Coventry City are attempting to become the second newly promoted team to beat a defending league champion in a season opener in Premier League history.
Key Takeaways
- Only one of the last 10 newly promoted teams to face the reigning Premier League champions on Matchday 1 won.
- Arsenal are -2,300 (95.8% implied probability) to win or draw the match.
- Coventry are -145 to be relegated from the league.
Friday’s matchup between Arsenal and Coventry City will mark the 11th time that a reigning Premier League champion has met a newly promoted side on the opening weekend. The 3 p.m. ET showdown will be a standalone match.
Arsenal won their first title since 2003-04 last season, finishing with 85 points, seven ahead of second-place Manchester City. Coventry City, meanwhile, finished its EFL Championship season with 95 points from 46 matches, 11 ahead of second-place Ipswich Town.
Only once in the 10 previous opening-week matchups between the reigning champions and one of three league newcomers did the underdogs scrape a victory. That occurred in 2016 when Hull City stunned Leicester City at the MKM Stadium.
Before that, it hadn't happened since 1990, two years before the Premier League era began.
Despite the historical advantage, FanDuel only has Arsenal as -600 favorites, giving them an implied 85.7% chance of winning the match. Coventry is +1,500 (6.3% implied probability), and there are +600 odds (14.3%) of a draw.
FanDuel’s tie-no-bet market has Arsenal at -2,300 (95.8% implied probability) to Coventry’s +1,500.
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Lampard, Arteta meet again as managers
The return of Premier League action will renew an old rivalry between two figures; this time as managers.
Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta and Coventry’s Frank Lampard competed against each other as Premier League players from 2005-15 - Arteta at Everton and Arsenal and Lampard at Chelsea and Manchester City.
Lampard played on more successful teams during their playing days, but the roles have flipped as managers. Arteta's Gunners won the league and were a penalty shootout away from also claiming the Champions League title, while Lampard’s Coventry is preparing for its first top-flight season in 25 years.
While Arsenal are a leading +105 in Premier League title odds, Coventry are -145 to be relegated. That is the third-shortest relegation price on the board, ahead of only the two other promoted sides, Hull and Ipswich. Sunderland (+320) are the next-closest team.
Coventry are also +1,800 to finish in the top half of the table.
Picks for opening weekend
Friday’s Arsenal-Coventry matchup is the only one of the day. There will be five matches on Saturday, three on Sunday, and one on Monday.
Our experts’ best picks and predictions can be found here.
