Imagine me holding a cup of coffee behind a sign that says: The English Premier League is the best domestic league in the world. Change my mind. To be honest, I’m not going to change my mind, but you can try.
Fifteen games into the season, there are two points between first and third place. Also, two members of the Big Six club aren’t in the top five. Finally, Newcastle is the living proof that you can buy a team, but you can’t buy chemistry.
Manchester City is now the betting online favorite to win it all.
English Premier League Breakdown
New Leader
Manchester City won its fifth straight game and finally climbed to the top. They beat Watford 3-1 with two goals from Bernardo Silva and one more from Raheem Sterling. They also must thank West Ham United because the Hammers beat Chelsea 3-2.
Those results allowed the Citizens to sit in first place with 35 points, two more than the Blues. We’re also talking about the two best defensive teams in the league. Both have allowed only nine goals.
On the other hand, Liverpool is the top-scoring team with 44 goals. That’s 12 more than City and nine more than Chelsea. The Reds sit in second place with 34 points after beating Wolverhampton 1-0. They’ve won four in a row.
Closing the top four, meaning the four teams that qualify for the UEFA Champions League, we’ve West Ham. The Hammers managed to turn things around against Chelsea twice! Arthur Masuaku scored the winning goal with only three minutes left on the clock.
All four are soccer betting favorites towards the weekend. Manchester City more than any other thanks to a -600 price to beat Wolverhampton.
Antonio Conte’s Effect
Tottenham had a bad start. So bad, that the front office decided to fire Nuno Espirito Santo and signed Antonio Conte. Last season, Conte led Inter Milan to its first Serie A title since 2010. They also put an end to Juventus’ nine titles run.
Tottenham started to improve the minute Conte was announced, and they’ve kept doing it. They haven’t lost in their last four games. Most recently, they beat Norwich 3-0 with goals from Lucas Moura, Davinson Sanchez, and Son Heung-min. That was their second straight clean sheet as well.
Now they sit in fifth place with 25 points, one more than Manchester United. The Red Devils also have a new head coach, Ralf Rangnick. He started on the right foot by beating Crystal Palace 1-0.
Both will hit the road this weekend. Tottenham to face Brighton and Manchester United to face Norwich. I recommend you include both in your soccer picks, the Spurs at +205 and the Red Devils at -210.
Last Places
I don’t recommend you include Norwich, Newcastle, and Burnley. All three sit in the relegation zone and have won only one of their last three games.
Curiously enough, all three have 10 points, but Norwich owns a -23 goal differential. No other team has allowed more goals than them with 31.
Newcastle won last week, but they beat…Burnley. Their next two matches won’t be easy at all, they’ll be visiting Leicester City and Liverpool. Newcastle was recently bought by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. Things changed outside the field, but not on it.
Top Scorers
If you were wondering how Liverpool can score so many goals, here are three answers: Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, and Sadio Mane. All three are among the EPL’s top scorers. Salah leads the pack with 13 goals, while Jota has scored eight and Mane seven.
Salah is followed by Jamie Vardy from Leicester City with nine goals. The Foxes aren’t having a good season, but Vardy always delivers. If you want to include a dark horse in your sports betting ticket, he’s the one.
We also have one player from Manchester City, Bernardo Silva. Everyone was expecting a huge season from Jack Grealish or Gabriel Jesus, but Silva has been playing a lot better. He has scored seven goals.
Individual success doesn’t always translate into team success. Liverpool and Manchester City are very lucky.
