29.01. (Tue) 20:45 Lazio - Juventus

PROBABLE LINEUPS

LAZIO
Marchetti
Cavanda, Biava, Ciani, Radu
Candreva, Ledesma, Cana, Hernanes, Mauri
Floccari

JUVENTUS
Storari
Caceres, Barzagli, Bonucci
Lichtsteiner, Vidal, Pogba, Giaccherini
Marchisio
Giovinco, Quagliarella

Stefano Mauri's late equaliser at the Juventus Stadium gave Lazio a vital away goal ahead of the second leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final.

Aware that they must score, Juventus will most likely start with two strikers. Fabio Quagliarella could retain his starting berth up front after scoring in the 1-1 draw with Genoa at the weekend, while Sebastian Giovinco is pushing for a start having been left on the bench in the previous match and he could replace Mirko Vucinic.

Andrea Pirlo should return to training later this week but the 33-year-old is ruled out of Tuesday's contest against the Biancocelesti. With Kwadwo Asamoah on international duty with Ghana at the Africa Cup of Nations, Arturo Vidal, Paul Pogba and Claudio Marchisio are expected to continue in central midfield. Emanuele Giaccherini could replace Paolo De Ceglie on the left wing.

Lazio's top goalscorer Miroslav Klose is still sidelined through a muscular injury, meaning that Sergio Floccari should continue up front, although Czech Republic forward Libor Kozak could start.

Lazio are likely to employ a four-man defence, with Luis Pedro Cavanda and Stefan Radu poised to start in the wing-back positions. Michael Ciani and Andre Dias are vying for the chance to partner Giuseppe Biava in central defence whilst Antonio Candreva is expected to return to the XI, having missed the first leg.

DID YOU KNOW?

Lazio have failed to beat Juventus in their last nine meetings, losing six. Their last triumph over the Bianconeri came back in April 2009 when goals from Mauro Zarate and Aleksandar Kolarov gave the Biancocelesti a 2-1 Coppa Italia victory.

Juventus are searching for a record tenth Coppa Italia title. Only Roma have lifted the trophy as many times as the Old Lady.

Lazio have lifted the Coppa Italia on five occasions, most recently in 2009 under the stewardship of Delio Rossi.

Antonio Conte has appeared in a Coppa Italia final on three occasions as a player, winning the trophy as part of the 1995 Juventus side.

Lazio's 1-0 loss to Chievo on Saturday was their first defeat in 17 matches.

Lazio faced Juventus in the 2004 Coppa Italia final where they secured a 4-2 aggregate win over two legs.

Prediction
Vladimir Petkovic's side succeeded in restricting Juventus to very few shots on target in the first leg and if they can replicate their defensive resilience, Lazio's away goal could prove the decisive factor between the two sides.
Editor's Prediction
Lazio 0-0 Juventus

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30.01. (Wed) 20:45 QPR - Manchester City

PROBABLE LINEUPS

QPR
Cesar
Onuoha, Hill, Nelsen, Fabio
Mackie, Mbia, Derry, Wright-Phillips
Taarabt
Bothroyd

MANCHESTER CITY
Hart
Zabaleta, Rekik, Lescott, Kolarov
Milner, Barry, Garcia, Silva
Dzeko, Aguero

Harry Redknapp may well find himself unable to call upon recent arrival Loic Remy (hamstring), with the Frenchman likely to be subject to a late fitness test prior to Tuesday's clash.

Fellow attackers Junior Hoilett (hamstring), Bobby Zamora (hip) and Andrew Johnson (knee) are also unavailable for the hosts, while Jose Bosingwa (back) is too absent through injury.

Samba Diakite, meanwhile, is at the Africa Cup of Nations with Mali.

The visitors go into the meeting with significant problems in central defence. Captain Vincent Kompany (calf) has been ruled out after picking up a problem in the FA Cup against Stoke, while Matija Nastasic (knock) is also a major doubt.

Roberto Mancini's problems at the back are exacerbated with the absences of Maicon and Micah Richards (both knee).

Kolo Toure, along with brother Yaya, remains on international duty with the Ivory Coast, so youngster Karim Rekik may be called into the backline unless the Italian opts for a three-man defence.

DID YOU KNOW?

At this point last season, in which QPR avoided relegation by a single point, the west Londoners were six points better off than they are currently.

