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Colours nailed firmly to the mast (blue, as it happens, on this occasion) I firmly fancy Chelsea to win the title this season.
I suspect Jose Mourinho strongly expects that to happen too. In fact, if he spoke totally frankly I guess he’d say: “If there are no disasters and if everyone does what I tell them to then we’ll win by a length.”
What he actually did say last weekend was:
“This season I don’t want to worry about who’s our biggest rivals. “I thought a lot about that and the key is that my club gave me exactly what I asked for [in the market].”
However, somewhere in the calculating, shrewd left hemisphere of his brain will be the acceptance that Roman Abramovich’s track record leaves no room for doubt: win the title and/or the Champions League or it’s the sack.
Whatever Chelsea win, the internet already has a joke for it.
You don’t have to look hard to find the wits who have designed a Chelsea shirt with the Atlético Madrid crest on it.
And here’s Diego Costa! #CFC https://t.co/CTNiZW6YuD
— Chelsea FC (@chelseafc) August 12, 2014
Diego Costa, Filipe Luis and Thibaut Courtois repatriated. While these are first-rate recruits for an assault on both the Champions League and deposing Manchester City they could, look, to some, like the perfect ‘bait’ for Diego Simeone.
Might the Blues’ Russian owner be attracted by this feisty Argentinian title winner who resembles nothing more than a young, hungry Mourinho circa 2004?
The same prodigy whose team outplayed Chelsea at the Bridge last spring, preventing them reaching Abramovich’s hallowed ground of the Champions League final? And if Simeone is the ‘Plan B’ marked Навсякийслучай ['just in case' in Russian] then what better way to scheme for the future than stripping the backbone of his Spanish champions and installing them at Stamford Bridge?
Such are the risks of the high-octane world in which elite football managers like Mourinho exist. Kill or be killed.
However, this time I think it’s reasonable to back Mourinho and suspect that he’s replicated his very best transfer market splurge – at Inter in summer 2009. The echoes are uncanny.
Beaten by Sampdoria in the Coppa Italia and Manchester United in the Champions league [in the semi final and the round of sixteen, the same stages Chelsea reached in the two competitions last season] Mourinho did two things.
The night of the United defeat he buttonholed his club owner, Massimo Moratti and demanded: “I want this, this and this player to come and want to let this, this and this veteran player to go…” Ring any bells from this summer?
Then, after the Coppa Italia humiliation, he told the media: “You are always badgering me to use certain players more [Mancini, Vieira, Crespo, Maxwell, Adriano].. this is what you get.”
For months Mourinho warned that the squad he’d inherited wasn’t sufficiently good. The following season’s treble, powered by his own signings, proved his case.
Diego Milito pic.twitter.com/vicGpkS76W — Soy Racinguista (@Racinguistas) August 11, 2014
Forward-thinking fella
All last season he warned that Chelsea’s strikers weren’t converting a sufficient percentage of their chances. Finishing 30 goals behind both Liverpool and City proved him right.
Long before the end of season 2008/9, almost as soon as defeat to United was wrapped up, so were the purchases of Thiago Motta and Diego Milito from Genoa.
Mourinho believed the Argentinian striker would become the guy to turn defeats into draws and draws into wins.
Over the following months Milito scored the league-winning goal, the Coppa winning goal and both Champions League Final-winning goals.
Another Diego, Costa, has the potential to replicate all that and in my view it’s telling that Mourinho recently revealed he’s known for months [just like with Milito] that the 25-year-old striker was secured.
“All last season we wanted him and we decided to wait until now because we were very focussed on having Diego Costa.”
In summer 2009 Mourinho enquired about buying Daniel Van Buyten or Breno from Bayern and was shocked to be able to sign World Cup winner Lucio. He bit their hand off and it was a triumph.
