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Jamie Steed previews EPL Matchday 21 of the 2024-25 season, starting on 1/14/2025. He previews each game from the English Premier League, picking bets and providing predictions for each game.
The EPL season rolls on, and we're bringing you our weekly article, which looks at betting picks and predictions for all games. Matchday 21 kicks off on Tuesday, January 14, with three games starting at 2:30 p.m. EST. It culminates on Thursday, January 16, when Manchester United hosts Southampton.
Every week, we'll offer a preview of all the games. We'll predict the outcome, give a score prediction, and pick our favorite play for all fixtures. Before you read on, remember these essential things: betting on sports should be fun. If you aren't having fun with it, stop. And never bet what you can't afford to lose.
We're bringing you more soccer content than ever before at RotoBaller. There are FPL, UCL, and DFS articles every week, along with our weekly betting picks and game previews article, all of which can be found here. Follow the team on X (@EuanFPL, @TheFPLManual, @df_solutions, @BellRoto, and yours truly @Baseball_Jimbo), and reach out to any of us if you ever have any soccer questions.
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Matchday 20 Recap
We hit our first 'over/under' parlay of the season and maintained a profit on the campaign. It could have been an even bigger weekend. Liverpool and Fulham were surprisingly held at home on Sunday after we hit the first three legs of the moneyline parlay on Saturday.
Southampton and Wolves failed to score at home which denied us a 'both teams to score' parlay. We head into a set of midweek fixtures following the weekend's FA Cup ties on the back of a win. And the games keep coming at a rapid pace so we'll look to build on that momentum.
Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Brentford (+360) vs. Manchester City (-155) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Brentford 1 – 3 Manchester City
City has been getting back on track with consecutive league wins. Brentford's win at Southampton ended a run of four games without a win. There have been three or more goals in eight of Brentford's 10 home matches. I expect an away win in a high-scoring game.
🚨 BREAKING: Kyle Walker has asked to leave Manchester City.
“Two days ago, Kyle asked to explore the options to play abroad and end his career”, says Pep Guardiola. pic.twitter.com/ZOZsDhBQBG
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 11, 2025
Chelsea (-160) vs. Bournemouth (+380) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Chelsea 2 – 1 Bournemouth
Chelsea's taken only two points from their last four games. They've kept just two clean sheets in their last 15 EPL matches. Bournemouth's last five away games have seen a total of 21 goals with at least three in each of them. We'll take both teams to score and over 2.5 total goals in this fixture.
West Ham United (+190) vs. Fulham (+140) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: West Ham United 1 – 1 Fulham
West Ham's first game under Graham Potter ended in defeat in the FA Cup. However, he had one day of training with the team so it's tough to take much from that. Fulham's unbeaten in their last eight EPL games, with both teams scoring in seven of them. That is our play here.
West Ham United is delighted to welcome Graham Potter as the Club’s new Head Coach ⚒️
— West Ham United (@WestHam) January 9, 2025
Nottingham Forest (+340) vs. Liverpool (-140) - 3:00 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Nottingham Forest 1 – 2 Liverpool
Forest's six-game winning run is the longest in the league. None of those games were against current top-7 sides. Liverpool's showed some vulnerabilities recently but they should have too much for a Forest side that's been impressive but about to face their biggest test.
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Everton (+215) vs. Aston Villa (+135) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Everton 1 – 1 Aston Villa
Everton will be hoping the appointment of David Moyes will see them steer clear of relegation. His first task will be to get the Toffees scoring, having blanked eight times in their last 10 games. Only two teams have conceded more away goals than Villa (19). We'll take both teams scoring in this one.
Everton Football Club is delighted to welcome back David Moyes as their new Manager, effective immediately. ✍️
— Everton (@Everton) January 11, 2025
Leicester City (+275) vs. Crystal Palace (-105) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Leicester City 2 – 1 Crystal Palace
Leicester's still looking for their first league win under Ruud van Nistelrooy. Palace has lost just one of their last nine games but won only three of them. Despite their contrasting form, Leicester's too highly-priced to secure a home win so we'll be backing the Foxes to end their winless run.
