Worcester v Gloucester
Premiership Rugby – 3.00 pm
BT Sport
Gloucester look set to be heading to the Gallagher Premiership semi-finals and they could mathematically seal their place this weekend. They are in some hot form at the moment too with the Cherry & Whites on a four-match winning streak in the league. Their last game saw them overhaul a 7-17 half time deficit at home against Bath to post a win. The last time that Gloucester managed to win five in a row was back in December 2017. Gloucester start the weekend of action in third place in the table, eight points behind second-placed Saracens. Gloucester are 1/2 odds-on with top bookmakers to secure the victory.
As for Worcester, they are having some issues down at the other end of the table. They are second from bottom, seven points ahead of the ailing Newcastle Falcons, who look the likely candidate for the drop with three rounds of action only to go. Worcester need the crowd at Sixways behind them to give them something of a lift, but they have only won one of their last five games against Gloucester. That was in this corresponding fixture last season, and they are 11/10 to pull off a repeat.
Manchester United v Chelsea
Premier League – 4.30 pm
Sky Sports
This is a big game in the context of a top-four finish this season. That top four race is now basically boiling down to these two and Arsenal for the one remaining spot. Chelsea could do themselves a huge favour in the race by winning such a big away game but their record against the others in the Big Six this season has been poor. The Blues have lost all four games on the road in such contests. The Blues head to Old Trafford as 7/4 underdogs with leading bookmakers for the win. Chelsea have lost five of their last seven away games in the league, so aren’t carrying top form.
Manchester United have been called out recently for some really poor performances. They lost at home again in midweek against rivals Man City. In a short span of time, they crashed out of the FA Cup, the Champions League and four defeats in their last six Premier League games, has left their shot at a top-four finish in jeopardy. With so few games remaining now, will they be able to finish with a strong showing of power? As much as they can be faulted recently, their home form has been decent. The loss against City snapped a 14 match unbeaten run of home games. It’s now about character more than anything at this point and United are 17/10 to show some and claim the win.
Burnley v Manchester City
Premier League – 2.05 pm
Sky Sports
There is the not-so-small story for Manchester City’s title hopes of course in this one. However, before getting into that, Burnley deserve credit for the way that they dug out a point at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea last Monday. It wasn’t pretty from them, but it was a point which will see them safe at the end of the season. So they can relax and breathe a little bit easier ahead of this clash at Turf Moor against the title-chasing Citizens. Burnley have won their last two home games so can they potentially trip up Man City? The Clarets are 14/1 underdogs.
Manchester City probably won’t be relishing such a trip to Turf Moor. It’s a tricky game, a potential banana skin. But Pep Guardiola’s men will likely be hoping that Burnley are in a relaxed mood after maintaining their Premier League status for next season. So from that perspective, this could be good timing for the Citizens. City, who have posted wins over Spurs and Man Utd in their last two games, are such overwhelming odds-on favourites in the match outright that they are even still at odds-on with leading bookmakers at 4/5 to win to nil. While they are red-hot favourites and will be backed by many as a best bet of the day for the victory, the majority of their league losses have been away from home this term.
Leicester v Arsenal
Premier League – 12.00 noon
Sky Sports
Arsenal are one of those teams who can’t afford to have their home form desert them. It did last weekend as they suffered a 3-2 loss at the Emirates against Crystal Palace. That was the last thing they needed in their scrap for a top-four finish because their away form just hasn’t been there this season. Following a 3-1 defeat at Wolves on Wednesday, the Gunners have now lost five of their last eight on the road in the top flight (W2 D1). Arsenal are 11/8 favourites with top bookmakers for the game but will they be able to raise their away game?
Leicester have a target in mind as well, so they aren’t just coasting to the end of the season. There is a chance of a top seven finish for them still, which is likely to reward with a place in the Europa League next season. The Foxes haven’t been in bad shape either with three wins in their last four at the King Power. So they could pose a further threat in this one to Arsenal’s top four ambitions. It’s a tough finish for Leicester as they face Man City and Chelsea in their final two games of the season. They have to take what they can get at home.
London Marathon
Athletics – 10.00 am
BBC
Mo Farah is looking for another highlight moment in his career. The British Olympian legend will be lining up at the start of the London Marathon as the second favourite at 7/2 odds with leading bookmakers. Last year he had a crack at it and took a 2 hours 6 minutes 21 seconds finish. He was out at the Chicago Marathon following that and knocked a minute and change off his best time. But can he bridge the gap to take down Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge who is the 4/6 odds-on favourite? Kipchoge has won the London marathon three times and he set a new world record in Berlin last year for the marathon. That’s going to take some beating.
