Tag: EPL tips

Everton v West Brom: Toffees Still Dreaming of Champions League

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Everton currently lies eight points adrift of Liverpool in the race for the fourth and final Champions League qualifying spot ahead of this coming Saturday afternoon’s clash with West Bromwich Albion at Goodison Park.

A win for Ronald Koeman’s men would narrow the gap on their city rivals Liverpool to just five points, with Arsenal and Manchester United also still challenging strongly for a top four finish, something the Toffees haven’t achieved since 2004-05.

West Brom meanwhile, currently sitting eighth under Tony Pulis’ tutelage, go into the match on Merseyside just nine points short of their highest ever total of 49 in the Premier League. And with 11 matches still to play, the Baggies look in good shape to possibly even better their highest ever finish of eighth achieved in 2012/13.

However, to do so Pulis’ men could do with overcoming the Toffees on Saturday who currently holds a four-point advantage over them in seventh place. They will also have to contain the Premier League’s second top goalscorer Romelu Lukaku, who has bagged 18 goals already this season, one more than he finished with back in 2012/13 when on loan at The Hawthorns.

Everton to Win and Lukaku to Score a No Brainer

Everton’s number nine has been in imperious form of late, notching nine goals, seven of them in the league since the turn of the year, including four in one game against Bournemouth at the start of February. One goal more will see him beat his previous career high total of league goals, which he achieved last term while two goals will incredibly see him become the first Everton player since Gary Lineker in 1985/86 to hit 20+ league goals in a single season. The big Belgian has also scored his club’s first goal on eight occasions already this season and is the 3/1 favourite with BetFred and Ladbrokes to make it nine occasions on Saturday.

Koeman’s main concern, as always, will be how Everton will cope if something happens to Lukaku. Ross Barkley and right-back Seamus Coleman are Everton’s second top goal scorers thus far with a paltry four goals each, while West Brom’s Salomón Rondón is hardly streets ahead of them himself as West Brom’s top goalscorer with just seven goals this season and none since a hat-trick against Swansea in mid-December.

McAuley to Notch Once Again?

Baggies veteran centre-back Gareth McAuley, with six goals to his name to date, offers a huge threat in the air from set pieces, something Pulis perennially has his teams extremely well drilled on. The Northern Ireland international is a superb 13/1 with Paddy Power to increase his tally at any time on Saturday and a massive 35/1 to open the scoring, both wagers surely worth digging deep for.

However, with Lukaku in such impressive form and with Everton having lost just one league match at home all season, it’s difficult to look past them extending their record and my top tip for this one will be for the Toffees to come out on top in a match where both teams hit the back of the net. Bet365 will offer that exact outcome with lucrative odds of 3/1 available for any willing punters.

If Everton’s vociferous home support can cheer them to yet another victory on Saturday and a few other results go in their favour, the odds of Koeman’s men qualifying for the Champions League qualifying rounds for the first time in 12 years, currently on offer at 125/1 with Bet365, will undoubtedly lower. And if you’re thinking Everton achieving a top four finish is impossible, let’s just cast our minds back to Tuesday evening when Barcelona proved that sometimes dreams can come true when they sealed a stunning 6-5 aggregate victory over Paris Saint-Germain to progress to the Champions League quarter-finals despite losing the first leg in Paris 4-0.

As the great British poet and author C.S. Lewis once said: “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” Keep dreaming Everton fans, you just never know!

Man City to get Their Title Campaign Back on Track

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

THERE is a whole host of “must win” games in the Premier League this weekend and that is certainly the case when Manchester City host strugglers Swansea at the Etihad on Sunday afternoon.

After a mid-season blip, City finally looks to be getting back to their early season best form and are a very warm 1.20 favourite win and put the pressure on Chelsea at the top of the table with another three points against the Swans.

City arrives in confident mood after back-to-back wins scoring seven goals in the process and not conceding, and another easy win looks on the cards, despite Swansea arriving in Manchester in decent form themselves.

The visitors have won their last two matches as well including a famous 3-2 success at Anfield on their last road trip, but with City expected to let loose from the shackles in this one, this is going to be a long, tough afternoon for new Swansea boss Paul Clement.

