Football Q&A: ask Ed Aarons your questions as the Premier League returns – live

Football Q&A: ask Ed Aarons your questions as the Premier League returns – live

After a lengthy international break dominated by the Manchester City verdict, the Premier League is back on Saturday. Football writer Ed Aarons is online now answering your questions Sign in or sign up to take part trinder19 asks: Ed, great feature. What do you see as the main tactical changes in the Premier League this season? Do you see styles, tactics and approaches diverging more or less across the league? Ed says: I think it’s a bit early to see any major changes but more generally there has been a bit of a shift away from controlling games by pure possession and a much more direct approach from many teams. Pep Guardiola’s style of play was so influential in the Premier League and beyond but even he went a bit more direct towards the end of his reign at City and lots of other teams have been trying to get the ball forward much earlier. There’s also been even more emphasis on taking greater risks with pressing much higher up the pitch, as Brighton showed with their masterclass against Arsenal before the international break. But the arrival of so many new managers in the summer means that it will be interesting to see how the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City evolve as the weeks go on. Ed says: There were only five Premier League players shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or this year and that is an indication that most of the biggest stars in world football still play overseas. While English clubs have been dominating European competitions over the past few years with Arsenal, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace all reaching finals last year, I think the attraction of playing for the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and these days Paris Saint-Germain outweighs the benefits of playing in the Premier League for many of the very best. But there is no doubting that the overall level is far higher in England than anywhere else given the financial might of the Premier League that allows clubs to bring in and develop better players. You just have to