Betting tips

FA Cup - third round

2010-01-01T18:16:00.002+02:00

Sunderland - Barrow

SUNDERLAND:

Call it foolhardy, call it a statement of intent. Steve Bruce readily admits it's a risk, but that will not stop him from putting Darren Bent at the mercy of Barrow's no-nonsense defenders when there is a strong case to argue that he should opt for the alternative.

Largely prompted by the player's desire to add to his 13 goals so far this season, the Sunderland manager will resist the temptation to allow the England international a well-earned day off.

He intends to give his top scorer the nod to lead the line in the hope he will help ensure the Stadium of Light doesn't witness the shock result invariably seen somewhere around the country on third round day.

It's a pragmatic approach and a decision no doubt made with one eye on the fact that the Wearside club have managed a single victory in 12 games as their season threatens to go into freefall. Bruce dare not contemplate the consequences of defeat.

Bent's inclusion is also in part due to the lack of goals from the rest of the squad, and Bruce said: "The one person I could leave out is Benty for obvious reasons. However, I won't. He's done fantastically well for me, he's been a breath of fresh air since he came here and he wants to play every week.

"His return is up there with Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba and for us to have someone like that at the club is fantastic. He enjoys being Sunderland's number nine, but we can't just keep relying on him. Some of the other lads need to come to the party as well.

"Of course, if he gets a knock and is missing for eight weeks, I'll be spewing on Monday. If he picks up an injury in the Premier League that's one thing, but it could happen in training or anywhere. It's vital that I put out my biggest and strongest team and with our injury situation I haven't got much option to be honest.

"With nine out either injured or suspended any squad would be stretched to the limit so I'm not really in for any rotation. I've done it before where you leave people out because you're worried about picking up injuries but I'm going to treat the FA Cup with the respect it deserves. I want to get through so I'll play my strongest possible team."

Bruce admits he's driven by the fear of being added to the competition's long list of fallen giants. He added: "We've all been involved in a horrible one where an upset can happen and that's something we must guard against.

"They'll be trying like beasts to cause a shock and we must give them the hugest respect and make sure we match them in the battle, because at times it will be just that. If we do then hopefully our ability will come through.

"It's that time of year where conditions are hard and pitches are at their worst, let's just consider ourselves lucky we've been drawn at home. For most of my career I've tended to get either Manchester United, Chelsea or Liverpool at this stage, which is great for getting some money in but isn't great for your hopes of progressing."

Strategy: Late withdrawals permitting, Bruce will hand a vote of confidence to the 11 players on duty in Monday's 2-2 draw at Blackburn Rovers, where there was a first start for the midfielder David Meyler and a rare appearance from Daryl Murphy, who impressed down the left.

Fraizer Campbell will be given his latest chance to finally make an impact by improving on a modest record of one goal in nine starts as the second striker alongside Bent in a 4-4-2 formation. If the England Under-21 international fails to shine against non-league opposition, then Bruce must start to wonder just why he paid £3.5m for the so far distinctly average-looking former Manchester United forward.

The manager added: "We've hardly got anyone coming off our long injury list but even if we had I'd still be tempted to stick with the same team against Barrow."

Injury Update: Steed Malbranque (thigh strain) and Bolo Zenden (hamstring) are the only players among Sunderland's walking wounded likely to recover in time to figure.

The list of absentees remains a lengthy one with Bruce denied the services of Anton Ferdinand, Andy Reid
John Mensah, Kieran Richardson, Lee Cattermole and Kenwyne Jones. Defender Michael Turner serves the third of a four-match suspension.

Goalkeeper Craig Gordon could return to action within a fortnight after stepping up his rehabilitation from a broken arm by starting ball work this week. Bruce added: "The news on Craig is excellent, and he could be playing in a couple of weeks."

BARROW:

The visitors, who currently sit in the bottom half of the Blue Square Premier League, a division below the Football League, eight points clear of the relegation zone, will be backed by nearly 8,000 fans, about a quarter of the Cumbrian town's population.

There will be a sense of deja vu as at this stage last season, a similar army of supporters made the trans-Pennine pilgrimage to Middlesbrough, who were then in the Premier League, to see their side put up a creditable display in a narrow 2-1 defeat.

Money earned from that cup run 12 months ago enabled the club to step up their training schedule from two nights to three days a week, and Jason Walker, who scored at the Riverside last year, hopes for a similar boost to the coffers this time round to fund the bid to seal a return to the league for the first time in almost 40 years.

The 25-year-old Barrow-born forward said: "The money last year really helped and hopefully we can get even more this time with Sunderland's ground having a bigger capacity than Middlesbrough. It'll help us push the club on even further. We're confident of doing ourselves justice and I don't see why we can't cause an upset

Milton K. Dons - Burnley

BURNLEY:

Owen Coyle could be forgiven for not wanting the distraction of an FA Cup run considering Burnley's increasingly perilous situation in the Premier League, but nothing would be further from the truth.

Coyle clearly believes some success in the competition will help boost flagging confidence at Turf Moor ahead of the second half of the season.

With this in mind, Burnley will be under instructions to make light work of their hosts, who are chasing promotion from League One.

Coyle said: "This competition is very important to me, the players and the club. We would like to have a good run in it. For me, the FA Cup is still the best club competition in the world and an added bonus is it gives you a break from the constant demands of the Premier League."

Strategy: Injuries and suspensions will force Coyle to shuffle his pack, but whichever team he decides to pick will be expected to take the initiative and give the MK Dons no encouragement of an upset.

Robbie Blake is expected to be recalled to the starting line-up and his influence could have a huge bearing on Burnley's ability to press home their superior quality.

Coyle will also be hoping David Nugent is available to play. His loan at Burnley expires towards the end of January but it is unclear whether Portsmouth are prepared to let him be cup-tied.

Coyle, who has distanced himself from speculation linking him with the vacant manager's job at Bolton, added: "We will need permission from Portsmouth to play him so we will speak to them about that, but if not, it will give a chance to another player."

Injury Update: Where to start? Coyle is still without long-term absentees Jay Rodriguez, Chris McCann and Martin Paterson. But just to make matters worse both Tyrone Mears and Stephen Jordan are suspended, Clarke Carlisle is doubtful with a groin injury and captain Steven Caldwell has been ruled out for up to a month with a groin injury. Andre Bikey will play his last game before joining the Cameroon squad for the African Cup of Nations.

MILTON KEYNES DONS:

Paul Ince's side have suffered some mixed form of late but Luke Chadwick is tipping an upset. The former Manchester United winger, who spent a year on loan at Turf Moor earlier in his career, said: "We've not really got anything to lose, the expectation will be on the opposition and that is often when we are at our best. With the pressure off there's no reason why we can't have a go at them."

Bolton Wanderers - Lincoln City

BOLTON WANDERERS:

The dismissal of Gary Megson has completeld overshadowed the team's preparations for the third round tie against League Two strugglers Lincoln City.

Wanderers have failed to be up for the cup in each of the last two seasons, falling at the first hurdle to Sunderland last season and Sheffield United in 2008.

But, despite the fact that they are currently managerless and occupy the one of the relegation places in the Premier League, this tie represents an excellent chance of progress in a competition they have won four times.

Chairman Phil Gartside has given Chris Evans and Steve Wigley the responsibility of looking after first team affairs while the search for a permanent replacement for Megson goes on.

And Evans said: "We'll be looking for a very professional approach. The players will be ready. It's all about concentrating on our 11 players, not them.

"Gary's pushed on now, and we've got to look forward. Steve Wigley and myself have come from similar backgrounds - we have over 60 years of experience between the two of us.

"Every game has to be taken on its merits, and I think we can continue to do the work that we've been setting out to do."

Lincoln, who are managed by former Blackburn striker Chris Sutton, languish perilously close to the League Two relegation zone.

Yet Evans has warned his players against complacency. He added: "There have been times in the past when all teams have found it difficult in the FA Cup, but we have a duty to be correctly prepared. We have a few little niggles, but as far as I am concerned we have a clean bill of health."

Strategy: This is a crucial game for Bolton because the club needs a lift. It is expected that Evans and Wigley will field a strong side, despite the obvious opportunity to rest a few of their first choice players. There is absolutely no doubt, however, that Lincoln will fancy their chances of adding to the home side's misery.

"I know enough Lincoln to know we must have a great deal of respect for them," said Evans. "It's the FA Cup, and we all know what it's about."

Injury Update: Evans has reported a clean bill of health, although he did say there are a few little niggles in the camp following Tuesday's draw against Hull City. Don't be surprised to see Gary Cahill rested.

LINCOLN CITY:

Having brushed aside non-League teams AFC Telford and Northwich Victoria in the last two rounds, this is Lincoln's first appearance in the third round for 11 years. On paper Bolton ought to win without too much trouble with Lincoln fighting for their lives at the wrong end of the League Two table. Yet in Sutton, their manager, they have an FA Cup winner, the former England international collecting a medal during his playing days at Chelsea

Stoke City - York City

STOKE CITY:

It has not been a memorable end to 2009 for Stoke City, with an alarming run of just one win in nine league games. So a cup tie against non-league opposition should present an ideal opportunity to get back on track.

Stoke were stunned in this competition last year against lowly opposition in the shape of Hartlepool at Victoria Park, but this home encounter with York, of the Blue Square Premier, should be a far simpler proposition.

The biggest dilemma for Tony Pulis will centre on team selection, as he is mindful of cup-tieing players he will allow to leave in January.

After making a raft of changes in the Carling Cup Pulis will operate a similar strategy here, with the likes of Andy Griffin and Leon Cort expected to play.

This game will be used a chance to put them in the shop window as Pulis wants to prune his squad in this transfer window.

Stoke midfielder Rory Delap insists his side can recover from their recent malaise. He said: "We've bounced back from worse, so we'll back bounce back from this.

"We know it won't be easy against York and we won't be taking anything granted, but I am sure if we perform as we have done recently, we'll get the right result.

"We can't start feeling sorry for ourselves though. We just need to focus on making the chances count when we are playing as well as we did against Birmingham."

Strategy: This will be a welcome opportunity for Pulis's fringe players to either stake a claim or earn a move to another club this month. His gamble to field a weakened team backfired badly this time last season - and he will undoubtedly warn against a repeat. Stoke's Achilles heel this term has been scoring goals so whoever plays against York will want to find the net to build confidence back up.

Injury Update: Ryan Shawcross is suspended after picking up his fifth booking of the season against Birmingham. Glenn Whelan and Salif Diao will return after bans. Andy Wilkinson may be back after an ankle problem.

YORK CITY:
Don't write off their chances. York are lying third in the Blue Square Premier, only seven points adrift of league leaders Oxford United. They are a solid, well-organised side, but must will depend on the service to their England 'C' international Richard Brodie, who has struck 25 goals already this season.

Fulham London - Swidon Town

FULHAM:
Manager Roy Hodgson signed a new contract at Fulham this week - and must view this competition as his best chance of picking up silverware to justify the improved deal.

The scenario of Fulham captain Danny Murphy walking up to collect the trophy in May does seem unlikely, especially given the competition among England's elite clubs to pick up a major trophy.

But after the form the West Londoners have shown in the league and on the continent this season, it cannot be discounted.

Fulham are one of the country's in-form sides, but Hodgson has played it cool ahead of the visit of Swindon.

He is showing respect to his opponents and insists the Whites can not afford to look towards the next stages yet.

Hodgson said: " We know we have a very tough game ahead of us and we will take it seriously.

"I don't think I would ever use the word distraction for the FA Cup. I think it is another game with prestige at stake.

"I can't imagine there are too many managers up and down the country who would not like a cup run.

"But we know there are occasions when upsets take place and favourites do not always win. The form book is often turned on its head when the third round comes around and we are aware of that."

Hodgson also revealed some bad news, as John Pantsil's knee problem could lead to an operation that would rule him out for the rest of the season.

He suffered the injury against Chelsea last time out, and was ruled out of the African Cup of Nations as a result.

The manager added: "We won't know how long John will be out our specialist returns.We want him to have a look at before we make any decisions. The scan shows there is damage to the posterior cruciate ligament.

"We're talking about a period of eight to 12 weeks, whatever happens. It could be he's decided the damage is sufficiently bad that he might requires an operation.

"If that's the case he'll be out for another four to six weeks to his rehabilitation. It's really bad news for us and for John as well because he was voted Ghana player of year and has been playing very well. Now he's looking ahead to a long period of rehabilitation."

Strategy: After a fantastic season so far, Hodgson is desperate to avoid an embarrassing slip up here. He has told his players to approach this tie just as they have with Europa League fixtures, which means fans heading to Craven Cottage can expect to see plenty of attacking football. Fulham will try to get the game won early, so that key players can be substituted and rested.

Injury Update: Brede Hangeland was left out of the encounter with Chelsea as he needed a rest, and that could be the case here again as Chris Smalling is on standby to make another start. Simon Davies is still sidelined.

SWINDON TOWN:

The League One outfit are taking 6,000 supporters to Craven Cottage and manager Danny Wilson hopes they will inspire his men to an unlikely success. Wilson said: "It promises to be a good game. They've got a good reputation of playing good football, so it's great for us - the fans and the players - that we can go to a Premier League club and experience what it's all about. Possibly some of the fans will never be able to see Premier League clubs unless they are drawn in clubs like this, so it is terrific." Former Fulham midfielder Michael Timlin is set for a start.

Tottenham Hotspurs - Peterborough

Tottenham will take a break from league duties content with the progress made under Harry Redknapp in 2009.

Spurs appointed him a little over a year ago with a mandate simply to avoid relegation; now, following some hefty moves in the transfer market, the North London side will begin 2010 in the top four.

Spurs are also a club with a cup tradition, particularly where the FA Cup is concerned although they haven't lifted the famous trophy since 1991.

The visit of Peterborough, the Championship's bottom club, should pose few problems therefore.

Redknapp is also a renowned wheeler and dealer in the transfer market but insists he does not feel the need to make changes to his squad this time round.

"We are not looking to do anything in the window," he said. "I'd be surprised if we did anything.

"It will be difficult to end the season in the top four but that's the ambition and we've got to try. We have a chance of doing it, but it's not going to be easy. It's very difficult to break into that top four but we will give it our best shot."

Strategy: Redknapp will use the occasion to give fringe men a chance, although whether Roman Pavlyuchenko's latest complaint about being left on the bench most weeks will endear him to his manager remains to be seen. "The cup is very important to us," Redknapp said.

"It's a big game and we want to keep winning. We will give one or two of the lads who haven't played too much a game because they have all worked hard. Those who come in will be ready I'm sure." David Bentley, Alan Hutton and Gareth Bale, internationals all, should feature.

Injury Update: Aaron Lennon and Benoit Assou-Ekotto are both sidelined by groin problems and Jonathan Woodgate's slow recovery from hernia surgery means he will play no part either. Jermain Defoe has a foot injury, but should be able to take part.

PETERBOROUGH UNITED:

Keeper Joe Lewis is expected to play after recovering from a side strain and Ryan Bennett will be in defence being concussed in their last game when they recovered from a 4-0 deficit to draw with Cardiff. Gaby Zakuani is doubtful with a groin strain, while Josh Simpson and Exodus Geohaghon are cup-tied after playing in the fourth qualifying round for Histon. Simpson, who scored twice against Cardiff is a lifelong Spurs fans and said:""It's horrible that I can't play, but the lads are buzzing after our fightback in the last game and feel ready to take on anyone."

Portsmouth - Coventry City

PORTSMOUTH:

Chased by the taxman and with the players wages yet again unpaid, things remain as bleak as ever for the bean counters at Fratton Park.

Against such a backdrop, it's hard to imagine anyone, sacked predecessor Paul Hart aside, who would envy being in Avram Grant's shoes.

The brief lift given by the home victory over Liverpool has been squashed by successive defeats to West Ham and Arsenal, a game that saw Pompey supporters finally snap as they voiced their discontent at the shambolic goings on at Fratton Park.

As if that wasn't bad enough, Grant must now attempt to engineer an upturn without six of his key players who have now flown out to the join up with their countries' squads ahead of the African Cup of Nations.

So far the Israeli has shown impressive management skills, instilling discipline and organisation to his team's play while steadfastly refusing to get dragged into discussions about the off-field problems circling the club.

Should Pompey suffer an embarrassing FA Cup exit at the hands of Championship opponents, Grant will have to dig even further into his box of management tricks to maintain morale.

The omens are not good , with defender Steve Finnan admitting that the financial problems are affecting the players, but Grant welcomes the distraction of the cup.

He said:"I like the FA Cup because anything can happen. One game can change everything. Our scouts have looked at Coventry and we know they are a difficult team to play against. All the teams from the Championship always give 100 per cent, but we want to succeed."

Strategy: The cup may be an unwanted intruder given that Pompey's priorities lie elsewhere but while an early exit may ensure the club's focus is fully trained on its survival, the last thing Grant's side needs is a confidence-sapping defeat against second tier upstarts. Against Arsenal they looked woeful up front and while Coventry with provide a less daunting challenge, the manager must somehow find a replacement for the penetrating runs provided by Algerian duo Nadir Belhadj and Hassan Yebda.

Injury Update: Yebda and Belhadj are on international duty, along with Aruna Dindane, John Utaka, Kanu and Aaron Mokoena. David James's calf injury remains a problem, while Papa Boupa Diop is struggling for fitness after a long lay-off.

COVENTRY CITY:

Manager Chris Coleman has been refused permission to play on-loan trio Jack Cork, Leon Barnett and Gary Madine, so Sammy Clingan will start his first game after a three-month injury lay-off. Freddy Eastwood has recovered from an illness and will play. Coleman said:"The pressure will be on them rather than us."

Reading - Liverpool FC

LIVERPOOL:
Having fallen way off the pace in the race for the Premier League title as well as being eliminated from the Champions League, the FA Cup represents one of Liverpool's last chances of winning any silverware this season.

No wonder Rafa Benitez insists the competition is more important than ever to the club this season as the Spaniard battles to avoid a fourth successive campaign without a major trophy.

Although Liverpool beat Chelsea in the Community Shield in August 2006, the Merseyside club has not won a major piece of silverware since Benitez steered them to their last FA Cup triumph in May 2006.

Reading may be struggling in the second-tier of English football but Benitez knows that, if his side are knocked out of the competition, he will be under even more pressure.

And, if he requires a reminder of a previous black day in the cup for Liverpool, the Reading line-up may feature Brian Howard, who who scored Barnsley's last-minute winner against them at Anfield 2008.

Having often used the competition to give his fringe players a chance to stake a claim, Benitez insists he does not intend to make wholesale changes for the third round tie.

"It's always been important but you know that, when you're out of the Champions League, people think about silverware and the FA Cup is very, very important for us," said Benitez.

"We want to progress, we want to go as far as we can. We'll have to analyse and consider what to do and we still have another training session. We'll see how the players are but maybe we won't change too many.

"We know we're playing against Tottenham eight days later, so we'll have time. We can put a strong team out.

"Always in the FA Cup it's really important to do things right. Everyone wants to win and it's a massive competition, so we have to be ready."

Strategy: Liverpool need this tie like a hole in the head. This has banana skin written all over it and it will require an ultra-professional performance by Benitez's side if they are to avoid an upset. This stage last season they overcame a potential shock at Preston thanks to goals from Albert Riera and Fernando Torres. Liverpool will have to turn the clock back 12 months if they are to keep their season alive.

Injury Update: Having torn a ligament in his right knee during Tuesday's 1-0 win at Aston Villa, Glen Johnson will be out for at least a month. That will mean a reshuffle at the back with Jamie Carragher expected to fill the void at right-back and Martin Skrtel partnering Daniel Agger in the centre of defence.

READING:

The visit of Liverpool provides Reading with the opportunity to draw a line under a miserable year that ends with the club sitting just two points above the Championship relegation zone. Brian McDermott was placed in temporary charge following the dismissal of former manager Brendan Rodgers in mid-December after just six months in charge and a season that began with high hopes of promotion has turned into a desperate survival battle.

Monday's 4-1 defeat at Plymouth marked a new low point for the Royals although McDermott – who harbours hopes of landing the job on a full time basis – is undaunted by the prospect of facing Benitez's side. He is likely to recall Howard, who has been out since November with a broken jaw. Howard said:"I'm desperate to get on the pitch. If I can score another winning goal against Liverpool it would be Roy of the Rovers stuff."

Middlesborough - Manchester City

MANCHESTER CITY:

Roberto Mancini takes his side to the stadium where his old Italy team mate Fabrizio Ravanelli used to strut his stuff, hoping to keep Manchester City's season alive on three fronts.

The rest of Europe are not supposed to value their cup competitions as much as the English but Mancini won the Coppa Italia as a manager with Lazio, Fiorentina and Inter Milan, including won three successive triumphs between 2004 and 2006.

There is also the sense that City are only ever one embarrassing defeat away a horrendous fall out but the Italian has been steady so far with two wins and two clean sheets from his first two matches in charge.

Mancini has plenty of injuries to contend with but maintains he will pick his first-choice side despite facing Manchester United in the Carling Cup semi-final first leg next week.

"I will play the strongest team that I can but we have a lot of injuries," Mancini said. "I will not be thinking about the match against United next week, just what is best for the team and the players. We do not have a very big squad but we do have some young players who have been training with the first team and one or two might have to play.

"I know Middlesbrough will be a tough side to play on their own pitch and will see the tie as one where they can relax and try to take the scalp of a Premier League team. We don't want that to happen; we want to make progress because we know that by the time of the fourth round we will have many people back from injury.

"I have told the players that they should not be thinking about the semi final either. We must have full attention on the FA Cup and then prepare for the next game as soon as the final whistle goes."

Strategy: Mancini has managed to find the defensive stability that City lost during the final weeks of Mark Hughes's reign and that will be the basis of their game-plan at the Riverside. Say what you like about Kolo Toure, but his departure for the African Nations Cup will leave City short at the back so a clean sheet will be a major priority, with the knowledge that their forward players will always create chances at the other end. While Mancini is adamant that he is not thinking about United, Craig Bellamy, who can only play one game a week, is unlikely to start.

Injury Update: City are hoping that Shaun Wright-Phillips can return from an ankle injury but they are definitely without Joleon Lescott, Wayne Bridge, Nedum Onuoha, Stephen Ireland and Roque Santa Cruz through injury, while Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor have headed off for the African Nations Cup.

MIDDLESBROUGH:

A trip to a Championship club in the third round is hardly what Premier League teams would choose, but Middlesbrough, who beat City 8-1 at the Riverside in 2008, hardly look in the shape to pull off a shock. Gareth Southgate was sacked in October but they have managed just two wins in Gordon Strachan's 10 matches in charge, which have brought six defeats, leaving them in mid table.

Boro are without Leroy Lita, Isaiah Osbourne and Emanuel Pogatetz., Adam Johnson, David Wheater and Chris Riggott are all doubtful.

Aston Villa - Blackburn Rovers

ASTON VILLA:
Stephen Warnock faces three meetings in quick succession with team mates he left behind when he moved to Aston Villa in the summer.

Warnock, whose £8m move to Villa Park was designed to further his chances of international recognition from Fabio Capello, is desperate for success in the first part of a trilogy involving the two clubs this month.

This third round tie is a dress rehearsal for the two-legged Carling Cup semi-final and victory in the first of the three meetings would certainly give Villa the edge as they look to reach their first final for nine years.

Manager Martin O'Neill has made it clear that he will prioritise for the chance to reach Wembley by making changes, but Warnock feels the break from successive league defeats against Liverpool and Arsenal is the perfect opportunity to rebuild confidence.

Villa have not won any silverware for 14 years and the England left back feels this could be the time to end that barren run, saying: "For the club to win something would be a fantastic achievement.

"It would be a great honour to be a part of that. The manager hasn't hidden his desire to do well in the competitions. He feels silverware is important to the club and to himself.

"The cups give us the potential to go into Europe, which is such a massive bonus. They also give you a bit more freedom in the league to play without any real pressure and sometimes that can bring the best out in you.

"It's interesting to be facing Blackburn three times in just over a week. We will know each other inside out by the end of the three games."

Strategy: The FA Cup represents the only piece of domestic silverware O'Neill has failed to get his hands on as a manager or a player and Villa last won the trophy in 1957, which the Northern Irishman knows is not good enough for a team of Villa's stature. Nevertheless he will be keeping some of his powder dry ahead of the Carling Cup meetings.

Ashley Young is likely to return after a one-match suspension, but James Milner, Stiliyan Petrov and Stewart Downing could all be rested, along with Richard Dunne. Fabian Delph, Nigel Reo-Coker and James Collins are all expected to be given starting roles, as well as Emile Heskey, who has recovered from a bug that forced him to miss the Liverpool game.

Injury Update: Villa have no fresh injury concerns from 1-0 loss to Liverpool. Curtis Davies is still recovering from a shoulder operation and Wilfred Bouma (ankle) is still nowhere near a first team return.

BLACKBURN ROVERS:
Life has dealt Sam Allardyce a few bad hands in recent months.

Having undergone minor heart surgery in November, Allardyce is yet to see his struggling side win since resuming his duties at Ewood Park.

But the manager allowed himself a chuckle when he discovered his team would face Aston Villa in the third round - the very same Aston Villa who will be looking to stop Allardyce's side in the two-legged Carling Cup semi-final this month.

"I thought 'what have we got here' because this sort of situation doesn't happen very often," said the Blackburn manager. We're playing Aston Villa three times in the space of 18 days in two different cup competitions."

This is the first of at least seven games in January for Rovers, yet Allardyce has made it perfectly clear which two games mean more to him than any other.

Although keen that his side embark on a healthy FA Cup run, Allardyce admits he will be able to stomach defeat at Villa Park as long as his players book a place in the final of the Carling Cup at the expense of O'Neill's men.

"To come this far with all the effort, particularly with the outstanding victory against Chelsea in the quarter-final - the top team in the country at the moment - means we have got a hugely difficult tie against Aston Villa in two semi-finals," added Allardyce.

"But before that we have got a this difficult tie. Tactically from the managers' point of view you have to be looking at it and saying `can we psyche each other out and what can we do to best prepare our players for these games?'.

"That is what we will try to do on Saturday and if we can get a bonus by coming away from Villa with a result it will give us a lot of confidence going into the game on Tuesday.

"It's a big few days for all the players and hopefully at the end of it we will be on a roll, looking up and excited about next playing Manchester City and then the return leg of the semi-final."

Strategy: Expect plenty of changes in the line up as Allardyce tests the depth of the Blackburn squad over the course of the next few games. Having made it clear that the FA Cup is not at the top of his list of priorities, Allardyce still wants to return from Villa Park with a victory. The likes of Lars Jacobsen, an FA Cup finalist with Everton last season, and Martin Olssen are expected to feature while keeper Jason Brown is also set for a rare start.

Injury Update: Vince Grella (thigh), Brett Emerton (groin) andDavid Dunn (calf) start 2010 on the sidelines but all three are expected to be back in action within the next two weeks.

taken from : http://football.fanhouse.co.uk/

And my combo of the day (FA Cup thirs round bets) :

Liverpool to win
Aston Villa to win
Manchester City to win
Tottenham -1 european handicap
Sunderland -2 asian handicap
Southampton to win

Good luck!

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South Korea - Saudi Arabia

2009-06-09T16:58:00.001+03:00

Already Planning Ahead

While it may not please rivals in the group, one of the benefits you get from early qualification is chance to use your remaining games as bonus preparation matches.

South Korea are already looking ahead to South Africa 2010 and the team that faces Saudi Arabia on Wednesday will likely be different to the one that won 2-0 in UAE on Saturday.

It will still be a fairly strong side and will be roared on by a big and happy crowd at Seoul World Cup Stadium. The hosts will play with a freedom that could be dangerous for the visitors.

A Point At Least

Saudi Arabia look in good condition, however. Two come-from-behind wins over Iran and UAE have put automatic qualification in their own hands. Four points from their final two games will be enough.

With South Korea already qualified, the Saudis, who have a recent good record against their hosts – their 2-0 defeat in Riyadh in November not withstanding – will fancy their chances a little more.

In August 2005, the two teams met in Seoul with both already through to Germany, and it was Saudi Arabia who ended their campaign on a winning note.

TEAM NEWS

South Korea

The Taeguk Warriors have injuries and suspensions to deal with. Lee Young-pyo and Kim Jung-woo are suffering from the latter, while Kim Chi-woo has a hernia.

It is likely that some players will be rested and some tested. Young strikers Yoo Byung-soo and Yang Dong-hyun are expected to make their debuts in attack while Cho Won-hee of Wigan comes in for the suspended Kim. Kim Young-kwang should start in goal ahead of Lee Woon-jae and Kim Chang-su looks set to replace Oh Beom-seok.

Saudi Arabia

Compared to earlier rounds, it is a strong squad that the Saudis bring to Seoul. Malek Maaz is still injured by strike partner Yasser Al-Qahtani returns to the national team.

KEY PLAYERS

South Korea – Cho Won-hee

Many feel that Cho deserves a starting place in his own right and with Kim suspended, this is his time to really show he can do it. His energy and determination could cause problems for the Saudis as they look to attack.

Saudi Arabia – Yasser Al Qahtani

It is time for 'the Sniper' to deliver. He has not been in the best of form of late, nor been in favour with coach Jose Peseiro. That will all be forgotten with a goal or two in Seoul.

PREDICTION

South Korea’s players are either tired or new but most of all, it is hard to maintain the same level of concentration when you have qualified. Saudi Arabia’s greater need to win will make the difference.

goal.com

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Shakhtar Donetsk - Werder Bremen, UEFA Cup final

2009-05-19T14:25:00.002+03:00

Sukru Saracoglu Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey (live)

Mircea Lucescu brings Shakhtar Donetsk to Istanbul aiming to help his club become the first ever Ukrainian side to win the UEFA Cup.
Certainly Donetsk are in uncharted territory; they have never before gone past the last 16 of the tournament and Wednesday’s game will be their first major European final.However, having already beaten the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, CSKA Moscow, Marseille and Dynamo Kiev, Lucescu’s side will head to the final with plenty of confidence.Donetsk will also be boosted by the fact that they are currently on an excellent run of form.

Although they have missed out on the domestic league title, they have won their last six league games and will hope to make amends by ending the season with the UEFA Cup.Despite their inexperience at this stage of the competition the eastern Europeans certainly possess plenty of attacking flair and more than enough quality in their squad to worry the Germans.

Shakhtar are a team filled with samba style in the shape of Brazilians Ilsinho, Fernandinho, Luiz Adriano, Jadson and Willian; and with a solid defence behind them they will prove a stern test for the boys from the Bundesliga.

Werder Bremen, meanwhile, will be confident of becoming the first German side in eight years to claim a European title (since Bayern Munich lifted the Champions League in 2001).Despite enduring a disappointing season in the Bundesliga where they currently lie tenth, the Green-Whites have the possibility of ending the campaign with a cup double.

Thomas Schaaf’s men will play Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB Cup final on May 30 and will hope to travel to Berlin having already bagged the UEFA Cup.Certainly having already despatched the likes of AC Milan, St Etienne, Udinese and compatriots SV Hamburg to reach the final, Bremen will be confident they can take the final step required to bring them their first European title since winning the Cup Winners Cup in 1992.However, Schaaf does have problems going in to the game with a number of key players missing.
Bremen’s inspiration and top scorer in the competition, Diego, is banned, as is striker Hugo Almeida.Injury also rules out Per Mertesacker yet Werder do have strength in depth and will look to Claudio Pizarro, Markus Rosenberg and bright young thing Mesut Ozil for inspiration

Shakhtar Donetsk

May 16: Zorya 0-3 Shakhtar Donetsk
May 10: Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0 Kharkiv
May 3: Kryvbas 0-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
Apr 25: Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 Chornomorets Odesa
Apr 19: Metalurh Donetsk 1-2 Shakhtar Donetsk

Werder Bremen

May 16: Werder Bremen 1-3 Karlsruhe
May 13: Eintracht 0-5 Werder Bremen
May 10: Werder Bremen 2-0 Hamburg
May 3: Koln 1-0 Werder Bremen
Apr 25: Werder Bremen 3-2 Bochum

Shakhtar Donetsk

Tomas Hubschmann is suspended for the final but Olexandr Kucher should return.
Possible Starting XI: Pyatov, Srna, Kucher, Chigrinskiy, Rat, Gai, Duljaj, Ilsinho, Jadson, Fernandinho, Luiz Adriano

Werder Bremen

Diego and Hugo Almeida are both banned whilst Per Mertesacker will miss the game through injury.Naldo, Claudio Pizarro and Markus Rosenberg should be fit but Frank Baumann is a doubt with a groin strain.
Possible Starting XI: Wiese, Fritz, Prodl, Naldo, Boenisch, Frings, Baumann, Niemeyer, Ozil, Pizarro, Rosenberg

My bet: without Diego i think it will be very hard for Werder. Shakhtar to win the cup is the best bet

Australian Open round 1

2009-01-19T20:50:00.002+02:00

yerstarday started the first grand slam tournament from Melbourne, Australia.

Here are my first picks:

Andy Murray - Andrei Pavel 3-0
V Spadea - Istomin 2 @ 2.15
Chris Guccione - Nicolas Devilder 2 @ 3.4
Schuettler R. - Sela D 1 @ 1.80
Lleyton Hewitt - Fernando Gonzales 1 @ 1.90
Cipolla - Tursunov 2 @ 1.25
Stakhovsky S. - Clement A 1 @ 1.88

all played single..from Gamebookers

Kaka belongs to City?

2009-01-17T20:39:00.003+02:00

I couldn't pass by the most discussed subject in european football: Will Kaka leave Milan for Manchester City..

Of course Kaka said he loves playing at Milan and there he wants to spend the rest of his footballer days...but..
Berlusconi said he will sell Kaka:
"I will have to probably sell him," the Italian Prime Minister told La Stampa.

"City have made a really big offer to him, more than €15m after tax per year in wages.

"If I don't sell him then the balance of the team will go up in smoke. I risk losing him without earning anything from the deal. I just need to consider the fans and find a transfer hit...we'll see."

It remains to be seen how Milan fans will react to this news, especially as a large number of supporters took to the streets last night to protest against the transfer.

Most of Milan's players especially Ronaldinho bagged kaka to stay there..but it isn't his decision any more. Kaka allready said that AC Milan betrayed him and he will get used to the ideea in the next couple of weeks.

I belong to Jesus was written on his T-shirt..now..he belongs to the new Mesiah..the world of money.

