Can Villa extend their lead over Tottenham? Will the Gunners’ scoring streak continue? And can West Ham return to the winner’s circle?
The BetDeluxe experts take an in-depth look at three big games.
Aston Villa vs. Nottingham Forest
25th February 2:00am
Aston Villa has a great chance to extend their lead over Tottenham and secure fourth spot on the table when they host Nottingham Forest at Villa Park.
The Villans returned to their winning ways in fine style at Fulham, defeating the home side 2-1 thanks to an Ollie Watkins double. Watkins (13) is now just two goals from equaling his record 15 from last season and will undoubtedly be eyeing the back of the net against the 16th-ranked Tricky Trees.
While the market currently has Forest as $5.75 outsiders, they will be buoyed by their 2-0 victory over West Ham on Sunday. Taiwo Awoniyi and Callum Hudson-Odoi did the damage on the scoreboard. Notably, the win put them five points clear of the drop zone.
Having lost their past two at Villa Park following a 17-game unbeaten home run in the League, Villa should be able to get the job done in this one.
Suggested Bet: Villa to score in both halves @ $1.95
Arsenal vs. Newcastle
25th February 7:00AM
The Gunners simply won’t stop pestering Liverpool and City at the top of the table, having won five consecutive matches in the past month.
It’s been a period of total domination from Mikel Arteta’s unit, with Sunday’s 5-0 win at Burnley coming after a 6-0 triumph at West Ham and 5-0 thumping of Crystal Palace. No team has come close to Arsenal’s barrage of goals in recent weeks, with Bukayo Saka (12) leading a total of six Gunners with five goals or more.
At $7.50 in the head-to-head markets, there’s very little love for the injury-riddled Newcastle. While they’ve etched out two wins and two draws from their past four, the Magpies have been fighting an uphill battle with a combined 160 Premier League games lost this season through injury and suspension.
Alexander Isak and Joe Willock could potentially return for this clash, but it will likely matter little against a red-hot Gunners outfit.
Suggested Bet: B. Saka first goal scorer @ $4.30
West Ham vs. Brentford
27th February 7:00AM
In the case of ‘who needs it more’, the market is struggling to find a winner between West Ham and Brentford, with the Hammers ($2.45) narrowly ahead of the visitors at $2.70.
After starting the season with so much promise, West Ham endured a six-game winless League run in the new year, including a 6-0 home loss to the Gunners last week. David Moyes’ men have gone 0-8 in all competitions in 2024.
If they can snap out of their form slump in this one and Newcastle goes down to the Gunners as expected, they can jump back into 8th spot on the ladder and start to rebuild.
As for Brentford, it’s been a tough week as they’ve been forced to take on both Liverpool and Manchester City in their rescheduled Round 18 fixture. While they were no match for The Reds, The Bees held City to just one goal in their narrow loss.
While they’re ranked 14th in the standings, don’t dismiss Brentford’s renewed confidence. After all, it’s only been two weeks since they upset the Wolves 2-0 away from home.
Suggested Bet: Brentford to win @ $2.70
