Monday, December 6, 2010

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06-12-2010 20:45 Napoli - Palermo

Reviving The Glory Days

Last month Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri expressed his lofty desire to revive the glory days of the past for the Partenopei and construct a team that can challenge for the Scudetto. That might be pushing it a bit too far but there can be no doubt that the former Italian champions can finish in a Champions League position this campaign.

Currently placed fourth in the table with 24 points from 14 matches, Napoli are nine points off the pace but with a game in hand. Encouragingly, the Azzurri are a point ahead of Italian and European champions Inter, and with other candidates for a top four finish suffering from inconsistency, Napoli are very much in contention.

However, the former Italian champions have to maintain the momentum and not drop unnecessary points. Last weekend they suffered a 3-1 defeat to Udinese in Udine but recovered in midweek when they came from behind to hold Utrecht to a 3-3 draw in the Netherlands in the Europa League.

Napoli have won four of their last six Serie A fixtures and have won half of their matches at the San Paolo. The 1989 UEFA Cup winners have a mixed result against the country's bigger clubs as they have won against Sampdoria and Roma but lost to Milan and Lazio.

Champions League Ambition

Palermo are one of the most entertaining sides to watch anywhere in Europe and although they lost some important players in the summer and struggled at the start of the season, they have steadied themselves and are back in the race to finish in the top four in Serie A.

At the moment Delio Rossi's side are fifth in the league standings with 23 points from 14 matches and are just a point behind Napoli. Victory in Naples tonight will propel them to fourth spot and place them just a point behind former Italian champions Juventus.

Palermo have an intriguing away form too in the championship this campaign as they have won thrice and lost thrice away from the Renzo Barbera, scoring 11 goals and conceding as many in the process. The Rosanero won their last match on the road, defeating Cesena 2-1.

Last weekend the Aquile beat Roma 3-1 in Palermo exhibiting some lovely football but failed to register a victory in midweek against Sparta Prague in the Europa League as they were held to a 2-2 draw.

TEAM NEWS

Napoli

Cristiano Lucarelli and Matteo Gianello are injured and will miss tonight's clash. Walter Mazzarri will deploy a 3-4-2-1 formation that will see Ezequiel Lavezzi start as the lone striker upfront with Edinson Cavani and Marek Hamsik just behind him. The two playmakers will be supported by a four-man midfield with Walter Gargano and Michele Pazienza as the two central midfielders.

Palermo

Abel Hernandez and Matteo Darmian are out because of injuries and Armin Bacinovic is suspended. Delio Rossi will field a 4-3-2-1 system that will have Fabrizio Miccoli as the lone striker up front. Javier Pastore and Josip Ilicic will be the two playmakers behind him and they will be supported by Giulio Migliaccio, Antonio Nocerino and Nicola Rigoni.

Prediction
This could potentially be the most entertaining game of football this week as both Napoli and Palermo are very much committed to attacking football and play with promising youngsters. The Neapolitans will be the favourites since the match is in Naples but their propensity to concede far too many goals than they should could force them to drop two points.

Napoli 2-2 Palermo

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06-12-2010 21:00 Liverpool - Aston Villa

No Room For Error

After going on an inspiring run of six games unbeaten in all competitions, Liverpool have slipped into an all too familiar situation that sees them with little room for error. They are well off the pace in the race for fourth place, as 10 points separate them from Manchester City.

And even if the Reds should win this game - which is technically a game in hand - it would still mean that they would have to navigate through a run of form that is seven points better than City’s results. All this would still be fruitless if Tottenham Hotspur, continue to push forward as they did last month.

So saying that the Merseyside club have no room for error is correct if they are realistically chasing fourth spot, which has looked a little unlikely since their morose start to the season.

Manager Roy Hodgson will be without both his skipper Gerrard and his vice-captain Carragher, who are sidelined with injuries. The talismanic England international is expected to be back in time for the next Premier League game against Newcastle United, while centre-half Carragher sustained a dislocated shoulder against Tottenham and surgery has ruled him out for up to three months.

