Betting Preview: Middlesbrough Vs Derby County

Take a look at the best betting odds ahead of Derby County's Championship clash at Middlesbrough thanks to Sky Bet.

If you fancy a punt on the game then the Football League’s title sponsor Sky Bet have all the best odds and, before every Rams game, they will provide exclusive betting previews for dcfc.co.uk during the 2014/15 season.

Derby fans can place their bets by visiting www.skybet.com/derby - but make sure you register as a Rams supporter so the Club can benefit from each bet that is placed.

Betting Previews - Match-By-Match

Brighton & Hove Albion Vs Millwall : Friday

Despite lying third from bottom, Brighton are 19/20 favourites to get the better of fellow strugglers Millwall in the Sky live game on Friday night. The Seagulls are currently on a four-match winless run and have only tasted victory once in their last 16 Championship games – so they’ll view this clash as a perfect opportunity to climb out of the drop zone. Millwall, who are 3/1 to win and 23/10 to take a point, are just two places and two points above Brighton in the table and head into this clash on the back of a 5-1 home defeat to Middlesbrough – their third loss in six winless games. Darren Bent and Sam Baldock are both 5/1 to net first and 11/8 to score anytime while Millwall duo Jermaine Easter and Ricardo Fuller are 8/1 and 11/4 in the same respective markets.

Top tip: Draw and under 2.5 goals in the match 11/4.

Birmingham’s recent resurgence came to a halt when they became only the second team to lose to Blackpool this season but they are still marginal favourites at 7/5 to beat Reading on Saturday. Before defeat last time out, the Blues had won three and drawn two of their five games under new boss Gary Rowett while Reading, who are 9/5 to bag all three points and 12/5 to get one, head to St Andrew’s on an inconsistent run of form having won three, lost three and drawn one of their previous seven outings. Reading’s Glenn Murray is 11/2 favourite to score first and 6/4 to net anytime, while Birmingham’s Clayton Donaldson is 6/1 and 7/4 respectively.

Top tip: Glenn Murray to score a brace at 9/1.

Bolton Wanderers Vs Ipswich Town

The bookies can’t split Bolton and Ipswich ahead of this Saturday’s meeting at the Macron Stadium, making both teams 13/8 for victory, while the draw is 23/10. The Trotters have won all four of their home games under Neil Lennon and are currently on a five-match unbeaten run but it won’t be easy against high-flying Town, who sit second in the table. The Tractor Boys have won five and drawn two of the last seven and tasted victory in their previous two away games, so they’ll no doubt be confident coming into this. Championship top scorer Daryl Murphy of Ipswich is 5/1 favourite to find the net first and 11/8 to strike anytime, while Bolton duo Craig Davies and Joe Mason are 6/1 and 11/8 respectively. The returning Eidur Gudjohnsen is 7/1 and 12/5 in those same markets.

Top Tip: Eidur Gudjohnsen to score the last goal at 7/1.

AFC Bournemouth Vs Cardiff City

High-flying Bournemouth got back to winning ways with a 2-1 victory at Wolves last time out and Sky Bet have installed them as 8/11 favourites to make it two in a row against Cardiff. The Cherries were on a three-game winless run but the alarm bells were hardly ringing considering they haven’t lost since September 16. Ninth-placed Cardiff have their eyes on the play-offs after five wins and two draws in their last nine so some punters may be tempted by the 18/5 that they win here. The draw is 11/4. Callum Wilson of Bournemouth is 4/1 to score first and even-money to net anytime while Cardiff pair Kenwyne Jones and Adam Le Fondre are 8/1 and 11/4 respectively. Bournemouth beat Cardiff 3-0 earlier in the season and a repeat of that scoreline is 12/1.

Top Tip: Draw and over 2.5 goals in the match at 12/1.

Brentford Vs Blackburn Rovers

Brentford are 13/10 favourites to bounce back from their defeat at Huddersfield last time out with all three points against a Blackburn side who are also licking their wounds. The Bees had won five in a row before last weekend’s slip-up to surge into the play-off spots, while their opponents on Saturday are also on the fringes of the top six. Blackburn conceded a last-gasp winning goal against Sheffield Wednesday to end an unbeaten run of nine games, including four wins, but you can back them at 19/10 for victory this weekend and 5/2 to earn a point. Brentford striker Andre Gray and Blackburn counterpart Rudy Gestede are both 5/1 to score first and 11/8 to net anytime, while Jordan Rhodes will surely attract attention at 11/2 and 6/4..

Top Tip: Brentford to score two goals or more at evens.

Charlton Athletic Vs Blackpool

Charlton Athletic are odds-on favourites to beat bottom-of-the-table Blackpool in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday. The hosts find themselves in mid-table, with six wins after 20 games, and are 10/11 to pick up all three points. Bob Peeters’ side have only lost one of their 10 home games and are 7/4 to beat Blackpool 1-0, 2-0 or 2-1. Lee Clark’s Tangerines picked up their second victory of the campaign with a 1-0 triumph over Birmingham last weekend – having beaten Cardiff 1-0 earlier in the season – and they can be backed at 6/1 to prevail to nil again here. The Seasiders have found the net in their last three away games and both teams to score is even-money, with Charlton 6/4 to be ahead at the break and 9/2 to win both halves.

Top tip: Charlton to win the first half at 6/4.

