2012 League Cup Betting Tips

The first few fixtures for the Capital One Cup, or whatever it's called now, are already upon us and we have some fascinating fixtures ready to roll today in England. We're just a few hours away from kick-off and punters can expect some serious quality in a few of these contests – with a genuine chance of an upset or two in some of the others.

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Only the West Brom vs Liverpool match-up kicks off a bit late, punters will find that one considered to be fairly even, with the visitors getting the slimmest of margins by the bookmakers. The hosts trade at 7/4 while Liverpool can be backed at 7/5. The draw trades at 5/2 and that would see us through to extra time.

Liverpool currently find themselves in the Premier League relegation zone and they really must get themselves back on track. A win here doesn't do much in terms of their points total but, with an away fixture lined up against Norwich at the weekend, you can assume they'll be looking to today's match as a major opportunity to build momentum. If Liverpool lose or draw against Norwich this Saturday, alarm bells are going to start ringing.

Arsenal play host to Coventry, who haven't been back in the Premier League for quite a while. They've been known to pull off a few upsets here and there, so they may wind up taking a bit of money at 12/1. It also depends on which Arsenal team actually gets named to play here today as their 1/6 offers up no value and they may just make a hash of things if they concede early.

Norwich play Doncaster and the Canaries are a slim 4/9 to get the job done against relatively straightforward opposition. Spurs are away to Carlisle but emerge as the 4/9 favourites. Expect them to get a bit adventurous with their starting line-up but you can also assume they're going to get the job done.

The big match-up of the day is Manchester United vs Newcastle – a side who have really staked their claim as one of the key sides in the new-style Premier League where City compete at the top and Liverpool hang out in the relegation zone. Many neutral punters will likely fancy the Magpies and they trade at a hefty 5/1 to get the win at Old Trafford.

United can be backed at 8/15 and that's not bad odds all things considered. They'll be happy to keep this at 0-0 at half-time and then try to nick something in the last 30 minutes or so.

You can lock in generous odds on United x Spurs x Norwich – a $25 wager would reward $80 with William Hill.