Premier League 3pm Kick-Offs: Back Albion to bag three opening-day points

Will Alan Irvine guide his West Brom side to an early victory?

The Premier League returns this weekend and regular columnist Mike Norman is back to preview each of the non-televised games, starting with five 3pm kick-offs on Saturday afternoon...

Leicester 3.3512/5 v Everton 2.47/5; The Draw 3.45n/a

It's perhaps stating the obvious but from a punting perspective you have very little to go on during the first weekend of the season in terms of form, and sometimes your best weapon is your good old gut instinct.

Leicester were very impressive in winning the Championship last season but moving up from that division to the Premier League is undoubtedly the biggest step up in class in professional football. In horse racing terms it's a bit like winning a low grade handicap and then having to compete in the Epsom Derby in your next race!

Worryingly, Nigel Pearson hasn't really made any progress in the transfer market so the logical choice is to back Everton at 2.47/5 to win the game.

The Toffees finished fifth last season and with the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Gareth Barry now permanent fixtures at the club, and the brilliant Ross Barkley tied down on a long contract, there's a feeling that everyone at Goodisonn Park is more happy than they normally are.

Opta tell us that Everton are unbeaten against Leicester in their last nine Premier League clashes and I'm happy to wager they make it 10 by backing the away victory.

Recommended Bet
Back Everton to Win @ 2.47/5

QPR 2.68/5 v Hull 3.1511/5; The Draw 3.412/5

Hull were a very well organised side under Steve Bruce last season and were difficult to beat when faced with opposition other than the 'big seven'. I expect a very similar story this season and perhaps that will be evident against QPR on Saturday.

Harry Redknapp's men eventually secured promotion through the play-offs and their ultimate aim this season will simply be to avoid the drop. For large parts of their Championship campaign their success was based on a solid defence and grinding out low-scoring victories. Again, I expect the Hoops to be a similar side this term.

So if you're looking for an opening day goal-fest then I don't think that Loftus Road is the place to go on Saturday afternoon.

In fact I fully expect both managers to set up their teams to avoid defeat first and foremost and I'm very much expecting a low-scoring encounter with defences on top.

I wouldn't put anyone off trading the 0-0 Correct Score (available to back at 9.617/2 from the outset) but I'll take the much safer option of two or fewer goals being scored.

Recommended Bet
Back Under 2.5 Goals @ 1.684/6

Stoke 1.981/1 v Aston Villa 4.77/2; The Draw 3.55/2

Stoke were superb at the Britannia Stadium last season and their home form will again be the key to any success that they have this term.

Many good judges are predicting that Mark Hughes' men will be the club outside of the big boys to make the most impact and it's difficult to present a solid case against that belief. New signings Phil Bardsley and Steve Sidwell will make them even harder to beat on home soil, though all eyes will be on former Barcelona starlet Bojan Krkic.

If Bojan can settle quickly into the Premier League and grab his fair share of goals then the Potters should comfortably finish around mid table, possibly in the top-10.

Unfortunately the same can't be said of Aston Villa. They were generally poor last season and the summer signings of Kieran Richardson, Philippe Senderos and Joe Cole amongst others have raised eyebrows for all the wrong reasons.

Opta tell us that Cole hasn't assisted a Premier League goal since 2010 and I think that just about sums up what the Villa fans are feeling about their new arrivals. A distinct lack of quality springs to mind.

On last season's form Stoke should breeze this. This is not last season of course, but at around even money for a home win I'm more than willing to wager the Potters start their campaing off with a victory.

Recommended Bet
Back Stoke to Win @ 1.981/1

West Brom 2.3211/8 v Sunderland 3.55n/a; The Draw 3.412/5

Following an eighth place finish in 2012/13 West Brom were very disappointing last term, though undoubtedly the loss of Romelu Lukaku and the goals that he brought to the team was a big contributing factor.

So too in all likelihood was the sacking of Steve Clarke despite the club's promising start of just three defeats in their first 12 games. The club took an age to appoint a permanent successor and it's fair to say that Pepe Mel was hardly a success.

Albion's new boss Alan Irvine promises to be far more successful and his summer signings have really caught the eye - especially 10m Nigerian striker Brown Ideye and experienced England international defender Joleon Lescott. Expect the Baggies to be much improved this season.

Sunderland performed a miracle to avoid relegation last term but they have failed to significantly strengthen their squad in the summer, and with Fabio Borini still not a Black Cats player my worry is that they'll struggle for goals without a top class striker in their side. Not that Borini is top class, but he's arguably better than what Gus Poyet currently has at his disposal.

Again, we don't have much to go on here but given what I've said already my strong hunch is that West Brom will be a much better side this term and I'm backing them to start their campaign off with a win.

Recommended Bet
Back West Brom to Win @ 2.3211/8

West Ham 4.03/1 v Tottenham 2.111/10; The Draw 3.613/5

This is arguably the toughest game of the opening day as I'm really struggling to make a strong case for either side winning.

I like the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham, I defnintely believe he will improve the side but unfortunately for him and Spurs fans, the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverool and Man City are either already too far ahead of them quality wise or have improved past them in recent years. Then there's the expected improvement of Man United under Louis van Gaal of course.

I think a top-six finish and a good cup run would be more than acceptable for Pochettino in his first season in charge.

As for the Hammers I can see them being similar to last season - they had one of the best clean sheet records in the division but the fact that midfielder Kevin Nolan was the club's top scorer tells its own story.

The Hammers have made steps to improve their fortunes in front of goal, not least by hiring Teddy Sheringham as an attacking coach, but I think they'll struggle to score a few past Tottenham on Saturday and that this game could be a cagey, low-scoring opening day fixture.

Recommended Bet
Back Under 2.5 Goals @ 1.9210/11