PREMIER LEAGUE BOXING DAY: We look ahead to Wednesday’s Boxing Day Premier League games with extended stats and recommended BETDAQ bets.
FULHAM V WOLVES
12.30pm It’s Boxing Day and for football fans this is a better day than Christmas! We have nine Premier League games today and we kick off with Fulham v Wolves. Fulham managed to take a point away from St James’ Park before Christmas however they are still bottom of the table; they really need to perform over the next few days with so many fixtures coming up. Wolves have been having an excellent season however they came unstuck to league leaders Liverpool last weekend – there’s no shame in that though and looking at how they’ve been playing lately they should be able to beat this Fulham side. It’s hard to see Fulham stopping Wolves from scoring and with the away side trading 2.36 that look at least ten ticks too big and we’re happy to back them.
MATCH STATS
- Fulham have won just one of their last 10 games against Wolves in all competitions (D3 L6), however that did come in the most recent meeting (2-0 in February).
- Wolves have won six of their last eight league games against Fulham (D1 L1), scoring three or more goals on five occasions.
- This will be the first Premier League meeting between Fulham and Wolves since March 2012, when the London side won 5-0 at Craven Cottage under Martin Jol.
- Wolves have never previously won away at Craven Cottage in the Premier League (P4 D2 L2), losing on each of their last two trips.
- Wolves have lost all three of their Premier League games played on Boxing Day, the most games played on the day without earning a single point in the competition.
- This will be Wolves’ 100 th league game played on Boxing Day, making them just the second side to play as many on the date (after West Bromwich Albion).
- Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic has scored in each of his previous two league starts against Wolves; once for Newcastle in February 2017 and the other for Fulham in February 2018.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Wolverhampton to beat Fulham at 2.36.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQFulWol
BURNLEY V EVERTON
3pm Everton were one of only two teams who had to play on the 23rd but with the fitness levels of modern day players it shouldn’t be an issue. Burnley had a much needed win against Brighton recently however they still sit in the bottom three – it’s hard to read too much into their last two games as they have come against Spurs and Arsenal. Everton have had to play Man City and Spurs in their last two games too; so this will be a welcome change in class for both sides! Burnley have been pretty poor this season and it’s no surprise that they are 18th in the table; however we don’t like the Everton price at 1.86 away from home. They have had a tough run of fixtures lately but failing to beat the likes of Watford and Newcastle has to be a worry. We just feel that this game will be closer than odds of 1.86 suggest so from a value point of view we’re going to lay Everton.
MATCH STATS
- Burnley have won three of their last four games against Everton in the Premier League (L1), including both home and away meetings in the 2017-18 season.
- Everton’s only previous victory at Turf Moor in the Premier League was back in October 2014 (under Roberto Martinez). They’ve lost 2-1 there in each of the last two seasons.
- Burnley are looking to record three consecutive league wins over Everton for the first time since September 1959 (a run of four).
- None of the previous eight meetings between Burnley and Everton in the Premier League have finished level, with both sides winning four games apiece.
- Everton have conceded just five goals in their last 11 Premier League games on Boxing Day (W5 D4 L2), keeping a clean sheet in each of their last three.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Lay Everton at 1.86.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQBurEvr
CRYSTAL PALACE V CARDIFF
3pm Crystal Palace had a magically weekend beating Manchester City 3-2 away from home; while Cardiff were slightly embarrassed and shipped five goals against Manchester United. That’s the first time a team has conceded five goals to United since Alex Ferguson! City were trading 1.06 on BETDAQ when leading by one goal only for Palace to score three with no reply and we had a massive shock. Obviously Palace will now come into this fixture on a high and it’s hard to see Cardiff getting a result here. They have been way more solid in front of their home fans this season compared to away from home and if Palace can even get close to their performance against City, this should be an easy three points for them. It’s a good time to back Palace and we’re happy with 1.69.
MATCH STATS
- This will be the first meeting between Crystal Palace and Cardiff City since April 2014, when the Eagles won 3-0 away from home in a Premier League clash.
- Cardiff have lost three of their last four league games against Crystal Palace (L1), including both home and away meetings in the 2013-14 Premier League season.
- Crystal Palace have won both of their Premier League games against Cardiff without conceding (2-0 in December 2013 and 3-0 in April 2014).
- Cardiff are winless in their last five league games played on Boxing Day (D2 L3), with their last such win coming against Crystal Palace in 2012-13 (2-1).
- Cardiff manager Neil Warnock is unbeaten in his last nine away games at Selhurst Park (W6 D3), although each of these meetings took place in the second tier.
