Good Morning ☀️,

It’s Lucas here, your Chief Predictions Officer at What Are the Odds?

The season’s barely started, and already, Ange Postecoglou’s looking for a new job. Yep. After just 40 days with Forest, he’s fired!

Still, with all that experience waving his arms on the sideline, who knows — maybe it’s time Arsenal considered dusting off ol’ Gunnersaurus Rex?

That news aside, here’s what else we’ve got for you in this week’s edition of What Are the Odds?

• Killer odds and sure shot predictions for this week’s top EPL games. 🦵⚽

• A little Gunnersaurus Rex history trivia to break things up. 🏟️🦖

• An Ange Postecoglou quote with an important lesson behind it. 🤡💀

Sharing is caring: Help grow the team and show your friends you care — send them this link https://whataretheodds.io/subscribe

⚽ Chelsea vs Sunderland
🏟️ English Premier League
Saturday 25 Oct; 16:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Looks like some people are underestimating Chelsea here — that’s left us with some great value on a likely Chelsea victory.

• CXSports says: Historically, Chelsea has dominated this fixture, with 23 victories out of 33 meetings. But let’s face it, Sunderland’s not exactly the same old slouch it was last time we saw them relegated in the Premier League, so history might not be the best indicator here. In particular, we can’t help but note Sunderland’s defense, which is second only to Arsenal’s if we judge by goals scored alone. And that could mean they’ll frustrate Chelsea this time around, particularly with their star attacker Cole Palmer forced to sit this one (and likely quite a few more) out. With all that said though, Chelsea, particularly at home, simply plays a better quality of soccer, and will likely edge this one through dominance in possession and the creation of more clear chances.

• Score prediction: 1-0 for Chelsea

Option #1

• Bet: Chelsea Victory

• Odds Range: 1.30-1.44

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (No)

• Odds Range: 1.68-1.87

⚽ Newcastle vs Fulham
🏟️ English Premier League
Saturday 25 Oct; 16:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: If Newcastle can at least maintain their current form, then this should be a reasonably certain victory for them.

• CXSports says: Right now, according to their predictive stats, Newcastle are underperforming (e.g., their xG suggests they should have theoretically scored more). Still, we can’t deny that their baseline is still higher than Fulham’s, even if Fulham just about matches Newcastle in terms of goals scored. In particular, Fulham’s defense has been miserable to put it mildly, with 12 goals conceded so far this season (1.5 goals per game on average). And their away record doesn’t offer much hope either. With all that said, don’t expect this to be a whitewash — Newcastle should edge it, but they’ll still have to deal with some pushback from Fulham.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Newcastle

Option #1

• Bet: Newcastle Victory

• Odds Range: 1.50-1.65

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.65-1.91

⚽ Manchester United vs Brighton
🏟️ English Premier League
Saturday 25 Oct; 18:30 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Maybe not our pick of the week, but a solid double-chance play nonetheless.

• CXSports says: Based on their respective seasons so far, there’s not much between these two in terms of baseline stats. They’ve both got a similar number of goals scored/conceded, and a similar number of points on the board. But there are some points where we can split the difference. Head-to-head data is one, with United holding a historical edge in this fixture. That combined with their home advantage might just be enough for them to edge it. But we probably wouldn’t go all in on that outcome — maybe take a double-chance option if you really must.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Manchester United

Option #1

• Bet: Double Chance (Man United/Brighton)

• Odds Range: 1.15-1.27

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.65-1.91

⚽ Brentford vs Liverpool
🏟️ English Premier League
Saturday 25 Oct; 21:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Liverpool’s losing streak has opened up some nice odds on their victory (which still remains highly likely). In short, terrific value!

• CXSports says: Let’s cut straight to the chase — Liverpool should take the victory in this one (even if they are on a losing streak). They are, after all, sitting towards the top of the table whilst Brentford’s not too far off the relegation zone, and we’re not deep enough into the losing streak to know whether it’s terminal, or just a stretch of bad luck (we’re backing the latter). But here’s the catch — Brentford, stubborn as they are, will likely fight back hard on their home ground, even if they aren't likely to fully stop Liverpool or match their class. That might see them equalise at some point in the game (if Liverpool hasn’t already gotten away by that point), but it won’t be enough to stop Liverpool walking away with a superior tally once the dust settles.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Liverpool

Option #1

• Bet: Liverpool Victory

• Odds Range: 1.54-1.70

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.42-1.59

Want to get the best odds on these predictions?

»» BET NOW ««

Anyone who’s followed Arsenal for any period of time no doubt knows about Gunnersaurus Rex.

