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West Ham v Chelsea

The lunchtime game in the Premier League this week comes from Upton Park where Sam Allardyce’s West Ham host Rafael Benitez’s Chelsea.

Since taking over the reigns at the Bridge just over a week ago, Benitez has come under ferocious criticism from Chelsea fans due to the former Liverpool boss’s comments he made regarding the Blues during his tenure at Anfield. The Chelsea faithful have been relentless in demonstrating just what they think of Benitez during his first two games in charge of Chelsea, both dismal 0-0 draws at home against Manchester City and Fulham. They will be expecting a much better performance at Upton Park as they continue to drop points and slip down the table. They currently find themselves third and only above West Brom on goal difference. What is more concerning is that they are already seven points behind leaders Manchester United.

They travel to East London once again without skipper John Terry, Frank Lampard and Daniel Sturridge. All three are still struggling with injury and are expected to miss the game. Benitez will also have Wednesday’s must win Champions League tie with FC Nordsjaelland on his mind and may choose to rest key players. Victor Moses, Oriol Romeu and Marko Marin should all play some part on Saturday.

West Ham are currently sitting in tenth and are without a win in three games. Their last victory came on the 11th November when they defeated Newcastle 1-0. Since then they have claimed just one point out of a possible nine.

Whilst their form is worrying, they can take comfort in the fact that on-loan striker Andy Carroll is fully fit after missing two months of the season through injury. The England hit man, on loan from Liverpool, netted his first goal for the Hammers last week in the 3-1 loss to Spurs and he is looking sharp and ready to fire his side up the table.

With both clubs in desperate need of a win, this promises to be a fascinating encounter and isn’t one to be missed. Written by @SebBudd

Match PredictionsAfter playing around with the team a bit in the last couple of games, Rafa will probably go back to what he can of Di Matteo’s team with the players he has available. This means we are likely to see Hazard, Oscar and Mata together again. Chelsea are undoubtedly at their best with these three playing so we will be backing Rafa to get his first win as Chelsea boss.

If you’re not as confidence as us, backing Under 2.5 goals looks sensible in this one, especially after Chelsea’s previous 0-0 draws.

It seems like Rafa may just be playing the numbers game with Torres, get the ball to him and hope he does something with it, and surely it’s only a matter of time before he scores right? We’ll back him to score anytime.

www.flickr.com/photos/cliche

West Brom v Stoke

Stoke City will be travelling to The Hawthorns on Saturday as Tony Pulis’ side take on Steve Clarke’s West Bromwich Albion.

The Baggies have somewhat been the surprise package this season, and find themselves in 4th place following a very impressive start which has seen them topple the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Everton. Manager Steve Clarke has managed to improve an already strong side assembled by predecessor Roy Hodgson, and has made some tactical tweaks that have worked wonders for the midlands side, and they are playing more attractive football as a result, whilst continuing to consistently pick up points.

However, they did suffer a slight blip in midweek when they went 3-1 down at Swansea after altering their system for the game, but once they returned back to their more familiar formation they were more competitive, so Clarke will be looking for an immediate response on Saturday to put things right.

As for Stoke, they showed resilience to come back from a goal down to defeat Newcastle in midweek, and they are starting to look more like the Stoke we know following a run of 3 wins and 1 draw. They are looking solid once again whilst looking a threat going forward, so they could easily come out with the points in this tie if they play their cards right.

This game should be an interesting one, as the bookies will probably back West Brom based on form, but this could potentially be a coupon buster as Stoke will come to this game confident and halt West Brom’s impressive home form, for now at least.

PREDICTION: 2-2 draw Written by @Liam1992LUFC

Match PredictionsThis game looks to be a real tough one to call, especially after West Brom’s slip midweek. As Liam says, Stoke come into this game brimming with confidence and will be expecting to at least get a draw.

Rather than flipping a coin for which team will win this one, we’ll stick to the goals markets and predict Both Teams To Score. Stoke have a pretty poor away record and may miss Crouch in this one, but history shows that they usually do quite well in this fixture (apart from losing in January).

Picking goalscorers in this one is tough, Stoke may be without Crouch, and the rotation at West Brom means you have to wait for the team sheet usually. Shane Long has played well in the past couple of games he has started and if he starts again in this one, we’ll back him to score.


