Articles

Salford v Stevenage
League Two – 12.30 pm
Sky Sports

It is a huge afternoon for Salford. They are playing in the top four tiers of English football for the first time ever. They earned a gritty promotion from the National League back in May through the play offs. Salford had finished third in the league table, four points off first-placed Leyton Orient. There was just the one automatic promotion spot up for grabs in the division. Salford went through to the playoff semi-finals where they faced Eastleigh. Salford won the fixture in a penalty shootout.

That put them through to face AFC Fylde in the playoff final. Salford banged out a 3-0 win at Wembley. So now the Ammies are facing life in the top tiers for the first time. Manchester club Salford became famous when they were taken over in 2014 by former Man Utd players Ryan Giggs, Gary & Phil Neville, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt. David Beckham also bought a share earlier this year. Will the Ammies be able to open with a win? They are 3/4 favourites with leading bookmakers, which will probably be supported by punters as one of the best bets of the day.

They are facing Stevenage who were top-ten finishers in the division last season. Boro finished the season in fine fettle too, dropping just two points in their final six games. Stevenage picked up a W8 D7 L8 record on their travels last term in League Two. That was some progress by them after having finished down in 16th the previous season. Despite their strengths and experience in League Two, top bookies have them as 18/5 underdogs for this game. But they did finish last season with an unbeaten run of seven away games, winning each of their last three.

PSG v Rennes
French Super Cup – 12.30 pm
BT Sport

It has been a strange, quiet summer from PSG. There has been no major cash splashed around. No big marquee signings. Are they happy with their lot? They have at least kept a hold of Neymar, when at one point it looked as if he could be heading out of the door. There is still time for things to happen, of course. They will be taking in some French Super Cup action on the weekend where they start as overwhelming favourites to win. So much so that big bookmakers have them at 11/8 to claim a victory without conceding in the match.

PSG had yet another easy league title last season, winning the title by 18 points over Lille. They face up against Rennes who pulled off a shock Coupe de France victory over PSG in April. They were massive underdogs for the game in Paris but stuck in there for a 2-2 draw and then claimed the title in a penalty shoot-out. Rennes are a big 4/1 price to lift the trophy on the weekend and upset PSG once again. Stade Rennais have lost 11 of the last 13 games against PSG (W1 D1) but then no-one gave them a chance back in April. As it was last year, the French Super Cup is being played in Shenzen, China.

Nottingham Forest v West Brom
Championship – 5.30 pm
Sky Sports

It is a busy day of Championship action on Saturday. The first Saturday evening kick off the new season sees Nottingham Forest playing host to West Brom. The Tricky Trees did get themselves a top ten finish in the second tier last season. Helping them achieve that was a three-match winning streak right at the end of the season. They carried some pretty decent home form did Forest. Their returns from the City Ground last season was W13 D4 L6. They took a very good W4 D1 L2 home record against the top seven finishers in the league. They played out a 1-1 draw with West Brom.

The Baggies were pretty solid throughout the season. They just couldn’t take things a little bit further and push for an automatic qualification spot. West Brom ended up finishing fourth in the Championship, sending them to the playoffs. They were up against Midlands rivals Aston Villa in the semi-finals, the Baggies losing on a penalty shootout after a 2-2 aggregate draw. West Brom have a new manager in Slaven Bilic and will once again, be expected to raise some kind of promotion push. They are 9/5 underdogs for their opening game of the season.

Borussia Dortmund v Bayern Munich
German Supercup – 7.30 pm
BT Sport

The German Supercup has been dominated by Bayern Munich recently. There is no better word than dominate. The Bavarians have won the last six editions of the title. Two of the wins in that sequence were against Borussia Dortmund. One of those against Dortmund was at the Signal Iduna Park, the very home of Borussia Dortmund. That is where the 2019 edition of the German Supercup is being played.

Once again BVB finds themselves going in a game against Bayern Munich as underdogs, this time to the tune of 11/5. Last season they looked as if they were going to end Bayern’s dominance in the Bundesliga, but they threw away a good position and finished second. Bayern made a clean sweep of the Supercup (beating Eintracht Frankfurt 5-0), the Bundliesga and DFB Pokal last season. It wasn’t even that good of a start that they had to the domestic season.

But somehow they still managed to pull out the titles. Just as they have done in the Supercup six times in a row. Bayern Munich are 23/20 favourites with leading bookmakers to win the title again (90 minutes). Dortmund and Bayern traded home wins in the Bundesliga last season. Each of the last eight meetings have gone over 2.5 goals. There have been sixteen goals in the last three meetings alone.

