English Premier League Round 12 (7/11 - 10/11)

Aston Villa v Bolton
Tottenham v Sunderland
Blackburn v Portsmouth
Manchester City v Burnley
Wolverhampton v Arsenal
Hull City v Stoke City
West Ham United v Everton
Wigan Athletic v Fulham
Chelsea v Manchester United
Liverpool v Birmingham City


Saturday, November 7

Blackburn v Portsmouth

Team news - Blackburn: Grella (doubtful) Portsmouth: Finnan (OUT), Utaka (doubtful).

Verdict: Only 3pts seperates these sides as 3rd from bottom Blackburn face bottom club Portsmouth. Portsmouth has had an upturn in form recently with only one defeat in five (in all competitions), including consecutive 4-0 hammerings of Wigan Athletic and Stoke City respectively. Blackburn have tasted defeats to tough opposition in the last month, namely Arsenal, Manchester United, and Chelsea so will not be too disconsolate, especially as their home form has been impressive. The Rovers are on a run of three consecutive wins at Ewood Park in contests that have provided goals a plenty, 12 in fact which equates to an average of 4 a game. Portsmouth have been cautious on their travels so far but confidence is high now and they will chase the victory, knowing that a win here will catapult them above Blackburn and outside the relegation zone.

Pick: Over 2.25 goals @1.83 (sbobet, 6 units)
Blackburn 3 - 1 Portsmouth

Manchester City v Burnley

Team news - Manchester City: Adebayor (IN), Bridge (doubtful), Toure (slight doubt), Robinho (OUT) Burnley: Jordan (doubtful)

Verdict: Despite only winning once in their last five Premiership encounters, Manchester City occupy fourth place and have a chance to tie Arsenal for third (atleast for 24hrs) against home sick Burnley. The Clarets have the worst away record in the league with no points and a GD of -15, so the home side won't get a better opportunity to register big time here. Following a 2 week absence , Adebayor returns to heap misery on a porous Burnley backline. With a run of difficult games ahead against Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea over the next month, it is key that Manchester City run into some form in a period which could very well decide their season.

Pick: Manchester City -1.5AH @1.98 (ibcbet, 6 units)
Manchester City 3 - 3 Burnley

Tottenham v Sunderland

Team news - Tottenham: Defoe (IN), Lennon (50/50), Bassong (OUT) Sunderland: Jones (OUT), Cana (OUT), Cattermole (OUT), Mensah (doubtful), Zenden (doubtful)

Verdict: Tottenham will be eager to put the London Derby defeat at Arsenal behind them as they face an injury/suspension hit Sunderland side. Sunderland's valiant comeback draw from 2-0 down, against West Ham, came at a cost with striker Kenwyn Jones seeing red and captain Loric Cana picking up his 5th yellow, and resulting one week suspension. With Cattermole already absent through injury, Sunderland will be toothless in midfield. I fully expect Palacios and company to dominate the middle of the park. In addition, Spurs are boosted with Defoe returning from suspension and Lennon who is likely to return from injury. Sunderland have been poor on their travels this season with only a single victory at Bolton to hang their hat on. In their last home Premier League encounter, Tottenham completely out played Stoke City with 64% possession but the visitors managed to steal the points with only their second shot on target for the entirity of the 90 minutes. I expect the home side to return to winning ways here.

Pick: Tottenham -0.75AH @1.7 (sbobet, 8 units)
Tottenham 2 - 0 Sunderland

Wolverhampton v Arsenal

Verdict: Worryingly for Wolverhampton, this is their first meeting against 'The Big 4' and they find themselves in 17th position with 2 wins in 11 contests. Their home form hasn't been too flash either with points dropped against the like of Hull City, West Ham, and Portsmouth. Fresh from their demolition of Spurs and AZ Alkmaar midweek, Arsenal are flying at the moment and it's difficult to see Wolves doing anything to halt their progress. Wolverhampton do like to play the game the right way with lots of neat passing movements, not too dissimilar to Arsenal but ofcoarse in a less effective way. I think we should see an open game here with lots of goals.

Pick: Over 2.75 goals @1.75 (sbobet, 6 units)
Wolverhampton 1 - 4 Arsenal

Sunday, November 8

Wigan Athletic v Fulham

Team news - Wigan Athletic: Figueroa (OUT), Edman (IN) Fulham: A.Johnson (OUT), Murphy (doubtful), Duff (doubtful), Davies (IN)

Verdict: Both sides are in relatively good form and will be keen for maximum points here to hang onto the coat tails of the top 6. In Round 11, Wigan suffered a surprise 4-0 defeat at the hands of struggling Portsmouth while Fulham put another dent into Liverpool's fading title hopes with a 3-1 win at The Cottage. Fulham also put on a fine display in Rome midweek, only to come undone with two red cards and a resulting 2-1 defeat. Wigan have shown an air of confidence at the JJB in their last 3 encounters, gaining points against West Ham, Chelsea and Manchester City. The visitors general form is even more impressive, with only one defeat in their last seven competetive fixtures. It is worth noting that Fulham have conceded 2 goals, following European midweek fixtures, on the last 5 occassions. With this in mind and the form of strikers on both sides, goals are the order of the day in this one.

Pick: Over 2.25 @1.98 (sbobet, 7 units)
Wigan Athletic 1 - 1 Fulham

Monday, November 9
Liverpool v Birmingham City

Team news - Liverpool: Torres (OUT), Carragher (OUT), Deggen (OUT) Birmingham City: Ferguson (OUT), O'Connor (OUT)

Verdict: Desperate Liverpool will look to put a stop to the rot following only a single win in their last 8 competitive fixtures. Birmingham also find themselves in a hole with only a single win in their last 6 competitive fixures. Liverpool reshuffle their backline following suspensions to Carragher and Deggen with Johnson and Agger returning from injury. Liverpool's impressive home form has kept them just about in the title chase but they cannot afford any slip ups. Birmingham have only won one game on their travels but are a fighting side and have done well at Anfield in the past. Liverpool are the second highest scoring home side and despite the absence of Torres and Gerrard, do have players capable of breaching a Birmingham defence that has leaked 7 goals in their last 3 games on their travels. Birmingham themselves pose a threat with Jerome, McFadden and Benitez leading the line against a reshuffled Liverpool backline.

Pick: Over 2.5 goals @1.98 (sbobet, 6 units)
Liverpool 2 - 2 Birmingham