Swansea v Sunderland Betting Tips

Swansea’s atrocious defensive record of late has caught up with them, and they sit marooned at the foot of the table on nine points, the only team still in single figures. This week they host Sunderland, who edged champions Leicester 2-1 last weekend but are also struggling to find their way out of the relegation zone. The Black Cats will hope that their good form (three wins in four games) will allow them to exit the bottom three and heap further pressure on Bob Bradley.

One of the main bright lights this season for Sunderland has been Jermain Defoe, who now has four goals and two assists in his last fivebgames; his eight goals in the league so far this season are the most of any player in the bottom six, and the partnership between him and Victor Anichebe is crucial if Sunderland are to survive this season. Swansea have conceded three or more in five of their last seven games and have conceded first in 13 of their last 20 league games, second only to Crystal Palace (who have conceded first in 15 of their last 20). The bizarre 5-4 win over Crystal Palace was their first home win in eight attempts, but they can take some confidence from the fact that Sunderland have won just one of their last nine away games.

This is likely to be a scrappy game between two teams desperate to get out of relegation territory, but since five of the last eight games between these two sides have been draws and both teams have struggled to score freely this season, we’re backing the draw again here.