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Carling Cup Review and Wednesday Betting Preview

September 22, 2010 By

Arsenal thrashed Spurs 4-1 in Extra-Time last night in the Carling Cup. Samir Nasri scored two penalties in extra-time to help Arsenal to a 4-1 victory over north London rivals Tottenham in the third round of the Carling Cup.

ARSENAL are now 6/1 fourth favourites for the Carling Cup with William Hill after knocking out Spurs. Hills make Chelsea 4/1 favourites and also offer 5/1 Man U; 11/2 Man C; 8 Liverpool; 14 Villa; 16 Birmingham; 20 West Ham ;Wolves. Brentford are 100/1.



Everton crashed out in London, beaten 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out by League One strugglers Brentford after a 1-1 draw over 90 minutes. Jermaine Beckford and Phil Jagielka failed from 12 yards for David Moyes’ men. It could be a tricky period for Moyes if Everton don’t improve soon.

Bolton boss Owen Coyle endured a miserable evening on his return to former club Burnley, Wade Elliott scoring the only goal for the home side. Bolton out. Coyle was predictably abused all night by the Turf Moor faithful, who saw Elliott’s 45th-minute volley pushed out by goalkeeper Adam Bogdan only for referee Mark Clattenburg to award the goal on the advice of his linesman.

Birmingham enjoyed a comfortable passage into the next round after scoring three goals in four first-half minutes to beat MK Dons 3-1 at St Andrews. Alexander Hleb, Nikola Zigic and Craig Gardner put the result beyond doubt by the 28th minute, with Dons substitute Aaron Wilbraham deservedly bagging a late consolation for the League One side.

Tamas Priskin and Gareth McAuley gave Ipswich a 2-1 victory over Millwall at the New Den. Priskin struck his third goal of the season in the 23rd minute and defender McAuley doubled the lead before the break. Steve Morison pulled one back in the second half but Ipswich held off a late onslaught to reach the fourth round for the first time in eight years.

Championship outfit Swansea also joined the last-16 line-up as a hat-trick from former Chelsea winger Scott Sinclair accounted for League One pacesetters Peterborough at London Road. Craig Mackail-Smith scored Peterborough’s goal in their 3-1 home defeat. First-half goals from Michael Morrison and Lloyd Dyer saw Leicester advance at the expense of 10-man Portsmouth. A late Liam Lawrence goal set up a tense finale at Fratton Park following Richard Hughes’ straight red card, but Leicester held on.

Headers from Danny Higginbotham and Kenwyne Jones secured Stoke’s 2-0 victory over Fulham at the Britannia Stadium. Higginbotham gave the Potters the lead in the 23rd minute, arriving at the far post to convert Matthew Etherington’s corner and Jones wrapped up the win with his third goal in three games 11 minutes from time.

Nigeria international Victor Obinna gave West Ham their first victory over Premier League opposition this season with a 2-1 win at Sunderland. The 23-year-old struck 14 minutes after the break after Sunderland’s record signing Asamoah Gyan had earlier cancelled out Frederic Piquionne’s opener for the visitors.

Wolves were given a scare by Notts County but came through 4-2 after extra-time at Molineux. Former West Brom striker Lee Hughes put Notts County ahead in the 57th minute, but a penalty from Nenad Milijas seven minutes from the end of regulation time forced the extra 30 minutes – after County defender Liam Chilvers had been sent off for hauling back Christophe Berra. Substitute Steven Fletcher put Wolves ahead for the first time two minutes into the added period, and Kevin Doyle gave them breathing space by making it 3-1. Kevin Smith replied for County but Doyle scored again with a minute remaining to remove any doubt.

Wednesdays Carling Cup Betting…..

Highest scoring game –

ODDS
Chelsea v Newcastle5/2
Scunthorpe v Man Utd11/4
Wigan v Preston4/1
West Brom v Man City5/1
Liverpool v Northampton7/1
Aston Villa v Blackburn8/1

Red Cards –

ODDS
None11/8
One13/10
Two or more11/4

Total penalties –
ODDS
None7/4
One13/8
Two or more13/8

All 90 minutes only.



