It’s a sad day when it’s the last football game of the English football season, isn’t it? We’re then forced to actually interact with women and even, God forbid, family! It makes me shudder to even think about it, frankly, so let’s make this last game of the season a profitable one!

Let’s get down to basics here – Chelsea are favourites to lift the FA Cup and rightfully so because their squad is stronger and better than Everton’s. I don’t consider that a disrespectful statement to David Moyes and his team, despite the fantastic job he’s done at the Merseyside club, but the side with most money tends to buy the better players.

As with all finals, there’s always an element of unpredictability, that unknown factor that means caution must be used when placing bets on this game. However, looking at what we can deal with – head-to-heads suggest this will be a close encounter, be it a final or not. It’s rare these games involve over 2.5 goals so playing the under card should be fruitful, even if the odds are not.

Everton have proven themsevles worthy adversaries this season, becoming somewhat notorious for being hard to beat, compact, and efficient. However, the trouble is with a team like that is that when you miss one key part of this chain, the chain becomes considerably weaker. I’m talking about Phil Jagielka, of couse. Injury rules him out of this clash and for Everton to win this game, they need all their first team players playing their best football. To me, him missing this game immediately puts them on the back foot. Don’t get me wrong, they’re going to work their socks off as they always do, but quality is what will win this game. Everton laboured past a Manchester United second and possibly even third string team despite being second best throughout the game, so their tenacity certainly isn’t in question. However, Chelsea have a terrific squad and are capable of playing whatever game they so desire. Everton have to contain Chelsea’s midfield to have a chance in this game and I just don’t think they’re capable of it. Then again, this is the FA Cup, where the unexpected has a tendency to rear its head so do approach with caution. That said, I think odds of about 8/11 on Chelsea to win this game in 90 minutes are something of a bargain.

The key area of this game in my opinion will be set pieces. Both are physical squads with big players. For that reason, I think the odds of Ballack to score anytime (7/1) and Terry to score anytime (10/1) are certainly worth a punt, as is Drogba to score anytime, although the odds are quite poor as he’s only at 7/4. In my opinion, a scoreline of 1-0 with either of the above goalscorers does look extremely promising. Chelsea have played very well under Guus Hiddink and will want to wave adios with a trophy for him. When you have two sides playing each other with one being a tenacious side with some quality and the other being a quality side with some effort, you tend to end up with a draw. When you have the quality side grafting as hard as their tenacious opponents, you tend to find the better side wins the game. Unfortunately for Everton, I do suspect that Chelsea are going to outfox them in the final and ultimately win the game.

To summarise – regardless of the odds, the better bets of today are backing either Terry, Ballack or Drogba to score at any time, to play the under 2.5 goals card, or to back Chelsea to win 1-0. Backing Phil Neville or Marouane Fellaini to get booked at any time is also worth a small punt. 

Saturday’s Picks

My tips:

As we reach the conclusion of some leagues, some very interesting bets arise from the mist. I’ve listed a few sides below in no particular order that I think could be very worthwhile in terms of value and likelihood:

Ceske Budejovice at 6/5 – they’re hosting Teplice who are poor on the road and competed in the Czech Cup Final mid-week
Grenoble at 2/1 (draw no bet) – they’re hosting Sochaux who need a point to secure survival but the visitors are woeful on the road and the hosts are decent at home
DAC Dunajska Streda at 10/3 – the hosts need at least a point to stay up, their illustrious opponents have nothing to play for and are one of the weaker “bigger” sides on the road in Slovakia. Take at draw no bet because the hosts are on a miserly run of form
Deportivo La Coruna at 23/20 – Barcelona will be resting players after their mid-week triumph in the European Champions League and the hosts need all 3 points to attempt to beat Valencia to a UEFA Cup spot. Riazor is no place for a side without 100% motivation

My favourite treble of the day includes OGC Nice, Ceske Budejovice and Kecskemeti TE at about 6/1.

Aside from the above bet, I’m somewhat hesitant to list trebles/accumulators for you to back due to it being the end of the season, a time when you need to make your own luck. So what I’ve decided to do is to seperate them into different groups for you to mix and match at your leisure:

Makeweights:

Atletico Madrid, Deportivo Xerez, Real Zaragoza, IFK Goteborg, Tenerife, Bari, Wisla Krakow, CFR Cluj, Saint-Etienne

Likely:

Chelsea, Lech Poznan, Besiktas JK, Sillamae Kalev, LOSC Lille, Lanus, Girondins de Bordeaux, Olympique de Marseille, MFK Kosice, Botafogo, MTK Budapest, Parma, Gyori ETO FC

As ever, any queries/explanations required, feel free to email me at thefootytipster@gmail.com. For the complete picks listing, see below!

