Monday, September 20, 2010

21.22. 09. 2010. Carling Cup Preview

Birmingham City v MK Dons
  • Birmingham have won their last six Carling Cup games against sides from a lower tier.
  • The two Carling Cup games to date involving MK Dons and a Premier League side have produced 12 goals in total.
  • MK Dons have never reached the fourth round of the Carling Cup.
  • Birmingham City defeated Wimbledon 1-0 in the 2003/04 FA Cup, but haven't yet met them since the Dons moved to Milton Keynes.
Brentford v Everton
  • Brentford have not kept a clean sheet in the Carling Cup since August 2001.
  • The last time Brentford reached the third round of the Carling Cup they also faced a top-flight side, losing 4-1 at Norwich in 1991/92.
  • Everton have kept a clean sheet in five of their last seven third round matches in the Carling Cup.
  • These teams have met 16 times, with both claiming seven victories.
  • Five of the last six encounters between these outfits have been won by the home side.
Burnley v Bolton Wanderers
  • Burnley have won their last three matches at home to Premier League opposition in the Carling Cup.
  • The Trotters have kept only two clean sheets in their last 11 League Cup games on the road.
  • Bolton are unbeaten in nine against Burnley, winning five of these matches.
  • Should Bolton win this game they will draw level with Burnley in their head to head record with 43 wins.
Millwall v Ipswich Town
  • Only once since 1995/96 have Millwall made it past the third round of the Carling Cup.
  • Town have won five of their last six matches in the third round of the competition.
  • The Lions have won just one of their last four home games against Ipswich.
  • These sides met in the 2000/01 edition of the League Cup, the Tractor Boys progressed 5-2 (AET in the second leg), after losing the away leg 2-0.
Peterborough Untied v Swansea City
  • The Posh have scored at least twice in their last six Carling Cup games.
  • This is only ther second time Swansea have reached the third round of the League Cup since their relegation from the top-flight in 1983.
  • Swansea's win over Peterborough in February ended a five game winless run against the Posh.
  • However at Peterborough, the Swans have won three of the last five and lost just once in this run.
Portsmouth v Leicester City
  • Pompey have won only two of their last six Carling Cup matches at home.
  • Leicester have scored in their last 18 games in the League Cup.
  • The Foxes are unbeaten in four games against Pompey, wining three of these games.
  • The last two games at Fratton Park between these teams have seen Leicester win 2-0.
Stoke City v Fulham
  • Fulham have not made it past the third round of this competition since the 2004/05 season.
  • Stoke won both league encounters last season against Fulham
  • The teams met in the 1994/95 edition of the competition, with both sides' winning their home tie.
  • The last time the sides met in a knockout competition Fulham won 3-0 in the fourth round of the 2006/07 FA Cup.
Sunderland v West Ham United
  • The Black Cats have kept a clean sheet in their last three Carling Cup games at home.
  • The Hammers have lost their last six League Cup matches against Premier League teams.
  • West Ham are unbeaten in four games against Sunderland, including three victories which saw them keep three clean sheets.
  • Sunderland have won just one of their last five home games against the Hammers.
Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal
  • Both Spurs and Arsenal have won their last six games in the third round of the Carling Cup.
  • Tottenham are unbeaten in their last 17 matches at home in the League Cup.
  • Arsenal have lost their last three matches away from home in the competition, conceding a total of 10 goals.
  • None of the last seven games between these sides has seen an away victory.
  • These sides met in the semi-final of the 2007/08 League Cup, Spurs won 5-1 at home in the second leg after a 1-1 draw at the Emirates.
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Notts County
  • Wolves have not made it to the fourth round of the League Cup since 2003.
  • Wolves are without a win in their last three Carling Cup games against sides from the third tier.
  • The Magpies have scored at least twice in their last eight matches in the third round of the competition.
  • Wolves have won four of their last five games against Notts County with the other game ending level.
  • The sides met in the 1992/93 League Cup when Notts County progressed 4-2 on aggregate, winning 1-0 at Molineux.
Aston Villa v Blackburn Rovers
  • Last season, this match (6-4) was the highest-scoring League Cup game since Villa beat Wycombe 8-3 in the competition in 2005.
  • The last Carling Cup match at Villa Park saw 10 goals (the 6-4 vs Blackburn): the previous four had produced just four in total.
  • Blackburn have won their last three third round matches, keeping a clean sheet each time.
  • These sides met five times last season, including in both cup competitions, Rovers won both league encounters but lost all three cup games.
Chelsea v Newcastle United
  • Chelsea have made it to the fourth round in eight of the last nine seasons.
  • The Blues have scored in 20 consecutive League Cup games.
  • The Magpies have conceded at least twice in each of their last six Carling Cup matches.
  • Newcastle have been eliminated at this stage in each of the last three seasons.
  • Newcastle have scored just one goal in their last seven games against Chelsea.
  • Chelsea have not lost at home to Newcastle since November 1986, a run of 21 games.
Scunthorpe United v Manchester United
  • The Iron have won their last four Carling Cup matches at Glanford Park.
  • Last season was the first time in Scunthorpe's history that they had made it to the fourth round of the League Cup.
  • Manchester United have lost three of their last six Carling Cup games against opponents from a lower division.
  • These two sides have never played each other before.
Wigan Athletic v Preston North End
  • Each of the Latics‘ last five League Cup games has seen a team win by at least a three-goal margin (three wins, two defeats).
  • Wigan have conceded only one goal in total in their last seven Carling Cup games at home.
  • Preston have conceded an average of 3.4 goals per game in their last 10 trips to top-flight opponents in the League Cup, losing nine of these matches.
  • Wigan have won just one of their last 10 home games against Preston, losing five of these.
  • Wigan have never beaten Preston in six League Cup meetings, losing four and drawing two.
Liverpool v Northampton Town
  • Only one lower-league side has ever won at Anfield in 51 attempts in the League Cup (Grimsby 2-1 in 2001).
  • The Cobblers have kept just one clean sheet in their last 24 League Cup games away from home.
  • These teams have met three times previously, Northampton are yet to record a win.
  • At Anfield, Liverpool won both games against Northampton, scoring eight goals and conceding just one.
West Bromwich Albion v Manchester City
  • The Baggies have not made it to the fourth round of the Carling Cup since 2005.
  • City have scored in nine consecutive League Cup games away from home.
  • West Brom have won their last three home games against the Citizens, scoring two goals in each match.
  • None of their last nine meetings at the Hawthorns between these sides have ended level.

