12-03-2011 20:45 Cesena - Juventus

DID YOU KNOW?

* Cesena are currently stationed in 17th place in the Serie A table with 28 points from as many matches. They are level on points with third-from-bottom Lecce.

* The Seahorses last won against Juventus in Serie A in November 1987. It was a 2-0 victory in Turin.

* Massimo Ficcadenti’s side have drawn five of their last six encounters with the former Italian and European champions at the Stadio Dino Manuzzi.

* The promoted team have scored more than one goal in a game at home just once – it came in their 2-0 victory over Milan in Week 2 of the season.

* Cesena are the only team in Serie A this season not to have had a substitute score a goal in any game.

* Juventus are currently seventh in Serie A with 41 points from 28 matches, 10 points behind fourth-placed Lazio.

* The Bianconeri are on a three-game losing streak in the league and have failed to score in any of those defeats.

* Luigi Del Neri’s side have won just five of their 14 away league encounters this campaign, scoring 17 goals and conceding 13 in the process.

* The Old Lady went five games without scoring in the league in December 1998.

* Juventus have won just once on the road in their last six attempts and have lost thrice.

LAST MEETING

November 7, 2010: Juventus 3-1 Cesena

Juventus fell behind to a Luis Jimenez goal after 11 minutes but restored parity just after the half-hour mark when Alessandro Del Piero found the target from the penalty spot. Things then turned from bad to worse for the Seahorses, as Maximiliano Pellegrino was sent off just four minutes from the half-time interval and Fabio Quagliarella doubled the Bianconeri’s lead. Vincenzo Iaquinta added the cherry on the cake on 87 minutes.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Cesena: Antonioli; Santon, Pellegrino, Von Bergen, Lauro; Caserta, Colucci, Parolo; Giaccherini, Jimenez; Bogdani

Juventus: Buffon; Sorensen, Chiellini, Barzagli, Traore; Krasic, Marchisio, Aquilani, Pepe; Matri, Del Piero

Prediction

Juventus are in crisis and are low on confidence. On the other hand, Cesena are coming off the back of a 3-2 victory over Sampdoria in Genoa. The Seahorses will eye an upset over the former Italian and European champions and could just get lucky.

Cesena 2-0 Juventus

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12.03. (Sat) 18:30 Werder - Borussia MG

DID YOU KNOW?

* Werder Bremen have failed to keep a clean sheet in 10 games now, the longest record of its sort in the Bundesliga this season.

* Claudio Pizarro has scored in each of his last five games against Gladbach for Bremen.

* In total, Werder have scored 134 goals against Gladbach in Bundesliga history while die Fohlen's tally in the fixture is 130.

* The two teams have the worst defences in the league with Saturday's home side conceding 51 and Borussia shipping 59 goals in total.

* Hugo Almeida remains Bremen's top scorer in the Bundesliga with nine goals despite departing the club for Beskitas in January for €2 million.

* Gladbach have struggled on recent visits to the Weserstadion, picking up only four points from their last 20 visits and scoring a paltry five goals in the process.

* Lucien Favre's side's win over Hoffenheim last weekend was their second consecutive home victory in a row. Previously the club had not won a Bundesliga game at Borussia Park this season (three draws and eight defeats).

* Moenchengladbach's last victory in Bremen came 24 years ago. In March 1987 the North Rhine-Westphalian club beat Werder 7-1 away from home, their record Bundesliga away victory. Coincidentally the result is also die Werderaner's record home defeat in the league.

* Gladbach remain bottom of the Bundesliga and have 11 games left to make up a four-point deficit.

LAST MEETING

October 23, 2010: Borussia Moenchengladbach 1-4 Werder Bremen

Bremen thrashed Gladbach at Borussia Park back in October with goals coming from Marko Marin, Wesley, Aaron Hunt and Claudio Pizarro. Per Mertesacker's own goal gave die Fohlen a consolation.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Werder Bremen: Wiese; Fritz, Mertesacker, Proedl, Silverstre; Frings, Bargfrede, Wesley, Trinks; Wagner, Pizarro.