Argentinian Primera Division:

Independiente vs Rosario Central (7) 2-1
Godoy Cruz de Mendoza vs Colon de Santa Fe (5) 1-1
Lanus vs San Lorenzo de Almagro (8) 2-1

Belarusian Vysshaya Liga:

Vitebsk vs Granit Mikashevichi (6) 1-1
FC Minsk vs Gomel (6) 1-0
Dinamo Minsk vs MTZ-RIPO Minsk (7) 2-2
Smorgon vs Torpedo Zhodino (7) 1-2
Dinamo Brest vs Dnepr Mogilev (7) 2-0

Brazilian Serie A:

Coritiba vs Goias (5) 1-1
Atletico Mineiro vs Santo Andre (7) 2-0
Botafogo vs Sport Recife (8) 2-1

Colombian Futbol Profesional:

Deportes Tolima vs Once Caldas Manizales (7) 2-1
Cucuta Deportivo vs Atletico Junior (5) 1-1

Czech Republic Gambrinus Liga:

Ceske Budejovice vs Teplice (7) 2-0
Slavia Prague vs Slovan Liberec (7) 2-1
Brno vs Pribram (6) 1-1
Viktoria Zizkov vs Viktoria Plzen (7) 0-2
Kladno vs Banik Ostrava (6) 1-0
Sigma Olomouc vs Bohemians Prague (7) 2-1
Jablonec vs Zlin (7) 2-1
Mlada Boleslav vs Sparta Prague (7) 1-2

Ecuadorian Primera A:

Deportivo Espoli Cayambe vs Deportivo Quito (6) 1-2
LDU Portoviejo vs Barcelona SC (6) 1-0, at least one red card in this game

English FA Cup Final:

Chelsea vs Everton (8) under 2.5 goals

Estonian Meistriliiga:

Sillamae Kalev vs Nomme Kalju (8) 2-0
Tallinna Kalev vs Flora Paide (7) 2-0
Tulevik Viljandi vs Trans Narva (7) 1-2

French Ligue 1:

Stade Malherbe de Caen vs Girondins de Bordeaux (8) 1-2
Grenoble vs Sochaux (7) under 2.5 goals
LOSC Lille vs AS Nancy-Lorraine (8) 2-1
Lorient vs Le Mans (6) 1-0
Olympique de Marseille vs Stade Rennais (8) 2-1
Nantes vs Auxerre (7) 1-2
OGC Nice vs Le Havre (8) 2-0
Paris Saint-Germain vs AS Monaco (7) 2-0
Saint-Etienne vs Valenciennes (8) 2-1
Toulouse vs Olympique Lyonnais (7) 1-1

Hungarian Soproni Liga:

Debreceni VSC vs Paksi SE (7) 2-1
Kaposvari Rakoczi vs Budapest Honved (7) 2-1
BFC Siofok vs Gyori ETO FC (8) 1-2
Szombathelyi Haladas vs Zalaegerszegi TE (5) 1-1
Kecskemeti TE vs Diosgyori VTK (9) 3-1
Rakospalotai EAC vs MTK Budapest (8) 1-2
Nyiregyhaza Spartacus vs Vasas Budapest (6) 1-1

International Friendlies:

Oman vs Egypt (7) 0-2
Cyprus vs Canada (7) 2-1
Jamaica vs El Salvador (6) 1-1

Irish Premier League:

Shamrock Rovers vs Drogheda United (7) 2-0

Israeli Ligat Ha’al:

Maccabi Tel-Aviv vs MS Ashdod (7) 2-1
Bnei Sakhnin vs Bnei Yehuda Tel-Aviv (7) 1-1
Hakoah Maccabi Amidar vs Hapoel Petach-Tikva (6) 0-0
Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona vs Maccabi Petach-Tikva (7) 1-0
Hapoel Tel-Aviv vs Maccabi Netanya (7) 2-1

Italian Serie B:

