TUESDAY 18TH AUGUST - CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AND CHAMPIONSHIP - PREVIEWS, PREDICTIONS AND SUGGESTED BETS19/8/2015
I decided to give Monday's action a miss and it was probably for the best as I fancied BTTS at Anfield but didn't make the tip and Bournemouth and Bo would have been raging at their wrongly disallowed goal in what was a very entertaining performance from the new comers as they lost narrowly by 1 goal to nil. Tonight's action is tasty though with 5 Champions League qualifiers including Man Utd at home to Bruges while here are also 7 encounters from the English Championship to look at so I should be able to find some nice bets for a boring Tuesday. Here are the fixtures, predictions and suggested bets for all the best of the action tonight. Champions League Qualifiers 18:00 FC Astana vs APOEL Nicosia - Prediction - 1.1 - Suggested Bets - no bets Apoel are favourites to progress and they should be happy with a draw here but it wont feature in my best bets for the day given the early kick-off. 20:45 BATE Borisov vs Partizan Belgrade - Prediction - 0.1 - no bets BATE are not the team of last season while Partizan seem to have improved but for me it's another no bet with this tie too tough to predict a final outcome. 20:45 Lazio vs Bayer Leverkusen - Prediction - 1.1 - Suggested bets - BTTS @5/6, Draw @9/4 Perhaps the pick of the ties tonight sees Lazio welcome Champions League regulars and once beaten finalists Leverkusen to Rome for the first leg of their qualifier this evening. Leverkusen have the edge on experience and in match fitness with their Bundesliga campaign kicking off this past weekend with a home success over Hoffenheim. Lazio by contrast have yet to play a competitive fixture and they will be under enormous pressure from an expectant and raucous home crowd and that could go against them, particularly if they don't get off to a great start. The Germans have made some decent signings, particularly the Chilean midfielder Charles Aranguiz who impressed so much in this summers Copa America but he is doubt for tonight's fixture and may need to wait a little before stamping his quality on his new club who have plenty of pedigree in this event. Ultimately, I don't think Leverkusen will lose but the possibility of BTTS is pretty decent at 5/6 odds and I expect we could finish with a draw here with their 2 previous encounters both finishing 1.1. A repeat tonight would not surprise but if there is a winner, it could be the visitors. 20:45 Manchester United vs Club Bruges - Prediction - 2.0 - Suggested bet Man utd to win to nil @5/4 Man Utd welcome Bruges to Old Trafford for a crucial first leg and the home side will be expected to claim the win at 3/10 odds on with the Belgian big outsiders at 7/1. Under Van Gaal, United have the best defensive record in the Premier League since November with just 23 goals conceded and I fancy a clean sheet and narrow win for the Reds tonight with the visitors likely to sit in deep to try to keep the tie alive when they return to be Belgium. United to win to nil pays at 5/4 and is my stand out bet for today. I went to sleep dreaming of a 2.0 United win and It turns out that the Daily Record's Mrfixit has also made this his super single for today. Great minds think alike and all that, and I can't see past a home win with a clean sheet for the Reds tonight as they return to the Champions League for the first time since 2013. Goals could be an issue with Wayne Rooney struggling badly so far in his opening 2 matches as the central striker, and United will need to find a way to get the England man sparkling again and a goal tonight would do a lot for his confidence as United look to add spite to a side that is compact, organished but still missing the sparkle in the final third. Memphis and Rooney both need to improve although their will be new signings still to come. I expect a 1 or 2 goal success with Rooney perhaps bunding one in from 3 yards to change his fortunes and get his season off the mark. 20:45 Sporting CP vs CSKA Moscow - Prediction - 1.1 - Best Bets - no bet Sporting are odds on favourites here but CSKA have a better recent pedigree in Europe and I'm not gonna back the hosts here. I'm leaving this one alone with little stats or form to go on. No Bo bets. Championship 20:45 Derby vs Middlesbrough = Prediction -0.1 - Suggested Bets - Boro draw no bet @5/6 Beaten play-off finalists 'Boro have started the season well and they should be well up for this clash with Derby who have stuttered to 2 draws under their new gaffer Paul Clement. The visitors can be backed at 7/4 to win on the night and if you are brave, you might want to take a chance on an away win here but I prefer the 5/6 on draw no bet as I don't see the visitors losing this one. Middlesbrough were excellent at the weekend and the additions of David Nugent and Stewart Downing will only make them stronger. Derby in contrast have lost the services of vital midfielders Will Hughes and Craig Bryson, both to long term injury and without their quality in the middle of the park tonight, I expect the away side to be the stronger team here. Derby have lost each of their last 3 meetings with the visitors and haven't even managed a goal in any of those losses so while BTTS has a chance, based on the respective abilities of both sides, I'm siding with the Riverside boys to pick up at least a point here. 20:45 Milton Keynes Dons vs Bolton - Prediction - 1.1 - Suggested Bets - No bets Neil Lennon's Bolton have had a tough start to the division with 1 point taken from 2 of the best teams in the league in the shape of Middlesbrough and Derby so they will be eager to get something here from new boys MK Dons who have 1 win and 1 defeat to show for their season so far It's just too tough to make a real call here, so I'm gonna leave it out of my best bets today but a draw wouldn't be the biggest surprise. 