10th August DFB Pokal

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: Germany

 

Arminia Bielefeld vs Hertha Berlin DNB @1.73

Two 0-0 draws in their opening two games of the Bundesliga 2 season isn’t the worst start in the world for the newly promoted Bielefeld side. However, they face Bundesliga opposition in the form of Hertha, who narrowly escaped a relegation playoff last season. The Berlin side, yet to start their campaign, are short of form, but will be looking to get their cup run off to a good start against the side who surprisingly knocked them out of the same competition on penalties last season in round 2. Strangely enough, Bielefeld also knocked out fellow Bundesliga opposition Monchengladbach in the quarter finals last year, on penalties. I’ve gone for Draw-no-bet to cover off the threat of extra-time again this year, but I don’t think Bielefeld have shown enough firepower this season to be capable of beating a Hertha team who will undoubtedly be more wary of their lower league opponents this time around.

St. Pauli vs Borussia Monchengladbach @1.65

Further Bundesliga 2 opposition, this time up against Monchengladbach. St. Pauli finished last season in 15th place in the second tier, and have drawn 1 and won 1 so far this season. Their opponents will be tough, having finished 3rd in the top tier in Germany last year and with an impressive squad. The odds look reasonably attractive, possibly because ‘Gladbach are the away side and are yet to get their season underway, however I would expect the their quality to come through and see off the power league opposition.

 

8th August Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England

 

Bolton vs Derby @2.05

Derby were one of the best teams in the Championship for large parts of last season, just tailing off at the end and narrowly missing out on a playoff place by 1 point. They’ve had a good summer, bought in exciting faces like Tom Ince, Darren Bent and Andreas Weimann, along with having some good pre-season results. The Rams are a lot of people’s picks for automatic promotion this season and are 7/4 to go up. Bolton haven’t got the same level of quality in their squad and have struggled in recent times in the Championship. They have been left short in the goal-scoring department for the new season with no Le Fondre and no Gudjohnsen, and appear to be struggling slightly for fitness going into the first game against Derby here. Wouldn’t go for Derby -1 here, purely because its the first game of the season and they are away from home.

 

Hull @1.70 vs Huddersfield

Although being a relegated side going into the new season is never easy, Hull look to have retained some of their key players, and go into this match at home with the better team on paper. Huddersfield, who lost their opening game last season 4-0 to promoted Bournemouth, finished the campaign in 16th. They don’t look like a solid team who are yet ready to challenge for promotion, and starting the season away at Hull is a tough ask. The quality of Hull should be too much here, although it will be interesting to see the transition between Premiership and Championship for Bruce’s team who will be looking to get off to a winning start here at home.

 

2014/15 Season Overview

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England, Germany, Italy, Spain

season2015

 

European qualification:

– West Ham gain additional Europa League qualifying spot through finishing top of the English fair play table

– Sampdoria currently take rivals’ Genoa’s Europa League qualifying spot due to financial regulations

Notable occurrences:

– All-round lower scoring season compared to previous one across all 4 leagues

– More card shown compared to previous season, around 8.5% more yellows

– Dominance of Barcelona & Real Madrid, particularly in goalscoring. Also the superiority of the champions of the other 3 (Chelsea, Bayern & Juve) over their respective leagues

– Close relegation battles in 3 out of the 4 leagues, coming down to the last day. Reasonably unified figure across all 4 leagues of around 35-38 points to stay up.

– Augsburg making Europa League football finishing 5th, despite losing 15/34 games. Dortmund also making the Europa League qualifiers, despite being bottom at one stage around Christmas. The resurgence of Wolfsburg, and contrasting fortunes of Hamburg who managed to stay up through a dramatic late goal and extra-time winner against Karlsruher.

– Lazio’s second half of the season, challenging Roma for 2nd place, only to lose out in the Derby. The poor display from both Milan clubs, Inzaghi’s side in particular, both missing out on European places. The financial struggles and effective collapse of Parma, under the mismanagement and neglect of their owner.

– The form of Valencia and Sevilla, pushing Atletico for 3rd, with the former gaining the 4th Champions League spot.

– Chelsea’s dominance of the Premier League. Manchester United’s return to the top 4 at the expense of Liverpool. Newcastle’s incredible poor run of form, almost resulting in their relegation. Aston Villa’s inability to score goals for extended periods of time. Harry Kane hype.

27th September Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England, Germany

Ipswich @2.00 vs Rotherham

Ipswich are on a good run of three wins on the bounce in the Championship, and will be looking to another home win here to push them further into the promotion places. Rotherham, on the other hand, have been struggling of late and look slightly beleaguered as they search for their first win in 5 this weekend. They were promoted last season from League One, and made a respectable start to this campaign, but have faded since and face some hard work to turn things back around. Evens seems like a generous price for an in-form Ipswich who should name an unchanged side from their victory at Wigan as they look to push for the opposite end of the table to their visitors.

(Confidence 8/10)

Nottingham Forest @2.20 vs Brighton

Forest look like an accomplished Championship side this year, genuine contenders for promotion. They are unbeaten this season and have shown that they can score plenty of goals at home, with Assombolonga already on 8 for the season. Pearce’s side still remain top of the table, despite two draws in their last 3 games, but should be looking to get a decent win under their belt at home against a patchy Brighton side. Despite the home side’s 3-1 loss to Spurs in the Cup in midweek, they looked like they had the potential to play good football and threaten on the break even against a top tier side. Brighton are without a win in the last 4 games, and although they have shown quality at times, they look out of form and in no shape to be travelling to Forest this weekend hoping for a win. A good away win at Burton in the cup midweek will lift their spirits slightly, but going to the City Ground in search of a result is a different matter. This looks like a fantastic price for a Forest home win.

(Confidence 7/10)

Paderborn vs Monchengladbach @2.10

Paderborn have got off to a flying start this season after gaining promotion in the summer. They went unbeaten in their first four games, finding themselves temporarily top of the league at one stage. Bayern rained on their parade in the last match, beating them 4-0, but Paderborn will still be upbeat about their start. Monchengladbach will also be happy with how their campaign has begun, remaining unbeaten. They have a stronger and fuller squad this year, and will be looking at challenging for the European places once again. They will offer a stern test for the newly promoted side, one in which they have only really encountered once so far, which ended in a heavy defeat. For as well as they have played so far, Paderborn will still be dicing with relegation come the end of the season, according to the bookies, and the visitors will be looking at games like this as three points for the taking against an inexperienced team.

(Confidence 6/10)

Freiburg vs Leverkusen @1.80

Freiburg have had a poor start to the season, going 5 games without a win, with only 3 points on the board. They have proven they can score goals, netting 3 against Hoffenheim and 2 against Hertha, but they haven’t been able to secure three points in these games. They miss Mehmedi despite the goals, and will have to do without the suspended Darida for the visit of Leverkusen. Schmidt goes into the game with his side sitting in 4th in the table, their only real blip in the season coming at Wolfsburg recently. Aside from that, they have looked good, with a notable victory at Dortmund and players such as the returning Bellarabi and new addition Calhanoglu performing well. They will go into the game with confidence, looking for all three points to help them continue their quest up the table for another Champions League place. I think they will be too much for Freiburg and their individual talent will come out on top at the Mage Solar Stadion.

(Confidence 6/10)

24th September midweek picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England, Germany, Italy, Spain

Malaga vs Barcelona : Barcelona -1 @1.85

Barca are yet to concede a goal after winning their opening 4 games, and come into this match off the back of a 5-0 win away from home. Malaga on the other hand have struggled somewhat, and will not see this as a good time to be playing the league leaders, 3 games without a win. It is difficult to see the home side conceding, especially not more than 1 goal, and you’d expect them to score at least 2 themselves with the likes of Messi and Neymar ready to start in attack.

