Betting Previews
The Premiership
Blackburn -
Fulham 1.55 - 6.80
It is getting
desperate for Fulham and they have to go for the
three points at Ewood Park. Fulham, you may
recall, the formidable travellers with 0-5-8
away from home this season. They will have L.
Andreasen back from suspension and it is not out
of the question that the Finnish maestro, J.
Litmanen, will be involved. He is 37 and will
not be able to turn the Fulham ship, that much I
know, although he once was a fantastic player.
No Smertin.
Blackburn continue
to pick up points without impressing much. How
they managed to defeat a strong Newcastle side
last week, nobody knows! D. Dunn could be back
tomorrow, but probably not. I have seen some
strange games between these sides and I have no
interest in backing this low priced home win
(1.55). I recall when Blackburn, coached by a
hard pressed Souness won away to Fulham, 4-3.
Then again. Fulham have won twice at Ewood Park
these last four years. No bet!
Blackburn 1 Fulham 1
Liverpool - Newcastle 1.40
- 10.00
As I just
mentioned, Newcastle played a strong
match against Blackburn, probably their
best since Keegan took care of business.
An inspired display, but unfortunately
Newcastle failed to find the net (0-1).
Michael Owen missed three open chances,
or maybe I should say that the excellent
Friedel made the saves. J. Barton will
not be available tomorrow, but O.
Martins should be OK. S. Carr and M.
Viduka are major doubts once again, and
definitely missing are Emre and S.
Given. Newcastle have a 0-1-9 record in
their last visits to Anfield and I guess
that the above odds give a fair
reflection of their chances. OK,
Liverpool already played a league
fixture in mid week, (4-0 win vs. W
Ham), while Newcastle were without a
game. Normally this should be
advantageous for Newcastle, but the
fact that Liverpool played their game
with West Ham and won big in the process
can never be bad, can it? Anyway, Torres
scored three of the goals against the
Hammers, and Liverpool have now scored
ten goals in their last three league
games. Inter are waiting in a few days,
but I expect Liverpool to do their job
against Newcastle. Home win (1.40).
Liverpool 3 Newcastle 0
Reading - Manchester City
2.56 - 2.99
The
Reading coach, Coppell, used Ingimarsson
and Bikey as central defenders against
Middlesbrough last week. It worked, with
Reading keeping a clean sheet (1-0 win).
Their recent signing, Kebe, had his
first minutes for the club. M. Duberry
is back in contention tomorrow, but
Gunnarsson, Fae and Murty will all
be missing again. City will be without
Petrov and M. Richards again. No Petrov
playing for City and this writer is
prepared to oppose Sven's team (2.56).
Elano had to leave the Wigan match with
an injury, but he should be back to play
tomorrow. The City defender Onuoha is a
late withdrawal. City won 2-1 against
Reading before Christmas, the winning
goal coming in the very last minute of
the game. My choice this time will be
the home win for Reading (2.56).
Reading 2 Man City 0
Sunderland - Everton 3.45
- 2.25
Thanks to
their home strength, Sunderland are
still favourites to stay in the
Premiership. They have won their last
four home games, but apart from
Portsmouth, their opponents were from
the lower half of the table. Sunderland
welcome back D. Collins from his
suspension period. With K. Richardson
back in the line up, I thought that
Sunderland would be able to defeat Derby
last week. They were quite superior on
the day, but alas, no goals were scored.
Everton are enjoying a sensational spell
at the moment. They are strong all over
the pitch and normally a team like
Sunderland should not be able to touch
the present Everton side. Still, I am
not prepared to ignore the midweek
Everton engagement. Everton played
atough UEFA Cup game in Florence, vs.
Fiorentina last night (0-2 loss). I
mean, Fiorentina are top quality, and
surely the Everton players could be a
bit jaded or even slightly unmotivated
come Sunday. The Everton hard man L.
Carsley is out, suspended, and L. Osman
has joined the injury list. Coach Moyes
was disappointed with his team in
Florence and he is likely to make some
changes for this match. Andy Johnson
from the start, maybe Arteta as well. 1X
in my opinion. OK, the draw! (3.25).
Sunderland 0 Everton 1
Tottenham - West Ham 1.85
- 4.81
Same here!
