Sunday, May 22, 2011

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 20:45 Udinese - Milan



DID YOU KNOW?

Udinese are currently riding a two-game winning streak.

The Zebrette have collected nine points from their last five home matches.

Francesco Guidolin's men have conceded 16 goals at the Stadio Friuli.

Antonio Di Natale leads the league in scoring with 28 goals.

AC Milan are unbeaten in their last seven matches.

The Rossoneri have picked up ten points in their last five road games.

Massimiliano Allegri's men have conceded a league low 12 goals away from San Siro.

Milan have keep four clean sheets in their last five encounters.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Udinese (3-5-2)
Handanovic; Benatia, Zapata, Domizzi; Isla, Inler, Pinzi, Asamoah, Armero; Sanchez, Di Natale

Udinese coach Francesco Guidolin will have to make do without wing-back Dusan Basta who is out with injury.

AC Milan (4-3-1-2)
Abbiati; Abate, Thiago Silva, Yepes, Zambrotta; Gattuso, Ambrosini, Pirlo; Robinho; Pato, Ibrahimovic

Milan announced earlier in the week that Alessandro Nesta, Mark van Bommel, Thiago Silva, Massimo Ambrosini and Flavio Roma had all signed extensions to remain at the club. Andrea Pirlo will play his last game for the Rossoneri after confirming he will leave the San Siro outfit in the summer.

Prediction
This game is absolutely vital for the hosts as they could clinch fourth spot in Serie A while Milan have already been crowned Serie A champions and have nothing to play for. Expect Udinese to come out all guns blazing and earn three points on Sunday.
Udinese 2-1 AC Milan

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 20:45 Lecce - Lazio



DID YOU KNOW?

Lecce are riding a two-game winning streak.

Luigi De Canio's men have picked up six points in their last five home games.

David Di Michele leads the team in scoring with eight goals in Serie A.

Lecce have scored 25 goals at home this season.

Lazio have only one win in their last four encounters.

The Blucerchiati have picked up just three points in their last six road matches.

Lazio have conceded 22 goals away from the Stadio Olimpico.

Hernanes leads the team in scoring with 11 goals.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Lecce (4-4-2)
Rosati; Donati, Sini, Fabiano, Giuliatto; Munari, Vives, Giacomazzi, Mesbah; Chevanton, Di Michele

Lecce coach Luigi De Canio will leave the club after the match on Sunday. The 53-year-old tactician will be without the services of the injured Gustavo and the suspended Nenad Tomovic.

Lazio (4-2-3-1)
Muslera; Lichtsteiner, Biava, Dias, Garrido; Ledesma, Brocchi; Mauri, Hernanes, Zarate; Rocchi

Lazio coach Edy Reja will have to make do without injured trio Matuzalem, Mark Bresciano and Mobido Diakate for Sunday's encounter.

Prediction
Lecce have already secured their Serie A status for next season while Lazio need a win to keep their Champions League hopes alive so expect the visitors to take all three points on Sunday.
Lecce 1-2 Lazio

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 20:45 Juventus - Napoli



DID YOU KNOW?

Juventus are winless in their last two games.

The Old Lady are unbeaten in their last four matches in Turin.

Juve have scored seven goals in their past four encounters at home.

The Bianconeri have conceded 29 goals this season at home.

Napoli have just one win in their past five encounters.

Edinson Cavani leads the team in scoring with 26 goals.

Walter Mazzarri's men have conceded eight goals in their last five road games.

Napoli have picked up just one point in the month of May

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Juventus (4-4-2)
Buffon; Sorensen, Barzagli, Chiellini, Traore; Krasic, Marchisio, Felipe Melo, Pepe; Matri, Del Piero

Luigi Del Nerl might be making his last appearance on Juve sideline as speculation continues to mount over the coach's future in Turin. Claudio Marchisio signed a new deal with the club earlier in the week while Marco Motta is suspended and will miss the match on Sunday.

