Liverpool

Liverpool v Manchester United

These two great rivals meet upon a backdrop of emotion following the release of Hillsborough documents last week. Both clubs have appealed to the fans to end the unsavoury chanting that have dogged these fixtures in recent years, but not to lose the great rivalry that makes this game so special. Liverpool (7/4) have the recent edge in this fixture, having won four and lost none of their last five games in all competitions at home to United (13/8). However, the Reds have made a stumbling start to life under Brendan Rodgers and are yet to register a league win this campaign. They have struggled for goals and with Wayne Rooney also absent for the visitors, chances should be at a premium. The best bet appears to be the 1-1 draw priced at 11/2.

Newcastle v Norwich

Chris Hughton will be guaranteed a warm reception by the Newcastle fans when he makes his first return to St James’ Park since being controversially sacked in December 2010. His successor, Alan Pardew, is equally popular after guiding the Magpies (8/11) to fifth place last season. They face a Norwich (4/1) team who are showing signs of ’second season syndrome’. After a magnificent 12th place finish upon their return to the top flight last year, the Canaries have struggled for goals this time around and are still searching for their first win. With Toon striker Demba Ba showing signs of getting back to his best with a brace at Everton on Monday, it’s unlikely City will get the points here. Back a 3-0 Newcastle win priced @ 12/1.

Manchester City v Arsenal

Both Manchester City (8/11) and Arsenal (9/5) have made solid starts to the season and will put their early title credentials to the test at the Etihad Stadium. City were taught a harsh footballing lesson at Real Madrid on Tuesday, conceding two last minute goals to lose 3-2. Meanwhile Champions League veterans Arsenal won 2-1 at Montpellier. Don’t expect goals on Sunday though, there have been just six goals scored in the last six league meetings between the two sides. All three fixtures finished 1-0 last season and history looks likely to repeat itself here, back 1-0 to City priced @ 6-1.

Tottenham v QPR

Spurs (1/2) will go hunting for their first home win of the season at the fourth time of asking against QPR (6/1) on Sunday. After a shaky start, Andre Villas-Boas’ men have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, defeating Reading 3-1 last weekend and drawing with Italian side Lazio in the Europa League on Thursday. Despite a summer of heavy investment QPR have yet to really get going this season, though they will be encouraged by a solid display in the 0-0 draw with Chelsea last weekend. They are very poor travellers though, taking just three points from their last 45 available and that run looks unlikely to improve here. Back the 2-0 win to Spurs priced @ 6/1.

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First-up Sweden face Serbia in Solna in a tie that will certainly provide a stern test for Erik Harren’s men (Sweden 8/13, draw 5/2, Serbia 4/1 – 90 minutes).

Sweden go into the game in strong form having won their last two friendlies against Croatia and Iceland but as with all the teams heading into the upcoming championship, Tuesday’s match will be as much about continuing their momentum as it will be about making sure their players avoid picking-up any needless injuries.

Serbia on the other hand are currently one of the enigmas of European football. Despite possessing some truly brilliant individuals, they often struggle to bond as a team, which appears to have once again cost them a place at a major tournament.

However, they do have a lot of talent but the Swedes should just have enough to sneak a victory and look out for their captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic to lay down a late marker ahead of the championships.

Then co-hosts Ukraine take on another team who disappointed in qualifying, Turkey (Turkey 6/4, draw 21/10, Ukraine 13/8 – 90 minutes).

The Turks are currently in somewhat of a transitional phase following the relative success of the likes of Nihat and Rustu Recber but still have plenty of talent in their ranks, most notably Arda Turan and Nuri Sahin.

Despite their status as co-hosts, Ukraine are seen as huge underdogs going into Euro 2012 but the fact that they’re playing on home soil will undoubtedly give them a huge lift and may see them cause a few upsets.

Tuesday’s match will provide them with the perfect opportunity to send out a warning to their rivals and a typically committed performance from Oleg Blokin’s side could see the come out with a morale boosting victory.

Then England’s first opponents France face Estonia in a game coach Laurent Blanc will see as the perfect way to end his side’s preparations for the upcoming tournament (France 1/8, draw 6/1, Estonia 14/1 – 90 minutes).

