EPL Matchday 37 Odds & Picks: Away Wins for Southampton and Chelsea at Plus-Money?

• Matchday 37 of the English Premier League, the penultimate week of the season
• With only two games left, the fight for European places and to avoid relegation has reached crunch time
• We list the odds for all 10 games and preview three below, offering our best picks

It’s Matchday 37 of the English Premier League, the penultimate week of the season, and while Liverpool has had the title wrapped up for weeks, there’s still plenty to be decided in terms of European places and the relegation zone. While it’s also FA Cup semifinal weekend, the league action kicks off on Saturday with Norwich vs in-form Burnley.

We’ll list the schedule, show the odds, preview three games, and offer a pick for each.

English Premier League Matchday 37 Odds

All odds taken July 18

Pick 1: Bournemouth vs Southampton

Watford’s defeat by West Ham on Friday night has left the door slightly ajar for Bournemouth in their fight to beat the drop. They still remain in the relegation zone but have shown signs of fight – only going down 2-1 in the week to Manchester City – and are only three points adrift of 17th-placed Watford with two games left. Significantly, the Hornets have Man City and Arsenal left to play, so the Cherries of Bournemouth have a real chance if they can do themselves a favor.

For Eddie Howe’s men, it’s now-or-never and this clash against south-coast rivals Southampton is literally a must-win. With little to lose, the Cherries have no option but to attack and will look to take the game to Saints, who themselves are safe in mid-table. This potentially exposes Bournemouth to counter-attacks, which Southampton proved very adept at on Monday night against Manchester United, and makes the absence of key defender Nathan Ake all the more damaging.

Southampton are undefeated in their last five league games and have performed really well since the restart, even with little incentive. So, this will be close but the value is definitely with the +184 on offer for the Saints win. Bournemouth are 18th in the EPL for a reason.

Pick: Southampton to win (+184)

Pick 2: Tottenham  vs Leicester

Tottenham’s recent upturn has rekindled their chances of sneaking a Europa League place – something that looked beyond them three weeks ago – while for Leicester, a Champions League place is still within their grasp. The Spurs’ 3-1 win over Newcastle United last week, in which Harry Kane scored a brace, has opened up an opportunity that looked gone and Jose Mourinho will be desperate for his team not to fall at the penultimate hurdle. They are currently joint-sixth with Wolves, who have Crystal Palace and Chelsea still to play.

Leicester, meanwhile, stayed in fourth thanks to a 2-0 midweek win over Sheffield United and are fighting hard to claim that fourth Champions League place that for most of the season looked theirs for the taking. They hadn’t planned on an unstoppable Manchester United emerging from the lockdown, but given the Foxes play United on the last day, a draw here would not be a disaster. So, for me, that’s where the value lies.

Pick: Spurs and Leicester to draw (+240)

Pick 3: Liverpool vs Chelsea

While the Reds will want to sign off with a win at Anfield, the hard work has been done and Jurgen Klopp continues to rotate his squad. That extra five percent that comes with pressure and having something at stake is unavoidably missing, and one point from their last six available tells the story of a team with one eye on the summer break.

By contrast, the stakes could hardly be higher for Chelsea who, while still in third, have both Leicester and Manchester United breathing down their necks in the race for the Champions League. The incentive factor for the Blues is off the scale here and brings into play the away win at a tempting +250.

Pick: Chelsea to win (+250)