Burnley v Southampton

The Saints face a tricky game at the weekend as they travel to Turf Moor to face Burnley. If Southampton have been the surprise package at the top so far, the Clarets have equally been the shock strugglers and currently sit 20th in the table, only out of the relegation zone on goal difference.

Despite their lowly position, Eddie Howe still has a talented squad at his disposal and will be looking for the likes of Zavon Hines and Andre Abougu to stand up and lead the team to victory.

However, the South coast club have the momentum going into the game and with the class of Rickie Lambert and Adam Lallana, they should just sneak another victory (Burnley 11/5, draw 23/10, Southampton 5/4).

West Ham v Peterborough

Another promotion chasing-side in action on Saturday is West Ham, who play host to Peterborough in a match that has the potential to be a belter.

After being relegated from the top flight last season, Sam Allardyce has taken over the reigns at Upton Park and made the team more of a unit, especially in defence after years of inconsistency.

Despite mumblings among fans about the former Bolton boss’ playing style, the Hammers currently sit in fifth and victory could see them move further up the table.

However, Peterborough are a team who can beat anyone on their day and since Darren Ferguson’s return to the club last season, have gone from strength to strength.

Despite losing star man Craig Mackail-Smith, the Posh have made a good start to the season and will be looking at Saturday’s game as a chance to cause an upset.

Both sides like to play football but the Hammers should have the firepower to record a convincing win against the London Road club and will see it as a must-win game even at this stage of the season if they are to bounce straight back up (West Ham 8/13, draw 11/4, Peterborough 9/2).

Doncaster v Crystal Palace

The final match that we are picking out on Saturday is Crystal Palace’s trip to South Yorkshire to take on Doncaster.

Rovers are currently bottom of the league but it’s the dawn of a new era at the Keepmoat Stadium as Dean Saunders takes charge after his appointment on Friday.

Palace have had a typically inconsistent start to the season but will be pleased with their mid-table position after some difficult games.

The Eagles are without a number of their key players for the match but should welcome back experienced duo Julian Speroni and Darren Ambrose.

Palace’s injury problems could take their toll and, keeping in mind  the tradition of manager’s normally winning their first game, Rovers should pick-up their first victory of the campaign in this one (Doncaster 6/4, draw 9/4, Palace 9/5).

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Burnley

The Championship outfit have the better form of the two sides, having won five of their last nine games in all competitions, losing only once. This was a 1-0 defeat at Doncaster at the start of the month.

Since installing new manager Eddie Howe, the Clarets have lost just once in six games and are making a concerted assault on the  play-off places. This may still be their top priority for the rest of the season but there is clearly a winning mentality at Turf Moor and Howe will be desperate to keep the momentum he has built up.

Meanwhile, relegation threatened West Ham have only won two in their last seven but will be buoyed by their stunning second-half comeback against West Brom last weekend in which they overturned a three-goal deficit to draw 3-3 at The Hawthorns.

In fact, despite their lack of wins, it is clear that the Hammers have significantly improved in recent weeks. This is backed up by the fact that they have only lost once in their last five games.

One of the main reasons for this is a renewed spirit. Avram Grant’s side looked dead and buried before Christmas but inspirational captain Scott Parker has led by example on the pitch and his enthusiasm and appetite for the battle has now begun to spread to other players.

West Ham were unlucky to be knocked out at the semi-final stage of the Carling Cup to Birmingham City and will have a strong desire to go as far as possible in the FA Cup to avenge this defeat.

Goals could be guaranteed at Upton Park as the Hammers have scored three times in three of their last four games. Meanwhile, Burnley have netted six times in their last three fixtures, including grabbing three at Watford.

Chris Eagles is Burnley’s form player in the FA Cup as he has already scored three goals in the competition. He scored the third goal in the Clarets’ 4-2 defeat of Port Vale in the third round whilst he bagged a brace against Burton Albion in round four.

West Ham will be stiffer opposition than those two sides and Eagles will need to be on top form if Burnley are to sneak a win. However, he clearly likes this competition and 11/4 to score at any time against a defence which has conceded 48 goals in the Premier League looks good value.

Indeed, the Hammers’ defence is of significant concern as they have conceded 19 goals in all competitions in 2011 already. With no clean sheets in eight games, backing Burnley at 4/1 to score in both halves looks tempting.

West Ham played Championship opposition in the fourth round, scraping past Nottingham Forest 3-2 at Upton Park. A Victor Obinna hat-trick provided the goals and he is 40/1 to do the same again. Whilst this may seem unlikely, a small nibble on 8/1 for him to net a brace looks like a good option.

Burnley will not fear West Ham as many of their players have experience of playing against them in the Premier League last season. Furthermore, the Clarets are currently eighth in the Championship meaning there are few rungs between them and West Ham in the football pyramid.

Should the north west outfit force the Hammers back to Turf Moor, it will be seen as a real achievement, so the 5/2 on offer for the draw looks another strong bet.

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United were able to see off Spurs without the services of Wayne Rooney. When Harry Redknapp saw the teamsheet he must have had high hopes that his team could beat all the top three sides within a week but the Londoners never really threatened at Old Trafford.

Chelsea were facing a Stoke side that were unbeaten away from home since January but Carlo Ancelotti selected an aggressive line up with all three of his main strikers in the side. His boldness paid off as Salomon Kalou came up with a hat-trick to make the victory something of a stroll.

The title race seems likely to be decided by Chelsea’s trip to Anfield. Ancelotti has to assume Manchester United will take six points from their final pair of fixtures though a visit to Sunderland is no walkover.

Tottenham’s defeat and Manchester City’s inability to find a goal against Arsenal proved to be great news for Aston Villa. Martin O’Neill’s side now have a realistic chance of grabbing fourth place again after looking out of it just a couple of weeks ago.

Villa were lucky to get past their city rivals Birmingham. A James Milner penalty separated the two clubs and the decision against centre half Roger Johnson was certainly marginal, to say the least. At the time, Birmingham appeared the side more likely to force a win.

At the bottom, the relegation issues were just about settled. West Ham forced a 3-2 win over Wigan Athletic which sent Burnley down when the Clarets crashed 4-0 at home to Liverpool. Happily for the Londoners, Wigan had just about secured their future by beating Arsenal at the DW Stadium.

West Ham’s victory all but confirmed Hull City’s relegation too. The Tigers would need to win both their remaining games and turn around a massive deficit on goal difference to catch the London club- even assuming West Ham lose both their matches.

Liverpool’s win is significant because they could still finish fourth- though it is unlikely- and so Chelsea will have a tough encounter when they visit Anfield next week.

Related posts:

1. Chelsea Take Advantage Of Manchester United Defeat at Everton
2. Burnley and Hull City Hot Favourites To Go Down
3. Chelsea v Manchester City: Tough Times For Roberto Mancini

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