Wolves - WBA, betting tip - 13h cet

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Wolves are two points below the line and in last two rounds will visit Sunderland and in last day potential cracker, will host Blackburn. It’s a must win game, one point would leave only slim chances for survive. They’re winless in last five and will have some problems in front line as Kightly, Ebanks-Blake and Doyle are probably all out. Wolves have noticed only one win out of last ten clashes against WBA.

The Baggies are safe, but wouldn’t lack in motivation to send big rivals down to Championship. Since Roy Hodgson took the charge, they look like reborn with just one defeat out of last ten matches (Chelsea). Skipper Brunt, Reid and Jara are doubts, Scharner is suspended, Jerome Thomas should play.

I cannot see Wolves winning this one. They look toothless in front and defensive line is prone to big mistakes. Keeping a draw doesn’t make too much sense, but if they push too much for a winner will get execution.

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Bet: WBA 0.0
Odd: 2.45 Tipico
Stake: 7/10
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Monday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Bolton defender Gary Cahill, who is reportedly attracting interest from Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool, has admitted the time may be right for a move away from the Trotters.(The Bolton News) 

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TRANSFER GOSSIP

Ajax forward David Suarez may be bound for Arsenal, with the Gunners weighing up a £22m bid for the Uruguay international.(Caught Offside) 
But Wolves insist striker Kevin Doyle, who has emerged as a £10m target for Arsenal, will not be leaving Molineux this summer.(Daily Mirror) 
Manchester City have Aston Villa winger Ashley Young in their sights, with the Eastlands hierarchy believing a £22m bid may tempt Villans boss Martin O'Neill to sell.(Caught Offside) 
Wigan have slapped an £8m price tag on Honduras left-back Maynor Figueroa, who is wanted by Sunderland boss Steve Bruce. (Daily Mirror) 
Palermo defender Simon Kjaer, 21, is a possible target for Arsenal as manager Arsene Wenger looks for a new centre-back partner for Thomas Vermeulen.(Footy Latest) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez is set for showdown talks with new Reds chairman Martin Broughton later this week as speculation continues that the Spaniard may be on his way out of Anfield.(the Sun) 
Former England boss Steve McClaren will move on to Bundesliga club Wolfsburg after guiding FC Twente to the Dutch league title on Sunday. (Daily Mail) 
Inter Milan sporting director Marco Branca has said it is "unthinkable" that manager Jose Mourinho would move away from the Champions League finalists this summer. (the Times)
Defender Steve Finnan has pledged to stick with Portsmouth next season, despite the club's relegation to the Championship. (Daily Mirror) 
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has told his error-prone goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski to win over the Gunners' faithful in the same manner as defender Emmanuel Eboue, who was booed by the home support at the Emirates last season only to turn it around with a string of fine performances. (Daily Mail) 
Wigan manager Roberto Martinez believes that in-demand attacking duo Hugo Rodallega and Charles N'Zogbia should stay with the Latics if they want to develop.(the Sun) 
Burnley skipper Steven Caldwell admits that he is disappointed to find himself still waiting for a new contract offer at Turf Moor.(the Sun) 

AND FINALLY

David Beckham has blamed his unerring dedication on the pitch for the Achilles tendon injury that has ruled him out of England's World Cup squad this summer. "In the last two years I've been pushing myself too hard because I wanted to get into Fabio Capello's World Cup squad," the Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder told David Letterman's chat programmeThe Late Show in the United States.(Daily Mail) 
Stoke striker Dave Kitson has claimed he has been unfairly blamed for problems at the club. "Cloudy in Stoke? That's Kitson's fault. The traffic's terrible? Blame that on Kitson too," he said. (the Sun)

www.bbc.co.uk

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Birmingham C. 2 - 1 Burnley

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Milton Keynes Dons 0 - 0 Brighton & Hove A.

