There is just one Premier League fixture on Bank Holiday Monday but what a massive game for both Blackburn Rovers and Wigan Athletic as they meet at Ewood Park desperate for the win to aid their survival battle.
Blackburn are currently second from bottom in the table and seemingly nailed on for relegation as they are priced at 1/50 to go down, while Wigan, who have enjoyed a fantastic run of results of late, are on offer at 20/1 to fall through the trap door.
Steve Kean has not had the easiest of times in the Rovers hotseat this season, not least because of the teams problems on the pitch, but there has also been plenty of vocal dissent from the stands throughout the campaign which can hardly have helped the cause.
The fans have seemingly wanted him out right from the off but he has managed to survive the calls for his head – although the writing could already be on the wall by the time his players take to the field.
Rovers are currently three points from safety but QPR and Bolton could increase that, depending on how they fare on Sunday, while the Latics hold a six-point cushion over them in 16th place in the table.
It certainly makes it an absolute must-win clash for Rovers, otherwise they might as well kiss their survival hopes goodbye (if they haven’t already) as they have an inferior goal difference to those clubs around them and must travel to Stamford Bridge on the last day of the season.
Roberto Martinez’s men face the simpler task – on paper at least – on the final day as they host already relegated Wolves, so there need is far less greater.
That is perhaps reflected in the betting with the more desperate Rovers installed as the 11/8 favourites, with the Latics on offer at 15/8 while the draw is on offer at 13/5.
However, the two teams go into the crunch clash in real contrasting form with Rovers having lost six of their last seven league matches, and failing to muster a single effort at goal, on or off target, in their last match – the 2-0 defeat at Spurs.
Wigan seemed dead and buried a couple of months ago but have found their form when it has mattered most, winning five of their last seven league matches and beating the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United.
Arguably their most impressive result came last time out when they dismantled an in-form, top-four chasing Newcastle United side – who have since beaten Chelsea 2-0 at Stamford Bridge – 4-0 at the DW Stadium with all four goals coming in the first half.
Good news for Rovers fans is that Wigan have never won at Ewood Park in their history and have lost on their last five visits, while they managed to secure a 3-3 draw at the DW Stadium earlier in the season, despite having a man sent off.
Yakubu secured the last-gasp point on that occasion and has got to be a threat in the goal-scoring markets, while Junior Hoilett has also found a bit of form.
However, the side has been hit by injuries, seemingly lost confidence and have only won two of their previous nine meetings against other sides in the bottom six.
Wigan don’t necessarily need to win but are playing with confidence, have beaten far better sides than Blackburn and should have enough about them to secure the points to all-but-ensure Premier League survival.
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After a long and entertaining Premier League season, the teams now have just two games left and Sunday has the potential to be an era-defining day for clubs at both the top and bottom of the league with the likes of Manchester City (1/2 Premier League outright), Manchester United, QPR and Bolton all in action.
можно сказать, что то, для чего приглашался Жозе Моуринью уже осуществлено. Кубок чемпионов Испании по праву принадлежит «сливочным». До последнего матча на «Камп Ноу» еще были разговоры о том, что по дистанции «Реал» может и победит, но в личных встречах «Барса» все расставляет по местам.
With the FA Cup final taking place later in the day the Premier League serves up an interesting appetiser in the form of Arsenal against Norwich at 12:45pm. For the Gunners it is a must-win game given recent results as they look to hold onto third. Could a care free Norwich throw a spanner in the works though?
It’s the final weekend of games in League One and League Two and there are still promotion and relegation issues to be resolved in the final 90 minutes, with the play-off pictures still to be sorted. Here’s our guide to the most important games from the two divisions that could make or break a club’s season.
Liverpool and Chelsea go head-to-head on Saturday in the FA Cup final and while the Blues (4/6 – FA Cup Outright) still have the Champions League showpiece to come, they will be keen to deny the Reds (6/5 – Outright) their second trophy of the season in what looks like being a tight Wembley clash.
Friday’s focus will be on the action at Bloomfield Road as Blackpool and Birmingham City go head to head in the Championship play-off semi-final first leg, hoping to secure an advantage by the halfway point.
Celtic may have already wrapped up the Scottish Premier League title this season but plenty of Bhoys players will be looking to earn a place in Neil Lennon’s plans for the future, when they host St Johnstone on Thursday (Celtic 1/3, draw 4/1, St Johnstone 8/1).
The Championship Play-Offs get underway on Thursday evening with West Ham looking to continue their strong away form from the run-in to secure a positive first leg result against Cardiff City in South Wales.
турнирной таблицы, которая дает возможность прохода в Лигу Чемпионов. Плотность команд между 2-м и 7-м местом просто потрясает так, как шансы на путевку в ЛЧ не потерял даже «Рубин». Но казанцам безусловно нужно побеждать в ближайшем туре, иначе их шансы станут исключительно теоретическими.