Premier League midweek preview: Liverpool back on track?

The Premier League returns on Tuesday evening for its second round of midweek fixtures of the season. With game week 11 throwing up some enthralling encounters at the top of the table, the impetus is with Arsenal after champions Manchester City lost to Liverpool on Sunday.

With neither of the top two in action before the weekend, we preview three other matches below to keep your eyes on.

Liverpool v West Ham United

What a statement from Jürgen Klopp’s injury-hit Liverpool side on Sunday! The Reds threw the formbook out of the window to cease Manchester City’s seemingly unrelenting momentum in Sunday’s 1-0 win – the first time they’ve netted the opening goal in the league since August’s 9-0 victory against Bournemouth.

Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez’s heroics at the back mean it’s also the first time Klopp’s side have kept a clean sheet in the league since that same fixture against Bournemouth, with The Reds looking much more assured with the England man in defence. Betting against both teams to score at 21/20 for Liverpool’s visit of West Ham on Wednesday could therefore be a profitable move given this new-found defensive resilience.

Broadly speaking, The Reds are unsurprisingly firm favourites at 2/5 to brush aside an unpredictable Hammers side at Anfield, who picked up a meagre point away at struggling Southampton on the weekend. That 1-1 draw extended David Moyes’ side’s unbeaten record to five games in all competitions, but fans of the Irons will hold higher expectations than their team’s current 12th placed position in the table.

If you back West Ham to net on Wednesday, then striker Gianluca Scamacca’s anytime goalscorer odds of 16/5 look appealing, with the Italian now up to six goals this season after a slow start to his West Ham career.

Meanwhile, Mo Salah seems to have rediscovered his goalscoring touch and loves playing against West Ham – netting nine times in 10 appearances against the Hammers. His anytime odds of 19/20 may seem to offer little value, so backing the Egyptian to score the first OR last goal on Wednesday evening at 9/5 is a much more attractive option.

Check out all the latest betting offers at William Hill.

Brentford v Chelsea

Brentford cast aside their recent poor form with an impressive 2-0 victory over Brighton on Friday night to record just their second victory in eight league fixtures. The Bees also netted the game’s opening goal for only the third time this season – going on to win all three of those fixtures – highlighting the importance of starting on the front foot for Thomas Frank’s ambitious yet inconsistent side.

Brentford have now lost just once in five home matches this season but will face a stern test from their west London rivals Chelsea on Wednesday evening, with the Blues odds-on at 7/10 to extend Graham Potter’s winning run as new Chelsea manager to six.

Chelsea were well below their best at Villa Park on Sunday but still managed to secure a 2-0 victory, thanks largely to reinstated goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga’s first half heroics. That result means the Blues have kept four clean sheets on the bounce and back-to-back 2-0 wins in all competitions, with Potter’s men 13/8 to win to nil on Wednesday.

The Blues won this fixture 1-0 last season – with an additional 2-0 victory in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals at the Brentford Community Stadium – with under 2.5 goals valued at 10/11 if you feel a similarly low-scoring affair might repeat itself.

In terms of personnel, Mason Mount continued his rich vein of form with two strikes against Villa at the weekend, with the England midfielder priced at 13/5 to find the net anytime against a Brentford side who have conceded ten goals in their last five fixtures. Meanwhile, in-form Ivan Toney netted the opener in Brentford’s 2-0 win against Brighton, with the striker 11/2 to repeat the feat on Wednesday.

Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur

Manchester United recorded their first draw of the Erik ten Haag era on Sunday with a 0-0 stalemate against Newcastle at Old Trafford. Fans of the Red Devils should still be quietly content with their current fifth-placed position given their horrid start to the season, although such results against supposedly inferior opposition will hardly capture the imagination of the Old Trafford faithful.

Nonetheless, eight wins in 10 across all competitions certainly represents progress – epitomised by their slight favourite tag against third-placed Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday (11/8). United have won each of the last three meetings against the north London side, with three or more goals being scored in five of their previous six encounters. If you fancy this trend to endure, over 2.5 goals can be backed at 7/10.

The jury’s still out on Tottenham this season, with Antonio Conte’s side just four points adrift of leader’s Arsenal but continuing to attract criticism for their performances since the beginning of the campaign. Indeed, they’ve failed to win any of their league games when starting as the betting outsider, so backing Conte’s men at 9/5 to close the gap to their North London rivals would be somewhat brave.

Harry Kane has netted nine goals from his last nine league games and is perhaps priced generously at 6/5 to net anytime, especially as he’s scored four goals in his previous four trips to Old Trafford.

Meanwhile, striker Marcus Rashford missed an injury-time sitter against Newcastle but still looks reinvigorated this season. He can be backed at 27/10 to score anytime against a Spurs side who he’s netted four times in his previous seven appearances against.

Check out all the latest football betting odds at William Hill