The time has come once again where soccer fans all over the globe are ready to kick off another season – Welcome to the beginning of a new English Premier League campaign. On Sunday August 25th as the third Matchday of the EPL will kick off as Pickswise, the home of free EPL Expert Best Bets Matchday 3 will dive into each game on Saturday and double your earnings quickly.
AFC Bournemouth vs. Manchester City
Best Bet – Manchester City to Win and Over 3.5 Match Goals +115
Final Score Bet – Manchester City 3-1 +1100
Prop Bet – Raheem Sterling To Score Anytime -120
Bournemouth welcome Premier League champions Manchester City to the south coast on Sunday, hoping to make the most of the momentum they gained from their smash and grab win at Aston Villa last weekend.
The Cherries raced into an early two-goal lead at Villa Park, and even though the pressure from the hosts was intense for two thirds of the game, Eddie Howe’s men showed a robustness at the back that went against the grain of their porous reputation.
Bournemouth’s defensive levels will have to be cranked up another few notches to keep Pep Guardiola’s City at arm’s length on Sunday however.
Like the Cherries, the Citizens took four points from their opening two Premier League fixtures against West Ham and Tottenham respectively, though City could and probably should have taken maximum points against Spurs having registered over 30 shots against them in a 2-2 draw that was wrapped up in VAR controversy.
City’s two goals against Tottenham brought their haul to the season so far to seven, and the Citizens have racked up more attempts on goal on average (22) than any other team in the division – by some distance.
Just like last season, the champion’s attack looks packed to bursting with goal scoring potential, and the Citizens generally have their shooting boots on when facing Bournemouth.
Since the Cherries promotion to the top flight in 2015, they have gone toe-to-toe with City on eight separate occasions, and the Citizens have enjoyed total dominance over their less illustrious foes, maintaining a 100% win record against Bournemouth, while rattling home 25 goals in the process (3.125 goals on average per game).
We expect City to flex their considerable attacking muscle again this weekend, in what promises to be another exciting encounter against a Bournemouth team that has kept just 7 clean sheets in their last 33 Premier League home matches since December 2017.
Two of the last three meetings between Bournemouth and City saw over 3.5 goals scored, and we’re tipping Sunday’s game to be equally exciting. We also expect City to leave the Vitality Stadium with three points, which is why we recommend coupling an away win with over 3.5 total goals combination.
Our correct score prediction tips City to win 3-1, a result that would mirror the final score-line from the Citizens and Bournemouth’s clash last December.
With four goals in his first two Premier League starts of the season, Raheem Sterling has hit the ground running in 2019/20, and with the England international in such scintillating form, we think he is well worth backing in the anytime goalscorer market for Sunday’s fixture.
Sterling also tends to excel in games against Bournemouth, and the former Liverpool star has scored 8 times in just 7 career appearances against the Cherries. We expect him to enhance that phenomenal individual record even further this weekend.
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Newcastle
Final Score Bet – Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 +700
Tottenham’s start to the 2019/20 Premier League season has been equal parts positive and unusual. Spurs battered Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the new campaign, racking up 31 attempts on goal in total, though they needed two Harry Kane goals in the last four minutes to secure a late 3-1 victory against the division’s new boys.
Against Manchester City on Saturday, Spurs found themselves on the receiving end of a hammering in terms of goal attempts, conceded 30 shots overall against the champions, though Tottenham, with a little help from VAR, somehow managed to escape the Etihad with a draw.
Remarkably, Spurs opening brace of displays leaves them 2nd in the Premier League for average attempts on goal, and 2nd for average shots conceded, though they have an opportunity to normalize those figures against a ramshackle Newcastle United team on Sunday.
Two fixtures are never enough to fully get the measure of a team or their prospects for the season, but there have already plenty of worrying signs for Newcastle United in the opening weeks of the campaign.
Newcastle’s 0-1 defeat to Arsenal on matchday one was largely expected, though their 3-1 chasing at newly promoted Norwich City last weekend is certain to set alarm bells ringing.
The Magpies looked tactically disorganized throughout their defeat at Carrow Road, while their players lacked the hunger you’d usually expect to see under a new manager.
It already looks like Steve Bruce will have his work cut out this season, and it’s no surprise to see Newcastle’s boss topping the list of favorites to be the next Premier League manager sacked.
To make matters worse for Newcastle, they carry a poor recent record against Tottenham into their latest meeting with Spurs on Sunday.
Tottenham have won on each of their last four encounters with Newcastle, keeping three clean sheets along the way. Under 2.5 goals were scored in three of those fixtures, though Newcastle can’t call on Rafa Benitez’ famed defensive tactical blueprint to keep the score down this weekend.
With Newcastle continuing to looks clueless and toothless, we’re tipping Spurs to take the points while keeping their 4th clean sheet in five matches against the Magpies.
Norwich showed that the Magpies’ rearguard can be cut open at will, and we expect a much better Tottenham side to have similar success. With that in mind, we’re backing Tottenham to win 3-0 in our correct score prediction.
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Burnley
Final Score Bet – Final Score 1-1 +600
Wolves were involved in an exciting end-to-end battle with Italian side Torino in the first leg of their Europa League playoff tie on Thursday, and though they emerged from the game with a 3-2 victory, there is almost certain to be some tiredness in their ranks after their travels.
Their opponents on Sunday, Burnley, know all about the dangers of juggling domestic and European football, and last year, the Clarets’ Premier League form suffered badly due to their UEL commitments.
Given the strength of their Italian adversaries in mid-week, Wanderers’ manager Nuno Espirito Santo was forced to play almost a full-strength side in Turin, and Burnley will be ready to pounce should the Wolves players display any signs of fatigue at Molineux.
Burnley have started the 2019/20 Premier League season in largely positive fashion. The Clarets’ 3-0 win against Southampton on match day one was one of the most impressive results and performances of the opening weekend of the campaign, and Burnley were unlucky to fall to a 2-1 defeat at Arsenal a week later.
Wolves took two points from two tough opening fixtures against Leicester and Manchester United respectively, though Wanderers’ did look worryingly toothless in both contests for the majority of the 180 minutes.
Wanderers’ generally prefer playing against teams that they can successfully counter attack against, though Burnley are unlikely to play with the kind of attacking thrust that Wolves are so good at exploiting.
Because both Nuno Espirito Santo and Sean Dyche prefer their teams to sit deep and spring forward quickly and directly, games between Wolves and Burnley are generally quite attritional affairs.
Under 2.5 goals were scored in each of the last four meetings between the clubs, though Wolves’ win against Burnley last September was their only victory over the Clarets in six attempts.
Burnley recorded a 2-0 win against Wanderers in the clubs’ most recent encounter in March however, and we think circumstances could allow them to secure another positive result against them on Sunday.
The Clarets have kept just one clean sheet in their last thirteen Premier League away fixtures however, so it’s likely that they will concede at Molineux on Sunday. With that considered, we’re tipping the teams to draw 1-1 in our correct score prediction.
