Premier League betting: Where is the mid-season value in the season-long markets?
The Premier League has a well-deserved reputation as one of the most competitive major domestic leagues in the world, and that fact is no more relevant than right now, as a host of big-name sides are jostling for position at the sharp end of the table.
It should make for a thrilling season for fans, and potentially one filled with value for punters.
WHO WILL WIN THE TITLE?
Manchester City are the clear favourites here, at 4/11, and justifiably so.
They have the deepest squad, they create the most chances and they are already in the box seat at the top of the table.
Liverpool (9/2) and Chelsea (10/1) are doing a great job of keeping pace at this early stage of the season, but if past years are anything to go by, the festive fixture pile-up often sorts the contenders from the pretenders, and City's squad strength may see them pull clear.
Liverpool seem best placed to challenge, but while they can match City head to head on the pitch, their habit of dropping points in winnable games in seasons past may come back to haunt them again.
WHO WILL MISS OUT ON THE TOP FOUR?
Right now, the Premier League's Top Four seems largely set. City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham appear to have everything in their favour to hold their spots in the Top Four. But with Arsenal looking like the team capable of breaking back into the Premier League's elite, who could potentially be bumped out of it if the Gunners return to form?
Priced at 11/10 to miss out, Arsenal's cross-town rivals Spurs are arguably the most vulnerable. They opted not to strengthen their squad during the summer, and Mauricio Pochettino may come to rue that decision if they suffer injuries to any of their key stars. Losing Harry Kane, for example, would be catastrophic, with Spurs lacking another natural finisher in their squad.
Despite making a great start to the campaign, Chelsea are still relatively short odds to drop out of the Top Four, at just 4/1. They'd need to be hit by disastrous festive form for that to happen, however. And their relatively solid squad should be strong enough to cope.
WHO WILL FALL THROUGH THE RELEGATION TRAPDOOR?
Fulham, Cardiff and Huddersfield are the three odds-on favourites to go down at the end of the season, but there's usually at least one early-season struggler who finds form during the run-in and manages to perform a great escape.
That then brings some of the other lower-league strugglers into play, and one of the Premier League's big guns could find themselves in serious danger by the time we hit the New Year, particularly if they fail to strengthen significantly in the January transfer window.
The April 20 clash between Newcastle and Southampton could be pivotal to the Premier League futures of both sides, with the pair looking particularly precarious already this season.
The Toon are 11/4 to be relegated, while Southampton are marginally longer, at 4/1. Both look like prime candidates to be sucked into trouble by the season's end.
THE TEAM TO WATCH: WEST HAM UNITED
One side worth watching closely is West Ham United. They're 20/1 to go down but are only a couple of bad results away from finding themselves in the thick of it at the foot of the table. That could mean some serious value for football betting enthusiasts looking for a long-shot winner to cap off their season.
And the Hammers' run-in looks terrifying. In April, West Ham face Chelsea, Manchester United, Leicester and Spurs, and their penultimate game of the season in May sees them take on another side whose Premier League future may not be secure: Southampton.
They may look comfortable in mid-table now, but they may end up offering the best value as the season heads to a dramatic finale.
