Data experts predict shock Premier League finishes for Aston Villa, Wolves and rivals

Aston Villa have started the 2024/25 campaign in a strong and confident fashion, claiming six points from the nine available. Away wins at West Ham United and Leicester City were clinical and ruthless, characteristics Unai Emery’s side struggled to embody on the road at times last term.

The only visit to Villa Park so far ended in a 2-0 defeat, but it was at the hands of an Arsenal side determined to close the gap to Manchester City after narrowly missing out on the title. It was also a very even encounter which really could have gone either way.

Fellow West Midlands side Wolverhampton Wanderers haven’t got off to as positive of a start. The Gold were beaten 2-0 away at Arsenal on the opening weekend and then were thrashed 6-2 by Chelsea at Molineux. Gary O’Neil’s men then showed a reaction, claiming the first point of the campaign with a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest.

Early results for Man City confirm everybody’s suspicions that Pep Guardiola’s side will likely claim a fifth successive Premier League crown. That said, Liverpool have won all three of their opening matches under Arne Slot and have done so without conceding a single goal. The Reds could be contenders.

The battle to qualify for Europe is set to be fierce. Villa will be keen to finish in the top four again but the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United are expected to put up strong fights. Brighton & Hove Albion, meanwhile, look like the season’s dark horses.

It will be mightily tough for the promoted sides - Leicester, Southampton and Ipswich Town - to survive but all three are capable of doing so. This could especially be the case with Everton and Wolves struggling to get off the mark.

Opta predicts final 2024/25 Premier League table

With so much up in the air, it would be very tricky to predict how things will unfold come the end of the season. Thankfully for us, data experts at Opta have done the hard yards and worked out the probabilities for the finishing positions and likely points totals of all 20 teams. Here’s a full run-through.

• 1st: Manchester City (Expected points: 91.69)
• 2nd: Liverpool (Expected points: 79.48)
• 3rd: Arsenal (Expected points: 78.83)
• 4th: Newcastle United (Expected points: 62.88)
• 5th: Chelsea (Expected points: 59.96)
• 6th: Brighton & Hove Albion (Expected points: 57.49)
• 7th: Aston Villa (Expected points: 57.27)
• 8th: Tottenham Hotspur (Expected points: 57.04)
• 9th: Manchester United (Expected points: 55.08)
• 10th: West Ham United (Expected points: 49.93)
• 11th: Brentford (Expected points: 49.84)
• 12th: AFC Bournemouth (Expected points: 48.02)
• 13th: Fulham (Expected points: 47.70)
• 14th: Crystal Palace (Expected points: 47.19)
• 15th: Nottingham Forest (Expected points: 41.07)
• 16th: Wolverhampton Wanderers (Expected points: 39.50)
• 17th: Everton (Expected points: 38.01)
• 18th: Ipswich Town (Expected points: 32.58)
• 19th: Leicester City (Expected points: 32.31)
• 20th: Southampton (Expected points: 29.68)