Premier League - Football: James Milton's antepost tips part one

bet365 News Team Published: Aug 22 2022 16:37

The 2022/23 Premier League season starts on Friday 5th August and Racing Post football expert James Milton has picked out his best bets on the main markets.

What:	Premier League 2022/23
Where:	England
When:	6th August 2022 - 28th May 2023
How to watch:	Selected matches on Sky Sports and BT Sport
Odds:	Man City 8/13, Liverpool 5/2, Tottenham 12/1, Chelsea 16/1, Man Utd 28/1

Premier League To Win Outright: Manchester City look a cut above

Manchester City needed three goals in the final 15 minutes of the 2021/22 Premier League campaign to hold off valiant runners-up Liverpool, but the 8/13 Citizens should retain their title in more straightforward fashion this season.

City and the 5/2 Reds finished miles clear of the chasing pack last season and Pep Guardiola has freshened up his formidable attacking unit with the signings of Erling Braut Haaland and Julian Alvarez.

The prolific Haaland will enjoy a winter break as Norway have not qualified for the World Cup and he is guaranteed top-quality service from team-mates Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez.

City look just as strong in defence and midfield, where England international Kalvin Phillips' energy and industry should ease the burden on defensive midfielder Rodri.

Guardiola's champions have been amazingly consistent in the league, winning four of the last five titles and posting points tallies of 93, 86, 81, 98 and 100, and they should prove too good for their rivals again.

Liverpool can chase them home again, although 12/1 Tottenham have bulked up their squad impressively over the summer and Antonio Conte, a title winner with Juventus, Chelsea and Inter, will have Spurs fit and firing for the start of his first full season at the club.

Chelsea, 16/1 for the title, have swooped for Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly although the Blues also lost key defender Antonio Rudiger and are still searching for an elusive centre-forward after Romelu Lukaku's struggles last season.

Without The Big Six: Hammers have tools for success

Newcastle are 2/1 to win the Premier League without the big six and the Magpies have to be respected after an excellent second half of last season.

Eddie Howe steered them out of relegation trouble to an 11th-placed finish thanks to a rock-solid defence and some terrific performances but they still scored only 44 goals in 38 games.

Preference in this market is for 4/1 West Ham, who were best of the rest in the Premier League last term, finishing seventh despite the distraction of a run to the Europa League semi-finals.

The Hammers, who also finished sixth in 2020/21, look primed to build on their domestic and European success, especially if they keep hold of England pair Declan Rice and Jarrod Bowen.

Moroccan centre-back Nayef Aguerd and towering Italian striker Gianluca Scamacca look smart signings and David Moyes can continue his managerial renaissance at the London Stadium.

To Be Relegated: Southampton sliding into trouble

Bournemouth, at 4/9, head the relegation betting but it could be worth chancing their south-coast neighbours Southampton currently at 3/1 to lose their top-flight status this term.

Ralph Hasenhuttl's men ended up only two points clear of 17th-placed Leeds in 2021/22 after a disappointing end to the season in which they picked up just five points from their last 12 league fixtures.

Their one win in that spell came against Arsenal, who had 23 shots at goal in a 1-0 loss at St Mary's, and Saints have lost reliable goalkeeper Fraser Forster to Tottenham.

Inspirational skipper James Ward-Prowse has also been linked with a move away from the club and Southampton can ill afford to lose his world-class set-piece delivery.

They scored only 43 goals last term, conceding 67 including 21 in their last eight matches, and they could be dragged into relegation trouble along with the Cherries and 5/4 Fulham, who have struggled with the step up from the Championship in the past.

Season Match Bets Treble: Take on Ten Hag's United

Erik ten Hag has taken on a serious rebuilding project at Manchester United and the 4/5 shots should be opposed in their Season Match Bet against 10/11 Arsenal.

The Gunners finished 11 points clear of United last term, beating them 3-1 in April as the Red Devils ended Ralf Rangnick's interim reign with a run of six straight away defeats.

Arsenal have invested heavily again this summer and if Gabriel Jesus settles in quickly they should be more ruthless than last term, when they were pipped to fourth spot by rivals Tottenham.

Brentford beat the Gunners 2-0 in their first Premier League match last August and that set the tone for a fine debut campaign for Thomas Frank's men.

The departure of smart January signing Christian Eriksen is a blow for the Bees but they won seven of their last 11 league games in 2021/22 and should be backed at 4/7 to finish above 5/4 Fulham, who have struggled to improve their squad after winning a far-from-vintage Championship last term.

Complete the treble with Brighton at 8/11 to eclipse 1/1 rivals Crystal Palace. Like Brentford, the Seagulls have lost a key player - midfielder Yves Bissouma was sold to Spurs – but they have a shrewd manager in Graham Potter, a coherent playing style, and won five of their final eight games, all against top-half opponents.

Season Handicap: City and Arsenal should go well

Liverpool pipped Manchester City to win the Premier League Season Handicap last season, reversing the result in the actual title race, but City +0 are worth backing at 15/1 in 2022/23.

The Citizens have racked up some imposing points tallies over the past five campaigns and it is hard to see their standards slipping after the arrival of ace striker Haaland.

Jurgen Klopp's Reds get a start of +4 but Arsenal +20 make each-way appeal at 15/1. The Gunners just missed out on the handicap places last season off +19 and they had comfortably the youngest average starting 11 in the 2021/22 Premier League so more progress can be expected from Mikel Arteta's side.

Top Newcomer: Playoff heroes Forest can kick on

The three promoted clubs are all expected to be in the relegation mix but 13/10 Nottingham Forest should be backed to outperform 5/4 Fulham and 7/2 Bournemouth in the Top Newcomer market.

Forest finished lowest of the trio in last season's Championship, winning promotion through the playoffs, but their record after Steve Cooper's arrival in September was outstanding.

Cooper is a fine coach, while Fulham's Marco Silva and Bournemouth's Scott Parker still have questions to answer at Premier League level and Forest's club-record signing of Union Berlin striker Taiwo Awoniyi is a statement of intent from the new boys.

By James Milton