Tag Archives: faith

Dalglish puts faith in Carroll

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Bet on the Premier LeagueLiverpool manager Kenny Dalglish looks set to turn to struggling striker Andy Carroll for goals for the Premier League clash with Newcastle United on Friday (Liverpool 4/7 draw 3/1 Newcastle United 11/2 – match prices).

The 22-year-old has the perfect opportunity to kick-start his career at the Merseyside club and who better to do it against than his former employers.

Carroll (4/1 first goalscorer) has struggled to find the back of the net since his £35m move from St James’ Park almost 11 months ago, with only two goals in the top flight this season.

The England international has been giving the backing of Dalglish, after he saw yet more opportunities go wide of the mark or saved during the 1-1 draw with Blackburn Rovers on Boxing Day.

With the Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez set to miss Friday’s clash with the Magpies due to a suspension for his gesture to the crowd during another Liverpool draw against Fulham, Carroll is set to take a leading role against his former club at Anfield.

Reds skipper Steve Gerrard also featured against Rovers on Monday and is likely to play some part against the Magpies, as Dalglish looks to ease the key midfielder back into regular football.

As for Newcastle, after a stuttering couple of weeks they got back to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over Premier League strugglers Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium on Boxing Day.

Once again it was that man Demba Ba (8/1 first goalscorer) who got himself on the score-sheet, as the Senegalese striker continues his superb season for Newcastle following his move from West Ham in the summer.

The 26-year-old could be the signing of the season, having joined the Magpies on a free deal, he has put away most of the chances presented to him and Liverpool will have to be wary of the goal-machine.

Another man who impressed during the victory over the Trotters was the Frenchman Hatem Ben Arfa (10/3 – Anytime Scorer), who found himself on the score-sheet with a wonderful finish.

The 24-year-old made a slow start to life at St James’ Park having suffered a broken tibia and fibula in one of his first games for the club, after being on the wrong end of a tackle from Manchester City’s Nigel De Jong.

However, manager Alan Pardew will be delighted to see the player coming back to full fitness and he will be another the threat the Reds will have to be alert to.

Liverpool and Newcastle sit in sixth and seventh place in the Premier League table respectively and there certainly is not too much between these two teams.

The Reds have tended to raise their game for the bigger fixtures in the top flight this season and struggled against the supposed lesser teams.

This is certainly a big game for both clubs as they hope to contend for European football next season.

Liverpool are likely to raise their game but this contest pits together two attacking football sides so expect goals but a stalemate at the final whistle.

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Fergie to keep faith in youngsters

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Wednesday will be a big day for a number of young hopefuls at Old Trafford, as Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is set to field a raw side for their Carling Cup quarter-final with Crystal Palace (United 2/9, draw 5/1, Palace 12/1 in the match betting).

United have managed to get to this stage of the competition with a blend of youth and experience, which has seen them get past the likes of old rivals Leeds United and avoid a potential banana skin against Aldershot Town.

Paul Pogba and Ezekiel Fryers played in both Carling Cup games this term, having impressed in the academy at Old Trafford.

The youngsters have been guided through the tricky games by veterans Ryan Giggs, Michael Owen and Dimitar Berbatov (7/2 first goalscorer), who have also performed well in the competition as they hope to impress Ferguson enough to secure more regular Premier League action.

Another promising name coming through the ranks with the Red Devils is 18-year-old midfielder Ravel Morrison, who was named on the bench for United’s Champions League encounter with Benfica last week.

The playmaker looks to have a bright future ahead of him, after helping United to the FA Youth Cup last term and now the player has a chance to impress at the Theatre of Dreams.

Having avoided an upset against the Shots, it will be Palace’s turn to try and overturn a side who have looked a little uneasy in recent outings.

A draw against Benfica and then a point earned in controversial circumstances with Newcastle United at the weekend added up to a frustrating week for the Premier League champions.

However Palace have not been in the best form of their own, having failed to score in their last three outings.

The Championship side though have proven to be a tough side to break down under manager Dougie Freedman and have done better than expected in the second tier of English football this term.

But with just one win in their last five games, they will have to make some serious improvements, especially in the attacking end of the field, if they want to cause United any problems.

Palace have not won at Old Trafford since 1989 but against what is set to be a relatively inexperienced United side, they should have one of their best chances to cause an upset.

