Weekend Review: Anything the League Cup can do...

Well the FA Cup has had to up it's game this year just to compete with the unexpected marvel that has been the Capital One Cup this year. It was hard to imagine anything being able to top Bradford City's phenomenal run to Wembley this year from the fourth tier of English football but the FA Cup did spring a few surprises on fourth round weekend ...


Norwich 0-1 Luton: we've always heard about the famous giant killings of the FA Cup like Sutton v Coventry, and Hereford against Newcastle and this Luton Town victory certainly ranks up at the top with these results. There are 85 places and four divisions between these 2 sides. Just to reiterate Luton are a non-league team, and they've just beaten a Premier League side who at the moment are the 13th best side in the country. This is an amazing result and I feel a little bit sorry for Luton as their story would be given so much more limelight had Bradford not got to the League Cup final in the same week. Here are some of the stats about this result: this was the first victory for a non-league side against a team in the top division since Sutton in 1989, it was the first time in 27 years a non-league side have beaten a top flight team away from home, and it was the first time a non-league side have beaten a team in the top tier since 1949. What an achievement. This match would probably fit the definition of a smash and grab victory, which you would expect in these circumstances. Luton only had 32% possession throughout the game and had just two shots on target, but they outgunned Norwich on that stat that matters: goals. They also put in 18 more tackles over the 90 minutes than their counterparts (11 to 29). Luton were hungrier, pure and simple. The goal emphasised that as Scott Rendell bust a gut to nip in front of Norwich's defence to turn the ball home. It is a great story for a team that have had little to celebrate in recent years (similar to Bradford really). In 2005 Luton were a Championship side, but three consecutive relegations from 2006-2009 has seen them in the Conference ever since. The side took an incredible 4000 fans to Carrow Road and it would take a cold hearted man not to feel pleased for this club, they deserve their moment in the sun and long may their journey continue!

Brentford 2-2 Chelsea: one of the bigger shocks this weekend occurred at Griffin Park. Amid amazing scenes little known striker Fernando Torres actually scored! Seriously though this was another genuinely shocking result in reality when a £50m striker has to rescue the European champions from losing to a side in the third division in England. The pitch at Brentwood was definitely a leveller and with the fervent crowd packed into this historic ground this game was clearly not one that some of Chelsea's highly paid stars relished. It was clear again that it simply meant more to Brentford than to Chelsea. This was billed as the Bees against the Honeypot, and Brentford played extremely well. It is easy to see why Uwe Rosler is a highly rated manager as he seemed to get his tactics spot on in this game. He pinpointed Chelsea's lack of pace in defence with the likes of Terry and Ivanovic and geared his side up to counter attack, particularly using the pace of Harry Forrester who was always a thorn in Chelsea's side. Rosler has been linked with Championship jobs such as the vacancy at Barnsley and its not hard to see why. His star will only continue to rise if he can show such tactical nouse again in the replay at Stamford Bridge.

Millwall 2-1 Aston Villa: what a terrible week to be an Aston Villa fan. Two defeats inside of a week to lower league opposition. Their side sit just one place above the relegation zone and have now exited both domestic cup competitions within a week. This loss will arguably sting less than the Bradford one but its still a big blow and can do nothing but damage to their already brittle confidence. Worryingly for Villa this was not a game they bossed and were unlucky to lose either. They had slightly more possession than Millwall over the 90 with 51% possession but they had just 4 shots during the entire game compared to the Lions' 12. They conceded yet again from a corner to a Danny Shittu header and eventually succumbed to an 89th minute winner from John Marquis. You have to wonder what is next for Villa and its hard to see them bouncing back quickly from this week. They have a young side and really could have done with a confidence boosting win against the Londoners. Instead Paul Lambert is now left with the unenviable task of trying to pick his players up off the floor and instilling in them the grit to succeed in their relegation dogfight this season. Villa fans are beginning to call for Lambert's sacking but the question is: is there anyone that could do a better job with that group of players? We're not sure but it seems unlikely. It looks like being a pivotal week in Villa's season though either way we will find out what their character is like.

Other results: as we're sure you can appreciate it was hard to put in a mention for every shock result this week. Plaudits have to go to Oldham for their brilliant 3-2 victory over Liverpool as forward Matt Smith starred in a bullying performance that put Coates in the centre of Liverpool's defence to shame. Leeds for their 2-1 victory over Spurs and also to MK Dons for their sensational 4-2 victory away at QPR (which will be mentioned below in a bit more detail). Macclesfield Town's dream run was finally ended by Wigan in a hard-fought 0-1 victory at the Moss Rose, while Brighton  ran Arsenal extremely close in an excellent cup tie that ended in a 2-3 victory to the Gunners.

We know we've harped on about it a lot but it really does seem like this year, underdogs have been spurred on by what we'd like to call the 'Bradford Effect'. Bradford have shown other lower league clubs it is possible to beat Premier League teams combined with the performance of promoted teams like Swansea and Norwich as they've stepped straight up to the Premier League has shown teams that the gap is closing. We say long may it continue!

Round up of our teams

J was at Old Trafford to see Man Utd canter to an easy 4-1 victory over a timid Fulham side in the FA Cup Fourth Round. United never looked back after a third minute Ryan Giggs penalty. There was enough time to show Sam Allardyce that contrary to his beliefs, he's not always right, and United don't always get penalties at Old Trafford for anything as Damien Duff clearly handled the ball again in the box not long after the first penalty was (rightly) awarded against Aaron Hughes for another clear handball. United controlled the game from start to finish and Fulham rarely threatened as Phil Jones in particular impressed in a dominating game at centre back as he won every header he seemed to compete in. Wayne Rooney's goal just after the break killed off the game and showcased him at his powerful best, while Chicharito's double further emphasised the depth of United's striking options. All in all this was a powerful performance from the Red Devils, and one of their better performances this season, arguably.

As mentioned above C's QPR suffered a humiliating 2-4 humbling at the hands of League One side MK Dons. Dons had just 6 shots to Rangers' 20 and had less possession of the football and still managed to show up their troubled opponents. This game showed Rangers' dearth of viable options in the side as high paid stars like Anton Ferdinand were shown up time and again. This game looks like being Ferdinand's last for Rangers before an apparent loan move to Bursaspor in Turkey and I'm sure C and many other R's fans will not be sad to see him go. Judging by 'Arry's scathing criticism of his players after the game, he might not be the only player to see the exit at Loftus Road this week. 'Arry has a lot to do before Deadline Day, you feel.

Crewe lost disappointingly to Bournemouth at  the Goldsands Stadium. A Brett Pitman hat-trick saw off the Alex in a 3-1 loss. The result wasn't a huge surprise considering Bournemouth have only lost 1 game in the 18 they've played since Eddie Howe took the reigns over again, and that loss was against Wigan in the FA Cup Third Round replay. Crewe however, haven't won in 3 and could do with reversing their slump sooner rather than later.

Once you've caught your breath enjoy the round of League games this week and we'll be back soon!

C&J

Weekend Review: Does football in 2012 have to end?

After an amazing year in football, we're back with another weekend review of the last games in this calendar year, as the Premier League continues to take shape...

Aston Villa 0-3 Wigan - Wigan put a further dent into Aston Villa's season to make their aggregate score over their last 3 games 0-15. Villa's win at Anfield seems like an age ago now and they have really been pulled into the relegation battle which they seemed to be relatively clear of a short time ago. The worrying thing for Aston Villa is that Wigan are hardly the most prolific team (they have scored 22 goals in their 20 league games so far this season) but managed to score 3 goals against their leaky defence. Emmerson Boyce's new nickname should surely be 'Moses' after the way the Aston Villa defence parted to allow him to score a memorable goal. We've said this before but if Wigan stay up this year a large part of that will be down to Arouna Kone, who looks so good in that team. Not to be unfair to Christian Benteke who has shown signs of real promise this season, but a comparison between the 2 strikers illustrates just how effective Kone is. Benteke had 48 touches in the game and Kone had 49 so they had similar opportunities to put a stamp on the game. With these 49 touches Kone had a pass accuracy of 94% whilst Benteke was accurate with 55% of his passes. They both had 3 shots, and Kone managed to score with one and also assisted a goal for his team. Wigan and Villa are equal on points so obviously there is a long way to go, but this game highlights how much of a contrast there is between these two teams at the moment. Villa seem to be sliding downwards, and you find it hard to see how the January transfer window will help them with Randy Lerner's purse strings growing ever tighter, while Wigan will believe that they can produce enough displays to leave at least 3 teams trailing in their wake come May.

Arsenal 7-3 Newcastle - Theo Walcott should be a striker blah blah blah. That angle on this game has been done to death, yes Theo scored a hat trick, he was clinical and looked great, but there's enough about that everywhere else. Instead it's interesting how Newcastle are aiming to knock Aston Villa off their leaky defence perch, by letting in 11 goals in their last 2 games. Last year Newcastle's defence starred and they conceded 51 goals in their run to 5th place, after 20 games they've already conceded 37 goals and you definitely have to think the Newcastle board are regretting giving Alan Pardew an 8 year contract now! The signing of Mathieu Debuchy from Lille though does seem like an astute signing, and I would be very surprised if they didn't bring in a centre back as well. Newcastle are now just 3 points off the relegation zone, and while it's hard to see the likes of QPR, Reading or Southampton overtaking them by the end of the season it is a worrying time for the Toon Army. Demba Ba is apparently in talks with Chelsea and seems set to leave the club, Newcastle have scored 26 goals in the league - Ba has exactly half of these goals. If they do sell him Papiss Cisse has a very big burden on his shoulders.

