Bookmakers braced for another onslaught
PUNTERS took bookmakers to the cleaners last week with some layers reporting record losses as favourites across the coupon obliged and this weekend’s action is likely to revolve around the big six in the FA Cup.
The five most popular sides in the FA Cup are all odds-on at home on Saturday with Chelsea (1-7 v Bradford), Liverpool (1-3 v Bolton), Manchester City (1-3 v Middlesbrough), Southampton (8-13 v Crystal Palace) and Tottenham (8-11 v Leicester), while Arsenal are rated 4-7 shots to triumph at Brighton on Sunday.
Coral are best, or joint-top price all of the six sides with the accumulator returning £81.05 for a £10 bet and spokesman John Hill believes turnover will be up as punters look to improve their winnings.
He said: “In an ideal world, we would have liked to have had a competitive Premier League fixture list but we still should take a lot more than we normally would on the FA Cup.”
Chelsea, Liverpool and City are all expected to overcome their Football League opposition with a fair amount of ease and bet365 have opened a market on how many goals the trio score between them with eight or more at 8-11.
Seven or fewer goals can be backed at evens, while Bolton’s trip to Merseyside marks a return to Anfield for former Red Emile Heskey and the forward is 11-2 with Coral to score.
Bradford face a tougher task at Stamford Bridge and Betway rate the League One side 6-4 to notch against the current Premier League leaders.