Tottenham welcomed PSV to White Hart
Lane yesterday for the first leg of
their UEFA Cup meeting (0-1 loss). Full
focus on the UEFA Cup from Ramos and his
Tottenham, and it is very likely that
some of his leading players will be
rested against West Ham. Say L. King and
Woodgate for instance. J. Jenas will
probably sit this one out, but A. Hutton
should be back. Tottenham were not at
their best against PSV and it was their
second below par display in a week. Just
a week ago, I looked upon West Ham as a
tough side to beat, but since I saild
those mighty words, they have conceded
eight goals in two matches. Their
opponents were Champions league quarter
finalists Chelsea and Liverpool, but it
does not matter, conceding eight goals
is not a healthy thing! Key defender M.
Upson will probably miss this match as
well as J. Faubert. Scott Parker could
possibly be back. I guess both these
sides would like to forget about this
last week. I do not know, but the home
win is closer to my heart (1.85).
Tottenham 4 West Ham 0
Wigan
- Arsenal 6.69 - 1.60
My hope
last week was that Wigan would be able
to take advantage of the poor Manchester
City form, but I guess that they were
only too happy with the point that they
achieved. They will able to face Arsenal
with the same group of players as last
week, plus the fit again R. Taylor. I
kind of liked their starting line up,
with both Koumas and Palacios on the
midfield. E. Heskey and M. King as
strikers - sounds good at least. First
Milan and then Wigan! There is a life
for Arsenal after their famous win
against Milan in midweek, but surely it
will be easier for the Arsenal players
to reload their batteries than for their
Milan colleagues away to Empoli on
Sunday. No Eboue for Arsenal, no Diaby
and no Walcott. Van Persie could be back
in the starting line up and there is
also a chance that Toure will recover.
Probable away win, (1.60), but surely
the odds are too short.
Wigan 0 Arsenal 0
Serie A
Inter
- Reggina 1.33 - 13.00
Both
Ibrahimovic and J. Cruz will be
available for Inter again. That is great
news, only a couple of days before their
meeting with Liverpool. At the same
time, Inter must keep Roma at a distance
and I expect both the strikers to be
involved in this match. Chivu is out,
suspended, and Cordoba, Samuel, Maxwell
and Dacourt remain on the sidelines.
Reggina come to this fixture with a new
coach. He will be without among others
Vigiani. Campagnolo is a major doubt. It
looks like he will use a 4-4-2 formation
with Amoruso joined by Brienza or
Makinwa in the front line. Home win for
Inter! (1.33).
Inter 2 Reggina 0
Palermo - Udinese 2.25 -
3.75
The
Palermo striker Amauri missed the last
match and he is considered once again a
major injury doubt. If Amauri should not
make it, Cavani will be joined by
fit-again Miccoli. Balzaretti is out,
suspended, with Simplicio his likely
replacement. Two Udinese players,
Dossena and Zapotochny, are suspended
this weekend and their defender Lukovic
is an injury doubt. Still no Zapata, but
Mesto should be available again. Small
advantage for Udinese ahead of this
match. They knocked out Palermo from the
Coppa Italia, and then you should know
that Udinese fielded mostly second
choices. Also Palermo were weakened, but
not at all like Udinese. The outcome
then? Both teams are terribly
unpredictable, that much I know. I
cannot help it - the value is on the
home win! (2.25).
Palermo 1 Udinese 1
Catania
- Cagliari 2.00 - 4.80
A massive
fixture, a true six pointer affair, this
one. Week in and week out I hear myself
saying that Catania play some attractive
football and that they are better than
their league position indicates. Two
alternatives - I could be totally wrong,
or they have all the bad luck in the
world. They drew their last home game
with Milan, 1-1, after a strong display
and I trust the Sicilians to defeat the
bottom side Cagliari (2.00). Catania
will be without the suspended Terlizzi
and the injured Edusei. Martinez is a
doubt. Baiocco back however. Aquafresca,
the young striker, was man of the match
when Cagliari won their home game with
Genoa, 2-1. Did they deserve the three
points? I can not say that they were the
better side, but they played on the
result for the whole of the second half.
They were 2-1 up at half-time. Ferri and
D. Lopez will be missing, but Agostini
is available again. Supporting my
Catania then! (2.00).
Catania 2 Cagliari 1
Empoli
- Milan 5.25 - 1.90
Fiorentina
winning away to Juventus was the worst
that could happen to Milan last week.
