We aim to give you the best possible information before each game. However, the moment the game starts, anything can happen, ranging from red cards to snow storms to pitch invasions. We can only prepare you for so much; it's up to you to learn how to develop yourself as to know when to jump ship if things aren't going as they should.
Pay attention to the odds provided for each tip. Be aware that the longer the odds are, the less chance there is of it coming in. Don't lean toward backing the bankers containing teams you've heard of or selections at longer odds because you trust the team more or if you see the pound signs flashing before your eyes. Sometimes bankers won't win, try to use the previews to steer you toward the right selection to make rather than taking the quick/lazy way.
Please understand that every single tip has the capacity to win, push, or lose. We aim to find good value bets (probability vs odds) as our focal area.
KO: (UK time)
Even with rotation, Chelsea are too good for lower league opposition Morecambe today. It’s expected that Lampard will give some of Chelsea’s impressive academy graduates a game here but I think he’ll name quite the strong side as he needs to build morale back up after some disappointing displays. Either way, I expect Chelsea to find a way to win this FA Cup tie.
Verdict: Chelsea to win at 7/100.
KO: (UK time)
Guardiola has already said that Aguero will start, and that’s enough for me – when Manchester City play him, they tend to win. Rotation is likely here, especially with Walker and Jesus back after their Covid-19 infection, but I can’t see Birmingham City being able to contain Manchester City forever. It’s not likely to be a great nor a high-scoring game, this one, but it’s one that the Premier League outfit should win.
Verdict: Manchester City to win at 7/50.
KO: (UK time)
I’d love it if amateurs Marine got something here but they’d realistically have to consider this a good result if it’s kept below double figures. Tottenham Hotspur winning this game, even with rotation, is a guarantee. Mourinho’s teams seldom leave me believing they’ll win any game by high margins and yet they’ve been ruthless enough in front of goal to do so sometimes this season so I fear for Marine here. I can’t doubt the away win here though; the quality gap is way too big, perhaps bigger than any other match-up I’ve seen in the FA Cup for quite some years now.
Verdict: Tottenham Hotspur to win at 1/50.
KO: (UK time)
AS Roma still aren’t quite on a par with Italy’s elite but they sure do play some lovely football under Fonseca. He’s made it so that the entire squad is comfortable in possession of the ball, and attacking with their passing. It’s come at the expense of their ability to contain teams, but it’s made them a lot more confident in getting forward.
I really don’t feel like the capital club are far away from being a top team in Italy once more now that the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk man is at the helm. This team enters each game, completely sure of its ability to outscore its opponents, no matter what style they come up against. Sometimes it takes time, as it did against Sampdoria, and other times it requires them to get involved in an open match. AS Roma look well equipped for both, to be honest. The only area of their squad that they’re lacking in is defence, and I can’t see that changing any time soon, not whilst they continue to prioritise attacking.
I do think that AS Roma’s depth is a concern, though. That’s especially the case because quite a number of their starting eleven are notoriously injury prone. This is a work in progress though, so let’s not get too far ahead, shall we? I think it’s important to focus more on how brilliantly Fonseca gets the best out of his players. I mean, when have Mkhitaryan and Veretout last been this good? And how does Dzeko manage to play so consistently well despite his age? He does a thankless task, Fonseca, managing such a volatile club. I genuinely think he’s done the best job at AS Roma since Capello though. If they stick with him, they’ll be fine.
AS Roma are going to have a go at old foes Internazionale today, and why not? Their opponents are scoring goals for fun but by no means are they suppressing opponents and controlling games. Even Serie A’s smallest and weakest teams have managed to upset Internazionale in some form or another. I thought Hellas Verona and Spezia both ran the title hopefuls close recently, and even Crotone did for a little while! Credit must go to boss Conte for instilling the winning mentality in this squad though, as they’re still grinding out wins. I daresay that this is the most ruthless Internazionale I’ve seen since the Mourinho days.
