Sport

GUIDE TO THE NEXT £1,000,000 1×2 PICK15

Leicester

Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa

Head-to-Head: CPA 10-14-17 ASV

Crystal Palace were arguably unlucky against Arsenal last Sunday where an unfortunate own-goal separated the two sides. Their attacking flair is evident under Alan Pardew and the addition of Yohan Cabaye is already having a positive impact. Aston Villa, likewise, deserved more in their 0-1 loss to Manchester United. Tim Sherwood’s men battled well but lacked any goalscoring threat in the final-third. It will be a worry for Villa fans after the departure of Christian Benteke to Liverpool and I feel the Eagles will prove too strong on Saturday.

Selection: HOME

Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur

Head-to-Head: LEI 33-18-51 TOT

Leicester are enjoying a fantastic start to their Premier League season with victories against Sunderland and West Ham, respectively. They find themselves in second place, behind leaders Manchester City, and full of confidence heading in to their meeting with Spurs. Tottenham, on the other hand, will be disappointed with their first couple of games. A loss at Old Trafford on the opening day will frustrate Spurs fan as they missed a number of good scoring opportunities. Their draw with Stoke last weekend saw the North London side take a 2-0 lead before conceding two late goals in the last 12 minutes. They are desperate for a moral-boosting win but may struggle to find that at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.

Selection: DRAW

Norwich vs Stoke

Head-to-Head: NOR 17-15-19 STO

Norwich will be buoyed by a nice away victory against Sunderland recently following defeat on the opening day of the season to Crystal Palace. The Canaries dominated much of the game and showed real urgency when on the attack. Fans will be pleased to see their team net three goals after proving to be arguably unlucky against Palace the week before. Stoke will also be confident heading to Carrow Road. Mark Hughes’ men battled very well to come from behind to snatch a draw against Tottenham last week. They are, however, in desperate need of a player who can produce more creativity in the final third and will be hoping record-signing Xherdan Shaqiri can adapt quickly to the Premier League. I see Norwich proving too strong this weekend as they seek to register a first home victory of the season.

Selection: HOME

Sunderland vs Swansea

Head-to-Head: SUN 12-10-8 SWA

Sunderland have endured a poor beginning to their campaign and have come under much criticism for their desire and motivation in the two performances to date. Back-to-back defeats to Leicester and Norwich, respectively, leave the Black Cats as odds-on favourites to be relegated in May. They will need to improve significantly to trouble Swansea who will arrive at the Stadium Of Light on the back of a stylish victory over Newcastle. The Welsh side really should have defeated Chelsea two weeks ago but instead settled for a 2-2 draw. Their win over the Magpies last Saturday saw midfielder Jonjo Shelvey to best effect where he had great control over the game in the second half. If in similar form here, then the Swans will take all the beating.

Selection: AWAY

West Ham vs Bournemouth

Head-to-Head: WHU 3-2-0 BOU

West Ham will be looking to bounce back from their 1-2 home defeat to Leicester last weekend. They would have been frustrated to go in to half-time 0-2 down but looked a different team after the break. The Hammers dominated the possession with 70% and looked certain to equalise inside the closing ten minutes. Bournemouth were themselves very unfortunate against Liverpool on Monday. A number of key refereeing decisions did not go their way as they lost by a single goal. Eddie Howe’s side lacked in any goalscoring threat which may see them come up short against West Ham this weekend.

Selection: HOME

Brighton vs Blackburn

Head-to-Head: BRI 12-11-11 BLA

Brighton have started their Championship campaign in fine style with two victories and a draw from their opening three games. The Seagulls defeated Nottingham Forest in the football league season opener and looked good in doing so. Chris Hughton’s side showed a good attacking flair on that occasion and were unlucky not to score more. Blackburn, on the other hand, are yet to register a single victory this season and travel to the Amex Stadium lacking in momentum. They are struggling to put away their chances in the final third and will need to do so if they want to take any points home from Brighton this weekend.

Selection: HOME & DRAW

Preston vs Ipswich

Head-to-Head: PNE 13-8-9 IPS

Preston are proving to be a very solid side already this season. From their first four games in the Championship and League Cup, they have won two and drawn two. Three clean-sheets from those games prove that the newly-promoted will be difficult to break down this season. They host Ipswich on Saturday who are in similar form themselves. Mick McCarthy’s men have won all of their last three and will be confident of extending that run to four here. Their most recent victory over Burnley proved how strong the side is when on the attack. However, Preston’s defensive group have looked stable in recent weeks and may prove strong enough to see out at a least a draw this weekend.

