Tag: football odds

Sunderland Simply Must Start Winning

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

David Moyes is a man under pressure. Sunderland is rooted to the bottom of the Premier League with only thirteen games to go. The arrival of Moyes at the Stadium of Light was seen as a move that would bring solidity to Sunderland. The reality has been much different. A procession of near misses in recent seasons with regards to relegation has taken its toll.

Whether the blame is with Moyes or with the Sunderland board is unclear. It has been slightly surprising to see Moyes still in a job in February. The demand to stay in the Premier League has never been higher. A creditable goalless draw with Tottenham and a 4-0 thumping of Crystal Palace were deceiving.

Is Sunderland Good Enough?

This is a big question? They were humiliated at home to Southampton with most of their crowd leaving early. With several relegation candidates picking up points recently, Sunderland is clearly under pressure. If they don’t begin to pick up points soon, it is tough to see David Moyes surviving until the end of the season.

Sunderland travels to Everton in what appears to be a really challenging encounter. Everton is clearly the best team in the Premier League outside of the top six. Ronald Koeman has done a fantastic job of pulling them together. They work to a really solid system that suits them. What Sunderland need is a couple of easier fixtures. Goodison Park certainly isn’t on that list.

Can we Back Sunderland to win?

Sunderland is a best priced 13/2 with SkyBET but even at those odds, it is difficult to see them winning. Sunderland just looks so poor at the moment. Everton is currently 2/5 with William Hill and that is almost like buying money.

The Black Cats are still in the hunt for survival and are only two points adrift of the safety zone. It is this that has kept David Moyes in a job. If that gap increases to five points or more then we can expect the board to take action. Bet365 are a best priced 17/4 for the draw and that is a good bet too.

So the decision is whether to bet on the draw or the home win? The better option is the home win. Sunderland simply doesn’t appear to be capable of getting a result against a top seven side away from home. Their 0-0 draw with Tottenham was misleading. The look of despair on Moyes’ face during their display against Southampton said it all. That was the look of a man who knew his team are in trouble.

Man City vs. Monaco, Falcao and Aguero at the Etihad

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Next Tuesday sees high-flying Monaco travel to the Etihad to take on an improving Man City. This is the first time these two sides will come together in Champions League history, and with both sides in fine goal scoring form, the potential is here for a true football spectacle.

Manchester City

City, currently sitting in 2nd place in the Premier League and coming into this game on a strong run of form, 6 wins out of 8 with 21 goals, Guardiola is looking to propel the club past the round of 16 for only the second time in the club’s history. Drawing Monaco seems to be a mixed blessing, avoiding a PSG side who put 4 past Barcelona last Tuesday will be preferred, but Monaco is nothing to be scoffed at. The blue half of Manchester will have high expectations, but their hopes could well be dashed.

Much of the current discussion at City is being generated by their forwards. The arrival of Gabriel Jesus has brought to bear the long-term commitment of talisman striker Sergio Aguero, now threatening a summer move to Real Madrid. Amidst the controversy, Jesus quickly found himself with a metatarsal fracture, putting him out of action until May, further complicating the matter. He joins Ilkay Gündogan on the bench, as well as John Stones who is still in recovery from a head injury that has put him out of contention since the end of January.

Monaco

Sitting 3 points clear at the top of Ligue 1, Monaco is in possession of some truly intimidating form. Unbeaten in all competitions in 2017, with 26 goals in only 8 games, Monaco are no lightweight draw for Man City, and could arguably be considered the favourites in this match. Should they get the better of City next Tuesday, and considering PSG’s phenomenal performance against Barca, this could well be the first season a French team has won Europe’s premier competition since Marseilles in 1993.

Radamel Falcao is the in form player to look out for here. Back at Monaco after unsuccessful loan stints at Manchester United and Chelsea, the Colombian has been truly scintillating so far this season. Joint 3rd in the Ligue 1 goal charts with 16, he has 5 in the last 5 games and will be looking to add to that tally against City. Alongside Falcao, Monaco is capable of putting out a dynamic and attack minded midfield, led by playmaker Joao Moutinho. Gabriel Boschilia is their only player out with an injury.

The value

There is no head to head data to look at, as these two haven’t met before, but it is worth noting that Monaco beat Tottenham 2:1 both home and away in the group stages. City, however, with more recent squad experience in the Champions League have already proven to be more capable of winning in Europe than their Premier League rivals.

I would expect this game to follow the Spurs game in a BTTS pattern, with both sides so strong up front: Bet Victor have BTTS at 13/20 and Bet 365 have City to Win and BTTS:Yes at 21/10. BTTS:Yes and Draw could also be a good shout, considering Monaco’s quality, but I would expect the home team to carry it here.