The Rs currently boast the sixth highest net transfer spend total since the start of the summer 2012 transfer window, with only Chelsea, Liverpool, Southampton and the two Manchester clubs boasting greater outlays.

The last time Harry Redknapp managed a club that was relegated was Southampton in 2004-05. At the equivalent stage of that season, the Saints had an identical results record to QPR's current run: two wins, nine draws and 12 defeats.

QPR are 7/1 to draw 1-1 with bet365.

Manchester City are yet to concede a goal in 2013.

So far, the Premier League champions have only managed 75% of the number of goals they had scored at this point last term.

Roberto Mancini's men have netted three times in each of their last three meetings with QPR, winning every time - including their memorable last-minute win to claim the Premier League title last season.

City have won their last four games in the Premier League, and last six in all competitions, while Redknapp's side are unbeaten in three, but crashed out against MK Dons in the FA Cup at Loftus Road last time out.

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Premier League Opta Facts – January 29-30th

Aston Villa v Newcastle United

Aston Villa have enjoyed just one win in their last five Premier League meetings with Newcastle (D2 L2), netting a total of four goals in this period while shipping 10.
At Villa Park, the Villans are unbeaten in their last five top tier clashes with the Magpies, winning four, drawing one and keeping three clean sheets in the process.
The one and only time that a Paul Lambert side hosted Alan Pardew's team in the Premier League came last season, when Norwich won 4-2 at Carrow Road.
Villa Park has witnessed fewer goals than any other Premier League stadium this season (24).
On average, Mike Dean has handed out a card for every 5.9 fouls in the Premier League this season; the most frequent of any referee.
Newcastle have won just three of their 18 Premier League matches since Alan Pardew signed a new 8-year contract (W3 D4 L11).
Villa have scored just five goals in their last seven meetings with Newcastle in the Premier League, with each of these arriving in the first half.
Aston Villa have won fewer points after 23 Premier League games in a season than ever before (20). They have also scored fewer goals (19) and conceded more often (44) than in any previous PL campaign at this stage.
This is also Newcastle's worst ever points tally after 23 games of a Premier League season (21).
Only two players (Gomis (25) and Aubameyang (24)) have scored more goals in Ligue 1 since the start of last season than Yoan Gouffran (22).

Queens Park Rangers v Manchester City

QPR have lost each of their last four Premier League clashes with Man City, shipping three goals in each of the last three defeats and two in the loss before that.
In the two sides' five Premier League meetings at Loftus Road, the Hoops have only managed one win, 1-0 in August 1995, losing two and drawing two.
No side has scored more goals than Man City in the final 15 minutes of Premier League games this season (11) and these goals have contributed towards a league-high 12 points.
Phil Dowd has awarded a league-high eight penalties in the Premier League this season.
Only Chelsea (8) have won more penalties in the Premier League this term than Man City (6).
QPR have scored the highest proportion of goals from outside the area in the Premier League this season (39%; 7 of 18).
Man City have conceded the highest proportion of goals from outside the area in the Premier League this season (26%; 5 of 19).
Adel Taarabt has either scored (2) or assisted (2) four of QPR's last five Premier League goals.
Eden Dzeko has scored one goal in each of his three Premier League matches against QPR.
QPR are the 13th side in Premier League history to have won 15 points or fewer after 23 games of a season. Of those 13, only three have avoided relegation (West Brom in 2004-05, Fulham in 2007-08 and Wigan in 2011/12).
Should QPR suffer defeat in this match, it'll be their 100th loss in the Premier League.

Stoke City v Wigan Athletic

Stoke have now gone seven Premier League games against Wigan without winning (5D 2L), with that run coinciding with Roberto Martinez taking charge at the DW Stadium.
The Latics are unbeaten on their last three league visits to the Britannia Stadium (W1 D2), only losing (with Steve Bruce in charge) back in May 2009, 2-0.
The last three clahses between these two sides have produced four penalty goals, with Irish striker Jonathan Walters bagging two of those spot-kicks.
No side has conceded the first goal of the game on more occasions than Wigan Athletic this season in the Premier League (15).
No referee has a higher cards per game average in the Premier League this season than Mark Jones (4.1 a game).
No side has committed more fouls in the Premier League this season than Stoke City (301).
Ali Al-Habsi has made more errors leading to opposition goals than any other Premier League player this season (5).
Stoke have lost three successive games in the Premier League. The last time that they lost four in a row was in February 2012.
Wigan have won fewer points from their last 10 Premier League games than any other side (5).
Stoke have conceded 13 goals in their last four Premier League games. They had conceded the exact same amount in their previous 18 games.

