ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE FINISHING POSITION BETTING TIPS

If you're looking for some really solid team-by-team insight into this year's English Premier League, you'd do well to check out the Finishing Position betting market at William Hill.You'll find odds for each team based on their performance last year. You can literally back teams just for improving, and grabbing some tidy odds along the way. I've spotted some really great prices here and this is a supremely lucrative market if you can get the action right.Arsene Wenger's Arsenal finished fourth last year and are favoured to do a bit better. You'll find their price to finish fourth listed at 13/5, lower than 4th pays out at 15/8 while higher than 4th is listed at evens. Clearly, they're a solid punt for third place? Or are they? I think Arsenal to finish fourth at 13/5 is a great bet. Jump all over that.Aston Villa are tipped to finish lower than last season with 4/11 odds to finish below sixth place. This is a tough one for me and I think the 4/1 odds on them finishing sixth are about right. They are 9/2 to finish any higher.Blackburn are tipped to improve with 4/7 odds if they finish higher than 15th. They are 5/1 to finish 15th again and 21/10 to finish lower than 15th. I could see a relegation fight in their future, but I need to see them in action for a bit before I drop any coin on this. Bolton finished 13th last year and are 8/15 to finish lower. That's about right as I don't see a huge amount of improvement in this side. 9/4 to finish 12th or higher is too short for me and 5/1 to finish 13th, is also a bit of a dodgy bet.Chelsea are favoured to finish higher than 3rd with a 4/6 price telling no lies. They are 5/2 to finish third again and I think that's a solid bet. 4th place or lower (gasp!) would pay out at 16/5.Everton are heavily favoured to finish below 5th, and they carry 1/7 odds to do so. I think 6/1 on them to finish 5th is quality value. They are 8/1 to break the top 4.Fulham impressed a lot last year and Roy Hodgson's side performed admirably, especially towards the end of the season. William Hill seemingly thinks this was a total fluke and they are listing the Cottagers at 1/12 to finish lower than 7th. They are 10/1 to improve to sixth or better and 8/1 to remain in 7th place.Hull City are an interesting bet here. They finished just above the drop last year in 17th place. They are 2/1 to improve, 16/5 to stay in 17th again, while they are at a 4/5 price to finish lower, effectively being relegated.Liverpool really challenged last year and pushed United most of the way. 2nd place is still the first loser and the bookies don't seem to think Rafa Benitez's men will still be there in May 2010. They 8/11 to finish lower than 2nd and 13/5 to stay in the same position. They are also 11/4 to win the Premier League.Manchester City are expected to improve significantly. If you're looking to bet against City doing well this year, more or less backing a disaster, you've got some quality odds to work with. They are 10/1 to finish 10th again and 9/1 to finish 11th or lower.Manchester United are 2/1 to retain the English Premiership and 4/11 to not win it. This one looks like a real competition this year with Ronaldo gone and City buying up all the available talent they can. I think 2/1 is a bit short on United, but I do think they're the favourites.Portsmouth are anybody's guess at this point and they managed to finish 14th after flirting with the relegation mire for a few tense weeks in April. They are 21/10 to improve on last year and 5/1 to finish 14th again. They look candidates for the relegation dogfight again with 4/7 odds on lower than 14th place.Stoke City surprised us all last year and they look like they're trying to set themselves up as the next Wigan. Finishing 12th is quality work for the pre-season relegation favourite. They are 2/7 to finish lower than 12th and 5/1 to stay in the same spot. You're looking at a 9/2 payout if they finish higher than 12th. Is Stoke a top-half team? The answer might surprise you.Sunderland are expected to improve significantly and they are 1/4 to finish higher than 16th again. They are 5/1 to wind up right back there again (which isn't a bad bet). They carry an 11/2 price to finish lower than 16th.Tottenham Hotspur were in a real spot of bother last year before Harry Redknapp took over. They are 4/7 to finish higher than 8th place, but I don't really see them lighting the world on fire this year. Their central defensive partnership remains a bit shaky. 4/1 to finish 8th isn't a bad bet and lower than 8th pays out at 5/2.West Ham ended the season in a respectable 9th place and they are favoured to finish bottom-half this year at 4/7. I think this one is going to be a real slog for them, but I think they're capable of top-half. 9/2 to stay at 9th again is a solid bet and 9/4 to improve is a bit too short for me.Wigan are an established Premier League side, and having finished 11th last year, will doubtlessly be looking to build upon such a solid performance. Hills places them at 4/9 to finish lower while another 11th placed finish pays 5/1. Wigan worming their way into the top half will deliver an 11/4 payout.