Weekend Outlook (14 Mar 2009)

Manchester United vs Liverpool

"...I say take ManUtd, give the 0.5-ball handicap and watch the Scouscers weep when the final whistle is blown...."

- JayWalk, 14 Mar 2009

And then there were 8. I see only Inter Milan and Barcelona being the credible ones to challenge us for the ECL title and with Inter Milan out of the way, we only have Barcelona to take care of before we lift that trophy again.

It doesn't matter when we meet Barcelona, if at all. It could be next round in the Quarter-Finals or further down in the Semi-Finals or Finals, as long as we eliminate them, we win.

Everyone else is irrelevant.

Despite the 2-0 victory over Inter-Milan, it wasn't an impressive win. We didn't win because we played better. we won because they played worse.

If we are to beat Liverpool today, we have to buck up and play better than we played during mid-week.

With no game in the following mid-week, the squad will have a good week's rest before taking on Fulham again. Given that we trashed the Cottagers earlier in the FA Cup 4-0, 3 points is definitely in the bag as our challengers spiral further down into the abyss of despair as we inch nearer to the title.

JayWalk The Talk: Neville, Brown, Hargreaves and Rafael are out, which brings me to wonder why we bought Hargreaves. It seems that he is warming the sickbay more than he is warming the bench. Let's not even talk about getting unto the grass.

Van dar Sar should still be in between the sticks with the dynamic duo of Vidic and Ferdinand holding the centre with Evra and O'Shea securing the flanks. Further up in mid-field, we have Ronaldo and Giggs taking the wings with Carrick as the playmaker. Rooney and Berbartov will take the front and given then we lost Liverpool earlier in the season playing 4-3-3, I think Fergie will play 4-4-2 this time round which means an extra slot in mid-field. Scholes perhaps?

On the Liverpool side, Torres and Gerrard are sure to feature although both are having a slight nagging problem here and there during mid-week.

JayWalk The Walk: We lost to Liverpool at Anfield only because they caught us at a time when we were short-handed due to injuries.

Not so lucky for them this time as Fergie will have a wide selection of players this time.

Bookies are making ManUtd give 0.5-ball at 1.95 decimal odds to beat it. Punters are favouring ManUtd slightly with 55% of the wager pot on ManUtd to beat the 0.5-ball.

The pressure today is on Liverpool as even a draw means elimination from the title challenge and we all know how Liverpool suck at handling pressure.

I think Liverpool will play all defensive again and just sit there waiting for that one chance to sneak that counter-attack. Fergie will be too smart for that as we should be dictating the game right from the start.

In case anyone hasn't notice, Liverpool suck big time the weekend after a European game.

I say take ManUtd, give the 0.5-ball handicap and watch the Scouscers weep when the final whistle is blown.


Disclaimer: The above views are purely my own two-cents' worth. In other words, I cannot and will not guarantee that my predictions are accurate. If you want to bet on the game, do so at your own risk. Also, please bet responsibly and within your means regardless of how "sure thing" that game may appear to be. As the old saying goes, "The Ball Is Round". Good luck.