Premier League Football Tips: 27th & 28th February

These two teams played out a very entertaining 1-1 draw when they met in London earlier on in the season and it is fair to say that both teams are well exceeding the expectations of their fans at the start of the campaign too.

City start 10-points clear in the Premier League, having recorded a 2-0 away win in the Champions League in midweek and at the moment, they are looking as unstoppable as Bayern Munich did on their way to Bundesliga and Champions League glory last season.

West Ham have been in great form themselves of late and have picked up some excellent wins, notably last week against Tottenham. They deservedly sit in the top four, but for me, this is their biggest test of the season and I am not sure they have the team ready to shock everyone and land the win here.

There’s no doubt that it is the improvement in City defensively that have led to their incredible run of form which now stretches back to 19 winning games in a row. As good as West Ham have been this season, which is excellent, I can’t see their good form continuing here and I am backing Manchester City to land another solid victory.

Both of these teams have been pretty inconsistent of late. Leeds problems have been on the road in their most recent games as they have won their last two at home. Aston Villa’s form over recent times has been pretty similar with as many defeats as victories in recent weeks too.

There’s no doubt the absence of Jack Grealish last weekend in their defeat to Leicester was a big blow but the reports suggest Grealish could be back for this game. That will be a massive boost to Villa as they are nowhere near as dangerous as an attacking threat without him.

That said, Leeds have been looking very sharp at home and they have beaten teams around them in the table in recent weeks and I just think that after a thumping win at Villa Park, Leeds will be keen for a repeat dose of that here.

I was surprised at how easily Leeds United beat Aston Villa when the two teams met back in October but I think with the potential return of Jack Grealish to the team, Villa will be looking for revenge. However, Leeds home form has been good of late so while I can see Villa scoring their customary goal, I do feel Leeds will do enough to land a 2-1 win.

Leicester have a good recent record against Arsenal winning four and losing just two of the last even games between the two teams. Given their recent form, and the fact that they have improved somewhat at home in recent times, they should be confident of getting the job done here too.

The Gunners recent form isn’t great with three defeats in their last four games and only one win in their last five. It is a problem that has been an issue for Mikel Arteta all season, consistency, and it is one that he seems unable to quite resolve as yet.

Arsenal’s biggest problem has been goalscoring with just 31 goals scored this season. Defensively they have been solid, conceding just 26, which is better than all but two teams inside the top ten above them in the Premier League.

I think this will be another tight game and probably will turn out to be like the game at the Emirates earlier in the season. Leicester pinched that one late on and I have a sneaky feeling they may well do the same here.

Chelsea’s improvement under Thomas Tuchel has been marked. In their first eight games under their new manager, they have won six and drawn the other two, conceding just two goals in the process and last week won away to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in what was a massive morale-boosting result.

However, they face a Manchester United side that is unbeaten away from home for the entire season in the Premier League. The way they are set up with Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial plus either Mason Greenwood or Dan James, they can hurt any team with their pace on the counter attack.

However, United do have 48-hours fewer to recover for this game after their Europa League tie at home to Real Sociedad on Thursday and while many players will be rested for that, I think some won’t and that could lead to a bit of fatigue.

As such, I think both teams unbeaten records will stay intact here as while I would have probably just favoured United here, I think the lack of Pogba and Chelsea’s newfound defensive resolve means that this one will likely end up as a draw.