The Premier League returns following a lengthy international break, seemingly seeing the English national side take a step backward in their preparation for Qatar 2022.
The round gets underway at Emirates Stadium when league leaders Arsenal take on Tottenham in a highly anticipated North London derby!
Elsewhere, Chelsea and Crystal Palace meet in the 2nd London derby, Brighton starts life after Potter with a matchup against the Reds, while City hosts United in yet another spicy derby!
We’ve previewed all 10 EPL Game Week 9 fixtures and provided our best betting plays below!
1st takes on 3rd, as North London bragging rights hang in the balance.
Arsenal got their season off to a flyer with a record five straight victories, before falling to United in GW6.
The addition of Gabriel Jesus to the Gunners’ forward line has done wonders for Arteta’s side, with the Brazilian striker directly involved in seven of his side’s 17 goals.
Interestingly, the home side has dominated this fixture in recent years, with the traveling team failing to claim a victory across the last 16 North London derbies.
Despite looking a fair way off the pace this season, Spurs are just one point adrift of the Gunners at the top of the table.
Conte will be thrilled with his players’ form across the international break, with Kane, Son, and Richarlison all scoring for their respective nations.
Five of the last six league fixtures between this pair have seen over 2.5 goals scored.
This is an extremely tough fixture to pick, as such I’ll be steering clear of the H2H market and backing the Overs instead, combined with both teams to find the back of the net.
From the North London derby to a fixture on nobody’s watch list.
The international break came at the perfect time for Southampton, who have suffered back-to-back 1-0 defeats to struggling outfits Villa and Wolverhampton.
Alternatively, the Toffees claimed their first win last time out, holding the Hammers to nil and extending their undefeated run to six games across all comps.
As impressive as Everton has been defensively, they have been equally unimpressive going forward, managing just five goals from seven fixtures, six of which games have seen under 2.5 total goals scored.
Like many, I will not be tuning into this match, though I will throw some money behind the Unders, which looks like excellent value at $1.82.
Fulham continue to exceed expectations upon their return to the top-flight, securing 11 competition points across their opening seven fixtures, a feat which required 15 starts during their last PL campaign.
They’ll be faced with the task of taking down an ever-improving Toon outfit, who will be looking to welcome back several key players from injury.
The absence of gun midfielder João Palhinha through suspension will pose a huge concern for the home side, who will be up against it through the middle of the ground.
Fulham is too reliant on Serbian striker Mitrovic, who accounts for half of his side’s goals this season (6), whereas Newcastle has found great balance across the pitch.
I’m backing the visitors to claim their third straight victory at Craven Cottage, in doing so, leapfrogging their opponents on the league table.
Preseason relegation favourites Bournemouth are out to go four games without defeat since sacking manager Scott Parker, with the potential to crack into the top half of the table.
Meanwhile, Brentford will be attempting to bounce back to winning ways after getting humbled by the Gunners last time out.
Despite sitting just one point above the Cherries, the Bees have conceded seven fewer goals, while scoring on nine more occasions!
I think Ivan Tooney will prove too much for the Cherries backline to handle, with the visitors cruising to a comfortable win here.
Brighton put their top-four spot on the line when they travel to Anfield on Saturday night.
Liverpool is currently sitting in 8th, after an injury-disrupted start to the season, with Klopp forced to start teenagers alongside the likes of PL veteran James Milner through the middle of the ground!
If this fixture was played two weeks ago, I would’ve jumped on the Seagulls to spring an upset over the Reds, but much has changed since then, with Graham Potter taking on the Chelsea job, while Liverpool welcoming back several key players including midfield maestro Thiago.
The Reds claimed a 2-0 victory the last time this pair met in the league and I’m backing them to hold out the visitors on their way to a similar result here!
We’re set to be treated to yet another London derby on Saturday when Chelsea bids to win their 11th straight fixture against Crystal Palace.
The Eagles have won just one of their six fixtures this season (3D,2L), though they can hang their hat on the fact they’ve only faced one side in the bottom half of the table (3-1 Win vs Villa).
The Blues are set to play their first league fixture under the watchful eye of Graham Potter, the ex-Brighton manager has been brought into the fold to improve Chelsea’s production in the final third, though an overnight fix looks far from likely.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some teething issues in the early days of Potter’s reign, with his initial focus on building a solid platform at the back of the pitch.
The past two fixtures between this pair have seen the ‘Unders’ salute, a trend I’m backing to continue here.
Two of the biggest underachievers of the season thus far are set to take the field at the London Stadium this weekend.
Both the Wolves and the Hammers have scored just three goals a piece over the opening seven games of the season, leaving them in the 17th and 18th spots on the ladder!
Neither side has shown enough going forward to warrant me backing them outright, I think this is going to be a nervous affair with both teams desperate to avoid defeat.
The way these sides are traveling I would not be surprised if this fixture were to end the way it starts, at 0-0!
The derbies just keep rolling in!
Next up we are set for the Manchester variation, as Eric ten Hag prepares for his biggest challenge yet.
City is bidding to win their third straight league fixture against the Red Devils for the first time since 2014.
While ten Hag is also out to create history by becoming the first United manager since Fergie to win their first matchup against their crosstown rivals.
Despite United winning four league games on the trot, it’s hard to see them taking the required step up to compete against England’s most feared outfit.
I’m jumping on Haaland to continue knocking in goals for fun, combined with a shot on target from KDB and ultimately another derby victory for the Sky Blues.
Following a poor start to the season, Aston Villa looks to string a few results together when they travel to Elland Rd this weekend.
The Villans come into this fixture off the back of a draw against City, and a 1-0 victory over the Saints, and will be looking to claim their third straight victory away to Leeds!
Alternatively, Leeds is hoping to break a three-game winless streak (1D,2L), while remaining undefeated at home this season (2W,1D).
Both teams to score + over 2.5 goals has hit in Aston Villa’s last three away fixtures.
With neither team’s backline firing this season, I’m happy to put my money on more goals to flow here.
Brendan Rodgers’ job goes on the line as the 20th place Foxes host the 19th placed Forest!
Leicester (22 GA) and Nottingham (17 GA) represent two of the three worst defensive records in the league.
Despite losing five straight fixtures, Leicester waltz into this game as $1.75 favorites on reputation alone.
I feel like both teams will do their best to find a way to lose this fixture, so I’ll be playing it safe and backing the scorekeeper to be the busiest man on the day!