The highlight games for the next set of EPL matches are BRIGHTON versus ARSENAL and LIVERPOOL versus MANCHESTER UNITED. Our feature columnist, John Newsome, previews these and all game week 20 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-20
So the 2024/25 Premier League campaign is now halfway through with 19 of the 38 Game Weeks completed.
Liverpool look certainties to be crowned Champions, with Southampton more than likely to be relegated.
The rest of the prizes are still up for grabs.
All these set of fixtures are the reverse of Game Week-3 that were played over the weekend of August 31st and September 01st 2024.
Saturday 4th
TOTTENHAM v NEWCASTLE
12.30 in England
TNT Sport
Tottenham gained a point from a draw by a 2-2 score against Wolves on Sunday.
Wolves scored the opener in the 7th minute, which was equalised by Rodrigo Bentancur 5 minutes later.
Son Heung-Min then missed a penalty.
Nice One Son!
Brennan Johnson scored on the stroke of half-time to give Tottenham a lead at the break.
When a victory looked on the cards, Wolves scored an equaliser in the 87th minute and with no further goals, both teams shared the points from the Archbishops’ favourite scoreline.
Tottenham are now winless in the last 3 Premier League games with a draw and 2 Losses on the record.
One point from a possible 9, could see Ange Postecoglou’s time at the Chas and Dave Memorial Stadium come to an end.
Whilst the hierarchy at Tottenham are still behind the Aussie, Ange has stated that he wins a trophy in the 2nd season when in charge of football teams.
Tottenham are still in the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup and the Europa League so that Second Season Syndrome might still be on, however, Tottenham face Liverpool in the Semi-Final of the Carabao Cup, so that Trophy option could come to an end.
In the FA Cup, Tottenham visit Tamworth.
For those not familiar with ‘The Tams’ Tamworth are in the National League, which is the Division below League Two, basically League 3 of the English Pyramid.
It’s more than likely Ange’s Spurs will get the victory over Tamworth, however, if Tottenham suffer a defeat against The Tams in the FA Cup, Ange Postecoglou may as well just head straight to the Airport and fly back to Australia.
The Europa League will take care of itself for the time being.
Whatever the future holds for Ange Postecoglou and his Spurs team, Tottenham need to improve in the Premier League, however, today’s visitors may continue the winless streak for the LilyWhites.
Tottenham sit in 11th place with the same 24 points as Brentford from 19 games played.
Newcastle smashed Manchester United at Old Trafford on Monday.
The scoreline of 2-0 with the goals from Alexander Isak and Joelinton coming before 20 minutes were on the clock, didn’t really tell the full story as Eddie’s Magpies were completely dominant against Ruben’s Reds who simply didn’t have the answers.
Eddie Howe has assembled a great team who, with players such as Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali and not restricted just to those, are now unbeaten in the last 4 Premier League games, winning all 4.
Newcastle sit in 5th place with 32 points with half of the season remaining.
Newcastle gained the home victory over Tottenham back in September 2024 at St James Park.
Harvey Barnes scored the opener to give the Magpies a lead at the break.
Dan Burn was then credited with an Own Goal to put the scores level before Alexander Isak scored the winner for Newcastle in the 78th minute.
Betfred offer Tottenham at 9/5, the Draw at 11/4 and 6/5 for Newcastle to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 7/2 that Alexander Isak Scores First and 13/10 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.)
Away Win 1-2- Get 17/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
BOURNEMOUTH v EVERTON
15.00 in England
Bournemouth dropped to 7th with 30 points following a draw against Fulham on Sunday.
Goals from Evanilson and Dango Outtara, one in each half and both to equalise an earlier Fulham goal gave both teams a share of the points from a 2-2 scoreline.
The Archbishop was happy.
Man City were a place behind but gained a victory so move above Bournemouth into 6th, with the Cherries now 7th and the Cottagers 8th at the halfway stage of the season.
Everton suffered a home defeat against Nottingham Forest at Goodison Park on Sunday.