West Ham 1-3 Wolverhampton

Wolves made a huge leap towards Premier League safety with a crushing victory over fellow strugglers West Ham.
The visitors went close when Kevin Foley hit the bar and took the lead when a scuffed James Tomkins pass-back fell to Kevin Doyle who fired home. 
David Jones set up Ronald Zubar to fire in and then passed to Matthew Jarvis who blasted in for a fine third. 
Scott Parker hit a post for West Ham in the first half, leaving Guillermo Franco to chip in a late consolation. 
Despite a spirited fightback in the closing stages, the Hammers overall lacked ideas and confidence and boss Gianfranco Zola will be very concerned as he prepares for the final seven games currently three points away from the drop zone. 
After a weekend dominated by talk of an invigorated title race, Tuesday night saw the teams at the other end of the Premier League taking centre stage. 
West Ham, in 17th spot, were facing the team one place above them with Zola calling the clash "a massive six pointer" as he desperately sought to avoid a fifth successive league defeat. 
Mick McCarthy's pre-match motivational speech to his players are likely to have pointed towards their opponents recalling star players after a rested few days with Zola having 'targeted' Wolves.
The Italian boss did indeed bring back fit-again skipper Parker, along with two strikers who did not start in the 2-0 loss at Arsenal, Carlton Cole and Benni McCarthy, but it was the visitors who ripped open a very nervous defence inside seven minutes.

www.bbc.co.uk

Wednesday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Manchester City are tracking Sporting Lisbon defender Daniel Carrico as cover for first-choice pair Kolo Toure and Joleon Lescott but he is also interesting Atletico Madrid and Valencia.(Daily Mirror) 
City scouts are also impressed with Sampdoria midfielder Andrea Poli but striker Emmanuel Adebayor wants to stay at Eastlands, despite interest from AC Milan. (Daily Mail) 
Manager Mick McCarthy has conceded that Wolves have little chance of keeping £6.5m striker Kevin Doyle if they are relegated from the Premier League. Aston Villa, Fulham, Everton and Sunderland are all set to battle to sign the Republic of Ireland international if his side slip into the Championship. (Daily Mirror) 
Wilson Palacios has stunned Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp by admitting he is using Spurs to get a move to Real Madrid. The Honduran midfielder has been a key player for Redknapp's side following his £12million move from Wigan last January. But Palacios, 25, reckons he has bigger fish to fry. (The Sun) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Four years after arriving at Chelsea on a £121,000-per-week contract, German midfielder Michael Ballack has been offered a new one-year deal at half that salary. (The Sun) 
Chelsea have reopened negotiations with striker Nicolas Anelka over a contract extension that may result in the France international staying at Stamford Bridge until 2013. Anelka's deal was set to expire in 2012 but there is still no sign of a new contract for Joe Cole, whose current contract expires in the summer.(Daily Mail) 
England will step up their security as they attempt to hunt down and identify the culprits behind the security breach at their team hotel in Hertfordshire. A six-hour recording of team meetings is said to be in existence and has been offered to media outlets. (Daily Mail) 
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is set to escape disciplinary action after he appeared to aim a V-sign at referee Andre Marriner during Monday's defeat by Wigan. (Daily Telegraph) 
Stoke full-back Andy Griffin, currently on loan at Reading, has laughed off suggestions he could snatch a World Cup berth with England after some impressive performances that have guided the Royals away from the Championship relegation zone. (Daily Mirror) 
Wigan's Victor Moses could be set for a World Cup appearance with Nigeria after he invited officials to watch him play and train for the club. Moses, born in Lagos, has represented England at youth level but could be tempted to switch allegiances. (Daily Mirror) 

AND FINALLY

Fabio Capello's biggest World Cup selection headache is over the goalkeeping position - according to tennis legend Boris Becker. After a recent dinner with the England coach, Becker said: "I understand why the players are a little bit afraid of him because he's a very serious guy who doesn't joke around much. We talked about goalkeepers and Capello was just smiling so we didn't get into that." (Press Association)

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Wolverhampton - Tottenham

Wolves hold 19th place with a point less than first above the line, Bolton. They’re without a win in four league games (2 draws and 2 defeats). In previous round, lost in a derby game against Birmingham, conceding two goals in five minutes. They’re physically strong team, but obviously have lots of problems when they play against technically superior opponents, usually focusing on keeping the own net. They also failed to score in last 3 home games. Boss Mick McCarthy doesn’t have any injury worries, only new signing Adiene Guedioura is pushing for a first start after three consecutive appearances as substitute. It is expected to McCarthy set his favorite 4-5-1 formation with Doyle alone in front. 

