The odds are squarely in Chelsea's favor for their home clash with Reading on Wednesday, but is there a better value pick we can go with instead? Find out where we believe that bettors can find the best value with their soccer picks.
Sure, the Blues are the obvious favorites , but are you
willing to swallow -368 on the soccer odds board? That's what the numbers are
looking like for this Premier League fixture.
Reading had a solid debut to their season but find
themselves at +1280 to win at Stamford Bridge. Yes, You read that right.
Chelsea
Even though they won the Champions League last season, the
Blues weren't mere spectators in the transfer market over the summer.
While Didier Drogba was the big name to move on, Chelsea
went out and got Eden Hazard, Oscar and Marko Marin as their headline signings.
Hazard played a massive part in the Blues' opening 2-0 win
over Wigan Athletic last weekend, setting up the first goal and then drawing
the foul which led to the converted penalty. Both goals came in the first seven
minutes, with Branislav Ivanovic getting the first and Frank Lampard scoring
from the spot.
These days in the Premier League, you can't ask for much
more than getting all three points away from home. The Blues may not have
completely dominated the match, but they put goals on the board early and held
their nerve defensively.
Now Chelsea gets their first home match at Stamford Bridge
against a team that was just promoted from the Championship. Roberto di Matteo
has to be feeling upbeat about his side's chances of getting three more points.
Reading
The Royals were given an automatic place in the Premier
League after outlasting Southampton and West Ham to win the Championship last
season.
To begin their 2012 EPL life, Reading battled to a 1-1 draw
with Stoke City at home.
After going down 1-0 in the first half, time was running out
for the Royals and they seemed destined to fall short in their opener. However,
the soccer gods were on their side and Garath McCleary was able to win a
penalty in stoppage time, which Adam Le Fondre smashed home to the delight of
the crowd.
Le Fondre was prolific for Reading last season, scoring 12
goals in 16 league appearances. The Royals have a couple other names you may
recognize, such as former Newcastle man Danny Guthrie and Pavel Pogrebnyak, who
made the most of his short time with Fulham last season.
Reading fans have to be satisfied with a point in their
taste of Premier League action in quite some time. But, now a date with Chelsea
looms on the horizon.
EPL Pick
It's hard to imagine any other outcome but a straightforward
win for the Blues here, but as we saw in opening weekend, you should expect the
unexpected in England's top-flight league.
In 2011/12, Chelsea had the off result here and there at
Stamford Bridge, but overall they were prolific. Scoring 41 goals in 19 home
matches, the Blues are no strangers to putting goals in the back of the net in
their own building.
And while Reading did hang around with Stoke City, Chelsea
offers up a whole different set of challenges, especially now that Eden Hazard
is making things happen. Hazard was in irrepressible form in the opener and
should be relishing the opportunity to show the Blues faithful what he's
capable of.
Could this be baptism by fire for the Royals? I do expect
them to be well-organized in the back, but ultimately the Blues have too much
quality to keep in check for the full 90 minutes.
Chelsea 2 Reading 0