Premiership Preview by Matthew Chapple (22-24 November) (Thursday, November 20, 2008)

Premiership Previews 22nd - 24th November Chelsea V Newcastle United Saturday 15:00 Joe Kinnear's Newcastle side will make the trip down to London this week in hope they can attain some more points. They have the tough task of going to Stamford Bridge where Phil Scolari's Chelsea team will be expecting to get all three points. Once more, Newcastle haven't picked up a single point in the league when they have gone to Chelsea in the last 5 visits with Chelsea winning all five games between the two sides. The statistics are heavily against the away side but Joe Kinnear will fancy his sides chances nevertheless. Chelsea have yet to hit a low point this season with their only defeat being against Liverpool and have only dropped points in the league on two occasions against two decent sides in Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. They have a knack of brushing a side the smaller sides in the league and this match should be no different. Since the home defeat to Liverpool they have managed to pick themselves up and win their next four league matches pretty emphatically scoring 13 in 4 games and conceding zero in return. Their rear guard has been in superb form this season but they may be without their captain John Terry who has a foot injury. The defender didn't play in midweek for England and might not feature this weekend. They will also be delighted with the return of Didier Drogba who is starting to get a few games under his belt. However, Nicolas Anelka is good goal scoring form and will be looking to keep the Ivorian forward out of the starting line up. The French man scored a brace on Saturday evening and it would be hard to leave him out of the starting eleven on that performance. Newcastle fans will be slightly disappointed with their sides results at the weekend when they could only manage a draw at home to Steve Bruce's Wigan Athletic side. The game finished 2-2 but the talking point was the dismissal of Wigan defender Emerson Boyce after what looked a fair challenge only to see a second yellow card brandished. Wigan were looking the better side and that sending off certainly influenced the game. Despite that rather fortuitous result, Newcastle's results and performance on the pitch have improved greatly recently with the Joe Kinnear factor appearing to be the catalyst. They are still at the foot of the table though just two points off the bottom. A defeat this Saturday could realistically see them lye in 20th position if other teams results go against them. Something the Newcastle fans and board won't be satisfied with. Match odds - Chelsea 1/5 Bet365 Draw 9/2 Partybets Newcastle 12/1 Canbet Prediction - Chelsea Liverpool V Fulham Saturday 15:00 Liverpool will be looking to build upon their result at the weekend and secure another set of three points as they prepare to play host to Fulham this weekend. With Liverpool winning five of their six home games this season and Fulham yet to register a win on their travels, the end result really looks a formality. The head-to-head doesn't bode well for Fulham either with four of the previous five league encounters between these two sides played at Anfield ending in the home side winning. Liverpool have also scored 14 in those games with Fulham scoring just the two. A tough match ahead for Fulham it would appear. Rafael Benitez will be fully aware that every single Liverpool fan out there will now have their eyes set on that Premiership title after their impressive start to the season. They are level on points with Chelsea with Chelsea's superior goal difference separating the two sides. Liverpool have had problems with beating some of the smaller sides when they have met at Anfield as most sides tend to play very defensively in hope they can walk away from Liverpool with a point. Liverpool don't have problems with creating chances but it is converting them which is the problem. Robbie Keane scored a couple at Anfield when they played West Brom and many punters expect him to go on from that. His open goal miss from just a few yards on Saturday won't have helped his already low confidence. Fernando Torres made a second half appearance in place on Robbie Keane and also failed to put away a very easy goal opportunity. Fortunately for Liverpool, Steven Gerrard and Dirk Kuyt were on hand to put two chances away and seal the win but if Liverpool are to mount any serious title challenge then the strikers will need to get more involved in the goals. Gary Hodgeson will know is side will have it all to do if they are to take anything away from Anfield on Saturday. They haven't travelled well this season and have just the one point to show for their efforts away from home in a 1-1 draw with Portsmouth. They do struggle for goal away with just two from five away league matches. Andy Johnson certainly has the potential to score but Fulham do lack a creative player in the middle of the park. Funnily enough their defence hasn't been the problem and have conceded just one away from home in each of their four previous away matches. Some will say that, that is one too many but for a Fulham side who have a reputation for shipping a few, it is a pretty good statistic. They have faced some weak opponents though of late and this will be a much sterner test. Match odds - Liverpool ¼ Bet365 Draw 17/4 Sportingbet Fulham 52/5 Canbet Prediction - Liverpool Manchester City V Arsenal Saturday 15:00 By far one of the more attractive matches the Premiership has to offer this weekend as Arsene Wenger will be looking for a much improved performance after Saturday's home defeat. While Manchester City boss Mark Hughes will be desperate to get back to winning ways after going four league games without a win. With the talent on show this really does have the potential to be a very good game with a lot of attacking football. It is Arsenal though who go into the game with the better record over City with Arsenal winning the nine of the previous ten league encounters between the two sides. Manchester City's only league victory over Arsenal coming back in 2006 in Manchester. Mark Hughes's has been backed by the board to turn City's fortunes around and has been rumoured to be on the verge of receiving a very large transfer fund when the January transfer window opens. Until then he will have to work with what he has got and get the best out of the players he has available. Something it would appear, he isn't doing too well judging by their recent results in the league. Their away draw at Hull will be seen as a poor result by most football followers but that was their first points in the league for three games with their previous three matches in the league ending in defeats. A cause for concern will be their results against the better sides in the league this season. They have had games at home against Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur and lost both. If they are to break into the top four then have to beat their nearest competition. City certainly have attacking ability with the likes of Robinho and Wright Philips bombing down the flanks and Stephen Ireland lurking in the centre of the park. These three will be key if they are to pick up a good result on Saturday. Arsenal are starting to look very inconsistent. Their defeat on Saturday to Martin O'Neill's Aston Villa did come as a surprise as Arsenal have now lost two home games in the early part of the season. Their away form has been a mixed bag with some of their matches ending in comfortable victories for the Londoners while some they have really struggled to match their opponents. Their last away game at Stoke proved this. They were simply out muscled and Stoke fully deserved the win. Their pretty football will work against sides that play open attacking football but when it comes to sides who sit back and hold out, they seem to find no answers. However, Manchester City will look to attack at every opportunity and that is why we fancy the away sides chances despite their poor form of late. We expect City to play right into Arsenal hands and get punished on the break. This should be a very open game and could well be a goal feast for the neutrals. Match odds - Manchester City 51/20 Canbet Draw 23/10 Bet365 Arsenal 6/5 ToteSport Prediction - Arsenal Middlesborough V Bolton Saturday 15:00 Gary Megson's Bolton Wanderers side make the trip up to Tyneside on Saturday in desperate need of some points. With the bottom half of the table separated by just a couple of points it means no one is safe from dropping in and out of the bottom three. A defeat for Bolton could see them drop back into the bottom three while a win for Middlesborough could see them close the gap on the teams above. This match has always been a hard one to call and the head-to-head clearly shows this with Middlesborough winning four, Bolton winning three and the other five league encounters ending in draws. Gareth Southgate's Middlesborough have showed some improve form of late still struggle to win back to back games. Their last five league games have ended with two wins and three draws all alternative to each other. Despite the fact that they are undefeated in five they must be disappointed with the amount of draws they have achieved so far. They played very well against Everton but they could only manage another draw. Their most expensive signing, Alfonso Alves has still not hit any sort of form while Tuncay is starting to show a bit of promise. Middlesborough will certainly get chances on Saturday. It's just whether they can convert them. Bolton never really looked like get something when they took on Liverpool at The Reebok on Saturday. They did have a goal ruled out for pushing and Gardner could of finished off a slick move but that was the closest they came to breaking through Liverpool's rear guard. Liverpool could of won the game by 5 or 6 and this has to be a massive concern for Gary Megson. His side look very vulnerable at the back while they struggle for penetration in the final third. A terrible combination. Bolton look a side that have every chance of going down this season and will need to show vast improvements if they are to change our minds. Match odds - Middlesborough 19/20 Canbet Draw 5/2 Coral Bolton 10/3 Coral Prediction - Middlesborough Portsmouth V Hull City Saturday 15:00 Tony Adams prepares his side for the arrival of Hull this Saturday with both side eager to make emends for the drop of points at home the following weekend. Both of these sides could only manage draws at home at the weekend with Portsmouth drawing 0-0 