Well, next to their loss against Arsenal
of course. Now Fiorentina are 4 points
ahead of Milan in the league and the
pressure is on Ancelotti and his
players. No time for any depression!
Seedorf remains sidelined and, for this
match, Milan also have to do without the
suspended Gattuso. Their injury list
looks much the same as last week. Zero
points for Empoli from their two matches
last week and not a single goal scored.
Pretty bad, considering their precarious
league position. Moro and Marzoratti are
out, suspended, and Pozzi has not yet
recovered. Defender Raggi has joined the
injury list. Empoli are a limited side
and coach Malesani does not that have
that many options. A very likely away
win, despite the Milan midweek set back
(1.90).
Empoli 0 Milan 2
Genoa
- Juventus 3.95 - 2.25
What
happened with Juventus last week? 2-1 up
at home to Fiorentina, and then losing
2-3, certainly uncharacteristic for a
club like Juventus. Admittedly their
form has been a bit questionable of
late, winless in their last three games.
Nedved will be suspended also this week,
and he is their only important absentee.
Leon, Sculli and Di Vaio, all Genoa
strikers, are available for this match
and their leading striker Borriello has
just been cleared to play. Juric is
suspended this weekend. After their two
strong wins against Udinese and Napoli,
Genoa had a bad day at the office last
week at Cagliari. They will play a
stronger match against Juventus, I am
sure of that, but will it be enough to
disturb Juventus? I think so. X2 in my
opinion. Maybe a score draw. (3.00).
Genoa 0 Juventus 2
Lazio
- Livorno 1.75 - 6.00
Surely
Lazio should be too strong for Livorno
(1.75). Lazio certainly had their
chances to win their away game against a
weakened Milan side at the weekend, but
they had to settle for a 1-1 draw. They
will be OK for this match only missing
the suspended Mudingayi and De Silvestri.
Their injury list is not as full as
before. Diamanti, Livorno striker, was
rewarded with an 8 last week when his
side won the important match with
Catania, 1-0. His winning goal was
something extra, I have been told. No
changes for Livorno ahead of this match.
Lazio to win! (1.75).
Lazio 2 Livorno 0
Napoli
- Roma 3.65 - 2.25
Inter were
beaten by Napoli last week and rightly
so. Zalayeta scored the winning goal but
he also missed a second-half penalty. I
thought that Napoli faced Inter at the
best of moments, and I have to say the
same about the situation this weekend.
Roma played against Real Madrid earlier
this week. One thing differs: Inter were
plagued by injuries, while Roma are
practically injury-free. For Napoli,
both Domizzi and Contini are back in
contention and their coach has only
problems of abundance. Vucinic made all
the difference for Roma in midweek, when
they deservedly defeated Real Madrid,
2-1. The first encounter between these
sides this season ended in a sensational
4-4 draw. Another goal feast? Not out of
the question. I have Roma as winners
(2.25).
Napoli 0 Roma 2
Parma
- Sampdoria 2.20 - 4.20
Definitely
tempting to oppose Sampdoria, now that
Cassano will be missing. I am not
exaggerating, he is everything to
Sampdoria. Also missing are Sala and
Bellucci. We will probably see Bonazzoli
and Delvecchio up front for Samp. Parma
have a fully fit squad these days. Well,
Morfeo is on their injury list, but he
has hardly played this season. Parma are
decent at their own place, they
absolutely need the points and I find it
quite natural to bet on the home win
(2.20).
Parma 1 Sampdoria 2
Siena
- Fiorentina 3.50 - 2.45
Tuscan
derby and small advantage for the home
side, as Fiorentina only yesterday
played a tough UEFA Cup game against a
strong Everton side. (2-0 win). Italian
sides seldom enjoy two big games in a
week. Locatelli will be making his come
back for Siena, slotting in the hole
behind Frick and Maccarone. Bertotto is
out, suspended and Jarolim plus
Vergassola are on their injury list.
Fiorentina will be without Osvaldo, Mutu
and Liverani, but both Semioli and
Santana are expected to be fit to play.
Papa Waigo was cup-tied in midweek, but
he will be available at Siena.
Should
Fiorentina have an off day, they will
punished immediately. Siena like to
attack and I predict major problems for
Fiorentina on Sunday. Will a draw make
everyone happy? No, I do not think so,
but maybe Siena can live with a draw
result. OK, the draw! (2.90).
