Manchester United vs Manchester City
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Sorry for the late update, guys – no idea what happened last night so here is a brief update to make up for it!
Everyone’s got their own view on this – here’s mine. United are still a better team than City. City have improved massively this season and will probably continue to do so but they’re not at United and Chelsea’s level yet. They don’t have the defence to be there and they don’t have the manager, in my view. Mancini’s tactics have cost City in their biggest games this season as he’s forced them into a 4-4-2 and whereas I believe that will help them long-term, if you do a 4-4-2 against a side that’s better than you then you’re going to struggle. United haven’t played too well lately themselves but there’s one key element behind this derby that wasn’t in derbies from a few years ago – United have more motivation than City. I don’t know whether it’s because City have parted ways with almost all their home-grown talent or whether United are working harder to keep City quiet but whatever it is, United haven’t ever looked like losing against City in the last few meetings. In fact, in all honesty, the 3-2 win in the Community Shield at the start of the season was an absolute annihlation which Mancini again fucked up with his tactics, making City play their more solid 4-5-1 far too late. If City play 4-5-1 today then we may see a 0-0 but I don’t think he’ll do that. If they go 4-4-2, I expect an open game but United should outscore them – that’s what United do at Old Trafford, hence thirty wins from their last thirty-two home games.
Verdict: Manchester United to win at 11/10.
Sunday’s Picks
My tips:
As ever, you’ll find my value tips listed below in no particular order:
Westerlo vs Anderlecht – away win with -1 Asian Handicap at evens.
Better side, really. The signings of Jovanovic and Mbokani look inspired – they totally tore Standard apart last weekend. Anderlecht had a game mid-week so may be a tad tired but for me, they’ve still got enough to beat the -1 Asian Handicap against a side notorious for its lack of firepower.
Ethnikos Achnas vs APOEL Nicosia – under 2.5 goals at 9/10.
Stout home side against a none-too-convincing away side – could be unders here. APOEL worked really hard in Oporto midweek and will surely carry at least some of that tiredness into this game. An away should be expect but I’m avoiding the 1×2 market and rolling with under 2.5 goals instead.
Arsenal vs Stoke City – home win with -1 Asian Handicap at evens.
Arsenal are starting to get things together now and it’s good to see, to be honest. Van Persie is the heart of it, of course, but he’s playing today so I’ve no concerns there. They play good attacking football and can cause Stoke problems. I like Stoke a lot but away from home really isn’t their strongpoint and although Pulis has always rested at least some of his players for the mid-week UEFA Europa League games that they’ve been in, his players must surely be feeling it by now because it’s a lot of games to get used to when you’re not used to it. Arsenal not winning this one would surprise me so the insurance is there and when playing at The Emirates, you have to fancy Arsenal to score more than once so the -1 Asian Handicap appeals to me here.
Blackburn Rovers vs Tottenham Hotspur – away win at 9/10.
Better side. Blackburn look a complete mess whereas Spurs are getting things together. Redknapp rested all his big players mid-week and although Ewood Park is normally a fortress, I just can’t see the hosts getting anything against an in-form and frankly superior Spurs side.
Paris Saint-Germain vs Dijon FCO – home win with -1.5 handicap at 4/5.
I’ll finally delve into the handicap market with PSG. Lots have before but it’s taken me some time to be convinced by them. It helps that they’re facing one of the worst sides in Ligue 1, of course, but PSG should win this one comfortably with their ability. Additionally, it looks like people are reading too much into their draw in Bratislava mid-week, which amuses me as that’s not their priority and because Slovan Bratislava are a good home side. For me, the real PSG will return today and beat the -1.5 handicap.
Vitesse Arnhem vs PSV Eindhoven – lay PSV Eindhoven at 7/5.
I like PSV a lot but their odds to win at the difficult Gelredome are scandalous. They’ve just come back from Israel and they’re facing an ever-improving and talented Vitesse side. The hosts rarely lose at home nowadays and despite the obvious firepower that PSV have, I think laying them here could have some value, especially given how their defence falls to pieces upon conceding one goal nowadays.
Odd Grenland Skien vs Haugesund – home win at evens.
Really impressed me lately. Odd play on artificial turf, which always helps. They’re a nightmare to face at home, though – always have been and probably always will be. My unwritten rule is to never take the away side when Odd are at home. Anyway, they’re a very solid unit and usually squeeze a goal or two in so them beating a fairly average Haugesund side at evens interests me today.
LKS Lodz vs Wisla Krakow – away win at 9/10.
Wisla got a great and morale-boosting win against Fulham mid-week to keep their UEFA Europa League hopes alive and I expect them to take that momentum into this game. They’re still missing some key attackers, hence the odds, but Genkov should be enough to decide this game as LKS Lodz are a pretty piss-poor side, to be honest, even after their derby win with Widzew.
Accumulator fodder:
Colo Colo, Viktoria Plzen, Esbjerg, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, FK Ventspils, Skonto Riga, Dinamo Bucharest, Dynamo Kiev.
Recommended bets:
No multiples today, sorry guys!
As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts to prevent endless questions about my thoughts on certain games!