20:45 Blackburn vs Cardiff = Prediction 2.2- Suggested Bets - BTTS @5/6, Draw @23/10 Blackburn were prolific in the BTTS market last season and I think they could be at it again tonight with Cardiff the visitors to Ewood Park. The Welsh side have seen 6 of their last 7 away games (going back to last season) in the league finish with BTTS and over 2.5 goals and that form continued into this season with their most recent fixture a 2.2 draw at QPR. One major worry is the fitness of Jordan Rhodes who is doubtful with an ankle injury and given their lack of striking options, I would prefer to wait for the team news before committing to the BTTS selection here. I don't expect Cardiff to lose, given that they have only lost 1 of their last 9 away games and they should be good enough to come away with a point against a Rovers side that need reinforcements. Check team-news before this one but for now, I will predict a 1.1 draw with BTTS @5/6 possible although not by any means a "banker". 20:45 Ipswich vs Burnley = Prediction - 2.2 - Suggested Bets - BTTS @10/11, BTTS and over 2.5 goals @6/4, Draw @5/2 Ipswich will be stronger contenders for promotion again this season but the visit of recently relegated Burnley is sure to present a tough test for the Tractor boys tonight. In Darryl Murphy and Freddie Sears they have a dangerous attack that knows its way to the back of the net and they might fancy their chances tonight against a Burnley that have appeared vulnerable defensively in their opening 2 fixtures of the season, conceding 2 at home to Birmingham most recently in a hard earned draw to add to the point they got at Leeds the week previously. This should be a good encounter between two of the better teams in the league and while Ipswich could claim the points, I feel Burnley will do just enough to get a resjult in a decent encounter and both will find the onion bag at some juncture over the 90 minutes and the 6/4 on BTTS and over 2.5 goals is also worth a look. I fancy this will be game of the night in the Championship and I'm going for the 2.2 in my bonkers bet for today. 20:45 Huddersfield vs Brighton = Prediction - 1.1 - Suggested Bets - BTTS @10/11, Draw @9/4 Goals look likely here with the hosts seeing BTTS in 5 of their last 6 home league games going back to last season while Brighton seem to have improved on last seasons poor showing with 6 points from 6 against 2 of the stronger teams in the league in the shape of Forest and Fulham. Huddersfield are draw specialists, with 5 of their last 6 in the league finishing even and with each of the last 4 meetings between these 2 sides also finishing level, I fancy a repeat tonight as well, having backed the Huddersfield draw to some fine success this past weekend in my draw treble. It should be a close one and I fancy we will get the goals we need to bring up BTTS @10/11. 20:45 Nottingham Forest vs Charlton = Prediction - 1.1 Suggested Bets - BTTS @4/5 Draw @27/10 I picked Charlton to draw at the weekend and I am going with it again here with the visitors tough to beat and Forest not overly impressing in their opening 2 fixtures. Charlton are well organised under their Belgian boss Guy Luzon and they drew more games in the division last season than any other side and they will fancy their chances of taking something against an inconsistent opponent in Forest who are struggling to impress under Scot, Dougie Freedman. Forest leak lots of goals with 8 of their last 9 home games seeing BTTS and with Charlton well capable on the road, scoring in 8 of thelr last 10 away games, while 5 of their last 6 on the road also saw BTTS and in last season's two encounters BTTS came up in both so I fancy a repeat again tonight @4/5 odds on but I certainly wouldn't touch Forest who are 10/11 to take the win. 20:45 Rotherham vs Preston = Prediction - no prediction - Suggested Bets - No bets I'm happy to leave this fixture out tonight with plenty of better games to choose from. Bo's Suggested Bets Man Utd to win to nil @5/4 Lazio v Leverkusen - BTTS @4/5 Derby v Middlesbrough - 'Boro to win, draw no bet @5/6 Ipswich v Burnley - BTTS @10/11, BTTS and over 2.5 goals @6/4 Huddersfield v Brighton - BTTS @10/11 Forest v Charlton - BTTS @4/5 Bo's Dour Draws Lazio v Leverkusen Huddersfield v Brighton Forest v Charlton Ipswich v Burnley Blackburn v Cardiff Comments are closed.
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