Sunderland - Aston Villa

2009-01-16T20:22:00.002+02:00

Ricky Sbragia is only a matter of weeks into his ship-steadying exercise at the Stadium of Light, and the waters have become choppier since he managed to navigate the ailing side out of the bottom three.

After initial success, with two wins coming in the Scot's first three matches at the helm, results have tailed off; Sunderland are winless in their last three league meetings.

Encouragement will have been taken of late however with the burgeoning form of striking duo, Kenwyne Jones and Djibril Cisse. The formidable pair have struck eight goals between them since Sbragia took charge and potentially present one of the most fearsome strike-lines in the top flight.

With stability and sharpness at one end of the field, Sunderland are still lacking in other areas though. No side have used more players during the course of this league campaign so far, in contrast with Aston Villa; Martin O'Neill's side have fielded the least. Therefore, one key problem facing Sbragia is the self same conundrum that faced his predecessor, Roy Keane - too many pegs, not enough holes.

In truth, aside from Steed Malbranque and the front-two, no Black Cat would be confident of describing themselves as a guaranteed starter with seemingly two candidates for each position on the field. Sbragia is in charge of a side six points better off that this stage of last year's campaign, but the relegation whirlpool is capturing more potential victims by the week.

Martin O'Neill's Aston Villa seem to have added another string to their bow during the nine-game unbeaten run that they are currently on. No longer are the Villans missing out in tight-encounters and shedding points in potentially decisive games, like their last league defeat to Middlesbrough over two months ago.

Since Arsenal's share of the spoils at Villa Park on Boxing Day, the Ulsterman's outfit have been involved in two close encounters - and won them both. Hull City and West Bromwich Albion may feel aggrieved to have not taken rewards against the clarets but it is a testament to the will and determination instilled in the Birmingham-based outfit that they didn't.

A solitary goal victory over Hull and a win by the odd goal in three against WBA have helped Villa keep Arsenal out of the Champions League placings and their consistency surely must be keeping Arsene Wenger awake at night at this stage of the season.

What the side are also proving is that, despite the lack of John Carew, they are capable of plundering goals when necessary and keeping it parsimonious at the back.

Sunderland

Craig Gordon's blighted season continues; the Scotland international custodian has still not recovered from ankle damage. George McCartney also misses out with a foot injury. Phil Bardsley is in line to start after shaking off a virus but Steed Malbranque serves a ban. Liam Miller has joined Queens Park Rangers.

Possible Line Up: Fulop - Bardsley, Chimbonda, Nosworthy, Ferdinand - Tainio, Whitehead, Richardson, Reid - Cisse, Jones

Aston Villa

Possible Line Up: Friedel - Reo Coker, L Young, Davies, Laursen - Petrov, Barry, Sidwell - Young, Milner, Agbonlahor

it will be a very tight match. Over 2.5 and Sunderland 1x is my bet here

Siena - Reggina

2009-01-16T20:17:00.001+02:00

Siena started the season brightly, sitting comfortably in the middle of the table before heading in the wrong direction and have subsequently slumped to four straight defeats, leaving Marco Giampaolo’s job hanging in the balance.

Three of those four defeats came on the road, where the club have struggled mightily this season as they have only managed to pick up a lone victory over lowly Chievo.

The Tuscan outfit are spiralling down the Serie A table and desperately need a victory. Giampaolo’s men gave a good account of themselves in their last two matches and were unlucky not to take any points from Inter Milan and Juventus respectively.

Siena have also been the victims of some plain, old-fashioned bad luck. An offside goal by Maicon doomed Siena to defeat against the Nerazzurri, and in the Juve match their penalty protests were waved away when Nicola Legrottaglie handled the ball inside of the area.

Siena will look to change their fortunes on Saturday evening against an equally struggling Reggina side that sit near the foot of the Serie A table. Siena’s home form has been very good and they will like their chances, but Giampaolo is expecting a stiff challenge from the visitors.

Siena

Giampaolo will be without the services of SimoneVergassola, Luca Rossettini and Douglas Riccardo Packer, who are all receiving some work on the treatment table, while Gianluca Curci will miss out through suspension.
Possible starting XI: Manitta - Zuniga, Portanova, Brandao, Del Grosso - Jarolim, Codrea, Gallopa - Kharja - Ghezzal, Maccarone

Reggina

The injury list at Reggina is long with Carlos Valdez, Luca Vigiani, Emmanuel Cascione and Christian Puggioni all missing out through various aches and ailments.
Possible starting XI: Campagnolo - Cirillo, Lanzaro, Santos, Costa - Sestu, Barreto, Carmona, Barilla - Corradi, Brienza
goal

Siena seems favorite here. But i wull take Siena DNB with full stakes

FC Barcelona - Atletico de Madrid

2009-01-14T15:28:00.002+02:00

Copa del Rey:

If Javier Aguirre really does only have two matches to stay in his job as head coach of Atlético de Madrid, then he will be hoping that the board in the league and do not include the visit to Barcelona.

Los Colchoneros' Mexican boss is under intense pressure to produce impressive displays as much as impressive results despite lifting the club firstly into the UEFA Cup and then the Champions League.

Defeat at home by Athletic Club at the weekend came on the back of the first leg reverse in this tie against Barça and the Atleti fans are becoming frustrated.

Whether they think that their team should suddenly be pushing for the title is unclear, but even in the Spanish game, Aguirre having to walk a tightrope after the success he has had is rare.

Lionel Messi netted a hat-trick in the opening encounter of this fixture to remind his compatriot of his ability following Sergio Agüero's omission of him from his team of the year.

Agüero is set to feature in Camp Nou, but he did not play in the Vicente Calderón, which saw the fans who usually adore him give the Blaugrana's Argentinian star applause for his performance instead.

The build-up to this game could have been so different had Messi not produced a magical goal to give his team victory at the weekend after Barça had let Osasuna come from behind to lead with ten minutes remaining.

While the media gush over each performance from Pep Guardiola's team, they are equally ready to pounce if and when the Catalan giants have an off day and allow Real Madrid to move closer than the current 12-point gap.

That pressure not to slip up may see Guardiola again rest players as he did in the first leg and it will be a stern test for the shadow memebers of the squad who come in to keep up the team's impressive record.

The Copa del Rey does not always capture the supporters' imagination in Spanish football until the semi final at least and with the Blaugrana two goals ahead and a chilly evening in the Catalan capital in prospect, it will not be a full house either.

FC Barcelona

Once again, Guardiola will not name his squad until the morning of the game but it is widely expected that he will continue with his rotation policy and give a few players that have not appeared regularly another chance.

Probable Starting XI: Pinto; Alves, Márquez, Cáceres, Sylvinho; Touré Yayá, Keita, Gudjohnsen, Iniesta; Henry, Bojan.

Atlético de Madrid

Diego Forlán is set to be rested, but Agüero will start the match up front alongside Florent Sinama-Pongolle. John Heitinga and Maniche are both suspended while Maxi Rodríguez and Giourkas Seitaridis are out injured.

Probable Starting XI: Coupet; Antonio López, Pablo, Perea, Pernía; Camacho; Ever Banega, Raúl García, Simao; Sinama Pongolle, Agüero

goal

Over 2.5 and a draw are my bets here

Atletico - Barcelona 1-3 highlights:

Manchester United - Wigan Athletic

2009-01-14T15:23:00.004+02:00

Three And Easy

Manchester United will not be short of confidence for the visit of Wigan Athletic. The reigning champions’ 3-0 demolition of Chelsea at the weekend saw them make up ground on the league leaders Liverpool, and another win will take them up to second, ominously just two points behind Rafael Benitez's men

Wednesday’s game is the first of the Red Devils’ games in hand and a win on Wednesday followed by another on Saturday at Bolton Wanderers could see Sir Alex Ferguson’s men top the Premier League table by the time Liverpool are next in action.

The European champions have never lost to Wigan, and cruised to a 4-0 win against Steve Bruce’s men at Old Trafford last season.

They also have fond memories of the return fixture which they won 2-0 on the final day of last season, a result that crowned them Premier League champions for the second successive season.

Dizzy Heights

However, Wednesday’s visitors to Old Trafford are one of the Premier League’s most in-form sides.

The Latics have won their last four league games on the bounce, a superb run that has seen them move up to seventh place in the table.

Wigan boss Steve Bruce has admitted it is a delight to manage his side at the moment and has demanded a strong performance at Old Trafford so his players can prove they deserve their lofty league position.

Bruce’s men have never been higher than their current position in the Premier League, and they have also never beaten one of the top four, a record their boss will be hoping to end at a club where he spent nine years as a player.

Manchester United

Manchester United have defensive problems with both Patrice Evra and Rio Ferdinand out injured, meaning John O’Shea and Jonny Evans will continue to deputise.

Possible Starting XI: Van der Sar, Neville, Vidic, Evans, O’Shea, Ronaldo, Anderson, Carrick, Scholes, Rooney, Berbatov

Wigan Athletic

Steve Bruce is expected to stick with the same starting XI that defeated Tottenham Hotspur last time out.

Possible Starting XI: Kirkland, Melchiot, Scharner, Bramble, Figueroa, Valencia, Palacios, Cattermole, Taylor, Heskey, Zaki.
goal

Manchester shouldn't have any problems in thins match: my bets United win to nil; United win by 2 or more goals. 3-0 corect score.

Manchester - Chelsea 3-0 corner kick

2009-01-12T23:17:00.004+02:00

Disallowed goal. Really smart ..unfortunattly the referee canceled the goal. Anyways i love this. Manchester won 3-0.

Tennis bets

2009-01-12T13:30:00.002+02:00

Since we don't have so many football matches today i will bet on tennis:

ATP Sydeny:

Mardy Fish - Janko Tipsarevic 2 @ 2.27
Richard Gasquet - Dimitry Tusunov 2 @ 2.67 ..two possible surprises

WTA Sydney

Alize Cornet - Alisa Kleybanova 2 @ 2.40

WTA Hobart

Anne Keothavong - Virginie Razzano 1 @ 1.99
Jie Zheng - Gisela Dulko 2 @ 2.28

ATP Auckland

Juan Monaco - Victor Hanescu 1 @ 2.14
Steve Darcis - Yen Lu 1 @ 1.57

All ods are form Bwin.com

Picks of the day!

2009-01-11T00:54:00.002+02:00

1. Udinese - Sampdoria 1 @ 2.15
2. Bologna - Chievo 1 @ 1.80
3. Racing Santander - Recreativo Huelva 1 @ 1.90
4. Sporting Club Gijon - Real Valladolid 1 @ 2.35
5. Osasuna - Barcelona 2 @ 1.40

AS Roma - AC Milan

2009-01-11T00:45:00.003+02:00

Starting Anew

For Roma, they must put 2008 behind them and try to begin 2009 on a positive note. Surely, winning over one of their chief rivals, Milan, would be a big first step.
While Roma have been absolutely terrible on their travels this season, losing six of their nine away fixtures, they have done well at home, winning five of seven matches played. They have given up twenty-three goals this term, but only seven of those have come at home.

The problem, however, is that they aren’t scoring as many goals as they have in past seasons. Having put up at least 70 in each of the last three seasons, they are on pace this term for less than 50. The main reason for that, certainly, is the absence of Francesco Totti, who has only made ten Serie A starts. Players like David Pizarro and Matteo Brighi can provide an attacking element, but neither of them can score goals like Totti does. Also, main striker Mirko Vucinic doesn’t score as many goals as you would expect from the first-choice attacker for a Champions League side

Not to Be Outdone…

Milan’s season hasn’t gone according to plan, either. Sitting nine points back of Serie A leaders Internazionale, many people believe they are already out of the title race. They shouldn’t lose hope, however, as there are still twenty-one matches remaining in the season, and the expectations for the squad in 2009 are even higher.
After winning their last match by an astonishing 5-1 score against Udinese, Milan have shown that they are still as strong as ever. With players returning to fitness and Kakà and Ronaldinho becoming accustomed to playing with each other, they can have a bit of realistic optimism for what they can do in the second part of the season.

It remains to be seen, however, if players such as Andriy Shevchenko and Filippo Inzaghi can make more of a contribution to the side. Shevchenko has yet to reacclimatize to life in Italian football, but it could simply be that sitting on the bench for two years at Chelsea FC has taken away some of his best days, and he is now on the decline.
As far as Inzaghi goes, he just has to stay fit. He can still contribute to the side, as his penalty box poacher style of play doesn’t require a lot of running or dropping into midfield.

Roma

Roma have a mostly fit squad, and no suspended players. However, their best player and captain, Francesco Totti, is injured for this match, just as he has been for most of the season. Also, Max Tonetto is out for this contest.
Simone Perrotta, Daniele De Rossi and Cicinho are one caution away from a suspension.
Possible Formation (4-3-2-1): Doni; Cassetti, Mexes, Juan, Riise; Perrotta, De Rossi, Brighi; Pizarro, Aquilani; Vucinic

Milan

The winter break helped some of the Rossoneri get back to fitness; although, Alessandro Nesta, Gennaro Gattuso, Marco Borriello and Daniele Bonera are not fit.
Massimo Ambrosini and Gianluca Zambrotta return to the squad after being suspended for the final match of 2008, and Mathieu Flamini and Kakhaber Kaladze are facing suspension should they be cautioned in this match.
Possible Formation (4-3-2-1): Abbiati; Zambrotta, Kaladze, Maldini, Jankulovski; Seedorf, Pirlo, Ambrosini; Kakà, Ronaldinho; Pato
goal

My pick is Over 2.5. Both teams have great offensive power but they lack in defence.

Manchster United - Chelsea

2009-01-11T00:37:00.004+02:00

The Old Trafford side are an established club with pedigree in every competition they have entered. Their marketing deals are synonymous with their success as they tied up back-to-back Premier League titles and a European Cup to boot, while fans from London to Laos, and Abuja to Ankara, all tuned in to cheer.

Chelsea, on the other hand, are a relatively new heavyweight in European football. They are also one of the richest clubs in the world as they are bankrolled by a wealthy Russian sponsor. Their successes have (for the main part) all been recent and the transformation under Jose Mourinho and Roman Abramovich has arguably had a far greater impact on the Stamford Bridge side than the influence of Ted Drake in the 1950s, although both creeds were poles apart.It is testament to both sides that other clubs have used either Manchester United or Chelsea as a model for their own team.

There are often parallels drawn between Middlesbrough and Arsenal, but Gareth Southgate's reliance on local youth and promotions from the club's academy is reminiscent of Sir Alex Ferguson's class of '92: Ryan Giggs; David Beckham; Nicky Butt and Gary Neville all lifted the FA Youth Cup that year and went on to become full England internationals. Likewise, Stewart Downing, David Wheater and Lee Cattermole (now at Wigan) all rose through 'Boro's ranks.

Chelsea have a new fiscal rival and, for the first time in Premier League history, Roman Abramovich was outbid for a player last summer as Brazilian forward Robinho was transferred to what the newspaper press dubbed 'Middle Eastlands' for a British record fee of £32.5million. With rumours that the Citizens have been sniffing around the likes of Roque Santa Cruz (Daily Mail); Michael Owen (The Express); Adriano (The Mirror); Kolo Toure (Daily Star); and Mikel Arteta (The People), it appears that Manchester City are going to adopt a similar recruitment policy to the Pensioners: buying well-known professionals as opposed to creating and grooming your own.

The media live for these fixtures and the marketing and advertising for such an affair is prepped as soon as the fixture list is announced.
They seldom live up to the hype, but should United claim victories in both their games in hand then that would only lag a point behind league leaders Liverpool. Chelsea's recent form has been a bag of mixed sorts, they are dropping points and relinquishing leads, although their away record has been solid.United have not conceded a goal in the Premier League since Arsenal defeated them 2-1 at the Emirates, and their rearguard will be bolstered with the return of key defenders Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra

Manchester United

Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra both return from four game absences. The former had a back complaint keeping him at bay while the latter was serving suspension.
Squad: Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Foster, Neville, Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, O'Shea, Ronaldo, Nani, Fletcher, Gibson, Possebon, Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Park, Berbatov, Rooney, Welbeck.
Possible Starting XI: Van der Sar - Neville; Ferdinand; Vidic; Evra - Park; Fletcher; Carrick - Ronaldo; Rooney; Berbatov.

Chelsea

John Terry returns from a three game suspension. Michael Ballack is also available.
Florent Malouda is sidelined due to a hamstring injury.
Squad: Cech, Cudicini, Hilario, Bosingwa, Ferreira, Ivanovic, Terry, Alex, Mancienne, A Cole, J Cole, Mikel, Deco, Mineiro, Belletti, Ballack, Lampard, Kalou, Anelka, Drogba, Stoch, Carvalho, Di Santo.
Possible Starting XI: Cech - Bosingwa; Terry; Carvalho; A Cole - Mikel - Ballack; Lampard; Deco - Anelka; Drogba
goal

I think Manchester is way better than Chelsea this season. there for i will bet ont he Red Devils and 2.20 at Bet365 looks great. 1-0 or 2-0 si my call.

Sevilla - Stuttgart

2008-10-23T00:05:00.001+03:00

Sevilla might not have qualified for the Champions League last season but they are looking in buoyant form this year as they aim to crack the top four and put themselves amongst the elite again. The Andalucian side missed out on fourth spot to Atlético Madrid but after seven games in La Liga this time around they are looking like not just top four contenders, but title challengers.Manolo Jiménez has seen his side go undefeated up until this stage, with two draws against rivals Real Betis and Racing Santander the only dropped points in an otherwise perfect start.

Take into account the fact that for many of those seven games the manager has not even had his strongest eleven to call from and it is easy to see why they are rated so highly in Spain. Against Almería at the weekend they were missing all of their first choice strikers but due to their impressive squad strength and determination they managed to grind out a win thanks a second-half strike from Adriano.
That sheer grit and willingness to get results even when things aren’t going for them signals Sevilla out as serious challengers for not only domestic titles but also for European silverware, again. In their qualifiers against Salzburg they might not have set pulses racing for ninety minutes each leg but instead they were patient and picked off their opponents when they were at their most vulnerable.

This new found patience and all round strength seems to have been instilled by Jiménez and it will certainly be interesting to see how they develop when Luis Fabiano, Freddy Kanouté, Javier Chevantón and Arouna Koné all return to full fitness.

At least this Thursday however, Stuttgart will not need to worry about three of those four, with Fabiano a possibility but still unlikely to play. The German side, much like Sevilla, are bidding to bounce back from a year of disappointment and failure to qualify for the Champions League but they have not started brilliantly in the Bundesliga or Europe so far.
Their route to this stage of the competition has come through the Intertoto Cup and whilst Sevilla are favourites they will not be underestimating the German side, bearing in mind the class amidst their ranks.Armin Veh has assembled a team built on solid foundations but containing some creative sparks, both in midfield and upfront.

Tomas Hitzlsperger is always a threat whether it be with his wide range of passing or his hammer-like shots and Mario Gomez, who disappointed for Germany in the summer seems to be finding life easier with his club side again as he starts to rack up the goals. The Germans also brought in Dutch defender, and ex-Sevilla player, Khalid Boulahrouz over the summer to bolster what is already a strong looking back line.

Sevilla

Luis Fabiano is fighting to be fight for this opening group match but his partner Freddy Kanouté is definitely out, as are Javier Chevantón and Arouna Koné. That means Jiménez will more than likely stick with the same side that won at Almería at the weekend, with Romaric and Lautaro Acosta darting into forward positions.In midfield it should also be the same story where Diego Capel is still out injured and Renato is a doubt , meaning there will be space for Adriano, Enzo Maresca, Jesus Navas and Aldo Duscher.
Probable Line-Up (4-3-2-1): Palop – Konko, Escudé, Prieto, Navarro – Duscher, Maresca, Romaric – Navas, Adriano - Acosta

Stuttgart

Armin Veh will more than likely stick with the same side that lost narrowly to Hertha Berlin at the weekend, although he could alter the formation in a bid to win the battle of the midfield.Gomez and Cacau are the most likely pairing upfront whilst in the midfield Hitzlsperger should play alongside Roberto Hilbert in what looks to be a fairly competitive side.
Probable Line-Up (4-4-2): Lehmann – Trasch, Tasci, Delpierre, Magnin – Hilbert, Hitzlsperger, Pardo, Boka – Gomez, Caucau

Sevilla to win.

Nancy - Feyenoord

2008-10-23T00:00:00.001+03:00

Nancy

The French side finished fourth in Ligue 1 last season, but started this year’s campaign a lot less successful. They are currently sitting sixteenth in Ligue 1, having won only one match thus far. Additionally, they have drawn five matches and recorded three losses.Key men for the experienced French are defenders Abdeslam Ouaddou, who returned to the club where he started his professional career last summer, and Brazilian defender Andre Luiz. Furthermore, forwards Marc Antoine Fortune and Youssouf Hadji have proven themselves as dangerous attackers, despite their current goal drought.

Forward Marc Antoine Fortune has the advantage that he played in the Dutch Eredivisie for a while. Therefore, he knows something extra about the way Feyenoord normally play.Nancy qualified for the group phase by beating Scottish side Motherwell 3-0 on aggregate.

Feyenoord

Like their opponents, Feyenoord have been struggling domestically so far. They have dropped to fifteenth in the Eredivisie with only four points after six matches.Not only were the results extremely disappointing, the Rotterdam side were also plagued by injuries. Important players like Roy Makaay, Kevin Hofland, Jon Dahl Tomasson, Henk Timmer and Jonathan de Guzman have all missed several matches following injury trouble.

The Rotterdam side have an experienced squad with several (former) Holland internationals. Additionally, Feyenoord also have some promising youngsters in their selection. Most important players for the Eredivisie side are skipper Gio van Bronckhorst, Makaay and youngster de Guzman.Feyenoord had a hard time qualifying for the group phase against Swedish side Kalmar.

Nevertheless, they eliminated the Swedes 2-2 on away goals

Nancy

It is likely that Nancy will come out with their usual 4-4-2 formation, with Youssouf Hadji and Marc Antoine Fortune leading the frontline. Pascal Berenguer is not totally fit, but should be ready to go on Thursday.Michael Chretien is out of this match due to injury.

Possible Formation (4-4-2): Bracigliano; Ouaddou, Andre Luiz, Macaluso, Calve; Berenguer, Gavanon, N’Guemo, Brison; Fortune, Hadji

Feyenoord

Players such as Andwele Slory, Jon Dahl Tomasson, Tim Vincken and Denny Landzaat are sure to miss out through injury. However, Henk Timmer and Roy Makaay might both be recovered in time to start the match.Therefore, manager Gert Jan Verbeek is likely to start with a 4-4-2 formation with a holding and an attacking midfielder.

Possible Formation (4-1-2-1-2): Timmer; Lucius, Bahia, Hofland, De Cler; Van Bronckhorst; El Ahmadi, Georginio Wijnaldum; Jonathan de Guzman, Biseswar; Makaay

Over 2.5

Twente - Racing Santander

2008-10-22T23:55:00.002+03:00

Twente will enter their opening group game against modest Spanish outfit, Racing Santander in great form having won five of their last six games in all competitions. But they in fact only scraped through to this phase of the competition by the skin of their teeth via the away goal rule after holding French side Stade Rennais to a 2-2 aggregate draw in the qualifiers.
The Dutch side, and indeed Racing as well, will both have their work cut out for them in this group, widely regarded as the group of death.

Consisting of experienced European sides, PSG and Schalke as well as a Premiership club by the name of Manchester City, the trio will be slight favourites to snatch the top three spots in the group to advance to the next round.
De Tukkers will be hoping that their English coach, Steve McClaren will be able to impart some knowledge and experience to the team, having picked up some invaluable lessons at his previous jobs which included a stint as the assistant manager at Manchester United, a quite successful spell at Middlesbrough where he led the side to the UEFA Cup final in 2005, and ofcourse the hottest of all hot seats as the England national team boss

Racing are making their very maiden voyage into European competition. They successfully avoided the embarrassment of crashing out at the qualifying stage to a relative unknown in the form of Finnish outfit, FC Honka and that is a good way to start things off, eventhough they may not have been very convincing in the two-legged victory.

The Cantabrians have a new manager at the helm to guide them through this unique adventure after highly rated coach Marcelino García Toral made the surprise decision to reject European football in favour or helping a second division side, Real Zaragoza, gain promotion.
Juan Ramón López Muñiz have a tough act to follow and in La Liga, he is already finding out exactly how difficult it can be after just seven rounds. The verdiblancos currently lie in 14th place in the standings with only one win to show and if they don’t improve immediately, the prospect of another top ten finish will soon disappear.
But improvements will not come easily for Racing. Things will only get tougher for them as the group stage of the UEFA Cup gets underway and the club’s paper-thin squad will be put to the test.

FC Twente

Probable Starting XI (4-4-2): Boschker – Wielaert, Braafheid, Tioté, Douglas – Brama, Staam, Perez, Hersi – Denneboom, Nkufo

Racing Santander

Racing’s only major injury concern lies in defence. Ezequiel Garay and Oriol are both sidelined with muscular injuries and they have been left behind in Cantabria to recover. Forward Jonathan Pereira, meanwhile, has been omitted for the trip for technical reasons and this should leave Munitis and Tchité as the preferred attacking duo.
Probable Starting XI (4-4-2): Toño – Pinillos, Moratón, César Navas, Marcano – Valera, Luccin, Colsa, Serrano – Tchité, Munitis

Twente to win..proably by a goal.

Schalke 04 - Paris Saint-Germain

2008-10-22T23:49:00.002+03:00

It is only a short hop from Paris to Gelsenkirchen, where Schalke 04 will eagerly anticipate beginning their UEFA Cup campaign in earnest on Thursday evening. After dispatching of Apoel FC with relative ease in the first round of the competition, the real competition starts for the Germans in the group stages.Schalke are a club with pedigree in this competition, defeating Inter Milan in 1997 to claim European trophy, although it seems a long shot that the penalty kick success enjoyed by that generation of players will be repeated this year.

Success at home has been pinpointed by German international midfielder Jermain Jones as a key to progressing in the competition. “We are all looking forward to the game,” he told his club’s official website, “I am glad it is against a top international club.“We need to be a powerhouse. The opponents will get scared it they come out at the arena and it is intimidating. If the fans can back us, we will try to reward them with a good performance on the pitch.”
Events on the field in Gelsenkirchen have been rather overshadowed by those off the park. There is still a great deal of speculation over the future of key striker, Kevin Kurányi, who is rumoured to be off in the summer.

The 26 year-old has a formidable strike rate in the German league, finding the net at a ratio of nearly a goal every other game.Perhaps more public has been the rather spectacular fall-out of Schalke with Uruguayan duo, Gustavo Varela and Vicente Sánchez, who have been relegated to the reserve squad indefinitely for the immediate future due to unspecified disciplinary issues. Although Varela rarely featured for the club, Sánchez was a frequent substitute, appearing six times in league play this season.
Domestically, Schalke are going relatively well, occupying sixth spot having lost just one of their opening eight matches, although they have not tasted success for a month. Draws have blighted the start of their campaign, although the management will see last weekend’s point with league leaders Hamburg as a sound result.

Schalke 04

Of course, Uruguayan duo Sánchez and Varela are missing for the Gelsenkirchen side due to internal disciplinary reasons, but head coach Fred Rutten has no major injury crisis on his hands at present.That is not to say there are no concerns in the camp; defenders Krastić, Pander and Kobiashvili are all doubts while squad midfielder Levan Kenia is also struggling.

Paris Saint-Germain

Paul Le Guen has no major injury issues for the Parisian club but will wait another week or so to welcome Ludovic Giuly back onto the right-hand side of his midfield.Le Guen, therefore has a strong squad to select from. Aside from a whole host of rested players - Makélélé, Sessegnon, Hoarau, Camara, Ceara and Bourillon – all of whom would expect to be in PSG’s strongest eleven aside from the latter, that is.Kezman will likely be deployed in a lone striking role in a 4-2-3-1 system with PSG’s bench likely to look very inexperienced indeed. Mamdou Sakho makes his comeback after nearly two months out injured.
Predicted line-up: Landreau; Malabia, Armand, Sakho, Traoré; Clément, Chantôme; Rothen, Pancrate, Arnaud; Kezman

Schalke to win seems great !

UEFA Champions League tips 22.10.2008

2008-10-22T01:20:00.002+03:00

Atletico Madrid - Liverpool 1x @ 1.4
Basel - Barcelona - no bet
Bordeaux - CFR Cluj x @ 3.40
Chelsea - Roma : Chelsea (-1) @ 2.20
Inter Mialno - Anorthosis Famagusta 1 @ 1.16
PSV - Marseille 2 @ 2.87
Shaktior - Sporting 1 @ 2.00
Panatinaikos - Werder Bremen - no bet

Atletico de Mardid - Liverpool

2008-10-22T01:12:00.005+03:00

After a promising domestic start, the Atlético Madrid La Liga challenge has been derailed somewhat. Three successive losses have left los Colchoneros in disarray and Mexican coach Javier Aguirre is allegedy one game from the sack as the side flounders in eighth place.

The coach will not be allowed to take his place on the home bench tomorrow evening as a result of UEFA sanctions levelled against the club in the wake of their tumultuous Champions League encounter against Marseille.

Although Aguirre will watch from the stands, at least he will be watching from the stands of the Vicente Calderón. European football's governing body has decided to rescind the stadium ban imposed for the behaviour of the Atlético supporters against Eric Gerets' side in light of the logistic difficulties likely to be encounter by fans travelling to a game more than 300 kilometres from the Spanish capital. Playing at home will certainly provide a crumb of comfort for a side on a low ebb as will their Champions League form in this campaign so far.

They sit atop of Group D, one goal clear of Liverpool, and impressed in the competition's opening two fixtures, albeit before thier current domestic woes. PSV and Marseille were brushed aside as the rojiblancos made a devastating return to the Champions League for the first time in more than a decade.

However, they come into the match against the backdrop of uncertainty. Injuries and tiredness are likely to exacerbate the worries that Aguirre has about the side, as he contemplates leaving Argentinean hot-shot Sergio Kun Aguero out of his starting XI.

The spirit of Istanbul has well and truly been invoked at Anfield; the 2005 Champions League final saw the Reds recover from three goals down against AC Milan to snatch victory from the Italians, and this season has seen Liverpool once again specialise in rallying from behind.

Four times in the Premier League this season, Rafael Benitez's men have turned over deficits to record wins, and seven of their 13 league goals have come in the last 15 minutes of matches. Wigan Athletic were the latest victims of the comeback kings, despite the best effort of Amr Zaki on Saturday.

In Europe also, the Reds have made a friend of adversity, claiming a win against Marseille after falling behind as well as eliminating Standard Liege deep into extra-time of their qualification clash. In the absence of Fernando Torres too, the Reds have found a new means to the goal. Dutchman Dirk Kuyt has been derided as a workhorse throughout his time at Anfield but has provided the side with goals in three consecutive matches for the first time since his move from Feyenoord.

Rafa Benitez's men have a mental robustness, masquerading as 'character', throughout the side and a 'we'll score more' attitude to boot

Atlético Madrid

Tomas Ujfalusi's absence will likely mean that John Heitinga will start alongside Luis Perea at the heart of the Atlético back-line although Pablo Ibanez is nearing a return to fitness. Maxi Rodriguez is still sidelined, so there could be a place for Luis Garcia in the starting line-up. Another Liverpool old-boy Florent Sinama Pongolle may start up-front if Aguirre decided to rest Kun. Goalkeeping duties have been rolling among Leo Franco and Gregory Coupet, although Franco has got the nod so far in the Champions League.

Probable Starting XI: Leo Franco - Seitaridis, Ujfalusi, Perea, Pernía - Maniche, Banega, Raul Garcia, Simao - Sinama Pongolle, Forlan

Liverpool

Torres is obviously the most notable absentee but the Reds have been coping well without him. Rafa Benitez admitted concerns over Yossi Benayoun, Steven Gerrard and Robbie Keane although all are expected to play. Fabio Aurelio, Martin Skrtel, Philipp Degen and Ryan Babel are all ruled out. Jermaine Pennent excelled in the weekend win over Wigan Athletic and like Albert Riera will be expecting to start.

Probable Starting XI: Reina - Arbeloa, Carragher, Agger, Dossena - Mascherano, Alonso, Gerrard - Kuyt, Keane, Reira

Without Fernando Torres i think Liverpool will have a very hard match. 1x IMO

PSV Eindhoven - Olympique Marseille

2008-10-22T01:06:00.003+03:00

In isolation, when judged on their performances against Atletico Madrid and Liverpool, PSV are an abomination of a football team. A lack of coherence and fight were only two ingredients in a thoroughly sour mixture for Huub Stevens’s side. The champions of Netherlands aren’t just struggling in the Champions League.

Their Eredivisie form has been under par, too. The 2-1 defeat on Saturday against NAC Breda proved that the Eindhoven side are still looking for their best form.The Eredivisie giants have gotten used to the loss of a number of first-teamers over the summer, but this year seems to be different.

Legendary goalkeeper Gomes signed for Tottenham Hotspur and hasn’t been adequately replaced. New signing Andreas Isaksson hasn’t convinced his critics yet and it remains to be seen if the fans will ever accept him as Gomes’s successor
Like their opponents, Olympique Marseille lost their first two Champions League matches of the season. On the other hand, they have been quite unbeatable in the French league and are currently sitting second in the Ligue 1.In other words, Marseille have proven to be a domestic powerhouse, but they’re struggling on the European stage so far. Nevertheless, the away match against PSV might be the ideal opportunity to change this.

Manager Erik Gerets underlined the importance of the game, saying: “We have to win this match, that’s our only goal. Our Champions League adventure is over if we draw this match.“I want us to dominate the match from the beginning. We can definitely grab the full three points if we’re able to control the match.”

The Belgian manager will most likely rely on his attacking triangle Hatem Ben Arfa, Bakary Kone and Mamadou Niang to help his side to the victory in Eindhoven. The trio already made eleven goals in the Ligue 1 and will pose a serious threat for PSV’s defenders.

PSV

PSV boss Huub Stevens will be without injured trio Reimond Manco, Mike Zonneveld and Jan Kromkamp. The Eindhoven side will most likely start in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Serbian attacker Danko Lazovic as the starting striker. However, Danny Koevermans, who scored PSV’s goal against Liverpool, is ready to come off the bench whenever needed.

