Grading each Premier League team after their opening three matches

The Premier League season may only be three weeks old, but already there have been plenty of talking points and controversy in England's top division. While the back pages have been dominated by penalty talk and rule changes, the action on the pitch has at times been scintillating, with a goals coming thick and fast.

Despite the campaign being a matter of weeks old, it's clear to see who are the teams to beat this season and which sides could well find themselves in trouble next May, so BettingOdds.com thought we'd analyse all 20 clubs' performances so far, and give them a grading out of five for each of their efforts...

Arsenal

Started extremely well, losing just one of their opening three games to a strong Liverpool side on Monday night. Mikel Arteta has them playing some nice football, they seem more united as a team and played Fulham off the pitch in their curtain-raiser a few weeks back. Still need to tighten defensively a little, though very promising signs to take at this early stage.

Grade: 4/5

Aston Villa

Dean Smith's side battled relegation tirelessly last season but look invigorated this time out. They've only played two league games as of yet, but have won both of them - beating Sheffield United 1-0 and most recently Fulham 3-0. Four goals scored and none conceded, it's a fantastic start for the Villans; now they must retain this level of form to ensure they don't get suckered into another battle at the bottom.

Grade: 5/5

Brighton

Brighton have picked up one win from their opening three games but were extremely unfortunate not to come away with anything from their most recent tussle with Manchester United last weekend. A dubious 100th-minute penalty, awarded AFTER the full-time whistle was blown at the Amex, prevented them from taking four points from a potential nine on offer, but there are plenty of positives for manager Graham Potter to take from his side's opening three games. They're playing some lovely football and are having no problems in finding the net - scoring six goals - so should be relatively pleased with their efforts so far. 

Grade: 3/5

Burnley

Burnley have lost both of their opening games to Leicester and Southampton, but you have to feel for Sean Dyche given the length of his injury list. In total, the Clarets are missing seven key first-team players - including star defender James Tarkowski - so it is difficult to fully gage them in their current format. The defeat to Southampton last weekend was disappointing as they barely created anything at Turf Moor, but that is largely down to their lack of personnel. They've been poor so far, but things should start to look up when missing players start to return to fitness.

Grade: 1/5

Chelsea

Despite a summer of spending, where Chelsea splashed over £200m on new arrivals, Frank Lampard won't be overjoyed by the start his team has made this season. With just one win in their opening three games there is certainly improvement to be made at Stamford Bridge, but I'm sure that results will start to pick up when the players to start gelling. Indeed, that must happen sooner rather than later or the gap at the top will become too great before they know it. Showed good character to come from three goals behind to rescue a point against West Brom, but it never should have got to that point in the first place.

Grade: 1.5/5

Crystal Palace

Palace started the season strongly with surprising wins over Southampton and Manchester United, and were extremely unlucky not to get something against Everton last weekend after an incredibly dubious penalty saw the Toffees take all three points at Selhurst Park. Roy Hodgson's side are creating plenty of chances in the final third though, something which they really struggled to do last term, so there is plenty for Eagles fans to be optimistic about early on. 

Grade: 4/5

Everton 

Everton have really impressed me so far, taking maximum points from their first three league games. Carlo Ancelotti completed some fantastic business by capturing the signings of James Rodriguez from Real Madrid and Allan from Napoli this summer, and both have taken to their new surroundings effortlessly. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the division's leading goalscorer with five goals and the young Englishman is now just two goals away from hitting double figures in all competitions following his hat-trick against West Ham in the League Cup. All in all, things are looking good for the Blues and I expect them to be challenging for Europe in some capacity this season.

Grade: 5/5

Fulham

I am already very concerned about Fulham. The Cottagers just cannot seem to get it right at the back and have already shipped 10 goals, scoring just three. It is a poor return from their first three matches, and unless they can sign one or two more solid defenders I can't see them remaining in the top-flight beyond this season. With 0 wins from three, demotion back to the Championship already appears to be on the cards for the Lilywhites and they have now moved into odds-on favourites (1/3) in the Premier League relegation betting.

Grade: 0/5

Leeds 

Leeds have picked up exactly where they left off last season, and entered this campaign in the Premier League with the same game plan which worked so well for them last time out. With a high press causing opponents nightmares, the Whites took last season's champions Liverpool right down to the wire and were unfortunate not to get anything from that game at Anfield. Wins against Fulham and Sheffield United mean that Marcelo Bielsa's side currently sit 7th in the table, but the acid test will come this Saturday against Man City. Take something from that game, though, and their confidence will be sky high heading into the winter months.

Grade: 4/5

Leicester

Current table-toppers Leicester have started this domestic season perfectly. Three wins from three against West Brom, Burnley and most recently Man City is a terrific return and with only four goals conceded in those games it is clear that Brendan Rodgers' side are the full package. The test will come when their Europa League campaign begins later this month and their fixture list starts to become a lot more congested, though early performances suggest that the Foxes will be in and around the top of the division again this season.  