Dortmund vs Stuttgart : Dortmund -1 @2.00

Stuttgart have been really poor this season so far, with only 1 point. They come to the Signal Iduna at a time when the home side will want to bounce back from their loss to Mainz and will probably field a slightly stronger team, with Immobile & Kagawa looking for starts. I think evens is a good price for a Dortmund team who is very capable of scoring goals against the side who are bottom of the table and lost the last 3 by 2 goals.

Parma vs Roma : Roma @2.05

Roma are yet to concede a goal in their opening three games, winning them all, although maybe not in supremely confident fashion. They will be slightly light at the back with a couple of injury doubts, however they have strength in depth now – more so than last season – and should cope. Parma have been hit and miss so far, gaining their first win against Chievo last time out, but conceding 5 against Milan and losing to newly promoted Cesena. Their main attacking threat is Cassano, and the pace of Biabiany (who is missing tonight). Paletta will also miss out, and the home side may struggle to contain Roma as Garcia’s men could dominate the ball. Parma always have the potential for an upset, but evens seems good value for Roma here.

Tottenham vs Nottingham Forest : Forest @6.00

Spurs have been poor recently, without a win in 4 games, and suffering an embarrassing 1-0 home defeat to West Brom on the weekend, with only 1 shot on target. They will likely field a weaker side tonight, and will not go into the game with any momentum. Forest, on the other hand, will probably put out a strong team and look to cause an upset here. Despite their 0-0 draw with fellow Championship high flyers Millwall on the weekend, the away side are unbeaten this season and have shown their goalscoring prowess. With forest @6.00 here, it seems like great value for a team who despite being a division below, are playing good football and will be more than up for the fight here this evening.

 

13th September Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England

Peterborough @1.7 vs Notts County

Table toppers Peterborough have been fantastic this season, their only loss coming to a decent Sheffield United side in a narrow 2-1. They score plenty of goals and a re typically very good against teams below them. Notts County haven’t been terrible this season by any means, but are yet to get a result against any sides in the same sort of form as their opponents this weekend. I think home advantage might not count for as much here as some games this weekend, but Peterborough have the quality to win this game comfortably. I think County could do OK this season, but they won’t be fighting against teams like the Posh.

(confidence 8/10)

Luton vs Cheltenham @2.9

After reaching 101 points in the conference last season and thus gaining promotion, many tipped Luton to do much better than they have been in this year’s campaign. They’ve only scored 4 goals int he League, and sit in 20th having not won since the opening day. They lost to Plymouth and Shrewsbury in their recent fixtures, and you would expect Cheltenham to offer an even greater threat. The away side have been on a great run, unbeaten so far, and sit 2nd in the table. None of their wins have been overly convincing, with all 4 coming by a single goal margin, but look like they have enough to beat Luton at great odds here.

(confidence 6/10)

Telford vs Barnet @1.6

Barnet are the form team in the Conference, they’ve scored 21 goals in their 8 games and have won 7. The likes of MacDonald, Cook and Akinde at times look too good to be playing in this division. Telford on the other hand are poor, and sit second bottom without a win so far this season and only 2 points. It would really be an unexpected result if the away side didn’t win here. Barnet -1 is @2.5 which seems like good value for a team that can easily score goals in this division away from home, against a team who have conceded the second most in the division.

(confidence 8/10)

31st August Serie A

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: Italy, Uncategorized

Cesena vs Parma @2.35

Parma had a decent time of things last season, and will be pushing for a European place or at the very least a solid top-half finish. Francesco Lodi will be looking to make his first start for the away side after his summer move from Catania. He showed real threat in the playmaking role last season, despite a poor campaign for Catania whom he rejoined halfway through the season. Lodi can also offer a good set piece delivery, but will be in contention for a starting place with Jorquera who comes in. Belfodil could start up front, and although found goals hard to come by at Livorno to say the least, is a decent striker on his day. The main threats will probably come from wide, with Cassano drifting in and becoming a creative influence, and Biabiany on the other wing offering a completely different threat of pace. Paletta and Lucarelli are solid at the back, and newly promoted Cesena may struggle to control the possession and move into the opposition third to trouble them. The home side have a seemingly stronger squad than last season, but will most likely take time to settle and work together. They are heavily reliant on loans, being on a cash-strapped budget. Its yet to be seen what tinkering will be done with the starting line-up, but Marilungo could be the danger up-front. Their defence could be have a strong Atalanta contingent, with loan signings coming in from Bergamo, for their sake I hope it doesn’t prove to be a makeshift and shakey opener in-front of the home fans.

I would favour Parma here, who will be setting their sights far higher than the home side this season. On paper Cesena look kind of thrown together, and may take time to adapt to life back in Serie A. Parma have a solid unit and, although not adding to their squad too much in the summer, have retained their main players from last season and would expect to worry Cesena and get off to a good start. The price for a Parma win seems good and I think probably too favourable to the home side due to the unpredictable nature of a new team coming up. But like I said previously, I just don’t think Cesena have the resources to trouble Parma too much at the moment. Probably wouldn’t go for overs on the goals front, purely because the home side may put up a solid defence and frustrate Parma, but it is possible that Cesena will be disorganised and/or struggle with Biabiany’s pace. Overall I’d say Parma are a good pick on what is a relatively tough day of fixtures on Serie A gameweek 1.

Udinese @1.80 vs Empoli

Udinese are another side who will hope to push up into the top half of the table and challenge for European places this season, after struggling at times in the previous campaign. Antonio di Natale will lead the line once more, and looks in good form if pre-season is anything to go by. He will most likely be joined by Thereau, who is similarly good on the ball and was a pretty decent partner for Paloschi at Chievo last season. There is the potential for a partnership here in Muriel’s absence from the starting line-up, which should be welcomed by di Natale who looked isolated at times last season. They also signed Panagiotis Kone from relegated Bologna, who can play an attacking role from midfield, out wide or further forward. Empoli look a much more inexperienced side to be going into a Serie A campaign. They will probably start with Tavano up-front, offering the main goal threat after scoring 23 goals in Serie B last season. But the veteran 35 year old will likely miss his strike partner Massimo Maccarone through a slight injury. Verdi could also be a force for the away side going forward, although it is yet to be seen if the youngster’s tricky style will live up to its potential in the top flight.

I’ve picked out this game a decent value for an opening day game, with Udinese notably good at home in recent times. Empoli look like they may struggle with Serie A to begin with, and are not up to the same sort of standard that we saw from the Serie B winners of last season Palermo. Udinese weren’t free-scoring last season and still rely heavily on the goalscoring exploits of di Natale, but I think that they have steadies their team more so for this coming season than in the past where they have become used to losing their stars in the transfer market. Thus, again, I would hesitate to bet on goals in this game and there is a slightly unpredictable nature around Udinese with the arrival of new manager Stramaccioni. However, I think the home side have more than enough about them to see off newly promoted Empoli here.

Other games

AC Milan take on Lazio at the San Siro, in what may prove to be a close encounter. Milan should have the much awaited return of El Shaarawy to aid them this season, and he could be involved from the right. This may be Milan’s main avenue of attack with Abate going forward also, probably causing Radu problems but potentially leaving themselves exposed to Candreva. The home side could go with Pazzini and Menez up front, which won’t set Milan fans’ world alight, but may be dangerous in the box if they can get the service from out wide. Mexes and de Sciglio are rules out through suspension, and Lazio have Marchetti seemingly out through injury. Its a tough one to call, with Milan’s strength and team cohesion difficult to gauge under new boss Inzaghi and a pretty depleted team sheet it has to be said. On paper, its pretty evenly matched in all areas. Its the sort of game you want to avoid on the first day of the season. Under 2.5 goals might be an option though, with neither side looking spectacular in the attacking department, although the price around 1.8 isn’t hugely attractive.

Torino and Inter face each other at the Stadio Olimpico in what also should be a pretty tough game for both sides. Inter look stronger on paper, particularly with Torino losing their top marksman Ciro Immobile in the summer, however Ventura’s side are notably good at home – proving very tough to beat in the past couple of seasons. If it was at the San Siro, I would probably be on Inter, but it seems foolish to bet against Torino at the Olimpico this early on. The home side have a few players missing, but they should still be strong and able to counter well, with the likes of Cerci cutting in from the right aided by Darmian, and Quagliarella taking up his spot up top. Kovacic, Icardi, Hernanes could all start and provide attacking threat for Inter, and their wing-backs Nagatomo and Jonathan should be bombing forward as usual. This could lead to an open game, but it could also get congested in the middle of the pitch if the ball is constantly played down the wings without the play being stretched methodically. I’d probably favour a draw here, but again its a tough one this early on in the season.

Napoli have a trip to the Luigi Ferraris to play Genoa to look forward to on the opening day. Odds of a Napoli win are around evens, which quite a few people will probably go for here. Genoa have been busy in the summer transfer window, notably bringing in Pinilla who will probably start in Matri’s absence and Perotti who could provide a threat on the wing. Napoli will be pretty much unchanged from last season, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but they will be on a bit of a downer having missed out on Champions League qualification through the playoffs against Bilbao in the week. I’d be slightly more hesitant of betting on Napoli than most. Genoa have a reasonable team, and Pinilla can score goals up front. They are unpredictable in their approach, and may take time to gel together as a squad, but they will fancy a home game and it is yet to be seen how the visitors will come out and tackle this game after their big disappointment in Europe. If I had to choose, I would say Napoli to win, but I think it has potential upset written on it.

Verona travel to Bergamo to play Atalanta in a game which should be another close call. Atalanta are another side with a reputation of being hard to beat at home, so Verona will have a job on their hands. The home side are relatively unchanged from last season – their retain Denis up front, supported most likely by Moralez. Bonaventura, who impressed in spells last season, will probably start from the right and look to be their main creative threat along with Cigarini from midfield. Hellas have lost Iturbe and Romulo, and look to Christodoulopoulos coming in to hopefully offer support to Toni from out wide. It remains to be seen how Verona can cope without their main stars from the start of last season when they began the campaign so well, but you’d have to say they may struggle. However they are capable of surprises and Luca Toni can pop up with a goal on many an occasion. If pushed, I’d go for a home win here at around evens.

Newly promoted Palermo start their 2014/15 campaign off at home to Sampdoria after they ran away with the Serie B title last season. Unfortunately for them, it looks like their main star Hernandez is on the move, so Dybala is favourite to start up top. Neither team have really changed to much from last season, with the visitors missing Bergessio. They will most likely also be without Gabbiadini. Sansone impressed at times in 2013/14 and will probably be partnered by Okaka in attack with Eder from he right although he could be deployed up top. Krsticic and Palombo look set to continue in the middle of the pitch. Sampdoria look slightly better on paper, although their inconsistency and the fact that Palermo are back in Serie A playing at home could mean a close game and probably one to avoid from a betting perspective.

30th August Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England, Germany, Uncategorized

Werder Bremen vs Hoffenheim @2.15

This one isn’t straight forward, and is based predominantly on the performance of Hoffenheim last week and the strength of their attacking line compared to Bremen. Werder came back into their game against Hertha to draw 2-2, but they weren’t convincing and another slow start this weekend could again be punished. Hoffenheim, in general, will create more chances than Bremen and I expect Szalai, Volland and Firmino in particular to be more dangerous throughout. Over 2.5 goals is likely, but a predictably poor price.

