Category: Football Tips

Premiership Preview – April 26th

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

There are two big games in the Premiership on Sunday with Everton playing Man United before the big London derby between Arsenal and Chelsea. The title race cannot be decided but Chelsea will have one hand on the trophy if they can avoid defeat at the Emirates Stadium.

The action begins at Goodison Park where Everton will be hoping to continue their recent revival against a United team still smarting from their 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge last weekend. Louis van Gaal felt that it was possibly United’s best performance of the season and that can only be taken as a compliment to Chelsea.

The Blues have a phenomenal recent record against the Gunners and Mourinho is yet to lose to a side managed by Wenger in twelve meetings. There is clearly no love lost between the pair, as illustrated by their minor skirmish on the touchline at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season. Arsenal are in far better form now and a win would give them a psychological boost as well as delay Title celebrations for the Blues.

Mourinho has managed to coax his side through some tricky matches in the absence of Diego Costa and they are definitely a weaker team without him. Olivier Giroud was used sparingly in last week’s FA Cup semi-final and this could be his chance to shine in a big London derby.

Manchester United’s progress has left them on the brink of securing a Champions League spot and that will have been the brief given to Van Gaal in the summer. They played well against Chelsea but lacked a cutting edge, something that the signings of Falcao and Di Maria was meant to provide. Even with those two players falling well short of expectations, they are still a force to be reckoned with and Juan Mata has been impressive in recent weeks.

Roberto Martinez has not had a great season at Everton but a recent rally has at least given them a respectable league position. They have managed clean sheets at home to Burnley, Southampton and Newcastle in recent weeks so will not be easy to break down. United can just edge this one with Mata worth considering in the goal scorer markets.

Man United to win @6-5 Bet365

Juan Mata to score at any time @4-1 Skybet

Everton 1 Man United 2 @9-1 Bet365

Man United to win by one goal @14-5 Ladbrokes

Arsenal to win by one goal @3-1 Ladbrokes

Arsenal 2 Chelsea 1 @19-2 BetVictor

Olivier Giroud to score at any time @9-4 BWin

Premiership Preview – April 25th

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

It’s another cracking weekend of Premiership football action including the London derby between Arsenal and Chelsea on Sunday. A win for the Blues would put them on the brink of lifting the title and I shall be previewing that game separately.

Saturday’s action kicks off at 12.45 with a really tricky fixture between Southampton and Tottenham. Both sides have taken their foot off the gas in recent weeks as the dream of a Champions League spot disappeared over the horizon. Whatever magic Ronald Koeman used in the early months of the season at St Mary’s seems to have worn off and they are struggling for goals and points. Tottenham are totally unpredictable at present and this looks like a game to swerve.

While the title battle seems to be heading to a predictable conclusion, the same cannot be said of the battle for Premiership survival. You have to admire the battling qualities of Burnley and Leicester in recent weeks and the two sides clash on Saturday afternoon at Turf Moor.

The Clarets have home advantage but they are meeting a Leicester side with an incredible never-say-die attitude. Sometimes these games can be disappointing but I just have the feeling that this could be a thriller and it may be worth looking at some ambitious score draw prices.

QPR have also won many admirers with their battling performances in recent weeks. They are at home to London rivals West Ham who have lurched into obscurity after a promising first half of the season. It’s almost as if they reached their points total too soon and did not really believe they could maintain that level of form. QPR are in their position because of their horrific away form but they have always been difficult to beat at home. Take Charlie Austin to score in a home victory.

Aston Villa did this column a massive favour last week when knocking Liverpool out of the FA Cup. Christian Benteke’s contribution helped us to a 20-point profit on the game and they now travel to Manchester City. Villa are still not safe from relegation so any thoughts of Tim Sherwood picking anything other than his best team are wide of the mark. City beat a lack-lustre West Ham to end their own miserable run but is this match really a foregone conclusion as the bookmakers suggest? Maybe we should re-invest a little of last week’s profits in the hope of another Villa upset.

Burnley 2 Leicester 2 @15-1 BetVictor

Burnley 3 Leicester 3 @80-1 BetVictor

QPR to beat West Ham @29-20 BetVictor

Charlie Austin to score and QPR win @3-1 Paddy Power

Christian Benteke to score at any time @7-2 Totesport

Christian Benteke to score and Villa win @20-1 Paddy Power

Champions League Preview – April 22nd

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Hat’s off to Bayern Munich for their 6-1 demolition of Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday night. I didn’t see that coming after their poor display in the first leg. Fortunately Barcelona won by a two-goal margin to give us a return on our bets for the night.

