Football Accumulator Tips

Atletico Madrid were handily beaten by Arsenal and Liverpool in the League Phase, while they were a mess defensively against Club Brugge in the last round. Spurs won all four home games on their way to finishing fourth in the first round, and they can match an Atletico side who have been far from dominant in Europe in recent seasons.

Sporting are arguably the weakest of the top-eight sides, while Bodo have won four straight European games including home and away victories over Inter Milan. The Norwegian side went to the semis in the Europa League last year, and they can see off a Sporting side who overperformed their xG numbers at a huge rate in the League Phase.

While Chelsea beat PSG 3-0 in the summer’s Club World Cup, Enzo Maresca’s tactical tweaks were key in that victory. Months on, and the Blues look to have gone backwards. PSG clearly took issue with the Blues, and they can claim some revenge after eliminating three Premier League sides on their way to last season’s final.

These two sides are meeting in the knockouts for the fifth straight year, and Real Madrid have won three of the previous four meetings, including the last two. The Spanish giants have won eight of their last 10 under new boss Arbeloa at the time of the draw, and they are one of the few sides in Europe with the individual talent to match City.

Five defeats from their last six games has shunted Clermont towards the relegation zone, and another loss could be handed to them by a Dunkerque side that have excelled on the road this season, winning five of their last seven Ligue 2 trips.

Both teams have scored in Telstar’s last five competitive games and they are without a clean sheet in nine games, while NAC Breda have scored in five of their last six matches, conceding in four of them.

Strasbourg’s last eight games have all gone over 2.5 goals and they face a Lens side that have seen 20 goals scored in their last four games, with all of those featuring three or more goals.

It’s only a matter of time before Wolves’ relegation from the Premier League is confirmed as they sit 17 points adrift of safety with ten games left to play. Their plight could become even more terminal following this visit from Aston Villa but a cagey contest looks likely. Villa are way off the side who won 11 straight matches between the start of November and the end of December, and injuries are taking their toll on a side who have won just one of their last five. They should still have too much for their beleaguered hosts.

Five defeats from their last six games has shunted Clermont towards the relegation zone, and another loss could be handed to them by a Dunkerque side that have excelled on the road this season, winning five of their last seven Ligue 2 trips.

Harrogate have boosted their survival hopes with a four-game unbeaten streak, including a home win over promotion-chasing Cambridge United. They face a Cheltenham that have taken just two points from their last five away games.

Parma have hit some form and they could be coming up against Cagliari at the right time, as the visitors are winless in three and have failed to score in all of those games. Parma are on a three-game winning streak and after beating Bologna and Milan they look capable of overcoming Cagliari.

Bristol City fought back from a goal down to win at Blackburn in midweek and can follow that up by beating poor travellers Watford, who they thumped 5-1 in the FA Cup at Ashton Gate last month. The Robins have won four of their last seven at home across all comps, losing just once, while Watford are winless in five on their travels.

Road wins have been hard to come by for Alaves this season but they look capable of taking maximum points at Levante on Friday. The Granotes have been woeful at home with just seven points to show from 12 games, losing seven, and they come into this clash after four successive defeats overall. Alaves have eight points from their last five games and four from their last two away from home, the visitors also won the reverse fixture 2-1 earlier in the season.

It’s only a matter of time before Wolves’ relegation from the Premier League is confirmed as they sit 17 points adrift of safety with ten games left to play. Their plight could become even more terminal following this visit from Aston Villa but a cagey contest looks likely. Villa are way off the side who won 11 straight matches between the start of November and the end of December, and injuries are taking their toll on a side who have won just one of their last five. They should still have too much for their beleaguered hosts.

Laval are rock bottom of the Ligue 2 table and have taken just one point from their last four home games, while Nancy have won one and drawn one of their last three league away games.

Bastia are winless in their last five games and have only taken two points from their last five at home. Annecy are 18 points better off than the relegation-threatened hosts and have taken 14 points from the last 18 available.

Road wins have been hard to come by for Alaves this season but they look capable of taking maximum points at Levante on Friday. The Granotes have been woeful at home with just seven points to show from 12 games, losing seven, and they come into this clash after four successive defeats overall. Alaves have eight points from their last five games and four from their last two away from home, the visitors also won the reverse fixture 2-1 earlier in the season.

Chesterfield look the better bet away at Barnet. The visitors are above their opponents in the table, have fewer defeats this season and continue to do good work on the road. Barnet are wobbling at home and remain vulnerable defensively, which gives an in-form Chesterfield side a strong chance here.

Wrexham are the best bet to win at Charlton on Saturday. They have won on four of their last five Championship away trips and can secure another victory at The Valley against a Charlton side who are without a win in three games.

