English Premier League Round 3 (28-29/08)

Blackburn v Arsenal
Blackpool v Fulham
Wolverhampton v Newcastle United
Tottenham v Wigan Athletic
Chelsea v Stoke City
Manchester United v West Ham United
Bolton v Birmingham City
Aston Villa v Everton
Liverpool v WBA
Sunderland v Manchester City


Saturday, August 28

Blackburn v Arsenal

Verdict: A contrast in styles will be on view at Ewood Park as Blackburn will look to outmuscle Arsenal off their free flowing game. The Rovers dissapointingly let a 1-0 lead slip at Birmingham City last week to eventually lose 2-1. The Rovers let in two soft goals and missed a penalty which made the result even more heart breaking. Arsenal welcomed the return of first team regulars Van Persie, Fabregas, and Song in their 6-0 win over Blackpool. It was an easy day out for the Gunners, especially following the sending off of Ian Evatt in the 31st minute.

Apart from the injured Bentdner and Nasri, Arsene Wenger now has a full strength squad. Walcott and Arshavin were devasting last week and I think these two will be key if Arsenal are to break through Blackburn's defensive stall. In their two games so far, Rovers have not created many goal scoring opportunities which is worrying for Sam Allardyce. With Givet and Salgado expected to man the Blackburn flanks, Arsenal are likely to get in behind and this is where the game will be won for the visitors.

Pick: Arsenal -0.5AH @1.82 (sbobet, 10 units)
Blackburn 1 - 2 Arsenal

Manchester United v West Ham United

Verdict: Both teams suffered dissapointing results last week with the Red Devils drawing 2-2 at Fulham, and West Ham losing 1-3 to Bolton. Manchester United suffered a late equalizer to a fantastic Hangeland header, continuing their 3 games winless streak at Craven Cottage. The Hammers dominated the first half against Bolton, with Carlton Cole guilty of missing a penalty and several other opportunities. The London team's build up play looked good at times but a lack of finishing and calamitous defending has been their downfall.

I expect Manchester United to be ruthless here and try set a marker down before going into the international break. West Ham have worryingly conceded 6 goals so far this season despite playing some pretty football. With defensive midfielders, Collison and Hitzlsperger unavailable for the visitors, I struggle to see them blunting Manchester United's attacks.

Pick: Manchester United -2AH @1.76 (sbobet, 10 units)
Manchester United 3 - 0 West Ham United

Sunday, August 29

Sunderland v Manchester City

Verdict: Following a shaky start at Tottenham, Manchester City showed in their 3-0 win over Liverpool that they are genuine title contenders. James Milner made the perfect debut for his newly adopted club and will look to continue in the same vein at Sunderland. The Black Cats have struggled to get going so far this season with an opening day 2-2 draw against visiting Birmingham City, and a 1-0 loss at new boys WBA.

Sunderland let some key players go in the off-season in Kenwyne Jones and Lorik Cana, and perhaps have not replaced these two sufficiently. Replacement for Cana, Cristian Riveros, still looks off the pace in the centre of midfield whereas the striking options are threadbare with only Bent and Campbell as the only two recognized strikers. The Sunderland backline for this game also looks suspect with young Belgian keeper, Mignolet, deputising for the injured Craig Gordon, while regular defenders Onuoha and Mensah are unavailable. I feel that the likely back 4 of Ferdinand, Turner, Bramble, and make-shift left back Kieran Richardson will find it difficult to combat Manchester City's star-studded team. Adam Johnson was fantastic against Liverpool and should be too much for Richardson to handle while Milner/Wright-Phillips/Silva will be to mobile for Anton Ferdinand on the other flank.

Pick: Manchester City -0.75AH @2.14 (sbobet, 10 units)
Sunderland 1 - 0 Manchester City