RADIO
We're offering up our favorite betting pick for each game along with a score prediction and will include a player to look out for in fantasy from each fixture. Before you read on, remember this essential thing: betting on sports should be fun. If you aren't having fun with it, stop. And never bet what you can't afford to lose.
This week could be do-or-die for many FPL managers with 12 teams having a double gameweek. It could also go a long way to deciding things at both ends of the league table. Following on the back of an international break, Premier League lineups are never as clear as we'd like. Still, we will try to navigate things as best we can.
We've been cranking up the soccer content at RotoBaller, too. We're still bringing you dedicated DFS and Fantasy Premier League content, on top of the weekly preview and betting content. Follow the team on Twitter (@LucidMediaDFS, @PhilOfSports, @EuanOrYouOut, @df_solutions, @wagmifantasy, and yours truly @Baseball_Jimbo), and reach out to any of us if you ever have any soccer questions or need advice on any of this.
Due to the fact we have an additional six fixtures in midweek, I'll be providing the usual game predictions for the 10 weekend games. But instead of offering the FPL advice and tips for each game, I've provided a table at the end of the article featuring all 20 teams and the players I'm looking at playing in FPL this week. With Wildcards and Free Hits set to be used in abundance, this week is surely going to play a pivotal part in any FPL success you have.
Saturday, April 1, 2023
Liverpool (+450) at Manchester City (-170)- 07:30 am ET
Score prediction: Manchester City 3 - 1 Liverpool
The last time City played in the Premier League, their 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace moved them two points behind league leaders Arsenal. Now, they find themselves eight points adrift and need to beat a side they've not won against in their last three EPL meetings.
Liverpool followed up their 7-0 demolition of Manchester United with a 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth, so trying to predict what version of Liverpool turns up this week is impossible. They do tend to 'play up' to their opponents but are also susceptible to taking a pasting themselves (their recent 5-2 loss against Real Madrid is a prime example).
Leeds United (+900) at Arsenal (-350)- 10:00 am ET
Score prediction: Arsenal 2 - 0 Leeds United
After their dramatic win against Bournemouth, Arsenal has had somewhat comfortable wins in their last two games, beating Fulham 3-0 and Crystal Palace 4-1. Manchester City is the only team to have beaten them at home and they've scored at least two goals in 11 of their 14 home games this season.
Leeds might have one eye on their midweek home game against Nottingham Forest but they have picked up seven points from their last four games and scored six in their last two. They have also conceded two goals in each of their last two games.
Fulham (+180) at Bournemouth (+160)- 10:00 am ET
Score prediction: Bournemouth 1 - 1 Fulham
Bournemouth has picked up twice as many points at home as they have away following their 1-0 win against Liverpool. They followed that up with a 3-0 defeat at Aston Villa but only four teams have been able to score more than once at Bournemouth in their 13 home games.
Fulham comes into the game following back-to-back league defeats in which they've conceded three goals in each. This also includes an FA Cup exit at Manchester United in which top scorer Aleksandar Mitrović and Willian both got sent off, so they will be suspended for this fixture.
Brentford (+425) at Brighton (-155)- 10:00 am ET
Score prediction: Brighton 2 - 1 Brentford
Brighton could move into the European qualification spots with a win this weekend although they are currently level on points with Saturday's opponent. They do have two games in hand, though. Both teams have picked up eight points in their last five EPL games and conceded four goals in that span, with Brighton scoring eight and Brentford scoring seven.
I give Brighton the edge considering the attacking midfielders they have at their disposal but this is the closest game to call this weekend. An away win wouldn't be a surprise in the slightest.
Leicester City (+195) at Crystal Palace (+155)- 10:00 am ET
Score prediction: Crystal Palace 1 - 1 Leicester City
Roy Hodgson has returned as manager of Palace until the end of the season. He will attempt to end a run of four straight losses and 12 EPL games without a win dating back to last year. Yet, they are still in 12th position and eight of their 10 remaining fixtures are against sides currently in the bottom half. Leicester is in a similarly bad run, winless in their last five games and with just eight points from their 12 games since the World Cup. They've failed to keep a clean sheet in that span as well.
