Matchweek 21 of the 2022-23 EPL season saw Arsenal maintain their barnstorming title run, while reality set in at two big clubs.
Here’s how it looked for punters:
Gunners pass another huge test
Another week, another barnstorming Arsenal clash that has further solidified their title assault.
The Gunners have proven up to just about every challenge thrown at them this EPL season. But when they went down 1-0 to Manchester United in the Premier League clash of the weekend at the Emirates — the same United side that inflicted their only loss of the season to date — Mikel Arteta’s men were up against it. Marcus Rashford’s sizzling strike on 17 minutes ($7.25 first goalscorer with Palmerbet) saw Arsenal ($1.88 pre-match favourites) with plenty of work to do to maintain their five-point lead atop the EPL table. But they did exactly that; Eddie Nketiah scoring either side of Bukayo Saka ($2.90 and $3.30 anytime goalscorers respectively) to seal a thrilling 3-2 win. That margin was paying $21 pre-match in Palmerbet’s correct score market. It has seen the Gunners shorten further, into $1.60, in the EPL title market. They started this season as $34 outsiders.
Eddie Nketiah has scored 19 goals across his last 26 starts for Arsenal in all competitions, including 13 in his last 13 starts at the Emirates Stadium 👏#ARSMUN pic.twitter.com/tTP2hiLMgE
— Premier League (@premierleague) January 22, 2023
Reality sets in at Liverpool, Chelsea
If Arsenal and United’s clash was electric, Liverpool and Chelsea’s was anything but.
Despite the fact it was ninth hosting tenth, many had wondered whether these two giants’ mid-table standing was unreflective of where they were truly at. Sure, it hadn’t been a great EPL season for both, but both are better than this, no? A drab 0-0 affair ($14 pre-match) suggested not, and presented far more questions than answers. The primary one at this stage is: is Champions League football out of reach for these two. The Reds and Blues started this season as $1.06 and $1.67 Top 4 hopes respectively. Now, those odds have ballooned out to $3.60 and $12. Liverpool are without a win in 2023, while Chelsea have now gone six EPL away games without a win — their worst run in over seven years.
Summary of Liverpool vs. Chelsea 🤝 pic.twitter.com/Ghb6MMsS53
— B/R Football (@brfootball) January 21, 2023
Lampard gone as Everton firmly in the mire
Saturday’s clash between West Ham ($1.80) and Everton ($4.60) had a macabre intrigue, with the losing club’s manager likely to be under huge strife. Both David Moyes and Frank Lampard had gone winless in their previous seven EPL games, and fans of both clubs were growing increasingly restless. As it turned out, pre-match predictions were correct. A Jarrod Bowen brace propelled the Hammers to a much-needed 2-0 win, and on Monday — after less than a year in charge at Goodison Park — Lampard was given the boot.
The Toffees need a manager capable of giving them an immediate bounce. In 19th place on just 15 points (equal with bottom-placed Southampton), the team that started the season as $4.50 relegation chances are now into $1.50 with Palmerbet.
🗣️ "Everton are the worst run club in the country"@Carra23 discusses Everton sacking Frank Lampard 💬 pic.twitter.com/Y07E7sWSc8
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 23, 2023