After 3 drawn games, it appeared that the Toffees had settled into the season but Forest were too strong and gained the away day victory by a 2-0 scoreline, as predicted in this EveryTip column last week.
Everton remain in 16th place with 17 points from 18 games played, not the 19 that the other teams around them have.
16,17,18.
All to play for.
This reverse fixture at Goodison Park back in August saw a 5-goal thriller with the Cherries getting the narrow away day victory over the Toffees by a 3-2 scoreline.
Without using Google, can one remember how the game panned out, with the goals going in as follows,
No Goals in the 1st-half.
Half-Time Toffee Apple and Cherryade.
50′ Michael Keane- (Everton 1-0)
57′ Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton 2-0)
87′ Antoine Semenyo- (Bournemouth 2-1)
90+2′ Lewis Cook- (Bournemouth 2-2)
90+6′ Luis Sinisterra- (Bournemouth 2-3)
Full-Time Pork Scratching and a Pint of Guinness.
Amazingly, Everton had a 2-goal lead going into the 87th minute and somehow grabbed a defeat from the jaws of victory.
The Toffee Rappers were not happy, however, the Cherryades enjoyed the long trip up North.
Betfred offer Bournemouth at Odds On 8/11, the Draw at 13/5 and 100/30 for Everton to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Evanilson Scores First and 2/1 that Bournemouth 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.)
Home Win 2-0- Get 8/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
ASTON VILLA v LEICESTER
15.00 in England
Aston Villa gained a point from a draw by a 2-2 score against Brighton on Monday.
That was 1 of 3 fixtures of Game Week-19 that finished in a 2-2 scoreline.
The Archbishop was treble happy!
After Brighton had scored, Ollie Watkins converted a penalty to take both teams in level at the break.
Mr Watkins came back into the starting lineup due to the suspension of Jhon Duran.
That was Ollie’s 8th goal of the season.
Morgan Rogers added a 2nd for Villa just after the restart, however, Unai’s Claret and Blues couldn’t hold on for the victory eventually conceding a Seagull’s goal late on in proceedings to give both a point apiece.
Aston Villa sit in 9th place with the same 29 points as Fulham both having completed 19 games so far.
Leicester are now winless in 5 of the 6 games that Ruud Van Nistelrooy has overseen since the sacking of Steve Cooper.
After a brilliant start to life at the King Power, with Ruud’s first game seeing a victory over West Ham, it’s now 1 Draw and 4 Losses in the next 5.
The latest defeat was against Man City at the Etihad on Sunday, which previously could be excused, however, City are poor at the moment and are losing against everyone so it wasn’t a certainty that Pep’s Blues would get the win.
The defeat against Man City by a 2-0 score, leaves Leicester in 19th place with 14 points from 19 fixtures completed.
That is only 2 points adrift of safety so RVN doesn’t need to panic just yet but Leicester need to start winning or it will be a return to the Championship at the end of the season.
The 3 teams promoted to the Premier League in May, are all currently in the relegation zone.
There have only been 2 occasions in the history of the Premier League (32 seasons) that the 3 promoted teams were immediately relegated.
Crystal Palace, Barnsley and Bolton in 1997/98 and Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton in the 2023/24 campaign.
Maybe that trend will become more common over the next few years as the gap between those who have and those who have not is becoming increasingly wider.
It was Aston Villa that gained the away day victory over Leicester at the King Power in the Game Week-3 encounter.
Amadou Onana scored the opener in the 28th minute to give Villa a lead at the interval.
Jhon Duran added a 2nd, just after the hour mark before Facundo Buonanotte pulled a goal back for the Foxes.
With no further goals, Aston Villa held on for the win from a 2-1 scoreline.
Betfred offer Aston Villa at Odds On 2/7, the Draw at 4/1 and 8/1 for Leicester to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 11/4 that Ollie Watkins Scores First and 11/4 that Jamie Vardy Scores Anytime.
(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 2-1- Get 15/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
CRYSTAL PALACE v CHELSEA
15.00 in England
Crystal Palace gained a victory over Southampton at Selhurst Park on Sunday.
