The English Premier League is the most-watch division around the world and it attracts some of the biggest stars to its stage. It is a hugely competitive 20-strong division which regularly serves up plenty of entertainment on a weekly basis.

The season begins in August and will conclude in early-May. From the 2019-2020 season onwards, the league will take a winter break which will reduce the hectic schedule which takes place throughout December and January.

Apart from Leicester’s unexpected against-the-odds success in 2016, the Premier League title has generally been shared between four clubs over the last decade. The top teams regularly compete to finish in the top four positions the incentive of qualifying for the Champions League. Teams who finish directly below will be automatically entered into the Europa League. The bottom three sides are relegated to the second tier.

There are one or two midweek fixture lists throughout the season but the majority of games are played at the weekend.

It is a hugely popular league and TV rights are sold worldwide. Iconic teams such as Manchester United and Liverpool have fans who travel from afar to watch their games whereas the league provides a huge financial boost to teams who are lucky enough to get promoted from the Championship.

Manchester United are the most decorated side in the division although the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City have enjoyed the most success over the last five years.

Prediction Report

The odds for the Premier League are often released before the previous season has concluded and the outright market is always one of the most popular ante-post markets available to punters. All of the best UK bookmakers have prices for the English top tier and the odds will fluctuate throughout the campaign.

At the end of June, Manchester City were the favourites and the implied probability suggested that Pep Guardiola’s men would be dominant throughout the course of the season. Liverpool were behind the Citizens with the Reds having a 16.67% implied probability of securing their first title in over twenty years. Liverpool’s probability increased to 17.31% in August after the club signed Alisson, Fabinho and Naby Keita. After reaching the Champions League final in May, the Reds were looking to strengthen their squad and this cause a bookmakers to reduce their price accordingly.

BigBetBookmakers.com predicted that Manchester United would come third this season with season with an implied probability of 13.33% but their lack of summer spending saw that drop to 12.90% in August. Jose Mourninho’s side have made a disastrous start to the campaign with the Portuguese manager facing criticism from fans and the media.

London duo Chelsea and Spurs also featured in many people’s predictions although the pair were given just 9.09% and 8.03% implied probability respectively. Spurs’ price drifted out and their probability went down to just 6.90% following the World Cup. The summer tournament saw the majority of their starting XI feature in the latter stages with the likes of Harry Kane, Eric Dier, Kieran Trippier and Hugo Lloris getting very little time off ahead of the new season getting underway.

Chelsea’s probability also decreased but this may have been affected by Maurizio Sarri’s appointment at Stamford Bridge. The former Napoli coach was an unknown in the British game and that could have caused the price to lengthen. Their price also lengthened after they were easily swept aside by Manchester City in the Community Shield at the beginning of August. The Blues went into that fixture without a number of key players including Eden Hazard and Ngolo Kante.

Last Season

Last season, Manchester City easily wrapped up the title by accumulating 100 points. Pep’s side finished 18 points ahead of Manchester United and their dominance was the main reason for their short odds this time around. After winning the title in such a convincing fashion, they were always likely to have the biggest implied probability going into this season.

Manchester United finished second but Liverpool could only finish fourth. Jurgen Klopp chose to focus on the Champions League and that was partly to blame for their poor finishing position in the Premier League. They have the second best chance according to the probability chart based on the strength of their squad and their record against top six rivals.

Spurs could only finish third last year with Chelsea back in fifth. It was Antonio Conte’s last season in charge in West London and a fresh start was definitely required at Stamford Bridge.