Considering last few Spurs’ games, it seems their performance is over the results. They look well balanced, with Defoe and Crouch in front, Bentley and Modric behind and tough defense line. They definitely have enough quality for a serious challenge for a spot for CL. They overplayed Villa, but couldn’t score. Although they scored just 3 goals in Premier in 2010., they have scored the most goals after title challengers and will face one of the worst defenses in the league. Ledley King with a knee problem will be sidelined, Sebastien Bassong and new signing Younes Kaboul will fight it out to play alongside Michael Dawson. Gudjohnsen is expected to take some part in the game after being on the bench against Villa. As a big missing, remains Aaron Lennon.

Wolves suffered two hard defeats, first in Cup shocking 1-3 against Palace, then in last round vs. Birmingham. Both games were a big blow to their self confidence and in combination with the obvious lack of quality and a pressure to make a result I can’t see any positive outcome for them. Spurs have finally exclude the ups and downs in their displays and their shape look more than decent. Away win with a clean sheet. I'll try with a handicap as a gamble, predict 0-2.

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Man Utd 1-0 Wolverhampton

Danny Welbeck marked his first start of the season with the winning goal as 10-man Manchester United edged past Wolves into the Carling Cup fourth round.
The United substitute was set free by a superb Michael Owen pass and he slotted in to send the holders through. 
That came after Fabio da Silva had seen red for a deliberate foul on Michael Kightly, who was clean through on goal. 
But Wolves played their part in a fine game, David Jones and Kevin Doyle both forcing saves from Tomasz Kuszczak. 
The Premier League new-boys lived up to their pre-match word that they would go for the victory at Old Trafford, despite not having won a top-flight match there in almost 30 years. 606:
But the game's one moment of true class told as United overcame the first hurdle of their defence of the trophy they won on penalties against Spurs last February. 
Not that Sir Alex Ferguson ranks that as his greatest priority this season if his selection is anything to by, with the Scot selecting an entirely different XI to the one that started Sunday's derby win over Manchester City.
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson:
"You can't argue with the red card, but Fabio is only 18 and this experience will help him grow. 
"Even before we went down to 10 men Wolves were a threat on the counter-attack, but for the last hour we kept our discipline and that was very pleasing. That never-say-die attitude runs through this club and the goal was of magnificent quality. 
"Who do I want next? (Son Darren's side) Peterborough at home. All the family should be happy with that." 
Wolves boss Mick McCarthy: 
"My assessment was that we weren't good enough to win it - we've been sat down, patted on the head and sent on our way. 
"Nice old Wolves, come up put on a show but don't upset the apple cart. It annoys me."
www.bbc.co.uk

Tuesday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Former England midfielder Peter Reid has rejected speculation he will quit as coach of Thailand to take charge of League One club Southampton. (Press Association)

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Samuel Eto'o wants a £12.5m signing-on fee to join Manchester City. The Barcelona striker has already been offered wages of £250,000 a week by the Eastlands club.(The Sun) 
Or the Cameroon striker is looking for a £15m golden handshake from Barcelona otherwise the move to City is off.(Daily Mirror) 
Chelsea are poised to complete a hat-trick of signings by landing CSKA Moscow forward Yuri Zhirkov, Manchester City forward Daniel Sturridge and Middlesbrough goalkeeper Ross Turnbull. (Daily Mirror) 
Arsenal have been stunned by Andrey Arshavin's revelation that he would be "really happy" to play for Barcelona if he gets the chance. (The Sun) 
Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso will holds talks with manager Rafael Benitez this week over a possible move to Real Madrid.(The Sun) 
Meanwhile, Reds defender Alvaro Arbeloa is set to seal a switch to Real for about £5m. (The Independent) 
Aston Villa are ready to pay £5m for Espanyol forward Luis Garcia, who is also wanted by Porto.(The Sun) 
Villa are also set to bid £5m for Middlesbrough midfielder Tuncay. (Daily Mirror) 
Tottenham have joined the chase for Groningen's Sweden international striker Marcus Berg but they may need to pay £10m to beat Everton to his signature.(Daily Mirror) 
Spurs have told Villarreal they want cash plus Sebastien Eguren and Marcos Senna in exchange for striker Roman Pavlyuchenko. (The Times) 
West Ham are trying to hijack Hull's £3.4m move for Nancy striker Marc-Antoine Fortune. 
Full story: (Daily Mirror) 
Fulham have offered £2.2m for Almeria striker Kalu Uche. (The Sun) 
Birmingham want to sign Tottenham defender Gareth Bale on a season-long loan deal. (Daily Star)
Wolves are set to sign Reading striker Kevin Doyle for a club record fee of £6.5m. (The Sun) 
Huddersfield will pay £1m to sign Bristol Rovers striker Rickie Lambert. (The Sun)
Ipswich boss Roy Keane is close to completing a £1m deal for QPR full-back Damien Delaney. Keane also wants to make a double raid on former club Sunderland to sign defender Nyron Nosworthy and winger Carlos Edwards. (Daily Star) 
Burnley are fighting it out with Cardiff in the race to sign £2.5m-rated Doncaster defender Mat Mills. (Daily Star)

