EPL Matchweek 1 betting preview & top picks

The English Premier League is set to commence this Friday, and the wait for top-flight English football will finally be over. Teams like Manchester City, Arsenal, and Newcastle will be in action this Friday and Saturday. Here are our best bets on the slate.

Burnley v Manchester City preview

The Premier League’s opening game is an interesting battle between a newly promoted Burnley team and a prolific Manchester City side. While Burnley will be at home, we expect City to dominate and come away with an easy win. Manchester City should outclass Burnley in all facets of this game, and the Clarets simply do not have the defensive talent to slow down Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne. City have outscored Burnley 6-0 in their last three head-to-head matches and we expect that to continue. Take City to win and cover at -112.

Arsenal v Nottingham Forest

Arsenal are coming off their most successful season in recent memory, and a key part of that was their star winger, Bukayo Saka. Saka is still only 21 years old, and he should be even better this campaign. Saka bagged 14 goals last term, and he should top that number in the 2023–2024 season. We expect it to start in game one. Nottingham Forest were one of the worst defensive teams in the league last year, and they should struggle once again. Arsenal should have plenty of chances in this fixture, and at +160, we like Saka to capitalize on one of them.

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Everton FC v Fulham preview

These teams appear to be trending in the opposite direction. Everton are coming off a hellish season where they barely avoided relegation with a 17th-place finish. Fulham, on the other hand, finished 10th last year and look like they will have an improved side this coming season. New additions Calvin Bassey and Raul Jimenez project to play big roles this campaign, and they should be out there Saturday for this contest. All in all, we are going to fade Everton at home and take the team that outclassed throughout all of last year. At +210, Fulham is a steal.

Bournemouth v West Ham United preview

Two relegation candidates will duke it out this weekend, and while this is likely the least anticipated fixture on the slate, we still like a bet on this game. And that will be West Ham’s talisman Michail Antonio’s chance to grab a goal. While the Jamaican striker is coming off a terrible campaign where he only scored two Premier League goals, he had three straight 10-goal seasons before then. Bournemouth conceded the most goals of any Premier League team that wasn’t relegated last year, and Antonio should be able to take advantage of that porous backline. At +285 with the top betting sites, this is a tremendous value bet.

Newcastle United vs Aston Villa preview

This is sneakily one of the most interesting games we have this weekend. Newcastle are on the rise and will return their squad that finished fourth last year. Aston Villa, like Newcastle, are also on the rise, and they will look to improve on their seventh-place finish last campaign. Both teams are defensively focused, and we expect that to be on display in this contest. In an evenly matched game, one mistake could prove costly, so we believe both teams will play cautiously and sit back. At +295, the draw is great value as both teams approach this season with lots of optimism.

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