Grade: 5/5

Liverpool 

It's clear that Liverpool will be the side to beat again this season. Jurgen Klopp's side have taken maximum points in their opening three league games with wins over Leeds, Chelsea and Arsenal and look really strong. The acquisition of Thiago will massively bolster the Reds' midfield options, and it's already difficult to look past them winning the league for the second consecutive season next year. Liverpool are now odds-on favourites in the Premier League winner betting market after beginning the season as 7/4 shots for the title. Market movers. 

Grade: 5/5

Man City

After beginning the season as odds-on favourites for the title ahead of Liverpool, City are now second-favourites at 11/8 in the betting. Pep Guardiola's side have only played two league games, beating Wolves 2-0 before losing heavily to Leicester 5-2 in what was a terrible performance all round by the Cityzens as they conceded three (yes, three) penalties. There's plenty of time for City to get things right but they can't dwell on doing so, and one more defeat this side of Christmas could really kill off their title aspirations.

Grade: 2/5

Man United

Like neighbours City, United are only two games into their domestic season but so far they have looked unconvincing. A 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace was followed by a narrow 3-2 win over Brighton last weekend, which bizarrely had to be decided by a penalty awarded after the final whistle was blown at the Amex. Sunday's game against Spurs is their first proper test, but lose that and the job in hand for Ole & Co. suddenly becomes much, much harder. United's odds for the title have already drifted to 40/1 from 16/1, while their odds in the Premier League top-four betting have also drifted significantly to 5/4 from 2/5.

Grade: 2/5

Newcastle

Newcastle have won one, drawn one and lost one of their opening three league games, with their most recent draw against Spurs coming via another dubious last minute handball decision last weekend. Steve Bruce's side sit 10th so far, but face a tough run-in of games in October and the start of November with Man United, Wolves, Everton and Chelsea all on the agenda, so it will be very interesting to see where they are in the league in five weeks' time.

Grade: 2.5/5

Sheffield United

Blades fans would have been hopeful of another repeat of last season this time around, but early indications suggest that they could struggle this term. With no points taken from a possible nine on offer and not one goal scored, Chris Wilder's side's odds in the Premier League relegation betting have been cut from 4/1 to 21/10 and they are now third-favourites for the drop. Change is urgently needed at Bramall Lane, but they face a huge challenge this weekend away at Arsenal which could see them fall to the bottom of the league should Fulham get something at Wolves. 

Grade: 0/5

Southampton

Saints have kicked their season off in typically inconsistent fashion, starting with a poor showing against Palace and then conceding four second half goals against Spurs a week later after dominating the first 40 minutes. They picked up a valuable win away at Burnley last weekend, however, with the ever-reliable Danny Ings yet again providing the goods. If they can keep him fit, they should be fine but there is a worry over the club's strength in depth and defensive frailties, so perhaps the addition of another one or two bodies would be a good idea.

Grade: 2/5

Tottenham

After their opening day defeat to Everton, Spurs bounced back with an emphatic 5-2 win over Southampton but took almost all of the first half to actually wake up at St Mary's. Son Heung-min's phenomenal individual display was to thank for that victory, and a week later the north London outfit came within minutes of claiming another win against Newcastle but were undone by a very harsh last minute penalty decision. One win, one loss and a draw means that Jose Mourinho and his side still have plenty of work to do, with this weekend's clash against United providing them with a chance to gain some good momentum heading further into Autumn.

Grade: 2.5/5

West Brom

You have to feel for West Brom. They have played some really nice football so far and have found no issues in finding the net, but defensively they are all at sea. After taking a three-goal lead against Chelsea last weekend they completely bottled it and ended up drawing 3-3 and it was a similar situation on gameweek two where they took the lead against Everton but ended up losing 5-2. If Slaven Bilic can tighten things up at the back then I think they'll be fine this season as attacking-wise they look really dangerous.

Grade: 2/5

West Ham

After a really poor display against Newcastle, where they lost 2-0 at home, West Ham improved 10-fold against Arsenal and were unlucky not to take a point from the game after a late goal from Eddie Nketiah clinched the spoils for the Gunners at the London Stadium. They didn't let that result affect them, though, and after sticking five past Hull in the League Cup David Moyes' side thrashed Wolves 4-0 in the Premier League last weekend in what was a hugely surprising result. Nine goals scored in two games is certainly a statement from the Hammers and it will be interesting to see if they continue their impressive form against early pacesetters Leicester this Sunday.

Grade: 3/5

Wolves

Although still really early days given Wolves have played just two games so far, I have been disappointed with Nuno's side. Last season they did the double over Man City but when the two sides met a fortnight ago they were second best throughout and almost allowed City to dominate them. Then, last weekend they were played off the park by West Ham and shipped four goals without response. I've no doubt that they'll start to improve and thoroughly expect them to be in and around the top-six again this season with all of the quality they have, but it hasn't been the best of starts for the boys from the Black Country, and their odds for a Europa League finish have now doubled to 4/1 from 2/1 with certain firms.

Grade: 0/5