TEAMtalk's Rob McCarthy delivers his predictions for the 2012-13 campaign, tipping cup glory for Tottenham and woe for West Brom and Wigan.

Premier League top six: Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool.

Sir Alex Ferguson will have been hurt by last season's last-gasp title defeat but United are still one or two players short of stopping neighbours City claiming back-to-back titles for me, although the possible arrival of Robin van Persie could alter that.

Shinji Kagawa will add energy to their midfield but City should, they hope, have Carlos Tevez all season and a potential three-pronged attack of Tevez, Sergio Aguero and Mario Balotelli should fire them to title glory once again.

Chelsea have bought really well so far but I see them falling short of mounting a title challenge. Robert Di Matteo did a terrific job of moulding a strong defensive unit last season but I'm not convinced he'll figure out how to get the best out of all the attacking weapons he now has at his disposal.

It will surprise no-one that I'm tipping Tottenham to pip Arsenal and Liverpool to the final Champions League spot, but only if they add a couple of top-class strikers to an already-talented squad. They also have a manager in AVB who will be desperate to show he can succeed in England.

Alan Pardew's Newcastle side are likely be in the mix but an RvP-less Arsenal will finish fifth and Liverpool should improve enough under Brendan Rodgers to round off the top six.

Premier League bottom three: West Brom, Reading, Wigan.

I seem to tip Wigan to go down every season but Roberto Martinez's men always seem to find a way to drag themselves away from danger - surely not this time though. Victor Moses is seemingly on his way and it's difficult for Martinez to attract top players to the DW Stadium, so they will surely suffer this time around.

Reading were terrific in the Championship last season but I don't think they're ready to step back in with the big boys, while West Brom's appointment of Steve Clarke, after the safe and steady hands of Roy Hodgson, was a poor one for me and a tough start could ultimately cost them.

Leading Prem scorer: Sergio Aguero - Manchester City.

The Argentine hitman did superbly to notch 23 goals in his first season in the Premier League and will only get better with a full campaign now under his belt.

First Prem manager to be sacked: Steve Clarke - West Brom.

Clarke has done his best work as a coach and I'm not convinced he has it in him to become a successful manager. The Baggies will probably try and stick with him for as long as possible but I think that stubborness will ultimately cost them their place in the top flight.

Biggest Prem flop: Pavel Pogrebnyak - Reading.

The Russian hitman made a strong start during his loan spell at Fulham last season but when the goals dried up so did Martin Jol's interest in signing the 28-year-old permanently.

Okay so it was a free transfer move to The Madejski but he would have got a fair old signing-on fee and will be on hefty wages and I just don't see him scoring the goals to keep Reading up.

FA Cup winners: Manchester United.

There were will be some silverware at United this season as they snatch their 12th success in the competition.

Capital One Cup winners: Tottenham.

I see this as more of a priority for AVB than the Europa League and Spurs will repeat their success of 2008.

Champions League winners: Real Madrid.

Having won La Liga last season this will be Jose Mourinho's priority without a doubt and Real will attack it with all guns blazing.

Europa League winners: Newcastle.

Such a hard competition to predict, given that the drop outs from the Champions League are not known, but if they take it seriously I really think that Newcastle could go all the way.

Championship top six: Blackburn, Middlesbrough, Cardiff, Wolves, Bolton, Leeds.

This is close your eyes and grab a pin for me, in what has to be the most difficult league to predict. Rovers, however, have recruited pretty well and will be up there all season, even if they give Steve Kean the boot early doors and get in a more competent manager. As for the rest, I'll admit there is some guesswork there and they could finish in any order.

Leading Championship scorer: Kevin Doyle - Wolves.

With Steven Fletcher seemingly on his way, Doyle will once again be the main man for Wolves and his international pedigree should see him dominate the goal-scoring charts in this division.

League One champions: Sheffield United.

The Blades were unlucky to miss out on promotion last season but I think they'll do the business this time around.

League Two champions: Rotherham.

I normally tip Bradford every year but as a favour to my Bantams buddies in the office I'm going to steer clear of them and back Steve Evans to lead Rotherham to title success.

SPL top three: Celtic, Motherwell, Dundee United.

What used to be a toss of a coin will now be a title procession for the Bhoys, who could have it wrapped with 10 games to spare.

SPL top-scorer: Gary Hooper - Celtic.

The former Scunthorpe hitman notched 24 times last season and with no games against Rangers this term should break the 30-goal mark.