There’s no getting away from the fact that it was a poor start to the season for this column with no winners from the four suggested bets.
However, there was also an unusually low number of cards shown with five of the 10 matches seeing less than three.
Hopefully that’s not the start of a trend – if it is then the whole concept of value in the anytime card market will need revisiting.
For now, we continued unbowed and I’ve got two tips for this weekend’s action.
Fabian Schar – Norwich v Newcastle (Sat, 1500) – 27/10 (BetVictor)
Schar was a huge player in this market last season, being booked in 12 of his 24 Premier League games. The Swiss defender was also carded in three of his six competitive internationals, figures which suggest he could justifiably be going off around evens.
However, he’s getting close to 3/1 at BetVictor this weekend and that has to be worth taking.
Schar is a quality defender but he has a tendency to dive in and in their first home game back in the top flight, Norwich should be buzzing and offering plenty going forward.
With both sides expected to be among the relegation candidates this season, this is a big game and should be very competitive which bodes well for a few cards.
Referee: Stuart Attwell – In terms of yellows per game, Attwell was just below average in the Premier League last season but notably he was a fast starter with eight shown in his first match and six in his second. Maybe that’s a co-incidence but it’s worth noting that he’s already produced 15 yellows in two Europa League outings this term.
Luke Shaw – Wolves v Manchester United (Mon, 2000) – 3/1 (BetVictor)
United may have begun the season with a 4-0 win but opponents Chelsea created plenty and Shaw was often exposed by the Blues when they came forward.
Wolves may well look to target that left-back area in an attempt to enjoy similar success down that side and Shaw has a track record of resorting to fouls to stop marauding attackers.
Last season the England international was carded in 14 of his 40 club games – 11 of 29 in the Premier League, including both meetings with Wolves.
Wing-back Matt Doherty will trouble Shaw down his side, while front men Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez have both started the season well and can often be found drifting into wide areas.
Referee: Jon Moss – Was fourth strictest (of 18) in terms of yellow cards per game in last season’s Premier League and also fifth for reds per game. Last week he produced four yellows and a fifth in Palace v Everton resulted in a red so this looks a strong appointment for the bet.