QPR v Aston Villa

Harry Redknapp will have been in the QPR hot seat for a full week by the time this encounter with Aston Villa comes round, and he’ll be hoping to oversee one of the biggest comebacks since Lazarus if his side are to avoid the Premier League trapdoor.

The Hoops have accumulated just five points from 14 games, which is a joint lowest in Premier League history. With Christmas just around the corner, old ‘arry will be hoping that this fixture kick-starts his employer’s season.

Aston Villa meanwhile limped out of the relegation zone for the first time in ages with their 2-0 triumph against Reading in midweek, with Belgian front man Christian Benteke continuing to draw plaudits for his forceful displays.

And two clean sheets on the bounce will have given Paul Lambert and the Villa faithful something to cheer, although they will have to be on their guard defensively against this QPR side that does boast a number of attacking talents.

Ironic really, considering they’ve only scored ten goals in those 14 outings this campaign. But with the genuinely world-class Esteban Granero pulling the strings in midfield for the likes of Djibril Cisse, Adel Taarabt and Junior Hoilett, you would imagine that that situation will change soon enough.

Redknapp has always been a stoic 4-4-2 man, like some kind of real-life Mike Bassett figure. Whether he stays true to that philosophy, or changes to something a bit more fluid to incorporate both twinkle-toed creators like Granero and craggy-faced hard men like Diakite in the middle of the park, remains to be seen.

Either way, this will be a gritty, low scoring encounter between two teams desperate for the win. One for the purists then. Written by @ItsRouteone

Match PredictionsHaving just changed manager, QPR are still figuring out their best way to play under Harry Redknapp. The fans will be hoping for a quick turnaround and will see this home fixture as the perfect place to get going. Harry seems to be confident that the players have showed desire this week in training, so they could be a team to look out for this weekend.

Another one for goals this one, it’s tough to pick a winner, but Both Teams To Score again looks almost a dead cert (famous last words).

QPR’s only recognised available striker is Cisse and his form has been woeful this season so we’ll steer clear of him. Benteke on the other hand has been a revelation since joining Villa so may get on the score sheet again this weekend.


Arsenal v Swansea

Both Arsenal and Swansea have had inconsistent starts to the season, with neither really putting together a great win streak, however, both sides are great footballing clubs and regularly entertaining – striving to play attacking football every games – which makes you think this should be a great game for the neutrals.

Arsenal have had an unremarkable start to the season, only winning five of their opening thirteen games, as they’ve already drawn six games this season. If they want to take maximum points against Swansea, they’ll be hoping for Theo Walcott to be on song. Despite having lots of problems off the pitch with his contract situation, he has drastically improved on the pitch and The Gunners have looked a different side when he plays. He provides the much needed width for them, and seems to have matured as he’s giving a much better return, scoring four goals and collecting four assists – making him their joint-top goalscorer and top assister - despite only starting four games. They’ll also want Spaniard Santi Cazorla to be in his best form, and to aim to pick apart the Swansea defence, and continue his great form, scoring four goals and getting three assists, and always looking a threat to the opposition defence.

Swansea started the season in great form, and after having a bit of a blip, seem to be steadying the ship again, as they’re undefeated in their last five, winning two. If they wish to extend this run they’ll be looking towards £2M buy Michu and midfielder Jonathan De Guzman to be on form. Michu has been a revelation since joining from Rayo Vallecano, scoring eight goals in his first fourteen games, whilst De Guzman has been The Swans’ creative force, picking out key passes from the deeper midfield role, collecting three assists and completing nineteen key passes.

Written by @PlayedOfThePark

Match PredictionsThis should be a good game, one that I’d have liked to have seen live on Sky with both teams eager to play good quality football. Ultimately the home advantage should be enough for Arsenal in this one despites Swansea’s current good run of form.

Backing the outright Arsenal win is currently at 1.44 at the time of writing. If you fancied something a bit different, Arsenal to score 2 or more goals is 1.53 which looks a pretty strong bet from where I’m sitting.

After scoring again midweek, Walcott is now Arsenal’s joint top scorer this despite only making 4 starts so far this season. If Wenger decides to start him again this weekend, another goal may well be on the cards. Oh and a new contract.


Fulham v Tottenham

We have a London derby on Saturday when Spurs make the short trip to Craven Cottage to take on a Fulham side who’s season has slightly hit the buffers.

