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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12-03-2011 13:45 Birmingham City - Bolton Wand.

DID YOU KNOW?

* After stunning Arsenal with a 2-1 victory in the League Cup final last month, Birmingham City have shown that they are a match for any team in cup competitions - winning six of their last seven FA Cup matches.

* The cup draws have been kind to Birmingham this season, with Alex McLeish's side being drawn at St Andrew's for every round of their successful League Cup campaign as well as for two of their three FA Cup ties.

* Blues stopper Ben Foster, man of the match in the League Cup final, has made 124 saves in the Premier League this season – more than any other ‘keeper.

* Birmingham have the edge over Saturday’s opponents in FA Cup history, winning two of the three meetings between the sides – with the last being a 2-1 victory way back in 1955.

* Despite their impressive cup form, Birmingham fans will be wary of a Bolton side who have won three and drawn one of their last four matches against the Midlands outfit.

* High fliers Bolton Wanderers, enjoying a successful season under Owen Coyle, have also been in impressive form in the cup this season - keeping a clean sheet in all three of their FA Cup ties.

* And Owen Coyle's men will travel to St Andrew's in confident mood, having won four and lost none of their last five matches in all competitions.

* Super-sub striker Ivan Klasnic could get his chance from the start as loanee Daniel Sturridge is cup-tied after featuring for Chelsea in an earlier round. Klasnic has scored the winning goal in each of Bolton’s last three wins, two of them away from home in FA Cup matches.

* While they excel at keeping goals out of their net, the Trotters have struggled to find the back of the net in the cup, scoring just five goals in their last six FA Cup ties.

* And their opponents will gain confidence from the fact that Bolton haven’t scored more than one goal in an FA Cup game against a top flight side since netting three times against Arsenal back in 1994.

LAST MEETING

August 29, 2010: Bolton Wanderers 2-2 Birmingham City

Goals from Kevin Davies and a late Robbie Blake free-kick inspired 10-man Bolton to a point after the home side had fallen 2-0 behind and had goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen sent off for slapping Roger Johnson just before half-time.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Birmingham City: Foster; Carr, Johnson, Jiranek, Murphy; Larsson, Bowyer, Mutch, Beausejour; Zigic, Martins.

Bolton Wanderers: Jaaskelainen; Steinsson, Wheater, Cahill, Robinson; Elmander, Muamba, Holden, Petrov; Klasnic, K Davies.

Prediction

Despite suffering from an ever-growing injury list caused by fighting on all three domestic fronts this season, Birmingham's exceptional cup performances have taught us to never write them off. Alex McLeish's men are hovering just above the relegation zone and face a tough battle for survival but will once again be free of the Premier League worries when they look to reach Wembley for the second time this campaign.
On paper high-fliers Bolton, who sit in seventh place in the league table, should be too strong for Bolton but the absence of Chelsea loanee Daniel Sturridge will be a big blow to Owen Coyle. Cup-tied Sturridge has been in marvellous goalscoring form since signing in January and the Trotters will miss his added spark of genius in the final third.
The importance of reaching an FA Cup semi-final will not be lost on both managers so I don't necessarily expect either side to open themselves up particularly early. Birmingham have tended to start slower than their opposition on many occasions this season so I expect Bolton to take the lead before the home side wake up and battle their way back into the game.

Birmingham 2-1 Bolton

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Argentina Preview Round 5

Game of the Weekend: 

River Plate vs. Velez Sarsfield

Ricardo Gareca's Velez Sarsfield side have had a tough time of things in 2011 so far, and the Fortin will try to get their season back on track with a win this Sunday. They won't find it easy however against a River team yet to concede a goal in the Clausura; even if the Millo have looked rather toothless going forward.

The biggest relief for the Liniers side is that they will not be lining up against a single Chilean in the Monumental, after Andean sides Union Española and Universidad Catolica both handed out Copa Libertadores defeats to Velez in recent weeks. You do not become a bad team overnight however (although Boca may beg to differ). With players of the calibre of Santiago Silva, Maxi Moralez, Juan Manuel Martinez and David Ramirez in the team the Fortin will give River their strongest test yet, and could well break the 360 minute lockdown on the Millonario net.