After conceding a Saints goal in the 15th minute, Trevoh Chalobah scored an equaliser to take both teams in level at the break.
Eberechi Eze scored the 2nd just after the restart and with no further goals, Crystal Palace held on for the home win from a 2-1 scoreline.
That leaves Palace in 15th place with 20 points at the halfway point of the campaign.
Chelsea have gone off the rails of late, suffering defeats in the last 2 fixtures plus a draw in the game previous, meaning just 1 point from a possible 9.
After drawing against Everton and then losing to Fulham, Chelsea suffered a surprise defeat against Ipswich at Portman Rd on Monday.
Despite being the away team, a win was predicted due to the fact that Ipswich are in the relegation zone, however, not the case with the Tractor Boys gaining the victory over Enzo’s Blues by a 2-0 scoreline.
The defeat leaves Chelsea in 4th place with 35 points at the halfway stage of the campaign.
Both teams shared the points from a draw by a 1-1 score, when Crystal Palace visited Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea at the beginning of September 2024.
Nicolas Jackson scored the Chelsea goal in the 1st-half, with Eberechi Eze replying for Palace just after the restart.
It is worth noting that Chelsea had won the previous 14 games between the two teams, 13 Premier League fixtures and 1 FA Cup tie over 7 years.
The FA Cup game was emotional for the Eagle Ultras as it prevented Patrick Vieira’s Palace from getting to the 2022 Final, with Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea progressing to Wembley.
Betfred offer Crystal Palace at 11/4, the Draw at 13/5 and slight Odds On 9/10 for Chelsea to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 7/1 that Jean-Philippe Mateta Scores First and 5/4 that there are Under 2.5 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.)
Draw 1-1- Get 13/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
MAN CITY v WEST HAM
15.00 in England
Man City finally gained a victory after 4 winless games in the Premier League.
Goals from Savinho and Erling Haaland gave Pep’s Low Flying Blues the away day win over Leicester by a 2-0 scoreline.
That was Erling’s first goal in 4 Premier League games which the Citizen faithful will hope will kickstart the City Striker into goal-scoring life.
Man City move up to 6th in the Premier League table with 31 points from the initial 19 games played so far.
Julen Lopetegui is back under pressure following West Ham’s devastating defeat against Liverpool at the London Stadium on Sunday.
Arne’s Slot Machines gained the away day victory over Julen’s Hammers by a 5-0 scoreline, leaving West Ham in 13th place with 23 points from 19 games played.
Added to the misery of losing against Liverpool, it has been confirmed that the Captain and Star Striker Jarrod Bowen fractured his foot against the Reds and will be missing for around 8 weeks.
Ouch!
All the best Jarrod and Michail.
Back in August 2024, Man City were still good at Football, before becoming rubbish.
Pep’s High Flying Blues gained the away day victory over Julen’s Not So Bubbly Hammers by a 3-1 score.
Erling Haaland scored twice in the 1st-half to give City a lead at the break.
Ruben Dias did score an Own Goal in between Erling’s 2.
The Norwegian/Leeds lad then scored his
hat-trick goal late on in proceedings to give Man City all 3 points.
Betfred offer Man City at Odds On 2/7, the Draw at 5/1 and 7/1 for West Ham to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 9/4 that Erling Haaland Scores First and 6/4 that Man City 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.)
