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Top five European games on Sunday

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Bet on footballThe FA Cup has taken centre-stage in England this weekend but the battle for supremacy goes on across the European leagues.

Here are the top five games on Sunday.

Inter Milan v Palermo (2pm)

Inter will be hoping their rivals and Serie A leaders AC Milan slip up on Saturday evening when they travel to face Catania as they bid to make up more ground on them in the race for the Scudetto (Inter 11/4 Serie A Outright).

Leonardo’s side have won four league games on the bounce to move to fourth in Serie A and are nine points behind AC with a game in hand.

New striker Giampaolo Pazzini could start if he overcomes an ankle injury, while Inter will be without Sunderland-bound Sulley Muntari. Cristian Chivu, Dejan Stankovic and Ivan Cordoba will all serve one-match bans while Julio Cesar, Milito and Wesley Sneijder are all injured.

Palermo will be no pushovers having moved up to seventh in the table with a 1-0 win against Brescia, but Inter should have too much at the San Siro.

Prediction: Inter To Win 2-1 @ 7/1

Osasuna v Real Madrid (6pm)

Jose Mourinho’s men could be seven points behind Spanish Primera Liga leaders Barcelona by the time this game gets underway should the Catalan giants see off Hercules on Saturday evening.

Madrid have struggled of late after drawing at lowly Almeria and scraping past Mallorca 1-0 on home soil last weekend. Therefore a win at struggling Osasuna could be imperative on Sunday evening.

Karim Benzema (9/2 2 Or More Goals) will look to make it as difficult as possible for new signing Emmanuel Adebayor to secure a regular starting place after he joined from Manchester City this week.

Osasuna are just a point clear of the bottom three at the time of typing and could do with some points for survival purposes.

However, with the heat well and truly on Real Madrid, surely they must win this one.

Prediction: Real To Win 2-0 @ 5/1

Espanyol v Villarreal (8pm)

These two sides have enjoyed successful La Liga seasons in their own right as they head into this match at the Cornella well placed in fifth and third position respectively.

Espanyol have been hit by the sale of full-back Didac Vila to AC Milan, while central defender Victor Ruiz joined Napoli earlier this week.

How this will impact on the home team remains to be seen given that they have won all but one of their home games so far this term.

Villarreal (21/20 La Liga W/O Barcelona & Real Madrid) have won their last two fixtures and will be brimming with confidence going into this one.

Prediction: Draw @ 12/5

Monaco v Marseille (8pm)

Defending champions Marseille (12/5 French Ligue 1 Outright) travel to the Stade Louis II boosted by their first win in six to see off Bordeaux last time out. This put them in fifth position and six points behind current leaders Lille.

On paper, it looks a banker away-win given that Monaco are struggling in second-bottom position with just three wins from their 20 Ligue 1 games this season.

However, the hosts will hope Mahamadou Diarra’s arrival from Real Madrid and the loan signing of Gregory Lacombe from Montpellier will start to pay off immediately.

Prediction: 1-1 Draw @ 5/1

Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (4.30pm)

The action in Germany’s Bundesliga on Sunday centres around the battle to avoid relegation as bottom club Borussia Monchengladbach travel to mid-table Frankfurt aiming to stay in touch with the teams immediately above them.

The game takes on extra significance as Michael Fink could make his Borussia debut against his former club after arriving at the Bundesliga strugglers from Turkish side Besiktas.

And he will be desperately hoping to get his career with the basement boys off to a flying start on his old stamping ground.

Borussia’s problems have been at home this season, where they have yet to register a win, while they have picked up maximum points three times on the road.

Frankfurt have lost four at home so it would not be a surprise if an away win popped up in this fixture.

Prediction: Draw/B Monchengladbach @ 15/2

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Top games in Europe on Sunday

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While there is a massive day of action in the English Premier League on Sunday, it is worth noting that several fixtures across Europe could also have a huge bearing on the outcome of their respective league’s title races.

Here are the top five games taking place on the continent that are worth checking out.

