Premier League Saturday preview: Arsenal vs Liverpool & more

Chelsea vs West Brom

Chelsea’s excellence under Thomas Tuchel is well established; for the record it’s now 10 unbeaten league games for the Blues under tactically astute Tom.

Sam Allardyce’s mid-season arrival at West Brom sadly hasn’t had a similarly galvanising effect. With the side enjoying just two wins in 2021, relegation now looks all but assured.

The Chelsea win looks similarly nailed on here – but rather than backing that outcome, how about betting on the score? The Baggies have at least cut down on goals conceded in recent weeks, with just three goals scored against them in their last six league games.

That suggests this won’t be a high scoring match, even before you factor in Chelsea’s current low scoring approach. They haven’t scored more than two goals in a single game under Tuchel, and five of their last six home games in all competitions have ended 2-0.

The West London team are 23/5 to win by that scoreline once again on Saturday…

Leeds vs Sheffield United

Sheffield United’s fortunes have not been improved by the exit of Chris Wilder, and the Blades have only scored a single goal in their last six league outings.

Raphinha found the net against Fulham in his last game before the international break as Leeds won 2-1, and the Brazilian has generally been one of the Yorkshire side’s more influential players since his arrival from Rennes in October. Back Raphinha to score at any time at 21/10.

Leicester vs Man City

Third in the league but trailing Man City by 15 points, could Leicester give Pep Guardiola’s champions-in-waiting a rare moment of difficulty on Saturday?

The only time Man City have failed to triumph so far this year came back at the start of March, when Man United rained on Pep’s parade; otherwise, it’s been win after win after win.

Brendan Rodgers might be doing a fine job with the Foxes, but Leicester have lost at home to both Arsenal and Leeds in 2021 and may struggle to stifle this illustrious opposition.

Man City might feel this is a good opportunity for revenge, too. It’s hard to credit it now, but the Manchester side had a somewhat shaky start to this campaign, epitomised in their second game of the season when they lost 5-2 to Leicester at the Etihad.

That might tell you that Guardiola’s team can be stopped, but it seems more likely that a reckoning is on the cards – City have won their last 14 away games, after all. The visitors are 8/15 for the win – I think Man City will get the result, but that’s not necessarily a price that begs to be backed.

Alternatively, Ilkay Gundogan’s superb form continues; he’s scored in his last three appearances for City, and netted twice for Germany during the international break too. Gundogan is 9/5 to score at any time.

For Leicester, Jamie Vardy has an excellent record against Man City, with eight goals in nine league games. But the English striker has mustered just one goal in all competitions in 2021, and odds of 43/20 to score at any time might not represent the greatest value.

Fellow forward Kelechi Iheanacho is scoring for fun, however, with seven goals in his last four games in all comps. Iheanacho is 3/1 to get on the scoresheet. Iheanacho to score and City to win is available as a double in our Bet Builder section at 8/1…

Arsenal vs Liverpool

Arsenal are a bit of a head-scratcher at the moment. Good enough to come back from 3-nil down against West Ham to take a share of the points; iffy enough to concede three goals in just over half an hour in the same match.

And alright, the Irons have been excellent this season; but the Gunners’ last league outing is hardly the only time they’ve been caught out. Still, they’ve also beaten Leicester and Tottenham in the last six weeks. So do Liverpool offer a magnificent opportunity for Mikel Arteta to instil a bit of confidence, as we head into the closing stages of the season?

Or conversely, do Arsenal offer the same opportunity for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool? The Merseyside team won last time out against Wolves, but eight Premier League losses in 2021 alone show just how badly the Merseyside team have fared of late.

Still, the fact that Liverpool have won four of their last five away games in the Prem means backing the visitors for the win at 6/5 might still be the smartest play against an Arsenal side that seem just as capable of disaster as of triumph.

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