There may be seven positions in the standings and five points separating these two teams right now, but there looks to be very little between them. Both will not want to spend the second half of the season fighting a relegation battle and if they are to keep away from that they need to pick up more points over the coming games. Both teams come into this game with opposite profiles, Huddersfield started very well but have since slowed down, while Bournemouth started poorly and are now coming to life. That makes the game important, Huddersfield would love a confidence boosting win, while Bournemouth need more to finish off the good work they have done recently.
English Premier League – Bournemouth vs Huddersfield Town – Saturday 18th November 2017 – 15:00 UK Time
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Draw Best Odd of: 5/2 at PaddyPower |
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Bournemouth
HuddersfieldBournemouth Form
After winning just one of their first eight games the pressure was on Bournemouth to improve their fortunes. They have a very good squad, one that is clearly capable of avoiding relegation, and finally we may be starting to see that on the field. They have won two of their last three games to climb out of the relegation zone and this next month is going to be very important for them as they look to build on that and make further progress. Their one loss in the last three games came against Chelsea, which is nothing to be too worried about and if anything the international break came at exactly the wrong time for Bournemouth. It could prevent them from picking up some momentum from their recent victories and the test for them over the coming weeks is to pick up where they left off and that all starts against Huddersfield.
Huddersfield Form
Huddersfield started very well, much better than most predicted they would and many had them as favourites for relegation in their first Premier League season. However, so far they have proven they are capable of mixing it with the big boys and with just four losses from their opening 11 games they are showing they have the ability to pick up points. When you are close to the relegation zone, picking up regular points is vital and Huddersfield are already showing the ability to do that, which is keeping them in a mid-table position.
Just like Bournemouth, Huddersfield have also won two out of the last three games, including a huge confidence boosting victory of title challengers Manchester United. Their only loss in that period was a 3-0 away defeat against Liverpool, and just like the Bournemouth loss to Chelsea, that was to be expected. A grinding 1-0 victory over West Brom gave them a great ending before the international break and now they have to quickly get back to the same form and kick on once again.
Team News
Both of these team have one area where they really need to improve and that is goal scoring. Teams who struggle to score usually have trouble keeping clear of the relegation zone and neither team wants to be involved in that. Despite being 10th in the league, Huddersfield have just eight goals from their opening 11 games. They are doing well defensively, which allows them to keep picking points up, but they have to hit the net on a more regular basis. Bournemouth are having a similar problem and they have just seven goals from their opening 11 games. Despite that they have managed to pull out of the relegation zone and now the next few games are about moving clear of that, and to do that they need to find a way to score more goals.
Top Betting Tips
I don’t expect to see many goals in this one, with both struggling to find the net. I also expect to see Huddersfield set up quite defensive, they will be more than happy to take a point away from this game with the position they are currently in. Bournemouth don’t really have the same luxury, they need to win some of their home games to move clear of the relegation zone and will have selected this game as one they can win when they return from the international break.
Looking at the way these two set up and their recent stats I am going to back a 0-0 draw in this game to try and find value. The 0-0 draw is priced up at 8/1 with William Hill and Betfair, and when you consider neither team are clinical in front of goal, this looks to be a good price for a probably low scoring game.