Manchester City set the early pace, but Chelsea could provide Premier League value

With a 2-1 win at near neighbors Manchester United last weekend, Manchester City sent out an early marker of their intentions to the rest of their Premier League title rivals this season.

The best Premier League odds for a Manchester City title win are now -110 (10/11 in UK fractional odds).

There’s an awfully long way still to go this season though, with only four of 38 rounds having been completed to date and it also has to be remembered that Man.City won their first five Premier League matches last season in impressive fashion and looked to be an unstoppable force, only to eventually struggle home in fourth place after what became a hugely inconsistent campaign.

The difference this season is that City now has one Pep Guardiola as their coach and the squad seems far more motivated than it was in the latter months of Manuel Pellegrini’s reign.

The victory over the Red Devils also pushed out Manchester United’s odds and they, along with Chelsea who dropped points in Sunday´s controversial 2-2 draw away to Swansea City, are now both available at best price of +550 (11/2 in fractional odds) in places.

Despite the vast expenditure, Manchester United still look like a work in progress and it remains unclear as to their strongest starting XI.

Chelsea’s potential advantage over the other likely title challengers is their lack of European football this season, enabling Antonio Conte to keep his squad focused on one major target and avoiding any significant fixture congestion.

The Blues also seem to have rediscovered their appetite for the game, which was woefully lacking in the likes of Eden Hazard and Diego Costa for much of last season so, at +550, they look the best value pick at this stage.