Can Porto Savage the “Old Lady?

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Porto has long since been considered to be one of the sleeping giants of European football. They went through a golden period in 2003 and 2004. Under Jose Mourinho, they won the Europa League followed by the Champions League. In fact, that win by Porto in the 2004 Champions League season can be considered to be the last time that any club won the competition that wasn’t on the “rich list” of European clubs.

Porto has twice won Europe’s premier club competition having also won in 1987. As top European clubs became richer, the leading teams left clubs like Porto behind. Juventus are also on the list of teams that were considered to be great once upon a time. They have to go back to 1996 for their last Champions League win.

Can Juve Roll Back the Years?

Juventus are definitely a side to be respected. They reached the 2015 Champions League final and gave the mighty Barcelona a scare before eventually losing 3-1. They travel to Portugal for the first leg of their last 16 tie with Porto. Porto crushed Leicester City 5-0 in their final group game.

Once again this highlights just how strong Porto are when at home. Juventus are clearly the favourites to progress over two legs. They have the advantage of being able to play the second leg at home in Turin.

Many people feel this could be their year. Barcelona appears to be out of the competition after losing 4-0 to Paris St Germain. Some experts remain far from convinced about Bayern Munich even though they demolished Arsenal 5-1. Juventus are one of those teams that could lift the trophy should the big three of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich slip up.

Where is the Value in Portugal?

Juventus, Manchester City, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla are a list of four very dangerous dark horses that could go all the way. Despite this, Juventus seem poor value to travel to Porto with Bet365 offering just 6/5. Considering a draw will be a great result for Juventus or even a 2-1 defeat, this seems like poor value.

Benfica defeated Borussia Dortmund at home 1-0 in what appeared to be a similarly matched Champions League game to this one. Meanwhile, Porto can be backed at 13/5 with BetVictor and this seems like much better value. Porto has always been traditionally strong at home. It has always been their away form that has let them down.

City to Keep Winning in a Goal Fest

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ME and odds-on favourites away from home in the Premier League don’t usually go hand in hand but there is a lot to like about Manchester City this week when they make the long journey down to the south coast to face struggling Bournemouth.

It’s a Premier League coupon that’s littered with heavy odds-on pokes but the 1.50 that is available with Stan James on City for this one looks one of the better of the short prices.

It’s very rare that I would suggest a play on any side that is odds-on away from home in still the most competitive league in the world, but I am expecting totally different ends to the season for this two and it’s hard not to get involved.

Last weekend City left it late to beat Swansea 2-1 at the Etihad with two goals from wonder kid Gabriel Jesus, and despite what’s been a disappointing Premier League campaign, they still remain in third position in the table and arrive on the south coast with three successive wins under their belt.

In recent weeks, manager Pep Guardiola has let his star-studded side off the shackles and City games for the remainder of the season will be good ones to watch.

In their last three wins City has scored an impressive nine goals and getting with goals certainly looks the way to profit at the Vitality.

Nine of City’s last ten matches have seen over 2.5 goals feature and at 1.57 with Stan James again that looks the banker in the match for me as it’s also been a winner in 11 of Bournemouth’s last 13.

Bournemouth is 7.00 with William Hill to win this game, and despite a win at home to Liverpool and an impressive home draw with Arsenal, that is not a price that I would go anywhere near with their current form.

The Cherries are in real danger of being dragged into a relegation battle. With no wins in their last six matches and a staggering 19 goals conceded in those matches, this is certainly worrying times for Eddie Howe.

At the weekend Bournemouth defended like school kids in the 6-3 defeat against Everton, and another freaky result looks on the cards but with the majority of goals for the visitors, so I also like City -1.5 goals on the Asian handicap at 2.20 with Bet365.

City have to go all out and win every remaining game now in Premier League, something that they are more than capable of doing since the arrival of new Jesus; he could be the answer to their prayers and Bournemouth need to stop the rot or they will be in the Championship, something I am not sure they can do.

Man United vs. Watford – Return of the Giant Slayers

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This Saturday sees Manchester United entertaining a resurgent Watford, and Walter Mazzari will be eager for a repeat of last week’s shock win against Arsenal at the Emirates. United are unbeaten in the league since October and are looking to preserve that run.

Man United

Coming off the back of 3 consecutive league draws, Sunday’s win away against Champions Leicester came as welcome relief for the United faithful. An impressive display from Mourinho’s men, if somewhat emphasised by Leicester’s complete lack of quality, sees them keep pace with the pack chasing 4th place. Currently sitting in 6th with 45 points, they are only 5 points behind Tottenham in second place; both Liverpool and Arsenal’s campaigns have fallen into disarray, and United now have a solid chance of claiming a Champions League spot next year. Their last Premier League loss was 4:0 against Chelsea in October, at a time when many were writing them off and declaring Mourinho to be past it. Since then, United have rallied under the Portuguese, quietly consolidating themselves into a position where they can mount a challenge on 4th place.

