The Premier League continues this weekend, despite the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley. There’s still a lot going on in the top flight in this reduced weekend of fixtures, which gets underway with West Brom hosting Liverpool on Saturday. The Baggies should be high on confidence after a win at Old Trafford from nowhere last Sunday, can they add to that by beating Liverpool this weekend?
There are still four live matches in the league this weekend, and we have you covered for each one. From Saturday’s opener through to Everton’s clash with Newcastle on Monday night, we’ve previewed the televised clashes this weekend, picking out a betting tip on each. You can see our selections for the Premier League below, along with the reasoning behind each.
Saturday 21st April 2018
West Brom v Liverpool (12:30) – Over 2.5 Goals (7/10 with Betfair)
Liverpool’s task here got much harder after West Brom’s last result. The Baggies’ shock victory at Old Trafford not only decided the league, but it gave some belief back to a side who looked utterly demoralised under Alan Pardew. With nothing to lose in the run-in and with a bounce from their last result, the Hawthorns won’t be an easy place to visit this weekend. However, it’ll be made all the more difficult for the Reds on Saturday, given that Jurgen Klopp and his side will hardly be focusing on this league encounter.
Liverpool have a Champions League meeting with Roma looming, so they have to prioritise their final shot at silverware. A clash with the Premier League’s bottom side when neither has much to play for isn’t massively appealing, but we still expect Klopp’s Reds to come here with an attacking swagger. The only issue is, they’ll be resting the defence. That should allow chances to the home side, who are likely to be buoyed by the problems they caused Jose Mourinho’s side on Sunday. We can see this turning into a high scoring game and given that over 2.5 goals has landed in 76% of Liverpool’s away trips, it seems well priced at 7/10 with Betfair.
Sunday 22nd April 2018
Arsenal v West Ham (13:30) – Both Teams to Score (5/8 with Coral)
Arsenal lost out at the weekend, and they’re now fully focused on the Europa League in the closing stages of the season. With Atletico Madrid to contend with, that’s pretty fair. Arsene Wenger’s side are playing a dangerous game, as failure to win that trophy could see them wind up back in the Europa League before the end of July. Should Burnley overtake Arsenal and finish sixth, then the seventh placed Gunners would be left in the Europa League qualifiers, which kick off less than two weeks after the World Cup comes to an end. Given their repetitive, hopeless campaigns, the last thing the Arsenal support needs is an elongated season.
The Gunners need to make an effort in their remaining league games to avoid that fate, although they’ll still rotate. The problem for Arsenal is that they host West Ham this weekend, a side who have scored in their last five away league matches. On top of that, the London Road outfit have found the net in all but one of their visits to the top seven, so we think backing both teams to score at 5/8 with Coral is the way to go here.
Man City v Swansea (16:00) – City to Win to Nil (8/11 with Betfred)
Man City may have been celebrating their title win, but that doesn’t excuse them from action this weekend. With no other competition to focus on, the driven Guardiola will be after his men to make history. They can record the highest number of points and goals with a strong run in, and this clash with Swansea seems like the perfect chance to boost their return, given the problems which have plagued the Welsh side all season. Will we get a repeat of City’s 4-0 thumping of the Swans at the Liberty earlier this season?
The Citizens should be comfortable winners in this one, and we expect them to do it in style. However, they have little to worry about from a Swans side who have scored just 0.65 goals per game on their travels this season. We’re backing City to dominate against 17th placed Swansea on Sunday, and we’re backing the newly crowned champions to keep a clean sheet. We’re going for a City win to nil this weekend, which can be backed at 8/11 with Betfred.
Monday 23rd April 2018
Everton v Newcastle (20:00) – Everton to win (13/10 with Ladbrokes)
Everton have had their problems this season, so they’re not exactly the side you’d go with against a Newcastle team who have won four on the spin. While Rafa Benitez has his men in great form, will they be able to perform in this trip to Merseyside? The issue for the Magpies is that they’ve built up form on Tyneside, while they’ve kept just two clean sheets on their travels this season. It seems like Benitez can’t quite extend his side’s capabilities to turn them into a consistent outfit away from home. Could that hand an opportunity for Everton to take all three points?
The hosts have won their last four meetings with Newcastle, which gives them a great chance to boost their points haul this weekend. While Sam Allardyce hasn’t exactly breathed new life into Everton, he has guided them to a safe position, and given them a strong home record. The Toffees have won eight of their nine home matches against sides outside of the European spots, and we think it’s worth backing them to see off Newcastle on Monday night. We’re going with a home win in the final game of the weekend, which is priced at 13/10 with Ladbrokes.