Arsenal vs. Crystal Palace and Pick to Win
Date:Monday, April 10th, 2016
Where: English Premier League Thornton Heath, London, UK
by Keith, Professional Soccer/Football Handicapper, Predictem
Match Odds: Arsenal 4/5, Crystal Palace 4/1, Draw 58/19
Moneyline: Arsenal -125, Crystal Palace +400, Draw +305
Over/Under Best Market: UNDER 2.5 +130 (13/10)
Once again its a renewal of a rivalry in the Capital City of England as its North Londons Arsenal against South Londons Crystal Palace. The latest edition of this rivalry is set to take place Monday night in a featured contest at Crystal Palaces pitch, Selhurst Park in South London. A recent slew of Crystal Palace victories has led Palace out of the relegation zone.
Currently, Arsenal is battling it out with Everton with for the coveted sixth position in the English Premier League table. Many Gooners as we have mentioned have adamantly called for the termination of boss Arsene Wenger after the Gunners have won just one game in their previous five despite featuring some world-class talent. The Gunners are 1-3-1 in their last five fixtures are in terrible form. The sole win for the Gunners came against Lincoln City in the FA Cup where Arsenal took advantage of weaker opponents by a score of 5-0.
The same cannot be said for Palace. As mentioned, had won four consecutive English Premier League matches, capped off with a home win against Chelsea where they shocked the table-topping Blues by a score of 2-1 at Selhurst Park. Crystal Palace has a propensity for sneaking up on teams as an underdog. Palace also took down another London rival when they edged Watford 1-0 in another Greater London Derby at the Hornets Nest. Palace have some talent in their ranks worth taking into consideration. The most notable member of the Palace rolls is all-English forward Jason Puncheon who has been known as a chief offensive catalyst for the bunch. Given Arsenals woes on the back-end as of recent, Puncheon could be a serious problem for the Gunners to deal with. However, the fact remains that the reaction of the consensus in response to Crystal Palaces shocking defeat could likely be driving this market. It is very likely that lightning will not strike twice.
Normally, Arsenal is a popular lay option when they are on the road. They have a notorious reputation for struggle outside the Emirates. We have already mentioned how they had trouble against the likes of Manchester City and Manchester United, but such is to be expected. However, the Gunners being rocked by West Bromwich Albion is not expected by the least. Given the disarray in this club as a whole, the Gunners are a tough sell even if they are at nearly a standard vig in terms of an outright.
On the contrary, desperate times call for desperate measures. As we have championed before: no one needs to win more than Arsenal, most notably the manager whose position is in question, Arsene Wenger. Arsenal will not make the same mistakes that cost him defeats against opponents they should have beaten. The stock in the Gunners is so low that we can actually get them at a decent price against a club due for some attrition. We will take this position every time given the fact it is customary to lay juice with a name brand club such as Arsenal. The Gunners will get off the snide and challenge for the FA Cup and a top-six finish down the backstretch as they will certainly play to meet expectations from this point out. For Over/Under markets, expect Arsenal to ignite offensively in what will be a statement victory for the Gunners against what many would anticipate. Thus the Over 3.0 offers tremendous value at a great price of 17/10 or +170. All in all, off this wager three goals and an Arsenal victory results in a risk of 2.25 units for a potential net of 2.7 units. As stated we normally do not advocate juice, but situationally the price here is warranted.
Arsenal Recent Form
D Manchester City 2-2
L West Bromwich Albion 1-3
W Lincoln City 5-0
L Bayern Munich 1-5
L Liverpool 1-3
Crystal Palace Recent Form
W Chelsea 2-1
W Watford 1-0
W West Bromwich Albion 2-0
W – Middlesbrough 1-0
L Stoke City 0-1
Keith’s Prediction for the Game: ARSENAL -125 (4/5) and OVER 3 +170 (17/10)
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