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Today’s Sports Betting Preview & BONUS Tips – By Rick Elliott

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Things Could Get Worse For Liverpool 

Manchester City have played 37 games in the Premier League this season and Vincent Kompany has had 37 shots from outside the penalty area in the competition over his 11 seasons at the club. City need to a win at Brighton on Sunday to clinch the title and Kompany’s first shot from more than 18 yards to go in secured a crucial three points against Leicester at the Etihad last night. That keeps them in the driving seat and one point ahead of Liverpool before the final day when Liverpool play Wolves at Anfield. Liverpool are the outsiders to be the champions of England in the 2018/19 season for which MANCHESTER CITY are now 1/10 with Paddy Power.

Liverpool are also long shots to qualify for the final of the Champions League ahead of this evening’s second leg fixture in the last four against Barcelona at home.  A 3-0 defeat in the first match was just about the worst result after Liverpool gave Barcelona a good match at Camp Nou last week. They were one outrageous free-kick and poor miss from Mo Salah from coming back from Spain with a 2-1 deficit which would have been a great result. Liverpool were three down against AC Milan in the 2005 final but came back to win the Champions League but this Barcelona side are a different kettle of fish. Salah is absent but Messi plays which means the match could ends up as a DRAW and that outcome is 13/5 with Coral.  

There are five meetings in the UK today and Fakenham offers the most prize money with £70,000 over seven races. It’s a lull before the lucrative Chester May meeting over the next three days which features some trials for the Derby. Aidan O’Brien often sends his leading prospects to the track and his runners should be noted after he won the 2,000 Guineas and 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket over the weekend. O’Brien has never had a runner at Fakenham where the Norfolk National takes place today at 3.45. FIFTY SHADES has the form and ratings to win the race at 3/1 with Paddy Power.

Huge Fixtures For United And City Of Manchester

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On Wednesday night Liverpool fans were supporting Manchester United and today their allegiances are with Burnley. Manchester City are playing at Turf Moor and if they drop points Liverpool would be massive favourites for the Premier League title and being the champions of England for the first time in 29 years. Burnley are becalmed in middle to bottom safety, free of relegation issues and nothing much at stake. City have scored 157 goals in all competitions this season and can advance that total today. MANCHESTER CITY -2 is the bet at 11/8 with Paddy Power.

There is a huge match at Old Trafford in the context of the race for third and fourth place. Manchester United play Chelsea and a win would be huge. Tottenham lost yesterday and Arsenal have a tough match at Leicester. The fixture at United almost becomes a playoff for qualification for the Champions League next season. Chelsea can still earn a place by winning the Europa League but its all or nothing, or playing in the Europa League, for the home team. MANCHESTER UNITED can repair the damage of two defeats by winning this match and that outcome is 8/5 with Coral.

The jumps season is over for another year and the next one starts on Saturday when all the prize money and win totals are set back to zero. Irish racing yet again shows the way with two lucrative cards with most prize money on offer at Navan. The richest race is the Group contest over one mile and six furlongs at 4.15. On form and ratings the horse to back is CAPRI at 11/8 with Paddy Power.

Today’s Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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Wins For English Clubs In The Europa League  

Arsenal are fifth in the Premier League and one place outside of qualifying for the Champions League. An alternative route into playing in the main European competition next season is winning the Europa League. Manager Unai Emery won that competition three times with Sevilla so appreciates the value of lifting the trophy. That process with Arsenal continues tonight with the home leg of the last 16 tie with Napoli. Arsenal have lost just three of 37 matches at home in all competitions so can establish a lead. ARSENAL should be backed at 29/20 with bet365.   

Chelsea are big favourites to qualify from their tie with Slavia Prague and odds-on to win tonight’s first leg in Czech Republic. The English club have conceded just one goal in four knockout matches in the Europa League this season. Slavia are probably at a similar level to Dynamo Kiev who Chelsea beat 8-0 on aggregate in the last round. Their most important player, Tomas Soucek, is suspended for this match while Chelsea have plenty of attacking options even if Eden Hazard is not selected. CHELSEA are the team to back at 7/10 with bet365. 