Roundup of our teams

C's QPR slumped to a dismal 0-3 home defeat to Liverpool, with all goals scored in the first 27 minutes. A crushing defeat given the fact that their 3 closest rivals before the start of the gameweek all picked up at least a point, with Wigan and Reading winning their games. C's match review will be up in the near future to review his thoughts on the game.

League leaders Man Utd cruised to a relatively straight-forward 2-0 victory against West Brom at Old Trafford to finish the year with a 7 point lead at the top. Shinji Kagawa returned to action and played 66 minutes and looked right back to his early season excellent form. United dominated possession but did allow West Brom to put in a far too high 14 shots on goal. This was only their 4th clean sheet of the season but they had 17 shots on goal and finish the year with 50 goals in 20 games. If they are to keep their lead at the top of the league it will have to be down to the attack and with Robin Van Persie in this form it looks exciting. United have 11 goals more than any other team in the league and the exciting games they've produced this year look set to continue!

Crewe won 2-1 at Oldham to bounce back after defeat from Tranmere on Boxing Day. Mark Ellis bounced back from his mistake which granted Oldham an 82nd minute equaliser to score the winner just 2 minutes later. Mathias Pogba's 11th of the season had earlier put the Alex ahead. 2012 was a fantastic year for Crewe with their 20 game unbeaten run, Wembley play off victory, and they now sit in 13th place in League One just 3 points off the play off places. The big job for Steve Davis will surely be to keep hold of Luke Murphy who is being strongly linked with a move to Stoke in the January transfer window.

Union Berlin's last game before the winter break was on December 17th in a 4-3 away loss to Braunschweig and they don't play again until 1 February. At the end of the year Union sit in an excellent 7th place in Bundesliga II in what has been a great start to the season. Here's hoping the break revitalises the team and propels them to an even better second half of the season!

What we learned this week

• Maybe the purse strings really are extremely tight at Arsenal if they can't even afford to give their manager a coat that works.
• Cameron Jerome can score an absolute 'worldy' when he wants to.
• Frank Lampard won't be short of offers should he leave Chelsea.
• Samir Nasri is becoming a bit of a liability.
• Mick McCarthy is still loved in Wolverhampton, Stale Solbakken is not.
• When do 2 yellows not equal a red? When your name is Mick Russell.
• Championship clubs are hedging bets on new managers weaving their magic in January - Nottingham Forest, Blackburn and Barnsley all clearly felt that was their best plan of action.
• It'll be interesting to see if Edgar Davids really can save Barnet on his own.

On that note, happy new year everyone and enjoy 2013! Let's hope it brings as much excitement as 2012 if not more!

C&J

Weekend Preview: The consistently inconsistent world of AVB

This week was a mixed bag for English clubs in Europe yet again. The weekend, however, could see some sorting out of managerial issues and ambitions for the season...

We're up and running for the weekend already as Friday night, which together with Monday night are the nights every football fan prays that a fixture won't get switched to - apart from Middlesbrough and Sheffield Wednesday fans it seems (28,229 packed into the Riverside for last night's game - I expect ticket prices were reduced, Boro's form of late and the fact that there can't be much else going on in Middlesbrough on a Friday night had much to do with it). Still, the red army will have gone home happy with what they saw after the home side shot down the Owls, beating them 3-1. Once again, Emmanuel Ledesma, who promised so much in his early days as a QPR player that T-Shirts were on sale after a hat-trick against Carlisle in the League Cup, was the star of the show for Boro, involved in most things good about their play. Ledesma is undoubtedly a very talented player but I am still surprised that he is plying his trade in this country when it is obvious to me that his style better suits something like La Liga or a South American league. Still, good luck to the guy, I always like to see talented players fulfilling their potential.

Plenty more lies ahead of us this weekend, of course:

Southampton v Swansea - The annual sack race in the Premier League looks set to culminate soon with what seems to be a sprint finish between Nigel Adkins and Mark Hughes. This weekend could determine who wins that race with QPR travelling to almost struggling Stoke, while bottom-placed Southampton take on Swansea at St Mary's. These two teams have only met twice in the last 29 years and Southampton haven't won either of these meetings (which took place in the Championship in 2008/09), with one draw and one Swans win. Swansea haven't won in their last 2 games but considering their last outing was a draw against Chelsea it must have felt like a win to them. Between them in the league so far this year there have been an average of 3.55 goals in games involving this teams so it's a very decent bet there will be more goals here! Saints have conceded a staggering 28 goals in 10 matches which is a joint Premier League record along with Barnsley in the 1997/98 season. Swansea have actually failed to score in 5 of their last 7 away league games, but it is extremely hard to imagine that run will continue. Saints haven't won in 5 and Swansea have only won 1 game in their last 8. However, since their victory against Wigan, Swansea have narrowly lost to the Man City at the Emptihad and drawn to the team who sat at the top of the table going into the weekend of that game so they seem to have turned a corner. It is incredibly hard to see anything but a Swansea win here, and it could spell disaster for Nigel Adkins. It would be harsh - especially considering the team have had 2 successive promotions to get here, and also it seems like there is a lack of talent to replace him. The only name that leaps at you is Harry Redknapp, yet he is the exact man who relegated Saints last time they were in the Premier League and you can't imagine he'd be very welcome at St Mary's! This could be an interesting one...

Prediction: Southampton 1-3 Swansea

Man City v Tottenham - For the first 2 games of the season we were told that Andre Villas Boas was a flop who had got his players backs up and wouldn't succeed at White Hart Lane. Then for a spell of about 4 or 5 games he was the next coming of the Messiah and could do no wrong. Now he's back to being a disaster after losing 2 out of his last 3 league games! Which is right?! Maybe we'll find out this weekend - a win at the Emptihad for AVB and Tottenham would arguably banish a lot of his critics surely! Tottenham have won their last 3 away games and after last weekend's grumblings at White Hart Lane you have to feel it may be beneficial for them to be away from home after all. This isn't an easy place to come though with City having won 27 of their last 29 league games at home. Tottenham's problems have arguably centred around their leaky defence - which has conceded 14 in 10 games - over a goal a game. City will have been stung (yet again) by a pretty dismal performance in Europe and they seem to have a knack of grinding out results at the moment - as shown by the fact they're the only unbeaten team in the league without really impressing at all, so they could easily compound Tottenham's problems. A lot could depend on Gareth Bale and whether he is given freedom to play in his preferred position on the left or is moved around by AVB, which seems to have happened too often this season. Tottenham haven't won away at both Manchester clubs in the top flight since 1959-60 and it's hard to see that run coming to an end as well.

Prediction: Man City 2-2 Tottenham

Chelsea v Liverpool - A clash that would have been billed as a 'Top four Grand Slam Super Sunday' special on Sky a couple of years ago, this fixture has produced some decent controversy over the last few years, mainly in the Champions League though rather than domestically. Fast forward to 2012 and it's kind of difficult to get excited about this game in the fixture calendar. Chelsea managed a lucky midweek win over Shakhtar after their opponents were guilty of over-committing on an attack at the end of the game, then some QPR-esque marking from said corner. Liverpool put out a bunch of reserves (even Carragher played) in Russia with Sunday's fixture in mind so I don't think they'll particularly suffer from any effects of their midweek exertions, but even a slightly tired Chelsea side are good enough to sweep the Scousers aside at the moment. Yes, they turn up for the big games, but I can't look beyond Torres piling misery on his former side here.

Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Liverpool

In the Championship there are some tasty local derbies around, Barnsley v Huddersfield looks like a League One tie on paper but having said that the two have looked far from League One teams, the latter particularly flying high currently. Blackpool v Bolton looks like it could be a classic, I'd go with a score draw! The standout fixture has to be Leicester City v Nottingham Forest though. The away side have been wildly inconsistent this season so far, producing some outstanding football at times but then having taken two steps forward they take one back with performances like that which saw them lose 4-1 at home to Millwall. They don't have a great record at the Walkers Stadium (their last win there was in 2005) but they have only lost once on the road so far this season and Leicester's form has dipped slightly of late with unexpected defeats to Crystal Palace and Watford. Still, I fancy Leicester to beat them here, probably not as comprehensively as they did in the FA Cup earlier in the year, but still fairly comfortably. Nugent on the scoresheet.

Prediction: Leicester 2-0 Nottingham Forest

Our sides are all in action this weekend and, for the first time in god knows how long, all playing today (albeit with staggered kick-off times). 

1.FC Union Berlin are underway against VfR Aalen hoping to continue where they left off with that fine away win in Dresden. That confidence should translate into an excellent atmosphere at the Alten Foersterei this afternoon and hopefully they will extend a decent record which they have against today's opponents, who they last played at Division Three level!

C is unbelievably missing the mouthwatering prospect of Stoke v QPR at the Britannia this weekend (part timer!). QPR have a fairly decent record away at the Potters' ground but with Stoke not having lost in their last eleven home games and Peter Crouch up against an incompetent back line that aren't practising marking from set pieces, we don't hold out much hope for the travelling R's faithful today. Having said that, there is the continued saving grace that Rory Delap is out injured and the home side are, together with Sunderland, the League's draw specialists. I know QPR need more than one point from games at the moment, but a point at a hard place to go would certainly be looked upon favourably.