against West Ham and Hull City getting a pretty respectable point against the rich boys, Manchester City. Neither side have picked up many points in recent games so both will want an improvement in form. Tony Adam's has already achieved his first win as Portsmouth manage but is yet to experience a league victory on home soil after Portsmouth lost 2-1 against Wigan Athletic in Adam's first home match of the season. Their draw at home at the weekend will be a little disappointing for the Pompey manager as his side has the better of the chances with Defoe failing to put several chances to bed. Portsmouth have been inconsistent at Fratton park with just three wins at home from six. Jermaine Defoe has been their main goal threat this season and the Portsmouth faithful will be hoping to see him hit the net on Saturday. Hull City are without a doubt the most surprising and most improved side of the season and are currently sixth in the league table. Their results have dropped though recently and haven't won in four league games picking up just one point. A tough fixture list has seen them lose to the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United but their draw at home to Manchester City was creditable. Another key factor for the away side will be that their away form is far better then their home form. Four of their six league victories have come away from home and have lost just once on their travels this season. They don't struggle for goals away either and have actually scored more goals away then Portsmouth have at home. This could be a free flowing match and could go either way. Match odds - Portsmouth 9/10 Partybets Draw 13/5 Bet365 Hull 7/2 Coral Portsmouth - Draw Stoke City V West Brom Saturday 15:00 This match could potentially be a six pointer come the end of the season as West Brom make the trip to Stoke City in desperate need of adding some points to their already poor tally. Both sides go into this match off the back off defeats at the weekend and both lye at the foot of the table which makes this match even more important for the teams. Tony Pulis will be fairly satisfied with his teams start to the season despite them being just one point away from the bottom three. A lot of punters expected Stoke City to struggle this season especially after they were comfortably beaten on the opening day by a poor Bolton side. Since then they have picked up some decent results with the home victory over Arsenal being the highlight. They never looked like causing a threat to Manchester United goal on Saturday and were thrashed 5-0 at Old Trafford. Tony Pulis would have been expecting his side to struggle for a result in Manchester but will certainly see this game as one they can and ought to win. A lot has been said about their aerial prowess and if they can assert that aerial advantage this weekend then they could be too much of a handle for West Brom. West Brom have made hard work of their time in the Premiership so far and have picked up just 11 points from their opening 13 matches. They also find themselves rock bottom of the Premiership but only three points a drift from safety. They do go into the game though with a bad away record having lost their previous three away matches in the league. Their only away victory coming at Middlesborough. They do play some decent football and can pass the ball around very well. Their main problem is creating clear cut chances and converting them. Scoring on Saturday could be a problem against a physically, strong Stoke side. Match odds - Stoke 13/10 Canbet Draw 23/10 Bet365 West Brom 5/2 Boylesports Prediction - Stoke City Aston Villa V Manchester United Saturday 17:30 Setanta Sports Martin O'neill will be very optimistic about his sides chances on Saturday against the current league champions after pulling off a fantastic result at the weekend at The Emirates. Their 2-0 victory over Arsenal was fully deserved in our opinion and go into this tough fixture with the utmost of respect. Manchester United on the other hand made very light work of Stoke City at Old Trafford and will be looking to carry on their good form into Saturday's evening kick off. Aston Villa don't have a very good record against Manchester United in the league and have picked up just the one point ion their previous 12 league meetings. Their problem in recent matches has been scoring goals and have managed just 4 goals against Manchester United in 12 games whilst conceding 20 in return. Their win over Arsenal will have given the team a welcome confidence boost and should go into the game fearless of their opposition. They do look the only side at present that could potential cause an upset to the top four and will want to prove they can stick it with the big boys this Saturday. Gabriel Agbonlahor is the clubs top goalscorer this season and he will be their main goal threat on Saturday. Sir Alex Ferguson will know this is a must win game if they are to keep up with Chelsea and Liverpool at the top of the table. With both of those sides appealingly having fairly easy home fixtures on Saturday . They are already 9 points behind the pair but with a game in hand. A defeat though on Saturday could see them fall 12 points off the pace. Their 5-0 home victory over Stoke City came as no surprise and it was a breathe of fresh air to see Manchester United back in full flow with Ronaldo bagging a brace. Their form of late has been good with their away defeat at Arsenal being their only defeat in eight. Their away form overall has been very sketchy so far though and have won just two of their six away league fixtures. They will need to start playing a lot better on their travels if they are to keep up with the pace setters. Match odds - Aston Villa 4/1 Bet365 Draw 12/5 Bet365 West Ham 5/6 888sport Prediction - Draw Tottenham Hotspur V Blackburn Rovers Sunday 13:30 Sky Sports Harry Redknapp suffered his first defeat as Spurs manager on Saturday and will be looking for an improved performance this Sunday as his side host Paul Ince's Blackburn side. With recent form in mind it makes Spurs clear favourites but recent encounters between the two sides have been very close and we expect a similar result this Sunday. The arrival of Harry Redknapp has certainly rejuvenated the Tottenham side and recent results have shown this. The defeat at Craven Cottage to Fulham was his first as Spurs manager but he has previously won 3 of the first 4 games as manager. Many would have been expecting Spurs to at least get a point on Saturday but came away from London with nothing to show for their efforts. Their performance was a lot better then their display against Liverpool but they didn't get the same result. If they can produce something similar on Sunday then they should have no problems seeing off an out of sorts Blackburn side. Darren Bent looks to be back to his old goal scoring self now Harry is at the helm while summer signing Pavluychenko has also chipped in with a few. The players are certainly playing with a lot more confidence and we expect them to come away from White Hart Lane with all three points this weekend. Paul Ince certainly has his work cut out as Blackburn manager and is really struggling to pick up results. Three wins from 13 has seen his side slide into the bottom three. They are also without a win in the league in 7 matches with their last victory in the league coming at Newcastle. Blackburn will take heart in the fact that they did beat their opponents at White Hart Lane in the league last season but it will take a vast improved performance form the players for them to repeat that feat. Match odds - Tottenham 4/5 Coral Draw 11/4 Bet365 Blackburn 4/1 Paddypower Prediction - Tottenham Hotspur Sunderland V West Ham Sunday 16:00 Sky Sports Gianfranco Zola takes his West Ham side to Tyneside this coming Sunday in search of a rare win in the league. They will have to overcome a gutsy Sunderland side with Roy Keane also desperate to take all three points. Neither side has set the league alight and both find themselves in the bottom half of the table. A win on Sunday though could push them into the top half depending on other results. Sunderland go into the match with the momentum after adding to Paul Ince's woes on Saturday seeing off Blackburn 2-1 at Ewood Park. That was their first win in 3 and they do have a fairly poor home record. They have already lost three at home and do have a tendency to struggle for goals at The Stadium of Light. Just six have been scored by the home side all season. Sunderland do play attacking football but are another side who struggle to convert chances. A potent striker could be what they seek in the January transfer market but until then they will more then likely struggle in front of goal with Michael Chopra on the verge of going out on loan at Cardiff. West Ham have endured a disappointing spell of late and haven't won in 7 league matches. Their last victory in the league coming away at Fulham. That was also their only away victory of the season which make this all the more challenging for West Ham. They have picked up just 5 points from eight games and if their poor form continues then they could find themselves in a precarious position in the league table. With funds at the club very limited we could see some key players exit in January which could spell more woes for the West Ham boss. It is hard to look past the home side with West Ham's recent poor run of form in the league. Match odds - Sunderland 6/5 Bet365 Draw 12/5 Bet365 West Ham 5/2 Boylesports Prediction - Sunderland Wigan Athletic V Everton Monday 20:00 Setanta Sports The PFA Manager of the year takes his Everton side to Wigan on Monday with both sides eager to put their weekend draws behind them and concentrate on picking up some points on Monday live on Setanta Sports 1. In what looks a close game to call it would appear Everton have the slight edge going into the match with the better form. Steve Bruce was furious with the referee on Saturday as he seen Emerson Boyce sent off for a clean and fair challenge at Newcastle. His side were playing the better football but that controversial decision appeared to have influenced the final result as Newcastle pulled one back to pick up a point and deny Wigan all three. He will need to put that to one side though and concentrate on Monday home fixture with Everton. This will be a tough match for the home side and don't go into the game with a good record at home after winning just one of six home fixtures so far. Two draws and a win have seen Wigan end their four game losing streak so Steve Bruce's fortunes appear to be changing for the good. David Moyes was delighted to have picked up the manager of the year award for last season but will would exchange that award for a win on Monday any day. After a poor start to the season they have picked themselves up and have managed improved results of late. Their draw at Goodison on Saturday against Middlesborough ended their 3 game win streak in the league but David Moyes will be keen to get back to winning ways. They didn't play particularly well on Saturday and will need to put in a better performance on Monday if they are to take the spoils. Match odds - Wigan 44/27 Boylesports Draw 47/25 Bet365 Everton 23/10 Bet365 Prediction - Wigan Labels: premier-league-betting, premier-league-preview, premiership-betting, premiership-preview Posted by soccerbetting.info @ 7:51 AM