Sunderland v Swansea City

Sunderland remain unbeaten in their three Premier League meetings with Swansea, winning one (2-0) and drawing two (0-0 and 2-2).
On their 12 visits to Sunderland in all competitions, the Swans have only ever enjoyed one victory, 1-0 in February 1982 in the old Division One.
Ki Sung-Yueng (22) has attempted the most shots (excl. blocked) without scoring a goal in the Premier League this season.
If matches ended at half-time this season, Sunderland would be 4th in the Premier League table, while if only the second half of PL games counted, Swansea would be 5th.
Steven Fletcher has scored the first goal of the game more often than any other Premier League player this season (6).
Only seven of Steven Fletcher's 22 Premier League goals since the start of last season have been scored in home matches (32%).
Fletcher has scored three goals in his previous two Premier League appearances against Swansea, but both of these games have been away. He netted two of these in his Sunderland debut back in September.
Sunderland have won five of their last eight Premier League games (W5 L3), this after winning just four of their previous 29 (W4 D13 L12).
The Swans have suffered only two defeats in their last 14 Premier League matches (W5 D7 L2).
Michu has scored just one goal in his last eight hours and 31 minutes of Premier League football (511 mins). Before this run, he had averaged a goal every 115 mins.

Arsenal v Liverpool

Arsenal have lost only one of their last 11 Premier League meetings with Liverpool, but six of these games have also ended in a draw (W4 D6 L1).
The Reds have won just eight points in their last 12 Premier League away games at Arsenal (W1 D5 L6).
No side has won more Premier League away games at Arsenal than Liverpool (6, alongside Manchester United).
Liverpool have averaged the highest possession in the Premier League so far this season (59.4%).
Of players to have attempted at least 30 shots (excl. blocked) in the Premier League this season, Theo Walcott (31.3%) has the best shot conversion rate.
Lukas Podolski tops the Premier League assist charts with nine this season following three in his last appearance against West Ham; the first player to assist three in a single PL game since Steven Pienaar in April 2012.
The Emirates has witnessed more goals than any other Premier League stadium this season (46).
Luis Suárez has created more goalscoring chances from open play than any other player in the top five European leagues this season (61).
Santi Cazorla has made 15 through balls in the Premier League this season, no other player has made more than eight.
There have been seven goals scored in the 90th minute or later in the last eight Premier League meetings between Arsenal and Liverpool.

Everton v West Bromwich Albion

Just one of their previous 13 Premier League meetings between these two sides have ended as a draw, with Everton winning seven and West Brom securing five wins.
Victor Anichebe has scored in two of his last three Premier League games against West Brom, despite playing a combined 69 minutes over those three matches.
Everton have lost only 9% of games that they have conceded the first goal of the game in this season (one of 11); the best such record in the Premier League.
West Brom have attempted 61% of their shots in the second half of Premier League games this season; a higher proportion than any other side.
Romelu Lukaku has scored seven goals and assisted one in his nine Premier League starts for West Brom.
Despite picking up just one point from their last four Premier League games, this is still West Brom's highest points tally after 23 games in a PL season (34).
Everton have drawn a joint-league high 11 games in the Premier League this season. Only three sides (Everton in 2010-11, Birmingham in 2010-11 and Ipswich in 1992-93 - all 12) have drawn more of their first 23 games in a PL season.
Only Manchester City (2) have lost fewer games than Everton (3) this season.
West Brom have lost four of their last five (W1) away games in the Premier League.
Everton have used fewer players than any other Premier League side this season (22).

