England: Premier League Aug 16-17

[impressivegol]

Aston villa, 1.95, to defeat Manchester City

this pick has been given above by spooner and i couldn't agree more. Man City now face a crucial 2nd leg of theyre european season just 3days after theyre trip to Aston Villa with a deficit. Man City's preseason results have been lackluster, theyre key acquisition of the transfer market is in China (Jo), all news surrounding the club is negative at the moment with the Thagskin's troubles and an absolute disgusting shock at home to a danish team in the uefa cup. Morale must be low going to Aston villa, who dont have to worry about they're 2nd leg and should be able to grab the 3points in front of the home fans. personally can't see past a HW. and between now and sunday, i fully expect odds to drop. they have already dipped slightly and will continue to do so in the next 48hours. good luck

[Spooner]

Villa look an even better bet after the result city had last night.

[Mydogdylan]

Pre season friendlies mean nothing in my opinion they are just used for trying different systems out and different players in other posittions.

[Djslutmonkey]

One very interesting bet for me in the Prem

Chelsea vs Portsmouth - under 2.5 goals - 1.96 Betdaq

In the two games between these teams last year there were only 3 goals. Both teams went under in 71% of league games. Portsmouth just drew 0-0 with Man Utd in the Community Shield.

Of course its hard this early in the season and Pompey now have Crouch & Defoe, but this seems too big a price to me.

[Djslutmonkey]

Blimey - another very interesting one here.

Adebayor 6/5, Van Persie 6/4 - anytime goalscorer - William Hill

Seen a massive disparity in the prices on anytime goalscorer in the Arsenal vs West Brom game. I went there on the off-chance of getting evens for the Arsenal strikers, and they were heavy odds-on in most places - apart from William Hill who have gone 6/5 Adebayor and 6/4 RvP. That is simply too good to refuse - West Brom, for all their attacking quality, were leaky even in the Championship, conceding 56 goals. Fabregas missing is a problem for Arsenal, but its hard to not see them getting a couple really, and if they do score you'd expect one of these two to be in the goals. Either one scoring means a profit.

[SaberBlade83]

ARSENAL-WEST BROMWICH

Don't like the prices here for obvious reasons. But I'm in agreement with Djslutmonkey in the anytime scorer market. Had a look at Expekt and found Adebayor at 1,80 but could get 2,10 at Unibet so it looks good enough for me. He will be keen to win back the Arsenal fans that has turned against him during the summer with all the talk placing him in Milan and Barcelona. He has had a steady pre-season with goals against Ajax and scored in the CL as well.

The game itself will be interesting. Arsenal got of to a less than impressive start in the CL tie with Twente but got away with a 2-0 win. They are missing Fabregas, Diaby, Eduardo and Senderos. It's likely we'll see new signing Ramsey from start with Nasri coming off from the bench. Can't see past a home win, but -1.5AH has to bad odds. So I'll stick to the anytime scorer.

Score prediction: 2-0

Pick 1: Adebayor to score anytime - 2,10 @ Unibet (5/10)

HULL-FULHAM

Hull were promoted through playoffs from the Championship. This is a hard working team that I was a little suprised to see make the step up, but it's great to see. They have been very active in the transfer market and have made some interesting signings. Fulham managed to survive last season, and will hope to build towards a higher position this season. But IMO these are two sides that will have a long hard season. But Fulham has also made some decent signings, with Johnson beeing the highlight perhaps.

These first day games can often provide suprises, and I think Hull could produce one on saturday much like Sunderland did last season against Tottenham. Hull probably isn't the best side that went up, but I belive they can have a decent chance to get a win against Fulham.

Score prediction: 1-0

Pick 1: Hull (level ball) - 1,89 @ Expekt (4/10)

[Spooner]

Sport	Football (Eng - Prem)
Event	Sunderland v Liverpool
Selection	Liverpool (Lay)
Strength	10/10
Date	16/08/2008
Bookmaker/Price	Betfair @ 1.75 (Lay)
Reasoning	Sunderland entertain Liverpool at the Stadium of light today and I think Keane's side could well cause an upset. Liverpool didn't look the side they should be during the week in there champions league qualifier, They will be relieved to come away with the 0-0. Sunderland under Keane are a good side, Managed to keep them up last season when in previous seasons in the premiership they have been terrible. Keane has made some good signings this summer, Chimbonda, Tainio, Diouf & Malbranque all have premiership experience. They will add On Liverpool's performence during the week I don't see how they can be backed here at the price and are well worth a lay.

