Rafa's on-a-roll Magpies unlikely to be halted by West Ham

What’s your best bet of the weekend?
I’m keeping faith with Newcastle who were very decent in victory at Burnley on Monday night and can make it four wins in a row by seeing off West Ham. I’m not saying Rafa’s a streaky manager but when he gets on a roll his teams are hard to stop. Even allowing for all the problems he’s got trying to fund improvements at the club, Newcastle are playing well.

Which favourites look the most vulnerable?
I wouldn’t touch Manchester United at odds-on against anyone right now and they are no value whatsoever at Southampton. Against Young Boys they were terrifyingly dull and there’s a depression around the club. They may feel slightly less pressure away from Old Trafford but they are far too inconsistent to be considered good things anywhere.

Where is the value in Sunday’s three derbies?
I’d take a punt on Arsenal. It’s been a great week for Spurs with wins against Chelsea and Inter but you can’t argue with what Unai Emery is achieving at the Emirates, where the Gunners haven’t lost since an opening-day reverse against Manchester City. Given the changes made against Vorskla on Thursday, Emery’s big guns have also had a week off.

Will Liverpool and/or Spurs qualify from their Champions League groups?
Both will qualify. I’m bullish about Liverpool, who are at their most dangerous when they have to go for it as they will against Napoli, but I can also see Tottenham pulling it off. They’d love PSV to do them a favour against Inter but the likelihood is that Spurs are going to have to win in Barcelona, who will make changes. Tottenham have to believe.

Does Mick McCarthy give Ireland a better chance of success than Martin O’Neill?
It can’t be any worse. Ireland had been doing okay under O’Neill before that savaging by Denmark last autumn and it’s gone downhill fast ever since. McCarthy hasn’t got much to improve upon but he can’t find talent that isn’t there so it makes sense to have Under-21 boss Stephen Kenny waiting in the wings to replace Mick after the 2020 Euros.

Give us a winner for the midweek Premier League matches
Huddersfield at a fancy price at Bournemouth. You can’t help but be impressed by what David Wagner is doing at the club. He kept them up last season and has hauled them up the table after a run of seven points from three matches. I think he’s a bit special and his next move is going to be a big one. First things first, back them to surprise Bournemouth.

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