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We are down to the final 16 teams in the Carling Cup which is always the stage when the competition really starts to get interesting as the big teams start to clash & teams start to think about possibly reaching the final.

The make-up of the last 16 is 13 Premier League teams plus Barnsley, Peterborough & Scunthorpe from The Championship so while the Premier league teams dominate the competition, the presence of those three Championship teams does add something extra to the competition.

The 4th round matches look very interesting indeed with 5 all Premier League clashes & overall the 8 4th round ties look likely to provide a good deal of entertainment & betting opportunities to get stuck into.

Here are our thoughts on each of the 4th round ties & the bets we feel are worth consideration:

Barnsley vs Manchester United – 7.45pm Tuesday

This is a proper cup tie in every sense of the word with a ‘David & Goliath’ situation that all great cup ties have & this clash of Championship strugglers Barnsley taking on Premier League Champions & Carling Cup holders Manchester United looks a fascinating game in prospect.

Mark Robins had one clear target when taking over as manager of Barnsley & that is to make sure they stay in the Championship but this competition gave him a great to start to his Barnsley career as they deservedly beat Burnley in the last round here & that should give them the confidence to go for the win again.

Barnsley will be aware that Manchester United are likely to change virtually their whole side for this match & that too should level up this game so with home advantage Barnsley have a much better chance the odds suggest.

By winning this competition last year, Manchester United proved their strength in depth & admittedly a fully confident Manchester United side would normally be expected to win this tie but they struggled to beat Wolves 1-0 at home in the last round & this competition might just be too much for a squad that is not as strong this time around.

We expect this to be an open game because both sides like to play attacking football & we feel that the home crowd can inspire former Manchester United cup hero Mark Robins’s Barnsley side to a famous cup win over the holders & Barnsley do look well worth a bet at a great value price.

Betting Recommendations:

Outright Match Result: Barnsley to win

Correct Score options: Barnsley to win 2-0/2-1

First Goalscorer each way/Player to score first: Hume/Hammill/Gray

Double Result: Barnsley Half Time & Full Time

Portsmouth vs Stoke City – Tuesday 7.45pm

Now the first thing to say about this tie is that this competition is without doubt the lowest direct priority for both sides as survival in the Premier League is all that matters to both Portsmouth & Stoke City.

However, Paul Hart & Tony Pulis are two managers who firmly believe in every game being a seperate event & a chance to build team confidence so we are still expecting both managers to get their teams to have a go in this game & it could well make this a better game than if this were a Premier League tie with no real pressure for either side.

Portsmouth have had 2 very good wins in this competition, and while they have only come against Hereford & Carlisle, the two wins have given the squad confidence & chance to score goals which is something every team needs.

Portsmouth lie bottom of the Premier League & they need to keep building team confidence & only positive results will do that so this is an important game in that respect.

Stoke City have had a very good start to the Premier League season so far & their excellent win at Tottenham probably ranks as their best result in the Premier League to date so they will come into this game absolutely full of confidence.

Stoke City do look a fair bit stronger & definitely have more quality this season so Tony Pulis will have confidence even if he makes the changes we expect him to make.

This is a tough game to call because we feel it really can go either way as Portsmouth will feel confident at home while Stoke City know they are hard to break down & both managers are certain to make changes which adds further difficulty to solving the issue of who is going to win.

Portsmouth will want to keep building on their positive results but we are just going to give the edge to Stoke City in this one as they appear to have a stronger squad & look to have more goal threat to come into the side & Stoke City do look a value bet to book their place in the Quarter Finals.

Betting Recommendations:

Outright Match Betting: Stoke City to win

Correct Score: Stoke City to win 2-0/2-1

Player to score first each way/Player to score anytime: Kitson/Tuncay/Etherington

Double Result: Draw Half Time & Stoke City Full Time

Sunderland vs Aston Villa – Tuesday 7.45pm

We do like the prospects of this match because it brings together two sides who have been in good form & going well in the Premier League but more importantly two managers who will take this competition seriously & field their strongest sides.

