NEVER MIND Cole Palmer’s nickname, it’s Chelsea and Liverpool who are coming into tonight’s battle at the Bridge pretty much ice cold.
The Blues, the champions of the world let’s not forget, have not won in the Premier League since beating Fulham in August.
The only sides they have beaten since are Lincoln in the Carabao and Benfica unconvincingly and courtesy of an own goal in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Without the cool finishing, ball carrying, chance making Palmer this is an orchestra without a conductor.
They have been their own worst enemies with keeper Robert Sanchez sent off after five minutes in the defeat at Man United, before Trevor Chalobah was dismissed just after half-time last weekend against Brighton with his side 1-0 up. They lost 3-1.
Then Joao Pedro made it a treble, walking in the win over Benfica.
While champions Liverpool remain top of the table, they have slipped behind Arsenal in the title betting after their 100 per cent record went at Palace last weekend.
TITLE ODDS (best price): 5-4 Arsenal; 9-5 Liverpool; 5-1 Man City; 40-1 Chelsea; 66-1 Spurs; 80-1 Palace; 125-1 Man United.
Bet Balls
- Spurs to win at Leeds, BTTS today is 10-3 with BetGoodwin
- Chelsea and Liverpool to draw 3-3 tonight is 28-1 with BetGoodwin
- Palace to win 3-1 at Everton tomorrow is 22-1 with BetGoodwin
- Man City to win 3-2 at Brentford tomorrow is 16-1 with BetGoodwin
Join BetGoodwin now and get a £5 free bet – CLAIM HERE
18+ GambleAware.org T&Cs apply
The Anfield side’s European break did little to raise the spirits as they were deservedly beaten 1-0 at Galatasaray in midweek.
The same Turkish outfit had lost their Champions League opener 5-1 at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Arne Slot’s £400million summer investment is yet to show dividends, with the back four in particular looking vulnerable – conceding in eight out of 10 games so far this term.
SunSport’s Kevin Dunne saddled a tidy winner last weekend as his Dark Horse bet came romping in.
Our football tipster put up Palace to beat Liverpool and both teams to score at 11-2 – with Eddie Nketiah’s 97th-minute winner getting the underdogs home by a flared nostril.
Coral’s Dave Stevens has concerns about both sides. He said: “I’d rather back Spurs at 10-3 to finish in the top four under the excellent Thomas Frank than Chelsea at evens.
“And as far as Liverpool are concerned, right now they look a different team to the runaway champions of last season.
“My reading of tonight’s game is that neither side can confidently be backed to win right now. Liverpool don’t look like worthy favourites, so it’s a score draw for me.”
And indeed, three of the last four of these clashes in west London have ended all square.
William Hill’s Lee Phelps had the history books out this week and said: “Enzo Fernandez found the back of the net when Chelsea won this 3-1 last term and he scored again last weekend.
“He’s 13-5 to score anytime, while Alexander Isak is 29-10 to get his first Prem goal for the Reds.”
Injured keeper Alisson Becker has been the visitors’ best player this term and will be sorely missed.
So I take Chelsea to score and Liverpool virtually always do. So draw and BTTS at a widely-available 10-3 is the main course.
Dessert would be sweet in the form of 2-2 at a best-priced 12-1 with bet365. The luck of the draw even.
Dark Horse
13-1: Cody Gakpo got 21 goals last term and is overdue with only one goal this campaign.
Likewise Chelsea’s electric Brazilian forward Estevao.
He’s yet to get off the mark for Blues but got 20 last season. Sporting Index go 13-1 both score anytime tonight.
IF THE clue’s in the name, then West Ham must be hoping they’ve got the right man in Nuno Espirito Santo, as they clearly need saving.
At the time, the appointment of Graham Potter looked reasonably sane.
He’d flourished at Swansea and Brighton and could be forgiven for what happened at Chelsea given the upheaval there.
But the magic deserted him in the East End, as he lost 14 of 25 games in charge then his job.
Nuno arrives with the Hammers second-bottom and the new third-favourites to go down, at 6-4 with BetVictor.
He’ll keep them up. The fans who should be, and probably are, worried are those at his old club.
Forest are just one point and one place above West Ham but are trading at a best-priced 4-1 to go down with Betfred and William Hill.
Ange Postecoglou is yet to win in his five games at the helm and has European football on his plate.
RELEGATION ODDS (best prices): 4-11 Burnley; 1-2 Wolves; 6-4 West Ham; 15-8 Sunderland; 10-3 Leeds; 4-1 Brentford, Forest.
GOODWINNERS’ ENCLOSURE
AND THEN there was one unbeaten side in the Premier League… and it’s not Liverpool!
