After a weekend of English Premier League action that saw a number of the big sides stumble, there’s a good chance we should see some normality restored this weekend. Chelsea were humbled by the previously winless Crystal Palace and now their title defence is beginning to show widening cracks. It was a similarly poor performance from Arsenal that resulted in a 2-1 loss away at Watford but for the current league leaders, it was a fantastic weekend. A 7-2 thumping of Stoke after seeing Manchester United defend their way to a point against Liverpool now gives them a 2 point lead at the top of the table. Both sides have favourable draws this weekend but things get that little bit tougher for United with Tottenham and Chelsea to follow. In saying that though, this is the Premier League and there is bound to be plenty more twists and turns.
Week 9 Best Bet: Manchester United to beat Huddersfield to Nil at $1.83
Week 9 Best Value Bet: Manchester United to win both Halves at $3
Week 9 Head to Head Multi Bet: Chelsea win ($1.3), Manchester United win ($1.33), West Ham win ($1.83), Tottenham/Liverpool Draw ($3.6) = $11.39
**Odds from Sportsbet.com.au as of 19th October
Headline Fixtures
Chelsea vs Watford
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Chelsea 3, Draw 2
The Reigning Champions had a shock result to swallow last weekend when they stumbled at the hands of Crystal Palace. A 3-3 home draw in the Champions League during the week now makes them winless in their last 3 matches and the visit of Watford won’t be as easy as it may sound. Watford have had a fantastic start to the season to sit 4th on the table, 2 points ahead of Chelsea. What gives them more credibility for this match is that 3 of their 4 wins thus far have come on the road where they are also undefeated. It’s true though they are really yet to play anyone of real significance on the road whilst at the same time despite Chelsea’s recent poor run, seeing them lose 3 straight league games doesn’t feel likely. Defensively Chelsea don’t look like the side they were last season but they’ll be keen to turn their poor home record around where they have captured just the one league win at home this season.
Predicted Result: Chelsea 3-2
Best Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $1.57
Best Value Bet: Chelsea to win and BTTS at $2.8
Everton vs Arsenal
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Arsenal 4, Everton 1
The Toffees have been for the most part appalling this season but there could very well be a good contest in this matchup. After 8 matches, Everton sit in 16th with just 2 wins where they have alarmingly scored just 5 times whilst conceding 13. The scoring woes point largely to the reshuffling up front and proves they had a heavy reliance on Lukaku in recent times. Defensively they still need time with a few new faces still to settle but this Arsenal side have defensive issues of their own. They themselves have conceded 10 times whilst their team selection asks a lot of questions week in week out. Last time out, Arsenal lost to Watford on the road which compounded an already poor away record this season where they are still yet to win. Simply just looking at both sides inability to defend there’s reason to be optimistic that we may see some goals in this one. As for a winner, neither side look like clear cut chances to produce a performance worthy of the 3 points right now.
Predicted Result: Draw 2-2
Best Bet: Both teams to score – Yes at $1.67
Best Value Bet: Over 3.5 goals at $3.11
Tottenham vs Liverpool
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Liverpool 2, Draws 3
This looks a really good game on paper and should produce the goods come game day. Spurs have struggled at home as they adapt to Wembley stadium and that should very enticing for Liverpool who will no doubt be very confident in the space that the Wembley pitch provides. They were unlucky not to get something more out of their match with fierce rivals Manchester United where they dominated possession to take 19 shots on goal but had to settle for a scoreless draw. They got their scoring ability back on track during the week though in the Champions League when they put 7 past Maribor which will give them plenty of confidence. Similarly for Tottenham though, they return after getting a morale boost when they matched it with Real Madrid away from home in their Champions League fixture. That will give them a great deal of confidence heading into a match against Liverpool who they haven’t beaten since 2012/13. Getting the 3 points doesn’t look easy though and given the strength of Liverpool’s attacking players, they may well be in for a tough day to secure such a result. A draw may be more fitting.
Predicted Result: Draw 1-1
Best Bet: Under 2.5 goals at $2.15
Best Value Bet: Draw at $3.6
Remaining Fixtures
West Ham vs Brighton
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): West Ham 3, Brighton 1, Draws 1
Brighton have only taken a point on the road this season whilst West Ham’s only loss came at the hands of a strong Tottenham side. It’s difficult to see Brighton capturing anything more than a draw and even then, it may just be a step too far as they simply just haven’t scored enough goals away so far (just the 1)
Predicted Result: West Ham 1-0
Best Bet: Under 2.5 goals at $1.65
Best Value Bet: Half-Time Draw at $2
Huddersfield vs Manchester United
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Manchester United 4, Draws 1
Times are getting tough for Huddersfield after winning their first 2 games of the season. Manchester United have had a tough few matches where they’ve had to be pretty defensively minded against Liverpool and Benfica but perhaps this is the match where the goals come flooding back.
Predicted Result: Manchester United 4-0
Best Bet: Manchester United to win to Nil at $1.83
Best Value Bet: Manchester United to win both halves at $3
Manchester City vs Burnley
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Manchester City 3, Burnley 1, Draws 1
Manchester City have been on fire and that’s not a great sign for Burnley, albeit defensively they have been solid conceding just 6 times. City have scored 29 times already in 8 matches conceding 4 times – is there really much more to say at the moment?
Predicted Result: Manchester City 3-0
Best Bet: Manchester City to win to Nil at $1.53
Best Value Bet: Manchester City to win both halves at $1.83
Newcastle vs Crystal Palace
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Newcastle 1, Crystal Palace 1, Draws 3
Since their opening day defeat at home to Tottenham, Newcastle have been very good at home winning 2 and drawing the other. Palace presents an interesting test where they will be on a high after beating Chelsea last time out. That may propel them to a mini run of results to lifts them from the bottom of the table.
Predicted Result: Draw 2-2
Best Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $2.08
Best Value Bet: Crystal Palace to win either half at $2.45
Stoke vs Bournemouth
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Bournemouth 2, Stoke 2, Draws 1
Stoke conceded 7 times to Manchester City last time out and they’ll still be feeling a bit of that pain. At least this week they’ll be playing at home where they have produced their best football this season so expect them to bounce back against a Bournemouth side that are yet to win away.
Predicted Result: Stoke 2-1
Best Bet: Stoke to win either half at $1.57
Best Value Bet: Stoke to lead at Half-Time at $2.63
Swansea vs Leicester
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Leicester 4, Swansea 1
Swansea had a great result last time out when they defeated Huddersfield but things may be a little more difficult when they host Leicester. Leicester have just let their manager go and may be a more difficult prospect than what they would have been if Shakespere was still around.
Predicted Result: Draw 2-2
Best Bet: Both teams to score – Yes at $1.8
Best Value Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $2.07
Southampton vs West Brom
Last 5 meetings (All competitions): Southampton 2, West Brom 2, Draws 1
The Baggies are loving the draw this season having already captured 4 of them and this match points to a similar result. Southampton have been on a pretty poor run of form taking just the 1 point in their last 3 matches.
Predicted Result: Draw 1-1
Best Bet: Under 2.5 goals at $1.53
Best Value Bet: Half-Time Draw at $1.91
