EPL Soccer Picks, Predictions, Best Bets: Man City draws level with Arsenal atop the table

Only five matches remain in the 2025/2026 EPL season as tensions rise with Arsenal dropping points to Manchester City last weekend. 

The gap is as close as it’s been this season; City are tied on points (70) with Arsenal after the Citizens’ victory last Sunday, meaning Arsenal must beat Newcastle to stay in close contention.

Meanwhile, United have really held their own this year and want to extend their hold on third place by defeating eighth-place Bournemouth on Sunday.

Mohamed Salah is finally on the climb, as he seeks his third goal in three straight league games when Liverpool takes on Crystal Palace.

Tune into the next set of Premier League matchups Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET before more games ensue this weekend.

Arsenal vs. Newcastle best bet: Arsenal ML (-200)

Arsenal lead the way in this fixture with 75 wins to the Magpies’ 64. Most recently, the Gunners won the last two straight encounters by one goal.

Mikel Arteta’s men are under immense pressure, as they’ve dropped six points in their last two games to City and Bournemouth, which is keeping the title race as alive as ever. They’re in their own heads at this point, in the midst of their worst stretch of games since the EFL Cup Final on March 22 – posting just one win in all competitions in April. However, regardless of their recent results, Arsenal are still aiming for a UCL and EPL title despite how hard they made it for themselves, and are -200 favourites in this match. 

The Gunners will showcase the same personnel as they have all season, with leading goalscorer Viktor Gyokeres set to score anytime at +120, followed by Kai Havertz – the sole goalscorer against City last match – at +140. With their title on the line now, they’ll have extra motivation for this matchup against Newcastle.

The Magpies have also dipped in the Premier League since their FA Cup and Champions League exit, losing their last three straight EPL matches and last four overall. On the bright side, their consecutive losses to Sunderland, Palace and Bournemouth were by just one goal. 

Newcastle were in seventh place and in contention for a top-six finish, but with so many losses this month, they’ll be lucky to finish in the top half of the league at this point. William Osula is the team’s most likely goalscorer in this match at +270 after netting four this season. Yoane Wissa follows him up at +320 after having a rough year with only one goal to his name.

If Arsenal can calm it down and play this one like every other game this season, simply outmuscling their opponents with set plays could be enough to score one goal and hold on for another three points with their typical defensive dominance.

Manchester United vs. Brentford best bet: Draw +290

Manchester United take on Brentford for the 16th time in history, as the Red Devils conclude a promising season. United are 2-1-2 in their last five games, but recently nabbed a brilliant 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea on Saturday with a 43′ Matteus Cuhna game-winner. They were completely dominated – 20 shots to four and just 40 per cent possession – but still managed to put their only shot on target in the back of the net, proving they have the focus and determination to stay in the top three this season. Benjamin Sesko (+155), Bryan Mbeumo (+200), Bruno Fernandes (+240) and Cunha (+280) all lead the Red Devils with the highest likelihood to score against the Bees.

Brentford is on a path to complete their best season in the EPL as they hold on to eighth place after five consecutive draws – six if you include the FA Cup regulation result against West Ham. They’ve locked down opponents defensively even when they couldn’t strike themselves, tying three of their last five league draws 0-0 – including their last match against Fulham on April 18. Igor Thiago nearly leads the league in goals with 21 at this point in the season and is the matchups’ most probable scorer at +135.

With United’s close recent results – 1-1-1 in their last three matches – and Brentford drawing their last five consecutive EPL matches, expect United to slip and Brentford to take home another draw here.

Mohamed Salah anytime goalscorer (+185) in Liverpool vs. Crystal Palace

The Egyptian International and former Golden Boot winner is back in his form with three goals in his last five games in all competitions, including two in his last two EPL matches. It’s a bit late in the season, but he’s starting to show signs of his former self. Against 13th-place Crystal Palace, this is tremendous value to back Salah to net his eighth goal of the season.