Wolves (+160) at Nottingham Forest (+200)- 10:00 am ET
Score prediction: Nottingham Forest 1 - 0 Wolves
Forest at home and Forest away is like Jekyll and Hyde. At home, they've picked up 20 points from 14 games. If not for a stoppage-time penalty against Newcastle last time out, they'd be unbeaten in their last 10 home EPL games.
For Wolves, a 4-2 loss at home to Leeds in their last game means they are just three points above the relegation zone and have picked up just four points from their last six games. Their only two away wins this season have been at Everton and Southampton and their sole away clean sheet came at Bournemouth.
Aston Villa (+450) at Chelsea (-155)- 12:30 pm ET
Score prediction: Chelsea 2 - 2 Aston Villa
Just when it looks like Chelsea is finding their feet, they slip up and drop points at home to Everton. They have scored six goals in their last three EPL games and progressed to the Champions League quarter-finals. At least they have turned the corner somewhat.
Villa's recent resurgence continued with their 3-0 win against Bournemouth. 10 points from their last four games mean a win on Saturday will see them leapfrog Chelsea and into the top half. Villa has scored in their last 14 EPL games but they haven't managed to go five consecutive games without a defeat this season.
Sunday, April 2, 2023
Southampton (+370) at West Ham United (-135)- 09:00 am ET
Score prediction: West Ham United 2 - 0 Southampton
West Ham could find themselves at the bottom of the table if they lose this weekend but only Nottingham Forest and Villa have secured more points at home among sides in the bottom half. They are unbeaten in their last four home league games.
Southampton's late comeback against Tottenham in their last fixture means they've only lost once in their last four games. However, the nine goals they've scored on their travels is the third-fewest in the league and they've scored just once in their previous four away league games.
Manchester United (+195) at Newcastle United (+140)- 11:30 am ET
Score prediction: Newcastle United 1 - 2 Manchester United
Newcastle will be seeking to avenge their EFL Cup final defeat against Sunday's visitors and victory will see them move above Manchester United and back into the top four. Back-to-back 2-1 wins have seen them pull out of a slump in which they failed to win any of their previous five league games.
But the league's stingiest defense hasn't kept a clean sheet in six EPL games. Since their 7-0 shellacking at Liverpool, Manchester United progressed to the FA Cup semi-finals and Europa League quarter-finals but also managed just a goal-less draw with Southampton. They will be keen to get their league form back on track this week.
Monday, April 3, 2023
Tottenham (+115) at Everton (+245)- 03:00 pm ET
Score prediction: Everton 0 - 1 Tottenham
Everton's modest three-game unbeaten streak has seen them move out of the relegation zone. They've won three of their last four home games but have failed to score more than once in any of their last eight home games. Tottenham sacked Antonio Conte following his incredible rant after their 3-3 draw at Southampton.
They now face seeing their Director of Football (Fabio Paratici) being banned from the game for two years. They come into this game with their backs against the wall. That's certainly something they've had to do too often in recent seasons but they have picked up 10 points from their last five EPL games.
Betting Picks
The below table gives the odds for each of the three main plays for each game (moneyline, total goals, and both teams to score).
