BETTING-EXCHANGES.COM

I realise that it has been months since my last post - I have been trying to sort out my Betfair accounts which unfortunately were hacked last year. I stress that this is not Betfair's fault but that does not help me regarding my funds which were 'blown' on a no-hoper against Nadal!

I assume that once the hacker(s) realised that withdrawals could only be made to the bank cards on my account - that they just bet my account funds out of frustration. Prats.

Anyway the cyber-unit of Hampshire police have not made any headway and have now dropped the case despite actually tracing the location / IP address of the computer used for the hacking.

During this 'down time' I have become involved in some other projects - not yet sure if I will return to Betfair as they cannot refund my funds and I still do not know how the hackers go in.

Wish you all the best of luck.

Dan

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

Most boxing pundits are going for Klitschko in the big fight on July 2. I am not so sure though. There is 'nothing' in this division in terms of opponent and I wonder if we have just got used to watching 'no hopers' getting demolished by Klitschko - that make him look better than he is. He is a good, if boring, technician but I would'nt be surprised if Haye can upset that rythmn and maybe spring a surprise. I would like him to get through the first 3 or 4 rounds to make that happen. The problem is the price at under 2/1 - and that could come in further as the fight draws closer as fans get on.
Anyway I think an upset is on the cards - hoping for a 'Haye-maker'!

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

Agree with both Andy's tips. You wouldn't catch me taking the odds on Chelsea though. Arsenal at 1.4 acceptable. Sure to put in a decent home showing after last week. On the smaller games I have no view - except that I don't have Birmingham beating Fulham.


Chelsea v Newcastle

There's not much Chelsea can do now other than just trying to finish the season as well as possible. Results this year this may mean a change of manager over the summer and if that's the case all the players on show will want to put in good performance because they can be pretty sure any new boss will be watching a video of this game. Besides, it's the last home match of the season and they'll want to provide good entertainment for the fans, who have supported them well throughout a campaign that must ultimately be viewed as a poor one.


There will be an inquiry over the summer into how a side who started the season so well ended up winning nothing and the form of Fernando Torres will be a whole other issue.

All those are concerns are for another day though and whatever went wrong elsewhere, Chelsea's home form against mid-table teams was actually pretty good. With not much to play for themselves and the summer break on their minds, I think Newcastle could be on the wrong end of a pretty convincing defeat here.

Recommended Bets:

Back Chelsea to win at 1.25

Back Chelsea to win 3-0 at 10.0

Back Chelsae to keep a clean sheet at 2.0



Arsenal v Aston Villa


I think I've spent more time on this site trying to work out what went wrong with Arsenal this season than discussing anything else. Everyone will have their own views and I suspect Arsene Wenger will have his own idas too but the truth is that a team with as good a manager as the Frenchman and a side as richly talented as this one just can't go on this long without winning something. Or at least they shouldn’t be allowed to.

Unlike Chelsea or Newcastle though, Arsenal have plenty to play for in this match. If they were to finish fourth they’d have to try to get into the Champions League via the play-off route and you never know who you might end up facing in that. The likes of Bayern Munich could well end up being their opponents at the last hurdle and that's not really the sort of team you want to be facing at any time, let alone that early on in the season.

Arsenal were massively disappointing on Sunday aginst Stoke and few would argue the home win wasn’t a deserved result. I think the Gunners have got one big performance let in them this season though and I fancy them to beat a Villa side here, who rather like Newcastle, may already be thinking about sunny beaches rather than 90 minutes of chasing shadows on a warm afternoon.

Recommended Bets:

Back Arsenal to win at 1.4

Back Arsenal to win 2-0 at 8.0

Back Theo Walcott to score at 3.6



Birmingham v Fulham – A home win against a side low on confidence after a horror performance against Liverpool on Monday. Back Birmingham to win at 2.18; back Birmingham to win 2-1 at 10.0

Liverpool v Tottenham – No prizes for guessing who's in the better form going into this match and I think that will have shown by the time the final whistle has been blown. Back Liverpool to win at 1.8; back Liverpool to win 3-1 at 17.0

Wigan v West Ham – A six-pointer if ever I’ve seen one and one in which Wigan should come out on top. But will it be enough? Back Wigan to win at 2.2; back Wigan to win 1-0 at 10.0.