Premiership Preview by Matthew Chapple (15/16 November) (Thursday, November 13, 2008)

Premiership Previews 15th/16th November Bolton Wanderers V Liverpool Saturday 12:45 Sky Sports 1 Liverpool will be looking to continue their rich vein of form as they make the trip to Bolton to take on Gary Megson's Bolton Wanderers. Both of these sides will go into the match with a win behind them but Liverpool go to Bolton with the better head-to-head with eight league wins to Bolton's two. Liverpool have also won the last 3 league encounters between the two sides scoring ten in the process. Bolton's form overall has picked up with two straight league wins at the expense of Manchester City and Hull City. Their home form though this season has been inconsistent to say the least with two wins, two draws and two defeats at The Reebok stadium. They are a physically tough side though and teams don't look forward to going to Bolton. The return of Johan Elmander will be a welcome boost but we doubt his goal scoring credentials considering he cost the club around £12,000,000. If they can restrict the amount of time and space Liverpool have on the ball then they could get some sort of result but when they allow sides to play, they do tend to end up second best as they found out when Arsenal came to the Reebok and won comfortably, 3-1. Liverpool dropped points in two consecutive matches duriong the last 7 days losing at White Hart Lane to Tottenham and then scraping a draw at home to Athletico Madrid. This wasn't the case on Saturday though as Liverpool eased past West Brom winning 3-0 with Robbie Keane scoring a brace. I'm not sure what will please the fans more from that game. The two goals from Robbie Keane to end his league goal scoring duct or the return of their number 9, Fernando Torres. I would possibly say the latter as Liverpool have suffered lately in games by not managing to put away several clear cut chances. They are currently second in the league, level on points with Chelsea and this game will be crucial if they are to keep up with the pace setters at the top. Match odds - Bolton Wanderers 5/1 Bet365 Draw 11/4 Bet365 Liverpool 4/6 ToteSport Prediction - Liverpool Arsenal V Aston Villa Saturday 15:00 An Arsenal revival appears to be on the cards and a victory at home to Martin O'Neill's Aston Villa side will be essential if they are to keep up with the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool at the top of the Premiership table. Aston Villa on the other hand are starting to lose the grip that they had on fifth position and can now feel the rest of the pack on their shoulders. The head-to-head doesn't bode well for the away side as they have never beaten Arsenal in the Premiership and have only managed to pick up a draw on four of the twelve times they have met in the league. Arsene Wenger was delighted with his teams performance on Saturday against their bitter rivals Manchester United after they won 2-1 at The Emirates. His only criticism was that they couldn't stretch their lead and finish the game off. Something which Arsenal do have trouble doing recently and has cost them vital points. They had two disappointing home draws within the space of a week to Tottenham and Fenerbache and this result against the current champions will boost the players confidences greatly. The players are beginning to play with a smile on their face now while William Gallas is finally starting to show that he has the attributes to be an Arsenal captain. A similar performance this weekend will see them take all the beating. Aston Villa were starting to settle in at number five in the league but two straight league defeats has seen them reduce their hold on that position to just two points with Everton, Middlesborough and Portsmouth all hot on their heels. Martin O'Neill will be devastated with the result on Sunday at home to Middlesborough. Two defensive blunders cost them a point and gifted Middlesborough the victory. It would appear that European football is starting to play a factor and could be their downfall. I was also disappointed with Agbonlahor in front of goal. He had several opportunities to score but failed to keep his composure. If they put in another lack lustred performance then they will get brushed a side but a resurged Arsenal side. Match odds - Arsenal 11/20 Canbet Draw 3/1 Bet365 Aston Villa 13/2 Gamebookers Prediction - Arsenal Blackburn Rovers V Sunderland Saturday 15:00 Neither side go into this match with any momentum as Blackburn host Sunderland with both sides eager to put their recent result behind them and pick up some valuable points this Saturday. Blackburn haven't won in six while Sunderland have lost their previous three league games and have only won once away from home this season. The head-to-head though is strongly favours the home side with Blackburn winning four of the last six matches between the two sides with the other two ending in draws. Paul Ince hasn't had the best of starts as Blackburn manager winning just three of his 12 matches in charge at Blackburn. His side are far from the side that they once were last season with Roque Santa Cruz in particular, having a poor run of form in front of goal. Morten Gamst Pedersen has gone off the boil in recent months while Benni McCarthy is far from his regular goal scoring self. Something is going wrong and will need to be put right soon before they find themselves in a difficult situation. They are currently 15th in the league, just two points off the bottom. A few more defeats would leave them at the foot of the table and could pile the pressure on Paul Ince. Sunderland are also suffering a bit of late having lost their third successive league game at the weekend at the hands of Tony Adams Portsmouth side. They started brightly scoring early with a Djibril Cisse strike but two second half goals with one being a late penalty, sealing the win for the away side. Roy Keane will have been furious with his sides performance and will be expecting a response against another side with very little form. Despite the defeat, they did make a good start to the game making several chances. If they can put in another display like that and retain it for the full 90 minutes then they could pick up a result. Match odds - Blackburn 6/5 Canbet Draw 12/5 Bet365 Sunderland 14/5 Bet365 Prediction - Draw Fulham V Tottenham Hotspur Saturday 15:00 Two sides with form entertain each other this Saturday as Harry Redknapp looks to continue his unbeaten start and travel to Fulham in search of even more points. Surprisingly though, Fulham do edge the head-to-head and Tottenham have never beaten Fulham at Craven Cottage since the Premiership was formed. A trend Gary Hodgeson will be desperate to continue. Fulham were slightly fortunate to get the win on Sunday when they beat Newcastle 2-1 at Craven Cottage. Newcastle has several chances and hit the word work but failed to out score their opponents. Fulham on the other hand certainly had the luck of the green as Fulham's opener came after a few deflections landed at the feet of Andy Johnson to smash home. That won't matter to much to their manager and as long as they get a result this Saturday he won't mind too much how they play. Tottenham are probably the in form team right now having not lost in four getting good result against Arsenal, Liverpool and now Manchester City. The two sending off's of course helped their cause but never the less the arrival of Harry Redknapp has certainly improved team moral and team results. Darren Bent is in the goals again while David Bentley is starting to show the sort of form that made the big four look him up. They are starting to play with a bit of pace and with a lot more confidence and that's why we highly rate their chances this Saturday. Match odds - Fulham 23/10 Bet365 Draw 12/5 Boylesports Tottenham 13/10 William Hill Prediction - Tottenham Hotspur Manchester United V Stoke Saturday 15:00 Tony Pulis and his Stoke City side have the tough task of getting a result against the current champions in Manchester United and have to do so at the fortress that is Old Trafford. A stadium they haven't visited in the league and one that the players will undoubtedly look forward to. Sir Alex Ferguson will be very disappointed with his sides performance at the weekend against Arsenal which seen them go down 2-1 at The Emirates and suffer a bitter defeat at the hands of another of the big four. In all fairness Manchester United were a little unlucky not to walk away with at least a point after managing to have 20 shoots on target at The Emirates. Something which many teams fail to even get half of. Their lack of composure in front of goal was what cost them in the end. Christiano Ronaldo missed a clear cut chance in the second half while Wayne Rooney put several opportunities high and wide. They were playing a far better side then, than they are today and this should be a comfortable home win. Especially if they create as many chances as they did at The Emirates. Stoke City have started well in the league so far after accumulating 14 points from their opening 12 fixtures. They are however just three points off the bottom. That is how close the league is at the moment with the exception of the top 6 clubs or so. Every win in the league for every side is crucial at the moment and while a win at Old Trafford is a massive ask a draw is possible. That will still be very tough to achieve as Stoke would need to keep an attacking minded side at bay for the full 90 minutes. Something we doubt will happen. Match odds - Manchester United 9/53 Boylesports Draw 13/2 Bet365 Stoke 22/1 Bet365 Prediction - Manchester United Newcastle V Wigan Saturday 15:00 Two sides at the very foot of the table clash this Saturday as Steve Bruce's Wigan side make the trip up north to take on Joe Kinnear's Newcastle side at