FEBRUARY –  The Texans’ suffocating defence has been the key to their eight-game winning run and with the AFC looking the less competitive conference this season after the demise of the Kansas City Chiefs, they have the talent to go a long way. Quarterback CJ Stroud is fully fit again and can look for an elite wide receiver in Nico Collins while former first-round picks Will Anderson Jr. and Derek Stingley Jr. are just two of their many defensive stars.

JULY – Elena Rybakina looks a bet in her bid to repeat her 2022 triumph at the All England Club. The Kazakhstani has had a tough couple of years, due in the main to off-court issues, but she finished last year on a high with victory at the WTA Finals. She’s a superb grass-court player who is as good as Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek when she’s on her game.

JULY – Alex Noren enjoyed a resurgence in his career in 2025, winning twice on the DP World Tour, and 2026 could finally be the year he ends his long wait for a maiden Major. The Swede has an affinity for links golf, evidenced by his victory at the 2016 Scottish Open and his two top-10 Open finishes, he could go all the way and land the Claret Jug in 2026.

DECEMBER – Mercedes may have botched the ground-effect era, but the Silver Arrows have a strong record of responding well to rule changes, and the sweeping regulation shift coming in 2026 should bring the title back into play. Their power unit has already come under, and been cleared, of scrutiny, suggesting it is likely to be among the strongest engines on the grid, and they have the driver lineup to win the consistent points necessary to land the constructor crown.

Defending Brazil Serie A champions Flamengo have only picked up one point from their two games so far, but they have scored in both of these games and have seen goals at both ends in four of their last five. Underdogs Vitoria have won one and drawn one of their two outings, and both teams have scored in their last two matches.

Manchester City have won four of their last five matches and are on a 19-game winning streak against Fulham. However, they have conceded in their last three games and face a Cottagers outfit that have found the net in 15 of their last 16 assignments, including four goals in their December defeat to the Citizens.

Aston Villa have won eight of their 12 Premier League home games this season but are without a clean sheet in six here. They should get the points against a Brighton side that have won just one of their last 12, but both teams have scored in their last five on the road.

Bayern Munich have won four of the last five meetings between them and RB Leipzig and both teams have scored in four of those five matches.  A repeat of that is likely in this one with the Bavarians fancied to dominate a Leipzig team who have not been in the best form as of late.

Manchester City have won four of their last five matches and are on a 19-game winning streak against Fulham. However, they have conceded in their last three games and face a Cottagers outfit that have found the net in 15 of their last 16 assignments, including four goals in their December defeat to the Citizens.

Both of these teams are out of form but home advantage and a superior head-to-head record gives Villa an edge. Unai Emery’s side have eight wins in 12 Premier League home games this season and have won seven of the last nine meetings between these sides, while Albion are on a run of just one win in their last 12 league games.

Palace concede on average 1.25 goals per-game at home in the league, compared to 1.16 overall, while Burnley have the worst defence in the division with 49 goals conceded. The Clarets have at least scored in 75% of their Premier League away games and both teams have scored in four of Palace’s last five games so goals at both ends looks likely.

Nottingham Forest’s three-game unbeaten run came to an end at Elland Road, but they have won two of their last four matches and should get three points against Wolves, who have lost their last three games and nine of their 12 away fixtures this season.

Sunderland are the only Premier League side yet to lose a home game this season and they could extend that record against Liverpool, who are reeling after their defeat to Manchester City and have dropped points in their last three league away days.

Tijjani Reijnders was not involved against Liverpool at the weekend, but he scored his seventh Manchester City goal against Newcastle last week and has found the net in five of his last eight starts for the club, while he also scored in the reverse fixture against Fulham.

Morgan Rogers scored in the draw with Bournemouth at the weekend and now has two goals and one assist in his last four games across all comps, he looks a candidate for an anytime effort for Villa.

Ismaila Sarr scored the only goal of the game in Palace’s win at Brighton, having also scored in the draw with Nottingham Forest beforehand. The Senegalese forward looks to be hitting form at the right time and he can make it three goals in as many games with an anytime effort against Burnley.

Sunderland have drawn six of their home matches this season and four of these have ended 1-1. Liverpool have drawn four of their last seven league matches, and these sides played out a 1-1 draw at Anfield in December.

Wolves have scored just one goal across their last four matches and have lost two of these by a 2-0 scoreline. Nottingham Forest won 1-0 at Molineux in December and two of their last four games have seen them win to nil, including a 2-0 success against Brentford.

Manchester City have won four of their last five matches and are on a 19-game winning streak against Fulham. However, they have conceded in their last three games and face a Cottagers outfit that have found the net in 15 of their last 16 assignments, including four goals in their December defeat to the Citizens.

