Match Betting (1x2)
Last season, thousands of Aston Villa supporters made the journey to Wembley Stadium and saw the Villans land promotion to the Premier League after beating Derby County. Those same fans will head south again for the EFL Cup final although they will travel more in hope than expectation.
After all, Unibet offer a massive 20/1 that Dean Smith’s team land victory within ninety minutes against a City team who dismantled them a few weeks ago at Villa Park, eventually running out as 6-1 winners.
Even if you’re looking to back the Midlands side to lift the trophy, you can get 10/1 with Paddy Power, although it’s a tall order against a City team who are becoming adept at winning this piece of silverware.
Ladbrokes have 1/6 about the Citizens winning in normal time which isn’t a price for the faint-hearted, while the draw is available at 6/1 with BetVictor.
You could perhaps make a case for the game ending all square providing that Villa don’t concede an early goal, although that’s a big “if” and the City players are sure to enjoy those big wide spaces.
Asian Handicap
Manchester City often like to turn on the style when they’re playing in the cup finals and punters who find their match odds too short might seek an alternative bet such as backing them on the Asian Handicap markets.
For example, BetVictor have odds of 8/9 about Manchester City off a -2 Asian Handicap and anyone who saw them dismantle the Villans recently might be keen to bet this price.
It would mean money back if the Citizens win by a two-goal margin and a profit if they oblige by three or more, with their opponents looking to defend a lot better than they did in that recent match.
Unibet offer 7/5 about the favourites off a handicap of -2.5 which would mean you would need a three-goal margin of victory to triumph with this bet.
Both Teams to Score
Smith will surely want his team to go out and be positive. Aston Villa don’t reach cup finals very often and it would be disappointing for them if they suffered a heavy defeat without really trying to score goals.
Paddy Power offer 6/5 about the “Yes” option on the Both Teams to Score market and that could make appeal for punters expecting both sides to find the net during the ninety minutes.
However, the “No” option is trading at 4/6 with William Hill and it’s plausible that Manchester City will produce a masterclass which includes not conceding a goal.
If you’re interested in this particular route, then you can get 4/5 about Manchester City winning the game to nil.