Leeds United - Chelsea Betting Preview: Home side capable of providing cup shock
Dec 19, 2012 5:32:00 PM
Neil Warnock's men welcome Premier League Chelsea to Elland Road in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday evening and Willie Duncan is backing the hosts to cause an upset
Chelsea lost out in the final of the Club World Cup on Sunday morning but the Blues will look to get back to winning ways on their return to domestic action when they face in-form Leeds United in the Capital One Cup quarter-finals at Elland Road on Wednesday night.Rafael Benitez’s men were 3-1 winners in their last domestic fixture before jetting off to Japan and the Blues are chalked up at 17/20 (1.85) with William Hill to pick up where they left off by securing a semi-final spot by seeing off Leeds United in 90 minutes here.
Neil Warnock’s side, though, have hit a rich vein of form in recent weeks, winning four of their last five matches and are available at a chunky 7/2 (4.50) with William Hill to add Chelsea to their list of Premier League scalps, having already seen off Everton and Southampton at Elland Road in this competition. The same firm go 23/10 (3.30) that the match ends in a draw inside 90 minutes.
Leeds striker Luciano Becchio has been in superb form for the Whites this term, scoring an impressive 13 goals in just 21 outings for the Championship outfit and Becchio is chalked up at a tempting 13/2 (7.50) to notch the opening goal on Wednesday.
Chelsea interim boss Rafael Benitez will have been delighted to see Spanish striker Fernando Torres somewhat rediscovering his scoring touch with the former Liverpool forward scoring five goals in his last four outings and Torres can be backed at 7/2 (4.50) to break the deadlock at Elland Road.
Chelsea are red hot favourites to progress to the last four of the competition with William Hill making the Blues just 1/3 (1.33) to qualify but it is the Whites who represent real value at 9/4 (3.25) to stun the west London side and secure their place in the Capital One Cup semi-finals. The Premier League outfit will have virtually no time to adjust after flying back from their Club World Cup defeat in Japan and despite facing a strong squad, the home side will be galvanised by the chance of another Premier League scalp. 9/4 (3.35) does appear to offer plenty of value.
That price should be snapped up by eager punters while the 2/1 (3.0) for Leeds in the draw no bet market also appeals.
Those seeking greater value should snap up the 13/2 (7.50) for Leeds’ in-form striker Luciano Becchio to bag the first goal of what promises to be a thrilling encounter.
 |
BET |
OF THE |
DAY |
| BEST BET |
VALUE BET |
| Leeds United to qualify at 9/4 (3.25) with William Hill |
Luciano Becchio to score first at 13/2 (7.50) with William Hill |
Sign up with William Hill for a £25 free bet
Willie Duncan is a freelance sports journalist. Willie, from Edinburgh, has covered Scottish football for over 10 years and he specialises in football betting markets from across Europe. You can also follow Willie on Twitter
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Champions League final - LIVE!
German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will battle it out at Wembley for European glory. Get involved by sending us your thoughts via Twitter or Facebook! Hosted by Mark Doyle.
7:13 PM BST
Carlo's now had his attention turned to the intiguing arrival of a certain Spaniard at the Allianz Arena this summer ...
@A_Mostefa17: Do you think Bayern will be even better with Guardiola next year or will it all go wrong for them?
CG: Everything suggests that Guardiola's Bayern will be a great team. The setups at Bayern and Barcelona are comparable, both on and off the pitch. Only Barcelona have monopolised more possession than Bayern over the past two seasons, while the Germans have enough top quality young players for Guardiola to build a great team around.
Everything is there for Guardiola to do well, the problem is that if Bayern win tonight and clinch the treble - as expected - how on earth do you better that? The simple answer is you can't. So Guardiola will almost be in a no-win situation from the outset, and that is never an easy starting point.
@A_Mostefa17: Do you think Bayern will be even better with Guardiola next year or will it all go wrong for them?
CG: Everything suggests that Guardiola's Bayern will be a great team. The setups at Bayern and Barcelona are comparable, both on and off the pitch. Only Barcelona have monopolised more possession than Bayern over the past two seasons, while the Germans have enough top quality young players for Guardiola to build a great team around.
Everything is there for Guardiola to do well, the problem is that if Bayern win tonight and clinch the treble - as expected - how on earth do you better that? The simple answer is you can't. So Guardiola will almost be in a no-win situation from the outset, and that is never an easy starting point.
7:09 PM BST
And the rest of that response (trust me - it gets even better!) to the question on whether Germany deserves four Champions League places:
CG: Germany took a place off Italy purely because Uefa's coefficient system - which rewards the same number of points to Europa League competitors as it does for those in the Champions League - was so ludicrously flawed.