Australian A-League:
Newcastle Jets vs Central Coast Mariners (5) 1-0
Perth Glory vs Wellington Phoenix (6) 2-1
Austrian Bundesliga:
Austria Vienna vs Rapid Vienna (5)1-1 at least one red card in this game
Sturm Graz vs Salzburg (5) 0-0
Belarusian Vysshaya Liga:
Neman Grodno vs Gomel (6) 1-0
Dinamo Minsk vs Shakhtyor Soligorsk (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Vitebsk vs FC Minsk (5) 0-1
Dinamo Brest vs Naftan Novopolotsk (4) 1-1
Dnepr Mogilev vs Belshina Bobriusk (5) 0-0
BATE Borisov vs Torpedo Zhodino (7) 2-1
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Westerlo vs Anderlecht (7) 0-2
Kortrijk vs Club Brugge (5) 2-2
Standard de Liege vs Zulte-Waregem (6) 2-1
Brazilian Serie A:
Sao Paulo vs Coritiba (4) 1-2
Internacional vs Corinthians (6) 1-1
Atletico Paranaense vs Ceara (7) 2-0
Bahia vs Vasco da Gama (6) 2-1
Flamengo vs Santos (5) over 2.5 goals
Cruzeiro vs Atletico Goianiense (6) 1-0
Chilean Primera Division:
Cobreloa vs Huachipato (5) 1-1
Cobresal vs Universidad Catolica (4) 1-1
Colo Colo vs Santiago Morning (8) 2-0
Colombian Primera A:
Itagui Ditaires vs Deportes Tolima (4) 1-1
Independiente Medellin vs Envigado (7) 1-0
Cypriot Division 1:
Ethnikos Achnas vs APOEL Nicosia (4) 0-0
Nea Salamis vs Apollon Limassol (4) 1-1
AEL Limassol vs Anorthosis Famagusta (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Czech Republic Gambrinus Liga:
Hradec Kralove vs Slovacko (6) 2-1
Slavia Prague vs Ceske Budejovice (7) 2-0
Viktoria Plzen vs Viktoria Zizkov (8) -1.5 handicap
Mlada Boleslav vs Bohemians 1905 (7) 1-0
Danish Superligaen:
SonderjyskE vs AC Horsens (6) 1-1
Aalborg BK vs OB Odense (6) 2-1
HB Koge vs Midtylland (5) 0-1
Silkeborg vs Brondby (5) 1-1
Danish 1st Division:
Roskilde vs Vejle-Kolding (6)
Skive vs Naestved (7) over 2.5 goals
Vestjaelland vs Hobro (7)
Esbjerg vs Blokhus (8)
AB Copenhagen vs Randers (6)
Hjorring vs Bronshoj (5)
Ecuadorian Primera A:
Deportivo Cuenca vs Manta (6) 2-1
Deportivo Quito vs Emelec Guayaquil (4) 1-1
Espoli Cayambe vs Liga de Quito (5) 1-2
Barcelona Guayaquil vs El Nacional Quito (6) 1-0
English Premier League:
Arsenal vs Stoke City (7) over 2.5 goals
Fulham vs Everton (6) 1-0
Manchester United vs Manchester City (7) 2-0
Blackburn Rovers vs Tottenham Hotspur (6) 1-2
Queens Park Rangers vs Chelsea (8) 0-2
English Championship:
Bristol City vs Birmingham City (7)
French Ligue 1:
Auxerre vs Stade Rennais (6) 1-1
Paris Saint-Germain vs Dijon FCO (8) 2-0
LOSC Lille vs Olympique Lyonnais (6) 1-0, at least one red card in this game
German Bundesliga:
Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs Schalke 04 (7) 2-1
Hannover 96 vs Bayern Munich (6) 0-1
Greek Super League:
OFI Crete vs AEK Athens (5) 1-1
Panionios vs Olympiakos Piraeus (7) 0-2
Aris Salonika vs PAOK Salonika (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Hungarian Soproni Liga:
Gyori ETO FC vs Fehervar (6) 2-1
Pecsi MFC vs Debreceni VSC (6) 1-2
Italian Serie A:
Lecce vs AC Milan (6) 1-2, at least one red card in this game
Cagliari vs SSC Napoli (6) 1-1
Internazionale vs Chievo Verona (7) 2-1
Parma vs Atalanta Bergamo (5) 1-0
AS Roma vs Palermo (6) 2-1
Siena vs Cesena (7) 1-0
Udinese vs Novara (7) 2-1
Bologna vs Lazio (6) 2-1
Japanese J-League:
Shimizu S-Pulse vs Ventforet Kofu (7) 2-0
Jubilo Iwata vs Cerezo Osaka (5) 1-1
Albirex Niigata vs Avispa Fukuoka (6) 2-1
Latvian Virsliga:
FK Jurmala vs Gulbene 2005 (5) 2-1
FK Ventspils vs FC Jurmala (8) -1.5 handicap
Skonto Riga vs Jelgava (8) 2-1
Daugava Daugavpils vs Liepajas Metalurgs (6) 1-0, at least one red card in this game
