Jose Mourinho said the other day that Manchester United deserved to win all of the nine games they have drawn. That’s an extra haul of 18 points. Which would put them four points clear off the seemingly unstoppable force that are Chelsea.
In other words, Mourinho reckons his United side are the best in the league. We can’t agree with such skewed logic. We can’t even agree that they are a good bet to beat Leicester City at the KingPower Stadium on Sunday.
The layers at green listed bookmakers give them a best price of 1.7. Those odds are with Betfred. Interesting. Betfred is the pride of fanatical United supporter Fred Done. So even he doesn’t fancy them that much. They are as short as 1.62 with Stan James.
Why are United so short? Two theories abound in the industry. First, there is a wave of money that comes for United regardless of who they are playing so bookies can afford to price them up a little shorter than they should be. There is also the accumulator factor.
With Manchester City playing on the same day (at home to Swansea) the temptation will be strong for a double delight in Manchester. So the price is squeezed.
Of course the most important factor is a ragged Leicester. But before we criticise their performance, what about United? Are they actually playing well enough to deserve such skinny status?
Well, it depends on whether you are a glass half full or half empty kind of guy/gal. United are unbeaten in 14 in all competitions. That’s the best streak in Europe. However, seven have been draws. And they have drawn their last three in the Premier League. This has not only ended their title challenge with absolute certainty, but it puts them in a grim battle for a Champions League spot.
Leicester, one suspects, are desperate for a point. They are 6 (BetVictor) for a win. This looks unlikely considering their sequence of two wins in 14. They are yet to score this year and could be the first champion to lose four-in-a-row since 1983.
Stats like that will keep coming because Leicester are champions only in name. They have hopelessly failed to even match half the desire they showed last season and they have realised before it’s too late. Sure, they’re trying now but few can have sympathy for a mob who thought they could just turn it on when they fancied.
It’s tricky when perusing a match when there are negatives everywhere you look about two teams. Unfortunately, United’s price is just the biggest of them all.
The smart money is on a stalemate at 4 (Bet365, Paddy Power). That’s where ours will be going anyway. Even the boffins at the University of Salford agree. Their super computer (Sports Analytics Machine) which eats algorithms for breakfast, says it’s a draw with 1-1 the most likely score.
You can bet that at 8 with Bet365 and BetVictor. If you fancy United, we best advise following a 2-0 success at 8.5 (BetVictor). That is worth a saver.
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