Crewe Alexandra are home to league table neighbours Colchester this weekend and will be hoping that the goals against Wycombe in the FA Cup and in the outstanding away win at Doncaster midweek has breathed life back into the seasons of their strikers. Mathias Pogba has been in amongst the goals again whilst loan signing Lauri Dalla Valle introduced himself to the Alex fans with the opener in the victory at the Keepmoat. Colchester haven't yet recovered from their TOWIE derby defeat to Chelmsford City in the FA Cup but on their day are more than capable of competing at this level. 

Tea-time sees Manchester United travel to the West Midlands to take on Paul Lambert's Aston Villa. United should have beaten Arsenal by more last week but a convincing ending to the match at Braga should mean their tails are up for this one. Villa won at Sunderland last weekend by virtue of the fact they were able to finish a chance on the day whilst Sunderland haven't looked like scoring in a month of Sundays. I'm not really convinced by Lambert's Villa revolution yet and I can see United winning comfortably here.

Enjoy the weekend's football and we'll be back with C's review of QPR v Reading and a weekend review later this weekend.

C&J

Weekend Review: Chelsea See Red as Refs Hit The Headlines

It seems like it's been a while since we've spoken about bad refereeing decisions affecting games, so it seems appropriate that they would all come at once on the most Super of all Sundays so far this season...

Chelsea 2-3 Manchester United - Man United finally won at Stamford Bridge in the league for the first time in 10 years but it's hard to argue with the fact that refereeing decisions influenced the game massively. United started like a house on fire and took the lead after just 4 minutes through a quick counter attack that ended with a Robin Van Persie shot hitting the post and going in off the hapless David Luiz. This was only the 3rd time United have taken the lead in their 9th Premier League game this season! Robin Van Persie scored to make it 2-0 after another lightning counter attack down the right hand side. This was his 6th goal at Stamford Bridge and according to Opta Joe he has now scored more goals there than any other visiting player in the Premier League. Chelsea took control from around the half hour mark and scored either side of half time and David De Gea deserves a lot of credit for holding Chelsea out for so long. After his first half free kick Juan Mata has now been involved in 9 goals in his last 5 league games (scoring 4, assisting 5) and he seems to be in the form of his life. Then, enter Mark Clattenburg. Branislav Ivanovic can have no complaints really for his sending off. Ashley Young was through on goal and whether it was intentional or not he clipped Young, was the last man and prevented a goal scoring opportunity. Fernando Torres' red was contentious to say the least. Depending on your allegiance you may feel it was harsh, you may not. Personally (call me biased) I didn't see any contact between Evans and Torres, but Evans did dive in and it could easily have been a foul the other way. United then scored late on through Chicharito, and again Mark Clattenburg was at the centre of controversy as Hernandez was in an offside position. Niall Quinn said 'you have to feel for Chelsea don't you?' As Man Utd and QPR fans we can tell you Niall, no you don't! In our humble opinion any club that celebrates a captain charged with racist abuse and whose fans boo the victim of said abuse and his brother - for having the audacity to be racially abused and to be related to said victim - doesn't deserve any of our sympathy whatsoever! All in all though it seems a bit of a shame that such a fantastic game had to be influenced so heavily by Mr Clattenburg. This was a massive win for United though, and shows that Chelsea aren't going to run away with the title. This makes things a lot more interesting now anyway as only 1 point separates 1st to 3rd place.

Everton 2-2 Liverpool - Earlier this pulsating Merseyside derby was also marred by a late dubious refereeing decision that prevented Luis Suarez (shame!) and Liverpool from claiming a late late victory against Everton. Suarez was clearly motivated by David Moyes' pre-match comments about the Uruguayan's propensity to dive. He was right up for it all game and showed his displeasure with those comments by diving along the ground right in front of Moyes after Leighton Baines' own goal put Liverpool ahead. Suarez had double the amount of shots of any other player on the pitch. The first half was enthralling and all the goals were scored in the first 35 minutes. Liverpool had a goal disallowed in the last minute as Suarez was adjudged (wrongly) to be in an offside position before turning the ball in from a Coates knock down. It was a feisty affair with 7 yellow cards and it almost seems like the biggest hurdle for Everton now to beat Liverpool is psychological rather than based on inequality on the pitch. Everton have all the tools to beat Liverpool and showed their quality by coming back from 2-0 down but they seemed to be a bit fearful of Liverpool's fast start leading to them not really getting started until they were 2 down. That's 3 draws on the trot for Everton and they need to start picking up wins again soon if they want to challenge for 4th position this season. Liverpool meanwhile continued their habit of only showing up for the big games - something they've continued for a couple of seasons now.

There were some big surprises in the Championship this week as Birmingham won at Leeds, Crystal Palace produced an excellent display to continue where Dougie Freedman left off as they won away at leaders Leicester whilst Millwall trounced strong starters Huddersfield.

(Brief) round-up of our sides

QPR's kamikaze performances continued this week with an 11th red cards in 47 Premier League games and  another defeat to go hand in hand with it. C's match report is here.

Crewe  and Union Berlin compounded C's misery with 0-1 defeats against very mediocre opposition (no disrespect to Yeovil Town or SC Paderborn 07 fans among our readers). Crewe were defeated by a disappointing goal scored by a defender from a set piece, whilst Union, who were five games unbeaten before the weekend, will be looking to bounce back in the DFB-Pokal (FA Cup in English money) as they play Offenbacher FC Kickers away as they gear up for the big East German derby against old enemy Dynamo Dresden next Sunday. Apparently Steve Davis is interested in bringing Ryan Lowe back to the Alexandra Stadium from MK Dons - an experienced goalscorer at this level can only be a good addition to such a young side and we hope it happens!

And finally, of course, we've glossed over Manchester United's three points at Chelsea above already.

Things we learnt this week

• The 'Bairdinho' train keeps rolling as Chris Baird scored his second goal in 2 games to equal the amount of goals he scored in his first 120 Premier League appearances.
• Were MOTD having a special on old supporters this week? Apparently there was a  centurion fan present at Arsenal and Wigan and both were honoured by their clubs, which is quite a nice touch really. We didn't even think Wigan had been going that long though?!
• Gordon Bennett that was a lot of Bennetts in the Aston Villa v Norwich game! Elliott and Ryan were both playing for Norwich, while Joe was playing for Villa. It was as if that many Bennetts on one pitch would make the universe implode so Joe got himself sent off to reduce the Bennett number by one.
• Phil Neville obviously got altitude sickness from being so high up the pitch. That's why he dived.
• Jose Fonte looks really out of his depth in the Premier League, and it appears his lack of ability is what is continuing to cost Southampton dear
• G4S security staff do have their uses, it seems. In spite of having their name dragged through the mud all Summer at the Olympics, one of their staff stepped up from being spectator to run the line in Dunfermline v Cowdenbeath after the original linesman stepped up to referee following an injury
• Oxford United - Adam Chapman joins the list of crazies football injuries of our time - playing through the pain barrier after burning his nipple with hot dairy products - proof that there is no point in crying over spilt milk!
• The Davids effect is continuing to impact on the Football League's bottom club Barnet, who recorded a first away win of the season in what has been a productive week or so since the Dutchman's arrival - that's now two wins and a draw in three games.

Weekend Preview: Best League in the...UK?

After a week that confirmed what pretty much everyone has known for a while - the Premier League just isn't the best league in Europe any more - the Premier League is back and the top teams will be looking to bounce back after 4 of the country's representatives failed to win in Europe...

The big talking point this week has to be Man City's failure (yet again) in Europe. Roberto Mancini's record in Europe is coming under close scrutiny as his team look set to bow out at the group stages for the second year in a row, despite their wealth of riches, barring a miracle. Between 2004-08 Mancini got Inter to the Quarters (2004/05, 2005/06) and the last 16 (2006/07 and 2007/08) before he was sacked. This was despite winning the Serie A title three years in a row from 2006-2008. 2 years after he left Inter (with predominantly the same core as Mancini's team) won the Champions League under Jose Mourinho. Coincidence? City’s three fixtures in the Champions League them concede a total of 72 shots in contrast to 85 in their eight Premier League games this season. Yes, Man City have been drawn in the 'Group of Death' this year but they haven't even played well really. They have 1 point and they were extremely lucky to get that against Dortmund. The contrast in the two teams on Wednesday was remarkable and it has been well documented that the total cost of the Ajax starting XI on Wednesday was £2.75m while City's starting XI cost a measly £187.5m! They really should have been winning that game.

