Owls eye Seasiders shock

Posted on August 10, 2011 by SoccerCapper

There have been plenty of upsets in the first round of the Carling Cup so far and Thursday throws up the opportunity for one more, as League One outfit Sheffield Wednesday host Championship side Blackpool at Hillsborough (Sheff Wed 8/5, draw 12/5, Blackpool 13/8).

With Derby County losing out to Shrewsbury, Barnet beating Portsmouth and Coventry going down at Bury to name but a few, there are a number of Championship clubs who have suffered a cup shock.

The Owls will be hoping they can be the next side to cause an upset in this upcoming Yorkshire-Lancashire derby.

Wednesday got their League One campaign off to a decent start with a 2-0 victory over a side from the other side of the Pennines in the form of Rochdale at Hillsborough on Saturday.

Manager Gary Megson will be pleased with his side’s start to the league campaign and will be looking for a similar performance against the Tangerines.

Megson’s men will be aided by their latest signing Chris O’Grady who has joined from Rochdale with enough time to be eligible for the Carling Cup tie.

The likes of Daniel Jones, James O’Connor and Jon Otsemobor are all set to feature against Blackpool, as the Owls boss hopes to look at different options at this early stage of the season.

As for the Seasiders, they too made a great start to their league campaign with a strong away victory against Hull City at the KC Stadium on Friday in the season curtain-raiser.

Tangerines boss Ian Holloway was delighted to get his side’s season off to a winning start thanks to a superb goal from striker Gary Taylor-Fletcher (8/1 First Goalscorer).

Blackpool have been guilty of conceding goals in the League Cup, as they have conceded nine goals in their last three games in the competition.

What will also give Wednesday hope will be the fact their opponents have been knocked out four times in their last eight appearances in the first round of the tournament.

The big question will be whether Holloway decides to make wholesale changes from the side that won in East Yorkshire last week.

With the likes of Kevin Phillips (6/1 First Goalscorer) up front alongside Taylor-Fletcher and Barry Ferguson bossing play in the middle, Blackpool’s strongest XI would be clear favourites to beat the Owls.

However, Holloway is likely to make some changes to the side, which will give Wednesday hope of causing an upset.

With Megson’s side looking strong on the first day of the season they may well cause another upset against a Blackpool side who have been guilty of some poor performances in this competition.

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Seasiders set for Latics battle

Posted on April 15, 2011 by SoccerCapper

Blackpool manager Ian Holloway Points in the Premier League are priceless at the moment with plenty to play for at this business end of the season. Saturday throws up five games in the top flight with all 10 teams desperate to pick up three points.

In arguably the game with the most at stake, Blackpool take on Wigan Athletic in a crucial game for both sides (Blackpool 13/10, draw 23/10, Wigan 19/10).

After an impressive start to the season, the honeymoon period is well and truly over for manager Ian Holloway and his players.

Without a win in their last five outings, the Seasiders have been drawn into the relegation battle and now they sit just above the bottom three in the Premier League table.

Wigan are rock bottom of the table but could leapfrog the Tangerines with three points at Bloomfield Road.

This is bound to be a tight and scrappy contest but Wigan have been here before and they should pick up the invaluable victory on Saturday.

Birmingham City are another side desperate for points and they will be confident going into their game against a Sunderland side who have got the end of season syndrome (Birmingham 5/4, draw 11/5, Sunderland 21/10).

The Black Cats have not won in their last 10 games and from being in contention for a European qualification spot, they now find themselves looking over their shoulders.

With the St Andrews crowd behind them, the Blues should win this game and ease their relegation fears.

West Ham United continue to battle for survival and they take on Aston Villa at Upton Park on Saturday (West Ham 5/4, draw 23/10, Villa 2/1).

Villa have appeared to have turned a corner after their victory over Newcastle United last weekend but they are still just five points above the relegation zone.

The Hammers will be hurting after they were comfortably beaten 3-0 by Bolton in their last outing.

With a fully fit squad at his disposal, Villa boss Gerard Houllier should be leaving Upton Park with a win to extend the gap between themselves and the drop.

Everton have been strong finishers in recent seasons and once again a poor start to the campaign has let the Toffees down.

The Merseyside club face Blackburn Rovers on Saturday at Goodison Park in a massive game for the visitors (Everton 4/6, draw 5/2, Blackburn 21/5).

Rovers have struggled under manager Steve Kean and now the Lancashire side run the risk of playing Championship football next season.

Everton are comfortable in seventh place in the Premier League table and with Blackburn battling for their lives, Rovers might just bag a point at Goodison.

Chelsea will be looking to put the disappointment of the Champions League quarter-final defeat to Manchester United behind them when they take on West Brom at the Hawthorns (West Brom 21/5, draw 11/4, Chelsea 8/13).

The pressure is building on all concerned at Stamford Bridge with manager Carlo Anclotti walking a tightrope and striker Fernando Torres yet to open his Blues goalscoring account.

With no silverware up for grabs it might be hard for Chelsea to get motivated for this one, however the club must make sure they qualify for the Champions League this season.

The Baggies are never an easy proposition at the Hawthorns and they might just compound Ancelotti?s misery by holding the Blues to a draw on Saturday.