Perfect, though? Absolutely not. If anything, they’ve regressed defensively this season, giving away the most ridiculous of goals. The focus at the club has very much shifted to simply scoring more goals than their opponents rather than trying to outsmart them. I can understand that; they’ve got one of the best squads in the country, and they should otuscore almost every team in the division on a regular basis. As was evident in the UEFA Champions League this season though, the work at Internazionale is far from complete – not taking their chances in that competition (specifically versus Shakhtar Donetsk) is what sent them out. I do think that Interazionale have a better balance to their squad than AS Roma but there’s not much between them right now because both are playing very openly as often as they can.
Ultimately, I’m left feeling like we’re going to see an incredibly open and entertaining affair today. If that does indeed prove to be the case, backing over 3 goals at 49/50 makes a lot of sense.
Verdict: Over 3 goals at 49/50.
KO: (UK time)
Although Istanbul BB have generally struggled with teams going at them lately, I don’t think they’re going to find that a problem today. True enough, Turkish football has been a bitch to me this week, but the logic for this one suggests that Ankaragucu are going to sit off the reigning champions.
In other games, Ankaragucu have gone at teams lately, scoring goals for fun. However, their patterns have remained very consistent when facing a top team in the sense that they park the bus. It only makes sense, I suppose – they’re not going to beat the likes of Istanbul BB by adopting the usual Super Lig approach to matches. No, they save their wildcard displays for games that they consider to be winnable, and as out-of-sorts as Istanbul BB are right now, they’re still a lot better than Ankaragucu.
Ankaragucu have played that same defensive way against Besiktas JK, Trabzonspor, and Galatasaray this season with some success. I don’t think that they embarrassed themselves in any of those encounters, and they did give their opponents some things to think about. However, the common feature of those games was that Ankaragucu were not clinical enough with the chances they did manage to create, whereas their opponents managed to take one apiece, each of them winning 1-0. A similar outcome today is likely, to be honest, and I did toy with the away win at 83/100.
Still, I believe that backing under 2.5 goals is the better call here. A lot of weird stuff has happened in Turkish football since Covid-19 came about because there haven’t been any fans (home advantage is huge in the Super Lig when there are packed stadiums) and because of fixture congestion, which they’re really not used to. Subsequently, the quality of football has dropped rather significantly, and results have become that bit crazier. Therefore, despite Istanbul BB being a lot better than Ankaragucu, I just don’t trust them to do the right thing at the moment.
However, when they’re not placed under too much pressure, Istanbul BB will remember how to control games, and they do defend well enough to keep opponents out. It’s only pressing that has hurt them so much lately, which is really bizarre when you consider how good they used to be at dealing with such. I don’t envision Ankaragucu playing that way against them here though, which should mean that the capital club gets to run the game as they see fit. They’ve got more than enough target men up top to be a good route through the Ankaragucu banks of four, and enough silky midfielders to ensure that they get the ball properly. I certainly couldn’t blame anyone for backing the away win but, as I said above, I just don’t have the balls to do it.
Backing under 2.5 goals makes sense to me though. I can see the visitors controlling it, and their hosts sitting back and waiting for opportunities at the other end. Therefore, I’m on under 2.5 goals at 11/10.
Verdict: Under 2.5 goals at 11/10.
KO: (UK time)
I think that this is a good time to face SSC Napoli. I can’t quite make up my mind if the Naples faithful are finally turning on Gattuso, or if it’s simply one of those spells that every team has at some stage – both are possible here. As poor as some of SSC Napoli’s recent displays have been, I still remember them delivering a really impressive display in Milan, not that they managed to avoid defeat. On another day though, they’d have bagged a few goals in that game. So, yeah – I’m on the fence there.
Where I’m not on the fence, however, is in deciding whether it’s a good time or not to oppose SSC Napoli – because it is. Firstly, their displays have not been effective, whether they’ve been unlucky, poor, or simply had decisions go against them. You can paint it however you like; they’ve not been getting the required results, which does not bode well for them, given that AC Milan, Juventus, Atalanta Bergamo, SS Lazio, and AS Roma all have another level or two to go to and yet are all still doing more than SSC Napoli.