With all the talk in the build-up to the competition being about Germany and Spain, France have flown somewhat under the radar of many pundits.

However, a look down their squad and its clear to see that they undoubtedly have the talent to repeat their country’s successes in 1984 and 2000.

Estonia themselves almost qualified the Euros but lost out to Ireland in the play-offs. They’re on the whole a workmanlike team but Tarmo Ruutli’s men always provide a test due to their commitment to playing for their country.

However, France should have more than enough and will be looking for a high scoring win to send them to the Euros on a high.

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Atletico Madrid

A cursory look at recent meetings between these sides and barely a cigarette paper separates them, although totesport has installed Atletico as the 11/8 favourites (draw 23/10, Athletic Bilbao 2/1 – 90 Minutes) for the National Arena showpiece.

This season Athletic won the home La Liga fixture 3-0 in October but Atletico then turned the tables when consigning their rivals to a 2-1 loss at the Vicente Calderon in March.

Marcelo Bielsa’s Atheltic have accounted for the prize scalps of Manchester United, FC Schalke 04 and Sporting Lisbon to reach their first European showpiece since 1976/77 and the San Mames outfit will also contest the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on May 25.

Arguably the highlight so far in a compelling European adventure for Los Leones was embarrassing Sir Alex Ferguson’s side over two legs with a breathtaking display of attacking football, while Spain striker Fernando Llorente’s 88th-minute goal, which sealed a 4-3 aggregate win at the expense of Sporting, raised the roof in Bilbao.

Llorente has scored seven goals in 13 Europa League appearances so far and at 11/8 to score anytime rates exceptional value to continue his hot streak.

Prolific pair Adrian Lopez (13/8) and Falcao (11/10) have wreaked havoc helping Atletico record 11 successive wins in Europe and cannot be dismissed at odds-against to help repeat the club’s triumph of 2010.

The winter arrival of coach Diego ‘El Cholo’ Simeone – a member of Atletico’s 1996 La Liga and Copa del Rey-winning squad – has transformed Los Rojiblancos and they have not lost in all competitions since a 4-1 humbling by champions Real Madrid on April 11.

Juanfran said the celebrations will run for some time on the banks of the Manzanares river if Los Colchoneros can end the season on a high.

He said: “We had to overcome a lot of obstacles to get through to this deciding match, it was something we all dreamed about. History and tradition say that Atletico should be up there fighting for trophies like these.

“We want to continue reaching landmarks so we have to win this one for ourselves and for our fans.”

A notoriously difficult fixture to call between two teams of such attacking prowess, the advice here is to stick with Llorente and Falcao to deliver.

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They say that money talks in football and, generally, that is the case, as the ‘haves’ more often than not occupy the top places in the league and the ‘have-nots’ struggle to compete.

But try telling that to Basel, who defied the odds to dump Manchester United out of Europe’s elite club competition and resigned them to life in the Europa League in the New Year.

United are the first club that has previously reached the final to be knocked out in the group stage and it just the third time in 17 attempts that Sir Alex Ferguson’s side has failed to reach the knockout stage.

The fall-out has already begun with Patrice Evra labelling the exit as “embarrassing” and “a catastrophe” and it remains to be seen just what sort of side Fergie actually fields when United begin their Europa League campaign.

There are still some big clubs in the second-tier tournament, with Valencia, Porto and Ajax also making an early Champions League exit, while Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Madrid and Udinese look set to be in the draw for the next stage.

Ferguson will doubtless make all the right noises and pledge to put out a strong side in each match but, with Manchester City ( 4/7 Premier League Outright) currently topping the Premier League and challenging United’s domestic dominance, the fiery Scot will surely have one eye on Premier League matters when he next hands in a European team sheet.

But it could be that the Europa League is United’s best chance of silverware this term, as they have hardly pulled up any trees in the English top-flight and have been hanging onto City’s coattails all season with several 1-0 victories.

Their lack of a creative midfielder has haunted them right from the start of the season and they finally got found out in Switzerland, and the boss may well be forced to dip into the transfer market in January to try and address the problem or run the risk of the season tailing away over the next few months.

City will have also harboured ambitions of winning the Champions League this time with the money that has been spent on assembling their talented squad, but it has it be remembered that it was their first foray into the competition and they are still gelling as a unit.

