If you read last week’s article on the both teams to score prediction, you’ll have seen it was just goals from Aston Villa and Stoke away from a winner. Perhaps a bit naïve to think that Villa could score against Man City, and then a tired Stoke team to score against a strong Crystal Palace side away from home, but it wasn’t too much of a disastrous start.
But we now return to normalcy, as league football returns across the country. It’s that part of the season which defines where a team will finish. Whether they will challenge for the title; whether they rare in trouble; or whether they can gather some momentum to try to finish in the play-offs. With this in mind, here is this weekend’s both teams to score tip.
Tottenham Hotspur v Watford
Spurs are full of confidence. Their midweek 3-0 win against Norwich, with England’s future stars Harry Kane and Dele Alli amongst the scorers, had many people having them down as genuine title contenders. But Watford, who have been so impressive this season and sit in a very respectable ninth place, are very capable of getting a goal at White Hart Lane.
Odion Ighalo already has 14 Premier League goals to his name, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he got another at the weekend. Amazingly, Watford’s away form is better than at home, losing just four times on the road this season. When the teams met last December, Tottenham came away with a 2-1 win, and it certainly could be the same here.
Burnley v Hull
Rightly so, both teams fancy their chances of going up. Hull sit top of the Championship—a point above Middlesbrough who have a game in hand, whilst Burnley are just below in third place. Both should feel they need to score to get any points at all.
Burnley’s last four fixtures have seen both teams scoring, and they’ve only failed to score in any match twice in the last two months. Meanwhile, Hull have won their last six matches, and beat Burley 3-0 at home on Boxing Day. Sean Dyche’s men will fancy their chances of getting revenge at Turf Moor, but with Jordan Rhodes’ move to Middlesbrough strengthening their automatic chances, Hull need to take at least a point in this top of the table clash. Goals should be everywhere.
Sheffield United v Wigan
One of the biggest games in the competitive League One, this one will be vital to both team’s seasons. Sheffield United are aiming to get in to the play-offs, whilst Wigan need to win if they want to achieve automatic promotion back to the Championship.
Nigel Adkins’ side slipped up midweek against Blackpool with a 0-0 draw, and will be hoping to put things right against a high-flying Wigan who haven’t lost since 12th December. The reverse fixture saw the Blades come back from 3-0 down to draw at the DW Stadium, so anything similar to this would be really appreciated.
Walsall v Millwall
Another huge game in the toughest league from which to get promoted, both teams need a result to keep that very dream alive. Walsall sit in second place and just a point off first place, whilst Millwall are level on points with Sheffield United and just three points outside the play-off places.
Millwall’s last five league fixtures have had both teams scoring, but they found themselves losing 1-0 at The Den to Walsall earlier on in the season. Walsall need to keep the pressure up at the top of the table if they are to play Championship football and should win, but Millwall have to go out to win too, so goals should be scored.
Yeovil v Plymouth
Both clubs need points for very different situations. As Yeovil sit just four points above relegation, but worryingly for their fans an extra two games played, a home fixture against second-placed Plymouth is the last thing they want. Yeovil, though, have managed to score in each of their last six fixtures in all competitions, and if they want to remain a Football League side they need to at least try and score a goal here. Plymouth are just two points off top place, but like Yeovil have played two more than the teams around them. They will definitely go out to win the game, and so it should promise goals to be scored by both teams.
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PLEASE NOTE: One thing which will never be given is predictions between any lunch-time and evening kick-offs. There’s literally nothing worse than a bet losing before 3pm, and equally as bad is when you’re waiting on one team later on in the day and being stuck whether to cash out or not. Inevitably, you end up frustrated when that so-called banker draws just when you need them the most.