Napoli (3-4-2-1)
De Sanctis; Santacroce, Cribari, Ruiz; Zuniga, Gargano, Yebda, Dossena; Sosa; Mascara, Lavezzi

Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri will be missing key striker Edinson Cavani who will serve the last game of his ban on Sunday. Jose Sosa will likely be given a rare start in place of Marek Hamsik.

Prediction
Juve coach Luigi Del Neri admitted after last weekend's loss to Parma that Juve needed a miracle to qualify for Europe and they will conclude their disappointing season with a stale draw in Turin

Juventus 0-0 Napoli

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Bolton Wanderers - Manchester City



DID YOU KNOW?

The overall record between these sides is remarkably close. City edge it with 43 wins to Bolton’s 41 and there have been 25 draws over the years.

Bolton’s recent home league record against City is very good. Their last loss in this fixture came in December 2004, when Joey Barton scored the only goal for the visitors.

But the Trotters' recent run has been awful. They have lost their last four on the spin and would hate to finish the season on a five match cold streak.

City’s form is much better, however, as six wins in the last seven and only three goals conceded shows they are now a very tough team to beat.

With Joe Hart receiving the Golden Gloves award this week, he could finish the season with 18 clean sheets.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Bolton Wanderers (4-4-2)
Jaaskelainen; Steinsson, Cahill, Knight, Robinson; Lee, Cohen, Taylor, Gardner; Elmander, Sturridge.

Johan Elmander could be announced as Galatasaray bound by the time kick-off arrives and this would be his farewell.

Fabrice Muamba picked up a hamstring injury in the last outing against Blackpool and may miss out. Kevin Davies and Stuart Holden are still in the treatment room and will not see action until next season.

Manchester City (4-2-3-1)
Hart; Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Zabaletta; De Jong, Barry, Johnson, Toure Y, Silva, Tevez

Roberto Mancini is likely to field a strong XI on Sunday as City’s quest for a third place finish reaches it’s climax. Gareth Barry could come in for James Milner, whilst Carlos Tevez could make his final appearance for City if his move away from Eastlands comes to fruition.

City have kept three clean sheets in as many games and Mancini will likely stick with what is working - meaning the defence should remain untouched.

Prediction
The game is essentially a dead rubber for Bolton. They are sitting nicely in the top ten before kick-off, which is a successful season and a solid foundation to build on next year.

They would love to prick Manchester City’s hopes of clinching third place, but this does not seem likely.

The Eastlands outfit are riding the crest of a wave at the moment and this confidence will ensure that they take three points on Sunday and qualify automatically for the group stages of the Champions League.

Bolton 1-3 Man City

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Fulham - Arsenal



DID YOU KNOW?

Not one of Fulham's home Premier League games against Arsenal has ended in a draw.

The Cottagers have failed to score in six of their last eight home Premier League games against the Gunners.

Arsenal have scored exactly four goals in the ultimate game of their Premier League campaign in three of the last five seasons.

Arsenal have only ever drawn one of their 18 games on the final day of the Premier League season.

30% of Fulham's goals this season have come from headers - the highest proportion in the league.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Fulham (4-4-2):
Schwarzer; Senderos, Hangeland, Hughes, Salcido; Sidwell, Murphy, Dempsey, Greening; Zamora, Johnson.

Mark Hughes will be sweating over the availability of Sean Davis and Bobby Zamora, with the duo set to complete late fitness tests before the game.

Meanwhile, Chris Baird is definitely out, serving a two-game suspension for foul language towards an official. Damien Duff’s continued absence is more than likely to be filled by Jonathan Greening.

Arsenal (4-3-3):
Szczesny; Sagna, Vermaelen, Squillaci, Gibbs; Song, Wilshere, Ramsey; Walcott, Arshavin, Van Persie.

Thomas Vermaelen continues his comeback trail, completing a back-four line-up that was dismantled by Aston Villa in 15 minutes last week.

In fact, Arsene Wenger will more than likely keep faith with the same XI from last week, as Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas look as if their period on the sidelines will stretch into the summer. Andrey Arshavin could count himself lucky to start after a dismal end of season run-in.

