Weekend Outlook (13 Nov 2010)

   Aston Villa vs Manchester United  


If I were Fergie, I can't wait for Hargreaves' contract to be over and done with and save a shitload of medical expenses that look doomed to yield zero return. I have right the start, objected to Hargreaves who entered the Theatre Of Dreams on crutches. He has had a very long injury spell at Bayern Munich and it is baffling how that does not ring the alarm bells prospecting him? Regardless of how talented he is, as long as he is injured (and a long-termed one if I may add), he is no bladdy use.

ManUtd just got out of the Manchester derby with a boring and lousy 0-0 draw. Both sides played as if they weren't interested to get out of bed that morning.

This is the problem with ManUtd who have not be able to string consistency. Sure we are the only unbeaten team left in the Premier League but a draw is only good against other club's loss. 2 draws can't even beat 1 win which means the other club can even afford to lose a game and still have more points. It's like a hand of 2 pairs trying to beat 3-of-a-kind i.e. your 4 cards can't beat my 3.

Part of the reason is perhaps the extended list of injuries and luckily for this particular game, Aston Villa isn't doing any better. The reports from all the other websites are saying that Houllier may have to do without 8 or even 9 of his first time players. Sounds like ManUtd playing their B-team in the early rounds of the Carling Cup.

Asian handicap suggests ManUtd to give 0.75 ball to Aston Villa with a decimal odds of 1.975 to beat it. 76% of the wagers are on ManUtd to do so.

Looking at current form, Aston Villa is unbeaten at home while ManUtd, too unbeaten away, have a worrisome record of 5 draws from the last 6 away games.

Some say that Houllier, other than Wenger, has a knack at cracking ManUtd but that was with Liverpool. This is a significantly weaker Aston Villa we are talking about today.

With Aston Villa fielding a reluctant B-team and ManUtd have no mid-week game in the horizon to worry about, I say it will be a victory for ManUtd as they head toward shaking off the Away-Game jinx.

JayWalk's 2010/2011 Track Record to-date (13 Nov 2010) :  P56-W28-L28

- Voxeros

Fixture Focus - Spurs (13 Nov 2010)

Tottenham Hotspur vs Blackburn Rovers

One word describes all of our games since our emphatic win against Inter at White Hart Lane - horrendous.

Fortunately for us, our position more or less stayed the same after the midweek game, with Liverpool, Manchester City and even West Bromwich Albion earning draws as well.

Still, we and 5 other teams are on same points going into this weekend, and any slip-up by us, we will tumble down to mid-table, definitely.

Spurs will be playing at home again, hosting on-form Blackburn Rovers who had won their past 2 games. Likely starters will be (heaven forbid) Gallas and Kaboul helming the defence (?!) with Assou-Ekotto and Hutton; our reliable midfielders Van der Vaart, Bale, Kranjcar and Huddlestone; and at the front, Crouch (as usual). We might see an appearance by our dear Defoe, who may be fit for the bench this weekend.

Blackburn will be entering the game high from their victories, though they have injury problems of their own (but not as serious as us). Benjani is out, and the highlight will be how Salgado will stop Bale in his tracks.

A must win. In fact, we have go on to win our next 2 league games against Arsenal and Liverpool, and Werder Bremen in between, in order for us to go marching on in style (and contention to retain our top 4 credentials).

COYS!!!!

EPL Prediction League Match Weekend 13-14 November 2010

EPL23: SAT 13/11 Wolves v Bolton at 10.55pm SIN/HKT

EPL24: SUN 14/11 Everton v Arsenal at 9.55pm SIN/HKT

GAME ON!
Scoring System
3-Points for a correct outcome (Win, Lose or Draw)
1-point each for correct score on each side.

Double Entry
Later submission shall override earlier submission.

Penalty
Submissions after kick-off will not be admissible. (Disqualification)

Blog Blackout
This Prediction League will be played here but if in the event this blog goes down, we will automatically carry on the league over to the personal blog of Voxeros at http://www.JayWalkOnline.com. Please bookmark this or at the very least stay in touch with one of us as we will also be helping all stay in the loop via the various channels like MSN, Skype, email as well as SPUG Off-Topic Chat.

Midweek Review - 10 Nov 2010

Manchester City vs Manchester United

"Tonight's derby will be intensified due to Wayne Rooney saga."

-Gary, 10 Nov 2010

Er, an odd name stand out when the first eleven teamsheet was broadcasted on television and Internet. Owen Hargreaves. The last match that he played was in Sep 2008.

