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2011-10-25 - Aldershot vs Manchester United
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football : English Carling Cup 4th Round
Tuesday 25 October 2011 - Kickoff 7:45pm
This game is live on TV
Aldershot
As the TV build up to this game says, this really is what 'players wait for' when they play at this level and get a chance to play against the Champions of England in front of their own fans. Aldershot are the lowest placed League team left in the Carling Cup this season and would not have wished for a better draw.
Aldershot had not been in very good form since the draw for this Round of the Carling Cup was made, and they sit in 15th place in League Two after an inconsistent start to the season. They are 1-1-4 at the Recreation Ground this season, scoring just 3 goals and conceding 6. However, Aldershot have beaten Carlisle United and Rochdale here in previous Rounds of this competition.
As I said, the team's form had not been very good since the draw for this game had been made, losing 5 games in a row since knocking out Rochdale in the last Round. They did stop the rot with a convincing 2-5 win at Dagenham & Redbridge at the weekend, but they have lost 3 in a row at home.
There are no new injury worries for Aldershot and they look set to start the same XI that beat Dagenham at the weekend.
Manchester United
It's been a tough 24 hours for all those who are connected with Manchester United, be it the staff, players or fans since an absolutely shocking ending to the Manchester Derby on Sunday afternoon. However, the one thing all will be expecting is a reaction to that result and I fully expect United to push on from now.
The Carling Cup remains the lowest of United's priorities this season, but it has proven to be a competition where they have enjoyed plenty of success in the last few seasons, winning the competition twice and reaching the Quarter Finals last season. Sir Alex Ferguson also played a surprisingly stronger team than expected at Leeds United in the last Round and I expect something similar for this game.
The result on Sunday highlighted United's recent struggles where they have won just 2 of their last 6 games in all competitions. The defence has been giving up far too many opportunities and the return of Nemanja Vidic cannot come soon enough. They are unbeaten in all 7 away games they have played this season, although winning just 2 of their last 5.
Ryan Giggs is out through injury, while Jonny Evans is suspended and United are also expected to make a vast amount of other changes. That means the likes of Dimitar Berbatov, Michael Owen, Antonio Valencia, Fabio, Ji Sung Park, Michael Carrick and Anders Lindegaard are likely to be given a start. The aforementioned Vidic may also be given a start having played very little since early August.
Prediction
As I did in the last Round against Leeds, the best way for me to be involved in this match is to pick Michael Owen to continue his excellent record in this competition for United.
I know there is a very popular 'bettingzone' out there that have tipped Michael Owen to score at least 2 goals, but I am going to pick the former England International to just score at anytime at odds against.
A lot of this is going to be a rehash from what I wrote in my Leeds-Manchester United preview, but I'll make it briefer.
I am picking Michael Owen to score as he has had a lot of success for United in games against lower League clubs- he has goals against Scunthorpe, Barnsley and Southampton in previous years and has already added a couple against Leeds this season.
Owen knows his chances are limited at Old Trafford and he must stay in the manager's thoughts by scoring goals when he is given an opportunity and at 2.25, Owen has to be the call to get on the scoresheet, but I'll be keeping it to minimum stakes in this competition.
The Pick :
Aldershot 0-3 Manchester United
FIXED ODDS BETTING TIP :
I'll be backing Michael Owen to score anytime @ 2.25 (Victor Chandler)
