This article is part of our Best Bets series.
PREMIER LEAGUE (ENGLAND)
Leicester City v. Crystal Palace: Over 2.5 @ +100
Saturday, 10:00 a.m. (EDT)
It's hard to have faith in this Leicester City club scoring goals when they've plainly been figured out. The league has taken a 'fool me once…' attitude towards this team, and it shows in the results. Aside from beating basement-dwellers Swansea and Burnley, they have nothing to show for the first eight weeks. They have had a hard schedule, however, and have not lost in their four home matches, so I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. The fact that Crystal Palace is a more productive road team pushed me to make this bet; Palace are scoring 1.5 goals and have earned 64 percent of their points as the visitor. Should be good football, this.
Liverpool v. West Bromwich Albion: Liverpool -1.5 @ -130
Saturday, 12:30 p.m.
Liverpool lost to Burnley. We get it. It was a cute story early in the season, but this is a long season and since then all they have done is hold United scoreless, beat Chelsea on the road and crush the defending champs. The numbers just don't add up in any favorable manner for West Brom here; they've done well to get points in their last four, but their schedule has been comical to this point and Liverpool are going to cruise here. West Brom have yet to concede more than once in an away match, but Liverpool is the strongest opposition they've
PREMIER LEAGUE (ENGLAND)
Leicester City v. Crystal Palace: Over 2.5 @ +100
Saturday, 10:00 a.m. (EDT)
It's hard to have faith in this Leicester City club scoring goals when they've plainly been figured out. The league has taken a 'fool me once…' attitude towards this team, and it shows in the results. Aside from beating basement-dwellers Swansea and Burnley, they have nothing to show for the first eight weeks. They have had a hard schedule, however, and have not lost in their four home matches, so I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. The fact that Crystal Palace is a more productive road team pushed me to make this bet; Palace are scoring 1.5 goals and have earned 64 percent of their points as the visitor. Should be good football, this.
Liverpool v. West Bromwich Albion: Liverpool -1.5 @ -130
Saturday, 12:30 p.m.
Liverpool lost to Burnley. We get it. It was a cute story early in the season, but this is a long season and since then all they have done is hold United scoreless, beat Chelsea on the road and crush the defending champs. The numbers just don't add up in any favorable manner for West Brom here; they've done well to get points in their last four, but their schedule has been comical to this point and Liverpool are going to cruise here. West Brom have yet to concede more than once in an away match, but Liverpool is the strongest opposition they've faced on the road.
LIGUE 1 (FRANCE)
Angers vs. Toulouse: Angers pk @ -130
Saturday, 2:00 p.m.
I may have mentioned this before but in low-scoring leagues, whenever I can get the home team at a good price in a pick 'em I am more than willing to place a bet. Although Angers have conceded in every home match, their only loss came to league-leaders Nice, and Toulouse do not have that kind of firepower. Toulouse have scored just three times as the visitors, and that includes losses to struggling Bastia and Caen. Their only road win was against a poor Lille squad, and I love the safety of a possible push if Angers can't find the outright win.
Metz vs. Nice: Over 2.5 @ -110
Sunday, 11:00 a.m.
Nice again, yes this is happening, but I am not so madly in love with this club that I can justify their money line price in this matchup. If they were listed as a pick rather than a half-goal favorite, I would take a shot, but their away form needs to improve before I continue to go after them. I expected more out of them in their win over Nancy and their draw against Montpellier, but I still love the over here considering how poor Metz have been as the home team. Granted this is skewed due to their embarrassing effort against Monaco, but their home matches feature an average of 4.25 goals scored.
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER (USA)
Colorado Rapids vs. Houston Dynamo: Under 2.5 @ -115
Sunday, 4:00pm
There aren't too many Colorado stats that I haven't tossed out here, but coming off a loss to Portland they really need to lock down against a poor Houston team in order to get their Supporters Shield hopes back on track. We know Colorado usually plays to the under, but their season depends on it this weekend.
