Matchday 25 of the EPL season is in the books, and we’re here to review it, identify the big takeaways, and examine the markets.
Around The EPL
Christian Romero is making headlines for all of the wrong reasons at the moment, and added another one to open Matchday 25 of the EPL season.
The Tottenham Hotspur defender saw red in the 29th minute for a reckless challenge on Casemiro, making things all too easy for Manchester United on their way to a 2-0 win, their fourth in a row.
Aston Villa needed to work hard for their point against AFC Bournemouth. Another Morgan Rogers goal put Villa in front in the first half before Rayan equalised only 10 minutes after the break.
Despite all of the talk around Arsenal’s potential to blow their lead at the top of the EPL table, they made sure to take the gift three points in front of them this week. Viktor Gyokeres scored twice as the Gunners cruised to a 3-0 win over Sunderland. In defence, Arsenal kept Sunderland to a lowly 0.17 expected goals to assert their dominance on both sides of the ball.
West Ham picked up a valuable three points in their efforts to avoid relegation, beating Burnley 2-0 at Turf Moor. It leaves Burnley winless in 16 EPL games and firmly in the relegation zone, 11 points from safety.
A pair of own goals were pivotal as Everton completed a second-half comeback to beat Fulham 2-1. In the end, Bernd Leno putting the ball into his own net in the 83rd minute capped off the game after Vitaliy Mykolenko did the same 18 minutes into the match.
Cole Palmer’s first-half hat-trick propelled Chelsea to a convincing 3-1 win over Wolves at Molineux. Liam Rosenior became only the second English manager to win each of his first four games in charge in the process.
Brentford’s pre-match price looked like a gift, and it paid dividends when Dango Ouattara scored the winner to beat Newcastle 3-2. The Busy Bees have now won four of their last five games on the road and are up to 7th on the table and $3.75 to finish in the Top 6.
Crystal Palace brought an end to their winless run in the EPL as Ismaila Sarr scored the only goal in their 1-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion. To finish Matchday 25, Manchester City kept their title hopes alive with a 2-1 comeback win over Liverpool.
3 Takeaways From Matchday 25
West Ham Rising
“As $2.15 favourites to beat Burnley on Matchday 25, now is the time to bet on West Ham to avoid relegation and look for value elsewhere.” – Fighting Off Relegation
The Hammers are on the up and earned a crucial three points in what was effectively a six-point game against Burnley. They kept their first clean sheet since their 3-0 win at Nottingham Forest in August to pull to within three points of Forest on the EPL table.
Crysencio Summerville’s form is playing a large part in their fight. He became the first Hammers player to score in five consecutive games in all competitions since Jesse Lingard did it in 2021.
⚽ vs. QPR
⚽ vs. Tottenham
⚽ vs. Sunderland
⚽ vs. Chelsea
⚽ vs. BurnleyCrysencio Summerville has now scored in each of his last five games for West Ham. 💪 pic.twitter.com/FYTqGk5eIY
— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) February 7, 2026
For the first time since the festive period, only three points separate 17th and 18th on the table. Wolves and Burnley aren’t in the conversation – they’re as good as relegated already. However, the battle remains between West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Leeds. Crystal Palace can’t be ruled out either as a club in disarray following the departure of Marc Guehi and confirmation that Oliver Glasner will be leaving at the end of the season.
To Be Relegated: West Ham – $1.40, Nottingham Forest – $4.33, Leeds – $9.50, Tottenham – $11
Palmer’s Masterclass
Cole Palmer has now scored three hat-tricks before the break in the EPL, having also done it twice in 2024. He’s the first player ever to do it three times and is also responsible for three of the last four instances.
He scored two from the spot as Joao Pedro caused havoc in the box for Matt Doherty and Yerson Mosquera to give away penalties. Palmer scored his third from open play, sweeping high into the net on the back of a ball from Marc Cucurella.
It’s worth noting that Palmer still isn’t at his best after dealing with lingering injuries. Four of his last seven goals have come from the spot, which suggests some reliance on penalties to score at the moment. Still, as $1.52 favourites to beat Leeds on Matchday 26 during the week, expect Palmer to be among the scorers again.
City Stay Close
Manchester City have, uncharacteristically, left a lot of points on the table in recent weeks. There is a good chance they’re left kicking themselves at how they’ve performed over the last month while failing to significantly close the gap on Arsenal.
However, their 2-1 win over Liverpool came at the right time to stay within six points of the league leaders as we head into the final third of the EPL season. Erling Haaland’s dramatic late winner sealed the three points for Manchester City and kept them close enough to apply pressure on Mikel Arteta’s men.
Erling Haaland: “We managed to stay through and never give up. This is what I loved about Bernardo’s goal; he just wanted another one straight away.
He gave a signal, not only to me, but the whole club and also the fans that, ‘Come on, let’s have it!’
In the end, this is what… pic.twitter.com/wndlO56nG7
— City Report (@cityreport_) February 8, 2026
Most encouraging is the way City dominated. They registered 10 shots in the first half and should have led at the break. Particularly when keeping Liverpool to three shots before halftime – all off-target. But even as Liverpool took an unlikely lead, City fought back. They’ve fallen short in so many big games recently, but not here.
The unnecessary dismissal of Dominik Szoboszlai certainly helped, but the result is a fair reflection of City’s performance. They should be encouraged heading into their next fixture against Fulham as $1.32 favourites while cheering on Brentford to upset the Gunners as $4.80 outsiders.