Aston Villa v Norwich - Saturday's early kick off will centre around the battle of Norwich and their former manager, Paul Lambert. There is seemingly a lot of ill-feeling between the two parties since their separation - Norwich are suing Lambert for breach of contract while Lambert is counter-suing Norwich for unfair dismissal looking for £2m! This week Norwich's chairman said Lambert walks out on every team he manages while Lambert suggested he hasn't spoken to the chairman, Alan Bowkett in three years (even when he was there). There has been a lack of spark for either team this season and neither has really got going. Both sides only have the one win in the league each from 8 games, and both have struggled for goals scoring less than 1 per game this season on average (both have 6 goals). Norwich have conceded over 2 goals per game this season on average (17 goals in 8 games), while Villa have let in 13 goals in 8 games. Norwich did win against Arsenal last time out and they will be hoping that result will kick start their season but it looks like being a relegation dogfight for both teams this year, and neither have been in good form. Norwich haven't won their last 6 away games, while Villa have failed to win in 17 of their last 18 league games. Both managers have a difficult job on their hands this season and you have to think a lot of both teams seasons depend on Darren Bent and Grant Holt respectively. Holt has 3 goals this season while Bent has 2 and they are the only players from either team who have scored more than 1 goal this season. You have to think this game could be the best opportunity for these teams to fill their boots and score a few, but it appears unlikely. I tend to think that Paul Lambert will thrive on this sort of pressure game. Having played at the likes of Dortmund and Celtic and winning multiple trophies he loves the big games and this is a huge game for his team, and I think the Lambert factor will win out for Villa.

Prediction: Villa 2-1 Norwich

Everton v Liverpool - Sunday's early kick off sees the return of the Merseyside derby. This game seems like it could be a difficult one to predict so I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest there will be a lot of cards. In the last 6 games between these sides there have been 26 yellow cards and 3 reds. So expect more of the same this weekend. Everton have only beaten Liverpool once in the last 6 meetings between the two teams while Liverpool have won 4 and certainly seem to have the edge on their rivals. However, Everton go into this game 8 places and 6 points above their rivals, and have only lost once this season. They have also won 6 of their last 7 home games in the league. However, as we all know the form book goes out of the window in a derby. Liverpool have a young team and the average age of their likely first XI tomorrow is 24.5 years old, whilst Everton's is 29.4 years of age. This youth could either prove to be the undoing of Liverpool or their secret weapon. The players don't look like they have been phased by anything this season but a pressure cooker atmosphere at Goodison Park in the Merseyside derby is another challenge altogether for Liverpool's players. Personally I think the game will come down to clinical finishing and Everton's 15 goals in the league versus Liverpool's 10 tells a story in itself. Liverpool need to take their chances tomorrow otherwise Everton will punish them. I'm going with the form book in this game though.

Prediction: Everton 3-1 Liverpool

Chelsea v Man Utd - Finally, the Sunday evening match is at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea take on Manchester United. Stamford Bridge always seems to be a bogey ground for United and the Reds haven't won at Stamford Bridge in the League in the last 10 games - since April 2002, and Chelsea are the only team in the history of the Premier League who have more wins than losses against United. Funnily enough though United haven't lost in their last 5 meetings against Chelsea (including the two Champions League games from United's 2011 run to the final). This should be an excellent game though and sees 1st take on 2nd in the league. This game could go a long way to showing how serious both teams title challenges are this year. Expect goals - between them these teams have scored 40 goals in the league this year and conceded 17. United are starting games this season bizarrely and seem to be giving teams head starts every game. I think this was slightly inevitable as this season seems to be purely concentrated on attacking and scoring goals with that forward line. Chelsea's forward line is almost as impressive though and it should be a high scoring affair for that reason. United have scored at least 2 goals in their last 7 Premier League games and it seems almost certain that Chelsea will score goals as United's defence seems to be leaking goals on a huge scale this year. United's philosophy this year seems to be 'we will score one more than you'. This has never really worked before (see Newcastle in 95/96) so it is intriguing to see how long this goes on.

Prediction: Chelsea 2-2 United

This weekend QPR take on an Arsenal team who have lost their last 2 games and appear to be back in the middle of a crisis again, just weeks after being the best team since Sliced Bread FC. Rangers are still without a win in the league this season and they will be hoping this is the best time to play Arsenal. However, Mark Hughes has said he fears a backlash this weekend. Rangers avoided defeat last weekend for the first time in 4 in the league and fans will be hoping this could be the start of a turnaround in fortunes, and they will take heart from Norwich's performance against the Gunners last weekend.

 Crewe beat Swindon 2-1 in midweek to record their first win in 4 in the league and they take on an in-form Yeovil team this weekend who have won their last 2 league games. Games between these two teams don't end in draws (both teams have shared 3 wins each in the last 6 games between these 2). Byron Moore got 2 in midweek for his first goals of the season and Steve Davis has challenged him to get double figures this season, so the Railwaymen will be hoping this will spur him on to have more of an impact. Yeovil are an entertaining team this season having scored 24 so far in 14 this season and conceded 21 so there should be goals and an entertaining game at Gresty Road!

Union Berlin take on SC Paderborn 07 on Sunday. Paderborn haven't won in their last 4 and Union will be hoping to build on their win over FSV Frankfurt last week. This is 11th v 10th and should be a tight affair as both teams sit on 12 points. Let's hope Union's good home form continues and they use this to their advantage!

Enjoy the weekend and we'll be back with a review of the weekend next week!

J

Gameweek 8: Things Starting To Take Shape?

Well that was an eventful weekend, and it looks like things could be starting to take shape at the top of the table...

The top 3 is now containing 3 of the 4 teams you might expect it to at the end of the season (bar Arsenal) and the likes of Everton, Tottenham and Arsenal all consolidated the theory that they will have good seasons and be in the running for the top 4 this season.

The game at the DW Stadium on Saturday was a fast-paced, attacking game with 4 goals ending in a 2-2 draw between Wigan and Everton. Wigan put in a very promising performance and there are a lot of reasons for their fans to be positive after the game, regardless of the late equaliser they conceded to their old boy Leighton Baines. Arouna Kone had an excellent game on the right of their front 3. He looked a constant thorn in Everton's side and scored the first goal (even though he was in an offside position) and laid on the second for Franco Di Santo. Kone had 2 shots and scored 1 of them and he appears to be the marksman that Wigan have missed for probably all of their years in the Premier League. He now has 3 goals and 2 assists for Wigan this season in just 7 appearances, and his presence up front seems to be aiding Franco Di Santo who has also scored 3 goals already this season in 6 games - nearly half of his tally last season (7) which he achieved in 31 games. All this positivity is curiously framed in the fact that Wigan have made one of their worst starts in the Premier League. They have equalled last years tally at this stage, have 3 points less than they did in 2010/11, and they have 4 points less than 2009/10...anyway you get the idea. I think the reason for this is this 3 at the back system that Wigan are playing with this season. A 3 at the back system always seems to need pace, which is why you wonder how Gary Caldwell gets in the middle of the 3 every week - he is one of the slowest players I've ever seen and I've never been convinced he's actually that good. Ivan Ramis has also had a pretty inauspicious start to life in the Premier League and hasn't really shown any signs that he has got the quality to succeed in the top flight. Wigan looked really susceptible to attacks down the wing against Everton and Steven Pienaar in particular ravaged their defence. Wigan aren't the first and won't be the last team to face problems up against Pienaar this season but the lack of defensive width due to their 3 system didn't help at all. Roberto Martinez appears to have gone for the mantra 'attack is the best form of defence' and it seems their setup is geared to gain results up front and hope they score more than they concede which could lead to a really interesting season for Wigan.

Bolton were the latest side to dispense of their manager, showing club legend Owen Coyle the door on Tuesday afternoon. This came as something of a surprise, because the club can't surely have been expected to win promotion at the first attempt given the sheer number of departures and lack of arrivals at the club this summer following relegation. Phil Gartside has always been one for prudence and this Summer was no different, so what exactly his expectations were of Coyle this season (he apparently set a points target)? I am not sure. It seems like the writing was on the wall since January last year. Coyle didn't seem able to inspire his players and you can only blame injuries for so long. Coyle will no doubt find himself a job again soon though; Scottish managers are a highly sought after breed right now in the English game it seems. So much so that even Steve Kean might find himself in a job again sooner rather than later!

Last season they lined up against each other in training matches at QPR, but this season DJ Campbell locked horns with Matt Connolly and Heidar Helguson in a Championship match between lowly Ipswich and table toppers (but annual bottlejobs) Cardiff City. Campbell drew first blood as he somehow managed to escape Connolly and the Cardiff keeper's attentions to guide the ball into the net Maradona style without either them or the officials noticing! The away side were victorious in the end though thanks to C's Doppelgänger Heidar Helguson tapping in from a Scott Loach howler and scoring a trademark header late on. Helgar even had time to produce one of his trademark headers at the other end of the pitch, casually crashing a header against his own bar. There's no way he didn't mean that... Ice cool from the ice man.

Roundup

We'll start with the bad news, and yet again C was on hand to witness QPR lose, this time at The Hawthorns, where comical defending and lack of attacking prowess contributed to a 3-2 defeat to the Baggies. Match report available here.

Sunday saw Manchester United record an excellent win away St James' Park (we can call it that now again thanks to wonga.com). Newcastle produced some QPR-esque marking from corners to allow Evans and Evra two quick-fire goals which effectively ended the game as a contest. Wayne Rooney relished his new role at the tip of the midfield diamond and it really seems like the pressure is off him. Last year he was the one carrying the team but now he has Robin Van Persie to share the burden and this seems to have given him a creative impetus he has lacked for a few years. Tom Cleverley in midfield also adds some dynamism that is lacking with Carrick, Scholes or Giggs.

