Bournemouth vs Leeds Betting Tips and Stats

Alex Scott has been one of Bournemouth’s standout performers this season, and I’m keen to back him to hit the target at least once here. The Cherries midfielder is averaging 0.40 shots on target per game in the Premier League this season, but that doesn’t paint the full picture. Scott’s shot output has been on a steep upward curve in the second half of the season, underlined by the fact that he has registered at least 1 on-target effort in 5 of his last 10 outings. Across that same stretch, he has scored against both Wolves and Arsenal, while also working the goalkeeper twice away at West Ham.

The case for siding with this selection grows even stronger when you consider that Scott has pulled the trigger at least twice in 9 of his last 12 top-flight outings, which demonstrates that he is consistently finding himself in positions to try his luck in front of goal, and hitting the target with a healthy share of those attempts.

While Leeds are ticking along nicely at the moment, it is worth noting that they conceded 20 shots in their last away trip to Manchester United, 9 of which hit the target.

Gabriel Gudmundsson looks well placed to register at least one shot on Wednesday night. Deployed in a left wing-back role, the Leeds defender is given plenty of licence to bomb forward, which naturally feeds into his tendency to get shots away. That is reflected in his numbers, with Gudmundsson registering at least 1 effort in 11 of his last 21 Premier League appearances. A closer look shows the 26-year-old let fly twice in a relatively recent away game at Aston Villa, with the same also true in the game that followed with Manchester City. His willingness to push into advanced areas was also evident during an FA Cup tie against Norwich last month, when he scored from 1 of his 2 efforts in that match.

While Bournemouth are enjoying a lengthy unbeaten run in the Premier League, they have failed to keep a clean sheet in 7 of their last 8 home games, so they are far from watertight defensively. That should give the visitors enough scope to create chances, further strengthening the case for Gudmundsson to fire at least 1 shot on Wednesday night.

Based on their seasonal statistics, I think Bournemouth look well worth backing to collect at least 2 bookings against Leeds on Wednesday night. Andoni Iraola’s side rank among the most ill-disciplined outfits in the Premier League this season, averaging 2.30 yellow cards per game, a tally topped by only 3 other teams in the division. Dig a little deeper and it can be seen that the Cherries have accumulated multiple bookings in 6 of their last 8 top-flight outings, including each of their last 3 at home.

As for Leeds, they are drawing an average of 1.79 cards per 90 from their Premier League opponents this season, with 6 of the last 8 teams they have faced having at least 2 names taken by the match official. The fact that Bournemouth picked up a couple of cards in this season’s reverse fixture only adds to the appeal of siding with a repeat at the Vitality on Wednesday night.