It is true that they look world beaters in the Premier League but that might just add fuel to the argument that the English game is not as strong as we are all led to believe.

City finally won a trophy when lifting the FA Cup last season and any silverware will be welcomed at Eastlands, and it just might be that boss Roberto Mancini uses the Europa League as a stepping stone for nest season’s assault on the Champions League.

Both City and United have the squad to cope with European football throughout the season, but it would surprise nobody to see a few fringe players appear as the tournament progresses.

Manchester was rocked on Wednesday with the twin failures, but the scene is now set for the Premier League rivals to meet in Bucharest for the final on May 9. Whether they actually want to is open to debate.

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Lionel Messi

The little Argentine blew away rumours that he was in crisis with successive hat tricks against Real Mallorca last weekend and against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League in midweek – Messi is 6/1 to score another hat-trick on Sunday.

The striker now has 22 goals in 17 games this season and surpassed 200 on Wednesday to become Barca’s second all-time goal scorer. He now has an incredible 202 goals in just 286 appearances and is understandably 2/1 favourite to score first at San Mames.

Despite his latest accolade the 24-year-old has already switched his attentions to Bilbao, with Barca a point behind Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga – keen to improve on some unconvincing away form.

Indeed Pep Guardiola’s men could begin the game four points behind their great rivals, with Real tackling Osasuna earlier in the day (Match Betting –R Madrid 1/12, draw 9/1, Osasuna 20/1).

“The most important thing is to win the three points this weekend because it’s a very difficult stadium to win at,” said Messi. “They are a great team, they study their rivals in depth, and they aren’t afraid to take the game to you.

“I’m not aiming to break the record this year. I hope to do it someday seeing that I want to stay here for the rest of my career. I feel great physically, strong enough to play as many games as possible, like last year.”

Messi and his team-mates travel to the Basque country (Match Betting – Athletic 10/1, draw 9/2, Barcelona 1/4) to play an Athletic side, who have recovered from a poor start to the season.

Marcelo Bielsa’s men are unbeaten in nine games across all competitions and have risen to ninth in the La Liga standings.

Bielsa will hope that star striker Fernando Llorente will be fit enough to last the 90 minutes. The striker has been struggling with a knee injury in recent weeks but showed why he is so important for Los Leones with two goals in their last league game at San Mames against Atletico Madrid 10 days ago (Llorente 10/1 to score first).

Scoring will be a whole lot tougher on Sunday though as they become the latest club to try and beat Victor Valdes, who broke a club record in midweek by going 787 minutes without conceding a goal stretching back to mid-September. It is no surprise then that Barca are at 8/11 to keep yet another clean sheet.

The Catalan giants have also comfortably outscored their opponents this season, scoring 32 goals to Athletic’s 15, suggesting any goal-fest could be distinctly one sided – a 4-0 Barcelona victory is 11/1.

Don’t expect Bilbao to sit back and try and contain their illustrious opponents though, striker Oscar de Marcos insists his side will go out for the win.

“We have had a very good run recently,” the striker told Sport.”We know that to beat Barca is very difficult, but we will try to get the three points. We will not go for the draw, we will do our best and enjoy the game.”

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In what looks like being one of the closest-fought battles to avoid the drop in years, just 10 points separates bottom club West Ham (8/13 to go down) and Bolton in seventh so, realistically, any three from 13 or 14 clubs could end up in the Championship next term.

And with the likes of Liverpool, Everton (33/1) and Aston Villa (4/1) on that list, could 2011 see a real shock with one of those three slipping into the second tier?

The Hammers appeared to have turned a corner following wins over Fulham and Wolves and a draw against Everton, but their 5-0 drubbing at the hands of rejuvenated Newcastle (9/1) has landed Avram Grant’s men right back in it.

Wolves were bottom ahead of Wednesday’s games but they have given themselves a huge lift with two wholly unexpected victories over Liverpool and Chelsea over the festive period to leave Mick McCarthy’s side in 17th but still level on points with Wigan and Aston Villa below them.

Gerard Houllier still apparently retains the backing of owner Randy Lerner at Villa Park but results have generally been dire since the Frenchman took over and the fans are growing restless as they view what appears to be a sinking ship under the former Liverpool boss’ tutelage.

