Well as for Liverpool, they have no chance, do they?

Lets take a look at each team’s odds and we’ll recommend where your hard earned / won dollars should be going on.

Manchester City – currently the bookies favourites at stingy odds of $3.20. Whilst City have the best team on paper, they seem a little uncertain of their best starting 11. We can’t see City winning the Premier League this season, and the way they were swept aside by Bayern Munich highlights the huge gulf in class between them and the best teams in Europe. Don’t back City.

Chelsea – second favourites available at $4.00, are more likely to win the EPL than City. True, Mourinho doesn’t really have a reliable strike partnership, however Torres is looking better and with a huge wealth of attacking midfielders (Hazard, Mata, Oscar, Willian, Lampard) at the Special One’s disposal, we can see Chelsea winning the EPL. Back Chelsea.

Arsenal – third favourites at odds of $6.00, largely thanks to their remarkable turn around since the signing of Mesut Ozil. However, it is unlikely that a team can win the EPL based on the performances of just one player, so we think backing Arsenal is not a good bet. There is little point backing them each way, as their odds aren’t big enough for a decent return.

Manchester United – fourth favourites at odds of $7.00. being as ‘short’ as 7.00 when you’ve already lost 3 games is testament to United’s pedigree as winners. No-one would be surprised at all if David Moyes’ men put together a string of results that saw them climb up the table and claim the title. Apart from me that is. Having publically stated that they need 3 or 4 world class players, Moyes seems to be aiming for the 2014 / 2015 season, and United fans can consider this season as a development season. My tip here is to back United to win no trophies at odds of $1.53 (note the Community Shield doesn’t count)

Liverpool – available at odds of $8.00, if you are thinking of backing the Anfield outfit, don’t. True they have started well, however will soon fade and we can’t see them finishing in the top 4. Don’t back Liverpool.

Tottenham – available at odds of $13.00, now this is a bet worth making, albeit an Each Way one. Tottenham have a superb squad, right up their with the likes of City and Chelsea in terms of quality. Putting aside the blip of being Hammered by Sam Allardyce’s team last weekend (see what I did there?) Spurs are a cracking each way bet to win the EPL.

No. In fact if anything my opinion that there has never been a better time to back Manchester United has strengthened, and it is nice to see United drifting so far from odds of $4.00 or $4.50 to $5.50 with Sportsbet. That is a cracking price.

Here is my forecast for the EPL finishing positions come May 2014.

1st – Manchester United. Moyes will have worked out his best starting 11 by mid Oct, and Kagawa will be a regular starter along with Zaha. Young will be dropped to the bench and Tom Cleverly will probably drift out of the squad completely. United will buy a big name in January, possibly Herrera or Barkley or the hotly fancied Julian Draxler. Backing United now at odds of $5.50 is an awesome bet.

2nd – Chelsea. My early season tip to win the Premier League, I actually think Chelsea will finish a close second. Jose still hasn’t a clue what his best team is, and the dropping of Torres (plus the loaning of Lukaku) for a clearly unfit Samuel Eto’o has to rank amongst The Special One’s most bizarre decisions. Eto’o who had the goal getting sharpness drilled out of him at Inter (under Mourinho) in favour of a more defensive role, has basically been on holiday for 2 years in Russia. Chelsea are bet priced at odds of $4.00 with Sportsbet.

3rd – Tottenham. Controversial! Tottenham are building an awesome squad with the oddles of cash they received for Gareth Bale, and I don’t think they are finished spending yet. AVB is still working out his best team, but unlike Jose, is making logical decisions. I can see Spurs rising to the challenge and finishing in the top 3 for the first time for many many years. Available at odds of $4.00 on the handicap betting (Spurs +16) we’ve invested heavily on them.

4th – Manchester City. Whilst City looked like world beaters against Man Utd on Sunday, they were helped by one of the most lacklustre performances United have ever put in…well since City won 6-1 at Old Trafford anyway. Pelligrini will have a hard job keeping his 98 strikers happy and is bound to start tinkering. For every minute Fernandinho spends on the pitch, City should drift a point in the betting, and I simply cannot agree with Sportsbet that they are $2.75 favourites.

