The highlight games for the next set of EPL matches are SOUTHAMPTON versus MANCHESTER UNITED and LIVERPOOL versus NOTTINGHAM FOREST. Our feature columnist, John Newsome, previews these and all game week 4 matches with his unique and insightful commentary. You can view all previous analysis from John’s regular column here: English Premier League Predictions For Saturday.
Please note all prices quoted below were correct at the time of publication.
Game Week-4
Saturday 14th
SOUTHAMPTON v MANCHESTER UNITED
12.30 in England
TNT Sport
Yukinari Sugawara is the only Saints player to score in the Premier League this campaign, getting the goal in the defeat against Brentford by a 3-1 score last time out.
In the opening 2 games, Southampton have ‘Lost To Nil’ despite scoring 5 in the Carabao Cup victory against Cardiff.
The goal scorers against Cardiff were Mateus Fernandes, Samuel Amo-Ameyaw, Cameron Archer (2) and James Bree, yet none of those started against Brentford.
Surely that’s the point of the Cup Competition.
If a Manager is going to change the team for the Carabao Cup, then surely the guys who make an impression and score goals in a team that hasn’t yet, is making an impression, should be in the starting lineup for the following game.
However, as mentioned, none of the goal scorers against Cardiff started, with Mateus and Cameron being introduced at half-time but Samual and James left on the bench.
It’s significant that in the 3 Premier League fixtures, against Newcastle at St James Park, Nottingham Forest at St Mary’s and Brentford at the GTech, Russell Martin’s Saints have had the majority of possession in all 3 games.
Newcastle 22% – Southampton 78%
Southampton 65% – Nottingham Forest 35%
Brentford 37% – Southampton 63%
That in itself, tells a story, Russell wants his team to have the ball for the majority of the game, yet whilst that is apparent, the ball isn’t going into the opponent’s net.
Possession-based football is the ‘New Modern’ but wouldn’t it be better to have less possession and score a few more goals?
Not to tell Russell Martin, or for that matter, any Manager how to play football, that’s their prerogative.
Still, when one is watching a game of football on the telly, in the top left corner, the only figures shown are ‘Newcastle 1 Southampton 0’.
Not ‘Newcastle 22% Southampton 68%’.
When Russell is sat in the Southampton Job Centre next to another out of work Manager (possibly today’s opposite number) then it’s no point saying,
‘We had 65% possession against Forest Erik!’
‘I know Russ, we had 52% against Brighton!’
‘Anyways, how do we fill in these Job Seeker Allowance forms?’
Southampton sit in 19th place with Zero Points, along with Everton who are the only 2 teams out of the 20 not to register at least a point.
Manchester United are now 2 from 3 in the loss column following last weekend’s defeat against Liverpool by a 3-0 scoreline.
Erik’s Ten Bobs were simply horrendous against Arne’s Reds who dominated United in front of the Red Devil faithful at Old Trafford.
The new boy Manuel Ugarte wasn’t included in the Match Day Squad but will surely be introduced for this relegation battle against Southampton today.
It’s more than likely that Manuel will come in for Casemiro, who it’s fair to say had a shocker against Liverpool, being at fault for 2 of the 3 goals.
The only reason Cassie wasn’t responsible for all 3 goals is that the Brazilian Midfielder was taken off at half-time to save the lad from any further embarrassment.
There was talk that Casemiro would be out of Manchester and on his way to Turkey to join Galatasaray on loan.
However, it looks like the Brazilian doesn’t need new hair and teeth and has snubbed the offer to join the Turks
In the last meeting between United and the Saints at Old Trafford back in March 2023, Casemiro was shown a straight Red Card in the 34th minute, with the game ending in a dismal 0-0 draw.
Manchester United’s fate in the Europa League was confirmed just before the fixture against Liverpool.
United will face the following in the New Look European Competition, similar to the revamped Champions League, where there is one Group of 36, with each team playing 4 different opponents at Home and 4 Away.
Manchester United’s opponents-
25/09/2024- FC Twente at Home.
03/10/2024- FC Porto Away.
24/10/2024- Fenerbahce Away.
