Archived Premiership Football Betting Tips (26th December 2005)

On current form Charlton would be prime candidates for relegation and their home form has been far worse than that on the road. They have only 2 wins from 8 home games conceding on average just under 2 goals a game. Their opponents Arsenal also have an unfamliar look to them in that they are currently 8th in the Premiership and actually have a worse away record than Charlton's home record; they've only 1 away win all season. They were also fortunate to scrape through to the Carling Cup semi-finals after a poor reserves display against Doncaster Rovers, but have no doubt that their big guns will return for this fixture. If Arsenal were playing anyone other than Charlton (or Sunderland) I would question the likelihood of an away win but given Charlton's poor form, Arsenal should be backed.

Runaway leaders Chelsea still have a 100% record at home and are yet to concede a goal in the second half all season. They've only conceded 4 goals at home and only Liverpool have looked like having a gameplan to stop them. Although Fulham are not in the same class as Chelsea, they are their closest (geographically) rivals so expect a bit of a derby atmosphere. Fulham are the highest placed side yet to win away and they are unlikely to change the pattern of things at Stamford Bridge. They have the likes of Bouba Diop and Boa Morte available again but the odds look stacked against them. Chelsea to continue their impressive home form.

With Rooney in fine form and van Nistelrooy heading the list of scorers challenging for the Golden Boot, United look to have turned things around and have the club moving in the right direction after a disappointing European exit. They are currently second in the table and along with Liverpool are the closest challengers to Chelsea. West Brom have been performing well at home of late but are still to win away in 8 games. Shortly after George Best's passing these two met at Old Trafford in the Carling Cup; a game in which United ran out comfortable winners. Expect more of the same this time around.

Sometimes the mixture of the fixture list and cup competitions throw up these anomalies where 2 sides play each other twice in a week. Boro have the advantage in both in that they're at home but in the first instalment they were knocked out of the Carling Cup in the dying seconds by Blackburn; on balance Blackburn probably deserved their victory. The question is can Boro learn from the experience and change the outcome of the Premiership encounter. These 2 sides are fairly evenly matched with only 1 point and 1 place separating them in the current Premiership standings; wouldn't be surprised if this turned into a stalemate, especially considering that they are playing each other again so soon.

Portsmouth may still be in relegation territory but since the reappointment of Harry Redknapp, all things may well come good. A spirited defeat at Spurs followed by a ground out win at home to West Brom could mark the foundations of a Portsmouth revival; at the very least expect Fratton Park to be a much more difficult place to go. West Ham are positioned well in mid-table with only 3 away defeats and 2 wins in the last 3 but to go to Portsmouth and get anything is a big ask now that Pompey seem to be on the up after the charade on the South Coast. Portsmouth to gradually build some confidence and edge out another win.

Sunderland are firmly rooted to the foot of the table with a measly 5 points and the gap between them and closest relegation rivals, Birmingham, is widening steadily. The gap now stands at 7 points and Sunderland are yet to score a home victory in 9 attempts; their fate looks to be sealed before Christmas. Confidence is bound to be low and Bolton will go to the Stadium of Light looking to take full advantage and secure maximum points. Bolton may have exited the Carling Cup at the hands of Wigan but they should field a full strength side for this one. Sunderland to suffer yet another defeat.

Wigan may have slipped to 6th after a tough run of fixtures against the cream of the Premiership but they bounced back in emphatic style with a great win over Charlton inspired by a Henri Kamara hat trick. They should be expected to go on from this and turn team performances into points. City have been inconsistent away from home following an emphatic win away at Charlton with a defeat at West Brom. In Cole's absence last week Sibierski put in a man of the match performance as the front man against Birmingham but his starting place is not guaranteed. Wigan's togetherness as a team give them the edge at home and they should take advantage of City's inconsistences on the road.