The 2023/24 Premier League season kicks off on Friday with competition near the top-end of the table expected to be stiffer than ever before. No fewer than seven clubs are either targeting a title challenge or a top four finish.

Three more clubs – Aston Villa, Brentford and Brighton – also have the potential to take another step forward having finished on the top half of the table last season. But which of the trio is best-placed to mount an unexpected top four challenge? And which might fall away?

Aston Villa

Unai Emery’s appointment transformed Aston Villa last season. Indeed, the Villans went from battling relegation at the time of the Spaniard’s arrival to ultimately finishing seventh and qualifying for the Europa Conference League. Continental football could be where Emery really makes his mark as a Villa manager.

There is good reason to believe Aston Villa will be stronger domestically, too. Emery has added genuine quality to his squad through the signing of Youri Tielemens from Leicester City, Pau Torres from Villarreal and Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen. The Spanish coach likes his teams to be dangerous on the break and Diaby in particular will help implement this style.

Monchi’s appointment as Aston Villa’s new director of football underlines the ambition being demonstrated by the club as they look to make further progress and push themselves even closer to the Premier League’s top four.

Aston Villa appear to be well-stocked in all areas of the pitch, although they could use greater depth in the full back positions – Kieran Tierney has been linked with a move to Villa Park. If Emery and his players can handle the additional burden of European football, they will surely enjoyed another successful campaign.

Brentford

Brighton achieved their best-ever Premier League finish last season by resting in ninth place. At one point, it appeared the Bees would finish even higher with Thomas Frank’s team missing out on Europa Conference League qualification by just two points. Victory over Manchester City on the final day of last season reinforced the quality of Brentford.

Roughly £60m has been spent on new signings over the summer with Nathan Collins lured from Wolves. Kevin Schade and Mark Flekken were also signed from Freiburg to give Brentford more squad depth. Ivan Toney’s suspension until January means Frank might be forced into some tactical changes with the Bees no longer able to go so direct so quickly.

It can be easy to forget this is only Brentford’s third season in the Premier League. While last season was an extremely successful one, some fans might take another mid-table finish in the name of consolidation. With several bigger clubs hoping for improvement this season, Brentford will have to work even harder to just stand still.

Brighton

Brighton’s transfer model meant they waved goodbye to Alexis Mac Allister at the end of last season with Moises Caicedo another prize asset who could be on his way out of the Amex Stadium before the end of the window – Chelsea remain determined to sign the Ecuadorian midfielder. Levi Colwill has also stayed at Chelsea despite strong interest from Brighton.

However, the Seagulls have reinvested the Mac Allister money in club-record signing Joao Pedro who has made the move to the south coast from Watford and new Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen. James Milner has also been signed from Liverpool while Mohammed Kudus is expected to sign in a statement transfer in the coming days.

Roberto De Zerbi drastically improved Brighton as an attacking outfit and the addition of Kudus would give him the perfect modern forward for his system. The Italian coach is a tactical innovator and has quickly become the Seagull’s greatest difference-maker. Another strong season could put De Zerbi on the radar of some elite level clubs.