This Week's Top Premier League Punts...
TOTTENHAM BESIDE THE SEA
After conceding 7 (SEVEN) goals to Bayern Munich, Tottenham are going to need to do a lot of soul searching and it is going to have to be done fast. That's because the Premier League is a competition that waits for no man and this Saturday lunchtime, the North Londoners quickly return to action.
Although, the fact that Mauricio Pochettino and his players have another fixture so soon, could be something that ends up working to their advantage � especially if they can get the better of Brighton at The AMEX.
The Seagulls have not won since the opening weekend of the season and although the football that they've played under Graham Potter has been easy on the eye, a change of tact might soon be required.
Serious questions will have been asked in regard to the aptitude of Tottenham and whether or not they have the stomach to compete this campaign and more importantly, whether or not we are seeing the final days of their current manager.
Quite simply, this is a must win game for Spurs and although confidence will be at an all-time low, they will have enough quality to deal with this one. Therefore, backing them at odds of 1.91 should offer enough of a reward.
HAMMERS NAIL THE EAGLES
A London derby awaits us this Saturday, as West Ham play host to Crystal Palace and after being thrashed by Manchester City on the opening weekend of the season, the Hammers are now unbeaten in their last six.
With that run of form, the talk of whether the East London outfit can quality for Europe, is one that is getting louder and with Manuel Pellegrini finally installing a squad of players that all seem to be injury free, the Hammers have every right to focus on a dream of continental football.
They go up against a Crystal Palace side, who have only scored six times this season and although they do tend to be goal shy, that was not the case last Saturday when they got the better of Norwich at Selhurst Park.
That was the game in which it seems Wilfried Zaha has finally got over his Summer sulk and he looks primed and ready to be Palace's talisman once again. Something that will be required in order to keep Palace well clear of the relegation zone.
The Eagles start the weekend in ninth, while the Hammers are fifth and that coupled with the fact they are at home on Saturday means that odds of 2.0 for the hosts to win, looks like being a price worth considering.
TOFFEES GET OUT OF STICKY SITUATION
After suffering a trio of successive Premier League defeats, Everton manager Marco Silva will be feeling the pressure and with the blue half of Merseyside aspiring of a Europa League finish at the end of the season, that dream already looks like it is fading into the distance.
With the Toffees currently lying 15th in the table and with the quality that is within their ranks, this is a far lower position than many would have expected Everton to be in and now the need to deliver a win, is more urgent than ever.
While although they lost to Manchester City, they did give a good account of themselves and had they been a little more ruthless in attack, they may well have done their Merseyside cousins a massive favour.
This weekend, Everton travel to an in-form Burnley and Sean Dyche's men will be confident of extending their recent run of positive results. However, one should not forget that Everton won at Turf Moor by five goals to one last season.
That December 2018 victory was arguably one of if not Everton's best attacking display in the past twelve months and Marco Silva will have to tap into that particular afternoon, in a bid to make sure there is a repeat offering on Saturday.
A quintet of goals may prove to be a rather big ask for Everton. That said, they are a team with a point to prove and therefore their odds of 2.50 to win away from home this weekend, is certainly worth weighing up.
Going into week seven of the season, not many punters would have labelled Wolves vs Watford as a bottom of the table clash and especially one, where both clubs are still searching for a first league win of the campaign.
However, we are where we are and it means that the stakes are incredibly high going into this weekend's clash at Molineux � although should Watford lose, I cannot envisage them sacking their new manager just yet.
Then again, after the absolute mauling they were given at the Etihad last weekend, Quique Sanchez Flores knows that he and his players, are going to have to not only roll up their sleeves but also try and blot out any memories of facing Manchester City.
If they are a team that is at an all-time low, then Wolves are not in all that better shape and it seems as if their early Europa League exploits are becoming a burden rather than a benefit to Nuno Espirito Santo's men. However, they will at least be boosted by the fact that they nicked a point away at Crystal Palace last Sunday and one which saw them finish the game with ten men. While with that in mind, they go into this meeting as slight favourites.
Summary: Wolves to come out on top at odds of 1.90
A BLUNT UNITED ATTACK
With Marcus Rashford's injury adding the rather unwanted exclamation point to Manchester United's limp performance against West Ham, it has given Ole Gunnar Solskjaer quite the issue in terms of attack.
With Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez already off the books and Anthony Martial also in the treatment room, it has given the United boss a huge selection headache and one he could certainly do without. Especially as the Red Devils play host to Arsenal on Monday night and this is an encounter that could not only define the top six aspirations of the club, but also define the long term employment status of the former Norwegian international.
Arsenal will make the trip North in fine fettle and after coming from behind to beat Aston Villa last Sunday, they will be more than confident of dealing with everything that United throw at them and to be honest it might not be all that much. Admittedly the Gunners still have their defensive deficiencies but with United having so few attacking threats to cause any real concern, Unai Emery's men should at least come out of this with a point and therefore the double chance market is worth looking at.
Summary: Arsenal to avoid an Old Trafford defeat at 1.62
A BIG SIX TREBLE
After suffering defeat to Liverpool last weekend, Chelsea will be looking to bounce back and with them playing host to Brighton at Stamford Bridge, this should be a fixture that allows them to achieve their objective.
The Blues start the weekend lying 11th in the table, although there is no real cause for concern as yet and especially when you consider that there are just two points separating Tottenham in 7th and Norwich in 16th .
Brighton have not won since the opening weekend of the season and this looks like being perfect accumulator fodder, as a home win will pay out odds of 1.4. However, that alone is not going to make you rich and therefore, we'll need to fatten this up.
Next up, Liverpool travel to Sheffield United and it is the trip to Bramall Lane that kicks off the upcoming gameweek, with Jurgen Klopp's men not only looking to make it seven wins from seven but also go eight points clear at the top of the table (if only for a few hours). Liverpool came out on top of that aforementioned win over Chelsea by two goals to one and don't be surprised if the score is the same on Saturday. That said, all we care about is the final outcome and therefore we can add Liverpool as the second leg of the treble at 1.36. While if Liverpool do go eight points clear for a couple of hours, they will be asking for a huge favour from their Merseyside counterparts. That's because it is Everton who have the task of hosting Manchester City this Saturday.
City took out their post-Norwich frustration on Watford last weekend and after putting eight goals past Ben Foster, Jordan Pickford will probably be having some sleepless nights in preparation for this encounter.
Not only that but back to back losses for Everton has reapplied the pressure on manager Marco Silva and defeat for the Toffees, could then see the former Watford boss landed in a rather sticky situation.
With that in mind and City looking to keep the pressure on their nearest rivals, backing the defending champions at odds of 1.33 looks a shrewd move and completes the third leg of our ‘Big Six' treble.
Summary: Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City to win, treble pays out 1.5