Selection: HOME & DRAW

Cardiff vs Wolves

Head-to-Head: CAR 15-14-26 WOL

Cardiff are unbeaten thus far this season after drawing three of their opening four games. Their recent stalemate at Blackburn in midweek would have frustrated boss Russell Slade as he saw his side take an early lead before conceding an equaliser right at the death. They will need to respond quickly as they face a Wolves side who have enjoyed two wins from four games, in all competitions. Their game against QPR on Wednesday saw Chris Ramsey’s side come from two goals down to win 2-3. Kenny Jackett was frustrated defensively with his team who made a number of key errors. I see both teams content with a draw as they look to build some consistency for the weeks ahead.

Selection: HOME & DRAW

Hamburg vs Stuttgart

Hamburg suffered a crushing 5-0 defeat to Bayern Munich last week and will need to react effectively to get back on track this weekend. They just avoided relegation in the Bundesliga last season but many are expecting them to fall short this campaign. Stuttgart, on the other hand, enjoyed a successful pre-season where they beat Manchester City 4-2. Their opening league game saw a 15 minutes burst of action where four goals were scored including two penalties. Ultimately, Stuttgart lost the game but much confidence can be taken from the performance as well as their momentum from pre-season.

Selection: DRAW & AWAY

West Brom vs Chelsea

Head-to-Head: WBA 42-34-57 CHE

West Brom have won only once in their last five meetings with Chelsea but confidence will be high of improving upon that record following the champions’ brutal loss to Manchester City last Sunday. Like Chelsea, West Brom suffered a similar defeat to City on the opening weekend but the margins between Tony Pulis’ side compared to Mourinho’s will give Albion a great boost. Chelsea will be seeking an immediate response from a poor start to their season. The signing of Pedro on Thursday will add a flair of creativity to the Blues team and I fully expect them to turn up the pressure on Sunday. It is always dangerous to discount a Jose Mourinho side.

Selection: AWAY

Watford vs Southampton

Head-to-Head: WAT 25-17-32 SOT

Watford fans will be pleased with their sides start to the season with two draws from their opening two games. The meeting with Everton a fortnight ago showcased a good unity in the side and one in which is full of determination to succeed. After signing nearly a dozen plays this summer, many expected Watford to take time to find their feet and gel as a team. However, their recent performances prove that there is little worry in that department. Southampton fans will feel somewhat different about their sides start to the campaign. A tight draw with Newcastle followed by a tough home defeat to Everton last week will leave the Saints faithful downbeat. They will be hopeful of an immediate response but face a hungry newly-promoted Watford side who will fancy their chances.

Selection: DRAW

Everton vs Manchester City

Head-to-Head: EVE 66-44-66 MCI

Everton will have been ecstatic with their away performance against Southampton last week. Roberto Martinez’s men were ruthless on the counter-attack which saw striker Romelu Lukaku net two first half goals. Ross Barkley was also in sparkling form for the Toffees as he continues to develop into one of England’s leading talents. Manchester City have started their season in blistering fashion. A stylish win away at West Brom was followed up by a trouncing over champions Chelsea last Sunday. Vincent Kompany, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero all proved why they are considered world class players with dominant displays. City are now favourites to lift the Premier League crown next May and will be difficult to contain this weekend.

Selection: AWAY

Fiorentina vs AC Milan

Fiorentina’s pre-season campaign has included victories over Barcelona and Chelsea respectively. It will give the Italian side great confidence ahead of their opening Serie A game this weekend when they host AC Milan. Milan are, admittedly, not the force of old and will do well to qualify for Europe this season. They’ll have their work cut out against a hungry Fiorentina side looking to start their campaign strongly.

Selection: HOME

Palermo vs Genoa

This encounter is without doubt the week’s banana-skin game. From the two sides last four meetings; three have finished as a draw. Both teams look evenly matched and will likely take a point-a-piece to begin their respective seasons. Be safe and cover all bases.

Selection: HOME, DRAW & AWAY

Arsenal vs Liverpool

Head-to-Head: ARS 78-57-83 LIV

Arsenal have enjoyed a fantastic record against Liverpool in recent years having lost just one of their last eight meetings. The Gunners will be buoyed by their success at Selhurst Park last week where they moved the ball incredibly well but failed to finish the majority of their chances. Liverpool, likewise, have begun their season in solid fashion. An away victory on the opening weekend over Stoke was followed by a fortunate win at Anfield against Bournemouth on Monday. Each side will be confident of success and a fiercely attacking game is anticipated. However, I feel Arsenal will yet again come out on top.

 

Selection: HOME