NJ's Midweek Premier League Preview

By Nishant Joshi

Arsenal vs Bolton



20th January 19:45 GMT

After securing a comfortable 2-0 at the weekend, Arsenal are faced with a fairly ideal reverse fixture just a few days later. Owen Coyle's new side looked much improved in his first game in charge, but Arsenal still ran out comfortable winners. With no new injury worries and with their home record of 8-1-1 this season, Arsenal are the obvious pick here, but instead of piling into them for the win at a generally available 1.2, we'll take them on the Asian Handicap. The Gunners have scored 30 goals in their ten home matches this season, and there's certainly some mileage in the evens quote about the -1.75 AH.

Liverpool vs Tottenham



20th January 20:00 GMT
Sky Sports 1 (19:30-22:00), Sky Sports HD1 (19:30-22:00)

We were slightly hard done by at the weekend when Stoke failed to take care of Liverpool in their own back yard - the reasoning was sound but the performance wasn't positive enough to secure the win. Nevertheless, Stoke's tremendously late equaliser only served to underline that Liverpool are a vulnerable team at the moment. Without Gerrard, Torres and Benayoun, the gaffer must be close to a complete overhaul and selecting the local Under 17's side. Team selection is no longer a luxury, with the expensive Alberto Aquilani benched at the weekend despite the squad being threadbare. With the likes of Lucas holding onto his midfield berth like a leech, I can only assume that the Brazilian kid has a terminal illness and Rafa Benitez is trying to give some publicity to the 'Make a Wish Foundation'.

On the other side of the coin, Tottenham have now kept six clean sheets in a row and are sitting pretty in fourth place. It's my rule of thumb to always oppose Liverpool when Gerrard/Torres aren't playing, but when you add star performer Benayoun to the list, growing unrest in what will be a fickle midweek crowd, and pretty poor form overall...Rafa's not exactly doing much to tempt us with the 2.2 about a Liverpool win.

Man Utd vs Hull



23rd January 15:00 GMT

In their quest to regain the top spot, Man Utd are in an important run of fixtures. Despite an easy win against Wigan at the weekend, their Carling Cup loss to arch rivals Manchester City will have cut deep, especially considering both goals were scored by Red Devils discard Carlos Tevez. Just two days later, they will be looking to bounce back against Hull, a side who are surely destined for relegation. Led by a manager only accepted by Hull fans for his contribution to the city's fake tan industry; Hull have little hope of climbing the table, even in the midst of some relatively poor quality teams at the bottom of the league.

Only Boaz Myhill earned them a 0-0 draw at White Hart Lane at the weekend, as Spurs managed 30 shots during the game but were unable to get past an inspired Myhill - whose ridiculous name is frustrating, simply because I'm not entirely sure how to go about ridiculing it. To be fair, 'Boz Myhill' and 'Baz Myhill' would both incur my full repertoire of cliché puns.

We've now backed 'Wayne Rooney to score 2 or more' on two occasions this season - both times he's scored just the one, and subsequently failed to push on. However, he still remains in excellent form, and William Hill still offer 5.5 for the outcome, compared to around 4.0 everywhere else - c'mon Wayne, third time lucky.

NJ's Midweek Bets:

Arsenal to beat Bolton -1.75 AH - 3.75pts @ 2.0 (Paddy Power)

Tottenham to beat Liverpool (draw no bet) - 3.5pts @ 2.2 (VCBet)

Wayne Rooney to score 2 or more - 2pts @ 5.5 (William Hill)