England EFL Cup Quarter-finals

[spkutano]

 

[spkutano]

Arsenal vs Sunderland Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Arsenal:
Leno; Soares, Holding, Chambers, Tavares; Maitland-Niles, Elneny; Pepe, Smith Rowe, Nketiah; Lacazette

Sunderland:
Hoffmann; Wright, Flanagan, Doyle; Hume, Neil, Pritchard, Embleton, Gooch; Broadhead, Stewart

Arsenal and Sunderland will meet at the Emirats Stadium on Tuesday, as two teams are looking to secure a semi-final in Carabao Cup. Following a run of three successive league wins, Arsenal players will enter the match full of confidence. The Gunners managed to beat Southampton, West Ham and Leeds United in the Premier League. Mikel Arteta's men have largely increase their chances for Top-4 finish. If something could be rated as positive ahead of this match, that's the home form. Arsenal are in series of six victories at the Emirats across all competitions. The series started against Aston Villa in October, while Leeds were the latest victims during the weekend. The Gunners have outplayed Bielsa's men and won 4:1 on Saturday. Two goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka's deflected effort made it 3:0 before half-time, while substitute Emile Smith Rowe scored the fourth goal in the 84th minute. I believe the atmosphere in the squad is excellent at the moment, despite the incident with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabonese international was not in the Gunners' squad for the last games after Arteta revealed the striker had broken club protocol. Three more players are also unavailable as Pablo Mari and Albert Sambi Lokonga have COVID-19 positive tests, while Sead Kolasinac is out with an ankle injury. Some changes are very possible after Arteta named the same starting eleven in the last four consecutive Premier League matches. It is clear most of the regulars should be rested to avoid any potential injuries.

Sunderland have been excellent so far in the competition. However, the truth is they have a relatively easy schedule, avoiding any Premier League side in the first four rounds of the EFL Cup. First they beat Port Vale with 2:1 thanks to Josh Hawkes and Aiden O'Brien's goals. Blackpool were the second victims as O'Brien's hat-trick was enough to secure a 3:2 win. In the third round Sunderland managed to beat Wigan with 2:0. The goals were scored by Nathan Broadhead and Luke O'Nien. Finally, the Black Cats secured quarter-finals after eliminating QPR in a penalty shootout. The fans are satisfy with the successful campaign in the League cup and most of them are dreaming about the semi-final. Sunderland are also good in the League One as they currently sit third. For the weekend they shared the points playing an 1:1 draw away at Ipswich thanks to Nathan Broadhead's second-half equalizer. Lee Johnson's men remain in contention for automatic promotion as only four points separate them from league leaders Rotherham. For this match Sunderland have lot of absences. Leon Dajaku is the latest injury victim as the German winger was substituted in the match against Ipswich just before the half-time. Denver Hume has replaced him, but he has recently returned from an ankle injury and isn't fully prepared. Dennis Cirkin and Corry Evans remain out of contention, while Luke O'Nien and Aiden McGeady are long-term injury victims.

Arsenal vs Sunderland Prediction:

Arsenal are clear favorites in this match. However, the odds for a home victory are low, so I will suggest goals. At least three should be scored at the Emirats. Even if Sunderland failed to find the back of the net, the Gunners have enough fire power to score at least three alone. Like they did against Leeds on Saturday. I expect a high scoring clash.

Arsenal vs Sunderland Pick: Over 2.5 goals @ 1.54 with Pinnacle

 

[spkutano]

Liverpool vs Leicester City Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Liverpool:
Kelleher; N. Williams, Gomez, Konate, Tsimikas; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Morton, Milner; Gordon, Firmino, Minamino

Leicester City:
Schmeichel; Albrighton, Amartey, Ndidi, Bertrand; Tielemans, Soumare; Maddison, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes; Daka

This is probably the most interesting clash of the Carabao Cup quarter-finals. We could expect a thrilling encounter at Anfield, although both managers will rotate the players. Jurgen Klopp usually didn't pay too much attention to the cup competitions, but this time could be different as he’ll now look to move within a win of Wembley. Even more because the biggest rivals Manchester City have been eliminated in the previous phase. The atmosphere in the squad isn't at desired level as several players had positive Coronavirus tests and skipped the last fixtures. What is worse, the number of infected players could increase rapidly. The situation is critical in the midfield as the German coach could be missing up to the five players. Thiago Alcantara has joined Fabinho and Curtis Jones in testing positive for Covid-19, while Harvey Elliott remains long-term injury victim. Captain Jordan Henderson was ruled out of the weekend game due to a illness and it is unlikely to be risked here. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is almost a sure starter, while James Milner could be an option to start again. But two matches in just three days will definitely be a problem for the veteran. Klopp also has worries in the defense - Alisson Becker need a rest following his big mistake against the Spurs, Andrew Robertson will serve the suspension , while Virgil van Dijk remains in isolation after his own positive COVID-19 test. Nat Phillips and Adrian are also sidelined. Neco Williams, Joe Gomez and Caoimhin Kelleher are expected to be in the starting lineup.

Leicester City won the League Cup trophy in 2000, but since that they have only reached the semi-finals once in 21 attempts. However, this is a huge opportunity considering Liverpool problems at the moment. Brendon Rodgers' men have eliminated Millwall and Brighton & Hove Albion in the previous rounds, but the trip to Anfield is likely to be their toughest test yet. The players are fresh and hungry for football as their last two Premier League games against Tottenham and Everton were called off due to a COVID-19 outbreak. The actual form could be evaluated as mixed, but it is very important to be mentioned they hammered Newcastle United 4:0 at the King Power Stadium in their last competitive match. Youri Tielemans was the key name in that match after scoring a brace, while Patson Daka and James Maddison also found the back of the net. The victory surely improved the atmosphere in the squad and increased the players confidence. But Rodgers also has issues ahead of this match. Jannik Vestergaard, Ayoze Perez, Ademola Lookman, Kelechi Iheanacho, Filip Benkovic, Hamza Choudhury and Vontae Daley-Campbell are among the players to have tested positive, meaning it is not clear who will be available for selection. Both centre-backs Caglar Soyuncu and Jonny Evans are struggling with injuries, as well as Wesley Fofana, so Daniel Amartey and Wilfred Ndidi could start in the heart of defense. This match is likely to come too soon for James Justin.

Liverpool vs Leicester City Prediction:

Liverpool will play without the regular defenders, including the keeper Alisson Becker. Left-back Robertson is suspended, Van Dijk is in isolation, while Trent and Matip will be rested. I believe Leicester will take advantage and expect to score at Anfield. At the same time Liverpool are still able to find the back of the net. Salah and Mane could be rested, but Firmino and Takumi Minamino are also good. The latter have scored five goals in his four League Cup outings. The Foxes are without Soyuncu and Evans in defense, so it will be a huge surprise to keep clean sheet.

Liverpool vs Leicester City Pick: Both teams to score - Yes @ 1.65 with Pinnacle

 

[tommalkovic12]

With this covid sh*ts last few days, i'n not sure how to bet on EPL matches. Maybe, it's better to wait for betting on live .

 

[spkutano]

With this covid sh*ts last few days, i'n not sure how to bet on EPL matches. Maybe, it's better to wait for betting on live .

Yes, lot of postponed matches