Prediction
It's a game where Fulham have a lot more to lose than Arsenal. If results conspire against the Cottagers, they could find themselves in the bottom half of the table after a very respectable season. The Gunners, on the other hand, are guaranteed fourth but could leapfrog Manchester City into third should Roberto Mancini's side fail to win.

Arsenal will be desperate not to end the season with three losses in a row. They attacked Aston Villa last week and I can see more of the same this week and I'm not sure whether Fulham will be able to keep them at bay.

Fulham 1-2 Arsenal

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Wolverhampton Wanderers - Blackburn Rovers



DID YOU KNOW?

Blackburn Rovers have never lost to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League. Their last defeat to this opposition came in 2000 in the second tier, when the hosts managed to carve out a 2-1 victory.

Paul Robinson could become only the fifth goalkeeper in the history of the Premier League to concede 500 goals in the top-flight, should he let one in on the day.

Rovers have lost 12 games on the road, scoring 21 but conceding 41 in the process.

If all games ended at half-time, neither one of these sides would have been battling for relegation. The hosts would have been in a comfortable seventh position, while Steve Kean's men would have been fighting for a Europa League spot.

Steven Fletcher has been in impressive form in the past few weeks, scoring four times in the last five games for Wolves.

Mick McCarthy's men have managed to take seven points out of a possible nine from their last three games.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Wolverhampton Wanderers (4-4-2): 
Hennessey; Stearman, Craddock, Mancienne, Elokobi; Foley, O’Hara, Henry, Jarvis; Ward, Fletcher.

Kevin Doyle is believed to have aggravated a knee injury ahead of the relegation dogfight, but could potentially return to claim a spot on the bench. This means that the partnership between Steven Fletcher and Stephen Ward should continue.

Matt Jarvis failed to train on Friday, and remains a doubt for this game.

Blackburn Rovers (4-5-1):
Robinson; Salgado, Samba, Givet, Olsson; J Jones, NZonzi, P Jones, Emerton, Hoilett; Roberts.

Chris Samba, Junior Hoilett and Jermaine Jones have all returned to fitness and should be able to take their respective places in the starting line-up in this all-important clash at Molineux.

Ryan Nelsen and Vince Grella are long-term casualties and will play no part in this fixture.

Prediction
Both teams need the points to survive and it could all come down to which side wants it more. But on the face of it, this looks like a draw.

Wolves 1-1 Blackburn

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Stoke City - Wigan Athletic



DID YOU KNOW?

Stoke City have scored 23 goals at home since the turn of the year in all competitions, from 11 games, and have not been beaten at the Britannia since December.

The Potters have the chance to finish for the first time in their history as the highest ranked Midlands team. They have a significantly better goal difference than West Bromwich Albion, who are also on 46 points, with Aston Villa on 45, while Birmingham City and Wolverhampton Wanderers scrap for survival.

Kenwyne Jones (pictured right) and Jonathan Walters will be duking it out to try and finish as the club's top scorer. The Trinidadian tops the chart with 12 goals in all competitions (nine in the league), while the Republic of Ireland international is on 11 after hitting goalscoring form in recent months.

Wigan Athletic could still go down even if they win at the Britannia, should results elsewhere go against them. But despite being 19th they could actually stay up if they fall to defeat and Birmingham City lose by two goals more.

The Latics have won just three times on the road this season in the Premier League. But they still have a better away record than Stoke, who have picked up a paltry 12 points on their travels.

If they overcome Stoke, Wigan would be only the fifth club to beat the Tony Pulis' men at the Britannia this season, joining Manchester United, Tottenham, Blackpool and Fulham as victors in the Potteries.

Charles N'Zogbia's two goals against West Ham United took him one ahead of Hugo Rodallega as the team's top scorer in the league with nine strikes.

Wigan have failed to beat Stoke in five meetings in the Premier League, with the last three games ending in draws and producing 14 goals, while the Potters were successful two years ago in a 2-0 May win at the Britannia.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Stoke City (4-4-2):
Begovic; Wilkinson, Shawcross, Huth, Wilson; Pennant, Whitehead, Whelan, Delap; Walters, Jones. 

