Premier League champions Chelsea "will still be the team to beat" this season, says ex-England captain Alan Shearer.
The Blues won their fifth league title by a comfortable eight-point margin ahead of Manchester City.
"Chelsea won at a canter last season, certainly from February on, but it will be tighter," Shearer told BBC Sport.
The former Newcastle striker also said Manchester United have "work to do", while Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is under "huge pressure".
In a wide-ranging interview looking ahead to the new Premier League season, Shearer also discussed:
- The battle for the Premier League top four;
- How "something smells" at Liverpool;
- Newcastle United's ambitions under new boss Steve McClaren;
- The challenges for the promoted sides.
How will the top four look?
Shearer - the Premier League's top scorer with 260 goals - predicts the same top four as 2014-15 but "not necessarily in that order".
To better last campaign's finishes:
- City have spent big on Raheem Sterling, paying Liverpool £49m for the 20-year-old - a record fee for an English player;
- Arsenal have tried to solve their goalkeeping situation with the £10m purchase of Petr Cech from Chelsea;
- And United - after returning to the Champions League - have added Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger to their squad.
"You cannot tell me Raheem is worth £49m," said Shearer.
"He's a good player, he's got potential, he's lightning quick, but I still think he needs to improve on a lot of aspects. Will he improve Manchester City? Yes. For £49m? No.
"Cech will be very, very good and improve Arsenal by a number of points, but I think they still need a top-class centre forward at least to go that one step further and win the title.
"I still think there's work to be done for United. I don't think there's a lot between City and United, they'll be pushing Chelsea all the way. I still think they might lack just one or two players."
'Something smells' at Liverpool
The Reds endured a disappointing season, finishing sixth having come runners-up the season before.
Following an end-of-season review, assistant manager Colin Pascoe and first-team coach Mike Marsh left the club.
Rodgers has brought in England midfielder James Milner on a free transfer, Brazil playmaker Roberto Firmino for £29m, and used a chunk of the Sterling money on the £32.5m signing of Belgium striker Christian Benteke from Aston Villa.
"Brendan's spent a lot of money again," said Shearer. "He has to achieve success this year, he has to win something,"
"Also, with the change of his backroom staff, the way it happened... I'm not sure that you have a trusted lieutenant right throughout your career and then you come to the end of the season and because you've had a poor season say 'we're going in a different technical direction'.
"That doesn't sit easy. Something smells a little bit there. Brendan will be under huge pressure."
Can McClaren change Newcastle's fortunes?
Shearer hopes "attitudes change" on Tyneside to reward the fans who have renewed their season tickets despite the "truly dreadful" second half of last season, which saw them finish 15th.
"Newcastle will improve, having said that it shouldn't be too difficult," said Newcastle's record goalscorer and former captain.
"Steve McClaren is a good coach and a good manager, but I hope he's allowed to manage and coach.
"Let's be realistic, Newcastle are not going to finish in the top four. There's only two things Newcastle are going to win - and that's the League Cup and the FA Cup.
"I would dearly love to see them have a go in one of them and play their strongest team. Let's hope that changes."
How will the promoted sides do?
Watford returned to the top flight for the first time since the 2006-07 season, while Bournemouth are there for the first time. Norwich are back following a season's absence.
"Traditionally what happens and what will always happen is they'll have a struggle," said Shearer.
" Watford have signed so many players it is going to be difficult to integrate them all and for it to work.
"Bournemouth will probably be like Burnley and try and do it the right way and everyone will continue to praise them because of the way they play, their work ethic... but they might just come up short. Norwich may be similar as well.
"Those three will struggle, but Leicester might, Aston Villa might because of the players they've sold, and Sunderland.
"And, dare I say it, if Newcastle have signed two or three players, that would worry me, because they might sell one or two as well."
Jose Mourinho v Rafael Benitez: When sport gets personal
It is just sport after all.
Yes it can mean the world and more to fans and is worth potentially billions to those involved, but the fun can sometimes turn sour.
