The betting behind Liverpool's title-win and next season's outright odds

So Liverpool have finally done it. After 30 years of hurt, the Reds have laid claim to their first ever Premier League title and, in the end, they didn’t even have to kick a ball to complete the job.

A helping hand from a man who has so often inflicted pain and misery on Liverpool Football Club over the years ensured Manchester City could no longer mathematically win the league title for a third consecutive season on Thursday night. 

Frank Lampard’s Chelsea were resilient, well-organised and ruthless on the counter-attack during their 2-1 victory over the Cityzens at Stamford Bridge. And, while they have Benjamin Mendy largely to thank for the opener, and owe Fernandinho a pint for his stupidity late-on, the Blues deserved all three points after what was a hard-fought encounter in SW6. 

It must be said that Liverpool have been tremendous throughout the entirety of a bizarre campaign which has been marred by a gastly global plague. With such a gap at the top of the Premier League, and for so long, Jurgen Klopp’s well-oiled machine has dismantled pretty much everything in its path (aside from a relegation-threatened Watford side, that is) and truly deserve the trophy. 

After missing out on the title last season by a single point, many thought that Liverpool’s chance of winning the Premier League had been missed, once again, by the very finest of margins. They were not expected to continue with the same level of consistency and destructiveness as they had done throughout the 2018-19 campaign; it was deemed an impossible task with a squad much thinner than that of their closest top-flight rivals Manchester City. 

But they did, and now last season’s near miss has become reality. With 70 goals scored, just 21 conceded and all with seven games still left to play, the Reds are now odds-on at 5/6 to break City’s Premier League points tally record of 101 next month.

Indeed, for all who doubted Klopp and his side this season, there were many who felt differently.

According to bookmaker’s Betfair, 1,493 people had a punt on Liverpool winning the league at odds of 3/1 at the start of the campaign, which amounts to 11% of customers who placed an ante-post wager on the Premier League winner market with them, while 20% fancied City at 4/9. 

One lucky Betfair customer even staked a huge £1,325 on the Merseysiders to land their first Premier League title at odds of 6/5 after the season had begun, pocketing a tidy £2,915 on Thursday night following City’s defeat to Chelsea. 

Now, the focus turns to next season 

Despite Liverpool’s dominance this season, Manchester City are bookmaker’s favourites to reclaim the title next term. Pep Guardiola’s side have been priced up at 6/5 to clinch their fifth Premier League title (a 45% chance), while the Reds are being given a 36% chance of making it two in two with their odds of 7/4.

Chelsea looked sharp on Thursday night and have some really exciting new additions joining in the summer, with Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner both making the switch to Stamford Bridge in the coming months. Frank Lampard’s side will have their eyes firmly on the title next season, and could be a worthwhile consideration at 16/1. 

Manchester United have been inconsistent this season but have looked promising since the restart, with Bruno Fernandes looking to be a valuable asset and the return of Paul Pogba certainly strengthening their midfield. If they can keep hold of the Frenchman and add one or two more players during the summer transfer window - namely the highly sought after Jadon Sancho - they could stake a genuine claim for the trophy next term. 

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are fourth-favourites at 25/1 with bet365, which could be worth an outside bet depending on how their off-season transpires. 

Meanwhile, Tottenham are being given a slim-looking 2% chance of obtaining their first ever Premier League title next season, priced up at 50/1 with bet365. North London rivals Arsenal are unsurprisingly even bigger shots for league dominance, priced at 80/1 (1.2% chance), while former champions Leicester could be the value punt at 150/1 with Betfred. 

Brendan Rodgers’ side have impressed all season and at one stage moved to second-favourites for the title, so those odds do seem somewhat appealing considering just how well they have performed throughout the last ten months. 

Elsewhere, recently taken-over Newcastle have been priced up as huge 350/1 shots for the title, while Nuno Espirito Santo’s ravenous Wolves are slightly shorter at 250/1.

Salah or Mane for the Golden Boot?

With the title now officially wrapped up, the focus on outright betting this season turns to markets like who will face Premier League relegation, which side will make it into the elusive top-four and secure Champions League football next season, and who will scoop the coveted Golden Boot award at the end of the campaign.

Jamie Vardy still leads the way with 19 goals but the Englishman is yet to find the net since the top-flight resumed last week, failing to score against Watford and Brighton. 

Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (17 goals) has won the award the last two seasons - sharing it with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and teammate Sadio Mane last term - and will be eyeing up a third title this time around as he finds himself just two goals behind Vardy with seven games still left to play. 

The Egyptian is currently 9/2 to surpass Vardy and claim his third consecutive Golden Boot next month, whereas Reds teammate Sadio Mane - on 15 goals as things stand - is priced up at 12/1. Both of those bets offer good value as it’s likely Jurgen Klopp will continue to play his most influential forwards in a bid to break the points tally record set by Manchester City in 2017-18.

If you fancy Vardy to be crowned top scorer, though, he can be found at odds of 13/8, while Arsenal’s Aubameyang (17 goals) is 9/2.