27-02-2011 17:30 Werder - Bayer Leverkusen

Fan Intervention To Inspire Bremen?

There is no dressing up the fact that Bremen are in trouble. Every week Thomas Schaaf and co must wonder when the club's fortunes will improve, only for things to get even worse.

Last weekend's 4-0 defeat in the Nord derby to rivals Hamburg was a sickening experience for all concerned with the club, especially 250 fans in particular who sought answers from the team.

When news broke that the supporters had surrounded the team coach after the game, many would have expected to hear about the discontent fans hurling abuse and causing trouble. This was not to be the case.

Instead, the pack of Bremen supporters encouraged a factual and peaceful discussion with general manager Klaus Allofs, coach Schaaf, captain Torsten Frings and his vice Per Mertesacker.

"It is absolutely correct how the fans voiced themselves. You could clearly tell their worries about the current situation. The manner in which they presented themselves was positive and gives one courage," Allofs told the club's official website after the incident.

Everyone involved with the club will hope the situation can add renewed optimism to the Bremen cause and bring everyone who cares about the team together.

What is for certain is that as the club head into Sunday's crunch home tie with Leverkusen, the supporters still believe. The fans left the team last Saturday evening with chants such as "We are Bremen", "Never second division" and "Thomas Schaaf, you are the best."

Contrasting Fortunes For Bayer And Werder

Their is certainly a contrast in fortunes between the two sides heading into Sunday's crucial game between Bremen and Leverkusen. Leverkusen come into the game on the back of a 4-2 victory over Stuttgart and a 6-0 aggregate win in the Europa League over Metalist Kharkiv to send die Werkself into the last 16.

Bremen on the otherhand suffered their heaviest defeat of the season to Northern rivals Hamburg last week, a 4-0 thrashing to send team spirit to rock bottom while there was to be no midweek European fixture following their earlier Champions League exit.

Leverkusen sit second in the table while Bremen languish down in 14th place. Jupp Heynckes' men can even boast a near full-strength squad while Werder are crippled with a lenghty list of absentees.

So does Heynckes believe the game will be a walk in the park? Of course not.

"We saw in our 4-2 win over Stuttgart how hard it is to play against established Bundesliga club’s who have got themselves into trouble and need every point. We need to go there with the necessary confidence to win the game. Nothing else counts," the veteran tactician told the club's website.

With title rivals Bayern and Dortmund also meeting this weekend, Leverkusen will be hoping to take advantage of at least ont of those sides dropping points. In current form, who's to bet against them?

TEAM NEWS

Werder Bremen

Thomas Schaaf's struggling team are without several important players for the visit of Leverkusen. Captain Torsten Frings will miss the game through a one game suspension while Wesley, Naldo, Sebastian Boenisch, Felix Kroos, Christian Vander, Samuel, Onur Ayik and Daniel Jensen also miss out through injury. There is some good news for the home side with Tim Wiese returning from suspension and Claudio Pizarro expected to return to the starting line-up after shrugging off a muscular problem.

Probable Starting XI: Wiese - Schmidt, Mertesacker, Proedl, Silvestre - Hunt, Bargfrede, Fritz, Marin - Pizarro, Arnautovic

Bayer Leverkusen

Die Werkself are relatively injury free going into the game with Bremen with Tranquillo Barnetta and Fabian Giefer the only players on the injury-list. Jupp Heynckes' men are expected to name the same team who defeated Stuttgart 4-2 last weekend meaning Michael Ballack will have to be content with a place on the bench.