Juan Jose Lopez's team on the other hand have reason to celebrate after a solid start to the season, and in the week various staff members went as far as to compare the Nuñez club to Barcelona and Jose Mourinho's Inter. This may be a touch optimistic, but the team looks rock-solid at the back and lies in third with eight points from the first four games. The real issue has been scoring goals; the goals for column in the table registers just three strikes for the giants, and with Mariano Pavone set to continue as the lone striker a profound change looks unlikely.

Prediction: It's the unstoppable force against the immovable object, last year's attacking powerhouses against a River defence which has been watertight with young Leandro Chichizola in goal. This game will be decided by one goal, and Velez have the tools to grab it and win the game.

Saturday's Action:

An intriguing fixture kicks us off on Saturday, featuring two of the teams who have been up and down in recent weeks. Lanus and Gimnasia both managed to lose their respective derbies next week and will be desperate to bounce back, and an intriguing clash between Primera golden oldies Mauro Camoranesi and Guillermo Barros Schelotto makes the fixture an interesting one.

Camoranesi and 'El Mellizo' prepare for battle

Later on the week's only clasico sees San Lorenzo hosting Boca Juniors in Bajo Flores, in a game with all the ingredients of a classic. Walter Erviti and Diego Rivero are guaranteed a spicy return to the Gasometro as the Boca pair go back to their former club, while Matias Gimenez moved the other way and Cuervo coach Ramon Diaz- a River Plate legend- is always in for a rough ride from Xeneixe fans. The big question for Boca will once more be can they boasts a creative cutting edge without Juan Roman Riquelme, who is on the sidelines for the fourth game running through injury.

While the two grandes do battle in the south of Buenos Aires, Argentinos Juniors will be looking to break their run of four games, four draws when Arsenal de Sarandi visit La Paternal. Arsenal picked up a fantastic result on Monday with a 3-0 thrashing of neighbours Independiente, but the Bicho are a tough prospect on home turf and another draw wouldn't surprise anyone.

Sunday's Action:

You wait two years for a stadium, and then it feels like you never leave. Estudiantes play their third game in a row at their shiny new Estadio Unico home, retractable roof and all, as they host Godoy Cruz on Sunday afternoon. Both teams suffered through tough Copa Libertadores victories midweek, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see a few reserve players on show as the teams try and conserve batteries for the long run ahead.

While River get the ball rolling in the Monumental Colon will also be kicking into action, as the 'Elephant's Graveyard' in Santa Fe plays host to Racing Club. It would be difficult to find two teams in the league that are currently in higher spirits; Clausura top scorer Esteban Fuertes especially must feel 20 years younger after smashing in an incredible 45 yard strike last week against Godoy. Racing meanwhile will be unchanged from the swashbuckling 4-3 victory over Olimpo; coach Russo though will be hoping for a repeat of the first and not second half performance.

Monday's Action:

A relegation '0.6 pointer' on Monday sees bottom of the pile Quilmes travel to Parque Patricios to tackle Huracan, in a game both sides simply must win. The Cervecero have been awful this term, but have brought in hothead rent a quote/ relegation saviour Ricardo Caruso Lombardi to try and avoid the drop. Huracan meanwhile were much better in drawing against Newell's last week and will hope to go one better and start to approach their rivals the other side of the promocion.

Chief amongst these rivals are Independiente, who have now gone over five months without tasting victory in the league. Coach Antonio Mohamed may have won the Copa Sudamericana last year but his head is well and truly on the chopping block; a failure to grab three points at home to Newell's Old Boys would almost certainly see an end to 'El Turco's reign at the Libertadores de America.

Full Fixtures and Predictions:

Lanus 2-0 Gimnasia

San Lorenzo 1-0 Boca

Argentinos 1-1 Arsenal

Estudiantes 2-2 Godoy C.

