OUR Correct Score man Daniel McCulloch (@danmcc84) delivers his best bets from Saturday's Premier League action.
West Ham v Swansea | Saturday 30th September 2017, 15:00
Having tipped West Ham to win 1-0 against Huddersfield, I have learned my lesson and am going to have a saver on 2-0 on this occasion, as well as the same 1-0 selection for Saturday.
To be truthful, this is more of an anti-Swansea bet than any kind of confidence in a West Ham side with just one league victory this season.
As a neutral, the honesty of Swans boss Paul Clement has impressed me this season. Rather than bemoan a late goal that cost his side a point at home to Watford last week, he simply said “You can't afford to perform for only 40 minutes” in this league.
He was similarly frank after the home loss to Newcastle and away point at Southampton. If I was a Swansea fan, however, I would be concerned that my side was being outplayed so frequently.
On paper, their away record looks very good so far this term. They have five points from three games and are yet to concede a goal. However, on further analysis, the 71 shots they have faced this season should be a real source of concern.
Only a combination of excellent last-ditch defending, inexplicable misses and brilliant goalkeeping has kept their opponents scoreless so far and I do not believe such luck can continue for much longer.
Additionally, they failed to have a shot on-target themselves in two of those games and overall their tally of 11 to date is three less than any other side. Given that goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has also made the most saves, you have an idea of the pattern of Swansea matches this term.
Despite all this, I would find it difficult to back the East London side at odds-on, but as stated in a previous column, I believe that Slaven Bilic is still in a job due to his ability to win this type of match.
The Hammers won 1-0 on six occasions last term, including against Saturday’s opponents. BetVictor are offering 6/1 on them repeating the trick. Have a saver on 2-0 at 9/1 with SkyBet as well.
Chelsea v Manchester City | Saturday 30th October 2017, 17:30 | BT Sport
Free-scoring Manchester City face arguably their first real test of the season when they travel to West London to face Champions Chelsea.
That they do so without Sergio Aguero obviously makes me slightly more cautious although ultimately, I find it impossible to oppose Pepe’s side at present.
I thought the Citizens were the better side for the majority of both matches between these two last season. They lost both games, however, so I can see why many punters will be siding with Antonio Conte’s men on Saturday evening.
Chelsea have been impressive since they lost on the opening day of the season to Burnley, with their victory against Atletico on Wednesday night particularly notable.
That said, I simply feel City have better players and as they are also due some luck against this opponent, I will take Bet365 up on their offer of 10/1 on a 2-1 victory for Pepe’s men.
Since the Catalan arrived in Manchester, his side have won four of their 22 away games by this margin and I think this is a big price on them making it a fifth this weekend.
Best Bets
West Ham v Swansea – West Ham to win 1-0 (6/1 BetVictor)
West Ham v Swansea – West Ham to win 2-0 (9/1 SkyBet)
Chelsea v Manchester City – Manchester City to win 2-1 (10/1 Bet365)
