EPL 2021/22 Week 22 Soccer Picks and Predictions

Prospector Sam is here with your free soccer picks for this weekend's English Premier League soccer action.

North London Derby week is here! As a Spurs fan, this game is obviously a big fucking deal for me, but it also has some pretty serious significance in the EPL as both of these teams are vying for European spots. Also, on a less positive note, both are equally capable of going off the rails at any point and one bad loss in a game like this could just do it (if losing the Nottingham over the weekend hasn’t already done it to Arsenal).

This is also important to me on a personal level because I have the unfortunate privilege (aka I’m painfully stuck) with friends who root for Arsenal and I really want to shove a Spurs win down their throat (metaphorically speaking, of course. Be careful shoving anything down someone’s throat who still has their teeth, they can bite). Even worse, I have a running soccer chat with an Arsenal and United fan whose name and photo is controlled by the winner of the most recent matchup, and those two numbskulls are ruthless when it comes to mocking my pain. So, both because a Spurs win would be good for their success and because it’s an absolute necessity for me to hold the previously mentioned power which I certainly won’t abuse (if you two are reading this, know that I will abuse it), Let’s all hope Spurs don’t choke this one away.

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Free EPL Picks 2021-22

Manchester City vs. Chelsea: Saturday January 15, 7:30 AM EST

Well, I guess in all my excitement I forgot to mention this match, which is also sort of important because it pits the top two clubs in the table against each other. But, while I want to believe these teams are fairly competitive right now, nothing about their play over the last month or two says they are. City are clicking on all cylinders (and spheres, and whatever other shape you can think of) while Chelsea are just trying to keep their head above water, which obviously points us towards a comfortable win for the home side. But, while the untrained eye might go that route, I’ve been around the block too many times in the EPL to get suckered into a bad bet when the value isn’t right, and City -150 here just feels a bit too dangerous. Instead, I’m rolling with a safer bet in City Team Total, which plays into City’s quality but won’t burn us if Chelsea find some offensive form. Over 1.5 at -140 doesn’t sound all that lucrative, but Chelsea have conceded at least one goal in 8 of their last 9 EPL matches, City have scored in each of their last 10 (8 of which were 2+), and City don’t have a midweek fixture to deal with like Chelsea do. I think City put in at least two in this match, and -140 is about as good a number as you will ever see for this team which tells you that the value is there even if the return doesn’t wow you.

⛏️ PICK: City Team Total Over 1.5 (-140)

MORE: Man City vs. Chelsea simulator

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Norwich vs. Everton: Saturday January 15, 10:00AM EST

When the odds are right, I have no choice but to fade Norwich, and neither do you. This team is absolutely horrendous and can’t score to save their god damn lives, with 8 goals and a -34 GD through 19 games. That is exceptionally bad, and it’s a bit of a minor miracle that they only sit 3 points off 17th. But, while Everton are having a pretty bad year themselves, they have way more talent than the Canaries and I don’t think they can help but win this game unless they intentionally give up penalties or get a red card. Barring those circumstances, Everton is a far better team and their defensive weaknesses aren’t going to be exploited by a Norwich side that couldn’t score if you put 11 in the field and didn’t use a goalie. Getting a close to 1:1 payout on any team to beat Norwich is decent, and especially good if it isn’t one of the clubs fighting against a realistic relegation. Take Everton to handle this match before turning around and imploding again.

⛏️ Pick: Everton ML (-105)

MORE: Southampton vs. Newcastle simulator

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Tottenham vs. Arsenal: Sunday January 16, 11:30AM EST

Well, after that intro it would be a bit rude of me to NOT give a bet for this match, so I’ll do it even though my brain is absolutely contorted by Spurs and my desperate love/hate relationship with them. And, rather than trusting either of these teams (which feels like a foolish thing to do), I’m going with the over. Spurs defensive record looks solid at a glance, but this team basically didn’t play soccer under Santos and the hiring of Conte has opened them up more. Good for offense, bad for a defense outfitted with a bunch of hacks and opportunities will be there for the taking. Just ask Morecambe (yes, Morecambe, the team playing in England’s fourth division whose mascot is a shrimp that scored on Tottenham over the weekend) if you don’t believe me. As for Arsenal, their run of form recently to get up to fourth has been impressive but they’re still a thin side that should be overpowered by the offensive talent that Spurs have, and I think this game plays more open as both trade punches and find the back of the net a few times (a slap fight between young girls might be more appropriate for these two teams, but I’ll go with the boxing analogy because I’m a nice guy). The over has hit in 3 of the last 5 matches between these two, including a 3-1 game in the fall (we won’t say who won), and I think -108 is a good number for us here.

⛏️ PICK: Total goals OVER 2.5 (-108)

MORE: Tottenham vs. Arsenal simulator

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