Traders Tips – Premier League GW25

Week 25 of the Premier League season looks like a cracker. Pivotal games in both the title race, the race for European football and some M23 bragging rights at stake. We focus on two blockbuster clashes between 4 of the traditional big six sides and focus in on a fierce but unusual rivalry between Brighton and Palace.

The Manchester United revival is well and truly underway under Michael Carrick. 3 wins out of 3 against Manchester City, Arsenal and Fulham, have seen United catapult their way into 4th place, and they seem to have their old swagger back. A vintage late United winner from Benjamin Sesko (2.15 to score anytime), perhaps papered over the cracks of a generally lacklustre display, but momentum certainly seems to be with the Red Devils. United surrendered a two goal lead to Fulham, which would be a cause for concern, but they seem to be scoring at will under their new manager, with 8 goals from the 3 games Carrick has overseen. The injury to Patrick Dorgu is a frustrating one, as it looked like he had unlocked his potential in a new role higher up the field. With their season consisting of only 14 more league games, United will certainly fancy their chances of getting back to the Champions League next season, and they should have enough to see off their visitors on Saturday lunchtime.

Tottenham arrive at Old Trafford off the back of a very encouraging second half against Manchester City, in which they came back from a 2-0 deficit to snatch a draw. Their Premier League form has been dreadful, with no win in their last 6 outings in the competition. The Spurs faithful are understandably growing restless with manager Thomas Frank. However, their Champions League form has been enough to keep the Dane in the hotseat. They qualified in 4th place in the league phase, albeit with a kind batch of fixtures, winning 5, drawing 2 and only suffering defeat away at PSG. If they can translate some of their European form into domestic games, they should have a decent finish to the season. However, Spurs have been riddled with injuries, missing a host of first team players for large parts of the season, which might go some way to explaining their poor Premier League form. The returning Dominic Solanke scored both goals in their comeback last week and he is a generous 3.40 to score anytime at Old Trafford.

Goals are expected here if Carrick’s previous games are anything to go by. I expect Manchester United to have too much for Spurs, but I would be surprised if they were able to keep the visitors out. Both Teams to score and United to win is 2.57 with Gamblr.

The very boring debate as to whether this is a rivalry or a derby is always touched upon when these two meet, and there are always questions as to why it is even considered as such. The simple fact of the matter is these two clubs do not like each other at all, which always adds a great edge to the game when they clash. Only two points separate the two teams going into Sunday’s game. Both sides will have enough to avoid relegation barring a spectacular implosion, however the European places also seem out of their reach. This makes big rivalry games such as this even more important in the context of their season.

Brighton have only recorded one win in their last 11 league outings after a promising start. Their home form has been good, with only Aston Villa and Arsenal leaving the south coast with 3 points. The frustration will be that they have drawn 10 of their 24 games (a Premier League high) which has cost them momentum and consistent progress all season. No draw was more frustrating for the Seagulls, than conceding a 96th minute equaliser against Everton last weekend. You can back the draw with Gamblr at 3.60.

Crystal Palace, from the outside, appear to have hit the self-destruct button. After the best year in their club’s history, culminating in a magnificent FA Cup triumph, there would have been huge hope that they could kick on. However since that glorious day at Wembley, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. Firstly they have lost their two talismen from last season in captain Marc Guehi and Eberechi Eze. Secondly, due to multi-club ownership, they lost their place in the Europa League and are having to play in the Conference League, failing to qualify automatically for the top 8. Finally, the manager that has transformed their fortunes, Oliver Glasner, has announced he will leave at the end of the summer. Despite this, Palace were able to bring in Jorgen Strand Larsen (3.1 to score anytime) from Wolves and Evan Guessand (4.25 to score anytime) from Villa towards the end of the window, which should bolster their forward options, perhaps filling the void left by wantaway striker, Jean-Philippe Mateta, whose move to AC Milan fell through due to a failed medical. A win for Palace here prove a launchpad for a successful end to the season.

Liverpool host Manchester City this weekend in a Premier League fixture that brings together two of the competition’s most consistent performers of the past decade. The meeting arrives at an important stage of the season, with both sides positioned near the top of the table and still involved in multiple competitions. Recent encounters between the teams have frequently had defining implications for the title race, however this year they both sit well behind the 8 ball.

Manchester City come into the fixture having shown a degree of inconsistency in recent weeks. Whilst their attacking flair continues to excite, their defensive solidity has been a constant thorn in their side over the course of the season. The addition of Marc Guehi should help, however last week’s collapse against Spurs was another concerning string of results in all competitions. Changes in personnel and rotation across competitions have coincided with some lacklustre displays which have seen City slip 6 points behind Arsenal, despite being given multiple chances to close the gap over recent weeks. A very convincing victory over Newcastle to reach the Carabao Cup final should give the Citizens confidence, with Omar Marmoush back from AFCON to net a brace. However, Haaland, rested against Newcastle, still sits a way clear at the top of the PL goalscoring charts, and you wouldn’t be at all surprised if he stretched that gap with a goal here on Sunday. (Haaland to score first is 4.00).

Liverpool have offered a disappointing defence of their league title won last May, especially when considering the outlay in the summer. Their European form has been strong, breezing through the Champions League Group phase with some impressive performances. However, they have, like City, been blighted by defensive issues. The big decision for manager Arne Slot, will be if he sacrifices star midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai, and plays him at right back, in the absence of Bradley and Frimpong. This is less than ideal, and something Liverpool should maybe have addressed in the January window when they had the chance.

That said, there is some encouragement when it comes to the performances of £100m summer signing Florian Wirtz. After a slow start on Merseyside, Wirtz’s performances have been improving by the game, seeing him nominated for Premier League January player of the month, with 3 goals and an assist in an impressive month. He is 4.50 to score anytime with Gamblr. He could be the key to punishing any defensive lapses by Manchester City and providing the chances for fellow summer signing Hugo Ekitike (2.25 to score anytime). Ekitike has registered 10 goal involvements in the league in 18 appearances (8 goals, 2 assists) and appears to be growing into his role at Anfield.