Probable Line-up: Isaksson - Maza, Marcellis, Salcido, Pieters - Simons, Wuytens, Afellay - Amrabat, Lazovic, Dzsuzsak

Olympique Marseille

Marseille should be able to field their strongest side against PSV although it remains to be seen just how Erik Gerets decides to line-up. Gerets will most likely choose a 4-4-2 and it seems likely that both Niang and Koné will start upfront for Marseille. Defender Julien Rodriguez is close to fighting fit after a long spell out.

Probable Line-up: Mandanda - Taiwo, Hilton, Zubar, Bonnart - Ziani, Cheyrou, Cana, Ben Arfa - Niang, Kone

I think that Marseille has the strongest side in France and one of the strongest in Europe. Thay come after an important win at Vallencienes and i think they are big favourites today even if the odds are very high! Marseille to win

UEFA Champions League tips 21.10.2008

2008-10-20T22:28:00.004+03:00

Here is my advice for all the tuesday's UCL games:

Zenit St-Petersburg - BATE Borisov 1 @ 1.25

Zenit has 0 points after 2 matches and needs to win if the russians want to progress into last 16 or ar least get a place for UEFA Cup

Bayern Munchen - Fiorentina 1 @ 1.80

Bayern welcomes back Ribery for a Champions League match. Fiorentina isn't in a goos form, drawing at home 0-0 with Steaua after a very ugly game. bayern should win. Presure on Klinsmann.

FC Porto - Dynamo Kiev - NO bet

Fenerbahce - Arsenal 2 @ 2.00

Arsenal plays great and Fener has a very poor season. Great odd for the guners.

Juventus - Real Madrid 2 @ 2.5

Many injures players for Juve. Real is in a good form and it's favourite in this clash.

Manchester United - Celtic : Manchester win to 0 @ 1.66

Celtic is very poor in away games in CL and Manchester has a great defence.

Steaua Bucuresti - Lyon Under 2.5 @ 1.70

Steaua needs a win but it will aproach this game with a defensive line-up. Lyon is satisfied with a draw.

Villareal - Aalborg 1 @ 1.20

Fenerbahce Istambul - Arsenal London

2008-10-20T22:14:00.002+03:00

Arsenal face a tough assignment in Istanbul, where the special atmosphere is often a factor to contend with, as well as the opposition, although Fenerbahçe have been slightly less formidable at their Sükrü Saraçoglu Stadium this season than last.

The Turkish side racked up eight successive home wins in the Champions League, including qualifiers, before being held to a goalless draw by Dynamo Kiev last month. Arsenal were also held to a draw by Dinamo, in Ukraine, but whereas the Gunners beat FC Porto 4-0 at home in their other Group G game to date, Fenerbahçe lost their opening game 3-1 to Porto in Portugal. As a result, Arsenal top the group with four points, while Fenerbahçe are bottom with one going into Tuesday night's clash.In the circumstances, Luis Aragonés' side will be desperate to take points off Arsenal to keep alive their hopes of progressing to the knock-out phase.

After Tuesday, the Gunners will have two games still to come at the Emirates, where they have never lost a Champions League encounter, while Fenerbahçe will have two more away games - and they have a notoriously poor record on the road.But the Turks will be buoyed by the knowledge that they are unbeaten in 15 European home games, and beat Chelsea 2-1 at home last season in the quarter-final first leg, before losing the return at Stamford Bridge 2-0 to bow out of the competition.Arsenal also reached last season's quarter-finals, losing on aggregate to Premier League rivals Liverpool over two close-fought encounters.

Both teams go into this meeting on the back of wins in their domestic leagues at the weekend. Fenerbahçe recorded their first away win in the Turkish Super Lig this season on Saturday, after having made a poor start to the domestic season by losing four of their first seven games under Aragones, who took over in the summer after leading Spain to the European Championship title in June. Admittedly Saturday's 3-2 win was against bottom club Kocaelispor, and it took an injury-time goal from Semih Senturk to secure the points.

But a win is a win and will have boosted morale ahead of Arsenal's visit. It took Fenerbahçe up to tenth place in the Turkish table."Of course, I am not pleased with the game we played in the first half," commented Aragones afterwards, adding: "I think the atmosphere at the Champions League will be different."Fenerbahce defender Roberto Carlos, the former Real Madrid and Brazil left-back, promised that the team would turn things around in the Champions League."We've beaten Chelsea at home. The atmosphere in Kadikoy is always different," he told the Hurriyet newspaper on Monday. "

This time, we will make it up to the fans that we have upset."In England Arsenal, who had surrendered top spot in the Premier League last month by losing at home to Hull and then drawing at Sunderland, got back to winning ways by beating Everton 3-1 despite going behind early on. The win kept them within four points of Premier League leaders Chelsea and Liverpool."I believe in this team 100 per cent," said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger afterwards. "We deserve a lot of respect for last season, but we want to move on and we will be stronger this year."Wenger describes Istanbul as a “special, unique” football venue, but he is confident the notoriously vociferous fans will not intimidate his players.

“They have the most passionate fans in Europe,” he said last week, “especially in Istanbul where you have Besiktas, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce.“It is a unique place and for me it is a special city. But it is very, very tough.“However, it will not affect the players. It could have done 20 years ago but one of the good things done by Uefa is that they protect the players and the competitions so much they know if [the fans] do too much they will be kicked out.“Every simple thing is filmed. That was not the case 20 or 30 years ago.

You had a little more freedom to express your aggressiveness then. But that has gone.”Nevertheless, Fener's five straight home wins in last season's competition, Anderlecht, Inter Milan, PSV Eindhoven, CSKA Moscow and Chelsea, is eloquent testimony to the task ahead for the Gunners. Still, after Zico's time at the helm - he left because he couldn't deliver the Turkish title - and without some key players (such as Deivid de Souza, Emre and Gokhan) through injury, Aragones has struggled so far to find the winning formula. He has struggled with Turkey - this his first job outside of Spain and the different language and culture have proved a problem.

He is also perceived by some supporters to be a bit old for the job at 70, but anyone would have a problem being accepted, without outstanding results, following the footsteps of fans' favourite Zico. Coincidentally, there have been grumbles of disapproval from a minority of Arsenal fans about Arsene Wenger, who turns 59 this week, following Arsenal's failure to clinch a trophy last season despite leading the Premier League for so long, and the Frenchman's refusal to splash huge sums on big-name 'stars' in the transfer market. The Gunners have been exposed a few times defensively this season and missed a touch of experience in midfield.

But Wenger retains unshakeable faith in the ability of his young team, technically, physically and mentally, and will be confident they can win their way through to the knock-out stage again this year

Fenerbahçe

Aragones could be without injured midfielder Gokhan Gonul. Brazilian striker Deivid has been out since early July with a broken ankle, Gökçek Vederson since mid-July with a knee injury. Emre Belözoğlu has been sidelined since early this month with a pulled hamstring, while Josico has resumed light training.

Last Starting XI (on Saturday): Volkan Demirel, Lugano, Roberto Carlos, Edu, Kazım Kazım (Gürhan Gürsoy 55), Alex, Güiza, Önder Turacı (Bilgin 46), Selçuk Şahin, Semih Şentürk, Uğur Boral (Deniz Barış 69)

Arsenal:

Wenger will be without central defender Kolo Toure, who went off at half-time against Everton with twisted shoulder ligaments. Captain William Gallas and full-back Bacary Sagna are also sidelined.Johan Djourou may come into central defence after recovering from the concussion he sustained while playing for Switzerland, and Samir Nasri should be fit after a minor thigh problem that saw him withdrawn in the Everton game. Nicklas Bendtner is fit again from an ankle problem. Arsenal are still without Tomas Rosicky and Eduardo da Silva, but midfielder Abou Diaby returned at the weekend, coming of the bench, and defender Mikael Silvestre made his Arsenal debut, playing the full 90 minutes against Everton.
Squad: Almunia, Song, Silvestre, Clichy, Eboue, Fabregas, Denilson, Nasri, Diaby, Walcott, Van Persie, Adebayor, Fabianski, Vela, Ramsey, Gibbs, Hoyte, Bendtner, Djourou.

I think Arsenal must and will win

Juventus Turin - Real Madrid

2008-10-20T19:51:00.005+03:00

Clash Of The Titans

Juventus and Real Madrid have met a total of 13 times before in this competition. The most recent meeting was the Round of 16 battle in 2005 when the Serie A giants overturned a 1-0 first leg deficit away from home to claim a 2-1 victory on aggregate. Since then, both clubs have gone through immense and almost unrecognizable transformations.
Juventus, ofcourse, have been to hell and back following the Calciopoli debacle. They had to rebuild their squad nearly from scratch while playing their football out of Serie B after numerous key figures decided to jump ship.
Madrid, meanwhile, had a glimpse of their own personal hell after watching the Galácticos dynasty crumble to a shambolic end a little over a year after that 2005 encounter. Like Juve, many of their superstar players were forced out of the establishment, although most of them were thrown off the ship, rather than jump off it.

The two clubs seem to have this uncanny and unspoken kinship, like conjoined twins separated at birth. Whatever one is forced to endure and experience, the other has to share it miles and miles away. The other striking similarity in question is that both are trying to re-establish their supremacy in the continent after dominating the competition so thoroughly from the mid 90’s to early 2000.
The Old Lady made three successive finals between 1995 and 1998 and then added a fourth in 2003 while the Men In White actually won the crown three times in the space of five seasons from 1998 to 2002. Ever since then, neither have come close to getting their hands on Europe’s top prize.

Rainy Days For Ranieri

Juve have now gone five games without a win in all competitions. By the time the opening whistle blows in Turin, they would have gone exactly a month without a single victory to show.
Yet amazingly, their coach Claudio Ranieri is still occupying the hotseat, one that must surely be reaching hellish temperatures by now. Many expected the defeat at home to Palermo a fortnight ago to be his curtain call. He survived. A 2-1 defeat at Napoli last weekend seemed certain to be the final straw, but so far, there has yet to be any hint that anyone else other than the 57 year old will be giving the team talk prior to kick-off.

But there have already been rumours that a defeat to arch adversaries, Real Madrid on Tuesday will bring the axe down closer to his head and another poor performance against neighbouring nemesis Torino this weekend will all but seal his fate.
If the pressure wasn’t on before, it certainly is now. But on the flip side of the coin, a victory over their Spanish counterparts could be exactly what Juve and the Tinkerman need to jump start the season.
As the cliché goes, the form book flies straight out the window on nights like these. Motivation supersedes everything else and as soon as I Bianconeri hear the Champions League anthem, they would have forgotten about their results and performances of the last 30 days.

All Smiles For Schuster

The 1-2 in away at Zenit St. Petersburg on Matchday Two was Los Blancos’ first victory on the road in the Champions League in seven attempts. It could not have come at a better time and another huge triumph on their travels last weekend, at fierce crosstown rivals Atlético Madrid, have boosted their confidence even more.
But the capital superpowers have a rather dreadful record in their trips to Italy. In 25 visits, they have chalked up only four measly wins and five draws, while they have gone on to lose a staggering 16 times.
However, Madrid will have a special motivation to do well this time around. They can all but seal a spot in the knockout stages if they pick up a win in Turin. With the reverse tie at the Santiago Bernabéu to come in a fortnight, Los Merengues could potentially launch themselves to an unassailable eight point lead ahead of their closest rival in the group by the time Matchday Five rolls around.
If they can pull that off, coach Bernd Schuster will then have the ultimate luxury of allowing his team to take their foot off the gas in the final two group games and shift the focus momentarily to La Liga as the campaign approaches the critical halfway stage.
That will be the idea in theory but on the football pitch, things rarely go according to script in such big games. But if ever there’s a time to get one over their bitter rivals in Europe and avenge recent defeats, it would be now.

Juventus
Oct 18 Napoli 2-1 Juventus (SERIE A)
Oct 05 Juventus 1-2 Palermo (SERIE A)
Sep 30 BATE Borisov 2-2 Juventus (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)
Sep 27 Sampdoria 0-0 Juventus (SERIE A)
Sep 24 Juventus 1-1 Catania (SERIE A)

Real Madrid
Oct 18 Atlético Madrid 1-2 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
Oct 05 Real Madrid 2-2 Espanyol (LA LIGA)
Sep 30 Zenit St. Petersburg 1-2 Real Madrid (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)
Sep 27 Real Betis 1-2 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
Sep 24 Real Madrid 7-1 Sporting Gijón (LA LIGA)

Juventus

Juventus almost have enough players out injured to make up separate team. Christian Poulsen is the latest to join the infirmary after suffering a thigh strain in the 2-1 loss at Napoli at the weekend. Gigi Buffon, Mauro Camoranesi, Tiago and Cristiano Zanetti are all sidelined with thigh ailments, Jonathan Zebina has an achilles problem, while David Trézéguet and Jorge Andrade are recovering from long-term knee injuries.
The good news for Ranieri is that Nicola Legrottaglie, Olof Mellberg and Vicenzo Iaquinta have all returned to normal training and they could make their comebacks, or at least play some part, against Madrid pending a late fitness test.
Probable Starting XI (4-4-2): Manniger – Grygera, Knezevic/Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Molinaro – Salihamidzic, Sissoko, Marchisio, Nedved – Amauri, Del Piero (c)

Real Madrid

Arjen Robben, who was left out of the Atlético Madrid game to regain full fitness following a hamstring problem, has been included in the squad to travel to Turin. Guti, who also failed a late fitness test prior to the Atleti clash, has been omitted again as he continues to nurse his right calf tear.
Fellow midfielder Mahamadou Diarrà will also be unavailable after picking up a knock in his right knee in midweek international duty but Fernando Gago and Wesley Sneijder made their successful comebacks at the weekend following their respective injuries and they should retain their places in the starting berth.
Miguel Torres has been left back in Madrid to recover from a muscle tear in his thigh while Míchel Salgado and Javier Saviola have been overlooked for technical reasons.
Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Cannavaro, Pepe, Heinze – Van der Vaart, Gago, Sneijder – Higuaín, Van Nistelrooy, Raul
goal

I think that Real has a much stronger side. The absences of Juve will count. Real to win

Bayern Munchen - Fiorentina

2008-10-20T19:48:00.002+03:00

Hope

As their worst start in about three decades finally was given a glimmer of hope, Jurgen Klinsmann seemed to be a man of his word and seemingly sticking to his guns, saying, “You naturally have to acknowledge the fairer criticism; however at the same time ignore the irrelevant comments.” Having had time to himself over the past week and a half while the majority of his first squad was away on international duty, Klinsmann was left with a total of nine players and a simple sketch board.

Though his rotational system was once again in use, he made some changes to his squad at weekend against Karlsruhe.

Coming off the bench for his first start in 3 weeks was captain Mark van Bommel, while Demichaels was taken back to the defense after having a holding midfield-cum-anchor role. The chances seemed to have worked, however the to often noticeable lack of flow and overall cohesion seems to have been left to chance as he opted for a starting XI who were match fit. Though earning a very crucial 1-0 away win, the Munich side are forced to set their sites on the short term, as they will now be faced with a grueling 7 matches in the next 3 weeks. Seemingly, the most important will be Tuesday’s matchup with Tuscan giants, Fiorentina.

Having won their last 3 league matches, albeit to lower label opponents, the Viola seem on the surface to be by and large match fit.

Rhythm

The Florentine side, who currently sit a respectable 7th in the table have only begun to find an acceptable rhythm in the league. To date, they have been able to heavily rely on superb goaltending and an average defensive system, while having only averaged 1.2 goals per game in Serie A. Their matchup against Bayern will depend largely on whether or not Cesare Prandelli decides if Adrian Mutu is match fit, while having rested him against Reggina largely due to a knee issue.

If Mutu is however not available, there have been two major bright spots for the Viola, namely Alberto Gilardino and Stevan Jovetic. Gilardino, having scored 12 goals in all competitions, is truly the only goal scoring threat this season. Jovetic on the other hand, having only made a small number of appearances, is looking to make his mark on the side who have high hopes of edging out some tougher competition for top spots in the group Tuesday.

When looking at the big picture Tuesday, the games fate and that of at least one manager will rest on an updated squad list and revised tactical measures. Both Bayern and ACF are going to be lucky to get any points outside of a clean and dull draw, however fitness of key scorers will be the key.

If Luca Toni does end up making an appearance again his former side, then one could bet that it will be all hands on deck, as the “thunder and lightning” will once again clap for the red and whites.

Bayern

After a largely successful World Cup qualification campaign, the majority of the Bayern squad will be match fit. Some question marks are being raised as to the availability of Luca Toni after he was substituted for injured ribs, however he is likely to return on Tuesday or not the following match day. Two other key notes are the minor sprains affecting both Miro Klose and Frank Ribery. They to were taken off the field due to slight pain, though look to be rested and fit.
Probable Starting XI: Rensing - Oddo, Lucio, Demichelis, Lahm - Schweinsteiger, van Bommel, Zé Roberto, Ribery - Klose, Podolski

Fiorentina

This weekend’s 3-0 thrashing of Reggina was without a doubt a massive lift for the Viola. As a few members of the regular rotation were sidelined precaution for Tuesdays match with FCB, only Martin Jorgensen and Franco Semioli are going to miss action through injury. Both Stevan Jovetic and Gilardino might not see the green until late, though both had outstanding performances in the league and might be fit enough to make a start if called upon.

Probable Starting XI: Frey- Danielli, Gamberini, Gobbi, Commoto- Melo, Donadel, Kuzmanovic- Jovetic, Pazzini, Mutu

Steaua - Lyon

2008-10-20T19:42:00.002+03:00

Group F underdogs Steaua Bucureşti host Lyon on Tuesday in what is a make-or-break Champions League fixture for the Romanian runners-up.

With just one point from their opening two fixtures in the Champions League, defeat would leave even the consolation of the UEFA Cup a distant prospect, however, victory would lift Marius Lăcătuş’ side back into contention to qualify from the group phase.It is largely on the strength of their home record that Steaua have surprised Europe by progressing so far.

Although they won a decisive fixture against Galatasary in qualifying on their own park, it was in the league that the Stadionul Steaua became such a fortress. Form a possible 51 points at home last season, Steaua dropped only six, remaining unbeaten on their own park.Such a formidable record has proven tough to replicate, although Steaua remain unbeaten at home in the league this term.

In Europe it is a different story as Bayern Munich crucially breeched the ranks of home defenders in matchday 1 through Daniel Van Buyten’s neat header.One thing an uninspiring start to the season has ensured, it is that Steaua are a side willing to battle to the death for everything. The Romanians have scored a vast number of crucial late goals in domestic football, giving them a sense of invincibility.

No doubt this will have been affected at the weekend as they slipped to a disappointing 2-0 loss against mid-table Oţelul, rendering Steaua winless in four matches on all fronts.It will take a huge effort for the side currently position in third spot in the Romanian league to bounce back against a Lyon side that has its full focus on this fixture.

Steaua Bucharest

The Romanians, who have three players in their squad that held France to a 2-2 draw in Constanta not two weeks ago, are expected to play with a little more enterprise than they did in their draw with Fiorentina. Marius Lăcătuş is, nevertheless, likely to maintain his 4-2-3-1 system with Portuguese forward Antonio Semedo leading the line.Defender Ifeanyi Emeghara, who would have been unlikely to play, is currently their only injury problem

Predicted line-up: Zapata; Ogararu, Ghionea, Goian, Petre; Lovin, Nadio, Nicolita, Stancu, Moreno; Semedo

Olympique Lyon

It has not been a particularly easy three week spell for Claude Puel’s side as disappointing results against Rennes and Lille have sandwiched the international break.On the park things may be a little uneasy for the Rhône Valley club yet things are getting easier for them off the field, where the physios are becoming increasingly redundant as the squad gains fitness.This was, at least, until late last week when Mathieu Bodmer broke down with a slight complaint that will rule him out of this fixture. In addition, the injury-prone John Mensah picked up an adductor problem late in the match against Lille and will also be ruled out. They join François Clerc and Sidney Govou on the sidelines.The latest players to return to first team contention are Kader Keita, Cesar Delgado and, vitally, left-back Fabio Grosso.

Predicted line-up: Lloris; Réveillère, Grosso, Cris, Boumsong; Makoun, Toulalan; Juninho, Ederson, Keita; Benzema

Under 2.5 it's the best choise here..also maybe you should try a draw.

Karlsruher – Bayern Munich

2008-10-17T23:31:00.004+03:00

The international break for the World Cup qualifiers arrived just at the right time for Bayern Munich. It took the attention (most of it negative) off of the Bavarians but that spotlight will however return this weekend with their trip to Karlsruher. It is quite simple- Bayern need a win this weekend, no ifs, no buts.
With just nine points from their seven games thus far the Bavarians sit in 11th place and are a full seven points behind leaders Hamburg. Their worst start to a league campaign in over thirty years has heaped an enormous amount of early pressure on Jürgen Klinsmann, and he and his players know the importance of Saturday’s clash at the Wildparkstadion.
Midfielder Zé Roberto, who has actually been one of Bayern’s better performers this season explained his take on the match this weekend. “We’re aware of the importance of the game. We have to play well and come home with three points” the Brazilian commented.
“Hamburg are seven points ahead of us. The season starts from scratch as of the Karlsruhe match” he added.
"We've put ourselves under pressure, needlessly" Klinsmann said in Thursday's edition of Kicker magazine. "Now, we have to step it up again.
"There is no doubt we are not satisfied with our position in the Bundesliga," Klinsmann said. "We want to be somewhere very differently. Bayern have a rather more impressive record in the Champions League and that is a true representation of the clubs ability according to Klinsmann.
"In the Champions League, the position is very good. We need consistency" he said. "The team is on a good way to grow together."
The disgruntled Bayern fans may not be of the same opinion having witnessed their side not win in their last three outings. The team was jeered off the field after wasting a two-goal lead to draw 3-3 with VfL Bochum in Bayern's last home game, and for the first time there were chants of "Klinsmann out."
"I know what our mid-term and long-term goals are, and I can see that we are already implementing some of what we are trying to do" the Bayern trainer said. "When you have two, three setbacks, there is turbulence at a club like Bayern Munich. Maybe we are a little bit to sure of ourselves in the Bundesliga."
One of the problems, Klinsmann said, was that Franck Ribery - "our key player" - is only now coming back from an ankle injury and still has not reached last season's level.
Another factor is that Bayern's many internationals are taking a long time to recover form from the European Championship, plus the players are lacking concentration in some games.

Head To Head Record in Karlsruher:

23/09/07 Karlsruher 1 Bayern Munich 4
18/10/97 Karlsruher 1 Bayern Munich 1
23/03/97 Karlsruher 0 Bayern Munich 2
19/08/95 Karlsruher 2 Bayern Munich 6
19/11/94 Karlsruher 2 Bayern Munich 2
30/04/94 Karlsruher 1 Bayern Munich 1

Karlsruher

Trainer Edmund Becker has concerns over midfielder Antonia da Silva after the Brazilian received an ankle injury in KSC’s midweek friendly win. The former Stuttgart man had to be taken off after just 16 minutes and is a doubt for the visit of Bayern.
Goalkeeper Markus Miller is set to return though after his injury lay-off, while Andreas Görlitz is ready to end his five month injury nightmare, but will have to settle with a place on the bench. Joshua Kennedy only returned from international duty with Australia on Friday, but he could still make the Bayern game.
Probable Starting XI: Miller, Celozzi, Sebastian, Franz, Eichner, Mutzel, Porcello, Freis, da Silva, Iashvili, Kennedy

Bayern Munich

Mark van Bommel is set to return to the starting line-up with Klinsmann likely to revert to the formation that served Bayern so well with Schweinsteiger and Ribéry given license to roam forward and provide the ammunition for Toni and Klose.
Massimo Oddo looks set to occupy the right back role with Lukas Podolski having to return to the bench following two games as a starter for Germany.
Despite going off injured t half time in Germany’s midweek win over Wales, Miroslav Klose is set to start alongside Luca Toni.
Probable Starting XI: Rensing, Oddo, Lucio, Demichelis, Lahm, van Bommel, Zé Roberto, Schweinsteiger, Ribéry, Toni, Klose

My bet is Bayern Munich to win 10/10

Napoli - Juventus

2008-10-17T23:20:00.002+03:00

Napoli Looking To Bounce Back

The Partenopei have enjoyed one of the best starts to a season in years. Edy Reja's discipline, no-nonsense attitude as well as Pierpaolo Marino's buying powers has seen the club firmly establish themselves in Serie A and their 'relegation strugglers' tag has been replaced with a 'potential Scudetto challengers' label.However, Napoli will be hoping to make amends for their 3-2 defeat away to Genoa in week six and there is no better team to do it against than a Juventus side whose chips are down.Reja's men have won three, drawn twice and lost once in the league this term and they are still unbeaten at San Paolo.

There was a scramble for tickets this week when they went on sale and the atmosphere, as always when these tow lock horns, will be electric.Historically this game has always been a big one and it goes all the way back to the 1988/89 UEFA Cup edition. Juventus met Napoli in the quarter final.

The Bianconeri won the first leg 2-0 but Napoli overturned the result in the return with a 3-0 win at San Paolo. The Partenopei went on to win the trophy and the rivalry between these two teams has increased ten fold ever since. The Genoa defeat left the port-city club with plenty to think about as they threw away the lead after Ezequiel Lavezzi fired them in front. The Rossoblu went on to win the game but Napoli have had two weeks to work on their game and put things right as Reja designs a plan which could all but end Juve's Scudetto ambition.

Napoli will still remember the 3-1 last season and it was this result which threw Juve off the title chase. History may well repeat itself on Saturday night as the Bianconeri have a number of injuries to deal with and their minds will be on the Champions League clash against Real Madrid. The Azzurri have no such worries after their exit from the UEFA Cup against Benfica and thus all their efforts will be on causing more grief for the Old Lady.

Juventus Desperate To Win

The Bianconeri are winless in four consecutive games. Life is tough down at Vinovo and all the talk of an easy stroll to the Scudetto this term has evaporated. The heat is on for Claudio Ranieri and his contract could be torn up and thrown into the fire if his side fail to produce a win against their opponents this weekend. Speculation has been rife in Italy regarding the Tinkerman.

The club has tried to brush the hype under the carpet but, with serious title ambitions in Serie A and Europe, the directors at Corso Gallileo Ferraris are likely to run out of patience. Juve are four points off the pace and a loss at San Paolo will see their Tricolore run put on hold until next term. Crisis is a word which has been looming in the air at the club but a win against Napoli will put things in place, silence the critics and get their season back on track.

Napoli

October 5: Genoa 3-2 Napoli

October 2: Benfica 2-0 Napoli

September 28: Bologna 0–1 Napoli

September 24: Napoli 2-1 Palermo

September 21: Udinese 0-0 Napoli

Juventus

October 5: Juventus 1-2 Palermo

September 30: Bate Borisov 2-2 Juventus (CL)

September 27: Sampdoria 0-0 Juventus (Serie A)

September 24: Juventus 1-1 Catania (Serie A)

September 21: Cagliari 0-1 Juventus (Serie A)

Napoli -3-5-2: Iezzo, Contini, Cannavaro, Santacroce, Vitale, Maggio, Gargano, Blasi, Hamsik, Lavezzi, Dennis.

Juventus -4-4-2: Manninger, Knezevic, Grygera, Chiellini, Molinaro, Nedved, Marchisio, Poulsen, Marchionni, Del Piero, Amauri.

Atletico Madrid - Real Madrid

2008-10-17T23:13:00.002+03:00

It’s the 143rd edition of El Derbi Madrileño and very likely to be dubbed the Redemption Derby. It has been a testing week for the two Madrid clubs, and the city in general, as the issue over racism and crowd violence in the country spills into overdrive.

What a tumultuous few weeks it has been for Atlético Madrid. Just a month ago, everything was rosy for the rojiblancos. They were charming fans and pundits all over the world with their delightful football, they were starting to look like genuine title contenders, their collection of star players were finally coming good and it seemed as though nothing could go wrong for them.
But it did… all in a space of around a fortnight.
On the pitch, they suffered their first real setback of the season when they slumped to a 0-2 home defeat to Sevilla three weeks ago. That was promptly followed by the 6-1 annihilation at Barcelona, a much-hyped and much-talked about encounter which they lost inside the opening eight minutes.
If that wasn’t enough to send the club into a tail spin, they then had to face the scrutiny of the world when UEFA decided to not only ban the team from playing at the Vicente Calderón in their next three Champions League home games, but the European football governing body also suspended coach Javier Aguirre from taking the bench for the next two matches due to unsporting behaviour.

Ofcourse, Real Madrid were not completely immuned from their fair share of controversy over the past few days, although for once, the issue was instigated by someone else and club themselves played no part in it.
Earlier in the week, the English Football Association publicly announced that they will refuse an invitation for an international friendly against Spain if the game were to take place at Madrid’s own Santiago Bernabéu, citing the possibility of racial abuse on their players as the main reason.
Just goes to show that sometimes, trouble follows you wherever you go. But this is something that should not bother the men in white nor affect their performance on the pitch, although it has struck another blow to the club’s image and reputation following their infamous absurdities during the summer transfer window.

Atlético Madrid

The good news for coach, Javier Aguirre is that trio Maniche, Simão and Diego Forlán have all won the race against the clock to regain full fitness and they will be available to be called upon.
The other trio of Pablo Ibañez, John Heitinga and Maxi, on the other hand, weren’t so lucky as they continue to nurse their injuries and look unlikely to recover in time. Sergio Agüero and Luis Amaranto Perea, meanwhile, have only just returned from their CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers and they would have taken part in only one training session prior to kick-off.
The Mexican trainer will be tempted to rest El Kun but this being the derbi, the player himself has already demanded to be put on the pitch.
Probable Starting XI (4-4-2): Coupet – Seitaridis, Perea, Ujfalusi, Antonio López (c) – Luis García, Assunção/Maniche, Raúl García, Simão – Agüero, Forlán/Sinama-Pongolle

Real Madrid

Midfielders Mahamadou Diarrà and Guti are both sidelined after failing to recover from their respective ailments. Fernando Gago, just back from a thigh injury himself, has been confirmed as the Malian’s replacement in the first eleven.
Also set for a comeback is Dutch winger Arjen Robben, who has shrugged off his thigh muscle strain but he is only fit enough to start the game from the bench.
Leftback Marcelo returns from a one match suspension and he should replace Gabriel Heinze at leftback following the Argentine’s heavy involvement in the World Cup qualifiers. Fabio Cannavaro is often rested whenever he is involved in any midweek outings but it remains to be seen if Schuster will maintain that philosophy, given the magnitude of this clash.
Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Cannavaro/Metzelder, Pepe, Marcelo – Van der Vaart, Gago, De la Red/Sneijder – Higuaín, Van Nistelrooy, Raul (c)

My bet : Over 2.5 because both teams are offensive ones.

Austria - Serbia

2008-10-14T22:56:00.002+03:00

When Austria defeated France by three goals to one at the Ernst Happel Stadion on Saturday 6 September of this year, it seemed that Czech head coach Karel Brückner, newly appointed in the role, was leading the country to a bright new international future.Only the previous month, Austria had nearly sprung a massive surprise by grasping a two goal lead in Italy only to eventually succumb to the Azzurri’s force and ending with a draw.Such strong foundations have not been built upon as the Austrian challenge for World Cup qualification has, apparently, crumbled against pressure from two of the qualifying groups supposed make-weights.Coming off the high of destroying France was easy for the Austrians as they froze in Lithuania, limping away from Vilnius with a 2-0 defeat to put their fine start in perspective.

“We will go to Vienna for three more points,” stated Serbian head coach Radomir Antić after watching his side dismantle Lithuania on Saturday evening.Leading the group after three matches, Antić’s side appear to have overcome a tricky start to the new head coach’s life in charge. A 2-0 victory against the Faroe Islands at home was unimpressive in the extreme while the Serbians never threatened to upset an uncertain looking French side in Paris as they struggled to a 2-1 defeat in their opening double-header in September.The change in the pace and quality of the football the team played on Saturday in the success against Lithuania was really quite remarkable. Switching from a mechanical, rather predictable side against France, the Serbians played some lovely fluid football on Saturday and will be looking for more of the same against Austria.

Austria

Saturday’s result will be seen as a disaster for Austria’s hopes of finishing in the top two spots in the group and, therefore, alterations will be made to the side’s tactics, although the personnel will remain largely familiar. Of course, the nature of the forthcoming home fixture against Serbia is very different to the draw in the Faroe Islands. Werder Bremen youngster Martin Harnik limped off during the first half of Saturday’s draw and must be considered a heavy doubt for Wednesday’s match but, otherwise, the Austrian side appears to be in good health.

Predicted line-up: Manniger; Garics, Prödl, Stranzl, Pogatetz; Scharner, Ivanschitz, Fuchs, Holzl; Hoffer, Janko

Serbia

Radomir Antić has had just one injury scare in his squad with defender Ivica Dragutinović forced off mid-way through the first half of the victory over Lithuania with an injury. Into his berth will come Mladen Krstajić of Schalke 04. Krstajić, a tall centre-back, should hope to cope with the aerial threat of Austria with a degree of comfort.Vast changes are unexpected in the side after such a fine showing last Saturday.

Predicted line-up: Stojković; Ivanović, Krstajić, Vidić, Obradović; Milijas, Stanković, Krasić, Jovanović; Zigić, Pantelić

Tought match...1-0 0-0 1-1 or 0-1 most probable scores..under 2.5 IMO.

Belarus - England

2008-10-14T22:46:00.003+03:00

Considering confidence among fans and within the squad itself after the Euro 2008 failure was of a similar low to that of 1994, should England have been offered a 100 per cent start after three games to their road to South Africa campaign, even the most ardent of Anglican ale enthusiasts would have traded a finite supply of Greene King IPA in order to seal the accord with a happy hoppy finish.In fact any initial skepticism has been diluted due to a 11 goals scored after 270 minutes of football and the imminent possibility of the finest possible start to a World Cup qualifying season providing the Three Lions carry on roaring in Minsk.

Emile Heskey, a once maligned figure, is now seen as enjoying a renaissance and is now arguably an untouchable. As, in the eyes of Fabio Capello, it is the powerful Wigan forward who allows national darling Wayne Rooney to blossom."Rooney is very important for us," Capello said after the flattering 5-1 Kazakhstan win. "But Heskey is important for him.