[malcolmas]

Middlesbrough v Tottenham Hotspur

1st game of the season away for Spurs and they are up against Boro who haven't really troubled them in recent years.
With the Berbatov saga still ongoing it could have an effect on the players.
Bent looks like he is starting to prove himself, but the real test lies ahead in the weeks to come.
(Pre-season friendlies should only be seen for what they are - training games).
Had to double check who Boro's strikers were , not sure if Alves will continue on from his little run in Apr/May,
Downing is fairly consistent with goals from midfield.
Both teams should find the net on Saturday.

Last season's match at the Riverside ended 1-1, so depending on the team news and barring major withdrawals,
I will be backing the Draw with some Correct Scores to cover.
Very Low Stakes on Draw 3.45 BF
CS 2-1 (13.5 BF), 1-1 (7.2 BF) & 1-2 (10 BF)

[Paul Ross]

I have to agree with Spooner here, Liverpool are a mugs bet imo.

How can you be 1.75 away on the first game of the season anyway? They're not playing Bournemouth, this is another premiership side who are keen to do well.

Liverpool's performance midweek was far from impressive too.

Lay Liverpool @ 1.75 Betfair

[JCtips]

Good to see the new Soccer season starting (in England and Germany for now).

My picks for tomorrow:
Bolton-Stoke
Stoke have been away from the top league for the last 23 years and their goal will be to avoid relegation. I do not expect them to get many points away from home during the entire season.
Bolton are a much more experienced side and I think this is a good price for a home win.
My pick: home win (1.86);

W. Ham-Wigan
IMO these are teams with similar value in terms of quality and capacity.
Playing at home is always an advantage (and the crowd is looking forward for the season kick off) and I see good value in taking the home win at this price.
My pick: home win (2.02);

Good luck!

JC

[Toronto_Mike]

Originally Posted by Djslutmonkey

One very interesting bet for me in the Prem

Chelsea vs Portsmouth - under 2.5 goals - 1.96 Betdaq

In the two games between these teams last year there were only 3 goals. Both teams went under in 71% of league games. Portsmouth just drew 0-0 with Man Utd in the Community Shield.

Of course its hard this early in the season and Pompey now have Crouch & Defoe, but this seems too big a price to me.

Glad someone pointed this out. Not too fond of Crouchy infront of the net, and heck can he actually keep up with Defoe? Pompey still have a very tight knit defense and considering Chelsea's offense is a hit or miss these days, I think we can see a team keep a clean sheet here. Good eye there mate.

[Toronto_Mike]

Aston Villa H @ 2.07

I managed to get this at 2.07 on 188bet last week, it has not dropped down to 1.90 due to Man City's hectic week. Mark Hughes jumped ship from Blackburn to Citeh in hopes that he would get the funds to build a contender. Unfortunately, owner Shinawarta has his assets frozen and all hell seems to be on the verge of breaking lose. Citeh just lost their UEFA Cup qualifier yesterday at home to FCM from Denmark. They are lacking any sort of striking options and seem rather depleted. Villa on the other hand are on the up, after finishing a strong 6th last season they have boosted their back line with the purchases of Cuellar, Luke Young, Shorey and Brad Friedel. The defense was their main weakness last season as they often let in weak goals. Nevertheless they have strengthen their fullbacks significantly. Gareth Barry is a Villa player for at least another 6 months as he played yesterday in the UEFA Cup qualifier which makes him Cup tied in Europe. He put on a solid performance and goes to show this club really needs him.
You may ask why the price is listed as so, well Aston Villa have not beaten Man City in their last 6 home attempts. City are Aston Villa's bogey team. However, with Mark Hughes in the game, there is an added advantage for Villa because he has not beaten a Villa side in his last 4 attempts. To make things more interesting his former keeper Brad Friedel is now in goal for Villa and will be able to share more inside tips. This is going to be a rather tight afffair and could be a defensive battle. I think Man City just lack that killer touch infront of the net and that will eventually lead to their downfall. So a 1-0 Villa win for me.

