TOM LOVE (@TomLove_18) has perused Tuesday night's Premier League coupon and picked out his favourite fancies.
Arsenal v Cardiff | Tuesday 29th January 2019, 19:45
Unai Emery saw his Arsenal side knocked out of the FA Cup by rivals Manchester United on Friday night; he will no doubt be looking for a response as the Gunners return to league action with a home tie with Cardiff.
Arsenal were dealt a blow with centre-halves Laurent Koscielny and Sokratis going off injured at the weekend, Shrokdan Mustafi is likely to replace one here. Nacho Monreal or Granit Xhaka may have to fill in at centre back too with the sheer number of defensive injuries the club has.
Cardiff were rocked by the news of the disappearance of record signing Emiliano Sala last week – it would be totally understandable if the club aren’t in a great state of mind for this fixture.
Neil Warnock tends to set his troops up as hard to break down when on the road, I expect more of that here. They’re likely to defend with a low block and concede the majority of possession to the hosts.
Ultimately though, Arsenal should get the job done. The Gunners’ home record has been excellent this campaign on the whole and we can boost the 2/7 quotes on a home win to a more palatable 4/5 by chucking in Under 5 Goals on Bet365’s BetBuilder feature.
I’d expect the Bluebirds to put up some stubborn resistance but the quality of Arsenal should show after 90 minutes.
Fulham v Brighton | Tuesday 29th January 2019, 19:45
This is a huge game in Fulham’s season. Claudio Ranieri knows his side need to start getting wins on the board as they’re starting to get cut adrift along with Huddersfield at the base of the table.
This match presents one of their best chances for a win as notoriously bad travellers Brighton make the trip north to Craven Cottage. Despite conceding a high ratio of shots, Chris Hughton’s side sit 13th on 26 points.
Only Burnley have a worse Shots In The Box ratio figure than the Seagulls. What’s more, they sit bottom of the Expected Goals from open play table with a paltry 31% ratio. Admittedly, a lot of their goals have come from centre-halves Shane Duffy and Lewis Dunk from set-pieces but apart from that Brighton don’t create much.
Fulham too concede a high number of shots but they also have a threat going forward so it’s no surprise to see goals be a feature of their games this season. They need to be right on it here, it could prove a turning point in their season if they manage to get a vital victory.
I’m once again going to utilise the handy BetBuilder feature on Bet365 and combine Fulham Double Chance alongside Over 1 Goal, this gives us a 10/11 quote.
Brighton would probably see a point as not the worst but I’m expecting Fulham to go all-out to get the three points here. Getting the stalemate on side gives us a nice bit of insurance though and the prices allow for it.
Best Bets
Arsenal v Cardiff – Arsenal to win and Under 5 Goals (4/5 Bet365 BetBuilder)
Fulham v Brighton – Fulham double chance and Over 1 Goal (10/11 Bet365 BetBuilder)
