Premier League Predictions - EPL Betting Preview For December 15-17

EPL Betting Preview Including Predictions and Picks

WagerTalk Premier League handicapper Kevin Dolan presents his Premier League prediction preview heading into December 15-17 matches. He gives betting previews for key matches including Tottenham at Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United at Chelsea. Which teams is he looking to pick up points and which will have goals being scored? Read his betting preview now!

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Tottenham at Nottingham Forest | December 15 | 3:00pm ET

Tottenham -135 | Nottingham Forest +345 | Draw +300

Tottenham faces Nottingham Forest on Friday night over at the City Ground after coming off a very impressive 4-1 victory against Newcastle last weekend, a result that snapped Spurs’ five-game winless run in the league.

For Forest, that five-game winless run is something that has become all too familiar, with the Tricky Trees not having won a game in the league since early November, and slipping from 12th to 16th in the table as a result.

In fact, Nottingham Forest ranks as the worst team in the league since that timeframe, with boss Steve Cooper now the next favorite to go according to bookmakers.

However, despite the board looking for a new injection of life in the East Midlands, Steve Cooper is a manager much loved by both the players and the fans alike, and with the pressure continuing to mount on him ahead of this game, the City Ground could well be bouncing on Friday night with an electric atmosphere to back their man.

It’s not just in the atmosphere where Nottingham Forest could gain an advantage in this game either, with the Tricky Trees ranking as a top-five team in the league this year in defensive xGA at home, a defensive unit that could well stifle a side in Tottenham in this one that has vastly overperformed their metrics on the road this season.

According to expected goals differential, Nottingham Forest is the play here at +0.75 as they actually own the better numbers of the two on a straight home/road form split, and with the fans and players alike continuing to back Cooper, expect a best-effort from Forest on Friday.

Premier League Prediction: Nottingham Forest +0.75 (-110)

Sheffield United at Chelsea | December 16 | 10:00am ET

Sheffield United +1020 | Chelsea -395 | Draw +530

Former Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder returned to his old club in style last weekend as he secured an excellent 1-0 home win in his first game back in charge against a solid Brentford side at Bramall Lane.

That result has now brought Sheffield United level with Burnley at the bottom of the table as the Blades try to crawl their way out of the relegation zone after former manager Paul Heckingbottom was fired last week.

They face a Chelsea side in this one coming off three losses over their last four starts, giving up multiple goals in each of those games as well with Mauricio Pochettino continuing to struggle to get a handle on his team so far.

The Blades under new boss Chris Wilder will no doubt look to contain Chelsea again here, something they accomplished incredibly well last week against Brentford, restricting the Bees to just 0.72 xG across the entire match.

Therefore we can effectively throw out Sheffield United’s abysmal season-long defensive data ahead of this game and concentrate instead on what they bring to the table under their new manager, which is a tight, compact, aggressive style of play that forces opponents into committing errors.

Chelsea are the perfect type of opponents for that gritty style of play as well as no team in the league this season has amassed more total booking points than the Blues have, so expect Chris Wilder to target that and get his team stuck in here on Saturday.

Take Under 3 goals this weekend between the Blades and the Blues in London in what should be a tight, cagey affair in the English capital.

Premier League Prediction: Under 3 (-105)

Manchester United at Liverpool | December 17 | 11:30am ET

Manchester United +705 | Liverpool -295 | Draw +485

Manchester United were unceremoniously dumped out of the Champions League in last place on Tuesday night as they lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich in Manchester.

Losing a close game to Bayern certainly bears no shame in and of itself, with the Bavarian giants ranking as one of the world’s elite, but it was the manner in which the defeat came for Manchester United that was most concerning, with the Red Devils needing a win at all costs in that game to continue their European journey, yet coming out looking limp and lifeless in attack, creating a fairly pathetic 0.25 xG across the entire match with just one shot on target also.

Those kinds of performances are completely unacceptable for a club with the stature of Manchester United, and it’s no surprise to see Erik Ten Hag currently sitting only behind Steve Cooper right now in terms of next manager to go, and things certainly won’t get any easier for him this weekend against a rampant Liverpool side at Anfield.

The Reds have been absolutely sensational at home this year, generating a perfect seven wins from seven games, the only other team outside of Aston Villa to do so, and in terms of underlying data, Liverpool are simply out on their own, posting an electric +1.62 xGD/90 inside Anfield this season, with no other team coming close to matching those numbers.

Liverpool demolished Manchester United 7-0 in this venue back in March, a pretty shocking result in what traditionally has always been England’s biggest rivalry game, but that scoreline could well be on the cards once again here given how inept Manchester United has looked of late, combined with how ruthless Liverpool have been at home.

Take Liverpool to win by a margin on Sunday in their standalone fixture against Manchester United at Anfield.

Premier League Prediction: Liverpool -1.5 (-110)

Stoppage Time | Weekly Soccer Preview

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