Firstly, Merrrry Christmas from all at Betcirca! It’s been quite a year for us, i hope its been a splendid year for you too!
We thought we’d leave this Christmas treat here. You have until 12:45 tomorrow to take advantage of this juicy treble. Chelsea, Man Utd and Arsenal all to win at 10/1 with Coral. Max stake is £5. Free £50 i hear you cry? Well, the chances are pretty damn high this’ll win, so why not take advantage!
Click here to open an account to be offered the enhanced 10/1 price!
Chelsea, a team feared by all, are taking this season by storm. Betfred have already paid out on them to win the Premiership, and we don’t blame them.
We’ve worked out a way for you to turn £30 into £150 on Chelsea to win their 3 games over the Christmas period, and should they not win, you’ll get your money back as a free bet!
Simply head over to BetBright, go to Football -> Matches -> Premiership then add the three Chelsea games to your betslip and do an up to £30 treble.
Remember, should this treble not win, you’ll get a free bet up to £30 to use on whatever you want.
Don’t say we never treat you! Go on Chelsea!
The holiday period can sometimes prove pivotal in the title race and Chelsea go into Christmas three points clear of champions Manchester City.
Goals by John Terry and Cesc Fabregas were enough to claim all three points against Stoke at the Britannia Stadium on Monday and the Blues now face London rivals West Ham. The game gets under way at 12.45 and it will be interesting to see whether Sam Allardyce employs the same defensive policy which yielded a 0-0 draw last season.
Jose Mourinho labelled it “19th century football” but that did not concern Allardyce. His side are performing with a lot more credit this season and a top ten finish looks distinctly possible. A feisty encounter seems assured but Chelsea can match any team physically and can grab another victory.
Man City are on their travels at West Brom and they should keep up the pressure on Mourinho’s side with the minimum of fuss. They have won all but one of their last nine meetings with the Baggies and can be backed with confidence on the handicap.
Arsenal did not impress everyone with their 2-2 draw at Anfield but they should have too much fire power for QPR. Harry Redknapp’s side are still seeking their first away point of the season and this does not look like providing it. Olivier Giroud is in unstoppable form at present and he can fire the Gunners to victory.
Liverpool deserved their point against Arsenal, even if they required a goal deep into injury-time. They were down to ten men at the time so Brendan Rodgers will not doubt their commitment. They visit struggling Burnley who have failed to score in five of their last six games. The home side will see this as an opportunity to cause an upset but Liverpool’s superior quality can see them home.
Stoke were very poor against Chelsea on Monday night, other than a few fleeting moments in the second half. They are unlikely to get any change out of a visit to Goodison Park who will be looking to Ross Barkley to continue his return to full fitness. He will give their attack a new dimension which has been lacking in the early part of the season.
Manchester United’s progress was temporarily stalled by Aston Villa at the weekend, a costly result for those attempting accumulator bets on the top teams. They host a Newcastle side that has failed to progress from their shock 2-1 win over Chelsea. Van Persie has a fine scoring record against the Magpies and can again feature in an entertaining fixture.
Chelsea to beat West Ham by one goal @14-5 Ladbrokes
Liverpool to beat Burnley @17-20 Coral
Ross Barkley to score and Everton beat Stoke @7-2 Bet365
Van Persie to score and Man United beat Newcastle @7-5 Bwin
Olivier Giroud to score and Arsenal beat QPR @11-10 Bwin
Man City (-1.0 handicap) to beat West Brom @13-8 Spreadex
From the media reaction to Chelsea’s 0-0 draw at Sunderland on Saturday you would think that Jose Mourinho’s side were in crisis. Manchester City closed the gap to six points by winning at Southampton on Sunday while Arsenal and Man United are 11 and 13 points adrift respectively.
It certainly was not a vintage Chelsea performance at the Stadium Of Light, perhaps suffering a little from their fantastic 5-0 win in Germany in midweek. Perhaps more significant was the booking picked up by leading scorer Diego Costa, ruling him out of the Spurs clash on Wednesday night due to suspension.
His place is likely to be taken by Didier Drogba who has looked sharper with each appearance this season. Spurs may feel some relief that Costa is not present but Drogba has a good record against them and is still a fearsome opponent. Eden Hazard and Willian have been running rings around most defences this season but have not been converting a high percentage of chances. This could be the time for Hazard to return to goal scoring ways in another home victory.
Sunderland battled for 90 minutes and fully deserved their point on Saturday. They now have to do the same with Champions Man City the visitors. The glimmer of hope for Sunderland is the news that Kompany is out, leaving a makeshift defence. City have been leaning heavily on Sergio Aguero so far this season but they showed at St Mary’s that they have plenty of other players capable of scoring, Frank Lampard included. I cannot see the Black Cats holding out here, despite having beaten City 1-0 in their last four clashes here.
Southampton’s bubble appears to have burst with the onset of a run of tough fixtures. The warning signs were clear at Villa Park on Monday where they had to fight hard for a point before suffering a 3-0 loss at home to City. A trip to the Emirates Stadium could see a second consecutive loss, although they did beat a sub-standard Arsenal side here in the League Cup. Olivier Giroud should be sharper for his 80 minutes at West Brom on Saturday and he can get his name on the score-sheet in a home win.