Albinoleffe vs Ancona (7)
Pisa vs Brescia (7)
US Avellino vs Empoli (7)
Grosseto vs Frosinone (7)
Ascoli vs Livorno (8)
Triestina vs Modena (6)
Sassuolo vs Parma (8)
Vicenza vs Piacenza (6)
Cittadella vs Rimini (6)
Mantova vs Salernitana (7)
Bari vs Treviso (8)

Montenegrin Prva Liga:

Lovcen Cetinje vs Decic Tuzi (8) draw no bet
Rudar Pljevlja vs Zeta Golubovci (7)
Kom Podgorica vs Grbalj Radanovici (6)
OFK Petrovac vs Sutjeska Niksic (5)
Jezero Plav vs Buducnost Podgorica (7)
Jedinstvo Bijelo Polje vs Mogren Budva

Polish Ekstraklasa:

Gornik Zabrze vs Polonia Warsaw (7) 1-1
Jagiellonia Bialystok vs GKS Belchatow (6) 2-1
Lech Poznan vs Cracovia Krakow (8) 2-1
Legia Warsaw vs Ruch Chorzow (7) 2-0
LKS Lodz vs Polonia Bytom (6) 0-0
Wisla Krakow vs Slask Wroclaw (8) 2-0
Piast Gliwice vs Lechia Gdansk (6) 1-0
Arka Gdynia vs Odra Wodzislaw (7) 1-1

Romanian Liga:

CFR Cluj vs Pandurii Targu Jiu (8) 2-0
Farul Constanta vs Gaz Metan Medias (7) 2-1
Politehnica Iasi vs Gloria Buzau (6) 1-0
Vaslui vs Rapid Bucharest (7) 1-1

Russian Premier League:

Tom Tomsk vs Dinamo Moscow (7) under 2.5 goals
Lokomotiv Moscow vs Spartak Moscow (6) 1-1, at least one red card in this game
Rostov-na-Donu vs Terek Grozny (6) 1-0, draw no bet
Zenit St Petersburg vs Kuban Krasnodor (7) 2-0
Krylya Sovetov Samara vs FK Moscow (7) 2-1

Serbian Super Liga:

Cukaricki vs Partizan Belgrade (7) 1-2
Hajduk Kula vs Borac Cacak (7) 1-1
Jagodina vs Javor Ivanjica (6) 1-0
Napredak Krusevac vs Red Star Belgrade (6) 1-1
OFK Belgrade vs Banat Zrenjanin (6) 1-0
Rad Belgrade vs Vojvodina Novi Sad (7) 1-2

Singaporean S-League:

Home United vs Armed Forces (8) 1-3

Slovakian Corgon Liga:

DAC Dunajska Streda vs MSK Zilina (7) 2-1
Ruzomberok vs Slovan Bratislava (6) 1-1
Banska Bystrica vs Spartak Trnava (6) 1-1
Zlate Moravce vs Artmedia Petrzalka (7) 1-2
Dubnica vs Nitra (7) 2-1, draw no bet
MFK Kosice vs Tatran Presov (8) 2-0

Spanish Primera Liga:

Real Mallorca vs Villarreal (6) 1-1
Deportivo La Coruna vs Barcelona (7) 2-1
Atletico Madrid vs Almeria (9) 3-0
Valencia vs Athletic Club de Bilbao (6) 2-2, at least one red card in this game

Spanish Segunda Liga:

Girona vs Gimnastic de Tarragona (6)
Deportivo Xerez vs Eibar (9)
Sevilla Atletico vs Tenerife (9)
Deportivo Alaves vs Huesca (6)
Real Murcia vs Alicante (7)
Real Zaragoza vs Albacete Balompie (9)
Levante vs Rayo Vallecano de Madrid (7)

Swedish Allsvenskan:

IFK Goteborg vs Brommapojkarna (9) 3-1
Trelleborgs vs Gefle (6) 2-1

Swiss Super League:

Aarau vs Vaduz (8) 2-0
Luzern vs Neuchatel Xamax (7) 1-2
Sion vs Bellinzona (6) 1-1

Turkish Super Lig:

Antalyaspor vs Ankaragucu (6) 2-1
Istanbul BB vs Bursaspor (6) 1-1
Denizlispor vs Besiktas JK (8) 1-3
Galatasaray vs Sivasspor (7) 2-1
Genclerbirligi vs Kayserispor (6) 1-1
Konyaspor vs Ankaraspor (6) 0-0
Trabzonspor vs Fenerbahce (7) 1-1

Uruguayan Primera Division:

Danubio vs Central Espanol (7) 2-0
Penarol vs Cerro CA (6) 1-1

Enjoy your free betting tips!

