💰 Punt: Over 23.5 Tackles for Monaco & Over 22.5 Tackles for Aston Villa
Over 25.5 Tackles for Monaco & Over 24.5 Tackles for Aston Villa
📗 Bookie: Bet365
🎲 Odds: 17.00 (16/1) & 41.00 (40/1)
⚽️ Game: Monaco vs. Aston Villa

That’s a lot of tackles. More tackle than Robson Green would take on a Weekend Escape that’s for sure.

Monaco’s 21 tackles per game average is the highest in Ligue 1 and the 4th highest in Europe’s Top 5 Leagues. Bettered only by Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers. Aston Villa average 17.2 tackles per game which is the 11th most in the Premier League, they rank 40th across Europe’s top 5 divisions. So, why the bet?

Monaco tackles is pretty self-explanatory. They’ve made the most tackles in Ligue 1 (378) as well as that, they’re also tackled a lot. Their Ligue 1 opponents have made 349 tackles, which averages out at just shy of 19.4 tackles per game. Monaco attempt the 11th most dribbles per game in Europe (20.7) with 209 of their 373 attempted dribbles being unsuccessful.

The Ligue 1 side’s tackle numbers aren’t as impressive in The Champions League, although they’ve still made 104 tackles in their 6 games. Averaging 17.33 a game. Their opponents have made 107 tackles in 6 games, an average of 17.83 a game.

On the other hand, Aston Villa have made just 82 tackles in their 6 games, an average of 13.66 a game, but they did show vs. Bayern Munich that they can rack up the tackles as they registered 29. Meanwhile, the Villains opponents have made 122 tackles in the UCL so far, an average of 20.33 a game. In the Premier League, Villa’s opponents have made 380 tackles in 22 games, an average of 17.27 a game.

Hopefully the intensity of the game increases as the new Champions League format nears the conclusion of the group stage. Villa currently sit in 5th place with 13 points whilst Monaco are in 16th place with 10 points. The sides who finish in the Top 8 will automatically qualify for the round of 16 whilst those who finish in 9th-24th will take part in a two-legged play-off to advance. Get those tackle numbers skewed in our favour, Emery.

Punts: 

• Over 23.5 Tackles for Monaco & Over 22.5 Tackles for Aston Villa @ 17.00 (16/1) - Bet365

• Over 25.5 Tackles for Monaco & Over 24.5 Tackles for Aston Villa @ 41.00 (40/1) - Bet365

💰 Punt: Enzo Le Fee Anytime Assist
📗 Bookie: Bet365
🎲 Odds: 8.00 (7/1)
⚽️ Game: Derby vs. Sunderland

Roma loanee Enzo Le Fee was impressive in small doses vs. The Championship’s best defensive outfit in Burnley last week. The Frenchman showed glimpses of his class and was unlucky not to register an assist as his defence-splitting pass rocketed off the post from Wilson Isidor’s strike.

If the former Lorient man can do this against the league’s best defence and promotion contenders in Burnley, then I’m backing him to show his class against a relegation-threatened Derby County side and register an assist. Enzo Le Fee Anytime Assist is priced at 8.00 (7/1) with Bet365. 

From the 148 games that WhoScored have data available for, Enzo Le Fee averages 1.8 key passes per90 minutes. He’s registered 18 assists in that time, registering an assist every 524.3 minutes. This data is from Ligue 1, Serie A & The Europa League, I imagine his chances created and assist numbers will improve as his class shines through in England’s second-tier.

Punt: Enzo Lee Fee To Assist Anytime & Enzo Le Fee To Score Anytime @ 41.00 (40/1) - Bet365

💰 Punt: Makhtar Gueye To Be Booked
📗 Bookie: Bet365
🎲 Odds: 5.50 (9/2)
⚽️ Game: Blackburn vs. Coventry

Senegalese striker Makhtar Gueye averages 1.8 fouls per90 in his career. Since his move to Lancashire, he’s averaging 3.3 fouls per90 in The Championship for Blackburn Rovers. He’s picked up 28 yellow cards and 4 red cards in 131 games, picking up a yellow card on average every 288.4 minutes. His yellow card on Saturday vs. Oxford United made it 5 yellow cards and 1 red card in just 1052 minutes of action in England, finding his way into the referee’s notebook once every 210.4 minutes.

Now that the boring stuff (logic, reason, mathematics) is out of the way.

5.50 (9/2) IS JUST TOO BIG FOR BIG GUEYE 🇸🇳

Referee for this one is Oliver Langford. Langford booked Gueye back in November after the striker had been on the field for just 3 minutes when they played Sheffield United. Gueye was subbed on in the 72nd minute and was booked by the 75th minute for a foul on Vinicius Souza.

💰 Punt: Callum Styles To Be Booked.
Ben Doak To Be Booked.
Callum Styles & Ben Doak To Be Booked.
📗 Bookie: Betfair Sportsbook/Paddy Power & Bet365
🎲 Odds: 4.50 (7/2), 7.50 (13/2) & 29.00 (28/1)
⚽️ Game: Middlesbrough vs. West Brom

Hungarian international Callum Styles (What a way to start a sentence that is) has picked up 7 yellow cards in just 12 Championship starts this year, making 17 appearances in total. He’s committing 1.1 fouls per game and is fouled 1.0 times per game. That increases to 1.4 fouls and being fouled 1.3 times per90 minutes. Styles has been booked 34 times in 198 games. See for yourself here.

That’s a card every 408.4 minutes on average. This season, he’s picking up a yellow every 163.4 minutes. Those stats combined with the fact he’ll likely be tasked with stopping Liverpool loanee Ben Doak, makes the 4.50 (7/2) available with Betfair Sportsbook or Paddy Power for Callum Styles to be carded a bet. He’s 5.00 (4/1) with Unibet or 4.75 (15/4) with BetVictor if you have accounts with those bookmakers.

Scottish international Ben Doak has also picked up 7 yellow cards in The Championship from 19 starts, appearing 22 times in total. He averages 1.0 fouls and is fouled 1.0 times per game, increasing to 1.3 fouls and 1.2 fouls won per90 minutes. The 19-year-old has been booked in his last 2 games and the 7.50 (13/2) available with Bet365 for Ben Doak to be booked is more than big enough for me to be backing tonight.

We’d be fools not to back the Michael Duble on both Callum Styles & Ben Doak to be booked at 29.00 (28/1) with Bet365 as well, wouldn’t we?

#CheekyPunts

• Enzo Lee Fee To Assist Anytime & Enzo Le Fee To Score Anytime @ 41.00 (40/1) - Bet365

• Enzo Le Fee Anytime Assist, Makhtar Gueye To Be Booked & Callum Styles To Be Booked @ 190.00 (189/1) - Bet365

• Enzo Le Fee Anytime Assist, Makhtar Gueye To Be Booked, Callum Styles & Ben Doak To Be Booked @ 1276.00 (1275/1) - Bet365