After an epic midweek set of fixtures in the Barclays Premier League there is another round of matches this weekend which might just give us more of an insight into where the title is going and who will be heading for the trap door.
It all begins with arguably the biggest North London derby ever as Tottenham host Arsenal at White Hart Lane. Both sides lost in midweek to make the game even bigger, especially for the visitors who you would have to feel are going to be out of the title race if they lose here. Were Tottenham to lose they could be six points behind Leicester with nine games left were the Foxes to win later in the day.
Claudio Ranieri and his men will know where they stand from that game because they play in the final match of the day when they head to Vicarage Road to take on a fading Watford. Leicester know if they keep on winning they won’t be caught and that will be their task in that one.
In between then we have six matches kicking off at 3pm. Chelsea host Stoke, Everton take on Champions League chasing West Ham, Man City play Aston Villa, Newcastle face Bournemouth in a huge match at the bottom of the table while Sunderland head to Southampton and Swansea play Norwich in another with big implications at the bottom.
I was going to leave the NLD alone because of the enormity of it but the news that Petr Cech and Laurent Koscielny has got me interested again. In truth I was leaning towards a Spurs win if anyone was going to win it and I would say the chances of a home win has intensified with the team news especially with Spurs having Moussa Dembele back.
To get odds against on Tottenham with the draw cover of a 0.25 Asian line is really good value and I’m happy to snap that up even allowing for the magnitude of the game.
Of the 3pm games there are a couple of trappy ones. I think Swansea will beat Norwich but I am always wary of any team or sportsman who go into a game off the back of a big result. The let down potential is enormous and that isn’t good clearly. I was close to backing them but I’ll sit that one out.
I nearly took Man City to cover a -2 handicap but I’m put off a) by their performance in midweek and b) by the tiredness excuse that was being trotted out. If City were tired then Pellegrini might name a second string side here and while Villa are beyond useless that would be a big handicap to cover in full.
I still wouldn’t put it past them but it isn’t what I would call a betting prospect so I’ll sit that out and the lower half clash between Newcastle and Bournemouth which just has too much riding on it. I think Chelsea and Southampton will win but they are both a little on the short side too.
I am going to get involved with West Ham though. Everton might well win this match but they are plenty short enough for this one especially as they have won just four out of 14 matches at Goodison Park.
West Ham have been solid on the road all season and are really in form at the minute. They saw off Spurs in midweek and look a side full of confidence. Everton took care of Villa in midweek but we saw all their inconsistencies when they lost at home to West Brom in recent times and whenever you think Everton are going well they throw a stinker of a result in.
Three of Everton’s four home wins this season have been against the bottom four sides in the league and the other was against Chelsea in the heart of their slump at the beginning of the season so again at odds against West Ham on a +0.75 Asian line offers extreme value.
I wanted to get involved in Leicester but as I said in midweek things are starting to get a bit nervy and hairy at the top of the table so in the end I’ve decided to sit that one out. Even if they win I think we’ll have to ride a few bumpy moments and there is no need to do that when there are better bets out there.
Back Tottenham (-0.25AH) to beat Arsenal for a 4/10 stake at 2.05 with Bet365
WON – Back West Ham (+0.75AH) to beat Everton for a 4/10 stake at 2.02 with Bet365
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