It’s the first round of the US Masters and there are only 97 players in the field for the first major of the season. Even some of those players are ceremonial past champions with no chance of winning. Some bookmakers are offering 10 places for each-way bets and there is plenty of value in these place terms. Length of the tee is a significant advantage but overall accuracy is more important than distance. A player must have a good week on the fast greens to contend. PAUL CASEY has a decent skills’ profile so is the each way bet at 22/1 with Paddy Power at one fifth the odds for 10 places. 

Chelmsford City is an All Weather track that offers decent prize money and there is lucrative contest for the level at today’s meeting. The Class 2 race at 3.35 is worth £37,000 and runners earn qualifying points for a place in the Kentucky Derby. The conditions of the race have attracted the interest of Aidan O’Brien. The Irish champion has his first two runners at Chelmsford in this race. Antilles is a progressive horse but his stable mate, USS MICHIGAN, is the bet at 6/4 with Paddy Power.   

This Weeks Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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Manchester City Go Marching On To The Quadruple

The sporting season continues with huge events in football and golf. There are the first leg matches in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and the US Masters from Thursday. Four Premier League clubs have reached the last eight of the biggest domestic Cup competition in the world and potentially England could have three representatives in the last four. A Premier League team has not won the Champions League since 2012 and ENGLAND is 4/6 with Betfair to be the winning nation.

Liverpool begin their tie at home to Porto on Tuesday and Manchester United welcome Barcelona to Old Trafford the following evening. The all Premier League tie begins tomorrow night when Tottenham take on Manchester City at their bright new stadium. Liverpool, Watford and seven of the biggest clubs in Europe will have their say but the impossible dream goes. Manchester City are 9/2 with Paddy Power to win the QUADRUPLE and that is now a feasible objective.

There are now just three points between Tottenham in third place in the Premier League and Manchester United in sixth. It’s any two from four for the final two Champions League qualification spots. Chelsea could go above Tottenham and Arsenal with a home win against West Ham this evening. The Hammers have not found the net in their last 11 defeats and have picked up just one point from seven road trips. CHELSEA TO WIN TO NIL is the bet at with 13/10 with Paddy Power.

The Masters Tournament is the first major championship of the season and the only one of the four played on the same course. Jack Nicklaus likes Dustin Johnson for the Green Jacket. Tiger Woods is looking for his fifth title at Augusta National and 15th major in total. Justin Rose has the game and temperament to win his second major but we could see just the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam. RORY MCILROY is 7/1 with Betfair to join that exclusive club.

The feature race of the week is the Scottish Grand National at Ayr on Saturday. The level of interest will never reach that of the real National at Aintree but the Scottish version is still one of the biggest betting races of the season and bookmakers go 10/1 the field. Another handicap chase, at Kelso over almost three miles (3.40), is the richest race of the day. The top weight is MIDNIGHT SHOT but a seven pound claimer’s allowance could help the horse win at 4/1 with Betfair.

Today’s Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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Nicholls Could Dominate Ladies Day At Aintree

Its Liverpool’s turn to try to go back to the Premier League with tonight’s televised fixture at Southampton. Three points would see Liverpool overhaul Manchester City again and take the club a step closer to a first title in 29 years. The Saints have lost just once in six league fixtures at home and avoiding defeat tonight could be massive in the outcome of the title. Liverpool have been riding their luck and winning without playing well is not sustainable so may have to settle for a damaging DRAW against Southampton and that outcome is 15/4 with Betfair.  

The most eye catching performance on the first day of the Grand National meeting at Aintree was Kemboy’s win in the Betway Bowl. The horse was always in charge of the track’s version of the Cheltenham Gold Cup and won the race with something in hand. Kemboy fell at the first fence in the Gold Cup last month and on this form would have come close to winning the race. The horse is trained by Willie Mullins who also trains the winner, Al Boum Photo. He has two leading contenders for the 2020 Gold Cup and the best bet is KEMBOY at 8/1 with Paddy Power.    

There are another three Grade I races at Aintree on ladies’ day when it’s all fake tans and skimpy outfits and that’s just the men. Paul Nicholls could win two of those with Topofthegame and Politologue but there could be more value in backing ARAMON in the novices’ hurler at 2.20 at 4/1 with Betfair. The Topham Chase (4.05) over two miles and five furlongs is the second most famous race over the Grand National fences. Nicholls could also have the winner of this 30 runner handicap because SAN BENDETTO has the ratings to prevail at 16/1 with Paddy Power. 