Welcome to Premier League Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, and Thibaut Courtois! pic.twitter.com/hU9jf02Prh
— TheChelsQuotes (@TheChelsQuotes) August 13, 2014
Let’s talk about Cesc, baby
This time he admits he was very surprised that World Cup winning Cesc Fabregas would leave Barcelona, and now the Catalan will goals, assists and vast experience to Chelsea’s midfield.
“A fantastic midfielder who can modify how we play and addd a next dimension to our play” is Mourinho’s assessment.
Another part midfielder/part striker just like Wesley Sneijder became for Inter in Mourinho’s glorious summer of 2009 also plucked from Spain – Real Madrid in Sneijder’s case.
The Dutchman debuted in [without a training session] in a 4-0 win over Milan and scored crucial goals, including the one against Barcelona which put Inter in the Champions League final. Bet on Fabregas to produce the same impact.
In 2009 Mourinho had one season of learning under his belt, drove all the signings and sales … and Inter stormed to the treble by May 2010.
In 2014 all the signs are that he’s produced similar quality work.
And while the treble may be a big ask becoming champions of England should not be.
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France’s Le Championnat gets underway on Friday night with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) strong favourites to lift the title after their summer spending free. They look set to make a real splash in the European game but is ‘buying the title’ a good thing for football? (PSG 4/11 Ligue 1 Outright).
Despite being a relativity well-known club throughout Europe, PSG have only won the French top-flight title on two occasions and the last time they lifted the trophy was back in 1994. But that looks set to change as the Parisians have become the latests club to benefit from huge foreign investment.
The money pumped into the club by the Qatar Investment Authority means that they will now be on a different level financially to the rest of the Ligue 1 clubs and, while money does not always guarantee success, it would be a surprise if they were not crowned champions of France in May 2013.
Players of the calibre of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva had already arrived from AC Milan before news broke that the capital outfit had outbid Manchester United to land Brazil international midfielder Lucas Moura for 45m euros. In terms of prestige and history, PSG cannot hold a candle to the Red Devils and it proves the point that, in football, money always talks.
History has shown that clubs can effectively spend their way to success and Blackburn Rovers proved the theory when lifting the Premier League trophy back in 1995 on the back of Jack Walker’s millions. The inevitable fall from grace occurred when the plug was pulled on the cash-flow and they are now a ‘yo-yo club’ with another spell in the second tier of English football about to begin.
The latest example in England is obviously Manchester City who, prior to the recent Middle East investment, would not have entertained the thought of beating United to the title. But they are able to attract the top stars to the Etihad Stadium the way that Roman Abramovich’s money has done at Chelsea, and there seems no reason to suggest that the recent trend will end any time soon.
The finances involved do annoy many people looking in from the outside and the way in which the Olympic athletics have performed so well for a fraction of the rewards that a top footballer receives has added fuel to the argument that they are grossly overpaid.
But is is not going to stop and PSG will look to join the top echelons of the European game through their ability in the transfer market, with ex-Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti the man pulling the strings.
Montpellier took the Ligue 1 title last season, with PSG finishing second and they kick off their defence of the title on Friday night against Toulouse (Montpelier 8/11, Toulouse 9/2, draw 12/5 Match Prices). The Paris club begin with the visit of Lorient on Saturday and are massive favourites to take all three points from the side who finished just one point and one place above the drop zone last term.
It is true that the increased expectation will heap pressure on the Paris players but, operating in a relatively weak league, they should be able to sweep all before them. The downside for the French league is that it could become, like Scotland has now after Rangers’ demotion, a one-horse race for the title, with the likes of Montpellier, Lyon, Lille and Bordeaux struggling to hang on to their coat-tails.
The PSG fans will not care two hoots about the financial implications as they will just want to see their heroes lift trophy after trophy at home and in Europe but it may well take them a few seasons to adapt to life in the Champions League, as there are a number of talented teams waiting to bring them down to earth.
If the cash keeps rolling in for Ancelotti and director of football Leonardo to spend then all should be well at the Parc des Princes. But it is a dangerous policy and one that can backfire if things go wrong, as Blackburn fans, who face trips to Brighton and Barnsley this season instead of Old Trafford and the Emirates, will testify to.
