There’s a full domestic schedule in England this Saturday. We’ve picked out four of the best bets for you to use across the Premier League and the Championship.
Tottenham Hotspur v Newcastle United – Premier League, 1230
There have been some value hunters chipping away at Spurs’ price this week, with Newcastle now favourites to win away from home. They lead the market for a reason however and we’d welcome any widening of their price.
Unless something is certain to change at a club, such as a new manager coming in, a new signing or a returning player, we have to rely on recent form. With that in mind, the bet has to be Newcastle.
Spurs are often free scoring but leave themselves wide open and vulnerable. An Eddie Howe team will be set up to take full advantage of that.
The home side have scored 20 goals in their last 8 home games and normally, that would have the visitors shaking. But, Spurs have somehow only won two of those games, conceding 21 goals in the process.
Since drawing 0-0 at Everton, Newcastle have scored in each recent away game showing an aggregate of 13-8 in their favour. They were impressive in winning 2-0 at Old Trafford the other night but should have been 4-0 up by the half-hour mark.
In the end, their win at Man United was little more than a training exercise for them which leaves them fit and ready, though not overdone. This is a big chance for them to make another statement in their push for the top 4. A general 6/5 looks fair.
Bournemouth v Everton – Premier League, 1500
Everton have fought hard recently for draws with Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City but ultimately, the quality still just wasn’t there. They remain far from convincing, and while they are now better than when they gave up a 2-0 lead against Bournemouth with 87 minutes on the click, they are likely to struggle.
Bournemouth did lose to Brighton in November, not a shameful act in its own right, but since then they’ve been excellent. They have beaten Wolves, Spurs, Ipswich and Man United while drawing a couple more games.
The Cherries have genuine quality in their ranks and the general 3/4 about them for this race looks like a decent price.
Bristol City v Derby County – Championship, 1500
Derby have been terrible away from home and now they have to visit a solid enough Bristol City outfit on Saturday.
Sheffield United and Burnley have both won at Ashton Gate this season. Both are title contenders, and both wins were narrow, while nobody else has left Bristol City with all the points. It’s hard to see Derby doing it in all truth.
You feel that Bristol City won’t lose the game, narrowing down the potential outcomes to only two. With that, the 10/11 about them winning looks like reasonable value and can be taken.
Sheffield Wednesday v Millwall – Championship, 1500
Sheffield Wednesday have not won any of the last three meetings between these two teams at Hillsborough. In fact, they haven’t even scored a goal in those three meetings. That has to change at some point, and it will. There’s no time like the present and a home win starts to look likely.
Millwall were once again totally ineffective in losing 1-0 at home to Oxford on New Years’ Day. At the same time, Wednesday were busy putting four past Derby. A shade above even money for the Owls at the time of writing is a fair price indeed.