St. James Park. A win is the only satisfactory result for these two as a defeat would probably leave them in the bottom three. These two have met four times in the league with the head-to-head being shared with two victory's each. However, home advantage has proven to be the key factor in all of those matches. Newcastle manager Joe Kinnear will have seen the game against Fulham at Craven cottage as a great opportunity to force a divide between his side and the teams surrounding the bottom three but failed to do so losing 2-1. The players are playing much better football and look to have some confidence restored since the arrival of Joe Kinnear. A concern would be the fitness of Michael Owen. He made his re-appearance on Sunday but failed to put in a good display in front of the England manager missing a sitter from 6 yards. Newcastle will need more cutting edge in the final third if they are to break down a rugged Wigan defence. Steve Bruce will be livid with his sides performance on Saturday which seen them draw 0-0 at home to Stoke. They would have seen that game as a must win and game which they dropped two points. They were very poor particularly when it came to creating chances in front of goal. They started the season brightly with Luis Valencia and Wilson Palacios putting in some good displays and Amir Zaki was hitting the net but both have slowly come to end it would appear. Steve Bruce will need to give his side a good talking to and somehow get them to up their work rate dramatically if they are to take something away from Newcastle. Match odds - Newcastle 11/10 Bet365 Draw 12/5 Betdirect Wigan Athletic 11/4 William Hill Prediction - Newcastle United West Ham V Portsmouth Saturday 15:00 Gianfranco Zola's start as a Premiership manager hasn't started well and already the pressure is beginning to pile up on his shoulders. A home match against Portsmouth could provide a vital stepping stone for their season if they were to pick up a rare win on Saturday. The omens aren't good though as they have never beaten Portsmouth in the league in 6 attempts losing four and drawing two. West Ham are on a terrible run of form losing 5 of their last six league fixtures managing just the draw in the other. They have fallen steeply in the league table to 14th and are already looking like a team that could be involved in a relegation scrap come the very end of the season. They lack creativity in the middle of the park and when they do create a rare opening they don't have anyone prolific in the final third whop can finish them off. Their defence is also a major concern having conceded a total of 22 for the season despite having a very talented keeper. This will be a vital match for West ham and one which could tell us whether they are a potential relegation side. Tony Adam's registered his first win as Premiership manager on Saturday after beating Sunderland at The Stadium of Light 2-1. A late penalty after a clumsy tackle by Diouf gifted Portsmouth the win and added to Defoe's season goal tally. Sunderland should have been out of sight in the first half as Portsmouth were left very exposed at the back. Their second half performance was a lot better and Tony Adams will be expecting a lot of the same as he looks to win back to back games in the league. They are currently 9th in the league and a win would put them in the mix for the fifth spot. It is early days though. Match odds - West Ham 6/4 Bet365 Draw 47/25 Bet365 Portsmouth 23/10 Paddypower Prediction - West Ham West Brom V Chelsea Saturday 17:30 West Brom have the rather ominous task of getting a decent result against the current leaders of the league, Chelsea. A feat they have never managed to do in the league losing all of the previous six league encounters between the two sides. They have also conceded 15 goals in those matches whilst scoring just 2. It would appear on paper that they have already lost but fortunately for them, the game is not played on paper. West Brom would have known before hand that the chances of them picking up points against both Liverpool and Chelsea would probably be beyond them and they were never really a threat when they took on Liverpool at Anfield at the weekend. They could only manage to hold out for 34 minutes before Robbie Keane fired up a quick fire double before the break. Their defence has been their main cause for concern this season having conceded 21 in total. Their defence will be under constant pressure this Saturday and it will probably be a matter of 'when' they score instead of 'if' for Chelsea. Chelsea away victory over Blackburn kept them at the top of the table on goal difference ahead of Liverpool. Their only poor performance of the season came against Liverpool when their unbeaten home record was ended. Against the poorer sides though they don't struggle at all. The only teams they have dropped points to this season have been top clubs in Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester United. The other big four seem to drop points against the lesser sides and this could play into Chelsea's hands. This is certainly a game they must win and a game that they should. They don't struggle to find the net and have scored 29 already this season. The highest in the league and we fancy Chelsea to break the West Brom rear guard fairly early on. Match odds - West Brom 11/1 Bet365 Draw 17/4 Centrebet Chelsea 1/3 Paddypower Prediction - Chelsea Everton V Middlesborough Sunday 13:30 Sky Sports 1 A potentially tricky match to call as David Moyes's Everton side prepare to entertain Gareth Southgate's Middlesborough side with both teams coming into this match off the back of decent winning performances. Both will be eager to carry on climbing up the table but it is Everton who hold the head-to-head advantage with six league wins to Middlesborough two. Everton also completed a league double over the opponents last season. Everton had to come from behind to see of West Ham at the weekend but ended up cruising to victory in the end winning 3-1 at Upton park. A result which leaves them 7th position. Just two points off Aston Villa who sit in that all elusive fifth position. It is good to see Louis Saha regain his goal scoring manner of old having scored two on Saturday and one the previous weekend. When the lad is fit he is certainly a decent player on his day and could be a decent acquisition for the club. The problem with Everton this season was their lack of ability to get a winning run going but they have finally managed to do so winning their last three league matches. They currently have the momentum and will be very hard to beat at Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon. Middlesborough caused a bit of surprise as they registered their second away win of the season at the expense of Aston Villa. The goals they did score were put on a plate for them but their performance on the whole was very good and the win was more then they deserved. They have also struggled for consistency this season and have a problem with dropping points against sides they really ought to be beating. Another worry is the lack of goals from their most expensive signing Alfonso Alves. He missed a sitter on Sunday which will only dent his confidence. We won't be surprised if Aliadere is recalled to the starting line up in his place. They will need a simialr performance to the one of last if they are to cause Everton any problems. Match odds - Everton 10/11 Paddypower Draw 5/2 Bet365 Middlesborough 7/2 Bet365 Prediction - Everton Hull City V Manchester City Sunday 16:00 Sky Sports 1 The surprise package of the league this season are starting to lose their novelty factor after losing their second league on the trot when they went down 1 at home to Bolton on Saturday. Manchester City also suffered a home defeat at the hands of Tottenham so both sides will be on the war path this coming Sunday. Phil Brown has been working wonders at Hull this season and despite their back to back defeats at home, they still sit in a very comfortable 6th position in the league table. It would appear that they are a pretty safe bet for safety this season despite the season being just 12 games old. They would only need to double their point tally to realistically survive judging by previous league totals. They would of seen the game at home to Bolton as a game they could of won and will be very disappointed that they didn't even get a point from the match. They started brightly but failed to put any of their chances away and were duly punished by Bolton. If they are to survive this season then their home form will be key and they will need to pick up as many points as they can on home soil. Mark Hughes would appear to have the dream job right now what with the new wealthy investors at the club but he has failed to get a winning run going. They are also on a three game losing streak and have picked up just 7 points from their previous 8 league games. Something the new owners surely can't be happy with despite their recent comments about the manager doing a good job at the club. They fully expect the club to break into the top four within the next season or two but it would seem they need a lot more time if they are to do so. They big four are a mile apart from the rest. Manchester City were very poor at home to spurs and lacked discipline after seeing two of their players sent off. Both Fernandes and captain Richard Dunne will miss this match through suspension which will be a massive lose for City. Robinho did manage to add to his goal tally though and Wright Philips is a constant threat to sides down the wing. Despite the absence of a few key players they should still win this match with the talent they currently have at the squad. Match odds - Hull 19/10 Paddypower Draw 12/5 Boylesports Manchester City 8/5 Betfred Prediction - Draw Labels: premier-league-betting, premier-league-preview, premiership-betting, premiership-preview Posted by soccerbetting.info @ 1:09 PM

Premiership Preview by Matthew Chapple (8-9 November) (Thursday, November 06, 2008)

