SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

Bet 1: Back Watford to beat Swansea at  1.70 Can Carlos Carvalhal turn things round for Swansea? Saving a club that is five points adrift in the Premier League is unlike any challenge he has faced before, and even if he is able to keep them up, it's likely to take a while to turn around a team that is five points adrift and leaking goals. Swansea's last outing was a Boxing Day thrashing at Anfield, and they've now conceded thirteen goals in four games. Watford have had their own problems at the back in recent weeks, having allowed an average of two goals in each of their last four fixtures, but they should have an easier time of it this weekend. As Mike Norman points out in his  Saturday Premier League Preview , in addition to their defensive woes, Swansea have also been struggling to find the net of late. The Swans have managed just four goals in their last six Premier League outings, so shouldn't give the Watford back line too many anxious moments. Bet 2:...

Ipswich  3.45  v Derby  2.34 ; The Draw  3.40 Just after putting Derby up as my best bet on Boxing Day it emerged that boss  Gary Rowett intended to make changes to his side for the trip to Hull. They still performed well, but couldn't quite manage the victory and had to settle for a goalless draw. But there are always positives from taking a draw away from home, and for the Rams it means they are now  five games without defeat , but more importantly they have recorded clean sheets in every one of those last five matches. Rowett is delighted with the way his side are defending, saying after the Hull game, "A fifth clean sheet in a row is excellent so I'm really pleased with that. We saw players putting their bodies on the line and that's what I'm after." He's spot on. At this level, when literally any team can beat anyone on their day, just one goal will always win you the game if you're keeping  clean sheets . It's a rock solid platform...

Man Utd v Southampton Saturday 30 December, 17:30 Live on BT Sport 1 Mourinho plays The Grinch Jose Mourinho  has played the role of The Grinch this Christmas after the 2-1 defeat at Bristol City in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals was followed by 2-2 draws against Leicester away and Burnley at home. "Lots of 's' goals against," complained Mourinho, adding that he didn't need to say the other letters of that word. It wasn't a happy Christmas for the United boss. United are still second but Manchester City are disappearing ever further over the horizon, now 15 points in front, and Mourinho's old club Chelsea are only a point behind in third. Winless in seven Southampton haven't had a good Christmas either, drawing 1-1 at home to Huddersfield and then being overrun in a 5-2 defeat by Tottenham at Wembley on Boxing Day. Mauricio Pellegrino's  side are winless in seven matches and have slid to 14th, only two points above the relegati...

Chelsea v Stoke City Saturday 30 December, 15:00 Chelsea trailing in leaders' wake, but it's not all doom and gloom With Manchester City setting the bar absurdly high in the Premier League title race, Chelsea boss  Antonio Conte  believes his side's own impressive form has been unfairly overlooked. He has a point - the champions have won nine of their last 12 league matches, losing just once in that sequence. They have reached the last 16 of the Champions League, and are in the semi-finals of the  Carabao Cup . At home, Chelsea have been  relentless  in the last couple of months, winning six Premier League matches in a row at Stamford Bridge. All very impressive, but not enough to make a dent in City's attempts to dethrone the Blues, and not even enough to lift Conte's men into the top two above Manchester United. Chelsea's  defensive record  has underpinned their recent improvement. They are chasing a fourth consecutive clean sheet in the...

Liverpool  1.32  v Leicester  11.00 ; The Draw  6.40 Saturday, 15:00 Liverpool's problems too big to be solved by one signing Liverpool's defensive worries have never been far away under  Jurgen Klopp  and the club have acted decisively in an effort to stop the flow of goals. Having been frustrated in their efforts to sign  Virgil van Dijk  during the summer, Liverpool have moved fast to secure a £75m deal for the centre-back, that will take place when the January transfer window opens. Though Van Dijk has the qualities to improve Liverpool's back four significantly, it's fair to say that he is merely a bit of the jigsaw rather than the final piece of the puzzle. Liverpool's defensive issues were on clear display in their recent 3-3 draw with  Arsenal  and they will continue to have problems until they recruit a defensive midfielder that can better protect the central defenders, who often find themselves exposed in one-on-on...