Sunderland vs Hull betting tips, BuildABet, best bets and preview
- Michael Beardmore (@MickeyBeardmore) is +32.65pts in profit for the 2023/24 football season
Football betting tips: Championship
1.5pts Sunderland to win and Under 4.5 Goals at 11/8 (Coral)
Less than a month has elapsed since these sides last met as, in a strange quirk of the Sky Bet Championship fixture list, the teams who played each other on Boxing Day have again been scheduled to clash in mid-January.
Sunderland came out on top that day thanks to a late Jack Clarke winner that gave Michael Beale his first three points as Black Cats boss.
That loss was one of seven defeats Hull have suffered in their past 11 games in all competitions, a poor run that has seen Liam Rosenior's side exit the FA Cup at Birmingham and slip to ninth in the table, yet still only a point off the top six.
Sunderland, meanwhile, sit seventh, outside the play-off spots only on goal difference, albeit part of a congested pack of teams separated by just four points from sixth-placed Coventry (40) down to 14th-placed Bristol City (36).
What are the best bets?
This game finished 4-4 last season - if you fancy a repeat of that, you can get 250/1 - and, interestingly, six of the past eight meetings between these feline foes have finished level.
However, Sunderland (W8 L5) have not drawn a game at home this season - they are a tad unpredictable but what leads me to back them here is the issues facing their visitors.
It is no coincidence that Hull's slump in results has occurred during a timeframe in which they have lost some of their most influential attacking players to injury.
Liam Delap (seven goals, two assists) and Jaden Philogene (six goals, five assists) have both been on the shelf the past few weeks.
Their woes have deepened in recent days with leading scorer Aaron Connolly (eight goals) unlikely to have cleared concussion protocols in time to feature here.
With Scott Twine (four goals, three assists) gone this week, recalled from his loan by Burnley, plus Adama Traore (two goals, one assist) and Jean Michaël Seri (two assists) away at the Africa Cup of Nations, Hull's attacking options are bare.
The absent players have contributed 27 of the Tigers' 41 league goals this term and 13 of their 26 assists - that's a heck of a lot of creativity missing.
Given that Hull have defensive problems too - just one clean sheet in their past 13 games - SUNDERLAND, who have beaten Southampton, West Brom and Leeds among others at home this season, should be backed to take advantage.
They are odds-on (best price 10/11) to WIN across the board but adding UNDER 4.5 GOALS in the match boosts the price nicely to 11/8 - the Black Cats have played 29 games this season and only one of those has featured more than four goals.
BuildABet @ 26/1
- Sunderland to win
- Jack Clarke to score anytime
- Regan Slater 1+ shots on target
- Hull most booking points
Jack Clarke has been Sunderland's main man this season, scoring 13 goals, while Hull midfielder Regan Slater has attempted 11 shots in his last eight starts.
Only Birmingham City have amassed more yellow cards away from home this season than Hull's 35.
Score prediction: Sunderland 2-0 Hull (Sky Bet odds: 17/2)
Team news
Sunderland have a number of injuries with Patrick Roberts (calf), Bradley Dack (hamstring), Dennis Cirkin (hamstring), Corry Evans (knee), Elliot Embleton (thigh) and Niall Huggins (knee) all out for varying periods.
Hull will again be without midfield pair Jean Michael Seri and Adama Traore who are away at the Africa Cup of Nations with Ivory Coast and Mali respectively.
The Tigers are also missing Aaron Connolly (concussion) plus injured quartet Liam Delap, Philogene Bidace, Cyrus Christie, and Ruben Vinagre, while Scott Twine's loan was this week cut short as he was recalled by Burnley and sent to Bristol City.
Predicted line-ups
Sunderland: Patterson; Hume, O'Nien, Ballard, Alese; Ekwah, Neil; Pritchard, Bellingham, Clarke; Rusyn
Hull City: Allsop; Coyle, Jones, Greaves, Jacob; Morton, Slater; Tufan, Carvalho, Lokilo; Sharp
Odds correct 1415 GMT (17/01/24)
More from Sporting Life
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
MOST READ FOOTBALL
FOOTBALL TIPS
