brentford"

David: "Lampard's side sold their most decisive player to a league rival and are yet to replace him after nearly kissing championship football last season. Not sure they'll be able to resist it this time around. 

"Leeds lost two key players this summer without a replacement - sharing a similar story to Everton last season. I would be shocked if they don't go down. 

For all of Forest's signings, I just believe they're not ready for this return and might learn the hard way, although, I think the third team to be relegated would be AFC Bournemouth. In recent times they returned, they just never looked ready for the challenge and would once again, learn the hard way."

Tunde: "I expect Bournemouth to get instantly relegated because they don't have enough quality, Nottingham Forest will struggle to find a balance with one too many new players and Brentford will run out of luck this season."

Nominated for the first sack of the season, based on poor performance, David, Izuchukwu, Joba and Tunde all opted for Everton's Frank Lampard.

According to Tunde, it will happen because "Everton failed to strengthen the team that almost suffered relegation last season and have now lost their star player Richarlison without an adequate replacement."

Other nominated candidates were Leeds United Jesse Marsch, and Fulham's Marco Silva, something Solace credited to Silva having already, "expressed discontent at the Cottagers' lack of decisive movement in the transfer market." He added that "while Manor Solomon and Joao Palhinha are good players, they are unlikely to make a big difference to Fulham's prospects."

I picked Nottingham Forest's manager, Steve Cooper.