07/11/2024- PAOK at Home.
28/11/2024- Bodo/Glimt at Home.
12/12/2024- Victoria Plzen Away.
23/01/2025- Rangers at Home.
30/01/2025- FCSB Away.
As well as the ‘All British’ tie against Rangers, there’s a match-up against Fenerbahce, who are managed by the enigmatic ex-United boss Jose Mourinho and have Fred in the Midfield, plus the ex-Coach Steve McClaren’s old team FC Twente.
More importantly though, before the European adventure, United face the Mighty Barnsley FC at Old Trafford in the 3rd-Round of the Carabao Cup.
When the draw was made, John Newsome was excited at the prospect of heading over the Pennines to Old Trafford and meeting up with the Manchester Stick and Ball Thrower and the Liccle Fat Lad from Penistone.
However, the price of tickets for the game was then announced by Manchester United.
The price of a Carabao Cup ticket for Barnsley fans against Manchester United at Old Trafford is £42.
The price of a Europa League ticket for Rangers fans against Manchester United at Old Trafford is £40
Is everyone happy with that?
John Newsome isn’t.
One was intending to go over to OT but John refuses to pay the exorbitant price of £42 for a ticket to watch a Third Division club face a Second String Manchester United team.
Mum and Dad with 2 kids will have to pay £124 for the night’s entertainment, on top of Travel Costs and Food and Drink.
Capitalism at its finest!
This could easily be considered an early relegation battle with Manchester United sitting in 14th place (14th!) with the same 3 points as West Ham from the opening 3 fixtures.
In the 2 Premier League fixtures back in the 2022/23 campaign before Southampton were relegated, there was just 1 goal in the 180-odd minutes at Old Trafford and St Mary’s.
In the game at St Mary’s, a single Bruno Fernandes goal, early in the 2nd-half was enough to give Erik’s Ten Bobs the victory over Wreck-it Ralph Hasenhuttl’s Saints (remember him?) by a 1-0 away day scoreline.
The fixture at Old Trafford, later in the season, finished in a goalless draw, with Ruben Selles at the Southampton helm.
Wreck-it Ralph is still having counselling following the game at Old Trafford back in February 2021, where United smashed 9 (Nine) past the Saints Goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, who is still at St Mary’s and started this season between the sticks but is now warming the bench, following the arrival of Aaron Ramsdale.
Betfred offer Southampton at 100/30, the Draw at 11/4 and Odds On 8/11 for Manchester United to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 7/1 that Bruno Fernandes Scores First and 11/5 that United Win To Nil.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
Away Win 0-2- Get 17/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
BRIGHTON v IPSWICH
15.00 in England
Brighton have faced Manchester United and Arsenal in 2 of their opening 3 fixtures with Crystal Palace the 3rd.
Fabian Hurzeler’s Seagulls are still unbeaten having come away from the Emirates with a draw by a 1-1 score.
Joao Pedro with the goal, following up from the winner Joao scored against United the week before.
Brighton sit in 3rd place with the same 7 points as Arsenal and Newcastle from the opening 3 games.
Ipswich registered their first point of this new campaign, gaining a draw against Fulham at Portman Rd last time out.
Liam Delap with the goal in the 1-1 result.
Ipswich sit in 17th place with the same 1 point as Wolves, Crystal Palace and Leicester.
It was February 2017 when these two last met at the Amex.
That was a Championship affair with the game finishing in a draw by a 1-1 score.
Luke Chambers with the Ipswich goal in the 1st-half, before Tomer Hamed converted a penalty soon after to take both teams in level at the break.
With no further goals, Chris Hughton’s Seagulls shared the points with Mick McCarthy’s Tractor Boys.
Lewis Dunk played in that game in February 2017 and is still the stalwart of the Brighton Defence.
Solly March is another Seagull still at the Amex that put his boots on.
A couple of substitutes on the bench for Brighton were Fikayo Tomori who now plays in Italy for AC Milan and the current Ipswich Goalkeeper Christian Walton, who started the New Campaign against Liverpool but has been dropped to the bench, since the arrival of Arijanet Muric.
None who played for Ipswich in that fixture are still at Portman Rd.