Everton @ 2.05

It has been a very quiet summer for Everton, they have only reinforced their squad with one player in Steven Piennar.....and well he's now out injured for a lengthy spell. Good news though is that Arteta is back to match fitness. The dynamic midfielder missed practically the entire season and at times you could see that Everton really needed his creativity. However, the squad managed to finish a strong 5th and claim a UEFA Cup spot. They are still a strong defensive squad and with the purchase of Yakubu midway last season he finished with a strong 15 goals for Everton. Blackburn on the other hand are another team that seem to be on the down. They lost 3 key figures, Mark Hughes, David Bentley and Brad Friedel, there is also talk that Roque Santa Cruz is on his way out. Plus they have a new manager in the frame, Paul Ince who coached MK Dons to a terrific League 2 season however, this is a big leap in managing for the former Man Utd star. I honestly am not a big fan of his managerial ways as he can often be very soft. He has a very tough squad who play extremely rough but whether he suits the style of the current Rovers team has yet to be proven. Managing your first EPL game against a top 7 club on the road is going to be quite the awakening. I just don't think Rovers are mentally prepared for this match, physically Everton should be able to bully them around, the pace of their full backs should stretch the field and give Arteta and Osman enough time to set up the duo of Vaughn and Yakubu for some nice goals.
Prediction: Everton 2-0 Blackburn

[kevshat]

3 for me tomorrow.

4pts Middlesbrough vs Tottenham - Over 2.5 goals 1.86 Ladbrokes

Both of these sides were better going forward last season than they were at defending. We all know how bad Spurs were at the back last season and while I expect that to improve a bit this season, we shouldn't forget that when he was at Sevilla, Ramos wasn't adverse to goalfests! Boro's defence had a very youthful look to it and the loss of Mark Schwarzer could hurt them quite a bit.

Both sides have strikers wanting to prove themselves this season. Darren Bent has been scoring for fun in pre-season and having had to warm the bench when he got a chance last season, he'll want to show what he can do now he seems to be 1st choice. Middlesbrough have Afonso Alves, who started to show why Boro paid a club record fee for him towards the end of the season. He comes with a big goalscoring reputation. Both midfields look to have an attacking intent to them and that should bode well for goals and I expect there to be over 2.5 goals in this one.

3pts Wigan +0.5AH vs West Ham 1.91 Bet1128

Wigan seem to have done some shrewd business in the close season and expectations are starting to rise at the JJB. Bringing in players like Kapo and de Ridder to strengthen their go forward in midfield was needed and Steve Bruce will get the best out of his side for sure. Expectations are rarely low at Upton Park but I'm unsure whether Alan Curbishley has the firepower to meet the expectation. There's no doubt having Dean Ashton at his disposal is a massive help but the former Charlton boss still has to makedo without Bellamy, Dyer, Ferdinand, Collins and Gabbidon and of course Freddie Ljungberg has been paid off. Although some Hammers would see that as a good thing.

Steve Bruce has his trump card - Emile Heskey, fit and ready to rock and roll and that could be key. I've heard a few decent things about Zaki, the Egyptian guy up front, and he could be a surprise to some. Chris Kirkland is fit and even though the absence of Paul Scharner is a blow I think Bruce has sufficient depth in his squad to deal with it and I think Wigan can leave the capital with at least a point, if not all 3.

3pts Sunderland +0.75AH vs Liverpool 1.96 Ladbrokes

Judging by Liverpool's performance in midweek, this is a pretty big AH to ask them to cover, especially at a place like Sunderland. I accept Steven Gerrard is fit for the Reds and that will make them better automatically but I sense Rafa isn't totally happy with his squad. There's no doubt he wants Gareth Barry and that could just be getting to his players, especially those who he could replace. Liverpool will have Robbie Keane available to make his Premiership debut but Javier Mascherano is in Beijing with Argentina so the midfield could have a light look to it.

Roy Keane has worked the transfer market well this summer. He's been to the minute mart in Tottenham and brought 3 of their players and they all look good signings. Sunderland could look like a new side this season with Kieron Richardson and Carlos Edwards being fit from the getgo. Kenwyne Jones could be a big loss up front and the pressure will be on Michael Chopra to deliver goals. I think Sunderland will be tough to beat this year, especially at the Stadium of Light and if Liverpool do win here I can't see it being by more than one goal so with that in mind I'll take Sunderland on the +0.75AH.

[Toronto_Mike]

Kev,
Leaning Wigan and Sunderland as well. I favor both squads for some major improvements this season. Hammers look awful preseason and well Curbs looks like he's a candidate for first manager to get axed!
I do fancy Sunderland +0.75 But i don't have that good of a price like yours! GL

[matt612346]

Hello.

bolton- I like Elmander. He had a good debut at the Keepmoat Stadium, he'll be under a lot of pressure however. Stoke has some injuries, Ricardo Fuller will probably not play, Liam Lawrence is game time decision.

everton- has some injuries but i think Jack Rodwell, Dan Gosling, Jose Baxter and Lukas Jutkiewicz can step up. Cruz and Emerton aren't 100%, Robbie Fowler hasn't sign a contract yet, goodluck ince at your first game as a pl manager.

fulham- Brown has a decent squad and he has been very active over the summer(8 new signings) Hull is much changed and unproven, i'll take fulham 2-0.

villa- man city is in a mess as said above.