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

Just on the Champions League final: I think Utd are actually better equipped to deal with Barcelona this time around. Without the dynamism of Ronaldo they look a more solid unit - a better team. I always felt Ronaldo kind of 'pulled the team apart' with his runs sometimes. Lets not forget that they are also effectively at home.

The problem of course is that Man Utd can only play one way - attack. Barcelona too only know attack - but are the best in the world at doing it. I fear that if Man Utd become too adventurous - as is their instinct - they will not win the game. If instead they can defend well for 70 minutes or so, then there is always a chance that they can 'nick it' in the last twenty minutes. Can't wait to watch it.

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

This isn't the final many would have expected but no-one could argue that either Stoke or Manchester City don't deserve to be at Wembley. City knocked out the team which has been the best in the country throughout the season when they beat Manchester United whilst Stoke have gone into unchartered territory and come up trumps when it really mattered.



Manchester City v Stoke



A lot of football fans tuning in to watch the FA Cup final will be expecting this to be a done deal and for City to win this pretty comfortably. Look at their respective league positions and the calibre of players at their disposal and it's pretty obvious why City are favourites.



But football doesn't always work like that and that's why we love watching it. There will have been plenty of burnt fingers when odds-on backers thought all Arsenal needed to do to win the Carling Cup final was show up. And look what happened there.



Tony Pulis will be instructing his players to carry on doing exactly what has kept them safely in the Premier League once again and got them to Wembley in this competition. Fight for everything, work hard when they don't have the ball and try to make something happen from any throw-ins and set-pieces that come their way. The one concern for Pulis is that they may not be as successful against Manchester City as they may be against other sides when it comes to dead-ball situations because their opponents are a big team. Arsenal didn't defend them at all on Sunday and that cost them, but in players like Vincent Kompany, Yaya Toure and Micah Richards, Roberto Mancini has some big old units who aren't afraid to put their heads in the way and take a few knocks in the process.



But Yaya Toure is more than just a physical presence and his runs and goals from midfield have been a big factor in City's success this season. David Silva had a slight dip in form about a month ago but his performances in the last few matches have been superb and I expect this pair to be pulling the strings in their midfield and making things happen. Then of course there's Carlos Tevez. He got a few minutes on Tuesday night to try and convince Mancini that he's fit enough to start this match and that will be the big decision the Italian has to make on the day. It's a tough choice. If Tevez starts and hobbles off after quarter of an hour he’ll have to waste a substitution early on and re-think his tactics. If he keeps him on the bench and City end up losing there will be an inquiry as to why he did so.



Whatever happens as regards Tevez, I think City will end up winning this match and finally get some silverware to put in the cabinet. I think Stoke will score at least once and I can see Jermaine Pennant giving Aleksandar Kolarov a torrid time throughout the match, but that shouldn't affect the end result.



Recommended Bets:



Back Manchester City to win in 90 minutes at 1.94

Back both teams to score at 2.0

Back Manchester City to win 2-1 at 10.0 and 3-1 at 18.0





Blackburn v Manchester United



Much depends on what sort of side Sir Alex Ferguson puts out on the day. He may well choose to make wholesale changes given it's been a pretty energy-sapping few weeks both mentally and physically for his team. But don't go rushing to back Blackburn if you see a vastly different XI to the one that started against Chelsea on Sunday. United played virtually a second string XI against Champions League semi-finalists Schalke and absolutely hammered them which goes to show the strength in depth that they possess.



Blackburn know that a point from their last two matches will be enough to see them stay up and though that may seem something of an unsatisfactory return by the owners who had such great hopes for this Blackburn team when they bought them, in the short-term it's a massively important achievement. Will Steve Kean stay beyond the summer? We’ll have to wait and see but I'm sure he won't be thinking about that either right now, safety is all that will be on his mind.



It's one of those matches where a draw would suit both teams just fine and that may well be exactly what we end up with.



Recommended Bets:



Back the draw at 3.7

Back 1-1 at 7.6

Back Nani to be first goalscorer at 8.0





Blackpool v Bolton – There will be plenty of neutrals up and down the country hoping Ian Holloway’s Blackpool can win this match and I think they might just do that. Back Blackpool to win at 2.24; back Blackpool to win 2-1 at 10.0.