Aston Villa have won eight of their 12 Premier League home games this season but are without a clean sheet in six here. They should get the points against a Brighton side that have won just one of their last 12, but both teams have scored in their last five on the road.

Bayern Munich have won four of the last five meetings between them and RB Leipzig and both teams have scored in four of those five matches.  A repeat of that is likely in this one with the Bavarians fancied to dominate a Leipzig team who have not been in the best form as of late.

Palace concede on average 1.25 goals per-game at home in the league, compared to 1.16 overall, while Burnley have the worst defence in the division with 49 goals conceded. The Clarets have at least scored in 75% of their Premier League away games and both teams have scored in four of Palace’s last five games so goals at both ends looks likely.

Sunderland are the only Premier League side yet to lose a home game this season and they could extend that record against Liverpool, who are reeling after their defeat to Manchester City and have dropped points in their last three league away days.

Motherwell are unbeaten in six games and have won seven and drawn one of their last eight at home. They have not conceded a single goal at Fir Park in this run, while Rangers have failed to win nine of their last 14 away games and have been held to a draw on their last two trips to this ground.

Nottingham Forest’s three-game unbeaten run came to an end at Elland Road, but they have won two of their last four matches and should get three points against Wolves, who have lost their last three games and nine of their 12 away fixtures this season.

NEC Nijmegen are having a fantastic season, sitting third in the Eredivisie table and heading into this midweek round unbeaten in 13 assignments, winning 11 of them and taking maximum points in their last six. Utrecht have lost seven and drawn one of their last eight in all competitions.

Newport County are second from bottom in League Two and have drawn one and lost seven of their last eight away games. Third-placed Swindon have won four of their last five at home and should pick up another three points here.

Both of these teams are out of form but home advantage and a superior head-to-head record gives Villa an edge. Unai Emery’s side have eight wins in 12 Premier League home games this season and have won seven of the last nine meetings between these sides, while Albion are on a run of just one win in their last 12 league games.

Nottingham Forest’s three-game unbeaten run came to an end at Elland Road, but they have won two of their last four matches and should get three points against Wolves, who have lost their last three games and nine of their 12 away fixtures this season.

NEC Nijmegen are having a fantastic season, sitting third in the Eredivisie table and heading into this midweek round unbeaten in 13 assignments, winning 11 of them and taking maximum points in their last six. Utrecht have lost seven and drawn one of their last eight in all competitions.

Newport County are second from bottom in League Two and have drawn one and lost seven of their last eight away games. Third-placed Swindon have won four of their last five at home and should pick up another three points here.

Seven of Stoke’s last eight games have gone under 2.5 goals and each of their last six on the road have featured fewer than three strikes, while Charlton have only scored nine goals in their last ten home games.

Sunderland are the only Premier League side yet to lose a home game this season and they could extend that record against Liverpool, who are reeling after their defeat to Manchester City and have dropped points in their last three league away days.

Motherwell are unbeaten in six games and have won seven and drawn one of their last eight at home. They have not conceded a single goal at Fir Park in this run, while Rangers have failed to win nine of their last 14 away games and have been held to a draw on their last two trips to this ground.

Bologna have been in disastrous form as of late, winning just two of their last 13 games in all competitions and those victories came against domestic and European strugglers Hellas Verona and Maccabi Tel Aviv. Lazio drew 2-2 with Juventus at the weekend and could go one better in this cup tie, take them in the draw no bet market against the defending champions.

NEC Nijmegen are having a fantastic season, sitting third in the Eredivisie table and heading into this midweek round unbeaten in 13 assignments, winning 11 of them and taking maximum points in their last six. Utrecht have lost seven and drawn one of their last eight in all competitions.

Liverpool look like the best value pick, with the Reds putting their struggles behind them with an eight-game unbeaten run. The Reds have the fourth-best Expected Goals record across the first six Champions League gameweeks, while they’ve recorded back-to-back 1-0 wins over Real Madrid and Inter Milan in Europe. Arne Slot’s side have a kind double-header in January, leaving them primed for a top-eight finish. With the Premier League coasting towards a fifth Champions League berth, the Reds should be in a good position to focus on European success in the spring.

Spain have some incredibly talented individuals, Lamine Yamal being the prime example, but are strong in all areas and don’t have any particular weaknesses. They won Euro 2024 with relative ease and they should be too good for their continental rivals at the World Cup. They also look a level above South American heavyweights Argentina and Brazil, suggesting they will be the team to beat at the World Cup this summer.

Glenavon are bottom of the Northern Irish Premiership, and and they’ve lost all 13 of their away games this season. The visitors have conceded a huge 32 goals across those games, while scoring just seven times.