Probable Starting XI: Adler - Schwaab, Hyypia, Reinartz, Kadlec - Rolfes, Vidal - Sam, Renato Augusto, Castro - Kiessling

Prediction

Werder Bremen 1-1 Leverkusen 

Read More

27-02-2011 17:00 Arsenal - Birmingham City

* Arsenal are unbeaten in their past 11 matches in all competitions.
* Without Cesc Fabregas in the team Samir Nasri has scored nine goals in nine games this season; when both have been playing the Frenchman only has five goals in 20 appearances.
* Nikola Zigic has scored three goals in his past four league games for Birmingham.
* Alex McLeish's side have only lost once in their past seven matches in all competitions.
* Arsenal and Birmingham have both scored 13 goals on their way to the Carling Cup final. Defensively the Gunners have been much more solid, conceding only two goals to the Blues' eight.
* Three of the last six League Cup finals have gone to extra-time.
* Arsenal's fans may have waited what feels like an eternity to win another major trophy but their six-year wait is nothing compared to Birmingham's 48-year trophy drought. The last time the Blues won anything of note was back in 1963 when they beat city rivals Aston Villa to win the League Cup.
* Both sides have lost League Cup finals in the past decade, with the Blues losing to Liverpool on penalties back in 2001, while Arsenal lost 2-1 to Chelsea in 2007.
* Arsene Wenger has taken Arsenal to eight major finals during his time at Arsenal and he as a 50 per cent success rate, winning four and losing four.
* Sunday represents not only an important day in Birmingham's history but is also the birthday of club owner Carson Yeung. The Hong Kong businessman will hope his side give him a birthday present to remember.

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Arsenal (4-3-3): Szczesny; Sagna, Djourou, Koscielny, Clichy; Song, Wilshere, Nasri; Bendtner, Van Persie, Arshavin.

Birmingham (4-4-2): Foster; Carr, Johnson, Jiranek, Ridgewell; Hleb, Ferguson, Gardner, Larsson; Martins, Zigic.

Prediction

Cup finals are always tricky affairs to call, especially the League Cup final which has provided numerous shocks over over the past 20 years. And the injuries sustained by Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott in the Gunners' 1-0 win over Stoke in midweek has really clouded the issue of who is going to be victorious on Sunday afternoon.

But Arsene Wenger's Arsenal should still have the firepower to overcome Birmingham and end their near-six-year wait for a major trophy. Alex McLeish's side will not roll over lightly though and expect the Blues to be in contention in this final from the word go, but Arsenal, on  Wembley's big pitch, should have enough quality to pick up the first major silverware of the season.

Arsenal 2-1 Birmingham

Read More

27-02-2011 15:00 Roma - Parma

Back To Winning Ways

Vincenzo Montella’s arrival appears to have revived Roma with the players having recovered their spirits. In midweek the Giallorossi won 1-0 against Bologna away from home in what was a rescheduled fixture from late January. That victory placed the former Italian champions in sixth spot in the Serie A standings with 42 points from 26 matches.

The win in Bologna was the Lupi’s first victory in six competitive games and followed a dramatic but eventually detrimental 4-3 defeat to Genoa. Roma had actually gone 3-0 up against the Grifoni only to concede no fewer than four goals in the second half.

However, having tasted victory once again on Sunday afternoon the Roma players will be keen to gift-wrap caretaker coach Montella a home win. As the takeover is nearing its fruition, it is getting more and more important for Roma to fulfill their potential. With Claudio Ranieri gone, the new era has already begun and the Roma fans will expect to see the dawn at home on Sunday.

Hope Springs Eternal

Parma remain part of the contingent who are struggling for survival in Serie A. Having collected just 27 points from 26 matches, the Ducali find themselves just two places and four points above the bottom-three and in desperate need of points.

Heading into Week 27, Parma have reiterated their support in coach Pasquale Marino, with the club’s chief executive Pietro Leonardi stating: "The team is behind the coach, they trust him like we do, we don't see a need to change.”

Parma will be looking for an upset at the Stadio Olimpico despite boasting a poor away form in the league as Roma have failed to win any of their last three competitive fixtures in Rome and lost to Shakhtar Donetsk and Napoli this month. In the reverse fixture in October, Parma held Roma to a goalless draw at home.

TEAM NEWS

Roma

Adriano and Perrotta are injured and will miss the visit of Parma. Rosi, Mexes and Greco are suspended.

Parma

Calvo and Marques are injured and are unavailable for the visit to Rome.

