Expert Jury: Buzzing Bees on the up ahead of Leicester clash

We asked our top team of Racing Post writers and a leading odds-compiler for their thoughts on this week's big talking points and this is how they answered...

What is your best football bet for the weekend?

Racing Post's Steve Davies: Carlisle to win their derby spat at Barrow. The hosts ended their five-match goal-less streak at Scunthorpe on Tuesday, although they needed the Iron to go down to ten men before notching the only goal of a dire game. On the same night much-improved Carlisle gave highflyers Newport a real working over and are so much better since Paul Simpson went back.

Racing Post's James Milton: Under 1.5 goals in Nantes v Lille at 2-1. Lille were knocked out of the Champions League by Chelsea in midweek but they have kept five straight clean sheets in Ligue 1, including a couple of goalless draws and 1-0 wins at Lyon and Montpellier. Nantes had just one shot on target in last weekend's 1-0 loss at Troyes.

Jason Murphy from Betfair:Brentford or draw double chance, or a lay of Leicester. All the small factors you look for in a game such as this favour Brentford. They have been able to fully prepare for this fixture whereas Leicester had to play in France on Thursday. The Foxes are still missing key players through injury including Jonny Evans, Jamie Vardy and Timothy Castagne. The Bees are on the up, Christian Eriksen is settling in well, and I fully expect them to take at a least a point on Sunday.

Racing Post's Chris Rivers: Cheltenham have taken to life in League One nicely and are odds-against to reach the 50-point mark by getting the better of AFC Wimbledon. The Robins have won three of their last four games, are tough to beat at Whaddon Road and are welcoming a Dons side who are sinking fast, failing to win any of their last 15 league games.

Who are the most vulnerable favourites?

Steve Davies: It's a colossal match at the foot of League One between Fleetwood and Doncaster and it's a struggle to commend a bet on the winless hosts at odds-on. Yes, Donny are pretty dreadful but Fleetwood have lost five in a row – admittedly against some top teams – and are without a win in 12. This will be a tense affair and the favourites look too short.

James Milton: Barrow look short enough at around 5-4 to beat resurgent Carlisle in League Two. The visitors won their first four matches under returning boss Paul Simpson before a 2-1 defeat to promotion contenders Newport on Tuesday and Barrow have won just three of their 18 home games this season.

Jason Murphy: As mentioned, Leicester are favourites to avoid in your accas this weekend. Tottenham at shorter than 8-11 against West Ham might be another to duck depending on how West Ham recover from the Sevilla match. If the Hammers have something close to their best 11 - Jarrod Bowen is out but Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell could be fit - then Spurs look a little short.

Chris Rivers: Backing a Fleetwood team who are winless in 12 League One assignments at odds-on to beat Doncaster in a relegation six-pointer looks a foolhardy move. Doncaster’s recent away results suggest they could get something from a clash against a Fleetwood team with five home league wins all season.

Who wins the Premier League?

Steve Davies: Trying to identify where the mistakes are going to come is nigh-on impossible. City at Wolves or West Ham? Liverpool at Villa or Southampton? But there could well be a shock loss somewhere, never mind the dust-up between the pair of them on April 10. City have an edge with nine games left and can see it through.

James Milton: Manchester City, although I'm not rushing to back them at 4-9. They are one point ahead, have an easier run-in than Liverpool, who travel to the Etihad Stadium for a crucial clash on April 10, and there wasn't much wrong with their performance in Monday's goalless draw at Crystal Palace.

Jason Murphy: Man City. Andy Robertson said it himself. City have one more point in the bag and home advantage when the sides meet. Having said that, at the prices I would back Liverpool to win the title and I'm really interested to see what price City are at home. I think they should just about be odds-against, but the market will likely have them odds-on and I would look to lay City at that price. I would also have a look at Liverpool to do the quadruple. They have the squad to do it. Like Manchester United’s treble-winning team in 1999, Liverpool have plenty of firepower now - as underlined by Firmino coming off the bench against Arsenal. If they do win all four then it will be very costly for us given that Liverpool supporters have been backing different combinations of the multiple trophies for a while now.

Chris Rivers: I was at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday and was very impressed with the non-nonsense manner in which Liverpool handled an in-form Arsenal team. Man City look to have the easier run in on paper but they appear slightly more vulnerable than a Reds team who don’t have many, if any, weaknesses.

Will Chelsea's off-field issues impact the rest of their season?

Steve Davies: Well they haven't yet. They'll finish third and going away to Middlesbrough, Wembley or wherever without any fans probably won't unduly perturb them either. Just looking at the goal celebrations of late, they look like a group who feel the world has conspired against them and seem more determined than ever to succeed.

James Milton: It's bound to have some impact given the restrictions on home fans and the uncertainty over some players' futures at the club. One thing in Thomas Tuchel's favour is that Chelsea's remaining targets are the FA Cup and Champions League and lifting his players for knockout games should be easier than maintaining a consistent challenge for the league title.

Jason Murphy: It will impact them, but not enough to affect the likely outcomes. They will still make the top four and they should still be good enough to beat Middlesbrough and potentially win the FA Cup. If Uefa do not allow home fans for the Champions League quarter-final and any potential semi-final then that does affect their chances of qualifying. Depending on the opposition, no home support could reduce probabilities of qualifying from each round by five to ten per cent which is significant. However, I did not expect Chelsea to repeat last year’s heroics in the competition anyway.

Chris Rivers: It would be only human for the players to have their heads turned slightly but this squad has operated under such unusual circumstances over the last two years that they can take this latest development in their stride. Thomas Tuchel has handled the situation superbly so far and can keep the players focused on on-field matters.

Give us a winner in one of the European World Cup playoffs

Steve Davies: It's touch and go whether Patrik Schick lines up for the Czechs in Sweden with the visitors already missing pretty much their entire first-choice defence. Given how strong the Swedes are in Solna – they've won their last nine there, including against Croatia and Spain – Janne Andersson's men look a pretty decent bet.

James Milton: Wales can make the most of home advantage to beat Austria in Cardiff. They have lost just one of their last 18 home matches and have been able to name a strong squad while Austria are an inconsistent side, losing three of their last six competitive internationals against Israel, Scotland and Denmark.

Jason Murphy: Italy. They should have qualified already. Jorginho's missed penalty against Switzerland and a draw in Belfast should not prove costly. They are a very short price to progress at home to North Macedonia and then they'll likely play Portugal in the playoff final, who I'd expect them to beat. To get them onside, back them at around 17.5 on the Betfair Exchange to win the tournament. That would be a nice price to have in your World Cup portfolio.

Chris Rivers: Wales have lost just one of their last 18 matches at the Cardiff City Stadium and it would be a disappointment if they didn’t see off Austria on home soil. Austria finished in fourth place in a weak qualifying group and must now face a Wales side with nearly all their big hitters available.

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