Weekend Premier League Predictions: Best bets for the weekend

The final international break of the year has come and gone, and the Premier League returns this weekend.

The top two in the table go head-to-head at the Etihad in the early kick-off, while Arsenal visit Brentford on Saturday evening as they look to keep pace with the league leaders Manchester City.

Spurs will look to continue their ascension under Ange Postecoglou when they host a red-hot Aston Villa side on Sunday, before Manchester United make the trip to Merseyside to face Everton.

We've picked out our best bets for this weekend's action.

Manchester City vs Liverpool (Saturday, 12:30)

This has been the standout fixture in the Premier League calendar in recent years, and the sides meet on Saturday currently occupying the top two spots in the table.

The Reds' record at the Etihad doesn't make for great reading - just one win in 14 league visits, not to mention that City have reeled off 23 straight home wins.

Liverpool have won just two away league games so far - and a draw at Luton and defeat at Toulouse isn't exactly the kind of road form you want heading to the home of the champions.

However, I'm steering clear of the match result for my first tip and looking at the goalscorer markets, more specifically at Liverpool's 'Egyptian King'.

Mohamed Salah needs just two more goals to become the fifth Liverpool player to score 200 for the club, and he's scored more goals against City (11) than anyone else, apart from the red half of Manchester (12).

The 31-year-old scored in all four meetings with City last season, so backing him at 9/5 to do so once again seems like a reasonable price.

Newcastle United vs Chelsea (Saturday, 15:00)

Saturday's showdown between Newcastle and Chelsea has the potential to be one of the games of the weekend, in my opinion.

These are two sides that appeared to be heading in opposite directions prior to the international break, so this clash could be an intriguing one. Chelsea have only lost once in their last eight, enjoying a 4-1 romp against Spurs and going toe-to-toe with City in a 4-4 thriller before the break.

Meanwhile, Newcastle have sorely lacked consistency so far this term. The Toon Army have produced excellent performances against the likes of Arsenal in the league, Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, and Man City and Man Utd in the Carabao Cup. However, they have produced some howlers too, not least in their last game where they collapsed to defeat at lowly Bournemouth.

My angle for this game is the cards market - only Wolves have picked up more cards in the Premier League than Chelsea this season. Newcastle hardly have a disciplinary record to be proud of either, with Eddie Howe’s side amassing 33 bookings in their opening 12 games.

The two sides have picked up a combined total of 74 cards so far this term, so I'm expecting a flurry of cautions when the sides meet this weekend.

Everton vs Manchester United (Sunday, 16:30)

Finally, our last pick comes from the Super Sunday clash at Goodison Park between Everton and Manchester United.

It was confirmed during the international break that Everton have been docked 10 points for breaching one of the Premier League's financial rules, and with the Toffees set to appeal their punishment, it's fair to say that the Merseyside outfit feel hard done by.

I think Goodison will be rocking on Sunday, and there'll be a feel of 'us against the world' for Sean Dyche's men. The Toffees will be determined to prove everyone wrong, and despite United being the league's most in-form team before the break, they're scraping results together at the moment and their recent away record is atrocious.

Goodison will be a cauldron of noise come Sunday, and I fully expect United to crumble.

Check out the rest of our Football Betting Tips here.