If Wednesday night’s matches follow a similar script, it will be Real Madrid and Juventus going through and bookmakers make that the most likely scenario. However, it is unlikely to be straight forward for Carlo Ancelotti’s team as they meet local rivals Atletico with the tie locked at 0-0 after the first leg.

Atletico have beaten them four times and drawn the other three in their seven previous meetings this season. They ought to know each other inside out, which would probably explain the dull stalemate in the first leg. This match looks more likely to develop at the pace of a game of chess rather than a swashbuckling goal feast.

Another factor is the current injury crisis afflicting Real. They will be without Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema while Marcelo is suspended. Ancelotti believes that he has the strongest squad in Europe and that may well be the case, but they are surely going to miss four such high quality players.

Atletico are without the suspended Mario Suarez but are otherwise at full strength and will be looking to soak up the pressure and hit Real on the break. They have kept seven clean sheets in nine matches so they are well equipped to do so. The best value here may be in a low scoring game with a repeat of the 0-0 scoreline worth a bet at good odds.

In the other match, Juventus travel to Monaco defending a slender one-goal advantage. They have dominated Serie A in the last four seasons but this is the first time that they have been in the last eight since 2012-13. A semi-final place beckons and Carlos Tevez could be the man to put them there. The former journeyman Premiership player has been in great form all season and even the absence of Pogba should not prevent a win for the Italians.

They have a wealth of experience in their squad including Andrea Pirlo, Gianluigi Buffon and Patrice Evra. Monaco clung on desperately against Arsenal in the last round and, rather like PSG, this may be a step too far. It may be worth speculating on a comfortable win for Juventus.

Real Madrid v Atletico Madrid DRAW @13-5 BetVictor

Real Madrid 0 Atletico 0 @10-1 BetVictor

Goals under 2.5 @8-11 William Hill

Juventus to win @7-5 Ladbrokes

Carlos Tevez to score and Juventus win @7-2 Paddy Power

Monaco 0 Juventus 3 @28-1 BetVictor

Champions League Preview – April 21st

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The Champions League semi-finalists are to be decided this week. On Tuesday night, Barcelona should ease past PSG with a comfortable 3-1 lead from the away leg but Bayern Munich face an uphill struggle to reach the last four.

The Germans went into the away leg missing several key players and were beaten 3-1. They welcome back Xabi Alonso, Thiago Alcântara, Jérôme Boateng, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Philipp Lahm for the return leg. They will still be without Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben and that could be vital. Despite their fine display in the first leg, Porto can still be backed at close to even money to go through.

I don’t there are any Premiership sides that would be odds-on to overturn such a deficit but Bayern are dominant in the Bundesliga. They are twelve points clear of Wolfsburg and were elevated to Champions League favourites after beating Shakhtar 7-0. Pep Guardiola’s side have a true Champions League pedigree but Porto may still be under-estimated. Julen Lopetegui’s side can be dangerous on the break with Jackson Martinez and Ricardo Quaresma and they could be the value bet.

Barcelona have a much easier task at home to PSG after running rings around them in Paris. In fact, Luis Suarez did precisely that to David Luiz on two occasions. The £50million former Chelsea centre-back must have thought his nightmare was over after that World Cup humiliation against Germany. With Thiago Silva out through injury, Luiz could be left exposed on Tuesday night and it would be no surprise to see Barcelona ease to a comfortable victory.

The French champions do have Zlatan Ibrahimovic back in the side but they were very fortunate to get past a lack-lustre Chelsea in the last round and they simply don’t look good enough. Laurent Blanc has to try to formulate a plan for this match but I cannot see them going out to attack. I believe that they will try to stay in the tie in the first half before searching for a lifeline goal after the break. Barring a sending-off for the home side, this looks like a formality for the Spaniards to book their place in the last four.

Porto to qualify @10-11 Coral

Ricardo Quaresma to score at any time @7-1 Betfair

Luis Suarez to score and Barcelona win @6-4 Paddy Power

Lionel Messi to score and Barcelona win @10-11 Ladbrokes

Barcelona to win by 2 goals @10-3 Bet365

FA Cup Semi-Final Previews

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

FA Cup holders Arsenal face Reading on Saturday with Liverpool playing Aston Villa on Sunday in the semi-finals at Wembley.

