Podcast – Premier League Matchweek 2 Betting Preview & Predictions

Host Carl Lewis and coach and analyst Grant de Smidt preview Matchweek 2 of the new Premier League season for 2022/23.

We cover:

Aston Villa v Everton

After conceding two set-piece goals, Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard said his side “had themselves to blame” following their 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth on the opening weekend of the new Premier League (PL) season. That result meant his team have now managed to win just two of their previous 12 PL matches, a worrying trend that’s starting to put the former Liverpool star under mounting scrutiny.

Man City v Bournemouth

Beating West Ham United 2-0 to open their Premier League (PL) title defence was the ideal start for Manchester City, avoiding a repeat of last term’s first-day defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. After marquee signing Erling Haaland scored twice, City fans now get to see him in action at home for the first time and they will expect goals as newly promoted Bournemouth visit.

Arsenal v Leicester

A new Premier League (PL) season brought around a change in fortunes for Arsenal, who not only secured an opening-day victory over Crystal Palace (2-0), but also secured a first league clean sheet after ten games without. You’d have to go back to January for Arsenal’s last back-to-back league shutouts and boss Mikel Arteta will be under no illusions that another is not guaranteed here, despite successive 2-0 H2H victories against Leicester City.

Brighton v Newcastle

After recording their first ever top-half Premier League (PL) finish last season, Brighton & Hove Albion kept the good times rolling by springing the shock of the opening weekend with a 2-1 win away to Manchester United, their first ever victory at Old Trafford. That result in itself has arguably already met one of manager Graham Potter’s goals for the 2022/23 season, “to forge lasting memories” for the Brighton faithful.

Brentford v Man Utd

As one of just two matchday favourites to lose their first round PL fixture (alongside Aston Villa) last weekend, Manchester United appear ripe for the picking. Their grossly underwhelming activity in the transfer market was thrust back into the spotlight with their first ever loss at Old Trafford to Brighton (1-2), an afternoon new boss Erik ten Hag declared as “a setback and a real disappointment” as he became the first United manager since Louis van Gaal to lose his debut league match.

Nottingham Forest v West Ham

West Ham’s opening day defeat to Manchester City (2-0) was no great surprise, so their bid to qualify for Europe for a third consecutive season effectively starts here. However, the Hammers are already facing an injury crisis with several centre-backs unavailable so expect manager David Moyes to bring in further reinforcements while hoping new signing Gianluca Scamacca quickly adapts to English football and starts scoring soon.

Man United v Brighton

While Manchester United’s rebuilding job continues under new boss Erik ten Hag, his signings of Lisandro Martínez and Christian Eriksen have been overshadowed by uncertainty surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo’s future. The manager also had to lay the law down after Ronaldo and others left a pre-season friendly early – hardly ideal preparation for the season ahead!

Chelsea v Tottenham

Chelsea’s 1-0 Premier League (PL) matchday one win over Everton came despite a less-than-spectacular attacking performance but it was a case of doing enough on the day to earn all three points. Unsurprisingly, manager Thomas Tuchel still wants to bolster his squad and he should have more leeway to do so with Timo Werner and Malang Sarr among players leaving this week.

Liverpool v Crystal Palace

Despite their disappointment at being pipped to the Premier League (PL) title, Liverpool would’ve been keen to carry the momentum of last season forward, but their 2-2 with Fulham represented a far from ideal start. Twice fighting back to salvage a point meant Liverpool have conceded first in their last five PL matches, taking their points earned from losing positions under manager Jürgen Klopp to 115, the most in the league since he took over.

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