Surprise? Check. Unsure? Check. Apprehensive? Check. Raised eyebrows? Check.

For a player that is in the treatment room longer than on the playing field, and to rush back in the first team out of the blue, it was a rush act from Fergie. And when he lasted 5 minutes, Fergie say Hargreaves was too excited. Lame excuse.

Not an easy 3 points on board but we have to thank Liverpool for cutting the lead to 2 points. However if you look at the standings carefully, from 6th to 16th the difference is only 3 points. That is how tight between a place in Europe and relegation battles.

Tonight's derby will be intensified due to Wayne Rooney saga. But im afraid the match could be overhyped by the media and ending up in a whimper.

Man City Team News: Adam Johnson is the only absentee.

Man Utd Team News: Anderson, Wayne Rooney, Michael Owen, Owen Hargreaves, Antonio Valencia and Ryan Giggs are out

Odds and Analysis: Level ball handicap. Avoid this match as I dont want to see people suffering from heart attack in this derby.

Disclaimer: This review is entirely on my own views and opinion. I didn’t point a gun at you to ask you to follow. If you want to bet on this game, do so at your own risk. Pls bet within limits. Good luck.

Fixture Focus–Spurs (EPL, 10 Nov 2010)

Tottenham Hotspur vs Sunderland        

We got another tricky tie this midweek and it is anyone’s guess if we can repeat the euphoria the last time we played at the Lane against Inter Milan.

Sunderland has either lost or drawn their last 3 away matches and with Darren Bent doubtful due to injury, all eyes will be on Asamoah Gyan as he showed his scoring prowess over the weekend against Stoke. 

As for Spurs, we are still without many of our starters and midfield maestro Rafael van der Vaart remains doubtful.  How much will the defeat at the Reebok over the weekend linger in the minds of the players remains to be seen.  For some reason, I feel Spurs seem to come out of the blocks running in big games only.  Let it be known that finishing well in the Premier League is of paramount importance and we need to pick up points quickly before the Top 4 positions become cemented for the season.  So I am hoping that Harry and his coaches tinker with the line up and get the boys riled up before the start of this tie.

COYS!!!

Results - Game 06 - 07 Nov 2010 EPL Prediction League 2010/2011

I haven't been scoring points for so long that I probably won't recognise them when I see some points. T_T

Mr White is still hanging on to the lead for dear life with his lead now cut to just 2 points. Perhaps we see a change in leadership if Mr White continues to stay in the funk with me, as I too am slowly sliding out of the Top 10 real soon.

On a brighter note, we have a handful of Marksmen this week, all from the Fulham-Aston Villa game. Congrats to ihawk98, KingMeng, Everton and redherring!

Cheers.

Housekeeping Notes:

All of this season's tables will be kept in Flickr's photoset. Click Here.






EPL Prediction League "Perfect Score" Hall Of Fame
Perfect Score = 2 correct-score predictions in a single weekend and hence the award of the full 10 points.

1) 8plus1 (28 - 29 Aug 2010)
2) KingMeng (02 - 03 Oct 2010)
3) ihawk98 (02 - 03 Oct 2010)
4) ollopA (16 - 17 Oct 2010)

Marksmen Board (Number of Exact Predictions)
5 Games - KingMeng
4 Games - Mr. White, ihawk98
3 Games - 8plus1, ollopA
2 Games - Voxeros, ianrus, Bedokian, Everton
1 Game - cool402, edwinsng, weimeng, redherring


Scoring System
3-Points for a correct outcome (Win, Lose or Draw)
1-point each for correct score on each side.

Double Entry
Later submission shall override earlier submission.

Penalty
No points for submission after kick-off. (Disqualification)

Blogspot Blackout
The EPL Prediction League will be played here but if in the event Blogger/Blogspot servers go down, we will automatically carry on the league over to my personal blog at http://www.jaywalkonline.com. Please bookmark this or at the very least stay in touch with one of us as we will also be helping all stay in the loop via the various channels like MSN, Skype, email as well as SPUG Off-Topic Chat.

Prediction League Past Winners

Copa America 2004 - WeiMeng
EPL 2004/2005 - Friday13
EPL 2005/2006 - ianrush
World Cup 2006 - EdwinSng
EPL 2006/2007 - Voxeros
EPL 2007/2008 - Cool402
Euro 2008 - Voxeros
EPL 2008/2009 - Everton
EPL 2009/2010 - ihawk98
World Cup 2010 - Raynaldo

As usual:

1) If you have spotted a mistake, please let me know where and what so that I can amend them accordingly.

