Norwich v Tottenham Betting 311012

Norwich v Tottenham Betting Preview

In recent fixtures this game has seen two teams contesting closely matched encounters averaging under 2.5 goals and an away team victory. This Capital One fixture promises to be frightfully exciting on the night of Halloween. Check out all the free bets available for Capital One Cup matches here.

Norwich City manager Chris Hughton will be questioning his teams fortune after they are left lying 16^th in the Premier League despite some impressive performances. Because of this their next Premier League fixture at home to Stoke City is extremely important and nothing less than a win will do for Norwich City. This may subsequently influence Hughton’s team selection on Wednesday forcing him to rest his key players and play a weakened team. Therefore out of action players like Butterfield, Morrison and Jackson will be handed a rare start and will be eager to impress and push their way into the first team.

If Tottenham wish to win a trophy this season then the Capital One League Cup may be their best chance, which they have won four times previously including their last success in 2008.  Despite this it is likely that Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas will make several changes to his Spurs side with their upcoming fixture against Wigan on Saturday. Newly signed goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and outcasts Dawson, Sigurdsson, Livermore and Townsend are likely to be amongst the starters at Norwich on Wednesday.  However, this tactic was proved successful when Villas-Boas opted for a similar approach in the third-round when Tottenham cruised to a 3-0 victory away at Carlisle back in September.

With both teams likely to field weakened teams this fixture may be an exciting encounter as the fringe players will be looking to push their way into the first team with an impressive performance.

Tottenham have been very impressive away from home this season not losing only one of their last six away fixtures in all competitions, winning their last three – including a historic 3-2 victory at Old Trafford. Therefore it looks like Tottenham will be going to Carrow Road bursting with confidence searching to maintain their fantastic away record, but having said that Norwich have only lost one of their last seven home games in all competitions. In their five home Premier League fixtures this year Norwich have been able to keep three clean sheets including one in a 1-0 victory in their last home outing against Arsenal.

Last three league matches:

Chelsea 4-1 Norwich City                                             Tottenham 2-0 Aston Villa

Norwich City 1-0 Arsenal                                              Tottenham 2-4 Chelsea

Aston Villa 1-1 Norwich City                                         Southampton 1-2 Tottenham

H2H:

Tottenham 1-1 Norwich City     Tottenham 1-2 Norwich City   Norwich City 2-0 Tottenham 

Prediction:

As mentioned earlier it is likely that both teams will play weakened teams resting players for key Premier League fixtures on Saturday. This may be more beneficial to Tottenham who have a much larger squad with strength in depth and may reap the dividends to Andre Villas-Boas. Although Norwich City have been very impressive at home this season only losing once in all competitions I feel that they may have one eye on their huge Premier League encounter with Stoke City on Saturday. Therefore with Tottenham looking to continue their run of good form away from home a Tottenham win looks a good bet and is advisable. However, Tottenham have been culpable of not being able to close out matches against supposedly weaker teams this season including throwing about winning positions against WBA, Malbor and Panithonikos. Because of this, a bet on Tottenham to qualify at 1/2 offers more security and is the safer option.

Highlighted Bets:

1)      Seven out of the last eight meetings between these two teams has ended with under 2.5 goals in the match with both teams struggling to score goals. Also, this season there have been fewer than three goals in 8/12 of Norwich’s games and 6/12 of Spurs’ games. Furthermore, in the 7 games Norwich have played at Carrow Road this season there have been under 2.5 goals in 5 of them. Therefore under 2.5 goals seems a good bet and at 11/10 it offers fantastic value.

2)      Tottenham midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson is likely to be an instrumental player for Spurs in this Capital One fixture. The ex-Swansea Icelander has not been able to fulfil expectations since his move over the summer, but has the quality to be the difference against a weakened Norwich City side. The midfielder is more than capable of scoring goals which he proved by scoring 7 in 18 Premier League games for Swansea City last year. Although incapable of emulating his form from last season, Sigurdsson did score in the last League Cup game against Carlisle. Sigurdsson will be keen to impress and the forward-thinking midfielder is 4/1 to score in a Tottenham win.

Recap:

• Tottenham to qualify 1/2
• Under 2.5 goals @ 6/5
• Sigurdsson to score and Tottenham to win @ 4/1

Read more betting previews for upcoming matches in our betting tips section. If you fancy a free bet for this match, or any upcoming event, check out the £25 free bet offer from Blue Square.

Article by Mark Stefanyszyn

*Click here for all the latest odds on upcoming football matches