Football Tips 03/05/2014 -

We could of taken any of the top three in League 2 for this one, but settled on Rochdale as they are the only team not playing a team in the top half of the table. Rochdale trail top of the league by goal difference only and they will be going all out to grab a win today to ensure they are there ready to jump into top spot should a slip up occur elsewhere. Newport County have managed to win just once in 11 home games and they have nothing but a pay cheque left to play for in their final game of the season. Rochdale enter the game on the back of two wins and in the knowledge that they beat Newport 3-0 when the teams met previously back in November. We just can't see Rochdale throwing away a chance to be champions with one game to go, they will need a bit of help from Fleetwood, but they have to play their part first.

Ayr need to win with two teams that could possibly leap frog them into a play-off spot. We don't rate their defense too highly have they failed to keep a clean sheet in 6 of their last 7 home games and that will mean their strikers will need to find the back of the net more than once. East Fife who are already doomed to a play-off relegation spot, could face an even worse scenario should Abroath manage to win and jump above them, but their defense has kept just one clean sheet in 17 away games. Ayr have the top scorer in the league Moffat at their disposal for today's game - the 30 year old is a late comer to professional football only starting out in 2011 when he signed for Ayr. Moffat has since become more and more prolific to the point where he now has 26 goals in 31 games this season.

A win for Palermo against struggling Novara would see them crowned champions of Serie B. We're playing it safe and jumping on the draw no bet, but if you want to play it really safe then you can just about find a little value in the double chance market. We've checked the Palermo squad for this one and it's a full bill of health for the boys in pink as they look to claim a victory and get back into Serie A. Novara have won just one of their last six league games and won't be relishing the front runners of the league paying them a visit today. It's also worth noting that Palermo have never lost this fixture on the four previous occasions it's been played. Palermo have won 9 of their last 10 games and haven't suffered defeat since December 2013 - 18 games ago!

Bayern will be hurting from the mid-week defeat to Real Madrid, but they may take it out on relegation battlers Hamburg today. If Hamburg fail to win today they are guaranteed to at best be in a relegation spot. That being said Hamburg have got to go for goals and that will mean leaving themselves exposed to the absolutely lethal force of Bayern's attack. With a cup final coming up next week Bayern may rest a few familiar faces, but Pep knows he needs to field a strong team and give us a response in this one. Hamburg have lost four of the last five games they have played to leave themselves in such a poor position. Hamburg's big problem is their defense, they've kept just one clean sheet in their last 22 league games - surely Bayern will wake themselves up ready for the cup final today, they have the perfect match here.