Football betting tips: Premier League
1pt Brighton to win and both teams to score at 100/30 (bet365)
1pt Brighton over 2.5 cards at 100/30 (Sky Bet, Paddy Power)
Watching an emotional Frank Lampard celebrate ending Coventry's 25-year wait for promotion to the Premier League it was hard to not immediately think of just how ridiculous it is that Liam Rosenior currently fills the Chelsea hotseat.
It is no slight on the 41-year-old, he is simply out of his depth.
Seven years ago Lampard missed out on promotion to the top flight in his first season as a manager by losing the play-off final with Derby and was quickly hired by Chelsea. His illustrious playing career and legendary status at the club meant that was not considered an odd decision.
He was far from a disaster, and in eight years as a manager has had more successes than failures - all at demanding clubs in Derby, Chelsea (twice), Everton and Coventry - with him now far better prepared to coach a top-six club should the chance come around again.
Rosenior had 18-month spells in the relative anonymity of Hull and Strasbourg. As a player he had a good career as a steady top-flight defender, but when things start to unravel in the spotlight of a club as big and complex as Chelsea what experience does he have to fall back on?
Six defeats from seven - the exception a 7-0 win at home to League One's bottom club Port Vale - and one league win in eight has him more than teetering on the edge of an exit. There's no respite this week either.
Ahead of an FA Cup semi-final against resurgent Leeds at Wembley on Sunday he must take his floundering team to former club BRIGHTON who are the division's in-form team - W5 D1 L1 across their last seven.
Buoyed by a last-gasp equaliser at Tottenham they will be confident of extending the Blues' misery and moving above them into sixth. Though not keen to back them at 6/4, I do like smaller stakes to combining the home WIN with BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE at 100/30.
Albion have scored at least twice in five of the six unbeaten matches in their run, and BTTS has landed in half those.
Chelsea have not found the net in their last four league matches but they missed a hatful of chances against both Manchester City and United across their last two and we can be confident they will break that duck at the Amex.
At the same price I'll also take BRIGHTON OVER 2.5 CARDS.
There has been a clear shift in aggression from Fabian Hurzeler's side over the past couple of months, one that has helped turn around worryingly poor form that had some questioning the future of the young German coach.
They have made this line in five of their last nine matches, and all three (3,4,5) home games in that time.
Brighton are priced as the 11/5 outsiders in the most cards market and while I think that's wrong, I don't like the bet given it brings the draw into play, and because with Chelsea potentially getting increasingly desperate some wild antics late on could scupper it.
Odds correct at 10:30 BST (20/4/26)
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