Colchester look the best bet at home to Salford after their emphatic 4-1 win over Barnet. They have won six of their last eight league games on their own ground and arrive on a two-match winning run. Salford are wobbling, with no win in four and back-to-back away defeats.

QPR had an off night when losing 5-0 at Southampton on Tuesday but they can revive their playoff hopes with a home win over Sheffield United. The Hoops are usually strong at their West London base and can pile on the misery for the Blades, who are smarting from a 2-1 loss at home to Coventry.

Plymouth beat league leaders Cardiff 5-2 on Saturday to extend their good form, and second-bottom Rotherham should struggle to match them. The hosts have lost three games in a row, while they’ve lost four of six home meetings with top-half teams. Plymouth have won all of their visits to the bottom eight so far, and they’ve scored 12 goals across their last three games.

Southampton have found the net in their last eight league games and there is potential for a goalfest when they visit Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on Saturday. Back over 3.5 goals. The hosts have had a leaky defence this season. Sheffield Wednesday have failed to keep a clean sheet in 20 of their last 21 Championship games, and no team has shipped more goals in the league this season than the 68 they have conceded so far – an average of exactly two goals per game.

Estrela can really help their survival hopes by winning at AVS on Saturday. The hosts have won only once all season and have failed to score in three of their last four home league games.

Bottom side Heracles tested PSV when the pair last met, with the leaders running out with a 4-3 home win. They head to Heracles having won 11 of 12 away trips, but the basement club have still scored 20 times in their 11 home matches. Eight of the visitors’ last nine Eredivisie matches have seen both teams score, so back a high-scoring away win.

NEC Nijmegen are without a win in three, but they picked up a solid 1-1 draw at Ajax last weekend. The hosts have a strong record at home, while visitors Fortuna Sittard have lost all four of their visitors to the top six, despite scoring in three of those games. The third-placed hosts have seen BTTS land in 12 straight games, while the same has landed in nine of Fortuna’s 12 trips.

Guimaraes have won four of their last five at home in all competitions and are worth siding with when Alverca visit. However, both teams have scored in Guimaraes’ last three and Alverca’s last four. The visitors have lost each of their trips to top-half sides, but they can find the net in another defeat.

Auckland are second in the A-League and they have a strong home record, but they’ve conceded in all but two of their eight home matches. Visitors Melbourne City have seen BTTS in their last five games, which has included heavy losses to Melbourne Victory and Macarthur FC.

Newcastle Jets have won their last eight A-League games, while they’ve won seven straight away trips this term. The visitors lost 3-2 at Central Coast Mariners earlier this season, and the hosts are in good form having gone five games without defeat, winning the last three. The hosts have scored at least twice in three of their last four, while the visitors have kept one away clean sheet in spite of their winning streak.

Perth Glory have stronger underlying numbers, despite sitting a place below Brisbane Roar. The away team has won the last four meetings between these two sides, and Brisbane Roar head into this contest have lost four of their last five games.

The visitors’ last four games have featured a total of 16 goals, while the hosts last three at home have finished 2-2, 6-2, and 0-3. Defensive issues are clear for both sides, with Western Sydney shipping 1.88 goals per game on their travels this season.

Bournemouth have won two of their last three home league games while Sunderland have lost their last three Premier League away matches. The Black Cats are struggling for goals and may come up short on the South Coast.

Burnley have conceded at least two goals in five of their last six home games while Brentford have scored multiple goals in three of their last five league away trips.

Liverpool have won their last three games to nil, including a couple of 1-0 road wins against struggling Nottingham Forest and Sunderland.

Both teams come into this game in good form and having found the net with regularity in recent weeks. Four of the last six head-to-heads have seen both teams score and over 2.5 goals and a repeat of that looks likely.

Athletic Club finally look to be getting it together and can record a fourth straight league win when they head to Rayo Vallecano. The visitors have won seven of 10 clashes with the bottom six, so back them to extend their fine form.

Hoffenheim look a decent bet to beat St Pauli in the Bundesliga this weekend. They have won 14 of their 23 league games while St Pauli have lost 13 of their 23. These two teams are at opposite ends of the table and the gulf in class may show.

Bromley look the right bet at home to Accrington. They sit top of League Two, are unbeaten in 16 home games this season and have been one of the division’s most reliable sides. Accrington come into this out of form, short on goals and struggling to keep opponents out too.

Burnley have conceded at least two goals in five of their last six home games while Brentford have scored multiple goals in three of their last five league away trips. Only Tottenham and Wolves have conceded more home goals than Burnley across their last 10 at Turf Moor, while they have scored just under one goal per game in that span.