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Spurs Beat Young Boys To Face the Big Boys

August 26, 2010 By

Tottenham hit the Champions League jackpot as they finally put Young Boys in their place to reach the group stage for the first time in their history.

Spurs were on the brink of utter humiliation in Bern eight days ago, 3-0 down and all at sea on their opponents’ plastic pitch.

Having somehow scrambled two away goals and back on the green, green grass of home, Harry Redknapp’s men demonstrated the true gulf in class that exists between fourth place in the Premier League and second in the Swiss Super League.

But Spurs’ claim to what will be a £20million-plus cash bonanza was not achieved without controversy on a night of torrential rain at an electric White Hart Lane.

Jermain Defoe, set to undergo a groin operation, controlled the ball with his arm to score the second goal that all but killed the contest.

But Tottenham fans will rightly point out their side were already ahead in the tie on away goals thanks to Peter Crouch, who went on to complete a hat-trick, while it could have been much, much worse for the hapless visitors, who had Senad Lulic sent off.

Young Boys were simply unable to cope with Crouch, who scored two unmarked headers and a penalty to edge the man-of-the-match honours ahead of Gareth Bale, whose four assists surely make him man of the season so far.

Harry Redknapp had ordered his side to hit Young Boys just as hard and fast as Spurs had been in Bern and they duly obliged.

After conceding inside four minutes last week, they were in front within five here.

And it was not only the weather which was atrocious as the visitors failed to deal with Bale’s corner, giving the in-form Welshman another chance to deliver a cross for the unmarked Crouch to nod home.

Spurs pushed for a second, Aaron Lennon giving Christoph Spycher a particular headache.

But, unlike last week, the floodgates failed to open, Benoit Assou-Ekotto’s piledriver blocked painfully by Ammar Jemal and Tom Huddlestone miscuing a Crouch cross.

All that changed just past the half hour mark thanks to Defoe’s sleight of hand, the striker’s arm controlling Bale’s ball before his left foot whipped it into the net.

The six pairs of officials’ eyes on him somehow failed to spot the offence, with Young Boys defender Jemal’s furious protests waved away.

Defoe, who is set to go under the knife next week, almost killed the tie legitimately moments later, screwing wide after being released by Lennon.

Lulic earned a needless yellow card as Young Boys’ discipline understandably began to waver.

But they soon channelled their frustration to positive effect, Henri Bienvenu completely miscuing a great headed chance to pull a goal back.

Heurelho Gomes had needed lengthy treatment on a leg injury early in the game and he failed to re-emerge after half-time, Carlo Cudicini making his first appearance since a serious motorcycle accident in November.

The downpour had become a deluge but Tottenham continued to cope the better.

The outstanding Bale almost curled a free-kick straight in from wide on the right.

Wilson Palacios was booked after an aerial clash and Bienvenu almost capitalised on a slip from Michael Dawson.

After that, it was all Spurs, Spycher making a vital clearance with Defoe poised to pounce and King and Crouch both seeing efforts blocked after a corner.

But Crouch made it 3-0 on the hour mark, again rising unchallenged to head in Bale’s corner.

The inevitable substitutions followed, including Defoe for Roman Pavyluchenko, who was immediately booked for a poor challenge.

Bale came agonisingly close to the goal his performance deserved before being cut down in the area by Lulic, who saw yellow for a second time.

Up stepped Crouch to complete his hat-trick from the spot and – after Bale was replaced by Niko Kranjcar to a standing ovation – the striker was denied his fourth by a brilliant save from Marco Wolfli.

Teams:

Tottenham Gomes (Cudicini 46), Bale (Kranjcar 82), Huddlestone, Lennon, Palacios, Crouch, Defoe (Pavlyuchenko 62),Dawson, Corluka, King, Assou-Ekotto.

Subs Not Used: Kaboul, Jenas, Keane, Giovani.

Booked: Palacios, Pavlyuchenko.

