EPL Preview - Week 30

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Man City v Chelsea
Man. City are languishing near the foot of the table and they are making a speedy nose-dive towards the Championship. Their form has been abysmal for most of the season, having scored only 10 goals at home in the Premiership this year. They met Chelsea in the first game of the season and were duly rolled over 3-0 at Stamford Bridge, I can see the same scoreline at Eastlands on Wednesday night.

City have been beset by off the pitch problems during this campaign with pressure mounting on Pearce after a bad run of performances, division in the dressing room and Joey Barton's alleged assault of a taxi driver this weekend. Pearce can afford a City loss but not a bad performance to go with it. It would make no sense to sack Pearce at this stage of the season as there is no one to come and change things around without the possibility of a mid-season break or a transfer window. The intriguing thing is that Pearce has been criticised for bringing in under par players to the club but people are missing one very important factor, it wasn't what Pearce brought in that was the major problem, it's what he let go: David James, Andrew Cole, Kiki Musampa, Ben Thatcher and Antoine Sibierski. All players with experience that added much needed depth to the City team. Cole's goals have been missed badly and he had a blossoming partnership with Vassell. James too is back to the peak of his best form and should not have been allowed to leave, he wanted more money so City should have obliged. Instead, they let him go and spent the money on an outstanding Swedish International goalkeeper that sits on the bench week-in week-out.

From a team news perspective Pearce doesn't have too many options at hand. Hamann, who had an ineffective game against Blackburn in the Cup, could be dropped in favour of Dabo, who has returned to the squad from injury. There is speculation that Barton may not figure against Chelsea after his altercation with the police earlier this week but Joey is used to situations like this. Last season he played the game against Charlton which was immediately after his brothers murder trial and it was his best performance of the season. The midfielder thrives under pressure like this and wouldn't miss the Chelsea game for anything. Also, Pearce cannot afford to sideline his best player.

Chelsea themselves are in the papers for the wrong reason this week, but whenever are they not? Mourinho spoke of his admiration for Real Madrid, yada, yada. Abramovich is upset, oy vay! I heard this week that the Russian billionaire talks with a childish voice, almost as if his balls haven't dropped. No wonder Mourinho finds it hard to grab him by his short and curlies... Saying this though Chelsea are a professional side and when push comes to shove, as shown against Spurs in the FA Cup, they carry out their work with stealthy precision. Captain John Terry returns to a Chelsea defence that looks lost without him and Makelele has been included in the side although Essien will probably start ahead of him. Shevchenko is Mourinho's main worry after the Ukrainian hurt his ankle during training. He is now a doubt ahead of the City clash while Mikel is certainly out as he is suspended.

Fantasy Insiders view: City are stuck in the mud; 3-0 Chelsea

Probable Formations
Man City (4-5-1) Weaver - Distin, Dunne, Richards, Ball - Sun Jihai, Barton, Ireland, Dabo, Vassell - Corradi

Chelsea (4-4-2) Cech - A. Cole, Diarra, Terry, Carvalho - Essien, Robben, Lampard, Ballack - Shevchenko, Drogba.

*Players denoted in red are doubtful.

FA Cup Fantasy - A Bad Idea...?

There are certain things that should remain sacred in football and one of them is the FA Cup. The FA Cup is something to be marveled at, enjoyed and watched on a Sunday afternoon with your mates. The minnows battle it out with the Elite and upsets, twists and adventures can be had by all. There remains something old school about the FA Cup that The Premiership has lost. Something less capitalist, harping back to the old days of pies, peas and Bovril. Maybe it is because the FA Cup is still on the BBC that it keeps its treasured spot in the national hearts of the English football fan? One thing is for sure though, I would never dream about making a fantasy football game out of our national heritage because it would be so Americanised to do so. The big fantasy companies have stayed well clear of the FA Cup, until now that is...

CYKI (can you kick it), run by ISM Games, launched its Fantasy FA Cup game earlier in the season and from what I can see is doing reasonably well. My objection to the game is that the makers of the FA Cup game have taken fantasy football to a new low. The guys over at the Bristol HQ must have been wracking their brains coming up with new ways of making money and bingo, FA Cup fantasy came to light. What they didn't consider is that in most people's hearts the FA Cup is not about commercialisation but about the essence of what the game means to be a supporter English football. It is still the purists competition that hasn't been tarnished by Rupert Murdoch's grubby hands, it is a national institution. Something that fantasy football companies should know not to take advantage of.