Colon 0-2 Racing

River 0-1 Velez

Huracan 2-1 Quilmes

Independiente 1-1 Newell's O.B

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Ligue 1 Preview Round 27.

Saturday

19:00 Arles Avignon – FC Lorient

19:00 RC Lens – Toulouse

19:00 Nancy – Caen

19:00 Nice – Auxerre

19:00 St Etienne – Brest

19:00 Sochaux – Lyon

Sunday

17:00 Bordeaux – Monaco

17:00 Lille – Valenciennes

21:00 PSG – Montpellier

Arles – Lorient

Arles Avignon are rock bottom in Ligue 1 having amassed 11 points from 26 games in the league this season. Their last outings ended in a 5-0 defeat away to Lyon and are a staggering 18 points from safety. Les Merius on the other hand drew 0-0 with Nancy last weekend and sit in eighth in the table, two points off a European spot.

* ACA are on a run of 14 consecutive games without a win

* Their 11-point total is the lowest at this stage in the competition since three points were introduced for a win.

* They also have the worst defensive record since 2003/04 with 50 goals conceded at this stage in the league.

* Lorient have won once in their last 5 games

Team News

Arles: Gael Germany and Kaba Diawara pose injury worries for the bottom-ranked club. Otherwise, no new injury worries are reported for ACCA.

Lorient: Cheick Doukoure and Arsenal loanee Gilles Sunu are the only new injury worries. The starting lineup remains unchanged for Christian Gourcuff’s side.

RC Lens – Toulouse

Les Sang et Or drew away to Nice last weekend, with the match finishing 0-0. Laszlo Boloni’s side are 19th in Ligue 1, and are four points from safety. Toulouse on the other hand are 12th in Ligue 1 and were beaten 1-0 by Sochaux last weekend.

* le Téfécé have lost each of their last four encounters.

* Lens last victory came against Caen on 22nd January

* Lens have managed to score in each of their last eight home fixtures

* Alain Casanova’s men have yet to be beaten by a side in the bottom five positions this season.

Team News

RC Lens: Franck Queudrue is ruled out of this encounter. Eric Chelle may return having been injured since January 21.

Toulouse: Alain Casanova has a selection headache in goal - Marc Vidal continues his recovery, first-team whilst Mathieu Valverde is suspended having been sent off last weekend. Ali Ahamada may deputise.

Nancy – Caen

ASNL’s last encouter ended goalless with FC Lorient last weekend. They are hovering above the relegation zone in 17th. Franck Dumas’ side won 1-0 against St Etienne at Stade Michel d’Orano courtesy of Youssef El Arabi’s last minute goal in the previous matchday. They occupy 14th position in the table, 3 points ahead of their opponents this weekend.

* Nancy are unbeaten in their last six matches against Caen

* Caen have racked up four away wins in Ligue 1 this season, one short of their all time record

* The previous encounter finished 3-2 in favour of Nancy, and saw 48 fouls committed, the second highest in the league this season

Team News

Nancy: ASNL have Massadio Haidara and Alfred N’Diaye out, they both picked up injuries last weekend. No new concerns for Pablo Correa.

Caen: Franck Dumas has no fresh worries, but will be sweating on the fitness of key player Romain Hamouna, who is still out.

Nice – Auxerre

Les Aiglons, who drew 0-0 with Lens last weekend, are unbeaten in three matches in all competitions and sit 15th in the table. Their opponents Auxerre, secured a shock win over title-challengers Paris St Germain last weekend. Only one point seperates the two teams. AJA will look to secure two consecutive wins for the first time this season.

* Nice have lost their last three matches against Auxerre, without even scoring a goal.

* Auxerre have failed to win any of their last eight away games.

* 209 minutes of action has passed since Nice scored a goal at Stade Du Ray.

Team News

Nice: Les Aiglons are ready to welcome back Gregory Paisley who has been out for a fortnight, however Emerse Fae misses out for the rest of the season, having been diagnosed with a blood clot in his leg.