There is no doubt that the Bundesliga is on the up and Serie A has since struggled in Europe - and this season Germany has proven its worth in the Champions League - but the league should hever have been granted a fourth place until they earned it in the Champions League ... not in a Mickey Mouse Cup that no one outside Germany and the minor nations takes seriously.
CG: Germany took a place off Italy purely because Uefa's coefficient system - which rewards the same number of points to Europa League competitors as it does for those in the Champions League - was so ludicrously flawed.
There is no doubt that the Bundesliga is on the up and Serie A has since struggled in Europe - and this season Germany has proven its worth in the Champions League - but the league should hever have been granted a fourth place until they earned it in the Champions League ... not in a Mickey Mouse Cup that no one outside Germany and the minor nations takes seriously.
7:07 PM BST
A cracking question here from Adam Scime, who has provoked an even better response out of Carlo, which I'll have to split in two!
@Scime_Live: Does Germany deserve four CL places?
CG: Germany were granted four Champions League places at the end of the 2010-11 season, which led to Italy losing one spot. This came into effect at the start of the 2012-13 campaign.
When Italy lost their place, their Champions League record was so far superior to Germany whether you looked at the last two,three,five,10,20 or 30 years. Serie A boasted two of the previous four winners of the competition, whereas the Bundesliga hadn't won a European trophy of any sort since 2001 ...
@Scime_Live: Does Germany deserve four CL places?
CG: Germany were granted four Champions League places at the end of the 2010-11 season, which led to Italy losing one spot. This came into effect at the start of the 2012-13 campaign.
When Italy lost their place, their Champions League record was so far superior to Germany whether you looked at the last two,three,five,10,20 or 30 years. Serie A boasted two of the previous four winners of the competition, whereas the Bundesliga hadn't won a European trophy of any sort since 2001 ...
7:04 PM BST
Carlo's finally been asked to put his neck on the line in our Twitter Q&A ...
@jagger_jagz: Who do you tip to win #UCL final?
CG: Bayern are clearly the favourites on paper. Individually and collectively they have the advantage, plus they have won two and drawn two out of their four meetings this season, so psychologically have the edge.
But, anything can happen in finals. The first goal will be crucial. If Bayern break the deadlock, it is hard to see them losing as they are so good at strangling the game and picking teams off. If Dortmund are to spring a surprise, I think they have to score first. If they manage that, then it will be interesting to see how Bayern react. They have developed a reputation as a team who bottle it on the big stage and fall at the final hurdle. Mentally, they seem a different proposition this year but falling behind could bring back all their bad memories and prove fatal.
@jagger_jagz: Who do you tip to win #UCL final?
CG: Bayern are clearly the favourites on paper. Individually and collectively they have the advantage, plus they have won two and drawn two out of their four meetings this season, so psychologically have the edge.
But, anything can happen in finals. The first goal will be crucial. If Bayern break the deadlock, it is hard to see them losing as they are so good at strangling the game and picking teams off. If Dortmund are to spring a surprise, I think they have to score first. If they manage that, then it will be interesting to see how Bayern react. They have developed a reputation as a team who bottle it on the big stage and fall at the final hurdle. Mentally, they seem a different proposition this year but falling behind could bring back all their bad memories and prove fatal.
7:01 PM BST
An interesting one here from a concerned Barceloan fan - or perhaps it's Cristiano Ronaldo in disguise.
@messixaviesta: Do you think the team that wins this final will provide the 2013 Ballon d'Or winner or it will once again go to Messi?
CG: As we are in an odd-number year, with no World Cup or European Championship, it is certain that the victor of the Ballon D'Or will be an individual who stars solely for their club team. As a result, a Champions League winner has as good a chance as anyone to pick up the prestigious prize.
The gong usually goes to a midfielder or attacker, so my money would be on Franck Ribery if Bayern win the Champions League as he is the kind of player voters usually go for. Having said that, as Bayern and Dortmund are such outstanding 'teams', their inividuals aren't always in the spotlight like a Messi or Ronaldo, so that could count against them.
@messixaviesta: Do you think the team that wins this final will provide the 2013 Ballon d'Or winner or it will once again go to Messi?
CG: As we are in an odd-number year, with no World Cup or European Championship, it is certain that the victor of the Ballon D'Or will be an individual who stars solely for their club team. As a result, a Champions League winner has as good a chance as anyone to pick up the prestigious prize.
The gong usually goes to a midfielder or attacker, so my money would be on Franck Ribery if Bayern win the Champions League as he is the kind of player voters usually go for. Having said that, as Bayern and Dortmund are such outstanding 'teams', their inividuals aren't always in the spotlight like a Messi or Ronaldo, so that could count against them.
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