England Premier League : Stoke - Swansea

Match	Date	Selection	Bet	Odds	Bet now
England Premier League : Stoke - Swansea Premier League England, England	29/09/2012 16:00	total goals	Over 2.5 Goals	2.1	Bet at Paddy Power
Betting prediction was written by Anton

STOKE – SWANSEA STATS

Stoke are yet to win in the EPL this season, with 4 draws from their first 5 games. They have played some excellent teams like Arsenal, Man City and Chelsea however so they will not be too disheartened.

Swansea started the season in amazing form winning their first two games by a combined score of 8-0. Since then they have not won in 3 however and have lost their last two games, 2-0 and 3-0.

TEAM NEWS AND RUN OF PLAY

Stoke have built their team on the foundation of a strong defence which they have followed this season, allowing just 1 goal maximum in all but 1 of their games. This season they have begun to move away from their traditional 4-4-2 formation and look to mix up their play with a 4-5-1 and deep lying playmaker in Charlie Adam. This makes it more difficult for teams to prepare for them as they can’t setup to play against 2 out and out strikers only.

Swansea have transitioned seamlessly into life under new manager Michael Laudrup, continuing the short passing style of play enjoyed last season with Brendan Rodgers in charge. This strategy can be hit or miss as we can see from their results so far, a 5-0 win away at QPR had them look like Barcelona but a 3-0 loss at home to Everton say them dominated throughout.

1X2 BET STOKE – SWANSEA PREVIEW

Stoke are strong favourites at home for this game, they will aim to bully Swansea by pressing them quickly and winning the ball back before throwing it long towards Crouch and Walters. I think if Swansea can overcome the initial flurry from Stoke then they can get a foothold in the game and can look to use their passing to control possession and keep Stoke on the backfoot.

I fancy the draw here at 3.6 with Skybet as a value play.

ASIAN HANDICAP PREDICTIONS

If you are even more bullish on Swansea then you might want to look at the AH odds of Swansea +0.5, this will then come in whether the game is a draw or Swansea win. Pinnacle are top price here in this market at 2.04.

Click here to put the bet on.

TOTAL GOALS PREDICTIONS

A tight game is expected with the Under a significant favourite. I think there is value in the over however at 2.1 with Paddy Power.

Stoke’s defence has been excellent so far but we can see that Swansea can both score and concede plenty of goals, with 4 of their 5 games going over 2.5 goals. If they are on form, or even well off form, we could see a fair number of goals.