After a gripping Matchday 22 which saw an abundance of upsets, the Premier League is back for another huge weekend of action, headlined by a massive Merseyside Derby.
We’ve got you covered with our preview and EPL betting tips for all 10 games in Matchday 23!
EPL 2022-23: Matchday 23 Preview & Betting Tips
West Ham vs Chelsea
London Stadium, Saturday 11th February, 11:30pm AEDT
Matchday 23 kicks off with an all-London clash as West Ham host Chelsea, with both sides in desperate need of a victory, in what has been a disappointing campaign for both clubs. A 1-1 draw against Newcastle has kept the Hammers above the relegation zone by just a single point, as they sit in seventeenth place. Back-to-back draws has left Chelsea with just one win from their last five games as their season continues to stagnate, after finishing third last season, Chelsea have slumped to ninth place on the Premier League table.
After ranking seventh in the Premier League in the past two seasons for goals, scoring 60 and 62 goals, West Ham’s attacking game has fallen off a Cliff. The Hammers rank sixteenth in the league for goals this season, with 18 goals from 21 games. After being a side that based their game around dynamic ball movement and pushing the pace, West Ham have shown none of that this season.
These two sides have combined for ten draws this season, the Hammers have had two of their last four games end in a draw, while Chelsea’s last two games have resulted in 0-0 draws. Given the attacking struggles of both of these sides, it’s difficult to see this game having much fluency which lends itself to a stalemate. Given the form both clubs are in, they won’t be looking to take too many risks, so the draw looks the most likely result in this clash.
Draw $3.20 with Tab (1 unit)
$3.20 (1 Unit)
Leicester vs Tottenham
King Power Stadium, Sunday 12th February, 2:00am AEDT
Tottenham kept their top four hopes alive with a stirring 1-0 victory over Manchester City. Despite having just 33% possession and going down to ten men for the final minutes of the game, Tottenham found a way and now sit just a point away from the top four, although Newcastle do have a game in hand on Spurs. Leicester put an end to a five-game winless run with a 4-2 win over Aston Villa, in an incredibly efficient performance in front of goal. The foxes had just five shots on target for the game, but scored four goals.
The defence has been a major issue for Leicester this season which was why they went and signed Socceroos centre back Harry Souttar during the January transfer window. The Foxes have conceded 37 goals this season, the third most in the league, only behind Southampton and Bournemouth - who occupy the bottom two places on the Premier League table. Across their last six games in the league Leicester have a 1-1-4 record, conceding twelve goals. Coming up against Harry Kane who has scored seventeen goals and sits second in the golden boot race, it’s going to be a difficult task for a struggling Leicester defence.
Tottenham have had the wood over the Foxes, winning four straight games in the Premier League against Leicester. Spurs haven’t found many challenges against the Leicester defence, scoring fourteen goals across those four games. Tottenham won 6-1 when these two sides met back in September, with Heung Min-Son scoring a hattrick and Harry Kane also finding himself on the score sheet. Whilst Leicester will eb upbeat by their performance last week, their defence is far too leaky to contain the quality that Spurs have forward of centre, at $2.15 Tottenham are excellent value in this fixture.
Tottenham
$2.15 (1.5 Units)
Liverpool vs Everton
Anfield, Tuesday 14th February, 7:00am AEDT
Matchday 23 concludes with the Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park, with both clubs having terrible seasons, however having contrasting emotions heading into this weekend. Despite sitting in the relegation zone, Sean Dyche led the Toffees to an upset victory over league leaders Arsenal in his first game in charge of the club. Liverpool’s horror season continued with a 3-0 defeat at the hands of fifteenth placed Wolverhampton. The Reds have three losses and a draw from their last four games, and conceded three goals in each of those three losses.
Fortunately for Jurgen Klopp’s side, they’re coming up against an Everton outfit that ranks nineteenth in the league for scoring. Everton have scored just seventeen goals this season, scoring multiple goals on only two occasions this season. The Toffees have been held goalless in eight games this season, giving Liverpool an opportunity to get back on track at the defensive end against an Everton side that has very few attacking threats.
These two sides played out a 0-0 draw back in September, however the Reds have had their way against their crosstown rivals. Since 2011, there have been 24 Premier League fixtures between the Merseyside clubs, with Everton winning just one of those 24 games. Despite how much Liverpool have struggled this season, it’s tough to see Everton finding a way to score goals in this clash. Dyche will want to make this a defensive slog, but the Reds will find a way to get across the line.
Liverpool -1
$1.80 (2 Units)
More EPL Matchday 23 Tips
Arsenal vs Brentford (Sunday 2am AEDT)
Arsenal suffered a rare defeat at the hands of an inspired Everton outfit last weekend, marking just their second defeat of the season. The Gunners return home for Matchday 23 where they have a record of 8-1-0. They welcome a Bees outfit to the Emirates who are nine matches unbeaten in the Premier League. The Bees are in rare goal scoring form having scored 2+ in seven of their last eight matches, and they’re good value to kick at least one on Sunday morning.
Brentford to Score ($1.67 at Ladbrokes)
Crystal Palace vs Brighton (Sunday 2am AEDT)
Brighton have been one of the form teams of the competition for a couple of months now and are showing no signs of slowing down. They’ve saluted in six of their past nine games and have moved into sixth spot on the table. I have them being too consistent over the 90 minutes for Palace in this one.
Brighton ($2 at TAB)
Fulham vs Nottingham (Sunday 2am AEDT)
Fulham were able to snap a two-game skid with a valuable point away from home against Chelsea most recently. However, they failed to score for the third straight league match which isn’t ideal. Meanwhile, Forest are absolutely flying at the moment and have picked up the most points in the league since the turn of the new year. They’re fantastic value to secure another win this weekend and are certainly a sniff at odds.
Nottingham Forest ($4 at Ladbrokes)
Southampton vs Wolves (Sunday 2am AEDT)
Southampton’s horrible run of form continued last weekend when they were smacked 3-0 by the Bees. The Saints have now lost eight of their last nine league matches, which has seen them fall to last on the table. I can’t see them having much success this weekend either when they come up against a Wolves side full of confidence after defeating Liverpool 3-0 last weekend.
Wolves ($2.50 at TAB)
Bournemouth vs Newcastle (Sunday 4:30am AEDT)
Newcastle fought out a draw for the fourth time in five league matches when finishing 1-1 against the Hammers last weekend. As disappointing as it would’ve been to not come away with a win, the Toon are now 16 games unbeaten. They now get a look at a Bournemouth side that are completely void of confidence after picking up just one point from their last six matches. The Visitors should be winning this one comfortably.
Newcastle -1.5 ($2.70 at Neds)
Leeds vs Manchester United (Monday 1am AEDT)
Leeds and Manchester United will be facing off for the second time in less than a week when they lock horns on Monday morning. Their meeting at Old Trafford midweek finished 2-2 in what was a highly-attacking game. There has now been 16 goals scored in their last three league meetings and it appears another high-scoring affair is on the cards in Matchday 23.
Over 2.5 Goals ($1.67 at Neds)
Manchester City vs Aston Villa (Monday 3:30am AEDT)
In the midst of a little bit of a form slump, the Citizens will be hoping to put their best foot forward this weekend. They’ve dropped points in four of their last eight league matches, and now face a Villa outfit that have been in some good touch of late, especially in their front third. This should lead to an interesting battle and one where I expect both teams to find the back of the net.
Both Teams to Score ($1.92 at Ladbrokes)