Almeria v Real Madrid (6pm)

Jose Mourinho’s side sit two points behind rivals Barcelona in the race for the Primera Liga crown (Real 6/4 Outright) after 18 matches and they will be fully expected to leap-frog Pep Guardiola’s side for a short time on Sunday when they travel to face lowly Almeria.

Real have won six on their travels so far, while second-bottom Almeria have no wins on home soil from their opening eight matches to date so it appears that an away-day banker is on the cards.

Prediction: Cristiano Ronaldo 1st Goal & Real To Win 3-0 Scorecast @ 14/1

Barcelona v Malaga (8pm)

The reigning champions (1/2 Outright) are not expected to be off top spot for too long on Sunday as their home game against lowly Malaga kicks off shortly after Real’s game against Almeria concludes.

Barca have been in good form of late with a 4-0 win at Deportivo La Coruna last weekend consolidating their two point lead at the top of the table.

They should have far too much for Malaga, but it might not be as clear-cut as you would think as the opposition go into the match having won their last away game 2-1 at Sporting Gijon, while Barca struggled to see of Levante 2-1 in their last outing at the Nou Camp.

Prediction: Barca To Win 3-1 @ 11/1

Marseille v Bordeaux (8pm)

We will take a giant leap across The Pyrenees and into the south of France for our next game as the only match on Sunday sees a clash between two sides firmly embroiled in what is becoming a very congested battle for the French Ligue 1 crown.

Marseille (21/10 French Ligue 1 Outright) sit in fifth position but are only three points off Lille in top spot ahead of this weekend’s action which brings an end to the winter break.

Marseille went into the break having drawn two on the bounce, while seventh-placed Bordeaux did the same so it is set to be a close encounter at the Stade Velodrome.

Bordeaux could jump above Marseille in the table with a win so it is all to play for.

Prediction: Draw 1-1 @ 5/1

Lecce v AC Milan (7.45pm)

Into Italy’s Serie A now and all eyes will be on lowly Lecce as they look to try and slow down the Rossoneri’s march towards the title (10/11 Serie A Outright) on Sunday evening.

Milan are four points clear of the chasing pack but returned from the winter break last weekend looking out-of-sorts as they were forced to fight back from 3-1 down to eventually snatch an injury-time 4-4 draw against Udinese at the San Siro.

Meanwhile, Lecce may sit third-bottom in the table but they stunned third-placed Lazio with a 2-1 win at the Stadio Olimpico to boost their survival fight.

It is set to be closer than you would think but Milan should just about nick it.

Prediction: Milan To Win 2-1 @ 7/1

Eintracht Frankfurt v Hannover (2.30pm)

Moving up to Germany’s Bundesliga and, with Borussia Dortmund 13 points clear at the top, it does not look like there will be much of a title race in the second half of the campaign.

However, there is still an interesting battle for the Champions League and Europa League places going on beneath them and these two sides are firmly in the mix.

Eintracht Frankfurt are in seventh spot – but only seven points off second position – while Hannover are sitting pretty in fourth on 31 points.

Frankfurt inflicted Dortmund’s first away defeat of the season after eight successive wins just before the winter break in December so will return to action brimming with confidence after that 1-0 success.

Hannover have won four and lost four with no draws on their travels to date, but lost 3-1 at Nuremberg last time out on December 18.

Everything points to a home win, but I feel the visitors are long overdue an away-day draw.

Prediction: Draw @ 23/10

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Sunday Premier League previews

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Chelsea v Aston Villa

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti hopes being generous to his team will spur them on to victory against Aston Villa on Sunday (Chelsea 1/ 4 to win).

The Italian normally makes his players analyse their previous performance on video ahead of each game, to try and learn from their mistakes.

But Ancelotti has spared his squad that chore following Monday’s 3-1 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Two days later, his relieved players were able to grind out a precious 1-0 win over Bolton at Stamford Bridge to end their worst Premier League run for 11 years.

The victory kept their faltering title defence alive and gave them a much-needed boost ahead of Sunday’s visit of Aston Villa.

“I didn’t show the video against Arsenal,” Ancelotti said. “I normally do show. When the moment is not so good, you don’t have to kill!

“I can show them in the future but not now.”