Carrick Rangers have surged up the standings with four straight wins, and they’ve already recorded a home win over the relegation-threatened visitors this term.

The last meeting between these two Edinburgh rivals was a thriller, which Hibs won 3-2. The visitors won by the same scoreline against Dundee United in their last league game, and their trip to Hearts should be another high-scoring affair.

Hibs were beaten 4-1 at Falkirk in their last away game, while Hearts have scored 25 times in their 12 home Premiership games this term.

Leipzig caused real problems for Bayern Munich when these sides last met, but the Bavarians ran out 5-1 winners. Vincent Kompany’s side have scored 11 times across the two Bundesliga meetings between the sides this season.

Over 3.5 goals has landed in five of the last six clashes between the teams, while Bayern beat Hoffenheim 5-1 at the weekend. The free-scoring Bundesliga leaders should book their place in the last four of the German Cup with another comfortable win.

NEC Nijmegen continued their Eredivisie success with a 4-1 win over Heracles on Saturday, earning their fourth consecutive league win. They’re above Ajax in the standings, while they’re only a point shy of second-placed Feyenoord.

Visitors Utrecht have lost all of their visits to top-half sides, and they head into this midweek clash having suffered four defeats in their last five league games.

Barcelona made it 17 wins from 18 games with a 3-0 success against Real Mallorca on Saturday. They can continue their brilliant run in the first-leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final against Atletico Madrid.

Atletico lost to Real Betis on Sunday, days after beating them 5-0 in the last round of the cup. Simeone’s side have lost their last three meetings with Barca, including a home defeat at this stage of the cup last season.

PSV Eindhoven are the runaway Eredivisie leaders, winning 19 of their 22 league games this term. The Dutch champions have a perfect record of 11 wins from 11 on their travels, averaging close to three goals per game.

Volendam haven’t beaten a top-half side in 11 attempts this season, but they have scored in 10 of their 11 home games. PSV have conceded in 13 of their 19 league wins this term, so Volendam should be good for a consolation goal.

Pisa’s struggles in front of goal continued last weekend, with the second-bottom side drawing 0-0 with fellow strugglers Hellas Verona.

Pisa have scored only three times in 12 home matches, while Milan are in the title mix thanks to some impressive defending. The Rossoneri have conceded only eight times on their travels this term, and they’ve already recorded 10 wins to nil in the league this season.

Millwall’s 2-0 win at Wrexham on Saturday extended their lead over the sixth-placed side to six points. The Welsh outfit are busy in the FA Cup this weekend, so the Lions can extend that cushion in this visit to bottom side Sheffield Wednesday.

The Owls have lost nine straight games without scoring, while Millwall top the form table with 17 points from eight games. The Lions have beaten Wrexham, Charlton, and Watford by two or more goals across their last five league games, so they can claim a comfortable win.

Man City didn’t hold back in the third round of the cup, as they thumped Exeter 10-1. League Two Salford have suffered 1-0 defeats to Accrington and Chesterfield across their last three, but they should fear a heavier defeat on Saturday.

Salford were beaten 8-0 when these two sides met at the Etihad last year, with a ruthless City side generating 10 shots on target and 5.04 Expected Goals.

Leeds made wholesale changes for their 3-1 win over Derby in the last round of the FA Cup, and they face a much sterner test against Birmingham.

The Blues have been let down by their away record, but they’ve won eight and drawn six of their 15 home matches this season.

The new wave of documentary clubs seem to put plenty of emphasis on the cups, as Birmingham did last season. They made it to the fourth round of the FA Cup during their League One promotion campaign, pushing Birmingham in an intense atmosphere. Leeds’ focus is elsewhere, so Birmingham are good value to at least avoid defeat at home.

Deportivo Pasto have only lost one of their five Colombia Primera A games so far and they could avoid defeat again when they face a Llaneros side that have drawn three of their last four fixtures and ended last season on a four-game losing sequence.

Deportivo Pasto have only lost one of their five Colombia Primera A games so far and they could avoid defeat again when they face a Llaneros side that have drawn three of their last four fixtures and ended last season on a four-game losing sequence.

Deportes Tolima finished as runners-up in last seasons Primera A Clausura and were beaten finalists in the championship match. They have only lost one of their five games this season, avoiding defeat in all three away fixtures, and they should do so again against a Bucaramanga side that have dropped points in three of their last four games.

Defending Brazil Serie A champions Flamengo have only picked up one point from their two games so far, but they have scored in both of these games and have seen goals at both ends in four of their last five. Underdogs Vitoria have won one and drawn one of their two outings, and both teams have scored in their last two matches.