Premier League football betting - Manchester United vs Tottenham

Manchester United and Tottenham meet at Old Trafford today in a game that neither side can afford to lose. Paul Scholes` last-gasp header won the Manchester derby for the Red Devils last weekend and kept them right in the title race, with the gap at the top of the table cut to just one point, as leaders Chelsea lost 2-1 at White Hart Lane. Spurs may have done United a favour last week but they have their own ambitions and currently occupy the much-coveted fourth place, which would see them qualify for next season`s Champions League.

The hosts are favourites for the game at 1/2 (bet £20 to win £10 profit), leaving Spurs as underdogs at 13/2 with SkyBet and the draw at 7/2. The Londoners are the league`s form team and will be supremely confident at the moment, having beaten Arsenal and Chelsea in their last two matches and won seven of their last eight in the Premier League. United`s season looked to be unravelling quickly as they crashed out of the Champions League before managing only a draw against struggling Blackburn, but last week`s win will restore some confidence and they are hard to beat in front of their own fans.

The bookmakers seem to think United should be too strong for Spurs and have made a 2-0 win for the hosts the favourite score for the game at 13/2, followed closely by a slimmer 1-0 triumph. A 1-1 draw,which would suit neither side, is 9/1 and 14/1 is on offer for a tense, goalless affair. A 1-0 win for Spurs, which would see Spurs in prime position to finish fourth but effectively end the title race, is available at 18/1.

Wayne Rooney has carried United at times this season and the England star is 3/1 favourite to open the scoring today. He is followed in the betting by the less than prolific Bulgarian Dimitar Berbatov, at 11/2 with SkyBet and eighteen year-old Federico Macheda, at 7/1. Spurs, however, carry a sizeable goal-threat themselves, with Jermain Defoe the most likely to break the deadlock at 8/1 ahead of Roman Pavlyuchenko and Peter Crouch at 9/1 and 10/1 respectively.

Alex Ferguson will want his side to take the game to their opponents early as they must take all three points today and United are 13/10 with Boylesports to lead at both half-time and full-time. Ladbrokes are best price at 7/2 on draw/United and 13/2 is generally available on draw/draw. Tottenham will also want to start fast, however, and they are 14/1 with Victor Chandler to be winning at both the interval and the final whistle, with draw/Spurs priced at 13/2.

Last weekend`s action saw Premier League leaders Chelsea`s odds drift from 1/8 to win the Premier League to 8/13 and United are now very much still in the hunt, with Bodog offering 6/4 on a fourth consecutive title. Spurs are now odds-on favourites to finish fourth this season, with bookmakers offering 5/6.

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