Lithuanian A Lyga:
Atlantas vs Klaipeda (7) 2-0
Mazeikiai vs Kruoja Pakruojis (5) 0-1
FBK Kaunas vs Banga Gargzdai (6) 2-1
Tauras Taurage vs Ekranas Panevezys (7) 1-2
Dainava vs Siauliai (5) 1-1
Suduva Marijampole vs Zalgiris Vilnius (6) 1-0, at least one red card in this game
Macedonian First League:
Shkendija 79 vs Metalurg Skopje (7) 2-1
Mexican Primera Division:
Toluca vs Puebla (5) 1-0
America vs Guadalajara (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Dutch Eredivisie:
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs Feyenoord Rotterdam (7) over 2.5 goals, at least one red card in this game
AZ Alkmaar vs Roda JC Kerkrade (7) 2-0
Groningen vs Twente Enschede (6) 1-2
Vitesse Arnhem vs PSV Eindhoven (5) 2-2
Norwegian Eliteserien:
Tromso vs Sogndal (7) 1-0
Brann Bergen vs Sarpsborg 08 (7) 2-1
Odd Grenland Skien vs Haugesund (7) 2-0
Viking Stavanger vs Lillestrom (6) 2-1
Stromsgodset vs Rosenborg BK (4) 2-2
Paraguayan Division Profesional:
Rubio Nu vs Guarani Asuncion (6) 0-1
General Caballero vs Nacional Asuncion (5) 1-2
Sol de America vs Independiente FBC (6) 1-0
Libertad Asuncion vs Tacuary (7) 1-0
3 de Febrero vs Olimpia Asuncion (7) 1-2
Peruvian Primera Division:
Cobresol vs Inti Gas (6) 2-1
Universidad San Martin vs Sport Boys (6) 1-0
Juan Aurich vs Alianza Atletico (7) 2-0
Universitario Lima vs Sporting Cristal (7) 1-0, at least one red card in this game
Polish Ekstraklasa:
LKS Lodz vs Wisla Krakow (6) 0-1
Legia Warsaw vs Widzew Lodz (7) 2-0
Polish Liga 1:
Katowice vs Piast Gliwice (5)
Kolejarz Stroze vs Nieciecza (4)
Zawisza Bydgoszcz vs Warta Poznan (6)
Portuguese Liga Sagres:
Maritimo Funchal vs Vitoria Setubal (7) 1-0
Rio Ave vs Uniao de Leiria (5) 0-0
Porto vs CD Nacional de Madeira (7) 2-1
Sporting Braga vs Feirense (7) 1-0
Romanian Liga:
Mioveni vs Petrolul Ploiesti (6) 1-0
Dinamo Bucharest vs FC Brasov (8) 2-0
Russian Premier League:
Rostov-na-Donu vs Zenit St.Petersburg (6) 0-1
Spartak Moscow vs Tom’ Tomsk (7) 2-0
Anzhi Makhachkala vs CSKA Moscow (5) 1-1
Scottish Premier League:
Hearts vs Rangers (5) 1-1
Celtic vs Aberdeen (7) 2-1
Slovakian Corgon Liga:
Senica vs Slovan Bratislava (6) 1-1
Slovenian Prva Liga:
Mura 05 vs Maribor (7) 0-2
Koper vs Nafta Lendava (6) 2-1
Spanish Primera Liga:
Real Betis Balompie vs Rayo Vallecano de Madrid (7) 2-0
Real Sociedad vs Getafe (7) 1-0
Atletico Madrid vs Real Mallorca (7) 2-0
Osasuna vs Real Zaragoza (5) 1-1
Valencia CF vs Athletic Club de Bilbao (7) over 2.5 goals
Villarreal CF vs Levante (6) 1-0, at least one red card in this game
Spanish Segunda Liga:
Elche vs Deportivo Xerez (5)
Almeria vs Las Palmas (7)
Swedish Allsvenskan:
Syrianska Sodertalje vs GAIS Goteborg (5) 1-1
IFK Goteborg vs IFK Norrkoping (6) 1-0
Elfsborg Boras vs Trelleborg FF (7) 2-1
Djurgarden vs Gefle (7) 2-1
Orebro vs Malmo FF (7) 1-0
BK Hacken Goteborg vs Kalmar FF (7) 2-1
Helsingborg vs AIK Solna (7) 2-0
Mjallby Solvesborg vs Halmstad (7) 2-0
Swiss Super League:
Servette vs Sion (6) -11
Young Boys Bern vs Grasshopper Zurich (7) 2-0
FC Zurich vs Basel (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Swiss Challenge League:
Lugano vs Wil (6)
Winterthur vs Chiasso (6)
Delemont vs Etoile Carouge (4)
Aarau vs Bruhl (7)
Turkish Super Lig:
Kayserispor vs Sivasspor (7) 2-0
Ankaragucu vs Orduspor (4) 1-1
Gaziantepspor vs Genclerbirligi (6) 1-0
Fenerbahce vs Samsunspor (7) 2-1
Ukrainian Premier League:
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Metalist Kharkiv (7) 2-1
Vorksla Poltava vs Tavriya Simferopol (6) 1-0
Dynamo Kiev vs Zorya Lugansk (8) 2-0
Enjoy your free betting tips!