James Milton's football predictions & free betting accumulator tips

Best bets

Bournemouth to beat West Ham
3pm Saturday
1pt 17-10 general

Cardiff to beat QPR
3pm Saturday
2pts Evs bet365

Real Betis draw no bet v Villarreal
Viaplay Sports 1 & LaLigaTV, 6.30pm Sunday
2pts 23-10 Betfair, BoyleSports, Paddy Power

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Best Premier League bet

Bournemouth v West Ham
3pm Saturday

Bournemouth started last season with a 2-0 home victory over Aston Villa and they could kick off their 2023-24 Premier League campaign in similar style against West Ham.

The Hammers won 4-0 at Bournemouth in April but one of their goalscorers, Declan Rice, has moved to Arsenal and another, Lucas Paqueta, is being linked with Manchester City.

That defeat was a rare blot during a golden spring run for the Cherries, who claimed six wins in nine matches with Liverpool and Tottenham among their victims.

Their ruthless post-season decision to replace Gary O'Neil with former Rayo Vallecano coach Andoni Iraola came as a shock but the new boss has been supported in the transfer market and an exciting season could be on the cards.

West Ham lost their first three league games last term without scoring a goal and they have been slow to reinvest the Rice funds, making their first signing of the summer only on Thursday when Mexican midfielder Edson Alvarez arrived from Ajax.

Best EFL bet

Cardiff v QPR
3pm Saturday

Cardiff and QPR finished just above the Championship relegation zone last season and both teams will be desperate to get an early win on the board when they meet on Saturday.

The Bluebirds made an eyecatching start to the season, establishing a 2-0 half-time lead at Leeds last Sunday before conceding a 95th-minute equaliser.

They scored with their only two shots on target at Elland Road and had just 28 per cent of possession but it was a promising performance and new manager Erol Bulut will be targeting maximum points against QPR.

The Hoops signed off their pre-season campaign with a 5-0 loss to League One Oxford before conceding four first-half goals in a 4-0 rout at Watford. That stretched their lean run in the league to four wins in 31 matches and they may well leave Cardiff empty-handed on Saturday.

Best European bet

Villarreal v Real Betis
Viaplay Sports 1 & LaLigaTV, 6.30pm Sunday

Villarreal have sold striker Nicolas Jackson to Chelsea, defender Pau Torres to Aston Villa, and winger Samuel Chukwueze to Milan this summer and they look vulnerable favourites at home to Real Betis in Sunday's La Liga opener.

The Yellow Submarine finished fifth last season, one place ahead of Betis, despite losing coach Unai Emery to Villa in October but Jackson and Chukwueze scored 21 of their 59 league goals.

Betis made a strong start to last term, winning five of their first six matches including a 1-0 home victory over Villarreal. They won eight of their 16 away games against teams outside the top three, beating fourth-placed Real Sociedad 2-0, and look a solid draw-no-bet selection on Sunday.

Weekend accumulators

Banker
Bolton
The League One Trotters, excellent defensively last season, have started 2023-24 with two wins to nil and should take three points at Cheltenham, who have failed to score in their first two outings.

Blowout
West Brom
The Baggies should not be written off after narrow 2-1 losses to Blackburn and Stoke but they look too short against a Swansea side who have made a solid start under new boss Michael Duff.

Accumulator
Millwall 5-6, Bolton 23-20, Gillingham 11-10, Rennes 2-5. £1 accumulator returns £11.57 with bet365.

Both teams to score
Games at Birmingham 4-6, MK Dons 10-11, Strasbourg 4-7. £1 accumulator returns £5.01 with Hills.

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