Premier League preview: Friday & Saturday’s action
Newcastle vs Leeds
With each of these sides still looking for their first wins of the campaign, will Steve Bruce or Marcelo Bielsa seize the initiative in Friday night’s kick-off? Leeds won both their encounters with the Magpies last season, but in recent weeks the West Yorkshire side have struggled to reproduce their form of the previous season.
Newcastle have conceded 12 goals so far in the Premier League – more than any other side – but Leeds have surrendered 11 goals themselves, shipping three against Liverpool last weekend. If you think more of the same is on the menu here, over 3.5 goals is available at 31/20.
Leeds are the favourites to win at 5/4, and factoring in Bruce’s unhappy relationship with the Newcastle fans, the hosts could be vulnerable against a Leeds side keen to shake off a disappointing start to the season. Although Newcastle are trying to do the same, of course…
Newcastle will be without the injured Callum Wilson, one of the Magpies’ livelier goal threats; for Leeds, Raphinha scored in this fixture last season, and could be worth a look again this week. The Brazilian is 13/5 to score at any time at St James Park.
Wolves vs Brentford
Wolves landed their first win of the season with a victory over Watford last week, and Bruno Lage can build on that by taking another three points against a Brentford side that haven’t won since stunning Arsenal in their opening game back in August.
The Bees were beaten at the death by Brighton last time out, and could be frustrated again this week – Wolves are 10/11 to take the win.
Each of these sides’ matches in the league have featured two or fewer goals this season, but under 2.5 goals is an unenticing 13/25; backing Wolves in the correct score market to win 1-0 at 23/5 looks the better alternative.
Burnley vs Arsenal
After beating Norwich, Mikel Arteta claimed he had just enjoyed the best week of his managerial career with Arsenal – not sure where to start with that one. But hey, at least the Gunners are winning again.
So will that fairly unremarkable step in the right direction prove meaningful, or are Burnley about to leave tricky Mikky scrambling to come up with more spurious soundbites of positivity on Saturday?
Sean Dyche has just signed a new four-year extension that keeps him at Burnley until 2025 – could he celebrate with a strong showing at Turf Moor?
Dyche’s side are yet to claim their first win of the campaign, their only point thus far coming in a draw against Leeds. Still, in the last three meetings between Burnley and Arsenal, the Clarets are unbeaten.
Burnley are 14/5 for the win; initially I felt quite gung-ho about that, but since Burnley have won just one of their 14 games against this side, perhaps backing the draw at 49/20 is more realistic.
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace
Palace have been decent under new coach Patrick Vieira and enjoyed an unexpected 3-0 victory over 10 man Tottenham last week. Still, the Eagles seem likely to lose out to Liverpool at Anfield – Klopp’s side played a blistering Champions League match against Milan midweek, and have looked pretty fearsome in the Prem too.
Liverpool are on a run of eight consecutive wins against the South London side – while Sadio Mane has scored in each of his eight appearances against the team. Mane can create a new record of scoring in nine consecutive matches against the same opponent if he finds the net here.
Mane is 4/1 to open the scoring. If you fancy Palace to make their presence felt, Odsonne Edouard scored twice in ten minutes after coming on as a sub against Tottenham, and is 19/5 to score at any time here.
Man City vs Southampton
Pep Guardiola irked some City fans when he implored them to come to this game on Thursday, telling reporters “[Southampton] are so, so dangerous.” The oddsmakers beg to differ; City are currently 2/15 to win this one, with the Saints 19/1 to take all three points.
It’s tough to see City slipping up against a Southampton side still seeking their first league win of the season. In fact, City have the opportunity to win four straight home games with a 5-0 scoreline.
City are 12/1 to win 5-0 again on Saturday – but if you think that’s a bit of a stretch, maybe a good alternative is to take a punt on over 3.5 goals, which is available at evens. Two of the four league games the Saints have already played this season have featured four goals…
Norwich vs Watford
It’s four straight losses for the Canaries, but Watford haven’t scored since the opening day of the season. From Norwich’s point of view, the Hornets are beatable opposition, and the hosts simply can’t afford to pass up the chance to win – although Watford will look to recent meetings in the Championship, when they won 1-0 on both occasions last season.
Norwich are 6/5 for the win, but perhaps backing Teemu Pukki to open the scoring is a better option; the Finn is 19/5 to find the first goal, and is Norwich’s likeliest threat, scoring 26 goals for the Canaries last season.
Aston Villa vs Everton
Some Everton fans might have been opposed to Rafa Benitez taking the reins, but the new coach is unbeaten in four league games with the Toffees. That should give the visitors plenty of confidence as they head to Villa Park – even if there’s a certain striker Everton would do well to be wary of.
Danny Ings has scored five league goals against Everton, across his time at Burnley, Southampton and Liverpool. Ings has already notched two league goals for Villa since his arrival this summer, and is 19/4 to score the first goal on Saturday.
Villa are also unbeaten in their last four league encounters with Everton; the Villans are 7/5 to win this one, and actually looked pretty good in their match against Chelsea last time out, even if they did lose 3-0. That scoreline may sound alarming, but Villa produced six shots on target at Stamford Bridge and should not be underestimated here.
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