Betfred offer Brighton at Odds On 1/3, the Draw at 4/1 and 7/1 for Ipswich to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 13/10 that Joao Pedro Scores Anytime and 13/10 that Brighton Win To Nil.
Home Win 3-0- Get 8/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
CRYSTAL PALACE v LEICESTER
15.00 in England
Crystal Palace ended the losing streak last time out, gaining a point from a draw by a 1-1 score against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
In the 3rd London Derby in succession, following games against West Ham and Brentford, which Palace suffered defeats in, an Eberechi Eze goal early in the 2nd-half, earned Oliver’s Army their first point of the campaign, leaving Crystal Palace in 16th place with the same 1 point as Wolves, Ipswich and Leicester.
As mentioned, Leicester themselves have 1 point from the opening 3 games, however, that came from the opening fixture, with the Foxes suffering defeats in the latest two.
Last time out before the International Break, Aston Villa inflicted a defeat on Leicester by a 2-1 scoreline, with Facundo Buonanotte getting the Foxes consolation goal.
Leicester sit in 15th place, with the same 1 point as today’s opponents, as well as Ipswich and Wolves.
When Leicester last visited Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace, both were under the guidance of different Managers, with the Eagles having Roy Hodgson in charge and the Foxes being overseen by Brendan Rodgers.
Roy had only just returned following the sacking of Patrick Vieira and got off to a winning start, gaining the victory over Brendan’s not-so-Wonderfuls by a 2-1 scoreline.
There was an own goal credited to the Leicester ‘Keeper Daniel Iversen for the opener, with the 2nd coming from Jean-Philippe Mateta, giving Palace the win.
Ricardo Pereira with the Foxes goal.
Although it was Roy’s first game back, it was Brendan’s final game in charge, with the Leicester hierarchy sacking Mr Rodgers after the defeat.
Betfred offer Crystal Palace at slight Odds On 3/5, the Draw at 3/1 and 4/1 for Leicester to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 6/4 that Jean-Philippe Mateta Scores Anytime and 13/5 that Jamie Vardy Scores Anytime.
Home Win 2-1- Get 7/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
FULHAM v WEST HAM
15.00 in England
Fulham have the full set of results, a Loss, a Win and a Draw from the opening 3 games, leaving the Cottagers in 12th place with the same 4 points as Chelsea and Tottenham.
The draw was the result in the last outing before the Break, with an Adama Traore goal gaining Fulham a point against Ipswich at Portman Rd by a 1-1 score.
West Ham sit a place below Fulham in 13th, with 3 points from the opening 3 games.
Those 3 points came from the victory against Crystal Palace which means that the Hammers have suffered 2 defeats, the latest being against Man City at the London Stadium.
City got the away day victory by a 3-1 scoreline, with the West Ham goal being credited to a City Defender.
If one remembers last season’s game between these two teams at Craven Cottage then one will know that Fulham inflicted a devastating defeat on West Ham by a 5-0 scoreline.
Raul Jiminez, Willian, Tosin Adarabioyo, Harry Wilson and Carlos Vinicius with the Fulham goals to give Marco Silva’s Cottagers the victory over David Moyes’ Hammers.
Betfred offer Fulham at 7/5, the Draw at 23/10 and 7/4 for West Ham to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 9/5 that Rodrigo Muniz Scores Anytime and 12/5 that Jarrod Bowen Scores Anytime.
Draw 1-1- Get 6/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
LIVERPOOL v NOTTINGHAM FOREST
15.00 in England
Liverpool are now 3 from 3 in the Win Column following the devastating destruction of Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Two 1st-half goals from Luis Diaz and the obligatory Mo Salah ‘against United’ goal gave Arne’s Reds the victory over Erik’s Ten Bobs by a 3-0 scoreline.
That leaves Liverpool with 9 points in 2nd place purely on goal difference, below Man City who also have 9 from the opening 3 games, being the only teams with a 100% win record.
Liverpool’s Champions League adventure is as follows-
17/09/2024- AC Milan Away.
02/10/2024- Bologna at Home.
23/10/2024- RB Leipzig Away.
