September 2014
17th September, 3pm
Time to play! We’re happy we’ve got some form in the bank now, so it’s time to get involved. Let’s have a look where we are, one month into the Premier League season.
Well it’s hardly a surprise, but normal service is starting to be resumed. We’ve seen a few of the big teams taking points off each other, Chelsea are still setting the pace, and the likes of Swansea are starting to drop a little from their previous lofty position. Meanwhile Van Gaal’s signings made Man Utd look like Man Utd again, albeit against a woeful QPR side. Liverpool we’ll steer clear of, they look like the team of 2 years ago without Suarez and I can’t see them troubling the top this time round.
So what have we got this weekend? Lets have a look at the Premier League fixtures:
Saturday 20th September 2014
QPR v Stoke
Aston Villa v Arsenal
Burnley v Sunderland
Newcastle v Hull
Swansea v Southampton
West Ham v Liverpool
Sunday 21st September 2014
Leicester v Man Utd
Tottenham v West Brom
Everton v Crystal Palace
Man City v Chelsea
The standout game is clearly the last on the list. The two teams many tipped to battle out the title meeting at the Etihad. It’s Chelsea who have got off to a flyer this time round, and another win here would put them 8 points ahead of City. It might be early in the season, but that would be a heck of a gap to make up on a team playing so well. Already Chelsea are odds-on for the league (although you wouldn’t catch me backing them at that), and another win here will see the price slashed further still.
What are the odds?
Man City 2.44
Draw 3.5
Chelsea 3.2
Big prices on either side then. City aren’t often above evens at home, but this price shows respect to the start Chelsea have made, and perhaps also factors in City’s surprising loss at home to Stoke last time out. They don’t often lose 2 on the trot at home though.
Chelsea away from home? See goals. 4 at Burnley, 6 at Everton. They’ve been attacking a lot and scoring for fun, although one has to think that they’ll find it a tad more difficult to open up City so freely.
(UPDATE – Costa maybe not fully fit?)
Thinking back to last season, we saw Mourinho go to Man Utd early in the season and play for a 0-0. Will he be content to avoid defeat again here? Maybe so, as they already have a clear advantage. City meanwhile will also be desperate to avoid another defeat, and may well subconsciously settle for draw. It’s the biggest price of the 3, and worth a small bet for me. If I was going for the correct score, I’d be on 0-0 or 1-1.
Enjoy the weekends games!
Todays bet:
Premier League, Sunday 21st September, 4pm.
Man City v Chelsea. Draw @ 3.5. £10.
5th September, 1pm
So no sooner than the season is starting to shape up than we’re into our first international break! The likes of Chelsea won’t thank the timing, having made a very strong start to the season only to find themselves stopped in their stride. For the likes of Man Utd it’s been a chance to complete their summer spending and perhaps their next game will actually feel like a brand new season. They certainly need to win it, otherwise their season could be over before it’s even started.
With the stop start nature of the league so far we didn’t have a bet in August, but we’ll certainly put that right in September. Although it won’t be on the internationals, check back next week for a Premier League pick!