Crewe managed back to back 2-1 wins in League and Cup with victories over Hartlepool (H) and Shrewsbury (A) on Saturday and Tuesday respectively. Mathias Pogba has a claim for the award for Worst Penalty of 2012 against Hartlepool. Even worse he took the ball from the normal penalty taker before missing it. Even worse, he took the ball from the boss' son Harry Davis who scored 4 penalties at the back end of last season!

And finally, as you learned on Friday, Union Berlin took a battling away point back from St Pauli. All in all, not a bad weekend for our sides then. Sort it out Hughes!

Things we learnt this week:

• If you want a man to take a penalty for you, you could do worse than Leighton Baines - that's 9 career penalties scored from 9 attempts.
• My word Santi Cazorla is good.
• We told you that in AFC Wimbledon's manager job specification it was compulsory to have played for the original Wimbledon, but what we didn't tell you was that Neal Ardley was the successful candidate (not Lawrie Sanchez, who will have to make do with Sky punditry as a source of pocket money)
• Clearly either the recent form of Palace, the sheer number of goals flying in at Selhurst Park or lure of cheaper seats has brought some long lost Eagles fans back. The ground looked packed out for the first time I can recall in years for their 4-3 win over Burnley. That's now 22 goals scored in SE25 in just five league games so far this season.

C&J

Six weekends, zero wins

As it's now after Monday dinner time and neither of us have managed to catch much of the weekend's action, we thought we'd give you a treat and combine our weekend review with C's match review of Monday night's East-West London derby at Loftus Road.

The weekend itself brought a memorable (or less so in J's case) win for Spurs over Manchester United at Old Trafford - a first since 1989, in fact. I managed to take in the game in the pub and I'll be honest, I genuinely thought I was watching match highlights in that frantic three minutes at the start of the second half. In summary, United showed just how much they missed the presence of Wayne Rooney in the first half, whilst at the back Rio Ferdinand looked past it (not for the first time, I hasten to add) up against the pace of Bale and Defoe. Evans looked like he has returned to his bad old ways again after a fairly solid season last season in which he won over several of his critics. I don't really understand how anyone can criticise RVP for his performance (as some have) - it was simply an off day for him and he'll be hitting the net again in no time. Finally, did Sir Alex really say there was 'not enough injury time to win the game'?! The team selection seemed a bit baffling considering it's total lack of pace, when everyone knows that is Spurs main attribute. However to paraphrase Mark Twain 'reports of Man Utd's death are greatly exaggerated'. Don't write them off any time soon.

Liverpool picked up their first league win of the campaign away in Norfolk where they could easily have won by a greater margin but for their usual profligacy. The Norwich defence were all at sea again with Michael Turner and Leon Barnett having a very good go at impersonating the Keystone Cops. It is no coincidence that in the two games that Sebastien Bassong has missed for the Canaries, they have conceded 11 goals. Rat boy Suarez cashed in here as he recorded a second consecutive hat-trick at Carrow Road to leave the locals sick of the sight of him (isn't that the feeling most people get when they see him though?!).

Roundup of our teams

We've said enough about the misfortunes of Manchester United above and QPR below but it didn't stop there for us as Crewe Alexandra had a five match unbeaten run ended by MK Dons. Charlie MacDonald struck after just eight minutes after getting himself on the end of a ball in from Dean Bowditch to give Franchise FC all three points.

Imagine our delight then when our German correspondent told of back to back home wins for 1. FC Union Berlin who emerged victorious in the Brandenburg derby with a 3:1 win over Cottbus. In a bad tempered affair which saw both sides finish ten-a-side, Simon Terodde, Christoph Quiring (who has been something of a revelation for Union so far this year) and Björn Jopek scored for Die Eiserner to rocket them up to 13th in the German 2nd Division. Daniel Haas, a newbie between the sticks for Union having signed from Hoffenheim over the Summer, also saved a crucial penalty at 2:1. Keep it up lads!!

Match Review: QPR 1-2 West Ham United

Sky Sports, the Park Ji-Sung fan club and I were in attendance for Monday night football as QPR took on West Ham in the Premier League seeking a first win of the season. Sadly, the QPR defence were not in attendance, and that's not the first time this week I've said that!

Gearing up for another defeat

QPR started this game as they left off the last - chasing shadows. West Ham came out of the blocks all guns blazing and their tempo, determination and tough tackling somehow caught the Hoops by surprise (you'd have thought they'd have learned from the Reading experience). The Hammers were rewarded for a good start but it was made all too easy for them as Matt Jarvis was allowed a free header across Julio Cesar into the far corner to give them a 2nd minute lead. This was hugely frustrating as yet again we are gifting teams easy goals but yet having to work ten times as hard to score ourselves (which is what you'd expect in the Premier League). The R's were lethargic, lacked urgency and struggled to string more than two or three passes together at a time, and Djibril Cisse was still insistent on shooting from distance, troubling Jaaskelainen just once all half.

The home side's best chance of the half came from an excellent Esteban Granero delivery on 21 minutes which somehow was cleared off the line by a combination of West Ham bodies (proper defending - a 'keep the ball out at all costs' mentality - take note Rangers!). One of those was that of Winston Reid, who appeared groggy as he was escorted from the pitch after being hurt in the goalmouth scramble. 

After a lengthy delay, play resumed and it was much of the same, with West Ham's energy and determination dominating the midfield. QPR were making Nolan, Diame, Vaz Te and Jarvis look like world beaters and West Ham were having far too much joy down the wings with any of the above proving a mismatch against the ageing Clint Hill or Nedum Onuoha (who I felt went on to have his poorest game in Blue and White Hoops yet). Wright-Phillips was just barged off of the ball by Joey O'Brien (another mismatch), Park was ineffective and distinctly lacked his usual work-rate (just like against Reading) and Granero, who has impressed many since joining us, was very frustrating all half (his free kick aside). The Spaniard insisted on dilly dallying with the ball rather than taking the better option of an open pass to a team mate, which allowed the West Ham midfield far too much time to anticipate his next move every time. 

A second goal was only a matter of time but when it did arrive it was thanks yet again to shocking marking. Stephane Mbia, guilty of leaving Jarvis all alone for the first, gave Ricardo Vaz Te the freedom of West London this time around. Perhaps he expected Julio Cesar to deal with the cross but neither player spoke to each other and it seemed that Cesar expected Mbia to deal with this. Under no pressure, the Portu-geezer had time to adjust himself and score from a seemingly impossible angle (afforded that much time, I probably could have, too). Half time couldn't come soon enough and after six minutes of injury time the R's were booed off when Mark Clattenburg did eventually whistle.

Clattenburg clearly decided at half time that he hadn't been controversial enough in the first half, booking just two West Ham players and no QPR players. He returned to the field later than everyone else and started the second half late after prancing around for a minute or two, seemingly determined to influence the outcome of the game. West Ham started as they had left off and did most of the early second half running. Diame had a decent effort stopped by Cesar and that was enough to spark Sparky into making changes. He called Taarabt and Diakite back from their warm up, a shout met by a chorus of cheers from QPR fans desperately seeking a game changer. On his day, Taarabt is exactly that. Brought on in the 57th minute here, the R's side were visibly lifted by the Moroccan entering the fray and a minute later Taarabt turned on the style, something we've just not seen enough of from him in the Premier League. After taking on the outstanding Diame with a confident swagger, he unleashed an unstoppable 25 yard shot into the top right corner of Jaaskelainen's net. Game on! The crowd were back behind the R's and West Ham looked shell shocked. Unfortunately, Clattenburg picked this moment to try to grab the headlines. He outrageously booked Taarabt for celebrating when he didn't remove his shirt (he only lifted it to reveal a religious message). And after letting so many similar challenges go in the first half, he booked Samba Diakite for the first tackle he made since coming on - yes it was a foul, but not worthy of a yellow for the first time it was committed! 

Unfortunately for QPR fans, Samba Diakite is a lunatic. This was the worst time he could have got a booking and knowing the way the man plays, it was only going to be a matter of time before he got his marching orders. However in the time leading up to his sending off, Diakite was calm, assured and offered the tough-tackling, determined, energetic approach that was required to put the Irons on the back foot. For a twenty minute spell, he ran the central midfield and West Ham had no answer. QPR were creating chances like they haven't done for weeks and it seemed they could go on and get the equalise. Clattenburg had lost his head by this point and was dishing out soft looking yellows to several West Ham players, including one for timewasting to Jussi Jaaskelainen. This is an offence that goes unpunished almost every week in the league but to the Finn's defence, he had only done it once and wasn't even given a warning by the referee. With all these soft yellow card awards having occurred, Clattenburg had set the precedent for the level of challenge that he would deem as a yellow card and with the bar very low, a fairly standard Samba Diakite foul was enough to persuade the deluded referee that it was time to change the colour of the card being dished out. I think it was coming anyway, with Samba being the wrecking ball that he is, but no way would another referee awarded two yellow cards for those two fouls. 