05/11/2024- Bayer Leverkusen at Home.
27/11/2024- Real Madrid at Home.
10/12/2024- Girona Away.
21/01/2025- Lille at Home.
29/01/2025- PSV Eindhoven Away.
The Top 8 teams go straight into the last-16 Knockout Stage, with the teams finishing 9th to 24th going into a Qualifying Round where those 16 will be paired off and the winners making up the final 8 that are then matched to see the fixtures in the last-16.
Does that make sense?
Surprisingly Nottingham Forest are 1 of 7 teams that are unbeaten following the opening 3 games, with a Win and 2 Draws, leaving the Tricky Trees in 9th place with 5 points.
A Chris Wood goal, which was quickly equalised by a Wolves player, gave Forest their 2nd draw of the campaign last time out, with the Midlands Derby ending in a 1-1 score.
At Anfield last season, Liverpool got the victory over Nottingham Forest by a 3-0 scoreline.
Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Mo Salah with the Reds goals.
Betfred offer Liverpool at Odds On 2/11, the Draw at 11/2 and 12/1 for Nottingham Forest to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Luis Diaz Scores First and Evens 1/1 that there are Over 3.5 Goals.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
Home Win 4-0- Get 10/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
***Premier League Team of the Week***
GOALKEEPER- Allison- Liverpool
RIGHT-BACK- Ricoh Lewis- Man City
CENTRE-BACK- Lewis Dunk- Brighton
CENTRE-BACK- Virgil Van Dijk- Liverpool
LEFT-BACK- Andy Robertson- Liverpool
MIDFIELDER-Joao Pedro- Brighton
MIDFIELDER- Amadou Onana- Aston Villa
MIDFIELDER- Lewis Cook- Bournemouth
FORWARD- Bryan Mbeumo- Brentford
FORWARD- Harvey Barnes- Newcastle
FORWARD- Erling Haaland- Man City
STAR MAN- Erling Haaland- Man City
***Last Week’s Winning Tips-
Brentford Win- 8/11
Bournemouth Win- 6/4
Aston Villa Win- 4/5
Man City Win- 2/5
Liverpool Win- 4/5
Correct Scores-
Leicester 1 Aston Villa 2- 7/1
West Ham 1 Man City 3- 9/1
Correct Tips-
Bryan Mbeumo to Score First- 6/1
(Doubled to 12/1 Scoring Two)
Jhon Duran to Score Anytime- 2/1
Chris Wood to Score First- 5/1
Nottingham Forest v Wolves Both Teams To Score- 4/6
Man City to Win Both Halves- 2/1
Mo Salah to Score Anytime- 7/5
MAN CITY v BRENTFORD
15.00 in England
Man City sit at the Top of the Premier League Table with 9 points from 3 wins out of the opening 3 games.
Erling Haaland scored his 2nd hat-trick in a row in the victory over West Ham by a 3-1 score, with the unfortunate Ruben Dias being credited with the Hammers goal.
Erling has scored 7 goals in the 3 games and is not only the leading player goal scorer but has more goals than 17 of the 19 other teams in the Top Flight with only Liverpool and Chelsea that have matched EH scoring 7.
City are usually slow starters in the Premier League but the 100% record is ominous for the rest of the teams with just Liverpool matching the 3 wins from 3.
Man City’s next 5 Premier League fixtures are-
Brentford, Arsenal, Newcastle, Fulham and Wolves.
Liverpool’s next 5 are-
Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Wolves, Crystal Palace and Chelsea.
Whilst all games in the Premier League are tough, one could say that Man City’s next 5, which includes Arsenal, are slightly tougher than Liverpool’s, so it will be interesting to see the outlook of the Premier League after Game Week-8.
Man City’s Champions League opponents-
18/09/2024- Inter Milan at Home.
01/10/2024- Slovan Bratislava Away.
23/10/2024- Sparta Prague at Home.
05/11/2024- Sporting Lisbon Away.
26/11/2024- Feyenoord at Home.
11/12/2024- Juventus Away.
22/01/2025- PSG Away.
29/01/2025- Club Brugge at Home.
