Chelsea dark horses for best away record this season

Manchester City are favourites to retain their Premier League title this season, and also to finish the campaign with the best home and away records.

The champions are priced at 6/4 to claim the division’s best home record again this year, and have identical odds to top the pile away from Eastlands too.

Last season Roberto Mancini’s side were the best team on home soil by some distance, but runners-up Manchester United were the better travellers.

You may assume that the league winners tend to have the best records both home and away, but history suggests the champions rarely do.

Over the past 10 seasons, only four times has the team who picked up the title been the best side in the league on home soil and on the road.

The trio of clubs to achieve the feat over the last decade are Man Utd (02/03 and 06/07), Chelsea (04/05) and Arsenal (03/04).

And when the champions have proved irresistible on both fronts, it has been during a league triumph that they have dominated.

Chelsea won the league by 12 points during their premier season, Arsenal by 11 during the ‘Invincibles’ year and Man Utd by six and five points in their perfect campaigns.

Therefore unless you are predicting one team to run away with the league this season, it would be wise to bet on different sides for the home and away record.

And with the title race this season tipped to be between Man City, Man Utd and Chelsea, it could be any one of those three teams who end up the best away side.

Man Utd can be backed at 11/4 to finish the campaign as the best visitors, although they have blotted their copybook already by suffering defeat at Everton.

An interesting proposition may be to plump for Chelsea to finish the season with the best away record, priced at a tempting 12/5.

The Blues have form as the best travellers even when not winning the title, doing so in both the 2007/08 and 2008/09 seasons.

Not always have title challengers been the best away from home, with Arsenal doing so in 2010/11 despite finishing fourth, and in 2008/09 Chelsea topped the travelling league even though they came third.

If you fancy a bet from left field, then league long shots Arsenal are priced at 8/1, Liverpool further back at 20/1 and Tottenham can be punted on at 25/1.

When selecting your team to end the season with the best home record, then you can rely on that side to also win the league.

Each of the last 10 seasons has seen the title winners pick up the best home record.

Reigning champions Man City are priced short at 6/4, Man Utd at Old Trafford can’t be ignored at 11/5 and Chelsea could make Stamford Bridge a fortress at 9/2.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.