The acca last week was downed by, well, some poor picks, if truth be told. We certainly expected more from Barnsley and Leeds against Aston Villa and Millwall respectively, while Sheffield United’s good form was undone by a Norwich City side who have been poor on the road. Until Saturday, naturally.
The nature of accumulator betting is weeks of despair followed by a moment of unbridled joy as all selections land, so let’s see if we can get back on the winning trail with this week’s football accumulator tips:
- Manchester City vs Crystal Palace: Manchester City -1 Handicap (2/5)
- Southampton vs Manchester United: Manchester United to Win (4/5)
- Swansea City vs Watford: Under 2.5 Goals (3/4)
- Leeds United vs Ipswich Town: Leeds to Win (7/10)
- Wolves vs Barnsley: Wolves to Win (2/5)
- Acca Odds 9.49/1
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace: Manchester City -1 Handicap
To quote an old Robert Palmer classic, Manchester City are simply irresistible at the moment, and even if Pep Guardiola makes changes to his starting eleven – the Champions League returns on Tuesday/Wednesday – we would still back his side to overwhelm the Eagles on home soil.
Roy Hodgson’s new side recorded two firsts on Tuesday – their first goal scored and first win of the campaign, hooray for them, but that came in the Carabao Cup; a competition which most sides are taking less than seriously.
Victory may have given them a boost, but they simply aren’t playing well enough at present to repel wave after wave of Manchester City attacks.
Southampton vs Manchester United: Manchester United to Win
Shot shy Southampton are tiptoeing towards a bit of a damp squib of a campaign at present, and the manner in which they celebrated the tepid 1-0 win over Crystal Palace was typical of a team wholly lacking in confidence.
Low morale is not ideal ahead of a visit from Manchester United, who are experiencing anything but this term. They have now scored two or more goals in all six of their Premier and Champions League outings, and if they repeat the feat at St Marys you would suggest the Saints are powerless to prevent them from claiming all three points.
Swansea vs Watford: Under 2.5 Goals
Watford’s defensive injury crisis was laid bare for all to see last week when they were blitzed 0-6 by Manchester City, and yet again they will have to make do without messrs Britos, Prodl, Kaboul, Cathcart and Hoban for the trip to Wales.
The Hornets will likely look to defend in numbers and sneak a winner on the break – this is a Swansea side that have failed to find the net in four of their five Premier League matches so far this term.
It’s not just putting the ball in the net that the Swans struggle with, it’s actually creating chances. In three of those five, they have failed to even register a single shot on target from inside the penalty area. The loss of Gylfi Sigurdsson is clearly hitting them harder than most anticipated.
Leeds United vs Ipswich Town: Leeds to Win
The price on Leeds to win this game is longer than our analysis suggests it should be, and that’s solely because they lost to Millwall last time out.
But as smart punters we look at the bigger picture, and prior to that defeat at the Den – a tough place to go – the Yorkshire outfit were unbeaten in five. Thy have still only conceded once in their last six games.
Ipswich enjoyed a fine start but were always punching above their weight according to the stats, and they have since regressed to their mean with defeats against Fulham and QPR.
Ignore the league table, the Tractor Boys have been completely dominated on the road this term, and we would expect them to be so once again.
Wolves vs Barnsley: Wolves to Win
Wolves’ continental project to deliver Premier League football to the West Midlands is stuttering and spluttering at present, but hey: they are still second and on a run of four unbeaten.
The Portuguese influence at Molineux has certainly aided their attacking play; they have only failed to score once this term, and have enjoyed shot supremacy in 7/8 Championship encounters.
That will be a concern for Barnsley fans, who have been outgunned when their side has met teams with a front foot attitude (0-3 against Aston Villa, 1-3 at Bristol City). The Tykes have lost eight of their last ten away games, and this will be another tough assignment on Saturday.