But how much do you know about Gunnersaurus’s disappearance?

Let’s find out with a quick quiz from our friends at Masters of Trivia.

Question: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Gunnersaurus briefly made headlines for what reason?

• A: He tested positive for COVID-19

• B: He was transferred to Tottenham on loan

• C: He was made redundant in cost-cutting measures

• D: He unmasked himself as Mesut Özil

Think you know the answer?

Read to the end to see if you were right.

⚽ Arsenal vs Crystal Palace
🏟️ English Premier League
Sunday 26 Oct; 15:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Want a sure thing with some very decent odds? This is it.

• CXSports says: Aside from sitting at the top of the table, Arsenal’s leading the league on one other very important front — defensive solidity. With just three goals conceded all season, they’ve got a major edge over just about everyone in the league — even Crystal Palace, who aren’t too bad on the attack. Couple this with Arsenal’s more-than-decent attack (not top of the league, but not too far off) and their home advantage, and we should be seeing a reasonably comfortable victory from the home side.

• Score prediction: 2-0 for Arsenal

Option #1

• Bet: Arsenal Victory

• Odds Range: 1.32-1.47

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (No)

• Odds Range: 1.63-1.83

⚽ Aston Villa vs Manchester City
🏟️ English Premier League
Sunday 26 Oct; 15:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: We like City’s chances here, which certainly seem higher than the odds are suggesting.

• CXSports says: City will likely seek to assert their dominance all over this game through their usual fashion — possession and chance creation. And that will probably be enough to seal an on-the-road victory for them. However, it won’t be too easy, and Villa will likely respond, particularly if City drops off the pace in the second half right as Villa gains momentum. Not that that’s going to be enough for them to equalize. So long as City brings their A-game, then this one’s in the bag.

• Score prediction: 1-2 for Manchester City

Option #1

• Bet: Manchester City Victory

• Odds Range: 1.72-1.92

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.45-1.63

⚽ Bournemouth vs Nottingham Forest
🏟️ English Premier League
Sunday 26 Oct; 15:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: One of the more solid picks this week given Bournemouth’s attacking prowess and Forest’s weak defense.

• CXSports says: Expect Bournemouth to take the initiative right from the get go here as they look to capitalize on their scoring power and much better momentum gain an edge over a Nottingham Forest side that’s looked somewhat shabby on the back end in recent times. Of course, Forest may get a goal along the way with a little luck. But unless they do something radical with their defense between now and game day (or Bournemouth somehow loses their prime attacking form), expect Forest to concede multiple goals for any goal they do score.

• Score prediction: 3-1 for Bournemouth

Option #1

• Bet: Bournemouth Victory

• Odds Range: 1.51-1.70

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.61-1.82

⚽ Wolves vs Burnley
🏟️ English Premier League
Sunday 26 Oct; 15:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: It’s not often you see a bet with solid chances that goes against the consensus. But this is one of them and definitely worth attention if you like things a little more ‘spicy’.

• CXSports says: If it was any other game, we usually wouldn’t like Burnley’s chances. But against the Wolves — yeah, why not!? The Wolves have performed so poorly this season, we can more or less rule them out of any game they play by default. Sure, they have managed a couple of draws lately. And they may well do so here. But don’t go expecting anything more, even if this will likely play out as a reasonably close game between two of the league’s tail-enders.

• Score prediction: 0-1 for Burnley or 1-1 draw

Option #1

• Bet: Double Chance (Draw / Burnley)

• Odds Range: 1.66-1.92

Option #2

• Bet: Burnley Victory

• Odds Range: 3.78-4.30

Make your sportsbook work for you!

»» BET NOW ««

Back in August (before he jumped ship to Forest), Ange was asked about his use of full-backs in the mid-field.

His answer?

Moral of the story?

It’s all well and good to copy from the greats.

But that doesn’t always mean what worked for them will work for you.

Clearly, Ange’s approach wasn’t the right fit for Forest, even if he did copy some of his tactics from one of the greats. Simply put, Forest just wasn’t ready to start playing this more attacking style of football

It’s a case of some good ideas being applied to the wrong context.

Maybe something to keep in mind next time you try to seek inspiration elsewhere.

Want to learn more about the team that just sacked Ange?

Masters of Trivia is the only trivia app where every player is rewarded. Play all the trivia quizzes you can handle and earn real rewards simply for participating.

Take Masters of Trivia for a spin with the Nottingham Forest Trivia Quiz today.

PS: The answer to this week’s question was [C] — He was made redundant in cost-cutting measures. Discover more trivia like this with the Arsenal Trivia Quiz.