Championship
15:00 Hull vs Fulham - Prediction - 1.2 Current Form
Past Meetings
Final Verdict We could be in for an interesting clash at the KC Stadium as Nigel Adkins Hull take on Fulham with both sides scoring and conceding plenty of goals this season. Hull did draw 0.0 with Derby in their most recent home outing, but their previous 8 at home did see BTTS as well as going over 2.5 goals while Fulham have seen that outcome themselves in 7 of their last 9 on the road and with both sides averaging well over 3 goals per game in the last 2 months, a similar outcome has to be expected here even if Hull have recently changed their manager. Of course, there is the possibility that home Hull matches may become slightly less entertaining under Adkins than they were under the former Spartak Moscow boss Slutsky, and they did draw 0.0 in Adkins first home clash with Derby on Boxing day but Fulham love to attack, and I can’t see this one failing to produce goals with recent meetings between these two sides also following that form. Fulham will be full of confidence following their fine 4.2 win at 2nd placed Cardiff on Boxing day and with the Cottagers also scoring 5 recently at Sheffield United, they can score a couple or more here @11/10 odds with Hull leaking 2 or more in 5 of their last 6 at home. Fulham have the edge, but I expect BTTS in a match that could well see at least 3 goals scored with the visitor’s favourites to go home to London with the points. Best Bets BTTS @4/7- 3.5 Stars BTTS and over 2.5 goals @20/21 – 2.5 stars Fulham to score 2 or more @11/10 – 1.5 stars 15:00 Middlesbrough vs Aston Villa – Prediction 2.0 Current Form
Past Meetings
Final verdict Middlesbrough welcome Villa to the Riverside for new boss Tony Pulis's first game in charge on Saturday and they will be confident of claiming the spoils against a Villa side that are without a win in 5 league matches. The visitors have struggled with injuries in the past month, with the loss of skipper John Terry just 1 of a number of absentees that have hit Steve Bruce’s side hard and while the former Chelsea man has a chance of returning to the fold here, I expect the home side to continue their recent decent form at the Riverside with new boss Pulis looking for that first game manager bounce that we so often see. Indeed, with the ‘Boro actually in better form than Villa, they may well have claimed the points without Pulis who will be thrilled to land such an attractive job so quickly following his WBA sacking earlier this month and I expect the former Stoke boss to lead his new side to a debut 3 points with the Villains still likely to be missing a number of key players including Lansbury and Hogan. Not Jessica nor Hulk for the purpose of clarity. I don’t usually go big on the WDW market but I do fancy the hosts to get the win here and when they do win at home, they usually do it with a clean sheet so the 21/10 on offer for that outcome, also holds some appeal for @bobreaksbookies. Best Bets Middlesbrough to win @1/1 – 2.5 stars Middlesbrough to win to nil @21/10 – 1.5 stars 15:00 Birmingham vs Leeds – Prediction 0.2 Current Form
Past Meetings
Final Verdict - Away win to be expected Leeds will be full of confidence when they travel to Birmingham on Saturday as they look to make it 4 successive away wins in the league against a side that has now lost 4 of their last 5 at home. It has been a dreadful campaign for the Blues and with only 17 points collected from 24 matches, they seem destined to be heading for League 1 next season unless their form changes quickly while Leeds on the other hand have really picked up form and now sit 4th in the table with a promotion push high on their agenda for the 2nd half of the season. Leeds seem far too big @13/10 to claim the points here with the home side losing 4 of their last 5 at St Andrews and with Leeds winning 5 of their last 6 in the league, and scoring freely on their travels, I expect nothing less than a comfortable away victory for Thomas Christiansen’s side who sit just 5 points off an automatic promotion slot. Leeds to win is my best bet here @13/10 while the visitors can also score 2 or more @6/4 having done so on 3 of their last 4 trips to St Andrews. Best Bets – Leeds to win @13/10 – 2 stars, Leeds to score 2 or more @6/4 – 2 stars 17:30 Bristol City vs Wolverhampton Wanderers – Prediction 2.2 Current Form
Past Meetings
Final Verdict – Entertainment on the cards at The Gate League leaders Wolves have a chance to extend their lead in the Championship as they head to Ashton Gate for a top of the table clash with a Bristol City side that have surprised many with their excellent performance this season which sees them 2nd in the table, albeit, 8 points behind their opponents on Saturday. It really has been a fabulous first half to the season for City, highlighted in their fantastic 2.1 win over Man Utd that sees the unfancied Championship outfit heading to the semi-finals of the league cup while simultaneously making a strong push for automatic promotion to the Premier League. Not bad at all. Under the stewardship of their talented young manager, Lee Johnson, City have won 6 in a row at home and will surely present the toughest challenge yet for Wolves who have built up an impressive 8 point advantage over both Bristol and Cardiff while a playoff spot already looks assured with the Molineux men holding a 17 point cushion over 7th placed Middlesbrough. With added financial muscle, Wolves, under the guidance of their Portuguese boss, Nuno Espírito Santo, have performed exceptionally well in the first half of the season having invested heavily in talent like Ruben Neves, but their form in front of goal has dipped a touch, and they have been involved in some tight and low scoring matches lately, but I expect that to change here with Bristol sure to play on the front-foot in front of an expectant home crowd and with this match also being played in front of the live Sky cameras, I expect the hosts to really give it a good go as they look for the points that would reduce the gap on Wolves to just 5 points but the league leaders only lost 2 of their last 20 league matches and they will also be up for a big contest that has in past seasons, always produced goals. Given the home form of Bristol City, and the strong away form of Wolves, we should be in for a really good match at Ashton Gate and with their first meeting of the season finishing in a classic 3.3 draw, I’m confidently backing BTTS @4/5 in a contest that could well go over 2.5 goals as well with the past meeting stats offering added weight to the selection. 8 of the last 9 meetings between these two sides have seen BTTS and over 2.5 goals scored although neither side were scaling the heights as they currently are but I expect goals to be the theme of the day with both going for the win, and we should see an end to end encounter as a consequence, with goals at both ends so BTTS makes sense @4/5 odds. I can’t pick a winner, with both sides so strong in recent weeks, but The Robins will certainly fancy their chances of upsetting the apple-cart and they could score 2 or more at tasty 7/4 odds, having done so in 6 of their last 7 at home, including in their win over Man Utd in the Carabao Cup. Wolves were held 2.2 at Millwall on Boxing day and that’s the outcome I fancy here with BTTS @4/5 the best selection for me. Best Bets BTTS @4/5 – 3.5 Stars BTTS and over 2.5 goals @11/8 – 2.5 stars Bristol to score 2 or more @7/4 – 1.5 Stars Comments are closed.
|
Categories |