THANK GOD THE LEAGUE IS BACK Last week’s predictions did not go too well. I was not very confident about the fixtures anyways as I mentioned that stage of the FA Cup can be extremely difficult to call due to uncertainty around what players will take the field. It gets to the stage in the cup where a team has gotten so far it is worth playing a full strength team, we’re still a bit away from that though. Nevertheless, the Premiership is back and I am a lot more confident in this week’s picks.
West Ham v Crystal Palace
3.00pm Saturday What a difference a week makes. Last weekend I had backed West Ham to pick the scalp of Man City, and boy did they disappoint. They got absolutely steamrolled by a rampant Man City team. Fast forward a week and the club looks to be in real turmoil. Payet has requested to move as well as refusing to play. It looks like he will be headed back to France and with him goes any hope of West Ham salvaging something decent from their season. He is hands down their most talented player, the guy makes everything tick. He will be a massive loss, one that will really hurt them after holding on to him in the summer.
Big Sam will be returning to his former club, one where he had reasonable success and may have been unfortunate to lose his job. He would love to get a win here, and the one certain thing is that he will set Palace up to be very difficult to beat. It’s the approach he always brings to big games, and this is a big game with all that is going on at both clubs right now, as well as being a London Derby. The pace of the Palace forwards could be the difference in this one. If you look at Zaha, Puncheon and even Benteke they have the pace to beat any West Ham defender. I really fancy Palace to pick something up here. West Ham went through a decent enough spell but after everything in the past week I really think they are there for the taking tomorrow afternoon.
TONY’S BEST BET:
Back Crystal Palace at 3.2.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQWHUCP
Hull v Bournemouth
3.00pm Saturday This one is at the same time as the above, and I’m going to go for another away victory here. If you look at Bournemouth last weekend, they rested their best 11 players so you know they will be fresh this weekend. Eddie howe clearly showed that the FA Cup was not his priority, all concentration is on the league for him and he would have definitely had an eye on this weekend’s game as a must win. Resting players last weekend will have them ready for tomorrow’s game and they will be ready to hit the ground running against a team on its last legs. Hull are almost in a complete opposite position, they have barely any fit players left. Midweek against United they had to put some of the youngsters on the bench just to make the seven subs.
Hull have brought in a couple of players on loan this week, but it may be too soon for them to make any sort of an impact. You could see during the week that these Hull players are pretty tired, they didn’t really show up against Man United which is almost understandable as they’ve been run into the ground lately with no suitable replacements around. Bournemouth will really benefit from this when you consider the expansive style that they play. Hull should tire early and Bournemouth with all their firepower should be able to capitalise. This will be a very tough job for Silva, especially up until he gets his players back fit. If you look at their recent results and performances it is hard to envisage them turning things around quickly. They will be really up against it even as the home side tomorrow.
TONY’S BEST BET:
Back Bournemouth at 2.34.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQHullBou
Man United v Liverpool
4.00pm Sunday I think every remembers the last time these two sides met, and although it will go down as one of their least memorable games it still sticks in the mind because of the build up that led to the game. It turned out to be a dreadful game with Jose Mourinho setting his team out to park the bus. Liverpool had been playing some highly entertaining football at the time and Jose just wanted to prevent a loss. Things should be different this time around. At that stage Man United were finding their new identity, and they most certainly have found that at this stage of the season. United will go out to win at home this time around, they certainly couldn’t approach the game any more negatively than the last time anyways.
Man United have so much more about them compared to when they last faced off. He is now getting the best out of players like Mkhitaryan, Mata, Hererra and Pogba is starting to show glimpses that he was worth the money they spent on him. He has a much more assured back four, with Phil Jones actually playing an integral part in turning things around and of course up front they have the newly crowned December Player of the Month in the ageless Ibrahimovic. They are really on song and they are fast approaching Fergie’s record of eleven wins in a row which would be a remarkable achievement for Jose in his first season at the club. Set pieces will be a situation Liverpool will struggle to handle when you look at the size in this Man United team. It has never been a strength of Liverpool’s either so you can be sure Jose will target these situations.
In some ways it does suit Liverpool that United will be braver in their approach. It will open up the pitch a bit more for them on the counter, but this is an area where they will be sadly missing Mane. He is their best player at running at defenders and taking it past them with sheer pace. I’m not sure if Henderson will be fit for Sunday, he does a big job for them of controlling the game from midfield. Then you look at Coutinho, of course it is great to have him back in the side, he can change any game, but after a lengthy layoff it may take him a couple more games to find his feet properly. After a disappointing performance during the week against Southampton I think Liverpool might struggle to turn things around against a Man United team who are beaming with confidence right now.
TONY’S BEST BET:
Back Man United at 2.2.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQMNULiv
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