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The 2012/13 Serie A season looks set to be a battle between three giants of the Italian game - Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan. Here is our closer look at their preparations and chances of success in the upcoming campaign.
In this age of austerity and looming Financial Fair Play regulations, Italian clubs have spent the summer shedding their squads of expensive players in order to bring their finances into line.
Add to that the spectre of match-fixing casting an unfortunate shadow over the game yet again, there is a feeling the new campaign represents a fresh start for a number of clubs as they bid to put recent troubles behind them.
Defending champions Juventus are understandably 11/8 favourites to retain their trophy after going unbeaten throughout the whole of last season.
Juve’s 2011/12 title completed the renaissance of a side that had hit rock bottom just six years ago when relegated to Serie B following the ‘Calciopoli’ scandal.
A return of Champions League football is the main reason for Juve fans to get excited this season and crystallises their return to the top of the European game.
Transfers have been reasonably modest so far, with Kwadwo Asamoah, Mauricio Isla and Sebastian Giovinco expected to fill out the squad rather than be first-choice. Brazilian defender Lucio and former Manchester United star Paul Pogba are exciting talents, however, and should see more action.
The crowning glory to Juve’s summer shopping, though, will be a striker. The club are desperate for a big name to spearhead their European challenge with Robin van Persie, Luis Suarez, Stevan Jovetic and Edin Dzeko the names regularly mentioned.
Add one or more of those to the squad and they will be difficult to dislodge at the top of the division.
Behind Juve, 18-times champions AC Milan are 2/1 second favourites for the title, but they, perhaps more than any other club, represent Italy’s efforts to comply with Financial Fair Play.
Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have been flogged to PSG, despite being key first-team players, while further departures have not been ruled out, with Robinho among those consistently linked with the move away.
Incomings, in contrast, have been sparse, with Kevin Constant a loan signing from Genoa and Bakaye Traore a free transfer. Riccardo Montolivo is, though, also a shrewd signing on a free from Fiorentina.
Boss Massimiliano Allegri will have to show all of his man-management skills to build a side shorn of his biggest stars but in contrast to Juve’s summer shopping, they look unlikely to challenge.
Milan’s city rivals Inter will dearly hope they have a better campaign than last, where they went through three managers, with Gian Piero Gasperini, Claudio Ranieri and finally Andrea Stramaccioni occupying the manager’s chair at the San Siro.
Stramaccioni managed to steady the ship during a troubled campaign, where they eventually finished sixth – significantly better that what was expected midway through the season.
Like Milan, the Nerazzurri are also clearing out their experienced players, with Lucio, Ivan Cordoba Goran Pandev and Diego Forlan all departing. Dejan Stankovic and Julio Cesar are expected to follow, while Douglas Maicon, Wesley Sneijder and Giampaolo Pazzini have also all been linked with a move away.
However, while Milan have limited themselves in the transfer market to date, Inter appear to have been shrewd in their dealings, with highly-rated goalkeeper Samir Handanovic joining from Udinese and Matias Silvestre arriving from Palermo. Rodrigo Palacio should also add goals to a side that struggled to find the net last season.
Roma (14/1) and Napoli (20/1) should be considered rank outsiders for next seasons’ title, though the latter could be a handy each-way beat to snatch the runners-up spot.
It is Juve, then, who look the team to beat next year again. The Old Lady appear determined to rediscover past glories after a traumatic few seasons and exert their dominance both at home and in Europe.
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Monday night will see the most highly-anticipated Manchester derby in decades, as City and United go head-to-head in a match that is likely to decide the destination of the Premier League title this season (City 6/5, draw 12/5, United 12/5).
For some time now it has been a two-horse race for the crown and as the battle between these two giants has ebbed and flowed, we have now arrived at the biggest game of the campaign and, possibly, of the past few seasons.
