By Jamie O’Hara, PricedUp Brand Ambassador
Ten games gone, and it’s another international break. A good time to take stock, and to tell you how I think it all ends up in May.
There are a few PricedUp Boosts along the way too.
Right, let’s get into it.
TO WIN THE TITLE
My prediction: Arsenal
It pains me to say it. They’ve got an excellent defence, five goals conceded in ten games, and it’s making up for the lack of creation going forward. They are boring to watch. But they pick up the points week after week, and that’s what wins leagues.
Look at the last month. One-nil at Forest. One-nil at Anfield. One-nil at home to Hull. Nobody’s getting out of their seat for any of it, but that’s nine wins from ten and a five-point lead. You don’t have to be pretty when nobody can score against you.
City have got unprecedented issues going on off the field, but to be honest I don’t think that’s been their problem in recent weeks. They’ve lost Rodri, and it looks like it’s caught up with them. They won their first seven and everyone thought it was business as usual. Then they lost three in a row.
Not scoring at home to Brighton and losing 1-0 was a worrying sign for City fans. Twenty-one shots and nothing to show for it. Then Forest took them apart 3-1. There’s nobody in that midfield controlling games any more, and teams have worked it out.
City used to pin you in. Lose the ball in the final third and they’d have it back in seconds, and you never got out of your own half. Teams are breaking through that now, and it’s leading to goals they never used to concede. Six in their last three league games tells you that.
Brighton are playing well, but a title challenge? I don’t think so. They’ve got Thursday nights in Europe to deal with as well, and that catches up with you by the spring. And Liverpool are already nine points behind. That’s too big a gap to give this Arsenal defence.
PricedUp Boost: Brighton to win the Premier League – 13/1 (was 10/1)
TOp five
My prediction: Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton, Chelsea
In that order.
City are in a bad run and they’re still third. There’s too much quality there for them to drop out of it. Liverpool had a slow start under Andoni Iraola, three draws in their first four, but they’ve beaten Brighton and won well at Palace, and they look like a side getting better by the week.
Brighton won’t keep this pace up, but they’ve banked twenty-two points and they’ll hang on to a place. Chelsea are the ones I’m least sure about. Nineteen scored, sixteen conceded. They only know how to play one way, and it’ll win them enough games to scrape in.
I think we’ll just miss out and finish sixth. We were bottom of the league after five games with two points. Then we won three on the bounce before the defeat at Leeds. If Roberto De Zerbi gets us sixth from where we started, I’d take that, and it would be something solid to build on for next season.
There’s one more thing. If City’s appeal fails and they get hit with a big points deduction, that could drag us into fifth. After the level of injuries we’ve had to put up with over the last two seasons, it’s a bit of luck we deserve.
PricedUp Boost: Tottenham top five finish – 10/3 (was 11/4)
relegation
My prediction: Crystal Palace, Sunderland, Ipswich Town
Palace are bottom, they’ve lost their last four and they’ve let in twenty-four goals already, the most in the league. They lost too much in the summer and never replaced it.
Sunderland are nineteenth, a year after finishing seventh. Beating Chelsea on Sunday was a big result, but they’ve got European football on top of a relegation fight and I don’t think the squad can carry both.
PricedUp Boost: Sunderland to be relegated – 3/1 (was 5/2)
Ipswich are the one people will argue with, because they’re fourteenth. But they’ve lost five of their ten and conceded twenty, which only Palace can beat. They’re three points above the bottom three. You don’t stay up defending like that.
And no, I’m not putting Manchester United in there. They’re eighteenth and they’ve been a disgrace. But there’s too much in that squad for them to go down.
PricedUp Boost: Manchester United top half finish – 10/11 (was 8/15)
BEST MANAGER
Fabian Hürzeler. He’s thirty-three years old. Brighton finished eighth the last two seasons, and he’s got them second. They’re the top scorers in the league with twenty-six, and only Arsenal have conceded fewer.
They beat Arsenal 3-0. They went to City and won there for the first time in the club’s history. And they’re doing it while playing in Europe. Nobody has done more with what he’s got.
BEST PLAYER
Declan Rice. The best player in the best team. He’s started all ten league games and he’s got five assists from the base of midfield. When Arsenal won 1-0 at Forest, he set up the goal. When they won 1-0 at Anfield, he set up the goal.
Everyone talks about that back four, but he’s the one stood in front of it. Everything Arsenal do well goes through him.
The Season in Five
- Champions: Arsenal
- Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton, Chelsea
- Relegated: Crystal Palace, Sunderland, Ipswich Town
- Best manager: Fabian Hürzeler
- Best player: Declan Rice
As always, these are opinions and nothing else. Screenshot it and send it back to me in May.
Jamie
Odds correct at time of publication and subject to change. 18+. Please gamble responsibly. For free, confidential support and advice, visit BeGambleAware.org
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