Wednesday 8th May 2013: 7:45pm
If ever André Villas-Boas wanted a fixture to remind his former employers what they were missing, this is it. If Spurs beat Chelsea on Wednesday night, they can do their chances of qualifying for the Champions League the world of good, and Roman Abramovich may wonder what might have been if he had given the rugged Portuguese prodigy more time at Stamford Bridge. Of course, if AVB fails to get the three points, we may as well say the battle for the Top Four is over, and have to listen to Arséne Wenger speak of his pride that he has managed to steer Arsenal into the Champions League yet again. Doesn't bear thinking about really.
Chelsea are odds-on favourites to get Top Four, at 1/8 with Coral, whilst Arsenal are just behind them, at 2/7 with Ladbrokes. Spurs will be the money-makers if they pull a smash and grab and sneak into the Champions League however: Bet365 have them at 2/1 to gatecrash the big boys' party and spoil the elites' celebrations.
Spurs right to be AVB-lieving?
After their gritty win at United on Sunday, we can't quite see a team that relies so much on Gareth Bale beating a Chelsea team that have started to look like the penny has finally dropped. Rafa Benítez' men have looked impressive in recent weeks, and this is reflected in their favourite status for this game. Chelsea are 19/20 with Paddy Powerm whilst Spurs are 3/1 with Betfred. The draw is being touted at 11/4 with Stan James.
Home advantage for Chelsea plus a Spurs team that look to be running out of steam equals for us a 2-1 Chelsea win, which can be found at 8/1 with BetVictor. Should you fancy the winning margin, but not the scoreline, the Chelsea win by one goal can be found at 3/1 with SkyBet.
Welcome to the Garden of Eden
Having been rested completely (he wasn't even in the squad) for the game against United on Sunday, expect to see Eden Hazard back with a vengeance on Wednesday night. We fancy the speedy Belgian to grab a goal against Spurs, especially if he's attacking the left side. Kyle Walker may find himself exposed given his propensity to push forward, and Hazard will exploit this. He is 11/4 with William Hill for Anytime Goalscorer.
Of course, anything blue can do, Bale can do better, so don't bet against Gareth Bale to pop up on the scoresheet. The Welsh Wing Wizard grabbed the winner against Southampton on Saturday and is seemingly on a one man mission to keep Spurs in contention for the Champions League places. Stan James have him at a generous 15/8 to score anytime on Wednesday night.
Chelsea should finish strongly
We like Ladbrokes' Half Time/Full Time offer of 4/1 on Draw/Chelsea. As they showed against United, Chelsea can score late in the game, and we fancy them to take advantage of a Spurs team who will be pressing forward as they need all three points.
Finally, as a bit of a wildcard, we like Frank Lampard for first assist of the game at 10/1 with Boylesports. Frankie may be getting on a bit, but he still pulls strings from the midfield like nobody's business.
As always, Top Tips are below! We don't like to brag... But they're not called Top Tips for nothing!
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Click to ClaimSam publishes regular feature and tips pieces for Howtobet4free. He has a blog, crackingjabulanis.blogspot.co.uk, and can be found on Twitter by following @Gaytski.
