Premier League Title Odds Favor Liverpool at +163 Odds After Drawing With Man City 1-1
- Winners of past three Premier League titles drew 1-1 in first meeting of the 2020-21 season
- While Liverpool remain third, City have made worst start to a season since 2008 and are in 10th
- Read on for a review of Sunday’s clash at the Etihad and how it affects the odds for the EPL winner
How costly will Kevin De Bruyne’s first-half penalty miss prove when we look back at the 2020-21 English Premier League race? And he wasn’t the only one to miss gilt-edged opportunities, as Gabriel Jesus also spurned the chance to put City in front in the second half, and help them close the gap on the leaders in the EPL.
But after the 1-1 draw in the first meeting between the winners of the past three Premier League titles this season, both are still favored to win the title, although the pair have flip-flopped in the average odds. As a result, Liverpool now lead the way in the Premier League odds at +163, with the Citizen closely trailing at +175.
2021 EPL Winner Odds
| Team | Odds at DraftKings |
|---|---|
| Liverpool | +163 |
| Manchester City | +175 |
| Chelsea | +700 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | +800 |
| Leicester City | +2200 |
| Manchester United | +2200 |
| Arsenal | +5000 |
| Aston Villa | +6600 |
| Everton | +10000 |
| Southampton | +10000 |
Odds taken Nov. 8
Will City Have Cause To Regret?
Purely in terms of points, Man City needed Sunday’s game more than Liverpool, with an inconsistent start having seen Pep Guardiola’s side having dropped seven points already coming into the game.
All the key moments from an end-to-end encounter 💪#MCILIV match highlights… pic.twitter.com/46l1bOvTuY
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 8, 2020
While few expect the near run to perfection that both Liverpool and Man City have shown in winning the past two titles, dropping nine points now in their first eight games has City sitting in 10th.
4 – Since a run of 35 consecutive Premier League wins when opening the scoring between February and July, Liverpool have failed to win four of their last seven games when scoring the opening goal (D3 L1). Pegged. #MCILIV pic.twitter.com/pcz5wMMjJ2
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 8, 2020
The chances were all there to win Sunday’s game, as De Bruyne took the game by the scruff of the neck to help set up Jesus’s equalizer, before missing his penalty. City had 55% of the possession, and although they were out-chanced by Liverpool 9-7, City’s were of higher quality.
19 – Gabriel Jesus' equaliser was the most number of passes (19) in the build up to a Premier League goal against Liverpool since September 2017; a strike which was also a Jesus goal (assisted by De Bruyne) at the Etihad, which was also 19 passes. Dejavu. #MCILEI pic.twitter.com/WaoAnnoh2r
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 8, 2020
The draw leaves Guardiola’s team six points off the top with a game in hand. Importantly though for City was that Jesus showed he back in business. The Brazil international was injured in the opening game of the season, but his smartly taken goal showed that he is not far off his best form.
Another Setback For Liverpool
It wasn’t the result that was the issue for the defending champions. Instead it was another injury to their defensive core, having already lost Virgil Van Dijk for much of the season, as well as Fernandinho. This time it was Trent Alexander-Arnold’s turn to join the injured list, with the England international suffering a muscle injury.
Trent Alexander-Arnold off with calf injury.
Liverpool’s 13th player to sustain an injury this season. pic.twitter.com/EYMX8fxi6V
— Watch LFC (@Watch_LFC) November 8, 2020
Liverpool have already shown they possess a fairly deep squad with an ability to rotate positions to get by. But ultimately absences will take a toll on their championship chances, particularly as they accrue among their first-choice back four.
London Still The Best Bet
For true value in this year’s championship chase, bettors must look south of the Northwest of England. While Midlands clubs like Aston Villa and Leicester City show few signs of dropping out of the race entirely – both registered hard-fought wins against other challengers on Sunday – London is where the serious options reside.
W26 ✅
D12 🤝
L12 ❌50 games in and Jose Mourinho has Tottenham Hotspur top of the Premier League. #COYS pic.twitter.com/yXrDeoacBD
— Talking THFC (@TalkingTHFC) November 8, 2020
Both Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea offer an intriguing mix of value in their odds with serious intent in the championship challenge. Spurs have at long last assembled a deep squad with top-notch firepower, and although they are not currently firing on all cylinders, with a third straight one-goal win in the EPL this weekend, they have scored 19 goals in eight games.
"We are a team and the boys are behaving like a team."
👔 Jose's reaction at The Hawthorns. #THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/vcFFOtZm3F
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 8, 2020
On top of that, the title-winning presence of manager Jose Mourinho may give them a decisive advantage when the season settles down into a more typical championship race.
Chelsea are 3 points behind 1st place, 2 points behind Liverpool, ahead of Man City, Man United and Arsenal. Agent Barkley dropping a masterclass vs Arenal, Willian dropping his weekly disasterclass and benching that 72m Ivorian Townsend.
We're feasting. pic.twitter.com/XdXBFRw9go
— Yahya (@CFCYahya) November 8, 2020
After a rocky start, Chelsea manager Frank Lampard seems to have succeeded in harnessing all his new horses at the club, with the likes of Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech helping the club to a second straight three-goal win in the Premier League. But the newcomers’ lack of EPL experience may be an Achilles heel as the games start to stack up.
Pick: Spurs (+800)
For the last 20 years, Paul Attfield has worked in sports media. Starting out in his native Britain with the likes of The Independent, he eventually switched continents, with his work appearing in the likes of the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and Yahoo Sports since.