City (7/4 Premier League outright) were clearly not comfortable holding the frontrunners tag and, having enjoyed a healthy lead over United, the Blues started to slip up as the pressure of closing in on their first Premier League title clearly started to get to them.
However, the Red Devils, who have been in this position so many times before as they go in search of their 20th league title, have also found life difficult at the top in recent weeks.
United at one stage held an eight-point lead at the top of the table but a defeat to Wigan Athletic and a thrilling 4-4 draw with Everton at Old Trafford in their last outing, has left them with just a three-point advantage ahead of the clash at the Etihad Stadium.
Manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes City would go on to win the Premier League title if they were to collect all three points on home soil and has insisted his players will be going all out for a win.
This is really a match City must win and you can expect their boss Roberto Mancini to go with an attacking line-up for the derby.
Argentine duo Sergio Aguero (11/2 first goalscorer) and the prodigal son Carlos Tevez have looked extremely dangerous in attack in recent weeks and the question has been asked whether this game would have as much riding on it if Tevez had not done his disappearing act to South America?
Another controversial figure Mario Balotelli, who scored in City’s astonishing 6-1 victory over United at Old Trafford earlier this season, could feature in this high pressure encounter.
Mancini has insisted he trusts his fellow Italian to keep his cool, although questions must still be raised over the former Inter Milan star’s temperament.
It would be hard to break up the Aguero-Tevez partnership but Mancini may well bring in Balotelli and use Tevez (6/1 first goalscorer) as an impact player in the second-half, with the striker looking to get one over his former club.
As for United (4/7 Premier League outright), they will be concerned with the ease in which Everton scored four at the ‘Theatre of Dreams’ and Ferguson will be determined to tighten up that defence.
England striker Wayne Rooney (11/2 first goalscorer) has looked dangerous up front recently and City will, of course, be more than aware of what the 26-year-old is capable of.
Nani, Danny Welbeck and Ashley Young, meanwhile, have been causing teams problems all season, so there will be plenty to think about for the Blues defence.
However, on home soil and with the momentum behind the chasers, City might just edge this all-important derby to set up a very exciting end to the 2011/2012 Premier League season.
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It’s a potentially-pivotal day at the top of the Premier League on Sunday with both Manchester City and Manchester United in action. Roberto Mancini has already said that if his side lose they can forget winning the title but how will things pan out? Here we look at the possibilities on what’s sure to be a nerve-wracking day (totesport – Premier League).
Manchester United v QPR (1.30pm)
Pundits, fans and pretty much the whole football world will view this one as a home banker (United 2/11, QPR 16/1, draw 6/1 – 90 minutes) and who are we to argue?
United, despite from being far from their best against Fulham and Blackburn in their last two games, have managed to grind out results in typically-efficient style and the chance of a slip-up here looks remote.
Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young weighed in with the vital late goals at Ewood Park on Monday and the former’s performances of late has led to Sir Alex Ferguson eschewing plenty of praise on the former Wigan man, who could just be the player that proves to be the difference in the run-in for the Red Devils (8/1 First Goalscorer).
Chasing their 20th title, Ferguson’s men have moved menacingly five points clear of City when it matters most and another three here will leave them eight points ahead of their local rivals before they go to Arsenal, so a comfortable home win it is then.
Former United hero, but City boss, Mark Hughes, may have other ideas as his side still search for victories to move them clear of the relegation zone.
The R’s home form has picked up notably since the Welshman took over and eye-catching victories at Loftus Road over Liverpool and Arsenal last week have boosted their survival chances considerably but they still sit level on points with Blackburn and Wigan, who are 18th and 19th respectively, only just ahead on goal difference.
Sadly for Rangers, they travel to probably the worst ground they could possibly choose looking for a result so a defeat, and possibly an unwelcome return to the bottom three, beckons.
Arsenal v Manchester City (4pm)
It’s a huge game at the Emirates that follows – one City dare must not lose if they are to stand a chance of catching United.
