Picks And Parlays Soccer: Looking at This Weekend's Value Bets

Newport County vs Tottenham Hotspur (FA CUP)

The English Premier League takes a short hiatus this week because the FA Cup fourth round matches take place. Punters love the FA Cup because it pits relative minnows against proverbial giants and there is always the chance of a “giant killing.”

One such match sees Newport County host Tottenham Hotspur at Rodney Parade; the home side’s ground will be at its 7,850 capacity. Can Newport, who play in English soccer’s fourth tier, cause an upset against Spurs? In short, no, but it may not be as clear cut as you think.

Newport are +1500 with Bovada to beat Spurs within 90 minutes while Spurs are -575 and the draw comes in at +650. While Newport have scored in each of their previous five cup games, they are unlikely to cause too much of a threat to the away side.

Instead of backing a Tottenham win at short odds, take a look at the handicap betting. Spurs with a -2 spread are -120, but it is the half time / full time market that has caught my eye.

Spurs may have beaten AFC Wimbledon 3-0 in the last round but they took their time to open the scoring. Newport are likely to put everyone behind the ball, plus there is a dodgy pitch to contend with and Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino will probably rest key players as his side take on Manchester United in four days.

A Draw / Spurs win is +310 and looks great value.

Valencia vs. Real Madrid: Zidane’s Last Game in Charge?

I would have laughed in your face if you had told me six months ago that Real Madrid would be trailing top spot in La Liga by 19 points and they had a realistic chance of missing out on Champions League soccer next season at the halfway stage of this campaign. Alas, this is the almost unbelievable story in Spain right now.

Madrid travel to Valencia knowing that any result other than a win will cost head coach Zinedine ZIdane his job. Madrid were dumped out of the Cop del Ray this week by lowly Leganes and the Madrid fans made their opinions known with a chorus of boos.

Zidane’s men looked exceptional at times in their last La Liga game. They went 1-0 down at home to Deportivo La Coruna but then rallied to win 7-1. A win in this latest game should allow Zidane to keep his job, although Madrid have found Valencia a hard nut to crack in recent seasons.

Bovada price a Madrid win at -160 and a draw at +340. I particularly like the look of both teams to score and the game to be a tie at +375, what do you think?

Goals Galore at Paris St. Germain This Weekend?

Most bookmakers think Paris St. Germain are going to hammer Montpellier this weekend as is evident by the ridiculously short odds offered on the home side. While I believe PSG will bag all three points, there may not be a glut of goals.

PSG are -800 to beat Montpellier with the away side a massive +1800 and the draw +750. The over 3 goals market is a short -160 with the under at +130; I’ll be lumping on the latter. Why? Because in the past five meetings between these sides in the league in Paris, there have been an average of 1.4 goals per game and that includes a 4-0 home win back in 2013/14.

Montpellier have only managed to score in one of the previous five encounters (home and away) so backing No on the both teams to score market at -160 also looks like a shrewd bet. PSG will win this game, mark my words, but it shouldn’t be a whitewash the bookies expect, perhaps 2-0 at +600 could be worth a dabble?

Category : Betting Picks

Tag : FA Cup , Montpellier , Newport County , Paris St Germain , PSG , real madrid , soccer bets , Tottenham Hotspur , Valencia