Newcastle United (-275) vs. Wolves (+600) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Newcastle United 3 – 0 Wolves
Newcastle enters this game on the back of a five-game winning streak in the league, scoring 15 goals in the process. Wolves have shipped in two or more goals in 15 of their 20 matches this season. After back-to-back clean sheets, Wolves have conceded five goals in their last two games.
We'll be playing Newcastle to continue their winning run. We'll also take over 2.5 total goals. Wolves will welcome back top scorer Matheus Cunha after he missed their last game. That was the first time Wolves blanked under Vitor Pereira (six games). Wolves may not score but there will be goals.
👉xG performance while CONCEDING for the teams in English Premier League 2024-2025. UPDATED after Gameweek 20.
🚨Wolves Conceded 45 Goals from JUST 33.21 xG. 🙄#PremierLeague pic.twitter.com/2ryLGF2L4i
— EPL - Analytics (@DataAnalyticEPL) January 8, 2025
Arsenal (-255) vs. Tottenham Hotspur (+550) - 3:00 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Arsenal 1 – 1 Tottenham Hotspur
Both teams come into this game with significant injury problems. Arsenal's league form has been good, with an unbeaten 10-game streak coming into this fixture. Tottenham's league form has been poor, having won just once in their last eight league games.
Both teams had differing fortunes in their cup ties over the last week. Tottenham is on course to reach the EFL Cup final and they progressed in the FA Cup. Arsenal lost on penalties in the FA Cup and look set to miss out on an EFL Cup final spot. We'll play it safe and just take both teams scoring.
Thursday, January 16, 2025
Ipswich Town (+270) vs. Brighton (-110) - 2:30 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Ipswich Town 1 – 1 Brighton
Ipswich's last two EPL games saw them score twice in back-to-back matches for the first time this season. They've only kept two clean sheets this season. Brighton is without a win in their last eight league games, drawing six of them. Both teams have scored in 11 of their last 12 games. That'll be our play in this contest.
If Liam Delap can help his side towards safety, his value is higher than any offer that may emerge in this transfer window@BenMcAleer1 looks at Delap's Ipswich impact in the opening months of the season ✍️
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) January 5, 2025
Manchester United (-340) vs. Southampton (+800) - 3:00 p.m. EST
Score prediction: Manchester United 2 – 0 Southampton
United has shown a propensity to grind out results against the better teams. Their struggles in games they are expected to win have been a problem. Southampton had only conceded three goals in three games before their 5-0 defeat last time out. I expect a home win but this looks like being a low-scoring affair.
Betting Picks
The table below gives the odds for each game's three main plays (moneyline, total goals, and both teams to score). My favorite pick from each game is highlighted if you are looking to build a parlay (which I will be playing and tracking).
| Game | Moneyline | Over/Under 2.5 goals | BTTS |
| Brentford 1 – 3 Man City | Man City -155 | Over 2.5 -255 | Yes -230 |
| Chelsea 2 – 1 Bournemouth | Chelsea -160 | Over 2.5 -210 | Yes -195 |
| West Ham 1 – 1 Fulham | Draw +250 | Under 2.5 +115 | Yes -190 |
| N. Forest 1 – 2 Liverpool | Liverpool -140 | Over 2.5 -155 | Yes -160 |
| Everton 1 – 1 A. Villa | Draw +220 | Under 2.5 -140 | Yes -130 |
| Leicester 2 – 1 C. Palace | Leicester +275 | Over 2.5 -140 | Yes -170 |
| Newcastle 3 – 0 Wolves | Newcastle -275 | Over 2.5 -240 | No +115 |
| Arsenal 1 – 1 Tottenham | Draw +425 | Under 2.5 +165 | Yes -155 |
| Ipswich 1 – 1 Brighton | Draw +270 | Under 2.5 +115 | Yes -175 |
| Man United 2 – 0 Southampton | Man United -340 | Under 2.5 +150 | No -115 |
| Season totals | 87/199 | 99/199 | 110/199 |
| Season parlays | 1/19 (-7.53u) | 1/20 (-11.41u) | 6/20 (+24.05u) |
Good luck with those FPL teams and EPL bets. Remember to bet responsibly!
