Soccer Betting Podcast

While 5 of the 8 ties looked heavily lopsided, Barcelona and Newcastle remains in the balance. It would've been "advantage Newcastle," if not for a 96th-minute penalty from Lamine Yamal, which kept Barcelona’s unbeaten streak intact at St James’ Park last week. Barcelona are now expected to get the win back in front of their own fans in this second-leg tie in Wednesday's early kickoff. Hansi Flick’s La Liga leaders have not failed to win a home game since the start of October, scoring a massive 50 goals in 15 successive wins since that defeat to PSG.

Manchester United’s failure to progress in the cups and their lack of European football mean they’ve been stewing on their 2-1 defeat at Newcastle for 11 days. This is a clear rust vs rest situation, as Aston Villa were in France on Thursday night for their Europa League tie with Lille.The Villans were 1-0 winners in that first-leg, but that left them with little turnaround time for a key clash with one of their main rivals in the quest for Champions League football. The Red Devils have had plenty of time to prepare for this one, and their empty midweeks could be a major advantage in the run-in.

Inter Milan lost the Milan Derby last weekend, however, they still have a 7 point lead at the top. Inter built that lead thanks to a run that has seen them win 17 of their last 20 Serie A games. They have also gone seven home games unbeaten and have lost just one of their last ten on home soil, which looks like a bad omen for an Atalanta side who shipped 6 to Bayern Munich in midweek.

Billi breaks down this weekend's Matchday 30 Premier League slate. Arsenal head into Gameweek 30 with a seven-point cushion at the top of the Premier League table, although title rivals Manchester City do have a game in hand over Mikel Arteta’s troops. Arsenal’s record in front of their own supporters is formidable and they have only lost once at home in 14 Premier League games. Only Manchester City have scored more goals and enjoyed a better record at home, but the Citizens have played a game more than Arsenal on home soil.Sunday will see Liverpool host Tottenham, and it's fair to say that neither enjoyed their midweek European trips in the Champions League, however, only one side was embarrassed. Slot’s men lost 1-0 to Galatasaray and should have found the back of the net on several occasions in Turkey. By contrast, Tottenham lost 5-2 to Atletico Madrid, with goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky replaced inside 20 minutes after a torrid start.Spurs caretaker Igor Tudor has been heavily criticised for that decision, and he has yet to show any evidence that he is the right man to steer Spurs away from the relegation zone. Tottenham have lost all four games under Tudor and they continue to leak goals at the back. Spurs are only one point above the bottom three and they have not won at Anfield since May 2011.

The Champions League Round of 16 will see Real Madrid and Manchester City meet again in what is now the third-most common fixture in the history of the Champions League, and before it the European Cup. This is the fifth time in the last six seasons that the pair have met in the knockout stages of the Champions League, combined with a league phase meeting back in December.Pep Guardiola’s men won that game 2-1 at the Bernabeu, and they are favourites to repeat the trick with Los Blancos plagued with key injuries. Elsewhere, holders Paris Saint-Germain had to navigate a tough play-off round to reach the Champions League last 16 and they face a stern test across two legs against Chelsea.PSG will be looking for a bit of revenge after defeat to the Blues in last summer’s Club World Cup final, but Chelsea have impressed during Liam Rosenior’s brief spell in charge.

The Derby della Madonnina headlines the weekend action in Serie A as Inter bid to extend their ten-point lead at the summit against fierce rivals Milan.Eight straight wins has allowed Inter to cruise clear in the title race and second-placed Milan know anything but a win would all but end their hopes of silverware.

Newcastle host Manchester City in the tie of the round. The Magpies received a welcome boost as they beat Manchester United in midweek, howwver, they have lost five of their last nine domestic fixtures, including a trip to the Etihad last month.

The Red Devils came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 2-1 on Sunday, extending their unbeaten streak to 11 league assignments, the first of which was a 1-0 win over Newcastle on Boxing Day.They have won six of their last seven outings, scoring 14 goals in the process and securing shock results against Arsenal and Manchester City in January.

Billi (@LockBettingSS) breaks down the EPL Matchday 29 slate. Premier League table-toppers Arsenal restored their five-point advantage over Manchester City with Sunday’s 2-1 derby defeat of Chelsea but with their title rivals having a game in hand and with an April trip to the Etihad to come, Mikel Arteta’s side cannot afford to let up.The Gunners slipped up twice last month, drawing with both Brentford and Wolves before routing Tottenham 4-1, and City fans will be hoping the north Londoners suffer the same fate at Brighton on Wednesday. As for City, they play hosts to relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest. Antoine Semenyo's strike against Leeds made it 6 wins on the spin for the title hopefuls and they haven’t lost a home since November, winning 11 of their 13 home games since.

Manchester United will look to maintain their challenge for the top five when Crystal Palace visit Old Trafford on Sunday. Michael Carrick’s men have not been able to maintain the high level of performance that they produced in the immediate aftermath of his appointment, drawing 1-1 with West Ham and scraping a 1-0 win at Everton on Monday.Neither performance was particularly good, but the Red Devils showed impressive character when faced by resolute tactics and a physical approach, also finding a new saviour off the bench in Benjamin Sesko.