Home Win 3-0- Get 17/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
***Premier League Team of the Week***
GOALKEEPER- Stefan Ortega- Man City
RIGHT-BACK- Trent-Alexander-Arnold- Liverpool
CENTRE-BACK- Dan Burn- Newcastle
CENTRE-BACK- Morato- Nottingham Forest
LEFT-BACK- Lewis Hall- Newcastle
MIDFIELDER- Mikel Merino- Arsenal
MIDFIELDER- Eberechi Eze- Crystal Palace
MIDFIELDER- Morgan Gibbs-White- Nottingham Forest
FORWARD- Rory Delap- Ipswich
FORWARD- Mo Salah- Liverpool
FORWARD- Chris Wood- Nottingham Forest
STAR MAN- Mo Salah- Liverpool
***Last Week’s Winning Tips-
Man City To Win- 3/10
Crystal Palace To Win- 8/13
Nottingham Forest To Win- 15/8
Tottenham v Wolves To Draw- 18/5
Liverpool To Win- 2/5
Newcastle To Win- 6/4
Correct Scores-
Everton v Nottingham Forest 0-2- 12/1
Manchester United v Newcastle 0-2- 14/1
Correct Tips-
Chris Wood To Score First- 5/1
Nottingham Forest Win To Nil- 100/30
Fulham v Bournemouth- Over 2.5 Goals- 4/6
Liverpool To Score In Both Halves- 4/5
Aston Villa To Score In Both Halves- 6/4
Alexander Isak To Score First- 4/1
Bryan Mbeumo To Score First- 10/1
Brentford v Arsenal- Over 3.5 Goals- 5/4
SOUTHAMPTON v BRENTFORD
15.00 in England
Southampton remain at the foot of the Premier League table following another defeat on Sunday, this time against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The highly rated Tyler Dibling, who is only 18, scored the opener for the Saints, however the New Manager Ivan Juric, overseeing his 2nd game as the Southampton Manager, saw his team concede 2 goals to ultimately see Southampton suffer a loss by a 2-1 scoreline.
Southampton sit at the bottom with 6 points at the halfway point, looking Odds-On favourites for relegation back to the Championship.
Only Sunderland in 2005/06 (6 points) and Sheffield United in 2020/21 (5) have had 6 points or less, after the opening 19 Premier League games.
All the best Ivan!
Bryan Mbeumo scored the opener against Arsenal at the GTech on New Year’s Day, however, the goal just kicked the Gunners into life, with the away team scoring 3 times to inflict a defeat on Brentford by a 3-1 scoreline.
The loss leaves Thomas Frank’s Bees in 12th place with the same 24 points as Tottenham after half of the season has gone.
Brentford gained the home win over Southampton back in Game Week-3.
Goals from Bryan Mbeumo, either side of the half-time break plus a Yoane Wissa strike gave the Bees the victory over the Saints by a 3-1 score.
Yukinari Sugawara scored a late consolation goal for Southampton in the 95th minute.
Betfred offer Southampton at 13/8, the Draw at 12/5 and 6/4 for Brentford to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 6/1 that Bryan Mbeumo Scores First and 6/4 that Both Teams DON’T Score.
(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 14/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
BRIGHTON v ARSENAL
17.30 in England
Sky Sports
Brighton gained a point from a draw by a 2-2 score against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Monday.
Simon Adingra scored the opener to give the Seagulls an early lead, however, after Joao Pedro was adjudged to have fouled a Villa player in the area, the dreaded VAR got involved and advised the on-field referee Craig Pawson to check the monitor.
Once this was done, Villa were awarded a penalty, which was converted to take both teams in level at the interval.
Villa scored a 2nd just after the restart but Tariq Lamptey equalised for Brighton in the 81st minute and with no further goals, both teams gained a point apiece.
Brighton sit in 10th place with 27 points, now a place below Villa at the halfway mark.
Arsenal gained an emphatic away night victory over Brentford at the GTech Stadium on New Year’s Day.
After conceding a Brentford goal, Gabriel Jesus equalised to take both teams in level at the break.
Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli added 2 and 3 early in the 2nd-half to give Arsenal the win from a 3-1 scoreline.
The Gunners sit in 2nd place with 39 points from 19 fixtures completed, now 6 points adrift of Arne’s Slot Machines at the Summit, however, Mikel’s Young Guns have played a game more.
Both teams shared the points from a draw by a 1-1 score when Arsenal hosted Brighton at the Emirates back in August 2024.
Kai Havertz scored the opener to give Arsenal a lead at the break.
Declan Rice, who had been shown a Yellow Card in the 1st-half, nonchalantly flicked the ball away when Brighton were awarded a free kick just after the restart.