Auxerre: No fresh worries for AJA, Julien Quercia the only new injury problem to surface, however the starting XI is set to be retained.

St Etienne – Brest

Les Verts slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Caen last weekend. They have only managed one win in their last five games in the league. They are 10th in the table. Also on 35 points are opponents Brest, in 11th and have two wins in their last 5 games, despite a 3-1 reverse at home to Bordeaux last Sunday.

* Alex Dupont’s men have never won at Stade Geoffrey-Guichard.

* However, Dupont has won his last three games as manager against Les Verts

* Brest have failed to win any of their last seven away games.

Team News

St Etienne: Christophe Galtier is missing key players Dimitri Payet, Christophe Landrin and Sylvain Marchal who picked up knocks last weekend.

Brest: Moise Apanga, who has 20 appearances this season is the only new worry for Alex Dupont.

Sochaux – Lyon

Sochaux won 1-0 away to Toulouse courtesy of a Modibo Maiga strike. They are unbeaten in their last 3 three league encounters. They sit ninth in the table, having amassed 35 points. Opponents Lyon thrashed whipping boys Arles 5-0 to stay in touch with the pacesetters at the top. They are undefeated in the league since 29th January when Valenciennes were the last team to beat Les Gones. Claude Puel’s men are third, four points off the top.

* The last eight games involving Les Lionceaux have seen eight red cards.

* The last encounter ended 2-1 in favour of Lyon – Alexander Lacazette scoring the winner

* These two teams are the only clubs in Ligue 1 who have won by a four-goal margin or more at least twice this season.

Team News:

Sochaux: Les Lionceaux have a number of key players on the treatment table including Brown Ideye who joined Kevin Anin and Jeremie Brechet on the sidelines.

Lyon: With one eye on a Champions League tie at the Bernabeu on Wednesday, Claude Puel is likely to rotate his side and places priority on the clash with Real Madrid. Cris is the only injury problem for Les Gones.

Bordeaux – Monaco

Les Girondins won 3-1 away at Brest last weekend, and sit 7th in the table, a point off the European positions. Jean Tigana’s men have two wins in their last 5 games. Monaco are 18th in the table, and limped to a goalless draw away to Valenciennes. They are three points adrift of safety.

* Les Girondins have put together two consecutive wins for the first time since November.

* They are also unbeaten in their last 13 games against the principality club (W8 D5)

* Les Rouge et Blanc have only won once in their last 22 away games.

Team News

Bordeaux: Jean Tigana should name the same starting line-up that turned out against Brest. Les Girondins have reserve keeper Ulrich Rame struggling with an injury.

Monaco: Vincent Muratori is the only new problem for the principality club, Daniel Niculae misses out again.

Lille – Valenciennes

Ligue 1 leaders Lille secured a 2-1 win against defending champions Marseille at the Stade Velodrome last Sunday. They have two wins, two draws and a defeat from their last five league encounters. Valenciennes arrive at the Stadium Lille Metropole unbeaten in their last six games, but have only won twice in that period. Philippe Montanier’s side are 13th, three points above the relegation zone.

* VA have lost each of their last three games at Lille, and haven’t scored in that period.

* Lille haven’t had a player sent off this season, one of three teams not to do so.

* Rudi Garcia’s side have won 21 of their last 27 league games at Stadium Lille Metropole.

Team News

Lille: No problems to report for Rudi Garcia’s side, who are set to line-up with the same XI that faced Marseille last week.

Valenciennes: No fresh worries for VA, Gaetan Bong continues to miss out as he recovers from injury.

PSG – Montpellier

The capital club slipped to a shock defeat at strugglers Auxerre last weekend, falling to a Kamel Chafni strike to condemn them to defeat, one of three in the league in 2011. They sit fifth in the table, six points ahead of Sunday’s opponents who lost at home to high-flyers Stade Rennes. Rene Girard’s team have won once in their last 5.

