The 2026/27 English Premier League season gets underway on Friday night when title holders Arsenal host newly promoted Coventry City at The Emirates.
Friday, Arsenal vs Coventry
Arsenal
Arsenal won the EPL title last season, eventually finishing 7 points clear of Manchester City. They were in the mix for all of 4 trophies last season but eventually had to be content with the league title. They lost the UCL Final to PSG on spot kicks and were also beaten by Man City in EFL Cup Final whilst their FA Cup run ended with a quarter final defeat at Southampton. Their final tune up for the new season saw them beat Man City 3-0 in the Community Shield in Cardiff last weekend. Arsenal are 12/10 with Sportingbet to win the title again this season.
Major Transfers In: Bruno Guimaraes - Newcastle, £75m, Christos Tzolis - Club Brugge, £34m
Major Transfers Out: Jakub Kiwior - Porto, £19m, Leandro Trossard - Besiktas, £17m, Christian Norgaard - Everton, £7m
Pre-season Results
1 August: Girona 1-4 Arsenal (Estadi Montilivi, Girona)
5 August: Arsenal 1-3 Real Betis (Aviva Stadium, Dublin,)
9 August: Arsenal 2-3 Borussia Dortmund (Emirates Stadium, London)
12 August: Arsenal 1-1 Como - Arsenal win 4-3 on penalties (Emirates Stadium, London)
15th August Arsenal 3-0 Man City Community Shield (Cardiff)
Team News
Defenders Timber and Saliba are both out injured.
Coventry
Promoted from the Championship as title winners last season Frank Lampard’s Coventry have spent more than £100m bolstering the squad. Pre season results include wins over Monaco (2-0) and Espanyol (3-1). Sportingbet have Coventry as 8/10 second favourites to be relegated this season.
Major Transfers In: Caleb Yirenkyi - Nordsjaelland, £26m, Carl Rushworth - Brighton, £22.5m, Sidiki Cherif - Fenerbahce, £20.5m, Loum Tchaouna - Burnley, £20m, Aurele Amenda - Eintracht Frankfurt, £17.2m, Taiwo Awoniyi - Nottingham Forest, £9m, Gustavo Hamer - Sheffield United, £6m, Frank Onyeka - Brentford, undisclosed, Billy-Ray Cullinane - Brighton, free
Team News
Haji Wright is out injured.
The Betting
Arsenal are 17/100 to win with the draw at 25/4 and Coventry can be backed at around 12/1
Price boosts from Sportingbet include Havertz and Saka both to have 2 or more shots on target at 23/4
Verdict:
Arsenal looked ready to go on the avidence of the Community Shield win over City and I fancy they can oblige for punters who back them to score 3 goals or more.
Bet: Arsenal total goals over 2.5 at 9/10 with Sportingbet
Prices are subject to change