Steve Bruce has already made it clear that he wants to achieve success at Sunderland & he has committed Sunderland to playing their strongest possible side in all games & the fact that this is a home tie Sunderland will definitely want to win this.

Sunderland have been very strong at home with 5 wins from 6 & their only defeat came against a very good Chelsea side so we do expect Sunderland to go for the win here with the likes of Darren Bent, Kenwyn Jones, Steed Malbranque, Andy Reid & Kieron Richardson all quality attacking players that will present a big threat to Aston Villa.

Martin O’Neil likes Aston Villa to be competitive in all matches & while he has fielded ‘weakened’ sides in europe, we do expect him to play a strong side here because this competition is a fantastic opportunity for Aston Villa to win something.

Aston Villa are in decent form at present & they are proving hard to beat so we expect them to go to Sunderland confident & determined to go for the win with the pace of Agbonlohar & Ashley Young likely to be the key for them.

This should be a cracking match & should be a great atmosphere to go with it so it’s very much a flip of the coin situation as it is so tight to call but we feel home advantage will be the key on the night & Sunderland are a fair bet to win this tie & go through to the next round.

Betting Recommendations:

Outright Match Betting: Sunderland to win

Correct Score options: Sunderland to win 2-0/2-1

First goalscorer each way/Player to score anytime: Bent/Malbranque/Reid

Double Result: Sunderland Half Time & Full Time

Blackburn Rovers vs Peterborough United – Tuesday 8.00pm

This looks another great cup tie in prospect with Premier League strugglers Blackburn Rovers welcoming Championship strugglers Peterborough United & it should be a decent game.

As with many teams playing in this competition, The Carling Cup is simply not a priority & that is most definitely the case with these two sides as survival in their respective leagues is all that counts this season.

That said, both managers are very proud men who believe in winning football matches & we are sure that Sam Allardyce & Darren Ferguson will demand their players go for the win.

The positive side to this game not being ultimately important to either side is that both teams can afford to be more expansive & positive without risk of failure & that should make for a good game.

Goals could be the order of the day in this match because there have 21 goals scored in Blackburn’s last 4 matches & 12 in Peterborough’s last 4 matches so clearly both sides can score but also have defensive issues to deal with.

Sam Allardyce has always placed great importance on winning home matches & he will certainly want to do that here but we feel the odds on price for a Blackburn win is too short because anything is possible in this match & that makes Peterborough a great value bet to get a famous cup victory.

Betting Recommendations:

Outright Match Betting: Peterborough to win

Correct Score options: Peterborough to win 3-1/3-2

First Goalscorer each way/Player to score anytime: Boyd/Mackail-Smith/Maclean

Double Result: Peterborough Half Time & Full Time

Tottenham vs Everton – Tuesday 8.00pm

Two excellent sides & two fantastic managers line up against each other in what looks a great tie on paper & will be fascinating to watch it unfold.

The theme of this competition & in many ways the key to deciding who is going to win the games is of course which managers are going to take the competition seriously but with this match being between sides managed by Harry Redknapp & David Moyes that should not really come into play.

Both Harry Redknapp & David Moyes enjoy winning football matches & both take great pride in making sure their teams give their best so their commitment to this match should be guaranteed.

Another important factor to this game is that both clubs are looking to bounce back after recent defeats so that should make for a very competitive game.

Both squads are being stretched at present so there are likely to be a few changes to both sides & particularly with Everton who are really suffering with injuries & the changes in teams only serves to make this a tougher game to call.

A major factor in this game is how Everton will respond to their tough fixture schedule given they have had tough away fixtues at Benfica & Bolton in the previous 6 days and this 3rd game in that period might just be too much but we still expect Everton to give their best.

This should be a decent game & quite possibly more open that a league tie would be & on that basis we really do like the look of a Tottenham home win & they look a solid bet to make the quarter finals again.

Betting Recommendations:

Outright match Betting: Tottenham to win

Correct Score Options: Tottenham to win 2-1/3-1

First Goalscorer each way/Player to score anytime: Crouch/Keane/Jenas

Double Result: Tottenham Half Time & Full Time