OTHER GOSSIP

Carlos Tevez has accused Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson of blowing the chance to win the Champions League final by dropping him. The Argentine striker, whose United contract expires today, said: "He made a mistake to leave me on the bench."(Daily Mirror) 
Former Aston Villa manager David O'Leary says his successor Martin O'Neill has not helped the club progress.(Daily Mirror) 

AND FINALLY

Usually there is little to be pleased about when you miss your flight but Fabio Capello's failure to catch a plane from South Africa meant he was spared being in attendance for England Under-21s' humiliating 4-0 defeat by Germany in the European Championship final in Sweden on Tuesday. (Daily Mirror)
www.bbc.co.uk

Saturday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Steve Bruce wants to make Tottenham striker Darren Bent, 25, his first signing at Sunderland, but is being put off by the £18m price tag that Spurs have put on him. (Daily Mirror) 
Manchester United have been told by Karim Benzema's agent that it is only a matter of time before the £35m-rated striker leaves French club Lyon. (Daily Mirror) 
But Benzema has said in the past that he would prefer to play in Spain and the Premier League champions will face a battle with Real Madrid for his signature. (Daily Mail)
Hull manager Phil Brown has admitted Brazilian striker Geovanni could be sold if another club is willing to put in a big money offer. (Daily Star) 
Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce wants to sign Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy from Spanish side Real Madrid. (The Independent) 
Fulham are eyeing up a £5m bid for Middlesbrough's 27-year-old striker Tuncay Sanli. (Daily Express) 
The Cottagers are also keen to sign Marseille midfielder Bolo Zenden, 32, who is available on a free transfer. (The Sun)
Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is considering a shock move to sign Portsmouth centre-back Sol Campbell, 34, on a free transfer.(The Sun) 
Wolves are set to sell Republic of Ireland midfielder Stephen Gleeson, 20, to League One side MK Dons for an undisclosed fee. (Daily Star)
Reading striker Kevin Doyle will decide next week on a £6.5m move to Fulham, Bolton, Sunderland or Wolves. (Daily Star) 
Birmingham believe midfielder Lee Bowyer, 32, will complete a permanent move from West Ham next week. (Various)
The Blues are also tracking 24-year-old midfielder Ferne Snoyl, who is out of contract at Dutch side RKC Waalwijk. (The Times) 
Arsenal's hopes of signing Fiorentina midfielder Felipe Melo, 25, look to have ended after the Brazilian's agent said he was happy in Italy. (Independent)
Queens Park Rangers are trying to talk veteran Turkish midfielder Tugay, 38, out of retirement. (Daily Mirror) 
Burnley have made a club record £2.75m bid for Hibernian striker Steven Fletcher. (Daily Mirror)
Everton are closer to a £6m deal for Rennes midfielder Stephane Mbia. (Daily Mail) 
Italian side Fiorentina are vying with Spanish club Atletico Madrid for Everton's Steven Pienaar.(Daily Mail)
Tottenham have bid £6m for Inter Milan's Nigeria striker Victor Obinna, while Atletico Madrid want to sell Maxi Rodriguez to Spurs.(Daily Mail) 
Birmingham have failed in a bid to sign midfielder Patrick Vieira, 33, from Inter Milan. Full story: (Daily Mail) 
Blackburn are weighing up a move for £10m-rated striker Andre-Pierre Gignac, 23, from Toulouse, who was top scorer in France last season. Full story: (Daily Mail) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Tottenham could be dragged into a legal fight over Jermain Defoe's £7.5m move from Spurs to Portsmouth in January 2008.(The Sun) 
Carlos Tevez, who is set to sign for Manchester City next week, claims he was forced to leave Manchester United after the Old Trafford club signed Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham.(The Sun) 
Liverpool left-back Fabio Aurelio looks set to miss the start of the season after damaging his knee playing football with his children. The 29-year-old is facing the prospect of surgery and several months on the sidelines, so the Reds are hanging on to Andrea Dossena despite interest from Juventus.(Daily Express) 
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate has denied claims that he has offered Everton defender Phil Neville a coaching role at the Riverside. (Daily Express) 
Former Crystal Palace boss Alan Smith is set to return to the game as Gareth Southgate's number two at Boro.(The Sun) 