Diakite's sending off effectively ended the game as a contest and whilst Clattenburg continued filling his notebook, Carlton Cole missed a sitter which would have put the game to bed and was duly replaced by Andy Carroll. Unfortunately, QPR became more and more desperate and resorted to the kind of hoof ball I'd associate with the opposition manager. Of course, with his side being masters of this game, Allardyce's men mopped up everything that was hurled towards Zamora and Collins and Tomkins were given an easy ride to the final whistle. There was even time for Ricardo Vaz Te to force Julio Cesar into a world class stop from a thunderous half volley - the Brazilian got a firm hand on the shot and tipped it on to the crossbar where it then went out for a corner. Take a bow son! (However, Julio, your homework this week will be dealing with crosses). In added time Clattenburg finally got the accolade his performance merited by booking an eighth West Ham player (no Premier League side had had eight bookings in a match before this game): James Tomkins this time going in the book, presumably because he took ten seconds to take a free kick and was the only West Ham player that Clattenburg could think of that he hadn't cautioned. 

So all in all a massive disappointment yet again, but bizarrely I'm still convinced that we'll come good under Hughes. I'm not expecting anything at West Brom on Saturday (where the home side have won three out of three and have yet to concede), so I think I'll review his position again after the international break when we *might* have a team of competent defenders. 

Man of the Match: Apart from Adel Taarabt who was a breath of fresh air when he came on and just has to start at the weekend in my mind, it was another poor performance all round from the others. Therefore, I'm forced to consider opposition candidates, and I can't look much further than Mohamed Diame, who has looked an excellent piece of business on a free transfer for the Hammers and ran the midfield here. 

What we learned this weekend

- It should be a criminal offence to leave Peter Crouch unmarked from a set-piece, what were the Swansea defence thinking?!

- Petr Cech showed yet again that he is the world's best goalkeeper in one-on-one situations when attackers try to round him to score
-Steve Kean's sacking must have been the most inevitable yet surprising (timing) ever? Why give him over £8m to spend on players exactly?!
- Who on earth will Venky's pick to replace him? Bookies seem to be assuming they have some football sense which they clearly don't

Week 6 Preview: The Biggest Weekend Since Last Weekend

After the drama of last week's Premier League games, this gameweek on paper looks a tad less exciting...

The weekend arguably offers one (maybe two - for the purposes of our preview, anyway!) stand-out game: that being Arsenal v Chelsea. The lunch time kick off on Saturday promises to be an exciting one, and as with Arsenal's game last week is another test of their title credentials. While Chelsea sit top of the table, Arsenal have been the more impressive side this season in many respects. After Chelsea's humbling in the Super Cup by Falcao and co they seem to have struggled and I think that central midfield is where the problem lies. Mikel and Lampard is a very unimpressive duo to sit in front of the defence in my opinion; Mikel has always struggled to live up to his wonderkid tag he got 10 years ago, while Lampard's legs seem to have gone and he is no longer the dynamic force he once was. Lampard appears to be trying to reinvent himself a la Paul Scholes as a defensive playmaker but Chelsea don't need any more playmakers, with the likes of Hazard, Mata, Marin and Moses in their team. Both sides have an identical goal record this season having scored 9 and conceded just 2. However, Arsenal have already played Stoke away, Liverpool away and Man City away while I don't think Chelsea have really had a test this season (sorry QPR fans), so Arsenal's record is a lot more impressive in my view. That said, Chelsea have kept a clean sheet in their last 3 games so Arsenal's forwards will need to have a good day for the Gooners to get a result. Last season there were 8 goals in the 2 matches between these sides but they all came in the first fixture at Stamford Bridge where an RVP inspired Arsenal ran out 5-3 victors. The season before Arsenal won 3-1 but that was their first victory against Chelsea for over 3 encounters - seemingly always Didier Drogba inspired Chelsea as well. Neither side have lost so far this season and expect it to be tense with both sides wanted to avoid defeat first and foremost. For that reason, we're predicting a draw.

Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea

There promises to be a 'cracking' (Warnock, 2012) West Midlands derby at Villa Park on Sunday when Aston Villa take on West Brom. The home side have not had the best of starts to this season but will be buoyed (and also tired) by the extra time win over Man Citeh on Tuesday night. Encouragingly for Villa, their most potent attacking threats of last season (N'Zogbia, Bent and Agbonlahor) have all netted in the last week which fans will hope will have brought confidence flooding back. WBA have made an outstanding start to the league season, drawing plenty of plaudits with their positive attacking football and resilient defending that has seen them concede less goals than two of the three sides above them, including not at all at home. But they have found points on their travels more difficult to come by, picking up just one so far this year (in fairness, they've only had a possible four points, but they rolled over fairly easily at Fulham). They did, however, win 2-1 at Villa Park last season, their first win there for over thirty years, which will give them hope they can claim something here. Add to this the Paul Lambert footballing ethos and I'm expecting an open game here with a flurry of goals.

Prediction: Aston Villa 2-2 West Brom 

In the Championship the pick of the week is Cardiff v Blackpool. Both sides suffered surprise defeats to Palace (away) and Huddersfield (home) respectively. Of the last 6 matches between these sides half of the games have ended in a draw but impressively Blackpool are unbeaten against Cardiff in their last 5 meetings. Obviously Blackpool also won the biggest fixture in May 2010 emerging 3-2 victors in the play-off final. Both teams have scored in the last 5 fixtures between these 2 teams so if you're a betting man that seems like a decent one (don't blame us when it inevitably doesn't come through though!). Cardiff have been impressive this season though and have won their last 3 home games in the Championship, so this is a tough one to call. However I'm expecting Tom Ince to run the show here and Cardiff to go missing in a big match yet again.

Prediction: Cardiff 1-2 Blackpool

On to our teams then, and at 17:30 on Saturday Old Trafford plays host to Manchester United v Tottenham. United haven't really hit top gear this season yet but they sit in second place, encouragingly. It's well documented that United are unbeaten in their last 26 matches against Tottenham in all competitions and Spurs haven't won at Old Trafford since 1989. Worryingly all the signs point to a United victory - they've won 10 of their last 11 home league games and kept 6 clean sheets in their last 8 home league games. Runs will always come to an end, but given Spurs mediocre start to the season hopefully it will be a narrow win for the Reds.

Crewe face a difficult looking away trip to Stadium:MK, where the home side have only dropped two points so far this season. This has lead the club's PR machine to interview as many players as possible in a week and have them tell the club website how the team will be going to Buckinghamshire 'with no fear'. The Alex, who go into the match on a run of four consecutive draws, have also intriguingly recruited Andy Bond on loan this week from Colchester. Bond is former Railwayman that left the club seven years ago without ever having made an appearance for them!

It's a Brandenburg derby for FC Union Berlin this weekend as they welcome 2nd placed unbeaten rivals Energie Cottbus to Köpenick on Saturday lunchtime (12:00 GMT kick-off). Union will be looking to build on a mini-run of form that has seen them beat Köln followed by a decent away point at Aue on Wednesday night in a virtually unheard of midweek 2. Bundesliga game. They will, however, have been left pondering what might have been on Wednesday after leading 1:0 for much of the game, only to concede an own goal in the 83rd minute. That's the way things go when you're struggling down at the bottom! Ich drücke euch die daumen, Union.

Finally, Monday night football comes from Loftus Road as QPR take on West Ham under the lights. This has just got to be the game that we get the three points we so desperately crave. I don't care how we do it this time, just as long as we get the job done. I can't bear any alternative outcome! In all honesty, I am expecting a really tough game, I think it'll be frustrating at times because West Ham are a technically strong side that don't get the credit they deserve because they are instantly dismissed as a purely 'hoof ball' team - which, of course, is partly true, but their midfield are no mugs and they have players that can finish chances all over the park. I have little doubt they will score at least one. From a QPR perspective, I just hope that Zamora continues his scoring run and that Cisse rediscovers his! If that happens, I think we'll be OK here.

All in all, plenty to look forward to this weekend. Enjoy the football and look out for our review on Monday in which we'll no doubt have something to say about this evening's news of Steve Kean resigning at Blackburn. C will also have a match review from the Loft on Tuesday evening.

C&J

The Weekend That Never Stops Giving

Another eventful weekend in English football with plenty to chew over.

Man United v Liverpool was a highly controversial game, and predictably supporters from Liverpool will argue all the big decisions went against them wrongly, while United fans will claim they were correct. I can't really be bothered going into why I think Shelvey's red card was correct, or why I think it was a penalty on Valencia. What I will say is that all fans have watched 16 replays from 14 different angles and come to their obviously correct conclusions. Sky zoomed in on Luis Suarez's foot to determine he reached the ball a microsecond before Jonny Evans and as a result it was a penalty. Mark Halsey saw these decisions in real time with no slow mo's and no extra angles for his benefit. It is easy to judge with the benefit of hindsight but spare a thought for what a tough job it is to make a decision on a split second's judgement knowing millions of people are watching and won't all agree with it. In the game, Liverpool bossed the field, and had 63% possession in the first half, but yet again they didn't have a clinical striker to take advantage of all this possession. Obviously Shelvey's sending off influenced the game hugely and by the end United had 48% of the ball throughout the game. I do think though that another major factor in their success in the second half was the substitution of Scholes on for Nani. I thought Nani had quite possibly his worst game in a United shirt yesterday. He had a passing accuracy of just 65% - to put that into perspective only Pepe Reina had a worse passing percentage yesterday of every single player on the pitch. He gave United no directness and was a liability unfortunately. As soon as Scholes came on and Giggs went to the left, they had more shape, space and width to pass the ball about. Obviously the extra man helped with this as well though. I think that the difference between the two sides was mainly up front: Liverpool had 6 shots on target and scored just 1 - a conversion rate of just 16%, whereas United had 3 shots on target and scored 2 - a 66% conversion rate. Liverpool have had a tough start and shouldn't lose patience in Brendan Rodgers, but from a United perspective the fact that they are picking up wins whilst not playing well (something City haven't mastered this season yet) is encouraging. Eventually they need to click or it will come back to bite them, but I think that if you give RVP and Kagawa a bit more time to develop chemistry the signs are there that it could be a good partnership.