Chelsea moved up to fourth place by beating Bolton, and will aim for back-to-back wins for the first time in two months.

“This is a very important moment for our players, physically,” Ancelotti said. The team has to show its fitness. We worked very hard for two weeks without a game and the players are in a very good condition.”

Villa’s confidence, already undermined by Boxing Day’s 2-1 home defeat to Tottenham, is at a new low ebb following the 4-0 drubbing at Manchester City on Tuesday (Villa 12/1 to win).

Ashley Young and Emile Heskey will be restored to the starting side after overcoming injuries, but Luke Young has yet to recover from an ankle knock.

Branislav Ivanovic is banned after picking up his fifth booking of the term, so Ancelotti must decide between Jeffrey Bruma and Paulo Ferreira as his replacement.

Wigan v Newcastle

Wigan hope an encouraging result at home to Arsenal last time out has laid the platform for victory over Newcastle at the DW Stadium (Wigan 6/4 to win).

The Latics secured a 2-2 draw against the Gunners on Wednesday, courtesy of a late own goal by Sebastien Squillaci which moved them out of the relegation zone. And that result came hard on the heels of the impressive 2-1 win at Wolves on Boxing Day.

Wigan know they could find themselves back in the bottom three by the time they kick off against the Magpies, but have a fine home record to fall back on. They have lost only three home games all season and are unbeaten in their last six games at the DW Stadium.

Newcastle’s leading scorer Andy Carroll is a major doubt after picking up a thigh strain, but Shola Ameobi is fit again and could be given his chance (Newcastle 9/5 to win).

Captain Kevin Nolan is back after serving a one-game ban, while Jose Enrique and Sol Campbell are both available after injury.

Wigan may give new signing Adrian Lopez his chance against Alan Pardew?s men, and are forced into at least one change.

Striker Charles N’Zogbia is banned for the next three matches, while Antolin Alcaraz has only a 50 per cent chance of playing due to a thigh problem.

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Sunday Premier League previews

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Chelsea v Aston Villa

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti hopes being generous to his team will spur them on to victory against Aston Villa on Sunday (Chelsea 1/ 4 to win).

The Italian normally makes his players analyse their previous performance on video ahead of each game, to try and learn from their mistakes.

But Ancelotti has spared his squad that chore following Monday’s 3-1 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Two days later, his relieved players were able to grind out a precious 1-0 win over Bolton at Stamford Bridge to end their worst Premier League run for 11 years.

The victory kept their faltering title defence alive and gave them a much-needed boost ahead of Sunday’s visit of Aston Villa.

“I didn’t show the video against Arsenal,” Ancelotti said. “I normally do show. When the moment is not so good, you don’t have to kill!

“I can show them in the future but not now.”

Chelsea moved up to fourth place by beating Bolton, and will aim for back-to-back wins for the first time in two months.

“This is a very important moment for our players, physically,” Ancelotti said. The team has to show its fitness. We worked very hard for two weeks without a game and the players are in a very good condition.”

Villa’s confidence, already undermined by Boxing Day’s 2-1 home defeat to Tottenham, is at a new low ebb following the 4-0 drubbing at Manchester City on Tuesday (Villa 12/1 to win).

Ashley Young and Emile Heskey will be restored to the starting side after overcoming injuries, but Luke Young has yet to recover from an ankle knock.

Branislav Ivanovic is banned after picking up his fifth booking of the term, so Ancelotti must decide between Jeffrey Bruma and Paulo Ferreira as his replacement.

Wigan v Newcastle

Wigan hope an encouraging result at home to Arsenal last time out has laid the platform for victory over Newcastle at the DW Stadium (Wigan 6/4 to win).

The Latics secured a 2-2 draw against the Gunners on Wednesday, courtesy of a late own goal by Sebastien Squillaci which moved them out of the relegation zone. And that result came hard on the heels of the impressive 2-1 win at Wolves on Boxing Day.

Wigan know they could find themselves back in the bottom three by the time they kick off against the Magpies, but have a fine home record to fall back on. They have lost only three home games all season and are unbeaten in their last six games at the DW Stadium.