Raheem Sterling Could have The Last Laugh 

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Today’s Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

In the past England have gone through qualifying games with ease and then not produced the goods when it mattered most in tournaments. They look good enough to go unbeaten in the group stages of Euro 2020 and progress to the finals which are being played in 13 cities next summer. England have shortened in the betting to win the tournament and are now a best price of 11/2. 

Gareth Southgate’s team are the first England outfit to score five goals in consecutive matches since 1984. RAHEEM STERLING scored four goals in the two matches. He is still young enough to be the PFA Young Player of the Year and is 3/1 with Paddy Power to win the main award for senior players.  

The WGC Matchplay in golf brings together 64 players in 16 groups of four who compete on a round robin basis. The group winners progress to the knockout rounds over the weekend after matches over the next three days. Rory McIlroy is the favourite to win the event for the second time and Dustin Johnson is the number one seed based on world rankings. The top seed has won the event five times since it was first played in 1999.  Johnson was the champion in 2017 on this week’s host course. 

If McIlroy and Tiger Woods win their groups they will meet in the last 16 over 18 holes on Saturday morning. McIlroy, the winner in 2015, could not have got a much easier draw as he plays the lowest seed from two bands and the second lowest seed form the other band. RORY MCILROY is 7/10 with bet365 to win Group 4.  

The racing at four meetings is ordinary today with no banker bet that stands out. The headline on the front page of the Racing Post complies with a system and ratings to identify potential winners of the Grand National. Only three horses meet eight criteria for potential winners of the greatest race in the world. Tiger Roll and Rathvinden are qualifiers but the best value is ROCK THE KASBAH at 20/1 with Paddy Power. 

This Weeks Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott 

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 England Can Continue The Qualifying Run In Montenegro 

All three British teams and Ireland won their opening fixtures in Euro 2020 qualifying but England were the most impressive. The team on the pitch at the end of the 5-0 win over Czech Republic included two teenagers for the first time for over 100 years. Gareth Southgate does not concur with the adage that you can’t win anything with kids because he will play youngsters if he thinks they are good enough. The semi-finals and final of Euro 2020 are at Wembley and ENGLAND could be running around the stadium with the trophy and that outcome is 13/2 with Ladbrokes. 

The process for qualifying for the finals being played in 13 cities across Europe next summer continues for England with a match in Montenegro tonight. They did not drop a point during qualifying for Euro 2016 and potentially England can win maximum points from the group this time. Twenty one wins in the last 23 qualifiers suggests England breeze through the qualifying process against teams below them in the FIFA rankings. Montenegro’s star player, Steven Jovetic of Monaco, is absent through injury and ENGLAND are the bet at 4/11 with Paddy Power.  

The Indian Premier League is the lucrative Twenty20 tournament that brings together some of the best limited overs cricketers in the world playing for eight franchises. The teams pay for a fortune to attract the best players in the format. Matches are played on a home and away basis and a playoff series won by Chennai last year. The RAJSTHAN ROYALS have Ben Stokes among their overseas stars and can improve on their fourth place finish during the 2018 regular season. Jos Buttler opens for the Royals and he can help his team win the 2019 IPL at 8/1 with Ladbrokes. 

The Grand National takes place a week on Saturday and Tiger Roll could be the shortest priced favourite for over 40 years. The horse has a great chance to become the first back-to-back winner since Red Rum in 1973 and 1974. However, BRISTOL DE MAI ran a great race to be third in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and has been allocated a manageable weight and is the better option at 25/1 with Paddy Power.  It’s all about the Flat this Saturday with the Lincoln Handicap and Dubai World Cup taking place at Doncaster and Meydan and we’ll preview both races this week. 

This Weeks Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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England Are Contenders For Euro 2020

The semi-finals and final of Euro 2020 are being played at Wembley Stadium so England have a great chance to win just a second major international tournament after winning the World Cup in 1966. The format takes the finals to 13 venues around Europe. The qualifying tournament begins this week and the conclusion could be ENGLAND as champions of Europe and that outcome is 7/1 with Ladbrokes.

There is an international break so no fixtures in the Premier League for two weeks. Liverpool and Manchester City are vying for the title and its any two from four for the remaining Champions League qualification places. Tottenham and Manchester United are in the quarter-finals of this season’s competition and Chelsea have dropped of the pace. ARSENAL are 4/7 with Paddy Power finish in the top four.

