You may recall that last weekend was something of a big derby weekend in the Premier League with four big derby games taking place across the weekend.
Well, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Nottingham Forest all came through their derby encounters with three points tucked away, while for Manchester City, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Leicester, it was time to lick their wounds and look forward to the next game.
After a couple of games in midweek, during which three of the top five teams in the table were in action, the Premier League returns this weekend with a bumper set of fixtures that features a number of games that have massive implications for the top and bottom of the table.
At the top of the table we see two sides in very poor form, Liverpool and Chelsea, meeting at Anfield, desperate for three points to bring them closer to the top six.
We also see Newcastle facing Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park while on Sunday Manchester City host Wolves in a big game at the Etihad.
However, the biggest game of the weekend comes on Sunday at the Emirates Stadium where Arsenal take on the only team to beat them in the Premier League this season, Manchester United.
Bet365 Sport will be offering its usual selection of pre-match and In Play bets across all the games taking place this weekend including their popular First and Last Goalscorer bets.
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Let’s now take a closer look at the games taking place this weekend in the EPL.
Kick off time is 3pm unless otherwise stated in brackets.
It seems strange to say that these two teams come into this game in desperate need of the points to stop an alarming slump in form. Chelsea have lost 7 of their last 10 games, Liverpool have lost both their last two Premier League games at Brentford and Brighton. So it is fair to say the pressure is on Klopp and Potter to get a result here. Excluding wins on penalties, the last four games between these two teams have been draws and it will be close again on Saturday but I think that win at Wolves in the week will have just given the home side the edge here.
Hot Tip – Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) to score at any time – 6/4.
Two teams whose recent form has been the polar opposite of the other, Bournemouth have lost four on the bounce while Forest have picked up three wins and a draw in their last five games. The Cherries do have home advantage here though, which is in their favour, but I think Forest are now finding their groove after a slow start and I think they may do just enough to claim another key win on the road here.
Hot Tip – Nottingham Forest to win – 9/5
Can Leicester resurrect some better form, or will Brighton continue their march up the table? The Foxes have lost four straight since the return to action after the World Cup whereas Brighton have won three of their last four, the last win a 3-0 thumping of Liverpool. Leicester do look too good to go down, but we’ve said that about a number of teams in recent times, but I think they’ll have to wait to get their first win of 2023 here.
Hot Tip – Lewis Dunk (Brighton) to score at any time – 9/1.
The Saints come into this game in great shape after following up their win over Man City in the Carabao Cup, with an away win at Everton last weekend. Villa have sold Danny Ings to West Ham in the week as Unai Emery’s revolution at the club continues. Both team’s more recent form has been better than their early season form, but I think Villa have been the more consistent of the two in the past few weeks. However, I think we are set for a close and tight game here.
Hot Tip – Draw – 9/4
With both of these teams in the relegation zone, the importance of this match cannot be underestimated. Both managers are under fire and under pressure for their jobs, their fan bases are not happy and the teams face a crucial second half of the season. A win here for one of them would certainly kick start that while denting the hopes of a main rival. This will be close but I think that home advantage could be crucial for the Hammers here.
Hot Tip – West Ham to win and both teams to score – 3/1.
After securing a 1-1 draw with Manchester United on Wednesday evening, Palace come into this game with a positive result but facing a Newcastle United side that have the best defence in the Premier League and who have lost just once all season long. As much as Palace have the capacity to cause an upset, the way Newcastle are playing I can’t see them dropping points here and I think the Magpies will be heading back North with all three.
Hot Tip – Newcastle United to win to nil – 2/1
After thrashing Cardiff 5-2 in the FA Cup in midweek, Leeds should feel more comfortable coming into this game, but their recent Premier League form is poor, especially compared to a Brentford side who have been in superb shape of late winning four of their last five including wins over Liverpool and Manchester City in that run. Leeds though I think will do just enough to earn a share of the spoils here.
Hot Tip – Draw and both teams to score – 10/3.
Manchester City face Wolves just three days after taking on Spurs at home on Thursday night and so the will have to rotate their squad for these two games you would think. Not that this will impact City a great deal given the depth of their squad against a Wolves side struggling for form at the moment and who are still adapting to new manager Julen Lopetegui. As such, I can’t see anything but a solid City win here.
Hot Tip – Kevin de Bruyne (Man City) to score at any time – 2/1.
The biggest game of the weekend sees Arsenal take on Manchester United in what is a revival of a Premier League classic of the past. The Gunners are eight points clear at the top of the table but their only loss this season has come to Manchester United back in September. United are in a good run of form themselves in the league, but they drew with Palace on Wednesday and I think the extra time Arsenal has had to prepare for this game will be decisive.
Hot Tip – Arsenal to win and both teams to score – 5/2.
Depending on how the result went in the Man City v Spurs game on Thursday, Fulham could leapfrog Spurs here with a win. That will certainly be their aim as they take on a Spurs team looking a little devoid of confidence and perhaps not so sure of the direction that they are taking under Antonio Conte. Kane and Son do give them real attacking threat though, so I am backing Spurs to land something here.
Hot Tip – Draw – 13/5
*All odds shown were correct with bet365 Sport at the time of writing but may have changed since.
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