I look across the pond to America and they will make fantasy games of anything ranging from the Oscars to probably how many fat kids can you squeeze into a school bus and with this FA Cup game now on the market we are unfortunately heading in that direction. What is next for the fantasy player? Can we play Fantasy Football Conference North Division football?? Don't get me wrong, innovation is a good thing but this FA Cup game smacks of a fantasy company just wanting to make a fast buck from a revered and much loved cup competition. It is cynical. Fantasy players should get a break when the FA Cup comes around; watch a game without worrying about assists, points etc. Enjoy the FA Cup don't abuse it.

A Tale of Two Alex's - Champions League Review

So attacking, flare football took another blow on Wednesday night as last year's beaten finalist went out at the first major obstacle. PSV, a very underestimated team in European football, humbled a depleted Arsenal side with an Alex (currently owned by Chelsea) headed goal. The quarter-finals are now riddled with teams that play tight, orthodox defences such as Milan, PSV and Chelsea. Roma remain, in my opinion, the only adventurous and overly positive team in the competition.

Fantasy wise, the most interesting aspect of the night was seeing the apparent last game for Swede Henrik Larsson in the United kit. The enigmatic striker has been a favourite with fantasy managers since his loan move from Helsingborg in January but with his departure imminent there is now a gap for a new strike partner for Rooney. Saha, the obvious candidate for the slot is out for up to 3-4 weeks, whilst Solskjaer is also sidelined. Alan Smith has returned from a long absence with a broken leg but surely cannot be considered to be an instant filler for the departing Larsson. Instead, it seems that Giggs may be used in the advanced role alongside Rooney. Another alternative could be for United to adopt a Barcelona style with Rooney, Giggs and Ronaldo all playing forward, a la Ronaldinho/Eto'o/Messi. Eitherway, Giggs looks like he will be playing a more attacking role in weeks to come with Ronaldo, and Ferguson will be looking to his two wingers to carry on with goalscoring duties. With Giggs moved forward Ji-Sung Park will surely get an extended run in the first team. Finally, with Silvestre looking to be out for a long time and Evra still sidelined there remains a chance that outcast Heinze may finally get a chance in the left-back berth - watch this space.

AC Milan 1 - 0 Celtic (Milan win 1-0)

Arsenal 1 - 1 PSV Eindohoven (PSV win 2-1)

Bayern Munchen 2 - 1 Real Madrid (Bayern win on away goals 4-4)

Man Utd 1 - 0 Lille (Man Utd win 2-0)

Fight, Fight, Fight! Champions League Review

Well, the Champions League turned into a ding-dong of epic proportions last night as Valencia and Inter decided to turn Europe's elite footballing competition into a playground scrap. The game ended in a 0-0 draw but this wasn't enough for the players as they engaged in a full pitch brawl that was reminiscent of the Switzerland v Turkey World Cup play off at the start of last year. Both teams will face sanctions after the scrap with Javi Navarro, the main culprit, probably getting the book thrown at him. Expect Valencia to possible have to play their next Champions League game behind closed doors at home with stiff fines. Saying that though, I think their should be a mass brawl at the end of every drab 0-0 game.
See the mass brawl here

Roma were definitely the bet of the night with odds of 4/1 to beat Lyon - when will the bookies every learn? Totti, who should most certainly be in contention for the European and World Player of the Year after his performances this season, was at the heart of much of the Giallorosso's play. After watching the Roma game I must say that Mancini has the quickest feet on Earth. He tap-danced his way around the, admittedly shabby, Lyon defence to score Roma's second.

Chelsea march on and are still favourites, cue snooze mode.