Cardiff can put an end to Doncaster’s winning streak when they visit the Eco-Power Stadium on Saturday. Cardiff are in good form, having been winners in four of their last six League One games and they are leading League One, having won 21 of their 33 games this season.

Only Livingston are keeping Kilmarnock off the bottom of the Scottish Premiership. Killie have won only two of their last 22 matches and Falkirk, who are enjoying an excellent return to the top flight, can make it three wins from four at home against one of the league’s worst travellers.

Millwall are in good form and look set to continue their winning ways away at Preston on Saturday. Alex Neil’s side got a big win in their last Championship game and can secure another victory at Deepdale. They beat Birmingham 3-0 in their last Championship game on Wednesday, while Preston are without a win in three games.

Estrela can really help their survival hopes by winning at AVS on Saturday. The hosts have won only once all season and have failed to score in three of their last four home league games.

Napoli look the clear bet away at Verona. The hosts are bottom, winless in 11 league games and have taken just one victory from their last ten at home. They are struggling badly at both ends, while Napoli have the quality and consistency to take advantage of another poor Verona performance.

Monaco look the right pick at Stade Louis II. They have won three of their last four league games, are chasing a third straight home win and are scoring freely, especially on their own ground. Angers have lost their last two, failed to score in both and remain poor away.

James: Phil Parkinson’s side have won their last two league matches, beating Ipswich 5-3 and Portsmouth 2-1, while they have been excellent on their travels with 13 points collected from the last 15 on offer. It has been a different story for Charlton, who are without a victory in three outings and have tasted success just once from their last four fixtures at the Valley.

Aidan: An away victory would extend Bolton’s unbeaten sequence to 10 games and see them do the double over City after a 2-1 home win in the reverse fixture in December.

Warren: Mansfield have taken their eye off the ball having reached the FA Cup fifth round, with the Dons able to take advantage on Saturday. Johnnie Jackson’s men have won three and drawn one of their last five league matches and are now three places and three points ahead of the Stags.

Alex: Barcelona’s 67 La Liga goals gives them the best attacking record in the division. The Blaugrana have averaged 3.08 goals per home game this season and have scored at least three goals in each of their last six on home soil. Villarreal have shipped nine goals in their last five away games and now face one of the best attacking outfits in Europe.

Henry: I think Manchester City’s good recent run is being overplayed and Leeds look overpriced. Pep Guardiola’s side weren’t convincing in a 2-1 win over Newcastle last weekend, and they could fall short against a Leeds side who have lost only two of their last 16 matches.

Gareth: Mallorca opted to axe Jagoba Arrasate as coach after their defeat to Celta Vigo on Sunday and we may see a reaction from the relegation-threatened side. In any case, home form hasn’t been the issue for Los Piratas as they have just three defeats at the Mallorca Son Moix all season and they’ve won two of their last three.

Bromley look the right bet at home to Accrington. They sit top of League Two, are unbeaten in 16 home games this season and have been one of the division’s most reliable sides. Accrington come into this out of form, short on goals and struggling to keep opponents out too.

Coventry have enjoyed success in 12 of their last 15 home games in the Championship and can be backed to win at the CBS Arena against Stoke on Saturday. The visitors are out of form, with just one win in Stoke’s last eight Championship matches. They have failed to secure victory in any of their last three away games.

Only Livingston are keeping Kilmarnock off the bottom of the Scottish Premiership. Killie have won only two of their last 22 matches and Falkirk, who are enjoying an excellent return to the top flight, can make it three wins from four at home against one of the league’s worst travellers. 

Mansfield look the best bet at home to AFC Wimbledon. Neither side has had a great season, but the visitors’ defensive issues stand out. Wimbledon have gone four league games without a clean sheet and have failed to shut teams out in 17 of their last 20, which gives Mansfield the edge.

Inter suffered a European humiliation in midweek and will feel the need to respond this weekend, which could be bad news for visitors Genoa. Il Griffone are winless in five away from home and they have an Inter side who have scored multiple goals in five of their last six home assignments, the hosts look capable of covering a -1 handicap here after winning the reverse fixture 2-1 earlier in the campaign.

Atletico Madrid have won just three of their 12 away games in La Liga and they come into this game after a midweek fixture. Real Oviedo have just one defeat in their last seven at home and can at least deny Los Colchoneros all three points.

Over 2.5 goals looks the standout bet when Le Havre face PSG. The visitors have scored in nine straight games and their recent matches keep producing goals. The last four league meetings between these sides have all gone over the line, while both teams have looked shaky defensively too.

Guimaraes have won four of their last five at home in all competitions and are worth siding with when Alverca visit. However, both teams have scored in Guimaraes’ last three and Alverca’s last four. The visitors have lost each of their trips to top-half sides, but they can find the net in another defeat.