AND FINALLY

Birmingham boss Alex McLeish is raging after being forced to sign Ecuador centre-back Giovanny Espinoza, 32, on Wednesday. (The Sun)
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Tuesday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

AC Milan midfielder Andrea Pirlo says he wants to follow coach Carlo Ancelotti from the San Siro to Chelsea, and Milan chairman Silvio Berlusconi has hinted they could let him go (Daily Mirror). 
Real Madrid's former Manchester United defender Gabriel Heinze says he would be open to the idea of playing in England again if Madrid let him go (Sky Sports).

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Manchester United are talking to Brazilian club Gremio about a deal for their 18-year-old midfielder Douglas Costa - dubbed the new Cristiano Ronaldo.(The Times) 
Newcastle defender Steven Taylor has hinted he could leave if Alan Shearer does not get the manager's job at St James' Park.(Daily Telegraph) 
Atletico Madrid, Sunderland and Sevilla are all chasing Tottenham midfielder Didier Zokora. (The Sun)
West Ham, Aston Villa, Everton and Fulham are all in the running to sign former Chelsea striker Eidur Gudjohnsen after Barcelona confirmed he can leave for the right price (Daily Mirror).
Wolves are ready to break their club's transfer record with a £6.5m move for Reading forward Kevin Doyle(Daily Mail) 
Highly rated Sheffield United youngster Kyle Naughton could be sold to bring in money for several new signings, with Aston Villa and Everton keen on the £5m-rated defender.(Daily Mail) 
Argentine striker Carlos Tevez's next transfer after he leaves Manchester United will be heavily scrutinised by the Premier League to ensure there is no third-party ownership involved.(The Guardian) 
Chelsea are having talks with CSKA Moscow about £15m-rated left-back Yuri Zhirkov. (The Times) 
They are also interested in Inter Milan right-back Maicon after missing out on Glen Johnson, who joined Liverpool. (The Sun) 
Hull, Wolves and Portsmouth are all challenging Celtic for the signature of Nancy striker Marc-Antoine Fortune, who played under new Celtic boss Tony Mowbray on loan at West Brom last season. (Daily Record)
Hearts manager Csaba Laszlo is targeting moves for Aberdeen striker Lee Miller and out-of-contract Motherwell midfielder Stephen Hughes. (Daily Star)
Venezuela midfielder Juan Arango claims Celtic are among the clubs chasing his £3m signature from Mallorca. (Scottish Sun) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Liverpool may need to treble Javier Mascherano's wages to keep the midfielder at the club after signing defender Glen Johnson from Portsmouth. Mascherano is believed to be unhappy because he is paid less than most of his team-mates.(Daily Mirror) 
England Under-21 coach Stuart Pearce says he is "inept" compared to England senior boss Fabio Capello and may need more club management experience before furthering his international coaching career. (The Times) 
Titus Bramble is poised to be named Wigan's new captain, taking over from Mario Melchiot (The Sun).
Matthew Le Tissier's consortium bidding to buy Southampton have been told they cannot appeal against the club's 10-point penalty for going into administration (The Sun). 
Motherwell are widening their managerial search to include former Sunderland boss Malcolm Crosby and ex-Stockport gaffer Jim Gannon. (Daily Star)
However, former Northern Ireland and Fulham boss Lawrie Sanchez is leading the race to take over at Fir Park. (Scottish Sun) 
Celtic midfielder Scott Brown needs ankle surgery and is a doubt for the club's Champions League qualifying campaign. (Scottish Sun)
Uefa have delayed Celtic's planned tie up with Hungarian side Upjest, stalling Parkhead reserve coach Willie McStay's takeover as manager in Budapest. (Scottish Sun) 

