We – and no doubt hundreds of punters across the land – were undone by Nottingham Forest’s surprising inability to beat Preston at home last week.
The Tricky Trees were one of those no-brainer selections, with just one defeat at home all season against an outfit that had just one victory to their name on the road.
But as we know, the beautiful game doesn’t always pan out as expected….
You can’t change the way you go about your business though, and you simply have to shrug and move on. Which we will with this week’s football accumulator betting tips.
| Match | Recommended Bet | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Fulham vs West Ham | West Ham/Draw Double Chance | 21/50 |
| Preston vs Millwall | Preston Draw No Bet | 4/9 |
| Bristol City vs Norwich City | Norwich/Draw Double Chance | 9/20 |
| Eibar vs Valencia | Eibar/Draw Double Chance | 11/20 |
| Huesca vs Villarreal | Huesca +1.00 Asian Handicap | 4/11 |
| Five-Fold Acca Odds | 5.22/1 | |
Fulham vs West Ham: West Ham/Draw Double Chance
One team in a rich vein of goalscoring form meets another with the worst defence in the division.
West Ham have suffered just one defeat in their last seven – against Manchester City, no less, and in amongst that run they have put four past Burnley and three each through Newcastle, Cardiff and Crystal Palace.
The Hammers continue to be laid low by injuries, but that doesn’t seem to stop them and key figures – such as Felipe Anderson and Javier Hernandez – are in fine fettle.
As for Fulham, an improved performance in the draw against Leicester was soon extinguished by a pretty abject visit to Old Trafford last time out; that 1-4 defeat meaning they have now conceded a ridiculous 40 goals in 16 outings.
New boss Claudio Ranieri is working hard on his side’s defensive shape, but there is no quick fix when you’re in this deep.
Preston vs Millwall: Preston Draw No Bet
Preston, undefeated on home soil since September, will surely fancy taking care of business against a Millwall side with the worst away record in the Championship.
The Lilywhites’ current run of form (W3 D2 L1) is made all the more impressive given that four of those have been played away from home, while at Deepdale their return of W4 D4 L2 is certainly solid enough.
Millwall’s away record (W0 D3 L7) speaks for itself, and with only Ipswich conceding more than them in the division the Lions find themselves in a relegation battle and without a win in six.
Bristol City vs Norwich City: Norwich/Draw Double Chance
In betting there are wagers that can be classified as ‘positive expectancy’, i.e. those flutters which if you bet on them an infinite number of times would yield a profit.
Norwich, at 6/4, to beat Bristol City is verging on being such, but backing them to win or draw this fixture is positive expectation manifest.
They are unbeaten in nine, with eight wins and 23 goals scored, and have claimed 19 points away from home this term.
Bristol City have only won 3/10 at Ashton Gate, meanwhile, and have only beaten one top-half team anywhere since September; that was a fortuitous 1-0 triumph over Birmingham last time out.
Eibar vs Valencia: Eibar/Draw Double Chance
In their last three home matches, Eibar have beaten Real Madrid (3-0) and Alaves (2-1) and played out a thoroughly entertaining 4-4 draw with Levante; a match they should really have won after taking a 4-2 lead.
All of those sides are in the top six, which indicates Eibar’s growing belief in their own abilities, and this week’s opponents Valencia are far from being an elite outfit in La Liga this term.
Their league position of 15th tells no lies, and their bizarre record – W3 D9 L3 – tells us they are tough to beat but equally lacking in the quality to win matches.
Valencia have a Champions League game on Wednesday too, and whilst that is a dead rubber it’s still 90 minutes in which injuries and fatigue could be picked up.
Huesca vs Villarreal: Huesca +1.00 Asian Handicap
One look at the La Liga table and it would be easy to write off Huesca here.
Bottom of the league and without a home win, they’ve surely got no chance here?
We are inclined to differ having watched their last pair of home outings against Levante ad Real Madrid, both of which they dominated. A 2-2 draw with the former and a 0-1 defeat to the latter is all they have to show for their efforts.
But as smart punters we have to use our instinct to predict when a big result is coming, and it could well come here.
Villarreal have won just one of their last eight, 3/15 overall this term and like Valencia they look a shadow of their former selves.
Conceding two or more in four of their last six, a defensive fragility should give Huesca all the encouragement they need.