Defenders always go towards Heskey. When that happens, it creates a bit of space for Rooney — whose movement is so good."Despite the impressive and still burgeoning partnership of Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe at club level, if Heskey carries on gifting Rooney space to attack and score then the Pompey pair may not be able to add to their 28 and 31 respective cap hauls.Capello even has partnership problems in other areas of the pitch.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are both fit, both started against Kazakhstan, but once again failed to find the glittering form that has guided their Premier League sides to Champions League finals.The Belarusians may pose some distinct problems for the English.

Such is the esteem that Capello holds the side in he went as far as to compare them to Arsenal, but without key midfielder Aliaksandr Hleb the home side may be impotent in attack.

Belarus

Squad

Goalkeepers: Zhevnov (Moskva), Veremko (BATE Borisov), Amelchenko (Moskva).

Defenders: Omelyanchuk (FC Terek Grozny), Filipenko (Spartak Moscow), Skverniuk (Krylya Sovetov Samara), Verkhovtsov (Naftan Novopolotsk), Molosh (Nosta Novotroitsk), Sosnovski (BATE Borisov).

Midfielders: Kulchiy (Rostov), Hleb (Barcelona), Korytko (Chornomorets Odessa), Strakhanovich (MTZ-RIPO), Stasevich (BATE Borisov), Putsila (Hamburger SV), Pavlov (Dnepr Mahilyow), Sitko (Vitebsk), Chukhley (Dinamo Minsk).

Forwards: Kutuzov (Parma), Bulyga (Luch-Energiya Vladivostok), Hleb (MTZ-RIPO), Rodionov (BATE Borisov).

Probable Starting XI: Zhevnov - Chukley; Filipenko; Verkhovtsov; Omelyanchuk - Kulchiy; Putsila: Stasevich; Stasevich; Strakhanovich - Bulyga.

England

John Terry has been ruled out after suffering a recurrence of a back injury so Matthew Upson will likely maintain his starting role while Rio Ferdinand will sport the armband.Ashley Cole has not travelled with the rest of the squad as he has also been sidelined.

Squad

Goalkeepers: James (Portsmouth), Green (West Ham), Carson (West Brom).

Defenders: Brown (Manchester United), Johnson (Portsmouth), Ferdinand (Manchester United), Terry (Chelsea), Lescott (Everton), Upson (West Ham), Bridge (Chelsea), A Cole (Chelsea).

Midfielders: Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy), Walcott (Arsenal), Barry (Aston Villa), Jenas (Tottenham), Lampard (Chelsea), Gerrard (Liverpool), Downing (Middlesbrough), Wright-Phillips (Manchester City).

Strikers: Heskey (Wigan), Crouch (Portsmouth), Rooney (Manchester United), Defoe (Portsmouth).

Probable Starting XI: James - Brown; Ferdinand; Upson; Bridge - Walcott; Lampard; Barry; Gerrard - Rooney; Heskey.

Ok..England IMO have a very difficult match. With both Terry and Cole missing i thing Belarus can and will score. So IMO the safest bat is both to score

Republic of Ireland - Cyprus

2008-10-14T22:36:00.002+03:00

The Trapattoni effect seems to be taking hold: four points from Ireland's first two games on the road is no more then he could have asked for. The Irish looked a far more organised and concentrated team then they were in their previous campaign. And they’ll be looking to avenge the nightmares of a 5-2 defeat and a 1-1 home draw that they achieved in Euro 2008 qualifiers with the Cypriots last time out.

Cyprus are perhaps unlucky to only have one point from their opening games. Last month they lost 2-1 to Italy, Antonio Di Natale scoring an injury time goal to put an end to a memorable night for them. And last Saturday they drew 1-1 with Georgia, missing a penalty in that game.Republic of Ireland currently lie second in the group, three points behind leaders Italy with a game in hand.

Cyprus lie just above Georgia who are last. Bulgaria and Montenegro are third and fourth respectively

Republic of Ireland

There is some good news for Giovanni Trapattoni before this game. Damien Duff is fit and available for selection after missing Ireland’s first two games last month through injury. That’ll mean that Stephen Hunt is likely to lose out as Aiden McGeady joins Duff on the wings.But there has been some vital casualties for Ireland. Steve Finnan and Stephen Kelly are both out which leaves Trapattoni having to reshuffle the defence possibly losing John O’Shea in the centre.Central midfielder Steven Reid is out with a knee injury and so Liam Miller looks set to join Glenn Whelan in the middle.But it is full strength in attack with Robbie Keane and Kevin Doyle set to lead the line again.

Squad

Goalkeepers: Shay Given (Newcastle United), Dean Kiely (West Bromwich Albion), Joe Murphy (Scunthorpe United).

Defenders: Alex Bruce (Ipswich Town), Damien Delaney (Queens Park Rangers), Richard Dunne (Manchester City), Kevin Kilbane (Wigan Athletic), Joey O’Brien (Bolton Wanderers), John O’Shea (Manchester United), Paul McShane (Hull City).

Midfield: Stephen Hunt (Reading), Aiden McGeady (Glasgow Celtic), Damien Duff (Newcastle United), Liam Miller (Sunderland), Andy Reid (Sunderland), Glenn Whelan (Stoke City).

Forwards: Kevin Doyle (Reading), Robbie Keane (Liverpool), Andy Keogh (Wolves), Shane Long (Reading), Daryl Murphy (Sunderland).

Cyprus

Georgos Theodotou, Marinos Satsias and Alekos Alekou have been dropped. Otherwise Cyprus have a full squad to select from

Squad

Goalkeepers: Michalis Morfis (APOEL), Antonis Georgallides (Omonia Nicosia), Sofronis Avgousti (Apollon Limassol).

Defenders: Stelios Okkarides (Apollon Limassol), Andreas Constantinou (Anorthosis), Lambros Lambrou (Anorthosis), Demetris Daskalakis (AEK Larnaca), Marios Elia (APOEL), Parakevas Christou (APOEL), Elias Charalambous (Omonia Nicosia).

Midfielders: Marios Nicolaou (Panionios), Christos Marangos (Apollon Limassol), Constantinos Makrides (Metalurh Donetsk), Constantinos Charalambides (APOEL), Chrysis Michael (APOEL), Alexandros Garpozis (Apollon Limassol), Efstathios Aloneftis (Omonia Nicosia), Kyriacos Pavlou (Omonia Nicosia).

Forwards: Dimitris Christofi (Omonia Nicosia), Yiasoumis Yiasoumi (Ethnikos Achnas), Michalis Konstantinou (Iraklis), Ioannis Okkas (Omonia Nicosia) source "goal"

Ok..my opinion is that this is a hard match to predict. Cyprus could have easily won in Georgia but they were unlucky. Ireland has a great chance of qualifing for the World Championships 2010 South Africa but it's very inconsistant. I think this will end 2-1 for Ireland but i will probably bet on this live.

Portugal - Albania

2008-10-14T22:33:00.002+03:00

Despite being within touching distance of group leaders Denmark, Portugal will be fairly disappointed with their start to the qualifying campaign. Of most concern will be the fact that they lost their first home game 2-3 to Denmark, thereby heaping unnecessary pressure on the squad for the road ahead. Additionally, the frontline, while full of fancy tricks, looked short on finishing quality against Sweden on Saturday, and will need to improve against a gutsy Albanian side.

On paper, however, Portugal are by far the strongest side in the group. Of course, tired old clichés about games being played on paper come to mind, but Portugal should realistically have enough quality to claim a playoff place, at the very least, by the end of the campaign. The fact that players like Quaresma and Danny were on the bench against Sweden, not to mention injured players like Deco, Carvalho, Maniche and Simao in reserve, indicates the Portugal have far more depth than their rivals.

After two games, Albania were indulging in delusions of grandeur after finding themselves top of the group, but a 2-0 loss away to Hungary sent them plummeting to fifth position, albeit on the same points as Hungary and Portugal above them. Still, they would certainly have taken four points from three games if offered beforehand.On Wednesday night, however, the Albanians face their most crucial match of the campaign. If they can scrape a draw, or even put in a respectable performance in defeat, it will prove to the rest of the group that they are there to compete. If the Portuguese attacking pressure overwhelms them, it will be a major blow to confidence and alert the other sides that they can be bullied. In reality, Albania do not have enough depth to seriously challenge for a qualification place, but they are more than capable of ruining other team’s campaigns.

Portugal

Portugal are missing the considerable experience of Ricardo Carvalho, Maniche, Simao, and most significantly Deco, whose absence was certainly felt in Sweden. The only change to the starting line-up could come in the form of Danny or Quaresma replacing Nani.

Probable Starting X1 – Quim- Bosingwa, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Paulo Ferreira – Meira, Meireles, Moutinho – Danny, Ronaldo, Almeida

Albania

Despite their loss to Hungary, it was an encouraging performance and it is hard to see Albania making any changes to their line-up in such a short space of time.

Probable Starting X1 - Beqaj – Beqiri, Vengelli, Dallku, Curri – Cana, Agolli, Duro, Skela – Lala, Bogdani

Portugal can't make any mistakes. I think they will win at least with 2 gols difference.

Chile - Argentina

2008-10-14T22:28:00.004+03:00

Chile are certainly playing their part to make things interesting in the race for the fourth and final position for direct entry to South Africa 2010 or at the very least, secure a spot in the eventual play-offs.
The coastal nation have been far too inconsistent in the qualifying campaign. A 2-3 win away at Venezuela in Round 6 was followed by a 0-3 mauling at home to a then disjointed Brazil side. But they bounced back amazingly well to thump Colombia 4-0 several days later, only to lose 1-0 at Colombia last weekend.
But despite the defeat, La Roja are still hanging on to the final automatic qualification spot in fourth place. Things, however, can change very rapidly in their next 90 minutes of football with three other teams below them within touching distance.
Uruguay and Ecuador, lurking just a single point behind, will have considerably easier opponents in their Round 10 fixtures – Bolivia and Venezuela respectively – and they are expected to bag all three points. And if Marcelo Bielsa’s Chile can’t find a way past his former team, then they could find themselves well out of the qualification zone by the time Round 11 rolls around in March of 2009.

Argentina finally ended their five game winless run in the qualifying campaign with a fiery 2-1 win over Uruguay last Saturday. Two early goals from superstars Lionel Messi and Sergio Agüero set them on their way but they were unable to add to their tally and had to settle for a narrow victory.
That has pretty much been the story so far for the two-time World Champions: all possession, all flair but not very proficient infront of goal.
For all their attacking talent, the jury is still out on just exactly how lethal and efficient Los Albicelestes are upfront. They have not scored more than three goals per game, while teams like Uruguay, Venezuela, Ecuador, Paraguay and ofcourse Brazil have all managed to score five times at least once in the qualifying campaign.

Chile

Bielsa will have numerous key players missing, mainly through suspension. Defenders Ismael Fuentes and Gonzalo Jara were both sent off against Colombia in the previous game while midfielder Roberto Cereceda and highly rated young forward Alexis Sánchez are ineligible due to yellow card accumulation.
Probable Starting XI: Bravo – Medel, Ponce, Contreras, Vidal – Carmona, Estrada – Matí Fernández, Valdivia, Mark González – Suazo

Argentina

Playmaker Juan Román Riquelme and forward Carlos Tevez are both suspended after exceeding their yellow card count following their silly bookings against Uruguay.
On the other hand, the likes of Sergio Agüero, Martin Demichelis and Javier Mascherano all picked up severe knocks in that bruising encounter and all three will have to face a late fitness test to determine their condition.
Probable Starting XI: Carrizo – Zanetti (c), Coloccini, Demichelis, Heinze – Mascherano, Ledesma, Cambiasso – Messi, Agüero/Milito, Sand/Di María

Even with this players missing i think 1.75 for Argentina to win seems great

Royal London Watches Grand Prix, Glasgow

2008-10-13T23:22:00.003+03:00

First round of the Royal Grand Prix from Glasgow. And there are 3 matches that are very tempting :

Ronnie O'sullivan (ENG) - Liang Wenbo (CHN) 1 @ 1.25

Ronnie is in a great form. He won the World Championship and Northern Ireland Tropy & he was finalist in Shanghai, beeing defeated by the surprising Ricky Walden. Liang is a very young and talented player but he has problems when he meats good players. They met this year at the WC and Ronnie won 13-7. I think he will win this clash too.

Shaun Murphy - Adrian Gunnel 1 @ 1.25

Both Shaun and Gunnel are in a lack of form. Murphy was eliminated in the first round of Shanghai Masters and Northern Ireland Trophy by Andy Hicks & Mark Williams. But i think this is a great oportunity for him, because his opponent is Gunnel, not a great player.

Alistair Carter - Dave Harold 1 @ 1.60

It's pretty simple. Carter has a great year, reaching the World Champ final and the NI Trophy semi-final, beeing defeated in both competitions by Ronnie. At Shanghai he was eliminated by Mark Williams which was in a great form. His opponent is a good one, but i think Ali won't have many problems.

ATP Madrid R64

2008-10-13T11:48:00.005+03:00

Darcis - Fish 1 @ 2.35

Mardy Fish is a typical home player. In the States and around it (Canada) he has a terrific season, but when it comes to Europe, things go so much slower for him.He has never had a great run in Madrid for instance. With the years it has been going from bad to worse - 3rd round, second, second and first round out last year.Mardy is not a bad player for sure, he has a lot to give on hard - great serve, good volleys, solid FH, not that solid BH but still not a big flow.What keeps him out of the highest positions in ATP is perhaps his discomfort playing away from home.Of course, there is also the fact that he's no good on clay and that's the surface we play in Europe the most, but his results for the last 4 years in Madrid on hard are far from convincing as well.Steve Darcis is a young player who is on his way to reach higher ranks in the ATP i believe. He has a very good base for winning matches on hard and all he needs is to step in the main draw of some bigger tournaments and be lucky with the draw.That's exactly the right time, place and draw for this guy to make some noise, just like Muller did in the States.He won Devilder and Bolleli in straight sets in the qualies and i believe he is now ready to take a top30 scalp.I guess the bookies believe the same as the odds are set actually right.No real value in this pick but certainly a chance to check if my theory for Fish being only a home player, at odds higher than the level ball

Igor Andreev - Gilles Simon 1 @ 2.05

Quite equal match at first sight.We have an agressive player that Andreev is, mistakenly stamped as a clay courter as he is imo an all rounder, especially in the last year, he has proven to be equally good on both surfaces.He had a very strange match in a very strange Kremlin cup tournament where he lost from one set up and 5-2 against the young Frenchman Chardy.This is actually his main blooper putting him ssihjtly underdog against Simon.But i believe in the abilities of the Russian to display super high quality tennis on hard, just like he did at the US Open, putting Federer in trouble to lose in the 5th set.Simon has been on a constant rise in the last year. He showed a very solid defensive tennis with a lot of success.Just like Andreev he had a strange result lately, in Metz losing to Mahut.His defensive qualities were the main weapon that won him the Bucharest clay tournament right before the Open de Moselle. Now, after a few mid range tournaments where the results are not to be taken as pure information, we have the Madrid Masters. Every player will show his best there as it is an important one giving a lot of points and money.So when i take the best seen from both through the year - let's say Simon losing to Del Potro in 5 in the US Open and Andreev the same against Federer, when i weigh these two performances, i believe that Andreev has a bit better arsenal compared to his oponent and should be actually favourit.I would have taken Igor at 1,90 and i am happy to do it now at 2,05.

Argentina - Uruguay

2008-10-10T21:27:00.005+03:00

It is widely accepted as the second most fiercest rivalry in South America. The two “Celestes” of the continent will collide on Saturday evening in what is expected to be a red-hot encounter as they look to strengthen their grip on World Cup qualification.

It may not be as fiery as Argentina versus Brazil but this is without doubt one of the oldest international rivalries in world football. Argentina and Uruguay have met a total of 174 times since 1901 in all official games and it gets more and more intense every meeting.
Both sets of players have already started the mind games in the lead up to this clash, each declaring their intentions to take down the other team with the aim of not only consolidating their hopes of direct entry to South Africa 2010, but also to attain the bragging rights, to boost their morale and to pile on the misery for the opposite number.

Indeed, neither nation have looked especially solid in the qualifying campaign so far. Argentina have now gone five games without a single triumph. In fact, their senior team have yet to pick up a victory in the whole of 2008 in a competitive outing. And if they happen to fail to beat Uruguay on Saturday and Chile in midweek, they would have gone the entire year without winning.
Despite that woeful streak, Alfio Basile’s men are still well placed inside the top four for an automatic qualification spot as they cling on to third place. But Los Albicelestes are definitely under immense pressure to snap their barren spell.
The 64 year old has an unfathomable amount of talent at his disposal and yet they are struggling to get the desired results. The veteran could be facing the chop if he stumbles against the old foe.

Uruguay, on the other hand, managed to notch up two wins in their last five rounds. Most impressive was the 6-0 hammering of Peru back in June but they also eeked out an admirable 0-1 win away against the always daunting Colombia. However, they only lie fifth in the standings due to their inconsistent form and a slow start to the campaign.
Prior to those two wins, Óscar Tabárez’s side had only managed one victory and that was in the opening round when they walloped Bolivia 5-0. Even though they are currently outside of the direct qualification zone, Los Charrúas are only a solitary point behind Brazil, Argentina and Chile who are second, third and fourth respectively by virtue of goal difference.
A positive result in Buenos Aires at the weekend will put them in the right frame of mind to enter the “second half” of the qualifying series when they take on Bolivia again on Tuesday. A win in La Paz and they could find themselves right in the hunt to challenge for the top four towards the final phase of the program.

Argentina

Playmaker Juan Román Riquelme has shrugged off a minor niggle as he trained normally with the rest of the squad in midweek.
Leftback Luciano Monzón, midfielder Pablo Barrientos and forward Gonzalo Bergessio have been handed their first call-ups while Nicolas Burdisso and Diego Milito have been given a recall to the squad.
Goalkeepers Pato Abbondanzieri and Óscar Ustari are both still sidelined which leaves Pablo Carrizo as the favourite to start between the sticks.
Probable Starting XI: Carrizo – Zanetti (c), Coloccini, Demichelis, Heinze – Mascherano, Riquelme, Cambiasso – Messi, Agüero, Tevez

Uruguay

Goalkeeper Juan Castillo has recovered from a knock to his right leg he picked up during training earlier in the week and he should retain his spot at goal. Stalwart defender and captain Diego Lugano has also shrugged off an injury and he will continue to marshal his backline.
Striker Diego Forlán has, ofcourse, been omitted from the squad as he nurses a muscular tear in his right thigh. Coach, Tabárez has all but confirmed that Javier Ernesto Chevantón will be his replacement to partner Sebastián Abreu upfront.
Probable Starting XI: Castillo – Fucile, Lugano (c), Godín, Cáceres – Pereira, Pérez, Eguren, Cristian Rodríguez – Abreu, Chevantón

My advice is to bet on the number of goals - over 3 seems a good choise. Also, i will go with Argentina -1 european handicap beacouse with an atack composed of Messi-Aguero-Tevez they should easy score 3+ goals

Germany - Russia

2008-10-10T21:14:00.003+03:00

A month after a weakened German side drew 3-3 against Finland, German coach Joachim Loew has the opportunity to make up for his side’s poor performance with a victory over Euro 2008 semifinalists Russia. In Helsinki, Loew’s side was unconvincing at best, falling behind three times only to be saved by a Miroslav Klose hat-trick. Loew’s squad against Finland included several changes to his usual set lineup: centre-backs Serdar Tasci and Heiko Westermann were granted starts over Christoph Metzelder and the injured Per Mertesacker, and central midfield pairing Thomas Hitzlsperger and Simon Rolfes started in place of the injured Michael Ballack and Torsten Frings.

Following a stellar Euro 2008 campaign that resulted in a place in the semifinals, Russia are back on the radar among the European elite. Along with the Netherlands, Russia helped to change the style of international European football by performing exceedingly well despite relying heavily on their offense to carry them through. When the two sides met in the quarterfinals, it was the Russians that defeated a Dutch side that featured such offensive talents as Rafael Van der Vaart, Wesley Sneijder, Robin van Persie and Ruud van Nistelrooij. Indeed, by a margin of 3-1, Russia won the “battle of the offensive powers.” Russia received a boost on Wednesday as they passed Portugal, France and Turkey on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings, securing a spot in 9th place. This was Russia’s best placement since October of 1997. To be honest, I think the Russians are even better than their ranking, and could shock any of the top ten. That’s what they’ll try to do on Saturday as they visit Euro finalists Germany.

Germany

Having missed last month’s qualifiers against Finland and Liechtenstein, right back Arne Friedrich, centre-back Per Mertesacker and central midfield pairing Michael Ballack and Torsten Frings return to Joachim Loew’s squad. Germany will be without left-back Marcell Jansen (thigh), goalkeeper Robert Enke (wrist), and right-back Andreas Hinkel (thigh). Additionally, centre-back Christoph Metzelder, left-back Christian Pander, and right-winger Marko Marin have been dropped Defensive midfielder Jermaine Jones and goalkeeper Rene Adler also will return for Loew’s side, the latter being set to make his first start for “Die Mannschaft.”

Probable Starting XI: Adler – Lahm, Westermann, Mertesacker, Fritz – Trochowski, Ballack, Frings, Schweinsteiger – Podolski, Klose

Russia

Centre back Denis Kolodin (ankle), Dmitri Torbinski (groin), and Roman Pavlyuchenko (ankle) will be missing for Guus Hiddink’s side. In defense, one of the Berezutsky twins (Alexei or Vasili) will deputize. In place of Torbinski, Spartak Moscow midfielder Ivan Saenko will get his 13th cap. The injury to Pavlyuchenko does have one good point for Hiddink: he will not have to choose between the Tottenham Hotspur forward and now definite starter Pavel Pogrebnyak.

Probable Starting XI: Akinfeev – Zhirkov, Ignashevich, Berezutsky, Anyukov – Saenko, Semak, Semshov, Zyryanov – Arshavin, Pogrebnyak

For me this game is 50-50..both teams have goos squads and play ofensive football. Over 2.5 seems the obvious choise

Ucraine - Croatia

2008-10-10T13:07:00.004+03:00

I think this match will be very tight. 50-50 chances for both teams. Although Croatia has clearly a better team, Ucraine plays home and this could count.

Ucraine, even though gathered 6 point, played pretty weak 1-0 against Belarus and 3-1 win in Kazakstan.
Squad for the match against Croatia: Andrij Pjatov (Šahtar), Stanislav Boguš (Dinamo Kijev), Aleksanadar Šovkoskij (Dinamo Kijev), Vjaćeslav Ševčuk (Šahtar), Dmitrij Ingrinskij (Šahtar), Aleksnader Kučer (Šahtar), Taras Mihaljik (Dinamo Kijev), Grigorij Jarmaš (Vorskla Poltava), Vitalij Mandzjuk (Arsenal Kiev), Andrij Rusol (Dnjipro), Maksim Kalinjčenko (Dnjipro), Serhij Nazarenko (Dnjipro), Denis Holajdo (Tavria), Anatolij Timoščuk (Zenit St Petersburg), Evhen Levčenko (Groningen), Serhij Kravčenko (Vorskla Poltava), Aleksander Aliev (Dynamo Kiev),Andrij Voronjin (Hertha Berlin), Andrij Ševčenko (AC Milan), Volodimir Homenjuk (Tavria Simferopol), Evhen Seleznjev (Šahtar)

Shevecenko is out of form, Voronin is in a lack of form and Timoscuk is a good midfielder but not a great one. Except these 3, the rest are modest players withaout much experience in the international clashes.

Croatia wass defeated at home last round by England 1-4 and this is a great thing for them IMO. They though they were superiori, that they were already qualified. Now they are back on earth and i think Croatia will be extremly motivated saturday evening.

Squad: Stipe Pletikosa (Spartak Moskva), Vedran Runje (RC Lens), Danijel Subašić (HNK Hajduk Split), Vedran Ćorluka (Tottenham Hotspur FC), Josip Šimunić (Hertha Berlin), Dario Knežević (Juventus), Hrvoje Vejić (Tom Tomsk), Ivica Križanac (FC Zenit St. Petersburg), Dino Drpić (Dinamo Zagreb), Niko Kovač (Red Bull Salzburg), Danijel Pranjić (SC Heerenveen), Nikola Pokrivač (AC Monaco), Luka Modrić (Tottenham Hotspur FC), Jerko Leko (AC Monaco), Ognjen Vukojević (FC Dynamo Kyiv), Ivo Iličević (Gruether Furth), Darijo Srna (Sakhtar Donetsk), Ivan Rakitić (SC Schalke 04), Mladen Petrić (Hamburger SV), Ivica Olić (Hamburger SV), Ivan Klasnić (FC Nantes), Nikola Kalinić (HNK Hajduk Split), Mario Mandžukić (Dinamo Zagreb)

Kovac, Eduardo and Kranjcar are missing.

In my opinion i think Croatia will win this very important match and get back in the fight for the first spot.

Scotland - Norway

2008-10-10T12:53:00.003+03:00

Scotland started their WC 2010 south Africa campaign very poorly. The coach said that he wants 4 point from the first 2 maches but they got only 3, being defeated in Macedonia 1-0. After that came a very important win in Iceland 2-1. Anyways in both matches Scotland practiced good football and i think they are currenty over Norway.

Norway only played one game during the last break, welcoming Iceland to their Ullevaal Stadion hours after the Scots crashed in the searing Skopje heat. Steffen Iversen twice gave Åge Hareide's men the lead, but Heidar Helguson and Gudjohnsen pegged them back and the visitors held on for a credible draw.
This lack off killer instinct was evident throughout Norway's four friendlies this year. They were thumped by Wales and Montenegro before improving their performance levels drastically during draws with Uruguay and the Republic of Ireland.

Scotland

Only 22 of Scotland's 25 man squad remain after Kenny Miller, Kevin Thomson and Kris Commons withdrew through injury. All three would have had a good chance of starting the match, with Miller in particular a massive blow.However, boss Burley claims that the remaining Scots are fully fit and raring to go.Wolves hitman Chris Iwelumo will be hoping to earn his first cap after finally forcing his way into the international reckoning.Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher has been made interim captain as skipper Barry Ferguson is still crocked and deputy Stephen McManus suspended.

Norway

The biggest team news from the Norwegian camp involves Aston Villa striker John Carew who has apparently shrugged off the neck injury which had threatened his involvement.Steffen Iversen and Thorstein Helstad, Tom Hogli and Bjorn Helge Riise are all doubtful. Iversen, who bagged a double against Iceland, will be given a late fitness test."He will decide what kind of system we will use," boss Hareide said, highlighting the former Tottenham man's importance, "I really hope he's fit."Definitely out are Mohammed Abdellaoue Martin Andresen, Per Ciljan Skjelbred and Vladimir Demidov.Rune Jarstein hasn't yet established himself as Iceland's undisputed No.1 yet, but is almost certain to start at Hampden.

My bet for is match is Scotland to win. Most probable by a goal. Norway has too many injury problems and it's lack of form is obvious. This is a "must win" game for the scots.

Bulgaria - Italy

2008-10-09T22:46:00.003+03:00

Interesting match takes place saturday in Sofia.

Bulgaria started very poorly the campaign for the World Cup 2010 , a draw 2-2 at Montenegro. But i think this is the perfect match for them to please the fans and get back in the fight fot the first position in the group.
Martin petrov returns to the squad, a very important player, and i think this will be great for Bulgaria
probable starting 11: Dimitar Ivankov- Zhivko Milanov, Alexandar Tunchev, Valentin Iliev, Lucio Vagner- Stilian Petrov, Chavdar Yankov, Velizar Dimitrov, Zdravko Lazarov- Martin Petrov, Dimitar Berbatov

Italy is having huge problems with injuries: Pirlo, Materazzi, Grosso, Iaquinta, Del Piero, Buffon and Camoranesi will all miss this clash. Pirlo and Camoranesi are the most important midfielders + Buffon, maybe the best goalie in the world.
Probable starting 11: Marco Amelia - Gianluca Zambrotta, Fabio Cannavaro, Giorgio Chiellini, Andrea Dossena - Gennaro Gattuso, Daniele De Rossi, Simone Perrotta; Giuseppe Rossi - Alberto Gilardino, Antonio Di Natale.
A pretty weak line-up if you ask me.

All in all i think Bulgaria can't miss this chanse to beat a strugling Italy
My bet: Bulgaria draw no bet @ 2.75 Bet365

Romania - France WC 2010 Qual

2008-10-09T00:20:00.007+03:00

Romania- France is the derby of group 7, counting for the Qualification for the World Cup 2010 South Africa.

I think it will be a very tight match, both teams playing very defensive.

Romanian squad:
GK: Bogdan Lobonţ( Dinamo Bucharest), Costel Pantilimon (Poli Timisoara)

Defenders: Cristian Săpunaru( FC Porto), George Ogăraru(Steaua Bucharest), Gabriel Tamaş(Dinamo Bucharest), George Galamaz(Unirea Urziceni), Dorin Goian( Steaua Bucharest), Marius Valerică Găman(Universitatea Craiova), Răzvan Raţ(Shaktar Donetsk), Mihai Neşu( FC Utrech)

Midfielders: Florentin Petre(Terek), Dorel Stoica (Universitatea Craiova), Gabriel Mureşan(CFR Cluj), Răzvan Cociş(Lokomotiv Moscow), Iulian Tameş( FC Arges), Cristian Chivu( Inter), Marian Aliuţă(Fc Vaslui)

Forwards: Gheorghe Bucur(Poli Timisoara), Adrian Mutu(Fiorentina), Florin Costea(Universitatea Craiova), Bogdan Stancu(Steaua Bucharest), Ciprian Marica(Stuttgart)

Probably starting 11 : Lobont - Rat, Goian, Tamas, Ogararu- Muresan, Chivu - Mutu, Petre, Cocis - Marica

Sistem 4-2-4-1 with 4 defenders helped by 2 defensive misfielders : Muresan and Chivu

France squad :
GK: Steve Mandada (Olympique de Marseille) andHugo Lloris(Olympique de Lyon)

Defenders: Rod Fanni (Rennes), Eric Abidal (Barcelone), Sébastien Squilacci (FC Séville), Bakary Sagna (Arsenal), William Gallas(Arsenal), Gaël Clicky (Arsenal), Patrice Evra (Manchester United) , Philippe Mexes (AS Rome)

Midfielders: Jérémy Toulalan (Olympique de Lyon), Alou Diarra(Bordeaux), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich) et Patrick Vieira (Inter Milan)

Forwards: Hatem ben Arfa (Olympique de Marseille), Karim Benzema (Olympique de Lyon), Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea), Thierry Henry (FC Barcelone) si Florent Sinama-Pongolle (Atletico Madrid)

Probably starting 11 : Mandanda - Sagna, gallas, Abidal, Evra - Toulalan, Vieira - Ribery, Gourcuff, Ben Arfa - Henry

4-2-4-1, an identical system as the romanians. 2 teams based of defence.

The game is played in Constanta, becouse romanian coach Piturca is very superstitious. At Constanta, Romania defeated Netherlands(1-0) and Czech Republic (2-0). Plus, the pitch is in terrbile conditions so the Romanian team "tricolorii" should have an advantage.

P.S. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl7M8HKg4mw

Most probable scores : 0-0; 1-1

Vienna Open - hard

2008-10-08T11:41:00.004+03:00

Fernando Verdasco - Guillermo Canas 2 @ 2.80 Bwin

Verdasco is a player that i like actually. He has a great forehand with his left hand and a decent surrounding arsenal of shots. But i rate him still fragile mentally. He's playing a lot of matches, a lot of tournaments but most of the time he can't reach the important stages.Against a tough old dog as the Argentinian, who is one of the great defenders in the circuit, Verdasco will need to be at 100%. We've seen how much had to struggle the star of the year Del Potro against his countryman and i rate the young Juan Martin much more stabile mentaly and much more consistent in the rallies than Fernando.These odds are more or less right but i believe that Verdasco might lose this one, more than Canas to win it.The Spaniard lost against a Ferrero who is at the same level of Canas, even though being completly different style wise.mid low stakes for the old. experienced god to pull it off on fast (H2H 3-2 Verdasco - 3 on clay, 2 on hard for Canas)

Ernest Gulbis - Fernando Gonzales 1 @ 2/00 Bet 365

I believe that Ernest has been underestimated here. The young Latvian is a very good all court player with a big love for indoors.Even though he made his break through on the Paris clay, he is much more redoutable on fast surfaces imo.Gonzo is in a quite shaky form, losing very badly to Berdych in Tokyo (10K+ km from Vienna) in Friday. Yes, Berdych was brilliant there but losing the first set 6-0 means that you miss all your possible weapons, starting from the serve and ending at the FH.He also lost to Phau in the previous tournament and i believe that being on this plate, slididng down, he is meeting a player that must be on his way up, much fresher eventually, with great arguments on this surface.I go full stakes here, mainly based on my gutfeelling that this match will be won by Gulbis. I am also considering him as a potential winner of the tournament but i will wait this round and check how the table is going.A minimum of 7 units are to be staked here, i go with 10.

UEFA Cup group draw

2008-10-07T21:15:00.003+03:00

Group A : Schalke 04 ,Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City,Racing Santander, FC Twente

Group B: Benfica Lisbon, Olympiakos Pireu, Galatasaray Istambul, Herta Berlin, Metalist Harkov
Group C : Sevilla, VFB Stuttgart, Sampdoria, Partizan Belgrade, Standard Liege
Group D : Tottenham Hotspurs, Spartak Moscow, Udinese, Dinamo Zagreb, NEC Nijmegen
Group E : Milan, Sc Heerenveen, Sporting Braga, Portsmouth, VfL Wolfsburg
Group F : SV Hamburg, Ajax Amsterdam, Slavia Prague, Aston Villa, MSK Zilina
Group G : Valencia, Fc Bruges, Rosenborg, FC Copenhaga, AS Saint-Etienne
Group H : CSKA Moscow, Deportivo la Coruna, Feyenoord Rotherdam, AS Nancy, Lech Poznan

Group A looks particularly tasty, with Twente and Racing threatening to oust PSG or even one of Man City and Schalke, while Group C is fairly evenly-matched, too.AC Milan appear to have had a plum draw from their perspective, though, with Braga and Heerenveen providing the main threats. Similarly on-form Valencia will feel that they have enough in the tank to make it through Group G.

