EPL Week Two: 5 Games to bet on

Club football returned last weekend on a bang – for some teams though. But for Arsenal and Manchester City, the story was different.

Arsenal got a shocker from newcomers Brentford, who slotted in two goals in a game where Arteta’s men were totally intimidated and run ragged. Manchester City, the EPL’s reigning champions, similarly got trounced by Spurs with new manager Nuno Espírito Santo extending his record as one of only three managers to have defeated Pep Guardiola home and away. With this recent win, Santo has now won Pep three times in the last one year.

As we enter the second week, below are the games to consider betting on.

Aston Villa vs. New Castle 

Villa’s defeat, last weekend, to Watford is one of those surprises without much coverage due to the stature of the clubs involved, compared to Arsenal and Manchester City. That loss to Watford is Villa’s first reality-check after Jack Grealish’s exit to City. He was their rock-solid driving force, who ran at defenders and caused trouble for opposing teams. Without Grealish, Villa will struggle for a replacement with similar intensity.

It is from this defeat that Villa will be hosting Newcastle at the Park this weekend. The visiting Magpies also lost their first game to West Ham. Both teams therefore are coming to avoid a repeat. But Villa invested some of the money they raised from Grealish’s sale into new signings such as Emi Buendia, Leon Bailey and Danny Ings. These replacements will provide the needed push to overcome Newcastle. This is why betBonanza favours an Aston Villa win.

Liverpool vs. Burnley

Burnley will be going to Anfield on the heels of an opening day loss to Brighton. They were the hosts, and led in the encounter with an early goal, before Brighton fought back into the game and ultimately grabbed the entire three points. The last time Liverpool hosted Burnley at Anfield in 2020, it ended 1-1 draw. It is expected that Burnley would not want to lose two games back to back. But that does not look likely this time. The injury spell that plagued the reds last season has eased, and Joggen Klopp will be fielding a team in shape and raring to go.

All of this sheds light on why the bookmakers give the reds a 90% win probability in this tie.  

Manchester City vs. Norwich

The reigning champions will host Norwich at the Etihad, but they will be facing the tie fresh from the bruise of a loss to Spurs. And for a team intent on retaining the title, City will refuse to leave this encounter without win. Although Norwich is also coming into this tie from their 3-0 defeat to Liverpool the previous week, which should impose some urgency on Daniel Farke and his men, the odds still overwhelmingly favour a Manchester City win.

Southampton vs. Manchester United

The last time United visited the Saint Mary’s stadium to play Southampton in the EPL, it ended in a 2-2 draw that annoyed United fans to no end. It was an encounter that chipped one point off of United’s aspiration for the title, as they chased neighbors City. But the second leg of the tie offered the Red Devils the chance to exact vengeance. United thrashed the Saints in a 9-goal rout, a second of such embarrassment for Southampton in one year. In 2019, Leicester had trounced them 9-0 at home, in front of their fans. It is not expected that Ralph Hasenhüttl will concede that much goals this weekend, but the odds are stacked against the Saints. betBonanza believes United will leave the game with the entire three points.  

Arsenal vs. Chelsea

An Arsenal side still reeling from the shock of the embarrassing defeat by first timers Brentford will be hosting in-form Chelsea that just won, within three months, both the UEFA Champions League and Super Cup. Mikel Arterta’s side was subdued in the last weekend’s encounter that shattered bookies’ predictions and tore punters’ tickets to shreds. Thomas Tuchel’s boys will likely be joined by new sensational signing Romelu Lukaku who joined from Inter Milan. Although their past history shows that Arsenal has an advantage, having won 79 times out of the 203 times they met in the past (they drew 59 times while Chelsea won 65 times) , this encounter looks different. Our bookies believe Chelsea have every reason to defeat Arsenal, and the probability is 67%.

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