MANCHESTER CITY v BURNLEY
Manchester City continue their FA Cup campaign this weekend aiming to book their slot in the semifinal of the competition when the blue side of Manchester are reunited with club legend Vincent Kompany. The Dutchman is now manager of Championship leaders Burnley in what promises to be a truly entertaining encounter at the Etihad Stadium.
Pep Guardiola’s City come into this tie full of confidence after the 7-0 decimation of Bundesliga side RB Leipzig at home in midweek to move to the quarterfinal of the Champions League. They are the clear favourites to clinch yet another domestic triumph: the FA Cup. The Cityzens however, face a potentially tricky clash against a side managed by a very familiar face on City ground: Kompany.
Kompany has seemingly ensured Burnley are destined for a return to the Premier League at the first time of asking after a stunning rapid-fire rebuild at Turf Moor. The Clarets are almost an unrecognisable side compared to the team who were relegated to the Championship. They will approach this clash full of confidence that comes with going undefeated in their last five games across all competitions.
The H2H between both sides shows this particular tie has been favourable to City more often than not. Burnley have only recorded a solitary win in 21 meetings with City and lost the last five, thus painting a very dire picture of the visitors chances against an extremely formidable City outfit.
PREDICTION: It’s practically unfathomable to envisage a win for the Clarets away at the Etihad Stadium, so we predict a combo option of a straight win for the hosts at ov. 2.5 goals scored (1 & ov. 2.5G) at 1.52 odds & also Phil Foden anytime scorer at @Bestbet360.
CHELSEA v EVERTON
Three consecutive wins in all competitions and three goals scored in their previous game for the first time since October 2022 have helped change the “aura” around a previously beleaguered Chelsea, who now seem to be in high spirits and will be gunning for their fourth straight win in all competitions when they host Everton this weekend at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues remain locked in the middle of the standings in 10th and are 11 points adrift of a Champions League berth, but showed a resilient performance in the 3-1 bashing of a struggling Leicester side last weekend.
Chelsea’s qualification for the Champions League next season by winning the 2022-23 edition is still a slim possibility thanks to their defeat of Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 but not to get ahead of themselves, the Graham Potter-led side will be more keen on bettering their form domestically and will have a go at it against the Toffees.
Meanwhile Sean Dyche’s own team in blue put Brentford to the sword 1-0 last and in the process claimed their second win in five league games in recent times.
The H2H between both sides in their last five meetings shows both teams have shared the spoils, recording two wins a-piece and playing out a draw in the previous meeting. The hosts won the reverse fixture 1-0 at Goodison Park earlier on in the season.
PREDICTION: It’s a tough call given how unpredictable Chelsea have been lately but given their new found confidence in the tactical set-up with 3 at the back, it’s safe to say Chelsea can do the double over Everton, so we predict a straight win for the home side at 1.46 odds @Bestbet360.
BORUSSIA DORTMUND v KOLN
Borussia Dortmund aim to get back to winning ways in the Bundesliga and close the gap between them and leaders Bayern Munich when they host Koln at the Westfalenstadion this weekend.
Die Schwarzgelben dropped points in the league for the first time this year, fumbling a one-goal lead twice to end up with a 2-2 draw against bitter rivals Schalke in the Reveirderby last week. This ensured Bayern moved back on top with a 2-point advantage following a comprehensive win over Augsburg.
Edin Terzic’s side also were knocked out of the UCL after a 2-nil defeat in the 2nd leg R16 tie against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, making sure the team are winless in their last two games in all competitions ahead of the meeting with Koln this weekend.
Steffen Baumgart’s side are winless in their last four league games, claiming their last win last month against Eintracht Frankfurt.
The H2H between both sides in their previous five clashes shows that the visitors have won twice, while Dortmund have just a single win and played out 2 draws in the other two games. Koln won the reverse fixture by 3-2 earlier on in the campaign.
PREDICTION: Dortmund currently are experiencing an injury crisis and are winless in their last two, but given how inconsistent Koln have been lately and Dortmund playing at home, we expect a couple of goals from both sides as the teams involved aren’t known to be airtight defensively, so we predict a GG outcome at 1.72 odds @Bestbet360.
ATHLETICO MADRID v VALENCIA
Diego Simone and his boys at Athletico Madrid will be gunning to extend their unbeaten run in La Liga to 10 games when they host relegation-threatened Valencia to the Wanda Metropolitanothis weekend.
Los Rojiblancos, ahead of this tie, occupy third spot on the standings and sit six points ahead of fifth-placed Real Betis, while beleaguered Valencia occupy 17th, level on points with 18th-placed Getafe in a crunch battle to stay afloat in the La Liga.
The Diego Simone-led side left it late against Girona last time in the league to claim a 1-0 win last time out, with the win being their fourth in five league games and will be aiming to pile on the misery for Valencia in an already torrid campaign for the visitors.
The ‘Che’ team have recorded two wins in their last 8, recording 6 losses in the process and face the looming danger of relegation to the second division is there isn’t an upturn in their fortunes.
The H2H between both sides in their previous five meetings shows this particular fixture has gone one way half the time as the hosts have won four and played out a draw against a Valencia team who are winless in the last five against their opponents. The reverse fixture ended in a 3-2 for Athletico who would aim to do the double.
PREDICTION: Given the rich vein of form Atletico Madrid are experiencing heading into this clash and although Valencia won their last game to take them out of the drop zone, only on a slightly superior goal difference, we predict Athletico Madrid’s unbeaten run will be extended with a win, so a home win at 1.59 odds @Bestbet360.
ARSENAL v CRYSTAL PALACE
Arsenal, fresh off their ouster from the UEFA Europa League, resume their Premier League charge looking to extend their gap at the summit to eight points over champions Manchester City when they host city rivals Crystal Palace at the Emirates stadium this weekend.
The Gunners fell out of yet another competition when they lost out 3-5 on penalties against Sporting Lisbon after playing out an enthralling 3-3 draw over the 2-legged encounter. The result means the London outfit will have to solely focus all their efforts on the Premier League and that resumes when they take on familiar foes Crystal Palace, whose former manager Patrick Viera is a club legend.
Viera has been handed his marching orders after the Eagles have found themselves 12th on the table having lost their last three league games and and are winless in their last 10 games in the league. The side have won only 6 games out of 27 so far in the league and are just 3 points above the drop zone with 27 points ahead of this crunch tie.
The H2H between both sides in their previous five meetings shows that the hosts slightly edge this meeting as they have claimed two wins, playing out two draws but lost once to Palace. The reverse tie ended in a 2-0 win for Arteta’s boys away at Selhurst Park earlier on in the campaign.
PREDICTION: Given the potential for a “new manager bounce” with Crystal Palace given the dismissal of Patrick Viera, the chances of an upset seem more realistic now more than ever. The last side that faced Arsenal after their previous manager was let go of was Everton. Sean Dyche recorded his first win as the Toffees gaffer under very shocking circumstances against Mikel Arteta’s boys, which explains why this could be a tricky tie for the hosts. With that being said, we predict a GG at 2.29 odds @Bestbet360.
This week’s entire selection leaves you with a sempe ACCA combo of 8.58 odds thanks to your preferred bookmakers Bestbet360.
Remember to always bet responsibly and may the odds surely be in your favor this weekend. Kpoko!!!!!