Keep up to date with a busy day of Saturday sporting action with the latest live bets!

Luton v Middlesbrough
Championship – 7.45 pm
Sky Sports

The new season of the Championship kicks off on Friday night with the newly promoted Luton playing host to Middlesbrough at Kenilworth Road. Luton put together an astonishing season last term as they collected 94 points to top League One. They only won two of their last six games, but still, nobody could catch them. The Hatters put together an unbeaten season on home soil as well as they went W16 L7 L0. Of course, they are going to get much tougher challenges this term.

Just back in 2009/10, Luton were playing in the Conference. But they have clawed their way back, starting with a return to the top four tiers for the start of the 2015/16 season. After getting out of League Two in 2018, their League One title this year has seen them earn back to back promotions up the tiers. Can they keep that promotion momentum going? More realistically for a first season back in the enormously competitive Championship, survival is probably just going to be their target. Luton start as 9/5 underdogs for this opening game with top bookmakers.

Middlesbrough were looking like play-off contenders in the Championship last season. That was a bust though as a telling six-match losing streak between mid-March and Mid April left them with too much to do. Despite a late flourish of five wins in their last six games, they fell short of the playoffs by a point. Former defender Jonathan Woodgate gets his first taste of managerial life with Boro. The Riverside crew went W10 D7 L6 away from home last season. Leading bookmakers have them at 29/20 to open with a win on Friday. Will that tempt punters as one of the best bets of the day?

Anthony Flower v Brian Rose
Boxing
Sky Sports

The headlining fight on Friday night sees Anthony Fowler going into battle with Brian Rose. Fowler has to get the hunger going again after losing his last fight. The Liverpudlian pugilist holds a W9 L1 record now from his ten career fights and the one loss on that record came against Scott Fitzgerald last time out. Fowler lost on a split decision in that fight. He admitted that he was probably a bit overconfident against Fitzgerald, underestimating his opponent.

Fowler was put to the canvas in that fight and now has to dust himself down to face challenger Rose. Rose is a former world title challenger. He went up against Joachim Alcine for the vacant WBO international belt and delivered a knockout win in the final round. He is a former British light-middleweight titleholder and took on Demetrius Andrade for the WBO Light middleweight in 2014 where he was stopped in the seventh.

There has been a lot of inconsistency in his form, losing four of his last seven. Since losing to Jack Arnfield for the WBA International middleweight title in 2017, Rose has beaten Alistair Warren and then James Hagenimana both by points. His scattered form has forced bookmakers to leave him as the 6/1 underdog for the bout. So much favouritism has gone on Fowler, he is as short as 11/10 to finish the fight in rounds 1-5.

Dunfermline v Dundee
Scottish Championship – 7.05 pm
BBC

Dunfermline had their struggles in the Championship last season. They finished seventh of ten and were just unable to get any momentum up and running. They were the lowest scorers in the entire division, netting just 33 times in 36 games. They rounded out the season in really poor fashion as well, losing seven of their last eight games of the campaign (D1). But it’s a new season, optimism of a fresh start will be back.

Former striker Stevie Crawford took over in January this year and he stays with the club. He saw them through a W8 D2 L11 period in all competitions, a 38% win rate. The Pars are 8/5 favourites with leading bookmakers to pick up the win in this season opener. They do have some home from going over Dundee, posting a W3 D1 record in their last four at East End Park against them. This will be the first time that they have hosted them in the league since 2011 though.

Dundee finished rock bottom of the Premiership last season. They managed to get only the five wins under their belt throughout the league campaign. As a positive going into this one, for which they are 8/5 underdogs with leading bookmakers, four of their five victories last season were out on the road. Dundee lost eleven of their last twelve league games. They conceded at an average of 2.2 goals per game. How many of their problems from last season will have been fixed ahead of this Championship campaign?

Look forward to more of the weekend’s top action with a look at Bobby’s Big Weekend Bets.

The new season is around the corner, with our eyes peeled on the best ante-post markets ahead of the big kick-off over the next couple of weeks. From the Champions League to Premier League survival, where is the best value found up and down the football pyramid?