Verbals can go too far, aggression can spiral out of control, when personal attacks are to the fore it can often be ugly.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has updated the archives of targeted attack - responding to disparaging comments from Rafael Benitez's wife by stating she should monitor her husband's diet more closely.
Not nice, but perhaps mild in comparison to some of the attacks BBC Sport unearthed when looking back at harsh words or actions of recent times.
'An out of control womaniser'
Who said it? Palermo president Maurizio Zamparini
Who was the target? Northern Ireland striker Kyle Lafferty
What did he say? "He is an out-of-control womaniser, an Irishman without rules. He is someone who disappears for a week and goes on the hunt for women in Milan.
"He has two families with six children, he never trains, he's completely off the rails. On the field he's a great player, because he gave us everything he had and more.
"In terms of his behaviour, however, he is uncontrollable. My coach told me he cannot sort this player out, so he has to go."
What did Lafferty say? "Everything he has said is a joke. It's a bit embarrassing because I definitely didn't just go out hunting for women.
"Basically, he only said it because the Palermo supporters didn't want me to leave and he had to say something to justify the decision to sell me."
The result? Two days later, Norwich City beckoned - Lafferty's sixth club - and last season, the Canaries loaned the 27-year-old to Turkish side Caykur Rizespor.
A knockout stiletto
The 62-year-old mother of British lightweight boxer Tony Wilson entered the ring in Southampton in 1989 to attack her son's opponent, leaving Steve McCarthy in need of four stitches.
So who won the bout? Wilson by technical knockout. McCarthy left the ring believing he won but refused to return when asked, citing the damage to his head from the shoe. So you could say, pensioner Minna Wilson, landed the definitive blow.
'A bidet is a mystery to them'
Who said it? Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis
Who was the target? The English
What he said: "If they want to go to England then in the end they're going to go. But they need to understand this: the English live badly, eat badly and their women do not wash their genitalia. To them, a bidet is a mystery."
The case against Carlton
Who said it? Ex-Saints boss Dave Jones
Who was the target? Towering England midfielder Carlton Palmer
What he said: "He covers every blade of grass, but that's only because his first touch is crap," said ex-Saints boss Dave Jones.
Harsh? Jones was not alone in his thoughts. "Carlton Palmer can trap the ball further than I can kick it," said Ron Atkinson, who managed Palmer at Wednesday.
The fashion put-down
Who said it? Basketball star Kevin Garnett
Who was the target? American sideline reporter Craig Sager
What he said: "Tonight, I am stressing to you, you take this outfit home and you burn it.
"I know you don't double back with outfits, I've never seen you in the same one twice but you take this and you burn it. When you get done with this, you should be butt-ass naked, and the shoes too. Burn it. Handkerchief, lime thong, burn it. Gasoline, kerosene, either one."
'All it has is Robin Hood... and he's dead'
Who said it? Former Nottingham Forest striker Bryan Roy (on his move from Hertha Berlin)
Who was the target? The city of Nottingham
What he said: "Berlin has everything. It is a cosmopolitan city with theatres and the people are open-minded. They are not as narrow-minded like the people in Nottingham. There are no theatres, no cinemas, hardly anything. All Nottingham has is Robin Hood… and he's dead".
The cloaked attack
Who said it? Wales striker Craig Bellamy
Who was the target? Chelsea captain John Terry
What he said: "I know what JT is like and nothing surprises me about him so I'm not going to comment on the guy. I think everyone in football knows what he's like."
The wide-open attack
Who said it? Republic of Ireland midfielder Roy Keane
Who was the target? National coach Mick McCarthy
"You're a f****** w*****. I didn't rate you as a player, I don't rate you as a manager, and I don't rate you as a person. You can stick your World Cup up your a***. The only reason I have any dealings with you is that somehow you are the manager of my country! You can stick it up your b*******."
The reaction: Then, and only then, did Keane go home from Ireland's World Cup base in Saipan
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