It may only be September but the 2017/18 Premier League season is already shaping up to be another thrilling journey for fans and punters alike. With just a handful of games played, we are beginning to see some title favourites emerge, not to mention a couple of clubs that look like dead certs for the drop.
You may have already placed your wagers on outright markets such as the overall winner or will get relegated. If you placed any pre-season bets on Manchester City or Manchester United then we are sure that you will be feeling pretty chuffed considering that the city rivals are currently sitting at the top of the table equal on points and equal on goal difference.
If you forgot to get your early outright bets in, then you might have already missed your opportunity to find those good-value odds for those lucrative potential wins. The fact of the matter is that odds on City to win the league have already dropped from odds of 19/10 to 11/10 while United have shortened from 4/1 to 3/1. While there is still a long way to go, you’re going to have to take a long-shot punt on the likes of Chelsea (6/1), Tottenham (16/1) or Liverpool (25/1), if you want to find better profit potential for the Premier League winner market.
Fortunately for us bettors, online sportsbooks have plenty of other betting opportunities available, many of which make for some interesting wagers and some (hopefully) rewarding returns.
Player of the Year – Kevin De Bruyne 7/1 (SkyBet)
This bet has caught the eye of many a bettor, and it’s not too hard to see why. The Manchester City midfielder has spent a couple of seasons in the Premier League now and he appears to be getting better every year. De Bruyne managed to assist the most goals out of any player in the league last season (18 in 36 appearances) and he has already set up 3 in 5 games so far this term. It isn’t too far-fetched at all to imagine that the Belgian player follows in the steps of his compatriot Eden Hazard to win the prestigious award and odds 7/1 aren’t too shabby at all.
One thing to keep in mind when placing this bet is that the award is usually won by a player who picks up a Premier League winner’s medal at the end of the season. This has happened in the past three years so the outcome of the award could easily be linked to the performance of the team as well as the performance of the individual. Other options worth checking out would be Manchester United players Romelu Lukaku (10/1) and Paul Pogba (12/1) as well as Sergio Aguero (12/1) at City. Harry Kane (10/1) is in amongst it all but, since Tottenham have a slim chance of winning the league, the English striker will need to win the Golden Boot at the very least.
Young Player of the Year – Marcus Rashford 4/1 (PaddyPower)
The PFA also recognises young talent in the Premier League with the Young Player of the Year Award. The accolade can be won by any player who begins the season aged 23 or under and it has been won by Spurs midfielder Dele Alli on the past two occasions. Alli is still only 21 years old so he is eligible to win it for a third time, something that has never been done in the 44 year history of the award. However, after some unsavoury on-field antics in a World Cup qualifier match for England, we can see the 5/1 player losing favour amongst his peers and the voters of the award.
Along with Alli, the other front-runners for the award include Man City’s new boy Gabriel Jesus (11/4). The 20-year old Brazilian striker has got off to a flyer this season with 4 goals under his name already and he could continue this form as City continue to show dominance and lethal attacking intent on the pitch. Then there is Marcus Rashford (4/1) who isn’t quite as prolific in front of goal Jesus, but still has 2 goals and 1 assist to his name. One thing that might persuade you to lean towards Rashford is that the award has only been won by a non-British player on 5 occasions, suggesting a tendency to award to home-grown talent over .
Highest Scoring Team – Liverpool 10/1 (BetVictor)
Every football fan wants to see goals and goals can be a bettor’s best friend with loads of game markets which revolve around the how many goals are scored, who scores the goals and when the goals are scored. Goals are also at the centre of some outright markets too, with options to bet on the Top Goalscorer for the season (Romelu Lukaku is top of this one at 3/1). However, one goal-based market that has caught our eye is the Highest Scoring Team market. The reason for this is because the odds appear to be somewhat eschewed in the favour of Manchester City and Manchester United, who are essentially the favourites to win the league.
The interesting thing is that the highest scoring team hasn’t won the league in the past three seasons. This is no doubt indicative of the shift towards defensive team set-ups with a view to manage games rather than going out to simply outscore the opponent. However, there are teams out there which still stand-by the latter tactic, even if it does mean that they jeopardise their title credentials. Liverpool, for example, are a very popular bet for the Highest Scoring Team market with odds of 10/1 while Tottenham are also worth a punt at 14/1. We don’t see much value in backing Manchester United at 5/2 considering Jose Mourinho’s tendency to “park the bus” against bigger teams and backing Manchester City at 1/2 just doesn’t offer much value even though Pep Guardiola’s attacking philosophy is well capable of leading the team to the title as top scorers.
Without Big 6 – Newcastle 11/1 (SkyBet)
The great thing about the Premier League is that it is one of the most competitive football leagues in the world. Whilst most leagues are dominated by two or three teams (if that), the Premier League is has at least six clubs with the pedigree, history and financial power to be considered as feasible title contenders each season.
But, it’s still important to remember that there are other clubs involved in the competition other than Manchester City, Mancheter United, Chelsea, Totteham, Liverpool and Arsenal. And if you’ve ever imagined how “the rest” would do without the top clubs, then you might like to consider placing a bet on the W/O Big 6 market. The favourites for this market are Everton at 2/1 and you can see why when you look at their squad of Wayne Rooney, Morgan Schneiderlin and Gylfi Sigurdsson. However, the gulf in quality has shown so far this season as the Toffees have lost games against ‘bigger’ teams like Manchester United and Chelsea while being held to a draw at Man City.
If you’re looking for some more lucrative winning potential then you might be looking at backing Southampton at 11/4, Leicester at 7/1 and Newcastle at 11/1. The latter of these teams have impressed on their return to the Premier League having brushed aside opponents like West Ham, Stoke City and Swansea City, showing that they are more than capable of being up there as one of the best of the rest.
