David John and Andy Schooler preview Tuesday's Carabao Cup ties with 7/1 and 6/1 tips among their selections.
Swansea v Manchester United (1945 BST, Sky Sports Football & Main Event)
There is some additional intrigue to Tuesday night’s live game on Sky Sports following United’s surprise reverse at Huddersfield in the Premier League over the weekend.
The Carabao Cup holders were a clear second best in West Yorkshire and found themselves 2-0 down before deciding to do anything about it which begs the question, will Jose Mourinho beef up his starting XI here?
Back-to-back defeats do not go down well at Old Trafford but there is also the visit of Tottenham looming large on the horizon with the latter making a serious title statement by dismantling Liverpool at Wembley.
It seems likely Mourinho will put his faith in some squad players safe in the knowledge they take on a team hardly brimming with exuberance as Scott McTominay, Luke Shaw and Matteo Darmian press for a starting berth.
Game-changing first-stringers Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Rashford and Henrikh Mkhitarayan are in the squad so this could well be a bit of mix-and-match, while Juan Mata may feel he has a serious point to prove having been at fault for Huddersfield’s opening goal following a clumsy loss of possession.
We will get an idea of how desperate Mourinho is to hang on to this trophy just before 7pm when the team-sheet goes up but I don’t think this is going to be as straightforward as a 1/5 quote to progress might suggest.
Swansea defender Alfie Mawson admitted they had taken a step backwards at the weekend in the 2-1 loss at home to Leicester having convincingly won a first game on their own patch 2-0 against Huddersfield.
A quick turnaround might not be a bad thing for Paul Clement while the chance for some other motivated members of his squad to have a chance could be the ideal opportunity to revitalise a team that is not a million miles away from a decent spell of form.
A storming last 10 minutes saw United ultimately cruise home 4-0 when this pair last met in mid-August at the Liberty Stadium but Swansea had been well in the game up to that point so should fully expect to be able to compete, particularly if the visitors to go with a few fresh faces.
On a day when Ronald Koeman was shown the exit by Everton, Clement might be teetering somewhat as well but his players can respond and they are worth a small investment to deliver another jolt to United.
Prediction: Swansea 2-1 Manchester United (Sky Bet odds: 22/1) - David John
Arsenal v Norwich (1945 BST)
While many of the top-flight teams will make changes to their regular starting XI as the fixtures build up, the Gunners are already well down that path with a tried-and-tested solution in both this competition and Europe.
Stalwarts like Olivier Giroud, Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshere have been part of the foundation for success away from the Premier League and all seem to be relishing the opportunity with an obvious potential for catching the eye of Arsene Wenger when he selects his players for the weekend.
Giroud and Walcott have scored regularly but Wilshere is by far the most interesting as he has looked sharper with each outing under his belt and thrived with some excellent performances without having to deal with constant scrutiny as he works his way back to full fitness.
The 25-year-old still has loads left in the tank and it looks like he is going to be offered a new deal by his current club despite both Chelsea and Manchester City circling – it would be classic Wenger if he were allowed to leave and one of the above managed to get the best years of his career.
I fully expect him to pull the strings against the Canaries and this might be the time to get with him in the anytime goalscorer market – he beautifully created Giroud’s winner at Red Star Belgrade but this might be the night when one of his trademark bursts into the opposition area pays off on a personal level.
Another run-out will do his cause no harm and if he keeps up this sort of form then he will merit serious consideration for Saturday’s home game with Swansea.
Norwich’s bit of additional quality and composure ensured another derby win over Ipswich on Sunday and manager Daniel Farke is unlikely to be back off in terms of team selection at the Emirates.
Well organised and in the midst of a very good run, they should give a decent account but the hosts are fancied to be too strong and go into the hat for the next round.
Prediction: Arsenal 3-1 Norwich (Sky Bet odds: 9/1) - David John
Bournemouth v Middlesbrough (1945 BST)
While Bournemouth were winning at Stoke on Saturday, Middlesbrough were losing at home to Cardiff to stretch their winless run to five.
The Cherries looked bright again having given Spurs a good game the previous week and definitely appear to be a side on the up. Perhaps wary of losing that momentum, boss Eddie Howe talked up the possibility of fielding a fairly strong side in this one.
