Sutton’s Acca: 9/1 EFL Bet – Saturday 8th October

EFL Pundit Gab Sutton is back with his best bets for the weekend’s action…

GAB SUTTON EFL ACCA

Sutton's 9/1 EFL Acca - Saturday 3pm

Gab has five EFL picks on Saturday

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October 08, 2022

3:00 pm GMT+1

Swansea to beat Sunderland – 6/5

The Play-Off scramble in the Championship could be wide open this season.

Swansea currently occupy 6th spot with 18 points from their first 12 games, which extrapolated over a whole league campaign would be 69 points, when 77 and 75 has been required in the previous two Championship seasons.

This low bar has unquestionably benefited the Swans, who endured a ropey start, taking just six points from their first seven outings, before a run of four wins in five catapulted them up the standings.

Russ Martin’s side play an attractive brand of possession-heavy football, and with Ryan Manning producing some sumptuous individual performances, they could be hard to stop.

Swansea’s form should continue for the visit of Sunderland, who have drawn three in succession.

Tony Mowbray’s side failed to find the net against PNE and Blackpool, missing the focal point of last season’s top goalscorer, Ross Stewart.

Ipswich to win at Morecambe – 2/5

Ipswich look an incredibly well-coached team under Kieran McKenna, and morale in the fanbase is as high as it has been for a generation.

The Tractor Boys have the means to create chances, whether through the thrust provided by wing-backs Wes Burns and Leif Davis, or the craft of number 10s Conor Chaplin and Marcus Harness.

At the same time, all their work is supported by a steady defensive structure, underpinned by the consistency of defenders Janoi Donacien, Luke Woolfenden and George Edmondson, as well as Sam Morsy and Lee Evans in midfield.

Town could enjoy dominance at Morecambe, who have won just one of their first 11 league games and sit bottom of League One.

Sheffield Wednesday to beat Cheltenham – 2/5

Cheltenham have lifted themselves into League One’s midtable thanks to a run of three consecutive home wins, over Cambridge, Shrewsbury and Bolton.

As such, the pressure is off Wade Elliott’s side on their trip to Sheffield Wednesday, who are hoping to close the gap on Plymouth Argyle and Ipswich in the top two.

What the Owls have in their favour is a handful of individuals who are too good for this level – Barry Bannan and Josh Windass to name two – as well as incredible strength in depth.

Alex Mighten was lighting up the Championship two years ago, and now Wednesday have the luxury of not even bringing the former Nottingham Forest prodigy off the bench.

It’s a bit different to what Cheltenham have in reserve: they have two good strikers in Alfie May and Dan N’Lundulu, but then beyond there can be a drop-off in quality – although the Robins did beat Bolton 1-0 without May in midweek.

Leyton Orient to win at Doncaster – 6/5

Richie Wellens returns to Doncaster, where he’s a divisive figure.

Many are grateful for his role in a successful time for the club as a player and acknowledge the challenges he faced in his time as a manager, others are keen for him to meet his demise.

Sadly for those in the latter camp, there hasn’t been much evidence of that at Leyton Orient this season: in fact, Wellens’ O’s side enjoyed an emphatic, record-breaking start to the season, picking up 28 points from their first 10 games.

The East Londoners dominated for parts of their game against Newport last weekend but fell to a 2-1 smash-and-grab, despite which they remain seven points clear in the automatic promotion race.

With energetic forward Paul Smyth and reliable right-back Tom James starring for Orient, they should have too much for a disjointed Doncaster side.

It’s possible that by full-time, Rovers fans may have more focus on the position of their own manager.

Grimsby to beat Crawley – 8/11

Grimsby have had a solid start to life in League Two: they’ve won more than they’ve lost and the number of goals they have conceded (10) is lower than that of games played (11).

Paul Hurst has drilled the Mariners into shape and while they have at times missed the individual brilliance of John McAtee, they have in Lewis Richardson a Burnley loanee who has looked bright and inventive.

Those two things should be enough of a template for Town to defeat Crawley, where head coach Kevin Betsy is already under pressure.

Owner Preston Johnson flew into the UK last week and has hinted that there may be some personnel changes considered, which doesn’t look great for Betsy, whose side lie in the relegation zone.

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