English Premier
2009-12-28 - Tottenham Hotspur vs West Ham United
A Sports Betting Pick by Shady
Football: England, Premier League
Monday, 28th December 2009 - Kickoff 13:00
Tottenham (5th) Home : 6-0-3 24:8
Spurs are in decent form lately losing once in their last eight games. With a couple of solid wins against Man City and Blackburn, Harry Redknapp’s side are lying on 5th spot, a point behind Aston Villa.
Redknapp will be without Hutton, Bentley, Woodgate and Cudicini for this game. However is likely to recall Ledley King into the starting lineup after recovering from a hamstring injury.
With Gomes keeping three clean sheets in a row, Harry Redknapp would be pretty pleased with the way his side has been playing. In their last outing, Spurs only managed a draw against Fulham but I believe Redknapp would be pleased with the result considering Fulham are in good form and are a difficult team to beat at home.
With Spurs playing their 4th game in 12 days, I do expect Harry Redknapp to rotate a couple of his players. Gomes will keep his place in goal protected by Bassong, Ledley King, Corluka and Ekotto.
In midfield, Jermaine Jenas is likely to make way for Tom Huddlestone to partner Wilson Palacios in midfield leaving Aaron Lennon and Luka Modric or Niko Kranjcar out in the flanks. Jermain Defoe is likely to partner Peter Crouch up front.
West Ham (17th) Away 1-3-5 10:15
You can see the smile all over Zola’s face when his side secured a massive 2-0 win over Portsmouth. However, West Ham have been playing awful this season, especially on the road, winning only once in their last 9 away games.
With Dean Aston retiring from football and Carlton Cole out injured, West Ham have been struggling to score goals. However Alessandro Diamanti has been popping up with the goals recently BUT most those goals have come from the penalty spot.
Zola will be missing a lot of key players going into this busy Christmas period. Noble, Gabbidon, Dyer, Hines, Cole, Davenport and Boa Morte are all set to miss this game against Spurs.
With so many players missing for tomorrow’s game, Zola is likely to fill in the exact 11 that defeated Portsmouth 2 days ago. With the Christmas period so busy for footballers, I do expect to see a minor impact on these West Ham players as the manager does not have the luxury of rotating his players.
Key players :
Robbie Keane was ineffective (again!) against Fulham and I believe his replacement Defoe would be one of the key player in this game. With Defoe playing against his former club, Defoe might just be the one that separates the score line. Peter Crouch has been causing defenders problema in the air and Aaron Lennon’s pace might just be too much for the West Ham players to handle.
On the other hand, West Ham will be relying heavily on Robert Green in goal to bail them out while Zola will be banking on Alessandro Diamanti to score for them.
Asian Handicap Analysis :
Under the AH line this season, Spurs have managed to payout five out of their nine home games. Those wins came against Liverpool, Burnley, Sunderland, Wigan and Man City.
West Ham have only managed to give punters a profit on three of their nine away games this season under the AH line. Those three wins came against Wolves, Blackburn and Sunderland.
The Betting Verdict :
With West Ham missing so many players ahead of this game, I have to fancy my chances on Spurs who are a decent team at home while West Ham are pretty awful on the road.
With Defoe and Crouch starting up front, I do expect the big and small combination of Spurs to hurt this West Ham defense who have been leaking goals in all season.
The Statistics :
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BEST BETTING TIP :
Take Spurs to winConsider trying Spurs to keep a clean sheet - best price is 2.05 at Victor Chandler
Gooner’s Statistical Value Bet
Take Spurs to cover the -1 goal head start