Livescore websites

2008-10-07T14:32:00.002+03:00

here are my favourite livescore sites:

www.xscores.com

Shows livescores from football, tennis, basketball, ice hockey, baseball and american football
Rate: 9/10

www.futbol24.com

Maybe the most complete football site: Livescores and statistics
Rate 9/10

www.livescore.com

A simple soccer livescore site.
Rate 7/10

In you know this sites you will find any result you need.

For live matches : www.justin.tv

Arsenal - Sheffield United : Carling Cup

2008-09-23T12:54:00.001+03:00

Arsenal's Academy

Wenger's youth team are again expected to be put to the sword as he uses this tournament as a bleeding ground and a potential promotion route to the first team. The 58-year old Frenchman told Arsenal TV Online: "There is a possibility it will be the youngest side ever... In the first team there are many players around 20. In the Carling Cup we will keep a few in there, but the side will be more between 16 and 19.

At Arsenal you can say 20 and 21-year-olds are the experienced players.""You are likely to see Gavin Hoyte, Abu Ogogu, Aaron Ramsey, Mark Randall, Jack Wilshere (pictured), Fran Merida and Carlos Vela. Maybe Nicklas Bendtner will play.
Alex Song, Djourou and Lukasz Fabianski will be the experienced players.""But you will have players like Emmanuel Frimpong and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, so it will be a very young side."Arsenal are enjoying a fine run of form recently, having tallied an average of three goals per game in their last five outings and conceding only once.

However, only a small number of the players featuring on Tuesday evening will have kitted out for the first team in that time.In the last reserves match where at least five of the expected starters were fielded, against Portsmouth reserves on September 16, Hoyte; Gibbs; Lansbury; Merida; and Randall, helped the second string to a 1-0 victory.Lansbury and Ramsey have both been impressing on international duty with the England and Wales U19 international teams while hotly-rated teenager Jack Wilshere lit up the Arsenal youth and reserve team last season, and had a commendable pre-season with the full squad.

ArsenalPossible Starting XI: Fabianski - Gibbs, Song, Djourou, G Hoyte - Wilshere, Merida, Randall, Lansbury - Vela, Bendtner.

United Front

Sheffield United on the other hand are not enjoying the English Championship as much as they would like and are struggling to kick start their season. A win over Arsenal's famed multi-national academy could be just the tonic to push on in England's second tier.United do have players that hold Premier League experience - and therefore presumably have the upper hand over Arsenal's academy players, although proceedings hardly ever work by that notion.

Greg Halford is on loan from Sunderland, James Beattie has international experience, Gary Speed witnessed near enough two decades of top flight action, Gary Naysmith used to play for Everton, Sun Jihai used to grace the Manchester City pitches (but faces disciplinary action for his dismissal against Coventry City), and Lee Hendrie is a former Villan.

Possible Starting XI: Kenny - Naysmith, Morgan, Kilgannon, Halford - Montgomery, Cotterill, Speed, Quinn - Beattie, Sharp.

i think a surprise is possible here
goal

Cagliari - Juventus

2008-09-21T01:15:00.002+03:00

Juventus travel to Sardinia in matchday 3 of the 2008/09 Serie A campaign but it will not be a holiday for the Bianconeri as Cagliari are looking to make life hard for the Old Lady...

Cagliari Looking To Bounce Back

Massimiliano Allegri’s men just about survived last season as a nice run towards the end of the 2007/08 campaign ensured they stayed up. Another difficult campaign is on the cards this time and it seems as if the team will be in for one more roller coaster ride. At the moment, the ride is pointing downwards for the Isolani with no wins in two games, conceding six goals and scoring two in the process.

Such form has got relegation written all over it.However, their focus will need to be deflected from the Serie A table as the grand Old Lady comes to town on Sunday. It’s not the game any Rossoblu fan would have wanted, given the fact the club are desperate for some points and it will not be easy against a very confident Juventus side.
The Cagliari coach is well aware of the task in hand and he warned his players to get their act together following last week’s loss to Siena.
Allegri knows that any slip ups are likely to have club president Massimo Celino ready to pull out the sack from under the table and thus he expects his side to bounce back this weekend.Goals mean points and points mean survival in this part of the calcio World. All eyes will be on Robert Acquafresca.

The under-21 international was the club’s top-scorer last season and he will be on hand to lend his support against mighty Juventus. The Isolani are not expected to win this game given their recent shambles but the possibility of a draw seems very high.
Cagliari know that Juve will be tired and fatigued from their European exploits on Wednesday night and thus their confidence and morale should be raise, if only a little.

Confident Old Lady

Juventus travel to the Stadio Sant’Elia full of confidence following an impressive seven days of football. A win against Udinese last week got their Scudetto chasing campaign and that was followed up in midweek with a fine, but hard fought win over Zenit St Petersburg in the Champions League as their hunt for European success got up and running.

The Bianconeri will be favourites to take all three points off a struggling Cagliari side but the Old Lady and Pavel Nedved are leaving nothing to chance as the Czech midfielder is well aware that it will not be a Sunday stroll in the park for his side.“The game against Cagliari will not be easy for us. They will want to fight back following their recent results and we are tired from the Champions League but we will go there to win,” said Nedved.

Cagliari

Sep 14 Siena 2-1 Cagliari (SERIE A)
Aug 31 Cagliari 1-4 Lazio (SERIE A)
Aug 23 Cagliari 1-0 Triestina (COPPA ITALIA)
May 18 Cagliari 2-2 Reggina (SERIE A)
May 11 Udinese 0-2 Cagliari (SERIE A)

Juventus

Sep 17 Juventus 1-0 Zenit (CL)
Sep 14 Juventus 1-0 Udinese (SERIE A)
Aug 31 Fiorentina 1-1 Juventus(SERIE A)
Aug 26 Artmedia 1-1 Juventus(CL)
Aug 22 Juventus-Napoli 0-0 (FRIENDLY) Juve win 5-4 on Penalties

Cagliari will be without Michele Canini for the game against Juve. The young defender was injured against Siena, he had to come off on a stretcher and he is unlikely to feature this week. Robert Acquafresca may get the nod as he seems to be back to full fitness. Daniele Conti is back and ready while Diego Lopez will be available following his suspension.

Juventus

Jorge Andrade, Cristiano Zanetti and Jonathan Zebina are all on the sidelines and David Trezeguet has been added to that list after he complained of a knee problem which has ruled him out of contention. Mauro Camoranesi picked up a minor knock against Zenit and he came off as a precaution in that match but he may feature at some point against the Isolani.

Cagliari: Marchetti; Pisano, Bianco, Lopez, Agostini; Biondini, Cossu, Parola; Lazzari; Larrivey, Acquafresca.
Juventus: Buffon; Grygera, Legrottaglie, Mellberg, Molinaro; Salihamidzic; Sissoko, Poulsen, Nedved; Iaquinta, Amauri.

1x my opinion
goal

Udinese - Lazio

2008-09-21T01:12:00.001+03:00

Udinese Look For Revenge

Udinese look to get back on track after their disappointing display in Turin last Sunday. Marino’s men looked extremely uncomfortable and could not muster up any really scoring chances at the Stadio Olimpico Grande.
Marino was baffled by the performance stating that “we were too timid and did not develop our game and gave up too easily. We were in awe of our opponents and that’s not one of our usual characteristics.” Marino will be further concerned by the performances of Fabio Quagliarella who has not been able to find his scoring touch yet this season.

The Bianconeri will need their hit-man to snap out of his slump as they were outscored 8-1 in both matches against Napoli last year including a 5-0 drubbing in this same fixture. Both Quagliarella and his partner in crime, Antonio Di Natale were rested in the UEFA Cup match against Borussia Dortmund on Thursday evening. The team performed admirably in their absence and ran out as 2-0 winners in the intimidating confines of the Westfalenstadion.

Udinese were the better team for most of the match and Marino was extremely pleased stating that "we were very aggressive and in doing so, neutralized their central midfielders. We closed down and counterattacked well, and we ended up building many goal scoring opportunities."

Napoli Look To Extend Unbeaten Run

Morale is sky high in the Napoli camp right now as the team have been firing on all cylinders to start the young campaign. Expectations were high coming into the new season as the Azzurri did very well in the summer transfer window, bringing in new talent to the Stadio San Paolo. The team have lived up to the early hype and that has only raised both the spirits and emotions of their supporters in and around the city.
The behaviour of some zealots in the Rome subway system have unfortunately given the club and its true believers a black eye amidst the teams renaissance.

Two large sections of the San Paolo stadium will remain shutdown until October 20th despite an appeal by the club that was subsequently turned down last week. That ban did not hurt the team’s performance against a dangerous Fiorentina squad which saw them come back from a 1-0 deficit to win the match with two goals in the second half.
The “comeback kids,” also clawed their way back from a one goal deficit to salvage a draw against Roma in their first match of the season. Taking four out a possible six points against two of the most competitive sides in the Serie A is an example of the team’s ambitions for this campaign

Udinese

September 18 vs Borussia Dortmund (A) WON 2-0 (UEFA CUP)
September 14 vs Juventus (A) LOST 1-0 (Serie A)
August 30 vs Palermo (H) WON 3-1 (Serie A)
August 24 vs Espanyol (A) LOST 1-0 (Friendly)
August 21 vs Villarreal (A) WON 1-0 (Friendly)

Napoli
September 18 vs Benfica (H) WON 3-2 (UEFA Cup)
September 14 vs Fiorentina (H) WON 2-1 (Serie A)
August 31 vs Roma (A) DREW 1-1 (Serie A)
August 28 vs Vllaznia (H) 5-0 (UEFA Cup)
August 14 vs Vllaznia (A) WON 3-0 (UEFA Cup)

Udinese

After sitting out the UEFA Cup match against Borussia Dortmund, the dynamic duo of Di Natale and Quagliarella should feature prominently against Napoli.
Probable starting XI-Handanovic- Pasquale, Coda, Lukovic, Domizzi- Inler, D’Agostino, Tissone- Pepe, Di Natale, Quagliarella

Napoli

Eqequiel Lavezzi limped off the field in the late stages of the UEFA Cup match against Benfica and will be out for at least two weeks. German Denis notched his first goal for the club in the same match and dedicated it to the people of Naples.

Probable starting XI- Iezzo- Contini, Santacroce, Cannavaro, Maggio- Vitale Gargano, Blasi, Hamsik, Denis, Pia

x2
Goal

Milan - Lazio

2008-09-21T01:10:00.000+03:00

No Time Like The Present

While the win over FC Zurich in the UEFA Cup on Thursday will relieve a small amount of pressure from manager Carlo Ancelotti’s shoulders, he is still very much under the gun. Not surprisingly, this, or any other match in the near future, could be his last in charge of the Rossoneri.

Yet another crisis meeting was held after the 2-0 away loss to Genoa last Sunday, and he reportedly kept his job just because of the sentiments certain members of the front house staff hold for him. With a disappointing loss to Lazio this weekend, however, those sentiments could be rendered meaningless and see Ancelotti packing his bags for another destination.
Although, it is not all gloom and doom for Ancelotti. His squad played quite well in midweek, defeating FC Zurich 3-1. The first goal was fortuitous, as Marek Jankulovski’s shot in first half stoppage time took a deflection on its way into the net, but the second and third were strikes of the highest quality.

In the 56th minute, Alexandre Pato sent an absolute rocket into the upper right hand corner of the net. Then, after having come on as a substitute, Marco Borriello put a low blast into the corner of the net from just outside the top of the box.

Don’t Fix It If It Isn’t Broken

For the Biancocelesti, the plan is quite simple― continue to play as you have been, with the goal of improving over time. Looking at what they currently have at their disposal and what is to come, that could very well be an attainable goal.
In their first two matches, Lazio were quite good, and one player in particular has sparkled. Mauro Zarate who is on loan after playing with Birmingham of the English Premier League last season, has been the revelation of the season so far in Italy. He almost singlehandedly saved Birmingham from relegation last spring with his goals, and he has brought that goal-scoring touch with him to the peninsula.
After surprising many with his two well-taken goals in the first match, a 4-1 away victory against Cagliari, he then confidently converted a penalty versus Sampdoria to secure the 2-0 home win last Sunday.
Looking forward to future matches, the return of club captain Tommaso Rocchi will just add another dimension to the attack. He, like Zarate and Goran Pandev, can play both provider and striker very well. With Ousmane Dabo also on course to return soon, Lazio must be feeling quite confident in what they can achieve in the coming season.

Milan
24/08 (Friendly): Sporting Gijon 2-0 Milan
31/08 (Serie A): Milan1-2 Bologna
10/09 (Friendly): Lugano 2-0 Milan
14/09 (Serie A): Genoa 2-0 Milan
18/09 (UEFA Cup): Milan 3-1 Zurich

Lazio
20/08 (Friendly): Lazio 5-1 Fidene
23/08 (Coppa Italia): Lazio 5-1 Benevento
28/08 (Friendly): Lazio 7-0 Zagarolo
31/08 (Serie A): Cagliari 1-4
14/09 (Serie A): Lazio 2-0 Sampdoria

Milan

The big news this week for Milan was the injury suffered by Andrea Pirlo in training. After initial reports said he could miss up to a month with the muscular tear he sustained to his right thigh, further exams have shown the injury to be more serious, and he is now expected to miss anywhere from six to eight weeks.
Alessandro Nesta still has not recovered from his back problems, and will not be able to play against Lazio, the club where he grew up. Filippo Inzaghi is not ready to go, but it seems possible that Gennaro Gattuso will be able to take part, having recovered well enough from the freak dislocation he suffered in his hand while on international duty two weeks ago.

Possible Formation (4-3-2-1): Abbiati; Zambrotta, Bonera, Maldini, Favalli; Ambrosini, Flamini, Seedorf; Kakà, Ronaldinho; Borriello

Lazio

Lazio too will be without several key members of their squad. Ousmane Dabo and Tommaso Rocchi (who was injured during the Olympics with the Italian squad) are certain to miss out. Fabio Firmani, Simone Del Nero and Matuzalem also look unlikely to take part. However, Mourad Meghni has recovered from the injury he sustained versus Benevento in the Coppa Italia a month ago, and could play from the start.
Possible Formation (4-4-2): Carrizo; Lichtsteiner, Siviglia, Rozehnal, Kolarov; Brocchi, Ledesma, Meghni, Mauri; Zarate, Pandev

Over 2.5 or x2

Palermo - Genoa

2008-09-21T01:07:00.002+03:00

Palermo Full Of Confidence

The Rosanero have their heads held high coming into the game against Genoa who are also in good form. The Sicilians bounced back in style against Roma following their week one shambles. A lot has happened at the Renzo Barbera since the 3-1 away defeat to Udinese. Maurizio Zamparini sacked Stefano Colantuono and in came Davide Ballardini.
The former Cagliari coach seems to have done the trick.A stunning win over Roma in his first game in charge saw pride and confidence restored in the port city.

A Fabrizio Miccoli brace and an Edison Cavani strike saw the Sicilian’s overturn a 1-0 deficit to run out comfortable 3-1 winners. The win showed the fighting spirit in Sicily and Genoa will need to be wary as Ballardini’s men seem to have been influenced by Zamparini’s fiery attitude.The club president said that the Roma win had justified his decision to sack Colantuono in midweek but one win can hardly prove his point and the Rosanero will need to show they can carry that good form with them throughout the season.
Genoa won this fixture 3-2 last term but the home side will be full of confidence following last week's result and thus more points are up for grabs this Sunday.

Grifoni Are Flying

Genoa stunned Milan in week two with a 2-0 win at Marassi. Nobody expected the result but it meant Gianpiero Gasperini’s men could bounce back into form following their week one shambles against the other Sicilian side, Catania. Diego Milito inspired his new team to victory with a goal and an assist for Gasbarroni and he will be trying to find more uplifting goals so that I Grifoni can continue to fly high.

The Rossoblu hadn’t beaten the Rossoneri in over two decades, and although many have argued the result was down to Milan’s recent woes, nothing should be taken away from the stunning performance I Grifoni put in. Milito will be hoping to cause another surprising result, the Argentine is looking to make his mark following his move from Real Zaragoza. He was brought in to fill the boots of Marco Boriello who returned to Milan.
The Italian hit the net 19 times last term. The former La Liga striker has his work cut out and he will have no better opportunity to grab a few goals against Palermo who have had mixed fortunes in defence.Genoa have great hopes of qualifying for Europe this season after just missing out on the UEFA Cup last term.
Three points are up for grabs as they continue to get up to speed but the Rosanero is no easy hunting ground.

Palermo

Septtember 13 v Roma (H) WIN 3-1
August 30 v Udinese (A) LOSS 1-3
August 23 v Ravenna (H) LOSS 1-2 (Coppa Italia)
May 18 v Siena (A) DREW 2-2
May 11 v Sampdoria (H) LOSS 0-2

Genoa

September 14 v Milan (H) WIN 2-0
September 09 v Bellinoza (H) WIN 3-0 (Friendly)
August 31 v Catania (A) LOSS 0-1
August 23 v Mantova (H) WIN 3-1 (Coppa Italia)
August 20 v Albese (H) WIN 5-1

Palermo: Ballardini will be without Igor Budan and Simon Kjaer as the dup are injured. Fabrizio Miccoli is likely to start alongside Edison Cavani as the coach keeps the same formation which played so brilliantly against Roma last week.
Genoa: The Port city side are missing former Juventus man Matteo Paro who is still injured. Apart from that, Gasperini has a full squad to choose from. He is likely to stick with the same side who triumphed over the Rossoneri.

Draw or under 2.5
Goal

Deportivo La Coruna - Mallorca

2008-09-21T01:04:00.002+03:00

Two teams in hot water meet at the Riazor this weekend to display a typical night of Spanish football. With Mallorca flopping seriously in their last two games, things seem to be rough all over, as Deportivo continue to struggle in finding their rhythm. The determination of both sides has taken a severe dip recently, but a game like this is the perfect chance to clear up the nonsense and get back on track.
Deportivo are out to impress their fans once again, yet Mallorca will gift no pleasure to the home side, saving what could end up becoming a serious embarrassment. What is certain is one thing, both teams are going for the win, and the battle for the three points is by no means going to be a tidy one. The hot atmosphere, angry fans, and very ambitious players will drive the tempo of this game up the roof, starting from the first minute right until the final whistle.

Deportivo's Woes

Last week's trouncing at the hands of Villarreal has sparked mixed feelings at the Galician camp. Taking the immediate pleasure of criticizing his players, Miguel Angel Lotina went public about his teams "lack of depth and aggressiveness", which has not gone too well with the Turkos. The Spanish press report of an internal rift between the players and their coach; time seems to have taken its toll on what has now become a very predictable team.
Crashing at the hands of Norwegian minnows Brann in the UEFA Cup is just one more disappointment to add to the long list of frustration.Lotina has been given some headaches in defence, failing to find a suitable replacement for his star defender, Fabricio Coloccini.

After the board ignored Lotina's request of buying a top class defender, relations seem to have become extremely frosty between the coach and the management.

Some fans have made their voice heard, demanding a change of coach, management, and even both.The sky has been cloudy in Galicia these past couple of weeks, and it seems to be a long way before it rises once more, but a win this weekend is the best place to start.

Balearic Blues

If Lotina has been tossing in bed, the last month has been a living nightmare for Gregorio Manzano. After failing to lead his team to a win in over a month, the Italian has been shown no mercy by the press. With boulders on his shoulders, the pressure is on Manzano to inspire his deteriorating players. Manzano's control in the dressing room has been questioned recently, and many believe that the coach is not the leading figure behind the curtains.

Why Mallorca are failing is simple, they have not learned to cut their losses and move on. Last year's two most impressive performers, Ariel Ibgaza and Dani Guiza, have left big shoes to fill, but no player's feet seem big enough to step up and make that key difference that these two made last year. With that aside, the Balearic outfit seemed to have lost their fast, attractive pace and become a heavy, uninspired side.What Mallorca need now is not a killer player or a star studded squad, Mallorca need a leader.

Raul of Madrid, Puyol of Barca, Senna of Villarreal, the list goes on; Mallorca are left with a void, and unless a player can fill it (my pick is Moya), success is a prospect that Mallorca must accept is out of their reach.A win is vital this time around, and the fans will settle for nothing less

Deportivo

18/9/2008 Brann 2-0 (L) UEFA Cup
14/9/2008 Villarreal 1-0 (L) La Liga
31/8/2008 Real Madrid 2-1 (W) La Liga
28/8/2008 Hadjuk Split 0-2 (W) UEFA Cup
14/8/2008 Hadjuk Split 0-0 (D) UEFA Cup

Mallorca

14/9/2008 Osasuna 1-1 (D) La Liga
30/8/2008 Valencia 0-3 (L) La Liga
9/8/2008 West Bromwich 1-1 (D) Friendly
3/8/2008 Newcastle United 1-0 (W) Friendly
1/8/2008 Hannover 96 4-2 (W) Friendly

Deportivo

Lotina has no major setbacks and will shift his midfield around in order to add depth, creativity, and aggression. His players have been working on their end product, one two's, and counter attack. Lotina will tell his players to put on early pressure and take advantage of the Mallorca's shaky back four.
Possible Starting XI: (4-2-3-1) Aranzubia – Laure, Zé Castro, Lopo, Filipe – Sergio (c), De Guzmán – Juan Rodriguez, Valerón, Guardado – Riki

RCD Mallorca

Manzano will look for a striker that he can depend on, Aduriz' recent form will give him the thumbs up in front of the disappointing Pierre Webo. The rest will seem to be a regular formation.
Possible Starting XI: (4-1-4-1): Moyá – Scaloni, Ramis, Nunes, Corrales – Santana – Varela, Martí, Keita, Arango – Aduriz

Over2.5
Goal

Betis Sevilla - FC Sevilla

2008-09-21T01:01:00.002+03:00

La Liga is warming up for the craziest exhibition of football passion Spain has to offer, with derby of Seville.

The Real El Derbi

From the outside looking in, La Liga’s most passionate match of the calendar – the real meeting of opposing identities – is seen unquestionably as the clash of the titans that is Real Madrid and Barcelona. We all know it isn’t a real derby, more of an international match in symbolic terms, but it means more than many of the ‘real’ derbies……apart from this one.With Sevilla very much exuding the persona of the better end of the fun loving city, the Beticos revel in putting one over on their hated rivals as the working class club, or veritable paupers of the town. Of course, both splash the cash to similar levels these days, but recent histories could not be more contrasting.

These fixtures have got in the news for all the wrong reasons recently, marred by crown misbehaviour, violence, as well as bizarre logistical and technical problems, such as failing flood lights.This season, the hosts have more than enough to be concerned with on the field, while Sevilla have begun their campaign relatively well after major changes in the summer

Divided Fortunes, Brewing Troubles

Real Betis are probably now unrivalled holders of the unwanted title of Spain’s worst run club. Atletico Madrid were in the same ball park, but have finally got their act together. The in-fighting and politics at Valencia has ensured rank underachievement for so much of it’s history, while both Barca and Real have sporadically challenged for that title in recent years. But the Beticos are a terminal case, much to the amusement of uptown rivals Sevilla, who have enjoyed something of a renaissance in the last five years after time yo-yoing between La Liga and the Segunda.
Los Pepinos have not managed a league win since April, and coach Paco Chaparro knows all too well that his employers are renowned for whipping managers in and out of office no sooner than the ink is dry on the contract. As per usual, the club has plenty of quality in its ranks, but forming a competitive team is proving a struggle. So far, a home defeat to Recre followed by a fortunate point at Getafe is likely to fill some of the beleaguered Betis faithful with a feeling of impending doom, such has been the unruly, heart-stopping nature of recent tumbles in form, ensuring the club fights off the threat of relegation on a regular basis.
The real problem for Betis is that Barcelona, Real Madrid and Villarreal follow this derby test, so it could be a long Autumn for Chaparro, which he will hope to see out. Manuel Jimenez, on the other hand, has had a fairly solid start in results terms. The manner of the 4-3 home win over newly promoted Sporting Gijon will have undoubtedly raised concerns over the defence, though Mate Bilic’s hat-trick for the visitors had a large slice of fortune attached to it.

Still, it was hardly convincing, but it will take time for a host of new faces at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan to settle.It’s set to be a cracking encounter, not least because of some mounting pressure on Chaparro. Sevilla president Del Nido has already spoke of the motivation he wants to see in the players for the trip downtown, while Betis forward Sergio Garcia has stoked the flames by stating Los Blanquirrojos are not as strong as last season.
With any luck, it will be all about the football and the very unique passion that accompanies this fixture, rather than an exhibition of some of the darker aspects of the Spanish game.

Betis

DREW 0-0 (A) Getafe (14 Sept – La Liga)
LOST 1-0 (H) Recreativo de Huelva (Sept 1 - La Liga)
LOST 3-0 (A) Almeria (Aug 23 Friendly)
WON 3-0 (A) Elche (Aug 16 - Friendly)
LOST 2-1 (A) Málaga (Aug 9 - Friendly)

Sevilla

WON 2-0 (H)Salzburg (18 Sept – UEFA Cup 1st round 1st leg)
WON 4-3 (H) Sporting Gijon (13 Sept – La Liga)
DREW 1-1 (A) Racing Santander (31 Aug - La Liga)
WON 2-0 (H) Malaga (23 Aug - Friendly)
WON 3-0 (A) Cadiz (16 Aug - Friendly)

Betis

Paco Chaparro has apparently settled on a set-up for this weekend, while he certainly has plenty of options. Pavone should lead the line up front, supported by Garcia and Gonzalez on the flanks.A three man midfield will likely be anchored by the returning Aurelio, which could see Arzu deployed at centre-back in place of Melli.

Probable Starting XI: Casto– Nelson, Juanito, Arzu/Melli, Vega – M. Aurelio, Emana, Capi – Garcia, Gonzalez - Pavone

Sevilla

Jimenez kept virtually the same eleven for Salzburg that beat Sporting in the 4-3 epic last weekend. It could mean changes are in the offing, most likely in central midfield with Duscher, who was suspended for Thursday. Fazio or Dragutinovic could come in at centre-back for Prieto, who was unconvincing in his last league outing.

Probable Starting XI: Palop - Konko, Squillaci, Fazio/Dragutinovic, Navarro - Jesus Navas, Duscher, Maresca, Diego Capel - Kanoute, Luis Fabiano

I think it will be a draw. or Over 2.5
Goal

Kilmarnock - Celtic

2008-09-21T00:58:00.001+03:00

Acid Test

Jim Jeffries was handed the Manager of the Month award for August after bossing his Kilmarnock side to four wins from five without conceding a single goal. It was a dramatic turnaround from last season's dismal form.Killie went to Ibrox last week with some predicting that the Ayrshire men would be brought down to earth with a bump.
However, they hardly disgraced themselves and were perhaps unlucky not to get something from a match in which they took the lead before sinking to defeat thanks to former charge Kris Boyd's brace
.The visit of Celtic, then, could be the real acid test in terms of progress at Rugby Park. If a good team can't become a bad one overnight, can a bad one really come good?

Ulcers

Visitors Celtic, meanwhile, looked to have turned a corner last week. A poor start to the season was compounded by a 4-2 Old Firm humbling at the hands of Rangers.
After the international break, though, they were four up on Motherwell before the interval, having played some tantalising football.

Then, Gordon Strachan was reminded that there are still ulcers in the bowels of his squad. He dropped Aiden McGeady to the bench, reportedly due to a feud, and saw his impotent Bhoys fail to break down stubborn Aalborg during the midweek Champions League stalemate.With Shunsuke Nakamura angling for a January exit, McGeady reportedly in the Lennoxtown doghouse and set-piece maestro Barry Robson missing a crunch penalty against the Danes, Strachan is running out of players to provide a much-needed spark.
The Rugby Park contest will certainly be an interesting test for two sides on completely different paths.

Head to Head

Incredibly, Celtic have won 19 of the last 20 meetings between the sides, with one goalless draw at Parkhead last August the only deviation. Still, Celtic's away form remains somewhat patchy, despite the fine win at Fir Park last week, while Killie are unbeaten in eight games at home. However, they lost 5-1 here to the Hoops in February.

Kilmarnock

Striker Allan Russell is still at least a couple of weeks away from returning, whilst Ryan O'Leary is a long-term crock.However, Jeffries has no other pressing concerns ahead of the Celtic clash.Former Celtic striker David Fernandez will hope to gun down his former employers.
Last starting XI (vs. Rangers): Combe, Fowler, Ford, Wright, Hay, Invincibile, Pascali (Hamill 89), Bryson, Skelton (Sammon 75), Taouil, Fernandez (Simmonds 86).

Celtic

The midweek European action will have tired out the Hoops. Aside from a couple of minor knocks, though, there are no new injury concerns. Strachan has spent the latter part of this week defending his underperforming Bhoys, chiefly
Last starting XI (vs. AaB): Boruc, Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Naylor, Nakamura, Scott Brown, Robson, Maloney (Vennegoor of Hesselink 72), McDonald (McGeady 63), Samaras.

I think Celtic win take a narrow win. 2-1 or 1-0 most likely

Stuttgart - Karlsruher

2008-09-21T00:52:00.002+03:00

It is derby day in Baden Württemberg as VfB Stuttgart host fierce rivals Karlsruher at the Mercedes Benz Arena looking to continue their impressive recent home form against the ‘Badener’.

Improvement Needed

This weekend sees the first Baden Württemberg derby of the season in one of three matches being played on Sunday. Due to Uefa Cup involvement VfB were granted special permission by the DFL to move their match to Sunday.
Stuttgart have started the season in a much more positive manner than they did last season, but have still suffered defeat at home to Bayer Leverkusen. They were also very grateful to goalkeeper Jens Lehmann last weekend against Hoffenheim. They played poorly against the newly promoted side and only a great showing from the former international keeper saved them a point from the game.
They struggled a little in midweek too, though beating Bulgarian side Cherno More Varna 2-1 away from home in the Uefa Cup with two goals from Mario Gomez. They now however have an ideal opportunity to make it through to the next stage of the competition.
Trainer Armin Veh was far from happy with the performance saying: “If we play like that in the league then we have no chance- it won’t be worth even turning up.”

VfB and KSC met at this stage of the season last year on Matchday 4, albeit at the Wildparkstadion. Then, Karlsruher triumphed 1-0 thanks to a Tamas Hajnal goal at a time when Stuttgart were in a state of turmoil and about to enter an early season crisis of form.
The corresponding ‘home’ fixture was a real cracker in all senses of the word. Stuttgart ended up winning 3-1, with Mario Gomez involved in a running battle with Maik Franz and fireworks being let off by the away fans leading to a break in play. Such is the ferocity of the derby that the police have raised the category of the game to “high risk”
It is worth mentioning that VfB have won their last eight home matches against KSC with their rivals only managing to take all three points on a solitary occasion.

Win Long Overdue

Karlsruher are now in their second season in the top division of German football and will want to build on the positives from last season when they surprised a lot of observers to finish 11th.
The Badener played good football and were in the running for a Uefa Cup spot until a collapse towards the end of the season saw them drop down the table. They have lost key players in Mario Eggimann and Tamas Hajnal, but direct replacements have been signed in Antonio da Silva (from Stuttgart) and Tim Sebastian.

Karlsruher find themselves down in 14th place after their match last Friday against Frankfurt was postponed. Because of the postponement, Karlsruhe organised a friendly on Tuesday against Kreisliga side VfB Wiesloch, which they won easily 13-0.
Trainer Edmund Becker is trying to play down the significance of the opponents saying: “For us the next game is always the one that counts no matter who it is.

“However the goal is the same whenever we play away from home- to gain points. It will be necessary for us though to go to our limits- each individual player and the team as a whole.”
Becker also sees the fact that VfB were involved in Uefa Cup action in midweek as an advantage for his side. “They didn’t have to put in 100% energy because of their result, but they will have used up a lot of ene

Stuttgart

18/09/08 v Cherno More Varna (a) WON 1-2 (Uefa Cup)
13/09/08 v Hoffenheim (a) DREW 0-0 (Bundesliga)
31/08/08 v Hannover (h) WON 2-0 (Bundesliga)
28/08/08 v Gyor (a) WON 1-4 (Bundesliga)
23/08/08 v Bayer Leverkusen (h) LOST 0-2 (Bundesliga)

Karlsruher

29/08/08 v 1.FC Köln (h) LOST 0-2 (Bundesliga)
23/08/08 v Hamburg (a) LOST 2-1 (Bundesliga)
16/08/08 v Bochum (h) WON 1-0 (Bundesliga)
10/08/08 v Ansbach (a) WON 0-5 (German Cup)
02/08/08 v Sochaux (h) DREW 1-1 (Friendly)

Head to head record in Stuttgart:

23/02/08 Stuttgart 3 Karlsruher 1
22/11/97 Stuttgart 3 Karlsruher 0
22/02/97 Stuttgart 1 Karlsruher 0
18/05/96 Stuttgart 3 Karlsruher 1
22/10/94 Stuttgart 4 Karlsruher 0

Stuttgart

VfB trainer Armin Veh will be without the services of Yildiray Bastürk, Pavel Pardo, Ciprian Marica and Sebastian Rudy for the derby.
Striker Cacau is however fit and should line-up alongside Mario Gomez, with Daniel Ljuboja acting as back-up.

Probable starting XI: Lehmann, Boulahrouz, Tasci, Delpierre, Boka, Khedira, Lanig, Hitzlsperger, Simak, Gomez, Cacau

Karlsruher

The midweek friendly against Wiesloch on Tuesday proved a little costly as Edmond Kapllani got an adductor injury and will be ruled out of the derby. Fellow striker Joshua Kennedy is also doubtful after suffering a stomach virus. A decision on his inclusion will be taken at the last minute.
There is good news though over defender Maik Franz who should return to the starting line-up in place of Stoll.
The availability of Christian Timm is also questionable after a recent bout of angina. Bradley Carnell is suffering from a knee injury also, while Andreas Görlitz is a long-term absentee.