With no wins in 6, Fulham’s barrage of brilliant attacking football has slowed down, and they are struggling to get the right results. This may be down to their defence however; they netted 10 times in the past 6 games which would be more than enough to grab results, if things were going right at the other end. The likes of Mark Schwarzer, John Arne Riise and Phillipe Senderos must improve if Fulham are to start picking up points again, a problem I am sure manager Martin Jol will be looking to rectify.

Despite their shortcomings in defence, they are a brilliant team going forward and inspired by the mercurial Dimitar Berbatov they are always in with a shout of scoring at any given moment.

As for Tottenham their stop-start season is slowly starting to find some form of consistency, and after performing well against West Ham and Liverpool, they will be looking to take all three points at Fulham in search of a more comfortable position. Spurs are another side who have an array of quality attacking talent, and with Jermain Defoe up front there is no better man to snatch an opportunity when given, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see him on the scoresheet on Saturday.

However, Spurs have had trouble getting over the line with results this season, so there’s always that given chance that they will not turn up, hopefully we see the confident side of them and see a great game.

This game has goals written all over it in my opinion, and it’s hard to predict who will come out on the better end of it.

Written by @Liam1992LUFC

Match PredictionsLooking at the form guide, Fulham haven’t won in their previous 5 matches while Spurs have won their last 2 against tricky opponents. The main problem for Fulham is injuries, with key players still missing, Tottenham will be confident of their third win on the bounce.

Tottenham to win gives a nice price of 2.5 or the double chance covering the draw as well is a measly 1.38.

Bale had a brilliant game on Wednesday, topped off by one of the funniest own goals I’ve ever seen (YouTube it now if you haven’t already seen it), so we’ll back him to score again against a Fulham side missing Hangeland.


Liverpool v Southampton

Nigel Adkins’ Southampton take to Anfield in Saturday’s three o’clock kick-off.

The mid-week Premier League fixtures saw the Saints draw at home to Norwich, and their recent performances are certainly looking brighter than their rocky start to the season. Despite this, their away form is very poor, picking up only one win from six games, and that is why they find themselves stuck in the relegation zone, just in front of Reading and QPR.

There is one thing that Southampton haven’t lacked in, and that’s goals. They have netted twenty one times so far this term, with forward Rickie Lambert netting six of those and Jason Puncheon contributing on two occasions. It’s their defensive frailties that have often been the difference between three points and nothing, and it’s something that Liverpool will want to exploit.

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers’ philosophy finally looks like it is setting into his player’s, although they’re having a few blips, which can only be expected. They come off the back of a 2-1 mid-week loss to Tottenham, after a lacklustre display.

Luis Suarez, as everyone knows, has been Liverpool’s saviour this season, and he has truly shown his qualities. He has netted an incredible thirteen times in all competitions for the Reds, and with those goals came some scintillating performances, and if Liverpool can find a strike partner for him during the January transfer window, they will shoot up the table, there’s no question about that. Their form at Anfield hasn’t been too bad, although the fact they have only won twice will worry Rodgers. They currently find themselves slumped in twelfth place in the league standings, but a win Saturday could really give them a lift.

It will be a free-flowing attacking game, and with the players on show, there will certainly be goals in this one.

Written by @AMay132

Match PredictionsThis is a game that when you first look down the list of matches you think, Liverpool banker, but then think about it a bit more and start to doubt yourself. Liverpool have won just 3 times this season, and will have to get past a Southampton side, already fighting for their Premier League lives.

The form table also shows Southampton higher than Liverpool having won 2 of their last 3 matches against QPR and Newcastle, so bet against Southampton at your peril! A much more comfortable bet would be Both Teams To Score in this one.

Southampton have managed to tighten their defence up a bit compared to the early games, but with Suarez sniffing around, they are sure to leak goals this weekend. Suarez is our pick to score anytime in this one.


Man City v Everton

Champions Manchester City host Everton this Saturday afternoon in a game that is sure to be enthralling, Moyes’ side have lost their early season momentum after seemingly finding the unfortunate knack of snatching draws from the jaws of victory. Manchester City on the other hand are quietly going about their business and are currently still unbeaten in the league.

With the Christmas period approaching and the amount of games per week beginning to build up the top sides will have the depth of resources to deal with the fixture pile up. Manchester City are perhaps the best equipped side, with neither Tevez nor Dzeko starting in their last league tie against Wigan meaning that they have two fully rested world class strikers should they require them. Everton on the other hand do have more depth than in previous seasons but the reliance on Marouane Fellaini may be a worry for Toffees manager David Moyes and expect his side to be exhausted after having had a much more difficult tie midweek against Arsenal.

