The opening weekend of the Premier League season is in the books and Matchday Two is here, headlined by a huge clash between Chelsea and Tottenham!
We went 7-3 on our EPL Tips for Matchday One, and we’ll be looking for another productive weekend, so check out our best bets below!
EPL 2022-23: Matchday 2 Preview & Betting Tips
Arsenal vs Leicester
Emirates Stadium, Sunday 14th August 12:00am (AEST)
Arsenal will be looking to entrench themselves inside the top four early in the season when they host Leicester on Sunday morning. Arsenal kicked off their campaign with a 2-0 win away at Crystal Palace in the opening fixture of the ‘22/’23 season. The Gunners’ strong pre-season form led into their first competitive game, with Mikel Arteta’s side putting together a professional performance.
Leicester squandered a golden opportunity to begin their season with three points, letting a 2-0 lead slip against Brentford, who scored twice in the last 30 minutes to hold the foxes to a 2-2 draw.
There are plenty of questions around the Leicester defence, that conceded two goals from three shots on target. Against a far more potent attack this week, it’s an area of the game that the Gunners will push Leicester to the limit. Arsenal have had the wood over the Foxes, winning three straight Premier League fixtures against Leicester.
Arsenal -1
$1.70 (1.5 Units)
Nottingham Forest vs West Ham
City Ground, Sunday 14th August 11:00pm (AEST)
For the first time in 8491 days, Nottingham Forest will play a Premier League game at the iconic City Ground when they host West Ham on Sunday evening. Forest’s first Premier League game in 23 years didn’t go to plan, suffering a 2-0 defeat against Newcastle, with the score line flattering Forest. Newcastle had 23 shots to Forest’s 5, and 10 shots on target to Forest’s 0.
West Ham were on the receiving end of a red-hot Manchester City outfit, headlined by star signing Erling Haaland’s brace on Premier League debut. The Hammers will enjoy coming up against a vastly weaker opposition, with a golden opportunity to get their first win of the season to begin their push for a top six finish.
Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen, Manuel Lanzini and Pablo Fornals are going to give the Nottingham Forest defence some serious problems. They struggled to handle Newcastle last, and the Hammers have a lot more quality in their front half than Newcastle. Newcastle had 62% possession against Forest last week, and Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek will give West Ham complete control through the midfield. This will be a comfortable victory for the Hammers.
West Ham H2H
$1.87 (3 Units)
Chelsea vs Tottenham
Stamford Bridge, Monday 15th August 1:30am (AEST)
The game of the week takes place on Monday morning as London rivals Chelsea and Tottenham face off at Stamford Bridge. Both clubs are coming off wins on Matchday One, with Chelsea defeating Everton and Spurs beating Southampton 4-1.
This game largely bases around offence vs defence, with Chelsea’s defence against Tottenham’s attack the key factor in this clash. Since Thomas Tuchel took over as Chelsea manager in January 2021, Chelsea have been the second-best defence in the Premier League only behind Manchester City. Spurs managed to score four goals last week without either Harry Kane or Heung Min Son scoring, in what is a massive positive to the development or Tottenham’s overall system.
Chelsea are 6-1-0 in their last seven Premier League matches against Tottenham, with Tottenham’s last Premier League win over Chelsea coming back in 2018. Chelsea won both meetings against Spurs last season 3-0 and 2-0, and they have had their way against Tottenham in recent seasons. Chelsea’s midfield was outstanding last week, and if they can control the tempo against Tottenham, they should keep their winning form against Spurs going.
Chelsea H2H
$2.30 (2 Units)
More EPL Matchday 2 Tips
Aston Villa vs Everton (Saturday 9:30pm AEST)
Both sides are coming off Matchday 1 losses where they failed to score, which certainly isn’t an ideal start to the season. Villa has the more immediate upside however and should put in a better performance on their home deck. I can’t see Everton’s young attack proving too menacing on the road against a team that should be pushing for a top half finish this season.
Aston Villa H2H ($1.80 at Ladbrokes)
Brighton vs Newcastle (Sunday 12am AEST)
Brighton upset Manchester United at Old Trafford on the opening day and there certainly wasn’t any luck about the result. Likewise, Newcastle were deserving of taking all three points in their matchup against the newly-promoted Forest. I’m expecting a high-scoring affair in this one with both sides having equal chances of coming away with a win.
Both Teams to Score ($1.83 at Neds)
Manchester City vs Bournemouth (Sunday 12am AEST)
Despite winning 2-0 in their first game back in the Premier League, the Cherries will start as whopping $41 underdogs away to the champions this weekend. It’s hard to see them having much luck at all against this powerhouse side that’s only gotten stronger this season with Erling Haaland spearheading the attack. The score could be anything in this one as we all know the Citizens won’t just settle for one or two goals.
Manchester City & Over 3.5 Goals ($2 at Ladbrokes)
Southampton vs Leeds (Sunday 12am AEST)
The Saints finished last campaign in horrible form, and they started this one in the same manner. They were thumped 4-1 away to the Spurs last weekend to make it five straight losses in the Premier League. They now come up against a capable Leeds outfit that came away with all three points against the Wolves last weekend. I’m happy to be on the underdogs to inflict more pain Southampton’s way.
Leeds H2H ($3.10 at TopSport)
Wolves vs Fulham (Sunday 12am AEST)
This is probably the trickiest fixture to get a read on after what transpired last weekend. Fulham were ultra-impressive in their draw at home against Liverpool but there’s no guarantees they can back it up on the road, which is a totally different beast in the topflight. With that said, they should still be able to create at least a couple of chances against the Wolves, which leads me to back the Both Teams to Score market in this one.
Both Teams to Score ($1.83 at Ladbrokes)
Brentford vs Manchester United (Sunday 2:30am AEST)
Manchester United couldn’t have played much worse in their season-opener and it’s now clear that it’s going to take time for Erik ten Hag’s gameplan to be properly implemented. They now have a tricky second-up fixture away to Brentford who have shown time and time again that they’re capable of beating anyone. I believe the Bees are well over the odds here but will settle to take them in the handicap market for some insurance.
Brentford +0.5 ($1.82 at TopSport)
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace (Monday 5am AEST)
Liverpool were disappointing in the first half against Fulham last weekend and had to settle for a single point in the end. I expect them to come out breathing fire in their first half of the season at Anfield this weekend and to make sure they have something protect in the second period. The HT/FT market looks like the way to play this one.
Liverpool HT/FT ($1.73 at Neds)
