This weekend is the ninth round of Premier League action so let’s take a look at the pick of the goal betting opportunities.

West Ham United and Manchester City will get things underway in the early kick-off game that takes place at the Boleyn Ground in East London on Saturday. The Hammers are in a good run of form at the moment; sitting fourth in the table and averaging 1.5 goals per game at home. Their opponents are currently second in the league but may still be recovering from a mid-week trip to Russia where they played another disappointing Champions League game.

Pellegrini’s team have managed to score 2.5 goals per away game this season and concede an average of one per game. As a result, this games ranks highly as a contender in the over 2.5 goals market. Combine this with a City win at 11/10 with Paddy Power; or both teams to score at 20/21 with Bet365.

The next game that stands out is the clash between Southampton and Stoke City at St. Mary’s Stadium. The stats may have been bloated by the Saints 8-0 demolition of Sunderland last week but Ronald Koeman’s men are certainly full of confidence in front of goal. They have an average goal strike of 2 per home game while opponents Stoke have managed to net an average of 1.3 goals on their travels. Over 2.5 goals can be backed at 10/11 in this game with Paddy Power or Coral.

West Brom have a good home scoring strike rate this season with an average of 2 per game. Their opponents this weekend are Neil Warnock’s Crystal Palace who also have an impressive ratio of 1.8 per away game. Those are good stats in anyone’s book and make this game another over 2.5 goal candidate. This one is currently available at evens with several bookies.

The most eye-catching game of the weekend for the neutrals will take place at Old Trafford where Lois van Gaal’s Manchester United team host the current league pace-setters Chelsea. United are still lagging behind the top four but have managed to score 2.3 goals per game at home. Chelsea can boat an even more impressive average of 3.3 goals scored per away match. Both teams have injury concerns with United waiting for news on the fitness of Angel Di Maria and Jose Mourinho likely to be without top scorer Diego Costa. The Blues will also be hoping that Loic Remy, André Schürrle and Ramires can recover in time. Coral will give you 4/5 on over 2.5 goals in this game.

Over 2.5 goals:

West Ham United v Manchester City

Southampton v Stoke City

WBA v Crystal Palace

Manchester United v Chelsea