5th – Arsenal. Sorry Gooners but despite the resurgence of Aaron Ramsey and the acquisition of the frankly awesome Mesut Ozil Arsenal won’t quite have the good to claim a spot in the Top 4. Which for Gunners fans won’t be a bad thing. A season without Champions League football will undoubtedly see an influx of big name signings as Arsenal (probably not under Wenger) build a new team. I’d be backing a return for Fabregas and possibly for Ian Wright and Dennis Bergkamp….

After the top 5, its anyone’s game, Liverpool and Everton will be up there, as might Newcastle, Villa or frankly anyone. One team that won’t be is Sunderland. With Roberto Di Matteo hot favourite to take over from Di Canio, even at this early stage of the season, I cannot see Sunderland surviving, and their 29 new Italian players had better prepare for life in the Championship.

Currently Chelsea are 2nd favourites behind market leaders Manchester City. This is baffling, and here’s why.

1. Chelsea sit 1 point ahead of Man City in the table already, having had a tougher start (2 away games, inc Villa and United, Vs City’s 2 home games against whipping boys Newcastle and Hull)
2. Jose Mourinho has been there before and won 2 x EPL titles. That counts for an extra 3 points over season over Pelligrini.
3. Chelsea have solved their striking crisis, not by bringing in Wayne Rooney, but be recruiting arguably the best striker in European football over the last 5 years, Samuel Eto’o, on a free transfer!
4. Chelsea have bought better than Man City over the last 2 years. Hazard, Oscar, Willian, Scurrle, Eto’o Vs Negredo, Jotivic, Navas and that useless article Fernandinho.
5. Fernandinho. You may think I am being cruel by blaming him twice, but City paid £30m ($55m) for the player so will play him a lot, and his presence unbalances the City midfield. Ya Ya Toure is forced to play further back, there are fewer cutting passes through the middle of the pitch and Fernandinho gives the ball away a lot.

With Sportsbet offering Chelsea odds of $3.00, and City being offered at $2.88, the smart money lands on Chelsea every time.

The more ludicrous rumour which simply will not go away is that Cristiano Ronaldo (CR7) is definitely going back to Manchester United because Antonio Valencia has given up the number 7 shirt in favour of 25. For some hacks, the contract is as good as written.

One player United will be buying is Everton’s Manchester based comedy wig seller’s dream Marouane Fellaini, whilst publically Everton are saying very little, what they are saying is that United won’t get him cheap. In EPL terms that means “United are buying him and we can nibbled a few extra million out of them”

Manchester United’s latest EPL odds 2013 / 2014 are $3.50 where they find themselves behind both Chelsea ($3.25) and Manchester City ($3.25) in the betting.

Chelsea meanwhile along with self publicist manager Jose Mourinho seem to have switched attention away from Wayne Rooney towards the athleticism of Samuel Eto’o. Eto’o's (?) club, the aforementioned Anzhi Makhachkala are having somewhat of a clear out after deciding to downgrade their annual spending by about 90%. Eto’o, believed to be the world’s second best paid player behind Messi (or Ronaldo depending which newspaper you read), is said to be keen to join in former Inter boss at Stamford Bridge.

Roma striker and Italy international Pablo Osvaldo is the latest player said to be interesting Tottenham, who are said to be close to a $30m deal. Spurs seem to be spending the Gareth Bale money before he has even been sold, which surely puts Real Madrid (or Manchester United if believe in fairies and goblins) in a stronger bargaining position. Spurs have never been big spenders, but are dealing out flipping great wodges of cash to teams all over Europe.

Keep check on who has gone where with our EPL transfer watch feature.

Quick summary of the rest of the gossip:

Arsenal to switch attention to Swansea’s Michu if their pursuit of Luiz Suarez fails, which it will do.

Arsenal to buy Swansea defender Ashley Williams in a $20m deal, so they can save money on the delivery charge by shipping him along with Michu.

West Ham striker Modibo Maiga (no I hadn’t either) is to be loaned to 1990′s pop band St Etienne, as Big Sam tries to buy Hugo Almeida from Besiktas.

David Luiz is not joining Barcelona from Chelsea, as Jose Mourinho has issued a hands off warning. He clearly pays attention to them, and respects the position of a club who say a player is not for sale. So expect Barcelona to make a public statement that it is “Luiz or bust” and talk to every available member of the press about how important it is that Luiz gets first team football in his desired position in a World Cup season.