Fourth plays third at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday evening as Manchester City take on Chelsea. Pep Guardiola’s side have had some time to regroup and focus after that damaging 3-1 defeat to Liverpool and we could see City get back to winning ways here.

The defending Premier League champions now find themselves nine points adrift of Jurgen Klopp’s side but City can’t afford to get too caught up on that just yet. It may prove prudent for the hosts to take things one game at a time for now...

Aymeric Laporte’s injury has crippled City’s title hopes – the hosts have struggled to inspire confidence in his absence. With the Frenchman expected to return in January, City will be hoping to close the gap at the top of the Premier League table.

However, you won’t find too many punters backing City’s defence to keep a clean sheet on current form and Chelsea will fancy their chances of an upset this weekend. If they can get to half-time on level terms, Lampard’s side could deliver the decisive blow late on.

After a slow start to the campaign, Chelsea have found their feet in recent weeks – winning their last six league games. The Blues were full of confidence prior to the international break and fans will be hoping that they can pick up from where they left off.

6/1 for an away win could turn out to be a huge price come Saturday night. Chelsea’s record at the Etihad Stadium isn’t great but this Blues side is heading in the right direction and we could see Lampard’s side take full advantage of City’s woes at the back.

Raheem Sterling has been in sensational form for club and country this season and he could be the thorn in Chelsea’s side once again. Sterling is now arguably the best player in English football and 11/10 for the City winger to score should be snapped up.

Lampard insists on an attacking approach and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Chelsea go at City early on. Sitting back and settling for damage limitation is not the way to go in a clash of this magnitude – that tactic has stung Chelsea in the past.

The 21/20 for over 1.5 first half goals is very tempting indeed. An early goal for either side will set the tone for the rest of the contest and this has the potential to explode into a goal fest. Neutrals certainly won’t want to miss this one…

With Liverpool playing against Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon, City could be 12 points behind their title rivals come kick-off. Guardiola has insisted that the title race isn’t over yet but Liverpool have been relentless and the Reds are showing no signs of letting up.

The international break came at a good time for Man City – Guardiola has had a couple of weeks to reflect. Chelsea may find themselves on the end of a City backlash if they’re not careful and punters may be tempted by the 6/5 for three or more home goals.

Lampard has got Chelsea purring but this is as difficult as it gets. We will learn more about Chelsea’s credentials on Saturday evening than in previous weeks and winning at the Etihad may be beyond their capabilities at this moment in time.

Defensively, City can be got at though and the 6/4 for a home win with both teams scoring is the way to go. Guardiola’s men should prove too strong for a spirited Chelsea in the end but Lampard’s men can take a moral victory by keeping the scoreline respectable.

If you fancy a punt at slightly longer odds, Sterling to score first in a Man City win is another way to go. The 5/1 available offers incredible Premier League Odds value ahead of what should be a massive clash between two heavyweights of English football.

TIP: Man City to win and both teams to score (6/4 with 888sport)

LONGSHOT: Raheem Sterling to score first and Man City to win (5/1 with 888sport)

PREDICTED SCORE: Manchester City 2-1 Chelsea (7/1 with 888sport)

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to Rui Vieira / AP Photo*

The international break went as expected for the first 10 days. England had two convincing wins while Wales qualified for the 2020 European Championship by the skin of their teeth.

However, the biggest moment of the week had nothing to do with international football. With Tottenham Hotspur languishing down in 14^th place in the table, Spurs made the tough decision to sack Mauricio Pochettino.

His replacement? None other than a certain Jose Mourinho. It will be great to see Mourinho back in the Premier League and he has sparkled in press conferences ahead of Spurs’ trip to West Ham on Saturday afternoon.

Without further ado, let’s get down to the best bets of the weekend. And what better place to start than the London Stadium for Mourinho’s debut as Tottenham boss…

 

West Ham United vs Tottenham Hotspur

After a solid start to 2019/20, West Ham have slipped down the Premier League table. The Hammers are just five points clear of the relegation zone and the pressure is mounting on manager Manuel Pellegrini. A win here will go some way to silencing his critics.

It is going to be interesting to see how Tottenham play under Mourinho. His style of football has been criticised in the past but Spurs are blessed with attacking talent and he may want to take full advantage of that. Watch this space…

The ‘new manager bounce’ is one of football’s biggest clichés but it may prove prudent to side with Spurs. Mourinho will get the most out of this squad and 3/4 for an away win is exceptional value.