Premiership previews Saturday 7th / Sunday 8th November Arsenal V Manchester United Saturday 12:45 Sky Sports 1 By far the most appealing and popular match of the weekend as Sir Alex Ferguson's players make the trip down to London to take on their familiar foes in Arsenal at The Emirates this Saturday. Recent matches in the Premiership have gone in Manchester's favour with United winning 5 of the last 12 league meetings between the two sides and Arsenal managing just two wins over their bitter rivals. Arsenal will undoubtedly go into the match with more pressure on their shoulders after suffering a disappointing result at the weekend losing 2-1 away at the hands of Stoke City. Arsenal have showed that they can still play the sort of football that leaves most dazzled and amazed but they have only done so this season in dribs and drabs. Their inconsistency, at this early stage, has already cost them dearly and have dropped vital points against sides they would have expected to beat. They also have no excuses with everyone available for selection. However, Theo Walcott took a knock to the arm and looked in some distress and will more then likely miss this massive clash. If Arsenal decide they want to get back to playing the stylish football that everyone has come to recognise then they could upset the champions but they will need to improve vastly. Manchester United have started picking up results once more and have caught the top two up already. They are currently third in the league, just five points off leaders Chelsea with a game in hand. They will also be boosted by the return of inform Ronaldo. He has been back to full fitness for a while but barely got out of the blocks in his first few appearances but it would appear he is back to his old goalscoring self. Their defence on Saturday did look surprisingly shaky and Sir Alex will be slightly concerned ahead of their trip to London. With so many attacking options at Ferguson's dispense it is hard to look beyond United for the points and another home defeat for Arsenal wouldn't be much of a shock. Match Odds - Arsenal 9/4 Bet365 Draw 9/4 Bet365 Manchester United 6/4 Boylesports Prediction - Manchester United or Draw Wigan V Stoke Saturday 12:45 Steve Bruce will have to prepare his side for a physical encounter as Wigan host Stoke City this coming Saturday. A match which we expect to include several cards in what should be a feisty affair at the JJB stadium. This is the first time these two sides have met in the league and both will be eager to register their first league win over their opponent. Steve Bruce will be delighted with their recent result over Portsmouth at the weekend. It was a miserable afternoon at Fratton park with the rain pouring down throughout the game but Emile Heskey managed to pop up in the final few minutes and secure all three points for Wigan. That win ended their run of four straight league defeats and pushed them out of the bottom three to the relief of their manager. The pressure was building slightly in Steve Bruce but that win will have eased it somewhat. He will however see this game as a fantastic opportunity to secure another vital three points and we expect them to be too strong for Stoke. Stoke manager Tony Pulis will be ecstatic with their 2-1 home win over Arsenal on Saturday. By far the biggest shock of the weekend but their performance backed up their result. They were better all over the pitch for the majority of that game and they looked the only side who would win. Their aerial presence is causing a lot of rifts between managers but it is getting Stoke goals. Our only concern is their ability to score from open play. Sooner or later teams will wise up to their tactics and we fancy their goals to dry up. Wigan are a fairly big side and they might find the aerial route they so prefer, might not work. Match odds - Wigan 5/6 Tote Sport Draw 12/5 Betfred Stoke City 4/1 Centrebet Prediction - Wigan Hull City V Bolton Wanderers Saturday 15:00 Gary Megson's vital win at the weekend will have taken some of limelight of him and his side but the fans will be expecting them to put in a good performance when they travel to take on Hull City this Saturday afternoon. Both sides will see this as a fixtures that they can both win and both will be hoping for a good result. Hull keep on surprising the British public and their recent display left many gob smacked. They went down 4-3 to Manchester United but they gave an excellent account of themselves and many of the big sides won't fancy taking their team to Hull from here on. What impressed us the most on Saturday was the fact they looked down and out at 4-1 and it appeared they were on the way to a spanking but they upped their game and pulled a couple back. They have a pleasantly surprising mixture of talent at the club with the strength of Dawson at the back and the creativity of Geovanni in the centre of the park. We thought they might struggle when they took on West Brom a few weeks back and they made us looks fools. We won't run the risk of that happening again and we fancy Hull to take all the spoils this coming Saturday. Gary Megson will breathe a sigh of relief after his side secured just their second win of the season at the expense of the richest club in the world in Manchester City. It took two late strikes to seal the win but it was a vital victory which took Bolton away from the drop zone and eased the pressure on their manager. Despite that good result, they have been performing very poor on the whole and this will be a tough ask for them. They still look vulnerable at the back with their keeper saving them on several occasions in matches. We seriously doubt their goalscoring capabilities and a home win looks on the cards. Match odds - Hull City 6/5 Gamebookers Draw 11/4 Bet365 Bolton 11/4 Coral Prediction - Hull City Sunderland V Portsmouth Saturday 15:00 Roy Keane will need to give his side a major lift after their disappointing weekend result and get them fired up for the arrival of Tony Adams Portsmouth side. Both sides go into this match off the back of defeats and both teams will be desperate for a change of fortunes. These two have met on just four occasions in the league with Portsmouth having the superior head-to-head record with 3 wins to Sunderland's 1. Sunderland were completely outplayed in every department on Saturday and were given a lesson in how to play the beautiful game when Chelsea romped to a 5-0 home win over Roy Keane's side. They never looked like posing any threat to Cech's goal and with their defence looking very vulnerable. The Sunderland manager would have known it was going to be a tough match but would have expected his side to put up more of a fight then they did. They will look forward to playing a side of similar ability and go into the match with Pompey knowing that win is not beyond them. New Portsmouth manager Tony Adams will have desperately wanted to get his first home win under his belt but his Pompey side fell at the first hurdle losing 2-1 with a late Emile Heskey goal sealing the win for Wigan. His side were awful in the opening 45 minutes with Wigan have half dozen chances to take the lead. Another opening 45 minutes like that could see Sunderland out of sight before the half is up. Match odds - Sunderland 6/5 Paddypower Draw 11/5 Betdirect Portsmouth 3/1 Bet365 Prediction - Sunderland West Ham V Everton Saturday 15:00 These two sides sit in mid table and both will be eager to climb up a few more places. David Moyes will know that a win would take him closer to that elusive fifth position in the league while West Ham will want to stay well clear of those at the foot of the table. These two sides have met three times in the league at Upton Park with neither having any sort of advantage with one win a piece and a draw. Gianfranco Zola hasn't made the best of starts as West Ham gaffer and his side haven't registered a win in the league since they beat Fulham away from home 6 games ago. Since then West Ham have notched up just one point losing 4 of the last five league matches. They will have felt a bit hard done by not have taken all three points at the weekend when they drew with Middlesborough at The Riverside but will need to improve dramatically if they are to stay up another season. With the absence of Dean Ashton through injury it is hard to see where regular goals will come from and it is showing with just 2 goals from the previous five league matches. The club itself looks to be in a bit of trouble where money is concerned and Zola will definitely need to consider looking for an attacking option in January. David Moyes Everton side would normally of played this match on Sunday but because they no longer have European football to contend with they have to prepare a day earlier. This could be a positive as it will now mean Everton only need to concentrate one one thing and that's their league position. They are currently 7th but are five points behind both Aston Villa and Hull City. They must win to keep in touch with both of those sides. Their season also hasn't gone to plan with just three victory's in the league to date. They have however won two on the bounce and will be aiming to stretch that run to three this Saturday afternoon. Scoring hasn't been a problem for Everton but keeping it tight at the back has. They have one of the worst defensive records in the league currently but have managed to keep two consecutive clean sheets. The absence of European football appears to be helping already. Match odds - West Ham 31/20 Gamebookers Draw 12/5 Bet365 Everton 9/5 Bet365 Prediction - Everton Liverpool V West Brom Saturday 17:30 Setanta Sports 1 West Brom make the trip up north to take on Liverpool this Saturday evening at Anfield. A fixture that they won't have been looking forward to. Especially if recent league form is to go by between the two teams. West Brom have never picked up any points when they have played Liverpool in the league losing all six of the matches between them conceding 19 and scoring none. This looks pretty straight forward. Liverpool will be devastated by the late defeat at the weekend at the hands of Tottenham. They dominated the match and had several clear cut chances but failed to punish their opponents. Something that Liverpool tend to do a lot especially when Torres hasn't been available. Robbie Keane has showed real grit and fantastic work rate when he has played but he has never really looked confident enough to break his goal scoring duct in the league. This has piled the pressure on others who feel they need to make up for his lack lustred finishing and try themselves. Fernando Torres should be available though which will bring a big sigh of relief for the Kopites. As long as he plays this weekend he will score. There is no doubt Liverpool will create chances and if one falls to him then he should take it with glee. West Brom will have known before hand that this was probably always going to be a fixture they weren't going to get anything from. There recent head-to-head isn't good and with their current poor form it looks a massive ask form them to pull off a shock. They are win less in 4 attempts in the league and have lost their previous two