Sunderland v Wolves – A share of the spoils may well be on the cards here and if that’s the case, Wolves will probably have to wait till the last day of the season to see if they've made it. Back the draw at 3.45; back 1-1 at 7.6

West Brom v Everton – A score draw in an entertaining match between two sides who have scored and conceded in equal amounts recently. Back the draw at 3.35; back 2-2 at 15.0

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

Andy Gray has his slot on Betfair at the moment and puts in tips fairly regularly.
Not sure what his P/L is but it's always worth putting them up. Just a bit of fun.

For what it's worth I agree with his Inter Milan win bet but I am not so sure Spurs will pull it off against Real Madrid. I know that for Real the tie is virtually over but I just think Real will claw back any goals they concede - if only for pride. I can kind of see this ending in a draw - maybe 2-2.

"Tottenham v Real Madrid

I feel for Peter Crouch, I really do. He's not a remotely dirty player yet in one of the biggest matches of his life he made two rash tackles and was off before he even had so much as a couple of touches.

These things happen in football and I was delighted to see him score a couple in his very next match against Stoke but unfortunately Tottenham's chances went with him. It's difficult enough playing against Real Madrid with 11 men, it's practically impossible to do so with ten.


Teams recover from a four goal deficit in the second leg about once every lifetime and when it happens, it's unlikely to be against Real Madrid. That said, there s no reason for Spurs fans to be too down-hearted about this return leg. For starters, hosting Real Madrid in a Champions League quarter-final should be reason for celebration whatever the circumstances. Secondly, there are good reasons to think Spurs can actually go out with a bang and win the match, if not the tie. Jose Mourinho knows perfectly well that it would take a minor miracle for this lead to be overturned and may be tempted to rest a few of his key players, especially those who are a booking away from a suspension in the next round. And he may even give a breather to those who aren’t treading a tightrope, with the Spanish Cup final and big league matches coming up.

Spurs have been excellent in this competition at home and will want to go out on a high note given they’re not sure when they'll next be playing in the Champions League. Ever the pragmatist, Mourinho wouldn't be too worried about actually losing the match as long as Real went through and injuries and suspensions were avoided. It will end up being in vain but I can see Spurs' last match in his thrilling campaign ending in a positive way.

Recommended Bets:

Back Spurs to win at 2.82

Back Tottenham to win 2-1 at 11.0



Schalke v Inter Milan

Those who watched the first leg live tell me this tie is far from over. I know that sounds ridiculous when Inter need to score at least four goals to go through but Schalke's defending was so ordinary in the first leg that it's not inconceivable. Especially when you consider that Inter have the firepower in the likes of Wesley Sneijder, Diego Milito and Samuel Eto'o to score four goals past anyone.

I like these open matches where one side has no choice but to really go for it and this should be pretty entertaining stuff but Schalke have such a big lead that I can't see Inter quite pulling it off.


Recommended Bets:


Back Inter to win at 2.7

Back Inter to win 3-1 at 28.0"

posted by Betting Exchange Trader

I went to Chelsea v Liverpool on Sunday expecting a victory for the Blues after some
pretty good performances, however, as soon as I saw Torres was in the starting line-up my heart sank.

I know Torres' inclusion was probably what most of the fans wanted and had he scored, it would have been good for shirt sales after the game - but really - why change a team that has been doing well for the sake of a debut?

Torres was never going to be that effective against his old club that know his game inside out. In the end, all he got was a confidence knock and abuse from Liverpool supporters - meanwhile we lost another game.

The new boy should have come on as a sub in the last quarter of the game.

If Ancelotti chose the team (hopefully without interference from Abramovich) then it was wrong, as was the set up. My faith in him as a manager is waning.

Mourinho would have taken an almost sadistic delight in not playing Torres and making him earn his place through a couple of good training sessions.

Once Liverpool had scored I didn't see a way back for us - hate to admit it but Liverpool played well.

You can, however, see Torres is class - he'll come good in time I am sure.

After the game I asked my eleven year old son if he wanted me to get him a Torres No.9 shirt - his response: "Thanks Dad, but no, it's much too expensive."

posted by Betting Exchange Trader