On that glorious day in 2015, Chelsea FC and their supporters could never have imagined just how awful the very next would go. Yes, in early May of last year Chelsea were crowned 2014-15 Premier League champions after they beat Crystal Palace 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. However, 2015-16 brought a league title defense that went just about as wrong a title defending season could go.
They faltered out of the gates, found themselves hovering just above the relegation zone for much of the early season and sacked their manager before Christmas.
Under interim manager Guus Hiddink, the Blues played pretty respectably (most of the time) and salvaged a mid table finish from an otherwise extremely dismal season.
Unfortunately, they finished well outside the top four and will now play the 2015-16 season without European football. How will this impact their odds of contending for the league title/getting back into the top four this season? Well, it seems that the wagering community is optimistic about the Blues upcoming season. They seem to believe that new manager Antonio Conte is the right man to rebuild the West London side, as Chelsea are essentially considered the fourth team in the title race.
The two Manchester clubs are considered the favorites right now, with City currently given better odds than United. The bookmakers like Arsenal third most of all right now with Chelsea coming in fourth as of now. Those of you looking to make online casino real money will the Blues usually at 13-2 or 11-2 league title odds right now, but some sports books are offering 5-1 or 6-1. Stamford Bridge has better odds than their London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, last year’s third place finisher, who are usually seeing 7 or 8-1, but also often 17 or 15-2. Liverpool are sixth on this board with last year’s amazing underdog story, reigning champions Leicester City, placing seventh.
All in all, you have to feel pretty good about Chelsea FC heading in the right direction when you see odds like these; especially so when you consider just how poorly this past season went.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication.
He also consistently appears on numerous talk shows all across the country. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram