Manchester United v Reading: Champions-elect to brush aside Royals

"And just last month United hosted Saturday's opponents in the FA Cup, and with similar line-ups to what we can expect here, the game was 0-0 for 70 minutes."

Back Under 2.5 Goals at 3.711/4

Manchester United are edging closer and closer to the Premier League title, and out-of-form Reading are not going to be able to stop the Red Devils in their tracks says Mike Norman...

Manchester United v Reading
Saturday 17:30, live on ESPN

Manchester United will go into the game against manager-less Reading with either a reduced lead at the top of the table or the knowledge that they can virtually wrap up the title, depending on how neighbours Manchester City get on away to Everton earlier in the day.

Not that any of this will matter to Sir Alex Ferguson - or at least he'll say it doesn't matter - as his primary aim will be to beat Reading with as less fuss as possible before travelling to Stamford Bridge for a FA Cup quarter-final replay on Wednesday night.

Of course, Sir Alex won't take Saturday's opponents lightly, but he's almost certain to re-shuffle his squad with one eye on Chelsea in midweek. And that makes trying to predict how United will line-up a far more difficult task than predicting the first six home in a 30-runner Cheltenham handicap.

What we do know is that Nani is out after suffering a hamstring injury, while Phil Jones and Paul Scholes are also unavailable. Nemanja Vidic and Robin van Persie should return to the starting line-up after beginning on the bench last weekend.

Reading sacked Brian McDermott on Monday leaving any incoming manager just nine games to save the Berkshire club from relegation; eight if we assume that a new boss won't be in place prior to the trip to Old Trafford.

Assuming that's the case then former Reading academy coach Eamonn Dolan will be responsible for naming the side to play United. He will be without injured duo Adam Federici and Jimmy Kebe, while Pavel Pogrebnyak completes a three-game ban.

Match Odds

Opta tell us that Reading haven't beat United for over 75 years; I am telling you that Reading won't be beating United in this encounter. OK, that's not exactly the bravest call I've ever made with the home side available to back at just 1.182/11, but it's just impossible to make any case for the away side... so I won't! Let's move on.

Over/Under 2.5 Goals

Yes, United will win this game, I'm certain of that. And yes, they'll probably win the game very comfortably, but to see Over 2.5 Goals available to back at just 1.351/3 is strange to say the least. I don't have the information to back it up, but I'm pretty confident that there hasn't been a Premier League game all season where Overs has traded so low prior to a match.

For that reason alone I believe Unders is worth a wager at 3.711/4 in this market, especially from a back-to-lay perspective.

There have been many instances at Old Trafford this season where the home side have started in a pedestrian fashion against some 'lesser' clubs - Wigan, QPR, West Ham (league and cup), WBA for example - where trading Under 2.5 Goals would have proved very profitable.

And just last month United hosted Saturday's opponents in the FA Cup, and with similar line-ups to what we can expect here, the game was 0-0 for 70 minutes.

Other Markets

It will take a brave man to think that Reading can take the lead in this game, but if you think they can then it's worth pointing out the Opta stats that tell us The Royals have lost at total of 23 points from winning positions this season, whereas United have won 27 points from losing positions - the most in the Premier League.

The Champions-elect are 6.05/1 in the Man Utd Win from Behind market currently, but I'm sure you'd get matched at much higher should you put a request in.

And one last bet worth considering is the Draw/Man Utd option at 5.79/2 in the Half Time/Full Time market. Similar to my reasoning for backing Unders, I wouldn't be surprised at all if Reading went ultra-defensive and United take a little time to find their stride.

Recommeded Bet

Back Under 2.5 Goals at 3.711/4

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NBA Betting Preview: Championship contenders Bulls can brush off Jazz

Basketball / Nick Shiambouros / 11 March 2011 / Leave a Comment

Can this team go all the way?

"The Bulls have developed in to serious championship contenders and look certain to give Boston and Miami all they can handle in the post-season."

With only a month to go before the play-offs, the race is hotting up on both coasts. This weekend there are some intriguing ties and Nick Shiambouros has the best betting angles.

The Miami Heat beat the Los Angeles Lakers 94-88 in a tense affair at the American Airlines Arena on Thursday night. Both teams traded punches all night but it was Miami who proved the stronger late in the game. The Heat took the lead with just over 90 seconds left and held the Lakers at bay in determined fashion.

The victory snapped a five game losing streak for the Heat who were delighted to get back to winning ways. Chris Bosh was the leading scorer for Miami with 25 points. This superstar forward played with a great deal of intensity and was the most effective player on the floor.

This was an important win for Miami who are only 3.5 games behind Boston in the Eastern Conference.

The Dallas Mavericks thrashed the New York Knicks 127-109 at the American Airlines Center late on Thursday. The Mavs came out firing and built a ten point lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter Dallas scored an incredible 41 points to take a 72-51 lead in to the intermission.

In the second half the Knicks tried to stage a rally but it was a case of too little too late.
The great Dirk Nowitzki had a big night for Dallas scoring 23 points. The German born forward dominated New York inside the painted area and played a huge part in this impressive win.

The Mavericks are playing some outstanding basketball at the moment and are only 5.5 games behind San Antonio in the Western Conference.

With just over a month left in the regular season there are some important games with playoff implications taking place this weekend.

On Saturday, the Chicago Bulls play host to the Utah Jazz at the United Center. The Bulls have won four in a row and are just 1.5 games behind Boston in the Eastern Conference.

MVP candidate Derrick Rose is playing at a ridiculously high level and is the best point guard in the NBA in my opinion. Britain's Luol Deng and centre Joakim Noah have given Rose plenty of support in the past few weeks and have played a huge part in this team's success.

This young team has developed in to serious championship contenders and look certain to give Boston and Miami all they can handle in the post-season.

The Utah Jazz have not been playing well recently and are still coming to terms with the loss of point guard Deron Williams who was traded to New Jersey earlier this year. The Jazz have dropped to tenth place in the Western Conference and are in real danger of not making the post-season.

The Bulls should easily brush aside the Jazz in this one. They should be priced around [1.9] with the advertised handicap.
On Sunday, the Phoenix Suns visit the Orlando Magic in a crucial fixture. The Suns are in ninth place in the Western Conference and need to put a run together to give themselves a chance of making the playoffs.

The Suns are a high energy team that score plenty of points. They are led by veteran point guard Steve Nash who is averaging over 15 points per game.

Orlando comes in to this game with a record of 41-24.The Magic are currently in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and are certain to make the post-season.

The Suns are worth an interest at around [3.8] in the match odds market. They are in a must win situation and have a sporting chance of causing the upset.

Recommended bets:

Saturday back Chicago with advertised handicap at [1.9]
Sunday back Phoenix in the match odds market at [3.8]

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