That was another Yellow Card for DR Declan and the subsequent Red leaving Arsenal a man-lite for most of the 2nd-half.
Brighton took advantage of the extra man with Joao Pedro scoring an equaliser in the 58th minute and with no further goals, both teams gained a point apiece.
Betfred offer Brighton at 3/1, the Draw at 11/4 and slight Odds On 4/5 for Arsenal to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 11/2 that Gabriel Jesus Scores First and 7/5 that Arsenal 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.)
Away Win 0-2- Get 17/2 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
Sunday 05th
FULHAM v IPSWICH
14.00 in England
Sky Sports
Fulham gained a point from a draw by a 2-2 score against Bournemouth at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
Raul Jimenez scored the opener to make the Pie and Pint an enjoyable one for the home faithful at the break.
The Cherries scored an equaliser just after the restart before Harry Wilson added a 2nd in the 72nd minute.
Unfortunately for the home fans, Bournemouth scored an equaliser in the 89th minute to gain both teams a point apiece.
Fulham sit in 8th place with the same 29 points as Aston Villa at the halfway point of the season.
Ipswich gained a brilliant home victory over Chelsea at Portman Rd on Monday.
Liam Delap converted a penalty after 12 minutes to give the Tractor Boys a lead at the break.
Omari Hutchinson added a 2nd just after the restart and with no further goals, Ipswich held on for a momentous victory over Chelsea by a 2-0 scoreline.
That was only the 3rd victory of the season but considering it was against Chelsea, it should give Kieran McKenna’s Tractor Boys confidence to push on and try and get out of the relegation zone.
The 3 wins and 6 draws from the opening 19 games, leaves Ipswich in 17th place with 15 points.
Although in the relegation zone, the Tractor Boys are only a point adrift of safety, so still plenty to play for.
Liam Delap scored the opener after 16 minutes when Fulham visited Portman Rd to take on Ipswich back in August 2024.
Adama Traore equalised for the away team just after the half-hour mark and with no further goals in the remaining hour or so, both teams gained a point apiece from a 1-1 scoreline.
Betfred offer Fulham at Odds On 8/15, the Draw at 3/1 and 9/2 for Ipswich to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 13/2 that Harry Wilson Scores First and 5/2 that Liam Delap Scores Anytime.
(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 2-1- Get 7/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
LIVERPOOL v MANCHESTER UNITED
16.30 in England
Sky Sports
Liverpool hammered West Ham at the London Stadium on Monday.
Goals from Luis Diaz, Coady Gakpo and Mo Salah gave Arne’s Slot Machines a comfortable lead at the break.
Real Madrid-bound Trent Alexander-Arnold added a 4th just after the restart before Diogo Jota rounded off the scoring late on to give Liverpool the win over West Ham by a devastating 5-0 away night scoreline.
Liverpool sit at the Top of the Premier League with 45 points from 18 games, not the 19 that the others have completed.
The next closest team are Arsenal who have 39 points but as mentioned, have played a game more than Liverpool.
The comment above, regarding ‘Real Madrid Bound Trent Alexander-Arnold’ could be tongue in cheek, however, it does appear that the West Derby lad TAA, is set to join his mate Jude Bellingham at the Spanish Giants for the start of the 2025/26 La Liga campaign.
Trent is out of contract at the end of this season and can talk to clubs abroad from January 2025 onwards.
It’s even rumoured that Real Madrid are willing to pay £20 Million in the January Transfer Window for TAA, despite the fact he will be a free agent in the Summer.
Watch this space.
Three words spring to mind,
‘Good luck United!’
Manchester United were destroyed by West Ham on Monday Night Football, with the Magpies gaining the victory over the Red Devils at Old Trafford by a 2-0 scoreline.
That scoreline could have been anything as Newcastle were just too good for Manchester United.
It appears Ruben Amorim is writing all the names of his squad on a piece of paper, putting them into a hat and then pulling out
individually to make up his starting lineup.