Brentford gained a victory over Southampton last time out, with goals from Bryan Mbeumo (2) and Yoane Wissa giving the Bees the points from a 3-1 scoreline.
Ivan Toney has finally departed the GTech after 4 seasons with Brentford.
None of the Premier League clubs wanted IT so the ex-Newcastle, Barnsley and Peterborough Striker has taken the Saudi Ryal and headed to the Desert to play for Al-Ahli in the Saudi Arabia Premier League.
A couple of notable teammates that Ivan now has at Al-Ahli are Roberto Firmino, Riyad Mahrez and the ex-Chelsea Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
There are rumours that Mr Toney will earn a staggering £1 Million a week with salary and bonuses over a 4-year contract.
One has not read that incorrectly, £1 Million a week (a WEEK!)
Whilst a lot can say that Ivan should have stayed in the Premier League, £1 Million a week is not only life-changing money for IT but life-changing money for Ivan’s family, so it’s hard to argue with that decision.
All the best Ivan and hopefully stay away from Riyadh’s local Betfred shop, at least until your football career is over.
Brentford sit in 6th place with the same 6 points as Aston Villa from the opening 3 games played.
Pep’s High Flying Blues gained a victory over Thomas’s Bees when Brentford last visited the Etihad, however, surprisingly there was only 1 goal in the game, with Erling Haaland scoring midway through the 2nd-half to give Man City the points from a 1-0 scoreline.
Betfred offer Man City at Odds On 1/7, the Draw at 13/2 and 12/1 for Brentford to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 12/5 that Erling Haaland Scores First and 7/4 that there are Over 4.5 Goals.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
Home Win 4-1- Get 12/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
ASTON VILLA v EVERTON
17.30 in England
Sky Sports
Aston Villa gained a victory over Leicester last time out, with goals from Amadou Onana and Jhon Duran giving Villa the away day points from a 2-1 scoreline.
Leicester scored a late consolation.
That leaves Unai’s Claret and Blues in 7th place with the same 6 points as Brentford from the opening 3 games, 2 Wins and a Loss.
Aston Villa’s Champions League fixtures-
17/09/2024- Young Boys Away.
02/10/2024- Bayern Munich at Home.
22/10/2024- Bologna at Home.
06/11/2024- Club Brugge Away.
27/11/2024- Juventus at Home.
10/12/2024- Leipzig Away.
21/01/2025- Monaco Away.
29/01/2025- Celtic at Home.
A quick note regarding the European Adventure, Aston Villa are charging between £85-£97 per ticket for their Champions League games.
£15 off for season ticket holders.
Scandalous.
These clubs are out of touch with society, charging the Common Woman and Man these astronomical prices.
In contrast, Liverpool and Man City’s Champions League tickets are a lot cheaper than Villa’s.
The cheapest Adult Price is just £9 to watch a game at Anfield, with the maximum being £61.
At the Etihad, Man City are charging between £37-£73 for an Adult Ticket.
Arsenal’s are around £75-£110.
If one is a Toffee, look away now as surely nobody wants to be reminded of the last outing against Bournemouth at Goodison Park.
After a goalless 1st-half, Michael Keane and Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored just after the break to give Everton a convincing lead.
With 87 minutes on the clock, it appeared that the job was done and the Toffees were going to register a first victory.
Bournemouth then scored a goal.
No drama, Everton will hold on!
Not so, Everton then conceded a further 2 to ultimately snatch a defeat from the jaws of victory.
Three goals in the 87th, 92nd and 96th minute, to suffer a loss by a 3-2 score.
As Chris ‘Kammy’ Kamara would say,
Unbelievable Jeff!
Any person who has played football over the years, at whatever level, knows that one doesn’t lose a game when 2 goals in front and 87 minutes on the clock.
In the good old days when John Newsome would don the boots and have a run out on a Sunday Morning, usually only a few hours after leaving Japanese Whispers, following another failed attempt to chat up the opposition, it was always a question to the referee,
‘How long left Ref?’
‘Three minutes and a bit of stoppage time!’
One of the players whoever was closest would get the ball and boot it as far away from the goal as possible, usually into the next field or onto the road.