On the other hand there is some encouragement to be taken from Joe Cole’s return to fitness, though his form still poses some concern. But the performances put in by Raul Meireles and Maxi Rodriguez in the recent loss to Spurs is encouragement enough that the home side can still pose a potent threat in the absence of Gerrard.

Another positive is that the manager rested several players during the midweek tie against Steaua Bucharest, when the team secured qualification into the knockout round of the Europa League. Fernando Torres, Dirk Kuyt, Raul Meireles, Glen Johnson and Paul Konchesky played no part in the game against the Romanian side, while Lucas’ last minute appearance can barely be termed an exertion.

Meanwhile, Torres’ form has been a bit of a concern as he has been slightly off colour this season, though there have been a few flashes of brilliance that remind supporters what he is capable of. And in the absence of key players, it may be up to the Spaniard to produce a performance worthy of winning the game.

Nostalgic Return For Houllier

Gerard Houllier still talks fondly about his time as manager of Liverpool, and the trip to his former home will likely be an emotional one.

The Frenchman guided the Reds to an historic cup treble in 2001, when they won the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup (forerunner of the Europa League). He even guided the club to a second-placed finish in the top-flight, which they have failed to better since - though they did equal it and come tantalisingly close to winning the Premier League under his successor Rafael Benitez.

Houllier, though, ran into a wall of criticism during a portion of his reign at Anfield as his tactics were at times viewed as one-dimensional while his signings were also subject to some criticism. In particular, his failure to get the team playing creatively during the latter part of his tenure led to a strained relationship with the upper echelon of the club that ultimately led to an exit by mutual consent.

He returned to manage French heavyweights Lyon and took a break from club management during a spell with the French FA before returning to the hotseat, and England, to succeed Martin O’Neill at Aston Villa.

The Ulsterman was a real favourite at Villa Park, but left suddenly - just before the start of the season – owing to a disagreement with owner Randy Lerner. As yet the 63-year-old replacement has been unable to play saviour and rescue the club convincingly from the fall-out following the popular O'Neill's departure; but he could alleviate the situation by master-minding a victory over his former employers.

To accomplish this, Houllier will have to spur his side to produce something different, as they have only one win away from home this season – against Wolverhampton Wanderers, which is hardly a major feat as they are currently languishing at the bottom of the standings.

Having been unable to fill every unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run, Villa find themselves in rough weather as they have won only one game in their last seven outings in all competitions. What is worse is that they have lost their last three matches, with the late strike by Nikola Zigic in the Birmingham derby proving to be a real League Cup quarter-final heartbreaker at St Andrew’s.

The time for redemption is ripe, but the question is whether the Villans can muster the sort of performance that will earn them three points at Anfield.

TEAM NEWS

Liverpool

Steven Gerrard (hamstring) remains on the sidelines owing to the injury sustained whilst on international duty, but now the club’s vice-captain Jamie Carragher (dislocated shoulder) has joined the skipper on the sidelines - and is expected to remain out of action for three months having undergone surgery.

Sotirios Kyrgiakos should come in and take the role of the vice-captain like he did against Steaua Bucharest in midweek, while Daniel Agger (calf) has not yet recovered from injury.

Jay Spearing (ankle) is not in contention to make an appearance, though it remains unlikely that he would have been given a look in even if fit.

Joe Cole, Milan Jovanovic and Christian Poulsen are all in contention to play a part in this fixture, with the former Chelsea midfielder in particular having a chance of playing behind Torres owing to Gerrard’s injury. But manager Roy Hodgson will likely opt to go with David Ngog to partner the Spaniard since Cole is only just back from injury.

Possible starting line-up: Reina, Johnson, Kyrgiakos, Skrtel, Konchesky; Kuyt, Meireles, Lucas, Maxi; Ngog, Torres.