* Les Parisiens have won only once in their last nine games against MHSC

* They are also unbeaten in their last seven home games in Ligue 1 – winning five and drawing two.

* All of Montpellier’s away wins this season have come via a one-goal winning margin.

Team News

PSG: Peguy Luyindula was taken off injured against Benfica in the Europa League on Thursday. Mevlut Erding returned and provides a boost for Antoine Kombouare.

Montpellier: MHSC have no injury woes ahead of this match.

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Bundesliga Preview Round 26

Friday

20:30 Koeln - Hannover

Saturday

15:30 Bayern Munich - Hamburg

15:30 Schalke - Frankfurt

15:30 Wolfsburg - Nuernberg

15:30 Hoffenheim - Dortmund

15:30 Kaiserslautern - Freiburg

18:30 Werder Bremen - Moenchengladbach

Sunday

15:30 Mainz - Bayer Leverkusen

17:30 St Pauli - Stuttgart

Koeln - Hannover

* Hannover have won seven of their last nine games against Koeln, including the game which led to the dismissal of Zvonimir Soldo.

* Lukas Podolski is the league joint-top second half goalscorer together with Bayern Munich's Mario Gomez.

* Steven Cherundolo is set to make his 250th Bundesliga appearance in this game.

TEAM NEWS:

Koeln

Pedro Geromel, Adam Matuschyk, Kevin McKenna, Christopher Schorch and Adil Chihi are out injured, while Martin Lanig is suspended for accumulated yellow cards.

Hannover

Didier Ya Konan has failed to recover completely from his knee injury, while Christopher Avevor and Leon Andreasen are also sidelined.

Bayern Munich - Hamburg

* Bayern Munich have won only one of their last eight matches against Hamburg, with four draws and three losses in the remaining games.

* In the last four games between the two sides only three goals have been scored. Earlier this season the teams played out a boring stalemate.

* Currently five former Bayern Munich players are contracted to Hamburg (Piotr Trochowski, Paolo Guerrero, Ze Roberto, David Jarolim and Marcel Jansen), while three players in Die Roten's current squad have played for Die Rothosen (Ivica Olic, Hans-Jorg Butt and Daniel Van Buyten)

* Both teams' current coaches have agreed to have their contracts terminated after the season's end.

TEAM NEWS:

Bayern Munich

Breno is suspended after picking up a red card against Hannover, while Ivica Olic is a long-term casualty and will only return to action next season. Bastian Schweinsteiger is expected to return to the starting line-up after missing last weekend's loss to Hannover due to suspension.

Bayern Munich's midfield maestro is expected to start

Hamburg

Key central defender Joris Mathijsen has been ruled out of the game against the Bavarians together with Jaroslav Drobny, who has suffering a thumb fracture. Romeo Castelen and Dennis Diekmeier only recently restarted training and are unlikely to participate in this encounter.

Schalke - Frankfurt

* Champions League quarter-finalists Schalke have picked up eight wins and three draws in their last 11 games against Die Hessen.

* Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has not scored in 1002 minutes, while Theofanis Gekas goal drought stretches to 645 minutes.

* The last time Frankfurt won against Schalke was almost 12 years ago on May 22, 1999 when they fought back from 2-0 down to win 3-2.

TEAM NEWS:

Schalke

Benedikt Hoewedes is suspended after his red card against Stuttgart last week, while Christian Pander, Tim Hoogland, Christoph Moritz, Levan Kenia and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar are out injured.

Frankfurt

Benjamin Koehler, Oka Nikolov, Chris, Zlatan Bajramovic and Marcelo Titsch-Rivero all miss out due to injuries. Maik Franz is suspended for this game for accumulated yellow cards.

Wolfsburg - Nuernberg

* Nuernberg have won three of their last four games against Wolfsburg. Die Woelfe also have a negative record against Der Club with two wins, three draws and three losses.

* Wolfsburg have never in their history accumulated fewer points at this stage of the season.

* Nuernberg are on a seven-game unbeaten run, during which they have only drawn twice. They hammered St Pauli 5-0 last week with Christian Eigler bagging no less than four goals.

