Giants in heavyweight battle for Wembley final

Fiery Foes. Eden Hazard (L) of Chelsea and Dele Alli of Tottenham Hotspur clash in an FA Cup semifinal with hope of reaching coveted Wembley final. AFP PHOTOS

What you need to know:

  • FA CUP. Manchester City have won only 18 of their past 31 games as favourites for a clear loss – nine of these games have ended in draws – and they have been a losing betting play across just about every metric.

LONDON.

The 2017 FA Cup semi-finals will be held at Wembley this weekend and we are set for two fascinating clashes.
The title race between Chelsea and Tottenham is on in earnest, but they will take time out from that to do battle in an FA Cup before Arsenal and Manchester City attempt to qualify for another final.

Chelsea vs Spurs
This is a fascinating tie between two teams that are now only separated by four points in the race for the English Premier League title.
They split their two meetings in the English Premier League this season – with both sides winning at home – and neither of these teams has beaten the other away from home since 2012.
It is Tottenham that will actually go into this clash as favourites, but there really is nothing between these two sides in betting.
Chelsea have won only one of their past five games as underdogs, but they have drawn two of their games in this scenario.
Tottenham have been in exceptional form during the English Premier League over the past couple of months and they have won seven games on the trot, but the issue for them could be Wembley Stadium.
They struggled at Wembley during the Champions League and their may be something of a mental hoodoo heading into this clash.
There really is very little between these two sides and it may take longer than 90 minutes to separate them, with the draw looking like a genuine result.
Arsenal vs Man City
It has been a couple of months of turmoil for Arsenal and it is no real surprise that Manchester City will go into this clash as clear favourites.
There has been very little between these two sides in recent years and both have been tough to trust from a betting standpoint so far this season.
Manchester City have won only 18 of their past 31 games as favourites for a clear loss – nine of these games have ended in draws – and they have been a losing betting play across just about every metric.
Arsenal have struggled badly for consistency throughout this season and the scary thing for their fans is the fact that they have not won a single game as underdogs this season.
This is another game where the draw represents serious value – five of the past ten games between the two sides have ended in stalemates and a repeat this weekend looks likely.

FA CUP ON SUPERSPORT
Today
Chelsea vs. Tottenham SS3, 7.15PM
TOMORROW
Arsenal vs. Man City (SS5, 5PM)