The Gunners are the in-form team in the Premiership and have stormed into second place. They are now going in pursuit of leaders Chelsea who have been far from convincing in recent weeks. The clash between Chelsea and Manchester United could open the door for an unlikely Premier League title for Arsene Wenger’s side who host the Blues next weekend.

In the meantime, they will look to take another step towards retaining their treasured silverware in the FA Cup against Reading. With eleven victories in their last twelve matches, confidence could not be higher at Arsenal. They have Olivier Giroud almost scoring at will with ten goals in as many matches and a fully fit squad heading into the final games of the season. This time last year, Arsenal needed penalties to get past Wigan before stumbling to a two-goal deficit in the final. The pressure of ending their long wait for a trophy seemed to be almost too much.

They are now free from such concerns and I cannot see them faltering against an out-of-form Reading. Since sneaking past Bradford in a replay, Reading have lost three of their last four matches. They have failed to score in almost six hours of football and this looks set up for the Gunners to go through to the final in style.

Sunday’s clash between Liverpool and Aston Villa looks far more competitive with Tim Sherwood having led a revival in Villa’s fortunes. They are still fighting for their Premiership lives but the return to form of Christian Benteke has given them a very powerful weapon. When he is at his best, he can torment any defence in the league and Liverpool could be in for a difficult time.

Liverpool’s form has deteriorated in recent weeks and a top four spot seems to have slipped away from them. They are clinging on to the hope that Man City go into freefall and allow them to overtake them but it looks unlikely. Their extra motivation for reaching the final is to secure another trophy for departing skipper Steven Gerrard. On their best form, they should certainly beat Villa but it may be worth taking a chance on Benteke causing an upset.

Arsenal (-2.0 handicap) @15-8 Skybet

Arsenal 4 Reading 0 @12-1 Skybet

Giroud to score and Arsenal win @Evens Totesport

Christian Benteke to score and Villa win @13-1 Bwin

Benteke to score at any time @11-4 Ladbrokes

Villa to win by a single goal @7-1 Paddy Power

Premiership Preview April 18th – 19th

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The big match this weekend is the clash between leaders Chelsea and third-placed Manchester United in Saturday’s evening kick-off.

The Blues are edging ever-closer to the Premiership title but still have United, Arsenal and Liverpool to play. A defeat at home to a resurgent United could still cause a few jitters with the winning post in sight. Had Chelsea gone into this match with a fully-fit Diego Costa, it would be very difficult to see them slipping up. As it is, not only is Costa out but there is also a doubt about the fitness of Loic Remy.

United are in buoyant mood after beating champions and neighbours City 4-2 last weekend. That game could signal the end of the brief reign of Manuel Pellegrini while Louis van Gaal looks set to achieve his goal of restoring Champions League football to Old Trafford. The return to form of former Chelsea star Juan Mata has had a great impact in recent matches and he could be worth a bet to silence the home fans on Saturday.

The Blues still have Eden Hazard and he is the kind of player to rise to the big occasion. Jose Mourinho will be calling on him once more and I’m sure that he would settle for a draw, just as he did when City visited.

West Brom are really struggling for form and face a tricky visit to Crystal Palace. Alan Pardew’s side have put up some brilliant displays recently and another defeat for Tony Pulis’s side could have them looking anxiously over their shoulders in the league table. Among those scrapping for survival are Leicester City who are at home to Swansea. They dug out an unlikely 3-2 win at West Brom last week and will fancy their chances of following up here.

Southampton’s season was in danger of falling away but Ronald Koeman’s side beat Hull decisively last week. They travel to Stoke who have little left to play for. A draw seems highly likely but Pelle’s first goal in months will have boosted his confidence and the Saints could come away with all three points.

Sunday’s games are Man City at home to West Ham and Newcastle facing Spurs. The two home teams are among the worst performing sides in the league at present so it is a brave man that takes 2-7 about City. They may struggle to a win but 11-2 for a draw looks tempting while Spurs should see off a lack-lustre Magpies outfit.

Crystal Palace to beat West Brom @20-21 Paddy Power

Leicester to beat Swansea @6-5 Ladbrokes

Southampton to beat Stoke @11-8 Ladbrokes

Chelsea v Man United DRAW @5-2 Totesport

Man City v West Ham DRAW @11-2 Bet365

Spurs to beat Newcastle @11-8 William Hill