Moenchengladbach: Bailly; Jantschke, Stranzl, Dante, Daems; Marx, Neustaedter, Arango, Reus, Idrissou.

Prediction

Werder Bremen 2-1 Mönchengladbach

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12-03-2011 18:15 Manchester Utd. - Arsenal

DID YOU KNOW?

* Manchester United have won their last eight home matches.

* Sir Alex Ferguson's side are unbeaten in their last six matches against Arsenal at Old Trafford in all competitions.

* Manchester United have lifted the FA Cup 11 times.

* Arsenal have won the FA Cup 10 times in their history.

* Arsenal have only won one of their last four matches in all competitions. Their last win came in the FA Cup against Leyton Orient when they won 5-0 at the Emirates.

* The Gunners have been taken to a replay twice in this season's competition by Leeds and Leyton Orient.

* This will be the first time Arsenal have faced Premier League opposition in the cup this season.

* In 13 matches in the FA Cup between the two sides, Manchester United have come out on top on six occasions while Arsenal have triumphed five times. Two contests have finished in a draw.

* Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have gone head-to-head in the FA Cup on five occasions. United have won three and the Gunners have only one victory. There have been two draws, with one coming in the 2005 final where Arsenal won the trophy on penalties.

* In overall head-to heads between the two sides, Manchester United have won 87 times, while Arsenal have come out on top on 77 occassions. There has been a draw 46 times.

LAST MEETING

December 13, 2010: Manchester United 1-0 Arsenal

Park Ji-Sung scored the only goal of the game as Manchester United extended their lead at the top of the Premier League. It was a tight affair but Park's clever cushioned header was enough to give the home side a 1-0 victory.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Manchester United: Van der Sar; Rafael, Smalling, Vidic, Evra; Fletcher, Carrick, Gibson, Giggs; Berbatov, Rooney.

Arsenal: Almunia; Sagna, Djourou, Koscielny, Gibbs; Denilson, Wilshere, Nasri; Bendtner, Van Persie, Arshavin.

Prediction

This is an intriguing contest as Arsenal will be looking to bounce back from the disappointment of going out of the Champions League, while Manchester United are coming off the back of two straight defeats in the Premier League.

They also have the small matter of a Champions League tie against Marseille on Tuesday night so it will be interesting to see how Sir Alex Ferguson treats this tie.

But all in all, expect goals and I expect a tight but thrilling 2-2 draw.

Man Utd. 2-2 Arsenal

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12-03-2011 15:30 Bayern Munchen - Hamburger SV

DID YOU KNOW?

* Bayern Munich are on the verge of scoring their 3,000th point in the Bundesliga, standing currently on 2,999. They have scored the most points of any team in the competition's 48-year history despite not being ever-present in the top flight.

* To put in perspective just how difficult it has been lately for Bayern by their own high standards, the last time they lost four competitive games in succession was in the 1991-92 season.

* Three of Bayern's current squad used to play for Hamburg, although of the trio only Daniel van Buyten will start tomorrow. Ivica Olic is a long-term injury casualty and Hans-Joerg Butt is second choice in goal to Thomas Kraft.

* Both teams will be waving goodbye to their respective head coaches in the summer with Louis van Gaal being let go at the end of the season and Armin Veh also departing the Imtech Arena, having finally made a concrete decision on his future.

* Club captain Philipp Lahm will start his 100th competitive fixture in a row for Bayern and has not missed a single minute of action either this or last season. He joins 11 others as an ever-present this term, including his opposing captain tomorrow Heiko Westermann.

* Hamburg have a poor record historically against Bayern in Munich, having won just five times there in Bundesliga history - in 1975, 1978, 1982, 2006 and 2007. However, they are the only team who have won twice in the Allianz Arena.

