SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

Aston Villa v Leeds Thursday 29 December, 19:45 Live on Sky Sports 1 Aston Villa Leeds Match Odds Over/Under 2.5 Goals Recommended Bets Clinical finishing was the difference at Villa Park on Boxing Day as a capacity crowd saw the Claret & Blue notch a fifth successive home victory. But Steve Bruce's boys were  below-par against Burton  with the struggling newcomers dominating the performance metrics. It's been a familiar theme for the Villans under Bruce's tutorship.  Ross McCormack  was the side's latest saviour but the caution and pragmatism that's often allied with Bruce's teams at this level once again came close to catching up with the hosts. Should Villa look to rest and rotate here,  Ashley Westwood ,  Jack Grealish, Jordan Ayew, Gabby Agbonlahor  and  Rudy Gestede  will all hope for recalls. Meanwhile, Micah Richards and Ritchie De Laet remain on the long-term treatment table. A crazy 14-minute spell in the first-ha...

"Southampton’s last two St Mary’s successes were by that very scoreline against Middlesbrough and Everton. They also beat Swansea 1-0 earlier in the season so 75% of their home victories in the Premier League have been by the minimum margin." Back Southampton to win 1-0 @   9.20 Southampton v Tottenham Wednesday 28 December, 19:45 Live on Sky Sports Southampton It's an exciting month ahead for Southampton. Nicely positioned in seventh, they'll hope to maintain their impressive form in the Premier League whilst booking a Wembley date in the EFL Cup by getting past a Liverpool side they held to a 0-0 draw at St Mary's last month. That game was one of  12 clean sheets they've kept in all competitions  and that run included six in a row across September and October. What's particularly impressive is that they've climbed to seventh whilst fighting on three fronts due to their run to the last four of the EFL and battles with the likes of Inter and Sp...

"Derby have risen from 21st in the Championship table in late October to just a point off the play-offs thanks to their spectacular run of results under Steve McClaren’s watch (W8-D2-L1)." Derby v Birmingham Tuesday 27 December, 15:00 Live on Sky Sports 1 Derby Birmingham Match Odds Over/Under 2.5 Goals Recommended Bets Back Under 2.5 Goals @  1.78 Derby have risen from 21st in the Championship table in late October to just a point off the play-offs thanks to their spectacular run of results under  Steve McClaren 's watch (W8-D2-L1). The Rams' last loss was to a 94th-minute goal at Huddersfield on 22 October and last time out County showed plenty of spirit to battle back from 2-1 down at Fulham to earn a point. Tom Ince  has flourished in the return to 4-3-3, scoring seven of Derby's 16 goals under McClaren. Elsewhere,  Alex Pearce  and  Richard Keogh 's outstanding combination at centre-half has lead to eight clean sheets in 11 outings. The ...

"You're going to need to be brave or stupid to back Stoke here, given the raft of stats and pages of history that go against them, and the market looks as if it agrees." Liverpool v Stoke Tuesday, 17:15 Live on Sky Sports 1 Stoke City Match Odds Over/Under 2.5 Goals Liverpool-1 Recommended Bets Liverpool Liverpool are the country's most swashbuckling attacking outfit - their  high-pressing , hard-running and forward-thinking style makes them a good side to watch, and if they can tighten up defensively then they're real challengers for the league title. As one of only two undefeated teams at home in the  Premier League  this season (Spurs, if you're wondering), they'll be confident of a good win on Tuesday against an inconsistent Stoke outfit who have only won one league game this month and have a pretty poor record at Anfield - they've never won there in the Premier League and what's more, Mark Hughes has never won there as a manager. ...

"But not only are Reading a decent side with the advantage of playing on home soil, they are also seven points and seven places above Norwich in the Championship table, and they go into this game in terrific form whereas their opponents are in a right mess, far from being at their best." Back Reading @  2.88  to beat Norwich Reading   2.88  v Norwich  2.70 ; The Draw  3.40 How the Canaries can be priced up as favourites to win this is an  absolute mystery  to me. True, Norwich are perceived to be, and undoubtedly are the better team when at their best. But even then, with the Royals having  home advantage  and being a decent side themselves I'd still have Jaap Stam's men as marginal favourites. But not only are Reading a decent side with the advantage of playing on home soil, they are also seven points and seven places above Norwich in the Championship table, and they go into this game in  terrific form  whereas their op...

"Ibrahimovic has now scored eight goals in his last seven appearances." Back Ibrahimovic to score first at   3.75 Manchester United v Sunderland Monday, 15:00 Sunderland Ref Watch Match Odds Over/Under 2.5 Goals To Score Recommended Bets Back Manchester United to win half-time/full-time at  1.77 Back under 2.5 goals at  2.42 Back Ibrahimovic to score first at  3.75 Manchester United Jose Mourinho's side come into this game off the back of a third successive Premier League win. Unbeaten in eight league games since losing to  Chelsea  in October, United are now finally showing some consistency under Mourinho and looking like a coherent unit. The 2-0 win away at West Brom last weekend was impressive considering that the Baggies are one of the Premier League's form sides right now.  Zlatan Ibrahimovic  scored twice to continue a run of goals that is quite amazing for a 35-year old. Ibrahimovic has now scored eight goals in his last sev...

Newcastle v Sheffield Wednesday Monday 26 December, 19:45 Live on Sky Sports 1 Sheffield Wednesday Match Odds Over/Under 2.5 Goals Recommended Bets Newcastle In each of the past nine Championship seasons, the Christmas league leaders went on to clinch promotion.  Newcastle  might only hold a one-point advantage over Brighton but the Magpies look well on course to bounce straight back to the Premier League. Rafa Benitez's  boys were given a stern examination by Burton in their most recent outing; Mo Diame grabbed the winner in a 2-1 triumph but the Toon were out-shot 15-9 and enjoyed only 42% of the ball at the Pirelli Stadium. Newcastle's victory made it 11 wins from their past 13 matches but the hosts must now survive without midfield star  Jonjo Shelvey  for five fixtures. Shelvey - the Magpies tempo dictator - was found guilty of using racially abusive language in a game against Wolves in September. Sheffield Wednesday occupy the final play-of...