One month and four matches into the 2015 2016 English Premier League season, there have already been a fair share of surprises and unexpected turns of events. From the inexplicable success of Crystal Palace, to the complete implosion of Jose Mourinho's Chelsea football club squad, August has been an eventful month in the EPL. But does the first month of EPL play 2015 provide any indication of where the season could be going? Or will the season's remaining 34 fixtures restore the table to a more usual and predictable outcome?

Manchester City: The Clear Season Frontrunners

If there's one thing that has been revealed by the first month of Premier League play, it's that Manchester City are the clear frontrunners to win the title come next May. A year ago, Chelsea very clearly announced themselves as title contenders, winning their first four EPL matches, and never giving up the top spot in the league standings after the very first week of play.

This year, Manchester City are in a very similar place: they won their first match to establish a spot in first place (beating West Bromwich Albion 3-0 in an away fixture), and racked up three more wins in August (against Chelsea, Everton, and Watford) to keep their momentum alive.

In fact, the wearers of the Manchester City home jersey 2015 2016 are downright perfect after their first four games. For one thing, they're the only football club in the league who have won all four of their matches so far-and one of three teams on the table with an undefeated record. For another, they have a +10 goal difference, after scoring 10 goals without conceding any. No other squads in the division have a GD above +3, and Joe Hart's run of four clean sheets makes him the natural candidate to win this year's Golden Glove award, for the second year in a row.

Add the fact that Man City trounced the defending champions from Chelsea 3-0 in the second week of competition, and it seems like the Sky Blues are hell bent on returning to the top of the Premier League this year.

Other Contenders

No team can really touch Manchester City in terms of either point tally or goal difference right now.
Interestingly, the clubs that are the closest to the Sky Blues after four games are not the ones you would necessarily expect.

Indeed, the teams closest to Man City at this point are Crystal Palace, Leicester City, and Swansea City. Crystal Palace have won three of their four games, losing to Arsenal in week two, but scoring a surprising win against Chelsea (and at Stamford Bridge, no less) in week four.

Leicester and Swansea, meanwhile, are the two other undefeated clubs on the table at the moment, each with two wins and two draws to their name. Each squad also boasts one of the early stars of the new season: Swansea's Bafétimbi Fredius Gomis and Leicester's Riyad Mahrez (along with Bournemouth's Callum Winters) are leading the league in goals right now, with four apiece. In comparison, Man City's summer transfer (the £49 million Raheem Sterling) has only scored one goal in the first four weeks of the Premier League.

Heavyweight Disappointments

As for the other heavyweights of the EPL, they have mostly disappointed in the first month of the 2015 2016 Premier League. Manchester United are in fifth place, but have only won two of their games (and neither of those in resounding fashion), and lost to Swansea City in week four. Arsenal, in sixth place, have bounced back from their week one loss against West Ham United, but have also been slow to get started, with two wins, one draw, and one loss. And Liverpool are in the same boat, having spoiled their strong two-win start with a draw and a loss in weeks three and four.

But the biggest disappointment of the 2015 2016 soccer season has either been Chelsea or Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea have only won a single match so far (a 3-2 victory over West Bromwich Albion), but have lost notable fixtures to both Man City and Crystal Palace, and settled for a lukewarm draw against Swansea City in the first weekend of competition. Tottenham, meanwhile, despite a promising campaign in 2014 2015, were DOA in August, failing to win a single match, and with Harry Kane, last season's golden boy, ending the month with zero goals to his name.

What are your predictions for the remainder of the 2015 2016 Premier League football season? Will we be seeing the Sky Blue's at the top of the EPL podium come May? Will Crystal Palace, Swansea, and Leicester continue to surprise? Will Chelsea stage a comeback? At Soccer Box, we want to hear your thoughts! Find us on social media to chat with us and with other fans about English football. We are active daily on multiple networks including Facebook, Pinterest and Google +.