2) Please check your scores for accuracy as soon as possible before I update the table during the next round of scores. Once the table has been updated, the old table will be overwritten.

3) In case you are still seeing the old table even if I have announced a new update, please refresh your browser to reload the table.

Weekend Review - 6 Nov 2010

Manchester United vs Wolves

"With the qualification all but secure, Fergie could concentrate all on the Premier League where he has to try to cut the lead on Chelsea."

-Gary, 6 Nov 2010

We are just 1 point to qualify for the knockout rounds, but at an expense where Nani and Fletcher are injured in the match.

With the qualification all but secure, Fergie could concentrate all on the Premier League where he has to try to cut the lead on Chelsea. And we will see Man Utd to be thereabouts when the festival season year-end starts.

Now is the time for those fringe players like Bebe and Obertan to carry the mantle.

Next game against Wolves and it look like we have 3 free points even before the match is done.

But with a week of rest for Wolves after winning against Man City, I dont think the 3 points will be that easy to get.

Man Utd Team News: Get ready for this! Anderson, Darren Fletcher, Nani, Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, Owen Hargreaves and Antonio Valencia are out.

Wolves Team News: Surprisingly, a full team to choose from.

Odds and Analysis: Man Utd is giving 1.75 handicap. I dont think Man Utd will clear the handicap but will win the match.

Disclaimer: This review is entirely on my own views and opinion. I didn’t point a gun at you to ask you to follow. If you want to bet on this game, do so at your own risk. Pls bet within limits. Good luck.

Fixture Focus - Spurs (6 Nov 2010)

Bolton Wanderers FC vs Tottenham Hotspur

For the past few days, our gifted left winger, Gareth Bale, has dominated the sports headlines all over the world with his stunning performance against Inter Milan during the midweek Champions League game.

And, with great power, comes great responsibility, at least on the part of our next opponent Bolton, to stop him.

Spurs will be travelling up to Manchester again, but this time to the Reebok Stadium, where just last week saw Liverpool battling till near the end of the game to secure a victory against the Trotters. In this early kick-off, most of the players who had played against Inter Milan will be starting, with the exception of Cudicini (likely replaced by Gomes) and Van der Vaart (still pending fitness).

Coyle's boys would be fielding the same XI against us as they had against Liverpool, with an addition of the return of Petrov back on the bench.

Traditionally, Spurs had never lost at the Reebok Stadium, but with exhaustion setting in, and coupled with the fact that this is Bolton's second home game in a row, we may see our boys finding victory a wee bit difficult.

But still, COYS!!!!!

EPL Prediction League Match Weekend 6-7 November 2010

EPL21: SAT 6/11 Fulham v Aston Villa at 10.55pm SIN/HKT

EPL22: SUN 7/11 Liverpool v Chelsea at 10.55pm SIN/HKT

GAME ON!
Scoring System
3-Points for a correct outcome (Win, Lose or Draw)
1-point each for correct score on each side.

Double Entry
Later submission shall override earlier submission.

Penalty
Submissions after kick-off will not be admissible. (Disqualification)

Blog Blackout
This Prediction League will be played here but if in the event this blog goes down, we will automatically carry on the league over to the personal blog of Voxeros at http://www.JayWalkOnline.com. Please bookmark this or at the very least stay in touch with one of us as we will also be helping all stay in the loop via the various channels like MSN, Skype, email as well as SPUG Off-Topic Chat.

Fixture Focus - Spurs (2 Nov 2010)

Tottenham Hotspur vs FC Internazionale Milano
(UEFA Champions League Group Stage)

Forget about what Clattenberg did to us. Forget about what Nani did to us. Forget about why we did not play to the whistle. Heck, let us forget about what had happened to us at Old Trafford a few days ago.

Today is the day, that we welcome the current European club champions to our sacred turf. And we really, really have to give our best in this fixture, in order to silence our critics that said we are just a "one-hit wonder" to be in the top 4.

Contrary to our earlier scare, we will definitely see our new signing Van Der Vaart starting, along with just-recovered Huddlestone. Bale will be there to continue his "thorn on Inter's side" role, and probably we may see Modric and possibly Lennon starting. The only regular out would be Gomes (suspension) and Cudicini would be covering him.

Inter Milan is starting without their first choice keeper Cesar, which means Castellazzi would deputise. Maicon and Lucio, though doubtful, may be able to start. Bentiez would definitely position his players to prevent another Bale-gate happening (if he can).

A little daydream - if we win 2-0 against Inter, we would top the table. :)

Come on you Spurs!!!!!