- Cardiff midfielder Aron Gunnarsson has scored in each of his last two league appearances against Crystal Palace, however this will be his first such outing against them since December 2012.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Crystal Palace to beat Cardiff at 1.69.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQCryCar
LEICESTER V MANCHESTER CITY
3pm Christmas Dinner wouldn’t have been enjoyable for Pep Guardiola after seeing his side lose 3-2 to Crystal Palace in front of their home fans, and now they have a tough trip to Leicester. They are now four points behind Liverpool and it’s fair to say that they haven’t been under this type of pressure in the Premier League for a while. These sides actually met here in the Carabao Cup last week and it finished a 1-1 draw; although you have to expect a different intensity level in a Premier League game. It highlight that Leicester are in good form though and they followed that game up with a 1-0 win away to Chelsea at the weekend too. Guardiola will want a massive reaction from his players however City look horribly short here at 1.4 looking at how Leicester are playing at the moment – we expect Leicester to make those odds look very short and again from a value point of view we have to lay the away side.
MATCH STATS
- Leicester are winless in their last four games in all competitions against Manchester City (D1 L3), with each of the three defeats coming in the Premier League.
- Manchester City are looking for their fourth consecutive win against Leicester in the Premier League – prior to this run, they had won just four of their first 11 games against the Foxes in the competition (D2 L5).
- Leicester have won just two of their last 15 games against Manchester City in all competitions (D5 L8), with both of those victories coming under Claudio Ranieri.
- Manchester City have lost just one of their seven away games against Leicester in the Premier League (W4 D2), with that defeat coming in December 2016 (4-2).
- Since they were promoted back to the top-flight in 2014-15, Leicester City have lost all four of their Premier League Boxing Day games.
- Manchester City have won eight of their last 10 Premier League Boxing Day games (D1 L1), winning the last four in a row. Their only defeat in that run came against Sunderland in 2012-13 (0-1).
- Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has scored five goals in his last three Premier League games against Leicester, with four of those coming in a 5-1 back win in February.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Lay Manchester City at 1.4.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQLeiMnc
LIVERPOOL V NEWCASTLE
3pm Liverpool sat top of the table at Christmas and the only side to not win the Premier League after sitting top in the last nine years is.. Liverpool! They will have to deal with the new expectation levels and it will be very interesting to see how they cope in their next few games. Newcastle have been poor this season though and Liverpool should have no trouble in beating them in front of their home fans. Newcastle couldn’t even beat Fulham at home at the weekend and we expect an easy home win here – Liverpool have been excellent this season. The handicap is tempting but we’re going to go with Liverpool to win both halves at 2.14 – it’s hard to see Newcastle stopping them for scoring in each half and we expect a smooth Liverpool win.
MATCH STATS
- Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 22 home games against Newcastle in all competitions (W18 D4), with their last such defeat coming in November 1995 in the League Cup (0-1).
- Newcastle have won just two of their last 10 Premier League games against Liverpool (D4 L4), with both of those victories coming at St. James’ Park.
- Since losing their first ever Premier League home game against Newcastle (0-2 in April 1994), Liverpool are unbeaten in each of the 22 such meetings since (W18 D4).
- Liverpool haven’t lost a home league game on Boxing Day since 1986-87 (0-1 vs Manchester United), winning eight and drawing three since then.
- Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge has been directly involved in eight goals in his last nine games against Newcastle in the Premier League (seven goals and one assist).
- Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez is winless in his three away games at Anfield against former club Liverpool (D2 L1), losing 0-2 in this fixture last season.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Liverpool to win both halves at 2.14.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQLvpNwc
MANCHESTER UNITED V HUDDERSFIELD
3pm Isn’t it funny how markets react? United beat Cardiff by five goals and suddenly they are back to starting at prices like 1.25! We noted in our preview last weekend that the player reaction would show whether they wanted Mourinho out or nor and it’s fair to say that five goals goes some way to showing that Mourinho lost the dressing room. Obviously Pogba’s problems are well documented and it will be very interesting to see do United keep up their work-rate for the rest of the season – the stats were pretty bad for them prior to the sacking of Mourinho. Huddersfield have slipped back into a run of defeats after collecting some points and shipping three goals against Southampton at the weekend was a bad sign for this game. We expect an easy United win and they can cover the handicap. They’re trading 1.8 -1.5 goals which looks great value.
MATCH STATS
- Manchester United have lost just one of their previous 14 games against Huddersfield in all competitions (W10 D3), with that one defeat coming away from home (1-2 in October 2017).
- Huddersfield are looking for their first away win against Manchester United since September 1930, when they won 6-0 in a top-flight clash. They’ve failed to win any of their last 15 trips in all competitions since then (D5 L10).
- Huddersfield have failed to score in seven of their last 10 games against Manchester United in all competitions, netting just four goals in total in this period.
- Manchester United have never lost a Premier League game at Old Trafford against Yorkshire opposition (W26 D6). The last Yorkshire side to win away against Manchester United in the top-flight were Sheffield Wednesday in April 1986.
- Manchester United haven’t lost a home league game on Boxing Day since 1978-79 (0-3 versus Liverpool), winning 14 and drawing three since.
- Manchester United find themselves outside the top five positions of the Premier League on Christmas Day for the third time in six seasons since Alex Ferguson retired (also in 2013-14 and 2016-17). Under Ferguson, United were never outside the top five places on Xmas Day in any of the 21 Premier League seasons.
- Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku has scored three goals in three appearances against Huddersfield in all competitions, with all three being scored last season.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Manchester United -1.5 goals to beat Huddersfield at 1.8.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQMunHdd
TOTTENHAM V BOURNEMOUTH
3pm We have another short price here as Spurs are trading 1.38 to beat Bournemouth – there will be a lot of trebles on Liverpool, United and Spurs on BETDAQ Multiples today! It’s hard to see Bournemouth getting a result here with Spurs in good form – highlighted by their 1-1 draw at Barcelona recently and a 2-0 win over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup. They have been playing some excellent football this season while Bournemouth have slightly lost their way recently. They have had a tough run of fixtures but they have consistently came up short against the top six sides and we expect a similar result here. Spurs are trading 2.04 -1.5 goals which looks massive and we’re very happy to take those odds.
MATCH STATS
- Since losing their first ever meeting (1-3 in February 1957), Spurs are unbeaten in their six games against Bournemouth in all competitions (W5 D1).
- Bournemouth have never beaten Spurs in league competition (P6 W0 D1 L5), with each of those six games coming in the Premier League since the start of the 2015-16 season.
- Spurs have won each of their three home games against Bournemouth in the Premier League, scoring eight goals and keeping a clean sheet on each occasion.
- Bournemouth have conceded 17 goals in their six Premier League games against Spurs, at an average of 2.8 per game.
- Spurs striker Harry Kane has been directly involved in seven goals in five Premier League appearances against Bournemouth (six goals and one assist).
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Tottenham -1.5 goals to beat Bournemouth at 2.04.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQThmBou
BRIGHTON V ARSENAL
5.15pm Arsenal got back to winning ways with an easy 3-1 win over Burnley after losing their unbeaten record when losing to Southampton and then Spurs in the Carabao Cup. This is the type of game, and price, that you would want to be laying them in last season; however this is a different Arsenal side and Brighton are in woeful form. They’ve lost their last three games coming into this fixture however one of those came against Chelsea; it’s hard to see how they can stop this Arsenal side who have been creating so much in front of goal. They were very impressive in their build-up play at the weekend and despite losing 3-2 to Southampton away from home recently, they have been grinding out some nice away results this season. We feel that they can outclass Brighton here and the 1.74 looks worth backing.
MATCH STATS
- Brighton have lost five of their last six games against Arsenal in all competitions, however did win the most recent meeting between the two (2-1 in March 2018).
- Arsenal have scored at least two goals in five of their last six games against Brighton in all competitions (W5 L1), netting 14 goals in total.
- Brighton have won each of their last three home games against Arsenal in the top-flight, after losing the first two such meetings.
- Arsenal have kept a clean sheet in six of their 10 games against Brighton in the top-flight, conceding just six goals in total in this run.
- Brighton haven’t won any of their last nine league games played on Boxing Day (W0 D3 L6), since beating QPR 1-0 in 2005-06.
- Arsenal have lost just one of their last 13 Premier League played games on Boxing Day (W10 D2), losing 0-4 at Southampton in 2015-16.
- Brighton striker Glenn Murray has scored two goals in 125 minutes played against Arsenal in all competitions (four appearances), including the winner for the Seagulls in this fixture last season (2-1).
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Arsenal to beat Brighton at 1.74.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQBriArl
WATFORD V CHELSEA
7.30pm We end the day with Chelsea away to Watford and this is a very interesting betting heat. Chelsea have had some poor results lately and they have quickly fallen off the pace in the race at the top of the table – they are now battling hard to stay in the top four with Arsenal catching them at the weekend. Recently losses to Wolves and Leicester have knocked them back; although they did managed to beat Man City 2-0 at Stamford Bridge. Watford have been a really up and down team this season after starting the campaign really strong – although they weren’t consistent last season either! They did well to beat an in-form West Ham side 2-0 at the weekend and while Liverpool and City have beaten them here recently, we can see them running Chelsea close. From a value point of view we’re happy to lay Chelsea at 1.74, we expect a closer game than those odds suggest.
MATCH STATS
- Watford won their most recent meeting with Chelsea (4-1 in February), ending a run of 13 games without a win against them in all competitions (D3 L10).
- The previous five Premier League games between Watford and Chelsea at Vicarage Road have seen both sides win two games apiece (one draw).
- Watford are looking to record back-to-back competitive wins against Chelsea for the first time since April 1987.
- The last four games between Watford and Chelsea in the Premier League have seen 21 goals scored (Watford 10 goals, Chelsea 11 goals), at an average of 5.3 per game.
- Chelsea are unbeaten in their last 13 Premier League games played on Boxing Day (W8 D5), since a 2-4 loss at Charlton in 2003-04.
BETDAQ BEST BET:
Lay Chelsea at 1.74.
You can view all markets here -> http://bit.ly/BDQWatChl
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