Opta Stats: Giroud to carry on firing against Blackburn

15Feb 2013

FA Cup

With the all-knowing Opta stats at his disposal, Christian Crowther picks out four potential scorers ahead of the weekend action...

Arsenal v Blackburn (Saturday, 15:00)

Olivier Giroud bagged a brace in the fourth round for Arsenal and has scored five in his last five appearances for the London club

Arsenal's sizeable French striker recently responded to criticism by claiming his first season stats are actually more favourable than departed goal machine Robin van Persie. While comparisons to RVP are possibly a little foolish at this stage in his fledgling Gunners' career, there is no doubting that 14 goals is a decent return so far as he adapts to English football. Another Championship defence provide a chance to further improve those stats.

Recommended Bet: Back Olivier Giroud to score @ 2.0

Oldham v Everton (Saturday, 18:00, ITV)

Forward Lee Barnard has scored in each of his two appearances for Oldham since joining on loan from Southampton

People often say a change is as good as a rest. In the case of Barnard, this couldn't be more apt, as the striker was merely collecting cobwebs at St Mary's before making a January loan move to Boundary Park. Barnard has clearly hit the ground running for the Latics and, although they have parted company with manager Paul Dickov, the recent win over MK Dons plus the result against Liverpool give the League One outfit confidence that they can cause another upset.

Recommended Bet: Back Lee Barnard to score @ 5.2

Chelsea v Brentford (Sunday, 12:00, ITV)

Fernando Torres' only goal in his last 12 appearances for Chelsea came against Brentford in the original clash

Despite scoring 15 times for his club this season, by his old standards, Torres is not the same striker that signed form Liverpool. However, the Spaniard has enjoyed rippling the net in the cup competitions at least this campaign with eight of those goals arriving away from the Premier League. Rafa Benitez should see this as a chance to boost the striker's confidence.

Recommended Bet: Back Fernando Torres to score @ 1.89

Huddersfield v Wigan (Sunday, 15:55, ITV)

Shaun Maloney has netted in his last two games for Wigan

It would be easier to predict the next Pope than it would to tell what Wigan are going to do from one game to the next. However, Roberto Martinez's team certainly have goals in them. The Latics haven't failed to register in a game since they visited Old Trafford back on New Year's Day. Maloney's good form recently earned him a start in Gordon Strachan's first Scotland side, and he should prove a real threat to the Terriers defence here.

Recommended Bet: Back Shaun Maloney to score @ 3.9