There are now just eight games to go in this season’s Premier League campaign and there is plenty to play for at both the top and bottom.
Here at InterBet we preview the Premier League outright odds over a two-part feature. We begin at the top, looking at the teams battling it out to win the Premier League and those aiming to claim a place in next season’s Champions League.
The second part of our feature will focus on the bottom half of the league table and the fight to avoid relegation whilst we also look at the players in contention for this season’s Golden Boot.
Title Race
Of course, we begin our Premier League preview by discussing the title race. For the first time in several years, the Premier League title race could be set to go down to the final day of the season.
Tottenham Hotspur’s recent slip-ups have left Liverpool as the only realistic challengers to Manchester City’s title defence. Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool are aiming to win their first league title since 1990 and are just one point behind holders, Manchester City.
Little over two months ago Liverpool held a commanding lead over City in the race for the title and looked destined to end their 29-year wait for a league title. However, a return of just three wins in seven games since the start of February has handed the advantage back to Manchester City.
It may be too much of a cliché to say that there are no easy games in the Premier League but in the coming weeks every one of Liverpool’s opponents will have a huge amount riding on the game. Liverpool’s five games throughout March and April will all be against sides in either the top six and fighting for Champions League qualification or in the bottom five and scrapping for their Premier League survival. Next up for Liverpool is a mouth-watering clash with Spurs at Anfield on March 31st.
Since the start of February, Manchester City have made a real statement of intent on the pitch. Pep Guardiola’s side have won six from six in the Premier League, retained the Carabao Cup and put one foot in the Champions League quarter final.
As they continue their push for an unprecedented quadruple, April promises to be a critical month in the club’s season. In the space of a week, City could be set to play the second leg of a Champions League quarter final (16/17th April), host Spurs at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday 20th before travelling to fierce rivals, Manchester United the following Wednesday (24th April).
Next Three Fixtures
Manchester City
Fulham (a)
Cardiff City (h)
Crystal Palace (a)
Liverpool
Fulham (a)
Tottenham Hotspur (h)
Southampton (a)
To win the Premier League
Manchester City – 17/50
Liverpool – 9/4
Top Four
At the turn of the year, Spurs were near-certainties for a top four finish and were seen as a dark-horse in the Premier League title race. However, the wheels have well and truly came off in the league recently and Mauricio Pochettino’s side have claimed just one point in their last four league games.
Their recent draw at home to Arsenal in the North London derby has done little to help boost morale at Spurs after three successive away losses at Burnley, Chelsea and Southampton leave them looking over their shoulders at the chasing pack.
Although Spurs remain odds-on at 4/6 to finish in the top four, they still have to travel to Anfield and the Etihad Stadium to take on Liverpool and Manchester City respectively. Coupled with at least two more Champions League games to come, the next few weeks will be a challenging one for the Spurs squad.
Behind Spurs, fierce rivals, Arsenal lead the chasing pack. The Gunners have enjoyed a fine run of form of late, culminating in the weekend’s win at home to Manchester United. Four wins and a draw from their last five league games have helped Arsenal break into the top four and many are backing them to stay there.
Arsenal have already played the other five teams in the top six both home and away and therefore have what is, undoubtedly the easiest run-in of all the teams pushing for Champions League qualification. The one concern hanging over Arsenal is their ability to manage their Premier League fixtures along with the demands of mid-week Europa League games.
With the worst attack and the meanest defence of the four sides in contention for the two remaining Champions League spots, Chelsea’s hopes of a top-four finish could be down to on-loan forward, Gonzalo Higuain.
The Argentine international has made a modest start to life in West London but his goals could be just what Chelsea need to claim a vital top-four spot. Like Arsenal, Chelsea have to juggle the Premier League with their current Europa League run. But, unlike their London neighbours, Chelsea have a couple of tough Premier League games in April. The Blues face away games at both Liverpool and Manchester United in April.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was seen as the saviour at Old Trafford after a fine start to his tenure as caretaker boss saw Manchester United go from sixth-placed also-rans to the bookies’ favourites to claim a top-four spot.
The Norwegian suffered his first Premier League defeat at Arsenal on the weekend to see United’s odds on a top four finish drift slightly. United remain odds-on at 9/10 but the bookies odds suggest that United could now finish below both Spurs and Chelsea.
Of the four teams clamouring for one of the two remaining Champions League spots, Manchester United are the only side still in this season’s FA Cup. With a Champions League quarter final also on the horizon, the United fixture list is set to be jam-packed throughout the coming weeks. They certainly have a squad big enough to cope with the demands of three competitions, providing they can keep their first team players away from the treatment table.
Sandwiched between the first and second legs of their Champions League quarter final, Manchester United host both Manchester City and Chelsea at Old Trafford in the Premier League. There’s no doubting that that ten-day period will make or break their season. The outcome of those games could also decide Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s long-term future. The caretaker boss is tipped by many to be named as Mourinho’s successor on a permanent basis.
Next Three Fixtures
Tottenham Hotspur
Liverpool (a)
Brighton & Hove Albion (h)
Huddersfield Town (h)
Chelsea
Everton (a)
Cardiff City (a)
West Ham United (h)
Manchester United
Watford (h)
Wolverhampton Wanderers (a)
West Ham United (h)
Arsenal
Newcastle (h)
Everton (a)
Watford (a)
Top Finish in Top Four
Tottenham Hotspur – 4/6
Chelsea – 4/6
Manchester United – 9/10
Arsenal – 6/4