Weekend Review: Accas bite the dust as lacklustre Liverpool caught out by the Cherries

Liverpool were brought crashing back down to Earth after the elation of their 7-0 mauling of Manchester United with a 1-0 loss away to relegation-threatened Bournemouth (7/1).

Juergen Klopp’s side (2/5) headed into the game full of confidence but failed to replicate last weekend’s performance as Philip Billing scored the only goal of the lunchtime kick-off on the south coast to crush weekend accas.

The win gave the Cherries a shot in the arm as they look to avoid heading straight back to the Championship after promotion last season.

While Bournemouth will take confidence from the performance, the lacklustre showing from Liverpool dented their Champions League qualification hopes.

Spurs (4/9) running out 3-1 winners against Nottingham Forest and Newcastle’s (8/13) 2-1 win over Wolves on Sunday afternoon compounded Liverpool’s misery as they slipped to six points behind the top four.

Those Cherries pic.twitter.com/YCatHVIoDb

— AFC Bournemouth (@afcbournemouth) March 11, 2023

Bet365’s Steve Freeth said: “It was a case of after the Lord Mayor’s show on the south coast as Liverpool got punters off to the worst possible start with their surprise 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth.

“The Reds were the cornerstone of many multiple bets with the in-form front three facing the leakiest defence in the Premier League, but an abject performance put a spanner in the works for their top four challenge.

“Liverpool’s loss was Tottenham’s gain in that race, with Spurs now into 6/4 after their 3-1 victory over Forest. Tottenham are frustratingly inconsistent for fans and punters alike, but the same can’t be said for Steve Cooper’s outfit. Such a tough nut to crack at the City Ground – woeful and opposable away from the Trent,” he added.

Elsewhere, Manchester United (2/7) were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Southampton as Casemiro saw red after a dreadful challenge on Carlos Alcaraz, which will see the Brazilian banned for four games.

Betfred’s Alan Firkins said it was “always a good sign” when Liverpool and United failed to win as the pair bust accas up and down the country.

In the title race, Arsenal (2/5) extended their lead over Manchester City to five points after blitzing Fulham at the Emirates on Sunday. City (1/3) had closed the gap to two points with a tight 1-0 win away to Crystal Palace.

Kindred Group’s Ali Gill said: “After a run of good results for punters, the weekend was a very good one for the layers here. Bournemouth versus Liverpool topped the turnover charts overall for the weekend, and after demolishing United 7-0 last time out, no one expected a capitulation to Bournemouth, the 1-0 result also coming in as our best overall result of the weekend.

“Not far behind was United’s 0-0 draw with bottom club Southampton, always a perfect result for any book. City only squeezing one past Palace also left a healthy margin in that one,” he added.

On the continent, wins for Real Madrid and Barcelona plus a feisty encounter between Sevilla and Almeria which saw nine cards produced, didn’t make for pretty reading for Freeth.

A century of wins under Mikel pic.twitter.com/2I6TwVCHfo

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) March 12, 2023

The bet365 man also confirmed PSG became the latest side to trigger the firm’s league winner early payout offer after Dumbarton, Napoli and Burnley following a 2-1 win over Brest.

Freeth said: “With ante post prices ranging from 1/8 to 1/25 up until 1 September, it’s fair to say that punters weren’t breaking the door down to back the serial French champions in singles, but with Messi, Mbappé and Neymar as their forward line, it felt like they were in every multiple bet going.

“Messi and Mbappé combined in injury time to also give PSG not only three points but also our second-worst result in Europe behind Real Madrid,” he added.

Elsewhere, in horseracing, it was a case of the calm before the storm as the Cheltenham Festival kicks off tomorrow.

At Sandown, 5/1 shot Iceo took the win in the Betfair Imperial Cup but owner Chris Giles said it was “unlikely” the horse would make an appearance at Cheltenham.

Welcome, to Cheltenham Eve. #CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/kMXylYRfeb

— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) March 13, 2023

Gill said: “The quiet before the storm in the racing world as all eyes are firmly on Cheltenham. However, Saturday did see the Imperial Cup at Sandown, which went the way of 5/1 shot Iceo under a good ride from Harry Cobden.

“A couple of big prices filled some placed in behind, so while Iceo wasn’t without his backers on the day, overall, another good result for the book here.”

Looking ahead to the highlight of the jumps season, Firkins said: “Biggest plunge of the week? Plenty of note, but there seems to be bags of confidence behind Impair Et Passe in Wednesday’s opener, the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle. Unsurprisingly, from the brilliant Willie Mullins’ yard. I’m looking forward to a great week, as no doubt, is Willie.”