Fantasy wise from last nights Champions League fixtures I noticed one or two things, most notably a certain Mr Alvaro Arbeloa starting for Liverpool in his second consecutive Champions League game. The bright, young Spanish full-back that was signed from Deportivo La Coruna in the January transfer window seems to have made the transition in to the first team and could figure for the rest of the season. Arbeloa hasn't started a Premiership game yet, with a substitution appearance against Newcastle being his only appearance so far, but on the back of his performances against Barcelona he will surely get to start more regularly in the Premiership. Throw in a reasonable fantasy price and he could be a cheap buy for the end of season run in.

Full Results
Chelsea 2 - 1 FC Porto
Robben 48' , assist : Diarra Ballack 79' , assist : Shevchenko
Quaresma 15' , assist : González

Liverpool 0 - 1 Barcelona
Gudjohnsen 75' , assist : Xavi

Lyon 0 - 2 AS Roma
Totti 22' , assist : Tonetto Mancini 44' , assist : Totti

Valencia 0 - 0 Internazionale

Reading v Aston Villa Review

Reading v Aston Villa

Reading (4-4-2)

_______________ Hahnemann 7 __________________

Murty 6 ------- Bikey 7 ------- Ingimarsson 6 ------- Shorey 7


Little 9 --------- Sidwell 8 ----------- Harper 6 --------- Hunt 7

____________ Long 5 _________ Lita 6 _____________

Team News
Bikey continued at centre-back and came off the victor from an absorbing 90 minute battle with Villa's John Carew. Bikey stuck to Carew like the proverbial glue and gave the striker no breathing space. He made a vital block inside the 6 yard area and looks to have cemented his place at the back in the meantime. In other news striker Doyle is on the mend and is back in training with the first team. He will be vying with Lita and Long, who were quiet in this match, for a starting spot in the coming weeks.
Round Up
Sidwell continues to garner fantasy points with two goals to his name against Villa which doubled his tally for the season. This comes after his two sumptuous assists against Man City last week. Although not the best fantasy earner on the day there can be no doubt that Glen Little was the star man on the day. He caused no end of grief to England left-back Barry and skipped past the defender on many occasions. The first goal came from one of his bursts down the right-flank, forcing the corner which lead to goal. Hunt was also in fine fettle setting up the first goal for Sidwell. The left-winger showed excellent technique in his ball deliver from crosses and was a good outlet for fast breaks from the long balls of Hahnemann. The American goalkeeper also had a spotless performance. When called into action the shot stopper pulled off some world class saves, notably a looping shot from Maloney.
The Future
Reading have some VERY tough games coming up with away games to Man Utd, Middlesbrough and Arsenal all on the cards. Reading players have returned very well in recent weeks but it may be time to let them go.

Aston Villa (4-4-2)

__________ Carew 7 _________ Young 6 ____________

Maloney 6 ----- Petrov 4 -------- McCann 5 ------- Agbonlahor5


Barry 5 -------- Cahill 5 --------- Mellberg 5 -------- Bardsley 6

_________________ Sorenson 6 __________________

Team News
Shaun Maloney made his starting debut against Villa and was lively at times but he is lacking a defensive attitude and left Barry stranded alone with Little throughout most of the first-half. Carew played off the centre-back and played very well as a holding figure. Ashley Young seemed to have been given a free role against Reading, popping up on the right, centre and upfront on many different occasions.
Round Up
Aston Villa totally dominated for the first 30 minutes but slowly pulled their way back into contention. Martin O'Neill's side were too one dimensional and they squandered a glut of chances with Young culpable of missing several obvious ones. Young, who started the season as a winger but has progressed to become a striker, is still lacking many fundamental attributes of a Premiership striker, most notably his heading ability. Villa's midfield was void of creativity with Petrov a non-persona for most of the game. It was in fact the Bulgarian who was largely at fault for the first goal. Petrov was hugging the six-yard line when Hunt swung in his corner. The Bulgarian wasn't marking any opposition player and was ball watching as Sidwell, unchecked, swanned into the box behind the Bulgarian and put Reading one to the good.
The Future
Villa have some difficult ties coming up but have the advantage of playing at home to Liverpool and Everton. Ashley Young has been a darling of fantasy players this year but his performance against Villa may warrant some to question his place in their side. Carew, on the other hand, looks bright, intelligent and everything that Milan Baros wasn't. He is an excellent purchase for O'Neill and I am sure he will be on the scoresheet many times this season and seasons to come.