Aviva Premiership: Title odds, five stars to watch and key statistics ahead of the new season

Latest Aviva Premiership odds

European champions Saracens are Sky Bet's even-money favourites to win the Aviva Premiership title for the third time in four years this season.

The London club failed to make last year's Grand Final as Exeter secured a historic first title, but it is Saracens who are strongly fancied to return to the summit next May.

Exeter, who defeated Wasps in extra-time at Twickenham last season, are 4/1 to retain their crown with Wasps, the long-time leaders last season, 5/2 shots to go one better.

Leicester Tigers, who finished fourth after changing coach midway through the season, are 12/1 outsiders to win the Grand Final and 4/9 to make the semi-finals.

Newly promoted London Irish are the favourites to be relegated in their first season back in the top flight from Worcester (15/8).

Chiefs ready for latest chapter

Exeter captain Gareth Steenson says the Chiefs have no intention of resting on their laurels as reigning Aviva Premiership champions this season.

Barely three months after Steenson and company stung Wasps at Twickenham to land a first Premiership title, the hard work begins again with a west country derby opener against Gloucester.

And Steenson has underlined Exeter's desire to kick on, not only in the domestic arena, but also on rugby's major European stage, where he admits there is an expectation on Chiefs following their stunning Premiership title triumph.

Steenson said: "Cementing ourselves as a top four (Premiership) side has got to be the bread and butter.

"But we also realise what will be expected of us in Europe as Premiership champions. We have got to try and look to get out of the group and get ourselves in the knockout stages.

"We've got the squad, and it is a lovely challenge to have.

"There is no such thing as an easy game in the Premiership. If you don't go out and play well and perform on the day, you lose. It's as simple as that because the league is that good. You have got to be on it every single week.

"We have got to raise our game, too. We have never really done a lot of chopping and changing in terms of the squad. What we have added is bits of quality.

"It's a good place to be at the minute, and we have got to use the confidence we've got in the right way."

Exeter have had a quiet summer in the player movement market compared with most clubs.

And that tried and tested squad strength in depth should once again serve them well this term, with an added bonus of young prospects like Jack Maunder and Harry Williams having gained senior England honours in Argentina two months ago.

"It's nice to come in and have a new challenge. The club has always been about progressing, and there is so much more the club can achieve and do," Steenson added.

"We haven't performed that well in Europe, which is something we will definitely talk about. And we want to establish ourselves as a top-four Premiership team. First and foremost, we want to make sure we are hitting those play-offs again.

"There is so much potential in the squad to continue to fight on all fronts, really, and it is something we will really look forward to.

"We probably rolled into last season following the (2016) Premiership final against Saracens, and it was very evident that we weren't on the ball in the early part of that campaign.

"We were probably still patting ourselves on the back on how well we had done, but we had a meeting in October time and righted a few wrongs.

"The danger of last season was that it could have been a nothing season for us, and it ended up being one of the greatest. It just showed the resolve we have in the group.''

Five players to watch

LIAM WILLIAMS, SARACENS:

The Wales flyer enjoyed a stellar summer with the British and Irish Lions in New Zealand and will now look to repeat that form with the back-to-back European champions. Saracens lost Chris Ashton to Toulon but shrugged off that blow by recruiting Williams from Scarlets as a direct replacement. Williams' strike running helped the Lions register one of the touring outfit's all-time great tries, kick-started the field-length break in the first New Zealand Test that led to Sean O'Brien's stunning score. At 26 Williams should now hit his prime, leaving Saracens well-placed to reap that fruit.

SAM UNDERHILL, BATH:

Underhill's switch from Ospreys to Bath allowed Eddie Jones to take the prodigiously-talented flanker on England's tour of Argentina in the summer. The former Gloucester back-rower broke through with the Ospreys while studying at Cardiff University, but is now back on home soil and able to progress his career for both club and country. Adept at the breakdown and a classic continuity flanker, Underhill boasts a rare skill set that Bath and England will doubtless look to maximise now.

VALENTINO MAPAPALANGI, LEICESTER:

New Leicester coach Matt O'Connor saw Mapapalangi's bruising qualities first-hand in a recent stint in Tonga's back-room staff. The 24-year-old back-five forward is certainly raw, but has plenty of muscle to flex and pace to augment that. Leicester have plenty of previous when it comes to unearthing and polishing rough diamonds, and may well have another gem on their hands here.

FAF DE KLERK, SALE:

Sale's high-profile capture of Springboks scrum-half De Klerk has signalled their intentions to push on under taskmaster boss Steve Diamond. The north west club hope to bring the best out of James O'Connor, the Australia back looking to rebuild his career after being arrested in Paris for drug offences in February. While O'Connor's move from Toulon will capture much fanfare, De Klerk's arrival at the AJ Bell Stadium ought to excite Sale fans just as much. The gritty half-back has a smart mix of aggression, physicality and wit that Diamond will hope can elevate Sale's back play to new levels.

MATT KVESIC, EXETER:

Kvesic traded Worcester for Gloucester in 2013 as the Premiership's hottest property and England's nailed-on next openside flanker. The groundhog seven saw his career stall with the Cherry and Whites however, with his England aspirations remaining largely unfulfilled. Kvesic has yet to feature at all with England under Eddie Jones, and will doubtless hope his switch to Exeter can help reignite his Test chances. Not only are Exeter now reigning Premiership champions, but rugby director Rob Baxter has also helped the Chiefs revitalise the careers of a catalogue of stars in recent years. Should Baxter and the Chiefs strike again here, Sandy Park will play host to yet another back-row forward of the highest quality.

Aviva Premiership in numbers

6 - half of the current teams have been Premiership ever-presents in rugby union's professional era, dating back to 1997.

17 - Christian Wade was the league's top try-scorer last season, contributing to Wasps' league-high total of 93.

292 - their fly-half Jimmy Gopperth was the division's leading points-scorer with 10 tries, 64 conversions and 38 penalties.

301 - Premiership wins for Leicester in the professional era, the only team to crack 300. With Sarries second on 267, that may remain the case for two more years.

9 - the number of clubs to have won the league title.

6 - years between Exeter being promoted to the Premiership and becoming champions last season.

4 - the Chiefs' top-flight win ratio, 56.5 per cent, ranks fourth behind Leicester, Saracens and Northampton among the current Premiership teams.

14 - new signings in Newcastle's ambitious rebuilding programme, headlined by former England fly-half Toby Flood, France back Maxime Mermoz and flying Canada win DTH van der Merwe.

1 - promoted London Irish return to the Premiership after one year away, with Bristol's top-flight stay also lasting just a solitary season.

4 - teams to have scored at least 10,000 Premiership points in the professional era - Leicester, leading the way again on 11,505, plus Saracens, Wasps and Gloucester. This season should see Bath, Northampton and Sale reach the landmark.