We are nearing the final 10 weeks of Barclays Premier League football action as we enter into Week 28 this Saturday and Sunday. Chelsea maintains a slim one-point advantage atop the league table over second place Manchester United. My pick for match of the week has to be Manchester City at Chelsea. With Manchester United on Carling Cup duty, the Blues have the chance to widen the gap as they play their match in hand. Here I take a look at a few this week’s top matches, giving you insight on making your EPL soccer wager a winner.
Chelsea: -222
Draw: +290
Manchester City: +650
Top of the table Chelsea will host No. 5 Manchester City at Stamford Bridge this Saturday. The Blues were defeated in the Champions League 2-1 by Inter at the San Siro but could have won the match had they converted more of their scoring opportunities. Everyone will be watching the reunion between John Terry and Wayne Bridge who has now made himself unavailable for England. Henrique Hilario will get the call in goal after Czech Republic goalkeeper Petr Cech tore a calf muscle against Inter Milan in midweek. Ashley Cole is a long-term absentee with a broken ankle and Yury Zhirkov has a calf injury. Paulo Ferreira is back in contention after not being registered for the Champions League in midweek, but Florent Malouda is expected to continue at left back. Jose Bosingwa, Michael Essien and Deco all remain sidelined. In the meantime City were handed an embarrassing defeated by Stoke midweek, and holding their own against the league leaders would do wonders for team morale. However, they have taken just one point from a possible nine on the road and have failed to score in their last seven visits to Stamford Bridge. Their 2-1 victory at home to the Blues in December ended a run of eight successive defeats to Chelsea. It will be a tough task against a Chelsea side who have dropped just two points at home all season and who have gone 37 matches unbeaten at Stamford Bridge in all competitions. I expect the Blues to take this one at home and the three points.
Stoke City: +425
Draw: +250
Arsenal: -153
No. 3 Arsenal will be bidding to avenge their FA Cup defeat at Stoke City and look to get within striking distance of both Chelsea and Manchester United with a rematch at No. 11 Stoke this weekend. The Gunners made off with an easy 2-0 win over Sunderland in their last league match. Croatia international Eduardo could return to the Arsenal squad after recovering from a hamstring problem, but his condition will still need to be evaluated just before match time. The Gunners will be without William Gallas (calf), Abou Diaby (knee) and Andrey Arshavin (hamstring) for Saturday’s game. As for Stoke City, they have not lost to Arsenal in 2010, beating them on their last two visits to the Potteries, with the most recent being a 3-1 FA Cup fourth-round victory last month. Both Abdoulaye Faye and Andy Wilkinson will return from suspensions just in time for this week’s match, while Stoke are waiting on fitness checks for Matthew Etherington and Danny Higginbotham before naming their side. The Potters have not lost in 11 matches in all competitions since December 28th and will no doubt be buoyed by their massive home win against Manchester City last week. Look for this game to end with the sides splitting the points.
Tottenham: -105
Draw: +230
Everton: +275
No. 4 Tottenham Spurs have taken 11 points from a possible 15 at White Hart Lane and will look to pick up three more when they host No. 8 Everton this Sunday. The Spurs reached the quarterfinals of the FA Cup with a 4-0 win against the Bolton Wanderers this past week. Aaron Lennon is set to face further time on the sidelines, Jermaine Jenas is still out with a groin problem and long-term absentees Jonathan Woodgate and Carlo Cudicini remain unavailable for Tottenham. Ledley King is also listed as doubtful for the match, but Benoit Assou-Ekotto returned against Bolton in place of Vedran Corluka, who was suffering with an illness. The club has revealed that a virus has hit the club hard and its effects remain to be seen. Meanwhile, Everton are one of the Premier League’s hottest team at the moment, winning five of their last six including wins over Chelsea and Manchester United in consecutive weeks. Nobody would be surprised if they came away with another victory against Spurs. Everton have lost only one of their last 12, but have won only one of seven on the road. Landon Donovan, on loan from the LA Galaxy, played well against Manchester United as he used his pace down the left flank to unsettle the ageing Gary Neville. It could be another good day for Donovan if he returns to that position. Both sides are in good form and both have played midweek games, with Everton suffering more having played a more outside the country. With home advantage, I suspect the Spurs to sneak a win and take all three points in this one.
Sunderland: +115
Draw: +225
Fulham: +225
No. 9 Fulham have taken 10 points from a possible 12 and are on a roll after reaching the last 16 of the Europa League thanks to a 3-2 aggregate victory over Shakhtar Donetsk. But the win came with a high price as Bobby Zamora, the clubs 15-goal striker, limped out of Thursday night’s match with an Achilles tendon injury. It is doubtful he will play in this Sunday’s Barclays Premier League match at No. 14 Sunderland. The good news is the Cottagers will welcome back defender Nicky Shorey and forward Stefano Okaka, who were both cup-tied. After such an incredible start to the season, Sunderland has gone 13 matches without a win, scoring just 11 and conceding 25 - and they have not had a victory in 2010. Sunderland need to start taking points at home if they want to escape relegation. Just two goals have been scored in the last three meetings between the clubs, and the Cottagers have not won away from home in the Barclays Premier League since the opening day of the season. This will surely be a tight match, as both clubs have aspirations of European football next season. I expect this one to end in a 1-1 draw.
My other picks for the week are Birmingham over Wigan, Bolton drawing with Wolverhampton, Liverpool over Blackburn, and Burnley over Portsmouth.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.