Rory McIlroy won the Players Championship on Sunday, an event known as the fifth major due to the quality of the field. The confidence gained from his play over the last four holes sets him up for the US Masters. That is the only major he requires to complete the career Grand Slam and this could be the year. RORY MCILROY at his best is difficult to beat so is the bet at 8/1 with Ladbrokes to win the 2019 Masters Tournament. There are average grade events in Europe and the States this week.

The week after the Cheltenham Festival is always low key and the highlight is a mares’ novice hurdle Finale at Newbury on Saturday for which the final fields are not known. The Grand National meeting at Aintree takes place in two weeks so there is a lull in the jumps season in Britain. Tiger Roll and Anibale Fly advertised their prospects for the National with impressive runs at Cheltenham.

However, Navan stages an excellent card for a Monday in the week after the Festival. The richest race of the day is the novice handicap chase over three miles at 4.30. This is an open contest with several potential winners based on official ratings. MONO LINO has gone up in the weights after a win at Naas 22 days ago but could still be ahead of the handicapper and is 4/1 with Paddy Power to win this race.

MANCHESTER UNIRED Is The Bet At 21/10

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MANCHESTER UNIRED Is The Bet At 21/10

If Manchester United beat Arsenal at the Emirates in the Premier League today they will rise to the third place in the table and in great shape to qualify for the Champions League. The turnaround in results and performance has been remarkable under Ole Gunnar Solksjaer and he surely must get the permanent manager’s job. His guidance has seen United win 14, draw two and lose just one of his 17 matches in charge. They beat Arsenal away from home in the FA Cup so a win for MANCHESTER UNIRED is the bet at 21/10 with Betfair.

Manchester City beat Watford at home yesterday which leaves Liverpool four points off the pace in second place in the Premier League. The pressure is on for them to beat Burnley at Anfied today and nothing less than three points would be highly damaging. Despite some goalless draws in tough matches Liverpool have had no trouble dispatching inferior opponents. They can stay in touch with City with a convincing win and LIVERPOOL -2 is 5/4 with Paddy Power.

Chelsea could move above Arsenal with victory against Wolves at home. The visitors are battling with Watford for seventh place and potentially qualification for the Europa League. Wolves have played five league matches in London this season and are unbeaten in those fixtures. On first glance Chelsea are in decent shape but the value of their recent form is questionable, Wolves can secure the DRAW and that outcome is 16/5 with Betfair.

It’s the eve of the eve of the Cheltenham Festival but Naas has produced a great fixture with €227,000 in prize money up for the grabs. The highlight is the Leinster National over three miles at 4.50. It’s a wide open handicap but on form and ratings the horse to back is DE NAMES ESCAPES ME at with 9/2 Paddy Power.

Today’s Sports Betting Preview – By Rick Elliott

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Could Man United Win The Champions League? 

When bookmakers starting paying out you know something is a done deal. Fred Done once famously got egg on his face when weighing in punters who backed his beloved Manchester United to win the Premier League only for Arsenal to overhaul them on the run-in. But if you had a bet on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer being the next permanent manager of the United the winnings will be in your account with some bookies. 

No team in the history of the European Cup and Champions League had recovered from a two goal deficit from the home leg to progress. After doing that against PSG MANCHESTER UNITED are 8/1 with Paddy Power to win the Champions League and with Ole at the wheel anything is possible. 

Norwich are the top scorers in the Championship and always perform in front of the cameras. In 12 televised league fixtures they have won 10 and drawn the other two. They are live on TV tonight against Swansea at Carrow Road where they have scored three goals or more in six of their last eight fixtures. The home team have found the net more than twice in all but one of eight matches in the Championship. 

Norwich are not solid at the back and in 16 matches both teams have scored in all but three occasions. Swansea have let in at least one goal in eight matches on the road. The statistics suggest goals and most for Norwich but Swansea are improving and could avoid defeat. The best bet is OVER 3.5 GOALS at 13/8 with bet365.  

There is plenty of racing today but its all quite ordinary but there is a decent handicap over one mile and four furlongs on the All-Weather at Dundalk (7.45). Chaparral Dream is progressive but the handicapper could have caught up with the horse.  Active Approach has a decent profile but has not run for 228 days. At a bigger price ALHAJJAJ makes some each way appeal at 8/1 with Paddy Power.