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The Pick Of Sunday’s Football: English, Scottish, Spanish & Italian

CHELSEA v TOTTENHAM

The game of the weekend takes place in the Queen’s capital, as Chelsea and Tottenham battle it out in a replay of last season’s Carling Cup final. The two couldn’t have more different starts to the season – the Blues look unbeatable, thanks to Deco, while Spurs have been simply awful.

The question is who will be playing in this encounter. Rumours abound that Chelsea are close to signing Robinho, while Spurs look set to clinch Russian star Roman Pavlyuchenko. Spurs are in need of some support for Darren Bent, who has yet to carry his pre-season form onto a Premier League pitch.

Read full Chelsea v Tottenham preview

Last Five League Results
Chelsea: 4 wins (Wigan, Pompey, Newcastle, Man Utd), 1 draw (Bolton)
Tottenham: 1 win (Reading), 1 draw (Bolton) 3 losses (Sunderland, Boro, Liverpool)

Prediction: A comfortable Chelsea win

SUNDERLAND v MANCHESTER CITY

Watch out for Keano! Whilst all eyes were on Man City’s failure to lure big-name players, Sunderland quietly bought a whole new team over the summer. And it’s a team filled with quality too. Djibril Cisse got off to an excellent start from the bench last weekend and will be looking to start this week, while Anton Ferdinand has completed his switch to the Stadium of Light.

Mark Hughes will be happy having seen his side quickly forget their opening day defeat with a convincing over West Ham. Jo is now back from the Olympics and much is expected of the costly Brazilian, after a string of useless/luckless strikers have passed in and out the doors at Eastlands.

Last Five League Results
Sunderland: 2 wins (Spurs, Boro), 3 losses (Liverpool, Arsenal, Bolton)
Man City: 1 win (West Ham), 4 losses (A Villa, Boro, Liverpool, Fulham)

Prediction: A tight one, but Sunderland will just nick it thanks to home support

CELTIC V RANGERS

It’s the first Old Firm derby of the season and typically there’s not much between these two. Both have identical records: two wins and one draw. Both also have new signings to show off, more so Rangers who welcome Maurice Edu and Kyle Lafferty to their first red-hot-cauldron encounters. Meanwhile Kenny Miller will face scorn, most likely from both sets of supporters, having represented both sides of the divide on numerous occasions.

Gordon Strachan will be hoping Georgios Samaras and Shaun Maloney can keep up the good work up front, especially considering their his only realistic strike options (both Vennegoor of Hesselink and McDonald are injury doubts). It’s hard to call these games, best just to sit back and enjoy.

Last Five League Results
Celtic: 4 wins (Falkirk, St Mirren, Dundee Utd, Hibs), 1 draw (Dundee Utd)
Rangers: 3 wins (Hearts, Falkirk, St Mirren), 1 draw (Aberdeen), 1 loss (Aberdeen)

Prediction: A draw, which will suit Kilmarnock who have the chance of topping the SPL this weekend

DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA v REAL MADRID

The Spanish league kicks off this weekend and the pick of the opening weekend’s clashes comes at the Estadio Municipal de Riazor. After four years of mid-table obscurity Deportivo fans are starting to forget the days when they actually used to compete against Madrid at the top of the tree. With Coloccini removed from their defence things won’t be getting any better.

Real look set to lose Robinho who, despite the heavy criticism, did his fair bit in terms of goalscoring last season to help guide his side towards winning the league. But in Raul and Ruud van Nistelrooy Madrid boast arguably the most prolific, if slightly ageing, strike partnership in La Liga.

Last Five League Results
Deportivo: 2 wins (Barcelona, Levante), 3 losses (Zaragoza, Atletico, Villareal)
Real Madrid: 4 wins (Bilbao, Osasuna, Barcelona, Levante), 1 draw (Zaragoza)

Prediction: A Real Madrid victory to set their stall out to all challengers

FIORENTINA v JUVENTUS

After finishing fourth Fiorentina fans are salivating at the chance to take a big scalp on the opening weekend of Serie A. Although manager Cesare Prandelli has ruled out a title challenge this year, many will be expecting them to be there or there abouts with a new strike partnership of Adrian Mutu and Alberto Gilardino leading the line.

