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.

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.