Top London Club – Tottenham @ 11/10 (Marathon Bet)

Despite still being two or three transfers short of where Mauricio Pochettino would like his Spurs side to be, the side enjoying the fruits of a new state-of-the-art stadium are likely to press on again this season under the wing of their exciting Argentine manager. A fully fit Harry Kane will guarantee them goals, Son and Lucas Moura will guarantee them the energy in attack, and securing Eriksen for another season will guarantee the guile in midfield which has been fundamental to the side’s recent success.

The addition of Tanguy Ndombele is a positive step, with 60 million euros being splashed out on the French midfielder. Losing Trippier and, probably Rose, will leave a void in the wing back areas that need filling. In comparison to Arsenal and Chelsea – their closest London rivals – Tottenham look the best equipped to have a strong season, improving on their faltering finish of fourth last time out.

Champions League Winner – Juventus @ 8/1 (Marathon Bet)

Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed that the Old Lady will win the European Cup within the next two seasons. Who are we to disagree with CR7? Juventus are continue to build an impressive squad of free signings, despite a heavy wage bill. The big question this season will be whether Sarri has the credentials to lead this squad to European glory.

They would trade their last three Serie A titles for a Champions League crown, however, Sarri’s trophy cabinet as a manager is very bare. The Italian won the Europa League with Chelsea last season to break his duck – perhaps he will carry on this form in Turin. It’s a very unpredictable tournament when it boils down to the last eight. If Juve can avoid some big names until then, it could be their year.

Premier League To Be Relegated – Brighton & Hove Albion @ 9/5 (Marathon Bet)

Brighton have been clinging on for a few seasons now. The Seagulls continue to struggle in front of goal, and with limited additions in the transfer market a lot of pressure will once again be on Glenn Murray to deliver. Graham Potter proved his worth as a coach in the Championship, but will be swimming against the tide from the off at the start of next season. With Aston Villa expected to do well, it opens up an obvious spot for an “established” Premier League side to face the drop.

Premier League To Be Relegated – Norwich City @ 10/11 (Marathon Bet)

It’s looking likely that Norwich and Sheffield United will be engaged in a battle not to become cut adrift at the start of the season. Norwich played some exciting football last season, but they still leaked 57 goals. Their scoring prowess can’t be overlooked, but the quality of the defences in the top flight might come as a shock to the Canaries. I expect the yellow and green to be floating around 17th all season, with a tricky run-in potentially proving their undoing.

Premier League Top 4 – Chelsea @ 21/20 (Marathon Bet)

It’s an interesting looking season for Chelsea lying ahead. Following their transfer ban, the Blues have been limited in their spending this summer, with Pulisic arriving after spending a year on loan and Kovacic being officially signed having been with Chelsea temporarily last season from Real Madrid. Lampard will breed the youth this season, with Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham expected to feature regularly.

Whether the Blues have what it takes to squeeze into the top 4 is the question, but with Arsenal and Man United also looking to rebuild, Chelsea’s core and feel-good-factor could prove enough. Their spine of Kepa, Luiz, Kante and Barkley are expected to shine in Lampard’s new 4-2-3-1 formation.

And just like that… the English domestic league is back underway.

Sunday’s Community Shield between Liverpool and Man City pits last year’s top two sides in the Premier League against each other having being separated by the slenderest of margins over last season’s 38 matches.

Wembley Stadium will welcome the teams who travel south to North London’s “Home of Football”, with Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp renewing their respected rivalry after an unforgettable 2018-19 campaign.

Once again, Liverpool and Man City are expected to contest the domestic prizes on offer in England this season – you can be sure they would agree to swap their Champions League and Premier League titles which they secured in May this year.

There will be significant attention placed on the introduction of Video Assistant Referees for this Community Shield “curtain-raiser”. We have seen VAR used in the League Cup previously last season, but with the technology being implemented in the league for the first time this season, Wembley’s match will be under added scrutiny.

Neither side has made huge strides in the transfer market this summer. Sepp van den Berg – a 17-year-old Dutch defender – has joined Klopp’s roster for a modest fee, with Rodri arriving from Atletico Madrid to bolster Pep’s fragile midfield. The £62 million man is expected to feature heavily for City this season; they’ve been hunting a replacement for the injury-prone Fernandinho for some time now.

City have been in scintillating pre-season form scoring 13 goals in four matches. Wolves managed to hold them to an unexpected 0-0 draw eventually beating them on penalties in a humid Hongkou Stadium – not a result that Guardiola will have lost much sleep over.