Probable starting XI: Miller, Celozzi, Sebastian, Franz, Eichner, Porcello, Mutzel, Timm, da Silva, Iashvili, Freis

I think Stuttgart will have no problems winning today. Stuttgart -1 European handicap @ 2.7 at Bet365 seems worty

Twente - Arsenal

2008-08-13T02:04:00.002+03:00

There was an air of inevitability surrounding the Uefa Champions League 3rd qualifying round draw. Steve McClaren felt it the most, citing fate as the dealer handing him a tie that would ensure a trip back to his native island. The former England coach, after a spectacular qualifying failure, wisely chose to occupy a position in another country. Not only can he concentrate on rebuilding a fallen career, but he can do so aware from the intense scrutiny that the British press just love to administer. Steve McClaren has his doubters, but his record in cup competitions with a standard Premier League side is decent. With Middlesbrough, the Yorkshire-born former midfielder guided the Teeside firm to a victorious Carling Cup campaign in 2004, and two years later to a Uefa Cup final in 2006.
His England performances however were far from savoury, but since his acrimonious departure he hasn’t just sat idly by the couch pondering what could have been – he embarked on a tour round the training grounds of European clubs, mainly in Netherlands and Spain, picking up continental tips that he can add to his English education. Whether he has had enough time to implement these tactics in his first season, against top opposition, will remain the largest question mark, dangling over his head like the Sword of Damocles.Which way the tie will turn may be easier to predict.
This will be the first meeting between the two sides, and will even be FC Twente’s first encounter in Europe’s premier competition. Arsenal have been drawn in this stage of the competition twice in their history, emerging victorious both times with tricky ties against Dinamo Zagreb, and then Sparta Prague.
The last time a Steve McClaren side faced an Arsenal team he was on the wrong end of an embarrassing 7-0 defeat. Before FC Twente, and during his management of the English national side, only a minor percentage of his time would have been devoted to watching an Arsenal squad so heavy on imported talent. In the past, FC Twente have even been dubbed the Netherlands version of the late 80s and early to mid 90s Arsenal. Many of their games were goalless draws, single-goal draws, or one-nils.
They have never won the Eredivisie in its modern format though, which is traditionally dominated by the trident of PSV, Ajax, and Feyenoord. However, they do hold European pedigree, reaching the final of the Uefa Cup in 1975. Arsenal on the other hand reached the final of the Champions League only two years ago.Steve McClaren may already be resigned to using this tie as a learning curve for his players, and featuring in the Uefa Cup this campaign. He recently admitted: “Playing Arsenal will be a great experience for the players and if they don't become better players after playing against Arsenal, they shouldn't be in football.
That's how you learn. That's how you grow and playing against one of the best teams in Europe, obviously the players will grow from that.”The tie will be played at Vitesse Arnhem’s stadium – Gelredome – due to the rebuilding of FC Twente’s traditional home venue. Interestingly, the anthem You’ll Never Walk Alone is sung before each game, and the last time Arsenal heard this before kick-off in Europe, they crashed out thanks to Liverpool.

FC Twente

26 July vs Olymp. Piraeus (H) Result 2-0
01 Aug vs Arminia Bielefeld (A) Result 0-0
05 Aug vs Ankaraspor (H) Result 2-0

Arsenal
02 Aug vs Juventus (H) Result 0-1
03 Aug vs Real Madrid (H) Result 1-0
06 Aug vs Huddersfield Town (A) Result 2-1
08 Aug vs Ajax (N) Result 3-2
09 Aug vs Sevilla (N) Result 1-1

FC Twente

Steve McClaren will be rueing the loss of key player Orlando Engelaar, who has recently joined German side Schalke 04. In a similar fashion to Arsenal’s loss of defensive midfielders Flamini or Gilberto for Arsenal, Engelaar anchored the midfield and allowed play to flourish in front of him. Twente will be missing Youssouf Hersi, who is said to be short of match fitness, and Swiss striker Blaise N'Kufo, who is suspended. N'Kufo will be a big loss for the Dutch side, he is a powerful striker who can command a thunderous shot.

Arsenal

There was a time when Arsenal had a multitude of midfielders to choose from. The present day however is not one of those times. Since January, Arsenal have lost Lassana Diarra, Mathieu Flamini, and Gilberto. Leggy Frenchman Abou Diaby will sit this game out due to injury. Kolo Toure (hip), Philippe Senderos (hamstring), Cesc Fabregas (hamstring), Samir Nasri (knee/thigh), Abou Diaby (thigh), Tomas Rosicky and Eduardo have all been left at home. Johan Djourou will likely partner William Gallas.

UEFA Champions League 3rd round qualifier round Schalke 04 - Athletico Madrid

2008-08-13T01:59:00.002+03:00

As nicknames go it’s one that Atlético Madrid would probably do anything to rid themselves of, but the tag of Pupas - the jinxed one - has just become all to appropriate for the club. When something can go wrong it usually does go wrong as far as Los Rojiblancos are concerned. In fact, when something goes right it more often than not goes wrong! Take last season for example. Like many before it was touted as ‘the year’ for the team to finally pull their socks up and achieve something. Unlike many before, they actually did achieve something, finishing in 4th place and qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in over a decade. A feat which was incredibly overdue, but one which could now be forgotten about incredibly soon too. For when the teams were drawn for qualification fate was to yet again deal Atlético Madrid a tricky card, this time in the form of last year's quarter-finalists Schalke

FORM GUIDE

Schalke have enjoyed a decent pre-season this year despite been beaten narrowly by Bayern Munich and Besiktas. They have been victorious against Rangers, Bahrain, Homburg and Aachen. Atlético on the other hand have had a poor pre-season. They failed to win any of their four games on a tour of Mexico and have only picked things up recently, beating Alcala and Rayo Vallecano back in Spain.
Last Five Results
Schalke:

22nd July: Schalke 4 Bahrain 1
26th July: Besiktas 2 Schalke1
27th July: Bayern Munich 1 Schalke0
1st August: Aachen 0 Schalke 4
9th August: Homburg 0 Schalke 3

Atlético Madrid:

16th July: Cruz Azul 1 Atlético Madrid 0
19th July: UANL Tigres 2 Atlético Madrid 2
23rd July: Toluca 1 Atlético Madrid 1
2nd August: Alcala 0 Atlético Madrid 4
5th August: Atlético Madrid 4 Rayo Vallecano 2

Schalke 04

The loss of Rafinha is undoubtedly the biggest blow to Fred Rutten but he will also be without goalkeeper Manuel Neuer and defender Mladen Krstajic for the first leg. Both players are likely to remain injured for the match which will mean Rutten will need to reshuffle his defensive line. Consolation for the coach will come from the pre-season form of new signings Jefferson Farfan and Orlando Engelaar. The Peruvian is settling into the team well and is likely to start the match upfront alongside Gerald Asamoah. Engelaar on the other hand could well partner Fabian Ernst in central midfield to provide a strong backbone to the side.

Possible Starting XI: Schober; Altintop, Bordon, Westermann, Kobiashvili; Engelaar, Jones, Ernst; Farfan, Kuranyi, Asamoah.

Atlético Madrid

Javier Aguirre will field nearly a full strength side in the Veltins-Arena on Wednesday with only Sergio Aguero missing due to Olympic commitments. The Mexican has decided to leave unsettled midfielder Maniche out of the squad and is likely to play new signing Paulo Assunção and Raul Garcia in the centre of the pitch. The main decision for him though will be whether to start Leo Franco or Gregory Coupet in goal for the game. Both players have pre-season matches under their belts so it will be interesting to see which one Aguirre considers his first choice. New signings John Heitanga and Tomas Ujfalusi should start their first competitive game together in defence, with Luis Perea and Antonio Lopez flanking them.
Squad: Leo Franco, Gregory Coupet, Luis Perea, Juan Valera, Tomas Ujfalusi, John Heitinga, Pablo Ibáñez, Antonio López, Mariano Pernía, Maxi Rodríguez, Luis García, Raúl García, Paulo Assunção, Ignacio Camacho, Miguel de las Cuevas, Cléber Santana, Simão Sabrosa, Diego Forlán, Florent Sinama-Pongolle Possible

Starting XI: Coupet; Perea, Heitinga, Ujfalusi, Lopez; Maxi, Raul Garcia, Paulo Assuncao, Simao; Forlan, Sinama-Pongol

Schalke - Athletico 1-0

Barcelona - Wisla Krakow

2008-08-13T01:57:00.001+03:00

It has not exactly been all-change at Barcelona this summer, but there is the feeling that a broom has certainly swept through the club if not completely clean with exit of several key figures.At the very top president Joan Laporta held on to power after a vote of no confidence that went against him but failed to dislodge him, but he could yet be out before these two sides meet again in the second leg.Frank Rijkaard has gone, as many expected, after a second successive season without delivering a trophy and reports and rumours all suggest that the way the whole situation has been handled has not been the best.The Dutchman is so placid that it is unlikely that he will ever say anything bad against the club out of respect for the fans and those that he liked, even if he felt his position was undermined at times.Ronaldinho was the figurehead of the Blaugrana's revival under Laporta and was heralded as one of the best players ever to play in the famous club colours of the Catalan giants.For three seasons he was feted as the greatest, but as stories that he was able to choose when he trained and enjoyed the odd night out was followed by a lapse in form, so his popularity waned.Barça fans were desperate to keep the faith and state that they were sure he would return to his best, but it slowly became obvious that both he and the team needed something fresh.

RECENT FORM

Barcelona
24/07 A 6-0 Hibernian
26/07 A 5-1 Dundee United
30/07 A 3-1 Fiorentina04/
08 A 5-2 Chivas
07/08 A 6-2 New York Red Bulls

Wisla Krakow
09/08 H 1-0 Bytom
06/08 H 5-0 Beitar Jerusalem
01/08 H 2-3 GKS Bełchatów
30/07 A 1-2 Beitar Jerusalem2
0/07 H 1-2 Legia Warsaw
19/07 H 1-1 Liverpool

On paper Barcelona should put this tie beyond doubt in this encounter and make the second match a formality, but they have yet to meet a side that has defended in the same numbers as the Polish side are expected to do on Wednesday evening. Guardiola will be looking for his side to remain strong at the back in case of any breakaway while staying in the Wisla half for the majority of the game.

Barcelona 3 - 0 Wisla Krakow

day 9

2008-08-10T01:48:00.002+03:00

hehe..started with 50 euro now i have 470 :D

for today i will et 70 euros on:

Manchester United - Porthsmouth 1 @ 1.6 . It's the Community Shield and United start clearlly with first chance
Debrecen - Fehervar 1 @ 1.45

total odds 2.32
posibble winnings 141 euros

day 8

2008-08-09T17:29:00.002+03:00

380 euro so far

i'll risk 80 euros today on

Rapid Bucharest - CFR Cluj 1 @ 2.15

winnings 170 euros

becouse Rapid has a great team,with a great coach, Peseiro..and the champions CFR will not face the Rapid's attacks

day 7

2008-08-06T11:30:00.002+03:00

so 340 euros winning untill now. Cfr Cluj defeated Gloria Buzau 2-0.
Today i'll et 50 euros on:
Basel - Goteborg 1 @ 1.65 in the first leg the scor was 1-1 and i am pretty sure that Basel will win tonight
Partizan -Inter Baku 1 @ 1.2 - Partizan is a strong team and the crowd will make a great show tonight
total odd 1.98
winnings ~90 euros

day 6

2008-08-03T02:17:00.001+03:00

I have again 300 euros...and today 1 will bet on a single match
stake 50 euros:
CFR Cluj - gloria buzau 1 H (0-1) @ 1.90
possible winning 90 euros

day 5

2008-08-02T13:08:00.003+03:00

unfortunnatly i lost my last combo..so now i have 250 euros...and i'll bet 50

Otelul Galati - CS otopeni 1 @ 1.4
FC Timisoara - Pandurii 1 @ 1.55
both form Liga 1 Romania...

total odds 2.17
posible winnings ~ 100 euros

UEFA Champions League 3rd round qualifier round draw

2008-08-01T13:21:00.002+03:00

1. Anorthosis Famagusta/Rapid Wien ( 3-0 first leg) - Olympiakos Piraeu
2. Vitoria Guimaraes - Goteborg/Basel ( 1-1 first leg)
3. Shaktar Donetsk - Domzale/Dinamo Zagreb (0-3 first leg)
4. Schalke 04 - Atletico Madrid
5. Aalborg/Modrica ( 5-0 first leg) - Glasgow Rangers/ Kaunas ( 0-0 first leg)
6. Barcelona - Beitar Jerulsalem/Wisla Kracow ( 2-1 first leg)
7. Levski Sofia - Anderlecht Brussels/Bate Borisov ( 1-2 first leg)
8. Standard Liege - Liverpool
9. Inter Baku/ Partizan Belgrade (1-1 first leg) - Fenerbahce Istambul/ Mtk Budapest ( 2-0 first leg)
10. Twente Enschede - Arsenal London
11. Spartak Moscow - Drogheda/ Dinamo Kiew ( 1-2 first leg)
12. Juventus Torino - Tampere United/ Artmedia Bratislava ( 1-3 first leg)
13.Brann/ Venspils ( 1-0 first leg) - Olympique Marseille
14. Fiorentina - Slavia Prague
15. Galatasaray - Steaua Bucharest
16. Panatinaikos/ Dinamo Tibilisi ( 3-0 first leg ) - Sparta Prague/Sheriff Tiraspol ( 1-0 first leg)

so some interesting matches as Schalke - Atletico , Standard Liege - Liverpool, Fiorentina - Slavia Pragua or Steaua Bucuresti - Galatasaray Istambul.

day 4

2008-07-27T00:40:00.002+03:00

so..i started with 50 euros now i have 300...
today i will bet 50 euros on 2 matches:

VFB Stuttgart - Saturn Moscow 1 @ 1.4
becouse Stuttgart played well in Russia and they can't afford an elimination in the Intertoto Cup, Uefa Cup beeing an objective for next season.
Young Boys Bern - Vaduz@ 1.5
Young Boys started very poor the season with 2 defeats : 1-2 with Basel and Sion. They can't lose another game. vaduz is a newly promoted team, which has 3 point, a vin at Lucern 2-1 and a defeat at home with Aarau 0-2.

total odds : 2.00
stake 50 euros winning 100 euros

Day 3

2008-07-25T20:56:00.004+03:00

So i have 210 euros...for tomorow i will bet 50 euros ( as usual)

Three matches seem atractive :

Universitatea Craiova - Poli iasi 1 @ 1.6

Universitatea Craiova has excelent start of stages. Last year for example they won 4-0 with Farul Constanta. It has a good squad, with players which play toghether since they were young. I really belive that Universitatea will win tomorow easily.

Rapid Bucharest - Gloria Bistrita 1 @ 1.4

Rapid in my opinion is the best romanian team at this hour. It has a good coach, Peseiro and they made some excelent transfers. Tomorow it should be a easy win.

Basel - Bellinzona 1 @ 1.25

Basel played excelent in the previous round and today it shouldn't have any problems

total odds 2.8 stake 50 euros possible winning 140 euros

day 2

2008-07-20T12:59:00.002+03:00

so yesterday my combo was a winner
grashoppers won 3-0 and zenit 2-0..so i made 110 euros.

Today i will also bet 50 euros.
My match for today is xamax- zurich 2 @ 2.15

possible winning 100 Euros.

Strategy

2008-07-19T12:56:00.003+03:00

Now i'll show you how i will start to play from today:

I start with 50 euros. And each day i'll make a combo with 2-2.5 total odd. So each day i should double my sum of money.

For today:

Grasshoppers Zurich - Chernomorets Bourgas 1 @ 1.6
Zenit St-Petersburg - Amkar 1 @ 1.5

Total odds 2.4
Stake 50 euros - possible winnings 110 euros.

Intertoto cup

2008-07-19T02:57:00.002+03:00

UEFA - InterToto Cup: Odense vs Aston Villa

Aston Villa will look to continue where they left off last season and try to repeat the way they played last year when they played maybe the best football in England. Odense on the other side who is led by Lars Olsen who captained the Danish side in their Euro 92 triumph, will try to exploit the fact that Aston Villa are still not in their top form with a couple of weeks left until the beginning of the Premier league
Danes looking for an upset
Danish team qualified for this year’s Intertoto Cup by finishing fourth in Denmark national league. Odense is regular in the European competitions over the last years, mainly in the Uefa Cup and is looking to continue that tradition. The ambitious trainer Lars Olsen believes that his team can build on their two victories over TPS and surprise big premiership club. Odense has an experienced squad with two stars, ex Denmark national team players Morten Bisgaard and Thomas Helveg. As their coach says they like to play possession football but realizes that they will not have many chances against Aston Villa and will have to take the ones they will have. Odense should be in good form because their domestic season gets under way this weekend.
Martin O'Neil expects
With one month before the start of the Premiership, Aston Villa hopes that even though they are not prepared for competitive matches, the quality of their squad will prove enough for going through to the Uefa Cup. We will see if the club is rocked by speculation regarding Gareth Barry's future, who has started training but will not be on the list of travelers to Denmark. But the new signing Steve Sidwell will be on the plane together with the rest of the Villa stars Agbonlahor, Young, Carew, Reo-Coker and others. Aston Villa kept the squad that played beautiful football last season, full of pace and flair.
Their manager Martin O’Neil will make sure the lads do not come into the game too relaxed and get the job done.
Prediction
If the match took place during the season I would have no doubts that Villa would win the game, but since they only played three pre season friendlies, losing last one to Lincoln 3:1 and are far away from their top form as oppose to Odense whose domestic season starts this weekend, I think that both teams will be satisfied if they get a draw from this game therefore my prediction is a draw

UEFA - InterToto Cup: NAC Breda vs Rosenborg

NAC Breda had an excellent season in Dutch league and finished 3rd but after losing heavily to Twente in the play offs had to satisfy with the place in the Intertoto Cup, while Rosenborg had yet another disappointing season in Norway finishing 5th. Rosenborg, whose season started in March will be in better position than Breda whose national championship doesn’t start until the last days of August.Can Breda make the most of last season?After a great last season which was unexpected for even their own fans, NAC Breda is hoping to make the most of the last year success and get to the qualifying round of the Uefa Cup. After a big success Breda management made a surprise decision to fire the coach and now the team is led by Robert Maaskant, who came from MVV Maastricht.
Most notable players include Anthony Lurling, Jonas Kolkka who plays for Finland national team and Ghanian forward Matthew Amoah. The new coach will not have full squad to choose from as Edwin De Graaf, Kurt Elshot and Tim Gilissen are injured.Are the glory days over?After the glories years of Rosenborg when they won 13 league titles in a row, at the moment they don’t seem to remember the recipe for success. They finished 5th last season and are currently 8th in the league which is certainly bad result for them. They have very good team when we look at the names, including Sweden national team defender Fredric Stoor, former Tottenham forward Steffen Iversen and a player with excellent potential Per Ciljan Skjelbred who orchestrates Rosenborg midfield.
Two defenders are injured, Demidov and Stadsgaard which means that young Nordvik will play at the center of defence. Rosenborg are not playing well in the league, they have 18 points from 13 games, but they were very convincing against Ekranas winning both games and scoring 7 goals.
Prediction
NAC Breda has a strong team, but is far away from the form required for facing strong opponents. Rosenborg’s form haven’t been great lately, but they are in full training and thez have hinted against Ekranas that they might be coming out of crisis. Both teams have some injured players and all this taken into account I predict a draw.
Our tip: Bet 3 on Draw

Switzerland Super league - Day 1

2008-07-18T20:39:00.002+03:00

so it begins ! it's the first day of the Championship of Switzerland - Super League and some interesting matches are schedueled.

Young Boys Bern - Basel

This is the derby of this week in Switzerland. Basel, the champions, plays away at Young Boys the runner-up in last season's super league. It will be a tight match beacouse both played well in friendlies:

Young Boys
15/07/2008 OBI-Cup VfL Wolfsburg vs. YB Bern W - 2:3
12/07/2008 OBI-Cup YB Bern vs. Botafogo RJ W - 6:0
09/07/2008 Club Friendlies YB Bern vs. Yverdon-Sport D - 0:0
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies FC Thun vs. YB Bern L - 2:1
24/06/2008 Club Friendlies YB Bern vs. Shakhtar Donetsk L - 1:5

Basel
12/07/2008 Uhrencup Basel vs. Borussia Dortmund D - 2:2
10/07/2008 Uhrencup Basel vs. Legia Warszaw W - 6:1
05/07/2008 Club Friendlies Basel vs. Shakhtar Donetsk L - 2:3
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies FC Wil 1900 vs. Basel W - 1:2

Last year both won at home 2-0. So i think it will be a tight match with many goals.
Over 3 goals AH @ 2.06 Bet365. In casa of 3 goals scored my money are refunded.

Aarau - Sion

Both team had very good result in friendlies

Aarau
11/07/2008 Club Friendlies Aarau vs. VfL Wolfsburg D - 1:1
02/07/2008 Club Friendlies Aarau vs. Wohlen W - 5:0
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies Aarau vs. Baden W - 6:0

Sion
12/07/2008 Club Friendlies FC Sion vs. Everton FC W - 1:0
05/07/2008 Club Friendlies FC Sion vs. Rapid Bucuresti D - 1:1
25/06/2008 Club Friendlies FC Sion vs. Servette W - 2:0

I think this will be a great match. a draw is likely
Last 3 matches:
22/03/2008 Axpo Super League Aarau vs. FC Sion 2:0
30/09/2007 Axpo Super League Aarau vs. FC Sion 2:0
28/04/2007 Axpo Super League Aarau vs. FC Sion 0:2

Luzern - Vaduz

This match is less-atractive than the other 2 . Luzern and Vaduz should think about evoiding relegation this season but a surprise can happen anytime. Impossible is nothing.
So let's see the friendlies :

Luzern:
16/07/2008 Club Friendlies Luzern vs. Liverpool L - 1:2
10/07/2008 Uhrencup Luzern vs. Borussia Dortmund D - 2:2
08/07/2008 Uhrencup Luzern vs. Legia Warszaw D - 1:1
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies Wohlen vs. Luzern L - 3:2
They had a great match with Liverpool and another good one with Dortmund. So i think they are in a good shape.

Vaduz:
17/07/2008 UEFA Cup FC Vaduz vs. Zrinjski Mostar L - 1:2
02/07/2008 Club Friendlies FC Vaduz vs. FC Wil 1900 D - 2:2
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies St Gallen vs. FC Vaduz W - 0:1
25/06/2008 Club Friendlies SC Lustenau vs. FC Vaduz W - 2:4
Vaduz is a new promoted and they start this season as big favorites at relegation.
My tip : victory Luzern

Neuchatel Xamax - Zurich

Zurich after a disspaointing season 2006-2007 want to win the superleague this year. They shpuld have a good start against Xamax.
Xamax played only an important friendly this summer 0-2 with Marseille.

Zurich played 4 friendlies:

12/07/2008 Club Friendlies FC Zürich vs. Aston Villa W - 2:1
08/07/2008 Club Friendlies FC Zürich vs. Shakhtar Donetsk L - 2:3
05/07/2008 Club Friendlies Kriens vs. FC Zürich W - 0:1
28/06/2008 Club Friendlies FC Zürich vs. FC Lustenau W - 2:1

I think this match will be kind of easy for Zurich. 2.

Sport News 18.07.2008

2008-07-18T19:25:00.003+03:00

Ronaldo to remain at Manchester United !

Speaking at a press conference held at the European Champion's tour base in South Africa, Ferguson confirmed reports that he met with his star man in Portugal last week. The Red Devils boss gave a dramatically different account of the meeting than the Spanish media, however, who had claimed that Ronaldo had infuriated his manager by confirming his plans to leave."The meeting went well - I think we both put across our points of view - where we stand and where the player stands," Sir Alex assured."I can say he'll be a Manchester United player next season. He won't be sold."

The Portuguese megastar has been the subject of intense transfer rumours since virtually the minute after he helped lead United to the European Cup, but Ferguson insists that he never really doubted that Ronaldo would choose to stay."It's not a difficult position. I was on my holiday and I was not going to interrupt my holiday, believe me," the manager continued."I wasn't panicked because the player is under contract so the strength and the rights are with Manchester United."What we have done well is to say nothing. We've kept quiet on this matter and kept it private and what I said to Cristiano remains private. I did go and see him last week in Portugal and it was very amicable - there were no problems. That's where we are and we carry on."Ferguson concluded by giving an update on the player's ankle injury, and confirmed that October is the earliest possible date that they can realistically hope to have him back available."He's had an operation and he'll be out for three months. He's on crutches for the first four weeks, he'll be in rehabilitation for the next four and then the following four he'll be back into football training," Sir Alex added.

The time mapped out is three months and we won't bring him back a day earlier than that."I think when players have operations we have a responsibility that the player comes back 100 per cent and we'll carry that out as we normally do."There'll be no risk-taking - we never take risks. Our goal is to always make sure that the player gets back 100 per cent and that will be the same in the case of Cristiano Ronaldo."

Liverpool enter Eto'o race.

The Cameroonian striker is being offered to Europe's major clubs and many have already previously made contact to ask about his annual salary and transfer fee.

While all those enquiries have failed to lead to a single concrete offer, Barça are determined to sell Eto'o this summer and may lower their demands in the coming weeks.That would allow Liverpool to make their move and Rafa Benítez believes that the powerful 27-year-old could form an incredible partnership alongside Fernando Torres.Finances at Anfield may be tight, but following the sale of Peter Crouch to Portsmouth, there maybe some room for negotiation with the Catalan giants

Manager Rafa Benítez is said to want Keane, but Tottenham will not let their captain go cheaply and his asking price could even rise above the amount Barça are requesting for their striker.Eto'o has flown back to Barcelona after a promotional trip to Uzbekistan and is due to return to pre-season training with the Blaugrana on Saturday.

Talks are set to be held between the player, his agent, José María Mesalles, and Barcelona and they are predicted to not be easy as the striker has done nothing himself to push for an exit.Liverpool would be a destination that could attract Eto'o, however, and the promise of Champions League football is the key thing in his list of priorities of any would-be suitor.Pep Guardiola has stated that if no deal can be done and the goalscorer remains then he will have no problems incorporating him into his squad for the new season.

Barcelona's board have said on various occasions that they want to off-load the forward, who joined the club four years ago from Real Mallorca, and buy a replacement.

Quaresma to Inter?

Nerazzurri supporters may have something to smile about in the coming weeks if reports in Portugal are to be believed. Portuguese speedster Ricardo Quaresma has been linked to the Scudetto holders throughout the summer and with the transfer market heating up in recent days, the Porto player looks likely to swap his blue and white stripes for the Inter black and blue.Quaresma has not played in Porto's first three pre-season friendlies because of stomach problems, but has now returned to training. The move is looking likely, as all three parties involved stand to benefit from the transfer.

Inter have been in the market for a creative force in midfield and Portuguese daily A Bola reports that the move is just a matter of time away.A team that can challenge for the Champions League may be a big motivational factor for Quaresma, an advantage that the Italian outfit certain has over the Portuguese champions. The player needs to make the move to one of the top leagues in Europe in order to further his career, but whether his sights are really set on the Nerazzurri remains to be seen

Latest " Tour de France" news

2008-07-17T01:38:00.003+03:00

Norway's Kurt-Asle Arvesen of CSC won stage 11 of the Tour de France in Foix by the narrowest of margins after beating fellow escapees Martin Elminger and Alessandro Ballan by a whisker.

The 33-year-old Norwegian national road champion attacked on multiple occasions in the final couple of kilometres into Foix and ultimately proved too strong for Switzerland's Elmiger (AG2R), albeit by a couple of centimetres.
Italian one day specialist Ballan (Lampre) was well beaten for third while Dutchman Koos Moerenhout (Rabobank) took fourth.
"This is unbelievable and the first time I have won a stage on the Tour de France since my first race in 2004," said Arvesen, a two-time Giro stage winner.
"I had a great day today and despite the hectic final, everything went well for me and I had really good legs too, which helps. I have finished second before in 2005 and so this is a kind of revenge."
The four riders were part of a 12-man breakaway which at one point had built up a 16-minute gap over the peloton.
Yellow jersey Cadel Evans of Australia (Silence-Lotto) maintained his one-second lead over Arvesen's CSC team-mate Andy Schleck of Luxembourg despite feeling the continued after-effects of his spill on Sunday's stage 9.
"I was still suffering from my crash but it is going better every day," said Evans, who is bidding to become the first Australian to wear the fabled maillot jaune all the way to Paris.
The stage started under a cloud with news that Spain's Moises Duenas Nevado of Barloworld had been kicked out of the race after providing a positive test for the blood-boosting erythropoietin on stage four.
Duenas Nevado was the second Spaniard to fail the Tour's tight doping controls following the positive test of compatriot Manuel Beltran of Liquigas last week.
Things did not get any better for the rider's Barloworld team with the retirement of Paolo Longo Borghini with a fractured collarbone and Felix Cardenas with a cut leg, leaving the team with just five riders.
The British-registered team has been on the back foot since the second day of the race when the 2007 polka dot jersey, the Colombian Juan Mauricio Soler, injured his wrist and was forced to pull out two days later.
Coming after Tuesday's rest day in Pau, the 167.5km transitional stage 11 from Lannemezan to Foix featured little talking points in terms of the general classification.
Spain's Oscar Pereiro, the 2006 winner and team-mate of pre-race favourite Valverde, tried his hand at a solo attack after a frustrating time in the Pyrenees saw him lose more than six minutes in the GC.
Although he managed to open up a gap of around two minutes over the peloton after his attack on the stage's principal challenge, the first-category Col de Portel, Pereiro was not able to stay out in front and was swept up by the bunch with 20km left to ride, his body language betraying his obvious anger.
The Col de Portel was where Frenchman Amael Moinard (Cofidis) had launched his own attack from the breakaway group further up the road. Moinard rode more than 60km ahead alone before being caught with less than five kilometres to spare.
Other big names in the group included Germany's Weggman (Gerolsteiner) and Italy's Pozzato (Liquigas), neither of whom were involved in the last-ditch counter attack which saw Arvesen beat three other riders to take the spoils.
The peloton came home almost 15 minutes in arrears, with another Norwegian, Hushovdt outsprinting rivals Zabel , Duque and Oscar Freire
Rabobank's Freire maintains the green jersey while Italy's Ricardo Ricco of Saunier Duval holds both the polka dot and white jerseys for best climber and youngster of the Tour.
Thursday's 168km stage 12 from Lavelanet to Narbonne sees the race hit the Mediterranean coast and should provide an opportunity for Britain's cavendish of Team Columbia to compete for his third victory of the race

Eurosport.

Top 10 transfers of the summer

2008-07-17T01:24:00.002+03:00

10. Hatem Ben Arfa (Lyon to Marseille)
Marseille have lost Samir Nasri to Arsenal, but have managed to land the perfect replacement in the man Arsene Wenger had his sights on to start with. What is more, they can keep him for a year or two, and make a cool 8-10 million profit.
9. Alberto Gilardino (Milan to Fiorentina)
On the face of it, it looks like the Viola have signed an unhappy, out of form striker. However, that was just what Adrian Mutu's move from Juventus looked like not so long ago. The fans will help him forget Milan in a hurry, and rediscover the striker that wowed Calcio when at Parma. The partnership with Mutu can be backed to produce some special moments in the Champions League.
8. Seydou Keita (Sevilla to Barcelona)
The best signing Barcelona have made this season, particularly in light of the way their soft underbelly was exposed on the road last season. With him partnering Yaya Toure in the middle, it will ensure that the likes of Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi do not get bullied, and also get the full license to thrill. 15 million euros worth their value.
7. Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander to Real Madrid)
What a capture! Barcelona seemed to have him in the bag, but hesitated a little too much as they waited for Frank Rijkaard to leave and a new coach to take charge. Madrid managed to snatch Sergio Ramos a few years ago, and what a signing that has turned out to be. This one may be no different.
6. Deco (Barcelona to Chelsea)
On the wrong side of 30, a first look suggests that he is past it, but nothing could be further from the truth. There is a fire that burns in him as we saw during Euro 2008, and he has a lot more to give to football. He is not what Frank Lampard is, as he will never score as many goals. But then, he is also everything Lampard is not. Superb creativity, a great eye for the game, and an ability to run the show that has seen him win the Champions League with two different clubs. Finally, Chelsea have a player who can orchestrate the pleasing football their owner wants. With Ballack and Essien set to play around him, it will be an ominous midfield.
5. Amauri (Palermo to Juventus)
The Brazilian-Italian striker made it to number three after earning himself a long overdue move to a top four club, but now slips down to five. He has already shown his potential with Palermo, and the prospect of him getting some top quality service from the Juve midfield is simply mouth-watering. Champions League, here he comes.
4. Daniel Alves (Sevilla to Barcelona)
Chelsea, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Manchester United – these are just some of the clubs that have queued up for him over the last 18 months or so. However, it is Barcelona who land him after some difficult negotiations with Sevilla. Perhaps a touch overpriced at 30 million euros (he would have been number one on this list at 20m), but then again, he is the best attacking full-back this world has seen since Roberto Carlos.
3. Samir Nasri (Marseille to Arsenal)
The highly rated French international is the latest to join the clan of young Gunners. Many view him as a replacement for Aliaksandr Hleb, while others go a step further and call him the next Zidane. He has had some problems with injuries, but let's hope those were exceptions as opposed to the rule. The prodigous playmaker joins in at number three.
2. Luka Modric (Dinamo Zagreb to Tottenham)
The hottest young Croatian was snapped up by Spurs despite the interest of clubs such as Barcelona and Chelsea, and what a signing it has already turned out to be. Looks set to become the jewel in Juande Ramos' midfield next season. He remains number two on our list.
1. Mathieu Flamini (Arsenal to Milan)
The underrated Frenchman was one of Arsenal's best players last season, and Milan's signing of him is most definitely the biggest coup of the summer thus far. That it was a free transfer makes it even better.

from goal.

In the news !

2008-07-17T00:58:00.003+03:00

Hleb to Barcelona !

The Catalan club confirmed the deal this morning, and he has officially been unveiled as a Barcelona player now, less that 24 hours after the departure of Ronaldinho.The midfielder had been linked with a move away from the Emirates Stadium for a number of months as he sought a new challenge, and the rumours intensified after some rather explosive comments from his agent last month.He denied allegations of a rift with manager Arsene Wenger or team-mate Cesc Fabregas, but it had been known for a while that his time with Arsenal was as good as over. The signing of Samir Nasri was what saw the Gunners give the nod, and he now moves to Camp Nou to replace Ronaldinho.Internazionale were said to be interested in him - even accused of making an illegal approach - something the player and the club denied, but it is the Catalans who sealed a deal worth 15 million euros, and five more based on results and performances.

Hleb told Barcelona's television channel: "I love this club."I spoke with Guardiola and it's good to know he wants me. I'll give my best to this team and I want to win everything with Barça."

