EPL: Premier League Best Betting Picks for Week 36

The English Premier League season is drawing to a close with just a couple of weeks left, and our EPL expert is here to make sure we enjoy the stretch run. He's back again with his Premier League best bets for Week 36.

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Well, things have officially gone from weird to “I don't really know how to explain what is happening” in the EPL. That statement slightly applies to my bets from last week, in particular Tottenham playing to a 1-0 win despite the fact that keeping a clean sheet is almost impossible for them, but I’m more focused on the chaos and desperation coming from the bottom half of the table.

Aside from Leeds, who had the unfortunate pleasure of facing City, many of the league’s bottom clubs played in an unusual Monday slate and it was… well, wild to be honest. The LOWEST scoring game had 6 goals and five of the six teams scored at least 3 on their own. Those results are absolutely staggering, particularly because the teams putting up crooked numbers are the same ones who have struggled to score all year (hence, why they’re in the bottom of the table).

But, while the end to end games are reason enough to enjoy that Monday slate, it was majestic to watch largely because it encapsulates how fucking incredible relegation is. While NBA teams are tanking for draft picks and last placed MLB teams are checked out by July, soccer clubs near the bottom of the table are clawing each other’s eyes out to survive the dismal reality of getting sent to a second tier. It’s both exciting and chaotic, with a nice pinch of meritocracy thrown in. American leagues will never have relegation - the owners now are too smart to put their investments at risk - but sports truly are better when relegation is involved.

Speaking of, let’s add some wagering to the mix to have even more fun.

Premier League Best Betting Picks - Week 36

Chelsea vs. Nottingham Forest - Saturday, May 13 at 10:00AM ET

If you trust Chelsea after one half assed performance last weekend, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you… In all seriousness, this year has been nothing short of fucking disaster for them and optimism isn't high around the Bridge these days, even after beating the MIGHTY Cherries of Bournemouth. I won’t complain, though, because watching Chelsea and their fans suffer is a true joy.

That said, I’m not exactly ready to go all in on Nottingham either. They’ve fought their way out of the relegation spots for now, but their 4-3 midweek win over Southampton wasn’t exactly a work of art (unless you count those abstract paintings where people splatter paint over a canvas like a 5 year old).

So, rather than place our faith in one team, we’ll go with a little bit of neither/both and bet BTTS. Chelsea, despite their anemic offense, should be able to find something against a Nottingham side who’ve kept 2 clean sheets since January. Nottingham, while on the right side of drop currently, aren't out of the woods yet and have found scoring form of late (10 goals in their last 4). I think each should find the back of the net, and then I’ll shut this one off and find a meaningful match to watch as soon as that happens.

PICK: Both Teams To Score (-108, 1.25 units) 

Brentford vs. West Ham - Sunday, May 14 at 9:00AM ET

At this point in the season, you do start to get some truly “meaningless” games. Sure, teams aren't going to just completely pack it in, but at a certain point it starts to be clear that neither has much to play for aside from pride. Both West Ham and Brentford are teetering on that edge, so I’m a bit reluctant to get heavy handed here, but I can’t pass up another opportunity to bet on our beloved Bees at home.

Brentford TT at home has, as i've said ad nauseam, been an absolute fucking work horse. They’ve scored 32 in 17 matches, which is damn near 2 per game, but they still don't get any respect from the books. And, while they’re probably out of luck as far as a spot in Europe is concerned, they’re neither completely out of reach nor are they a big club who will be jaded by meaningless games. I expect them to keep up the pace because simply surviving in the EPL is a big deal for them.

West Ham are also due for a bit of a letdown here. They won a huge match last time out over United and are likely clear of any relegation scare that existed a few weeks ago. More importantly, for our purposes, they’re also still alive in the Conference League with fixtures either side of this one against AZ in the semi finals, and I don't expect them to give much of a fuck here (they ay even rest some legs). Look for Brentford to find 2 once again.

PICK: Brentford Team Total Over 1.5 Goals (+108, 1 unit)