After a hectic festive period, the final set of Premier League fixtures before the turn of the year take place across the course of the weekend while league leaders Liverpool will ring in 2024 at Anfield on Monday night with a game against Newcastle before West Ham and Brighton clash on Tuesday following some big midweek wins.
Football Commentator and Sports Broadcaster, Kieran Burke gives us his best bets over the coming days…
LUTON TOWN v CHELSEA – Sat, 12.30 – DOUBLE THE ODDS FIRST GOALSCORER!
Luton Town claimed back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time in their history on St. Stephen’s Day with the Hatters dramatic 2-3 win at Sheffield United coming off the back of their thoroughly deserved 1-0 win at home to Newcastle.
Credit must go to Rob Edwards and his Luton players who have made Kenilworth Road an incredibly difficult place to go, especially for the league’s big boys with Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester City all blessed to have left the London venue with one-goal-winning margins while it took Liverpool an injury-time goal to salvage a point here.
Newcastle and Crystal Palace have been turned over here and with Chelsea losing their last four on the road, Luton supporters will be well up for the visit of free-spending Chelsea.
BEST BET: Luton win or draw (7/5) NAP.
ASTON VILLA v BURNLEY – Sat, 3.00
After surprisingly dropping points at home to Sheffield United and then throwing away a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 defeat at Old Trafford on St. Stephen’s Night, Villa fans may be fearing this could be the start of a slide that many are expecting them to encounter at some point.
Unai Emery is already a manager of the season contender for the work he has done at Villa Park this term and he wasn’t helped by some key absentees for the trip to Manchester and while the likes of Emiliano Buendia, Tyrone Mings and Youri Tielemans are set to sit out this game at home to Burnley, Matty Cash does return from suspension.
Burnley claimed a much needed win before Christmas against Fulham and while they made life difficult for Liverpool last time out, Burnley were always kept at arms length by the Reds with the 0-2 defeat meaning the Clarets are yet to win a game this season against a side starting the round inside the top half.
Such a stat indicates a lack in quality and with the likes of Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey enjoying excellent campaigns for Villa, I expect them to breeze past Burnley on Saturday afternoon.
BEST BET: Aston Villa (7/20)
TOTTENHAM v BOURNEMOUTH – Sun, 2.00
Even when they come up short, you’ve got to love this Tottenham team. The great entertainers of the 2023/24 season under Ange Postecoglou were punished for some Laissez-faire defending on the coast against Brighton on Thursday night but when the board went up showing nine added on second half minutes, Spurs genuinely looked as if they could score the two goals required to rescue a point.
Bournemouth haven’t exactly been dull to watch of late themselves, in fact, the Cherries sit top of the Premier League form table over the past five matches with maximum points achieved from their last four games.
Having won at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last season and with Spurs continuing to be plagued by injuries, Cristian Romero the latest of them, Andoni Iraola’s men will travel to the English capital full of confidence.
While Bournemouth have conceded just twice in their last four matches, this Tottenham team always score, or at least they have in their last 32 consecutive competitive matches.
Meanwhile Bournemouth have scored exactly three goals in each of their past three matches while they’ve scored two or more goals in their seven most recent games.
And just in case you needed any more selling on this encounter, Spurs last six EPL home games against Bournemouth have produced an average of 3.8 total goals with the last three all clashes all seeing exactly five goals scored.
BEST BET: Over 4.5 goals (21/10)
WEST HAM v BRIGHTON – Tue, 7.30 – DOUBLE THE ODDS FIRST GOALSCORER!
If Spurs are the leagues great entertainers then Brighton are very much the main supporting act. Roberto De Zerbi’s side have probably been a little up and down throughout the season, maybe down to their great schedule this season with Albion genuine Europa League contenders in my book, but one thing that has been consistent in Brighton games is goals and lots of them.
Thursday’s 4-2 win at home to Tottenham was the 24th consecutive domestic match in which Brighton failed to keep a clean sheet. The upside is Brighton would have scored a lot more than four had it not have been for the brilliance on Tottenham keeper Vicario.
Brighton have found the back of the net at least once all in but one of their last 18 matches in all competitions and that shutout came away to Arsenal.
West Ham are right up there with Bournemouth as surprise Premier League form table toppers with the Irons winning four of their last five league matches.
Having been dumped out of the League Cup when making six changes for the trip to Anfield, David Moyes men have since gone on to take the scalps of Manchester United and Arsenal, keeping cleen sheets in both games.
Mohammed Kudus and Jarod Bowen have been inspired for the East Londoners in recent weeks and will give this flakey Brighton defence plenty to think about on Tuesday night.
Brighton have their own in-form hit man with João Pedro dislodging Evan Ferguson up front for the Seagulls thanks to 13 goals in all competitions this season from the Brazilian.
VERDICT: BTTS (1/2).
A €10 stake on Kieran’s four selections could return €150.66!