away games. They have managed just two goals on their travels and against a side that doesn't tend to concede many it is hard to see any positives for West Brom heading into this fixture. They can get the ball down and pass it around nicely at time but they get much time on the ball at Anfield and this looks a safe home victory. Match odds - Liverpool ¼ Blue Square Draw 5/1 Bet365 West Brom 18/1 Boylesports Prediction - Liverpool Blackburn V Chelsea Sunday 13:30 Sky Sports Phil Scolari knows that a win away at Ewood park against Paul Ince's Blackburn side would keep his side at the top of the pecking order. Chelsea also go into the fixture with the omen that they have dominated the head-to-head in the league winning 8 of the previous twelve league meetings between the two teams. A trend which Paul Ince will be desperate to buck. Blackburn go into this tough fixture in terrible form having not won in five games in the league with their last league victory coming against Newcastle 6 games ago. A rather disappointing draw away to West Brom now leaves them in the bottom half of the table in 13th position. They also have a dreadful defensive record having conceded 20 in 11 games. Roque Santa Cruz was their shining light last season but has yet to get anywhere near the sort of form which seen him get into double figures last season. If Blackburn are to take anything away from this game then they will need Santa Cruz to start scoring. Chelsea go into this game off the back of a thumping defeat at the hands of Roma in mid week. They were outplayed all over the park and didn't deserve to take anything away from Rome. They did however thrash Sunderland 5-0 at the weekend at home so they are still performing in the league. Some of their play in that match was phenomenal and a display like that would see Chelsea hard to beat. Their performance against Roma on Tuesday was their worst for some time and if they play like that this Sunday then Blackburn will have a chance of causing an upset. It would take a poor display from Chelsea though you would feel. Match Odds - Blackburn 7/1 Coral Draw 7/2 Bet365 Chelsea ½ Betdirect Prediction - Chelsea Aston Villa V Middlesborough Sunday 15:00 Despite Aston Villa losing to Newcastle on Monday they do go into this game as clear favourites. Garth Southgates Middlesborough side have been very inconsistent with their displays in the league and their results have shown this. They do go into the game with a good record at Villa Park of late having not lost their in three visits. Aston Villa made a bright and lively start on Monday when they took on Newcastle at St. James Park but failed to put any of their chances away. They paid a heavy penalty with Martins scoring a brace in the second half to leave Aston Villa empty handed. With that result aside they have been playing well of late winning 5 of their last eight league games climbing to fifth in the league table. They do look impressive at this early stage in the season and look the obvious favourites for that fifth place finish. Middlesborough have made a very poor start to the season winning just two games from their last eight. Alfonso Alves showed good promise last season but he is another who has disappointed. He has looked lazy in front of goal and missed several chances which could have given his side more points. They were rather fortunate to take a point at the weekend when they drew with West Ham but if they could get a similar result this coming Sunday, it will be a great result. Match odds - Aston Villa 27/37 Bet365 Draw 11/4 Bet365 Middlesborough 9/2 888sport Prediction - Draw Manchester City V Tottenham Hotspur Sunday 15:00 We have a very tough match to call here as Harry Redknapp's in form Spurs side make the trip up north to to take on Mark Hughes's blue side of Manchester. Both sides posses some very talented players and it should be a very lively encounter. Strangely enough, the last 5 league meetings between the two sides have finished 2-1 to Tottenham. A bizarre trend which Harry would welcome continuing. Manchester City have now lost two on the bounce in the league having lost to both Bolton and Middlesborough on their travels. A home fixture couldn't of came soon enough for City. Their last home game was a 3-0 win over Stoke City. Mark Hughes will be concerned with the fact that not only have they lost two straight league games but they have failed to score on both occasions. Robinho was the start of the show when they beat Stoke but he has been rather disappointing of late and will need to improve if his side are to get the result they want this Sunday at The City of Manchester stadium. Tottenham fans won't believe their luck with their league victory over Liverpool at the weekend. They were vastly outplayed for the majority of the game but some how managed to secure all three points. Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp won't mind too much about how the players performed in that much but will need to look into the negatives of that game. Their defence still looks vulnerable while their keeper remains a constant worry at the back. If they allow Manchester City the time and space to play then they will get punished. Match odds - Manchester City 5/4 Coral Draw 12/5 Bet365 Tottenham 5/2 Coral Prediction - Manchester City Fulham V Newcastle United 16:00 Sunday Sky Sports Newcastle will look to continue their good run of victories and register another against Gary Hodgeson's Fulham side. A defeat for either side could see them drop back into the bottom three but a win could see them open up a gap over the teams at the foot of the table. Newcastle did complete a league double over Fulham last season which is certainly something Joe Kinnear will be looking to build upon. Fulham were largely disappointing on Saturday at Goodison Park. They did well to keep their opponents at bay for nearly the full 90 minutes but they lacked concentration and conceded a late goal. Their point tally of just 11 points from their opening 10 league games isn't good but they do have a game in hand over most. Andy Johnson look like his former self when Fulham beat Wigan nearly two weeks ago. He looks their only hope where goals is concerned though. Newcastle have started to show a bit of promise of late. They didn't start too well on Monday when they took on Aston Villa at home but their second half performance was second to none. They dominated the second half and fully deserved to make the break through and pick up some valuable points. That victory took them out of the bottom three and has to have given the players a massive confidence boost ahead of this fixture. Match 0dds - Fulham 7/5 Paddypower Draw 12/5 Bet365 Newcastle 11/5 Betdirect Prediction - Newcastle United Labels: premier-league-betting, premier-league-preview, premiership-betting, premiership-preview Posted by soccerbetting.info @ 9:45 AM

Premiership Preview by Matthew Chapple (1-2 November) (Thursday, October 30, 2008)

Premiership Fixtures - Saturday 1st/ Sunday 2nd November 2008 Everton V Fulham - Saturday 12:45PM Sky Sports 1 Everton manager David Moyes will have seen some positives in their performance against Manchester United last weekend and will be hoping his players improve on that result and pick up some vital points against Fulham this Saturday. With both sides sitting just above the drop zone, both will be eager to claim all three points. Everton's result against Manchester United last Saturday will have provided David Moyes with some positives and negatives. His side were abysmal in the opening 45 minutes but vastly improved in the second half to draw level and earn a respectable point against the current league champions. If they are to get the result which most punters expect this coming Saturday then they have to make a better start then they did last weekend. Their passing in the first half was poor while their defence was left exposed on several occasions. Fulham may not be a free scoring side right now but another first half performance like that could see Fulham spring a surprise. Roy Hodgeson takes his Fulham side to Merseyside in search of points in what looks a tough task despite Everton not performing to their full potential. They managed to pick up their first away point on Sunday against Portsmouth but it did little to their overall position in the table. Their previous 3 away league fixtures have seen them pick up no points and conceded 5 with just 2 in return. Early league performances indicate that Fulham will find survival tough this season. A lack of goals seems to be the key issue after scoring just 6 goals from their opening 8 league fixtures. Andy Johnson appeared to be a half decent capture from their match opponents Everton but he has hardly featured after injuries. It is hard to look elsewhere for regular goalscorers in the Fulham squad. Match odds - Everton 4/5 Bet365 Draw 13/5 Paddypower Fulham 9/2 Paddypower Prediction - Draw Chelsea V Sunderland - Saturday 15:00PM Luis Felipe Scolari will be in unfamiliar ground after his Chelsea side suffered an early blow to their Premiership title bid. Liverpool broke their 4 year undefeated home record to go 3 points clear of Chelsea at the top of the table. With that result in mind, the win today will be even more crucial against a Sunderland side that last beat Chelsea back in 2001. The last 7 league fixtures between the two sides have gone Chelsea's way. A trend Roy Keane will be desperate to buck this Saturday. The narrow home defeat to Liverpool at Stamford Bridge will be a massive blow for the Chelsea players and Scolari will have to find a way of getting his players to put that result behind them and fired up for the match against Sunderland. The match itself was a fairly even contest with deflected Alonso strike goal giving Liverpool all the spoils. Their second half performance though left a lot to be desired and Liverpool could have stretched their lead further. Bar that result they have been performing superbly and are justified favourites for the match. They attack in numbers and rarely miss guilt edge chances. I do have my concerns about their main source of goals in Nicolas Anelka. He doesn't work hard enough for me to get into goalscoring positions. The sooner Didier Drogba returns, the better for Chelsea. Roy Keane will be delighted with his sides recent result against close rivals Newcastle on Saturday. The second of the early kick off's seen Sunderland take the spoils 2-1 and move into the top half of the table. They are also undefeated in 3 league games but have just the one away victory this season against an out of sorts Tottenham at