Darren Ambrose (14/1 first goalscorer) is set to return to the starting XI which will be a big boost for the London outfit, in what must look like a mammoth test.

Palace have nothing to lose and will be determined to take their chances if some of the United youngsters freeze on what will be a big night for them.

However, with one or two veterans in the side such as Giggs (5/2 to score anytime), they should be able to guide these promising players through to the Carling Cup semi-finals without too much trouble.

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Ancelotti puts faith in youth

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Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed he will test his side’s youngsters in tonight’s Carling Cup showdown with Newcastle (Match Betting -  Chelsea 1/4, draw 4/1, Newcastle 8/1).

The Blues remain the only side in the Premier League with a 100% record, with the Stamford Bridge outfit winning all five of their games so far, scoring 21 goals and conceding just once, but the Italian tactician has revealed he will rest some of his senior stars for Newcastle’s visit (Chelsea 3/4 to win the Premier League).

The likes of Petr Cech, Didier Drogba, Ashley Cole, Michael Essien , John Obi Mikel and Frank Lampard will play no part in tonight’s contest, with Gael Kakuta,  Jeffrey Bruma, Patrick van Aanholt  and Daniel Sturridge (7/2 to score the first goal) all expected to start against Newcastle.

The Chelsea boss believes the younger players at Stamford Bridge are ready to make the step up, and Ancelotti revealed he hopes to have the opportunities to continue to test his rising stars throughout the current campaign.

“It is a good experience for them to play this kind of game,” Ancelotti explained. “They are involved this season more compared to last season and when there is an opportunity I want to give them the opportunity to play and show their quality.

“Sturridge played in the Champions League, Kakuta played two games, Bruma played in the last game against Blackpool  and they will get more opportunities to play.

“The Academy has done a good job in the last years and now we have the young players ready to play in our squad.”

However, while a number of Chelsea’s experienced heads will sit out the Carling Cup fixture, Ancelotti admitted he hopes captain John Terry will be available to play some part (Chelsea 9/2 to win the Carling Cup).

He added: “JT is fit to play and maybe can play for 45 minutes which could help Bruma, but Lampard is not available.”

Newcastle boss Chris Hughton will be without first-choice keeper Steve Harper, who picked up a shoulder injury during the victory over Everton, so Tim Krul will deputise in his absence.

Hughton is also expected to hand a debut to veteran defender Sol Campbell, who is now match fit after joining the club on a free transfer in the summer.

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Tabarez keeping the faith

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Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez believes his men could pull off a shock victory against the Netherlands in Tuesday’s first World Cup semi-final (Uruguay 5/1, draw 13/5, Holland 8/13 – 90 Mins Betting) in Cape Town.

The South Americans have been the surprise side in the tournament to date and, with a favourable draw, have reached the last four of the world’s greatest sporting event.

They eased into the knock-out phase with victories over South Africa and Mexico, before moving past South Korea and Ghana to set up the clash with the Dutch.

The Uruguayans possess some talented individuals, but have been mainly praised for their team ethic and the way they work for each other.

Former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan has been in excellent form for the South Americans at the tournament with three goals to date, while striker partner Luis Suarez, who is banned for the semi-final, has also bagged three.

Tabarez feels that his players must be right at the top of their game to compete with a Dutch side who have swept all before them in South Africa so far, but believes it is unwise to write his charges off just yet.

“We’re here for a reason,” he said. “People started sending us their condolences when the draw was made. We rebelled against that.

“We began to dream and now we have an opportunity to make our dream come true. World Cups are full of results that no-one really expects. I don’t see why it should be so surprising that one of our dreams comes true.”

Tabarez added: “We’ll go out there with enormous faith and do everything it takes to win. We don’t throw the towel in before playing. We’ll have to play a perfect match, but that’s also possible.”

The coach has adopted a siege mentality going into Tuesday’s match, after Suarez was accused of cheating following his hand ball against Ghana.

He refused to answer some questions at Monday’s press conference and would not reveal the make-up of his side as he has earlier promised to do.

But he did take time to point out that fit-again midfielder Arjen Robben will be the danger man for the Dutch, who are hot favourites to move into the final to play the winner of the Germany v Spain semi-final.

Robben is a player who can unlock defences with his skill and the former Chelsea man is the 11/2 second favourite to be first goalscorer against Uruguay with Arsenal’s Robin van Persie the 4/1 favourite.

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