Tag Archives: date

Away date will help England

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England have one foot at next summer’s European Championships and will be confident of sealing their place in Poland and Ukraine this weekend. It has all been a bit to straight forward for Fabio Capello’s men to date, but surely they can’t slip up now?

England have a six-point advantage at the top of Group G and know a point in Podgorica (Montenegro 9/2, Draw 23/10, England 8/11 – Match Betting) will be good enough to seal top spot. Defeat and victory for Montenegro in their final group game in Switzerland will leave England facing the prospect of a two-legged play-off.

This is likely to be their toughest game of the group so far, against a side that frustrated England at Wembley and claimed a 0-0 draw. That result highlighted their ability to defend, but the jury is out on whether they have the attacking threat to cause problems at the other end of the pitch.

The home side have conceded just three goals in six qualifying games to date, but just five goals scored tells its own story. Montenegro (20/1 to win Group G) are unbeaten in their three previous home matches in this group, although they did slip up in their 1-1 draw with Bulgaria.

They have also scored just once in each of those matches and England will be the toughest backline that they will have faced in this group. Capello insists that England won’t go there looking for a draw, but the visitors do have that as a cushion if needs be. But England (9/1 Euro 2012 Outright) have the firepower to kill off any hopes Montenegro still harbour of automatic qualification.

The major plus for England is that this game is away from home, bearing in mind their performances have been better on the road. Scoring eight goals in their three away games, the Three Lions have been impressive in victory in Switzerland, Bulgaria and Wales.

The players have recently admitted that they feel extra pressure from playing at Wembley. The tension that would have come across from the home crowd will be replaced by a positive vocal support in Podgorica.

Even with a couple of injuries, England have the luxury of bringing in young players with Premier League experience. Manchester United duo Danny Welbeck (11/8 To Score At Anytime) and Phil Jones are tipped to feature, while Scott Parker is expected to start the midfield after consistently impressive displays for Tottenham.

Montenegro midfielder Marko Cetkovic has described this as the “biggest game ever” for his country, but it looks likely to be the visitors who will be celebrating come the final whistle.

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Benfica set fair for Dublin date

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Dublin looks certain to be hosting a strong Portuguese contingent come the Europa League final on May 18, with the two protagonists set to be determined on Thursday in the semi-final second legs.

Porto arguably look to be already there, having beaten Spanish side Villarreal 5-1 at the Estadio do Dragao last week and they are the 4/9 favourites in the tournament outright betting, but there is still plenty to play for in the clash when Braga host Benfica in the first all-Portuguese tie in UEFA club competition.

Benfica hold the edge after a 2-1 win at the Estadio da Luz last Thursday, thanks to goals from Jardel and Oscar Cardozo, and are slight favourites at 8/5 to win the return leg, with the home side on offer at 17/10 and the draw at 9/4.

The omens perhaps do not look good for the Eagles after winning the home leg of their quarter-final last year, only to lose the return leg at Anfield to Liverpool 4-1.

The Primeira Liga fixture at the AXA Stadium did yield a 2-1 win for the home side (9/1 for a repeat scoreline) and that of course would mean extra time, although Benfica have won 31 times at Braga in all league and cup fixtures.

The away goal that Braga achieved has given them an initial advantage, which might suit the ‘Arsenalists’ given the fact they have scored just five goals in seven games since entering the competition at the round of the 32, although conceding a mere four goals in the process.

By contrast, Benfica have registered three times as many goals in the same period, although they have let in seven.

Of course, Benfica do not have to win the game to go through but they have the firepower to get on the scoresheet with Oscar Cardozo (11/2 First/last and 13/8 Anytime Goalscorer) an obvious candidate after notching four in seven games in the competition.

Braga have yet to concede a home goal in the competition but Benfica are expected to have enough to book their progression, with a draw very much to their benefit.

The other semi-final second leg is less in the balance of course and the outcome may well depend on team selection, as Porto (9/5 to win at El Madrigal) go into the match with a 5-1 lead.

The Dragons have already wrapped up their domestic league title and with such a big cushion, may opt to rest some of their key stars with the final in mind.

One would have to expect some sort of response from Villarreal (7/5 f match betting), who actually took the lead in Portugal, but this tie looks beyond them after suffering their worst defeat in European competition – and they could renew their focus on the race for third place in La Liga.

Porto have now won five on the bounce in the competition, scoring five in each of their last three games – so there should be plenty of entertainment for the watching world and goals look to be on the cards with over 2.5 priced at 8/13.

And after his four-goal salvo in the first leg, it would be foolish to overlook Radamel Falcao in the scoring markets, and he is on offer at 7/1 to score two or more.

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Tevez could miss Old Lady date

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It’s never boring at Eastlands these days and it’s been another turbulent week for Manchester City ahead of their trip to Italy to take on Juventus (Juve 6/4, draw 23/10, 9/5 – match betting) in the Europa League.

Thursday’s clash at the Stadio Olimipco looks like it could be a welcome distraction from the troubles off the field concerning their captain and top goalscorer Carlos Tevez.

The Argentina striker handed in a written transfer to the club stating that he wants to leave City because he misses his family back in his homeland.

City have stated that they will not be selling the former Manchester United forward, who has also revealed that his relationship with some of the chief executives at the club have “broken down beyond repair”.

It’s extremely doubtful that City will play their disillusioned striker in a match that will have no real impact on the club’s season as they have already qualified for the knockout stages of the competition.

Juve were one of the favourites to lift the Europa League trophy this season but have crashed out of the competition in the group stages as Lech Poznan have proved to be a surprise package in the tournament so far.

The Italian side have proven difficult to beat and have not lost a game in their last 16 outings in all competitions.

It should be an exciting game with both sides having nothing to lose.

However, with the distractions off the field and the Blues likely to field a weakened side as they challenge at the top of the Premier League, it should be a win for the Old Lady.

It’s a similar situation for Liverpool as they take on Dutch side Utrecht at Anfield on Wednesday, although their star striker has not asked for a move away from the club (Liverpool 2/5, draw 7/2, Utrecht 7/1 – match betting).

The Reds have been very inconsistent in recent weeks having looked comfortable in their 3-0 win over Aston Villa at Anfield, they failed to show up in the 3-1 defeat to Newcastle United at St James’ Park.

With the unpredictable performances in league it’s not surprising that it’s hard to predict how Liverpool will play against Utrecht.

The Merseyside club secured a goalless draw with a young side when these two sides met in Holland back in September.

Utrecht have been disappointing in Europe and in the Dutch league and the Reds should come out top in this one in front of their home fans despite the likelihood of fielding a weakened side ahead of Roy Hodgson’s game against former club Fulham this weekend.

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