The Premier League enters Game Week 16 with just eight points separating first from fourth, and another three between fourth and eighth!
Match of the round sees the Sky Blues hosting their cross-town rivals in a Manchester Derby.
Elsewhere, Liverpool squares up against Fulham, Chelsea go toe-to-toe with Brentford and the Gunners take aim at the Toffees.
Our VAR Virtuoso has previewed all 10 EPL Game Week 16 fixtures and provided his best bets below.
Leicester look to build on their unbeaten run under Ruud Van Nistelrooy this weekend when they travel to St. James Park.
The Magpies have picked up two points across their last four Premier League fixtures, suffering heavy defeats to both Brentford and West Ham across the trip.
Meanwhile, the Foxes have picked up four points in their last two games, surprising both West Ham and Brighton.
This is a game that Newcastle need to win if they are to challenge for European football next season, saying that, they look underdone at both ends of the park and should not be $1.29 favourites here.
I’m backing a Leicester side buoyed with confidence and belief to pull-off a third straight upset of sorts, leaving Newcastle with at least one competition point.
Both Wolverhampton and Ipswich enter Game Week 16 off the back of three straight defeats, sitting 19th and 18th on the league standings respectively.
No side has conceded more goals than the Wolves’ 38 GA this season, while only Southampton (11GF) have scored fewer goals than Ipswich Town (14GF).
The Tractor Boys only win this season has come on the road against Tottenham, while they also went close to winning on trips to Nottingham and Brentford.
Meanwhile, the Wolves have only beaten cellar dwellers Southampton at home, managing just four competition points from seven games at Molineux.
I’m backing the Tractor Boys to enjoy a profitable harvest this weekend, taking home the W as heavy underdogs.
Liverpool’s lead atop of the league table was slashed to four points after their GW15 fixture against the Toffees was postponed due to poor weather.
They can reestablish a seven point gap if they prevail in a tough home fixture against the Cottagers.
Fulham have proven to be no pushovers this season, with recent results against Arsenal (1-1), Brighton (3-1W), and Tottenham (1-1).
Saying that, the Cottagers have endured a rough time of it against the Reds, winning one of the pairs last 14 meetings (2D,11L).
To stop the Reds, you need to stop Mo Salah, a feat not many have been able to accomplish this season.
Salah has 13 goals and 8 assists from 14 EPL fixtures, while he has also scored 8 goals across domestic and international Cups.
I’m backing Liverpool to get the job done at home, combined with another goal from the Egyptian King.
The Gunners bid for their first title in over 20 years continues on Saturday evening, when they host a Toffees side looking to claim back-to-back league wins for the first time this season.
Freshness, is the one thing in Everton’s favour here, with no mid-week action and a postponement of their GW15 fixture, it will have been 10 days between kicks for Sean Dyche’s side.
The same can’t be said for Arteta’s squad, who have played twice since their GW14 fixture, fortunately this will be their fifth straight game in London.
Nine of the Gunners’ 15 games have seen under 2.5 total goals scored and I’m expecting the Toffees to make life hard for them.
Aston Villa look to put a horrid run of form well and truly behind them with a fourth straight victory across all comps when they travel to Nottingham.
Both the Trees and the Villans are tied on 25 competition points heading into this fixture, with Notts (fifth) edging out Villa (sixth) on in the standings by +1 goal difference.
Despite their impressive points tally, Forest’s home form has left much to be desired, winning just three of seven fixtures at the City Ground.
Villa look to have found their grove again, and I’m happy to back them at the healthy price of $2.63.
The Eagles hope to continue a much needed run of form when they travel to the Amex Stadium to take on the Seagulls.
Crystal Palace have gone four games without defeat in the league (1W,3D), claiming draws against Man City, Newcastle and Aston Villa across the trip.
Meanwhile, Brighton are winless in their previous three games (2D,1L), dropping points to two sides sitting below Palace on the table (Leicester & Southampton).
I’m backing the visitors to collect at least one point on their travels.
Man City look to crawl their way back into title contention when they host their neighbours in the Manchester Derby.
It’s been a grim spell for the Sky Blues, who have only won one fixture in all competitions since October 30th (2D,7L).
Alternatively, Man United have lost just twice over the same trip (5W,2D), though both of those defeats have come in their last two league outings against Notts and Arsenal.
Both teams have scored in each of the last three Manchester derbies across all comps, with over 2.5 total goals scored in each of the previous eight meetings.
I’m backing Both Teams to Score, Over 2.5 Total Goals, 1+ Shot on Target from Haaland, and 1+ Shot from Amad Diallo.
Is Ange’s job in jeopardy?
The Spurs are without a win in four games across all comps (2D,2L), sitting 11th on the league table, and showing no signs of improvement.
Fortunately for them, they be taking on the side who are sitting at the foot of the EPL ladder, a team who have one win from 15 league games, have scored the fewest goals (11GF), and conceded the second most (31GA), presenting Southampton.
Despite sitting 11th, Tottenham still boast the second highest goal tally (31GF) and the 4th best goal difference in the league (+12), going to show that when they do win, they win big.
I’m diving into the handicap markets and taking the Spurs to win by 2+ goals.
The Blues have emerged as surprise title contenders this season, with nine wins from 15 games (4D,2L), they sit just four points behind league-leaders Liverpool.
Enzo Maresca has his young forward line humming this season, with the Blues scoring a league-high 35 goals, with Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson both in the top 7 for the golden boot with 11 and 8 goals respectively.
Similarly, Brentford’s attack has been highly productive, scoring 31 goals across their 15 games, with Mbeumo (9G) and Wissa (9G) also both in the hunt for the golden boot.
The Bees have held the wood over the Blues in recent years, going unbeaten across the pair’s last five meetings (3W,2L).
Chelsea will be glad this fixture is at the Bridge, as the Bees are yet to win on the road this season (1D,6L).
The Blues are too short in the H2H market for my liking, so, instead I’ll be backing the goals to flow.
Game Week 16 wraps up on Tuesday morning (AEST), when the Cherries take on the Hammers.
Bournemouth’s 2-1 win over the Tractor Boys last weekend was their third straight Premier League victory, taking them to eighth in the league standings, just three points adrift of Man City in fourth!
Alternatively, the Irons are searching for their first back-to-back league wins this season after seeing off fellow strugglers Wolverhampton last round.
The Cherries have won four of their previous five home league fixtures (1L), and have accumulated the third most competition points across the last 10 games (19), only Liverpool (26) and Chelsea (21) have more.
I’m taking Bournemouth at home.