We go again.
LAS VEGAS — Here it is. The Premier League weekend is back and Matchweek 8 is all systems go. The international break has come and gone and in the aftermath we have a full schedule of PL action on-deck. Saturday through Monday fixtures. Hopefully I have some winners for you now. MW7 was a return to proper form with a 3-1 ledger. Weirdly, the miss was the *Best Bet by Darkseid Sports*. I’m looking to keep form while getting back on track with the featured play.
THE TIMELINE
COINCEDENTAL STADIUM of the WEEK
A new series depicting a stadium which corresponds to a play featured in The Premier League Prologue actions to open the show.
- City Ground, Nottinghamshire, England
MW4 POSITIONS PL
*Best Bet by Darkseid Sports* RECORD: 3-2-2 (Record displayed in Win-Loss-Push format)
2025-26 PUBLISHED BET RECORD: 11-8-2, 52.4% w/Push, 57.9% w/out (All plays, W-L-P format)
- Straight Bets: 11-4-2
- Parlays: 0-4 (?!?)
— ⚽️: “THE BTTS SPECIAL”
- CRYBOU BTTS (-40)
📚: William Hill/Caesars
KEY METRICS
- CRY: 2nd in the Table (2/20) in aggregate xG (12.7), aggregate npxG (11.9), xG/90 (1.82) & npxG/90 (1.70).
- BOU: is T10 in Progressive Passes (267), Progressive Carries (123), aggregate xG (8.4) and npxG (7.6) and npxG/90 (1.08).
KEY OPINION
This is a play on the consistent xG & xG/90 metrics of both clubs. Both teams play a style of football conducive to satisfying this wager.
MY TAKE
The BTTS Special has been very un-special thus far but I’m undeterred in the pursuit of delivering a winner here. To remain positive, myself and readers are on a two-week win streak with The BTTS Special. Not sure what I’m supposed to say really re: my take on The BTTS Special: I think both parties can score a goal in its respective match.
— ⚽️: NFO +.05 (-25)
📚: William Hill/Caesars
KEY METRICS:
- NFO: 5th in the Table in Progressive Carries (143) and 7th in GK SV% (75.7%).
- CHE: The Blues xGD/90 in-aggregate is just +0.17. It ranks 11th in GA/90 (1.29) and 17th (of 20) in GK SV% (59.1%).
KEY OPINION
- I just think Forest has to get going here, no? This is a play on desperation on the Tricky Trees end and an expected let-down spot for Chelsea as it looks ahead to Wednesday UCL play.
MY TAKE
It’s a play on the home Nottingham Forest as it hosts (wretched…they are my archenemies in this sport) Chelsea Saturday afternoon at City Ground right on the south end of the River Trent. It has to be now for Ange Postecoglou and the usually-Tricky Trees. They’ve been bad together. Like bad. I’m thinking the international break will have helped Forest citing team cohesion and with CHE involved in mid-week UCL play, here is a spot for Forest to come up with a result in the early (usually a slow-burn) Saturday fixture. I think it’s competitively priced, so I wouldn’t lay past -30.
— ⚽️: FUL +.5 (+35)
📚: William Hill/Caesars
KEY METRICS
- FUL: 7th on Table in Progressive Carries (131).
- ARS: N/A
KEY OPINION
I think the Gunners are ripe for the pickings here. Fulham has quality and has been good to myself and readers previously so why not here and why not now? At plus money on Spread? At Craven Cottage? I’m there. Mind you, ARS has *Tuesday* UCL play.
MY TAKE
It’s a play on Fulham receiving the half-goal when it opposes mighty Arsenal Saturday afternoon at Craven Cottage in southwest London. Let’s be real now: there isn’t much data, key metrics (see above) or digital cinema to support a try on Fulham but we’ll do it here. This play is solely based on the Gunners having a Tuesday UCL joust. I get it if you don’t want to walk down this path, but getting the half-goal at plus money in a poor spot for ARS to be good for me to take a Pasadena on.
GL🤝Play Responsibly
— ⚽️BB: WHU DNB (-25)
📚: FanDuel
KEY METRICS
- WHU: N/A (to-date metrics on the Hammers are to be taken lightly as a new manager was appointed very recently. Let’s wait for a sample size from the new regime.
- BRE: Bees rank 15-20 on the Table in most of the metrics I speak of here. There isn’t much to spotlight when the club is poor in total.
KEY OPINION
- I see this as a spot where a club with a new manager coming out of the international break can beat a substandard opponent at home.
MY TAKE
For the *Best Bet by Darkseid Sports* for MW8, it’s a play on West Ham in the Draw No Bet market. The Hammers showed something in Nuno Espirito Santo’s debut at Everton a few weeks ago and I think this is a spot here to stack on success. Metrically, these are two lesser sides in the Premiership. Brentford specifically is nothing special and could eventually get relegated. The West Ham locker room already responded more to the new appointment than it did during the previous managers whole tenure. At home, off a break, with a DNB reasonably priced? Ok, sure. West Ham Draw No Bet is your *Best Bet by Darkseid Sports* for the Premier League Matchweek 8.
FC Record YTD: 2-2
— ⚽️: SUNWOL ⬆️2.5 (+35)
I passed on this to focus on other positions. I guess there is some reservation in Sunderland scoring, but Wolves are poor and unknown for defensive masterclasses. I wouldn’t fault a bettor for playing this in-lieu of a hard Fulham try (see above).
MANCHESTER UNITED MINUTES
PREMIER LEAGUE MINUTES
BEYOND THE TABLE
You can get the Premier League table anywhere. It’s superfluous at MW8. I might check it out in January. But a table built on xG is something we can use for Sports Investment purposes in the now and Squawka has done solid, practical work in bringing us this PL table built on xG.
https://www.squawka.com/en/features/xg-table-premier-league-2025-26/
FUTURISTICS REVISITED
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REFERENCES:
- X
- Various individual and entity social media accounts on X as cited in this work
- Peacock
- USA Network
- NBC Sports
- FB Ref
- Opta Analyst
- Transfermarkt
- Squawka
- Grok
- Google Gemini
- NBC Sports Soccer
- CBS Sports App
- William Hill/Caesars
- FanDuel Sportsbook
- Getty Images
- Darkseid Sports Intellectual Properties
DISCLAIMER: The purveyor of Darkseid Sports (me) and the author of this writing (also me) has no affiliation, whatsoever, with Manchester United, the Premier League, any of the above athletes, managers, media entities, sports betting entities, social media accounts and/or any other corporate entity, either portrayed in written form or depicted in corresponding images. The author of this writing is a passionate and very serious Manchester United and Premier League fan.
INDUSTRY NOTE: I put considerable time and effort into this. Being the best is a process. Don’t plagiarize me, please. It’s already bad enough I’m totally excluded in the space yet have to be subjected to absolute hacks who get the run I don’t. As of this writing I have not seen any person or entity share the plays I have. So that makes me the source material. Any sharing or touting of my plays should include credit to Darkseid Sports. It’s easy. Failure to do so is an explicit proclamation of a gross lack of professional integrity on your part. I am also available to appear on your platform either via phone interview or in digitally written segment to feature my thoughts and selections, FYI.
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