| Game | Moneyline | Over/Under 2.5 | BTTS |
| Man City 3 – 1 Liverpool | Man City -170 | o2.5 -160 | Yes -145 |
| Arsenal 2 – 0 Leeds | Arsenal -350 | u2.5 +150 | No -120 |
| Bournemouth 1 – 1 Fulham | Draw +230 | u2.5 -130 | Yes -130 |
| Brighton 2 – 1 Brentford | Brighton -155 | o2.5 -130 | Yes -135 |
| Crystal Palace 1 – 1 Leicester | Draw +225 | u2.5 -145 | Yes -120 |
| Notts Forest 1 – 0 Wolves | Notts Forest +200 | u2.5 -175 | No -120 |
| Chelsea 2 – 2 Aston Villa | Draw +285 | o2.5 -115 | Yes -120 |
| West Ham 2 – 0 Southampton | West Ham -135 | u2.5 -130 | No -120 |
| Newcastle 1 – 2 Man United | Man United +195 | o2.5 -115 | Yes -155 |
| Everton 0 – 1 Tottenham | Tottenham +115 | u2.5 -135 | No -105 |
| Season totals | 21/55 | 32/55 | 22/55 |
Fantasy Premier League (FPL) Plays & Picks
This is our new weekly section that will look at specific players (and teams) with regard to FPL. We'll look at the best defense to stack, low-rostered players set to offer big returns, high-rostered dud plays, someone to keep an eye on, and the best captain choice for this week.
Rather than the usual plays, I have ranked players for each of the 20 teams this week. The first table shows those sides with two games in order of how FPL-friendly they are. The second table does the same but is showing the teams with just one fixture this week.
The players are ranked as 'stars' (best plays), 'studs' (good plays), 'solids' (decent plays), and traps (popular players to avoid). Depending on if you are using a Wildcard or Free Hit, this should offer a guide to how best to navigate the double gameweek and offer suggestions on who to captain, who to leave on your bench, and who to avoid completely.
Double Gameweek Teams
| Rank | Team | Gameweek 29 | Stars | Studs | Solids | Traps |
| 1 | Brighton | Bre (h), Bou (a) | Mac Allister, Mitoma, March | Estupinan | Steele, Veltman, Gross | |
| 2 | Manchester United | New (a), Bre (h) | Rashford, Fernandes | Shaw | Fred, Dalot | Weghorst |
| 3 | Chelsea | Ast (h), Liv (h) | Chilwell | James, Félix, Havertz | Arrizabalaga, Pulisic | Mudryk |
| 4 | Newcastle United | Man (h), Whu (a) | Trippier | Isak | Pope, Saint-Maximin, Willock | Wilson |
| 5 | Brentford | Bri (a), Man (a) | Toney | Jensen | Nørgaard, Wissa | Mbeumo |
| 6 | Liverpool | Mcy (a), Che (a) | Salah | Gakpo, Núñez, Alexander-Arnold, Robertson | ||
| 7 | West Ham United | Sou (h), New (h) | Bowen | Ings, Fabianski, Benrahma | ||
| 8 | Aston Villa | Che (a), Lei (a) | Watkins | Moreno, Buendía | ||
| 9 | Leicester City | Cry (a), Ast (h) | Maddison, Barnes | Dewsbury-Hall | Ward | |
| 10 | Leeds United | Ars (a), Not (h) | Harrison | Summerville, Rodrigo | ||
| 11 | Nottingham Forest | Wol (h), Lee (a) | Gibbs-White, Johnson, Navas | |||
| 12 | Bournemouth | Ful (h), Bri (h) | Neto, Billing |
Single Gameweek Teams
| Rank | Team | Gameweek 29 | Stars | Studs | Solids | Traps |
| 1 | Arsenal | Lee (h) | Saka, Martinelli | Ødegaard | Zinchenko, Xhaka, Ramsdale, Jesus | |
| 2 | Manchester City | Liv (h) | Haaland | Grealish, De Bruyne | Aké, Akanji | Mahrez |
| 3 | Fulham | Bou (a) | Andreas, Solomon | Vinícius, Leno | ||
| 4 | Tottenham | Eve (a) | Kane | Pedro Porro | Perišić | Son |
| 5 | Crystal Palace | Lei (h) | Zaha, Olise | |||
| 6 | Everton | Tot (h) | Doucouré, Gray | |||
| 7 | Southampton | Whu (a) | Ward-Prowse | |||
| 8 | Wolves | Not (a) | Neves |
Good luck with those FPL teams and EPL bets. Remember to bet responsibly!
