EPL Matchday 6 Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Preview.
WestHam vs Tottenham
Venue: London Stadium
Time: 12:30pm
West Ham endured a terrible start to the new Premier League season as they were hammered at Old Trafford and then lost a 3-2 thriller away to Southampton. A 3-0 loss to Newcastle followed that, and it cast a lot of doubt over the future of Slaven Bilic.
Fortunately for The Hammers, they do seem to have turned a corner since the international break. Their 2-0 win over the in form Huddersfield got their first points on the board, and a point away to West Brom last weekend is an acceptable result. They also progressed in the League Cup in midweek with a comfortable 3-0 win over Bolton, so things are looking a little brighter for the hosts at the moment.
The same can’t be said entirely truthfully about their opponents. Tottenham fans have long been worried about their temporary move to Wembley, with their shocking performance there in the Champions League last season compounding their fears. They haven’t proved to be unfounded either, with Spurs without a win in their three home Premier League games so far.
Fortunately for Mauricio Pochettino they have performed in other competitions and away from home. They beat Borussia Dortmund 3-1 in their Champions League opener, and whilst the 1-0 win over Barnsley in midweek wasn’t exactly a classic, it was a win nonetheless.
On the road they have managed comfortable victories over Newcastle and Everton in the Premier League too, scoring five goals and conceding none so far. With Harry Kane back to goalscoring form they should be confident of another three points as well.
As far as the overall result goes, it’s hard to look beyond Spurs. They have looked at their best away from home this season and West Ham have lost five of their last 11 home games in the Premier League, with three of those defeats being by more than a single goal. Tottenham, meanwhile, have won seven of their last eight away games in the league, and all but one of those have been by more than a single goal.
Prediction
We’re also going for a Tottenham Win and Over 2.5 Goals. Tottenham tends to score goal away from home. The visitors have seen at least three goals in four of their last six away victories in the League.
Burnley vs Huddersfield
Venue: Turf Moor
Time: 3pm
Burnley are having a strange sort of season so far, with the jubilation of results against the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool offset by poor performances in a defeat against West Brom and a penalty exit from the League Cup at the hands of Leeds in midweek.
However, in the Premier League they can’t complain at their results so far, especially considering their tough fixture list. They are somehow unbeaten away from home, despite losing the majority of their trips away last season and facing Chelsea, Spurs, and Liverpool in their three away games so far. Now they will be looking to transfer that form to Turf Moor.
Admittedly The Clarets haven’t been that impressive at home this season, but they have only had two games at Turf Moor in the league and their last one did end in victory. It’s important to remember that they have won nine of their last 16 home league games too, so Huddersfield are up against it here.
The visitors started their first ever Premier League campaign in fantastic fashion as they hammered Crystal Palace 3-0 away from home, following that with a win over Newcastle and a draw with Southampton. However, that honeymoon period was never likely to last too long.
That’s turned out to be the case for Huddersfield as well. They fell to their first defeat away to the out of form West Ham before picking up a respectable point at home to Leicester. Midweek saw them lose against the similarly out of form Crystal Palace in the League Cup too.
Burnley are clear favourites for this one in our eyes. The hosts have had a much tougher start to their Premier League campaign but are still level on points with Huddersfield, and their success away from home is bound to boost their confidence in front of their own fans.
It’s unlikely to be a high scoring win though. Huddersfield have failed to score in their last two away games and eight of Burnley’s last ten home games in the league have seen fewer than three goals.
Prediction.
Backing a Burnley Win and Under 2.5 Goals seems the right deal.
Everton vs Bournemouth
Venue: Goodison park
Time: 3pm
Everton started to notice a bit of blue sky behind the cloudiness and turmoil of the new season in midweek as they put in a solid performance at home to Sunderland in the League Cup. Admittedly they weren’t facing the best of opponents, but a win on the board was desperately needed and they duly delivered at Goodison Park.
Omar Niasse managed to find the net after a tumultuous 12 months at Everton, with youngster Dominic Calvert-Lewin bagging a brace to start things off as well. Both of these could be drafted into the starting lineup as they look for an end to their lack of goals.