Aston Villa

Stiliyan Petrov and Fabian Delph (both knee) are unavailable due to injury and are only expected to return in the new year. Steve Sidwell (Achilles) is also out until Christmas.

Midfielder Barry Bannan (groin) is rated as a doubt for this game, and is unlikely to feature at Anfield. But Marc Albrighton, Nigel Reo-Coker and Emile Heskey have all made significant progress in returning from their respective injuries. However, this game may be a little early for the trio.

Ashley Young picked up his fifth yellow card of the season during the volatile midweek clash in the League Cup against Birmingham City, and will serve a one-match suspension so is unavailable for this game.

Stephen Ireland could make the starting line-up in the absence of Bannan, while Robert Pires and youngster Jonathan Hogg could also be in line to play from the first whistle.

Possible starting line-up: Friedel; L Young, Dunne, Collins, Warnock; Clark, Hogg; Pires, Ireland, Downing; Agbonlahor.

Prediction
Liverpool have been strong at home in recent times, and the defeat by Tottenham in the last league game was arguably an unfair reflection of the efforts they put in at White Hart Lane. Despite the absence of some key players, they are still likely to take three points as the game is at Anfield.

Liverpool 2-1 Aston Villa

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06-12-2010 21:00 Dep. La Coruna - Hercules

Keep Possession

Going into the weekend’s action, Deportivo La Coruna are Hercules both command positions in the lower mid-table reaches of the Primera Division. Victory in their Monday night clash promises the relative safety of a firm footing in the middle order, and both clubs will be eager to attain that.

For Deportivo, a poor run of early season form suggested that it could be a long season. But the Galicians have shaken those blues and have settled into a far more settled pattern, earning 10 points from their last five fixtures.

The brakes were put on Miguel Angel Lotina’s side to some extent last weekend as they went down 1-0 against Racing Santander, but the positive momentum enjoyed by the northerners has not yet abated and they will approach Monday’s match with real optimism.

“We can still improve when we have the ball possession,” Lotina told the press this week. “I don’t know if people have the same impression, but I think that we are a team with doubts, because we are still failing when we have the ball.

“The most important thing in football is the pass, and we are not good on that. The other day we missed several passes and it in that way is very hard to create scoring opportunities. All the trainings on this week are related to the ball possession.”

If Lotina’s hard work on the training ground pays dividends, Deportivo should have few problems picking up maximum points.

Careful

While solidarity and reliability are traits that could be attributed to Deportivo, they are certainly not words associated with the Hercules team that is cutting its way into the middle of the Primera Division table in a rather unconventional manner. Esteban Vigo’s side have been wonderfully unpredictable, winning unexpectedly at Camp Nou but failing in more mundane challenges.

Prior to last weekend’s 3-1 victory over Levante, which was a win unexpected precisely because it was so expected, the Alicante side had fallen close to the relegation dogfight and were nearing the teeth of the battle before they picked up three valuable points. Inevitably, it was star duo Nelson Valdez and David Trezeguet who scooped the goals.

“We've done it the way hard because we scored a goal but were then tied on the next,” Vigo complained after the game. “We cannot make these mistakes because if we played another team, we would be talking about something else.

“We have to play carefully and keep a clean sheet and, well, maybe with a goal we can win the games that we have not managed to.”

Given Deportivo’s defensive resilience, it is important that Hercules stay tight at the back, as even Trezeguet and Valez will struggle to pick a hole in the hosts’ watertight rearguard.

TEAM NEWS

Deportivo

Michel, Juca and Riki are all out injured. Andres Guardado has overcome such problems but hasn't been selected.

Hercules

Juan Calatayud and Royston Drenthe return to the squad in the only changes made by Esteban Vigo.

Prediction
As tends to be the case whenever Deportivo La Coruna play, a tight game should be anticipated. In recent weeks the Galicians have improved offensively and have a right to expect that they can narrowly edge their recently promoted opponents, who nevertheless possess a real sting in attack.

Deportivo 1-0 Hercules