Siena 1 Fiorentina 0
Torino
- Atalanta 2.20 - 3.80
It is kind
of funny sitting here with my computer,
talking about the draw specialists
Torino week after week and they keep on
drawing. Two draws last week and they
are now 4-16-6! Pretty amazing! Pisano
is suspended and P. Zanetti are injured
but both Dellafiore and Bjelanovic will
be OK. Torino have a fit squad and their
offensive options are almost too many
these days. Doni had a poor game last
week and consequently Atalanta were
beaten, 0-2, by Udinese. Hopefully for
all Atalanta fans, he will be back to
his usual splendid business this
weekend. Rivalta and Carozzieri should
both be back, lining up in the Atalanta
defence. Bellini is out. 1X in my
opinion, but can one avoid the draw?
(3.00).
Torino 1 Atalanta 0
FA Cup,
quarter finals
Bristol
Rovers - W B A 3.65 -
2.20
Fulham and
Southampton were knocked out by first
division Bristol Rovers, and I should
think that the Pirates are optimistic
ahead of this quarter final. WBA and
Fulham are on the same level. Rovers are
in decent league form with only two
losses in their last twelve games.
Earlier this week they lost to
Doncaster, but they always lose to
Doncaster. Unfortunately, there is
something of a sickness bug in their
squad. Three players could not play
against Doncaster and there is still
some uncertainty within the squad. Their
pitch is bumpy and that is a advantage
for the home side.
To reach
this quarter final, WBA defeated
Peterboro, 3-0, and Coventry, 5-0, both
away from home. Pretty impressive,
especially if you consider the WBA
vulnerability in their league away
fixtures. F. Teixeira is out injured,
but both Bednar and C. Hoefken are
expected to be OK. When WBA defeated
Sheffield Wednesday in midweek, players
like K. Phillips, J. Morrison and I.
Miller all started on the bench. Plenty
of options for coach Mowbray, in other
words. My choice will be the away win
(2.20).
Bristol Rovers 1 WBA 5
Middlesbrough - Cardiff
1.70 - 6.00
The home
side will miss the suspended Aladiere.
A. Afonso, Mido and Tuncay Sanli are all
available, and there is nothing wrong
with the Boro firepower. R. Scimeca and
T. Sinclair made successful comebacks
for Cardiff in midweek when their side
played out a 0-0 draw with Crystal
Palace at Selhurst Park. Cardiff only
wait on their leading footballer, J.
Ledley, but according to the latest
report,s he could be ready for this Cup
quarter final. Old Jimmy-Floyd, can he
possibly be a threat to Premiership
defenders these days? I am talking about
Hasselbaink, the Cardiff striker. I have
my sincere doubts, and that is why it is
difficult to believe in a Cup upset.
Someone has to score the goals and
Middlesbrough look superior in that
department. Not that I trust
Middlesbrough completely, but the home
win will nevertheless be my choice
(1.70).
Middlesbrough 0 Cardiff 2
Regarding
the other two quarter finals, I do not
have much to say. I do not want to back
Chelsea (1.36) away to
Barnsley, and I will also skip
United (1.36) at home to
Portsmouth. I trust both the
Champions League quarter finalists to
win their matches, but the odds are not
up to standard.
Barnsley 1 Chelsea 0 Man Utd 0 Portsmouth 1
La Liga
Osasuna
- Almeria 2.15 - 3.83
I will be
backing the home win (2.15). Osasuna
have won their last two home games, vs.
Zaragoza and A. Madrid. Well, they
mostly win their home fixtures, but
struggle on their travels. Last week,
however, they drew their tricky away
game with Villarreal. Defender
Azpilicueta sits out a suspension and he
will be replaced by J. Flano. The only
change in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Kike
Sola up front. I watched Almeria draw
their home game with A. Bilbao last
week. I was not impressed by Almeria and
I thought that the Basques were the
better side. One of their three
strikers, J. Ortiz is out, suspended,
this weekend and Acasiete, defender has
joined the injury list. Back from
suspensions are Cisma and Paunovic. I
expect no goal-feast. there seldom is
when Almeria plays. Why not 1-0 or 2-0
for Osasuna? (2.15).
Osasuna 2 Almeria 1
Mallorca - Recreativo Huelva
2.00 - 4.18
Mallorca
have drawn their last five games, but I
am ready to support them in this fixture
(2.00). Last week they were 1-3 down at
Getafe, and their defender Scaloni was
sent off in the 36th minute. Down to ten
men, Mallorca reached a strong 3-3 draw.