Then repeat until the referee finally blows up for full-time.
The Everton players should have constantly kicked the ball into Row Z, gone down with a suspected broken leg, or anything to disrupt Bournemouth’s momentum.
That didn’t happen and then it’s all Sean Dyche’s fault.
Whilst Sean does pick the team, the players should take some responsibility and when 2 goals to the good and time running out, do anything to secure the victory.
Not concede 3 goals.
The defeat, which is now 3 from 3, leaves Everton at the foot of the table with Southampton both on Nil Points.
Unbelievable Jeff!
It was Aston Villa that gained the victory over Everton in last season’s encounter at Villa Park.
Goals from John McGinn, Douglas Luiz (penalty), Leon Bailey and Jhon Duran gave Unai’s men the win over Sean’s Toffees by a 4-0 scoreline.
Betfred offer Aston Villa at Odds On 4/9, the Draw at 16/5 and 11/2 for Everton to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 7/2 that Ollie Watkins Scores First and 23/20 that Aston Villa Score in Both Halves.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
Home Win 2-0- Get 13/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
BOURNEMOUTH v CHELSEA
20.00 in England
Sky Sports
Note the start time of 20.00 in England, which allows all the single boys and girls the opportunity to watch football on a Saturday Night, whilst the unfortunate married folk, including the Manchester Stick and Ball Thrower plus Penistone’s Little Fat Fella, have to watch some horrendous programme, disguised as Lite-Entertainment, called ‘The Voice On A Wheel Whilst Dancing On Ice Sewing Something To Show Britain Hasn’t Any Talent!’
As mentioned in the Aston Villa v Everton preview, Bournemouth somehow gained a victory over Everton at Goodison Park, when trailing by 2 goals to nil with minutes remaining.
After conceding 2 Villa goals early in the 2nd-half, Antoine Semenyo pulled one back in the 87th minute to give the travelling Cherries hopes of a comeback.
Lewis Cook then scored an equaliser in the 92nd minute and when it appeared that a draw was on the cards, Luis Sinisterra scored the winner in the 96th minute to give Andoni Iraola’s side the win by a sensational 3-2 away day scoreline.
That leaves Bournemouth in 8th place with 5 points from the 3 games played up to now.
Two Draws and a Win.
Chelsea have the full set of results from their opening 3 games, a Loss, a Win and a Draw, the latter being against Crystal Palace last time out.
Nicolas Jackson scored first to give Chelsea a lead at the interval before Palace equalised early in the 2nd-half.
With no further goals, both teams shared the points from a draw by a 1-1 score.
Chelsea, under Mauricio Pochettino, somehow made the Qualifying Stages of the Europa Conference League.
Then after a 2-legged affair against the Swiss Team Servette, Enzo Maresca’s Blues are now in the revamped Third European Competition.
As with the Champions League and Europa League, there are 36 teams in the Conference League, however, each team only play 6 times, not 8 as in the other 2 competitions.
Chelsea’s opponents are-
03/10/2024- Gent at Home.
24/10/2024- Panathinaikos Away.
07/11/2024- Noah at Home.
28/11/2024- Heidenheim Away.
12/12/2024- FC Astana Away.
19/12/2024- Shamrock Rovers at Home.
It’s worth adding that Cole Palmer, Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana have not been included in the 25-Man Europa Conference League Squad.
That’s basically to Manage Cole, Romeo and Wesley’s workload so that the players don’t overdo it.
This will become more of a ‘thing’ over the coming years for all players, with the possibility that Clubs will have to limit the number of games an individual plays.
For example, a player may be restricted to 50 games a season in all competitions.
So again, just as an example, Cole Palmer may be restricted to 44 games for Chelsea and then 6 for England.
This is purely speculation but it could happen over the next few years, to prevent players such as Harry Kane, looking like a Cart Horse in the Euro’s for England.
The World Cup and Euro’s are always at the end of a long hard campaign and at times, the players look shot to pieces.
The World Cup in Qatar was different and notably saw players at their peak and not exhausted after a long season.
This fixture between these two at the Vitality last season took place almost 12 months ago to the day on the 17th of September 2023.
