United can boost goal difference against Cottagers
Manchester United welcome Fulham to Old Trafford on Monday evening as Sir Alex Ferguson looks to take another step towards a 20th league title. United did their goal difference the world of good with a 5-0 hammering of Wolves last time out and they’ll be looking to bring it even closer when Fulham visit Old Trafford.
Total goal buyers looking at the game might recall that United hit five past Fulham in the reverse fixture this season. Five different goal scorers helped United to an easy three points and an impressive total of 254 in the total goal minutes market.
Another market that may be of interest given United’s recent displays is the match supremacy spread. United have won seven of the past ten meetings with Fulham and each of those has been to nil. In those seven victories United have racked up 22 goals – at an average of 3.1.
Can Ireland end poor run against Les Bleus
Scott Williams’ superb individual try at Twickenham handed Wales a 20th Triple Crown title in an extremely tight contest with England. The 19-12 victory kept Wales’ dream of a Grand Slam alive, although France remain in the running for the ultimate prize this year.
France could say goodbye to their Grand Slam dreams on Sunday as the two sides prepare to meet in Paris. Two weeks ago Ireland’s game in France was postponed due to the freezing weather and Ireland will finally have a chance to end their dismal run against Les Bleus on Sunday.
Ireland have really struggled against Les Bleus recently and last year’s 26-22 loss at Lansdown Road was the fourth straight defeat against Sunday’s opponents. The Emerald Isle last beat the French in 2009 following a 30-21 triumph and that was their first in 12 internationals playing France.
Spread bettors with an interest in the match supremacy market might like to know that the past two France victories have been close affairs. The average winning margin for those two contests stands at 5.5 points.
Can underdogs continue run in FA Cup?
Stevenage and Crawley Town are the two lowest placed clubs in the fifth round draw and both will harbour big ambitions of an FA Cup upset over the weekend. League One’ Stevenage welcome highflying Tottenham to Broadhall Way, while League Two’s Crawley make the daunting trip to the Britannia.
Crawley reached this stage of the competition on the back of four straight wins and punters interested in the match supremacy market might like to know that each win was to nil. Stevenage followed suit and also reached the fifth round without needing a replay and without conceding a goal in the process.
Tottenham are strong favourites to end Stevenage’s run, but Harry Redknapp knows all too well about cup upsets from his time at Portsmouth in particular. The hosts have averaged two goals per game in their past six league games, while Spurs have only won twice in their past six away league outings.
England should expect a test in Italy
Stuart Lancaster’s tenure as England coach got off to a winning start as they edged out Scotland at Murrayfield. It wasn’t pretty, but the 13-6 victory was hugely important ahead of this weekend’s clash with Italy.
The Red Rose hammered Italy 59-13 in last year’s competition to make it 17 victories from 17 internationals against them. Spread bettors looking at the match supremacy market for England’s game at the Stadio Olimpico might have seen that England’s recent games in Italy have been much tighter contests.
England narrowly beat the Italians 17-12 in 2010 and there was nothing to separate the sides at the break. Matthew Tait scored the only try of the game and Martin Castrogiovanni’s yellow card didn’t help Italy after the break.
In 2008 the winning margin was even less as the Red Rose scraped past 19-23. The average winning margin for England’s past three internationals in Italy currently stands at just eight points.
Bolton’s struggles at home set to continue for Liverpool visit
Saturday’s late kick off sees Liverpool travel to the Reebok looking to bounce back from another disappointing draw at Anfield. Elsewhere, Owen Coyle’s side were comfortably beaten 3-0 at Old Trafford and now the Trotters must prepare for life without Gary Cahill after the defender finally completed his move to Chelsea.
Bolton are currently locked in the relegation places and if things couldn’t get any worse, they have a truly woeful record against the Reds. Punters looking at either Liverpool’s win index or the match supremacy will be happy to hear that the Reds have won the last 12 games against the Trotters. Bolton fans must look back to August 2004 for the last win when a lone Kevin Davies strike proved the difference.
Home form remains a huge concern for Bolton, who have lost four of their past six league outings at the Reebok. Over the season Bolton have won only once in the league in front of their own fans and have lost eight of their ten matches.
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