Betting tips / Mike Norman / 26 December 2011 / Leave a comment Bet Now View Market

Of the three Boxing Day Premier League matches, Mike Norman sees two easy winners in Liverpool and Man U, while the outcome of the Bolton v Newcastle game is much more difficult to predict.

Bolton v Newcastle
Match Odds: Bolton [2.7], Newcastle [2.9], The Draw [3.5]

Bolton recorded a much needed win against relegation rivals Blackburn in mid-week and they'll fancy their chances of another victory when an out-of-form Newcastle visit the Reebok Stadium on Boxing Day. The Trotters have lost nine of their last 10 league games at the Reebok Stadium, so confidence is unlikely to be too high.

After a quite brilliant start to the season Newcastle find themselves without a win in six, injuries mounting and, not surprisingly in my opinion, having one of their own players (Gabriel Obertan) booed by their own fans. They'll be calling for Alan Pardew's head next!

I'm not at all confident about predicting the outcome of this game but a couple of Opta stats point me towards a possible In-Play wager. Bolton have failed to record a draw in 17 league games now, and in every one of those game the team that scored first went on to win the match. The advice then is to back whoever takes the lead; should it be Bolton (providing there's plenty of time left to play) they'll trade at around [1.6], should it be Newcastle, they'll be available to back at around the [1.8] mark.

Liverpool v Blackburn
Match Odds: Liverpool [1.26], Blackburn [18.0], The Draw [6.2]

For a club striving to get back into the Champions League, Liverpool simply have to beat the likes of Blackburn at Anfield. Despite having an excellent record against the big clubs, the Reds have already failed to beat Sunderland, Norwich and Swansea in front of their own fans, whilst last week's 0-0 draw with Wigan was another two points dropped.

You have to feel for Rovers boss Steve Kean as no-one deserves the abuse he is currently receiving. Having said that, before he'd even managed his first game in charge I said his appointment was very odd and that it would end in tears. The only surprise then is that he hasn't been removed from his post yet. A defeat today won't help his cause but at least he doesn't have to face the wrath of the Ewood Park faithful.

Opta tell us that Blackburn have failed to win any of their last 15 league games at Anfield, so a back on the home side at [1.26] should be a safe investment.

However, when Liverpool have won this term they've usually done it by leading at the interval. Add this to the fact that Kenny Dalglish's men have conceded just three first half goals all season and you'll understand why I believe Liverpool/Liverpool at [1.8] in the Half Time/Full Time market is my best bet of this encounter.

Manchester United v Wigan
Match Odds: Man Utd [1.17], Wigan [25.0], The Draw [8.8]

Since losing to arch rivals Manchester City in October United have taken 22 points from a possible 24, and it should have been all 24 but for somehow failing to beat Newcastle last month. What's more, in recent games United, and Wayne Rooney, have started to find the net again. It augers well for a team that always gets stronger from this point in the season onwards.

Wigan have been a complete pain in the backside for my betting balance recently, beating West Brom away from home and then holding both Chelsea and Liverpool at the DW Stadium recently. In fact, the Latics have lost just one of their last six league games after being on a run of eight straight defeats. But don't back them to win this game. As Opta point out, Wigan have a truly awful record against United, losing all 13 encounters in their brief history.

Backing the home-team to win is a play for big hitters, and I'm not one of them, so my alternative wagers will be Rooney in the 'First Goalscorer' market at around [4.2] - Opta state that the striker has scored 10 goals in 13 appearances against the Latics - and the 'Any Unquoted option' in the 'Correct Score' market at [3.2].

Recommended Bets

Best Bet: Back Liverpool HT/Liverpool FT @ [1.8] v Blackburn
Back whichever team scores first to win in Bolton v Newcastle (providing there's at least 30 minutes to play)
Back Wayne Rooney First Goalscorer @ [4.2] in Man Utd v Wigan
Back Any Unquoted Correct Score @ [3.2] in Man Utd v Wigan