Man Utd Currently 8.00 To Win EPL

Published on August 17th, 2014 12:16 am EST
Those hoping for a much improved Manchester United team this season were sorely disappointed on Saturday afternoon after Man Utd laid an egg at Old Trafford against Swansea City.

The game was supposed to mark the start of Manchester United's upswing under the watchful eye of new manager Louis van Gaal, but it was nothing of the sort at Old Trafford after Gylfi Sigurdsson and Ki Sung-yueng notched tallies for Swansea City. Wayne Rooney had a strong game for Manchester United, but it was not enough for his team to avoid a 2-1 defeat at home.

Last season was an unmitigated disaster for Man Utd, as they finished in 7th place in the English Premier League. That means no Champions League or Europa League for the club this season.

Excitement swelled in the offseason as Louis van Gaal was hired as the team's new manager, and the Netherland's strong performance in the World Cup heightened expectations even more.

Prior to the season getting underway, Man Utd was considered to have the third best odds of winning the English Premier League, behind Chelsea and Manchester City. Even after a disastrous campaign last year, Manchester United was being given a better chance of winning the EPL than both Arsenal and Liverpool.

After the opening week, things have changed for the worse for Manchester United.

Prior to this weekend, Manchester United was listed at 6.00 to win the EPL this season.

After Saturday's home disaster against Swansea City, the club is now listed at 8.00 to win.

Sure, the team likely has some wrinkles to iron out, but what club doesn't at this point of the season? Dropping a precious home contest against a team that they SHOULD beat may end up being a devastating blow to Manchester United's fragile psyche at this point.

Manchester United has an easy schedule to start out the season, as they have games against Sunderland, Burnley FC, QPR and Leicester City looming. After that, business picks up for the club, as they will have to square off against Chelsea, Man City and Arsenal over the course of just four weeks.

If Manchester United struggles over the coming weeks, their season is likely to get very ugly.