STANDING room only in the Darren Anderton physio suite these days at Tottenham, which just goes to show what a job Thomas Frank is doing in North London.
At last count, the Dane was missing 12 players you’d consider part of the first-team squad.
But once he managed to clear the pile of sicknotes off his desk, he found he still had enough quality to get Spurs up into third place.
The rider to that is, it’s built on the back of the best away record in the Premier League.
Home games have provided little in the way of comfort, with just one win in the four so far.
Which is why Spurs will be kicking off tonight’s London derby with Chelsea as 37-20 underdogs.
Bet Balls
- Chelsea winning half-time v Spurs, draw full-time is 12-1 with BetGoodwin
- Villa to beat Liverpool tonight, BTTS, is 6-1 with BetGoodwin
- Newcastle to win 3-1 at West Ham tomorrow is 10-1 with BetGoodwin
- Man City v Bournemouth draw and BTTS tomorrow is 4-1 with BetGoodwin
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And Coral’s Dave Stevens has his own theory as to why Frank’s side are struggling on their own turf.
He said: “Yeah, Spurs sit third thanks to their away form, and if the fans could create a decent atmosphere at home maybe that would give the players a lift. At the moment it feels too much like a tourist destination.”
Well, it’s certainly one of Chelsea’s favourite places to visit, as they’ve won on five of their last six trips, drawing the other. That includes 4-3 and 4-1 wins in the last two seasons.
The big problem currently for Enzo Maresca’s Club World Champions is no Cole Palmer, out for eight games already with a groin injury and no return date yet in sight.
In the absence of their marquee midfielder, they haven’t done badly – just two defeats in those eight games. Trouble is both at home in the league, to Brighton and shockingly to Sunderland last weekend.
That accounts for their lowly ninth place and Stevens doesn’t rate their top-four chances.
He said: “Top four is more than possible at 7-2 for Spurs, and I’d rather back that than Chelsea at 6-4.
“So even though their home record is far from impressive, I’m not sure why Spurs are underdogs for this one. It feels like we’ll see goals, so it’s a score draw for me.”
And a best-price of 8-5 with Betfred on Chelsea doesn’t hold a great deal of appeal.
But William Hill’s Lee Phelps reckons he might have the answer. He said: “With 4-1 and 4-3 wins on their last two visits to North London, the Blues are 11-1 to score over 3.5 goals.
“Traditionally, this fixture goes the way of West London, but this looks tough to call. Goals will likely be on the agenda, with Chelsea to win and over 3.5 match goals an attractive prospect at 5-1.”
I can’t quite share Lee’s optimism about a Chelsea side that let in three in midweek against bottom of the table Wolves in the Carabao.
And given Spurs’ new, improved resilience under Frank, they can take at least a point here.
Draw, both teams to score, at best-priced 7-2 with BetVictor looks a solid approach. And for the more adventurous, 2-2 at 12s with bet365 and a widely-available 40-1 on 3-3 both look worth a punt.
I’m not doubting Thomas.
Dark Horse
196-1: Premier League leaders Arsenal are 1-2 to win their first title since 2004.
They are also joint 5-1 favourites with PSG for the Champions League, 9-4 Carabao Cup favourites and 6-1 FA Cup shots.
Vbet and MGM go a best-priced 196-1 they win the lot.
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WHEN the teams were announced before Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup clash at Liverpool, Palace’s price came crashing in from 5-2 to odds-on.
And the market knew what it was on about, as the Eagles duly swept the understrength Reds aside 3-0.
So even though they landed a quarter-final trip to league leaders Arsenal next month, Palace’s 12-1 quote to win the competition was a nice surprise.
Mikel Arteta played the same trick as Arne Slot for their clash with Brighton, pretty much naming a B team.
But aided by the visitors’ poor finishing,the Gunners pulled it off, winning 2-0 – and are now 9-4 Carabao favourites.
Full-strength, they just edged out the Eagles 1-0 at home last weekend.
It’s likely Arteta runs the kids out again next month – and I like the idea of an upset and having a 12-1 side in the semis.
FA Cup, Community Shield, Palace’ve got a taste for it.
CARABAO OUTRIGHTS (best price): 9-4 Arsenal; 5-2 Man City; 9-2 Chelsea; 11-2 Newcastle; 12-1 Palace; 20-1 Brentford, Fulham; 80-1 Cardiff.
GOODWINNERS’ ENCLOSURE
THE surprise packages of the season pulled off their biggest upset yet last weekend, as crossing the Black Cats turned out to be very bad luck for Chelsea.