Ruben supposedly has his 3-4-3 system, yet it’s simply not working with the players he has at Old Trafford.
This was the starting eleven against Newcastle.
Andre Onana in goal, no problem.
Then a Back Three of Matthijs De Licht, Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez.
Noussair Mazraoui, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Diogo Dalot as the Four.
With Amad Diallo, Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee as the Front Three.
It was obvious to everyone who tuned into the game, including the Manchester Ball Thrower and the Little Fat Lad from Penistone and Gary Neville, commentating for Sky Sports, that the Midfield Four were simply too slow against Newcastle’s Middle Players.
Casemiro and Christian Eriksen are akin to the Penistone Fat Lad and John Newsome, one is older than God’s Dog and the other has a Heart Condition.
Both were good back in the day but both were not good enough to play against any of Joelinton, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes.
Eddie Howe must have been rubbing his hands with glee at that starting lineup.
Ruben saw the error of his way and brought off Joshua Zirkzee after 33 minutes, sending on Kobbie Mainoo when United were 2 goals behind.
United did improve when Kobbie came on, which begs the question, why didn’t KM start?
Was it a case of the home team improving? or the fact of Newcastle just taking the foot off the gas and controlling the game which they did comfortably to hang on for the win.
Casemiro lasted just over an hour with Christian Eriksen playing the full game.
Ruben included Marcus Rashford in the Match-Day Squad, after being left out of the previous 4, however, despite his starting eleven conceding 2 goals and being outplayed, Mr Amorim would not bring Marcus on and instead sent on Antony.
That’s not right in anyone’s mind, if there’s a problem between Marcus Rashford and Ruben Amorim, which there obviously is, either leave Marcus out or put him in the team, don’t just play games trying to prove a point.
The only point Ruben Amorim is proving at the moment is that he hasn’t a clue what to do at Old Trafford and could be back in Portugal before the first month of the New Year ends.
Some will say,
‘He needs time to bring in his own players to play the system he wants!’
How many times are Manchester United going to do this?
Spend £Millions on players that the Manager wants (Erik Ten Hag, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Jose Mourinho etc) then sack them and bring in someone else who wants to spend another exorbitant amount of money on the players they want.
Should the hierarchy at Manchester United just appoint a Manager who can use the current squad?
These players lack confidence and need a Manager to put an arm around them and instil some pride back into the squad, not pick a team to fit a system that clearly isn’t working.
Ruben Amorim should use the squad to the best of their abilities and if he still wants to play his 3-4-3 way, then wait until he gets the players he wants (if the hierarchy are daft enough to allow him to buy them) because as everyone knows, these players don’t come cheap.
At the moment, the system isn’t working, 4-4-2 is the way forward with this squad.
Andre Onana in goal,
Diogo Dalot, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire and Tyrrell Malacia as the Back Four.
Amad Diallo, Manual Ugarte, Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes as the Midfield Four, with Rasmus Hojlund and any of Alejandro Garnacho, Joshua Zirkzee, Mason Mount or Marcus Rashford as the Front Two.
Bruno can swap with Mason if required.
It’s not rocket science, it’s using the players at one’s disposal and using a system that suits the players, not players that are just accommodating a system.
Manchester United sit in 14th place with 22 points at the halfway stage.
That’s just 7 points more than Ipswich who sit in the relegation zone.
Can one see that gap improving this weekend with United having to face Liverpool at Anfield?
At best it will still be a 7-point gap if Ipswich suffer the expected defeat against Fulham, however, following the latest set of results, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the Tractor Boys get something from another West London team.
Arne’s Slot Machines gained the away day victory over Erik’s Ten Bobs when Manchester United hosted Liverpool at Old Trafford at the beginning of September 2024.
A couple of goals from Luis Diaz in the 1st-half and the obligatory Mo Salah notch after the break gave Liverpool the win over United from a 3-0 scoreline.