The final game on Wednesday should result in three points for Everton against struggling Hull City. The Tigers have looked pretty toothless of late while Everton nearly snatched a point at White Hart Lane.
Eden Hazard to score and Chelsea win @9-4 Bwin
Sergio Aguero to score and Man City win @7-5 Betfred
Olivier Giroud to score and Arsenal win @11-4 Bwin
If Chelsea could replay one match from last season it would be the home game against Sunderland in April. They suffered their first loss at Stamford Bridge under Jose Mourinho after an incredible run of 77 games.
They had taken the lead early on but failed to convert several chances before allowing Sunderland back into the game. In desperately chasing a winner, they were caught out on the break and a slip from Azpilicueta resulted in a penalty that gave Sunderland all three points. The game ended with angry scenes as Mourinho’s assistant Rui Faria was sent to the stands after confronting referee Mike Dean.
After Chelsea’s brilliant performance in beating Schalke 5-0 away on Tuesday, they will be looking to continue their dominance in the Premier League with a win at the Stadium of Light. Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas continue to impress and it may be worth taking a chance on the latter scoring first on Saturday. He has scored more goals against Sunderland than he has against any other Premiership side.
The early kick-off is at the Hawthorns where Arsenal will be anxious to return to winning form in the League. They have lost their last two matches against Swansea and Manchester United but steadied the ship by securing their place in the knockout phase of the Champions League on Wednesday.
Alexis Sanchez is in unstoppable form at the moment but the man to support here could be Olivier Giroud. He missed the game against Dortmund as he omitted from the Champions League squad through injury. He looked very sharp when coming on and scoring against United last week.
Man United have crept quietly into the top four after a poor start. Their last-gasp equaliser against Chelsea and win at Arsenal have suddenly given the team renewed confidence. They should brush aside a dour Hull City side without too much difficulty with Rooney and Di Maria likely goal scorers.
Liverpool are something of a mystery at the moment and did not exactly shine with a 2-2 draw against Ludogorets in midweek. They are at home to Stoke and would gladly take three points in any way, shape or form right now. They should just manage it but possibly by just a single goal.
Sunday’s action features high-flying Southampton against Man City. The Saints dropped points at Villa Park on Monday and most pundits will be waiting for them to start their inevitable slide down the table over Christmas. They have some tough games ahead of them but at least they catch City on the rebound from their epic clash with Bayern Munich. Take Southampton to hold out for another draw despite the presence of Sergio Aguero.
Olivier Giroud to score and Arsenal win @9-4 Paddy Power
Cesc Fabregas to score first v Sunderland @9-1 Ladbrokes
Diego Costa to score and Chelsea win @6-5 Ladbrokes
Man United to win by 3 or more goals @31-10 Boylesports
Wayne Rooney to score and United win @7-5 Bwin
Angel Di Maria to score first v Hull @6-1 Bet365
Liverpool to win by a single goal @11-4 Skybet
Southampton and Man City DRAW @23-10 Skybet
Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho has been stressing the importance of Chelsea securing their place in the knockout phase of the Champions League this week.
The Blues currently sit top of their group and have two matches to play but a win over Schalke would be good enough. That would give them the luxury of playing a dead rubber against Sporting Lisbon in their final match, something that Mourinho would greatly appreciate with the Christmas fixture list looming.
Chelsea have dominated the early part of the season in the Premier League, so much so that bookmakers Paddy Power have already paid out on them winning the title! That may be a little premature but you certainly cannot take anything for granted in the Champions League.
Schalke grabbed an unlikely point in the reverse fixture on a night when Chelsea failed to take a string of opportunities to move into a two-goal lead. Schalke’s class players on the night were the scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and the provider Julian Draxler. The loss of Draxler for this match will be a severe blow to Schalke as he looked dangerous throughout at Stamford Bridge.
Schalke are now managed by former Chelsea player and coach Roberto Di Matteo who took in October. No Chelsea fan will ever forget Di Matteo’s relatively short spell in charge, winning the FA Cup and a first ever Champions League for the Blues. He has only been at Schalke for six weeks so it is ironic that he comes face to face with Chelsea so quickly. The German side are currently second in the group but vulnerable with Sporting Lisbon just one point behind them.
Chelsea remain unbeaten in all competitions despite a scare at Maribor in their last group match. In the end, they could and should have won the game but Eden Hazard uncharacteristically fluffed his penalty kick. I don’t expect Chelsea to treat this game with anything less than full commitment and that has so far proved more than enough for most teams. If anything, the Blues have looked sharper away than they have at home.
The speed with which Hazard and Willian launch their counter-attacks is breath-taking but the decisive factor has to be Diego Costa. There has been much debate about his fitness in recent weeks but he looked sharp against West Brom on Saturday and looks tempting at around the 4-1 mark to open the scoring. Backing Costa and Chelsea to win has been a winning formula this season and could easily be the answer again on Tuesday.
Diego Costa to score first @4-1 Paddy Power
Diego Costa to score and Chelsea to win @19-10 Ladbrokes
Chelsea to win by one goal @11-4 Skybet
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
