January has been a month packed full of football action, with two rounds of the FA Cup plus replays on top of all the Premier League games we’ve had. We’ve seen a little slowing down in the calendar after the busy Christmas period, but there’s still plenty more league and cup action to come this month. While there’s going to be plenty of interest in the FA Cup at the end of the month, are there really any bigger matches right now than the League Cup semi-finals?
Three weeks ago the first legs of the Capital One Cup took place, and now we’re seeing the second legs, as the four teams fight it out to be in next month’s final. Manchester City need to overturn a deficit against Everton, while Stoke have a mountain to climb against Liverpool. While that’s happening, the Football League isn’t moving out of the way for its cup competition. The race for promotion to the top flight continues in earnest, and here we’re covering that as well. This is your guide to the biggest midweek games.
Monday 25th January 2016
Burnley v Derby (19:45) – Burnley to win (8/5 with Betfair)
The fight for promotion is as tight as ever in the Championship, and these two sides are in the mix to go up. Burnley are looking to bounce back after their relegation last term, while Derby are aiming to make up for a few near misses. They’re both eying up a place in the top two, but they find themselves in the play-off spots going into this one. They’ll have ground to make up, playing two days after the rest of the division, but just which of these two will manage to take the points in this big clash at Turf Moor?
Derby put together a great run of form to move towards the top, but recently they’ve started going backwards. They’re four games without a win in the league, and they can’t afford to let that run continue for too long. Heading to Burnley isn’t the easiest task for an out of form side, especially as the Clarets are really starting to make their case for promotion. Sean Dyche’s men went up automatically two years ago, and now they have a stronger squad and more experience. Given that they head here on the back of a five game unbeaten run, we’re backing Burnley, who look very well priced to win this one.
Tuesday 26th January 2016
Liverpool v Stoke (19:45) – Both teams to score (11/10 with Coral)
Tuesday’s big game is the first League Cup semi final second leg at Anfield. It serves as a good warm up for the second semi, which is a lot closer run. After Liverpool won 1-0 at the Britannia Stadium in the first “half”, it’s hard to see how the Potters can find any way back in to this one. It’ll take a massive upset to turn things around, and they’d need a two goal win to avoid forcing extra time. Do they have any chance?
Klopp’s Liverpool haven’t been that impressive at home, but it’s hard to see them slipping up here in a cup semi final. They will have some selection worries, but expect the strongest possible team. Klopp has a chance to win a trophy in his first season, which would buy him a lot of time. Stoke will have to push to have any chance of going through, which should suit Klopp’s team. This should end up being a pretty entertaining game, with both sides going for it. That’s why we’re backing goals, so we’re going for both teams to score, which is well priced at 11/10.
Nottingham Forest v QPR (19:45) – Forest to win (21/20 with BetVictor)
These two sides met not too long ago in the FA Cup Third Round, in which Forest came out on top. It wasn’t a huge shock that Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink failed to lead QPR to the win at Forest, as that is something no Rangers manager has ever achieved. In 31 trips to this ground, the R’s have never returned to London with more than a point. This is basically the bogey ground to end all bogey grounds. Can QPR end that run and reignite their play-off hopes, or will it be business as usual for Forest?
Form isn’t always reliable, but when you have a run stretching back to 1934, it’s something worth looking at. QPR’s dreadful record here doesn’t look like ending any time soon, especially when you consider that Forest are unbeaten since November ahead of this weekend. The R’s haven’t quite hit their stride under Hasselbaink, so we’re confidently going for a home win here.
Wednesday 27th January 2016
Manchester City v Everton (19:45) – Man City -1 handicap (5/4 with Coral)
This game is the highlight of the week, as City host Everton knowing they have a defeat to overturn. The first meeting at Goodison Park saw the Toffees deservedly win 2-1, and now they need to hold on to that lead at the Etihad to book a place at Wembley. Barring a shock on Tuesday, many will be hoping to see an all Merseyside final next month, although that would take a resilient display from Roberto Martinez’s team. Can they pull off a big result to book a final spot, or will the favourites prevail?
These two shared a 0-0 draw at the Etihad not too long ago, which may push people towards backing Everton to qualify. Manuel Pellegrini will have that in mind, and expect him to go after goals here. This Everton defence hasn’t been the most solid this season, so it would take a huge performance from their team to park the bus here. They’d be even more open if City got an early goal, which would make things very difficult for them. A 1-0 win for City would take them through on away goals, but only after extra time. We think they’d rather avoid that extra 30 minutes, so we expect them to finish this one off within the 90 minutes.