TEAM NEWS:

Wolfsburg

Arne Friedrich is suspended for the game, while Patrick Helmes, Tolga Cigerci and Thomas Kahlenberg are all on the casualties list.

Nuernberg

Dieter Hecking will have some selection headaches as Juri Judt, Julian Schieber, Albert Bunjaku and Mike Frantz all miss out due to injuries. Still, Der Club are expected to once again line up in an attacking formation.

Hoffenheim - Borussia Dortmund

* Three of the last five encounters between these two teams ended in draws. Earlier this season Borussia Dortmund managed to snatch a point against Hoffenheim courtesy of a late, late goal by Antonio da Silva.

* Borussia Dortmund is the only team in the Bundesliga yet to be defeated in 2011.

* Vedad Ibisevic has scored four times in four games against Borussia Dortmund, with Hertha Berlin being the only team against which he has shown such efficiency.

TEAM NEWS:

Hoffenheim

Andreas Ibertsberger, Tobias Weis, Manuel Gulde and Chinedu Obasi have been ruled out of the game with fitness problems. Peniel Mlapa is suspended for this game after picking up his fifth yellow card last week.

Dortmund

Jurgen Klopp will have to do without the services of Mats Hummels, Patrick Owomoyela, Mohamed Zidan, Shinji Kagawa and Florian Kringe. Lucas Barrios is unlikely to recover in time for this clash as well, giving Robert Lewandowski a chance to spearhead Borussia Dortmund's attack.

Robert Lewandowski is likely to deputise for the injured Lucas Barrios

Kaiserslautern - Freiburg

* Kaiserslautern are this season's best defence when it come to set-pieces, conceding only eight goals from non-open play. Frankfurt and Wolfsburg follow them.

* Freiburg have won five of their last seven competitive games against Kaiserslautern, losing only once.

* Freiburg's Erik Jendrisek played for Kaiserslautern from 2007 to 2010 and scored 34 goals in 90 appearances for Die Roten Teufel.

TEAM NEWS:

Kaiserslautern

Chadli Amri is sidelined, while Jan Simunek only recently stared training and is unlikely to feature.

Freiburg

Jan Rosenthal, Simon Pouplin, Tommy Bechmann and Daniel Williams are all on the casualties list. Anton Putsila is suspended for this game after picking up his fifth yellow card last weekend.

Werder Bremen - Moenchengladbach

* The encounter is one of the seven remaining games against relegation rivals for Thomas Schaaf's men, who until recently played against Europe's finest in the Champions League.

* Moenchengladbach last victory away to Werder Bremen was almost 24 years ago in which they overpowered their opponents 7-1. This was and still is Die Fohlen's record away win in the Bundesliga.

* Lucien Favre has lost four of his five last encounters as a coach against Werder Bremen, with his most recent game in charge of Hertha being a 5-1 hammering at the hands of Thomas Schaaf's men.

TEAM NEWS:

Werder Bremen

Werder Bremen will have to do without the services of Daniel Jensen, Sebastian Boenisch, Naldo, Christian Vander, Samuel and Dominik Schmidt, who are all out of the game due to various injuries.

Moenchengladbach

Igor De Camargo, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Jean-Sebastien Jaures have been deemed unfit to start. Mohamadou Idrissou has deputised well for De Camargo in attack and is likely to start once again for Favre's team.

Mainz - Bayer Leverkusen

* Prior to the first clash between the two sides earlier this season, Thomas Tuchel's men had a six-point lead over Die Werkself. Now it is the other way around.

* Mainz and Leverkusen are two of only four teams this season yet to lose after taking the lead.

* Andre Schuerrle, who is going to play for Die Werkself next season, is only one goal away from matching Mohamed Zidan's record of 13 goals scored for Mainz in a season in 2006-07.

Andre Schuerrle has been Mainz's best player this season

TEAM NEWS:

Mainz

Sami Allagui returns from injury and is likely to feature, but Adam Szalai is out injured. Former captain Miroslav Karhan is sidelined as well.

