Top 3 predictions to win the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League
It’s all to play for when it comes to the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League. So which sides are the likeliest bets to lifting these trophies come the end of the season in May?
Premier League
Manchester City are favourites to win the Premier League – rated 6/5 by bookies. They have a manager in Manuel Pellegrini who has won this trophy before and one of the best strikers in Sergio Aguero.
However, Aguero is struggling with injury and City look shaky, including a humiliating 1-4 home defeat against Liverpool. Second favourites Arsenal (6/4) have been more consistent during the first half of the season, with Mesut Ozil proving influential, despite the club having a major injury crisis.
Current league leaders, and the surprise package of the season, Leicester City are looking like real title contenders after a 2-1 win over Chelsea – you can find Claudio Ranieri’s men at 20/1. If you are looking for a realistic outside contender, Liverpool at 22/1 are the only ones.
They have been inconsistent under Jurgen Klopp, but can be expected to get better in the second half of the season as the players get used to the German’s methods.
FA Cup
This is much more of a lottery, but again it is Manchester City who lead the field – at 6/1. They haven’t been that impressive in this tournament since they won it in 2011, with a final defeat to Wigan in 2013 among their more ignominious moments – and may be distracted by the title and Champions League.
Recent FA Cup specialists Arsenal are 7/1 second favourites, but again it would seem that Arsene Wenger would prioritise his first title in a decade over a third successive cup win. Everton at 16/1 could be an intriguing outside bet, as they are very hungry for a first FA Cup triumph in twenty years.
They have won it five times before and manager Roberto Martinez has one of the league’s star youngsters in Spaniard Gerard Deulofeu – a match-winner made for cup ties.
Champions League
Barcelona, holders of this tournament, are 5/2 favourites to retain it, and they have players like Messi who are more than capable.
However, as last 16 tie a giants Arsenal is sure to be tricky test. They top their group with four wins from five games (Insert 2 here), leading it by eight points, which is ominous for their rivals. However, Bayern Munich – who are managed by former Barca boss Pep Guardiola – are second favourites on 11/4 and just as good a bet. Despite being in group with the likes of Arsenal, Bayern have dominated and lead it by twelve points.
Either of these sides is the likely winner, but big spending PSG (12/1) may be one of the few teams with the potential to change the story.
Time will tell if they are correct – but with air of unpredictability about this season, it may well be Leicester, Leeds and Gent claiming the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League!