Another great weekend for Liverpool has the Reds in firm control of the title race. Matchday 23’s slate in the English Premier League is headlined by a blockbuster fixture between Manchester City and Chelsea. Check out our best bets for the weekend’s action below and good luck to everyone following along!
EPL 2024-25: Matchday 23 Preview & Betting Tips
Liverpool vs Ipswich Town
Anfield, Sunday 26th January, 2:00am AEDT
Eighteenth placed Ipswich face the almighty challenge of heading to Anfield to take on league leaders Liverpool. They left it to the death, but two stoppage time goals from Darwin Nunez saw Liverpool extend their lead at the top of the table to six points. Liverpool absolutely dominated proceedings against Brentford registering 37 shots on goal and 62% possession, as Arne Slot’s side extended their unbeaten streak to 17 games. Ipswich are coming off a 6-0 hammering at the hands of Manchester City, and are in a battle with Wolverhampton to avoid relegation.
Liverpool are the complete package in all three facets of the game, which makes it no surprise to see them six points and a game clear of second place. The Reds are the number one ranked attacking team in the league (50 goals), the number one defence (20 goals conceded) and ranked fourth for possession (57.6% possession). Liverpool have been nothing short of dominant with a 15-5-1 record, and aren’t showing any signs of slowing down.
Ipswich have only scored 20 goals this season (ranked 18th) and have conceded 43 goals (ranked 17th), this is a serious mismatch and it’s going to be difficult for them to be competitive. Ipswich have suffered an aggregate scoreline of 8-0 across their last two games, which doesn’t inspire much hope coming up against the best team in the league. This game could get out of hand quickly, in what will be another dominant performance for Liverpool.
Liverpool -2.5
$1.75 (1.5 Units)
Manchester City vs Chelsea
Etihad Stadium, Sunday 26th January, 4:30am AEDT
The biggest fixture of Matchday 23 sees a battle of fourth versus fifth as Chelsea head north to take on the defending champions. In a turbulent season, Manchester City have found a solid patch of form, with three wins and a draw from their last four games. After getting to as high as second on the table, Chelsea have had a horror month, with 1-3-2 record across their last six games. Chelsea ended their five-game winless run with a 3-1 win over Wolverhampton last week, in what was a convincing victory.
Manchester City’s return to form has come on the back of their defence getting back to the standard of football they have shown over the past five years. Across their last four games they’ve recorded two cleans sheets, whilst also scoring a whopping fourteen goals across those four games. Their 6-0 victory over Ipswich last week featured six individual goal scorers shows they are beginning to get back to their best.
As they have had against most sides in the Pep Guardiola era, Manchester City have had an outstanding record against Chelsea in the last eight years. Since September of 2017, City have a 10-2-3 record against Chelsea in Premier League fixtures. Both teams have been high scoring sides in season ‘24/’25 so we should be in for an enthralling clash at the Etihad. With a chance to get back into the top four, City will continue their resurgence with an important win.
Manchester City to Win
$1.94 (1.5 Units)
Aston Villa vs West Ham
Villa Park, Monday 27th January, 3:30am AEDT
Aston Villa have a golden opportunity to keep themselves in the top four race, when they host the struggling West Ham on Monday morning. Villa produced a brave comeback last week after trailing 2-0 against second placed Arsenal, Villa scored twice in eight minutes to secure a crucial point. Aston Villa are four points away from fourth place, with winnable games against West Ham, Wolves and Ipswich in their next three games.
West Ham continued their struggles with a 2-0 defeat against Crystal Palace, where the Hammers failed to register a single shot on target. West Ham are the equal third worst defensive side in the league, having conceded 43 goals this season, with the only teams below them being the teams in the relegation zone. The Hammers haven’t been much better in the front third, ranking 15th in the league for goals (25), which has been a massive drop off from the dynamic attacking side they were four years ago.
Aston Villa have been tough to beat at home this season, losing just one of their eleven games at Villa Park. Unsurprisingly West Ham have been poor on the road this season, winning just three of their ten away games in season ‘24/’25. West Ham’s inability to defend has been a massive issue, recording just one clean sheet in their last eleven games. Their attacking unit isn’t potent enough to cover up their defensive incompetence, which makes it hard to be competitive against good teams. Across the last five years, Villa have had the edge in this matchup with a 5-2-2 record in Premier League fixtures between the two sides.
Aston Villa -1
$2.45 (1 Unit)