Thomas Sorensen made a rare Premier League start after an impressive FA Cup final display, but the three goals shipped to Manchester City in the league are likely to see regular No.1 Asmir Begovic return, while a raft of changes will be made to the side that started at Eastlands just three days after the Wembley meeting, with Jermaine Pennant, Kenwyne Jones, and Robert Huth all expected to return.

Wigan (4-3-3):
Al Habsi; Alcaraz, G Caldwell, Boyce, Figueroa; McCarthy, Watson, Diame; Sammon, Rodallega, N'Zogbia.

Roberto Martinez has no fresh injury concerns and a full squad to pick from, and he may be tempted to give match winner Conor Sammon a start ahead of Tom Cleverley, after the Irishman earned Wigan three precious points against West Ham last week.

Prediction
Wigan side have won just three times on the road this season, but that record will not worry manager Roberto Martinez on Sunday, for anything can happen when a team is fighting for survival.

Only recently, his men showed their fortitude by coming back from two goals down to beat West Ham last week, but are likely to be reliant upon other teams tripping up even if they pick up a win.

Yet against a Stoke team with a point to prove, it is a lot to ask of Wigan to get a fourth win on the road, and the gung-ho antics will be punished by a Stoke side that have been ruthless at home in recent months.

Stoke 3-2 Wigan Athletic

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Manchester United - Blackpool



DID YOU KNOW?

A Blackpool victory will give them the best away record in the Premier League outside the top five, and one which is only 3 points worse than United’s.

The Seasiders' last away win and clean sheet was the 2-0 victory over Sunderland on December 28 - nine away matches ago.

Blackpool have only won 14 points this year in 20 matches, as opposed to 25 points in the first 17 matches.

DJ Campbell has scored four goals in his last five games.

Blackpool have scored and conceded in 17 of their 18 home matches - the exception was the 0-0 draw against Stoke.

In the league, Ian Holloway's men have conceded at least two goals on 22 occasions, and out of those they shipped in three or more on in 14 games (including one game with six goals). Manchester United have scored at least two goals on 28 occasions, and out of those three or more during 11 matches (including one game with seven goals).

Blackpool have not won at Old Trafford since January, 1962.

Dimitar Berbatov is the joint top scorer in the league, but his 20 goals have all come in just 11 games. His last goal came in the 2-0 victory over Fulham on April 9.

United have won 16 of their 17 league games at Old Trafford this season and are unbeaten in their own backyard in all competitions.

United’s current total of 77 points is the second lowest points tally for the winners in Premier League history, only just beating their tally of 75 points in 1996-97 season. But a win on Sunday will push it above the two totals from the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Manchester United (4-5-1)
Van der Sar; Fabio Da Silva, Evans, Smalling, Evra; Nani, Fletcher, Scholes, Anderson, Park; Berbatov.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that Anderson, Dimitar Berbatov, Darren Fletcher, Paul Scholes and Edwin van der Sar will all play in the final game of the Premier League.

Blackpool (4-3-3)
Gilks; Eardley, Evatt, Baptiste, Crainey; Southern, Adam, Vaughan; Taylor-Fletcher, Campbell, Puncheon.

David Carney (shoulder) is sidelined for the all-important survival decider, while Chris Basham and Luke Varney are doubts for this game.

Prediction
Blackpool have been one of the most attractive sides to watch all season and are set to have a go at Old Trafford, but United’s players will be trying to catch their manager’s eye before the Champions League final and Sir Alex will not want there to be any suggestions that he may have gone easy on the Tangerines.

Man Utd. 3-1 Blackpool

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Tottenham Hotspur - Birmingham City



DID YOU KNOW?

A win for Tottenham will see them finish fifth and confirm Europa League football for next season. Yet if they were to lose, Liverpool would only need a draw against Aston Villa to claim fifth spot due to their superior goal difference.

However, Spurs have a superb home record this season in the league: they have lost just once at White Hart Lane, to Wigan Athletic back in August.

Tottenham’s win over Liverpool last weekend brought an end to a poor run and was their first victory in seven games.

But Spurs have only beaten Birmingham once in their last five attempts, that victory coming back in August 2009, courtesy of a 90th minute Aaron Lennon winner.