Nasri to Arsenal !

After a drawn-out process that was punctuated by EURO 2008 and the odd false start, Nasri has finally made the move from Marseille to north London for an undisclosed fee.Although renowned as a classical playmaker, it is expected the 21-year-old will take up a role on the flanks – a move Arsene Wenger has used before with Tomas Rosicky, Aliaksandr Hleb and most notably Robert Pires.

But Nasri knows he will get chances regardless of where he plays, and insisted he is keen to start working with his manager and team-mates as soon as possible. "The fact that Arsène Wenger gives great opportunities to young players is very important for me," he told the club’s official website. "Arsène has a great reputation and he is one of the best managers in the world. He has proved that he puts a lot of confidence in the young players and he gives them a chance. "It was very important for me to have such a great manager to work with and I’m really looking forward to working with both Arsène Wenger and all my new team-mates."French ConnectionNasri follows a long line of French stars to don the red and white of Arsenal since Wenger became manager in 1996 – Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira foremost among them.

The les Bleus gun revealed that he has received nothing but glowing references about the club, and he expects to slot right in at the Emirates, having already played alongside several of his new team-mates."Yes, I know all the French players," Nasri continued. "Of course, I have played with William Gallas in the national team and was with him in the France squad for the Euro 2008 championships. "I have also played with Gael Clichy and Abou Diaby in the France Under-21 team. So I don’t arrive in an unfamiliar place. He added: "I know Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira very well and they have told me a lot of good things about Arsenal Football Club.

They both had amazing times at this Club and, even talking to them now, they are still very enthusiastic about Arsenal. "Both Thierry and Patrick have given me a lot of advice and they both told me that it was the best choice for me to come to Arsenal."

Ronaldinho : “I am very happy, after a long time I'm here,”

The former European and World Footballer of the Year completed his long drawn-out move to Milan from Barcelona last night in a deal worth around €21m.The 28-year-old boarded a plane from Barcelona to Milan today, and arrived at Malpensa International Airport at 13:00 CET.Ronaldinho was greeted by Milan directors Leonardo and Ariedo Braida, with legions of fans repeatedly shouting out “Ronaldinho, Ronaldinho.”

The Brazilian, sporting a hip-hop look with a New York Yankees cap worn the wrong way, saluted his supporters, before offering his first declarations to Milan Channel.“I am very happy, after a long time I'm here,” said Ronaldinho.“I'm very happy to have arrived at Milan and I hope to give a lot of joy to everybody."It's true, I confirm I really wanted Milan. Many things have happened and in the end I am a Rossonero. I'm happy to be here, and I repeat, I hope to make the Milan crowd happy.“It's great to find a lot of Brazilians, but also the many champions who wear the Milan shirt. I'm happy about everything, I'm here with other Brazilians like me but also with all the others.”

Ronaldinho then left for Milanello, and upon his arrival at 13:30 he was greeted by hundreds of Milan fans. He shook the hand of Coach Carlo Ancelotti before being offered a tour around his new club.

Germany - Spain Euro 2008 Final

2008-06-28T22:24:00.002+03:00

This Is It...

What was 16 teams just three weeks ago has now been whittled down to a final two, Spain and Germany, who face off in Sunday's final for the trophy. The two are almost polar opposites of European football, with Germany constantly performing to or even beyond their ability at times to always pull through and be there or thereabouts in major tournaments while the Spanish, despite being technically talented, regularly flounder tactically, get overpowered and drop their heads far too easily.

History

Each team's tournament history tells a story. Germany have won three World Cups and three European Championships, having reached at least the semi-finals a staggering 18 times in total, with their main period of domination running through the 1970s and 80s. Spain, however, have reached the last four just four times - including this year - with their best finish in a World Cup being fourth place in 1950 and them having won the second ever Euro on home soil in 1964 and being losing finalists 20 years later.So this is just their third final - all of them in Euros - and what will inspire them is the opportunity to emulate the French team that beat them 2-0 in the Euro 84 final and win the tournament having made a clean sweep of their group, an incredibly rare feat.

Past Meetings

Germany have the edge on Spain in head-to-head meetings in the past, having won eight, drawn five and lost six. There is little between them, but in major tournaments, unsurprisingly, Germany's superiority is a little more significant. Spain gained a solitary victory over the Mannschaft on their way to the Euro 84 final, while Germany got the better of them on the way to the 1966 World Cup final, as well as in 1982 and in Euro 88.Spain have the most recent bragging rights, having beaten Germany 3-1 in 2003 with a brace from Raul and another from Real Madrid team-mate Guti. Despite both having had good seasons, neither made Luis Aragones' Euro squad amid much controversy. Meanwhile Germany last won in 2000 by four goals to one, with Michael Ballack the only member of that team still present in today's squad.

Germany

Torsten Frings has declared himself fit despite recently suffering a fractured rib that ruled him out of the quarterfinals and most of the semi. With his replacement, Simon Rolfes, suffering a nasty blow to the head against Turkey, the Werder Bremen midfielder is likely to slot back into his rightful place.With captain Michael Ballack's inclusion a given, Thomas Hitzlsperger is likely to retain his place to make it a three man midfield ahead of striker Mario Gomez, who disappointed in the groups and is only likely to make an appearance as a substitute if at all.The team is otherwise expected to remain as it has been in the knockout rounds, meaning no place for offensive full-back Marcell Jansen or Clemens Fritz on the opposite flank since Bastian Schweinsteiger seized his opportunity.

Probable starting line-up (4-5-1): Lehmann; Friedrich, Mertesacker, Metzelder, Lahm; Schweinsteiger, Frings, Ballack, Hitzlsperger, Podolski; Klose.

Spain

Tournament top scorer David Villa will almost certainly miss the final with a muscle injury, though there is a chance he may play a role from the bench if required.With Dani Guiza not the type of striker best suited to partnering Fernando Torres up front, Luis Aragones is expected to opt for star substitute Cesc Fabregas and line up a five-man midfield, for which he recently expressed a preference.The rest will remain as it is, with Aragones having made clear that he will stick with a winning formula.

Probable starting line-up (4-5-1): Casillas; Ramos, Puyol, Marchena, Capdevila; Iniesta, Xavi, Senna, Fabregas, Silva; Torres.

I think Spain will win this Tournament..2-1 exact score:D

Portugal - Germany ( Portugalia - germania ) Euro 2008

2008-06-19T01:21:00.003+03:00

The first quarter final of Euro 2008 pits Portugal (who have made it to the semi-final stage of the previous two tournaments) against Germany (who have made it to the quarter-final for the first time since their 1996 triumph). Everything is set for a fascinating match-up.

Ready To Take The Next Step?

Portugal have become a real tournament side in recent years having made it to the last eight in their last four major finals tournaments. As hosts in 2004 they went very close to winning their first major honour only for rank outsiders Greece to upset the apple cart with their shock win.
In the last World Cup they made it as far as the semi final only to fall at the hands of France. They then lost the rather meaningless 3rd place play-off to Germany.
Luiz Felipe Scolari looks to have built another side capable of going a long way, but the question is: can Portugal make it all the way this time?
They opened the current tournament with a 2-0 win over Turkey with Pepe and Meireles scoring two second half goals to get them off to the ideal start.
Then came the crunch match in the group against the Czech Republic. It was a case of the Ronaldo show kicking into gear as the Manchester United ace scored one and set up two in a 3-1 win. Those three points secured Portugal’s place in the quarter finals.
Scolari made a whole host of changes for the final group game against hosts Switzerland and unlike Holland it backfired on him. The Swiss came out 2-0 winners with Hakan Yakin grabbing a brace. Against the Germans expect to see the team used in the opening two games back in action.

"We have had two very good second halves" said Scolari. "Principally we have played football. We've worked with the ball, that is our quality he added."
The Brazilian coach has already declared his admiration for Germany saying: "Tactically, I've seen no one better than Germany" after their win over Poland.
This could be Scolari’s last game in charge should the Portuguese lose. He, the team and a whole nation will be hoping that the highly rated trainer will get a few more games for the national team before he takes on the Chelsea challenge.

Favourites No More

Going into this summer’s tournament Germany were one of the clear favourites to lift the trophy for a fourth time. They are still in with a shout, but it wouldn’t be unfair to say that they don’t go into this quarter final as the favourites.
A rather comfortable opening win over Poland went according to the script, but the Germans were brought rather abruptly to a halt when Croatia completely outplayed them in Klagenfurt and completely deserved their 2-1 victory.
Questions marks were raised over the defence, with Christophe Metzelder off the pace and the partnership with Per Mertesacker showing a clear lack of mobility.
The forwards have also come under criticism for their goal-shy tendencies. Mario Gomez in particular has looked a pale shadow of the player who has taken the Bundesliga by storm over the past two seasons.
The Germans had to go into their final group B match against rivals Austria needing a result and the duly got it thanks a superb Michael Ballack free kick.
The one disadvantage Germany will have going into Thursday’s quarter final clash is the enforced absence of trainer Joachim Löw from the bench. The Bundestrainer has been handed a one-match ban from Uefa following his sending off against Austria.
Hansi Flick will take control of team affairs on the day with Löw forced to look on from the stands with no contact with his charges

FORM GUIDE

Portugal

15/06/08 Switzerland 2 Portugal 0 (Euro 2008)
11/06/08 Portugal 3 Czech Republic 1 (Euro 2008)
07/06/08 Portugal 2 Turkey 0 (Euro 2008)
31/05/08 Portugal 2 Georgia 0 (Friendly)
26/03/08 Portugal 1 Greece 2 (Friendly)
06/02/08 Italy 3 Portugal 1(Friendly)

Germany

16/06/08 Austria 0 Germany 1 (Euro 2008)
12/08/08 Germany 1 Croatia 2 (Euro 2008)
08/06/08 Germany 2 Poland (Euro 2008)
31/05/08 Germany 2 Serbia 1 (Friendly)
27/05/08 Germany 2 Belarus 2 (Friendly)
26/03/08 Switzerland 0 Germany 4 (Friendly)

Do not expect too many surprises from Luiz Filipe Scolari. After resting all his key players for the final group stage match against Switzerland he will once more return to his first-choice line-up he used in the opening two victories.

Possible Starting Line-Up: Ricardo, Bosingwa, Pepe, Carvalho, Ferreira, Petit, Simao, Deco, Moutinho, Ronaldo, Gomes

Germany

Torsten Frings is the major worry for Germany having suffered a broken rib in the previous match against Austria. The Werder Bremen midfielder will be given right up until the last minute to prove his fitness such is his importance to the team. If he doesn’t make it, expect either Tim Borowski or Thomas Hitzlsperger to step in.
Bastian Schweinsteiger is expected to return to the side after serving a one-match ban against Austria for his stupid sending off versus Croatia.
Another question remains the form (or lack of it) of Mario Gomez. His confidence appears low and the sitter he missed against Austria is indicative of his low ebb. Whether Jogi Löw decides to take him out of the firing line, or stick with him remains to be seen. Lukas Podolski could be pushed up front from his wide left midfield role.

Possible Starting Line-Up: Lehmann, Friedrich, Metzelder, Mertesacker, Lahm, Frings, Ballack, Schweinsteiger, Podolski, Gomez, Klose

Tip : victory for Portugal beacouse Purtugal has a better team with much many star players than Deutchsland. Over 2.5 becouse after the first team will score the other one will have 2 attack and will leave empty spaces in the defence

Netherlands - France ( Olanda - Franta)

2008-06-12T21:06:00.002+03:00

Friday evening's encounter between the Netherlands and France is fascinatingly poised. A Dutch victory would seal their place in the knockout stages and put France under severe pressure

The Future's Bright, The Future's Oranje

It was a case of 'brilliant Oranje' for the Dutch on Monday as a breathtaking display of counter-attacking football proved far too much for a beleaguered Italian side to handle. Victory in their tournament opener gives the Netherlands a superb chance of progressing from the 'Group of Death'. Victory over the French on Friday evening would ensure progression and really lay down a message of intent to the other big nations. Head coach Marco Van Basten, who departs to take over Ajax after the tournament, will be acutely aware that it is not how the Dutch start the tournament but how they finish. Although Monday's 3-0 victory appears emphatic the margins were fine. After Ruud van Nistlerooy's highly controversial opening goal the Dutch scored their second and third goals from swift counters moments after the Italians had posed a serious threat at the opposite end of the field. Van Basten remains coy regarding his side's chances telling the assembled press after Tuesday's victory that, “We have won just one game. It is only the first step.”

Raymond Domenech: Feeling Les Bleus

France's head coach, Raymond Domenech, finds it difficult to stay out of the papers for the wrong reasons. Even when the French side are going well few pundits have too many complimentary words to say about the former Lyon boss but after catastrophes such as Monday's scoreless draw with Romania there are no shortage of critics. Les Bleus' tepid draw with the Romanians resonated loudly around Europe. German tabloid newspaper Bild declared Domenech an “idiot” while the French media were highly critical of his tactics without ever being quite so cutting.

Netherlands

Marco Van Basten was without a plethora of attacking talent for the Dutch side's opening game of the tournament and will face France with a depleted squad. Ryan Babble (ankle ligaments) and Clarence Seedorf (personal reasons) are, of course, unavailable but Van Basten's squad is otherwise returning towards fitness. Robin Van Persie was fit enough to play a cameo role against Italy while Melchiot is also expected to be strong enough to play a part if required. There is only one Dutch doubt and that comes in the form of Arjen Robben. The Real Madrid winger is closing in on fitness and could be used to play a part from the bench.

Predicted Starting Eleven: Van der Sar; Van Bronckhorst, Boulahrouz, Ooijer, Mathijsen; de Jong, Engelaar, van der Vaart, Sneijder, Kuyt; Van Nistlerooy

France

Like the Dutch les Bleus were adversely affected by injury for their tournament opener however unlike Friday's opponents France could not cope. Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira were conspicuous by their absence against Romania and both will likely play a part if deemed fit enough. Henry should certainly return to the starting eleven however there are greater doubts over the fitness of Vieira. Raymond Domenech will likely make a handful of changes to the side that claimed a feeble point against Romania.

Predicted Starting Eleven: Coupet; Clerc, Abidal, Gallas, Thuram; Toulalan, Nasri, Makélélé, Ribéry; Henry, Benzema

2-0 Netherlands or Under 2.5

Austria - Poland ( Austria - Polonia)

2008-06-11T22:09:00.002+03:00

Victory Now Vital – For Both Teams

After losing their opening matches in Group B, neither co-hosts Austria nor tournament debutants Poland can afford to be beaten on Thursday in their crucial second outings. If neither of last Sunday’s defeats was entirely unexpected, Austria at the hands of Croatia; Poland by the Germans, then the fighting qualities of the Austrian performance certainly surprised many.They were undone by Luka Modric's early winning penalty for Croatia – awarded for a foul by Rene Aufhauser and the fastest-ever spot-kick in the tournament – but went on to give Slaven Bilic’s side a real run for their money, and finished the game looking by some distance the more likely to score the next goal against a tired looking Croatian team.

Nevertheless, the 1-0 defeat, following Switzerland’s by a similar score 24 hours earlier, meant Austria had become the sixth host nation to lose their opening match of a European Championship tournament. Now they must strive to avoid joining Belgium (2000) as the only host country not to survive the group stage since the introduction of the knock-out rounds in 1984. Since then, seven teams have managed to survive the group stage after losing their opening match. Portugal and England were the last teams to achieve this, at Euro 2004.

Austria’s defeat by Croatia also means they have still not won a game at a major tournament since 1990, although they can take much encouragement from a spirited display that flew in the face of their recent form - a mere two wins in 16 matches, which had left morale at a low ebb going into the tournament.Referring to the penalty, coach Josef Hickersberger acknowledged: "This is the worst possible start you can have in an opening game of a tournament. After four minutes, we conceded a goal and we took some time to recover. For the first 30 minutes, the team wasn't playing well, we were nervous. But after that, we followed our tactical plan and we did it well.

We even dominated the second half."He added however, "The team is very depressed," so it is to be hoped he has managed to lift them in the meantime, because they showed, especially in the second half, that they are better than they seem to think they are. After losing his opening game in the qualifying As for Poland, they will be hoping to shrug off their opening defeat against the powerful and impressive Germans, in the same way that they bounced back after losing their first game in the qualifying tournament, eventually finishing on top of their group ahead of Portugal

Austria

Hickersberger is hopeful striker Roland Linz will have recovered from the ankle injury he suffered against Croatia, but Roman Kienast will come in should Linz not be deemed fit enough. Linz trained on Tuesday despite being told to rest by the team doctor, and Hickersberger said: "I was surprised that he did take part but he wanted to fight for his place in the starting team." Kienast, who came off the bench to play for 17 minutes against the Croats, is looking to start. “I hope I will play from the beginning but that is up to the coach," he said. "I am happy Roland was back in training.

There is no harsh competition between the two of us. I have a lot of self-belief and I try to convince the coach he should pick me because of my performances."Meanwhile, captain Andreas Ivanschitz should play despite torn ligaments in his right knee, but Umit Korkmaz is also in contention for a role in midfield.

Martin Hiden will win his 50th cap for Austria if he plays, while at 38, Ivica Vastic – who became the fourth oldest player in the history of the European Championship on Sunday – will become the oldest goalscorer ever at the tournament if he finds the back of the net.Sebastian Prodl, Jurgen Saeumel and Emanuel Pogatetz will be suspended if they receive another caution.

Poland

Roger Guerreiro is expected to take the place of injured Poland captain Maciej Zurawski (thigh), while Jakub Wawrzyniak could come in for Pawel Golanski at left-back.While Beenhakker would not confirm whether Roger would definitely start, the South American forward clearly excites his coach, who enthused: "He is great. He's amazing, he's fantastic. He sees solutions and makes choices on the field that are, well, it's Brazilian. I cannot explain it in any other way."Mariusz Lewandowski and Ebi Smolarek will be suspended if they collect another yellow card, while defender Jacek Bak, who plays his club football at Austria Vienna, will be up against team-mates Joachim Standfest and Ronald Gercaliu.

Germany - Croatia ( Germania - Croatia)

2008-06-11T22:05:00.001+03:00

The second round of matches in Group B gets underway with Croatia and Germany clashing in Klagenfurt. Both teams won their opening games, so the winner of this one will have gone a long way to clinching their place in the knock-out stage.

Croats Confident

Croatia got their Euro 2008 campaign off to a winning start against hosts Austria thanks to an early penalty from Luka Modric. They will want to continue that good start on Thursday as they face up to one of the tournament favourites Germany.
They are still regarded as one of the dark horses for the tournament and a positive result against the Germans will act as a huge confidence boost to Slaven Bilic’s men.
The Croats are not short on confidence and know that they can mix it with the big boys as their win at Wembley against England during qualification proves.
Striker Mladen Petric outlined the spirit in the side: "We're confident in ourselves, we know we're strong enough, and we have the quality to beat any team" he said.
Germany took the third place in 2006 World Cup as the host, while Croatia ended up with the same place in 1998 World Cup, during which Croatia beat Germany 3-0.

"We would love to be as successful as they were in 1998" Petric explained.
However, Germany has won five out of seven games against Croatia so far. "The Germans are always favourites - and not only in the group. It could be possible that our last game against Poland will decide who's going to the quarter-finals, but I hope we can secure our passage before that" the Dortmund striker added.
Germany beat the Croatians 2-1 in the last eight on their way to winning Euro 96 in England but suffered a humiliating 3-0 defeat by them in the World Cup quarter-finals two years later.

Croatia

Croatia coach Slaven Bilic remains confident midfielder Luka Modric will recover from an ankle injury to boost their hopes of a place in the last eight. Otherwise he is likely to stick with the line-up that overcame Austria.
Predicted Line-Up: Pletikosa, Simunic, R. Kovac, Corluka, N. Kovac, Srna, Modric, Pranjic, Kranjcar, Olic, Petric

Germany

As both striker Gomez and midfielder Schweinsteiger performed well in the first match, it is widely believed that Jogi Löw will make a minor change to send both to the pitch, while putting speedy Podolski backward as a winger to create more scoring chances for team-mates. Clemens Fritz would drop to the bench
Predicted Line-Up: Lehmann, Lahm, Metzelder. Mertesacker, Jansen, Frings, Ballack, Schweinsteiger, Podolski, Gomez, Klose

Over 2.5 or both team 2 score

Portugal - Czech republic ( Portugalia - cehia)

2008-06-11T00:03:00.002+03:00

Winner Takes It All

Or qualification, at least.Both sides won on the opening day - the Czechs fortuitously and the Portuguese most convincingly - and should there be a winner tomorrow in Geneva, they will have secured qualification to the quarterfinals.As such, Portugal will most definitely be looking to go all out and secure qualification so that in their final game against co-hosts Switzerland they may focus simply on finishing top of the group and perhaps affording one or two key men a rest.

The Czechs, though, would probably be satisfied with a draw, and that mentality may prove their undoing.Missing both Pavel Nedved and Tomas Rosicky has robbed the Czechs of much of their creativity on which the domineering Jan Koller used to capitalise. With Tomas Galasek also getting on in years, the midfield in general is lacking in all areas it was once fairly formidable.It will be up to coach Karel Brückner, then, to tactically discipline his players to work as a unit that will remain strong in defence as well as suitably quick and creative to enable attacking play.

Czech Republic

No injuries reported from the Czech camp. Coach Brückner has suggested he was happy with the defence but will make a change in the forward line. Replacing the legendary Jan Koller in his final tournament would seem too drastic a move, despite the country's all-time leading goal scorer having a poor first game. Marek Matejovsky is thought to be coming in to replace Jarolim in midfield, with neither the wily Plasil or the in-form Sionko likely to be replaced. Milan Baros' inclusion as a second forward is a move probably too bold against opposition as dangerous as Portugal, but he is likely to be used from the bench.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Cech - Grygera, Ujfalusi, Rozehnal, Jankulovski - Sionko, Matejovsky, Galasek, Kovac, Plasil - Koller

Portugal

Again, no injuries reported from the Portugese camp and Luiz Felipe Scolari is likely to go with the same side that dominated against Turkey. However, wingers Simao and Nani picked up minor knocks and therefore could make way for Ricardo Quaresma, who did not make an appearance on Saturday.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-3): Ricardo - Bosingwa, Pepe, Carvalho, Ferreira - Moutinho, Petit, Deco - Quaresma, Nuno Gomes, Ronaldo

Portugal win

Switzerland-Turkey ( Elvetia - Turcia)

2008-06-10T21:08:00.005+03:00

The two losers from the first matchday go head-to-head for what is surely a last-chance game for both sides. It's Switzerland versus Turkey and it's sure to be a pressure-filled occasion...

Wounded

Losing out to the Czechs was crushing enough for the Swiss, but just as bad was the first half injury to talismanic captain Alexander Frei. Not only did the number 9 miss the rest of the game, but he's out for the whole tournament.The party atmosphere among the confederation, then, has already fallen flat, although it won't fully end until all hopes of qualification are extinguished.For all intents and purposes, though, this could be as early as Wednesday night. Anything less than a point against the Turks will see the Swiss fall at the first hurdle: hard to take for a side that excelled defensively at the World Cup of 2006.

Disappointed

Turkey, meanwhile, were largely overrun by a Portuguese side that overcame much of their qualifying nerves to put on a decent, but not world-class showing.That was still more than the Crescent-Stars managed. Turkey, who had themselves only snuck into the tournament in second place, lacked the touch of class required to pick up all three points in their first game, or even come close to doing so.Still, they can draw comfort from the fact that, with a large fanbase in Switzerland, they won't be put off by the 'away' nature of this match. This is realistically their best chance to get all three points, and they will surely go for it.Nonetheless, much has to change on the pitch - not least the sense of confidence and the ability for the likes of Nihat to test the 'keeper

Switzerland

Frei is out for the tournament after picking up an injury in the opener. Everyone else is fit and ready for the Swiss, who may retain their 4-4-2 look as they go looking for three vital points. Yakin could support streller in an 'old-but-gold' forward line.

Probable Starting XI: Benaglio; Magnin, Müller, Senderos, Lichtsteiner; Barnetta, Behrami, Fernandes, Inler; Streller, Yakin.

Turkey

Gokhan Zan is out and Servet Cetin is doubtful, meaning that it could be an all-new central defence that lines up. Nihat will likely get the nod up front again.

Probable Starting XI: Volkan; Gonul, Asik, Kas/Cetin, Boral; Emre, Aurelio, Altintop, Turan; Nihat, Erding.

Under 2.5

Greece - Sweden ( Grecia - Suedia)

2008-06-09T22:16:00.004+03:00

As impressive as it seems, almost 88 years have gone by since the first – and only – time these two sides came up against each other in a competitive match. Sweden had won that August 28, 1920 game by nine goals to nil (!) in the Antwerp summer Olympics men’s football tournament, as Herbert Karlsson stole the show with five goals. But arguably a lot has changed since then…
Past the group stage
There is however a similarity. Even though that historic encounter was a knock-out match, it sent the Swedes into the quarter-finals. And reaching the same round of this European Championship looks like their target again, a goal they share with defending champions Greece. Should one – or even both – of these teams make the last eight, then anything’s possible. Otto Rehhagel may assure you of that.
While perhaps half of the teams still in contention have a chance of actually clinching the Henri Delaunay trophy, one of the clear favourites to do it are Spain, also drawn in group D. And even though it all comes down to what you do on the pitch, both Greece and Sweden could be forgiven for believing that it will be the clashes between them as well as against Russia which will determine which of the three follow La Furia Roja to the next round.

No fluke

Greece caused the biggest upset in football history when they won the European Championship in Portugal four years ago, starting the final phase as 100 to 1 outsiders. However, no one can deny the fact they had won a qualifying group which also included the Ukraine and Spain, whom they also knocked out in the last 16 before famously beating the likes of France, the Czech Republic and Portugal, all three by a single goal, to claim the biggest prize in the European game.
They did fail to shine in the last Confederations Cup and were knocked out in the qualifying phase of the previous World Cup, finishing fourth in a group also including Ukraine, Turkey and Denmark. But that made German boss Rehhagel even more motivated. He extended his contract by another two years, until the end of the running World Cup and his revived side took the continent by storm once again in the run-up to Tuesday’s clash.
Despite being thrashed at home by fierce rivals Turkey 4-1, Greece won 10 of their other 11 qualifiers and drew 2-2 in Norway, Swiss referee Massimo Busacca, also in charge in Wals-Siezenheim on Tuesday night, leaving them with many complaints. They conjured up as many as 31 points out of a maximum 36, a number not even Poland or Portugal could match in 14 games.

Greece

In contrast to several other teams still in the tournament, the defending champions are injury-free ahead of their last 16 opener on the outskirts of Salzburg. As many as 10,000 of their fans are expected to attend the Sweden game, which Yorgos Karagounis will start, despite not training for a few days due to a knee injury.
The Panathinaikos central midfielder is one of Rehhagel’s key players, alongside captain Angelos Basinas of Mallorca. However, the German coach is widely tipped to hand Benfica’s Kostas Katsouranis the task of switching from defensive midfield to Henrik Larsson’s man-marker, while Kyrgiakos, who - like Katsouranis – recorded his first ever cap against Sweden, will keep a close eye on Ibrahimović.
Right back Torosidis will play on the left, ahead of Nikos Spyropoulos, whereas 2004 hero Angelos Haristeas is expected to get the nod ahead of Dimitris Salpiggidis on the right of attack.
Possible line-up (4-3-3): Antonis Nikopolidis – Yourkas Seitaridis, Kyrgiakos, Traianos Dellas, Torosidis – Katsouranis, Basinas, Karagounis – Haristeas, Gekas, Amanatidis.

Sweden

Lagerbäck has revealed that he’s already chosen his starting XI, although it remains to be seen whether Ibrahimović will be included. The boss insists that he will, despite a knee problem.
Much like their opponents, Sweden are short on left-footed footballers, with the exception of Olympique Lyonnais’ Kim Källström, who may lose his place to Anders Svensson, scorer of the Swedes’ last goal against the Greeks in a 2003 friendly 2-1 home defeat. Torosidis and Amanatidis are right-footed, and so are Micke Nilsson and Swedish captain Freddie Ljungberg, who’s fit to play in a competitive match for the first time since April 26.
But unlike Greece, Lagerbäck will most probably stick to his favourite 4-4-2, especially given a wealth of options down the right flank. Henrik Larsson is expected to support Ibrahimović up front.

Possible line-up (4-4-2): Andreas Isaksson – Niclas Alexandersson (Fredrik Stoor), Olof Mellberg, Petter Hansson, Micke Nilsson – Tobias Linderoth (Källström), Anders Svensson, Sebastian Larsson, Freddie Ljungberg – Henke Larsson, Ibrahimović.

Under 2.5 or 1-0 exact score for Sweden

Spain - Russia ( Spania - Rusia)

2008-06-09T21:47:00.003+03:00

Luis Aragonés and Guus Hiddink have both placed the emphasis of their pre-match build-up to this tantalising opener on not losing, so caution could be the order of the day in Innsbruck on Tuesday afternoon.The two sides met in the opening game of Euro 2004 with Spanish edging a very tight encounter with a solitary goal from Juan Carlos Valerón and it could take just a single effort to separate the two sides here.

For Spain the pressure is as intense as ever with all kinds of baggage being taken into a major tournament with them once again along with the high expectations of public that believes success should be theirs, but inevitably will not be.During his tenure Aragonés has been pilloried and derided and rarely praised with chapters like his outburst against Thierry Henry, his omission of Raúl and his arguments and rants at the media all having seen him earn more and more critics.Then there is the performance of his team who have been accused of passing far too much while lacking the penetration to be able to play a major role in the tournament this summer.Spain had relied on a steadfast defence, but even that is being picked at after Carlos Marchena weak clearance allowed Peru to score against Iker Casillas last week in a friendly.While the media revel in highlighting and dissecting Spain's mistakes, all this may well be creating something of a siege mentality within the camp because all the players are certainly singing from the same songsheet in front of the media.

In the game against the United States and Peru recently, the team looked like a unit, but it is not look effective or incisive and that is an old problem that Aragonés is going to have to solve.When a free-scoring striker at club level like Fernando Torres claims that the system is hampering him, then maybe it is time to consider a change

Spain

Aragonés is keeping his cards very close to his chest, but reports in Spain suggest that the veteran trainer is considering pairing David Villa up front with Fernando Torres, rather than employ the conservative formation he played against the United States. In midfield, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Marcos Senna look set to play with David Silva just in front.

Russia

Arshavin is suspended while Pogrebnyak has been ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury meaning the Hiddink will be trying a front pair that he was not expecting to.

Spain - Russia 1 or..Under 2.5

Holland - Italy ( Olanda - Italia ) Euro 2008

2008-06-08T17:48:00.003+03:00

The first of the big clashes in the ‘Group of Death’ sees World Champions Italy take on Holland at the Stade de Suisse in Berne.

Twenty Years On

Twenty years have now passed since Holland’s one and only major international trophy, when Rinus Michel’s outstanding side won Euro ’88 following a 2-0 final success over the USSR.In that team was current Dutch manager Marco Van Basten, who scored probably the best goal in European Championship history, with a stunning volley from Arnold Muhren’s raking pass. At Euro 2008 Van Basten, who has already announced that he will be leaving at the end of the competition to take over at Ajax, is hoping to become the first person in history to win the Euros both as a player and as a coach.

However the former Milan striker knows he faces an extremely difficult task even to get through the group stages, having been drawn alongside Romania, France, and Monday’s opponents Italy.The relatively youthful and inexperienced Dutch struggled at times during their qualification, eventually finishing second in Group G, behind Romania. However their form in 2008 has been good, albeit not against the strongest of opposition. The Oranje have won four of their five matches this calendar year, drawing the other, and in their last warm-up test, defeated Wales 2-0.

Italy Going For The Double

World Champions Italy are attempting to repeat France’s feat from 2000, and hold both major international trophies at the same time.The Azzurri, now coached by Roberto Donadoni, would be the favourites for this competition had they not been handed such a tough draw, in which there is the possibility of them also playing Spain in the quarter-finals, and France or Holland again in the semis.For a while it seemed as if the Azzurri were not even going to make it to the Euros. Coach Roberto Donadoni, who replaced the legendary Marcello Lippi after the success in Germany, had a dreadful start to his reign, picking up just one point from his first two qualifiers.However Italy then went on an outstanding run, picking up 28 points out of a possible 30 to finish top of a tough qualifying group including Scotland, Ukraine and rivals France.Italy have largely impressed in their three friendlies this year, beating both Portugal and Belgium 3-1, and losing somewhat unfortunately 1-0 in Spain

Holland

Holland have been dealt a number of blows coming into the game, the biggest of all came on Saturday when Arjen Robben was ruled out after picking up a groin problem. He will probably be replaced by young PSV player Ibrahim Afellay. Clarence Seedorf had already long pulled out of the squad citing personal reasons, while Ryan Babel suffered an ankle ligament injury on the eve of the tournament and was replaced by Khalid Boulahrouz. Robin Van Persie is not fit enough to start, and will probably play no part in the game. Mario Melchiot faces a race against time due to a pelvic complaint, but Wesley Sneijder should play despite an injury scare in training.

Italy

The Azzurri have some problems in defence, having been robbed of the services of inspirational captain Fabio Cannavaro, who injured his ankle in training and has been replaced in the squad by Alessandro Gamberini. Christian Panucci had been a doubt for the game too due to a knee problem, however he should be available. Donadoni will probably employ a forward trident of Mauro Camoranesi, Luca Toni and the in-form Antonio Di Natale.

Over 2.5 or Italy win

Romania - France ( Romania - Franta ) Euro 2008

2008-06-08T17:46:00.002+03:00

Group C, the “Group of Death”, begins in Zurich on Tuesday afternoon when Romania meet France. With both sides looking to start the tournament in a positive fashion particularly as Italy and the Netherlands lie in wait.Romania Aim To Avoid Horror ShowEven the country that brought the legend of Dracula to the world could not have envisaged such a nightmarish draw at the European Championships.

If Group C is considered the “Group of Death” then many believed rigor mortis had set in on Romania’s challenge when the draw was made last December.Captain Christian Chivu thinks that this attitude may play into the Romanian’s hands explaining that, “Our opponents respect us, but probably think we have no chance of qualifying. It will be an advantage for us to start out in the shadows, as we can count on the element of surprise.”

