PREMIER LEAGUE SATURDAY: The Striker previews ASTON VILLA v ARSENAL, BOURNEMOUTH v CHELSEA and LEEDS v LIVERPOOL all with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
ASTON VILLA v ARSENAL
12.30pm The Premier League fixtures keep coming on Betdaq Betting Exchange! After a full midweek fixture list, we’re straight into another action packed weekend. We have seven fixtures to enjoy on Saturday, and we kick things off with arguably the highlight of the weekend as Aston Villa host Arsenal. After drawing with Chelsea last weekend in a top of the table clash, Arsenal got back to winning ways midweek – as you would expect at home to Brentford. With Chelsea losing away to Leeds too, Manchester City are now sitting in second place – the gap is five points, and to be honest it feels like Manchester City are the only side that can challenge Arsenal for the title now. Even if Pep Guardiola’s side haven’t been at their best! You would have felt Chelsea needed to beat Arsenal last weekend to be taken seriously, and that loss at Leeds was a massive blow. Quietly, Unai Emery’s Aston Villa have moved up into third – you could hardly call them a title challenger but if they won here, we’d have to have a discussion! Aston Villa only have an average xG created of 1.35 which is a mid-table attacking figure; they have done remarkably well to grind out as many wins as they have.
There’s no getting away from the fact that Villa have some excellent momentum coming into this game, and with home advantage this is going to be a good test for Arsenal. Villa have won their last four, and have eight wins from their last nine games – the loss coming away to Liverpool in early November. Even allowing for Villa’s excellent run, Arsenal still come into the game as the marginal odds on favourites at 1.98 with Aston Villa 4.4 and the draw is 3.65 at the time of writing. I have to say I was surprised to see Arsenal trading odds on when I clicked into the market – despite Chelsea losing a men early last weekend, they didn’t create a huge amount. I know Villa have been quite limited in attack looking at their figures, but they are clearly in a good place coming into this game. They’ve been tough to beat at home for a while now, and while there’s no getting away from the fact that Arsenal have been the best side in the Premier League this season – I still feel the 1.98 is a little short here. I feel the game will be closer than the odds suggest here, and I’m happy with the Arsenal lay.
The Striker Says:
Two points lay (liability) Arsenal to beat Aston Villa at 1.98 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/PLAsAr
BOURNEMOUTH v CHELSEA
3pm We have a busy afternoon with five games kicking off at 3pm – the pick of them in my opinion is Bournemouth hosting Chelsea. The other interesting games are Manchester City given they went second again midweek, but they will be fully expected to win at home to Sunderland. It’s also very interesting to see how Spurs get on against Brentford – surely Thomas Frank is starting to feel the pressure now, especially given how bad the performance levels have been. Spurs have the fourth worst attacking figure in the Premier League! Bournemouth v Chelsea should be the most interesting game though – especially after Chelsea lost midweek away to Leeds. That was a huge result for Leeds, and a massive blow to Chelsea just went you thought they were becoming the main challengers to Arsenal this season. Bournemouth have been playing much better football this season compared to Leeds, so this will be a tough afternoon for Chelsea. If you looked at the table, you would think there’s a huge gap between the sides but there’s actually little between them on the under-lining numbers. They have the fifth and sixth best attacking figures in the Premier League this season.
Chelsea come into the game as the favourites at 2.24 with Bournemouth 3.35 and the draw is 3.8 at the time of writing. With Chelsea being so good at the back this season, it was surprising to see them concede three goals midweek against Leeds. They dominated possession, but you can’t say Leeds didn’t deserve to win – they finished with the higher xG figure too. It was a poor performance from Chelsea, and a similar performance will see them really struggle here too. Bournemouth have been creating plenty this season, but the main issue has been at the back. They have conceded far too many chances, and that’s why they sit in the bottom half of the table and not the top half! I do feel that the 2.24 is a little short on Chelsea here – they just aren’t quite clicking at the moment, but let’s not judge them on the Arsenal game given they were a man down. Chelsea have been very solid at the back this season, but with Bournemouth being so open and creating a lot, I feel we’ll see goals here. I’m happy to stay out of the match odds market, and Over 2.5 goals at 1.7 looks a nice position here.
The Striker Says:
Two points win Over 2.5 goals at 1.7 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/PLBoCh
LEEDS v LIVERPOOL
5.30pm We finish Saturday with Leeds hosting Liverpool. The pressure continued on Arne Slot and his Liverpool side with another very disappointing result midweek; a 1-1 draw at home to Sunderland is never going to be acceptable. Especially when they have lost six of their eight Premier League games leading into that game! It’s clear to see that Liverpool are struggling this season; we might even get to the stage where they come under pressure to get back into the Top Four this season, but obviously that race is wide open for the time being. They might come into this weekend sitting in mid-table, but they are only two points behind Chelsea in fourth spot. Leeds will obviously be buzzing after beating Chelsea 3-1 midweek, and as I said in my preview of that game, the home support here is always fantastic and it’s a tough place to come. We have a very interesting betting heat here, and I’m sure there will be some big opinions either side of the book on the Liverpool price. They come into the game as the odds on favourites at 1.93 with Leeds 4.3 and the draw is 4.0 at the time of writing.
You have to give Leeds massive credit for the performance midweek – Chelsea had a huge amount of possession and still finished the game with a lower xG figure than Leeds. You’d have to feel that we might see a similar situation here in the sense that Liverpool will have a massive amount of possession, and then let’s see what they can create. Obviously Liverpool haven’t had many issues going forward this season – they have the second best attacking figure in the Premier League – all the issues have come at the back. They’ve been sloppy and they’ve made far more mistakes than usual. I do feel that the 1.93 is much too short on Liverpool here; the stadium will be rocking and you know Leeds will get chances. I wouldn’t put anyone off a Liverpool lay, but I’m happy to stay out of the match odds market here because this game screams goals. Over 2.5 goals is trading 1.73 and that looks cracking value in what should be a good game. I feel Leeds will have success attacking Liverpool, and Liverpool are hardly going to sit back either. I expect an end-to-end game, and I’m happy with a Five Star NAP on Overs!
The Striker Says:
Five points win Over 2.5 goals at 1.73 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/PLLeLi