Much has been said about Mancini’s penchant for changing formations during games and he has often be criticised for not starting with the best formation or changing to a 3-5-2 at the wrong moments. In the last few weeks however the side have adapted to the new style of play and with Kolarov and Maicon ready made wing backs, the formation is beginning to work for City as it did midweek in their 2-0 victory against Wigan.

Everton will have to be strong in the centre of the field which is no mean feat against the imposing Yaya Toure and will have to use set pieces effectively if they are to get anything out of this game. England left back is a serious doubt for Everton after picking up a knock and will be a big blow for Everton as his set piece delivery is a deadly weapon for the merseysiders.

Written by @JW1987

Match PredictionsManchester City are unbeaten this season and I don’t see that changing this week either, I expect a tight contest with home advantage giving City the upper hand.

A draw is value at around 3/1 and with goalscoring wing back Alexander Kolarov without a goal in a while the longshot is for him to score at 9/2, City to win 1-0 is also 7/1 and worth a punt.

There are no bankers in this weeks game but another goal from Everton’s Naismith would not be unexpected at 4/1.


Reading v Man Utd

As we enter December its normal service resumed at the top of the table, with both Manchester teams fighting over top spot and Sir Alex knows how crucial this part of the season can be.

Man United sit one point ahead of their fierce rivals Man City but as the Christmas and New Year fixture bonanza approaches they cannot afford to take a trip to the Madjeski stadium lightly.

Summer signing Robin Van Persie has been smashing in the goals as usual this season and is currently on nine goals but worryingly Wayne Rooney has just two. After a hard fought midweek win against West Ham Sir Alex will be hoping his team can gain some momentum and hold onto first place. This will be helped with United welcoming back Valencia who missed the West Ham game with a hip injury but they’re still without Vidic, Nani and Kagawa.

The hosts Reading will be looking to perform like they did when they overcame Everton earlier on in November when they ran out 2-1 winners. The Royals currently sit in 19th place with nine points but do have a game in hand against Sunderland still to play.

Brian McDermott has welcomed back goalkeeper Adam Federici to the side who has successfully regained his position in the starting eleven after a shaky start to his season. Despite this Reading are still missing the likes of Gunter, Guthrie and Karacan.

It’s always a big game when you play host to Man United but Brian McDermott will be optimistic that the occasion doesn’t get to his team. United however will arrive expecting to win and will be devastated if they don’t leave with all three points.

Written by @AndyClark19

Match PredictionsAfter a slight blip against Norwich, Man Utd’s title hopes are back on track with back-to-back wins against West Ham and QPR. A rare clean sheet last weekend shows the side are improving and this improvement looks set to continue this weekend.

Reading have played decent counter attacking football this season so far, picking them up a few well earned points, and that is their only realistic chance in this game. We will be backing Man Utd to win outright in this one at around 1.4 at the time of writing.

Van Persie is the obvious choice to score at any time, and shouldn’t be rested for the midweek game in Europe as Man Utd are already through. He’s our bet for this one after scoring last weekend.


Norwich v Sunderland

Norwich host Sunderland this Sunday in the 16:00 kick off at Carrow Road, Norwich will be hoping to continue their excellent form over recent matches. The Canaries are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League games, winning three and drawing four.

The Canaries are on a useful run of form under Chris Hughton. They are on a seven-match unbeaten run, including a 1-1 draw at Southampton in midweek as Robert Snodgrass cancelled out Rickie Lambert’s opener.

Two points and three places separate the sides in the Barclays Premier League table, with 13th-placed City holding the advantage. Norwich’s home form has been good, with three wins from six home games. A further two games have been drawn, with only a single defeat which was a 5-2 drubbing by Liverpool.

Norwich will still be without first choice goalkeeper John Ruddy, who is facing three months out with a thigh injury. His replacement Mark Bunn has performed admirably with a string of quality saves helping the Canaries hold on for a point last time out.

Sunderland notched their first away victory of the season at Fulham in their last game on the road and taken four points from their last three games. The Black Cats have just one win from their past eight matches and have been sucked back into the relegation dogfight, sitting just one point clear of 18th-placed Southampton.