TIP: Tottenham to win (3/4)

 

Arsenal vs Southampton

With Pochettino now available, the pressure is building on Arsenal manager Unai Emery. An impressive run of results may change his standing with Gunners fans but most believe that it is time to move on – anything less than three points here could signal the end of his tenure.

Southampton have been disappointing defensively this season and an early goal for Arsenal could see the floodgates open. Saints have the worst defensive record in England’s top flight while scoring just eight goals at the other end. Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are in big trouble…

Arsenal have been difficult to back in recent months but the Gunners can claim their first win in five league games here. Take the 17/10 for a home win with both teams scoring.

TIP: Arsenal to win and both teams to score (17/10)

 

Brighton & Hove Albion vs Leicester City

Brighton have won their last three home league games and Seagulls fans will be hoping to make it four in a row this weekend. The Amex Stadium has been a fortress in recent years and Graham Potter’s men could spring a shock against high-flying Leicester.

Brendan Rodgers is right up there with the leading Manager of the Season contenders – he deserves great credit for Leicester’s success. Smart work in the transfer window has helped transform the Foxes into top four candidates and it would be foolish to write them off.

Leicester are playing some fantastic football and 21/20 could look a huge price come the final whistle. It is hard to look past the Foxes ahead of what is definitely a winnable fixture.

TIP: Leicester to win (21/20)

 

Crystal Palace vs Liverpool

Crystal Palace have won just four of their last 17 home league games and the Eagles have struggled against the Premier League’s big boys this season. Roy Hodgson will be hoping that the international break has helped Palace to turn things around…

Now eight points clear of their closest challengers, Liverpool are primed to get their hands on the title. Jurgen Klopp’s side have dropped just two points in 12 games and confidence is sky high at Anfield right now – they are on the verge of something special.

Liverpool will be desperate to avoid a repeat of ‘Crystanbul’ on Saturday afternoon. The Reds have injury woes but Klopp’s side should have enough quality to score twice (12/25) at Selhurst Park.

TIP: Over 1.5 Liverpool goals (12/25)

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to Jon Super / AP Photo*

The Betfair Chase has now become one of the biggest National Hunt races of the entire season and on Saturday afternoon thousands of fans will be descending upon Haydock Park.

Established in 2005, the Betfair Chase has continually attracted some of the best chasers in the land and this year is no exception, even if it is a small but select field.

The Betfair Chase forms the first leg of the £1m Jockey Club sponsored Triple Crown, which is awarded to any horse that can win the Betfair Chase at Haydock Park, the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day and the Cheltenham Gold Cup at The Festival next March.

Now in its 15^th year, the Betfair Chase has produced a highly esteemed roll of honour.

The people’s favourite Kauto Star won the race four times (2006, 2007, 2009, and 2011) with his last win lifting the roof off the Haydock stands. A statue was even erected in his honour at the track.

As well as saddling Kauto Star to win this race on more than one occasion, Paul Nicholls also trained Silviniaco Conti to win the highly coveted Lancashire Chase (registered name) twice.

The Colin Tizzard-trained Cue Card almost pulled off the hat-trick of wins required to land the Triple Crown bonus but he fell when holding every chance in the Gold Cup. He managed to win the Betfair Chase a total of three times in his glittering career.

This Saturday the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained grey, Bristol De Mai, will attempt to continue his love affair with the Merseyside track by capturing a third-consecutive Betfair Chase.

 

Betfair Chase: Trends & Statistics

• Age – 8 of the last 10 winners were aged between 6 and 9.
• Price – Surprisingly only 4 of the last 10 winners were won by the favourite, 9/10 winners came from the top 3 in the horse racing betting.
• Last Run – 4/10 winners won on their last run before the Betfair Chase, 8/10 winners had their last run within the last 27 days. 6/10 winners ran in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby.
• Rating – 6/10 winners had a rating of 170 or higher.
• Grade 1 Wins – 10/10 winners had at least one win in a Grade 1 race.
• Season Form – 8/10 winners had at least one run that season, 4/10 winners had at least one win that season.

Here is your comprehensive guide to the four runner field on Saturday:

 

Bristol De Mai

The defending champion Bristol De Mai is the star attraction in the £200,000 Betfair Chase (3.00pm) in the first Grade One race of the Jump season at Haydock Park this Saturday. 

