Premier League 2023-24 top newcomer odds: Burnley the pick
Welcome to the all-new bet365 Premier League betting hub, where we take a closer look at the latest odds in some of the most interesting ante-post betting markets ahead of the new season that starts on Friday August 11.
Top newcomer
The top newcomer market focuses solely on the three teams who won promotion to the Premier League from the Championship last season.
Burnley and Sheffield United are returning to the Premier League after brief absences but for Luton Town the 2023-24 campaign will be their first in the top flight since 1992-93.
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Top newcomer odds – 2023-24
This market is a three-horse race comprising Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton Town, with the promoted sides competing to be the ‘top newcomer’ in the 2023-24 Premier League season.
The side that finishes the highest of the three will be confirmed as top newcomer and bet365 will pay out the winning selection at the end of the campaign. Bets need to be placed before the market closes on Friday August 11 at 8pm.
Last season, the three promoted sides all survived their first season back in the top flight, Fulham finishing 10th, Bournemouth 15th and Nottingham Forest 16th.
Where could the value lie in this market?
League tables don’t lie and this market reflects how the three promoted sides performed last season. Burnley won the Championship title with 101 points from 46 matches, comfortably clear of Sheffield United on 91, with play-off winners Luton Town a relatively distant third on 80 points.
Manager Vincent Kompany did more than transform Burnley’s fortunes – he also revolutionised their style of play. A direct side under previous manager Sean Dyche, they played their way back to the Premier League with patient, possession-based, progressive football.
Kompany’s team compiled a record of 29 wins, 14 draws and just three defeats in the second tier, and their only defeats in cup competitions came away to Manchester City and Manchester United.
No less an advantage than the Belgian’s ability to build a team will be the many high-level contacts he has in the game from his time as a player with City, Hamburg and Anderlecht, the last of whom he returned to manage when he left Manchester after 11 years as a player at the Etihad Stadium.
An example is goalkeeper James Trafford, who saved a last-minute penalty for England against Spain in their recent Under-21 European Championship final victory. Burnley are close to finalising a deal with City that will bring the 20-year-old to Turf Moor.
They are priced at 4/7 to be the best newcomer and, despite that favourites’ tag, could still prove to be the best value given how they dominated the division last season.
Duo key for hard-working Blades
Sheffield United are 11/4 to be best newcomer and Paul Heckingbottom’s side will not lack character for the challenge, having bounced back from losing in the 2021-22 Championship play-offs to return to the top flight at the second time of asking last term.
Where Burnley have adopted a new style of play, the Blades have a fantastic work ethic that echoes their time under former manager Chris Wilder, when they rose from League One to the Premier League finished ninth in their first campaign in the top flight, beating Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea.
They were relegated the following season – 2020-21, when they did not win a league match until January – but still claimed the notable scalp of Manchester United, whom they beat at Old Trafford.
Their chances of success next season may depend on the club keeping two of their best players in midfielders Iliman Ndiaye and Sander Berge. Both were key figures in the Championship last season, and it may be worth waiting to see if both stay on before backing the Blades to be top newcomer.
Hatters have their work cut out
Play-off winners Luton Town will be experiencing life in the Premier League for the first time in their history, having been relegated in 1992 after 10 successive seasons in the top flight.
In the intervening years, the Hatters dropped into the fifth tier and back before sealing promotion in May with a penalty-shootout victory over Coventry City at Wembley.
Manager Rob Edwards guided them to that enthralling occasion just six months after he took over as manager at Kenilworth Road.
On paper, Luton’s squad is the least strong of the three promoted teams – hence their odds of 4/1 to be the top newcomer in this market – but the likes of top-scorer Carlton Morris and his team-mates will be relishing the chance to bloody a few noses next term.