Norwich City v Tottenham Hotspur

Norwich have won four points (W1 D1) in their last two Premier League games against Tottenham, this after winning just five in their nine previous PL meetings with them (W1 D2 L6).
However, at Carrow Road, Norwich have lost four and drawn one of their five Premier League games against Tottenham Hotspur, netting just one goal in the process.
Only once in PL history have Tottenham had more points than their 41 after 23 games this season (49 points last season).
Tottenham Hotspur have used a league-high 27 players already this season in the Premier League.
Norwich have collected just one point from their last six Premier League games (L5 D1), fewer than any other side over this period.
Spurs have won seven and lost just one of their last 11 Premier League matches (W7 D3 L1).
Gareth Bale has already netted nine Premier League goals this season, equalling his highest tally in a single season (9 in 2011-12). Seven of these nine have come in away games.
No English player has scored more goals in the Premier League this season than Jermain Defoe (10), although the striker has scored just one goal in his last 11 hours and 49 minutes of PL football.
Only Norwich (14) have used more English players in the Premier League this season than Spurs (13).
Andre Villas-Boas has won 52.2% of his Premier League games for Tottenham (12 of 23); a higher win percentage than any other Spurs manager in the Premier League.

Fulham v West Ham United

Fulham have won just two of their previous 17 Premier League matches against West Ham (W2 D5 L10), with one of those victories being in their first ever PL meeting.
Only Arsenal (7) have won more often away at Fulham in the Premier League than West Ham United (6).
The Whites have failed to find the net in four of their previous eight Premier League home games against West Ham, netting only six goals in total.
Fulham have a lower win percentage than any other club in Premier League London derbies (19.4%) and have won just two points from a possible 15 in PL London derbies this season.
Only Arsenal (50.8%) and Chelsea (49.2%) have a better win percentage in Premier League London derbies than West Ham United (31.6%).
Carlton Cole has scored in each of his last five Premier League starts against Fulham, netting six goals in total, however, he also scored an own goal in this run. These six goals mean that he's scored more often against Fulham than any other side in the Premier League.
West Ham have conceded fewer headed goals than any other Premier League side this season (1).
The Hammers have played a higher proportion of their passes in the attacking third of the pitch than any other side in the Premier League this season (39.2%).
No goalkeeper has been forced into making more saves than Jussi Jääskeläinen (91).
Dimitar Berbatov netted five goals in his first seven Premier League appearances for Fulham (goal every 117 mins), but has scored only two in his subsequent 12 PL games (goal every 540 mins).
Mark Noble has created more goalscoring chances without having assisted a goal (32) than any other player in the Premier League this season.

Manchester United v Southampton

The Red Devils have dropped just two points in 13 Premier League home games against Southampton (W12 D1).
Manchester United have scored in 25 of their 27 previous Premier League games against Southampton and have scored at least twice in eight of their last nine PL games versus them.
Robin van Persie has scored four goals in three Premier League appearances against Southampton, including a hat-trick in Manchester United's 3-2 win at St Marys earlier this season.
Morgan Schneiderlin has made more tackles than any other player in the Premier League this season (90) and only Sandro (80) has made more interceptions than the Frenchman (72).
Paul Scholes has been given six cautions in the Premier League this season, despite playing only 682 minutes; meaning he has been given a yellow card every 114 mins on average.
Wayne Rooney has scored five goals in his last five Premier League appearances and has three goals in his last three PL games against Southampton.
Manchester United have currently won 299 home games in the Premier League; more than any other side.
Manchester United have seen 16 different players score a Premier League goal for them this season; more than any other side.
The Red Devils have won 29 of a possible 33 points from their last 11 Premier League games (W9 D2).
Southampton have lost none of their last six Premier League matches, but five of these have ended in a draw (W1 D5).

Reading v Chelsea

Reading have won just one point in their previous five Premier League meetings with Chelsea (D1 L4).
Reading have lost a league-high 20 points from leading positions this season, with three of these points coming in the reverse fixture, as Reading led 2-1 until the 69th minute and eventually lost 4-2 at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have scored the first goal of the game on more occasions than any other Premier League side this season (15).
Reading have won only one of their eight Premier League games (13%) that they have scored the first goal of the game in this season.
Despite refereeing only 11 matches in the Premier League this season, Mark Halsey has awarded six penalties. Only Phil Dowd (8) has given more.
Chelsea have won a league-high eight penalty kicks this season in the Premier League.
Five different players have taken these eight penalties for Chelsea, Frank Lampard (4), Eden Hazard, Oscar and Fernando Torres score theirs, while Lucas Piazon was the only one to miss.
Adam Le Fondre has scored with four of his last five shots (excl. blocked) in the Premier League.
This will be Rafael Benitez's 12th Premier League game in charge of Chelsea and he's won 21 points so far. Roberto Di Matteo won 24 points in his 12 PL games in charge of the Blues this term.
Reading have won nine points from their last four Premier League games (W3 L1). They had collected just 10 in their previous 19 PL matches this term.

