Jake Pearson has tips, best bets and previews for seven of the final ten games of the 2020/21 Premier League season.
Football betting tips: Premier League
1pt Brighton to beat Arsenal at 9/2 (General)
1pt Both Teams To Score 'NO' in Fulham v Newcastle at 13/8 (BetVictor)
1pt Over 3.5 Goals in West Brom v Leeds at 23/20 (Betfair Sportsbook)
0.5pts West Brom to beat Leeds at 6/1 (BetVictor, Sky Bet)
1pt Both Teams To Score in Manchester City v Everton at 9/10 (SportNation)
1pt Sheffield United to beat Burnley at 15/8 (General)
1pt Southampton to win or draw v West Ham at 5/4 (SportNation)
1pt Manchester United to win at 9/5 (General)
1pt Manchester United to score over 1.5 goals at 7/5 (Unibet)
Arsenal v Brighton tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Arena
- Match odds: Home 3/5 | Draw 3/1 | Away 17/4
Despite Arsenal’s woeful season domestically, they are still somehow in the hunt for European football, even if it is in the shape of the Europa Conference League. The Gunners are now just a point behind Tottenham and Everton thanks to four wins in their last four Premier League matches, and with both those sides facing tough final games, Mikel Arteta’s men might just fancy their chances.
Unfortunately, though, they will have to beat an in-form Brighton side who have probably not received their just deserts this season in terms of points accumulated. A magnificent 3-2 victory over Manchester City in midweek proved just how good Brighton can be, and Graham Potter’s men will be out to end their season with another scalp.
Seeing Brighton at this price is a rarity, for all that they have flirted with relegation this season, they have often been on the short side betting-wise.
Their recent away matches at Chelsea and Manchester United did see them at a similar price to the 9/2 they are available at to beat Arsenal, but the Gunners are not at that level, and a look at Brighton’s away prices against teams closer to Arsenal in the table, such as West Ham (21/10), Everton (7/2) and Leeds (21/10), gives us a better understanding of the underestimation of Brighton in this fixture.
For this reason, BRIGHTON TO WIN is the recommended selection in this match.
Score prediction: Arsenal 0-2 Brighton (Sky Bet odds: 28/1)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
Fulham v Newcastle tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Mix
- Match odds: Home 11/10 | Draw 11/4 | Away 11/5
Fulham are returning to the Championship with a bit of a whimper, relegated with three games still to play and now without a win in their last nine Premier League matches.
Scott Parker hasn’t really been able to rally his troops since their fate was confirmed, and despite a 1-1 draw against Manchester United in midweek, it is difficult to see Fulham causing an awful lot of problems for this in-form Newcastle side.
Steve Bruce has received plenty of criticism this season, but when your two best players are injured for huge chunks of the campaign, there isn’t an awful lot you can do.
Allan Saint-Maximin will be high on a few clubs’ wish lists, but equally important has been the recruitment of Joe Willock, who became the youngest player to score in six consecutive Premier League matches with his winning goal against Sheffield United on Wednesday.
It is highly probable that Newcastle will find the net against Fulham, but the home side may struggle to reply, having failed to score in 46% of their Premier League fixtures this season – only Sheffield United have failed to score on more occasions.
Given only Sheffield United have scored less goals than Fulham this season, it is surprising to see BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE ‘NO’ priced up as the outsider of the two possible outcomes, with a standout price of 13/8 too big to pass up.
Score prediction: Fulham 0-1 Newcastle (Sky Bet odds: 11/1)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
Leeds v West Brom tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: BT Sport 2
- Match odds: Home 2/5 | Draw 17/4 | Away 11/2
Leeds’ recent games have been entertaining to say the least, Marcelo Bielsa’s side netting nine times in their last three matches, and matches involving West Brom have hardly been dull either.
In fact, the last six games involving these two have seen a total of 21 goals, exactly 3.5 per game, so it makes sense to back OVER 3.5 GOALS at a price of 6/5.
Leeds arrive here in cracking form, three wins from their last three, while West Brom haven’t won any of their last six Premier League matches. This is to be Sam Allardyce’s last game as Baggies manager however, and surely his players will want to send him off with a bang.
West Brom made life extremely difficult for West Ham despite a 3-1 defeat last tim out, and if they play with the same determination and intensity against Leeds, they could well nick a result.
West Brom are far better aerially than Leeds, and that could potentially be an area 'Big Sam' attempts to exploit.
Either way, a price of 6/1 for a WEST BROM WIN seems big, particularly given there is nothing riding on this game for either side, so it could be worth siding with the Baggies to small stakes.
Score prediction: Leeds 2-3 West Brom (Sky Bet odds: 33/1)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
Manchester City v Everton tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Premier League
- Match odds: Home 4/9 | Draw 18/5 | Away 6/1
For the vast majority of this season, backing Manchester City to win with under 3.5 goals in the match was a sure-fire way of building you bank balance.
Since City secured the league title however, their outlook seems to have changed drastically, no longer determined to keep clean sheet after clean sheet, but rather happy to engage in Kevin Keegan-esque you-score-we-score extravaganzas.
Pep Guardiola’s men have conceded six goals in their last three matches, including during their 3-2 defeat to Brighton inn midweek. That’s an average of two goals per game, a far cry from the 0.76 goals per game they were averaging prior.
Guardiola also has the upcoming Champions League final to think about, and with nothing riding on this game, he could make a raft of changes.
