We are in the middle of the second international break, and at this point in the season it’s time to evaluate the race to win the Premier League. Coming into the season, Manchester City were favored to repeat per the soccer betting odds, while Liverpool were seen as the team most likely to knock them off their perch. Through the first eight games of the season, it’s looking very likely that one of those two teams will win the 2018-19 Premier League, and they are still the heavy favorites to finish top of the table. However, Chelsea is tied with the two favorites at 20 points, so you can’t count out the Blues.
English Premier League Betting at BookMaker.eu
Manchester City -150
Liverpool +225
Chelsea +900
Tottenham Hotspur +3500
Arsenal +4000
Manchester United +7500
Everton +75000
Wolverhampton +80000
Leicester City +90000
West Ham +100000
Field +20000
Manchester City
City brought back their entire lineup after smashing all sorts of Premier League records en route to a title last season. They even got stronger with the addition of Riyad Mahrez, so it’s no surprise to see the Citizens dominating once more. They have scored more goals than any other team (21), are tied for the lead in goals allowed (3), and their +18 goal differential is five goals higher than any other team.
They are set to get even stronger too after the break. Kevin De Bruyne has been sidelined by injury for almost the entire campaign to this point, but he is nearly ready to take the field again. He is considered questionable to play in City’s next match, and that would make topping this team even more of an uphill battle.
However, not all is lost. European opponents have seemed to find a way to test City, as they have not fared well in their Champions League matches so far. Lyon knocked off Manchester City in the Etihad, and Hoffenheim nearly secured a draw against the club last week. Premier League teams are likely to intently look over film from those two games for weaknesses.
Liverpool
The Reds have been very competitive this year, and they are tied with City atop the table after the two sides played to a 0-0 draw last Sunday. However, it’s interesting to note that they have been winning games in a somewhat unexpected manner thus far.
Last year, Liverpool relied on their attack to win games. Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, and Roberto Firmino were devastatingly effective and Jurgen Klopp was able to unleash them on opponents. Liverpool haven’t been bad in the opponents’ end this season, but they have been relying on their defense to win matches instead. They have allowed just three goals this year, and Alisson has been performing great in net.
It will be interesting to see whether the team continues to heavily lean on their defense going forward, or if they start to press on the attack more.
Chelsea
Eden Hazard has been the best player in the Premier League through the first two months of the season. Hazard has seven goals and three assists through eight league matches, and he is thriving with Maurizio Sarri giving him the freedom to run all over the pitch.
For Chelsea to really challenge, a complementary scorer needs to emerge. Pedro, Alvaro Morata, and Olivier Giroud have all looked good in spurts, but no one has provided the Blues a consistent second option to Hazard.
Rest of the Field
We’ll see whether or not Tottenham can compete for the league title over the next few weeks. Spurs have already dropped two matches, and both Hugo Lloris and Harry Kane have had slow starts to the year. Their next three Premier League tilts are away against West Ham, home against Manchester City, and away against Wolverhampton, and that stretch could make or break their season.
Arsenal are the only other team with something of a real chance to win the Premier League according to the EPL betting odds. The Gunners have won six in a row after dropping matches to Manchester City and Chelsea to start the season, and they have looked very good on the attack. However, until they get a win against another top club it’s hard to trust this team.
English Premier League Odds
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