Match ☆ 26 Apr 2009
ENG · Premier League · 2008
HT 1–0 Referee: Chris Foy
View head-to-head record →
Match stats
15 Shots 5
11 Shots on target 4
8 Corners 1
8 Fouls 13
0 Yellow cards 0
0 Red cards 0
Betting odds
1X2 (match) betting odds
Bet365 home win odds 1.5
Bet365 draw odds 4.2
Bet365 away win odds 7.5
Blue Square home win odds 1.5
Blue Square draw odds 4
Blue Square away win odds 8
Bet&Win home win odds 1.4
Bet&Win draw odds 4
Bet&Win away win odds 7.5
Gamebookers home win odds 1.45
Gamebookers draw odds 4
Gamebookers away win odds 7.25
Interwetten home win odds 1.45
Interwetten draw odds 4
Interwetten away win odds 7
Ladbrokes home win odds 1.44
Ladbrokes draw odds 3.75
Ladbrokes away win odds 6
Sportingbet home win odds 1.45
Sportingbet draw odds 4
Sportingbet away win odds 6.25
Stan James home win odds 1.44
Stan James draw odds 4.1
Stan James away win odds 8
VC Bet home win odds 1.5
VC Bet draw odds 3.6
VC Bet away win odds 7.5
William Hill home win odds 1.5
William Hill draw odds 4
William Hill away win odds 7
Number of Betbrain bookmakers (1X2 odds) 33
Betbrain maximum home win odds 1.53
Betbrain maximum draw odds 4.33
Betbrain maximum away win odds 8.39
Betbrain average home win odds 1.46
Betbrain average draw odds 4.02
Betbrain average away win odds 7.35
Total goals (over/under) betting odds
Number of Betbrain bookmakers (over/under 2.5 goals) 30
Betbrain maximum over 2.5 goals 1.89
Betbrain maximum under 2.5 goals 2.04
Betbrain average over 2.5 goals 1.81
Betbrain average under 2.5 goals 1.94
Asian handicap betting odds
Number of Betbrain bookmakers (Asian handicap) 18
Betbrain Asian handicap size (home team) -1
Betbrain maximum Asian handicap home odds 1.93
Betbrain average Asian handicap home odds 1.87
Betbrain maximum Asian handicap away odds 2.05
Betbrain average Asian handicap away odds 1.99
The models what they said before kick-off
Draw predictor · this site's own figures
Figure Arsenal Middlesbrough
N — no-draw runmatches in a row without a draw 0 0
Max Nthis team's longest run ever 16 14
E — draw debtexpected draws over the current run 0.00 0.00
p50 — last 50draw rate over its last 50 matches 30.0% 30.0%
p100 — last 100draw rate over its last 100 matches 29.0% 30.0%
Draw % — all timeshare of every match drawn 25.9% 27.7%
Σ Nboth sides' runs added 0
Σ Eboth sides' draw debt added 0.00

These are the figures that held before kick-off: each side's record over every match it had played before 26 Apr 2009, computed exactly as the predictor computes today's. Draw score and rank are left out: both place a team against the whole field, and the field can only be scored as it stands now.

Team strength · Elo
Arsenal 2,002 after: 2,006
Middlesbrough 1,738 after: 1,734
Rating gap +329 home advantage included
Draws at this gap 14.0% 300+ · 22,503 matches
Goals model · Dixon-Coles
Expected goals 2.14 – 0.65 home – away
Home win 71.3%
Draw 19.1% every level score added up
Away win 9.6%
Both together · the blend
Blended draw chance 17.7% 75% goals model · 25% Elo gap
Goals model said 19.1% form only
This Elo gap said 14.0% strength only

The mix is the one that scored best over 544,576 matches — the two are averaged on the log-odds scale, not simply added.

The regression · the logistic model
Logistic draw chance 15.5% five signals, then recalibrated
95% band 14.2% – 15.9% how unsure the fit is, not the match
The blend says 17.7% the older published reading

A regression over five signals — the goals model, the draw rate at this Elo gap, the expected goals in the fixture and the competition's own base draw rate — with an isotonic map on top to put the level back where reality is. Held out on a decade it never saw it beat the blend above, which is why both are shown here while one is chosen. Unlike the two readings above it, this one is not leak-free: the model was fitted on all of history, this match included, so for a played match it is a description rather than a prediction.

Both figures are what the models knew before this match — neither ever reads the result it is describing, so they can be compared with what actually happened. Measured over 160,869 priced matches the goals model is slightly worse than the bookmakers (how it is scored), so a high draw chance means an even, low-scoring match rather than value. Descriptive statistics, not betting advice.