Fabio keen to avoid Swiss miss

England boss Fabio Capello is expected to name his strongest possible team for Saturday’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland at Wembley on Saturday.

The Three Lions are the current leaders of Group G but they are level on points with Montenegro, who host Bulgaria on the same day, and Capello is keen to wrap up qualification as soon as possible.

However, star striker Wayne Rooney is suspended and Andy Carroll is sidelined, meaning Aston Villa’s Darren Bent is the most likely candidate to lead the line.

Villa may have struggled throughout the 2010/2011 season but Bent has been in fine form, scoring 11 goals since his January switch to the Midlands club.

Bent is 8/11 to score at anytime, while the former Sunderland man is a much more attractive 10/3 to open the scoring or 9/2 to grab a brace.

England are the heavy 1/3 favourites, with Switzerland 8/1 and the draw 7/2, but the Swiss are a well organised side and they could make things difficult for Fabio Capello’s men.  In the Half-Time/Full-Time market a draw/England result is priced at 3/1.

Switzerland may be well organised and relatively strong at the back but their attacking options are limited and lack any real threat going forward.

Capello is also expected to name a back-four of Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Glen Johnson and John Terry for the tie at Wembley.  On paper, and according to the majority of pundits, that is England’s strongest defensive combination and they should be able to keep a clean sheet.

An England clean sheet is priced at 10/11, which is worth some consideration, but England are 11/10 to win to nil and this may be the better option of the two bets.

Rooney’s likely replacement is Theo Walcott, with James Milner or Adam Johnson the other possibilities and the Arsenal winger tends to impress on the international stage.  Walcott is also keen to impress Capello after missing out on the 2010 World Cup and the 22-year-old is 7/4 to score at anytime in the match.

Switzerland’s most likely goalscorer, if they do manage to break England’s resolve, is Bayer Leverkusen striker Eren Derdiyok. Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld has chosen uncapped duo Innocent Emeghara, 22, and Admir Mehmedi, 20, as his other forward options and it remains to be seen if they will be able to rise to the occasion.

Derdiyok does not have an outstanding pedigree in terms of international goals but he is a talented striker and can be backed at 10/3 to score at anytime, or 11/1 to score the last goal.  Derdiyok’s Leverkusen team-mate Tranquillo Barnetta could be another option as an anytime goalscorer and the 26-year-old winger is 9/2 to score at anytime.

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Tevez could miss Old Lady date

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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Golden Gonzalo may miss Greece clash

Gonzalo Higuain (15/8 World Cup 2010 Top Goalscorer (Golden Boot)) could be rested from Argentina’s last Group B game against Greece as Diego Maradona ponders changes after his team secured qualification.

The Real Madrid hitman leads the race for the Golden Boot after hitting a hat-trick against South Korea on Thursday, but he could be confined to bench duty Tuesday.

Argentina’s coach Maradona, who famously tinkered with his line-ups in qualifying to the extent that he used 78 different players, may now opt to give Sergio Aguero and Diego Milito a chance with Higuain and Carlos Tevez set to rest.

Lionel Messi, yet to score in the tournament, is another who could be taken out of the starting line-up for a match against the fired-up Greeks (5/1 to win in 90 Minutes, Argentina 4/7), who have the chance to reach the second phase after grabbing a 2-1 win over Nigeria.

After the South Korea match, Maradona spoke of his happiness at the strength of his 23-man squad, insisting that they were all great footballers.

“I have 23 beasts in this squad, I have 23 starters,” he said.

Spain’s David Villa is Totesport’s second favourite in the market at 11/1 alongside Diego Forlan, who is on two goals after his brace against South Africa.

Spain, who drew a blank against Switzerland in their opening game 1-0 defeat, take on Honduras next and will be keen to turn their overwhelming dominance of possession into goals against Reinaldo Rueda’s side.

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