Mark O'Haire's football betting tips, best bets and nap: A Scottish double
Mark O'Haire has landed his last four selections in his column, with his season profit at +26.5. Don't miss out his tips for this weekend.
- Mark O'Haire column 21/22: +21.8pts profit | 15% return on investment
- Mark O'Haire column 22/23: +26.5pts profit | 23% return on investment
Football betting tips: Mark O'Haire
2.5pts Monaco to beat Ajaccio at 4/5 (bet365, William Hill, Coral)
2.5pts Aidrie and Alloa to win double at 21/20 (Betfair, Betway)
Ajaccio v Monaco
- Kick-off time: 12:00 GMT, Sunday
- Ajaccio 19/5 | Draw 13/5 | Monaco 3/4
Ajaccio have not looked cut out for top-flight survival since winning promotion last season with a squad lacking in Ligue 1 experience. The islanders are only two points from safety but come into Sunday’s clash with Monaco having been beaten in nine of their 11 league dates in 2023 – only avoiding defeat against fellow relegation-haunted sides Angers and Troyes.
L'Ours are a defensive-first outfit yet Olivier Pantaloni’s posse have managed to keep just three clean sheets across the whole campaign. And Ajaccio’s impotent attack has seen the division’s lowest scorers fail to net in eight of their 11 matches this calendar year.
The Corsicans have earned 16 of their 21-point haul against fellow bottom-six scrappers, with Ajaccio posting just W1-D2-L17 when facing sides in 14th and above (firing blanks on 13 occasions). At their Stade Francois Coty base when facing the same standard of opposition, L'Ours have returned W0-D1-L9 and could prove easy meat for Monaco on Saturday.
Monaco smashed Ajaccio 7-1 in the recent reverse encounter – flying into a 5-1 half-time lead – and the principality club are eager for a quick bounce back after picking up a solitary point from their past three fixtures to drop out of the top-three.
Les Monégasques’ record on the road, and their return from bottom-half dwellers should enthuse Les Rouge et Blanc followers. Philippe Clement’s charges have posted eight wins from 13 on their Ligue 1 travels, although their record at sides outside of the top-six reads a hugely impressive W8-D2-L0, striking twice or more in nine of those 10 tussles.
MONACO TO WIN is an eye-catching 4/5 and backing the men from Monte Carlo makes plenty of sense at the prices.
Airdrie vs Peterhead and Alloa vs Clyde
- Kick-off time: 15:00 GMT, Saturday
Basement battlers Peterhead and Clyde have already been cut well adrift at the bottom of Scotland’s League One. Peterhead (W2-D6-L19) prop up the division with a paltry 12-point tally, whilst Clyde (W3-D5-L19) are only two points better off but a massive 18 points from safety - the beleaguered pair have lost 38 (67%) of their collective 57 fixtures.
Opposing the disaster duo therefore makes plenty of sense and we can back an AIRDRIE AND ALLOA WIN double this weekend at an attractive odds-against price.
Peterhead and Clyde have combined to lose 23 (82%) of their 28 respective away Scottish League One showdowns this season. Across those 28 matches, the no-hopers have failed to even score on 19 (68%) occasions, notched just 15 goals and shipped an eye-popping 68 to return a monstrous -53 goal difference. The underlying data also paints a horrifying tale.
More recently, Peterhead have managed to net just one goal in their past nine away days – that’s almost 14 hours of football – with Clyde firing blanks in each of their last six games as guests. The latter have picked up just one point on their travels since August with their only league victory across all venues over the past seven months arriving against Peterhead.
In terms of the opposition on Saturday, Airdrie have won five of their six meetings with either Peterhead or Clyde this term and have taken top honours in seven of their overall 13 outings. The Diamonds average 2.46 home goals per-game and look rock-solid favourites.
Meanwhile, Alloa have picked up maximum points in nine of their 13 home Scottish League One encounters, averaging 2.00 goals per-game. The Wasps have also triumphed in five of their six match-ups with the basement battlers this season.
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