Promoted Sunderland, now purring along in fourth spot, silenced the Bridge with a last-minute 2-1 win, having gone off at 13-2 with us at BetGoodwin Towers.
Chelsea had been heavily backed at a pre-match price of 2-5, so that result sunk an armada of accas as well.
Regis Le Bris’ band of upsetters are flying higher than their Geordie rivals Newcastle – and it’s not luck that’s got them there!
We now make Sunderland 11-1 to make the top six, and a nice value 3-1 for a top-10 finish.
Liverpool’s horror run continued this week as they were beaten by both Brentford and Palace.
Shrewd punters who fancied the Bees to sting Arne Slot’s boys got a decent run for their money, taking the 3-1 pre-match.
And in-running both of the underdogs saw plenty of love once they went in front.
Those results and Man City’s defeat at Villa, mean it’s all one-way traffic in the title race.
Arsenal and their four-point lead are now 4-9 to be champions, with Pep Guardiola’s City next in the book at 4-1.
Getting back to Chelsea, they’ve looked unconvincing in their last few games, and will need to improve on that to beat Tottenham at the Lane tonight.
Spurs had a good win at Everton last weekend before Newcastle brushed them aside in the Carabao. Given the mixed fortunes all round then, our view is this all points to a draw and BTTS, at 3-1.
Chelsea’s ill-discipline struck again in midweek after Liam Delap was sent off at Wolves, and they’ve now had a red card in five of their last nine games.
We’re going 5-1 they get another tonight.
Elsewhere, we’ve been double-checking the table this week to see if Man United really are sixth – they are!
And with Ruben Amorim’s system finally looking like it’s clicking, evens that they keep their run going at Forest looks too good to pass up.
After two straight weeks of being one result away from copping the Nap Acca, we’re hoping this one gets over the line – Liverpool, Man City, Newcastle, West Brom and Sheffield United all to win for a monster 11-1!
TV Previews
Liverpool v Villa
VILLA haven’t won at Anfield since 2014. Now seems as good a time as any to put that right.
The champions have gone off the rails in spectacular style, losing six of their last seven.
By contrast, Villa beating Man City last weekend was their sixth win in seven outings.
And their 9-2 with Betfred is too big to ignore. John McGinn is the anytime-scorer tip at 15-2 with Skybet.
FORECAST: 1-2
West Ham v Newcastle
ONE win in nine league games all season has the Hammers in a bit of a spot – heavy odds-on to go down.
Nuno Espirito Santo is yet to work his magic following Graham Potter’s sacking and tomorrow’s visitors Newcastle will take some beating.
The Geordies disposed of Spurs in midweek to move into the Carabao quarter-finals.
Comfortable away win here. Six-goal Nick Woltemade is 5-1 to strike first with Sky Bet.
FORECAST: 1-3
Man City v Bournemouth
MAN City have beaten Bournemouth in 15 of their last 16 league clashes but this will be closer than their 1-2 odds suggest.
The Cherries are second in the table for a start and have lost only once in the league.
City’s 1-0 reverse at Villa last weekend was their first in 11 games. But Cherries can get something here.
Antoine Semenyo is the anytime scorer selection at 7-2 with Paddy Power.
FORECAST: 2-2
Top Tips
Pro bet
Fulham to beat Wolves, Charlton to beat Swansea, West Brom to beat Sheff Wed, Blackpool to beat Scunthorpe, Walsall to win at Eastleigh. Acca pays 16-1 with William Hill.
Retirement bet
Hull to win at Norwich, QPR to beat Ipswich, Carlisle to win at Reading, York to win at Barnsley, Halifax to beat Exeter, Swindon to win at Rotherham, Huddersfield to win at Bolton, Plymouth to win at Wycombe. Perm 1 x Acca, 8 x 7-folds, 28 x 6-folds. Acca pays 38,090-1 with Coral.
Away day
Gillingham to win at Newport, Cardiff to win at Peterborough, Stockport to win at Tranmere, Doncaster to win at Crewe. Acca pays 12-1 with Coral.
Top draw
Birmingham v Portsmouth, Stoke v Bristol City, Colchester v MK Dons, Salford Lincoln. Acca pays 166-1 with bet365.
TV Special
Spurs v Chelsea draw, Villa to win at Liverpool, Newcastle to win at West Ham, Man City v Bournemouth draw. Acca pays 146-1 with Betfred.
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