English Premier League Round 25 (1-2/02)

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


Tuesday, February 1

Arsenal v Everton

Verdict: Second placed, Arsenal, face a tricky tie against Everton in what will be their 10th game since the turn of the year. Arsenal's success in the domestic cup competitions continued in the FA Cup on Sunday with a hard fought 2-1 win over League One side Huddersfield Town. A day earlier, Everton were unlucky not to knock out current holders Chelsea in a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park.

The red card of defender Squillaci, just before half-time, meant that Arsene Wenger's men had to work harder than what they would of liked to defeat League One opposition. The news that Nasri is out for up to 3 weeks with a hamstring injury is also a big blow for the Gunners. Despite their lowly position of 14th on the table, Everton has incredibly lost just one more game (6 defeats) than their London compatriots. Too many home draws has been the Toffees achilles heel but their away performances at the more fashionable sides has been impressive. Draws at Chelsea and Tottenham in addition to a win at Manchester City tells us that Moyes' men are not over-roared by the big names, in fact just the opposite. With only Cahill absent from Everton's best 11, I expect the visitors to give Arsenal a very tough encounter.

Pick: Everton +1ah @2.17 (12bet, 5 units)
Arsenal 2 - 1 Everton


Wednesday, February 2

Bolton v Wolverhampton

Verdict: Both sides are going through a difficult period at the moment with Bolton dropping from 4th to 11th in the space of ten games while Wolves has produced the odd surprise (Liverpool and Chelsea wins) but still boast the worst away record in the division (1-1-9). In their last respective outings in the FA Cup, Bolton were involved in a scoreless draw with Wigan Athletic while a day later, Wolverhampton fell 0-1 to fellow Premier League side Stoke City.

Bolton will be aiming to jump back into the top half of the table with a win against poor travelling Wolves. New loan signing, Daniel Sturridge, from Chelsea will add some much needed pace to a recently laboured Bolton strike force while the return of South Korean winger, Chung-Yong Lee, will give the home side natural width on the right. Centre-back, Gary Cahill, and midfielder Stuart Holden return to the side after sitting out the FA Cup fixture. The visitors regain the services of striker, Kevin Doyle, who should be the only change to the side that lost to Stoke 3 days ago. Bolton has had a difficult run of games recently but still hold a handy home record (5-5-2). With manager, Owen Coyle, having the luxury of almost a fully fit squad to choose from (in addition to an extra day rest), I expect Bolton to return to winning ways.

Pick: Bolton -0.75ah @2.23 (sbobet, 5 units)
Bolton 1 - 0 Wolverhampton