Tag: Pep Guardiola

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.

Champions League – Bayern Munich v Barcelona

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

We correctly forecast a win for Barcelona with Neymar on target in the first leg of their semi-final against Bayern Munich. He was outshone on the night by Lionel Messi and Barcelona’s all-star line-up have one foot in the final as they prepare for the return leg on Tuesday.

It is probably dangerous to dismiss Bayern out of hand but the fact that they are 20-1 to qualify for the final says it all. Pep Guardiola undoubtedly had a game plan at the Nou Camp to stifle the Spaniards and hope to escape with a draw. That plan looked likely to succeed until the 77th minute when Messi opened the floodgates. A second goal followed from the Argentinian within three minutes before Neymar’s injury-time goal virtually sealed the tie.

Bayern Munich beat Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate two years ago but there seems more chance of that score being reversed than of Guardiola’s side reaching the final. A spate of injuries, notably to Ribery and Robben, has left Bayern looking a pale shadow of the side that were favourites for the Champions League only a few weeks ago. They have lost their last four matches without scoring a goal and there is no encouraging news on the injury front. It will still be a makeshift side that starts on Tuesday needing to score three times without reply to take the tie into extra-time.

By contrast, Barcelona have gone from strength to strength. They brushed aside Manchester City and PSG without ever looking in danger of defeat. They have found a way for Messi, Suarez and Neymar all to play in the same side and that is a fearsome front-line by any standards. In recent weeks they have beaten Getafe 6-0 and Cordoba 8-0.

Coach Pep Guardiola has dismissed rumours of a move to Manchester City in the Premier League and is contracted to stay at Bayern until the summer of 2016. Bayern had already wrapped up the Bundesliga prior to their recent run of defeats. Ribery, Robben, Alaba, Rode and Badstuber are all out and it is difficult to see anything other than a comfortable night for Barcelona.

Barcelona to win @13-8 William Hill

Bayern Munich 0 Barcelona 2 @17-1 BetVictor

Messi to score and Barcelona win @11-4 Paddy Power

Champions League – Barcelona v Bayern Munich Preview

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The second Champions League semi-final gets under way at the Nou Camp on Wednesday night when Barcelona face Bayern Munich in the first leg.

Barcelona were knocked out by Atletico Madrid at the semi-final stage last year but arrive here in peak form with all three strikers performing well. They were priced at 6-1 at the start of this year’s tournament but have been steadily cut to clear favourite at 7-4 ahead of both Bayern and reigning champions Real Madrid.

The reason is their dominant displays against Manchester City and PSG where they looked relatively untroubled. Luis Suarez took a long time to settle into the side but he is now playing well alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar.  With an attack that sounds like someone’s “dream team”, it is no wonder that they are favourites to win the Champions League for a fourth time in ten years.

This particular tie has the added interest of Pep Guardiola returning to his former club, this time in charge of Bayern. Having led Barcelona to 14 trophies, he is better placed than most to discover a way of beating them. The big problem for Guardiola is his massive injury list which includes several key players. The absence of Arjen Robben has been particularly keenly felt in recent matches while Franck Ribery, Holger Badstuber, David Alaba and Sebastian Rode are all absent.

Robert Lewandowski scored twice in the remarkable 6-1 second leg win over Porto but he may be forced to play in a mask on Wednesday after picking up a facial injury.  Veteran striker Claudio Pizarro was called upon in the weekend defeat at Leverkusen and Bayern will be desperate to escape with a good result here.

Neymar scored in both legs against PSG and has now scored in six of his last seven matches. The Brazilian is clearly in no mood to be overshadowed by Messi or Suarez and could be worth a bet to open the scoring here. Bayern Munich conceded three times at Porto and there must be a real danger that they could be out of this tie before the return leg. Barcelona have won their last eight Champions League appearances and have averaged over two goals per game during that spell.

Barcelona to win @8-11 Ladbrokes

Neymar to score first @5-1 Paddy Power

Neymar to score and Barcelona to win @5-2 Paddy Power