Weekend Review: Premier League favourites fashion victories following international break

The return of the Premier League following the final international break of 2020 came with a strong sense of standardisation as favourites across the board sealed victories over the weekend.

The likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool eased past their opponents, while there were only two results which could be classed as shocks.

A Danny Welbeck-inspired Brighton sealed a 2-1 win over high-flying Aston Villa as José Mourinho’s in-form Tottenham side earned a 2-0 victory against a Manchester City side bereft of confidence.

Still feeling like this… #THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/QxS4iH9LID

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 22, 2020

Despite the lack of major shocks over the weekend, Kindred Group’s Ali Gill told EGR that results in fact went the way of the layers.

Gill said: “A welcome return of the Premier League, and one that we enjoyed more than the punters. Although we saw limited ‘shock’ results, results landed in such a way that we came out ahead in seven of the eight games played over the weekend.”

The aforementioned Brighton and Tottenham games provided layers with two of the three biggest results for Kindred.

Gill added: “Leeds and Arsenal’s 0-0 draw was by far the best result of the weekend for us, with Brighton’s win over high-flying Villa coming in second. Spurs’ impressive win over City went our way also, but given City’s recent performances it wasn’t the huge shock it might have been in seasons gone by.”

Glad to get off the mark for the seagulls.. More to come ⚽️💪🏿 pic.twitter.com/XqU3zW6AhU

— Danny Welbeck (@DannyWelbeck) November 22, 2020

Betway’s Chad Yeomans detailed how Tottenham’s chances of winning the Premier League this season jumped following the win over Pep Guardiola’s City side.

Yeomans said: “The big talking point from this weekend is Tottenham’s victory over Manchester City on Saturday with Mourinho’s men largely unfancied to win three points at home.

“It was a typical Mourinho winning performance, whose side are now into 11/2 to win the Premier League outright,” he added.

Elsewhere, in horseracing, Haydock was the place to be as the Betfair Exchange Stayers’ Handicap Hurdle and Betfair Chase both captured imaginations on Saturday.

In the Stayers’ Handicap Hurdle, Main Fact won his ninth race in a row prompting his trainer David Pope to label him a “freak of a horse”.

Betfred’s Alan Firkins said: “Several well-fancied horses prevailed on Saturday in the fabulous TV action from Ascot and Haydock, but none more so than Main Fact, under apprentice Fergus Gillard.

“The seven-year-old gelding won his ninth race on the spin and landed a massive ante-post gamble in the Betfair Exchange Stayers’ Handicap Hurdle,” he added.

In the Betfair Chase, Bristol De Mai emerged victorious for the third time in four years after ousting defending champion and pre-race favourite Lostintranslation.

The silver-coated King of Haydock Bristol De Mai regains the Betfair Chase at @haydockraces #ITVRacing pic.twitter.com/z77vIuDQSB

— ITV Racing (@itvracing) November 21, 2020

Ridden by Daryl Jacob, Bristol De Mai won by two lengths and saw off two-time King George VI Chase champion Clan Des Obeaux in second.

Gill said: “Bristol De Mai took another Betfair Chase at Haydock on Saturday. Despite his enviable record at the track and in the race, Lostintranslation and Clan Des Obeaux were both well-backed and the result left us nicely ahead.”