With the first month of the new English Premier League (EPL) season completed, it’s a good time to take stock and see which teams are shaping up and which ones look like having more difficult seasons than first feared. If you’re someone that likes finding value in EPL wagers for the rest of the season, read on as we make four clear predictions for the 2019-20 campaign based on what we’ve seen so far.
Before we begin those predictions, it’s worth pointing out that if you enjoy futures betting on teams in the EPL, you’ll be interested to hear that FOXBet has launched a new EPL betting service online, offering some of the most competitive lines for soccer fans to wager on. It’s possible they will be offering markets on some of the following predictions below:
Tottenham to miss out on a top four finish
Tottenham fans will be mightily disappointed that their side were unable to hold onto their two-goal lead against bitter rivals Arsenal. Maurizio Pochettino’s men lacked intensity and vigour in the second half after going into the half-time break two goals to the good. Many leading pundits intimated that the Spurs backline was too passive and did not impose itself enough on the Arsenal front line and eventually paid the price late on.
The effectiveness of Spurs is still largely based around the fitness and form of two or three players. Harry Kane is the team’s obvious talisman, while South Korean Son is equally as important to Spurs’ counter-attacking style. The team is also heavily reliant on the creativity of Danish playmaker, Christian Eriksen, who is said to be keen to leave the club for La Liga. With such wafer-thin squad depth and players seemingly wanting out, it’s unlikely Spurs will have the tools to seal a Champions League berth in 2019-20.
Sheffield United to avoid an immediate return to the Championship
Blades boss, Chris Wilder insists his side haven’t been promoted to the EPL just to make up the numbers. That’s been underlined by their encouraging start to the 2019-20 campaign, which has seen them lose just one of their first four games. A draw at Chelsea proves that Sheffield United are not going to be easy to beat this campaign. Their unique playing style, which sees centre backs overlapping full backs on occasion, will cause confusion and problems for many EPL teams.
Neither Wilder or his players fear relegation and are clearly playing with freedom right now. Despite being two goals down at Stamford Bridge, they continued to have faith in their way of playing. The Blades have spent some decent money on strengthening their squad compared with other Premier League new boys, Norwich, and look better placed than their Norfolk counterparts to survive relegation.
Wolves to limp to a bottom half finish
Wolverhampton Wanderers are without a win in their first four league games of the season. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men have had other things on their mind of late, most notably qualification for the group stages of the Europa League. Wanderers are heading into unknown territory when it comes to playing midweek European games alongside the bread and butter of the Premier League. Whether their squad can cope with the extensive schedule remains to be seen. Other similar sized clubs have failed to do so in the past. The most high-profile fall from grace was Ipswich Town, who finished 5th in 2001 and ended up being relegated the following year due largely to a gruelling European campaign.
The Molineux faithful will have to hope that Mexican striker, Raul Jimenez can keep up his goalscoring form, whose goals should be enough alone to keep Wanderers away from the bottom three.
West Ham to push hard for a Europa League place
West Ham United finished last season strongly and appear to be taking that good form into 2019-20. The Hammers confidently despatched Norwich City 2-0 on home soil in what midfielder, Mark Noble, described as West Ham’s most complete performance for many a season. Pellegrini’s men finally have a talisman in attack they can rely on, with Sebastien Haller looking like a dynamic addition to the United squad.
With the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea looking less than consistent, Tottenham are still very dependant upon a couple of players. It opens the door to the likes of West Ham to push for a top six finish and a chance to play back in Europe. One thing’s for sure, the EPL will spring plenty of surprises at both ends of the table this season. Although City and Liverpool look like leading the way once again, there’ll be plenty of twists and turns elsewhere to profit from.
