EPL Matchday 5 best bets: Pressure mounting on Arteta, Arsenal

by Alex Moretto
Rich Linley - CameraSport / CameraSport / Getty

There's a four-way tie for atop the Premier League table entering the weekend, but it's the other end of the spectrum where the value resides.

Here's what's on tap for Matchday 5:

HOME DRAW AWAY
Newcastle (+200) Draw (+255) Leeds (+130)
Wolves (-110) Draw (+255) Brentford (+375)
Liverpool (-500) Draw (+580) Crystal Palace (+1250)
Norwich (+120) Draw (+235) Watford (+240)
Burnley (+280) Draw (+250) Arsenal (+100)
Manchester City (-650) Draw (+745) Southampton (+1700)
Aston Villa (+150) Draw (+235) Everton (+175)
Brighton (+175) Draw (+220) Leicester (+165)
West Ham (+340) Draw (+285) Manchester United (-130)
Tottenham (+340) Draw (+275) Chelsea (-125)

Norwich vs. Watford
Sept. 18, 10 a.m. ET

Still without a point, Norwich had no success navigating through a miserable stretch of fixtures to start the season. The Canaries have played Liverpool, Manchester City, Leicester City, and Arsenal, losing all four by a combined 11-1. To their credit, they were unlucky not to earn a point against the Foxes, with a late goal puzzlingly disallowed, and did well to make life tough on Arsenal at the Emirates last weekend. Still, pointless through four matches, this is a massive fixture against fellow relegation candidates.

Watford haven't scored since beating an injury-riddled Villa side on Matchday 1, struggling with a much more negotiable fixture list than Norwich's. The Hornets have created just one expected goal through two away matches, while the Canaries have managed 2.77 in two fixtures at Carrow Road. Despite what we've seen thus far, there are goals in this Norwich side. It's only a matter of time before Todd Cantwell and Teemu Pukki get going, while there's a lot to like about young attackers Christos Tzolis and Billy Gilmour. Daniel Farke is a smart manager, and I trust him to get a response out of his side with the pressure on.

Pick: Norwich (+120)

Burnley vs. Arsenal
Sept. 18, 10 a.m. ET

Speaking of pressure, Arsenal and manager Mikel Arteta are really feeling it. The Gunners picked up an important win last time out but face a very different test here against a physical and well-organized Burnley side.

The Clarets were unlucky not to get a result at Goodison Park on Monday night, and though they have just one point through four matches, there are plenty of positives to take from their performances. They've won on expected goals in three of their four matches - failing to do so only at Anfield, to no one's surprise - and catch Arsenal at a good time. Manager Sean Dyche inked a new deal to stay at the club through 2025, which is an excellent piece of business for Burnley, who'll celebrate with a valuable result on Saturday against a Gunners side that's failed to win on each of its last two visits to Turf Moor.

Pick: Burnley +0.5 (-115)

Brighton vs. Leicester
Sept. 19, 9 a.m. ET

This is where the fixture list becomes congested for Leicester, who are expected to win every match against sides not amongst the Big Six. But this is a tricky spot for the Foxes coming off a difficult week in which they faced Manchester City and Napoli, and now have to travel to the Amex Stadium on just two days' rest.

Brighton left it late against Brentford but picked up a valuable three points - a third win in four league matches for the Seagulls. They've been really strong to start the year and will be expecting to take something from this match. The Foxes have been underwhelming to start the campaign, posting a miserable minus-4.43 expected goal differential through four matches. They've especially struggled away from the King Power - they were thrashed by West Ham and lucky to beat Norwich - so you'd think Brendan Rodgers will happily take a point here.

Pick: Draw (+220)

Alex Moretto is theScore's supervising editor of sports betting. Find him on Twitter @alexjmoretto.

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