THE ever-popular Gavin Murphy (@GamePlanGavin) has found an angle on the bookings markets for Thursday's Europa League match in London.
West Ham v Astra Giurgiu | Thursday 19.45 | BT Sport
Slaven Bilic’s West Ham host Romanian outfit Astra Giurgiu at the London Stadium tonight hoping to progress to the group stages of the Europa League.
The Hammers, despite a few injuries, will be buoyed by the 1-1 draw secured in the first leg and having a valuable away goal.
German whisteblower Manuel Grade is in charge of this fixture and I've noticed a pattern in his Europa League games over the past two years. Basically, he has given 2-3 first-half cards in 6/6 matches.
In 2015/16, two were shown in the games between Monaco and Anderlecht as well as Sporting Lisbon v Besiktas. Three were shown in the encounter between Qarabag and Twente.
In 2014/15, he brandished two first-half cards in all of the games involving Sevilla-Reijka, Copenhagen-Bruges and Tottenham-Besiktas.
In the first leg in Romania last week Portuguese referee Artur Dias also showed two cards before the interval.
With very supportive historical stats, I'm backing 2-3 First-Half Cards at 6/5 with William Hill
Best Bets
West Ham v Astra Giurgiu – 2-3 First-Half Cards (6/5 William Hill)