Bristol De Mai (Nigel Twiston-Davies/Daryl Jacob) is chasing a third consecutive victory in three mile, one and a half-furlong feature, following a 57-length demolition job in 2017 and another dominant victory in 2018.

Twiston-Davies showed his intention of making it another Merseyside payday by swerving the Charlie Hall Chase and pencilling in this opening engagement as an absolute cert for his flamboyant grey.

The eight-year-old also made his seasonal debut in the Betfair Chase last November when he got the better of the former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River by four lengths.

Bristol de Mai has not been seen since finishing fourth behind Kemboy in the Bowl Chase at Aintree in April, but his supporters are well aware that he runs his best races when fresh and will also be buoyed by the fact that he has a perfect four from four record at the track.

After his emphatic win in the Betfair Chase of 2017, some people were of the view that that Bristol de Mai was simply a one-trick-pony that only scored in bottomless ground, however when he won again last year in much drier autumnal conditions, it put many of those naysayers to bed.

Away from Haydock last year he went on to be the best placed British-trained runner in the Cheltenham Gold Cup when finishing a commendable third.

Lostintranslation

Lostintranslation's successful reappearance in the Colin Parker Memorial at Carlisle had social media ablaze with memes and screenshots abound after an almost faultless display of fluent jumping  put him firmly on the radar for greater things to come this season.

He jumped superbly in front and quickened away easily after the last to win by two and a quarter lengths.

As a novice Lostintranslation won two of his six starts, including the Mildmay Novices' Chase at Aintree on his final outing.

Defi du Seuil, the horse he chased home twice last year, gave a massive boost to that form last weekend by scoring nicely in the Shloer Chase at Cheltenham.

Colin Tizzard, who trained Cue Card to win this race in 2013, 2015 and 2016, will be hoping that he has another horse of that calibre on his hands on Saturday.

 

Frodon

Paul Nicholls too has provided multiple winners of this race in the shape of Kauto Star and Silviniaco Conti and he will be represented this year by the fan’s favourite Frodon.

Frodon had a fruitful 2018/19 winning the Old Roan Chase at Aintree on his first start of the season before going on to record three major wins at Cheltenham, which included to the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup, the Cotswold Chase and the Ryanair Chase.

Many blamed the reduced jumping test for his underperformance in the Old Roan Chase last month, but he frankly did not look entirely match fit as many of the Nicholls stable didn’t either in that particular early segment of the season.

The seven-year-old is sure to come on for the run and will be a popular winner should he score under his regular pilot, the newly Jockey Club sponsored Bryony Frost.

 

Ballyoptic

Bristol de Mai’s stablemate Ballyoptic made a winning reappearance in handicap company at Chepstow in October before following that up with an authoritative win in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby.

The deteriorating conditions that afternoon really placed the emphasis on his stamina and the former Scottish National runner-up capitalised on the shortcomings of his rivals.

The nine-year-old would probably come into his own if this race develops into a slog, but there is no such weather forecast in place for Saturday and he will probably need a few snookers to fall into place if he is to trouble the judge in this one.

 

Betfair Chase: Prediction

I think this is the ideal race and venue for Lostintranslation to show off his slick jumping and I think he will overhaul Bristol De Mai over the final few fences with a superior turn of foot.

888sport suggests: Lostintranslation (win).

This article looks at the greatest ever tennis players. Greatness is subjective in some ways, when it comes to comparing era.

Other means of evaluating a player are more objective – such as number of Grand Slams – though these can still face the same criticism as arguably not every Grand Slam title is equal.

Comparing the achievements of a player from the 1970s with someone in the 2010s is almost impossible, but there’s an inner circle of tennis greats who go beyond debate: the players universally recognised as an all-time icon.

We’ve produced articles explaining the tennis betting industry and looking at various facets of tennis betting. The top 10 greatest tennis players ever are the focus of this piece…

 

Roger Federer

Potentially the greatest sportsperson of all-time, Roger Federer was always going to be the first name on this list. The Swiss maestro – as it stands – is the most successful men’s player in Grand Slam history and could yet add to his total of 20 titles.

Federer is universally admired, and widely adored. His game as elegant as any in the history of the sport, from the one-handed backhand to the pinpoint serve.

He made men’s tennis his own through much of the 2000s and has aged more gracefully than anyone could have expected.