(Confidence 6/10)

Watford @1.80 vs Huddersfield

Huddersfield are improving after a chaotic start. They managed an impressive away win at Reading and a draw against Charlton. However, I’ve been impressed with Watford, and on their day can look very good going forward. They had a blip when they lost away to Norwich, but apart from that they’ve been in top form and scoring plenty of goals. Last week Watford smashed Leeds 4-1, having 21 shots and their opponents having none on target 4 in total. Forestieri looked very good, along with Deeney who has just committed his future to the club, plus they have the likes of Vydra to come in. If the home side win, it could easily be by 2 goals, thus I would strongly consider Watford -1 @2.90.

(Confidence 8/10)

Colchester vs Peterborough @2.40

Peterborough, aside from a slip in a tough game against Sheffield United, have had a good start tot he season, winning their other 3 league games. Colchester’s games have been reasonably close, but they have only come away from their first 4 games with 1 point. Its possible for the home side to get a result here, but the price being offered on the away side, who sit second in the table, seems too good. I’m yet to see anyone backing Colchester in this game.

(Confidence 7/10)

Cheltenham @2.10 vs Hartlepool

The home side are unbeaten on 10 points, with some good results under their belt so far, and are up against a Hartlepool team who have lost 3 and won 1. Their win last weekend was a good one against AFC Wimbledon, but I think they will struggle to come away with points away from home for the second consecutive game. The odds seem good on the home team here, and were most probably boosted by a surprise 2-1 win for their opponents last weekend, but the gap in quality still seemingly remains.

(Confidence 7/10)

Bury @1.70 vs Accrington

Bury had a reasonably tough opening day fixture against Cheltenham, which they lost 1-0, but have since turned their fortunes around and sit on 7 points following wins against Hartlepool and Plymouth. Both teams have drawn against Luton, but Accrington have lost their other 3 games and lie second bottom in the table. The home side should have the quality to see them off here.

(Confidence 8/10)

Portsmouth @2.10 vs Newport

The home side look in great form, winning their last 3. Newport, although having played reasonably tough fixtures so far, look pretty poor and understandably sit hovering around the bottom of the table despite a respectable draw against Burton last time out. Playing at home, I would expect Portsmouth to continue their good run of form here and take all 3 points, maybe not by a huge margin, but better than evens appears to be a good price here.

(Confidence 7/10)

23rd August Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England, Germany

Bit late posting this, but here are my picks for this Saturday. Difficult weekend, lots of top teams playing each other throughout England, but there are a few good ones from what I can see.

 

Swindon @1.80 vs Crewe

Swindon have had a reasonable start to the season, but Crewe have been very poor and are notably bad at the County Ground losing convincingly in the last three seasons or so. Swindon has a win against Scunthorpe, a narrow loss to Crawley away from home and a draw against rivals Gillingham. Crewe are yet to get off the points mark and should struggle away from home here – @1.80 seems generous

(confidence 7/10)

Yeovil @2.15 vs Scunthorpe

Slightly more risky one, both teams haven’t been particularly good but Yeovil have a decent away win at Walsall on their books from midweek whereas Scunthorpe look very poor and are yet to get off the mark points-wise. With home advantage, I back Yeovil here against a lowly Scunthorpe side that really don’t seem up for a battle at the moment.

(confidence 6/10)

Nottingham Forest @1.95 vs Reading

Forest look strong, with a really good win against Bournemouth in their last game. They drew against Bolton away and won their opener against Blackpool and have been playing good football and Assombolonga looks very good and threatening in front of goal. Reading have been inconsistent, and lost in their last game to struggling Huddersfield at home which was surprising. I think they’ll struggle here against an in-form Forest side.

(confidence 8/10)

Hoffenheim @2.00 vs Augsburg

Hoffenheim actually have a really strong squad, I like the options they have going forward. Szalai is a very good signing, someone who I think can be excellent and powerful up front or out wide on his day. They’ve kept Volland and Firmino who should provide great threat going forward. Their defence is suspect after the carnage we saw last season, but i don’t think Augsburg have the incisive edge to outscore Hoffenheim here. Its hard with opening games of the season, but I really think evens offers great value on a talented Hoffenheim side against Augsburg who you could say have been slightly punching above their weight in recent times.

