Last season was a campaign to forget for Everton fans.
Not only did the Toffees nearly collapse into the EFL Championship (Everton only stayed in the Premier League with a stunning 3-2 Week 37 comeback win over Crystal Palace), finishing 16th in the table with a woeful 39 points, but they also had to watch on as Stanley Park rivals Liverpool won two trophies and made runs at both the Premier League and UEFA Champions League.
But Frank Lampard kept the team up at the end of the day, and the resulting celebrations–which were more relief–that came when Everton beat Crystal Palace (which ended in a massive pitch invasion) gave way to some thoughts that the team would regroup this summer and start to move back up the table.
Will they, though?
Maybe the silver lining for Everton is that right now, the club is nowhere near the bottom of the odds to be relegated.
The three teams that were promoted from the Championship make up the first three spots on the odds' boards, with AFC Bournemouth the clear favorite to go straight back down at -182. Two-time European Cup champions Nottingham Forest, which are back in the top flight for the first time since 1999, are next at +100, close to yo-yo club Fulham (+120).
At least one of the promoted clubs has stayed up most years (Brentford last season), so we have to start looking at some of the teams that finished 2022 in the bottom quarter of the table for any candidates to get relegated in May.
Who might those be?
Well, we have already spoke at length about Everton, which still has pretty long odds to be relegated. Leeds United (17th last season), led by American Jesse Marsch, along with Brentford (13th), are both at odds of less than 3/1. Southampton (15th) is currently +300, while surprise team Wolves, which finished in the top half last season, are priced at +500.
We will start to see it all unfold on August 5.
Premier League Relegation Odds
Bournemouth -182
Nottingham Forest +100
Fulham +120
Leeds United +225
Brentford +250
Southampton +300
Everton +400
Wolves +500
Crystal Palace +550
Brighton & Hove Albion +900
Aston Villa +1400
The Picks:
Bournemouth -186
Fulham +120
Leeds United +225
Long shot play:
Aston Villa +1400