The Premier League returns with a midweek round of fixtures to follow the weekend’s FA Cup action.
We have previewed five of the 10 games taking place between Tuesday and Thursday, including a massive north London derby.
A £10 wager on our three-leg acca would pay out £80.77, while the same stake on our five-leg version offers a potential return of £209.27.
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: Both teams to score in first half (11/4)
For better or worse, Tottenham Hotspur have been the most entertaining team to watch in the Premier League this season and there is reason to believe they will serve up another enjoyable encounter against Arsenal this week.
The Gunners ran out 1-0 winners on enemy territory earlier in the campaign, but their title hopes have taken a hit since then.
Mikel Arteta’s team are six points behind Liverpool having played a game more than the league leaders. That means there is very little margin for error going forward.
Tottenham also have work to do. Ange Postecoglou’s charges are well down in 12th place, a mammoth 12 points adrift of the top four.
Spurs and Manchester City share the record for the most first-half goals this term with 22, while Arsenal are joint-third with 20. This one should catch fire pretty quickly.
Select both teams to score in the first half at 11/4 with bet365
Manchester United vs Southampton: Man Utd over 1.5 goals (1/3)
As far as the Premier League is concerned, Ruben Amorim will hope that the 2-2 draw with Liverpool earlier this month proves to be a turning point in Manchester United’s season.
The task awaiting them on Thursday will be very different. Whereas United had a minority of possession at Anfield, they will be expected to make the running against Southampton.
Fortunately for Amorim, United are facing opponents who are not cut out for this level. The fact there is even talk of Southampton breaking Derby County’s record low Premier League points tally of 11 shows how poor they have been.
Ivan Juric has not been able to have any sort of positive impact on the Saints. It is not out of the question that the club will appoint a third manager before the end of the campaign.
United remain in the bottom half of the division, far away from achieving their goals. But they should be pretty comfortable when Southampton make the trip to Manchester.
Go for Manchester United to score over 1.5 goals at 1/3 with bet365
Brentford vs Manchester City: Man City to win (8/13)
After back-to-back victories over the festive period, Manchester City hope they have now turned a corner.
Although the title is out of reach for Pep Guardiola’s team, they remain in the mix for a top-four finish.
Champions League qualification would hardly be a disastrous outcome if this proves to be Guardiola’s worst season at the Eithad Stadium.
Brentford have the second-best home record in the Premier League in 2024/25, so a visit to the Gtech Community Stadium must be seen as one of the trickiest assignments in the division right now.
Yet the fixture list was reasonably kind to Thomas Frank’s team at home in the first few months of the season. Nottingham Forest, Arsenal and Plymouth Argyle have recently won at the Gtech and City can follow suit.
Back Manchester City to win at 8/13 with bet365
Back the 3-fold acca
Chelsea vs Bournemouth: Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals (8/11)
Chelsea will resume their Premier League season this week having failed to emerge victorious from any of their last four games in the competition.
That winless streak put paid to their title hopes, with Enzo Maresca now focused on securing Champions League football for his side in his maiden campaign at Stamford Bridge.
Bournemouth are only three points behind Chelsea in the table, so the threat they pose should not be underestimated.
The Cherries have given several big sides a bloody nose already this term, beating Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United.
Bournemouth should have plenty of joy up against an unconvincing Chelsea defence, but they too will struggle to keep out Cole Palmer and co.
Choose both teams to score and over 2.5 goals at 8/11 with bet365
Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool: Under 3.5 goals (1/2)
Nottingham Forest have already beaten Liverpool once this season. Doing the double over the Premier League leaders would be quite the achievement for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side.
It might even make Forest title contenders. A win at the City Ground, where the atmosphere will be fantastic under the lights, would move Nuno’s men within three points of top spot.
Forest triumphed at Anfield by being defensively solid and electric on the counter-attack. Although they are the home team this time around, their approach will be the same.
Virgil van Dijk remains an elite centre-back when defending in a high line, but Liverpool can be vulnerable to fast breaks.
Still, we expect this to be a relatively tight encounter with little to choose between the teams.
Tip under 3.5 goals at 1/2 with bet365
Back the 5-fold acca
About the author
Greg Lea
Greg Lea is a freelance football writer from London. He predominantly covers the Premier League and has had work published by the Guardian, FourFourTwo, ESPN and others.
Follow Greg on X: @GregLeaFootball
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