the start of the season. Roy Keane does tend to set his side up rather defensively when they play away and against a top side in Chelsea we expect something similar this Saturday. Good service to the pacey Djibril Cisse could be key if they are to cause Chelsea any problems. Match odds - Chelsea 2/9 Coral Draw 5/1 Paddypower Sunderland 15/1 Paddypower Prediction - Chelsea Manchester United V Hull City - Saturday 15:00PM Sir Alex Ferguson probably never though his side would be welcoming a side such as Hull City to Old Trafford for a Premiership fixture but that day has come and Hull City have fully deserved to be their judging by their early performances in the league. Manchester United cannot afford to drop any further behind leaders Liverpool and will be looking to damper Hull's recent high spirits this Saturday afternoon. Manchester United started brightly against Everton at the weekend but their lack lustred second half performance cost them all three points as they let Everton back into the game. That result has left them 8 points a drift of Liverpool and 5 points behind their match opponents Hull. They simply cannot afford to drop points and we expect them to go out all guns blazing this Saturday. Cristiano Ronaldo picked up the World Player of the Year award on Monday but has yet to put in a display which seen his achieve that award. It would appear that the defenders has clocked his skilful ways and he is heavily marked nowadays. Wayne Rooney though is in a rich vein of form and will be a key player for the home side this weekend. They have so many attacking options with the likes of Rooney, Ronaldo, Berbatov, Giggs and Tevez and aren't shy in front of goal. Hull City just can't help but surprise the footballing nation week in week out and have raced to third in the league table. Level on points with Chelsea and just three behind leaders Liverpool. Their 3-0 away win over West Brom at the weekend didn't provide a fair reflection on what was a tight game. Once Hull scored the opener though West Brom defence just opened up and Hull City ran out comfortable winners. They are also on a four match win streak in the league picking up wins against 3 London clubs in Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham. They have yet to lose away from home and there is nothing stopping them from pulling off another remarkable result this Saturday. Match odds - Manchester United ¼ Bet365 Draw 5/1 Coral Hull City 15/1 Paddypower Prediction - Man United Middlesborough V West Ham - Saturday 15:00PM Gareth Southgate'ss Middlesborough side will have to recover from conceding a late goal on Saturday evening against Blackburn to face Gianfranco Zola's West Ham side at The Riverside. A match which has seen West Ham win the previous three league encounters between the two sides with Middlesborough last victory over West Ham at home coming in 2006. Middlesborough were desperately unlucky not to hang on in the match with Blackburn on Saturday evening. That match summed up Middlesborough's start to the season. They have put in some valiant displays in the league only to drop points late on. Their last home game will also be a massive weight on the players shoulders after they were smashed for five by Chelsea two weeks ago. A match which could have seen Chelsea possibly reach double figures for goals. We are shocked by the start Alfonso Alves has made to the season. We had high expectations for the forward but he has yet to spark into life although did pick up his side's only goal at the weekend. West Ham fans will be bitterly disappointed with their sides 2-0 home defeat to Arsenal on Sunday. They gave as good as they had for an hour but collapsed within the final third of the game to throw away, what could have been a decent point. West Ham do look weak up front and we did expect Arsenal to come away from Upton park with the points but West Ham put up more of a fight then we expected. They passed the ball around nicely which is something they haven't done in their previous games. If they can get the ball down and provide decent service to Craig Bellamy then they could have a chance. They will be without the suspended Carlton Cole though after he was sent off late on in the match with Arsenal. Match odds - Middlesborough 11/10 Bet365 Draw 23/10 Paddypower West Ham 13/5 Paddypower Prediction - Draw Portsmouth V Wigan Athletic - Saturday 15:00PM A manager-less Portsmouth will welcome Steve Bruce's Wigan side to Fratton park this Saturday afternoon in a bid to put their poor 0-0 draw against Fulham at the weekend well behind them along with the loss of their manager Harry Redknapp. Wigan on the other hand will have to bounce back from a humiliating home defeat to Aston Villa. Last season Portsmouth completed the league double over Wigan. Something Steve Bruce will be desperate amend. Portsmouth football club and its fans have had to deal with a difficult week after losing their beloved manager to Tottenham on the eve of their game with Fulham. That off the pitch matter obviously didn't help and Portsmouth suffered, dropping two points at home to Fulham. Before that game they were looking bright and on the up. Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch were forming a good partnership up front while their defence was keeping it tight at the back conceding just 1 in three. The midweek defeat to Braga will undoubtedly have left the players exhausted both physically and mentally. Wigan were awful at the weekend when Aston Villa hammered them at the JJB. Wigan never came close to threatening Martin O'Neill's side and they looked especially vulnerable at the back. Something which hasn't been a problem up until now. Martin O'Neill may have exposed one of Wigan weaknesses in using pace to break through the Wigan rearguard. They couldn't handle Agbonlahor at times. That result meant they have now lost three league games on the bounce and have dropped down into 15th in the league. If they put in another below par performance this Saturday then they could see themselves free falling in the league table. Match odds - Portsmouth 10/11 Paddypower Draw 12/5 Bet365 Wigan Athletic 10/3 Coral Prediction - Portsmouth Stoke V Arsenal - Saturday 15:00PM Arsene Wenger takes his Arsenal youngsters to Stoke this Saturday in search of three vital points which will keep his side in touch of the league leaders. Stoke on the other hand will be desperate to pick up points after dropping into 18th position in the league table after losing 3-0 away to Manchester City. This will be the first time these two sides have met in the league with both sides eager for a good result. Steve Pulis will have foreseen a tough season ahead but will have hoped his side will have picked up a few more points then they currently have done. Two wins and one draw leaves them with just 7 points from their opening 9 league fixtures. They also posses the second worse defensive record in the league with 18 and do struggle for goals in open play. Their main source of goals tends to come from set plays and against a side in Arsenal who like to play football. They could struggle. Arsenal have made an inconsistent start to the league campaign having picked up a respectable 19 points from a maximum of 27. They do however find themselves 4 points off league leaders Liverpool and have already lost twice this season with one of those defeats being at the Emirates. Since that defeat they have upped their performances some what having come from behind to draw with Sunderland and picking up some decent wins over Everton and West Ham. Adebayor is starting to look like a threat in front of goal once more while Fabregas has returned to his usual sprightly self in the centre of midfield. If they play the fast flowing football that we are used to then Stoke could find it hard to hold out for the full 90 minutes. Match odds - Stoke - 15/2 Paddypower Draw 10/3 Paddypower Arsenal 8/15 Coral Prediction - Arsenal West Brom V Blackburn Rovers - Saturday 15:00PM Tony Mowbray prepares his West Brom side for a tough match against Paul Ince's Blackburn side this weekend. With both sides failing to pick up three points at home on the previous weekend, both will be eager to make amends and bring home the bacon this Saturday. West Brom were completely out played in the second half on Saturday losing 3-0 to Hull City. A match they would have seen as a great opportunity for three points and a chance to push away from the bottom three. They now find themselves just 3 points off the drop zone and another slip could see them falling straight into the positions no one wants to be in. They can get the ball down and play football but they fail to put the chances they do create away. If they are to get something from this match then they will need to dramatically improve in front of goal. Blackburn will be disappointed with the draw with Middlesborough at Ewood Park on Saturday despite scoring late into injury time to earn the point. Middlesborough don' travel to well and it was a fantastic chance for Paul Ince's side to pick up some valuable three points. After that result they find themselves in mid table with one of the poorer goalscoring records in the league currently. Roque Santa Cruz has yet to hit the sort of form which seen him score on a regular basis while David Bentley on the wing is already proving a massive loss. Match odds - West Brom 6/4 Skybet Draw 9/4 Bet365 Blackburn Rovers 9/5 Paddypower Prediction - draw Tottenham Hotspur V Liverpool - Saturday 17:30PM Setanta Sports 1 New Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp will be looking for another league victory when his side host the in form side of Liverpool at White Hart Lane. A match which will be made more interesting by the return of Robbie Keane to his old stomping ground. A match which Liverpool haven't lost in 8 straight league games. Tottenham will be in a rather buoyant mood after securing their first league victory of the campaign and will be eager to push out of the drop zone with a win over Liverpool this Saturday. With a new regime in place they should steer well away from the bottom three in time. Although they do have some tough matches to contend with first. They still look a tad shaky at the back and their forwards still lack that cutting edge in front of goal. Harry Redknapp's boys will need to be playing 110% if they are to get anything from this tough fixture. Liverpool are now the in form team and other are already starting to take notice. They are undefeated in the league still and have been getting wins without one of their key players available in Fernando Torres. Their defence