Well Man City v Arsenal was a confirmation that we might have title challengers from outside of Manchester this season, if you didn't already know. Arsenal showed resilience to come from behind to earn a point at the Etihad which they maybe wouldn't have had last year. By the end of the game you'd probably have to say that Arsenal deserved to win the game really, but ultimately the result is the only thing that matters. I think City are finding it a little bit more difficult this season as teams are upping their game for the 'Champions' (I feel a little bit sick still saying that). City have already dropped 6 points this season after just 5 games - that is nearly a quarter of the points they dropped all season last year. It's hard what to say the most impressive aspect of Arsenal's game has been this season - their excellent defensive displays, or the imperious Santi Cazorla (I'm not sure, but having listened to Jamie Redknapp I think he might be quite 'little'). Arsenal had 59% of possession in this game, and if they can get a clinical striker (sorry but Podolski hasn't proved he is yet) firing then they really could be in with a very strong shout for the title.

If you haven't watched Everton's second goal from their match against Swansea yet, watch it. Watch it now. Phil Neville picked up the ball right by their corner flag to end a Swansea move. Within 3 short, sharp, incisive passes Steven Pienaar had been released down the right and he played a magnificent first time cross perfectly into the path of the onrushing Kevin Mirallas to score at the second time of asking after his first effort had been tipped onto the crossbar. This goal shows the other side of Everton that people don't give them enough credit for usually. Against United they were set to be bullying and physical (in a good way) but this game shows they are a terrific footballing side when the time calls for it. Everton actually had a higher passing accuracy than Swansea, who are lauded for their tiki taka football, throughout the game (85% to 81%) and Everton had more possession of the ball - which not many teams will achieve at the Liberty Stadium this year I imagine. A lot is made of Everton being notoriously slow starters, but this is their best start after 5 league games since 2007/08 when they also had 10 points. Last year at this stage they had 7 points, in 2008/09 they also had 7 points, in 2009/10 they had 6 points and in 2010/11 they had just 2 points after 5 games. I think though that Everton's style of play is more impressive than their points total. They have a swagger about them this season we've not really seen before. They have depth up front, they have creativity in midfield and solidity in defence. Basically all signs point to Everton having a very good season and I think that if they carry on playing this well consistently throughout the season they could well challenge for a top 4 place.  

Southampton's season essentially started in earnest on Saturday and what a result it was for them. When they received their fixture list they will have earmarked the Wigan game as a must win I imagine, but Nigel Adkins will probably have realised his team would be highly unlikely to pick up much after their first four games which consisted of both Manchester clubs and Arsenal. They shipped 14 goals and looked very ropey defensively. Unfortunately for Saints Kelvin Davis just doesn't look up to the standard of a Premier League goalkeeper. He was finally dropped this week after conceding 14 goals in 4 games, and they only conceded one with Paulo Gazzaniga in goal and now they've signed Artur Boruc on a free this week as well. Rickie Lambert however looks right at home in the Premier League. In 137 games for Southampton he has scored an incredible 82 goals. He got 30 goals in League One in 2009/10 and 21 the following season in the same league. He made the step up to the Championship and scored 27 goals in 42 games last year, and now he has hit the ground running again with 4 goals in 5 games so far this season, including 2 against Manchester City and United. Following on from the success of Grant Holt and Danny Graham last year who also made their way up through the Football League, Lambert is showing that a clinical finisher can perform at any level if he has confidence. Southampton certainly look as if they will approach games with the Kevin Keegan mentality of defending by attacking. Whilst the Saints defence is undoubtedly very leaky - statistically the worst in the league at the moment - they have scored the 5th highest total so far with 9 as well (just 1 behind Man City). Last year in the Championship Saints scored 85 goals all season. This indicates their strength most definitely lies in going forward and attacking teams. It promises to be an exciting season for Southampton and you get the feeling that they may well be one of the most interesting teams to watch this season, especially in terms of goals! They certainly look much more well-equipped for the Premier League than Reading and Gaston Ramirez's performance looked like a very good sign. Nigel Adkins has done an excellent job at Saints to get them from League One to the Premier League and surely that should buy him some time out of the 'back page sack race', especially since they had such a challenging start to the fixture list. 

Unfortunately the other big talking point this week is John Terry. As much as we don't want to give him any more publicity, he has now announced his retirement from international football, something we couldn't just let slip. J mentioned in our preview of the England game against Moldova that he thought this had been coming for a while now. England have got a lot of very good options at centre back with the likes of Gary Cahill, Joleon Lescott and Phil Jagielka already in contention. Maybe it's time for someone like Ryan Shawcross or maybe Steven Caulker to be given the chance to come into the squad and gain experience, which is the only way they will be able to develop as international class central defenders. John Terry stated that the FA had made his position in the England team "untenable" by putting together an investigation about his alleged racial abuse of Anton Ferdinand last October when he had been acquitted in a criminal court of any wrongdoing. In the past if an England player was accused of a criminal charge was not eligible to be picked for the international team; John Terry was. When relations between England's usual centre back pairing became untenable due to Rio Ferdinand's unhappiness at Terry's behaviour towards his brother, Rio Ferdinand was dropped entirely and not picked; John Terry was. John Terry is said to have slept with his international and club colleague's ex-girlfriend (I thought that was a fact but apparently it isn't) and yet Wayne Bridge was the one who was forced to declare himself ineligible for selection whilst Terry was still in the team. In short, it's pretty difficult to see how the FA have made his position "untenable". As a matter of fact it appears to the outsider that they have bent over backwards to accomodate their brave leader at any cost. Therefore, it leads us to the conclusion that John Terry must know this FA investigation, which starts today, will not end favourably for him. In essence he has walked before he was pushed, and it is hard to take any other stance than he deserves what he gets. Though let's not forget, possibly the most important thing to come out of this is that Championship's Wayne Bridge is now surely in line for an England recall?

Roundup of our teams

As mentioned above Man Utd beat Liverpool 2-1 away from home, with a Rafael curler and Robin Van Persie penalty (finally we scored a penalty!) cancelling out Steven Gerrard's opener in a tense game at Anfield.

If you haven't read C's excellent review of the QPR - Tottenham game from yesterday yet why not? QPR were extremely unlucky to come away with anything from the game, let alone missing out on 3 points. Bobby Zamora's opener put QPR ahead but a Faurlin own goal and Defoe goal in one mad minute put paid to the R's hopes of a first away win in 16 games.

Crewe drew 1-1 with Leyton Orient to frustratingly record their 4th draw in a row in the League and sit in 15th position. Matt Tootle put the Alex ahead after 2 minutes but L'Orient equalised in the 19th minute through former QPR man Martin Rowlands. The Alex are really missing the presence and finishing ability of Mathias Pogba up front, and while the talented duo of AJ Leitch-Smith and Max Clayton are more than capable at this level there is a dearth in back up behind them, and thankfully for the Railwaymen Mat Pogba has returned to training this week to hopefully rectify this situation.

As reported in Friday's weekend preview, Union Berlin claimed their first league win of the season against the team who were placed immediately above them before the weekend, FC Cologne, who look to have carried their form from last year's relegation from the Bundesliga into this year. Union won 2-1 in a game that we are hoping will kickstart their season proper! Silvio and Torsten Mattuschka won the game for Union and moved them out of the relegation places into a lofty 14th position in the league.

What we learned this week:-

- Your Mrs ranting on Twitter still won't get you into the Reading team right now, Mr Federici. And on yesterday's evidence, you'll be warming the bench for a while; an excellent display from Alex McCarthy away at West Brom showed that he more than merits his place in the starting 11.
- Carl Jenkinson has been immense so far this season.
- Would you like to learn how to put a young child in his place with just a little laugh and smile?

- What a terrible shame that Nathan Dyer should come on for Swansea only to be booked twice in thirteen second half minutes (the two bookings incidentally just a minute apart). Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
- Surely this is the most ridiculous time to sack Steve Kean? Out of all the moments they could have done it now makes absolutely no sense with Rovers 2nd in the Championship. Another example of Venky's complete lack of understanding about how to run a football club. Seems similar to when Gareth Southgate was sacked by Middlesbrough after guiding them to relegation he then saw them to 4th place and 1 point off top when he was then sacked - and look what's happened at Middlesbrough since.

- There were a fair few football league hat-tricks around this weekend but one that stood out was that of Dean Bowditch. Bowditch is a player I've always thought has flattered to deceive after bursting on to the scene at Ipswich, but he helped himself to his 2nd career hat-trick for MK Dons away courtesy of Bury's generous defence. I'm reliably informed that this was his first treble in 8 years (the day of his senior debut).

