This weekend sees some huge games in the Premier League but the unquestionable highlight is Chelsea’s trip to Old Trafford to face Man United’s expensively assembled but nascent side. There are four other televised games though, starting with West Ham hosting Man City in the early kick off on Saturday, through to QPR’s home game with Aston Villa on Monday night.
It promises to be a busy, exciting and hopefully profitable weekend of Premier League action and this week we’re focussing on the five televised matches with top tips for each.
Saturday 25th October 2014
West Ham v Man City (12:45) – Draw (10/3 with Ladbrokes)
West Ham are fourth in the Premier League and Sam Allardyce, whose reputation has suffered in recent seasons, is proving what a fine manager he really is. Moreover, the Hammers are playing some decent stuff, something that shouldn’t come as such a huge surprise to those that remember how Bolton performed when Jay-Jay Okocha and other foreign stars were at their dazzling best. The Hammers are dangerous, especially at home, and with City sure to be tired after their 2-2 draw in Russia on Tuesday night the home side will fancy they can take something from this one.
Despite West Ham’s 3-1 home win over Liverpool, the Hammers are priced at large odds of 21/4 with BetVictor and that looks tempting to us. However, on balance we feel the draw offers slightly better value at 10/3 with Ladbrokes and that is our main tip here.
Swansea v Leicester (17:30) – Swansea to win 2-0 (10/1 with BetVictor)
Both of these sides have slipped up after fine starts to the season and whilst both may be happy to be sitting eighth and 15th respectively, they are each in need of a result here. The Swans have taken just two points from their last five league games whilst Leicester have just a point from their last three, and that came at home against Burnley.
However, Leicester’s problems look more long term to us and on home soil we think Swansea can get back to winning ways, with 2-0 the call against the goal-shy Tigers.
Sunday 26th October 2014
Burnley v Everton (13:30) – Everton to win to nil (85/40 with BetVictor)
Burnley are in serious trouble near the foot of the table, still without a win and struggling badly to find goals, whilst also being unable to maintain the fine defensive record that served them so well in the Championship. They have just four points and average only half a goal per game, conceding more than one and a half. They have failed to score in five of their Premier League games thus far and whilst many will point to Everton’s weak defence, in reality they have improved after a very bad start.
The Toffees recorded a clean sheet last time out in domestic football and whilst they conceded two at Old Trafford before that, they only let a goal go in away at both Krasnodar and Liverpool and showed real signs of improvement. Phil Jagielka looks back to his best and with Seamus Coleman back from injury and Ross Barkley also fit again we fully expect Roberto Martinez’s men to get all three points here and to do so whilst also keeping a clean sheet.
Man United v Chelsea (16:00) – Chelsea to win and both teams to score (18/5 with Coral)
This game should be a cracker and if Chelsea are to win the title – as most people think they will – this is the sort of game from which they have to take three points. The Pensioners look like the most complete side around, whilst Man United are not only lacking balance – they lack quality in midfield and at the back – but they are also yet to develop into an integrated team in the same way that Chelsea have. Players such as Angel Di Maria and Robin van Persie have undoubted class but Jose Mourinho’s men are likely to dominate midfield and control the game.
Old Trafford is no fortress these days, not by any stretch of the imagination, and given the Blues have a strong recent record against the Red Devils we think they look good value to get the win here. They only drew at Man City but could have won that one and will certainly find things easier in the Red half of the city. That said, United’s attacking potency makes them a threat against any side and given Chelsea have sacrificed some of their defensive solidity for a more expansive style of football, backing the away win in combination with BTTS looks a great bet here.
Monday 27th October 2014
QPR v Aston Villa (20:00) – QPR to win (6/4 with Sky Bet)
QPR are rock bottom of the Premier League but despite signs of the pressure telling on boss Harry Redknapp we feel confident that a win for the Hoops is just around the corner. They have had a very tough start to the season, with seven of their eight games coming against teams in the current top 11, including four away games at top nine sides. Last time out they deserved at least a point at home against Liverpool and were unlucky to lose 3-2 and we feel they can finally get a much-needed win here against Villa.
Paul Lambert’s men have lost their last four games and whilst all of those have been against top sides their confidence is sure to be low. They haven’t scored in any of those games, conceding a total of 11 goals and Rangers will certainly feel they have a real chance here. Odds of 6/4 with Sky Bet may look a shade short for a winless side but based on recent performances – Villa were poor last time out losing 3-0 at Everton – we have to think they look like solid value. We could see Redknapp’s men winning this one by a goal, or possibly two, to nil but we’ve decided to keep things simple here and go for the home win at shorter odds.