Premier League Weekend Betting Preview
There might be some envious glances from teams with Premier League duty this weekend, with the FA Cup semi-finals being held at Wembley on Saturday and Sunday, too. Nevertheless, a number of teams in league action would do well to maintain their focus, with just a few matches left to salvage a season.
West Brom are one of those teams, although in their case it seems almost unsalvageable at this stage. The Midlands club are sitting at the bottom of the Premier League table, with relegation to the Championship looming. Last weekend’s away win against Manchester United would have given them something of a boost for the remaining fixtures, but it would be a miracle if they stayed up. They’ll need to be positive going into Saturday’s early clash with Liverpool however.
Jurgen Klopp is likely to rotate his starting XI against the Baggies ahead of next week’s Champions League semi-final first leg with Roma. With Champions League action close to being secured through their league position, the German gaffer is desperate to finish a strong campaign with European success. That could play into the home side’s hands though, or at least give them more of a chance of a positive result.
It would still be a shock if they followed up a win over United with another one here. The Baggies are winless in their last five games at the Hawthorns, where the home fans seem to have lost their patience. They have been finding the net though – they’ve scored in each of their last seven league matches. There’s barely any value on backing both sides to score, so a better bet would be on The Reds to take the points, but both teams to score at 21/10 with Boyle Sports.
Another of the this weekend’s televised matches is Arsenal’s London derby with West Ham. An improvement in the Hammers’ form has seen them move closer to Premier League safety, but they’re still not completely out of the woods. They’ve won five points from a possible nine, with a draw with Chelsea and a resounding win over rivals Southampton the highlights of their three-match unbeaten run. They’ll fancy their chances against an Arsenal side clearly favouring European glory to a push up the Premier League table.
Whilst Arsene Wenger will likely field a weakened starting XI, you shouldn’t ignore the fact that The Gunners have still won their last five games at The Emirates. They’ve very much been a home team this season, so a loss isn’t a likely probability. The Hammers taking a point – like they did from Stamford Bridge – is a more likely outcome – and one that both sides would probably settle for. You can back a draw at 41/10 with William Hill.
There have been over 2.5 goals scored in Arsenal‘s last eight league home games, but you get the feeling that this game could be played at quite a slow tempo. West Ham will look to ruffle the home side’s feathers, but it wouldn’t make sense to go all-guns blazing early on. The home side meanwhile won’t be as motivated to start quickly, with their mind on their upcoming European match. Back the game to be 0-0 at half-time, at 3/1 with William Hill. Another tempting bet is for under 2.5 goals at 13/8 with William Hill, or for a draw and under 2.5 goals at 5/1 with Boyle Sports.
Manchester City will play their first game as Premier League champions on Sunday after United falling to West Brom handed them the title. Playing in front of their home fans against Swansea, you’d expect them to lift the party mood with a comfortable victory. The Swans have failed to win their last six away matches and are sitting just outside the Premier League drop zone. They still have everything to play for this weekend, and just have to hope that City will suffer from complacency.
That doesn’t seem an unlikely outcome, however. Pep Guardiola has kept his side extremely motivated throughout the season, and since they were dumped out of the Champions League by Liverpool they need to relish their league success. That means putting on a top display in front of their fans, and The Swans are likely to suffer.
Goals should certainly be expected therefore, with over 3.5 goals a decent bet at 23/20 with Marathon Bet. Otherwise, you could bet on City to score 4+ goals at 17/10 with Coral. The home side have the ability to cut teams open with ease, and they’re likely to start the game on the front foot. They’ve scored 10 goals within the first 15 minutes of matches this season – a joint high with Arsenal – so a tempting bet would be on them to be leading after 15 minutes at 12/5 with William Hill.
Find out how you can bet for free on the Premier League’s action by heading to our free betting page or view our list of the best new betting sites.
David handles all partnerships with the different bookies. If you want your bookie on Bettinglounge, David is the guy to contact.
