Burnley V Portsmouth Betting: Saturday, 27th February

Burnley V Portsmouth

Saturday, 27^th February – 15:00 GMT

Burnley

League Position: 19th

Recent Form: LLWLL

Possibly a season defining period for Burnley as their upcoming fixtures are all against sides either in and around them or in the bottom half of the table. However, their first task looks the easiest of the lot on paper as they set out to compile Portsmouth’s woes by adding three points to their own cause at Pompey’s expense. Defeat, however, could prove costly as not only would it have been a missed opportunity for The Clarets but it would also allow Portsmouth to narrow the gap on them and leave Burnley stranded in 19^th.

Burnley are this seasons version of Hull City because; after a sensational start, with the highlight being the 1-0 victory at home to Manchester United before a number of home wins, they have gone completely off the boil and have nosedived down the table into relegation territory. Their fall from grace has not only been emphatic but also hard felt as it’s clearly had an adverse effect on the confidence levels of the entire squad. We have the evidence to back this statement up as Burnley have only won one of their last fifteen in the league and have lost a staggering six of their last seven games. All this is a far cry from the form they were enjoying at the very start of the season and why Burnley are serious relegation candidates.

To rub salt in the wound, Burnley were given yet another spanking at the weekend when Aston Villa rolled five past them at Villa Park in a 5-2 defeat for Burnley. That was Burnley’s thirteenth away defeat of the campaign, so they can count themselves lucky they don’t have to travel again this Saturday as they stay put at home, at Turf Moor. It has, though, been a venue where Burnley have been far better in both the performance and results area. It has been the setting where Burnley come out of their shell more, with the players often rising to the occasion in front of a packed home support, often playing on the front foot and with an all out attacking mindset. Their more aggressive manner at home has seen them pick up a creditable twenty-two points out of a possible thirty-six at home, which is a million miles better than their one point from a possible forty-two away from home.

If Burnley are to survive their inaugural season in the Premiership then it will be solely down to their decent form at Turf Moor. However, they still require plenty more points, probably somewhere around the 37 marker, and so Burnley will need to pick up far more points than they’ve been doing of late if they are to have a fighting chance of avoiding the drop. The concern surrounding Burnley, though, is that even results at home are beginning to dry up, with Burnley only managing one win from their last six home fixtures. They were on the winning side in their last home encounter with West Ham, but that was against a Hammers side who hadn’t yet gelled after a number of new signings, whereas Portsmouth, although they aren’t playing particularly well, are working as a team and fighting for their desperate cause, but Pompey could be down and out after their bitter home defeat to Stoke City last Saturday so perhaps a Burnley win should be a formality providing the players don’t get overconfident.

Portsmouth

League Position: 20th

Recent Form: LLLDL 

Portsmouth are a club in ruin and already look destined for the drop, what with a potential 9-point penalty hanging over them. The reports are that the club find themselves in a £70,000,000 debt predicament, one they have no idea how to solve. Their money issues is an unwanted distraction from the main task at hand of avoiding relegation, but, more importantly, it’s piling yet more pressure onto those currently on the front-line at the club, the ones paid to actually get a result each Saturday – The players. Defeat this Saturday for the South coast side, accompanied by a couple more in the following few weeks, and Portsmouth could find themselves dead and buried before the FA even gets started on them.

When you’re down the bottom, at the very pit of the table, everything seems to go against you. That was definitely the case on Saturday as Portsmouth succumbed to their eighteenth defeat of the season when losing 2-1 to Stoke City at Fratton Park. It was a game Portsmouth pressed and pressed, troubling a usually sterdy Stoke defence with their attacks and attempts on goal. However, when Piquionne scored a perfectly legit goal just minutes into the game, only to see his effort ruled out wrongly for off-side, you just knew it wasn’t going to be there day, and that the football Gods certainly weren’t watching over the cash-strapped club. They did, however, take the lead through Piquionne ten minutes before half-time, but Portsmouth threw away their lead, three crucial points the drain and a potential lifeline of a win when some poor marking from a corner led to Roberth Huth heading in an unchallenged equaliser. However, the worst was still yet to come as in the 90^th minute, Salif Diao, slid home to leave the once jubilant Pompey crowd close to tears as the final outcome was yet another defeat.

With myself coming from the South, although I have no direct connection with Portsmouth FC, it was heartbreaking to see such a turnaround at Fratton Park on Saturday as that bitter defeat really could be the nail in the coffin as far as keeping the spirit at the club at a reasonable level. That late blow will have felt like daggers to the heart for Portsmouth and it’s players, to see their valiant efforts go in vein. Losing isn’t unfamiliar with Pompey, so the players won’t have been too disheartened with that part of the game, but the manner in which they lost could have huge implications in that the players might now start feeling sorry for themselves and feel a league win is impossible, no matter how hard they try.

To be honest, it was always going to be a mammoth task lifting Portsmouth out of the relegation zone and into safety as their squad is full of Championship players, with the exception being just a few African contingents and Jamie O’Hara. Pompey just don’t have the players in their squad capable of mounting a serious safety push so their decline was somewhat inevitable. The defeat on Saturday was the straw that broke the camels back and it really would take some exceptional motivational speech from Avram Grant to lift his troops after such a demoralising result in their last fixture.

Match Verdict: Burnley to WIN – 2.25 Bet365

The Portsmouth players were battling on stoutly despite all their money issues, but their recent setback, that of a 2-1 home defeat to Stoke, we feel will have knocked the stuffing out of the players and it’s hard to see them coming back from that. Burnley were given a lesson in how to play the beautiful game on Sunday when losing their thirteenth away game of the season at Aston Villa, but they did still manage to score twice at Villa Park and they did score two goals in their previous home outing in a 2-1 win over West Ham. Burnley’s form at home is what will keep them in the league and so a home fixture with Portsmouth is like gold-dust to them and for their cause.

Match Odds:

Burnley – 2.25 Bet365

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Portsmouth – 3.40 Boylesports

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Burnley/Burnley (HT/FT Betting) – 4.00 StanJames