Football Tips: 5 to thrive in our acca for the pick of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clashes

Another day and another raft of games to weigh up.

19:00 Millwall vs Burnley: Draw

This one is definitely a clash of styles. Millwall have enjoyed a good start to their Championship season, picking up four points from two goals without the loss of a goal.

Burnley, on the other hand, were uncharacteristically poor at the back in their 4-2 defeat to Leicester at the weekend and are clearly still feeling the effects of starting their Premier League campaign a week after almost every other club.

Sean Dyche will be hoping for a return of the resolute Burnley that everyone has come to expect on Wednesday night and the two abrasive clubs could cancel each other out.

19:00 Stoke vs Gillingham Stoke to win

Stoke haven’t quite enjoyed the start their fans would have hoped for after their promising end to the 2019/20 season, but they have had a good run in the cup so far.

The Potters have picked up just one point from their opening two games in the league without managing to score a goal, but their away victory at Wolves in the League Cup will surely give them confidence.

This is an excellent opportunity for Stoke to Win and advance to the last-16 of the League Cup and they should do so against a Gillingham side that hasn’t pulled up any trees since the start of the season.

19:45 Chelsea vs Barnsley: Chelsea (-2)

It’s fair to say that Chelsea’s new signings haven’t quite had the impact Frank Lampard would have hoped for in the early stages of the season.

There is still plenty of time for them to improve, and several signings are yet to even make their debuts, but Kai Havertz and Timo Werner have been underwhelming in the league so far.

In fact, Chelsea have been underwhelming in general. They were fortunate to beat Brighton on the opening day and looked completely void of ideas against Liverpool on Sunday.

Yes, Liverpool are one of the best teams in Europe, but you would expect £120 million worth of new signings to offer more. Lampard should really view Wednesday’s clash with Barnsley as a preseason friendly and, by extension, he should start a strong side to enable some of his new signings to gel.

Barnsley, meanwhile, have endured a difficult start to life in the Championship this season, despite a decent run in the League Cup.

The Tykes failed to score in each of their two league games so far this season, with both games ending in defeat. Their cup run will come to an end at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night and that is by no means a bad thing but Chelsea (-2) is the way to go here.

19:45 Preston vs Brighton: Brighton to win

Brighton have been excellent since the return of the Premier League two weeks ago.

The Seagulls were unfortunate to come away with nothing in their opening day defeat to Chelsea and have since put four past Portsmouth in the League Cup and three past Newcastle in the league.

Graham Potter has transformed Brighton’s identity and, with a full season under his belt, he will target better results.

A good run in the League Cup is exactly the sort of thing a club like Brighton should strive for and they should just about get over the line against a Preston side that has picked up just one point from their opening two Championship games, albeit both were against formidable opposition.

19:45 Fulham vs Sheffield Wednesday: Fulham to win

Fulham and Sheffield Wednesday are almost the exact opposite of Brighton in that there is nothing they need less than a run in the League Cup. Both clubs look certain to be pitched into a relegation dogfight in their respective divisions and they can both do without the distractions of a cup run.

Sheffield Wednesday have started the season well, picking up four points from two difficult games, but still find themselves eight points adrift due to their 12-point deduction.

Fulham, on the other, hand, have started the season abysmally, conceding seven goals in two games as they slumped to two early defeats.

They have a huge game against likely relegation rivals Aston Villa on Monday night and they would do well to instil a bit of belief into themselves before that crunch game.

A home win against relegation-threatened Sheffield Wednesday is the ideal opportunity to do so.

These five selections in an acca will give you odds of around 53/1 with Paddy Power.

Our five-fold acca for Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup clash

19:00 Stoke vs Gillingham Stoke to win
19:00 Millwall vs Burnley: Draw
19:45 Chelsea vs Barnsley: Chelsea (-2)
19:45 Preston vs Brighton: Brighton to win
19:45 Fulham vs Sheffield Wednesday: Fulham to win

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