Burton vs Bournemouth Preview: Brewers could take Cherries all the way

Burton enjoyed a fruitful cup run last season under Nigel Clough, and the Brewers will be hoping for a similar outcome when they take on Bournemouth at the Pirelli on Wednesday night. 

Bournemouth were 3-1 winners on Friday night, and the Cherries will be hoping to avoid going the same way as Burnley and Aston Villa last season. 

 

Burton vs Bournemouth Preview – 25/09/19: Carabao Cup

The Brewers were excellent last season, and despite crashing out of the competition at the hands of Manchester City, they caused plenty of upsets along the way. They beat Middlesbrough, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa along the way, before dispatching Burnley at the Pirelli at this stage of the competition.

They had a full squad to choose from last season, but they have a number of injuries ahead of this tie. John Brayford is missing whilst Colin Daniel is banned from this game. Jake Buxton, Scott Fraser and David Templeton are also struggling although John Joe O’Toole does return to the side.

They sit in mid-table in League One after an indifferent start to the campaign although a number of players have been settling into their new surroundings. They gave a way a one goal lead on Saturday, losing 2-1 at Prenton Park, and that was far from the ideal way to prepare for this contest.

Bournemouth have a much bigger squad this season, and there is plenty of competition for places. Eddie Howe is likely to make changes for this one, although he could play a much stronger team than he would have been able to in previous years. The Cherries have hit six goals in their last two outings, and are lookinh useful in front of goals.

However, they struggled to break down Forest Green in the previous round, and if Burton make themselves tough to play against in this tie – that could spell trouble for the south coast club.

 

Will Eddie Howe shuffle his pack?

Almost certainly. In the previous round, the likes of Jordan Ibe and Andrew Surman were given some minutes whilst 19-year old Gavin Kilkenny was also given a start.

With Phillip Billing, Josh King and Ryan Fraser all coming off the bench, Howe is likely to name a strong-ish squad although the XI could look very different to the one that lined up at St.Marys on friday night.

Nnamdi Ofoborh did feature in the previous round of the competition, but the Nigerian has since joined Wycombe on loan and was sent off at the weekend.

 

Can Burton do it again?

Although Burton’s league form is a slight concern, they weren’t exactly pulling up trees at this stage last season. At home they’ve kept three clean sheets in a row, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them frustrate the Cherries for long periods of this contest.

Bournemouth weren’t exactly convincing in the previous round, and they could come up against a similarly obstinate back-line here. Burton will be looking to repeat last season’s heroics, and Nigel Clough and his team will know exactly how to do it.

 

Penalties at the Pirelli

Bournemouth are odds-on for this tie, and that just feels a little too short. At 4/5, the Cherries must avoid the pitfalls that Sean Dyche’s men suffered last season.

The Cherries might come through this one, but it’s definitely worth backing this game to go to penalties.

The draw is 3/1 with Betfred, and that looks like the ideal bet in this EFL Cup contest on Wednesday night.

 

Burton vs Bournemouth Betting Tip

Draw – 3/1 with Betfred

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Read More: See the rest of this week’s football match previews from the Carabao Cup matches.

 

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