Sports

The Scout: EPL Week 2

Liverpool vs Burnley

Liverpool kicked off their Premier League campaign with an emphatic 3-0 win over the newly-promoted Norwich City. Meanwhile Burnley were unfortunate not to take any points from their match against Brighton, going down 2-1 despite leading right up until the 73rd minute.

After a disappointing 2020/21 campaign that was crippled by injury, Liverpool are back close to full strength with arguably the best attacking weapons in the league. Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Diego Jota and of course Mo Salah are all available and it was Salah who stole the show in week 1, scoring one, and assisting the other two of Liverpool’s three goals.

Burnley showed their defensive vulnerabilities against Brighton in week 1, and that doesn’t bode well for a matchup against Liverpool at Anfield.

Suggested Bet: Mohamed Salah First Goalscorer @ $2.90*


Leeds vs Everton

Leeds will be hoping to bounce back from their devastating 5-1 opening day loss to Manchester United while Everton are coming off an impressive 3-1 win over Southampton.

Leeds ended last season in ninth place on the table, but allowed the second most goals (54) out of all of the top 12 teams. Unfortunately the five goals conceded last weekend suggest that those defensive woes haven’t been fixed

Everton have built a nice core of attacking players and should see improvement from their young duo of Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (both 24). Their talent was on full display in the victory over Southampton, with both players scoring and looking dangerous throughout.

Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa has a clear “attack first” mentality that leads to plenty of goals at both ends of the pitch for his team. If this game turns into a shootout, I think it’s Everton who have the bigger weapons.

Suggested Bet: Everton (Match Result) @ $3*


Arsenal vs Chelsea

The London Derby sees Arsenal coming off a shock (and shocking) 2-0 loss to the newly-promoted Brentford, and Chelsea sitting pretty in second spot on the table following their clinical 3-0 win over Crystal Palace.

Mikel Arteta is instantly under pressure after his team’s opening day loss, the Gunners holding 65% of the ball, registering 22 shots but failing to find the back of the net. Big guns Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette are possible additions to the lineup and will no doubt help on the goal front.

Thomas Tuchel and his Chelsea team notched yet another win in the Premier League, with yet another clean sheet. The Blues are now undefeated in 17 of their last 20 Premier League matches.

Romelu Lukaku is set to make his return for Chelsea in this match, but it’s defense that sees them as a legitimate title threat. There are simply no weaknesses in Chelsea’s starting XI, a vast contrast to their opponent here.

Suggested Bet: Chelsea Win to Nil @ $3*

*Odds correct as at 2pm, 19th August 2021.

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