Mancini may have unwittingly heaped more pressure on his players by declaring it a must-win game but they can go to north London and get the required result – provided the real City show up and not the imposters of the last few weeks.
The disappointing 1-1 draw at Stoke was followed up by an unlikely 3-3 draw at home to Sunderland last weekend, and that only thanks to two late goals in what was overall an extremely lacklustre display from a side going for the title.
Mario Balotelli likes his headlines, but also his goals, and the Italian, who Mancini joked this week drives him so mad at times that if he were still playing he would have to “punch him”, can again be the man for the big occasion on Sunday.
His 13 league goals have helped keep City’s title bid afloat and he is well worth backing at 7/4 to score anytime once again.
Arsenal still have plenty to play for themselves, of course, and, sitting in third, a well-placed to claim a top-four finish despite last weekend’s setback at QPR.
Chelsea and Newcastle are breathing down their necks but, aside from the blip at Loftus Road, the Gunners have been very impressive of late and City will be up against a confident side determined to get back to winning ways.
However, we sense this means slightly more to City and fancy them to get the required result to keep their manager happy and maintain their faltering title bid – if only for now.
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The last round of fixtures dealt a body-blow to Manchester City’s hopes of landing their first league title since 1968, but is the top prize now out of reach for Roberto Mancini’s expensively assembled side?
Earlier in the campaign it looked as if City were going to storm the title but with just one win in their last four league fixtures, it seems safe to say nerves are starting to jangle at the Etihad Stadium, while fierce rivals Manchester United have, predictably, hit top form at exactly the right time.
The Old Trafford outfit have recorded nine victories in their last 10 Premier League games and have won their last seven on the spin, to take a five-point lead at the top of the title with just seven games remaining.
Manchester United are now 1/8 to secure the Premier League title this season with Totesport, while City can be backed at 5/1.
However, Mancini hasn’t given up on the top domestic prize just yet, but he concedes City need to win all seven of their remaining fixtures if they are to seal Premier League glory.
“We have seven games – 21 points. I think with 92 points we will win the title,” explained the Italian
“We should be strong, I believe always. The message is always the same – we will do everything to win this title.”
On paper United certainly have the easier run-in, but it is getting to that stage of the season where strange results crop up as the various sides battle for either European football or survival.
Indeed, United’s next two fixtures are against two sides battling the drop. The Old Trafford outfit host QPR on Sunday and travel to Wigan on April 11, with both the Rs and the Latics deep in trouble there is the potential for an upset – and both are capable of taking points from the top sides, as QPR demonstrated with their win over Arsenal and Wigan with their recent win over Liverpool.
United then host Aston Villa, who are in danger of being dragged into the relegation battle, and Everton – a side who have managed to upset Sir Alex Ferguson’s men in the past, and a team who thrive on the big occasion against the best in the league.
The Manchester derby then takes place at the Etihad Stadium in April 30, in what will be a must-win encounter if City are still involved in the hunt for the title.
United’s final two games see them host Swansea before a trip to Sunderland on the final day of the campaign, with neither the Swans or the Black Cats in danger of relegation or in a position to challenge for European football.
City’s run in sees them travel to Arsenal this weekend, and the Gunners are also in desperate need of the points as they continue their battle for a top four finish.
Mancini’s side then host West Brom and face trips to Norwich and Wolves before they host their title rivals. City travel to Newcastle in the penultimate game of the season before they host QPR on the final day, in what could be a huge fixture for both teams as the west London outfit may need to get a result to avoid an immediate return to the Championship.
United are certainly in the driving seat, but a former star may come back to haunt them. Carlos Tevez has now found a path back into the City first-team and if the Argentine striker can find the kind of form he displayed last season after a spell in the wilderness, or the golf-courses in Argentina if widespread reports are to be believed, the Etihad Stadium outfit could yet come out on top, but they are relying on a United slip-up.
The Old Trafford side are 1/6 to beat QPR this weekend, a win for the Hoops is 12/1 and the draw is 5/1.