The Inter Milan defender is not the only member of the Romanian party to be upbeat over their chances of making progress. Head coach Victor Piţurcă has also been remarkably bullish over his side’s chances stating that, “If the players are healthy and at a high physical and psychological level, they can achieve a lot.”“We can reach the final, even win it, but we could also lose all our matches. At this level everything can happen.”Romania out-qualified Group C opponents the Netherlands, beating them in Constanta less than twelve months ago. Unlike the French, Romania have kept their pre-tournament warm-up matches to a minimal, playing only one friendly match. Montenegro were hammered 4-0 last week by a powerful Romanian side.One of the goal scorers from that match, Adrian Mutu has dubbed Group C as “the hardest group ever” and will recognise that there will be a massive step up in class from Romania’s sole friendly.An experienced Romanian squad should not be dismissed lightly.

There is a great deal of international know-how in the team and, with Mutu leading the line, they possess a striker with a fine pedigree at this level. If Chivu, Contra and co. can adequately organise their defence then French could be shocked.

Romania suffered a duo of pre-tournament blows with the news that reserve goalkeeper Danut Conman and squad midfielder Ovidiou Petre would miss the entire competition through injury. Since arriving in Switzerland the fortunes of Piţurcă’s side have improved. Dorin Goian remains a slight doubt but should feature in the centre of defence after the initial prognosis was that he would miss the Romanian’s opening fixture. Meanwhile Stefan Radu may well drop to the bench after a bout of flu. In attack Stuttgart’s Ciprian Marica is likely to be favoured over Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s Marius Niculae.

Predicted line-up: Labont; Contra, Rat, Goian, Tamas Chivu; Radoi, Dica, Petra; Mutu, Marica

Last Tuesday’s friendly may prove to have been a draining experience for the French despite Domenech’s original assertions that his squad had picked up no injury concerns. Key attacking players Thierry Henry and Franck Ribéry both acquired bumps in that fixture that have caused them to miss training; however it is the fitness of the former that remains in greatest doubt. Henry has been the only member of les Bleus’ squad to miss every session in Switzerland to date and is a very significant doubt. With the attacking talent at Domenech’s disposal the Barcelona forward may be rested on the bench allowing Anelka to start alongside Benzema. Alternatively Benzema could start alone at the head of a 4-2-3-1 system. Patrick Vieira has been ruled out of France’s opener despite training with increasing confidence while Samir Nasri has struggled with illness but should be able to play a part.

Predicted line-up: Coupet; Sagnol, Abidal, Gallas, Thuram; Toulalan, Makélélé, Ribéry, Malouda; Anelka, Benzema

The most certain bet is Under 2.5...but a 1x for Romania is likely too

Euro 2008 : Austria - Croatia

2008-06-08T00:59:00.002+03:00

Stern Opening Test For Co-HostsAs co-hosts of the tournament, there is extra pressure on Austria to succeed at Euro 2008 - yet the portents are not promising for Austrian fans. Apart from the fact that they are drawn in Group B with Germany, Poland and their first opponents, Croatia, all of whom qualified impressively, Austria lack big tournament experience, competitive preparation and current form going into Sunday's opener.

In contrast, Croatia are viewed by many as potential 'dark-horse' winners of Euro 2008.It is 10 years since Austria last qualified for a major tournament - the 1998 World Cup - and their participation in Euro 2008 was secured as co-hosts rather than through a qualifying group. In fact this will be Austria's first-ever appearance in a European Championship, as they failed to qualify on every one of their previous attempts.

Their underdog status is underlined by the fact that they are by some distance the lowest-ranked team involved in Euro 2008, having slipped out of the top 100 in Fifa's official rankings following a poor run of just one win in 14 matches up to the start of this year.On the other hand Croatia, who were quarter-finalists at Euro 96 and finished third at the 1998 World Cup in France, looked a fluid and potent attacking force during their qualifying campaign,. the highlight of which was beating England convincingly home and away. However, the Croats suffered a body blow in February, when star striker Eduardo da Silva had his leg shattered playing for Arsenal at Birmingham. The Brazilian-born forward had contributed 10 goals in 12 qualifiers, and his absence is bound to be felt by Slaven Bilic's side.

He had been the attacking focal point of an adventurous 4-1-3-2 system deployed by Bilic, a departure from the more physical approach adopted in the three preceding tournaments (World Cup and Euros) when Croatia, having qualified, got no further than the group stages.

Even Austria's coach, Josef Hickersberger, only feels his team have a 40 per cent chance of beating Croatia. But although they have lost all three of their previous matches against the Croats, Hickersberger insists his side should not be written off prematurely, and says home advantage underpins his 40 percent prediction. "Croatia are a world-class team," he said, "so my prediction is very optimistic. But if we have a good day and a little bit of luck, we can beat Croatia."

Austria

Emanuel Pogatetz is expected to be available after suffering a calf injury in training, manager Hickersberger saying there was only a small chance he wouldn't be fit in time to face Croatia.But Hickersberger was forced to make a late change to his squad when goalkeeper Helge Payer suffered a blood circulation problem.

Payer was replaced by Ramazan Ozcan, but the coach was coy about whether Alex Manninger or Jurgen Macho would be his first-choice goalkeeper.He was keeping his players on their toes during the week, saying in midweek that although he had a team in his head to play against Croatia, he wanted to use the remaining training sessions for the players to show their best.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Jurgen Macho (AEK Athens), Alex Manninger (Siena), Ramazan Ozcan (Hoffenheim).

Defenders: Gyorgy Garics (Napoli), Ronald Gercaliu (Austria Vienna), Martin Hiden (Austria Carinthia), Markus Katzer (Rapid Vienna), Jurgen Patocka (Rapid Vienna), Emanuel Pogatetz (Middlesbrough), Sebastian Proedl (Sturm Graz), Martin Stranzl (Spartak Moscow).

Midfielders: Rene Aufhauser (Salzburg), Christian Fuchs (Mattersburg), Andreas Ivanschitz (Panathinaikos), Umit Korkmaz (Rapid Vienna),Christoph Leitgeb (Salzburg), Jurgen Saeumel (Sturm Graz), Joachim Standfest (Austria Vienna), Ivica Vastic (Linz).

Strikers: Martin Harnik (Werder Bremen), Erwin Hoffer (Rapid Vienna), Roman Kienast (Ham-Kam), Roland Linz (Braga).

Croatia

Slaven Bilic has named his strongest team to face Austria, and said he will be keeping to the same formation he used in Croatia's recent friendlies against Moldova and Hungary.That suggests the team will be: Stipe Pletikosa; Vedran Corluka, Robert Kovac, Josip Simunic, Danijel Pranjic; Darijo Srna, Niko Kovac, Luka Modric, Niko Kranjcar; Mladen Petric, Ivica Olic.

Tips : 0-1 or 0-2 exacr score :
Austria not to score @ 2.1
Croatia - Austria 1 @ 1.7 local Bookies might slightely change the ods

Euro 2008 : Germany - Polonia

2008-06-07T23:58:00.002+03:00

>Second day of the European Championship ..and my first day of betting after a long break...
germany - poland is a interesting match...but Germany take-off like huge favorites.

>Group B kicks-off on Sunday and tournament favourites Germany will be looking to get off to a flying start against neighbours Poland, who are in the first European Championships finals. Everything looks set for a cracking match up.

Joachim Löw’s side rightly come into the tournament as one of the favourites following a superb qualification process and Germany will no doubt be looking to get themselves off to a winning start against Poland in Klagenfurt in their opener.

The Germans cruised through their qualifying group that included the Czech Republic and many believe they finished second on purpose as to avoid a ‘Group of Death’ like the one that Italy, France and Holland find themselves in.
The two teams met in the group stage at the World Cup 2006 in Dortmund and it took a 91st minute goal from substitute Oliver Neville to secure a narrow 1-0 win for the host nation. The occasion was huge then and the rivalry is such that the forthcoming clash is likely to be just as massive.

The German team that took to the field two years ago against Poland remains pretty much intact with just one or two changes expected. Co-trainer Hansi Flick has even joked that the Germans will be using exactly the same team talk they used last time out.

The one worry concerning the Germans going into the tournament is surprisingly their defence. Keeper Jens Lehmann has not had a lot of football this season at Arsenal and has not looked on top of his game during recent warm-up games.
Christophe Metzelder, a Löw favourite, will partner Per Mertesacker in the centre of the defence, but he too has missed a lot of games this season for Real Madrid through injury. The one positive thing is that the same concerns were being raised prior to the World Cup in 2006 and they proved unfounded as the Germans reached the semi-final

Germany

Joachim Löw has intimated that he may play Bayern Munich striker Lukas Podolski on the left hand side of midfield in what will be the only real surprise in his line-up. Mario Gomez looks to have won the battle to partner Miroslav Klose up front with Marcell Jansen to play at left back with Bayern team mate Philipp Lahm on the other flank.
Predicted Line-Up: Lehmann, Lahm, Metzelder, Mertesacker, Jansen, Frings, Ballack, Schweinsteiger, Podolski, Gomez, Klose

Poland

Poland’s preparations have been hit after Dortmund midfielder Jakub Blaszczykowski suffered a hamstring injury which means he will miss the finals.
However, there is better news regarding defender Michal Zewlakow, who has recovered from a leg injury and will be ready for his country’s opening game in Group B. The other late injury news concerns third-choice keeper Tomasz Kuszczak, who has suffered a back injury and is also out of the tournament.
Predicted Line-Up: Boruc, Zewlakow, Wawrzyniak, Bak, Wasilewski, Lewandowski, Lobodzinski, Murawski, Dudka, Smolarek, Zurawski

I predict a german victory 2-0 most probably..so
Germany - Poland 1 ( -1) @ 2.25 bwin
Germany - Poland - under 1.5 yellow cards First Half @ 2.02 B win or bet 365

Roma - Manchester United x @ 3.2

2008-03-31T15:40:00.000+03:00

The game at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday night will incredibly be the fifth time that these two sides have met in the past 12 months. Despite all the talk of revenge, it remains to be seen if the Giallorossi have mentally recovered from the painful 7-1 thrashing they received at Old Trafford that saw them crash out 8-3 on aggregate at this stage of the competition last season. Roma and Man Utd met in the group stages this term, with the English champions winning 1-0 at Old Trafford, and the game finishing 1-1 in a dead-rubber match in the Eternal City.

The Italians’ performances in these games, particularly in the former, when they deserved at least a draw, perhaps suggests that they have recovered psychologically. Roma go into the match having been in fantastic form over the past month. They have cut Inter’s lead at the top of Serie A from 11 points to just four, although they did miss a brilliant chance to move even closer when they could only manage a 1-1 draw at Cagliari at the weekend.

The Giallorossi performed wonderfully in the last round in knocking out Spanish champions, and league-leaders, Real Madrid 4-2 on aggregate. Luciano Spalletti’s men won both legs 2-1, but it was in the return game at the Santiago Bernabeu when they particularly impressed, with Daniele De Rossi and Alberto Aquilani monsters in the midfield. Roma are in fact Italy’s only remaining representatives in the Champions League, and they will be hoping not to follow Inter and Milan in losing to English opposition.

Schalke 04 - Fc Barcelona 1 @ 2.5

2008-03-31T15:38:00.001+03:00

When the quarter finals draw of the Champions League was made earlier this month, Barcelona could not help but smile when being paired with Schalke 04 because the German outfit appeared to be one of the easier teams that they could have been paired with
..The Blaugrana are probably not smiling now however, after a weekend result that brought official recognition of crisis at the club and a supporters' protest at training.It does take much to bring about talk of major problems at any of the top clubs in Spain, but at Camp Nou things are particularly delicate this season given the fact that the side one no silverware last year.Also, the performances are not living upto the expectations and that has caused outrage allied with the fact that off-field matters are finally beginning to have a real affect on it.
A domineering first half against Betis saw Frank Rijkaard's team take a two-goal lead into the break, but then a complete collapse allowed the home side to net three times in the second period and win the game.That alone would have been a major cause for concern but added to Barça's recent poor results, when rivals Real Madrid have failed, have meant that the club's fans believe that their team have missed a huge chance to win the title.FanPressureAll that coupled with accusations that players are feigning injury or out partying even after defeats finally came to a head when 200 fans turned up to let the squad know their feelings on Sunday.
It was a real outlet of emotion in a part of Spain where conservatism is the norm and those supporters will have to hope that they have given the players the gee up they needed to play better rather than shatter their confidence altogether.After losing to Betis, Rijkaard may have made one huge error as he stated that the team's second half performance was "inexplicable".

The last Barça coach to tell the press he did not know what had happened was Bobby Robson and the board at the time took that to mean that he had no idea how to change things.Robson may have won two cups in his only season at the helm, but it was losing the league to Real Madrid that saw him moved upstairs to become a scout as Louis van Gaal took over.

Live Uefa Champions League only at http://www.myp2p.eu/index.php?part=sports using Sopcast or TVAants

UEFA Champions League draw live

2008-03-14T10:19:00.003+02:00

It will start at 13:00

Arsenal - Liverpool
AS Roma - Manchester United
Fenerbahce-Chelsea
Schalke 04 - Barcelona

Zenit St Petersburg - marseille 1 @ 2.10

2008-03-12T13:48:00.002+02:00

Marseille go into this second leg with a 3-1 advantage gained from the first encounter, in which a late goal for the Russian side kept Zenit's qualification hopes still alive.Zenit have just kicked-off their season with the Russian Super Cup, in which they defeated Lokomotiv Moscow 2-1 to take home the first honour of the season. This will surely prove to be an important boost for them ahead of this second leg and could give them the right psychological conditioning.On the other hand, their only other competitive games in this solar year have been the Uefa Cup games, and therefore the Russian side is far from being in form. However, they still managed to eliminate Villarreal a few weeks back, therefore Zenit still believe that they have all chances of going through.

Zenit

Mar 9, 2008 Super Cup L. Moscow 1 - 2 Zenit
Mar 6, 2008 UEFA Cup Marseille 3 - 1 Zenit
Feb 21, 2008 UEFA Cup Villarreal 2 - 1 Zenit
Feb 13, 2008 UEFA Cup Zenit 1 - 0 Villarreal
Dec 5, 2007 UEFA Cup Everton 1 - 0 Zenit

Marseille

Mar 6, 2008 UEFA Cup Marseille 3 - 1 Zenit
Mar 1, 2008 Ligue 1 Marseille 2 - 1 Auxerre
Feb 24, 2008 Ligue 1 Toulouse 0 - 0 Marseille
Feb 21, 2008 UEFA Cup S. Moscow 2 - 0 Marseille
Feb 17, 2008 Ligue 1 Marseille 2 - 1 PSG

Zenit
Kim Dong Jin is suspended for this game, but Shirokov and Šírl will return after serving a one match suspension. Šírl, Ricksen, Porgebnyak and Anyukov must be careful not to receive a yellow card in order to play the next game.
Marseille
No players are suspended for the French side and Cana is back from suspension after missing the first leg. Mandanda, Cissé , Nasri and Niang are just one yellow card away from suspension. Julien Rodriguez is set to miss out, while Niang will return after skipping the weekend win over Saint Etienne.

Getafe - Benfica Lisbon X @ 3.00

2008-03-12T02:36:00.001+02:00

Getafe hold the advantage over Portuguese giants Benfica going into the second leg of their UEFA Cup tie on Wednesday after recording a 2-1 victory in Portugal last Thursday.Ruben de La Red and Pablo Hernández gave the Spanish side a 2-0 advantage, before Pedro Mantorres pulled a goal back for Benfica inside the final quarter of an hour.The away goals rule dictates that Benfica will need to score at least two goals at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez on Thursday if they are to have any chance of progressing to the quarter finals.

Fernando Chalana will become the third different coach to lead Benfica this season when he takes his place in the dugout against Getafe on Wednesday, following Fernando Santos and Jose Antonio Camacho into the hotseat.Camacho resigned after their 2-2 draw with Uniao Leiria at the weekend left As Águias fourteen points behind league leaders FC Porto at the top of the Portuguese league.Chalana - a former playing legend at the Estádio da Luz - has the task of lifting the morale of a team that has failed to win in their last five games in all competitions and one that is at a serious disadvantage after conceding two away goals in the first leg.

Probable Starting XI Getafe: Ustari, Contra, Belenguer, Tena, Licht, Gavilan, de la Red, Celestini, Casquero, Albin, Blanco

Probable Starting XI benfica: Quim, Nelson, Edcarlos, Katsouranis, Leo, Petit, Rui Costa, Pereira, Gomes, Rodriguez, Makukula.

Bayern Munchen - Anderlecht 1 H(0-1) @ 1.6

2008-03-12T02:32:00.001+02:00

Few if anyone predicted the result from the first leg, which saw Bayern thrash Anderlecht 5-0 at the Constant Vanden Stock stadium. A fairly even first ten minutes saw the Belgian side have a good go at their German visitors, before Hamit Altintop struck an awesome shot past Zitka.
The sending off of Wasilewski and a second goal from Luca Toni just before half-time really stunned Anderlecht and Bayern were rampant in the second period with further goals from Podolski, Klose and Ribéry.
There is certainly no way back for the Belgian side, who will be playing purely for pride in the second leg at the Allianz Arena.

With a five goal thrashing in the first leg, all hope is lost for Anderlecht in the Uefa Cup this season. To say they need a miracle is perhaps the understatement of the century.
All the ‘Purple and Whites’ have to play for is pride. Another severe beating at hands of Bayern Munich would bring further criticism from a demanding Brussels public.
Ariël Jacobs side have already found themselves under pressure this season with Standard Liege and Club Brugge gunning for the title. Anderlecht are down in fourth in the Jupiler League a full nine points back.

The Belgian side will be looking to get at Bayern early on as they did in the first ten minutes of the first leg. Bayern’s defensive record is extremely strong at the moment so the away side will do well if they are to find a way past the defence in front of Michael Rensing’s goal.
Anderlecht had a 2-0 win at the weekend away to Charleroi so at least arrive in Munich on the back of a positive league result which has seen them move up one place to fifth in their domestic league

Probable starting XI: Rensing - Sagnol, Breno, van Buyten, Lahm - Sosa, van Bommel, Ottl, Kroos - Klose, Podolski

Probable starting XI: Zitka, Gillet, Juhasz, Deschacht, van Damme, Biglia, Polak, Boussoufa, Goor, Frutos, Serhat

Hamburg - Bayer leverkusen 1 @ 2.10

2008-03-12T02:31:00.001+02:00

This round of 16 match between the German title chasers is finely poised after an evenly fought first leg. Bayer Leverkusen lead by the solitary goal, and with no away goal against them will start as slight favourites. However, HSV will be confident of getting a result at home with their strong defence.
Both back lines looked strong in the first leg with clear chances few and far between, but with 13 minutes left Greek international Theofanis Gekas rose to meet a Tranquillo Barnetta corner giving the HSV keeper Frank Rost no chance and Bayer a 1-0 win

A 1-0 lead from the first leg and an impressive 2-0 win over Hannover at the weekend has given Bayer Leverkusen a great deal of self-confidence ahead of their trip North to face Hamburg in the second leg of this Uefa Cup tie.
Michael Skibbe’s side have put themselves in the driving seat with the 1-0 victory achieved last week at the Bay-Arena. They also believe that the omens are on their side as they beat fellow German side Werder Bremen on the way to lifting the trophy 20 years ago.
Omens or no omens the form shown by the Werkself this season on their travels is enough to have them confident of achieving the minimum result of a draw they need.

Probable starting XI: Rost, Boateng, Reinhardt, Mathijsen, Brecko, Demel, Jarolim, van der Vaart, Trochowski, Guerrero, Olic

Probable starting XI: Adler, Castro, Haggui, Friedrich, Sarpei, Vidal, Rolfes, Schneider, Barbarez, Barnetta, Kießling

PSV Eindhoven - Tottenham 2 @ 2.5

2008-03-12T02:28:00.002+02:00

Juande Ramos will need all the magic that he can muster if he is to continue his romance with the UEFA Cup when his Tottenham side take on PSV in Eindhoven on Wednesday evening.The Spanish coach was furious after the first leg as the north London outfit were beaten at home and he reprimanded his squad for still revelling in their recent Carling Cup win.PSV showed their experience at the highest level in Europe in the opening game at White Hart Lane as they capitalised on one mistake and looked well organised and strong at the back.

PSV

Mar 7 A Tottenham 1-0
Mar 3 A Utrecht 1-3
Feb 24 H De Graafschap 4-1
Feb 21 A Helsingborg 2-1
Feb 16 A Willem II 1-0
Feb 13 H Helsingborg2-0

Tottenham

Mar 10 H West Ham Utd. 4-0
Mar 7 A PSV 0-1
Mar 1 A Birmingham City 1-4
Feb 24 N Chelsea 2-1
Feb 21 H Slavia Prague 1-1
Feb 14 A Slavia Prague 2-1

Ibrahim Affelay is set to play despite missing training on Monday with a back injury. Otman Bakkal, Balázs Dzsudzsák and Danko Lazović are all available to coach Sef Vergoossen or he may choose to stay loyal to the trio of Jason Culina, Danny Koevermans and Edison Méndez, who all played well at White Hart Lane

For Tottenham to win through to the next round they will have to produce one of their best performances in Europe since they returned at the start of last term. Ramos is seen as the sort of tactician and motivator that could produce a surprise, but his team will have to be a lot better than they were in the first game.

Liverpool - Newcastle 1 @ 1.4

2008-03-07T20:15:00.001+02:00

Kevin Keegan returns to Anfield having endured a torrid start to his second coming at St. James’ Park. His first spell holders fonder memories: Keegan was the manager of Newcastle when his side succumbed to a last minute Stan Collymore goal in a 4-3 defeat that is possibly still the most entertaining Premier League game ever. That Newcastle team had flair - Ginola, Beardsley and Asprilla, as well as the goals of Les Ferdinand, and they went so close to winning the championship under Keegan’s guidance. This time, it's been different: sections of the Toon Army were delighted when Keegan returned but, to be honest, Keegan could not have imagined such a dreadful sequence of results in his darkest nightmares.

Liverpool

05 Mar v West Ham (h) WON 4-0 (Prem)
02 Mar v Bolton (a) WON 3-1 (Prem)
23 Feb v Middlesbrough (h) WON 3-2 (Prem)
19 Feb v Internazionale (h) WON 2-0 (CL)
16 Feb v Barnsley (h) LOST 1-2 (FA Cup)
10 Feb v Chelsea (a) DREW 0-0 (Prem)

Newcastle

01 Mar v Blackburn (h) LOST 0-1 (Prem)
23 Feb v Manchester United (h) LOST 1-5 (Prem)
09 Feb v Aston Villa (a) LOST 1-4 (Prem)
03 Feb v Middlesbrough (h) DREW 1-1 (Prem)
29 Jan v Arsenal (a) LOST 0-3 (Prem)
26 Jan v Arsenal (a) LOST 0-3 (FA Cup)

Last Starting XI Liverpool (4-2-3-1 v West Ham): Reina - Arbeloa, Carragher, Skrtel, Riise - Mascherano, Xabi Alonso - Kuyt (Benayoun 63), Gerrard, Babel (Pennant 76)- Torres (Crouch 82).

Last Starting XI Newcastle (4-4-2 v Blackburn): Harper - Beye, Taylor, Faye, Jose Enrique - Milner, Barton, Butt (Martins 67), Duff (N’Zogbia 78) - Owen, Smith.

Bundesliga preview and tips - day 23

2008-03-07T12:34:00.002+02:00

Borussia Dortmund – Hertha Berlin

Borussia Dortmund’s 2-0 defeat to Werder Bremen last weekend brought to an end a run of three successive victories for Thomas Doll’s side and they will be seriously challenged by Hertha Berlin on Friday.
Although looking safe from the drop-zone, 13th place in the league for a team of Dortmund’s calibre must be seen as a disappointment. Much will depend on the form of strike duo Mladen Petric and Alexander Frei.
The Berlin side look to be clicking of late with their strike force of Pantelic and Raffael looking increasingly dangerous. After losing comprehensively to Frankfurt in the first game back after the winter break, Hertha have won three and drawn one.
An away win against Stuttgart showed that they have what it takes to gain points on the road.
Tip: 1

Arminia Bielefeld – Schalke

Following their fantastic penalty shoot-out victory over Porto on Wednesday night, Schalke return to Bundesliga action as they visit Bielefeld looking to put an end to a run of three successive defeats.
The fact that they come up against a team in free-fall will give them even more confidence of picking up a valuable three points, but they will have to avoid the dangers of complacency or a Champions League hangover as so often is the case.
Bielefeld’s point last weekend against Rostock brought to an end a run of five consecutive losses, but trainer Michael Frontzeck is still awaiting his first win since replacing Ernst Middendorp as the Bielefeld trainer.
Tip: 2 or under 2.5

Stuttgart – Werder Bremen

The most attractive tie of round 32 sees last season’s champions entertain this season’s pretenders to the crown Werder Bremen. A disappointing midweek display from Werder saw them lose 2-0 to Glasgow Rangers so trainer Thomas Schaaf will be looking for a positive reaction on Saturday as Werder look to keep up the pressure on leaders Bayern.
Stuttgart were not in action last weekend due to the cancellation of their match away at Cottbus. They have had that extra time off, whereas Werder will no doubt be a little fatigued from their travels to Scotland.
Although out of the title race, Stuttgart could have a big say in the destination of the crown they currently hold. They beat Bayern earlier in the season at the Gottlieb-Daimler after seemingly being in the middle of a crisis. Could they be about to do the same to second placed Werder.
Tip 1x or Over 2.5

Eintracht Frankfurt – Bochum

Frankfurt will be looking to add impetus to their push for a European place with a win over Bochum on Saturday. Currently in seventh, they are four points behind fifth placed Karlsruhe, who face Bayern this weekend.
After a promising start after the winter break, Eintracht have slipped back to their old ways a little of late with two defeats in their last three games. Last weekend’s heavy 4-1 loss to Hamburg would have hurt and trainer Friedhelm Funkel will be looking for a reaction.
Bochum have hit a little form of late with successive wins over both Hannover and more surprisingly last weekend against Bayer Leverkusen. The return from suspension of Stanislav Sestak will be a welcome boost for them.
Tip: 1

Wolfsburg – Energie Cottbus

Defeat last weekend to Karlsruhe brought to and end a club best run of form which saw the ‘Wölfe’ go seven matches unbeaten. Their resolve will be tested on Saturday against an Energie Cottbus side who are desperate for points and who have had a free week following the postponement of their game with Stuttgart last week.
Cottbus have lost their last two home games but picked up points in their last two away games so they won’t mind too much their trip to the Volkswagen Arena.
Felix Magath’s side will want a swift return to winning ways as they look to build on recent form and start to move up from the mid-table position of 10th.
Tip : 1

Bayern Munich – Karlsruhe

Bayern return to Bundesliga action two days after their 5-0 demolition of Anderlecht in the Uefa Cup looking to extend their lead at the top of the Bundesliga. With Werder having a tough trip to Stuttgart, Bayern will be fancying their chances of extending their lead from four points to six or perhaps seven.
Ottmar Hitzfeld possesses the squad to rotate with the likes of Ribéry, Klose, Toni and Schweinsteiger only playing 45 minutes on Thursday.
Karlsruhe continue to soar at the top end of the table and they would surely be happy to come away from the Allianz Arena with a point.
Tip : 1 H(0-1)

Duisburg – Hansa Rostock

Duisburg remain bottom of the pile in the Bundesliga and their best chance of survival lies in their ability to take points off of the teams at the bottom end of the table. They succeeded in doing that two weeks ago against Bielefeld so will be looking to do the same against Rostock at home on Saturday.
Hansa have managed to pull themselves clear of the bottom three but a few results the wrong way could well see them sucked back in this really is another one of those “six-pointers” that could count for so much at the end of the season.
Tip: Over 2.5 or Niculescu to score - Duisburg

Nürnberg – Hamburg

Two teams at opposite ends of the table meet on Sunday with Nürnberg hosting third place Hamburg. ‘Der Klub’ are only off the bottom of the table on goal-difference, so a defeat to high-flying HSV could very well see them at the foot of the table at the end of Sunday.
Hamburg are looking to fend off the challenge from Bayer Leverkusen, who they lost to on Thursday in the Uefa Cup, while at the same time keeping up their challenge to both Werder Bremen and Bayern Munich.
Time will tell whether Hamburg show any ill-effects from their midweek exertions, but with Thomas von Heesen still looking for his first league win in charge of Nürnberg, he will be hoping that is the case.
Tip: x

Bayer Leverkusen – Hannover

The final game of the weekend sees Bayer Leverkusen entertaining Hannover at the Bay-Arena. Michael Skibbe’s side were involved in midweek Uefa Cup action so will be a little more tired than Hannover, but they do enjoy home advantage.
They need the three points on Sunday as Hamburg currently lead them by just that number of points.
Hannover meanwhile continue to have a consistent season and are maintaining their challenge for a European qualification berth. They are currently eighth, four points behind Karlsruhe.
Tip: 1

La liga - Spain Round 27 - tips and previews

2008-03-07T12:29:00.002+02:00

Real Madrid - RCD Espanyol

No Copa, no Champions League - there's just one shot at silverware left for the Bernabeu boys. Real Madrid must quickly put midweek's disappointing 2-1 home loss to Roma behind them and focus on the visit of Espanyol.The hosts have lost just once at home in the Liga this season - unfortunately for them, it was their last game at the Bernabeu against Getafe. Indeed, in all competitions, Madrid have lost five of their last seven.Espanyol, however, have actually lost seven of their last nine, providing you count their penalty shoot-out defeat to Athletic. But even waving that away as a draw doesn't make their record that much more impressive.Raul Tamudo could yet make a dramatic injury comeback on Saturday, though, and nothing peps the perequitos quite like their captain's presence.
Tip : x2

Real Zaragoza - Atletico Madrid

Zaragoza, meanwhile, could very well end the weekend in the relegation zone if things don't go their way here. Defeat at home to Atletico will leave them nervously waiting for Sunday's results so as to learn their fate.For now, though, it's in their hands, and the blanquillos will look to build on their fairly respectable home record against the rojiblancos.Atleti, however, are high on confidence after a fine win over Barcelona last week, and will seek to either re-take, or claw clear in forth place, depending on how Espanyol fare earlier.Kun Aguero in particular will look to build on his recent good form, but the shaky defence had better watch out...
Tip: Under 2.5 or x

Sevilla FC - Levante UD

Moving through to Sunday, and Levante travel to Andalucia to meet a demoralised, tired Sevilla. In short, it could be one of those days for the hosts.The Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan side found themselves eliminated from the Champions League midweek on penalties after a stunning fightback by Fenerbahce, and the 120 minutes of action - coupled with that heartbreaking loss - will no doubt have taken their toll.Levante, meanwhile, are starting to believe. Only (only!) ten points separate the Valencians from survival, and the completion of an underdog tale that even Hollywood would dismiss as being too outlandish.Their away record remains awful, though, with just four points from a possible 36 so far.
Tip: 1 H(0-1) or Sevilla will score 3 or more

CA Osasuna - UD Almeria

Surprise package Almeria, meanwhile, head north with the hope of punishing struggling Osasuna.This is, of course, Almeria's first season in the top flight, but that's not stopped them from battling up to a highly respectable 8th place.Osasuna, once upon a time a couple of seasons ago, were capable of even better placings, but now they're more apt to battle against relegation.The Pamplonans, however, are back on home soil after a draw at Villarreal last week, and the partisan Navarre crowd has certainly helped them this season more than last.
Tip: x

Athletic Club Bilbao - Real Valladolid

Valladolid, meanwhile, are back in the top flight, and Athletic had better beware.For although the Basques have far greater pedigree in the Primera, they have amazingly failed to beat the Pucela in the last eight meetings between the sides.Still, Athletic won't let head-to-head history put them off. However, the hosts have both Exteberria and Yeste suspended for this one, and are one point behind their visitors...
Tip 1 or Under 2.5

Real Racing Club - Real Betis

Next up, Racing prepare to continue their UEFA/Intertoto challenge with a visit from on-form Betis.The Santander men have gone off the boil just slightly of late, but they remain incredibly tough to beat at home, with the joint-second best defensive record on their own turf in the whole Liga.Betis, however, fear nobody after embarking on a fine run under recently-appointed boss Paco Chaparro. From relegation makeweights to mid-table hoverers, it's a certain improvement for them.However, 11th place can be deceptive, as they're still just three points into the safety zone.
No bet

Real Murcia - Getafe CF

Murcia would love to be in that position. Ill-fortune and a decline in their own standards has seen them slip to 19th place, seven points behind safety.Amazingly, they're just four points ahead of Levante, too, and that's clearly not good enough. Can new coach Javier Clemente turn it around?Geta, meanwhile, have recovered from their own relegation woes to climb up to the top half, albeit with a few scrapes along the way. Tiredness could be a factor for them here, though, after their UEFA Cup heroics in Lisbon against Benfica.
Tip: 1x

RCD Mallorca - Recreativo de Huelva

Mallorca, meanwhile, managed to fight back for a valuable draw against Geta last season, but need to get some wins on the board.They'll be hopeful of doing so against Recre, who have both Beto and - of course - Quique Alvarez suspended after their rigours of Real Madrid last week.The Barralets are on 31 points; a win for Recre will see them leapfrog their hosts, although the Huelvans have never won a top-level game against Mallorca.
Tip: 1

Valencia CF - Deportivo La Coruna

Valencia, meanwhile, have their pseudo-derby for he early evening game. It's going to be a tough one - Los Che have no fewer than three players suspended, and of course their requisite off-pitch problems.Los Che are firmly mid-table, which Depor will be envious of, but coach Koeman will still demand victory of his charges.Miguel Angel Lotina, meanwhile, is riding the crest of a wave of popularity after pulling his side out of the relegation zone for the first time in living memory.Still, they're just one point into safety, and can't rest on their laurels.
Tip: 1

FC Barcelona - Villarreal CF

Nor, for that matter, can Barcelona.The blaugrana toyed with Celtic sufficiently to qualify for the next stage of the Champions League - the only Spanish side to do so - and after a period of rest will welcome the Yellow Submarine to Camp Nou.They'll be without Lionel Messi, of course, which may have Villarreal fancying their chances. However, the free-scoring form of the early season has deserted Manuel Pellegrini's side of late, and recovering it here could well be difficult.
Tip: 1 H(0-1)