is playing remarkable while their talisman, Steven Gerrard is on top of his game. Their victory over Chelsea is by far their best result of the season and that should spur them on even further. The confidence will be with the reds and we would be surprised if they were to lose their unbeaten start to Spurs. Match odds - Tottenham 3/1 Coral Draw 12/5 Bet365 Liverpool Evens Bet365 Prediction - Liverpool Bolton Wanderers V Manchester City - Sunday 16:00PM Sky Sports 1 Gary Megson's Bolton side will need to make a quick recovery after being the first team in the league to lose to Tottenham on Saturday. Mark Hughes on the other hand will be hoping to continue their form and pick up another valuable three points in search of European football next term. Bolton had several chances against Tottenham but failed to convert any and paid the penalty. The sending off didn't help but they didn't really deserve anything form the game. Their main problem at the moment is their options up front. We doubt Johan Elmander's striking ability and struggle to see where the goals will come from for Bolton. To make matters worse their defence isn't too strong neither and they have the perfect formula for relegation. This will be a very tough match for Bolton. Manchester City were very impressive against Stoke City at home but have let themselves down on occasions. Especially on their travels. They will be looking for Robinho to carry his goalscoring form into this match with the little play maker scoring 4 in two matches for the blues. Four wins from 9 has left them in 8th position which is below where they want to be but they have showed more in the last few matches then Bolton have and we expect Manchester City to really push Bolton this Sunday. Match odds - Bolton Wanderers 21/10 Bet365 Draw 12/5 Coral Manchester City 69/50 Bet365 Prediction - Man City Labels: premier-league-betting, premier-league-preview, premiership-betting, premiership-preview Posted by soccerbetting.info @ 4:23 PM

Premiership Preview by Matthew Chapple (25/26 October) (Thursday, October 23, 2008)

Premiership Preview for the weekend 25/26 October 2008 Everton V Manchester United (Saturday, 25 October, 12pm) Sir Alex Ferguson's men make the short trip to Merseyside this Saturday when they take on the blue side of Liverpool in Everton at Goodison Park. The match will be live on Sky Sports in what should be a lively encounter. A match which has seen Manchester United dominate in recent years winning 9 of the previous 12 league matches between the two sides. Everton go into this tough home fixture in terrible form having gone without a win for 4 games picking up just 8 points from their opening 8 league games. Defeats in the league to Arsenal and Liverpool weren't too surprising but dropping points at home to Newcastle and only managing a draw at Hull will have left some fans bitter. It would appear that their defence is at fault for their recent poor run of results. They have conceded a total of 18 goals so far from just 8 games. That is over 2 a game and currently the worst defensive record in the Premiership. The lack of signings over the summer seems to be telling and they already appear to be losing their grip over fifth position. Manchester United made a rather sketchy start but have slowly started to get back into gear. They thrashed West Brom at the weekend to record their third successive league victory and progress up the table into fifth. Wayne Rooney has been scoring goals for fun of late and against a side with a poor defensive record, we fancy him to bag another. Christiano Ronaldo has been back to full fitness for a while now but has yet to hit the sort of form which seen him score over 40 goals in just one season. Fergie should have no fresh injury worries and will look to field a full strength side this Saturday. Everton's defence is too vulnerable right now to be backing them and a Manchester United away win at 8/13 with Skybet looks decent value. This will be an open affair and the odds of for their to be 3 or more goals in the match looks great value at 4/5 with Bet365. Sunderland V Newcastle (Saturday, 25 October, 12.45pm) A local Derby in Tyneside as Newcastle make the short trip to the Stadium of Light to face Roy Keane's Sunderland side who have never beaten Newcastle in the Premiership. Their best ever result in the league came last season when they managed to draw 1-1 at home against the Magpies. Sunderland could only manage a point at the weekend against Fulham and they find themselves in the bottom half of the table in 12th position. Their home form this season has been inconsistent with their last home fixture ending 1-1 against Arsenal. They did however lose both of their first two home league games but did follow that up with a win over Middlesborough. The loan of Djibril Cisse looks to be a good capture as he adds pace to their attack while it is good to see Kieran Richardson back to full fitness and was desperately unlucky not to score on Saturday when he had a perfectly good goal ruled out. Newcastle have finally started to pick up points and did surprisingly well on Monday to pick up a point after going down to 10 men after just 15 minutes. They were slightly unfortunate not to win the game only to see Stephen Ireland score late on to level the match. Joe Kinnear certainly knows how to rant but it would appear that he has restored some confidence back into the players and although they haven't picked up a win since their victory over Bolton at the start of the season. Things are starting to look a lot brighter for Newcastle. With Newcastle playing a lot better football we think they will come out on top in the Tyneside derby. It will be a tight affair but an away win at 12/5 with Bet365 is our pick. A home win is 5/4 with Bluesquare. West Brom V Hull (Saturday, 25 October, 3pm) Two sides who have so far surpassed expectations in the league. West Brom are currently settled in mid table while Hull are remarkable third in the league above current champions Manchester United. Undoubtedly that will all change but it would appear that they are already pretty safe for survival this season. West Brom did well to hold Manchester United to 0-0 at Half-Time on Saturday but couldn't last the full 90 minutes and were thumped in the second half 4-0. They can play football, especially at home and they will be looking to get the ball down and play some decent football against a side they are more then capable of beating. Hull keep banging in surprise results and another league victory this Saturday wouldn't be a shock. A Dawson header was all that was needed to secure all 3 points on Sunday against West ham and they will be looking to carry their good form which has seen them win their last three league games and climb to third in the league. This is a tough match to call. You have to think that Hull's recent run of results has to end soon and for West Brom to do so this Saturday at 11/8 with Coral looks good odds. We won't be backing against Hull though and an away win is currently 9/4 with Skybet. The draw looks the most appealing at 12/5. We fancy these two sides to cancel each other out. Blackburn V Middlesborough (Saturday, 25 October, 5.30pm) Both of these sides go into the game with very little form as Middlesborough make the trip to Ewood Park to face Paul Ince's Blackburn side. A match which has seen Blackburn win 7 of the previous 12 league encounters between the two sides. Middlesborough winning just 3 with their last victory over Blackburn coming over 3 years ago in 2005. Blackburn could only manage a dull 0-0 draw on Saturday against Bolton which brought their points tally up to 11 in the league. No doubt that Paul Ince's main target for the season will be to get an automatic birth into the UEFA Cup via the league and they will need to up their performance level if they are to come close to achieving that target. Blackburn have managed just three league wins from their first 8 games and have struggled some what for goals scoring just 8 with only two of those being at home. Middlesborough's confidence will have taken a battering after their abysmal display against Chelsea at home last Saturday. They were completely outplayed and the 5-0 scoreline really could have been worse. With 5 defeats from 8 they will also be looking for a vast improvement in performances. Alfonso Alves has yet to show that he is worth the money they spent on him while they only real player worth noting this season is David Wheater who looks to be progressing into a fine defender. A tough match to call in which we will narrowly edge towards the home side. A home win is currently 11/10 with Coral while an away win is 11/4 with Bet365. Chelsea V Liverpool (Sunday, 26 October, 1.30pm) By far the most attractive match of the weekend as Liverpool have the tough task of ending Chelsea's long running undefeated home record and extending their win streak in the league to four games while Chelsea will be hoping to do exactly the same. Chelsea have been unstoppable this season and their performance against Middlesborough at The Riverside proved that they are indeed the team to beat this season. Despite several injuries to key players, they still had enough to demolish a full strength Middlesborough side. They are undefeated in the league this season and have only dropped points twice. However, both of those occasions were at home so Liverpool will take that small positive into the game at Stamford Bridge. Ashley Cole should return while Drogba and Ballack remain out injured for the long term. Having scored 19 and conceding just 3. Liverpool will know they have a mountain to climb if they are to get all three points this Sunday. Liverpool performed another spectacular comeback to see off a battling Wigan side at Anfield on Saturday. Another late Dirk Kuyt goal insured the points went home with the reds. Liverpool are also undefeated so far this season and are level on points with Chelsea at the top with only their inferior goal difference separating them. They will be without Fernando Torres who will be missed but if they are to be League champions then they will need to beat teams when they are without key players. Chelsea are justified favourites but whenever one of these sides has dropped points, so has the other. This one will be closer then some expect. A home win for Chelsea is 19/20 with Centrebet while an away win is currently 4/1 with Skybet which looks good, the most obvious option possibly the draw (3.40 at Coral). Really difficult to decide. Wigan V Aston Villa (Sunday, 26 October, 3pm) Martin O'Neill's men make the trip up to Wigan