Punters negotiate unpredictable Premier League season

The Premier League provides so much entertainment to those who follow it. Not just those who love watching top-class football but also those who love to have a bet on the sport. It’s never an easy life being a punter and this new season has proved to be a bit tricky for them with some unpredictable results happening in the first month and a half of the season.

As we move into October, the top two in the table isn’t that unpredictable. Liverpool and Manchester City fill those two spots but probably not in the order that fans were expecting. Liverpool won their opening seven games so any fans who love backing Jurgen Klopp’s side will be counting their winnings. Those who follow other teams or just back favourites will have had their fingers burned on more than one occasion this season. Let’s look at some of the most unpredictable games so far.

Another shock Palace away win

For a club that hasn’t had a great deal of success, Crystal Palace have caused punters many problems in recent seasons. They are the last team to have won away in the Premier League at Arsenal, Manchester City (although Wolves have just repeated the trick) and Liverpool. However, when they went to Old Trafford in August, another famous win wasn’t looking likely.

The London club hadn’t scored a goal in their first two league games. They had an appalling record at Old Trafford, and Manchester United had already beaten Chelsea 4-0 at home. Punters piled on United to get the win but were left broken-hearted when Palace came away the 2-1 winners.

The Canaries spring the shock of the season

Norwich City won promotion from the Championship last season. They are expected to struggle to stay up and had already started conceding plenty of goals. When they hosted Manchester City, an away win was one of the bankers of the season. The defending champions were already the top scorers in the Premier League. Norwich City having a leaky defence was a big enough problem, but they also had an injury crisis.

Punters couldn’t believe it when Norwich won the game 3-2. Teemu Pukki was again in scoring form, but Pep Guardiola couldn’t believe the mistakes his players were making. Plenty of single and accumulator bets went up in smoke, but punters could still have made a profit betting on Manchester City.

How? It doesn’t have to be all about wins or losses - a bet on Manchester City to score at least two goals at Norwich would still have seen you make a profit. Crystal Palace host Manchester City in the coming weeks, and you can back City to score more than two goals at good odds of 3/1.

Also, you should look for sites that offer enhanced odds to maximize your profits. SportNation is a good sports betting site that has plenty of markets and offers very good value although it is only available to UK punters.

Newcastle nightmare for Tottenham

Tottenham haven’t made the best of starts to the new season. Home form had been good though with a win over Aston Villa. The pressure was already on Newcastle United after a poor start to life under Steve Bruce. Their fans made the long trek down to London without a great deal of confidence. Everything pointed towards a home win and some more rewards for those who back Harry Kane to score. Again, everything didn’t go to plan, and Newcastle ran out the 1-0 winners. More bets went down, and it was the bookmakers celebrating almost as much as the United fans.

Problems at the Bridge 

Chelsea fans expected a slow start to the season for many reasons. Eden Hazard had gone to Real Madrid, and the club had a transfer ban. With Frank Lampard in charge, Chelsea lost 4-0 at Manchester United and failed to beat Leicester City at home. Even so, when you lead newly-promoted Sheffield United 2-0 at home, you expect your side to go on and claim all three points. Punters and Chelsea fans watched on in horror as the Blades cut their way through Chelsea’s defence twice to come away from the Bridge with a point. Punters who didn’t decide to cash out their bets were left with nothing.

It’s not always the final score that counts

Football betting is so much more than betting on the result. Placing bets on the first goalscorer has proved difficult for punters so far this season. Time to point the finger at Aston Villa who have scuppered plenty of bets. They scored first in games against Tottenham, Arsenal and Burnley to disappoint punters choosing players from the opposition.

The season is only a month and a half old, but we’ve had plenty of shocks. More are likely on their way in the future so life will continue to be unpredictable.