THE new year kicks-off with Spurs looking to bounce back from their surprise defeat at the weekend. Tom Love (@TomLove_18) picks out his favourite betting angles from their visit to Cardiff.
Cardiff City v Tottenham | Tuesday 1st January 2019, 17:30 | Sky Sports
Spurs travel to the Welsh capital hoping to bounce back from their surprise 3-1 defeat at home to Wolves last time out. On the other hand, Cardiff will be looking to take the confidence from their late win at Leicester the other day into this fixture.
Some might argue that Tottenham’s recent loss at Wembley wasn’t all that much of a surprise given Wolves’ decent record against the top 6. The Old Gold had more shots than the hosts and allowed for only long range efforts conceded. Spurs had just the one shot inside the box and recorded a measly 0.29 xG for. Not like them.
Mauricio Pochettino bemoaned his sides lack of energy post match, the heavy recent schedule seems to be taking its toll. It was notable that his side sat back after they went 1-0 up and tried to soak up the pressure but it backfired when Willy Boly headed in from a set piece. Spurs simply didn’t have the intensity to respond, in fact they were left open to the lively Wolves and duly lost in the end.
Every side has to play plenty of games over this period so it won’t only be Spurs suffering. I’m backing them to get back to winning ways here though, if they want to stay in touch with the title race they need to win here really.
Given that, it would be no surprise if Poch mixed things up here to keep things fresh. Full-backs Kyle Walker-Peters and Danny Rose could come back in, as could Lucas Moura who could add another attacking dimension.
Cardiff went to Leicester for a point and defended well for the most part, they got more than that though with a 92nd minute Victor Camarasa belter. The man on loan from Real Betis has been instrumental for the Bluebirds this season, he tends to operate as a central midfielder with greater freedom than the two that sit behind him and it’s a position he’s revelling in. He’s popped up with a few goals this season and has plenty of shots for Cardiff. He’s also seemingly on penalty duties now and 13/2 quotes with Betway on the Spaniard to Score anytime looks a bit too big and looks worth a punt.
I do fancy Spurs to get the win here though, they’ve played plenty of away games this season and beaten better teams than Cardiff. Their 6-2 demolishing of Everton was highly impressive and they should have to reach such high standard here.
They’re short enough at 1/2 though but I’m going to utilise Bet365’s BetBuilder feature to garner a more palatable price. If we add over 1 goal and over 3 Spurs corners to the Spurs win then we receive an attractive even-money quote.
Cardiff were poor defensively against Manchester United in their recent 5-1 home defeat and will be coming up against a strong attacking force again here. Spurs are regular corner getters too, it’s very rare for them to get under 4. I could see Cardiff notching here but the away side should have too much for their counterparts.
Best Bets
Spurs to win, Over 1 Goal and Over 3 Spurs Corners – 1/1 (Bet365 – BetBuilder)
Victor Camarasa To Score Anytime – 13/2 (Betway)