Liverpool have enjoyed less success over their pre-season period. Domestic wins at Tranmere and Bradford were caveated by losses to Dortmund, Sevilla and Napoli, with only a share of the spoils managed against Sporting.

The important factor to consider coming into this Sunday’s fixture is the plethora of attacking talent that will be missing for Klopp’s Reds. Sadio Mane – arguably Liverpool’s best player last season – and Mo Salah are unlikely to feature following being granted time off following the African Cup of Nations. This will allow youngster Rhian Brewster to stake his claim for a starting spot early in the season, with Bobby Firmino expected to find himself on the scoresheet more than he managed last campaign.

City start as the obvious favourites at 20/21 with MarathonBet. At close to evens its a good price considering the available players City are likely to field in comparison to Liverpool. City have had recent success in this fixture, beating Chelsea in the 2018 edition.

Goals will be expected under the Wembley arch. Both teams know how to find the back of the net scoring a combined 184 goals in the league last season. Pre-season – as well as the Community Shield – is considered a “free hit” by many teams, with their attacking players given a freedom they may not be allowed throughout the season. Notching a few goals will be paramount for the confidence of the strikers involved, meaning Both Teams To Score and Over 3.5 Goals looks very tasty at 113/50 with Marathon Bet.

When these two sides meet there tends to be early drama. Both teams like to commit on the front foot and will be eager to make their mark on this tie as soon as possible. Backing a goal to be scored in the first 15 minutes comes out at 11/5 with Marathon Bet – fantastic value when considering their history and the lowered magnitude of this event.

Tips (with MarathonBet):
Man City to win @ 20/21
Both Teams To Score and Over 3.5 Goals @ 113/50
A goal to be scored in the first 15 minutes @ 11/5

There have been many global football stars who have graced Major League Soccer since its inception in 1996. David Beckham, Thierry Henry, David Villa, Steven Gerrard, Didier Drogba, Hristo Stoichkov, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney have all added their talent to the MLS.

And LA Galaxy, where Beckham and Gerard both starred at the end of their careers, currently have one of the league’s greatest ever talents in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The giant former Sweden international has played 44 games for Galaxy, scoring an astonishing 38 goals and earning the right to captain the team. But so dominant has he been for Galaxy, that without him, their threat is drastically reduced.

Given his physical style of play, suspensions are an occupational hazard for Ibrahimovic. Having picked up a two game ban in May, he was lucky to escape without penalty after an incident in the 3-2 El Trafico victory over LAFC, but a yellow card earned in Galaxy’s 4-0 defeat in Portland last weekend means that he has accumulated enough disciplinary points to earn a one game suspension.

That is bad news for a team that has been struggling for consistency as they try to hold a position towards the top of the Western Conference. And against Saturday’s opponents, Atlanta, the absence of Ibrahimovic could be the difference between a positive result and a big defeat.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, Galaxy, who have lost both of their previous MLS meetings with Atlanta, will be without Efrain Alvarez and Diego Polenta who were sent off in Portland. That leaves them in a dangerously weakened state to take on the reigning MLS champions, and explains why BetCris make LA Galaxy the +567 outsiders, with Atlanta available at -256 and the draw at +404.

Atlanta made a slow start to their campaign, and the methods of Frank de Boer have clearly taken a while to embed among the playing squad. But they have been improving steadily and are particularly strong at home. In fact, they’ve lost just once at the Mercedes Benz Stadium, where their raucous fans create a unique and overwhelming atmosphere. In fact, their last two home games produced 5-0 and 2-0 wins over Houston Dynamo and DC United respectively.

Galaxy don’t have a bad record on the road against Eastern Conference teams, but success has come against lower-ranked opponents from the East, and they were beaten by both Columbus and New York Red Bulls earlier in the season. Atlanta can claim to be better than both of those sides, who they lead by 2 points and 12 points in the Eastern Conference table.

And without the talismanic Ibrahimovic to lead the line, Galaxy could find themselves lacking the cutting edge to cause the home side, who are currently second behind Philadelphia Union, a serious threat. It’s hard to see past an Atlanta win on Saturday.

Its Big Boxing time, with a KO-special this week. Three of the high-profile fights could well finish inside the distance this weekend, with Liverpool, UK and Brooklyn, New York enjoying the best of the action.

