The Premier League finally returns following a six-week World Cup hiatus!
The Gunners will be looking to preserve the gap between themselves and the chasing pack (City) with a London Derby victory over West Ham.
While elsewhere, Newcastle hopes to keep their fairytale run going with a result at Leicester, Liverpool attempt to claw back some points with a win against Villa, and City makes the tricky trip to Elland Road.
Our Premier League profit prophet has done the form on all 10 fixtures and provided his best betting plays below!
Brentford enter this fixture off the back of delivering Man City just their 2nd defeat of the season, though their two-goal hero Ivan Toney could very well miss this fixture and likely many more after getting himself tied up in a betting scandal!
If Toney is ruled out, the Bees will be left with sparse attacking options, with the English striker accounting for 10 of the side’s 23 goals this season!
Meanwhile, Tottenham has a proven goalscorer in Harry Kane ready to put the World Cup disappointment behind him and continue his stellar league form.
Kane currently holds the record for most boxing day goals in the league, scoring nine times across six appearances.
Tottenham are undefeated across their last 13 matches against Brentford (9W,4D), last conceding a goal to their London neighbors back in 1998!
I’m backing Conte’s side to restart their season with a comfortable win on the road here, extending their clean sheet record against the Bees to six straight fixtures!
Newcastle will be hoping to pick up where they left off before the World Cup break, undefeated in 10 matches and on a five-game winning streak!
Meanwhile, Leicester also entered the break on a high, winning four of their last five fixtures (1L), after managing just one victory across their opening 10 games (2D,7L).
Both sides’ recent success has come off the back of solid defense, the Foxes keeping eight clean sheets across their last nine games (all comps), while the Toon have conceded just twice across the same stretch!
The last four games between this pair have been split with two wins a piece, and with both sides in decent nick at the moment I’m going to steer clear of the H2H markets and back the Unders.
The World Cup break came at a great time for Fulham, who were staring down the barrel of a three-game losing streak, having copped L’s from both Manchester outfits.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace’s form has been patchy at best, winning three of their last five league fixtures, though dropping points to both Notts Forest and Everton.
The Eagles have gotten the better of the Cottagers in recent times, winning three of the pair’s last four PL fixtures (1D).
With neither team in tremendous form, I’ll have to give the home side the edge here, who are decent value at just over evens.
The 1 AM fixtures go from bad to worse, as 17th-placed Everton prepared to take on 20th-placed Wolverhampton!
The Wolves trudge into this fixture on a run of five games without a victory (1D,4L), though fans will be excited by the latest edition to their club, highly touted manager Julen Lopetegui.
Lopetegui has formerly managed Porto, Spain, Real Madrid, and most recently Sevilla, bringing a wealth of experience and a touch of class this talented squad has long been yearning for.
Similarly, Everton has only won one of their last seven league games (1D,5L), while failing to score in five of those fixtures.
The Wolves won their last game at Goodison Park, and the introduction of a new manager here will do nothing but boost their chances of a repeat performance.
The Saints will be hoping the appointment of new manager Nathan Jones slows their rapid descent toward the foot of the table.
Southampton has lost their last three league fixtures, and has only managed to keep one clean sheet across the entire season!
Meanwhile, Brighton has experienced mixed results under the watchful eye of Roberto De Zerbi, with the East Sussex side winning twice and losing twice across their last four PL games.
Both teams have scored in the last five H2Hs between these sides, while neither side has managed to secure a top-flight home win in this fixture (10G)!
De Zerbi is known for his expansive style of football, which can be seen in Brighton’s recent league results, with the Seagulls’ last four games all seeing over 2.5 total goals scored.
I’m backing another high-scoring affair here, with both sides finding the back of the net.
Liverpool will begin their push toward the top four when they travel to Villa Park this weekend.
The Reds has won the last three league fixture between this pair, with all three games seeing under 3.5 goals scored.
Alternatively, Villa are out to build on a two-game winning streak as Unai Emery continues to impart his fickle style on the struggling outfit.
With a block of training under Emery, I’m backing the Villans to be extremely hard to breakdown here, though Klopp has enough offensive weapons at his disposal to ensure a fourth straight win.
Top of the league Arsenal plays host to the Hammers in a highly anticipated London Derby.
The Gunners will be without star striker Gabriel Jesus, who suffered a serious knee injury while playing for Brazil at the World Cup, this will hand Eddie Nketiah an opportunity to lead the line.
Arsenal will head into this fixture with the reassuring knowledge that they’ve bettered the Hammers in 11 of their last 12 meetings at the Emirates, last losing at home to West Ham in 2015!
Eddie Nketiah has scored 10 goals across his last 10 appearances at the Emirates, I’m backing the young striker to make it 11 from as many matches on the way to another Gunners victory here.
The Cherries look to extend their impressive record at the Bridge when they take on Chelsea on Wednesday morning (AEST).
Bournmouth has won three of their last five Premier League fixtures against the Blues (1D,1L), with all three victories coming to nil!
The World Cup break could not have come at a better time for Chelsea, who are on a three-game losing streak in the league, and winless in five!
Graham Potters new side are currently amist a massive injury crisis, with nine of their senior players facing a spell on the sidelines, while several more will be racing the clock following extended World Cup campaigns.
Alternatively, the Cherries entered the break off the back of convincing 3-0 victory against Everton and will be eager to catch the Blues napping here.
At $9.50 it’s well worth taking a punt on the Cherries claiming their fiftht league win over the Blues.
Man U and Notts Forest enter this fixture off impressive displays in the EFL Cup.
This is the first time this pair has met in the top flight since 1999, on that day United claimed a dominant 8-1 victory with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scoring four goals after the 80th minute.
Both teams to score has hit in three of United’s last four PL fixtures, with first-choice CBs Martinez and Varane set to miss this fixture, I’m backing the goals to flow at both ends f the ground, with the home side claiming all three points.
EPL fantasy managers are forced to wait until Thursday morning (AEST) to see their man in action, as Haaland and City travel to Elland Rd.
The Sky Blues have won their previous two fixtures against the Whites at an aggregate of 11-0, featuring 9 different goal scorers!
I’m expecting another convincing display from the current champs, though I think the goal spread will be much more acute, with the Norwegian freak to build on his 18 goals from before the break!