Prior to that victory The Toffees had lost four matches in a row in all competitions and were winless since their Europa League Playoff round tie with Hajduk Split. Their one and only win in the Premier League came in their opening game against Stoke, but they will feel a little more confident heading into this game.
That’s because Bournemouth haven’t enjoyed the greatest of starts to the season. They edged past Brighton in the League Cup in midweek with a 1-0 extra time win, following on from a 2-1 win against the same opponents in the Premier League last weekend.
However, The Cherries have lost four of their last five in the league and are yet to pick up a point away from home this season. They did beat Birmingham in the League Cup, but Everton pose a much bigger threat on Saturday.
Bournemouth have improved of late though, as their win over Brighton last weekend showed, and they should have what it takes to at least find the net against the hosts. Everton have shipped nine goals in their last three Premier League outings, and whilst they have struggled to find the net, they are coming up against a Bournemouth side who have conceded in every league game this season.
Prediction
Both Teams to score look good value and Everton to win or draw.
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace
Venue: The Etihad
Time: 3pm
Manchester City put out a largely second string squad of devastating talent in midweek when they visited West Brom in the League Cup. Leroy Sane scored both goals as he continues to push for a place in the regular starting line up, but it’s easy to see why it’s such a struggle with the hosts’ strength in depth.
That victory over The Baggies makes it five wins on the trot for Manchester City, and they haven’t exactly been unconvincing in victory either. They have scored a huge 19 goals in these five games, including a 5-0 battering of Liverpool, a 6-0 win over Watford, and a 4-0 thrashing of Feyenoord in the Champions League.
To say this will come as bad news to Crystal Palace is a bit of an understatement. The struggling Eagles have already parted ways with one manager this season after Frank de Boer failed to pick up a point in his opening four games, but replacement Roy Hodgson couldn’t do anything to stop Southampton getting a win in his first game in charge.
The visitors did manage a win over Huddersfield in the League Cup in midweek, but they have been utterly terrible in the Premier League. Five games in and they have lost every single match, failing to score a single goal in the process and conceding eight times.
To make matters even worse, they haven’t even had a particularly difficult start. A trip to Anfield has been by far their toughest fixture, with three of their other four matches all coming against pre-season relegation candidates. Considering they are now coming into a run of games including Manchester City, Manchester United, and Chelsea you wouldn’t back them to move off the bottom of the table anytime soon.
This has all the potential to become an absolute demolition job for The Citizens. They have scored 11 goals in their last two league games and both came against in form sides. Their last five meetings with Crystal Palace have yielded 19 goals scored and three clean sheets, with four of these matches seeing City win by three or more goals.
Prediction.
We’re going for a straight Manchester City win over 2.5.
Southampton vs Manchester United.
Venue: St. Mary's Stadium
Time: 3pm
Southampton had an enforced break from midweek football this week thanks to their early knockout from the League Cup, and whilst the rest might be helpful, it’s unlikely to instil much confidence in the St Mary’s faithful.
Last time out the Saints managed to sneak a 1-0 win away to the terribly out of form Crystal Palace, but their performances this season have been lacklustre to say the least for the most part. Their one good performance was in their 3-2 win against West Ham, but even that was marred by the fact that they required a last minute winner playing against a visiting side with ten men.
Undoubtedly, their problem on home soil is an almost complete absence of goals. They lost 2-0 to Watford in their last home game, a result which makes it seven failures to score in their last eight home league games. They have lost four of these games, and it’s hard to see them keeping a rampant Manchester United out on Saturday and their inability to score themselves means another defeat is a likely outcome.
The visitors were in midweek action on Wednesday as they comprehensively beat Burton 4-1 at home, with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial continuing their promising start to the season as Romelu Lukaku was rested.
The Red Devils’ win in midweek makes it six wins and one draw from their seven competitive games since the start of the season, with their only blip being a 2-2 draw away to Stoke earlier this month. They have bounced back from that by scoring 11 goals in just three games, and in the Premier League they have notched an impressive 16 goals in just five games this season.