Scaloni will be replaced by Hector this
weekend. Pereyra had to leave the Getafe
game with an injury and he is
touch-and-go for this match. Gutierrez
could be his replacement. Guiza, Arango,
Ibagaza likely matchwinners for Mallorca.
Huelva will be without the suspended
defenders Beto and Quique Alvarez. C.
Martins will play but striker
Sinama-Pongolle is an injury doubt. In
my view, Mallorca should be winners vs.
Huelva (2.00).
Mallorca 7 R. Huelva 1
Real
Madrid - Espanyol 1.59
- 7.50
I referred
to the Real squad against Roma as their
weakest of the season. It will be
slightly better now with Sneijder back
to fitness. Still missing, however, are
S. Ramos, Van Nistelrooy and Robben.
Espanyol have to do without De la Pena,
but welcome back Mr. Espanyol himself,
R. Tamudo. He has been out for ages and
his return is a real morale-booster for
the club. Espanyol are one of the most
unpredictable teams in La Liga, but
there is no denying their potential. On
a good day, they can defeat Real Madrid,
even at the Bernabeu Stadium. In Madrid,
the talk is already going on - Mourinho
to replace B. Schuster. Possible upset!
(7.50).
Real Madrid 2 Espanyol 1
Murcia - Getafe 2.95 - 2.65
Murcia are
poor, let us be clear about that, but
maybe they can win this match (2.95).
Their coach has been sacked and J.
Clemente is the new boss. New coach
syndrome, it could work this time.
Murcia welcome back their best striker,
Baiano, as well as Ochoa and Pignol.
Getafe visited Lissabon last night and
defeated 10-man Benfica, 2-1. This
overworked side, maybe they will suffer
on Sunday. Just too many fixtures
lately. Home win (2.95).
Murica 0 Getafe 3
French
League
Lyon
- Bordeaux 1.85 - 4.90
It is not
happening for me right now in France,
betting wise I mean, but some words on
this top clash. Since the Christmas
break, Bordeaux have done exceptionally
well, but the question remains - can
they match Lyon, when it really matters?
They will have Henrique and Diarra back
for this match. Missing once again are
Planus and Jussie. Count on Chamakh and
Cavenaghi to play up front. Lyon have no
major worries ahead of this game. Some
unrest maybe, as Benzema is tired of
playing on the flank and Ben Arfa is
tired of not playing from the start.
Personally, I still hold Lyon as the
stronger side (1.85).
Lyon 4 Bordeaux 2
Marseille - St Etienne
1.75 - 5.30
Bordeaux
and Marseille - equally strong I would
say. Marseille played against Zenit last
night, (3-1 win), and it could be that
they will not be at their very best on
Sunday. Niang, Nasri and Faty could not
play the full 90 minutes against Zenit.
What I have heard is that Nasri and
Niang will be OK for this match, while
Faty has joined their injury list. The
poor travellers St Etienne, (2-2-10 this
far), will be without their leading
striker Gomis. Home win, I guess (1.75).
Marseille 2 St. Etienna 0
Rennes
- P S G 2.50 - 3.40
A very
tricky six-pointer down at the bottom of
the table. Important Rennes defender
Mensah will be back tomorrow. At the
same time, PSG have to do without my
favourite PSG player, play maker J.
Rothen. Striker Luyindula will also be
missing. Both played from the start last
week. Digard is also out of this match.
Leading me to support the home win
(2.50).
Rennes 2 PSG 0
The
Championship
Coventry - Norwich 2.38
- 3.00
Can
Coventry be a motivation winner this
weekend? Yes, I think so! In midweek,
Coventry dominated their home game with
QPR, but they just could not find the
net. Poor sides generally have this
problem? Certainly true, but I will give
Coventry a chance to put things right
tomorrow. Such was their superiority
against QPR, and I have the utmost
respect for QPR. The Coventry midfielder
J. Tabb has a 50/50 chance of playing,
with J. Gray wating to replace him. D.
Russell and J. Cureton will probably
return to the Norwich starting line up.
Huckerby is out, injured, and Mo Camara
will be left out. Time for Coventry
(2.38).
Coventry 1 Norwich 0
-Chris
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