Striker! Vardy can stake Golden Boot claim

Dave Tindall
Jermain Defoe: Fancied to finish with a goal

Jermain Defoe: Fancied to finish with a goal

Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy and Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe are both in Dave Tindall’s anytime scorer staking plan this weekend.

This column has already brought you one 50/1 winner this season and has had successful tips among its selection every single week since launch. This week the focus is on the final round of Premier League games.

Premier League Top Scorers

25 Harry Kane (Tottenham) Last 6 games: 0-1-0-2-0-1 = 4

24 Jamie Vardy (Leicester) Last 6 games: 2-1-2-0-0-0 = 5

24 Sergio Aguero (Man City) Last 6 games: 1-0-0-1-1-3 = 6

18 Romelu Lukaku (Everton) Last 6 games: 0-0-0-0-0-0 = 0

17 Riyad Mahrez (Leicester) Last 6 games: 0-0-1-0-0-0 = 1

15 Odion Ighalo (Watford) Last 6 games: 1-0-0-0-0-0 = 1

15 Jermain Defoe (Sunderland) Last 6 games: 0-1-1-0-1-0 = 3

Analysis: He’s got a title winner’s medal already secured but Jamie Vardy would love to ice the cake by adding the Premier League’s Golden Boot too.

He moved to within a goal of Harry Kane with a brace in the 3-1 party win over Everton last weekend and would have had a hat-trick but for ballooning his second penalty into orbit.

The good thing from a betting point of view is that it will keep him hungry for the Foxes’ finale at Chelsea this weekend. In other words, we know we’re on a trier and that’s all you can ask when putting your hard-earned down.

The fact that it’s Chelsea away means we don’t have to take a skinny price on Vardy, who is available at an attractive 7/4.

With five goals in his last three games, the joint favourite for Sports Personality of the Year is ending the season in some of his richest form so let’s get on board.

Eden Hazard

 

In the same match, Chelsea’s Eden Hazard has to be worth a close look too.

After showing a virtual lack of interest for most of the season, something is suddenly inspiring the Belgian (a summer move or Euro 2016 the obvious candidates) and he’s blasted in four goals in his last four games.

Astonishingly, they are his only four Premier League goals of the season.

At least it adheres to this column’s big theory that scoring occurs in bunches so it’s no real surprise that one goal has led to two, three and four.

The 9/4 for him adding another is reasonable although the betting rule of related contingency means we can’t put two players (Vardy and Hazard) from the same game in the same acca. Play Hazard as a single then.

This battle for the Golden Boot means it’s worth giving Sergio Aguero a look too.

Man City have to take something from the trip to Swansea to stop Man Utd pinching the final Champions League spot so Aguero will be a key figure.

He was on target in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal last time and has plundered five goals in his last three Premier League away games thanks to a hat-trick at Chelsea and singles at Newcastle and Bournemouth.

The best price of 3/4 isn’t great but it’s certainly good acca material.

Sergio Aguero Manchester City celebration

There is nothing riding on Watford v Sunderland but at least it’s one final chance for Jermain Defoe to give Roy Hodgson a nudge. It might be too late but a hat-trick could just spark a media snowball.

One goal for Defoe would do us and he’s managed to find the target in each of his last four away games (Stoke, Norwich, Newcastle and Southampton).

Watford have leaked 13 goals in their last five games so the deadly Defoe should be able to help himself to another at an attractive 9/5.

To complete the acca, I’ll side with a player who is a little further down the top scorer charts – Manchester United’s Anthony Martial.

Despite some flat spells, the young French striker has shown enough flashes of his prodigious talent to show that United knew what they were doing when splashing out what seemed a ludicrously high £36m last summer.

He’s fired in 17 goals and, crucially, to make him a strong bet this weekend, four of those have come in his last three games.

Martial can sign off a promising campaign with another at home to Bournemouth so let’s back him to find the net at 7/5.

Best bets:

Jamie Vardy to score anytime v Chelsea at 7/4
Eden Hazard to score anytime v Leicester at 5/2
Sergio Aguero to score anytime v Swansea at 3/4
Jermain Defoe to score anytime v Watford at 9/5
Anthony Martial to score anytime v Bournemouth at 7/5

Best-priced accumulator:

Vardy, Aguero, Defoe & Martial at 22.75/1

Dave Tindall