Week 35 of the Premier League is underway from Wednesday morning and will span six days in total.
Manchester City have been crowned champions and have the opportunity to break more points records through the final four weeks of the Premier League.
Brighton and Tottenham will be eager to return to winning form when they clash at Falmer Stadium on Wednesday morning.
Both clubs suffered defeats in Week 34, but Spurs clearly had the bigger task in the newly-crowned champions Manchester City. Having leaked two goals in three minutes midway through the first half, Spurs pulled themselves back into the contest via a 42nd minute Christian Eriksen strike, but went on to concede another in the second half, in what was a very forgivable performance and result. Spurs have one foot in next season’s Champions League and will confirm a berth with one more win.
Brighton were pipped at the post by a hungry Crystal Palace side that is fighting to stay alive in England’s top flight. The Seagulls more than held their own and were unlucky not to take anything from the 3-2 loss. Mathematically, they are still a chance of being demoted but there is breathing room between them and the bottom three.
Spurs are a class above Brighton and they will comfortably win this match.
Bournemouth will host Manchester United in an intriguing Premier League match on Thursday morning.
Prior to Week 34, ‘United to win’ this match would have been the easiest tip of the round. Instead, their loss to the bottom-placed and already relegated West Bromwich Albion means that they are harder to have at a short quote. United just did not get into the game and while it looked like the match would end in a stalemate, things turned even uglier when the Baggies scored.
Bournemouth are a far better team than West Brom and on that logic they are a winning chance here, but surely the Red Devils won’t be so bad two weeks in a row – they have clearly been the second-best in the league this season.
Southampton’s fight to stay alive gets even harder when they travel to Leicester City on Friday morning.
The Saints have typically been one of the league’s better ‘small’ clubs since they returned to England’s top flight, but they have failed to get a leg up on the competition this time around and are worryingly five points adrift of safety. They simply need to win their remaining matches if they are any chance of surviving, but they’ll also need other results to go their way.
Leicester City have restored a bit of pride in their jersey this season and they are on track for a top eight finish. The Foxes were outdone by a quality Burnley side last week, but for the most part they have been terrific since Christmas and will be a real handful for the desperate Saints.
It’s tough seeing Southampton successfully playing themselves out of their predicament and the Foxes can put another nail in their coffin by winning this match.
Burnley will look to continue their outstanding season against Chelsea early on Friday morning.
The Clarets are amidst their best season in the Premier League on record and are only two points behind the sixth-placed Arsenal in overall standings. A smart 2-1 win over Leicester City last weekend was their fifth in succession and they are undefeated in the league since Week 27.
Chelsea did enough to beat the relegation-threated Southampton last weekend but for their standards, they have been pretty disappointing all season. Champions League football is a distant memory and from here on in, it’s all about maintaining their position on the ladder and considering their options for next season.
On paper, Chelsea’s side is another class to Burnley’s but that hasn’t meant a lot previously and they will be troubled in this fixture.
West Bromwich Albion will play their second-last home game in the Premier League against Liverpool on Saturday night.
West Brom’s fate is already sealed, but incredibly they still produced their best performance and result of the season when they defeated Manchester United at Old Trafford last weekend. That was only their fourth win of the campaign but and it’s all too little, too late.
The Reds are now only one point behind the second-placed Manchester United in overall standings and are primed for another performance typical of a Champions League-quality side this weekend.
Last weekend’s win can’t be looked past, but that result could prove just to be a big anomaly in an otherwise forgettable season for the Baggies and Liverpool should win comfortably.
Watford and Crystal Palace will square off in what looks like one of the more even fixtures in Week 25 of the Premier League.
Palace took a big step towards securing another Premier League season when they beat Brighton last weekend and this is another terrific opportunity to take three vital points.
Watford were one of the league’s more consistent sides through the first half of the season, but they haven’t been nearly as potent since Christmas and are winless since Week 29.
Palace have the firepower to causes headaches to most defences and they are capable of poking holes in a shaky Watford defence again this weekend.
Stoke will attempt to save their season and Premier League status when they host Burnley on Saturday.
The Potters have a huge job ahead of them and things will only get more difficult when they step out for this match.
This is the second time that Burnley will be in action in Week 35 and given their other opponent of the round is Chelsea, this is clearly their better chance of winning.
Burnley are good enough to win both of their Week 35 fixtures and they represent outstanding value to beat Stoke.
The weekend’s only London Derby will see Arsenal host West Ham at The Emirates on Sunday night.
Its been another pretty forgettable season for the Gunners, who remain a live chance of finishing as low as seventh in overall standings and who have already been relegated out of European football contention. A Week 34 loss to Newcastle underlined their campaign and the end of the season cannot come quickly enough.
West Ham still have plenty to play for and while they are out of danger for the time being, a couple of quick losses would see them fighting for survival on the final day of the season. They could only manage a draw with Stoke last weekend, but their record against big clubs has actually been pretty good again this season.
Surely Arsenal have the firepower at home to beat West Ham, but they are under the odds and I am happy to stay out from a betting perspective.
The newly-crowed champions will host Swansea City in Week 35’s penultimate fixture.
Manchester City have enjoyed their most potent season on record and secured their third Premier League title with a 3-1 win over Tottenham last weekend. They have been a class above every other club for the entire campaign and will look to continue breaking records through the final four weeks of the competition.
Luckily for Swansea, they have done the lion’s share of work necessary to survive prior to this match because if it was a must-win, things would be looking dire. Anchored to the bottom of the table for most of the season, the Swans now sit 17th over and in the box seat to survive.
City will win this match and probably, quite comfortably.
Everton and Newcastle will square off early on Tuesday morning Australian time. These two clubs are currently siting ninth and tenth on the ladder respectively and bragging rights are subsequently on the line.
Newcastle have found a rare vein of form recently and enter this match off the back of another impressive win, this time over Arsenal. If they can find this type of form earlier next season, they could return to their previously lofty standing in England’s top league.
Everton have the ability to win this match, particularly in front of their home crowd, but Newcastle look to be over the odds at their current quote and I am happy to take the value on offer again.