Last week’s posse of bets may have failed to bring home the bacon, but with a fresh note clutched in our determined mitt, we look to pitch our Fantasy thinking against Paddy Power’s odds, in another Flutter.
After a spell of defeats in the run up to Christmas, Stoke have slipped up just once in nine games, and that was a “gimme” at the hands of league leaders City. Although a secreted towel and a long-throw still play a major part in Tony Pulis’ tactics, teams have found ways to counter these methods, forcing Stoke to – whisper it – find quality on the ground. Jon Walters has been at the heart of this, always willing to push up to support the lofty talents of Peter Crouch, his prowess from the spot have seen Walters simmer as a strong mid-price midfield option all season. In the Picks again this week, Paddy post 4/1 on Walters to score and Stoke to gain a cleansheet against visiting West Brom, and thus our weeks tenner is broken, with £2 laid down.
Having missed five games this season, Steven Fletcher has had to work hard to rack up his impressive 81 Fantasy Premier League tally. Fletcher undoubtedly offers exceptional value for FPL managers and punters alike, and Paddy go 100/30 for him to score and Wolves to win against rivals Villa this weekend. Given that Fletcher has proved deadly in the air this term, we prefer to take a punt on him to score with a header at 8/1 for a quid.
Stephane Sessegnon may well be the key to Martin O’Neil’s Sunderland revival. To be fair to Steve Bruce, Sessegnon was performing well enough before he was turfed out, but there’s something about O’Neill that’s squeezed an end product from the lively attacker, to accompany the pace and trickery. Subject to heavy transfer activity in recent weeks, Fantasy managers will expect Sessegnon to feature with either goal or assist as Swansea visit the Black Cats, even though the visitors have put together a strong run of form of late. A Sessegnon goal and assist double at 10/1 is worth a £2 stake.
Our final market revolves around the glitzy world of celebrity Twitterer Joey Barton. The QPR skipper is not quite the Punch and Judy villain that Mario Balotelli has become, but nonetheless, he’s a great entertainer with his antics and indiscretions on and off the pitch. Paddy are tempting us in here with a “will he, won’t he” bet. Barton to avoid a yellow card and get a goal against Wigan is at 5/1. Since he’s racked up 8 cards in 18 games, this would normally be too much of a risk, but new managers can often bring out the best in players and change any leopard’s spots. We may even see Adel Taarabt’s ego humbled with Mark Hughes’ arrival – then again. If you want to firmly back a QPR revival under Hughes, Paddy are offing 14/1 on Barton to score and Rangers to earn the win against the visiting Latics. That’s well worth a sniff and earns our final stake slice.
Money Back Special
Paddy fast forward to Sunday’s big encounters to offer us a pair of Money Back Specials. If four or more goals are scored in City’s clash with Spurs they are refunding all losing first /last goalscorer, correct score and scorecast singles on that match. They’re taking the same stance on the Arsenal vs United clash at the Emirates, so if Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie let loose, you could be line for a refund on your punt.
Register and Bet £10 And Get £20 Free
If you’re new to this betting lark and new to Paddy Power then you can take up any of these odds and offers and get yourself a bonus. You can sign up via this site and get a free £20 when you register an account and bet a tenner.
Finally of course, we should state that all these offers are only available to those aged 18 and over and are subject to Paddy Power’s terms and conditions. Also, if you’re going to bet, always gamble responsibly.
