Wednesday Football Cheat Sheet: All the best bets in one place

“The Covid effects on Leicester are difficult to ignore and it seems logical to expect Liverpool to come through.”

Wednesday’s best bets come courtesy of the remaining League Cup quarter-finals as well as a top flight action in France, Italy and Spain.

Verona 3.185/40 v Fiorentina 2.486/4, the Draw 3.55
17:30
Live on BT Sport 3

The form makes it difficult to predict which team will come out on top in this Serie A clash but there should be plenty of goals.

Chloe Beresford says: “Hellas have lost just one of their last seven games on home soil, while Fiorentina sit sixth in the table and have won seven of their last eight away matches against Verona in all competitions.

“If that makes the eventual result difficult to predict, then it is definitely worth looking at the possibility that this could become something of a goal fest. There have been over 2.5 goals scored in each of Fiorentina’s last six league games, while nine of Hellas’ last 10 home games in Serie A have also seen over that tally.”

Chloe’s bet: Back Over 2.5 goals @ 1.758/11

Liverpool 1.768/11 v Leicester 5.04/1, the Draw 4.1
19:45

With key players reportedly testing positive for Covid, and a Premier League title race the priority for Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool could field youngsters in this League Cup clash.

Andrew Atherley says: “The Foxes have been inconsistent this season and have struggled when faced with high-level opponents, losing five out of seven in the Premier League against current top-half teams.

“In addition they are winless in their last 10 League Cup games against fellow Premier League sides, although eight were draws and they went through on penalties in five of them. One of those was the penalty shootout success over Brighton after a 2-2 draw in the last round.

“Leicester’s away record this season is patchy, but one notable aspect is that they have scored on 11 of their 12 trips in all competitions, which gives them a chance of an upset here.

“The Covid effects on Leicester are difficult to ignore, however, and it seems logical to expect Liverpool to come through.”

Andrew’s bet: Back Liverpool win with over 2.5 goals @ 2.56/4

Tottenham 2.3211/8 v West Ham 3.55/2, the Draw 3.55/2
19:45
Live on Sky Sports Main Event

Spurs looked fresh and up for the fight against Liverpool at the weekend and Antonio Conte will hope more of the same in this Carabao Cup quarter-final against West Ham.

Dave Tindall says: “West Ham have already beaten Spurs this season, a Michail Antonio goal settling the outcome of a fairly mediocre match at the London Stadium. But Antonio hasn’t scored in nine starts since and that was Nuno Espirito Santo’s Tottenham.

“The current Tottenham look completely re-energised under Conte and having two weeks off through cancellations – albeit with a number of players hit by Covid – clearly benefitted them in the game against Liverpool when they were able to fight back from 2-1 down.

“West Ham’s last four away games in the Premier League have been extremely disappointing: a 1-0 defeat at Wolves, a 2-1 loss at Manchester City, a 0-0 draw at Burnley and a limp 2-0 defeat at Arsenal. Their one goal in that run was a 90th-minute consolation.”

Dave’s bet: Back Spurs to win @ 2.3411/8

Brentford 5.59/2 v Chelsea 1.774/5, the Draw 3.7511/4
19:45

Chelsea have stuttered recently in the Premier League and our previewer thinks they look short for this west London derby…

Jamie Pacheco says: “The Blues are worth taking on. The Bees put up a good fight in the league encounter, losing 1-0 to a Ben Chilwell goal in a game where they had seven shots on target. Chelsea scored from their only shot on target.

“There’s no doubt the visitors have a vastly superior set of players but it’s also true that, as we’ve seen, they’re missing lots of players and will have to once again play a makeshift striker with neither Lukaku nor Werner available.

“It will also be interesting to see how seriously Chelsea take this match. They have a tricky away game at Villa on Boxing Day and as much as they’d like to bank a trophy early on in the season, the league is surely more important than this competition. The Bees, well rested and looking to cause an upset here should make life very difficult for them.”

Jamie’s bet: Lay Chelsea @ 1.758/11

Lorient 8.88/1 v PSG 1.412/5, the Draw 5.59/2
20:00
Live on BT Sport 2 and Betfair Live Video

PSG are without their most dangerous striker so the pressure is on Lionel Messi to produce the goods for the Ligue 1 leaders.

James Eastham says: Kylian Mbappe is suspended here and that’s the biggest factor in our selection of going low on goals. The France international has been in stupendous form for club and country this season and PSG will be a lot less dangerous without him…

“With Neymar already sidelined, Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria are the only superstar attackers available for PSG for this game.

“Messi’s form has been fitful since moving to the French capital so there are genuine questions about how PSG will fare with the seven times Ballon d’Or winner required to be the main inspiration.

“Even if Messi plays well, Paris will undoubtedly be less dangerous in front of goal without Mbappe and that leads us to our selection.“

James’ bet: Back Under 3.0 & Under 3.5 Goals @ 1.84/5

Athletic Bilbao 3.55 v Real Madrid 2.265/4, the Draw 3.55
20:30
Live on La Liga TV and Betfair Live Video

The La Liga leaders will have to work hard if they want to sign off from 2021 with victory in the Basque Country…

Dan Fitch says: “The La Liga leaders were held 0-0 at home by relegation threatened Cadiz on Sunday. A 10-game winning streak came to an end, as they failed to break down the stubborn Cadiz defence.

“A Covid outbreak saw Eden Hazard get a rare start, but the Belgian failed to make much of the opportunity. Having suffered with injury problems throughout his time at the club, Hazard has actually been healthy this season, but has fallen down the pecking order at Madrid.

“Athletic Bilbao also saw a streak end at the weekend, as they beat Real Betis 3-2. It was their first win after eight games without one (D5 L3) and a rare example of a goal-laden game involving Bilbao. Seven of their last nine have seen under 2.5 goals land.”

Dan’s bet: Back under 2.5 goals @ 1.865/6