United Considered Firm Favourites for 2011/12

After a summer full of wheeling and dealing from Sir Alex Ferguson and the Manchester United brass, it appears as though another high profile player is still to be acquired by the time the transfer window slams shut at the end of August. With five weeks still remaining to bring in the supposed “Paul Scholes replacement” that has been bandied about so much, it appears as though United have done enough to convince the bookmakers that their side is a justifiable favourite to repeat as Champions.

At the outset of the off-season, both United and Chelsea were deadlocked at 5/2 to win the 2011/12 English Premier League trophy. As it currently stands, the Red Devils have been shortened to 13/8 for top honors while Chelsea are trading at the aforementioned 5/2.

Big-spending Manchester City, who look to have secured the signing of Argentinian sensation Sergio “Kun” Aguero, have also seen their price shorten considerably to a 7/2 listing down from the 5/1 they were available at previously.

These three clubs seem to be the only genuine title threats at this stage of the season as Arsenal are priced at a lengthy 9/1 and Liverpool look well off the pace at 10/1. A surprise bid from Spurs would prompt a 50/1 payout.

Interestingly enough, Manchester United's Javier Hernandez is the favourite to be the top Premier League goalscorer this season and he trades at 6/1 to outscore everybody else. Fernando Torres is somehow the second favourite and punters will find him trading at 8/1 alongside Wayne Rooney. Carlos Tevez is at 9/1 with Darren Bent sitting at a 10/1 price.

With David De Gea, Ashley Young and Phil Jones all joining the squad and yet another big-name player inbound (Wesley Sneijder?) at some point, we could see United's price shortened again before the Community Shield.