Nobody safe as Sunderland are dragged into relegation dog-fight
Published:On a day in which QPR secured their first back-to-back wins in the Premier League for 18 years, and Wigan were dragged into the bottom three at the expense of Aston Villa, it is now 14th placed Sunderland who look vastly overpriced at 10/1 to avoid the drop.
The Black Cats have lost four of their last five, and with matches against Manchester United and Chelsea succeeding Norwich away, 1/4 for them to be playing in the top-flight next season looks too short.
The Wearsiders have now failed to win a league match since mid-January, combine that with the tepid impact of signings such as Adam Johnson and most recently Danny Graham, and it is easy to see why they are struggling.
Indeed, the only consistent performer for Sunderland is Steven Fletcher, who has scored 10 of their 32 league goals. An injury to the Scotland international would surely see their relegation price slashed.
Meanwhile, things are looking up for Queens Park Rangers and after successive wins, a price of 2/1 for them to stay up looks appealing.
Harry Redknapp had said during the week that 37 points would be enough for safety, and goals from three of his January signings Loic Remy, Andros Townsend and Jermaine Jenas, took them 14 points behind that target.
Elsewhere, Aston Villa managed to climb out of the relegation zone, coming back from a goal down to defeat fellow strugglers Reading 2-1.
Subsequently, their price of 8/13 to stay up looks about right given the continual impact of Christian Benteke, who scored his 11th goal of the season, and the return to form of Gabriel Agbonlahor, who bagged a sublime winner.
All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date