Secondly, I think facing Udinese – home or away – is always very annoying, and this season moreso than any other. In general, they’re a well-organised defensive team that looks to counterattack with speed. Over the past few years, Udinese have lacked the firepower to make that approach especially effective, particularly against good teams. This season, however – presumably because Watford were relegated – they were ‘awarded’ Pereyra and Deulofeu to improve their squad, and it has worked very well. Keeping hold of de Paul, and getting the best out of Pussetto as well – it’s just genius. Now teams have to break Udinese down and handle a really good counterattack, and every good team this season has struggled with such, even Juventus recently, not that the scoreline showed it. It’s not the kind of game you want when things aren’t going your way, though!
Thirdly, SSC Napoli are starting to run out of players. I’m not sure Osimhen is all that big a loss for them but losing classy attacker Mertens, the one that glues their attack together, is a big blow. Lozano may have scored most of the SSC Napoli goals this season, and others have played significant roles, but it’s Mertens that brings brains to that front line. Without him, they do struggle to break teams down. That, and Gattuso’s call to replace almost all of their naturally creative central midfielders with battlers has left them not ideally placed to get something from such a game.
Lastly, SSC Napoli have struggled with all manner of teams lately. Spezia did the same job on SSC Napoli in San Paolo that I expect Udinese to do tonight, hopefully with the same outcome. They’ve also struggled to break down an incompetent Torino defence that still lacks a good goalkeeper. Things just feel a little forced at SSC Napoli, and that’s not a good feeling place when taking on a prickly pear like Udinese, who love being the underdogs. I mean, I doubt many Serie A teams are worse than Udinese are at winning games when having to play on the front foot; it really doesn’t suit them because their defence isn’t particularly good without protection.
However, playing as underdogs is Udinese’s ‘thing’, if you will. I’ve not seen them quite as dangerous on the break as they are this season for quite some time now, and I think this is a good time to face SSC Napoli. I can’t possibly overlook how dominant SSC Napoli’s head-to-head record is against Udinese, but I think this is a good time for Udinese to buck the trend, even with Pussetto on the sidelines. Therefore, my tip is to back Udinese to get something from the game today.
Verdict: Udinese to win with a +0.5 Asian Handicap at 103/100.
All of the information in this section is listed to the best of our knowledge, and we use local sources for as many areas as we can.
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
KV Mechelen – Defour, Voet, and Vanlerberghe are absent.
Antwerp – Coopman, Butez, and Nsimba are absent. Rodrigues is a doubt.
Germinal Beerschot – Brogno, Dom, and Tissoudali are absent. Halamia is a doubt.
AA Gent – Mbayo, Niangbo, de Bruyn, Odjidja-Ofoe, and Yaremchuk are absent.
OH Leuven – Duplus, Aguemon, and Schuermans are absent. Kehli and Osabutey are doubts.
RSC Anderlecht – Verschaeren, van Crombrugge, Vlap, Trebel, Murillo, Linssens, Cobbaut, and Arnstad are absent.
Sint-Truiden – van Dessel and Mmaee are absent.
Club Brugge – Vanaken and Mitrovic are absent.
Brazilian Serie A:
Sao Paulo – Pablo, Luciano, Liziero, Jonas Toro, Perri, Tche Tche, and Walce are absent.
Santos – John, Raniel, Sanchez, and Wagner Leonardo are absent.
Flamengo – Alves and Maia are absent.
Ceara – Carvalho is absent. Ricardinho and Lacerda are doubts.
Atletico Goianiense – No absentees.
Bahia – Fonseca is absent.
Internacional – Boschilia and Guerrero are absent.
Goias – Taylon is absent. Chico is a doubt.
Vasco da Gama – No absentees.
Botafogo – Fernandez, Angulo, and Barros are absent.
English FA Cup:
Crawley Town – Watters is a doubt.
Leeds United – Cooper returns. Llorente is a doubt. Roberts is absent.
Manchester City – Aguero will start. Jesus and Walker return. Ederson is absent.
Birmingham City – Pedersen and Roberts return. Boyce-Munce and Jeacock are absent.
Chelsea – Kante, Christensen, and James are absent.
Morecambe – Lyons may debutise.
Marine – Lynch may debutise.
Tottenham Hotspur – Lo Celso is absent.
Newport County – Labadie, Howkins, and Taylor return.
