Continued troubles for Silva’s Toffees
Burnley [2.98] v Everton [2.66]; Draw [3.4]
Burnley are doing what they do best, rattling cages and proving very hard to beat. The Clarets were one of the favourites for the drop before the season started but on the evidence of their first seven games there’s no way they should be in or around the relegation zone.
Sean Dyche’s men narrowly lost their first away game of the season to Arsenal but they’re unbeaten in three away games since that defeat, and at Turf Moor their only reversal was to Liverpool, so there’s absolutely no shame in the two league games they’ve lost this term.
Burnley’s two other home games this season resulted in very comfortable victories over Southampton (3-0) and Norwich (2-0) meaning they currently occupy a mid-table berth, though a win over Everton on Saturday afternoon could see them shoot right up the table.
Dyche’s men are [2.98] to get the better of the Toffees, and that’s a price that really does appeal given Everton are enduring a torrid time at present.
Marco Silva’s men have lost four of their last five Premier League games, with three of those defeats coming at the hands of Bournemouth and newly-promoted Aston Villa and Sheffield United. That form is concerning enough but away from home they’ve now failed to win any of their last six league games.
There looks to be a crisis of confidence among Silva’s men and the continued absence of Andre Gomes from the centre of midfield isn’t helping either. Turf Moor – where Everton have lost two of the last three meetings with Burnley – is a tricky place to go at the best of times so it’s not difficult to see the Toffees leaving empty-handed on Saturday afternoon.
Another Reds win but still no home clean sheet
Liverpool [1.48] v Leicester [7.8]; Draw [5.0]
I’m sure that after Liverpool conceded three goals at home to RB Salzburg in the Champions League in midweek there will plenty of bettors willing to get Leicester on side in this fixture, especially after the Foxes thrashed Newcastle 5-0 last Sunday.
But it’s impossible to ignore the Reds’ form, especially at Anfield. Jurgen Klopp’s men are on a run of 16 straight league victories and they’ve scored at least two goals in every one of their last 12 home games, all of which they won. To be precise those last 12 games at Anfield have seen Liverpool score a total of 40 goals with the amount of goals scored per game reading 5-4-2-2-2-5-4-2-4-3-3-4.
The likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Porto, Tottenham and even Barcelona were all put to the sword in that devastating sequence of home wins.
So while we have to pay Leicester huge respect, to be quite frank it’s really difficult to envisage Liverpool not scoring at least two or three home goals once more. Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane combine as one of the best attacking trios in world football, while if there’s a more breathtakingly-brilliant wing-back duo than Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold then I’m yet to see it.
In other words, Liverpool can out-score anyone; out-score being the key word. And that’s because Klopp’s men have been far from convincing defensively, especially in comparison to last season. In fact they’ve conceded in all four of their Premier League games at Anfield this term, conceded at both Chelsea and Southampton, and conceded five in their two Champions League games.
So while we have to go for the home win, we also have to consider massively the possibility of Leicester getting on the scoresheet. Brendan Rodgers‘ men drew a blank in a disappointing display at Old Trafford recently but that’s the only time they’ve failed to score on the road in five games this term.
The Foxes have scored 12 goals in their four league wins and they also scored four at Championship outfit Luton in the EFL Cup just last week, so all things considered we have to back them to get on the scoresheet at Anfield, though ultimately they should come away empty-handed – available to back at 15/8 on the Betfair Sportsbook.
Buoyant Blades can add more points to their tally
Watford [2.24] v Sheff Utd [3.65]; Draw [3.45]
It’s fair to say I haven’t been too complimentary about Sheffield United’s chances of Premier League survival so far this term but it’s time to hold my hands up and admit that they’re a much better outfit then I initially gave them credit for.
Chris Wilder has assembled a strong bond of players who look extremely well-organised. But they’re far from a defensive-minded team just trying to stay in games as long as they can, quite the opposite in fact, they’re going toe-for-toe with most sides and looking to attack whenever possible. They were excellent against Liverpool last week and were very unfortunate to lose the game.
I still believe the Blades will be in and around the relegation zone come the end of the season but right now they’re playing with confidence and they certainly have the momentum to keep producing good performances and picking up points.
The complete opposite applies to Watford. Their confidence has been shot to bits following 8-0 and 2-0 defeats at Man City and Wolves respectively, and while a home game against newly-promoted Sheff Utd represents a much easier task on paper, football is rarely that simple.
The Hornets are statistically the worst team in the division. They are without a win in the Premier League for 11 games stretching back to the end of last season, and their two most recent away wins came at Cardiff and Huddersfield in February and April, two teams that we know got relegated to the Championship.
Football betting is, and always should be, about the price. Watford may well get their first win of the season on Saturday but do you really want to be taking odds of just [2.24] about a team that are without a league win for six months, have just lost back-to-back games by an aggregate score of 10-0, and who sit rock bottom of the table? No thank you.
The Blades can be backed at [3.65] to take all three points. Wilder’s men might not necessarily have the same collective ability Watford – though even that is debatable – but they’re the team that sit more near mid-table than they do the relegation zone, are regularly playing well, and are buoyed by a superb 2-0 away win at Everton the last time they were on the road.
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Source: BetFair Tips
