EFL Cup Second Round Tips
Liverpool lifted their second EFL Cup title in three seasons last term, getting the better of Chelsea in the final and this year’s edition begins to ramp up with second-round ties this week.
With a selection of Premier League teams entering at this stage of the competition, there are some mouth-watering matches across Tuesday and Wednesday.
Tip 1 - Middlesbrough to beat Stoke @ 3/4
Middlesbrough beat pre-season Championship title favourites Leeds in the first round of the EFL Cup and are fancied to follow up on Tuesday against a Stoke side that have lost back-to-back games in the second tier.
The Potters have lost 3-0 to Watford and 2-1 to West Brom in their last two matches and could get dragged into the relegation fight.
Boro on the other hand will be targeting a top-six finish and the depth of their squad looks like the key to this game.
New signing Tommy Conway could be handed a start and he could help fire the home team to victory.
Michael Carrick’s men have ranked strongly on the expected goals figures for their games this term and can progress to the next round with a win.
Tip 2 - Burnley or draw double chance v Wolves @ 23/20
Burnley’s red-hot start to the season ground to a halt with a 1-0 defeat away at Sunderland last time out but they could spring a surprise when they visit Wolves on Wednesday.
The Clarets netted nine goals in their first two league matches and face a Gary O’Neil side that have leaked eight in their first two Premier League outings.
Wolves have lost key men Max Kilman and Pedro Neto over the summer and O’Neil will have been extremely disappointed by how open they were on the break against Chelsea last time out, losing 6-2 at Molineux.
Burnley have one of the biggest squads in the second tier so can freshen up their side for this game and are fancied to at least avoid defeat in this clash.
Tip 3 - Over 3.5 goals in Nottingham Forest v Newcastle @ 31/20
Newcastle and Nottingham Forest tend to put on entertaining affairs when they meet and this EFL Cup tie should be no different on Wednesday.
Five of the last seven head-to-heads have gone over 3.5 goals and with rotation expected, this may be another thriller.
The Magpies ground out a 1-0 win over Southampton in their opener when down to 10 men for much of the game and then were given a real test in their 1-1 draw with Bournemouth at the weekend.
They should relish a less intense game here with Forest happy to sit deep and play on the counter. That could open up the possibility of a high-scoring affair and over 3.5 goals is the selection.