Which brings us nicely on to the Reds. If Houllier is under pressure then Roy Hodgson must be suffocating with the weight of expectation and strain currently being felt at Anfield.

The dismal home defeat against Wolves was followed up by a morale-boosting win over Bolton on New Year’s Day, but that good work was swiftly undone by a shocking performance and 3-1 defeat at Blackburn on Wednesday.

Surely the experienced coach is on borrowed time? Now only a fine run of results will save him from the sack and, quite possibly, Liverpool from being caught up in their first-ever relegation scrap in the Premier League.

Everton’s 2-1 win over Spurs has given David Moyes’ side (33/1) a four-point cushion from the drop zone but the Blues’ inconsistency this season means they could easily get dragged into a dog fight come April as well, while West Brom (13/5), Fulham (7/2), Birmingham and Wigan (3/4) will need to call on all their experience of previous survival battles to ensure safety.

Blackpool (13/5) have been one of the stories of the campaign but a 2-1 reverse at home to Birmingham (3/1) last time out means Ian Holloway’s men are also just four points off the bottom three and they could yet get dragged into trouble despite their eye-catching performances and results in 2010.

So it’s shaping up to be a real battle for several sides hoping to retain their top-flight status over the coming months, while one or two of the so-called big boys may just be beginning to ponder the unthinkable.

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Manchester City

Both teams crashed out of the Carling Cup in midweek but the two managers would have had one eye on Saturday’s big game at Eastlands.

City boss Roberto Mancini has revealed that he is desperately short of defensive options ahead of the weekend, with Micah Richards the latest concern.

The England international missed the League Cup defeat at West Brom due to a hamstring problem and is in a race against time to be fit for the weekend.

Mancini says Pablo Zabaleta will play at right back against the league leaders, while Vincent Kompany and Kolo Toure are the only other two fully-fit players.

The Italian admitted: “I hope that Micah Richards can recover. If not I don’t know who can play left-back. We have big problems.”

Gareth Barry or James Milner (4/1 to score at anytime) could well be asked to play in an unfamiliar role at left back, although Wayne Bridge still has an outside chance of making the weekend.

Mancini says he has no regrets over his team selection at the Hawthorns, even though City (4/6 Premier League 2010-11 Top Four Finish) crashed out of the Carling Cup.

The former Sampdoria (28/1 to win 2010-11 Europa League) striker added: “Saturday is more important, the FA Cup is more important. The Europa League is more important.

“I did not regard this as a necessary sacrifice. We wanted to win. That is why I had four senior players on the bench. But I knew there was a chance we could lose because we started with six young players.”

Meanwhile, Chelsea’s injury list continues to grow with Yossi Benayoun and Salomon Kalou almost certainly ruled out of Saturday’s match.

Both players featured in the Carling Cup loss to Newcastle, with Benayoun suffering a calf injury and Kalou picking up a thigh problem.

Carlo Ancelotti said: “We will know more soon, but they don’t look good. They will miss the next few games. These things happen in football.”

Ancelotti already has major doubts over the fitness of Frank Lampard, while Gael Kakuta is also sidelined with thigh injury.

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Arsenal

The North London club play Braga in the opening Group H game on Wednesday with the Gunners hoping to get off to a flying start in the competition (Arsenal 1/4, draw 9/2, Braga 11/1).

Arsenal have had a strong start to the Premier League season picking up 10 points from a possible 12. The Gunners scored late on against Liverpool in the opening match of the season to come away from Anfield with a draw but since then the side have won three consecutive matches.

Wenger will be hoping that his squad will take their excellent domestic form into the Champions League and the Frenchman has warned his team?s potential opponents that his team are ready.

He said: “For us the confidence is high enough. We have to show we can focus every three or four days now, keep our flow going.

“To play well, you need to be happy and enthusiastic.”

“Normally if you love football you enjoy to play with a lot of drive going forwards and we always try to cultivate that,” he added.

Arsenal are one of only three teams that have consecutively come through the group stages in the last decade despite spending far less than many big clubs from across Europe.

Wenger knows what has to be done to progress in the Champions League and he will be hoping his side can go at least a step further than the quarter-final stages that they reached last year before being dumped out of the tournament by Barcelona thanks to an outstanding display from Lionel Messi.

