Upset Double

Predicting a pair of upsets is always high risk and liable to leave the tipster with egg on his face. But, so long as the bet has long odds value there’s no harm in being a little more speculative from time to time. With this in mind, I’m going to tentatively suggest a cheeky double on underdogs Blackpool and West Brom winning this weekend at odds of 21/1 with Coral. You heard it here first!

Blackpool travel to fellow strugglers Blackburn in a massive ‘six-pointer’ that Rovers will have earmarked as the match that must halt their slide down the table. Steve Keen’s side haven’t won in six outings and suddenly find themselves just one point above the dreaded dotted line, having looked safe only a month ago. This sort of downturn creates massive pressure, which will only increase at Ewood Park, when entertaining the pre-season relegation favourites.

In contrast, Ian Holloway’s troops have surprised people just by having a realistic chance of staying up at this point. Psychologically, this must have a massive impact as the Tangerines can travel with less expectation and continue to play their attacking brand of football. At 7/2 to beat the worst team on form in the league, Blackpool represent value.

An even bigger punt comes with backing West Brom to beat Arsenal at 4/1. The logic here is that the Gunners are simply on their knees, having exited three competitions in the space of two weeks. Yes, they have the quality to beat the Baggies, but do they still have the appetite? Roy Hodgson has reinvigorated sides at the bottom of the league before,  most recently with Fulham,and there are signs that he may have a similar impact at the Hawthorns. He is unbeaten in three games in charge and the 3-1 win last time out at rivals Birmingham looked like a turning point.

Back two underdogs at 21/1 with Coral and you could have all the bragging rights on Saturday night.