By Antony Jordan
This weekend sees round 13 of the 2016/17 Premier League season and with all of the top three sides, who are separated by just a single point, in action this Saturday will round 13 be lucky for some or will it live up to its unlucky reputation?
We preview all of the six matches playing around the UK this Saturday afternoon and evening, including the biggest game of the weekend at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea take on Tottenham, with online sportsbook Bet365.com to provide our best Saturday EPL picks.
Chelsea v Tottenham: 1.72 – 3.60 – 4.75
The biggest game of this weekend comes from West London as the sides that begin the weekend first and fifth in the top flight do battle looking to secure all three points for the first time in two seasons after the teams drew both clashes last season. As the odds from Bet365 suggest Chelsea are the big favourites to continue at the top of the EPL as they have won all of their last six Premier League matches without conceding a single goal and they have not lost at home to their fellow Londoners since 1990. Can they back up the faith that Bet365 are showing in them by continuing their excellent form against Tottenham?
The away side do not come into this match in the best of form as they have secured just one victory in their last nine games in all competitions and that came last weekend as they needed Harry Kane to score two goals in the last two minutes at home to West Ham to win 3-2. Their last win on the road came two months ago at the end of September in Moscow and they have since drawn four and lost two of six away games, including losing 2-1 in Monaco during the week.
Kane is the form man for The Lilywhites right now as he has scored four times in the last three matches for Tottenham and with four of the last five meetings between these sides having seen at least three goals in them we can see this match being filled with goals, even taking into consideration Chelsea’s run of clean sheets.
Our best Chelsea v Tottenham bet is back Over 2.5 goals at odds of 1.75 with Bet365.
Liverpool v Sunderland: 1.14 – 7.50 – 17.00
The home side in this clash between the teams sitting second and second bottom of the league bring an unbeaten record of 13 matches into this game as they have won ten and drawn three in all competitions since suffering a shock loss to Burnley on the second weekend of the season. They were top of the league until last weekend when they could not find a way through at Southampton as the match ended 0-0 to allow Chelsea to take their place at the top, but with them playing first this Saturday they can move back to first place with all three points in this clash.
Jurgen Klopp’s men have been impressive on home soil this season with five wins and a draw in all competitions and they have bagged 19 goals in these six matches so they will fancy their chances against a side that already trails them by 19 points after 12 games of the season. Sunderland, however, are on the way up at the moment as they have won their last games against Bournemouth and Hull to move off the bottom of the league. Confidence will be higher at The Stadium of Light than it has been all season but they have not won at Anfield since 1983 and we’re going with the Bet365 odds in seeing this being a comfortable win for the free scoring Reds.
We are backing Liverpool to beat Sunderland AND Over 3.5 goals to be scored @ 2.00 in the Bet365 Sportsbook!
Burnley v Man City: 9.50 – 5.50 – 1.28
When Burnley were last in the Premier League during the 2014/15 season they had a good record against Manchester City as a 2-2 draw at The Etihad preceded a 1-0 home win at Turf Moor for The Clarets and they’ll be desperate to repeat that kind of scoreline this Saturday lunchtime as they start the weekend’s EPL action. Sean Dyche’s side have been in excellent form in front of their own fans this season too with wins over Liverpool, Watford, Everton and Crystal Palace while their two losses saw Swansea and Arsenal just edge across the line with 1-0 wins thanks to late goals. The home side will be confident of their ability to upset the odds, but can they take all three points?
City do not bring the best of form into this EPL clash as, although they are unbeaten in five matches, their last three games have seen them concede late at home to Middlesbrough to draw 1-1, edge past Crystal Palace thanks to a Yaya Toure brace and then drew 1-1 in Germany during the week against Borussia Monchengladbach. They played the last 30 minutes of that Champions League game on Wednesday night with ten men too so they will be the more tired of these two sides and with them having kept just one clean sheet in 11 matches on the road we feel that the hosts at Turf Moor certainly have a chance at getting something from this game. However, we feel that as City concede so many goals away from home the value on the weekend’s first match is on goals to be scored in Burnley.
Our money is on Both Teams to Score – Yes in this Burnley versus Manchester City match at odds of 1.95.
Swansea v Crystal Palace: 2.40 – 3.30 – 2.87
Both sides who are clashing at The Liberty Stadium this Saturday will be desperate to secure all three points as Swansea are now bottom of the EPL following Sunderland’s back to back wins and are still searching for their first win under new manager Bob Bradley while Palace have lost all of their last five games and are now just a single point above the drop zone. Even though we’ve only had 12 matches of the season so far this game is a vital, must win clash for both Swansea and Palace but can either side end their winless runs?
Confidence is low at both The Liberty Stadium and Selhurst Park right now and we are not confident about backing either of these sides to secure all three points this Saturday afternoon, although we could be tempted with the draw. However, both teams have been scoring goals of late, as well as conceding them at alarming rates, as four of the five games for Swansea since Bradley took over have seen both teams find the net and Palace have both scored and conceded in each of their last four clashes, so we are backing goals in Wales this weekend.
Back Over 2.5 goals in this Swansea v Crystal Palace match @ 1.90 with Bet365.com.
Leicester v Middlesbrough: 1.83 – 3.60 – 4.20
The meeting of two sides that lifted the Premier League title and finished second in the second tier of English football last season sees them just a point apart as they begin the weekend 14th and 15th. In previous meetings, it is almost 15 years since Middlesbrough have defeated The Foxes and their last four clashes have seen Leicester secure all three points. They have generally done well after their European adventures too this season as their previous four EPL games after midweek Champions League action has seen two wins and one draw and after defeating Club Brugge at this stadium on Tuesday night can they use the lack of travelling to their advantage to move up the league table?
Middlesbrough will not be an easy team to defeat as, while they have not won in six away games since defeating Sunderland in their first road trip of the season, have lost just once all season away from The Riverside. They have drawn with West Ham, Arsenal and Man City in the last three games that have seen them away from their own fans and, once again, they will prove difficult to beat. We see this a cagey and close game that will end with these two sides sharing the spoils.
Our top tip on this Leicester v Middlesbrough game is back the draw at odds of 3.60 in the Bet365 Sportsbook!
Hull v West Brom: 3.00 – 3.20 – 2.37
Any confidence that Hull would have had after going into the international break at the start of the month following their 2-1 win over Southampton has already gone up in smoke as their first game back saw them beaten 3-0 by Sunderland last weekend. Now they face a West Brom side that has recorded back to back wins in the league and are unbeaten in three games against Hull, winning two of those, so we can see this being another tough match for The Tigers.
In six home EPL clashes this season Hull have won two – their opening clash against Leicester and their last match against The Saints – and lost four and in those four defeats they managed just one goal – and that came from the penalty spot in a 4-1 loss to Arsenal. The Baggies, however, have shown some impressive skills lately with six goals scored in their last two games as they won 2-1 away at last season’s champions and then defeating Burnley 4-0 on Monday (and bringing us a nice winner on the Overs!) as they bounced back from losses to two of the top three sides in the league. They have lost only to Liverpool in their last four away matches and with their excellent recent record we can see them compounding Hull’s misery by getting something from this match at the KC Stadium.