 

Martina Navratilova

The 18 singles Grand Slam titles undersells Martina Navratilova. Remarkably, it is when you look at Navratilova’s record across singles and doubles it becomes even more impressive.

She is the only player to have been number one in singles and doubles for over 200 weeks. Navratilova’s tally of 59 Grand Slam titles is preposterous.

Best remembered for supremacy at Wimbledon – and reaching nine consecutive trips to the final – Navratilova actually thrived on all surfaces, winning twice in Paris, thrice in Melbourne and four times in New York.

 

Pete Sampras

Although not the most entertaining player to watch, there’s no arguing with Pete Sampras’ record. The American has 14 Grand Slam titles to his name with seven of those coming at Wimbledon.

He held number one in the rankings for 286 weeks, which was – of course – a record until it was broken by Roger Federer.

His rivalry with Andre Agassi was iconic, a representation of men’s tennis in the 1990s. Sampras’ serve and volley left opponents without an answer, and his serve is among the greatest ever.

Rafael Nadal

The King of Clay has 12 French Open titles, but his level on the grass and hard courts is sometimes overlooked when comparing his legacy with Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic.

No player has ever controlled a Grand Slam like Nadal has Roland Garros, though that shouldn’t overshadow his performances elsewhere.

Not just a supreme athlete, Nadal’s footwork and ferocious top-spin shots are as good as the sport has seen. He’s a brutal competitor and has rounded his game out well after early-career struggles with his serve.

 

Serena Williams

The most Grand Slam titles in the Open Era. The most successful player in US Open history. Still competing at the very top at 38 years old.

Serena Williams’ CV, like everyone’s on this list, is glittering. Williams has spanned multiple eras of women’s tennis, remaining the woman to avoid in ever Grand Slam draw. Her 349 Grand Slam matches won is, unsurprisingly, an all-time record.

Serena will still add to her career numbers, and could have a couple more Grand Slams added to her total before she hangs the racquet up. Margaret Court’s 24 Grand Slams could be reached before spring 2020.

 

Novak Djokovic

The fourth active player on this list, Novak Djokovic has produced some of the most unstoppable tennis seasons in history.

Peak Djokovic is like facing a wall, finding a way to return balls that shouldn’t be within reach. His agility and flexibility are what makes him the player he is, and a nightmare opponent.

In 2016, Djokovic became the first man since 1969 to hold all four Grand Slams at once and joined his long-time rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in completing a Career Grand Slam.

 

Margaret Court

Margaret Court not only has won more Grand Slams than any other tennis player – the Australian also owns the highest winning percentage in the sport’s history at over 91%.

At the Australian Open, Court lost just thrice in 64 matches, a barely believable record. Without breaking into a list of accomplishments, it is hard to put into words what Court achieved.

Perhaps the greatest indicator of her greatness was that she won the Multiple Grand Slam set as an amateur, retired, and then won it all again as a professional.

Steffi Graf

Only two women have won more Grand Slam titles than Steffi Graf. No other tennis player has won each Grand Slam title four times.

There’s a good argument that Graf is the most rounded women’s player in the history of the sport. Graf’s role in the popularisation of tennis in Germany cannot be overstated.

She achieved things in the sport that may never be done again – in the late 1980s, she reached 13 consecutive major singles finals, winning nine of them.

 

Rod Laver

The masterful left-hander started his career before the beginning of the Open Era. Once the Open Era began, however, Rod Laver was dominant.

He was ranked number one in the world for seven consecutive years during the 1960s and accumulated an extraordinary 200 singles titles (the most in tennis history).

Only fellow Australian Roy Emerson, Sampras, Nadal, Federer and Djokovic have won more Grand Slams than Laver’s 11. Playing a period when the Davis Cup was highly regarded too, Laver led Australia to five titles.

 

Chris Evert

Sixth on the all-time list with an incredible 18 Grand Slams, Chris Evert won 157 singles titles in her long career and finished the year ranked as number one in the world in seven different years.

She dominated women’s tennis in the second-half of the 1970s. Evert boasts a lengthy collection of Grand Slam records, including reaching the semi-finals or better at 34 consecutive Slams.

She is the lone record holder of the most French Open titles by a woman and shares the honour at the US Open with Serena Williams.

 

888Sport has tennis odds that are never out

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to Alastair Grant / AP Photo*