Goals: Crouch 5, Defoe 32, Crouch 61, 78 pen.

Young Boys Wolfli, Sutter (Regazzoni 62),Costanzo (Marco Schneuwly 61), Tape Doubai (Christian Schneuwly 82), Bienvenu, Spycher, Lulic, Affolter, Degen, Hochstrasser, Jemal.

Subs Not Used: Burki, De Pierro, Raimondi, Mayuka.

Sent Off: Lulic (77).

Booked: Lulic, Degen.

Agg (6-3)

Att: 34,709

Ref: Laurent Duhamel (France).

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Spurs v Manchester City Preview

August 13, 2010 By

The new Premier League season kicks off at White Hart Lane on Saturday afternoon as Champions League debutants Spurs take on a Man City side whose minimum requirement this term must be a top four finish.

Free Football Betting Tips

Manchester City title contenders?

At the time of writing, Harry Redknapp has so far defied his ‘wheeler-dealer’ reputation with no significant signings coming into the club over the close season, and it remains to be seen whether he strengthens his squad in time for this one.

A fairly indifferent set of pre-season results could tempt ‘Arry into splashing out, with Craig Bellamy and Scott Parker two of the players strongly linked with the north London club. A 1-4 hammering by Villareal at the Lane a couple of weeks go will certainly have had Tottenham fans perusing the gossip columns with a certain desperation.

Nevertheless, there should be a fine atmosphere at one of the few remaining top-flight grounds capable of providing such a thing, and with a settled side playing at home after a superb campaign last time out, it’s easy to make a case for backing Spurs at 11/8 here.

By contrast, City have again spent wildly this summer with David Silva, Yaya Toure, Aleksandar Kolarov and Jerome Boateng costing £79m between them, and while they should certainly be up there come May, they’re bound to take time to get it right and don’t appeal at 15/8 to win this one. For those who really want to get with Mancini’s boys here, the 11/10 available for them on the Draw No Bet market looks like the way to go.

Much like Spurs, it’s not been a great summer for City results-wise, and heavy defeats at Sporting, Inter Milan and Dortmund suggest that Mancini and his staff still have plenty of work to do on a defence that conceded more than any other top 7 side last term.

They do of course have a frightening amount of firepower at the other end, with last season’s leading scorer Carlos Tevez a 6/1 chance for the first goal and 13/8 to hit the net at any time, while Emmanuel Adebayor is exactly the same price on both markets.

James Milner’s move may not have officially gone through yet, but the Blue Square traders have wasted no time in pricing him up for this one – he’s 10/1 for the first goal on his debut and a 3/1 shot to score at any time.

For Spurs, it’s the prolific Jermain Defoe who heads the first goalscorer market at 5/1, while the 11/8 about him to score at any time looks very good after his 24 goals last term. Roman Pavlyuchenko is another player who could be worth backing after a fine second half to last season saw him revive his Spurs career – the Russian is 13/8 to find the net in this one.

This game should certainly provide goals given the amount of attacking talent on the pitch, allied with the fact that neither defence is exactly water-tight. Over 2.5 goals looks like a superb punt at 10/11, while Goal Crazy – both teams to score – also looks like a very good thing at 3/4.

For a Correct Score bet, the 25/1 about Tottenham to win 3-1 looks very attractive, while 2-1 also appeals at 9/1, For those who are looking for the big win to start the season in style, Tevez to score first and Spurs to win 3-1 pays an almighty 250/1 and might just be worth a quid or two.

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Sundays Football Betting, 6 December

December 5, 2009 By

Sunday Football Fixtures
There are two fixtures on Sunday in the Premier League with Fulham hosting Sunderland in London and Spurs visit Goodison Park to take on Everton. Here are Sundays odds;

Sundays Bets

  • Fulham (6/5) Draw (12/5) Sunderland (13/5)
  • Everton (2) Draw (12/5) Tottenham (6/4)

My view is to ignore the Fulham game, it looks tricky and could easily go either way. In my view Tottenham are the best bet of the weekend at 6/4 away to Everton. It was contrasting fortunes mid-week for both teams but in the League Spurs look very strong, certainly much better than Everton who have struggled. You can check out the latest results using the Betfair widget below, certainly Spurs are in form.