Whilst the single folk are allowed to watch, most won’t want a repeat of that game, where the Scorer wasn’t needed and the match finishing in a disappointing goalless draw.
There should be goals tonight.
Betfred offer Bournemouth at 23/10, the Draw at 11/4 and slight Odds On 19/20 for Chelsea to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Cole Palmer Scores First and 7/5 that Chelsea Score in Both Halves.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
Draw 2-2- Get 10/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
Sunday 15th
TOTTENHAM v ARSENAL
14.00 in England
Sky Sports
Tottenham come back into action sitting in 10th place with 4 points from the opening 3 games.
A Win, a Draw and a Loss, the loss being in the last game before the Break, with Ange’s Spurs succumbing to a defeat against Eddies Magpies by a 2-1 score.
Fellow Londoners Chelsea and Fulham also have 4 points.
Mr Postecoglou will want to get his team back to winning ways but today’s task will be an arduous one.
Arsenal drew against Brighton last time out, with both teams sharing the points from a draw by a 1-1 score.
Kai Havertz with the Gunners goal.
There was an interesting moment when Declan Rice gently kicked the ball away which produced a Yellow Card for DR Declan.
The problem was, that Mr Rice had already picked up a Yellow for a rash tackle earlier, so the petulant kicking of the ball resulted in a Red and an early bath.
Brighton then became the dominant team and equalised.
Added to that, Declan will be missing from today’s game which may give Tottenham an advantage.
The Midfielder did score for England in the fixture against the Republic of Ireland, which did irk a few of the Irish who had seen Declan donning a Green Jersey at Youth Level.
That also went for Jack Grealish who played a few games for the Republic of Ireland at Under Age Group level then both changed their allegiance to the Three Lions.
Interestingly, both scored against the Republic on Saturday, however, had different reactions to their goal, Declan was sort of apologising for scoring but Jack celebrated wildly.
Arsenal sit in 4th place with the same 7 points as Newcastle and Brighton from the opening 3 games.
Both of these North Londoners have a European Adventure to look forward to, with Tottenham in the Europa League and Arsenal in the Champions League.
Tottenham’s Europa League opponents-
26/09/2024- Qarabag at Home.
03/10/2024- Ferencvaros Away.
24/10/2024- AZ Alkmaar at Home.
07/11/2024- Galatasaray Away.
28/11/2024- AS Roma at Home.
12/12/2024- Rangers Away.
23/01/2025- Hoffenheim Away.
30/01/2025- Elfsborg at Home.
Arsenal’s Champions League campaign is as follows-
19/09/2024- Atalanta Away.
01/10/2024- Paris Saint-Germain at Home.
22/10/2024- Shakhtar at Home.
06/11/2024- Inter Milan Away.
26/11/2024- Sporting Lisbon Away.
11/12/2024- Monaco at Home.
22/01/2025- Dinamo Zagreb at Home.
29/01/2025- Girona Away.
The game at the Chas and Dave Memorial Stadium between these two North London rivals, finished in a very entertaining 5-goal thriller, with the Gunners gaining the away day victory over Spurs by a 3-2 scoreline.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg scored first to put Arsenal in front.
That sentence is correct before anyone dives in and says Pierre-Emile is a Tottenham player, unfortunately for the home faithful, Mr Hojbjerg turned past the Spurs ‘Keeper to concede an OG (Own Goal).
Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz added 2 and 3 to give the Gunners a convincing lead at the break.
It was then Tottenham’s turn to score with Cristian Romero and a converted Son Heung-Min penalty giving the LilyWhite’s hopes of a comeback, however, Arsenal held on for the win to continue the quest for a Premier League Title.
Betfred offer Tottenham at 12/5, the Draw at 5/2 and Evens 1/1 for Arsenal to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 21/10 that Son Heung-Min Scores Anytime and 15/8 that Bukayo Saka Scores Anytime.
Draw 2-2- Get 10/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
WOLVES v NEWCASTLE
16.30 in England
Sky Sports
Wolves sit in 18th place with the same 1 point as Ipswich, Crystal Palace and Leicester following the recent draw against Nottingham Forest before the International Break.
