English League One
2012-08-18 - MK Dons vs Oldham Athletic
A Sports Betting Pick by ArmchairPunter
Football – England – League One
Saturday 18th August 2012 – Kickoff: 1500hrs
MK Dons will be looking to go one step better this season following their play-off semi final exit at the end of last season when they narrowly lost to Huddersfield Town 2-3 on aggregate, and they host Oldham Athletic at their Stadium:mk on Saturday afternoon to start the ball rolling.
MK DONS
During the summer months though, manager Karl Robinson has shrewdly added a few new faces to his existing squad in the shape of former Newcastle United midfielder/forward Alan Smith, Sheffield Wednesday’s Jon Otsemobor & Ryan Lowe, along with Antony Kay from Huddersfield Town.
Lowe and Otsemobor I daresay will have a point to prove having missed the boat with Wednesday up to the Championship, with an experienced Alan Smith adding fuel to the attacking depth.
With a midfield consisting of Darren Potter, Luke Chadwick and Antony Kay along with the attacking options that are offered by Jabo Ibehre, Dean Bowditch, Charlie Macdonald and Daniel Powell, I reckon the Dons are well set up for a serious tilt at automatic promotion this season.
In the last meeting between these two, MK Dons walloped Oldham 5-0 in February thanks to a brace from Daniel Powell and goals from Bowditch, Gleeson and Doumbe, all of whom are still in this season’s squad.
OLDHAM ATHLETIC
Paul Dickov takes his Latics team down south for the trip to MK Dons on the back of some questionable away form last season; just two away wins in their last eighteen on the road in League One, along with four blanks in their last five, they will need to improve their overall form if they are to gain at least a mid-table position.
Oldham have been busy in the off-season with surprisingly offloading the two mainstays of last season Chris Taylor and Kieran Lee, along with the departures of defender Alex Diamond and attacking duo of Filipe Morais and Reuben Reid.
In come defender Jonathan Grounds from Middlesbrough and midfielder Lee Croft from Derby County, but almost half of the regular first team of last season have now since gone.
The Latics’ goal hopes appear to once again be pinned on experienced striker Shefki Kuqi backed up by Robbie Simpson, but their midfield options seem to be a little on the light side.
The betting Verdict
The new signings made by MK Dons’ Robinson have been good ones and I fully expect the home side to get off to a winning start in front of their home crowd, while the visitors will need a bit more time to gel and adjust.
The Pick :
MK Dons to win 2-1
BEST BETTING TIP :
Pick :take MK Dons to win @ 1.73 at Coral which seems a solid play