Everton have lost their last three league games and are looking like a team facing a regulation battle rather than challenging for a European place as has been the norm under David Moyes. Spurs are socring for fun and even ignoring (if you can) the 9-1 defeat of Wigan they are finding the net with regularity and in my view at 6/4 are a great bet to win.  Get on!

The Betfair front room…

Compare odds, the latest results and get a free bet with Betfair…

A further preview…

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Weekend Premier League Football Betting Preview

November 26, 2009 By
By Barry Robson

By Barry Robson

Fresh from a well deserved break in Spain Barry Robson is back in Blighty to cast his eye over the weekend’s football fixture list. Get the best advice from Pro Punter Barry Robson. It promises to be another thriller, but will we see another ten goal thriller?

Everton v Liverpool

Everton boss David Moyes has rejected rumours he is considering quitting the club. The Toffees have endured a disappointing season to date and Wednesday’s defeat to Hull leaves Moyes’ men just four points above the drop zone. The Toffees now face under pressure Liverpool.

Moyes admits his side could be dragged into a relegation battle if they do not improve their form quickly. When asked in the post-match press conference if he was aware of a rumour on Merseyside that he was preparing to stand down, the Scot turned the question back on his inquisitor.

“Do you live on Merseyside?” he asked back. When asked if he was prepared to comment on the rumour, he flatly said: “No.” Another question concerned the club’s position in the table, 14th, four points above the bottom three. Moyes was asked if he was worried Everton could become embroiled in a survival battle, and he replied: “Could be, yes.”

Fabio Aurelio insists Liverpool‘s players and not manager Rafa Benitez are to blame for their early UEFA Champions League exit. Liverpool crashed out of Europe’s premier competition on Tuesday after Fiorentina beat Lyon to ensure their progress alongside the French club into the knockout stages.

Benitez has come under increasing pressure following LIverpool‘s Champions League elimination, but Aurelio feels the Anfield players should shoulder the blame and not the manager. Aurelio has called on the squad to bounce back this weekend in the Merseyside derby against Everton as they look to get their Premier League campaign back on track.

Gerrard Liverpool Captain

Gerrard Liverpool Captain

“The players still have confidence and we know that it is only us who can change our situation by working hard to improve,” said Aurelio We know we can do better, certainly than we are doing at the moment. The team are now intent on winning at Everton on Sunday and starting to get more points right to the end of the season. Then we will see what position we are in, and what we are able to fight for. It is a big game next against Everton and a big opportunity to improve and regain the strength we need for a long season ahead.”

Result: Score Draw  First Scorer: David N’Gog

Villa v Spurs

Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill will not be rushing James Collins back into his first-team plans. The 26-year-old centre-half missed the 1-1 draw at Burnley on Saturday after picking up a groin injury. The Wales international has made positive strides in his recovery since then, and could come into contention for the visit of Tottenham this weekend. O’Neill, though, will not risk his £5million summer signing from West Ham if he feels he is not 100 per cent fit.

Villa host free scoring Spurs at Villa Park

Villa host free scoring Spurs at Villa Park

“James was really unfortunate to miss Burnley,” said the Villa manager. He trained all of the week and it was only in the last few moments of training on the Friday that he started to feel something again. I will have a look at it. At this minute, I would think he would be a doubt (for Spurs). The last thing you want to do is bring someone back too quickly and then find he’s out for a much longer period.”

Meanwhile Tottenham defender Benoit Assou-Ekotto has praised manager Harry Redknapp for bringing the best out of him. The 25-year-old left-back has played in 13 of Spurs’ Premier League games so far this season and has made himself a regular in the Cameroon national team that has qualified for next year’s World Cup. Assou-Ekotto moved to White Hart Lane from Lens three years ago, but fell out of favour under previous managers Martin Jol and Juande Ramos. He has been a part of the Tottenham team that has made an excellent start to the campaign this term, playing in the 9-1 demolition of Wigan at the weekend, and praised Redknapp for keeping faith with him.