Claudio Ranieri duly delivered the good times back to Juve on their return to the top flight, leading the team to third place last season. Palermo hot shot Amauri joins an enviable attack of Alex Del Piero, David Trezeguet and Vincenzo Iaqunita. Tough to call, but there could be goals galore, just like the 2-3 thriller in Turin last March.

Last Five League Results
Fiorentina: 3 wins (Torino, Parma, Palermo), 1 draw (Sampdoria), 1 loss (Cagliari)
Juventus: 2 wins (Lazio, Atalanta), 2 draws (Sampdoria, Catania), 1 loss (Siena)

Prediction: Sitting firmly on the fence, a draw as both sides cancel each other out

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Add comment August 30th, 2008

Chelsea v Tottenham Football Preview (Aug 31)

Here’s the latest EPL preview from the crew at Bodog Sportsbook. 

This weekend the capital’s two big spenders come face to face, following very differing starts to the season. Luis Felipe Scolari has picked up where Avram Grant left off, on a winning streak (bar that night in Moscow). Tottenham have nil points and a fractured dressing room. Surely this can only go one way?

They may not have gone crazy in the transfer market but Chelsea have certainly bought wisely this summer. Deco and Jose Bosingwa have fitted into the starting line up with ease, a rarity in recent seasons for Chelsea new boys. Still, Robinho is expected to arrive by Monday, and that could upset the apple cart – two of Joe Cole, Michael Ballack, Michael Essien and Jon Obi Mikel will surely lose playing time because of the move.

Juande Ramos must be jealous of the Brazilian’s selection headache. Now that Dimitar Berbatov has plainly given up trying in training, the Tottenham boss is left with just one experienced striker in the shape of Darren Bent. A good pre-season for the Englishman has yet to materialise in the league.

No wonder there’s still talk of Russian duo Andrey Arshavin and Roman Pavlyuchenko arriving before the transfer deadline. The Russian pair would boost Spurs’ confidence no end, but getting them before Sunday’s fixture looks unlikely.

So in reality Sunday’s fixture should be based on current clientele. Despite spending big, Spurs’ new signings have yet to shine. Both Luka Modric and Gio Dos Santos were expected to explode onto the scene but that has yet to happen. New goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes has yet to prove he’s any better than Paul Robinson too.

Down at Stamford Bridge, Deco has become an instant fans favourite (how soon they forget the Barcelona games), scoring in his first two games. Up front Nicolas Anelka still looks out of place in the Chelsea set up, but a goal on the opening day should keep his confidence up until Didier Drogba returns from injury.

Tottenham may have beaten the Blues in the Carling Cup final last year but there’s no looking past the Chelsea home form. Scolari’s men haven’t lost at home in the league for four years. There isn’t a cat’s chance in hell that an underperforming Spurs side can get three points at Stamford Bridge. And the leaky defence should provide enough chances for a comfortable Chelsea win come 90 minutes.

Prediction: Chelsea Win

Get the best odds on Chelsea v Tottenham EPL fixture live. (Compare odds live across the top online sports bookmakers). 

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Add comment August 30th, 2008

Hurricane Gustav forces LSU to move up opener

Baton  Rouge, Louisiana  – LSU  has moved  up the  kickoff time  of  its  home opener  Saturday  against  Appalachian State  due  to concerns  over  Hurricane Gustav.

Originally  slated for  3 p.m.,  kickoff will  now  be 11  a.m.  in  anticipation  of an  evacuation  of  New Orleans  and  an anticipated  traffic contraflow order by the governor of Louisiana in preparation for the impact of Gustav.

“We  understand the  reason for the change  in the kickoff time and I can tell you that this team will be ready to play no matter what time the game starts,” LSU head coach Les Miles said.

“We are excited about playing our season opener in Tiger Stadium in front of the greatest fans in college football and we just hope  that the time change doesn’t inconvenience our fans too much. See you in Tiger Stadium.”

Add comment August 30th, 2008

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Add comment August 30th, 2008