Prediction

Roma lost to Napoli and Shakhtar Donetsk at home recently but they still retain their strength and aura in Rome. Parma are struggling for survival and have a wretched record on the road, so a comfortable victory for the Lupi looks the most likely outcome of this encounter.

Roma 2-0 Parma

Read More

27-02-2011 15:00 Palermo - Udinese

Stopping The Rot

Palermo have suffered from bouts of inconsistency this campaign and despite remaining one of the main contenders for a top-four finish in Serie A, the Sicilians are uncertain whether they would even get into Europe next season as at the moment they are stationed outside the top six.

Last weekend Palermo went down 1-0 to Bologna on the road, following their shock 4-2 defeat to Fiorentina at home. Back-to-back defeats came after back-to-back victories over Juventus and Lecce and have placed them two points off a Europa League slot and a massive eight points behind Lazio, who occupy the fourth and final Champions League position.

Coach Delio Rossi is coming under increased pressure and although that he will not be sacked anytime between now and the end of the 2010-11 campaign, he needs to reform his team, re-inject confidence in the players and return them to winning ways.

With the Rosanero boasting an encouraging record at home with eight wins out of a possible 13 in the league, they should be trying to armour themselves with confidence.

Entertainment Guaranteed

Home or away, Udinese do not disappoint when it comes to giving the spectators and the viewers unalloyed entertainment. The Bianconeri may have failed to score against Brescia last weekend but the goalless draw in Udine saw them extend their unbeaten league run to nine matches – except losing to Sampdoria in the Coppa Italia on penalties, Udinese have yet to taste defeat in 2011.

At the moment Udinese are fifth in the Serie A table with 44 points from 26 matches. With just four points separating them from fourth-place Lazio, the Zebrette are very much in contention for a place in next season’s Europe’s premier club competition, and with their current stride they should be confident of accomplishing just that.

Udinese’s away form, though, isn’t as impressive as their record at home is as they have lost more league encounters on the road than they have won. However, Francesco Guidolin’s side have won their last three away matches in Serie A, including that against Juventus in Turin.

Having got the better of Palermo 2-1 in Udine in the reverse fixture in October, Udinese will travel to Sicily basking in hope and optimism.

TEAM NEWS

Palermo

Cassani, Miccoli, Pinilla and Goian are injured for the Sicilians. Carrozzieri and Garcia are suspended.

Udinese

Basta, Ferronetti and Angella are out for the Bianconeri.

Prediction

This promises to be an attack-minded and entertaining game of football. Both Palermo and Udinese are firmly committed to attacking football and one can expect goals in this fixture. The Sicilians are strong at home but Udinese are in a good run of form - this encounter could end in a draw.

Palermo 2-2 Udinese

Read More

27-02-2011 15:00 Cesena - Chievo Verona

The Struggle Continues

Cesena have shown signs of improvements from time to time but their effort has not matched the results. Heading into Week 27 the Seahorses find themselves second from bottom in the league table, having mustered 22 points from 26 matches.

Last weekend Massimo Ficcadenti’s side played out a high-scoring 2-2 draw with fellow relegation candidates Parma on the road to bring to an end to back-to-back defeats. However, Cesena have yet to win a league match since the first week of January when they won 2-1 in Brescia.

Mid-Table Safety

Worries of relegation had crept in on Chievo but the Flying Donkeys’ revival since late January means that they are now comfortably placed in mid-table and are likely finish there as well at the end of the season.

With 31 points from 26 matches, Chievo find themselves in 13th position in the league standings. Last weekend’s 2-1 defeat to Milan in Verona was their second successive loss in the league after they lost to Cagliari in Sardinia the weekend before.

Chievo have a poor record on the road this season but Stefano Pioli’s side will hope to collect all three points on Sunday given that they are up against one of the worst teams in the Italian first division.


TEAM NEWS

Cesena

Fatic and Gorobsov injured for the Seahorses.

Chievo

Luciano is injured for the Flying Donkeys. Cesar and Rigoni are suspended.

Prediction

Cesena would struggle against Chievo even at home but playing in front of their own supporters should give them the confidence and the motivation to get at least a point.

Cesena 1-1 Chievo

Read More