Bayer Leverkusen

Jupp Heynckes will have to do without the services of Manuel Friedrich, Michael Ballack and Tranquillo Barnetta. Die Werkself are expected to field the exact same team which suffered a heartbreaking loss to Villarreal in the Europa League.

St Pauli - Stuttgart

* Die Schwaben have a superior record against the Bundesliga newcomers with eight wins, three draws and one defeat in 12 games. Stuttgart have outscored their opponents 9-1 in the last four meetings.

* Last week Stuttgart managed to string together two wins in a row for the first time this season. It was also the first time they moved out of the direct relegation places since matchday 16.

* Only Frankfurt has scored fewer goals than St Pauli this season. In their last game against Nuernberg (5-0 loss which is also their worst defeat in nearly 14 years) they had only one shot on goal from their opponents' box.

TEAM NEWS:

St Pauli

Matthias Lehmann is suspended for this game, while Carlos Zambrano, Bastian Oczipka, Fabio Morena, Carsten Rothenbach are unfit.

Stuttgart

Patrick Funk, Marc Ziegler, Arthur Boka and Johan Audel are all sidelined and will not feature on Sunday. Captain Matthieu Delpierre is serving a red card suspension, while Romanian striker Ciprian Marica was excluded from the squad.

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Eredivisie Preview Round 27

Friday

Utrecht - Groningen

Saturday

Heracles - Excelsior

Roda - AZ

Vitesse - Heerenveen

Sunday

De Graafschap - ADO Den Haag

Feyenoord - NAC

Twente - VVV

Willem II - Ajax

NEC - PSV

Utrecht - Groningen

* Utrecht currently sit 8th in the table

* Utrecht had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Roda last week

* Groningen are the fifth in the league at the moment

* Groningen were beaten 4-1 by Heracles last Sunday

* Previous meeting: Utrecht 3-2 Groningen

Heracles - Excelsior

* Heracles are the league's 12th-placed team with 31 points from 26 games

* The Almelo side beat Groningen 4-1 last week

* Excelsior sit 16th in the table

* They were beaten 3-2 by PSV last week

* Previous meeting: Excelsior 2-1 Heracles

Roda - AZ

* The Kerkrade side have dropped to seventh spot in the standings

* Roda recorded a 1-1 draw against Utrecht last week

* AZ are the Eredivisie's sixth-placed side

* They were heavily beaten 4-0 by Ajax last weekend

* Previous meeting: AZ 1-2 Roda

Vitesse - Heerenveen

* Vitesse currently sit 15th in the league table

* The Arnhemmers recorded a 2-0 win over VVV last week

* Heerenveen are ninth in the Eredivisie

* The Friezen were beaten 1-0 by Feyenoord last week

* Previous meeting: Heerenveen 2-1 Vitesse

De Graafschap - ADO Den Haag

* De Graafschap are 14th in the Eredivisie at the moment

* They recorded a 2-1 win over Willem II last weekend

* ADO Den Haag sit fourth in the league table with 45 points from 26 games

* They recorded an impressive 5-1 win against NEC last week

* Previous meeting: ADO Den Haag 2-2 De Graafschap

Feyenoord - NAC

* Feyenoord sit 13th in the Eredivisie table

* They beat Heerenveen 1-0 on Sunday

* NAC are 10th in the league

* The Breda side were beaten 2-0 by Twente last Saturday

* Previous meeting: NAC 2-0 Feyenoord

Twente - VVV

* Twente currently sit second in the table

* The Tukkers defeated NAC 2-0 last week

* VVV are the league's 17th-placed side

* The Limburgers were beaten 2-0 by Vitesse last weekend

* Previous meeting: VVV 1-2 Twente

Willem II - Ajax

* Willem II are the Eredivisie's bottom side with 11 points from 26 games

* The Tricolores were beaten 2-1 by De Graafschap last week

* Ajax sit third in the league table

* The Amsterdam outfit recorded an impressive 4-0 win over AZ last Sunday

* Previous meeting: Ajax 2-0 Willem II

NEC - PSV

* NEC are the Eredivisie's number 11 with 32 points from 26 games

* The Nijmegen side were heavily beaten 5-1 by ADO Den Haag last week

* PSV still sit top of the Eredivisie table

* The Eindhoven giants beat Excelsior 3-2 last weekend

* Previous meeting: PSV 3-1 NEC

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11-03-2011 20:45 Brescia - Inter

DID YOU KNOW?