I can see Pep Guardiola going for it for the remainder of the Premier League campaign which means that City matches are going to be very entertaining to watch and the one thing that looks certain in this one is goals and a lot of them.

Goals are the Way to go in Man City Matches for Remainder of Season

Nine of the last ten City games have seen over 2.5 goals and that has also been a winning bet in 12 of the last 14 in Swansea matches; the over 2.5 goals line at 1.40 is a very short price in that market, but it does look the banker in the match, and also at 2.05 with BetVictor over 3.5 goals looks worthy of support as well.

Whilst we are on the goals theme both teams have scored in the last seven matches between these two sides and a “yes” in this one is certainly a bet in the BTTS coupon this weekend at 1.95 with Betfair Sportsbook and at the 11.00 I will be taking City to keep their title challenge right on track with a 3-1 win with Bet365.

Sergio Aguero looks a shadow of the player he was at the start of the season. He’s clearly unhappy at the moment and is a false favourite at 3/1 to open the goal scoring.

The Argentinian striker’s days at the Etihad look clearly limited, his body language doesn’t look great and he’s far from a certain starter at the weekend.

New signing Gabriel Jesus looks the real deal and the long term replacement for Aguero and he can answer punters prayers with the opening goal at 4.50 with Paddy Power.

Southampton vs. West Brom – Tense, Exciting Battle for Mid-Table

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Two teams in solid form coming together in what will be a tactical and potentially cagey mid-table battle between two effective and organised squads.

Clash of the Overachievers

Southampton and West Brom have undoubtedly been two of the surprise packages of the season so far. Having seen second summer of transfer raids on St Mary’s, and a third managerial regime change in 3 successive seasons, Southampton were being tipped at the beginning of this season for possible decline.

Currently sitting in 7th place after a good run of form, taking 10 points in the last 5, and progressing in the EFL Cup with a 2:0 win away to Arsenal, Claude Puel is proving those critics wrong. A poor showing in the Europa League could end up being a mixed blessing for a side looking to finish in a solid Premier League position while competing in 2 domestic cups. Southampton has a game in hand over West Brom, playing Tottenham on Wednesday night in their post-Christmas fixture. This will be an important game for Puel, as a defeat here could spell the end of any hopes for his team to finish in a top 6 position, while a victory will see them keep pace while doing damage to an immediate rival.

Against West Brom, the Frenchman will have to deal with some absences: with Jordy Clasie definitely out and Alex McCarthy in doubt, as well as long-term injuries for Charlie Austin and Matt Targett. Having only 3 days between their previous game, as opposed to West Brom’s 5, could have an impact on overall squad fitness.

Getting back to their best

West Brom is currently 8th, only one point behind Southampton, having played one more. The Baggies will be looking to pick up important points in a game they have every reason to believe they can win, or at least take points. Tony Pulis’ squad have had some tough recent fixtures, playing Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea in the last four, with their win against Swansea the only bright point in a gruelling winter period. A closer look at those games, however, demonstrates an organised and capable West Brom side. Against both Arsenal and Chelsea, they only lost by one goal conceded in the last 10 minutes, and they weren’t exactly overwhelmed by United. Pulis generally puts his back to the wall against the bigger clubs, while targeting teams below or around him to try for consolidated results, and he will very much want to take 3 points in this last game of December.

West Brom is amongst the fittest squads in the League, with all first team players available, apart from Saido Berhino who hasn’t played a role so far this season.

Where is the value?

We have seen a clean sheet in the last eight games these two have played, and the last nine games split evenly with each team taking 3 wins, 3 draws and 3 losses. Picking a result seems to be quite a challenge, with West Brom having the edge in fitness, but Southampton having the home advantage.

It’s very hard to imagine this being a particularly high scoring game; Southampton has one of the lowest BTTS ratings in the league, as well as a good run of home clean sheets. BTTS/No and Under 2.5 goals looking like solid picks, they are both at 8/13 on Bet365. Some outside bets on a correct score could be interesting, with Southampton 1:0 and 2:0 at 19/4 and 7/1 respectively on BetVictor.