Liverpool Everton Man City Villa Chelsea Arsenal
By David Tindall and Jonathan Turner
March 25 2006
The fluency which marked the Blues' displays in the first half of the season simply isn't there at present and it was no surprise that the goal came via a set-piece. They should be up to carving out another narrow success here though as City have been lamentable away from home.
Aston Villa v Fulham
After their memorable win over champions Chelsea on Sunday there will be plenty of people taking a close look at the 3/1 chalked up about Fulham piling the pressure on Villa boss David O'Leary by grabbing the three points here. We won't be joining them though because just three of the Cottagers' 35 points this season have come on their travels and that's a record that simply can't be ignored. It's a real shame because Villa do look there for the taking as there are real signs that the wheels are starting to come off, with three successive defeats including a 4-1 mauling at Everton last time. O'Leary's men do have an outstanding record against Fulham though, winning all four Premiership games at Villa Park and losing just one in nine overall. There's just one point and one place between this pair in the table and in the circumstances a closely-fought draw looks the way to go.
Verdict: Aston Villa 1 Fulham 1
Chelsea v Man City
Chelsea got back to winning ways in midweek by taking out Newcastle 1-0 in the FA Cup but given that the Magpies offered virtually nothing in terms of an attacking threat we shouldn't get carried away with either the result or the clean sheet (only their third from 17 matches this year). The fluency which marked the Blues' displays in the first half of the season simply isn't there at present and it was no surprise that the goal came via a set-piece. They should be up to carving out another narrow success here though as City have been lamentable away from home (nine defeats in 14 Premiership games), have lost their last two in the league and are now out of the FA Cup after their meek surrender at home to West Ham on Monday. They've at least pushed Chelsea more than most in recent clashes - being the only side to beat them last season and not losing by more than a single goal in the last five. The lack of goals in those five games is noticeable (just four in total) so we make no apologies for again putting up skipper John Terry to get on the scoresheet in a low-scoring Chelsea win.
Verdict: Chelsea 1 Man City 0
Liverpool v Everton
It's hard to remember when the Reds and the Blues went into a derby clash with both in such sparkling form. Liverpool have gone goal-crazy, winning their last three games 5-1, 3-1 and 7-0. Everton, meanwhile, have rocketed up the table and since Liverpool beat them 3-1 at Goodison on December 28th they've won six out of six at home in the Premiership. Probably the decisive factor here in Liverpool's home advantage. Rafa Benitez's men have taken 39 points out of a possible 48 at home and conceded just six goals in 16 games. Everton, meanwhile, have netted just 10 times away from home and lost seven out of 15. Despite their upturn in fortunes their recent away form is nothing special with two draws and a defeat in their last three in the Premiership. Benfica made light of Liverpool's impressive home record but in hindsight they caught the Reds on an off night. With all their strikers now finding the net for fun, Liverpool look an unstoppable force at present and get the nod here at 4/6.
Verdict: Liverpool 2 Everton 0
Portsmouth v Arsenal
Portsmouth were being written off as relegation certainties only a fortnight ago but two wins out of two have sparked a glut of 'Harry Houdini' headlines. Redknapp's men have certainly restored confidence after snatching a last-gasp victory against Manchester City before taking advantage of an under-strength West Ham last Saturday. But a reinvigorated Arsenal side is a totally different proposition. The Gunners are absolutely flying now and their defeat of Real Madrid in the Champions League has given them fresh belief in their bid to snatch a Champions League spot. They can continue to make up the ground on chief rivals Spurs with victory here although the bookies are lying in wait and the best 8/11 looks designed to put potential Gunners backers off. Well, it's done the trick with us.
Verdict: Portsmouth 1 Arsenal 3
Sunderland v Blackburn
There's a strong temptation to get with Rovers at a shade of odds-on here because they are one of the form teams in the Premiership and take on a Sunderland outfit that's the only side in England not to have won at home in the league this season. Blackburn have won four of their last five (and should have made it five out of five given their dominance at Spurs) and one of those victories came against the rock-bottom Mackems. That game gives us a massive clue as to the best way to get with Mark Hughes' side - backing Craig Bellamy to score anytime at odds-against. The livewire striker grabbed both goals in that match and is currently in unstoppable form, netting in four of his last five matches. He seems to be thriving playing with Florent Sinama Pongolle and his searing pace can again cause a static Sunderland rearguard all sorts of problems, making this bet one of the most appealing wagers of the weekend.
Verdict: Sunderland 0 Blackburn 3
Wigan v West Ham
You can't praise these two sides highly enough given what they've achieved since their promotion to the Premiership. Both are in the top half of the table, Wigan reached the Carling Cup final and the Hammers booked their place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup earlier this week. Two games within 48 hours at the start of the week indicates that West Ham might be vulnerable but Wigan themselves showed earlier in the campaign that if you are winning then tiredness isn't the factor it might be. There are also a few other conflicting signals - Wigan won 2-0 at Upton Park in the reverse fixture but are yet to beat the Hammers in three attempts at the JJB. We're therefore going to leave the match result well alone and instead go for a player on each side to find the net in what we believe could turn out to be a surprisingly open game. Dean Ashton has underlined his class since his move from Norwich in the January transfer window and five goals in seven games - including a brace against Manchester City on Monday - suggests he's overpriced at 2/1 to score again. And after the goal-grabbing success of central defenders Sami Hyypia and John Terry in midweek we can't resist Wigan's inspirational skipper Arjan de Zeeuw to finally get off the mark for the season by finding the net himself. He's had enough chances and it's surely only a matter of time before his forays forward at set-pieces pay dividends.
Verdict: Wigan 2 West Ham 3