English Premier
2018-09-16 - Wolves vs Burnley
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Sunday 16th September 2018 - Kick Off 1:30pm
This game is live on TV
Wolves
Many people tipped up Wolves as a potential top ten club in the Premier League at the beginning of this season and the start made by the club suggests they can reach that expectation. There will be hope for more from the results to match the performances produced by Wolves, but so far it has been a strong return to the top flight for this club.
They come into the weekend in 11th place in the Premier League table with 5 points earned from a possible 12 Wolves have played for. The side are still searching for their first home win of the season in the Premier League having produced a 0-2-0 record at Molineux with 3 goals scored and conceded.
Wolves have only lost 1 of their 5 games played in all competitions this season and they have won back to back games at Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup and at West Ham United in the Premier League going into the international break. They have drawn 4 of their last 6 home games going back to last season including the last 3 in a row.
Ivan Cavalheiro is expected to miss this fixture, while Raul Jimenez is a doubt.
Burnley
Playing Europa League Football and Premier League Football during the month of August proved to be difficult for Burnley and Sean Dyche might be privately pleased his club are out of the European competition. Coming out of the international break it could be the time for Burnley to turn around their form as they will have more time to prepare for their fixtures, although finishing as high as 7th in the League table looks a big ask for this squad.
A poor start to the Premier League season means Burnley go into the weekend in 19th place in the Premier League table and they have earned just a single point so far. That point did come away from home where Burnley have a 0-1-1 record and have scored 2 goals while conceding 4.
Burnley have not won any of their last 15 games in all competitions in normal time and they have suffered a defeat in 4 of their last 5 going into this fixture. They had drawn their first 3 away games played in all competitions in the 2018/19 season, but Burnley have lost back to back games at Olympiacos and Fulham and conceded at least three goals in each.
There are a couple of long-term injuries in the Burnley squad, but both Stephen Ward and Johann Berg Gudmundsson should be available to bolster the options for Sean Dyche.
Head to Head
Burnley and Wolves last met in the 2015/16 season when both clubs played in the Championship and both League games ended in draws.
Wolves have only lost 1 of their last 4 home games against Burnley but they have failed to win either of the last 2 games.
Prediction
As soon as Burnley qualified for the Europa League Qualifiers and failed to make the kind of investment in the playing staff that was expected in the summer it felt like this squad would be stretched playing the Thursday-Sunday schedule.
That has to be a real contributory factor in the poor start made by Burnley although they have also been a little unlucky in fixtures as teams have taken the chances they have created and Burnley's defence has not been as strong as it was last season.
I do expect things to turn around for Burnley now they are back to solely concentrating on the Premier League and they look a little underrated to earn a result in the first live game on Sunday afternoon.
Wolves have played well this season and could have earned more than the 5 points they have put on the board, but they haven't been so strong to think they deserve to be as short a price to win this fixture. The team do look decent enough going forward, but Wolves have yet to bring in the defensive strength which formed the platform of their success in the Championship as they won that Division in May.
Both teams should have their chances in this one and I am anticipating a close match. I don't think Burnley will defend as poorly as they have in August now the players are going to be more rested to put in the effort they need in the Premier League fixtures they have coming up and I think that makes them an interesting back on the Asian Handicap this weekend.
While I can understand why Wolves are favourites to win, this is a team still learning how to cope with the higher level and demands of the Premier League compared with the Championship. They do have players that could provide a magic moment or two to win this one, but Burnley are capable of scoring here which could make it very difficult for Wolves to win the game.
Backing the away team with the start on the Asian Handicap means half the stake would be returned if Burnley lose by a single goal margin, but I do think Sean Dyche's men can earn a result on Sunday. They will have to play better than they were going into the international break, but Burnley could also have a little bit more luck than they have enjoyed so far in the 2018/19 season and that could see Burnley earn a 'surprise' positive result in this one.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Wolves 1-1 Burnley