Leeds United Vs Fulham

Leeds United are 6/4 to claim a third straight home win when they host Fulham (13/8) at Elland Road on Saturday. The draw is priced up at 13/5 by Football League sponsor Sky Bet, with 1-1 the most popular correct score at 11/2. Both sides have been involved in plenty of high-scoring games of late and over 2.5 goals is predictably short at 4/6, with both teams to score also long odds-on at 8/15. The last time these two sides met in Leeds was back in December 2003, when the West Yorkshire club won 3-2, and a repeat outcome is 25/1. Mirko Antenucci is one of the league’s leading marksmen with eight goals to his name and the Leeds striker is 5/1 to score first. Former United hitman Ross McCormack is 11/2, with fellow Fulham striker Hugo Rodallega 6/1 in the same market.

Top Tip: Ross McCormack to score at any time at 6/4.

Middlesborough Vs Derby County

The clash of the day in the Sky Bet Championship with fourth hosting first and Middlesborough are 13/10 to enhance a home record that has seen them lose just twice all season. Derby County are no slouches on the road, however, having won five and they are 11/5 to bounce back from defeat on their last road trip, at Leeds United, and claim all three points. Middlesborough have won four and drawn four of their other home fixtures and are 4/6 in the ‘draw no bet’ market. The stalemate is 11/5. Middlesborough are unbeaten in their last eight home games with The Rams going back to the 1999/2000 season in the Premier League and they will be full of confidence after thrashing Millwall 5-1 last weekend. Jelle Vossen scored a hat-trick there with on-loan Chelsea starlet Patrick Bamford netting his sixth goal of the season and the pair are 6/1 and 11/2 respectively to score the opener. Bamford was on loan at Derby last season but Chris Martin has more than made up for his absence with 12 goals and he is 6/1 to strike first in what promises to be a keenly-fought encounter.

Top Tip: The draw at 23/10.

Norwich City Vs Huddersfield Town

A run of one win in nine Sky Bet Championship games left Norwich City boss Micky Adams under severe pressure but that was alleviated by victory away at Wigan, a result which sees the Canaries perched just outside the play-off places and now just 11/4 for promotion and 12/1 for the title. Visitors Huddersfield are positioned firmly in mid-table with 24 points, but only eight of those have been garnered on their travels, where they have fallen to defeat on six occasions, conceding 21 goals. Both teams have scored in Norwich’s last five home games and it’s 4/6 that both sides do so again on Saturday. Jonathan Howson has scored three goals in four games and is 7/2 to net at any time, while Gary Hooper has two in three and is 5/1 to open the scoring in a game the Canaries are 7/10 to win. Grant Holt is leading the line for the Terriers and he’s 3/1 to score at any time against his former employers, with Huddersfield 18/5 to gain their first win at Carrow Road since 1969/70 - a run spanning nine games.

Top Tip: Both teams to score at 4/6.

Rotherham United Vs Nottingham Forest

The Millers are firmly placed at the wrong end of the table in the Sky Bet Championship and are 7/4 second-favourites for the drop with the sponsors, whereas Forest are 7/1 for promotion in a season that hasn’t quite lived up to expectations. Forest had to wait nine games for their first win since beating Fulham in mid-September but backed that up with a defeat of Wolves before losing to Birmingham and drawing to Charlton. They are 7/5 favourites to claim all three points with Rotherham 19/10, but eight of the last nine games between these sides have finished all square and the draw can be backed at 12/5. Expensive summer signing Britt Assombalonga endured a lean spell during their bad run but then netted in three consecutive games, including when being sent off at Birmingham. He is set to return from suspension here and is 5/4 to score at any time and 9/2 to score first. The goals have been shared about for Rotherham with Alex Revell and Jordan Bowery both scoring three and they are 13/2 and 9/1 to open the scoring, as the Millers look to end a run of eight games without a win.

Top Tip: Britt Assombalonga to score first at 9/2.

Sheffield Wednesday Vs Wolverhampton Wanderers

Just one point separates these sides in the Sky Bet Championship but the Owls arrive in better form having ended a run of 10 games without success with back-to-back wins against Wigan and Blackburn. Wolves were level on points at the top of the table not so long ago but have stuggled more recently and they come here winless in six, losing their last five. The Molineux outfit did look on the way back against Bournemouth prior to being derailed by a controversial red card and they are 11/5 to win at Hillsborough where Wednesday, who can be backed at 13/10, have won just twice this season. They have drawn five, scoring just five goals and conceding nine, and the stalemate is 23/10 with under 2.5 goals at even-money and under 1.5 goals at 9/4. However, the Wolves defence has proved porous conceding 16 goals in their last five and that defensive weakness will need to be resolved if they are to hold their own here.

Top Tip: Sheffield Wednesday to win at 13/10

Watford Vs Wigan Athletic

The Hornets benefitted from an early red card for Fulham keeper Marcus Bettinelli to end a run of four defeats and stroll to a 5-0 victory last Friday. They are 11/10 to back that up and get their promotion bid (100/30 to go up) from the Sky Bet Championship back on track against a struggling Wigan side who are 4/1 for the drop with the sponsors. Troy Deeney scored a hat-trick at Craven Cottage with Almen Abdi netting twice and the pair are 9/2 and 10/1 respectively to open the scoring with joint top scorer Matej Vydra 5/1 in the same market. The Latics have seen a change of manager but that has yet to realise an upturn in fortunes as defeat at home to Norwich last Saturday was their fourth in five games. Watford are 9/4 to be winning at half-time and full-time with the draw/Watford outcomes priced at 9/2 - the same price as Wigan to be winning at both the interval and the final whistle. Wigan have failed to find the net in two of their last five games but have scored in four of their last five on the road and it’s 8/11 that both teams score on Saturday.

Top Tip: Both teams to score at 8/11.