The 4 FA Cup quarter-final fixtures take place this weekend and we suggest a bet in each of them.
Let’s start with a look at the Outright Betting where Manchester City are trading at 33/20 favourites ahead of Liverpool at 23/10, you can get 4/1 Chelsea and 11/1 and better the balance.
Click here for FA Cup Winner Outright Betting
SATURDAY
MIDDLESBROUGH v CHELSEA
Middlesbrough required extra time to beat Tottenham 1-0 at home last time out and they had previously needed penalties to see off Manchester United at Old Trafford making them the giant killers of the tournament. Their 3rd Round fixture was a comfortable 3-2 win at Mansfield.
They face a Chelsea side that have won their last 5 matches in all competitions. Looking how Chelsea reached the quarter-finals, they beat Luton 3-2 away in the last 16, required extra time to see off Plymouth at home in the last 32 and in Round 3 beat Chesterfield 5-1.
BETTING – Click here to bet
Middlesbrough 5/1
Draw 7/2
Chelsea 8/15
Suggested Bet: Middlesbrough (+0.5) goals at 31/20
Chelsea have had a hectic schedule of late and I am thinking that a fired up Middlesbrough team can cause an upset or the very least force extra time.
SUNDAY
CRYSTAL PALACE v EVERTON
Crystal Palace have had a relatively comfortable run through to the quarter-finals. They started with a 2-1 away win over Millwall and then had a 2-0 home win over Hartlepool and a 2-1 win over Stoke also at home. They also got a great result in the League on Monday night playing out a goalless draw to Manchester City.
Everton are really battling in the League and were beaten 1-0 by Wolves at home on the weekend and their fans will be hoping their FA Cup can salvage their season. They have had a comfortable run to date although they did require extra time to beat Hull away in the 3rd Round before seeing off Brentford 4-1 at home and Boreham Wood 2-0 at home.
BETTING – Click here to bet
Crystal Palace 23/20
Draw 12/5
Everton 5/2
Suggested Bet: Crystal Palace win at 23/20
I just can’t have any money riding on this Everton side the way they are playing and I think that Palace can book their spot in the semi-finals within the 90 minutes.
SOUTHAMPTON v MANCHESTER CITY
Southampton beat West Ham 3-1 at home in the last 16 and they had made hard work of getting to that point when they required extra time at home to Coventry in the last 32 and also required extra time to beat Swansea away in the 3rd Round.
Manchester City have had no problems and they beat Peterborough 2-0 in the last 16 away from home prior to that they had beaten Fulham 4-1 at home and Swindon 4-1 on the road.
BETTING – Click here to bet
Southampton 17/2
Draw 5/1
Manchester City 1/3
Suggested Bet: Southampton Total Goals over (0.5) at 15/20
City have got a tight defence, but I am expecting Southampton to throw everything at them and there are just signs that City could be a bit vulnerable by their standards.
NOTTINGHAM v LIVERPOOL
Nottingham have had 3 home games to date and all of them have ended up in victories in the 90 minutes. The biggest scalp was Arsenal in the 3rd round 1-0, but they beat EPL side, Leicester 4-1 in the last 32. Their last 16 clash was a 2-1 home win over Huddersfield.
Liverpool continue to play well on all fronts and they have also had 3 home victories to get to this point. They beat Shrewsbury 4-1 in the 3rd Round, Cardiff 3-1 in the last 32 and Norwich 2-1 in the Round of 16.
BETTING – Click here to bet
Nottingham 10/1
Draw 11/2
Liverpool 2/7
Suggested Bet: Both teams to score, YES, at 1/1
Liverpool’s approach to these FA Cup finals appears to focus on attack and this does open up opportunities for their opponents at the back. Nottingham have been quite free scoring in the Cup so far and Liverpool have conceded in each of their matches to date despite winning most of them comfortably.
Note: All prices correct at the time of writing but are subject to change