He said: “The mental side is the issue of everybody.

“The problem as well is that the level of competition is high and in the second part of the tournament, it becomes a real cup game, when it is knockout it becomes a different competition.”

“You have to have your best players available, the decisions to go for you and all that,” he added.

The Gunners look like favourites to qualify from their group as they face Braga, Shakhtar Donetsk and Partizan Belgrade.

However Wenger will be hoping the long distances his side will have to travel for away fixtures will not affect their main focus which will be the Premier League.

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The Doncaster chairman has criticised the moneybags regime at Eastlands for allowing the 31-year-old striker to go on a season-long loan to Cardiff and continue to pay the majority of his wages.

Bellamy scored one goal and got two assists on his debut at the weekend as the Bluebirds steamrollered Ryan’s Doncaster (16/1 – to be promoted) 4-0.

The Wales striker is on a reported £95,000 a week at City and made the switch to Cardiff despite interest in his services from Premier League sides Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham.

At a time when Championship sides like Doncaster have to scrape around to sign players on the cheap and look to the Premier League to allow younger, unproven footballers to go on loan to them, the details of Bellamy’s deal has irked a number of chairman across the country.

Ryan told the Daily Mail it is not a case of “sour grapes”, as he would have done exactly the same as Cardiff if they had the opportunity, but he is more disappointed with City for allowing the deal to happen under the circumstances it did.

He has claimed that the move is going to “distort the integrity of the Championship” and harm what is an “incredibly competitive division”.

“Handing a striker of Bellamy’s quality to Cardiff – and paying most of his wages – undermines the sanctity of the competition,” added Ryan.

“Manchester City shouldn’t have done that. I feel let down by that, as do many other Championship chairmen.”

“If everyone goes to Cardiff and gets slammed 4-0 like us, the result will be an unfair competition because Manchester City are bankrolling Cardiff’s success.”

Despite Bellamy’s successful debut for the Bluebirds, he has moved to calm down supporters who are expecting him to single-handedly bring success to the club this season.

The striker said he cannot get Cardiff promoted on his own and all the players at the club need to “step up to the plate” if success if to happen to Dave Jones’ men this season.

Cardiff face League One side Peterborough in the Carling Cup on Tuesday and after that travel to face beleaguered Portsmouth (50/1 to win the Championship) on August 28.

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Manchester United

Last season saw Chelsea pip United to the title on the last day of the season after the race for top spot developed into a two-horse contest.

The likes of Arsenal and City had been up there at times but eventually fell away as the two sides who have dominated the league for the last five years continued their stranglehold on the silverware.

Chelsea claimed a domestic double by winning the league and FA Cup, while United took the honours in the Carling Cup.

Speaking ahead of United’s first game of the season against his former club Newcastle (12/1 – 90 minutes) Owen said he expected the same sides to continue their dominance of the English game for another year.

“I see United and Chelsea as the two teams to aim at,” he told the Daily Mirror. “If someone else wins, then obviously they would have had a fantastic season.

“But between us we’ve won it over the last half a dozen years and it would take a very good team to have a very good season to finish above us.

“Every season you look for new challenges, to see who could emerge from the pack. But Chelsea have to be the benchmark. They won the league last year and they’re the champions. If anyone finishes above them, they’ll win the league.”

Owen’s point about Chelsea being United’s only challenger was emphasised by results at the weekend when the Blues hammered West Brom 6-0 while the other contenders could only draw.

While the likes of City, Tottenham, Liverpool and Arsenal faced tough games against one another Chelsea laid down an early-season marker with their demolition of the newly-promoted Baggies (3/4 – to be relegated).

United will be looking to do the same against Newcastle at Old Trafford on Monday as they look to keep up their impressive record against the Toon.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s side haven’t lost to the Tyneside-outfit since 2001 and will be confident of recording another victory over last year’s Championship winners, who are missing a host of first-team players.

Newcastle will be without Leon Best, Danny Simpson, Steven Taylor and Dan Gosling, while Alan Smith is also a doubt.

United have a few problems of their own with Rio Ferdinand, Anderson and Owen Hargreaves all missing out.

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