Watford

Watford had gone 7 league games without a win when they were dumped out of the FA Cup by League 1 Millwall. After that particularly poor performance, many were asking whether Watford would backslide into the expanding relegation fight. Their quality shone through against Arsenal, however, and they followed it up with a home win against Burnley. With 8 points in 4 games pushing them up to 10th, Watford is looking to be pretty much safe from the drop, bar a really shocking decline of form.

Head to Head

These two teams have played each other 3 times in recent years, United winning both games last season. This season, Watford have the opportunity to do the double against the Manchester giants, as the corresponding fixture at Vicarage Road in September saw Watford win 3:1, a game that brought as many plaudits down on Watford as harsh criticisms of United. Mourinho will be keen to avenge that result and score a victory against Mazzari, a man he once called “a hard working donkey” who would “never become a thoroughbred”. Mazzari will be eager to slay two giants in two weeks and get another one up on an old rival from Serie A.

Injuries

Marcos Rojo, Phill Jones and Timothy Fosu-Mensah are all in doubt for Saturday, and Wayne Rooney is currently suffering from an illness. For Watford, Costel Pantilimon, Christian Kabesele, Robert Pereya and Nordin Amrabat will all likely miss the game.

The Value

Despite Watford’s improving form and capacity for beating the top teams, I expect United to wear them down over 90 minutes. Dropping home points against Hull will be fresh in Mourinho’s mind and he won’t want to let it happen again here, and they will be all the warier after that defeat all those months ago. At 2/9 on Bet365, there is really very little value in backing a straight home win, but United to Win and BTTS/No at 2/1 might be worth a go.

Watford does have the potential to cause an upset, however, and backing them on a Double Chance at 5/2 with William Hill could be worth a pop.

Leicester v Man Utd: Foxes embroiled in relegation dog fight

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Leicester City welcome Manchester United to the King Power Stadium live on television on Sunday afternoon, desperate to get back to winning ways as they face up to the very real prospect of relegation.

Less than a year after their miraculous title win and despite taking the Champions League by storm and qualifying for the last 16, the Foxes’ defence of their Premier League crown has been nothing short of woeful. The club now sits just two points above the relegation zone and are currently as short as 7/2 with Bet365 to be relegated with 15 matches left to play.

Must win game for Foxes

On Tuesday evening, Leicester travelled to fellow relegation candidates Burnley and with a valuable point just moments away, Sam Vokes’ last minute strike, aided by his hand, snatched it away to suck the Foxes further into the mire.

Claudio Ranieri’s men have picked up just 21 points from 23 games this season with their away form a huge cause for concern to their manager and fans, with no wins on the road to date. Their home form has been nothing to write home about either with just five wins from 11 games. Sunday afternoon offers them another opportunity to improve that ratio whilst also improving their prospects of retaining their Premier League status.

United toiling in pursuit of top four finish

While Leicester battle the drop, United haven’t lost a single Premier League match since Chelsea thrashed them 4-0 at Stamford Bridge back in late October. Such a record usually indicates a club challenging for the title. But for Jose Mourinho and his players, the undefeated run has consisted of far too many draws, seven to be exact.

Now a daunting 14 points behind champions-elect Chelsea and four points outside of the Champions League places, United drew another blank on Wednesday evening when they failed to break down a stubborn Hull outfit with an inspired goalkeeper the difference between the two teams. United are now a massive 50/1 with Sky Bet to defy the odds and claim an unexpected 21st league title.

Failure to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition would represent a huge failure for Mourinho given the vast sums of money spent in the summer. Ladbrokes are more confident of United’s chances of a top four finish than their title hopes, though, quoting them as low as 11/8.

United favourites to extend Foxes’ woes

United go into this clash rightly proclaimed as favourites for victory, 8/11 with Paddy Power while Leicester, desperate for a reversal in fortunes are a somewhat tempting 9/2 with Bet365 to overcome the newly-announced wealthiest club in the world, according to Forbes magazine.

Not feeling a win on either side? You can get a decent 14/5 with BetVictor for United to once again draw a blank and Leicester to gain another point in their fight to avoid being only the second English club after Manchester City in the thirties to be relegated just a year after reaching their highest peak.

Fancy a flutter on first goalscorer? Jamie Vardy has failed to hit the heights of last season but is a cracking 17/2 with Paddy Power to strike first on Sunday, while United’s man of the season to date, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, is deemed more likely at 17/5 to notch that all-important first goal.