Bluebirds to fly
Betting tips 
/ Andrew French / 26 November 2011 / Leave a comment Bet Now View Market
With generous odds on a Cardiff victory, Andrew French is happy to jump on them as he takes a look at the three games that interest him most in this weekend's Champions League.
Bristol City v SouthamptonMatch Odds: Bristol City [4.3], Southampton [2.0], The Draw [3.7]
It may be too early yet to say that Bristol City have turned the corner, but new manager Derek McInnes has certainly got them out of the slump that saw five successive defeats in October. The Robins have won three and drawn the other of their last four - not quite enough to move out of the bottom three yet, but definitely a move in the right direction. Their recent away draw at West Ham shows they can grind it out against the better teams, and therefore I think there could be a point in this game for them.
You simply cannot knock what Southampton have achieved so far, and with an eight-point gap back to third place, the leaders just need to keep doing more of the same and they will be back in the Premier League come May. Even the Saints can't win every week though - although they have at home - and away from St Mary's is where they have dropped a few points. In fact, they have won only one of their last six on the road, and with City's new-found form, this one may well end level.
Cardiff v Nottm ForestMatch Odds: Cardiff [2.06], Nottm Forest [4.2], The Draw [3.5]
It must make a pleasant change for Cardiff to be playing at home given that four of their last five matches have been away fixtures.
Bearing that in mind, the fact they are unbeaten in six shows that Malky Mackay's side are in really good form, and recent away wins at Reading and Derby underline that. The Bluebirds are unbeaten in their last six at home, winning four of them, and I can see that run being extended here.
It's not been a great season so far for Forest generally, and they really haven't conjured much up on their travels, losing five out of eight on the road. They also struggle for goals, netting only seven times in their eight away trips so far. They have already managed to lose away at four of the teams currently in the bottom seven - a trip to Cardiff should be even harder, and with the home-side available to back at odds against, it's too good to turn down.
Peterborough v Middlesbrough, KO: Saturday 15:00, Match Odds: Peterborough [2.7], Middlesbrough [2.72], The Draw [3.7]
Goals in Peterborough home matches have been pretty much a standing dish both this season and last.
Of course, the price available to back suffers accordingly, but I'd prefer to suggest a short-priced winner than a longer-priced loser!
Only once in eight home games this season have Peterborough fans failed to see at least three goals: those eight fixtures have delivered 35 in all, at an average of 4.38 per match. Last term, London Road matches averaged a whopping 4.74 goals a game. This is a long-term trend and one I fancy will pay out again when Middlesbrough visit.
Boro are not among the division's higher scorers and they don't let many in, but that trend has started to change recently. After a sequence of three goalless draws at the end of September, Boro's last seven games have produced 18 goals: that's an average of 2.57 a game so we only need that to continue against the division's prime entertainers and we will be collecting.