Manchester City are 13/8 to secure a win at the Emirates on Sunday against an Arsenal side who are unbeaten at home since January 22, when United sealed a 2-1 win in north London. The hosts are 11/8 to take all three points and the draw can be backed at 11/5.
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The current Premier League season has been possibly one of the most exciting in recent history with Manchester City (7/4 Premier League outright) finally mounting a sustained challenge, while local rivals Manchester United have once again been the model of consistency.
We’ve also seen Spurs play a starring role in the campaign, but they’ve recently fallen away and it now looks as if it will be a two-horse race for the title.
The Red Devils are currently four points clear of their neighbours but have played a game more and with the teams still to meet at the Etihad, there is plenty to play for.
Big things were expected of Roberto Mancini’s side this season, but it appears that their lack of experience of winning titles is starting to bite them after a few disappointing results at both home and aboard.
The Citizens lost last time out in the league at Swansea, with a number of pundits pointing to the lack of leadership in the side in the absence of talismanic skipper Vincent Kompany.
However, they could be handed a major this week as its believed that former captain Carlos Tevez is set to return to the squad for Wednesday’s crucial home match against a resurgent Chelsea (City 4/5, draw 12/5, Chelsea 11/4).
The Argentine has been out of action since his much published row with manager Mancini but after missing out on a move in January, he has apologised for his behaviour and is now nearing full fitness.
Tevez has previously won the title with when he was at Old Trafford and his ability and experience could yet play a massive role in the destination of the Premier League trophy.
Everyone knows that Tevez likes to do things in his own unique style, so don’t be surprised if he pops up with a late winner on Wednesday (City 7/1 to win 2-1)
On the other hand United (4/9 Premier League outright) are absolutely flying and despite crashing out of the Europa League on Thursday, look to be full of confidence after their 5-0 win at Wolves on Sunday.
As already mentioned, they more than have the experience of winning titles and despite a number of disappointing results this season, seem to be coming into their own at just the right time.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s side appear to have the easiest run-in, playing a number of the teams vying to avoid relegation and apart from possibly the derby with City on 30th April, will be expecting to win all of their remaining fixtures.
The Red Devils began this season with a fresh outlook after buying a number of young players in the summer. However, it’s been the old heads who have been impressing recently and they will be looking to the experience of the likes Paul Scholes to see them through to their second successive league win.
Whatever happens, it’s sure to be a thrilling end to the season, but with their brilliant history in the competition, United should just edge it.
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The Championship has been possibly the most exciting league in Britain this year and despite West Ham (10/11 Championship outright) currently holding a four point lead, they know that any slip-ups are sure to be punished by the chasing pack.
That slip-up could come this weekend as Sam Allardyce and his men travel to London Road to take on Peterborough, who have their own agenda as they look to avoid relegation following their promotion in the summer (Peterborough 13/5, draw 5/2, West Ham evens).
Darren Ferguson’s side have been solid rather than spectacular this season but are currently in a bit of a slump having not won since beating Nottingham Forest on Boxing Day. However, they always seem to raise their game against the top teams and will be looking to break their streak against the Hammers.
Key to their chances will be playmaker George Boyd, who has long been hailed as one of the best players outside the Premier League. The Scot has the ability to unlock any defence and West Ham will have to be wary of his threat whenever the Posh have got the ball.
The Hammers themselves have disappointed recently but have somehow maintained their position atop the table and now look almost certain to earn promotion back to the Premier League.
Sam Allardyce’s side once again proved their credentials by beating local rivals Millwall last Saturday, despite going down to ten men early on after captain Kevin Nolan’s sending off.
Nolan’s absence will pile more pressure on stand-in captain Mark Noble, who was the architect of last Saturday’s victory. He’ll once gain look to control the game and is sure to be at everything positive for his side.
Noble’s quality could prove the difference at London Road and the Hammers will be confident of success but its sure to be a close game (West Ham 7/1 to win 2-1).
