Weekend Review: Premier League results offset electric Liverpool to buoy bookies
Spurs and Arsenal slip to defeats and 40/1 outsider wins Irish Grand National as layers battle back after classic FA Cup semi-final
A thrilling FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool (17/10) and Manchester City (31/20) gave the bookies a bloody nose over the weekend but a series of layer-friendly results in the Premier League pushed the punters back.
At Wembley, Liverpool went into halftime 3-0 up against Pep Guardiola’s men after goals from Sadio Mane (2) and Ibrahima Konaté put the Merseysiders in control.
An awful error from City’s second choice keeper Zack Steffen allowed Mane to tackle the American yards from goal to make it 2-0 before sweeping home a fantastic volley for the third.
City rallied in the second half, with Jack Grealish scoring moments after the restart but a stoppage time goal to make it 3-2 by Bernardo Silva was not enough to take the game to extra time.
Bet365’s Steve Freeth said: “We took a huge hit on the first semi-final between Liverpool and Manchester City. Free bets, bet boosts, goals aplenty with a few cards thrown in, not the type of game we enjoy.”
Sadiooo 🕺🏽🔴 pic.twitter.com/h12aJA6ijH
— Trent Alexander-Arnold (@TrentAA) April 16, 2022
Liverpool’s victory means a famous quadruple is still viable this season, with the League Cup already in the bag and Champions League and Premier League glory potentially to come.
Freeth continued: “The victory has now seen Liverpool cut into 8/1 for the quadruple. We’ve seen Manchester City threaten to be the first team to do this over recent seasons before being chinned to save us some tasty payouts.
“Those £20 and £10 bets at huge prices certainly mount up and we’ve seen 200 or so bets at odds of 1500/1 and 1000/1 for Klopp’s side to be the first team to do such a feat,” he added.
In the other semi-final, Chelsea (1/2) brushed past Crystal Palace (6/1) 2-0 thanks to goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount.
Kindred Group’s Ali Gill said: “A game of two halves in the FA Cup as one result went our way and one the way of the punters. Liverpool were the choice team for the punters and duly delivered in what was a great game, but one that left us in the red.
“Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Palace was one we managed to squeeze some profit out of, all things considered.”
In the Premier League, Tottenham, Arsenal and West Ham all failed to win in the battle for the top four, while Manchester United needed a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick to dispose of rock bottom Norwich.
Arsenal (9/10) and Spurs (1/2) both suffered 1-0 losses at the hands of Southampton (14/5) and Brighton (6/1) respectively while West Ham (3/4) were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Burnley (7/2).
Defeat at @SpursStadium. pic.twitter.com/WItDtml3o6
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) April 16, 2022
Gill said: “The Premier League was absolutely one for the layers. As the battle to avoid fourth spot continues, Brighton’s win over Spurs was our biggest game of the round and the best result in the book as well as taking a load of accas with it, with Arsenal’s loss to Southampton another delight.”
On the continent, Real Madrid (29/20) fought back from 2-0 down away to Sevilla (2/1) with the red-hot Karim Benzema netting a 92nd minute winner for Los Blancos.
Freeth said: “The Real Madrid fightback was one of the worst ones over the Easter period with our 2 Goals Ahead Early Payout being triggered when Sevilla went 2-0 up. That Benzema chap is becoming a bit of a pain.”
In horseracing, 40/1 outsider Lord Lariat gave trainer Dermot McLoughlin a second consecutive win in the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.
The race was beset with a series of falls, but jockey Paddy O’Hanlon guided the winner well amid the drama to win out ahead of Frontal Assault by almost five lengths.
Pre-race favourite Gaillard Du Mesnil (11/2) finished third.
Lord Lariat wins the BoyleSports Irish Grand National Chase 🏆
That's back to back wins in the Irish National for Dermot McLoughlin!!#ITVRacing | #IrishGrandNational pic.twitter.com/lillcOO7Qp
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) April 18, 2022
Gill said: “In the Irish Grand National, 40/1 winner Lord Lariat left us ahead as favourite Gaillard Du Mesnil could only manage third at 11/2.”
Matchbook’s Aidan O’Sullivan said: “The Irish Grand National took centre stage from Fairyhouse. Like the Aintree affair, it was a terrific day for the layers, with Lord Lariet winning at a price of 70.0 at the off versus the industry SP of 41.0. One lucky punter had £50 at 70.0, but that was more or less the sum of the damage to the layers.”
Finally, the World Snooker Championship kicked off with Zhao Xintong and the legendary Ronnie O’Sullivan looking to be the bookies’ top choices.
Betfred’s Alan Firkins said: “The Betfred World Snooker Championship got underway in Sheffield, and some very good judges are raving about Zhao Xintong. He dismissed Jamie Clarke 10-2 in round one, and Ronnie O’Sullivan no less has said that in his opinion, if he fulfils only 80% of his promise he’ll win four or five world titles.
“He’s an 11/1 chance for Crucible glory, with The Rocket at 9/2 to equal Stephen Hendry’s career-haul of seven.”