We take a look at all five English Premier League matches taking place on Saturday including Spurs v Manchester United and Sunderland v Arsenal
Prices quoted are correct at the time of publication but subject to change.
Spurs v Man United
Spurs have suffered back-to-back home defeats in the EPL, losing to Villa (2-1) and then Chelsea (1-0) and they finished the round in sixth place. They did put FC Copenhagen away 4-0 in a UCL home fixture in midweek but only 4 of their 17 league points have been earned in front of their own supporters.
United are unbeaten in their last 4 league outings, wins at home to Sunderland, away at Liverpool and at home to Brighton followed by last week’s 2-2 at Forest. Like Spurs they have 17 points in a very congested area of the standings, their goal difference is inferior to that of their opponents, but both these sides are only 2 points behind second placed Manchester City.
I can see goals for both sides here but the prices are on the short side so I look for an any time scorer. Spurs have tended to share their goals around so I’ll focus on the visitors and Bryan Mbeumo gets the vote.
Bet: Anytime goalscorer Bryan Mbuemo at 2/1 with Pokerbet
Everton v Fulham
Everton drew 1-1 away to Sunderland on Monday night and remain just below halfway in the standings with 12 points. They went down 3-0 at home to Spurs in their most recent home game but prior to that they were unbeaten in their new stadium with wins over Brighton and Palace and draws with Villa and West Ham.
Fulham are 1 point and 1 place below Everton in the standings. They snapped a 4-match losing streak with a 3-0 home win over bottom of the table Wolves last weekend whilst on the road they have drawn at Brighton and lost at Chelsea, Villa, Bournemouth and Newcastle.
Everton’s home games have generally been pretty close. Fulham’s away record is poor in terms of results, but they have found the net in 4 of 5 road trips and I can see this ending all square.
Bet: Match Result draw at 2.35/1 with Betway
West Ham v Burnley
West Ham chalked up just their second win of the season when they got the better of Newcastle (3-1) in last week’s home fixture. They remain in the bottom 3 with just 7 points but should take plenty from that victory, especially as they had lost all 4 of their previous home games.
Burnley went down 2-0 at home to Arsenal last time out but prior to that they have won at home to Leeds and away at Wolves, sides who could be considered as rivals in the lower end of the standings. They come into this game fourth from bottom, 3 points better off than West Ham and that win at Wolves is their only points return from 5 road trips after defeats at Spurs, both Manchester teams and Villa.
On paper Burnley have had much tougher tests than this away from home but West Ham are boosted from the win over Newcastle. Lucas Paqueta scored in that game and I can see him getting on the scoresheet again here.
Bet: Anytime goalscorer Lucas Paqueta at 33/10 with Sportingbet
Sunderland v Arsenal
Sunderland recovered from a very poor first 30 minutes to claim a 1-1 draw at home to Everton, retaining their unbeaten record at the Stadium of Light which also includes wins over West Ham, Brent and Wolves and a draw with Villa. They now take on by far their biggest test of the season in fourth position with 18 points.
The Gunners continue to chalk up wins and clean sheets. They were 3-0 winners at Slavia Prague in the UCL in midweek and its now 12 wins and draw in their last 13 across all competitions. With a 6-point lead over Manchester City who play third placed Liverpool on Sunday another victory here would send them into the international break with an even stronger hand in the title race. Viktor Gyokeres was the latest Arsenal player to pick up a knock in last weeks home win over Palace, adding to a lengthy injury list which they have dealt with really well so far.
Sunderland look set to see very little of the possession but that sometimes suits them. It’s a huge task for the home side and it’s hard to argue with Arsenal’s form but I’m backing former Arsenal man Granit Xhaka, who scored his first goal for the club against Everton to register a shot on target.
Bet: Player shots on target Granit Xhaka at 3/1 with Pokerbet
Chelsea v Wolves
Chelsea had to settle for a 2-2 draw away to Qarabag in the UCL on Wednesday but they have won 3 of their last 4 in the EPL and are another side in the scrum with 17 points. They were poor in a 2-1 home defeat to Sunderland in their most recent home game and Brighton also won here and Palace took a point but Liverpool and Fulham both left empty handed.
Wolves parted company with coach Vitor Pereira after last weeks’ 3-0 loss at Fulham and they remain rooted to the foot of the standings with just 2 points. They have drawn at Spurs (1-1) this season but failed to score in earlier defeats at Bournemouth, Newcastle and Sunderland.
At the time of writing Wolves had yet to appoint a new coach and they are a club in distress right now. I’m not knocked out by Chelsea this season but Garnacho is starting to find his feet, he scored against Sunderland and away at Qarabag in midweek (came on half time which suggests he starts here to me)
Bet: Anytime goalscorer Garnacho at 1.95/1 with Betway
Note, odds are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change