That is good news for Everton, who still maintain a small glimmer of hope with regards to qualifying for the Europa Conference League. Everton need to better Tottenham’s result in order to guarantee a seventh-place finish, which means Carlo Ancelotti will be forced into a more attacking approach against City.
Everton got the job done against Wolves on Wednesday, but they need to be more expansive to get anything out of this City side, and that could lead to goals in this match.
Manchester City have failed to score in just three of their 37 games so far this season, while Everton have failed to score in only nine, and given BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE has landed in each of Man City’s last three, a price of 9/10 for it to land again is certainly worth backing.
Score prediction: Manchester City 1-1 Everton (Sky Bet odds: 15/2)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
Sheffield United v Burnley tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: BT Sport 3
- Match odds: Home 9/5 | Draw 5/2 | Away 7/5
The quicker this season ends the better for both of these sides, with Sheffield United equaling the record for earliest relegation from the Premier League, while for Burnley, it really has been a season to forget, safe from danger due to the poor performances of other sides rather than their own efforts.
The Blades will return to the Championship after two years in England’s top flight, but for a team that thrived so much on the atmosphere of a rocking Bramall Lane last year, they will surely be desperate to put up a good performance with the fans back in the stadium.
Despite their disastrously poor season, Sheffield United have never thrown in the towel, and even in recent matches they have dug their heels in and made life very difficult for their opponents, as Everton will certainly attest to.
They lost 1-0 to Newcastle last time out, but again showed plenty of spirit, and here they come up against a Burnley team who may be lacking in exactly that department.
Sean Dyche’s men arrive in Sheffield on the back of two demoralising defeats in the space of four days, following up a 4-0 hammering by Leeds on Saturday with a 3-0 loss at home to Liverpool on Wednesday evening, and their players could be forgiven for wanting to move on from this season as quickly as possible.
This is likely to be a tight game whatever the outcome, but with the Blades’ home advantage restored for the first time this season, backing SHEFFIELD UNITED TO WIN at 15/8 is the recommended selection in this fixture.
Score prediction: Sheffield United 1-0 Burnley (Sky Bet odds: 9/1)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
West Ham v Southampton tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: Sky One
- Match odds: Home 7/10 | Draw 3/1 | Away 18/5
West Ham need a point against Southampton to secure a place in next season’s Europa League thanks to their 3-1 win over West Brom on Wednesday evening.
The Hammers ultimately ran out comfortable winners at the Hawthorns, but they were made to work for their victory for a large proportion of the match, and David Moyes’ side have shown definite signs of fatigue over the last few weeks of the season.
It has been a brilliant campaign for West Ham, but after the heartbreak of missing out on Champions League football, the East Londoners must make sure they do not let a place in the Europa League slip as well.
A dominant performance over a Southampton side with nothing to play for looks a formality, but nerves are a funny thing, and West Ham have certainly demonstrated over the past six or so matches that theirs are certainly not made of steel.
This could quickly become a very cautious affair, and with West Ham knowing a point is enough, there is a danger they will retreat and protect what they have, which is always a risk against a side with Danny Ings in their ranks.
Southampton were well beaten by Leeds last time out, but they arrived into that game on the back of successive Premier League wins, and they have been a very tough side to predict over recent months.
Factored into the price is the fact that West Ham need a result, but this is the second shortest price the Hammers have been to win at home this season, and given it's a game they don’t actually need to win, that seems an overreaction.
A standout price of 5/4 for SOUTHAMPTON TO WIN OR DRAW makes plenty of appeal given how this game could pan out, with West Ham trying desperately to eke out what would be a hugely valuable point.
Score prediction: West Ham 1-1 Southampton (Sky Bet odds: 13/2)
Odds correct 2215 GMT (20/05/21)
Wolves v Manchester United tips
- Kick-off time: 16:00 GMT, Sunday
- TV channel: BT Sport 1
- Match odds: Home 29/20 | Draw 5/2 | Away 7/4
After two seasons of unprecedented success in the Premier League for Wolverhampton Wanderers - recording consecutive seventh-place finishes since their promotion back to the top flight in 2017/18 - this has been a campaign to forget for Nuno Espirito Santo’s men, frequenting the bottom half of the table for much of the season and even flirting with relegation at one point.
Wolves come into this game on the back of successive away defeats at Tottenham and Everton, so they may be thankful that their final game of the season is at Molineux, but then again, perhaps not given it is against a side who are unbeaten on the road this season.
Manchester United will be desperate to maintain that record here, and for all that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will certainly be resting players ahead of Wednesday’s Europa League final, he must ensure he gets the balance right to build up a bit of momentum after a disappointing couple of weeks domestically.
Defeats to Leicester and Liverpool, as well as a 1-1 draw against Fulham last time out, have seen United stumble towards the season’s finish line, but they have a chance to put that right against a somewhat disjointed Wolves.
A price as big as 9/5 for MANCHESTER UNITED TO WIN has been a rarity this season, and even with the expected changes to the starting line-up, it looks too big to pass up.
Interestingly, United are also odds against to score at least twice against Wolves, and when you consider they are second only to Manchester City in terms of goals scored this season, that also seems generous, particularly as, away from home, they do have a habit of going behind before rallying to win.
Wolves have been defensively lax of late, conceding nine goals in their last five matches, so backing MANCHESTER UNITED TO SCORE OVER 1.5 GOALS at a standout price of 7/5 makes plenty appeal.
Score prediction: Wolves 1-2 Manchester United (Sky Bet odds: 17/2)
Odds correct 1100 GMT (21/05/21)
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