Another game that jumps out from the Championship on Saturday is the clash at the Walkers Stadium which sees Leicester take on Cardiff (Leicester 5/4, draw 9/4, Cardiff 7/4).
The big-spending Foxes have disappointed this season after bringing in a number of high-profile players, while Cardiff have once again confounded the critics and are challenging for promotion to the top flight.
The East Midlands club have often struggled at the back but seem to have settled down in recent times with Sean St Ledger stepping into partner Matt Mills. The duo will be vital on Saturday and will be looking to establish themselves as the first choice defensive pair ahead of Sol Bamba’s return from the African Cup of Nations.
Cardiff’s game is based on moving the ball quickly on the ground and central to this is midfielder Peter Whittingham, who has once again proved himself to be his side’s key player. The former Aston Villa man will be looking forward to testing himself against some of the best players in Championship.
However, home advantage should prove enough and a win could help Nigel Pearson’s side make a late run for the promotion places (Leicester 8/1 to win 2-1).
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There is one tasty looking fixture left in this weekend’s round of Premier League fixtures as Liverpool entertain Tottenham on Monday night in a match that will go a long way to determining both clubs’ chances of attaining their respective goals.
Spurs still retain hopes of winning the Premier League title after bouncing back from the unlucky and controversial 3-2 defeat at Manchester City with a 3-1 home win over strugglers Wigan.
City of course had slipped up against Everton in midweek but pulled eight points clear of Spurs with the 3-0 win over Fulham on Saturday night.
Harry Redknapp knows that his side can ill-afford too many slip-ups but a draw may not be considered good enough when trying to claw back the deficit, even though Liverpool remain unbeaten at home.
A top-four finish was perhaps the expectation at the start of the season for the Lilywhites but, having performed so well in the league to date, barring the opening defeats against United and City, there is still enough time to land the ultimate prize in domestic football.
That used to be expected in Liverpool but their star has fallen somewhat and the Reds now face a battle to even qualify for the Champions League after making a slow start to a campaign, which began with hopes of a title tilt after a summer spending spree – added to the outlay made last January.
Inconsistency has been a problem for Dalglish’s men while a lack of goals has not helped the cause, and they could go into Monday’s fixture seven points behind fourth-placed Chelsea (depending on the Blues’ result against United on Sunday).
The Reds are unbeaten at home and consequently have been installed as 11/10 favourites in the match betting, with Spurs on offer at a tempting 13/5 and the draw at 12/5 in the match betting.
Liverpool’s unbeaten home record does mask the fact that they have been held seven times at Anfield with just four wins in the 11 matches played there, scoring just 14 goals in the process.
Spurs have scored 20 on their travels and lost just three games, none of which would necessarily be considered surprising – at United, City and Stoke – while they were the last team to win at Anfield, winning 2-0 in May last season.
The north Londoners’ record is hardly great though as that win was their only one in their last 17 visits to Anfield, but this a different Spurs team and there is plenty of value about them taking something from the game.
Tottenham of course put Liverpool’s early-season pretensions into perspective with a 4-0 drubbing at White Hart Lane, and have lost only one of the last five Premier League games againstthe Reds and are looking to complete the double over them for the second consecutive season.
A lot could depend on the team news as Spurs are sweating on Aaron Lennon, Jermain Defoe, Emmanuel Adebayor and Rafael van der Vaart, while William Gallas and Tom Huddlestone are definitely ruled out.
Louis Saha was a deadline-day capture from Everton and could make his debut, and he is an 8/1 shot in the First/Last Goalscorer betting and 5/2 to score Anytime.
However, much of the pre-match hype is bound to surround the return of Luis Suarez (5/1 First/Last, 11/8 Anytime Goalscorer) from his lengthy ban, although whether he is thrust straight back into the team is open to question.
The Uruguayan is regarded as a key player for Liverpool but goals have been a problem this season, even for him, as he has managed just five in the top-flight this term.
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