The Premier League’s return last weekend did not disappoint, with goals flying in all around the country and the relegation race being blown wide open. With a clear run now until the end of the season, this is the perfect time to pick up form, and the worst time to pick up injuries and suspensions. With just seven games to go, every point is crucial for sides at the bottom, while there’s still a battle on for second place.
All that means there’s a lot at stake this weekend, especially in Manchester. The most evenly matched Manchester derby in two years is coming up this weekend, with those two sides currently battling Arsenal for second place behind Chelsea. The league leaders are also in action, with a kind of derby against QPR. There are a total of four live games across the weekend, and here we have a preview – including a betting tip – of each of them.
Saturday 11th April 2015
Swansea v Everton (12:45) – Swansea to win (6/4 with BetVictor)
This is a strange choice to kick off the weekend, showing two mid-table sides going head to head. Swansea are sitting in the top 10 and looking good to finish well, while Everton are down in 12th and doing a lot worse than many predicted last summer. They both had morale-boosting victories over the weekend, and that has set this one up perfectly. Both sides enjoy attacking, so this should be an entertaining game, although not exactly the usual end of season fare.
There’s nothing really to be decided here, which could actually work in favour of the broadcasters. Both teams to score looks to be a good bet, as neither side has been solid defensively this campaign. These two sides are quite inconsistent, which would probably lean you more towards both teams to score as the bet to pick on this one. Despite that, Swansea are great value here and they’re certainly worth a look. They don’t have the best home record in the league, but looking at the Toffee’s woes on their travels, eight defeats in their last 10 on the road, and suddenly the Swans look very well priced at 6/4.
Burnley v Arsenal (17:30) – Both teams to score (9/10 with BetVictor)
The late game sees relegation-threatened Burnley facing an Arsenal side who are gunning for second, so both sides are in need of the points. Arsenal’s win last weekend over Liverpool pretty much ended any hopes they had of putting up a real fight for Champions League football. Now, Manchester City, United and the Gunners have pretty much booked their places in next season’s competition, the only thing left to decide is who has to face a qualifier in August.
Burnley’s awful fixture list continues, but they are close to the end of this difficult run and there is light at the end of the tunnel for them. A win over Manchester City and a 0-0 with Spurs last week mean they’re just two points off safety, with less difficult matches to come in their final five games. The Clarets will no doubt be up for this one, as they’ve shown recently that they can shock the big guns. Arsenal should still probably get the win, but expect Sean Dyche’s men to at least find themselves on the score sheet.
Sunday 12th April 2015
QPR v Chelsea (13:30) – Both teams to score (6/5 with Sky Bet)
Sunday is a big day in terms of the title race, as Chelsea know a win will extend their lead over at least one of the Manchester teams. Their win against Stoke last week was another step on the road to becoming champions, and this trip to QPR is no different. The R’s are considered local rivals to Chelsea, but it isn’t truly considered a derby. Despite that, there’s no love lost between the two sides, and both will be fired up as they aim to take the three points.
QPR pulled themselves back into the fight for survival with a big 4-1 win over West Brom last week, and they’ll hope that form continues against the Blues at Loftus Road. QPR were relatively impressive at home in the early stage of the season, but that died off around the turn of the year, and without that they’ve been slipping towards the drop. They’ll be hoping this game reignites the spark at home, as they could do with a fortress-like home record in the run-in. Despite their lack of wins at Loftus Road, they’ve still been amongst the goals there so, both teams to score looks to be the best bet here.
Manchester United v Manchester City (16:00) – United to win (7/5 with Sky Bet)
This is the highlight of the weekend, one which promises a closely fought game between these two for the first time in a few seasons. David Moyes failed to do much against City during his spell, while Louis van Gaal’s first derby didn’t go that well at the Etihad this season (where they lost 1-0). Now, United are in form at home and on course for a return to the Champions League. They’re battling with City for second place, and a win here would be a massive step towards winning that battle.
City aren’t in great form on the road, after suffering three straight defeats on the road at Liverpool, Burnley and Barcelona. Their title defence is crumbling, and a defeat here would basically confirm the loss of their trophy. Morale in the camp isn’t likely to be high, and several players seem to be thinking of their summer holidays or next moves. That is far from the approach you want from your players heading into a derby, and it could well cost them second place. With United in good form at home, they are very well priced to pick up a win here.