Mark O'Haire has landed three winners in his last four selections, and his bets get underway at 3pm and 5pm on Saturday - one being a shot-based double.
- Mark O'Haire column 21/22: +21.8pts profit | 15% return on investment
- Mark O'Haire column 22/23: +22.0pts profit | 23% return on investment
Football betting tips: Mark O'Haire
2.5pts Dumbarton to win and Under 4.5 Goals at evens (General)
2.5pts Victor Osimhen and Iago Aspas Over 0.5 Shots On-Target at 19/20 (Unibet)
Dumbarton v Elgin
- Kick-off time: 15:00 GMT, Saturday
- Dumbarton 8/13 | Draw 11/4 | Elgin 18/5
Scottish League Two leaders Dumbarton saw their advantage at the top of the fourth-tier reduced to three points after suffering a surprise defeat at East Fife last weekend. Nevertheless, the Sons return to The Rock on Saturday and look well worth backing in their quest to return to winning ways with Elgin pitching up.
Dumbarton have been almost flawless in front of their home supporters. Stephen Farrell’s side have posted W8-D2-L0 at The Rock, silencing six of their opposition outfits, conceding only five goals and netting multiple goals on seven occasions.
Elgin have already suffered home and away defeats to Dumbarton this season, and the Moray men arrive in their worst form of the campaign. Since mid-October, City have suffered eight defeats in 14 league tussles, but more recently the visitors have lost five of eight and been beaten in four of their most recent six showdowns (W0-D2-L4).
The goals have also dried up for Elgin. City have scored just once in four fixtures, whilst their paltry tally of three clean sheets in 24 has left the guests with the second-worst defensive record in the division –far from ideal when heading to an efficient and process-driven Dumbarton side with their eyes on the top prize.
Dumbarton are trading around 7/10 (1.70) to take top honours here but we can grab a general price of even money by backing DUMBARTON TO WIN AND UNDER 4.5 GOALS.
None of the hosts’ 14 league triumphs have featured five goals or more, with 11 of their 14 victories arriving via the 1-0, 2-0 or 2-1 correct scores.
European double
- Empoli v Napoli (17:00, Saturday)
- Celta Vigo v Real Valladolid (15:15, Sunday)
Unibet are offering a hugely appealing 19/20 (1.95) on both VICTOR OSIMHEN AND IAGO ASPAS OVER 0.5 SHOTS ON-TARGET this weekend.
Two of European football’s hottest shots and most consistent operators, Osimhen and Aspas should require little introduction. The former is fresh from extending his remarkable goalscoring streak to six straight games after netting in Napoli’s impressive 2-0 Champions League victory at Eintracht Frankfurt on Tuesday night.
The Nigerian has had two shots or more in 21 of 24 appearances for Napoli in 2022/23, and 3+ in 18 of those 24 tussles. In Serie A action only, Osimhen has managed to hit the target in 16 of 19 appearances, averaging an on-target attempt every 49 minutes.
Empoli are Napoli’s opponents on Saturday and the Tuscans sit second in the shots conceded standings in Italy’s top-flight, allowing a hefty 16.30 per-game on average. The hosts were turned over 2-0 in the reverse encounter with Osimhen firing in four efforts at goal and a similar tally could well be on the cards this weekend.
Meanwhile, 35-year-old talisman Iago Aspas continues to shoulder the bulk of Celta Vigo’s attacking burden. The Celestes skipper is on penalties for the Galicians and has already notched nine times this term; averaging an impressive 2.40 shots per-game, the centre-forward has landed at least one shot on-target in 18 of his 22 league appearances.
At Balaidos, Aspas has covered this line in nine of 10 starts and Carlos Carvalhal’s crew should be given opportunities against a Valladolid team with one of the worst road records in La Liga this season (W2-D1-L8). Only no-hopers Elche are conceding more away shots than the visitors’ tally of 16.90, adding further fuel to the Aspas angle.
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