Newcastle’s leading scorer Andy Carroll is a major doubt after picking up a thigh strain, but Shola Ameobi is fit again and could be given his chance (Newcastle 9/5 to win).

Captain Kevin Nolan is back after serving a one-game ban, while Jose Enrique and Sol Campbell are both available after injury.

Wigan may give new signing Adrian Lopez his chance against Alan Pardew?s men, and are forced into at least one change.

Striker Charles N’Zogbia is banned for the next three matches, while Antolin Alcaraz has only a 50 per cent chance of playing due to a thigh problem.

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Sunday EPL preview

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Somen Tchoyi could be the value at 10/3 in the Anytime Scorer when West Brom take on bitter Black Country rivals Wolves in the Premier League on Sunday.

The former Salzburg favourite has got Baggies fans out of their seats with a string of eye-catching performances and is the club’s top scorer this season with four goals – all of them coming in his last eight appearances.

The Cameroon star looks a bag of tricks and might have improved his recent return had he not hit the crossbar against Aston Villa last weekend, when Albion fell to a 2-1 defeat to prevent Roberto di Matteo’s men from chalking up a third Premier League win on the bounce.

West Brom can be backed at 5/6 in the match betting against Wolves and the omens look good for odds on players.

Wolves have failed to score in six of their last eight games against West Brom – and in each of the last three – and they have not won any of their last eight trips to the Hawthorns losing five and drawing three.

Another way in could be to take the 7/4 on West Brom to Win To Nil, or, taking the win factor out of the equation for slightly less value, go for the 5/4 to Keep A Clean Sheet given that Mick McCarthy’s team have kept just one clean sheet in their last 19 away trips in the Premier League.

The only concern about this recommendation is the fact that West Brom have only kept two clean sheets in their last 16 Premier League home games.

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Sunday EPL Previews

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Bolton can continue their push for a European place when they welcome former manager Sam Allardyce and Blackburn in the Premier League at the Reebok on Sunday.

The odds against – 11/10 – about Wanderers in the match betting represents good value when you consider Rovers have not managed to keep a clean sheet on the road in eight away games this season – and, we should not forget, they shipped in an alarming seven against title-chasers Manchester United the last time they ventured away from Ewood.

The form of Johan Elmander has beefed up Wanderers attack – he has scored eight goals in all competitions this season – so the recommendation here is to snaffle up the 6/5 Anytime Goalscorer.

Rovers fans looking for crumbs of comfort can take heart from the fact that they are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League games against their north-west rivals, winning five of those matches, and Wanderers have failed to score in three of their last four matches against Blackburn.

Rovers also managed a Premier League double over Bolton last season but the home side have come a long away under Owen Coyle.

Local bragging rights will be at stake in the West Midlands when draw specialists Wolves and Birmingham clash at Molineux.

Five of the last 10 meetings between these two teams have ended in a stalemate and Blues – along with Fulham – have already collected nine draws in the Premier League this season since the first whistle was blown.

The draw can often be overlooked but the recommendation here is to take the 9/4 about this ending all square.

It is 10 Premier League games since Wolves last kept a clean sheet at Molineux so another way in could be to take the 7/10 about both teams to score – or the more adventurous punter may like the 2/1 about Blues to collect the away win.

Birmingham, remember, are unbeaten in their last nine league meetings with Wolves, winning four, including the last three in a row, but for slightly more value the draw looks appealing.

The final Premier League game on Sunday sees Tottenham play host to stuttering champions Chelsea and under-fire manager Carlo Ancelotti.

Spurs at the bigger price – 9/5 in the match betting – simply have to be the bet when you consider their London rivals have managed just two wins in eight games – and one in six in the Premier League.

Ancelotti has also revealed he has been given the dreaded vote of confidence by owner Roman Abramovich – a sure-fire sign all is usually not well.

Chelsea have been conceding too many – in the four games they have lost most recently they have also failed to score – and they face Manchester United at home and Arsenal away after this awkward-looking assignment in the capital.

Both teams to score can be backed at 4/6 given that it is 15 Premier League matches since Tottenham last kept a clean sheet in the league, but for odds against the recommendation here is to go with the home side to get the job done in 90 minutes.

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