They have also kept a clean sheet in four of these matches.
Prediction
With a solid defense, Manchester United win is very good value.
Stoke vs Chelsea
venue: Bet365 Stadium
Time: 3pm
It’s been a strange sort of season for Stoke so far. Their opening five Premier League games have included matches against Everton, Arsenal, and Manchester United and they were never expected to pick up many points, but they have impressed in the tougher matches but fallen flat against the so called easier opposition.
This was illustrated in midweek as Bristol City knocked them out of the League Cup, following on from their league defeat at the newly promoted Newcastle last weekend. However, prior to that they managed a 2-2 draw against the in form Manchester United and beat Arsenal 1-0 at home in their second league match of the season.
The Potters’ home advantage in these two fixtures could well have come into play though, as they are notoriously difficult to beat there. In all honesty they fully deserved their results against Arsenal and Manchester United, and they will be quietly confident about getting a result against the champions on Saturday.
Stoke’s chances could be boosted by the fact that Chelsea have a trip to the formidable Atletico Madrid next week as well, which could see Antonio Conte rest a few players in preparation for one of their most important group matches.
The Blues were also in action in midweek as Michy Batshuayi’s hat-trick helped them to a 5-1 thrashing of Nottingham Forest, leaving them with five wins, one draw, and one defeat in their seven competitive outings.
They have only won three of their Premier League matches though, and their 3-2 defeat to Burnley in gameweek one highlighted some of their vulnerabilities.
Prediction
Given that Stoke have only lost three of their last 15 home games in the league, backing a Stoke Win or Draw looks good. We’re also expecting both teams to find the net on Saturday.
Swansea vs Watford
Venue: Liberty Stadium
Time:3pm
There was a lot of doubt over Swansea’s ability to remain in the Premier League at the start of the season, and their seeming lack of transfer activity and poor start to the campaign did little to dispel the discontent among the fans.
To be fair, they did manage a draw away to Southampton in their opener before getting turned over against Manchester United, but their lack of goals was the big worry. This became an even bigger problem when Gylfi Sigurdsson finally left, and he was followed out of the door by Fernando Llorente. Fortunately they did manage to bring old crowd favourite Wilfried Bony back to the Liberty Stadium though, and added to their midfield with the shock loan signing of Renato Sanches from Bayern Munich.
This all came a few days after they picked up their first win of the league campaign, beating the dismally out of form Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. However, they followed this upturn in fortunes with a disappointing 1-0 loss at home to Newcastle. They held firm away to Spurs last weekend, but their problem seems to lie with their form at home.
Watford are seeing the same phenomenon as well. They have failed to win any of their four home games in all competitions. Admittedly two of these were against Liverpool and Manchester City, the former of which ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw and the latter seeing them ship six goals last weekend.
On the road, however, The Hornets have beaten both Bournemouth and Southampton comfortably and look a much better side. This, plus the fact that their early League Cup exit afforded them a midweek break, gives them a real advantage coming into this game.
Prediction.
Watford to Win under 3.5 looks incredibly good value.
Leicester vs Liverpool
Venue: King Power Stadium
Time: 5:30pm
As far as psychological advantages go, you don’t get much better than beating the side you’re about to face just a few days before your second encounter, and that’s exactly what Leicester managed to do on Tuesday evening.
The hosts put in an excellent second half display at the King Power Stadium to beat Liverpool 2-0, and whilst they didn’t exactly put a weak team out for the match, there was a distinct lack of the likes of Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez. Liverpool also fielded a strong side, with Phillipe Coutinho, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jordan Henderson, and Georginio Wijnaldum all failing to make a difference to the end result.
This victory ended Leicester’s three match winless run in all competitions, although two of those were against the in form Manchester United and Chelsea. In fact, the hosts have had a very difficult run of fixtures to start the season, but even so they have managed to pick up four points and will feel quietly confident about adding more to their tally on Saturday.