(confidence 8/10)

 

My picks are available via oddsportal as usual here.

16th August Picks

Published on by firstgoalscorer Category: England

Blackpool vs Blackburn (@1.80)

Blackpool’s troubles off the field have been well documented, with their depleted squad and lack of preparation time. Although they are not totally written off, it will be tough for them to compete against a decent looking Blackburn side who will be eager to bounce back after their poor midweek display in the cup. They have the quality, particularly through Rhodes up top, to perform well away from home against struggling sides despite an average start to the season. A tough first day fixture against Cardiff is difficult go by, but Rovers looked decent, and their surprising midweek cup loss was suffered with a second-rate team on the pitch after rotation.

Confidence (7/10)

 

Bournemouth (@1.9) vs Brentford

Bournemouth were fantastic last weekend against Huddersfield and looked like their can certainly capture some of the form that they saw last season. They also won to-nil in midweek in the cup and will look to excite the fans this weekend as they run out in front of the home crowd at Dean Court. Newly promoted Brentford could struggle away at the early league leaders, despite picking up a draw in the opening fixture, struggled slightly at home in that game with Charlton – picking up a late equaliser. They also had a midweek thriller with Dagenham & Redbridge which ended 6-6 AET and a win on pens, which would have taken its toll on the side. I would expect Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth side to go in and score goals here, in what should be a confident performance.

(Confidence 8/10)

 

Cardiff (@1.80) vs Huddersfield

Cardiff drew against Blackburn on the opening day, but look in decent shape to be candidates for promotion this season. Conversely, Huddersfield suffered a shock 4-0 defeat last weekend, and sacked their manager after only 1 game. They managed an extra time victory in the cup midweek against Chesterfield, although conceded 3 in the process. Home advantage for Solskjaer’s Cardiff side should ensure three points, and you would expect them to score at least a couple of goals. They have an impressive squad and will go into their first home game of the season with optimism.

(Confidence 7/10)

 

Bristol City (@1.70) vs Colchester

Despite losing in the cup in midweek, Bristol City will be in high spirits in front of their home fans on Saturday, after an impressive opening day victory over Sheffield United. Colchester managed a 2-2 draw at home to Oldham in their opening game, but slumped to a 4-0 defeat in the cup. We wait to see how well they will do on their travels this season, but Aston Gate is not where they will be wanting to go this weekend. City look the stronger side and I would expect their midfield to dominate, along with Elliot, Wilbraham and Baldock threatening.

(Confidence 8/10)

 

Barnet (@1.95) vs Lincoln

Barnet look very strong this season, and opening their campaign with 5-0 and 2-0 wins against Chester and Bristol Rovers respectively. John Akinde and Charlie MacDonald both know where the goal is, as Barnet will be looking to score more goals in front of their home crowd against Lincoln. The away side drew 0-0 against Kidderminster on the opening day, and subsequently gained a 2-1 victory over lowly Altrincham in midweek. They will have their work cut out to take anything away from Barnet who look to have an extremely impressive conference side this season.

(Confidence 8/10)

 

Doncaster (@evens) vs Port Vale

Doncaster will be promotion candidates this season, as they look to go straight back up following their disappointing campaign last year. They started off this season in the best possible way, with an opening day victory away at Yeovil, as well as cup success away to York in midweek. Their attacking force look particularly threatening, and they will be favourites to add to their goal tally int heir first home game of the new season here. Port Vale’s away form has been inconsistent at best in the past year or so, and they will be wary of an in-form Doncaster side. However, they do have quality of their own, and despite a 1-1 draw to Walsall on the opening day, they come into the game at the Keepmoat off the back of a 6-2 cup win over Hartlepool in midweek. I would expect home advantage to edge it here for Doncaster.

(Confidence 6/10)