QPR look to buck
the odds and confound the bookies when they take their tooth and claw relegation
battle to Old Trafford on Sunday in the Premier League. United know nothing
less than three points will do.
These two teams
could hardly have more different fortunes, as Manchester United are currently 1/7
favourites to win the Premier League and QPR are the bookies third favourite
team to go down and their fourth favourite (from seven clubs) to stay up. The
numbers have QPR at 8/15 to be relegated and 6/4 to survive.
Down at the
bottom of the league QPR are one of the five relegation scrappers, just six
points off rock bottom Wolves and one of three sides on 28 points, their heads
just bobbing above the dreaded relegation line by virtue of goal difference. At the top of the
table it’s a two Mancunian horse race where United have opened up a five-point
lead over Manchester City, as they look to clinch
a 13th title since Sir Alex Ferguson took charge and a record-extending 20th in
Premier League history.
Sometimes
pressure forms diamonds
After Sunday's
game QPR will face three sides from the top four; Tottenham, Chelsea and
Manchester City so Sunday's clash certainly isn't the sort of game that they
can give up before the first whistle, but few expect Mark Hughes’ QPR to upset United’s
title charge, the bookies have an away win at 14/1 and even a draw is at 13/2. QPR
are fighting for their premiership survival and we will likely see a very spirited
performance from them, but I doubt it will be enough as the home side
have won nine and drawn three of their last 12 matches against QPR in all
competitions and QPR have picked up just two points form the last 27 available
from away games in the Premier League.
A less
sympathetic pundit than I might mention the fact that as the game is being
played at Old Trafford would suggest we'll see penalties. You can pick up 13/10
for a penalty to be awarded and 5/1 for it to be scored.
No fun backing a
sensible winner in this one
Manchester
United might be the new favourites to win the Premier league this season but
they’re also the clear favourites to win Sunday's match. So far at home this
season United have won 12, drawn just one and had to put up with two losses, What
is considerably more impressive is that in their last 10 league games they are
the only side in the premiership not to have lost a game, and in fact have only
dropped two points, taking 28 from the last available 30.
The shortest soccer odds
on a united win suggest a 2-0 scoreline at 6/1, while 3-0 and 1-0 are at 13/2
and 15/2 respectively.
Plenty of fun to
be had backing the longshot
QPR may be 14/1
to win this game, but I have a funny feeling that QPR who will take the game to
Manchester United and could even open the scoring, they have considerably more
at stake in this match and they have only failed to find the back of the net in
two league games this year. You can back Man Utd to win from behind at 7/1 with
the sportsbooks. QPR have five defeats in their last 10 with just three
victories and two draws. 11 points from 30 is the sort of form that could see a
team go down, but at the sharp end of the season a greater emphasis should be
placed on grit and determination as opposed to form and history. But QPR's away
form is almost polar opposite of Manchester United's form as they've managed
just three victories and two draws from 15 games scoring just 16 goals and
conceding 29.
QPR have gone 22
games without recording a clean sheet, and the shortest odds on them winning
this game are on a massive 40/1 for a 2-1 victory, need we say more?
Look to the
correct scores for a decent return
QPR have also gone
27 games without seeing a 0-0, and Manchester United have gone 36 games without
a no-score draw. This time round 0-0 is available at the
big fat odds of 25/1 but that is strictly a loose change bet.
In the meeting
between the two sides earlier in the season Manchester United recorded a safe 2-0
away victory and the last time these clubs met in Manchester, way back in 2008 the
Red Devils again shut out QPR beating them by just one goal. Those scores are
available at 6/1 and 15/2 respectively.
Common sense says
that you should back a comfortable Man Utd victory however it is worth noting
that QPR’s last two victories have come
against big clubs, they beat Arsenal 2-1 at the end of March and Liverpool (the same Liverpool playing Aston Villa this weekend) 3-2 ten days before that. But before you think that I'm suggesting you run down the
bookies with your hard earned wage packets to invest on an unlikely QPR win you
should know that both of those victories came at home and the last three times
that QPR have played away they went down to Sunderland, Bolton and Fulham.
Prediction: 4-1
to United at 14/1