We’re one week into the Premier League season and already we’ve been treated to some truly world-class football from some of the world’s best players.
The EPL action resumes on Saturday night Australian time when Cardiff City host Newcastle and we won’t have to wait long for the match of the round – an absolute blockbuster between Chelsea and Arsenal and Stamford Bridge.
Week 2 concludes in London early on Tuesday morning Australian time when Palace host a rampant Liverpool.
Week 1 losers Cardiff and Newcastle will square off in Wales, in what looms as a great opportunity for both clubs to secure maiden competition points.
It was a baptism of fire for the newly-promoted Cardiff, who failed to respond to a decent Bournemouth outfit and finished on the wrong end of a 2-0 score line. Rosters suggest that this will be a tough match, but they’ll take some solace from their return home.
Newcastle immediately responded to an early Spurs goal in their campaign opener but leaked another almost immediately and failed to get back on level terms. The performance probably exceeded early expectations and the find themselves in a far-more winnable scenario in Week 2.
Newcastle look a class above Cardiff, particularly at this point of the season and they are over the odds in head-to-head betting.
An intriguing fixture will see West Ham and Bournemouth trade blows in London early on Sunday morning, Australian time.
The Hammers were thoroughly outplayed by the Liverpool in Week 1 and find themselves at the very bottom of the ladder after leaking four goals. Given the point of the season and the calibre of that opponent, it’s probably fair to ignore the result and this fixture will be a far-better indicator of where the sit.
The Cherries are expected to be faced with the relegation dogfight this season and their impressive Week 1 win over Cardiff could therefore prove vital to their chances of surviving. They absolutely dominated the stat sheet and will need to replicate that effort to make it two-in-a-row, particularly playing away from Dean Court.
West Ham can put the Liverpool result behind them by grinding out their first win of the season against Bournemouth.
Everton and Southampton drew their Week 1 games respectively and will meet at Goodison Park on Sunday morning.
The Toffees held on to finished locked 2-2 with the stacked Wolves outfit away from home last weekend, despite captain Phil Jagielka seeing red for his 40th minute challenge on Diego Jota. It was a credible performance and they did well to knock in a second after going down to ten men.
Southampton contested a relatively un-heralding 0-0 draw with Burnley but given how well that club fared in 2017/18, it could prove to be a decent result. The Saints barely survived the drop last season and they really need to be winning early, if they are to keep themselves out of that predicament this time.
Everton will struggle without one of their key central defenders and Jagielka’s leadership, and Southampton can tough out another draw.
One of the better contests in Week 2 of the Premier League looks like materialising when Leicester City host Wolves early on Sunday morning.
The Foxes were pretty easily accounted for by Manchester United first-up but did score a consolation goal in injury time and should take plenty of confidence into their first home match of the season. Jamie Vardy was a standout for his side and will need to continue producing high-calibre performances to keep the club in the top half of the table.
Wolves made their intentions clear with several big-name signings ahead of their return to the Premier League and while they appeared to have capitalised on Everton’s red card last weekend, suffered a late equalizer and were forced to share the points. It will take a little while for this team to gel, but the signs are all there and they are offered a great opportunity to notch a win in Week 2.
This should be a lot closer than betting suggests and Wolves are worth consideration at their current price.
One of the bigger mismatches in Week 2 of the Premier League looks likely to take place when Fulham travel across London to face Spurs at Wembley.
Spurs muscled out a handy 2-1 win over Newcastle in the north of England first-up and while the performance left plenty to be desired, they’ll have taken plenty of improvement from the run. Harry Kane was unable to get on the scoresheet but was ably supported by one of the league’s more multidimensional attacks and it will be a lot for Fulham to contain this week.
Fulham were unable to ride the adrenaline to victory in their first match back in England’s top league and slumped to a 2-0 defeat to crosstown rivals Crystal Palace. They’ll need to find plenty of improvement quickly if they are to survive the season and they face a far tougher prospect this week in the form of a live premiership hope.
Spurs should be winning this match and winning well.
The match of the round looks like materialising when London rivals Chelsea and Arsenal lock horns at Stamford Bridge early on Sunday morning, Australian time. Betting suggests that the result of this will be heavily skewed in favour of the home side, but regardless of form this is generally an outstanding contest and the Gunners certainly aren’t without a shout.
It was an ideal campaign-opener for Chelsea when they easily did away with Huddersfield on the road, to the tune of 3-0 and they are sure to have taken plenty of benefit from the run. Ngolo Kante was particularly impressive and opened the scoring for his side, while contributing to several other pieces of play.
Arsenal were faced with the impossible task of reigning champions Manchester City in Week 1 and while did understandably lost, it was still a credible Week 1 performance. It does get slightly easier for the North Londoners this week, but they’ll need to improve if they are to find winning form.
It’s hard splitting these two clubs this early in the season and the draw looms as a potentially lucrative betting option.
This is clearly the biggest mismatch in Week 2 of the Premier League and that is echoed in head-to-head betting.
City’s title defence began in the best way possible when they registered a 2-0 win over Arsenal in London, but their chances of a second-consecutive premiership have taken something of a hit this week with star midfielder Kevin de Bruyne ruled out for up to four months with injury. They remain a class above most clubs, however and should still be making light work of a club like Huddersfield.
Perhaps to their benefit later in the season, the Terriers have been dealt an awful start to the season and will follow up their week 1 loss to Chelsea with a trip to City. They were thoroughly played off the park by the Londoners last weekend and face an even tougher task here.
City will be winning this and winning well.
Burnley and Watford will meet in what could be a well-contest fixture at Turf Moor on Sunday night.
It was a decent performance in Week 1 from Burnley and they were perhaps unlucky not to take all three points away from Southampton. They were the big surprise packets of the 2017/18 Premier League season and if they can effectively juggle the Europa League with their regular workload, it could be another outstanding campaign.
Watford were too good for the travelling Brighton in Week 1 and they will take plenty of confidence from the performance into this. Roberto Pereyra netted both goals as his club cruised away with the match in the second half and a similar performance would see the Hornets hard to beat again.
There’s plenty of value around both teams in head-to-head betting but I am confident that Burnley can register their first win of the season in front of their fans.
Brighton will have their hands full with Week 1 winners and competition giants Manchester United in the round’s penultimate fixture.
It was not an ideal start to the Premier League season for Brighton, who slumped to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Watford. For a club that is expected to be faced with the relegation dogfight this season, early results could prove vital but it remains an uphill fight for the minnows here.
United did enough to take all three points away from Leicester City in Week 1 and they are sure to have taken plenty of benefit from the hit-out. Their roster is stacked and they will surely have too much class for the Seagulls, particularly at this point of the season.
Liverpool will attempt to consolidate their position at the top of the table when they travel to Crystal Palace early on Tuesday morning.
The Reds justified the hype with a 4-0 demolition in West Ham in Week 1 and they are faced with a similarly-skilled opposition in the form of the Eagles. Their superior goal difference means that they already lead the competition and they do look like a team that can maintain that position for a long time.
Palace began their campaign in the best way possible by delivering new boys Fulham a 2-0 defeat away from home. This is obviously a big step up in class, however and it’s tough seeing them stick with Liverpool for 90 minutes.