Well, what a few days, eh?! This has been my first real chance to comment on any of the actions over the past few days, so I shall do so!

Firstly – a massive congratulations to Barcelona for deservedly winning the European Champions League. They were the better side on the night with virtually immaculate passing and Manchester United simply didn’t show up so we shall never know what a game it could have been had they done so. It’s interesting that it wasn’t Rooney or Ronaldo or Messi that stole the show though – it was Andrés Iniesta. His passing was unmatched by anyone on that night, and for most nights I would imagine.

Secondly, it was interesting to see Brazilian midfielder Diego make a big money move from Werder Bremen to Juventus for approximately 25 million Euros, which is a for an Italian club to spend nowadays. He’s a very good individual who can unlock most defences, something Juventus have needed, especially in the latter stages of the season. It should be very interesting to see how he plays next season.

The recent changes in manager have intrigued me also. For instance, AFC Ajax Amsterdam have made an excellent capture by appointing Martin Jol as manager ahead of their 09/10 campaign. Jol has proven how good he is by taking Hamburger SV to the next level this season, so his move surprises me but I expect him to do well there. It may well be worth looking at backing AFC Ajax Amsterdam to win their league next year as reigning champions AZ Alkmaar have already lost manager Louis Van Gaal to Bayern Munich for the 09/10 season and thus are unlikely to repeat their miraculous displays.

Gordon Strachan stepped down as boss of Celtic, which puzzles me a little. They lost the title to Rangers, but that happens sometimes, so I’m not entirely sure why he’s done it. A possible reason may be that he’s in line to be handed a massive transfer kitty to take over at Sunderland for the 09/10 season, but we shall have to see.

Former CSKA Moscow manager Valery Gazzaev has intriguingly taken over the reigns at Ukrainian champions Dynamo Kiev. Dynamo Kiev currently boast one of their strongest squads since the days of Rebrov and Shevchenko and their season shows it with a league title in the pocket and a UEFA Cup Semi-Final place. The Russian rather mysteriously stepped down as boss of CSKA Moscow last season, only to be replaced by Zico, who isn’t enjoying the best of starts with the Russians. Yury Semin also stepped down from his excellent season in charge of Dynamo Kiev to return to Moscow. I’m not sure if he’s returning to coach his beloved Lokomotiv Moscow or not, but he has returned to Russia. Either way, given that Dynamo Kiev have their fair share of Brazilian players, something Gazzaev enjoyed bringing to CSKA Moscow, it should be a very interesting campaign for them next season, particularly as they’ll be playing Champions League football again.

Interestingly, Georgian legend Temuri Ketsbaia has left Cypriot side Anorthosis Famagusta to coach Greek giants Olympiakos Piraeus. He was the first coach to ever lead a Cypriot side to the group stages of the Champions League and has done a fantastic job at the club, all things considered. It’ll be very interesting to see how he does in Greece. He has a tough reputation to live up to as Olympiakos Piraeus demand success and usually get it too, having completed a domestic double this year under Spaniard Ernesto Valverde, who only left the club as they failed to agree terms on a new deal.

Bad news for VFL Wolfsburg fans however, despite them having just claimed their first ever Bundesliga title. They’ve lost coach Felix Magath to Schalke 04, who have had a disappointing season by their standards. Instead, they’ve appointed Armin Veh, former VFB Stuttgart coach, as their new manager. He left VFB Stuttgart in November after effectively ruining their season so I’m not sure what kind of impact he’s going to have.

In terms of players, however, it seems Bayern Munich have really pushed the boat out to try and become a European force again next season. They’ve already swooped to sign VFB Stuttgart striker Mario Gomez for a fee around 30 million Euros, which in my opinion is excessive for a striker who frequently fails to deliver on the bigger stage. They’ve also signed Anatoly Tymoschuk from Zenit St Petersburg, which is a fantastic signing as I rate him as one of the best and most underrated holding midfielders in Europe. They’ve also clinched the signing of workhorse striker Ivica Olic from Hamburger SV, so they really are trying to make their mark. They’ve also let Lukas “lukewarm” Podolski return to his home club of Koln following his disappointing time at the club.

