Football Betting
Premier League Betting
Despite Chelsea’s recent blip in their away trip to Wigan they still look very much like the team to beat in the Premier League this season. With Joe Cole and new signing Yuri Zhirkov returning from injury the options available to manager Carlo Ancelotti are only increasing and the London side can continue their excellent start to the season with victory at Aston Villa in Saturday lunchtime’s clash.
Apart from their win at Anfield, Aston Villa have failed to hit the heights of last season and a draw last time out against Manchester City was a fair result. Martin O’Neill will do well to match last season’s sixth place finish this time out and I can see Chelsea further denting Villa’s European ambitions at 5/6.
The last league meeting between Blackburn Rovers and Burnley was in 2001 and not even the presence of the then Home Secretary, Jack Straw, could stop some pretty unpleasant post-match trouble in East Lancashire. Rovers did the double over their local rivals on their way to promotion to the top flight and the two meet in the top tier for the first time in over forty years.
Blackburn should avoid relegation under the canny stewardship of Sam Allardyce but they’ll struggle to match the top half finishes last seen under Mark Hughes. Burnley have shown enough home form to give them a fighting chance of staying up but at 3/4 I have to side with the Ewood side in this one.
To say that Wigan’s performances this season have been inconsistent would be something of an understatement. They matched Manchester United for fifty minutes before capitulating to a 5-0 defeat and went down to a 4-0 thumping at the hands of Arsenal. Yet, Roberto Martinez’s side went to Villa and won and ended Chelsea’s 100% start with a 3-1 win last month.
Athletic host Manchester City this weekend and City will be looking to keep up their good goalscoring form, netting thirteen times in their last five matches. Whilst tens of millions might have been invested in the likes of Robinho, Carlos Tevez, Roque Santa Cruz and Robinho, it has been serial troublemaker Craig Bellamy that has been City’s main man in recent weeks scoring in three of City’s last four league matches.
Many thought it would take some time for Mark Hughes expensive side to gel but the shrewd signings of experienced campaigners like Gareth Barry, Shay Given and Kolo Toure have given City some real solidity. They are 7/10 to triumph at the DW Stadium.
Championship Betting
For those of you who have backed this column’s advice regarding sleeping giant Nottingham Forest over recent weeks will have been pleased by their profit. Billy Davies’ side have won their last three games on the bounce and sit a point outside the Championship play-off places.
The Tricky Trees host Newcastle this weekend in arguably the biggest game of the Championship season to date - in terms of the size of the fan bases at least. The Magpies have stuttered slightly after a confident start that few expected and have drawn their last two matches at St James Park. Chris Hughton has added ex-Forest striker Marlon Harewood to his squad in recent weeks to give his team some much needed additional firepower.
The last time Newcastle played in front of the TV cameras they demolished Ipswich Town 4-0 at Portman Road but I don’t think this match will be quite so straightforward. Forest look increasingly like play-off contenders and I’m going to side with them again to secure their fourth win on the spin at a tasty 9/5.
Scottish Premier Betting
Rangers sit atop the Scottish Premier League after their hard fought 2-1 Old Firm win last time out and travel to St Johnstone this weekend looking to consolidate their top spot.
Walter Smith’s side had been struggling for goals prior to their win over Celtic and failed to hit the net in any of their previous three matches. Two Kenny Miller goals ended the drought and the Scotland striker should be fit to face St Johnstone on Saturday lunchtime. With the away side also likely to be able to call on Lee McCulloch, Kevin Thompson, Majid Bougherra and Kyle Lafferty they should finally end their away goal drought with a win at McDiarmid Park at 4/9.
La Liga Betting
For those of you who followed the advice of this column and tipped Sevilla to end Real Madrid’s 100% start to the season a fortnight ago you’d have been rewarded at a tasty 9/4. The Rojiblancos look the team most likely to break the ‘big two’ duopoly in La Liga and sit level on points with their Madrid rivals.
Real face Valladolid on Saturday and even at 14/1 I can’t make much of a case for the visitors.
Catalonian giants Barcelona travel to the Mestalla on Saturday to face a Valencia side sitting fifth in the early season table. Los Che have drawn their two home games 2-2 so far this season having been ahead in both and there has been criticism that manager Unai Emery is too conservative in trying to protect their lead. Still, the Mestalla is a hard place to go and win, and with Valencia boasting the likes of David Silva, Nikola Zigic and David Villa the 7/2 on them beating the champions is way, way too long.
Serie A Betting
What would historically have been a top of the table clash in Italy is consigned to a dull mid-table affair this weekend. AC Milan host Roma with both clubs languishing in mid-table after disappointing starts.
Leonardo is the man under most pressure as his misfiring AC side have failed to win any of the last three matches - a late Ronaldinho equaliser rescuing a point at Atalanta last time out. Claudio Ranieri’s side, conversely, have been on a good run since he took over at the club with Francesco Totti amongst the side’s recent goals.
It’s tough to go to the San Siro and win but with Milan’s current disarray Roma can take full advantage.