Palace’s 2-1 win over the Reds at Selhurst Park last weekend was a great result for us, and we certainly didn’t have their start on our pre-season bingo card!
Liverpool wasn’t the only shock result of the weekend, with Chelsea’s loss to Brighton and Tottenham’s draw at home to Wolves also representing good wins for the book.
In the wake of those upsets, Arne’s Slot Machine have slipped in the title betting to 7-4 – and are now second-favourites behind 6-5 Arsenal.
Ollie Glasner’s third-placed Palace are into 80-1 from the 500-1 we had them pre-season…could we have another Leicester on our hands?
Tonight we have a Premier League blockbuster as Chelsea host Liverpool at the Bridge.
Neither is in the best of form, with the Reds’ new boys not exactly hitting the ground running.
And their £116million arrival Florian Wirtz is the latest player to join the 007 club – zero goals and zero assists in seven appearances!
We think this has score-draw written all over it, so we’ve boosted it to 7-2.
Undoubtedly one of the surprise packages of the season have been Sunderland, who were a stunning fifth place in the table before Bournemouth’s tangle with Fulham last night.
The Black Cats are purring under Regis Le Bris this season, and it’s not luck – they look a well-oiled machine, which is not something you can say about this afternoon’s opponents Man United.
Ruben Amorim’s United are consistently inconsistent and we think his nightmare will continue today, with Sunderland to win at the Theatre of Dreams a 5-1 shot.
At the top of the football pyramid, PSG and Barcelona are our joint favourites at 11-2 to win this season’s Champions League.
The market is taking Arsenal’s challenge seriously and we have them and Bayern Munich close behind at 6-1, with Real Madrid next at 9-1.
The record 15-time winners have attracted plenty of backing after their 5-0 dismantling of Khazhak’s Kairat Almaty in midweek.
Finally, the BetGoodwin Nap Acca for this weekend is: Man City, Villa, Newcastle, Coventry and Bristol City all to win for a monster 14-1.
TV Previews
Leeds v Spurs
WHILE a late equaliser rescued Spurs at home to Wolves last weekend, they’ve still only lost once all season.
It won’t be easy, though at Leeds, who’ve made a better than expected start on their top-flight return.
However, Spurs have done all their best work on their road – with wins at Man City and West Ham – and can prevail here.
Richarlison is due and can oblige with the opener at 6-1 with Unibet.
FORECAST: 1-2
Everton v Palace
EVERTON’S new Hill Dickinson Stadium has provided little in the way of home comfort since their opening win over Brighton.
The Toffees have since been held by Villa and struggling West Ham.
This term has been no struggle for FA Cup holders Palace, who beat champions Liverpool last weekend and remain unbeaten.
This looks tailor-made for them, with Jean-Philippe Mateta a big price at 6-1 with Unibet to strike first.
FORECAST: 1-3
Brentford v Man City
HANDS UP, I had Keith Andrews as favourite to win the Sack Race – but the rookie Brentford boss has the Bees buzzing.
They sorted United out 3-1 last weekend and have won four of their last six Prem home games.
Tomorrow’s a taller order, though, with City unbeaten in six and looking a bit more like their old selves.
Narrow away win and Phil Foden to score first at 15-2 with Coral.
FORECAST: 2-3
Top Tips
Pro bet: Newcastle to beat Forest, Doncaster to beat Burton, Lincoln to beat Burton, Barrow to beat Shrewsbury, Cambridge to beat Crawley. Acca pays 18-1 with Betfred.
Retirement bet: Sunderland to win at Man United, QPR to win at Bristol City, Derby to beat Southampton, Barnsley to win at Wycombe, Northampton to win at Port Vale, Wimbledon to win at Blackpool, Gillingham to win at MK Dons, Bristol Rovers to win at Walsall. 1 x Acca, 8 x 7-folds, 28 x 6-folds. Acca pays 80,103-1 with Betfred.
Away day: Stoke to win at Blackburn, Coventry at Sheff Wed, Chesterfield at Colchester, Brighton at Wolves. Acca pays 17-1 with MGM.
Top draw: Swansea v Leicester, Portsmouth v Norwich, Ipswich v Norwich, Stevenage v Luton. Acca pays 172-1 with MGM.
TV Special: Spurs to win at Leeds, Chelsea v Liverpool draw, Palace to win at Everton, Man City to win at Brentford. Acca pays 44-1 with Betfred.
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chase their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
- Gamcare – gamcare.org.uk
- GambleAware – GambleAware.org
Read our guide on responsible gambling practices.
For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.
Commercial content notice: Taking one of the casino offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. 18+. T&Cs apply. gambleaware.org.
Read the full article here