Harry Redknapp’s men have drawn more games at home than any other team this season (nine) and their last three home games have all ended all square (against Blackpool, West Brom and Arsenal).

Birmingham are out to avoid becoming the first Premier League side ever to win a trophy and be relegated in the same season.

However, the Blues are on a rotten run and have won just two of their last 12 Premier League matches.

The bottom of the table is so tight with Birmingham level on points with Blackpool and Wigan (and only out of the bottom three by virtue of one goal) that they could lose to Spurs and stay up, or win and still go down.

Striker Cameron Jerome (pictured) has not scored in the Premier League for six months. His last goal came back on November 9 in the 3-2 defeat to Stoke City.

Birmingham have scored the fewest goals in the top flight, having netted just 36 goals in 37 games.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Tottenham (4-4-1-1): 
Cudicini; Corluka, King, Dawson, Rose; Lennon, Modric, Sandro, Pienaar; Van der Vaart; Crouch.

Tottenham top scorer Rafael van der Vaart is a doubt with a calf problem although the Dutchman has insisted this week he will do his utmost to prove his fitness for the final game of the season. Steven Pienaar is also doubtful with a groin problem but could feature.

Yet there is good news for Spurs too as goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes, defenders Alan Hutton, Ledley King and Benoit Assou-Ekotto, as well as midfielders Jermaine Jenas, Tom Huddlestone and Wilson Palacios are all expected to be fit.

Birmingham City (4-5-1):
Foster; Carr, Johnson, Davies, Ridgewell; Larsson, Gardner, Ferguson, Fahey, Beausejour; Jerome.

Alex McLeish is able to recall Craig Gardner and Liam Ridgewell from suspension but the Blues have a number of injury problems and could be without Stuart Parnaby, Martin Jiranek and Lee Bowyer.

A knee injury means Alex Hleb will definitely miss out as well as the on-loan David Bentley who is ineligible against his parent club.

Prediction
A win at White Hart Lane looks a tall order for a Birmingham side on a dreadful run of form and against a Spurs team buoyed by victory over Liverpool last weekend, and eyeing a fifth-place finish.

Only one team has beaten Harry Redknapp’s men on their own turf in the league this season, and whilst Birmingham seem to relish taking on north London opposition, as evidenced in their League Cup win, they may have to hope results elsewhere go in their favour if they are to retain their top-flight status.
Tottenham 3-1 Birmingham

| by

0

22.05. (Sun) 17:00 Aston Villa - Liverpool



DID YOU KNOW?

If Liverpool do not better Spurs' result on Sunday, next season will be the first time the club hasn't played European football since 1999-2000.

Liverpool gained 25 points in 21 Premier League games under Roy Hodgson, while successor Kenny Dalglish has registered 33 points in just 16 games.

Aston Villa's record signing Darren Bent, with nine, has scored more than a third of the club's 26 league goals since he joined in January.

Villa's maximum final league tally of 48 points would be their worst finish since 2005-06 when they finished 16th on 42 points.

In 179 meetings in all competitions, Liverpool have won 88, Villa have won 53, and 38 have been drawn.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Aston Villa (4-4-1-1):
Friedel; Walker, Dunne, Collins, L Young; Downing, Petrov, Reo-Coker, Delph; A Young; Bent. 

Caretaker boss Gary McAllister is expected to stick with the same team that beat Arsenal 2-1 last Sunday.

Cameroon midfielder Jean Makoun is still suffering from a dead leg and is expected to miss out again.

Liverpool (4-4-2):
Reina; Flanagan, Carragher, Skrtel, Johnson; Kuyt, Spearing, Lucas, Maxi; Suarez, Carroll.

Striker Andy Carroll is likely to start for Liverpool despite the problems caused by a long-standing knee injury.

A similar knock is likely to see Raul Meireles sidelined again after he missed the 1-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.

Prediction
Liverpool still have everything to play for while Villa can't wait to end a season to forget. With the bit between their teeth, expect Dalglish's men to end with a flourish.

Aston Villa 0-3 Liverpool