Brighton & Hove Albion – Tau may debutise.
German Bundesliga:
Augsburg – Finnbogason, Framberger, Gouweleeuw, Jensen, and Moravek are absent.
VfB Stuttgart – Al Ghaddioui, Awoudja, Egloff, Grahl, and Mola are absent.
Arminia Bielefeld – Niemann, Edmundsson, Laursen, Rehnen, and Voglsammer are absent.
Hertha Berlin – Boyata, Dilrosun, and Leckie are absent. Ascacibar returns.
German Bundesliga 2:
Paderborn 07 – Evans, Mamba, and Schulze are absent.
Erzgebirge Aue – Cacutalua, Kalig, and Majetschak are absent.
Darmstadt 98 – Holland, Palsson, and Wittek are absent.
Hannover 96 – Evina, Frantz, Hansen, Lamti, Maina, and Sundermann are absent.
Jahn Regensburg – Vrenzi is absent.
VfL Bochum – Bonga, Decarli, Drewes, Gamboa, Lampropoulos, and Novothny are absent.
Italian Serie A:
AS Roma – Pastore and Zaniolo are absent. Spinazzola, Mirante, Calafiori, Pedro, Santon, and Fazio are doubts.
Internazionale – Vecino and D’Ambrosio are absent. Pinamonti is a doubt.
Parma – Boss Liverani sacked; D’Aversa touted as replacement. Karamoh, Gagliolo, Grassi, Nicolussi Caviglia, Kucka, and Iacoponi are absent.
SS Lazio – Lulic, Correa, and Fares are absent.
Udinese – Forestieri, Pussetto, Nuytinck, Okaka, and Jajalo are absent.
SSC Napoli – Mertens, Demme, Osimhen, and Malcuit are absent. Koulibaly is a doubt.
Hellas Verona – Veloso, Favilli, Benassi, and Vieira are absent. Lazovic and Dawidowicz are doubts.
Crotone – Marrone is absent. Benali and Cigarini are doubts.
ACF Fiorentina – Ribery and Castrovilli are absent.
Cagliari – Carboni, Nandez, Farago, Luyumbo, Klavan, and Rog are absent.
Juventus – Sandro, Morata, Cuadrado, and de Ligt are absent.
Sassuolo – Romagna, Ricci, and Berardi are absent.
Dutch Eredivisie:
Sparta Rotterdam – Vriends, Emegha, and Coremans are absent.
Feyenoord Rotterdam – Teixeira, Bijlow, Kokcu, and Bozenik are absent.
SC Heerenveen – van Ottele, Halilovic, and Harush are absent.
Fortuna Sittard – No absentees.
VVV Venlo – Janssen is absent.
Willem II – Kabangu, Nelom, Puyalto, and van der Bogert are absent.
AFC Ajax Amsterdam – Brobbey, Neres, Huntelaar, Traore, Martinez, and Kudus are absent.
PSV Eindhoven – Gutierrez, Obispo, van Ginkel, Gotze, Mauro, Romero, Ledezma, and Thomas are absent.
Portuguese Liga 1:
Farense – No absentees.
Gil Vicente – Diogo is absent.
Belenenses – Phete and Varela are absent. Kau is a doubt.
Pacos de Ferreira – Jan and Silva are doubts.
Spanish Primera Liga:
Levante CF – Campana, Suarez Pier, Vezo, and Vukcevic are absent.
Eibar – Correa and Valdes Diaz are absent.
Cadiz – Gonzalez, Jose Mari, Quezada, and Sanchez are absent. Mauro is a doubt.
Deportivo Alaves – Ely, Laguardia, and Pons are absent. Perez is a doubt.
Elche – Gonzalez, Mfulu, and Morente Oliva are absent.
Getafe CF – Cucho, Mollejo, Poveda, and Unal are absent.
Real Valladolid – Garcia, Janko, Fernandez, Kiko, Marcos Andre, and Orellana are absent.
Valencia CF – Racic, Gabriel, Gameiro, and Cillessen are absent.
Turkish Super Lig:
Fatih Karagumruk – Jorquera, Zukanovic, and Chahechouhe are absent. Lichaj and Salibur are doubts.
