Weekend Six Pack – New Year’s Betting includes Hammers and Blackburn

Each week our betting columnist Rob Hartnett will bring you six bets from the weekend football action.  Rob is the public face of leading In Play betting specialists 188BET.com and appears regularly on the Bolton, Wigan, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Everton websites doing betting previews.  You can follow his thoughts on Twitter @HartnettRob

After the twists and turns of so much football over Christmas we are going into the New Year with a very open look to the English top flight.  Arsenal’s win over Chelsea could set them up for a serious title challenge while the return of Frank Lampard yielded only a yellow card for the Blues.

Carlos Tevez is happy again and in the goals but will it last and can Bolton continue their run of form and get back into European action?

January 1^st and 2^nd

Man City (-1.5) Vs Blackpool

If City are serious contenders they need to start scoring at home.  Blackpool’s style of attacking football has yielded them plenty of points on the road.  It may though suit Mancini’s men who will be able to play more in the soak and strike style they have adopted away from Eastlands that has produced the best away record in the top flight.

Everton (Draw no bet) at Half Time at Stoke at 2.05

Everton’s away form would have them in fifth place but it is in the half time market where we will look to get with David Moyes’ side.  Stoke have been solid over 90 minutes but so often have been slow starters.  Of nine home games before the visit of Fulham in midweek they had only led at the break once and been behind four times.

Sunderland to beat Blackburn @ 2.00

Sunderland did not perform at Man United but the visit of a clearly out of sorts Blackburn side gives an opportunity to notch up three points at odds which look too big.  Blackburn have already conceded 14 goals away in four games against sides above Sunderland in the table and things are likely to get worse before they get better at Ewood.

West Ham to beat Wolves @ 2.07

West Ham’s win at Fulham lifted them above Wolves and with seven straight defeats away from home before facing Liverpool on Wednesday, Mick McCarthy’s side are struggling.  West Ham have only lost once in nine games against bottom half opposition and should be shorter to record an important win here.

Watford v Portsmouth +2.5 Goals @ 1.95

There were five goals when the two sides met at Fratton Park earlier in the season. In the ten games since then Watford’s average total goals per game has come in at 3.3.  Both sides are looking to move from the fringe of the play-offs and will feel this is an important game to win.

Wigan and Newcastle to draw at 3.35

Wigan were unbeaten at home in five before the visit of Arsenal.  Newcastle have won three and drawn three against sides in the bottom seven.  The sides shared the Points earlier in the season and can do so again.

Tune into my twitter account @HartnettRob for tips on the next round of Premier league games and the action from the FA Cup third round next weekend.

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