Toronto FC vs. Chicago Fire: Chicago team total Over .5 @ -130
Sunday, 4:00pm
In a sport where home field advantage is supposed to be paramount, Toronto FC have been absolutely stuck at BMO Field for a few months. They've only taken three points from their last five home matches, and they've conceded in four of them. Chicago have only been shut out seven times as the visitor and Toronto have only kept seven clean sheets at home. TFC just aren't dominant enough to to assume the Fire won't find the net.
LA LIGA (SPAIN)
Villarreal vs. Las Palmas: Over 2.5 @ -120
Sunday, 12:30pm
The statistics don't line up this nice very often, but they back up why this is my favorite bet of the weekend. Villarreal have been rolling (eight straight games without a loss) and play a much more dynamic style at home. Their home matches have cleared the over 75 percent of the time, and they get a visit from Las Palmas, who have scored and conceded in every road match this year. In fact, they have not played to an under yet. All of these bets are recommended as equal units, but if you were looking for a spot to go deep this weekend, I am certainly loving this.
Real Madrid vs. Athletic Bilbao: Athletic Bilbao +2 @ -125
Sunday, 2:45pm
I don't know what's going to happen here...Madrid could easily score six or seven goals on any given day but you just cannot spot the sixth-place team in the table a two-goal advantage in this sport. Never ever. After Madrid's streak of three straight draws, they snapped out of it in incredible fashion, thrashing Real Betis on the road, but this is not Real Betis. This is a club that has only conceded five times as the road team and has covered a two-goal spread all eight times they've taken the field. In contrast, Madrid have only won one home match by a score of more than two goals, which came against bottom-feeders Osasuna.
SERIE A (ITALY)
Cagliari vs. Fiorentina: Cagliari pk @ +120
Sunday, 9:00am
I want to sincerely apologize for doubting this Cagliari team at the beginning of the season. I don't admit this very often, but I was wrong. Cagliari are just behind Roma and Juventus for best home team this season, and though they haven't had the toughest schedule, they are doing their job and beating teams that they should be taking points from. This is another of those situations as Fiorentina come to visit. Although they have had a much tougher schedule, they have only take one point as the road team and I am just not sure where oddsmakers are coming up with these numbers for Cagliari; take the pk to be safe, but I love the money line here too.
Torino vs. Lazio: Torino team total Over 1.5 @ +110
Sunday, 9:00am
Serie A prices were pretty terrible for a few weeks, but things are starting to turn around. Getting plus money on this matchup is gold, as Torino are a very good home team and have scored the necessary two goals in three of their four home games. Lazio come in conceding two goals per game on the road, and though they have the second-best road record in the league, they are doing it with their attack. You would have to go back two-and-a-half years to find the last time Torino scored twice against Lazio, but these are two completely different teams and the tables have surely turned.
AROUND THE WORLD
Argentina: Colon vs. Patronato: Colon @ +105 (Saturday 4:30pm)
Australia: Western Sydney vs. Newcastle Jets: Over 3 @ +110 (Sunday 4:00am)
Australia: Central Coast Mariners vs. Brisbane Roar: Over 3 @ -115 (Saturday 2:35am)
England: Nottingham Forest vs. Cardiff City: Over 2.5 @ -115 (Saturday 12:30pm)
Germany: Eintracht Braunschweig vs. Greuther Furth: Over 2.5 @ -125 (Sunday 7:30am)
Japan: Vegalta Sendai vs. Vissel Kobe: Vissel Kobe @ +120 (Saturday 1:00am)
Netherlands: Feyenoord vs. Ajax: Under 2.5 @ -105 (Sunday 8:30am)
Russia: Ufa vs. Rostov: BTTS = YES @ +120 (Saturday 7:30am)
Ukraine: Oleksandria vs. Dynamo Kiev: BTTS = YES @ +115 (Sunday 7:00am)
