Premier League Top Four Odds: Chelsea Still Favourites, But Man Utd Drift

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Premier League Top Four Odds: Chelsea Still Favourites, But Man Utd Drift
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The Premier League season is just four games old, but the fledgling table already has a familiar look about it.

Manchester City, going for a record-extending fifth successive title, have made a perfect start with four wins ahead of this weekend’s mouthwatering clash with second-placed Arsenal, runners-up for the last two years.

Football betting sites have City and the Gunners available at 1.08 for a top-four finish, while Liverpool, now playing under Arne Slot, are a best-priced 1.3 with Ladbrokes to grab one of the Champions League spots as they did last season.

But will there be another surprising team filling the final spot just like Aston Villa last season?

Gambling.com has taken a look at the latest Premier League top-four odds and assessed the clubs’ chances of playing at Europe’s top table the season after next.

It's all still to play for, so take a look at the odds below and consider using your free bets on the Premier League top-four market if you have any. 

Premier League top-four odds: Chelsea Still Favourites

Chelsea were the best of the rest at 2.75 before a ball had been kicked and although that remains the case, their odds have drifted to 2.87 with betting sites.

The Blues replaced Mauricio Pochettino with Enzo Maresca in the summer and the new man at the helm has made a reasonable start to the campaign aside from a 2-0 home defeat to champions City on the opening weekend.

Chelsea remain in danger of falling foul of the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules, but that did not prevent them from spending £220million during the summer transfer window, bringing in players like Pedro Neto, Joao Felix and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.

The west Londoners also brought in Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho on loan, but shipped out Raheem Sterling to Arsenal, so there has been plenty of movement in both directions which saw Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Romelu Lukaku (Napoli) and Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa) leave the club.

The jury is still out on this bloated squad which has picked up seven points from four games, including a 6-2 victory at Wolves where Noni Madueke bagged a hat-trick. 

Chelsea have won both of their away games and are at West Ham this weekend, but have yet to taste victory in front of their own fans.

Newcastle Can Benefit From Europe-Free Campaign

Manchester United’s FA Cup success denied seventh-placed Newcastle a place in the Europa Conference League, but that means they can focus all their energy on the domestic campaign.

The Magpies have taken advantage of a relatively easy start to the season by winning three of their first four matches, and are one of only five unbeaten teams in the Premier League.

Transfer activity was light during the summer which saw midfielder Elliot Anderson join Nottingham Forest, but the Tynesiders have hit the ground running and are 3.75 with new betting sites for a top-four finish.

Strong Start For Aston Villa

Aston Villa defied expectations by finishing fourth last season and have burst out of the blocks domestically and in Europe.

Villa made a raft of high-profile signings for their debut campaign in the Champions League and one of them, Amadou Onana, is already paying back his £50m transfer fee.

The former Everton midfielder has scored three goals in all competitions, although striker Jhon Duran has been hogging the headlines with some brilliant displays from off the bench.

Douglas Luiz made a £42m move to Juventus and Moussa Diaby joined the Saudi Arabia exodus for an undisclosed fee in the summer, but Villa have won three of their four Premier League games and crushed Young Boys 3-0 on their return to Europe’s top table.

Unai Emery’s side may be fighting on two fronts, but they remain 4.5 for another top-four finish, the same price as Tottenham.

Tottenham Need To Improve

Spurs’ struggles at set-pieces were laid bare in their north London derby defeat by Arsenal which saw them drop to 13th in the table. 

Tottenham were denied a top-four spot by Aston Villa last season and were 3.0 with betting apps to grab one of the Champions League spots before the season started, but back-to-back defeats have seen those odds drift to 4.5.

Dominic Solanke, Archie Gray and Wilson Odobert joined from Bournemouth, Leeds and Burnley respectively in the summer, while keeping Timo Werner for another loan spell from RB Leipzig raised a few eyebrows among fans.

It has been an average start from Amge Postecoglou’s side with just just four points from as many games, but they have the chance to improve their tally with a tough home game against Brentford this weekend.

Jury Still Out On Man Utd

United were 3.0 before the big kick-off, but their odds have lengthened to 4.75 following back-to-back-defeats by Brighton and arch rivals Liverpool.

Either side, the Red Devils edged to a 1-0 win against Fulham on the opening weekend, but looked much better in a 3-0 victory at Southampton where Andre Onana saved a Cameron Archer penalty to keep the scores level before United ran riot.

United finished eighth last season and Erik ten Hag’s future was in doubt ahead of the FA Cup final against Manchester City, but a 2-1 victory at Wembley secured a place in the Europa League and resulted in the Dutchman signing a contract extension until 2026.

With a new deal in the bag, United brought in Matthijs de Ligt, Joshua Zirkzee, Manuel Ugarte, Leny Yoro and Noussair Mazraoui, but sold Scott McTominay and Aaron Wan-Bissaka to Napoli and West Ham respectively.

Many thought Ten Hag had buried the hatchet with Jadon Sancho, but the winger joined Chelsea on loan, having spent last season at his former club Borussia Dortmund.

United are at Palace this weekend followed by tough matches against top-four rivals Tottenham and Aston Villa.

Brighton And West Ham Outsiders 

Fabian Hurzeler has made an excellent start at Brighton, who are unbeaten with eight points from their opening four games, which included a late win against Manchester United and a draw at 10-man Arsenal.

A draw with Ipswich suggests there is still work to be done at Brighton, who sold Pascal Gross to Borussia Dortmund in the summer.

The Seagulls were 21.0 for a top-four finish before the campaign began, but those odds have been slashed to 8.0.

West Ham also have a new man at the helm, but Julen Lopetegui has not fared so well, with just one win from his first four games.

The Hammers brought in Max Kilman from Lopetegui’s former club Wolves and signed Germany striker Niclas Fullkrug, Leeds winger Crysencio Summerville and Wan-Bissaka, but with just four points in the bag, they are now 26.0 to be playing Champions League football next season. 

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