Saturday’s football predictions
- Celtic to beat Hearts and both teams to score - 6/4 Bet365
- Leeds to beat Swansea to nil - 4/5 William Hill
- Burnley v Bristol City to end in a draw - 5/2 Unibet
- Birmingham to score three or more against Shrewsbury - 5/4 Bet365
- The fourfold pays over 33/1 with Bet365
The international break might be over but there is no return to Premier League action just yet as the FA Cup takes centre stage.
As far as our accumulator goes, we’re focussing on the EFL and Scottish Premier League with plenty of interesting match ups to look forward to as we enter the business end of the season.
There is so much to play for at both ends of the table, as you will see from the matches and tips we’ve selected to make a fourfold that returns at 33/1 with Bet365.
Celtic vs Hearts Prediction
Celtic can edge closer to the Scottish Premier League table on Saturday when they host Hearts at 3pm.
Brendan Rodgers’ side are 13 points clear of Rangers in second place and 36 points ahead of their opponents, with just 12 points required to wrap up their 13th title in 14 years.
This will be the third time the two sides have met this season and Celtic have already taken six points out of six. They won 2-0 at home in September before following it up with a 4-1 win away at Tynecastle, with Adam Idah scoring twice.
Despite Celtic’s dominance in recent years Hearts managed two wins over the Bhoys last season, including at Celtic Park when Lawrence Shankland and Stephen Kingsley both scored in a 2-0 win. However, while Neil Critchley’s side have won four of their last five games, they are unlikely to have enough to record another famous win at Parkhead.
Football betting sites make Celtic 1/4 for the win, with Hearts 11/1, and you can get 11/2 on a draw - a result that hasn’t occurred in the last 17 meetings between the teams.
Six of the last eight meetings have been won to nil, but Celtic have conceded in seven of their last nine league matches, including letting in three against Dundee and Rangers and two at St Mirren.
Hearts have scored in 10 matches in a row, with 26 goals for and 12 conceded, so over 2.5 goals or both teams to score paired with a Celtic win is worth consideration.
Saturday accumulator prediction 1: Celtic to win and both teams to score - 6/4 Bet365
Leeds vs Swansea Prediction
Daniel Farke will see this fixture as another opportunity to further Leeds’s hope of a Premier League return with 36 points and 15 places separating the two sides.
By the time they kick off, Leeds could be in second place, with joint leaders Sheffield United in action on Friday night in what’s shaping up to be a three-way fight for first.
Burnley, in third place, are just two points behind and their goal difference is far superior to United, thanks to the fact they have only conceded 11 goals all season.
Leeds are currently on their worst league run of the campaign with just one win from their last three matches and now is not the time to have a blip.
They were recently held to draws by West Brom and QPR and beaten by Portsmouth, and Farke will be hoping his side can bounce back after the international break.
The last meeting between the two sides, back in November, resulted in seven goals including two in injury time, as Leeds managed to secure a 4-3 win at the Swnsea.com Stadium.
That is a huge contrast to the Swans’ current form which has seen them score just once in their last four games.
Saturday accumulator prediction 2: Leeds to win to nil - 4/5 William Hill
Burnley vs Bristol City Prediction
We’ve already mentioned how good Burnley have been at the back, conceding just 11 goals in their 38 games, but they have also scored 52, meaning Bristol City are going to have to be at their best if they are to take anything at Turf Moor.
City have been one of the surprise packages this season and currently only sit outside the play-off places on goal difference.
They have picked up 57 points from their 28 games so far and Liam Manning will certainly have one eye on extending his season by two games at least.
The Clarets last tasted defeat way back in November, when they were beaten by Millwall but they have drawn 10 matches since then, including eight goalless draws. Betting sites are offering 5/2 on this one ending all square.
City go into the game with four wins and three draws from their last seven games, so another draw is looking more appealing by the minute.
Saturday accumulator prediction 3: Burnley vs Bristol City to end in a draw - 5/2 Unibet
Birmingham vs Shrewsbury Prediction
In League One things couldn’t be much tougher for Shrewsbury Town right now. They sit bottom of the League One table, their manager Gareth Ainsworth has quit to drop down to League Two to take over at Gillingham, and on Saturday they face top of the table Birmingham City.
Chris Davies’ men are nine points clear of second place Wrexham and 12 clear of Wycombe in third, so it seems only a matter of time before their promotion back to the Championship is secured.
They have won eight of their last 11 games, losing just once, away at Bolton earlier this month, when they went down 3-1 at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.
That was one of only three defeats all season Blues have suffered all season, but they also went down against Saturday’s opponents 3-2 back in November in Ainsworth’s first game in charge.
He went on to win just four more times before leaving the club on Tuesday to sign a two-year contract at Gillingham.
The Salop are 14 points from safety and their relegation looks all but confirmed, with just nine games to play, and to think they will complete the double over the Blues seems a little far-fetched.
The Shrews are a massive 18/1 on some betting apps to win at St Andrew’s, but it seems more likely Birmingham avenge that shock loss in style.
Saturday accumulator prediction 4: Birmingham to score three or more against Shrewsbury - 5/4 Bet365
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