The Baggies continue to sit rock bottom of the Premier League, although consecutive home wins against Manchester City and Tottenham have given them hope for survival. Nevertheless, their away form has been poor all season (one win, one draw, eight defeats), something which will compel many punters to lump on Martin O’Neill’s team at 4/9 (Coral and Boylesports).
This is especially when you consider that Villa are sitting pretty in fourth position, just seven points away from the summit. However, the fact remains that this talented team have been more potent on their travels (21 points) than in front of their own supporters (17 points). Is there a case for taking the Midlands side on for this match, especially with betfair offering 1.43 as a lay price? After all, they have picked up just one win from their last five league games at home.
It might at least be preferable to plump for the Draw HT Villa HT odds of 7/2 (Victor Chandler), with the Baggies starting to look defensively tighter in recent weeks. With plenty of men behind the ball, they should feel confident of nullifying their opponents until the interval. If you think that they can frustrate the Champions League hopefuls, bet365 go 10/3 about the draw, while West Brom are 9/1 (Blue Square) to inflict a shock victory.
If you’re looking for a First Goalscorer bet on this televised match, Skybet are well worth a visit, with the Harrogate-based firm going best price about a string of likely lads. Gabby Agbonlahor is a 4/1 chance, with Ashley Young available at a tempting 13/2. They also go best price (11/1) about penalty taker Gareth Barry, who found the net against Arsenal in Villa’s last home match. For the Albion, it’s surely all about Roman Bednar (11/1 bet365), who has scored two in his last four matches. The Czech is 7/2 (Paddy Power) to score at any time in the match.