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Championship Opta Facts – January 29-30

Barnsley v Millwall

Barnsley have won three and lost none of their last four in all competitions.
Millwall have won three and lost just one of their last five in all competitions, including Friday's 2-1 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup.
No side have won fewer points at home this season than Barnsley (13 - W3 D4 L7).
Millwall have won none of their last four away league matches (D2 L2), having gone the previous seven unbeaten (W3 D4).
Chris Dagnall has scored three in his last three for Barnsley (in all comps) after managing just two in the previous 19.

Bristol City v Watford

Only Peterborough and Bristol City (both 13) have picked up fewer points at home this season than Bristol City (14).
Since November 1st, Watford have won more points (33) and scored more goals (39) than any other Championship side.
On the road, the Hornets are unbeaten in seven league games; winning five and drawing two.
Bristol City remain the only team in England's top four divisions yet to keep a clean sheet this season. They have conceded 56 goals in 28 league games.
Matej Vydra has scored 10 goals in his last five starts for Watford in the Championship, netting a brace on each occasion.

Huddersfield v Crystal Palace

Huddersfield Town have won none and lost six of their last 12 league matches.
Palace have won none and lost three of their last six away league matches.
Huddersfield have picked up fewer points (five) from their last 10 league games (W0 D5 L5) than any other team in the Championship.
The Eagles have kept just one clean sheet in their last 10 on the road in the Championship.
Glenn Murray have scored seven goals in his last nine league appearances for Crystal Palace, although he is yet to find the back of the net in 2013 (three apps).

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League One Opta Facts 29 January 2013

Crawley Town v Preston North End

Crawley's last six matches have alternated between victory and defeat. For the run to continue, they will win this match.
Preston have won just one of their last 11 league matches (W1 D6 L4).
When leading at half-time this season, Crawley have held on to victory in 100% of the matches (six games, six wins).
Gary Alexander scored twice against Preston in September. That was the last time the forward has scored in the league this season.

Leyton Orient v Swindon Town

Swindon have won five and lost none of their last seven league matches; the current longest unbeaten run in League One.
Leyton Orient have won just two and lost four of their seven matches against team in the top five of League One this season.
The Robins have kept five clean sheets in their last six matches, conceding just a single goal in the run.
The O's have won four and lost one of their last six home league games.

Portsmouth v Notts County

Portsmouth have lost each of their last five leagues games and are one defeat away from equalling their worst run of the season so far.
Notts County have won none of their last five away games, although four of them ended as draws.
In all competitions, Portsmouth have kept just one clean sheet in their last 16 games.
Yoann Arquin has scored three times in two games (in all comps) against Portsmouth this season.

Yeovil Town v MK Dons

Yeovil have won four and lost one of their last five in League One.
MK Dons have won four and lost just one of their last eight on the road in all competitions, including Saturday's historic 4-2 win over QPR in the FA Cup.
Only Coventry City (19) have opened the scoring in more matches than MK Dons (17) this season.
Irish forward Paddy Madden has scored five goals in his last five games for Yeovil.

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League Two Opta Facts 29th January 2013

Gillingham v Northampton

Gillingham have lost three and won none of their last five home games in League Two.
Northampton have won five of their last six matches (W5 L1).
Just 13 of Northampton's 45 points this season have been won away from home (W3 D4 L6).
Gillingham haven't kept a clean sheet at home in six matches, conceding 10 goals in that time.

Oxford United v Burton Albion

Oxford's loss to Fleetwood on Saturday ended an unbeaten run of eight league matches (W5 D3).
Only Plymouth Argyle and Torquay United (both 11) have picked up fewer points away from home this season than Burton Albion (12).
Oxford United have conceded just five goals in their last seven home games, keeping four clean sheets in that time.
Jacques Maghoma and Calvin Zola both bagged braces against Oxford United earlier in the season. However, between them they have scored just two goals in 2013 for Burton Albion.

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