The new Premier League season is almost upon us and football fans are eagerly awaiting the big kick-off, with champions Manchester City set to get the campaign up and running at Burnley.
Betting on the winner of the Premier League title will be very popular as the new season approaches with betting sites competing to offer some of the highest odds on this market.
The benefit of outright betting on the Premier League champions is that the wager will continue to run for the whole campaign, assuming there is some semblance of a title race this year.
Here are the top five favourites with the bookmakers to win the 2023/24 Premier League title:
It is easy to see why City are clear in the odds for the Premier League title this season. The Treble winners look likely to be just as strong this term and they are definitely the team to beat.
City have had a relatively quiet summer transfer window so far, moving to bring in midfielder Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea as a direct replacement for the Barcelona-bound Ilkay Gundogan.
The loss of Gundogan is sure to hurt but Erling Haaland is expected to be even more productive in his second Premier League season, while young stars like Phil Foden continue to develop.
Haaland hit 36 goals in 35 Premier League games to claim the Golden Boot last season and most football fans will be backing him to be even more dangerous as he adapts further to the rigours of English football.
The Gunners led the Premier League for much of the last campaign but fell away over the final third of the season as City chased them down. Mikel Arteta will be determined to avoid a repeat performance this time and Arsenal have invested heavily in players during the summer break.
Declan Rice is the headline arrival for Arsenal so far, with the former West Ham captain costing the club a cool £105 million – a new record for a transfer fee paid between two British clubs.
Rice is a significant upgrade on Granit Xhaka, who has joined the Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen for £21.4m. The England midfielder is expected to have a big impact on Arsenal, who have also snapped up Kai Havertz from Chelsea as well. Ajax defender Jurrien Timber has arrived to add a defensive option, with the Gunners proven light in that department last term.
Much is likely to depend on the fitness of ex-City striker Gabriel Jesus. The Brazilian hit double figures in his first season at the club but missed around a third of the campaign due to injury.
The Reds missed out on Champions League qualification after a very poor season last time out, with boss Jurgen Klopp demanding an improvement from his team during the 2023-24 season.
Captain Jordan Henderson is the headline departure with his fellow midfielder Fabinho having also been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia.
Roberto Firmino, Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all left at the end of their contracts, prompting a much-needed rebuild, particularly in the heart of the pitch.
Liverpool have splashed out almost £100 million on Brighton midfielder Alexis Mac Allister – who won the World Cup with Argentina during the 2022-23 Premier League season – and Dominik Szoboslai from RB Leipzig, but a few more key signings are expected to be made by the Reds.
The club lost out on the England star Jude Bellingham after he moved to Real Madrid, with Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia reportedly the top target for the Anfield side this summer.
Mo Salah’s goalscoring form will be in the spotlight. The Egyptian star had a relatively quiet season last year, scoring just 19 goals in the Premier League – his joint-lowest since joining.
Trent Alexander-Arnold moving into midfield could offer Liverpool fresh impetus this season.
United were 14 points behind rivals City last season, finishing third, with further progress demanded after an inconsistent first year under the Dutch manager Erik ten Hag.
Searching for a new striker has dominated United’s summer for the second summer in a row.
England captain Harry Kane is said to be a target but Bayern Munich look to be at the front of the queue for the Tottenham star, with United instead turning their attention to Rajmus Hojlund.
Ten Hag has urged United to bring in a new striker as soon as possible, adding to the signings of England midfielder Mason Mount from Chelsea, who cost £60m, and the £47.2m signing of new goalkeeper Andre Onana from Inter, who has replaced the long-serving David de Gea.
United have not won the Premier League title since the retirement of the legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson a decade ago and they should be much more involved in the title race this time.
But it looks like there is too much for them to do to close the gap to Pep Guardiola’s City, who are seeking a fourth straight Premier League title – something even Ferguson did not achieve.
New Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino is the man who is charged with making sense of the chaos under American owner Todd Boehly, who has continued to splash the cash at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea’s summer signings include laying out around £100m on Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal, the RB Leipzig forward Christopher Nkunku and Kendry Paez of Independiente del Valle.
There is no doubt Chelsea have some of the best young players in the world, but they have lost a lot of experience via the departures of Kalidou Koulibaly, Cesar Azpilicueta and N’Golo Kante.
No European football at all after last season’s disappointing 12th-placed finish could benefit Pochettino as he will be able to focus on the Premier League. But a return to the Champions League seems to be a much more realistic target for Chelsea during this coming campaign.
