Premier League Predictions, Picks and Odds for Matchday 34

Betting Preview for Premier League Matchday 34

WagerTalk Premier League handicapper Kevin Dolan presents his matchday 34 predictions and picks around key Premier League matches including Manchester United vs Aston Villa as well as Crystal Palace vs West Ham. Which teams is he looking to pick up points and which will have goals being scored? Read his betting preview now!

Crystal Palace vs West Ham | Saturday 4/29 | 7:30am ET

Crystal Palace+170 | West Ham +180 | Draw +220

Early kick-off game on Saturday as West Ham travel across town to Crystal Palace and the Hammers can arguably feel a lttle hard done by after Wednesday’s 2-1 loss against Liverpool.

West Ham had been on a great run of form up to that point, losing just one of their previous ten matchups overall and coming off back-to-back four goal efforts against Gent and Bournemouth respectively also.

However, they fell short against Liverpool on Wednesday night with a late penalty appeal going against them as they suffered their first defeat in three weeks.

Crystal Palace meanwhile, after an incredibly bright start under returning manager Roy Hodgson, have struggled of late, failing to find the back of the net against either Everton or Wolves across their last two games and they’ll be hoping they can rectify that shortfall in South London on Saturday.

For whatever reason, Crystal Palace have struggled massively to generate offense at home this season, actually ranking as the worst team in the league in offensive xG at home over the calendar year so far.

That could potentially be offset this weekend however against a team in West Ham that despite shutting out Bournemouth and Fulham across their last two league road starts, had failed to keep a clean sheet away from home in the EPL across any of their previous twelve matchups stretching all the way back to last August, so goals could be back on the cards in this one.

Given the Both Teams to Score prop is currently being priced up at plus money on Saturday, we’re happy to side with both teams finding the back of the net in this one.

Prediction: Both Teams to Score – Yes (+100)

Manchester United vs Aston Villa | Sunday 4/30 | 9:00am ET

Manchester United -130 | Aston Villa +340 | Draw +295

Aston Villa continued their dominant run under Unai Emery last weekend with a 1-0 victory against Fulham in Birmingham.

The Villains pretty much dominated that game from start to finish, generating 14 attempts on goal to Fulham’s 1, as the Cottagers were happy to sit back and look to break on Villa with their counter-attack.

That’s not the first time Villa have struggled to break down teams who have sat off them this season either as they took a long time to break down a dogged Nottingham Forest side two weeks ago as well.

However, on the break, especially under Emery, this Aston Villa team have been exceptional this year, punishing teams like Chelsea and Newcastle who look to attack them in a more direct approach, with Manchester United being among one of those more attack-minded teams also.

The Red Devils will look to shore up their top four positioning with a positive result in this game and are in some decent form of late as well, booking their place to the FA Cup final on Sunday with a penalty shootout victory against Brighton.

That will mark Erik Ten Hag’s second appearance in a major cup final this season after winning the League Cup back in February, and with Manchester United current market favorites to tempt electric Napoli striker Victor Osimhen over to Old Trafford in time for next season as well, Ten Hag’s maiden season in charge of the English giants certainly qualifies as a resounding success.

However, there’s no denying Aston Villa are in some absolutely brilliant form right now, but need to continue that run also with four teams currently in the race for the two Europa League spots this season in what should make for an exciting finale.

Take Aston Villa getting the generous head start here on Sunday in Manchester.

Prediction: Aston Villa +0.75 (-120)

Leicester City vs Everton | Monday 5/1 | 3:00pm ET

Leicester City +110 | Everton +255 | Draw +245

Huge relegation battle on Monday night in the EPL as Everton travels over to the King Power Stadium to take on Leicester City.

In a pulsating back and forth encounter on Tuesday night that saw 28 attempts on goal and 4.19 expected goals also, both Leicester and Leeds were forced to settle for a draw in a result that really didn’t help either side in their pursuit of safety this season.

Everton meanwhile will play Newcastle on Thursday night as sizeable home underdogs (this preview goes out on Wednesday), and in the unlikely event of a home win for the Toffees in that one, they would finally leapfrog Leicester, Nottingham Forest and Leeds to find themselves outside of the relegation zone for the first time in months.

Whatever happens in Thursday’s matchup between Everton and Newcastle, this is another huge relegation clash on Monday night in the East Midlands, and one we could see goals in as well with Leicester looking much sharper in front of nets of late, averaging the second-highest offensive xG in the league since April 15th.

However, the Foxes have been equally as poor defensively this season, with Leicester ranking fourth from bottom in terms of goals against since January 1st.

Only Chelsea have a greater discrepancy in shortfall of expected goals versus actual goals than Everton this season, so the Toffees are still creating a ton of chances in games this year, just failing to capitalize on them.

Perhaps that changes here against a team in Leicester with one of the worst defensive records of the season as we lean Over the total on Monday between Everton and Leicester City.

Prediction: Over 2.5 (-105)