* Brescia have failed to pick up a win in their last four matches.

* The Rondinelle have only scored six goals since the winter break.

* Brescia have been held scoreless 12 times this season.

* Inter have scored 35 goals in the second half of the season.

* The Nerazzurri have not played out a draw since Leonardo took over in late December (11 wins and two defeats).

* The Beneamata have scored four goals or more in five games this season.

* Samuel Eto'o is third in the race for the Capocannoniere with 18 goals.

* Inter are currently riding a four-game winning streak.

LAST MEETING

November 6, 2010: Inter 1-1 Brescia

The Nerazzurri needed a second half goal from Samuel Eto'o from the penalty spot to salvage a point against Brescia after Andrea Caracciolo opened the scoring 14 minutes into the game.

To make matters worse, Walter Samuel also went down with a serious knee injury and has not played since the draw at San Siro.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Brescia: Arcari; Zebina, Mareco, Zobol; Zambelli, Kone, Vass, Hetemaj, Berardi; Diamanti, Caracciolo

Inter: Julio Cesar; Maicon, Lucio, Ranocchia, Chivu; Zanetti, Thiago Motta, Stankovic; Sneijder; Pazzini, Eto'o

Prediction

Inter have too much firepower for the Serie A newboys and although the hosts will put up a fight, the champions will pick up their fifth victory on the trot on Friday evening.

Brescia 1-2 Inter Milan

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11-03-2011 21:00 Rennais - Olympique Marseille

DID YOU KNOW?

* Stade Rennes are on a run of five consecutive wins in Ligue 1.

* Victor Montano has scored on three of the last four match days. He is also the club's leading goalscorer with seven goals.

* Rennes have scored almost a quarter (22.58%) of their goals during the last 10 minutes of matches.

* Rennes have the most victories in Ligue 1 this season, claiming all three points on 14 occasions.

* They also have the best home record in the league, collecting 30 points from a possible 39.

* Of the 30 encounters between the two sides in Ligue 1 history, Olympique de Marseille have won 14 to Rennes's nine.

* Marseille have conceded only 12 goals away from home this season, the fewest in Ligue 1. However, they have kept a mere four clean sheets on their travels.

* A win for Marseille would leave them a single point behind Rennes in the Ligue 1 table.

* Marseille are undefeated in their last five meetings with Rennes.

* In the five encounters against teams currently occupying the top five Ligue 1 berths this season Rennes are undefeated, having drawn four and won one, while Marseille have lost two, drawn two, and won one.

LAST MEETING

December 1, 2010: Olympique de Marseille 0-0 Stade Rennes

Left to rue a penalty miss by Jires Ekoko after Steve Mandanda had brought down Victor Montano in the fifth minute, Rennes were ultimately held to a goalless draw at the Stade Velodrome in a twice-postponed encounter.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Stade Rennes: Douchez; Danze, Mangane, Kana Biyik, Theophile Catherine; Leroy, Tettey, Mandjeck, M'Vila; Boukari, Montano. Rennes

Olympique de Marseille: Mandanda; Heinze, Fanni, Diawara, M'Bia; Kabore, Cisse, Gonzalez; A. Ayew, Remy, Brandao.

Prediction

While both teams will be desperate to claim all three points, they will also be aware that to grant their opponent victory in such a decisive clash would have disastrous consequences. Expect Rennes and Marseille to once again share the spoils in a tight and measured encounter.

Stade Rennais FC 1-1 Marseille

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