* Die Rothosen boast five players in their squad who once plied their trade with der Rekordmeister, namely Ze Roberto, Marcell Jansen, David Jarolim, Piotr Trochowski and Jose Paolo Guerrero.

* This has been a tight encounter in recent years. No side has won by a two-goal margin since Hamburg won 2-0 at home to Bayern in September 2005, eight months after Bayern won 3-0 in Munich.

* Goals have not been in plentiful supply between these two giants of German football - the last four competitive games have brought at most one goal in total. Even in the pre-season Liga-Total Cup, Hamburg triumphed 1-0 against Bayern's reserves.

* Hamburg coach Armin Veh has lost all six away games he has taken charge of in Munich with a goal difference of -11 (five goals scored, 16 conceded).

LAST MEETING

October 22, 2010: Hamburg 0-0 Bayern Munich

Both sides came away from this with a point after failing to trouble the scorers. It was an even encounter in which both Hamburg and Bayern had chances, with Louis van Gaal remarking afterwards that he felt his side should have won.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Bayern Munich: Kraft; Lahm, Van Buyten, Luiz Gustavo, Pranjic; Kroos, Schweinsteiger; Robben, Mueller, Ribery; Gomez

Hamburg: Rost; Demel, Kacar, Westermann, Aogo; Ben-Hatira, Jarolim, Ze Roberto, Son; Petric, Guerrero

Prediction

Bayern will have one eye on next week's crunch Champions League clash with Inter but they cannot afford to take their eye of the ball in the quest for third spot. Hamburg are a team who usually do better against the bigger sides and who are not intimidated by the ferocious atmosphere in the Allianz Arena. I think these sides will cancel each other out in another reasonably low scoring fixture.

Bayern Munich 1-1 Hamburg

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12-03-2011 15:30 1899 Hoffenheim - Borussia D.

DID YOU KNOW?

* Hoffenheim have only met Dortmund five times in the Bundesliga due to the club's stratospheric rise. There has been a win for each team and three draws.

* TSG's only win over the Bundesliga leaders came in their first ever meeting back in September 2008. Ibisevic (2), Salihovic and the now departed Carlos Eduardo scored Hoffenheim's goals in a 4-1 rout.

* Ryan Babel, the club's big January signing, has yet to open his account for the club in six Bundesliga appearances.

* The club are in a poor run of form, winning only one of their last five games with three of those games ending in defeat.

* Hoffenheim's 1-1 away draw with Dortmund ended BVB's seven-game winning streak. Demba Ba, who exited the club in January on loan, opened the scoring only for Antonio da Silva to score a last-gasp equaliser for the away team.

* Dortmund are still unbeaten in 2011 and have only lost one of their last 24 Bundesliga games.

* Die Borussen have kept more clean sheets this season than any other team in the league with 12.

* The team have by far the meanest defence in the league. Klopp's men have conceded 14 goals in total with the next best record falling to Hannover, Mainz and Nuernberg who have all conceded 32 goals, more than double the amount Borussia have let in.

* Hoffenheim and Dortmund have only failed to score in three games each, no team in the league have found the back of the net in more games.

* Star striker Lucas Barrios now has 30 Bundesliga goals for BVB from 56 appearances, meaning the striker's goalscoring record is better than a goal every other game.

LAST MEETING

October 24, 2010: Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Hoffenheim

Hoffenheim ended Dortmund's seven-game winning streak earlier on in the season. Demba Ba opened the scoring for the away team early on but a late Antonio da Silva free-kick rescued a point for Juergen Klopp's men.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Hoffenheim: Starke; Beck, Vorsah, Compper, Braafheid; Rudy, Sigurdson, Alaba; Vukcevic, Ibisevic, Babel.

Borussia Dortmund: Weidenfeller; Piszczek, Subotic, Felipe Santana, Schmelzer; Sahin, Bender; Goetze, Lewandowski, Grosskreutz; Barrios.

Prediction

Hoffenheim 1-3 Borussia

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