Martin O’Neill’s side have also struggled in front of goal with just 12 goals so far this campaign. Steven Fletcher has six goals to his name so far this season, but the Scottish striker has lacked support with Louis Saha and Frazier Campbell both yet to find the back of the net.

Sunderland have won three of the past four clashes between the two sides and will be hoping for another positive result to steer clear of the bottom three.

Written by @nigelsmalley

Match PredictionsDon’t think this will be a classic encounter by any means, if Norwich can continue their home form, then this fixture could be another welcome 3 points.

Both of these teams aren’t known for their goal scoring prowess, so Under 2.5 goals looks like a banker if there ever was one. Saying that, the fact that both sides really need a win here may spur on the teams.

This isn’t really a fixture to bet on the goal scorer, as there’s a pretty good chance that it will end 0-0. If you were to bet, Sessegnon’s goal against Fulham appears to have done wonders for his confidence so picking him to score is a bit of an outsider this weekend.


Newcastle v Wigan

Newcastle United entertain Wigan Athletic at St. James Park on Monday night, aiming to preserve their record of never having lost at home to the visitors. The fixture has produced 3 draws, with 4 wins being posted by Magpies. The most recent encounter between these two sides at St. James Park was just last season, in October 2011, the Magpies carving out a narrow 1-0 victory in a Premier League match.

Newcastle United have managed to pick up just two wins from their last six home games, losing three. Newcastle have scored 5, and leaked 8 at the other end. Wigan Athletic have an average recent record on the road, winning 2 of the last six, but losing the other 4. Newcastle find themselves struggling down in 14th position in the league having picked up 14 points from their 14 matches. Wigan, like Newcastle with 14 points and one place below the Magpie’s find themselves struggling in 15th position in the league.

Alan Pardew’s men have so far struggled to recapture the form that took them to a fifth-place finish last season. Disappointing losses at home to West Ham and Swansea was followed by arguably their worst result of the season – a 2-0 loss at Southampton. They looked like finally ending their losing run against Stoke on Wednesday night, but conceded twice in the last 10 minutes to slump to their fourth straight defeat.

Papiss Cisse will be looking to continue his goal scoring form from the midweek game against Stoke City, hopefully putting his baron spell behind him. Newcastle’s other star striker Demba Ba has been more productive with eight goals to his name already and will be looking to further add to his tally in this clash.

Wigan have lost three of their past four clashes, but were far from disgraced in Wednesday’s 2-0 loss to defending champions Manchester City. Spanish attacker Jordi Gomez netted a sublime hat-trick in Wigan’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Reading and will pose a threat to Newcastle’s leaky defence. Arouna Kone and Franco Di Santo are also quality forwards with seven goals between them his season. Written by @nigelsmalley

Match PredictionsI don’t think this will be a winter warmer, but can see Newcastle just edging this one. The return to St James’ Park should spur on the players despite injuries to key players.

If you would rather stick to goals, Both Teams To Score also looks a solid bet in this one with the form of the Wigan forwards this season, and the home advantage for Newcastle.

Papiss Cisse finally seems to have found his goalscoring boots and Newcastle definitely need it. The Senegalese strike force won’t be going to the African Cup Of Nations this year but midfielder Cheick Tiote will be leaving. We will back Cisse to add to his tally this weekend.

Newcastle 2-1 Stoke


Acca’s Galore!

Liverpool v Southampton

Reading v Man Utd

Watford v Barnsley

Torquay v Dagenham & Red.

Bolton v Ipswich

Coventry v Morecambe

Crawley v Chelmsford

Luton v Dorchester

Crewe v Burton

Preston v Gillingham

Liverpool

Man Utd

Watford

Torquay

Bolton

Coventry

Crawley

Luton

Crewe

Gillingham

2/5

2/5

8/11

13/10

7/10

4/7

2/5

4/9

4/6

3/1

Betfred Goals Galore Banker Coupon

Fulham v Tottenham

Wycombe v Bristol Rovers

Carlisle v Bournemouth

Bolton v Ipswich

Accrington v Oxford

Peterborough v Blackpool

Liverpool - Win - 2/5

Man Utd - Win - 2/5

Watford - Win - 8/11

Torquay - Win - 13/10

Weekend Long Shot

10-fold pays 279.43/1

6-fold pays 20/1 4-fold pays 6.78/1

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