Thanks kevshat! ( i'm american btw, so be nice )

[Kozzin Benson]

Fulham to win @2.84 BF.
IMO fulham will nick this today, they finished the season really well especially way from home winning the last 3 i think.
Hull will be full of expectation as their team is in the prem.
They will be urging the team forward & this will be good for fulham who like to play counter attack away from home.
Fulham may not be the strongest of prem teams but the gulf from the championship is still massive & i think hull may come back down to earth with a bump come 5 to 5 this afternoon!
Good Luck all!

[SaberBlade83]

Originally Posted by Paul Ross

I have to agree with Spooner here, Liverpool are a mugs bet imo.

How can you be 1.75 away on the first game of the season anyway? They're not playing Bournemouth, this is another premiership side who are keen to do well.

Liverpool's performance midweek was far from impressive too.

Lay Liverpool @ 1.75 Betfair

Totally agree. I'm actually thinking of backing Sunderland as well. It's the first game of the season after all, Liverpool away from home, played a CL qualifier in mid-week and add to that, that Sunderland has made some decent signings. I think they can pull of a nice suprise on the opening day. The value is clearly on the home side, way to big odds! I'm gonna have a couple of smaller bets...

Pick 1: Sunderland +0.75AH - 1,94 @ Expekt (4/10)
Pick 2: Sunderland - 5,60 @ Betsafe (1/10)

[Paul Ross]

Originally Posted by matt612346

Hello.

bolton- I like Elmander. He had a good debut at the Keepmoat Stadium, he'll be under a lot of pressure however. Stoke has some injuries, Ricardo Fuller will probably not play, Liam Lawrence is game time decision.

everton- has some injuries but i think Jack Rodwell, Dan Gosling, Jose Baxter and Lukas Jutkiewicz can step up. Cruz and Emerton aren't 100%, Robbie Fowler hasn't sign a contract yet, goodluck ince at your first game as a pl manager.

fulham- Brown has a decent squad and he has been very active over the summer(8 new signings) Hull is much changed and unproven, i'll take fulham 2-0.

villa- man city is in a mess as said above.

Thanks kevshat! ( i'm american btw, so be nice )

Thanks Matt - we always encourage everyone to post why you are backing bets, then we can give you a point of view that you might not know etc....

[blackcrow]

Arsenal -1.5
Now that Arsenal have had a good midweek run under their belt, they should be better for this game considering they have seevral key players out, but then again, so do West Brom. Arsenal should be very solid at the back, so they should be able to hold out WBA but have the likes of Adenbayor to cause plenty of problems for Albion who will take time to get used the pace of the EPL once again.

Bolton
Megson is under pressure to perform and he should have the lads fired up in this opening home fixture. Bolton are a team that likes to grind away and look for them to do sthe same against the new boys fro Stoke who will find this very different to the Championship. Too much experience in the home side while Stoke will not be able to handle the increased tempo.

Everton
Everton are with virtually their same team as last year as their preparation has been more on the quite side compared to other teams with similar aspirations. However they are tough to beat at home, and will make it very hard for Blackburn to come here and get any points. The loss of their manager Hughes from last year's side could see some time before Rovers get used to the inexperienced Ince. While Everton have some injuries, besides Santa Cruz whihc the defence should be able to handle as tey are quite strong there, there is not much that Everton has to worry about from Blackburn and they are thr more likely team to win this

Tottenham
I really like the look of Spurs this year as they have some quality signings in there, and with the form of Bent in preseason, they can go into this clash as favourites. Boro are a decent side and have a few good players but don't have the quality throughout like Spurs have, and it could be that touch of magic from Berbatov or Modric that wins the game for Spurs.

[Ronnie]

Backing Bent to score anytime today, he's been scoring really well pre season, probably the only striker thats shown any kind of form so far, he did the same in pre season a few years back for charlton and ended up scoring a hatfull for them that season. Middlesbroughs defence looks like it will leak goals this year, wasn't too confident before Luke Young left and even less now.

Bent anytime scorer 9/4 @ William Hills