- There are no dead certs in football, just ask everyone that had Birmingham v Barnsley down as a home banker! A terrific away romp for the Tykes with Craig Davies on fire. He also gave an excellent post-match interview about how Birmingham is significant in his life because it's where his Nan lives, so it's ultra special to have scored four goals there rather than anywhere else. (I wish I could link you to it but can't find it at the moment.)

- Tranmere and Gillingham march on at the top of League One and Two, both picking up away wins respective in games at Crawley and Port Vale, arguably the toughest test each side has faced so far this season. 

- A special mention for Leon Clarke, who has found himself in another one of his spurts of form after joining Scunthorpe, where everything he touches is currently turning to gold (4 goals in 4 games). He never did find one of those said spurts at Wolves, or QPR, or Preston, or Swindon, or Charlton. Clarke is a truly odd confidence player who never ceases to amaze me with how many clubs he's been at, how high up the Football League ladder he has played and how little he offers to a team when he's not scoring. I wonder how long this run of goals will last before Scunny fans see the worst of him.

- The wait for another home win for Morecambe fans still goes on, this time they blew a 2-0 lead over Plymouth and went on to lose 3-2. Unbelievable!
- How has Sylvain Ebanks-Blake's 'straight down the middle' penalty routine not been sussed out by goalkeepers yet?! He's been doing it for ages now!

It's the turn of the CoC (Capital One Cup - obviously) this week and two ties that look particularly tricky for  Premier League sides are Tottenham away at Carlisle on Wednesday and Everton travelling to Leeds on Tuesday. We don't promise excitement - it is the CoC - but it could be intriguing. C is heading to Loftus Road to brave the rain on Wednesday night for the R's tie against Reading, so expect another match review from that.

Enjoy the week

C&J

*Also a little quick note to cheer up our friend JJ who hasn't been too good this week. Get well soon mate!

Weekend preview: Super, Magnificent, Phenomenal, Hype Inducing Sunday Is Nearly Here...!

It's a classic Sky Sports double bill this weekend as 'Super Sunday' © ® ™ returns to our screens with two big matches between Liverpool & Man Utd and Man City & Arsenal. 

I’m sure you’re all sick of reading about it and we’re sick of saying it but here is a little note to say that we really hope that there is no offensive chanting at the Liverpool – Man Utd game at the weekend. Let’s hope that we’re talking about the football at the end of the game and not the actions of some mindless few.

Anyway on to the football…as a United fan I can’t help but be pessimistic about our chances in this match as we haven’t won at Anfield in the League at the last 4 attempts and no matter how badly Liverpool seem to be playing at the time, the game against Man Utd always seems to spur them onto a good performance. Liverpool will press the ball quickly and high up the pitch which won’t suit United especially if the likes of Carrick or Scholes are playing (can’t see Scholes playing though after 2 games already in the last week). These players prefer space and time and they won’t get it at Anfield. Liverpool’s possession game may also be tricky for United to deal with. Unlike Liverpool, the Red Devils don’t really have any ball winners in their team to upset this which could mean long periods of possession for Liverpool. The duel of Raheem Sterling against Rafael also looks like an opportunity for Liverpool, as Rafael is more known for his attacking play than defensive capabilities (this is assuming Rafael will play but with Smalling injured and Phil Jones I can’t see him going with Valencia there in this game after the Everton debacle). That said Liverpool’s possession this season has not amounted to wins largely due to the fact that their front line is not very clinical and this hasn’t changed. I can see Liverpool having more chances and it may depend on whether Suarez or Borini have put their shooting boots on or not. United will be more likely to be clinical which could give them an edge. They will need to pass the ball better in midfield than they did against Galatasaray though if they are to stand any chance of avoiding defeat. Reading an article by The Secret Footballer it seems that Brendan Rodgers may be under fire if Liverpool don’t win this game, and you have to wonder if their hunger to win the first game of the season at the expense of their bitter rivals will see them win out in the end.  All in all this is a tough one to call and I’m erring on the side of predicting a loss but then it could be a draw.

Prediction: Liverpool 2-1 Man Utd

Immediately after the Liverpool-United game is another humdinger, which obviously Sky won't hype to the hilt promising it is the most important match since one Anthony McPartlin met a certain Mr Declan Donnelly on the set of Byker Grove. I think that this one is the most interesting game this weekend to be honest. It is the acid test for just how good this Arsenal team is and maybe even can be. A lot of people are talking up Arsenal’s chances of challenging for the title this season and we will begin to get an idea of how serious we should take this talk by 6:30 on Sunday evening. I'm sorry but I don't consider that Liverpool game to have been a serious test, I'm talking top 4 really at the moment (as in Man City, Man Utd, Chelsea mainly). Arsenal have looked really good so far this season they seem more balanced and Santi Cazorla looks like an outstanding player. But the 6-1 against Southampton wasn't that impressive to me since Saints defence has been very leaky, and they scraped past a Montpellier side which is languishing in 16th place in Ligue 1 and is a shadow of the title winning side last year, which was picked apart by the vultures (such as Arsenal, taking Giroud). Therefore, this is the time when we can hopefully see if Arsenal have the ability to challenge this season. As much of a cliche it is to say it, I think this game could all hinge on the first goal. Arsenal's ability to keep clean sheets looks like it has come back again after going missing for about 7 years, so if they go in front it may well be that they will keep hold of it. But if City go in front it will be interesting to see if the fragile nature of Arsenal's confidence comes to the fore again or if that is now a thing of the past. I think Arsenal will get a lot of chances in this one. City have conceded 9 goals in 5 games in all competitions so far this season, but then they have scored 11 in 5 as well. In short, Arsenal's defence will have its biggest test to date this weekend! Overall, I can actually see both teams settling for the draw if they head into the last 20 minutes on level terms. It would be a decent result for both teams and this early in the season I think that both will go in with the objective of avoiding defeat.

Prediction: Man City 1-1 Arsenal

Leeds v Nottingham Forest - We've picked out this game as all the signs point to there being goals, goals, goals galore at Elland Road on Saturday. Last year this fixture Forest ran out winners in an amazing 3-7 match. Furthermore, in the last 3 league games between the two sides there have been over 3 goals every time. This sounds promising you say? Well to add to this excitement, there have been 16 goals in Nottingham Forest's 6 league games this season (scored 9, conceded 7), and a phenomenal 21 goals in the same amount of games for Leeds (scored 10, conceded 11). Forest are unbeaten in their last 6 games whilst Leeds have lost their last 2. But Forest have been drawing matches away from home rather than winning really. All signs point to either a high scoring draw or a Forest win essentially. Leeds are sitting in 14th in the league and were booed off against Hull in midweek, so you have to feel that if Forest can score early Leeds fans could get on their players backs and the away team could run out winners.

Prediction: Leeds 0-0 Forest...Only joking! We're going for Leeds 2-3 Forest

For QPR this weekend it's another London derby as attention turns to 'The Lane'. Spurs will want to make up for a poor run of form at home of late which has seen them find the net just twice and pick up draws against Norwich and West Brom in the league. Both the Canaries and the Baggies will have been viewed by Spurs fans as cannon fodder before their respective match ups but, encouragingly from QPR's point of view, both sides were able to provide more than a match for the home side and will have left the Lane ruing missing out on what might have been three points. Having said that, the R's will have to play arguably the paciest right hand side in the football league and one of the best left midfielders on the planet without a recognised left-back (I don't count Onuoha or Hill in spite of their apparent 'ability to play anywhere across the back line') and with just two recognised centre halves due to a spate of injuries. Still, as long as we go there and play more positively than we did in last season's trip in the first half, then we should at least see them put up a better fight than the 3-1 reverse suffered a year back. AVB will no doubt be out for revenge as it was ultimately the QPR v Chelsea fixture almost a year ago that ruined his excellent start at Chelsea manager and saw the wheels begin to fall off of what looked like it might have been a decent campaign (what a shame, eh?!). Much has been made of the fact that QPR haven't won at Tottenham for 18 years but, in their defence, they've only been there three times since, so it's hardly a surprise! Still, I'd suggest there's a strong possibility of that number becoming 19 come 6pm on Sunday...

After picking up a creditable back to back away draws at Stevenage and Carlisle, Crewe host the QPR Reserves (better known as Leyton Orient) this weekend at Gresty Road. L'Orient are on a good run themselves (although having watched their 1-0 win over Brentford last weekend, they seem to be having some good fortune along the way!) so this will be an intriguing encounter. It was pleasing to see Max Clayton pick up League One's Young Player of the Month accolade, a deserved reward for a player who has really stepped up to the plate so far this season in spite of having had the burden of filling the void left by Nick Powell departing firmly placed upon him. We can only hope that his form continues but also that this isn't a precedent for the vultures to start circling around him too.

Finally I am delighted to bring the news that on this very evening 1. FC Union Berlin claimed their first league win of the season at home to struggling 1. FC Köln, themselves also still seeking a first league win since being relegated from the top flight (they are in fact winless since 10th March!). Silvio and Tuschi (Torsten Mattuschka) scored the goals for the boys from East Berlin in a 2:1 victory. An excellent start to the weekend indeed! Here's hoping they've finally turned the corner - St Pauli away up next in the league.

C is off 'daan the Lane' on Sunday afternoon and a match report will follow along with the usual weekend roundup.

Enjoy what will arguably be the best weekend of the season yet.

C&J