Take a look at these three bouts with an eye on a three-fold accumulator of stoppage victories…

Anthony Fowler vs Brian Rose

Fowler is on the comeback march following suffering the first defeat of his professional career early this year to Scott Fitzgerald. In a Fight of the Year contender, ‘Fitzy’ broke down ‘The Machine’ over 10 rounds of grueling action. Rose is edging towards the end of his career and has been hand-picked by Matchroom to get Fowler back to winning ways. Fowler was an established amateur who is still expected to achieve big things in the pro game.

Fowler is an extremely well-conditioned boxer who lives his life in the gym. Rose claims to be close to his best for this most recent challenge, however, it’s expected to be one step too far for ‘The Lion’. Fowler will be looking for a statement victory – one that comes inside the distance.

Fowler to win by KO, TKO or Disqualification @ BetVictor

Adam Kownacki vs Chris Arreola

Kownacki is on the verge of big things in the heavyweight scene, with Arreola knocking on the door of retirement. I can’t see this being anything but a fire-fight from the first bell inside the Brooklyn Center, with both guys trading up looking to land early. ‘Babyface’ is slowly building a resume of good wins against the second tier of heavyweight contenders – Arreola is primed to be picked off by the 30-year-old with one foot already out of the door.

If Arreola committed more to life as a heavy then this could be a 50/50 fight, but at 38, he is what he is. Kownacki can be hit which gives the early rounds slight jeopardy, but not enough.

Kownacki to win by KO, TKO or Disqualification @ BetVictor

Marcus Browne vs Jean Pascal

Pascal isn’t only fighting Marcus Browne this weekend, he’s fighting Father Time. Pascal has somehow managed to get another shot at a light heavyweight top 5 guy, having dropped losses to Kovalev, Bivol and Alvarez over the last three years, however, a loss to Browne this weekend may well signal the end of his career as a contender.

Browne has made no secret of his intentions to destroy Pascal in Brooklyn, with the southpaw buoyant after his impressive win over a bloodied Jack in January. Browne is reaching his peak as a professional, with his speed, power and gas tank surely too much for a shopworn Pascal to negate.

Browne to win by KO, TKO or Disqualification @ BetVictor

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Premier League fans have been used to the phenomenon of one team dominating their favourite competition. The most famous, of course, was that of Manchester United, who won the competition thirteen times in twenty-one seasons under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Their domination, which included two spells of winning the title for three seasons in a row, followed that of Liverpool, who were the pre-eminent English team from the late 1970s throughout the 1980s, when the Premier League had not yet been created.

Yet no English team has been able to create the same dominance that we have seen in other European countries. Paris St Germain, for example, have won six of the last seven Ligue 1 titles, and earlier this century, Lyon exerted a similar monopoly. Bayern Munich have sat at the top of German football for seven seasons, while Juventus have won Serie A every season since 2011-12.

But are we at the beginning of a similarly dominant dynasty in English football? Under Pep Guardiola, Manchester City have won the Premier League in consecutive seasons, with energetic, attractive and irresistible football. City topped the table with 100 points in 2017-18 and won it again last year with a total of 98. Those two points-hauls represent the two highest in the history of the competition, beating Chelsea’s return of 95 points under Jose Mourinho in 2004-05.

Fans tuning in to watch this year’s competition on SKY will once again be talking about which, if any, of their rivals can stop City. But only one team, Liverpool, have come close to surpassing Guardiola’s side. Their 97 points tally last season would have been enough to win the Premier League in all but the last two seasons in its history, but they were unfortunate to come up against the most dominant team the competition has ever seen (though the Champions League trophy was pretty impressive compensation for Jurgen Klopp’s men!).

But Liverpool aside, none of City’s main rivals appear ready to challenge them. Chelsea are rebuilding under a new manager, Manchester United and Arsenal are likewise in transition, while Tottenham have not come close to overtaking City in the last two seasons and there is no reason to believe that the same set of players under Mauricio Pochettino would be able to do so this time round.

Bookmakers have no doubt about the City dominance. They are regarded as 4/7 favourites by many sportsbooks, with Liverpool generally 3/1 and the rest nowhere. What will be particularly worrying for City’s rivals is that as well as having greater financial resources than their challengers, the best manager and the most effective team, they have also developed the ability to grind out results under pressure, as they showed last season when they won their last fourteen games, knowing that just one slip-up could hand the title to Liverpool.

With that added steel, City have all the qualities in place to embark on a prolonged period of domestic dominance, which is why no sports fans checking out the best odds on Bigbetbookmakers.com can afford to overlook them in the 2019/20 Premier League title winning market.

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