Betfred offer Liverpool at Odds On 2/9, the Draw at 5/1 and 9/1 for Manchester United to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 3/1 that Mo Salah Scores First and 5/1 that Liverpool Score 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 5-0- Get 20/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
Monday 06th
WOLVES v NOTTINGHAM FOREST
20.00 in England
Sky Sports
Wolves come into this Midlands Derby off the back of a victory against Manchester United, then a draw against Tottenham on Sunday.
Hwang-Hee Chan scored the opener at the Chas and Dave Memorial Stadium before Tottenham equalised and then had the opportunity to go in front when Andre bundled over Brennan Johnson in the area to give away a penalty.
Fortunately for the travelling Gold and Blacks, Jose Sa saved Son Heung-Min’s tame spot-kick.
Tottenham did score a 2nd on the stroke of half-time, however, despite trailing at the break, Jorgen Strand-Larsen scored an equaliser in the 87th minute to earn Wolves a point from a draw by a 2-2 score.
Wolves are unbeaten in the 3 games that Vitor Pereira has overseen, with 2 Wins and a Draw, however, there is some bad news for the Gold and Black Army, that being the influential Matheus Cunha has been banned for 2 games due to his altercation with an Ipswich employee at the end of the game against the Tractor Boys.
Luckily for everyone connected with the Molineux outfit, this fixture against Nottingham Forest will be the only Premier League game that Matheus misses as the 2nd one will be the FA Cup tie against Bristol City, which more than likely, would have seen the Brazilian rested.
Wolves are a better team with Matheus Cunha, so this could probably be a tough game against Nottingham Forest that sees the Old Boss Nuno Espírito Santo return to Molineux.
Wolves sit in 17th place with 16 points from 19 games played.
Nottingham Forest have won 9 of the last 12 Premier League games with losses in the other 3, meaning a brilliant return of 27 points from 36 on offer.
The latest victory came against Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday with Forest getting the away win by a 2-0 scoreline, as predicted in this EveryTip column last week.
Chris Wood scored the opener after 15 minutes, with Morgan Gibbs-White adding the 2nd in the 61st minute.
The brilliant victory which was the Tricky Trees’ 5th in a row, saw Nottingham Forest sit in 2nd place with 37 points from the opening 19 fixtures.
Forest subsequently dropped a place to 3rd, following Arsenal’s game against Brentford that bizarrely took place on New Year’s Day, 2 days after 9 of Game Week-19’s 10 fixtures were completed before the turn of the year.
It will be an interesting return to Molineux for Nuno Espírito Santo, who oversaw Wolves promotion to the Premier League back in 2018, where Wolves have stayed ever since, under the initial guidance of Nuno, then subsequently under numerous other Managers.
A draw by a 1-1 score occurred when these two met at the City Ground back in August 2024.
Chris Wood scored first for Forest after 10 minutes, with Jean-Ricner Bellegarde immediately replying for Wolves 2 minutes later.
With no further goals in the remaining 80 minutes or so, both teams went home with a point in the bag.
Betfred offer Wolves at 15/8, the Draw at 11/5 and 11/8 for Nottingham Forest to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Chris Wood Scores First and 3/1 that Nottingham Forest 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.)
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The Top of the Scottish Premier League is now back on track, with Celtic at the summit on 50 points from 18 games, now a massive 14 points in front of the Glasgow Rivals Rangers, who are in 2nd place with 36 points also having completed 18 fixtures.
Aberdeen are in 3rd, 2 points adrift of Rangers after now not winning any of the previous 8 games, with 5 Losses and 3 Draws, following a brilliant start to the campaign.
After Celtic gained a brilliant victory over St Johnstone (who?) on Sunday to finish 2024 at the summit, Rangers could only manage a draw against Motherwell (who?) with Aberdeen suffering a defeat against Dundee United (who?) in their post-Boxing Day/pre-New Year games.
There is the small matter of the Old Firm Derby which takes place on Thursday between Rangers and Celtic at Ibrox.
The loveable OzScot will be watching the game over in Melbourne, cheering his Teddy Bears on, however, as that fixture will take place after this column is submitted, the result (a Celtic victory no doubt) will be confirmed next week.
Happy New Year.
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