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde scored in the 12th minute after Forest had taken the lead a couple of minutes earlier.
With no further goals, both Midlanders gained a point apiece from a draw by a 1-1 score, leaving Wolves in the relegation zone.
Newcastle remain unbeaten after the opening 3 games, with 2 Wins and a Draw, the latest being a victory over Tottenham at St James Park by a 2-1 scoreline.
Harvey Barnes and Alexander Isak with the Magpies goal.
Dan Burn was unfortunately credited with the Tottenham goal.
That leaves Eddie’s Magpies in 5th place with the same 7 points as Arsenal and Brighton.
At Molineux last season, both teams shared the points from a draw by a 2-2 score.
The Archbishop was happy.
Callum Wilson scored twice in the 1st-half for Newcastle, with Mario Lemina adding a Wolves goal in between, to leave Wolves trailing at the interval.
Hwang-Hee Chan equalised midway through the 2nd-half and with no further goals both earned a point apiece.
Betfred offer Wolves at 9/4, the Draw at 12/5 and 11/10 for Newcastle to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 9/2 that Alexander Isak Scores First and 6/4 that Newcastle Score in Both Halves.
(If your pre-match First Goalscorer bet scores First and then scores a Second, Betfred DOUBLE the odds.
If they score a Third, Betfred TREBLE the odds.)
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The loveable OzScot was philosophical about the defeat of Rangers against Celtic in the Old Firm Derby that took place just before the International Break.
The Lad and Dad stayed up over in Melbourne to watch the Green and White Hoops demolish the Teddy Bears at Celtic Park, gaining a home victory by a 3-0 scoreline.
In truth, even Braveheart had to concede that his beloved Rangers were second best in all departments and were lucky to get ‘Nil’!
Celtic sit at the summit of the Pub League with 12 points from the opening 4 games, a 100% record, which is surprisingly matched by Aberdeen (who?), also with a 100% record of 4 wins from 4.
Rangers sit 4th with 7 points from the 4 fixtures completed.
It’s Dundee United (who?) that sits in 3rd place with 8 points.
It’s going to be a long old season for the Blue Half of Glasgow and for that matter, the Blue Half of Melbourne but one thing is for sure, John Newsome will offer support to his OzScot Mate.
The revamped Champions League Group which has 36 teams, sees Celtic face-
18/09/2024- Slovan Bratislava at Home.
01/10/2024- Borussia Dortmund Away.
23/10/2024- Atalanta Away.
05/11/2024- RB Leipzig at Home.
27/11/2024- Club Brugge at Home.
10/12/2024- Dinamo Zagreb Away.
22/01/2025- Young Boys at Home.
29/01/2025- Aston Villa Away.
As mentioned earlier, the Top 8 teams go straight into the last-16 Knockout Stage, with the teams finishing 9th to 24th going into a Qualifying Round where the 16 will be paired off and the winners making up the final 8 that are then matched to see the last-16 Knockout Stage.
Rangers are in the Europa League after failing to Qualify for the Champions League, suffering a 2-legged defeat against Dynamo Kiev or as folk now want to call them Kyiv.
Chicken Kyiv doesn’t have the same ring.
Rangers opponents-
26/09/2024- Malmo Away.
03/10/2024- Lyon at Home.
24/10/2024- FCSB at Home.
07/11/2024- Olympiacos Away.
28/11/2024- Nice Away.
12/12/2024- Tottenham at Home.
23/01/2025- Manchester United Away.
30/01/2025- Union Saint-Gilloise at Home.
The loveable OzScot has gone missing following Scotland’s two recent outings in the Nations League where the Jocks suffered back-to-back defeats against Poland and Portugal respectively.
Both games saw Bravehearts finest concede a last-gasp goal to ultimately lose, with the Poles scoring in the 97th minute to get the victory by a 3-2 score.
Then in the fixture against Portugal, That Boy Ronaldo, who was not included in the starting lineup by Roberto Martinez, came on at half-time and scored the winner in the 88th minute to knock the Haggis out of the Flower of Scotland by a 2-1 scoreline.
Where’s Kylie?
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