Konyaspor – Findikli, Anicic, Eduok, Miya, Hurtado, and Uludag are absent. Sahiner is a doubt.
Ankaragucu – Pazdan, Gural, Pinto, Potuk, and Kulusic are absent.
Istanbul BB – Caicara and Skrtel are absent. Gunok and Mbombo are doubts.
Rizespor – Remy and Boldrin are absent.
Denizlispor – Subotic, Cek, and Yilmaz are absent. Varela and Yumlu are doubts.
Hatayspor – Sackey is a doubt.
Besiktas JK – Douglas, Boyd, and Lens are absent. Ghezzal and Tore are doubts.
The "remaining thoughts" section is there to be a rough guide in case you want to get involved in games we haven't tipped. It is not there to tell anybody to back specific scorelines, or to guarantee that "2-2" games will go over 2.5 goals, for example. Ian lists what he believes to be the most likely outcome, and this is based on his assessment as to which way each game will develop. However, a "remaining thoughts" game listed with a 2-2 scoreline may have only just edged out a 0-0 scoreline in terms of probability because each game can develop in different ways.
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
KV Mechelen vs Antwerp (6) 1-1
Germinal Beerschot vs AA Gent (6) 0-2
OH Leuven vs RSC Anderlecht (6) 0-1
Sint-Truiden vs Club Brugge (5) 1-2
Brazilian Serie A:
Sao Paulo vs Santos (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Flamengo vs Ceara (6) 1-0
Atletico Goianiense vs Bahia (5) 1-2
Internacional vs Goias (7) 2-0
Vasco da Gama vs Botafogo (5) 1-1, at least one red card in this game
English FA Cup:
Crawley Town vs Leeds United (7) over 2.5 goals
Manchester City vs Birmingham City (7) 2-0
Chelsea vs Morecambe (9) 2-0
Marine vs Tottenham Hotspur (10) over 2.5 goals
Newport County vs Brighton & Hove Albion (5) 1-2
German Bundesliga:
Augsburg vs VfB Stuttgart (5) 1-1
Arminia Bielefeld vs Hertha Berlin (5) 0-0
German Bundesliga 2:
Paderborn 07 vs Erzgebirge Aue (6) 2-1
Darmstadt 98 vs Hannover 96 (5) 2-1
Jahn Regensburg vs VfL Bochum (5) 1-1
Italian Serie A:
AS Roma vs Internazionale (5) over 2.5 goals, at least one red card in this game
Parma vs SS Lazio (5) 2-2
Udinese vs SSC Napoli (5) 1-0
Hellas Verona vs Crotone (6) 2-1
ACF Fiorentina vs Cagliari (6) 1-0
Juventus vs Sassuolo (6) over 2.5 goals
Dutch Eredivisie:
Sparta Rotterdam vs Feyenoord Rotterdam (5) 2-2, at least one red card in this game
SC Heerenveen vs Fortuna Sittard (6) 2-1
VVV Venlo vs Willem II (5) 1-2
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs PSV Eindhoven (5) 2-2
Portuguese Liga 1:
Farense vs Gil Vicente (5) 1-0
Belenenses vs Pacos de Ferreira (6) 0-0
Portuguese Liga 2:
Penafiel vs Varzim (5) 1-0
Sporting Covilha vs SL Benfica II (6) 1-0
UD Oliveirense vs Feirense (5) 1-1
Casa Pia vs Arouca (6) 0-1
Vizela vs Cova de Piedade (6) 2-0
Spanish Primera Liga:
Levante CF vs Eibar (6) 2-1
Cadiz vs Deportivo Alaves (6) 1-1
Elche vs Getafe CF (5) 1-1
Real Valladolid vs Valencia CF (5) 1-0
Turkish Super Lig:
Fatih Karagumruk vs Konyaspor (6) 0-0
Ankaragucu vs Istanbul BB (6) 0-1
Rizespor vs Denizlispor (6) 2-1
Hatayspor vs Besiktas JK (5) 1-1
Sorry, but you do not have permission to view these tips – you should become a member to view the members tips.
We will send our latest tips straight to your email inbox. We typically send 5 free tips per week.