With the Premier League well underway, many avid fans are already placing their bets with dedicated confidence. Each year, the league offers players and fans alike a nine-month long adrenaline rush that still leaves them begging for more, and with every new year comes a whole host of new trends to watch. Whether it’s an underdog showing its true power, or a general show of riskier gameplay, the Premier League certainly gives us plenty of action to keep us cheering or yelling on the edge of our seats.

For the bettors amongst us, however, keeping up with the odds, tips and trends is a must for effective and well-informed betting strategy. While some will throw their money at their favourite team or place uninformed bets with an accumulator, having some knowledge about the trends currently forming the 2017/18 Premier League will not only keep things fun, but even make you a little money in the meantime. Here, we’re exploring some of the most interesting trends in this year’s Premier League.

Growing Conservatism

The biggest trend worth noting this year in particular is that goals just aren’t being scored. In fact, the lack of goals, especially in the lower half of the current league table, is frankly appalling. Let’s take Swansea, for example. This year, Swansea’s ‘top scorers’ list currently consists of Jordan Ayew, Tammy Abraham, and very possibly Alfie Mawson, one of Swansea’s defenders. You may be wondering just why this is an issue and the answer is this: with Mawson’s two goals this season, the fact that he’s within reach of the top scorers is a cringe-worthy reflection on just how badly the team has performed this season.

But Swansea are hardly the only culprits. In fact, most teams aren’t even averaging at one goal per game. Most are playing more games than goals scored, and while this may seem to make betting much easier, it could actually prove to have an adverse effect. The lower half of the league is volatile, with teams jumping around the positions with every game that they play. One goal in an entire game could raise a team up three or four places, and one loss could drop them down to the bottom. For those who aren’t supporters of current leaders Manchester City, betting on your favourites could mean taking a much more tactile approach than most are used to.

All-Out Defence

One reason for lower goal volumes could all be down to the new ‘all-out defence’ style of play that some of the bigger teams have taken on this year. The big six in particular are guilty of such a tactic, in which they are far more concerned with keeping possession of the ball than actually scoring with it, which is the reverse of tactics which were seen in the 2015-16 season. Against the smaller teams, this style of play is proving extremely successful so if you’re a fan of these ‘small’ teams, it’s probably best to bet carefully.

Let’s take the Newcastle vs. Manchester City match as an example; with possession rates of 22% for Newcastle and 78% for City, it’s no wonder that this was the match to open up fan’s eyes to this brand new tactic. It’s undoubtedly unfair, with an incredible level of domination and one-sided play in every match.  For this reason, bets surrounding possession rates as opposed to goals could be beneficial to those looking to make money, while any kind of betting around non-big-six teams should be done with care!

Betting Tips

While there is no set betting style to follow for each Premier League season, keeping up with live tips and odds is the key to ensuring safe and well-informed bets. With hundreds of sites dedicated to providing all the tips you could need, gaining this knowledge is truly easier than it ever has been before – and this season, it’s needed more than most.

Pay attention not only to the suggested odds and bets that you’re likely to find, but also to the potential trends that you could see per game. For example, the Liverpool vs West Ham match on 24/02/2018 at the time of writing still hasn’t taken place. The current suggested betting tips not only include suggested bets of Sadio Mane to score at any time, and Liverpool to be in the lead after 30 minutes, it also takes you through the potential trends we could see that have led to these suggested bets. It’s important to pay attention to this kind of information – after all, while Liverpool have been going from strength to strength with every game they play, West Ham are also thought to grow in strength with recent improvements in gameplay!

Betting on football doesn’t need to be a complicated process, and hopefully with our guide you’re already well on your way to well-thought-out Premier League betting. Good luck!