“There are a lot of factors involved, I had a long injury and then only played six months before that,” he said. “It’s about adapting to the game and now I’m more confident. Harry obviously believes in me, the other managers maybe didn’t believe in me as much.

Watch Tottenham score 9 (with dutch commentry)

Result: Score Draw  First Scorer: Robbie Keane

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Premier League Betting Preview

October 30, 2009 By

By Barry Robson

By Barry Robson

Barry Robson casts his punting eye over this weekend’s fixtures in the Premier League and advises where you should put your money. There are some great games and remember you can catch all the goals online and free at Footyfix.co.uk

Arsenal v Tottenham

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp insists David Bentley is not the trouble-maker he is perceived to be and is backing him to come good this weekend. The former Blackburn winger is set to win a run in Spurs’ line-up with Aaron Lennon facing a spell on the sidelines with an ankle injury.

Bentley has failed to live up to expectations following his move to White Hart Lane, scoring just once in the Premier League in his debut season. Redknapp knows a lot of questions have been asked of Bentley, although he believes the 25-year-old will rise to the challenge against Arsenal.

The talented winger impressed against Everton in the Carling Cup in midweek and Redknapp hopes the ex-Gunners man will shine at The Emirates. Cesc Fabregas does not believe Arsenal have to change their approach to end their long wait for silverware. The Gunners continue to earn rave reviews for their attractive, free-flowing style but they have not won a major trophy since 2005. There have been suggestions that Arsenal need to learn to play differently after finishing a distant fourth in the Premier League last season. However, Arsene Wenger’s men pride themselves on the way they play and Fabregas is confident it will eventually pay dividends.

Watch Arsenal beat Liverpool, midweek.

“I know we are capable of winning trophies, I can never accept that we must change our style to win,” the Spanish midfielder told ShortList. Trophies are important, but so too is the style in which you play the game.

Result; Home Win  First Scorer:  Arahavin  Man To Watch: Cesc Fabregas (again)

Best Odds: Arsenal 8/15 Betfair

Arsenal look red hot and should bag plenty of goals

Arsenal look red hot and should bag plenty of goals

Everton v Villa

Everton manager David Moyes refused to speak to the media following their defeat at Tottenham. Spurs moved into the last eight of the Carling Cup on Tuesday with a 2-0 win over the Toffees at White Hart Lane.

The Toffees, though, refused to speak to the media in protest at having to play on Tuesday. Having featured in the Europa League against Benfica on Thursday, that meant their Premier League clash with Bolton was moved to Sunday.

They had hoped their Carling Cup clash with Spurs would be played on Wednesday instead, but Tottenham cannot play at home on the same night as Arsenal – who were already scheduled to meet Liverpool. As such Everton were forced to play on Tuesday and Moyes was furious – so much so that nobody from the club was allowed to speak to the media Meanwhile Stiliyan Petrov believes team-mate Nigel Reo-Coker can still play a key role in Aston Villa’s season. The midfielder was recently cast aside after a training ground bust-up with manager Martin O’Neill which appeared to spell the end of his time at Villa Park.

However, more than a month after he last played for the first team, Reo-Coker came off the bench in the 1-1 home draw with Manchester City. The former West Ham captain made his first start since the fall-out against Sunderland in the Carling Cup on Tuesday and Petrov believes he demonstrated why he still has a future at the club.

“Nigel is a very important player for us,” he said. He has shown down the years he is a fighter, he is a character and what happened is (gone). We don’t even pay attention to this anymore. Nigel is back, he performed very well against Sunderland, was very strong and he showed the manager how important he is to us. Everyone started the season well including Nigel and it is great to see Nigel back.”

Result: Score Draw  First Scorer:  Saha  Man To Watch:  Petrov

Best Odds: Draw, 12/5 Betfair.

