English Premier League Preview


English Premier League 2019/2020 Preview

It has been a barren 88 days since the curtain fell on the 2018/19 season of the English Premier League. Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City narrowly pipped Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool by 98 points to 97 to retain the league following their tally of 100 points in the 2017/18 season. However, it’s a new season with some new teams, new managers and new players.

As far as teams go, we’ll take a look at the likely title favourites, the jostle for the coveted top four places as well as who’s likely to fall out of the top flight come the 17th of May 2020. Soccer is a team sport consisting of individuals and we’ll be highlighting which of those individuals will excel in front of goal and end up as the leading goal-scorer as well as the creative whizzes who create those goal-scoring chances. Finally, what is a Premier League season without a managerial debate?

 The pre-season betting markets suggest that we’re in for another two-horse race between Man City (1/2) and Liverpool (11/4) at the summit of the table. There’s movement in the rest of the top six however as last season’s fourth-placed Tottenham is the next best-priced team at 18/1. Surprisingly Manchester United (1/1) narrowly edge out Chelsea (11/10) in the top four race with Arsenal coming in at 5/4 to finish in a Champions League place.

 

Winner

Top 4

1) Manchester City

(1/2)

(1/50)

2) Liverpool

(11/4)

(1/14)

3) Tottenham

(18/1)

(11/20)

4) Manchester United

(33/1)

(1/1)

5) Chelsea

(33/1)

(11/10)

6) Arsenal

(50/1)

(5/4)

 

At the opposite end of the spectrum, last season’s 17th placed side Brighton and Hove Albion, who sacked their manager Chris Hughton after avoiding the dreaded drop by 2 points, are priced at 9/5 to be the best-placed relegated team. Norwich make a return to the big time after a three-year hiatus in the Championship and Daniel Farke’s Canaries are the bookies second-favourites at 19/20 to make an immediate return to the second tier of English football. It comes as no surprise that another of the recently promoted teams, Sheffield United, are heavily favoured to be rooted to the basement of the table and drop out of the Premier League come May 2020.

 

 

To be relegated

To finish bottom

17) Burnley

(9/5)

(13/2)

18) Brighton

(9/5)

(1/7)

19) Norwich

(19/20)

(7/2)

20) Sheffield

(4/6)

(5/2)

 

In terms of individuals, last years’ trio of leading goal-scorers, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane and shared the accolade with Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after scoring 22 goals each. They have been priced at 11/2, 14/1 and 8/1 respectively to be this year's Top Goal Scorer. Interestingly Spurs marksman Harry Kane who spent a large chunk of the previous season on the sidelines due to injury is the favourite to reclaim the golden boot at 9/2. The top 10 leading contenders are as follows:

 

Top goal-scorer

Kane, Harry

(9/2)

Agüero, Sergio

(5/1)

Salah, Mohamed

(11/2)

Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick

(8/1)

Mané, Sadio

(14/1)

Sterling, Raheem

(16/1)

Vardy, Jamie

(20/1)

Gabriel Jesus

 (25/1)

Lacazette, Alexandre

 (25/1)

Rashford, Marcus

 (25/1)

 

Goals don’t make themselves and just like the saying, “behind every successful man lies a strong woman,” it can be said that “behind every successful goal-scorer lies a creative maestro.” The assists chart was topped by Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, who has since moved on to Real Madrid, with 15 assists last season. Manchester City’s Belgian maestro Kevin de Bruyn is the early favourite to lead his peers at 5/2. However, there’s a good value for Bournemouth’s winger Ryan Fraser (7/1), who finished second last season with 14 assists. Arsenal’s record signing Nicolas Pepe, who scored 22 goals and had 11 assists with Lille in Ligue 1, the French top division last year, is priced at 11/1. The top 10 candidates for the most assists are as follows:

 

Most assists

De Bruyne, Kevin

 (5/2)

Alexander-Arnold, Trent

(13/2)

Sterling, Raheem

(13/2)

Eriksen, Christian

(7/1)

Fraser, Ryan

(7/1)

Salah, Mohamed

(7/1)

Firmino, Roberto

(11/1)

Pepe, Nicolas

(11/1)

Robertson, Andrew

(11/1)

Silva, Bernardo

(11/1)

 

The 2019/20 season will also see the emergence of a Premier League legend take to the field as a manager of a top-flight club for the first time. Frank Lampard was named manager of his beloved Chelsea after former boss Maurizio Sarri parted ways with the West London club to take the helm at Juventus in his native Italy. Lampard spent 16 seasons at the Blues as a player and after just one season as the Manager of Derby in the Championship, he returns to take the reins at Stamford Bridge. In all competitions, Lampard was in charge of 57 matches as Derby manager, winning 24, drawing 17 and losing 16 to leave him with a respectable win ratio of 42.1%. However, his inexperience at the very top counts against him and he’s among the top 8 candidates to be given the sack first!

 

 

Next Head Coach/Manager to leave

Bruce, Steve – Newcastle

(4/1)

Gunnar Solskjaer, Ole – Man U

(6/1)

Potter, Graham - Brighton

(6/1)

Hodgson, Roy – Crystal Palace

(10/1)

Pellegrini, Manuel – West Ham

(12/1)

Wilder, Chris - Sheffield

(12/1)

Farke, Daniel - Norwich

(14/1)

Lampard, Frank - Chelsea

(14/1)

 

Sunbet offers unmatched Premier League betting markets and we’ve barely scratched the surface on what you can bet on this season! It’s going to be a long and glorious season ahead and come May next year we will know if it will be the Citizens who will make it a remarkable three-in-a-row, if Liverpool can go one better and break their Premier League hoodoo or if Spurs can win their maiden Premier League title under the tutelage of their Argentine supremo Mauricio Pochettino. Maybe one of the former Champions, Manchester United, Chelsea or Arsenal can roll back the years.