By George Elek - 29 August 2024
A 10/11 winner isn’t much to crow about, but it was nice to put up the first one up of the season here last weekend thanks to Callum Robinson’s equaliser in the South Wales Derby, which meant that Cardiff or Draw copped although alas the no goalscorer bet evidently did not.
Onto this weekend’s Sunday action live on Sky, when Sheffield United are hosting Watford at 3pm. This could be the start of an almighty climbdown for me, after predicting Tom Cleverley’s Hornets to finish 24th in the Not The Top 20 1-24s before the season started. They’ve won three from three so far.
My list of concerns was longer than the “Watford FC Managers” Wikipedia page, but my main worry was around a rookie manager (Tom Cleverley) not being given the tools to do the job he was being asked to do.
Their flawless start means that the egg is now dangerously close to my face, but I won’t be tearing up my 7/1 relegation slip quite yet with some factors maybe going their way in the opening few weeks, none more so than the fixture list, which has thrown up two games against early strugglers in Millwall and the newly promoted Derby County.
Against the former they managed to win 3-2, with their goals coming direct from a corner, a 35-yard free-kick and a later winning header from a deflected shot from range.
That somewhat fortuitous win does seem to have galvanised them though, with an impressive 2-1 comeback win against The Rams coming after a dominant 3-0 display when hosting Stoke. Three games, three wins and nine points, but away at Sheffield United will be a step up in terms of the quality of opposition.
Chris Wilder, one of those featured on the aforementioned Wikipedia page, will be frustrated that his unbeaten Blades side only have five points to show for their start. They squandered a two-goal lead at home to QPR, before picking up a decent point on the road last time out at Norwich.
Their recent signings should compliment what has already been a good summer, with Jesrun Rak-Sakyi and Mike Cooper both making their debuts at Carrow Road. Callum O’Hare and Kieffer Moore are also smart pick-ups, and Chris Wilder deserves more respect than he’s maybe now given after his star has fallen somewhat in recent seasons.
This stage of the season is all about sticking to your guns and hoping that you know more than a market that could be spooked by noisy results rather than any tangible quality. I’d be happy enough to back the 4/5 about a home win, but think we can boost that to 13/5 by backing Sheffield United and BTTS.
Sheffield United’s inability to hold onto their two-goal lead last time they played at Bramall Lane coupled with Watford’s free-scoring start to the season lends me to think that this should be a relatively end-to-end game even if Wilder’s side’s quality should be reflected in the final score.
Wilder looks to be setting up a team this season to play on the front foot, and early evidence suggests that Cleverley is also a manager who is loathe to set a team up to frustrate rather than play with some freedom. It should be a good watch, and give us a much clearer picture of what the expectation levels should be for both.
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