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20.09. (Mon) 21:00 Dep. La Coruna - Getafe

Get A Goal

It’s been a moderate start to the season for Deportivo La Coruna, who approach Monday’s game against Getafe without a goal to their name, yet they have already picked up two points in the early stages of this campaign.

Low scoring encounters were the speciality of the Galician side last term and having maintained their defensive resilience over the summer, the Riazor side have failed to add to their offensive firepower, leaving themselves in a very similar position to which they found themselves last term.

Sevilla were impressive stifled at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan last weekend after an opening day home stalemate against Zaragoza. Miguel Angel Lotina was content with the performance last weekend, considering after the game to AS: “In the first half we were pretty good, moving the ball, without creating any clear chances, but competing fairly evenly. Sevilla tightened a lot after the break and the game was tougher then.


“We drew against a great team that shows a big physical intensity and is in more of a rhythm in official matches.”

Striker Adrian missed Depor’s best chance to win last weekend’s encounter, but he remains unconcerned about the club’s lack of goals thus far. “It is said that we don’t score goals and for me it isn’t weird,” he noted. “Just as we could win 3-0 against Getafe and people will no longer talk of it, these stories are like this. Honestly, I am not worried.

“if we don’t score the goals, then it’s normal to hear people talking. We are the main responsible for it and sincerely we are the first ones who want to fix it.”

A third scoreless draw in succession would be a frustrating manner in which to start the campaign, but that would much preferred to a high scoring loss.

Leave A Good Taste In The Mouth


Getafe have begun the season in a very different fashion to their frugal hosts. Michel’s men have seen goals galore in each of their last three competitive fixtures, which have produced a total of 12 strikes. The majority of these have been in favour of the Madrid men, who will look to keep the momentum of a two match winning streak going as they enter a frantic period of the season.

A 3-1 defeat at the hands of Espanyol on La Liga’s opening weekend was a disappointing way to start the campaign, but this was quickly followed up by a cathartic success over a Levante side who have started the term in a frightfully sluggish manner. Proving this was no fluke, los Azulones then wrestled their way to a 2-1 success over OB in midweek in Europa League play.

Michel was rather angry after the midweek success, lambasting the first half performance of his men. “At half time we talked and did not talk football or modifying positions on the pitch,” he stated to AS. “We appealed for pride and said we must be satisfied with what we do. It's something personal in each one of us. Everyone has to contribute a part to it. If we don't, the team appears vulgar, tasteless, sad, and that's not Getafe.”

Monday night football has sparked something of a debate in Spain, and Michel is one of the coaches against it. He has appeared in Marca stating that players should be given some time off, criticising the packed schedule of fixtures his team face at present.

The reality is that Geta will simply have to make do for the moment as they try to re-establish themselves as a top half club.

TEAM NEWS

Deportivo La Coruna


The big worry for the hosts is over Andres Guardado, who has struggled to train fully over the course of the last week. He trained only lightly on Friday due to a thigh problem, though Depor’s medics are yet optimistic over his participation.

Juan Dominguez also has thigh problems and will be missing for a couple more weeks. Dani Aranzubia, on the other hand, will at least make the bench.

Probable Starting XI:
Manu; Manuel Pablo, Colotto, Lopo, Morel; Juca, Rodriguez; Urreta, Michel, Guardado; Riki

Getafe


Michel was left frustrated on Thursday by an injury to Jaime Gavilan, which will keep him out for a fortnight, which is a massive blow considering the form the winger showed last weekend.

Otherwise there has been good news on the injury front as both Manu Del Moral and Juan Albin have managed to shake off problems to feature in this encounter.

Probable Starting XI:
Ustari; M. Torres, Cata Diaz, Rafa, Mane; Boateng; Manu, Parejo, Mosquera, Miku; Colunga 


Prediction
While Deportivo are generally involved in low scoring games, it’s the opposite for Getafe, which makes Monday’s match a tricky one to call. European fatigue will count against the visitors, who may be forced to rotate their squad fairly heavily after a tough midweek game. That should play into the hands of Depor, though whether they have the firepower to take advantage remains to be seen.

Deportivo 1-0 Getafe