After an incredible Euro 2020 campaign, there is little time to rest with the Premier League’s return now just a few days away.
Ahead of the 2021-22 season we have another antepost bet which with a £20 stake returns £942.
Premier League: Aston Villa top half finish (5/4)
Even considering the sale of Jack Grealish, Aston Villa have had a superb transfer window and are well placed to better their 11th place finish last term.
Manchester City paid £100m for Grealish and Dean Smith has spent the money wisely on the likes of Danny Ings, Emiliano Buendia and Leon Bailey.
In Emiliano Martinez they have one of the best keepers in the league and Ollie Watkins will be looking to build upon an excellent first Premier League campaign.
I was surprised to see Villa at longer than evens to secure a top half finish and few would back against this.
Championship: Bournemouth top six finish (11/8)
Bournemouth managed to convince Scott Parker to leave his position at Fulham to take the reins at Dean Court and that could be one of the best moves in the Football League this season.
The Cherries secured a top six finish last term in a stronger Championship than this year and there is likely to be less uncertainty at the club now following Parker’s appointment.
Asmir Begovic remains the only high profile departure this summer and should they keep Arnaut Danjuma and David Brooks then they have two of the best wingers in the league.
A 2-2 draw at home to West Brom represented a good start to the season and they should be one of the teams challenging for automatic promotion.
League One: Sunderland top six finish (4/7)
Sunderland have endured a nightmare few years culminating in relegation to the third tier; however they are well placed for promotion this season.
In Lee Johnson though they have a good young manager and who steadied the ship last term when they looked set to miss out on the top six.
Losing Charlie Wyke is a blow for the Black Cats, however additions in the form of Corry Evans and Alex Pritchard look impressive, with the latter having the potential to rip League One to pieces.
There is always pressure at the Stadium of Light; however if Sunderland make a good start then odds of 4/7 are favourable for a top six finish.
League Two: Mansfield top seven finish (8/11)
Mansfield are among the favourites for promotion to League One this season and made a good start last weekend with a 2-1 win over fellow hopefuls Bristol Rovers.
In Nigel Clough they have one of the more experienced managers in the Football League with over a 1000 games under his belt in his 23 year career.
Mansfield have signed well going into the new campaign, with the likes of Nathan Bishop, Danny Johnson and Ollie Hawkins all improving the squad.
Odds of 8/11 for a top seven finish seem good value and are a nice addition to the seven fold.
La Liga: Atletico Madrid top four finish (1/4)
Atletico Madrid seized upon the discontent at both Real Madrid and Barcelona last term to win La Liga, with the signing of Luis Suarez key in a second title in seven years.
Manager Diego Simeone has committed himself to Atletico for another three years and will be looking to build on an excellent 2020-21.
Whilst it will be hard for them to defend their title, they should easily secure a top four finish at odds of 1/4.
They have been relatively quiet on the transfer front; however keeping the majority of their squad from last term appears to be a priority, something their vials have struggled to do.
Bundesliga: RB Leipzig top four finish (3/10)
We can safely assume Bayern Munich will win a tenth consecutive Bundesliga title this season and surely the race for the Champions League will be the most interesting.
RB Leipzig have lost some key personnel in the form of manager Julian Nagelsmann and defender Dayot Upamecano, with both going to Bayern.
However they remain well placed to secure another top four finish and the signing of Andre Silva from Eintracht Frankfurt is one of the more under rated moves this summer.
Serie A: Salernitana to be relegated (8/11)
Salernitana’s promotion to Serie A last term came as a surprise to most and it will be their first campaign in the top flight for 23 years.
Fabrizio Castori is a very experienced Italian manager; however this season will be just his second at Serie A level, having also managed Carpi to promotion back in 2014.
In recent seasons promoted sides have struggled to remain in the top flight of Italy, with 75% of promoted sides lasting just one campaign in the last four seasons.
Salernitana are unlikely to buck that trend and odds of 8/11 are good value for an average side.