Roma host Juventus at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday in a crucial clash in the race for Champions League qualification. Fourth-placed Roma sit on 50 points, four clear of Juve in fifth, with both sides sharing an identical goal difference of +18 after 26 rounds.The Giallorossi boast Serie A’s best defensive record this term, conceding only 16 goals, and come into this on the back of a dominant 3-0 home win over Cremonese last weekend. Gian Piero Gasperini’s side have conceded only six times at the Olimpico and added attacking firepower in Juanuary with the capture of Donyell Malen.

Billi (@LockBettingSS) breaks down the Matchday 27 EPL slate. Arsenal’s lead at the top of the Premier League table may have been cut to just two points by the time they take to the Emirates pitch on Sunday, as closest rivals Manchester City play Leeds on Saturday. Back-to-back draws with Brentford and doomed Wolves had led to the suggestion that Arsenal could be bottling it in the title tussle but an emphatic 4-1 North London Derby win last weekend has eased those concerns.Mikel Arteta’s side now face another local rival this weekend as Chelsea visit, but the Gunners have dominated this fixture in recent years. Arsenal beat Chelsea in both legs of their EFL Cup semi-finals in January and February and have won seven of the last 10 head-to-head meetings. The league leaders have also won 10 of their 13 home league games, losing just once, and have won each of their last four home games against Chelsea.

Real Madrid bring a 1-0 first-leg back to the Bernabeu for an eagerly anticipated return clash with Benfica in the Champions League Play-off round on Wednesday.The first match in Lisbon was marred by an incident of alleged racism toward Vinicius Junior and Uefa have provisionally suspended Gianluca Prestianni “without prejudice” for one game pending a thorough investigation.Los Blancos have not been convincing in the Champions League this season, but it is usually around this time that they start to hit their stride. They sputtered through the league stage last year with three losses in eight games before turning it on in the knockouts against Manchester City and Atletico Madrid.

Billi addresses Jim Ratcliffe's recent "colonisation" comments, before moving onto to previewing tonight's trip to Everton. Manchester United’s winning run was stopped by West Ham last time out, but the Red Devils remain on the right path under interim coach Michael Carrick.The Red Devils have yet to lose since he stepped into the dugout to replace Ruben Antorim in January and four wins and a draw have given the Red Devils every chance of finishing in the top four.

Billi (@LockBettingSS) breaks down the Matchday 27 EPL slate. Draws in Arsenal’s last two Premier League matches against Brentford and Wolves have left the door ajar for Manchester City to steam towards the title, and they look unlikely to reject the opportunity to narrow the gap to two points when they face Newcastle on Saturday night.Pep Guardiola’s side needed a late goal at Liverpool earlier this month to effectively stay in the race, but they now have a great chance of putting the pressure on the Gunners before they face a north London derby at Tottenham on Sunday.

Inter Milan are making a mockery of their +350 price to win the title at the start of the season. Inter are top of the league, having won 20 of their 25 games so far. They travel to Lecce side on Saturday, who are 18th with just five wins and 13 defeats this season. Inter are widely expected to extend their lead over Milan and Napoli, who play on Sunday. Napoli travel to Atalanta in the Serie A game of the weekend.

Benfica clinched their place in the Champions League playoffs in astonishing fashion last month with a 4-2 win over Real Madrid and another lively encounter can be expected when the pair meet in this rematch. Elsewhere, there’s a sense of history repeating itself for European champions PSG. They missed out on the top eight and landed a tie with a fellow Ligue 1 side in the first knockout round, just as they did last season. This time around, it's Monaco, who have always beaten PSG 1-0 at home this term, and they’ve won three of their last five home meetings with PSG.

Missing out on retaining their Serie A title on the final day of last season has only awoken the beast that is Inter Milan, and that is terrible news for the rest of the league, including their next opponents Juventus. The summer departure of influential manager Simone Inzaghi could have left the Nerazzurri in trouble but former defender Christian Chivu has expertly picked up the pieces and Inter now hold an eight-point lead at the Serie A summit. Rivals AC Milan do have a game in hand but they face a tough task catching Chivu’s red-hot side, who have smashed in 17 goals and conceded just three while winning their last five matches in all competitions.

Billi breaks down selected matches from this this weekend's FA Cup 4th Round action. An FA Cup fourth-round tie may offer a welcome distraction for Aston Villa and Newcastle who have been going through a tough time. They face off this evening in the tie of the round.

Manchester City overcame a huge hurdle in the Premier League title race on Sunday, clinching a last-gasp winner at Anfield to keep the league title race alive. League-leaders Arsenal hammered Sunderland on Saturday, to open a nine-point lead, so City desperately needed to respond with a win. The Citizens remain six points adrift in the battle for top spot, but they can cut that down to three points against a Fulham side that have suffered a few poor results of late and who Manchester City have beaten in the last their last 19 H2H's. By doing so, they will put the pressure back on Arsenal, who travel to Brentford on Thursday.