As the season moves into its latter stages, the midweek fixtures become less and less frequent. We can see that this week, with the Capital One Cup down to the semi final stages, while there are a handful of Championship games involving the sides who are in FA Cup action next weekend. While there’s not a lot of games for us to cast our eyes over, there is certainly a bit of value to be found.
There are a total of four games from the Championship across Tuesday and Wednesday, but here we’re going to be focusing on the league’s top two. On Tuesday night, Bournemouth head to an inconsistent Leeds side, while it’s Liverpool v Chelsea from the League Cup. On Wednesday, Ipswich are away to Brighton, while Tottenham face League One Sheffield United in their Capital One Cup semi final first leg. Here we have previews for those games, including a betting tip for each.
Tuesday 20th January 2015
Liverpool v Chelsea (19:45) – Both teams to score (4/5 with Bet365)
The biggest game of the week comes at Anfield, as Liverpool and Chelsea spark up their rivalry once more in the first of their League Cup semi final clashes. The Blues are seen as having the slight advantage, as they are at home in the second leg. They are also the favourites to win the tie and the competition, but this won’t be an easy match for the 2007 and 2005 winners.
Brendan Rodgers still has yet to win a trophy since joining Liverpool, and he knows this is possibly his best chance to change that this season. The Reds boss knows he can’t really call himself a success at Anfield without winning some silverware. With two games against Chelsea standing between them and a Wembley final, they’ll be fired up for this game. There may be quite a distance between the two sides in the Premier League table, but this is a hard match to call. Picking a winner is difficult, but you can expect to see goals in this one. Look to both teams to score at 4/5 as the bet for this potentially fiery encounter.
Leeds v Bournemouth (19:45) – Bournemouth to win (10/11 with Bet365)
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Bournemouth will be looking to extend their lead at the top of the Championship with a win at Leeds. The Cherries travel up north again after going to Rotherham on Saturday, and they’ve been in impressive form of late, barring their recent slip up at home to Norwich. Their good season so far makes them among the front runners to get promotion to the Premier League, and a win here would only strengthen their credentials.
For Leeds, they are sitting 20th in the table, and instead of fighting for promotion as a club of their size should be, they’re fighting off relegation. They’ve seen sides like Bournemouth rise up and come past them, but they’ve been in awful shape this term. They’ve won just six times all season, and they really shouldn’t pose too much of a threat to this free scoring Bournemouth side. They’ve won five games on the spin away from home, and you should back them to get another win at Elland Road on Tuesday at nice odds of 10/11 with BetVictor.
Sunday 31st August 2014
Tottenham v Sheffield United (19:45) – Both teams to score (evens with Coral)
The second of this week’s League Cup semi finals is at White Hart Lane, where Tottenham are at home to League One Sheffield United. This should really be an easy home win, but United are the cup kings at the minute. They made the FA Cup semis last season, they’re in the fourth round of the competition again this time round, and they’ve been pulling off giant killings to make it this far in the Capital One Cup. They are going to be a test for Spurs on Wednesday night, just as they have been for quite a few Premier League sides over the past year or so.
Spurs haven’t won a trophy since their 2008 victory over Chelsea in this competition, and they’re heavy favourites to make it through to the final here. Despite Sheffield United’s good cup record, Spurs are of course going to be massive favourites in this game. For the League One side, they’ll want to keep it close before the second leg, as they’re a tough prospect at home in the cup. You aren’t going to get much value on backing the Spurs win, so look to both teams to score here. The Blades put three past QPR on their last trip to London, and Spurs have a leaky defence, making evens excellent value.
Brighton v Ipswich (19:45) – Ipswich to win (7/5 with BetVictor)
On Wednesday, the Championship’s second placed side are also in action, with Ipswich heading to Brighton as they look to extend their lead on third placed Derby. Their win at Millwall on Saturday lifted them second, and they’ve been in impressive form of late. They gave Southampton a tougher time than a few Premier League sides have lately, and their cheaply put together team looks like it could be playing in the top division next term. Mick McCarthy knows what he’s doing at this level, and he’s working his magic at Portman Road.
Chris Hughton is looking to produce something similar, after recently taking over at Brighton. He’s done well in the Championship with Newcastle and Birmingham in the past, although he struggled with Norwich last season. He’s found his way back in to the game on the south coast, and he’s made a solid enough start. They lost at the weekend, but they’ve won a couple under him, and booked a place in the FA Cup fourth round against Arsenal. Despite that, it’s hard to see Brighton getting a result here. Ipswich are playing so well, they’ll come here full of confidence and it’s hard to back against them, especially when they’re priced as nicely as 7/5.