With the conclusion of matchday eight last weekend, the English Premier League table has started to take shape as we move into the second international break of the season. This includes those at the top of the table, where teams are trying to stake an early claim and put themselves in the running for the title come the end of the season.
Read on as we look at who has the upper hand in this seasons title race so far:
City Still Favourites
When talking about English Premier League titles in recent years, it’s been hard not to mention the reigning champions Manchester City. Pep Guardiola’s side have become a behemoth since the Spaniard took charge with them winning five of the last seven league titles. This wealth of winning experience makes it hard to not bet on Manchester City winning the title yet again this season, which would make them the first English side to win the Premier League title four years in a row.
However, Man City may not have the easiest run to the title this year as they have in some of their past title wins.
Man City to win the league: 1.73
Statement made by Arsenal
Arsenal joined the title race in a big way last year, as they jumped up from a fifth place finish the year before to becoming Man City’s biggest challengers. Despite leading the league for the majority of the season, Arsenal did slip up in the later stages and the experience of City took over as they went on to win the title by five points.
But with huge additions to Arsenal’s already star-studded squad, with the most notable being Declan Rice, the Gunners are sure to be up for the challenge again this season. The 1-0 win against Manchester City was a major statement by the Gunners, considering it had been eight years since they beat City in the league. The manner of victory will give them great hope of going one better than last season.
Arsenal to win the league: 4.85
Tottenham the outsiders
While it is admittedly still very early in the season, the way that Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur side have been playing gives them every chance to be in and around the title race if they can keep it up until the end of the season. However, a lack of quality squad depth could be detrimental to their efforts if a key player such as James Maddison gets an injury.
Tottenham to win the league: 12.00
Liverpool back in contention
The final likely challenger see’s the return of Liverpool into the mix. An extremely disappointing last season saw them fall down into fifth place with a huge 25 points less than the season before when they finished second by one point. This year looks like they may be back to their best though, with them scoring 18 and conceding nine in eight games, losing just once and sitting on 17 points. With Mohamed Salah still putting up highly impressive attacking numbers, picking up five goals and four assists in the eight games so far, we can see Liverpool putting up a good challenge again this season.
Liverpool to win the league: 6.25
Regardless of all this, we still expect Manchester City to show their overwhelming quality and go on to break records and win yet another English Premier League title.
