Premier League Betting - Stoke City welcome titleholders Man U

Stoke City are enjoying their second lap around the Premier League and so far they are off to a rather good start. Last season’s promoted side were not expected to survive to see another Premier League season so. Nevertheless, they have and they are capitalizing on the opportunity.

Stoke are in tenth place with eight points hauled in six cycles with a 2-2-2 mark; more significantly, they play well on home turf having won two and lost only one so far. The loss, however, was to high-flying Chelsea FC and it was a narrow 2:1 loss come to that. That they lost was to be expected, that they kept the score close is encouraging. Stoke are hoping their good home form and what they learned from the experience against Chelsea will help them surprise United.

Man U are enjoying a six-match winning streak spanning all competitions but despite their good results and hold on second spot in the table, detractors point to their lack of convincing form, pointing to their penchant to do only just enough to win matches. And they do have a point to some extent but don’t Man U always do that?

More often than not when coming up against a bigwig then do we ever see Man U really at top form. Against minnows they traipse about the pitch for 90 minutes, defend in numbers and typically score one goal to win the match. That is probably why they got surprised by Burnley at the start of the season. They underestimated the exuberance of the promoted side and just didn’t do enough to shut down their keen efforts.

Soccer Betting Line:

Stoke City +1 +125 +775 2½ O -105 U -115 Draw +325

Manchester United -1 -145 -250 2½ O -105 U -115 Draw +325

Venue: Britannia Stadium

Match time: 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time Saturday September 26 2009

Soccer Betting Verdict: Stoke City are undefeated in their last two matches; they drew against Bolton on the away and beat Blackpool 4:3 in Carling Cup action. Both positive results and the narrow defeat to Chelsea FC have to inspire Stoke. They are not a flash lot but a hardworking lot and their ability to frustrate sides by working so well together is their strength. All this might yield the result they are hoping for – a home win.

Soccer Free Picks: Bookies are really not giving soccer bettors any assurances that this might be a possibility, listing Stoke at +775 underdog odds. But, hey, they might have it wrong? At least, I think so.

What is certain, is Man U at -250 is not an enticing play – that is, in my opinion. I realize this isn’t the popular opinion as the betting trend favours a Man U victory. But I don’t think it will be a cakewalk for Man U and if they win they will have to work hard for it. Over 2.5 goals at -105 is a good bet.