Aston Villa v QPR
Ding dong… let’s ring in the year with our top Jan 1 Championship betting tips. Welcome to 2019 and a Happy New Year from all our team. Here’s to a big year of profits spent bashing the bookies on all fronts. Keep our site close for the best free betting tips and predictions on the sports and matches you love. We have a thrilling round of fixtures from the English Championship to get things off to a roaring start and have found a couple of bets we think will put profits in your pockets and set the pace for the rest of the season.
We start off the Jan 1 Championship betting tips with Aston Villa v QPR. Aston Villa kick-off with a home match against London side QPR and this has all the ingredients of a festive cracker. Both sides promised big things this season; however, they go into the match knowing they’ve been performing well below a level that’s acceptable to their fans. Villa was one of the pre-season favourites for promotion; however, just eight wins from their first 22 games left them outside of the top-six play-off places and already playing catch-up.
They suffered from a run of draws in December and had to make do with a point at The Hawthorns when playing their part in a four-goal thriller. They also stumbled to a 2-2 finish when hosting Stoke City recently, goals from Abraham and Kodjia matched by Allen and Afobe. Turning one point into three in the coming weeks and months will be key to any success the club has this term.
Hoops Must Do Better
QPR sit in mid-table at present and that’s no better than they deserve after a poor start to the season and failing to nail down any kind of consistency since. They suffered a less than convincing December at a time of year when winning is important; after 22 games their stats showed 9-4-9. Bosses will sit down early in the new year and pick-out the problems that have stunted their progress this season. The first point of note in that meeting will be the fact the team conceded 32 goals in 22 games and that leaky defence will need fixing before it becomes a major problem.
The ability to win ugly is the main difference between a side in the middle of the table and one on the edges of the promotion play-off places; that’s something The Hoops must learn to do, turning no points into one by making themselves difficult to beat. The visitors conceded three goals at home to lowly Hull City when losing 3-2; they dropped two at Elland Road in a 2-1 loss; however, they did rally to beat Middlesbrough 2-1 at home in a match they were expected to get nothing from. Written off by odds-makers before the start, QPR got their noses in front when Wszolek broke the deadlock on four minutes. Saville levelled up for Boro, but Wells had the last say on the hour, that goal ending a four-game drought for Rangers.
Go With the Locals
We have no doubt QPR are good enough to win this match if playing to the best of their ability; we also know Aston Villa are just as likely to throw in a stinker and hand their opponents an easy day’s work. There’s not a lot between either side, so we wouldn’t put anyone off a draw (11/4 at Bet365); however, we think the best bet would be to take both teams to score – 8/11 at BetFred. That’ll keep you involved for the entire match and it’ll also help boost the returns of your multiples.
That would’ve been a winning bet in each of the two games involving these sides last season with Aston Villa snatching a 2-1 at Loftus Road in November 2017 before QPR responded with a 3-1 upset at Villa Park back in March of last year. Both teams to score would’ve resulted in a profit in half of the last six games and we follow the form with confidence. It’s also worth knowing QPR have won each of their last two vs Aston Villa and the hat-trick gets a small bet from us – 7/2 at Unibet.
Our Tip: BTTS – 8/11 at BetFred
Nottingham Forest v Leeds United
The next of our Jan 1 Championship betting tips is Notts Forest v Leeds Utd. This is a meeting of another two sides who will seriously rate their chances of gaining promotion to the Premier League; at the time of writing, there’s no reason why either can’t, at the very least, be involved in the promotion play-off fixture list come the end of the campaign. Leeds will hope for more; however, a top-six looks the best Forest can aim for after returning stats of 8-11-3 in their first 22 Championship matches. Turning draws into wins will be key to any success they have in 2019; however, that’s easier said than done in one of Europe’s most competitive divisions.
December’s form sums up The Tricky Trees’ season so far. They beat Ipswich at home without too much fuss, swaggering to the points courtesy of a 2-0 result; however, they were then beaten at the same venue by Preston in a match they were expected to win. The club dropped more points when ending goalless at Pride Park vs a capable Derby on 17 December; however, fans travelled home knowing their side had chances to win the day. Three shots on target from a dozen attempts was the reason they missed out on banking a maximum; however, Frank Lampard thought his Rams were denied a stonewall penalty.
Peacocks Have Their Tails Up
A run of victories powered Leeds United to the top of the Championship table and they are now looking every inch a team good enough to claim the flag and secure a long-overdue return to the Premier League. Many fans have allowed themselves to be carried away by it all; however, others choose to remain on the fence, having been hurt in the past after seeing Leeds promise much at Christmas but fail to get over the line. They finished 13th last term and that remains a sore point for those who pack the Elland Road stands.
Concentrating on the here and now, Leeds was impressive during a December that saw them claim wins over Sheffield United on the road and QPR in front of their own fans; they also battled to a 1-0 over Bolton at the Macron. A more comfortable winning margin was expected; however, as any title-winning side will admit, it’s nicking the close games that make all the difference come the final count. A narrow 1-0 cheer is much more important than playing a part in a stunning 5-5 draw. Leeds understand this and it’s worth knowing they beat Sheff Utd, QPR and Bolton all by a single goal.
More of the Same
We’re taking more of the same and will back Leeds to win by a narrow scoreline. The away day on its own is worth a place in the accumulator of the day and the price (13/10 at BetFred) will help boost returns; however, there’s bigger to be had by those keen to take a bit more of a risk. One team has failed to score in two of the last three meetings of these sides and that nudges us towards a play on Leeds to win to nil (3/1 at BetFred) and a small poke on the 1-0 Leeds correct score at a cracking price of 15/2 at BetFred.
If you’d prefer to follow the trends you will find it interesting to learn Forest and Leeds drew at Elland Road back in October and that was the second level finish on the bounce, following a goalless draw at the same venue last January. We do expect another tight match; however, but Leeds have improved and should be ruthless enough to edge through.
Our Tip: Leeds to win to nil – 3/1 at BetFred
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