Lastly, as I doubt there are many people here who have any idea what the Moldovan Divizia Nationala is, let alone follow it, I just thought I’d mention that there’s a potential new hero on the horizon for this country in the form of 18-year old stiker Oleg Andronik. He finished as top scorer in the division this year playing for Zimbru Chisinau despite missing some games through injury. It’ll be interesting to see how the giants of the eastern block (CSKA Moscow, Zenit St Petersburg, Dynamo Kiev, Shakhtar Donetsk, Steau Bucharest etc.) look upon this youngster as to whether he earns a move to one of these prestigious clubs or not.

ANYWAY! Moving onto today’s featured game in the Russian Premier League between Amkar Perm and Saturn Moscow Oblast – there appears to be a lot of value in a home win here having seen odds of 4/5. Amkar Perm proved last season that they can play football. Don’t get me wrong, they’re not a side who is going to compete for the title, but they’re a side that are capable of a top-half finish. Today’s visitors, however, are not. Their football has been entirely in the doldrums this season and I can only see it getting worse today. Despite both sides having relatively poor starts to the season, Amkar Perm have only lost once at home this season from five games and Saturn Moscow Oblast haven’t won any games on the road this season from four. Amkar Perm have won this fixture on home turf the last three times it has been played and I expect that to continue today. My call is 2-0 to the hosts, take it at draw no bet if you’re a little lacking in confidence, and I’d play the under 2.5 goals card for this game. I expect it to be a relatively boring affair with few cards and few goals but there’s certainly money to be made here.

Friday’s Picks

My tips:

Tip of the day has to be for Elfsborg to win at Hacken at 5/6. Hacken may have claimed the scalp of Helsinborg not long ago but the scoreline didn’t reflect that the game was a lot more even and the visitors failed to take their chances. Last year’s runners-up should do better with their form and I expect an away win.

There’s two trebles today that are right up my street! The first one includes Huracan, Amkar Perm and Elfsborg - the odds should be about 5/1 on this approximately. The second one includes Newell’s Old Boys, TPV Tampere and Boulogne – the odds should be about 7/1 on this approximately.

As ever, any queries/explanations required, feel free to email me at thefootytipster@gmail.com. For the complete picks listing, see below!

Argentinian Primera Division:

Newell’s Old Boys vs Arsenal de Sarandi (8) 2-1
Huracan vs Banfield (9) 3-1

Finnish Ykkonen:

Klubi 04 Helsinki vs AC Oulu (7)
TPV Tampere vs PoPa Pori (8)

French Ligue 2:

Btw – be careful as this is a difficult league at the best of times but this is also the last game of the season!

Bastia vs Troyes (7)
Boulogne vs Amiens SC (8)
Stade Brestois vs Nimes Olympique (7)
Berrichone Chateauroux vs AC Ajaccio (6)
Dijon FCO vs Racing Club Lens (6)
Metz vs En Avant Guingamp (6)
Montpellier HSC vs Strasbourg (7)
Stade de Reims vs Angers SCO (6)
Sedan-Ardennes vs Tours (7)
Vannes Olympique Club vs Clermont Foot (6)

Hungarian Soproni Liga:

Ujpest vs Fehervar (7) 2-1

International Friendlies:

Belgium vs Chile (7) 2-1 (played in Japan)
China vs Germany (8) 0-2
Wales vs Estonia (8) 3-0
Republic of Ireland vs Nigeria (7) under 2.5 goals (played in England)

Irish Premier League:

Cork City vs Bohemians (5) 1-1
St Patrick’s Athletic vs Bray Wanderers (7) 2-0
Dundalk vs Sligo Rovers (6) 1-1

Romanian Liga:

Gloria Bistrita vs CS Otopeni (7)
Steaua Bucharest vs Universitatea Craiova (8) 1-1

Russian Premier League:

Amkar Perm vs Saturn Moscow Oblast (8) under 2.5 goals

Singaporean S-League:

Woodlands vs Super Reds (8) 1-3

Swedish Allsvenskan:

Hacken vs Elfsborg (8) 1-2

Swiss Super League:

Basel vs Young Boys Bern (7) 2-1
FC Zurich vs Grasshoppers Club Zurich (7) 3-2, at least one red card in this game

Turkish Super Lig:

Gaziantepspor vs Eskisehirspor (7) 2-1
Hacettepe SK vs Kocaelispor (6) 1-1

Enjoy your free betting tips!