Chelsea should beat Bolton again

Chelsea should beat Bolton again

Bolton Wanderers v Chelsea

Gary Megson hopes Bolton Wanderers have learnt lessons from the first encounter with Chelsea for when the Blues visit the Reebok Stadium on Saturday. Bolton left Megson deeply disappointed after their tame showing in the 4-0 defeat by Chelsea in the Carling Cup on Wednesday at Stamford Bridge. Below are the highlights of that match. Chelsea were amazing;

Watch Chelsea v Bolton Wanderers at footyfix.co.uk  |  View More Free Videos

The Trotters boss is looking for a response when Carlo Ancelotti’s men travel north, this time in the Premier League, at the weekend. If the task was not daunting enough Megson is aware that the Chelsea side his team faced in midweek is likely to get considerably stronger as captain John Terry, Frank Lampard and Nicolas Anelka  look to be recalled.

“If we don’t approach it in the right manner, the same thing will happen again,” Megson said. We have got to find a way to upset Chelsea, and I don’t mean physically. We have got to play at a tempo that suits us because last night, Chelsea dictated the tempo – they dictated absolutely everything, from minute one to 90. We have to give ourselves a better chance. Hopefully it’s a better performance – hopefully we start in a manner which might cause the opposition a few more problems.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti is pleased with his side’s form following their comfortable Carling Cup success over Bolton. The Blues secured an emphatic 4-0 win at Stamford Bridge thanks to goals from Salomon Kalou, Florent Malouda, Deco and Didier Drogba. The victory follows impressive displays against Atletico Madrid and Blackburn Rovers and Ancelotti  hopes his troops can maintain their form. The former AC Milan boss hoped Chelsea would be playing good football before his arrival and believes his dream is coming true.

“We played well over the 90 minutes. We had good control of the game and we played with quality,” he told Sky Sports. We’re happy because it’s a good time for us. We want to maintain this form in the coming games. It’s a good moment. My dream at the start of the season was to field a team that plays good football and gives enjoyment to the fans.”

Chelsea made wholesale changes from their weekend win over Blackburn and Ancelotti was pleased with his replacements. The likes of Paulo Ferreira, Alex and Daniel Sturridge were all drafted in and the Italian felt they contributed. Ancelotti refused to be critical of Sturridge’s inability to score on his full debut, stating he was happy with his work rate.

“The players who returned after injury came back very well. Joe Cole came back in the last match and did very well,” he continued.

Result: Away Win  First Scorer:  Drogba  Man To Watch:  Frank Lampard

Best Odds: Chelsea 5/11, Betfair

Phil Brown under pressure it seems

Phil Brown under pressure it seems

Burnley v Hull

Diego Penny is ready to fill the void for Burnley against Hull City this weekend if Brian Jensen is forced to miss out with injury. The Clarets’ number one was forced out of their home defeat to Wigan after suffering ankle ligament damage and is a doubt for the visit of The Tigers.

Penny joined Burnley in the hope of regular first-team football, but it has proved a frustrating spell in England for the 25-year-old shot-stopper.The former Coronel Bolognesi keeper would rather his team-mate not be injured in order for him to win a chance, however, he will still be giving his all if he gets the nod. Defiant Hull City manager Phil Brown believes he still has the ‘one million per cent’ support of his players following the departure of chairman Paul Duffen.

Duffen quit as Tigers chief earlier on Thursday, less than 24 hours after the club were forced to issue a statement denying Brown had been sacked. The departing chairman claimed the club’s on-field problems were the reason for his exit, with Hull only narrowly avoiding relegation last term and struggling in the bottom three this season. But Brown, who alongside Duffen helped guide the club into the top flight for the first time in their history, believes off-field matters were the main contributing factor.

Concerns have been raised over the club’s financial stability and there are further reports that owner Russell Bartlett is planning to bring in former chairman Adam Pearson who quit his post at Derby on Wednesday, to replace Duffen.

Result:  Home Win  First Scorer:  Robbie Blake  Man To Watch:  Chris Eagles

Best odds: Burnley, evens Betfair

Get the best odds, recent form and a £25 free bet from Betfair;

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