Premier League weekend preview: Liverpool set sights on Champions League spot

The Premier League returns to action this weekend after some scarcely believable scorelines last week, as the season countdown begins.

We preview three fixtures below.

Bournemouth vs Liverpool – Saturday 12:30

I don’t think even the most die-hard of Bournemouth fans would have expected their side to go 2-0 up at the Emirates Stadium last weekend, particularly that sensational opener after nine seconds. Despite their efforts – and a generally brilliant attacking display against the league leaders – the Cherries remain rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table, but will be encouraged by the fact that, remarkably, only six points separates them from 12th place Crystal Palace. A couple of good results could therefore see Gary O’Neil’s men catapult into midtable, although they will start Saturday lunchtime’s clash with Liverpool as 6/1 outsiders.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp will know there’s more to come from his side amidst a transitional season, particularly with his front-three personnel, but their historic 7-0 demolition of fierce rivals Manchester United will go a long way in convincing both players and supporters that better times are ahead for the Reds. You would argue Liverpool are now favourites to pick up that final Champions League spot with Tottenham continuing to stutter, and you have to commend the way in which Klopp has gone about his damage limitation approach to their season, which has seen the Reds quietly rack up five successive clean sheets for the first time this campaign.

Liverpool start as 4/9 favourites for this one, with a draw priced at 18/5. You feel there will be goals since the Reds won 9-0 in the reverse fixture and their front three are slowly beginning to click. Mohamed Salah is 7/5 to score anytime and has seemed to have found his spark again, whilst Darwin Nunez (13/8) and Cody Gakpo (13/5) are gradually starting to contribute at a more frequent rate to this potent attack.

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Crystal Palace vs Manchester City – Saturday 17:30

Whilst they will almost certainly have enough quality to stay up, Palace are slowly being dragged into a relegation dogfight. Their current 12th place position perhaps exerts a false sense of where they are as a club, with only six points separating them from Bournemouth in 20th. Last weekend’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa means Patrick Viera’s men are winless in nine – their longest run without a victory since the 2015/16 season – and have scored just four goals in that time. They start Saturday’s clash against title-chasing Manchester City at 8/1 for an improbably victory.

City kept the gap between them and league leaders Arsenal to five points with a routine 2-0 win over Newcastle last Saturday, stretching their winning run at the Etihad to four. You feel all Pep Guardiola’s men can do is continue to hold their side of the bargain until his side face Arsenal in April, but with a Champions League campaign to worry about too, it’s far from a simple task for the English champions. Despite the enormity of the challenge, this trip to Selhurst Park shouldn’t provide too much of a hurdle, and City begin as 1/3 favourites.

Phil Foden seems to have rediscovered his scoring touch and is 4/1 to find the net anytime, whilst we also like the price of Ilkay Gundogan – often a go-to player in big moments – at 12/1 to be the last goalscorer.

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Fulham vs Arsenal – Sunday 14:00

Fulham were undone by an impressive Brentford outfit in their most recent fixture, but shouldn’t be downcast about the way their season is turning out. Marco Silva’s men are still seventh with 12 games to spare and as long as the likes of Chelsea and Newcastle continue to stutter, a European finish remains a very real prospect. Two winless games shouldn’t deter Silva too much, although they will have to be at their best on Sunday if they are to get anything out of a relentless Arsenal side, and begin the game as 24/5 underdogs.

You feel this is the time where it begins to get tricky for Arsenal. The burden of playing Thursday and Sunday every week as their Europa League knockout stage campaign commences may see an upturn of injuries and fatigue, but they showed against Bournemouth last weekend that they can quite literally dig out wins from any position they find themselves in. They’ve now won four on the bounce, scoring 12 goals in the process, and start Sunday’s encounter as 4/7 favourites, with a draw priced at 3/1.

A tough away game at Sporting Lisbon on Thursday night may see Mikel Arteta rotate his attacking options, with the likes of Fabio Viera and Reiss Nelson getting starts in Portugal, so watch out for Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard’s chances of scoring on Sunday. The pair are 23/10 and 2/1 respectively to find the net anytime, whilst both teams to score is odds-on at 17/20.

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