Nick Sedddon takes a look at this weekend’s four Premier League games in England’s top-flight.
Burnley v Luton Town – 7.45pm, Friday 12th January (TNT Sports 1)
There aren’t many television selections which fail to inspire quite like Burnley against Luton Town on Friday evening, but this is a match which has massive implications at the ‘wrong end’ of the table.
Both sides have found life tough since securing promotion last season, though Luton have made a better fist of things in recent weeks. The Hatters are showing plenty of fight of late and last month’s wins over Sheffield United and Newcastle have given them a real shot of pulling off survival.
Burnley picked up one of their three league wins this campaign away at Luton in October, but their home form has been miserable, losing all but one of their 10 league games so far. The outlier to that stat was a 5-0 victory over fellow strugglers Sheffield United but ignoring that they have shipped 24 goals and scored just five in response at Turf Moor.
Luton rarely contest a dull affair and both teams have found the net in six of their last seven completed league games. With so much on the line this seems likely to be an open contest and it could be worth looking at the 1.72 on offer with kwiff for both teams to score.
Newcastle v Manchester City – 5.30pm, Saturday 13th January (TNT Sports 1)
Manchester City traditionally hit top gear at the turn of the year under Pep Guardiola and they will be hoping to kickstart their bid for a record fourth straight title at Newcastle on Saturday evening.
Eddie Howe’s men endured a pretty miserable festive period, losing three league games on the trot, but they grabbed a much-needed shot in the arm when dismantling arch-rivals Sunderland in the FA Cup last weekend.
Newcastle have won just two of their last nine however, with their last league victory coming over a month ago against Manchester United. They look likely to face an uphill task here, too, with an injury list that continues to get worse – with Joelinton the latest to limp off last week.
City entered the festive period on a sour note after throwing away a two-goal lead at home to Crystal Palace, but they have been flawless since, winning five games on the trot and landing the Club World Cup title in Saudi Arabia.
The champions were dumped out of the Carabao Cup here in September, but with Kevin De Bruyne back fit and Erling Haaland imminent, there’s a distinctly different feel about the game this time around. City have won four of their last five games to nil and bearing in mind Newcastle’s pretty turgid run of form, they make plenty of appeal to repeat the trick at 2.65 with Kwiff.
Everton v Aston Villa – 2pm, Sunday 14th January (Sky Sports Main Event)
It’s been a remarkably up and down campaign so far for Everton, who were hit with a 10 point deduction in November for falling foul of the financial fair play rules.
Things looked bright at first for Sean Dyche’s men after that setback, who won four games on the spin to effectively wipe out that penalty, but three defeats since that have left The Toffees just one point clear of the drop zone at the time of writing.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa arrive here with the opposite end of the table on their minds, sitting just three points behind leaders Liverpool. Unai Emery’s men have lost just one of their last 13 games in all competitions and are still challenging on three fronts having defeated Middlesbrough in the FA Cup last weekend.
Goodison Park is a tricky place to visit at the best of times, though it’s worth noting that Everton perhaps surprisingly have the fifth-worst home record in the division this term and they face a Villa side who have picked up 14 points on the road this season – just five less than title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City.
It’s a slight surprise that Aston Villa are odds against for this at 2.25 with kwiff considering the form they’re in at the moment and they’re fancied to keep their momentum going with victory here.
Manchester United v Spurs – 4.30pm, Sunday 14th January (Sky Sports Main Event)
Manchester United avoided a red face when seeing off the challenge of FA Cup giants Wigan Athletic on Monday evening and they will be hoping to restart their top four aspirations by seeing off Spurs at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.
It’s been a tough second season so far for Erik ten Hag, whose side have struggled for consistency as well as goals. Indeed, their tally of 22 in the Premier League is the joint third worst in the division ahead of strugglers Burnley and Sheffield United, while their home form resembles that of a mid-table outfit.
Ange Postecoglou’s first victory as Tottenham manager came in the reverse fixture in August and his side arrived here in fine form, winning five of their last six. Their 1-0 FA Cup success over Burnley certainly wasn’t their most convincing, though Spurs are boosted by the signing of former Chelsea frontman Timo Werner for this.
That new addition adds extra firepower to a Spurs side that is one of the league’s top scorers with 42 goals and they will be confident of hitting the net at least once against a United side which has a negative goal difference at Old Trafford this season. Meanwhile, United have hit the net in 10 of their 15 home matches, meaning the 1.40 with kwiff about both teams to score feels like a safe option.
Premier League Weekend Betting Selections
– Back both teams to score in Burnley v Luton Town at 1.72 with kwiff
– Back Manchester City to win to nil at Newcastle (match result and BTTS – no) at 2.65 with kwiff
– Back Aston Villa to win at Everton at 2.30 with kwiff
– Back both teams to score in Manchester United v Spurs at 1.40 with kwiff
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By Nick Seddon
