Premier League
Three Premier League fixtures take place tonight with the pick of them being the Merseyside derby which takes place at Anfield. The corresponding fixture at Goodison finished one all back in October, however a lot has happened since then I think tonight could see a lot more goals.
Everton have had a fairly average season in the league and currently sit in eleventh place. Although this is a derby and it's one of the fixtures every Liverpudlian looks out for each season, Everton don't have anything left to play for in the league and will almost certainly have one eye on their FA Cup semi against Man Utd on Saturday evening. It seems certain that Roberto Martinez will keep at least a few of his main players fresh for that one which could have a big advantage to Liverpool.
Liverpool made ten changes to the side which beat Borussia Dortmund in such dramatic fashion last Thursday when they travelled to Bournemouth so the side that plays tonight will be well rested. Their form has also been excellent recently and they have been scoring a lot of goals. The return from injury of Coutinho, Sturridge and Origi has given them a massive boost and I can see them continuing their goal scoring run tonight against an Everton that has it's problems at the back this season.
The price of 8/11 with Betway on a Liverpool win appears a generous one but I like Liverpool on the handicap market, and we can obtain 9/5 on Liverpool minus one which I think has an excellent chance of coming in.
Man Utd host Crystal Palace tonight and they are another team who will be thinking about the FA Cup semi final on Saturday. They are still in the hunt for fourth place however so I don't think Van Gaal will change his team around too much. I haven't been impressed with Utd at all this season and they limped to a 1-0 against bottom side Aston Villa on Saturday. Crystal Palace gained an admirable point at the Emirates at the weekend and I think the pace they possess will cause Utd plenty of problems and can cause an upset at Old Trafford at a nice price.
Today's Selections
Liverpool v Everton - Liverpool minus one - 2 points @ 9/5 (Paddy Power)
Man Utd v Crystal Palace - Palace win - 1 point @ 7/1 (Sportingbet)