Liverpool started the season with a thrilling 3-3 draw away to Watford, which in the end is a poor result and illustrates the major problems within their defensive strategy. They did look massively improved as they beat Hoffenheim in the Champions League playoff round, narrowly beating Crystal Palace, and then hammered Arsenal at Anfield.
However, things haven’t gone quite so well since then. First they were destroyed away to Manchester City and then they failed to beat Sevilla in their Champions League group stage opener. A draw at home to Burnley and their midweek loss to Leicester have followed, casting major doubts over their chances of success this season.
Away from home Liverpool have won just one of their four competitive games this season, and they’re facing a Leicester side who have won two of their three at the King Power Stadium. In the Premier League alone, Leicester have won six of their last nine at home, losing only against Chelsea and Spurs.
Prediction.
All things considered, backing a Leicester Win or Draw Double Chance at looks fantastic value for money.
Overall we’re expecting a high scoring game here. Both of Liverpool’s away days in the Premier League this season have seen at least four goals scored, and with their defensive frailty and attacking menace that could well happen again, so we’re going for Over 2.5
Brighton vs Newcastle
Venue: Amex Stadium
Time: 4pm Sunday
Brighton looked to be getting to grips with Premier League football earlier this month, with a draw away to Watford and an impressive 3-1 win over West Brom giving them their first points of the season. However, they slipped back into disappointment last weekend with a 2-1 loss to Bournemouth, and they followed that with an extra time defeat to the same opponents in the League Cup on Tuesday night.
Still, the newcomers and one of the frontrunners in the relegation market remain out of the bottom three and are yet to be on the end of a thrashing in the Premier League, so they definitely have a platform to build on this season.
Newcastle looked quite terrible at the start of this season to be honest. They had made next to no moves in the transfer market and lost their first two league games after their promotion winning season. You can forgive them defeats, but their performances were abysmal.
Fortunately for the faithful Magpies they seem to have turned it around. They did go out of the League Cup early on, but they bounced back from that poor performance by hammering West Ham 3-0 at home, which preceded a 1-0 win away to Swansea and a 2-1 win over Stoke last weekend.
Their August loss to Nottingham Forest has afforded them a midweek off while the majority of the Premier League contests the League Cup as well, so they should be coming into this fresh and ready to continue their winning streak.
Prediction.
We can see a lot of value in the both teams to score here. Brighton have found the net in 11 of their last 13 home games in the league, but have conceded in nine of those as well. Newcastle, meanwhile, have scored in nine of their last 13 away days in the league and have conceded in eight of them too and also a Newcastle win sounds great too.
Arsenal vs WestHam
Venue: The Emirates
Monday night football.
Under two months into the new season and Arsenal have already seen their fair share of highs and lows, but at the moment it does look like they’re ascending a peak in their form, much to the disappointment of any neutrals who regularly tune in to Arsenal Fan TV.
Midweek saw them beat Doncaster Rovers 1-0 at the Emirates, following on from their much more impressive goalless draw away to Chelsea and a second half comeback against Koln in their first ever Europa League group match.
The Gunners have now won four, drawn one, and lost two of their seven competitive games since the league season began, but that 4-0 hammering at the hands of Liverpool will take some time to forgive. We’re expecting them to take another step towards forgiveness on Monday night though, with a win against West Brom looking a likely outcome.
The visitors were beaten by Manchester City in the League Cup in midweek, which wasn’t exactly unexpected but does extend their winless run to four matches in all competitions. They managed to start the season with a trio of victories, but their frailties have since come back to haunt them.
The Baggies away record in the Premier League doesn’t make for particularly nice reading for them either. They have won just one of their last 11 league matches on the road, drawing four times and losing the other six. They have failed to score in four of these matches too and have lost by two or more goals in five of these six defeats.
Arsenal, for all their concerns, have an excellent home record in the league too. They have won their last seven matches and kept a clean sheet in five of them. During these seven games they have scored themselves 18 times and have won by a comfortable margin in all but two of them.
Prediction
We are expecting a comfortable Arsenal win over 1.5.
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