It was one of those ‘what might have been’ weeks for our football accumulator tips last time out, with three legs landing, one being voided due to severe weather that came courtesy of the Beast from the East and one failing.
Southend’s 0-3 defeat at home to Walsall came as a real surprise given how well the Shrimpers have been progressing under Chris Powell, and was even more discombobulating knowing that Walsall would lose 0-3 at home to Rochdale just 72 hours later. Sometimes you just have to shrug and move on.
And that is what we shall do, with a rich vein of form under our belt and, hopefully, no extreme weather to scupper the fixture list!
- Fleetwood Town vs Plymouth Argyle: Plymouth/Draw Double Chance (4/7)
- Forest Green vs Notts County: Forest Green +1.00 Asian Handicap (3/10)
- Fiorentina vs Benevento: Fiorentina to Win (1/3)
- Borussia Dortmund vs Frankfurt: Dortmund to Win (4/6)
- Getafe vs Levante: Getafe -0.25 Asian Handicap (1/2)
- Acca Odds: 5.69/1
Fleetwood Town vs Plymouth Argyle: Plymouth/Draw Double Chance
Curiously, the bookmakers are undervaluing Plymouth again; despite the fact the Pilgrims have now won six on the bounce and lost just once in fifteen!
Those weren’t any old victories either or a quirk of the fixture list. The Green Army have defeated Blackburn, Shrewsbury and other decent sides along the way, so they are brimming with confidence right now. The 9/5 about them winning this match is almost laughable.
Fleetwood went on a run of six straight defeats that would ultimately cost Uwe Rosler his job, and while John Sheridan will come in and steady the ship he still has a long way to go in convincing his new charges of their ability. They will scrap here, but you’d expect Plymouth to get a positive result nonetheless.
Forest Green vs Notts County: Forest Green +1.00 Asian Handicap
At Christmas, Forest Green Rovers were dead and buried in League Two, but what a difference a couple of months can make.
Something has clicked and they are now unbeaten in five, winning five on the spin on home soil at a goal difference of +9. They are now sitting pretty some seven points clear of the dropzone.
They won’t rest on their laurels though, and neither can they afford to against a decent Notts County outfit.
That said, the Magpies are slightly off the boil at present (W3 D3 L4), and don’t forget that this Asian Handicap selection lands if Forest Green win or draw, and is voided if they lose by a one goal margin.
Fiorentina vs Benevento: Fiorentina to Win
This selection feels slightly predatory given the tragic passing of Fiorentina captain Davide Astori last week, who died in his sleep aged 31.
The sadness will loom large at the Viola for a while, of course, and the players can be forgiven for being hugely emotional when they take to the field this weekend.
But they will be pumped too – there is no better motivatory tactic than a tragedy like this, and the togetherness that Astori’s passing brings to the squad should take them to new heights.
Their opponents this week are the hapless Benevento, who have lost 22 of their 26 Serie A matches this term. Given the circumstances, you can imagine them producing an apologetic performance here.
Borussia Dortmund vs Frankfurt: Dortmund to Win
Borussia Dortmund have been far from their best this term, and that is reflected in what is a fairly generous price here.
But we know that they are still capable of putting the ball in the net – they average more than two goals per game at home, and Michy Batshuayi has taken the slack from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as far as socring is concerned.
The doubts about the Yellow-and-Blacks comes defensively, but Frankfurt are a side who prefer to sit deep and in numbers on the road, and so perhaps won’t pose the questions of their hosts that others have this term.
Frankfurt have lost their last two away games without scoring against a pair of fairly rudimentary teams: Augsburg (0-3) and Stuttgart (0-1). Dortmund will provide a much sterner test as we know.
Getafe vs Levante: Getafe -0.25 Asian Handicap
They have been one of the surprise packages of La Liga, and now unfortunately the bookmakers are catching on to the excellence of Getafe!
Their home form (W8 D3 L3) has helped punters bank some serious cash this term, and we’re willing to support them again this weekend against a pretty ropey Levante outfit.
The visitors’ away form (W1 D6 L6) is no mystery, and their last win anywhere came way back in November!