Josh King missed out at Stoke due to illness but is in contention for this one. If deemed fit enough, 9/2 about the Norwegian scoring the first goal looks an obvious choice, especially with Jermain Defoe out with a hamstring injury and therefore not getting the chance of a run-out in the first XI.
Boro's disappointing start to the season has now seen them slip into the bottom half of the Championship and they will be unable to call upon Ryan Shotton or Marvin Johnson here (both are cup-tied), while strike option Rudy Gestede is injured.
Garry Monk's team look opposable but with the hosts odds-on across the board, I'm left wanting more certainty over teams before getting involved at such a price.
Prediction: Bournemouth 1-0 Middlesbrough (Sky Bet odds: 13/2) - Andy Schooler
Bristol City v Crystal Palace (1945 BST)
The hosts have reported a few injury issues ahead of this one - plus, at time of writing, have Matty Taylor suspended - and that's seen Palace cut for a confidence-boosting victory.
Their win over Chelsea 10 days ago lifted the gloom but it was back down to earth with a bump on Saturday as the Premier League's basement-dwellers lost 1-0 at Newcastle.
This competition simply can't be deemed as important as the league campaign (and Saturday's six-pointer with West Ham) and Roy Hodgson will undoubtedly make changes which has to boost the hosts.
City's 12-match unbeaten run was ended by Leeds on Saturday but they could well offer some value at north of 7/4 on home soil against a side short on confidence.
However, it's not something I'd want to back until I'd seen the teamsheets.
Prediction: Bristol City 2-1 Crystal Palace (Sky Bet odds: 17/2) - Andy Schooler
Leicester v Leeds (1945 BST)
Leeds managed to take out Premier League Burnley in the last round so a trip to the King Power should hold no fears, especially after their three-match losing run was ended in impressive fashion at Bristol City on Saturday.
Gaetano Berardi is suspended after picking up a red card in that 3-0 victory but whether he would have played anyway is open to debate.
Thomas Christiansen has made plenty of changes in the previous rounds but it's not affected Leeds in terms of results and their success at Turf Moor was fully merited.
He's actually hinted there will be fewer changes for this one and the Championship's fourth-placed side look tempting at 6/1 against a club lacking stability right now given the managerial situation.
Michael Appleton looks set to be in charge again and to Leicester's credit they delivered a much-needed result at Swansea on Saturday.
However, maintaining that momentum doesn't seem to be a priority in terms of this match with the likes of Islam Slimani and Daniel Amartey set to be brought in.
Having shown in the last round they can take down top-flight opponents, Leeds look the call in this one.
Prediction: Leicester 1-2 Leeds (Sky Bet odds: 18/1) - Andy Schooler
Manchester City v Wolverhampton (2000 BST)
An big upset at a big price? Maybe not.
City played a strong side in the last round of this competition with plenty of experience packed into the first XI and youngsters left on the bench.
In addition, Wolves are 'just' 18/1. Remember Burnley were a best price of 33/1 prior to Saturday's Premier League defeat at the Etihad.
And to make it look worse, this won't be the Wolves team which is currently top of the Sky Bet Championship. Boss Nuno has changed virtually his entire XI in previous rounds and while they haven't conceded a goal in their three ties so far, neither have they been to free-scoring City.
We've got the familiar dilemma of not really knowing who's going to play but one man who looks highly likely to is Yaya Toure.
He started in the last round at West Brom and has also made substitute appearances in each of City's last two home games.
The midfielder may not be fully up to speed (he wasn't the quickest at the best of times) but his goal record is historically a pretty strong one and his undoubted class should make an impact against what is set to be a reserve-strength visiting team.
He's 5/2 to score at any time which is a price which stands out in that market, one which is regularly dominated these days by a host of short-priced City names.
Prediction: Man City 3-1 Wolves (Sky Bet odds: 9/1) - Andy Schooler
Recommended bets
1pt Jack Wilshere to score anytime in Arsenal v Norwich at 7/2
1pt Swansea to beat Manchester United at 7/1
1pt Leeds to beat Leicester at 6/1
1pt Yaya Toure to score anytime in Manchester City v Wolves at 5/2
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Posted at 2050 BST on 23/10/17.