AND FINALLY

Newcastle have unveiled a new yellow striped two-tone away kit for next season.(The Sun) 
Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole had his late grandmother's wedding ring resized for him to wear when he got married at the weekend. (The Sun)
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Reading - Burnley

Before the season start, Reading was the main favorite for wining Championship. Considering the names, it is the same team that relegated from Premier, even strengthened. They reached a place for direct promotion (in January, if my memory is correct), but from then their shape has been in decreasing path. In the last league round, they missed a chance for place number two, loosing against Birmingham at home, 1-2. Their performance characterize excellent defense line, tough and very well organized midfield, but the main problem is realization. Kevin Doyle plays much under the expectations and maybe that is the biggest reason for current situation. Have a lots of problems against defense oriented teams at Madejsky. Statistic for panic-attack says Royals haven’t won at home ground since 27.01.2009 (Wolverhampton, 1-0), eight games! Three draws and five defeats, six times didn’t score. In the first game, Royals were dominating in the first 45 minutes, missing four excellent opportunities. But, bad luck came in the second period. First, mentioned Kevin Doyle got injury renewal (and 99% finished the season), then penalty kick was gifted to Burnley and at the end defender Andre Bikey got a red card and four-match ban! I think the big pressure will be on the home side (completely same as Birmingham game).

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Burnley played very good season, announcing high ambitions from the beginning. With the brave attitude and attacking style of play they got a lots of sympathy and in combination with good results were already seen in play-off, much before the season ended. But, it seems at the first sight, they’re paying the price for playing in three competitions, 59 games played! But, the good side is they specialized for cup games. Their shoot list contains names as Chelsea, Arsenal and Fulham (almost eliminated Tottenham too, in Carling Cup semi-final). In the first game, boss Owen Coyle gave up from attacking style, trying to keep the net first, leaving the space to the visitors. Pure luck and brilliant goalie Brian Jensen kept that tactic unpunished. Five minutes before the end, Graham Alexander scored from penalty kick and gave a real hope before the re-match. I’ve been trying a while to discover do they have really serious injury problems, as they’re saying, or just want to present themselves as a bigger outsiders than they really are. The fact is, three very important players are under the question mark. Wade Elliott missed out on Saturday with a leg injury and his replacement, Joey Gudjonsson, was taken off after a heavy challenge, but both face tests. For me, the most important is appearance of excellent winger Chris Eagles. His fast runs can be decisive for this game. He will pass a late test on his jarred hip problem. Anyway, I don’t believe in Coyle’s moaning, too much. Clarets have experience how to play big games against much better teams, usually turning the surplus of pressure into surplus of adrenaline.

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Considering names, home side deserved a direct promotion. Considering opinions from a bunch of eminent experts, they’re the best team in play-off (hm…ok). Maybe it is the sixth sense before the facts, but I give an advantage to visitors. I think they’re mentally much stronger, the full crowd and big expectations can be just a rock tied up for the legs, for home side. I’ll go for Burnley, with a small stake. Pinnacle offers very high 4.68. Away win.

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Success! (What about Monday?)

That's what I needed. All three picks passed. Spanish and French sides played attacking games, while exhausted Boca didn't have a chance against motivated Rosario.  Sometimes everything looks so easy. 

Today we'll have three second league clashes. In Germany, Osnabruck and Hansa will fight to avoid relegation. I think Hansa is closer to achieve it, but won't bet. As I won't for French game. Racing Strasbourg against Metz, fourth against the third. For me, the most interesting will be in Championship game. So...

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Norwich City - Reading

This is the last chance for Canaries. They're the first under the line, with three points less than Barnsley, four than Nottingham Forest and five then Plymouth Argyle. With three points will be very close to stay in Championship, otherwise will have to beat Charlton away and to hope Barnsley will loose against Plymouth (Norwich has better mutual score with Barnsley). With a point, they'll include Forest into calculation, but Forest will host relegated Saints and they look safe. There is no doubt, this is a game of the season for Norwich who doesn't look in so good shape. Two defeats from last three games. Striker David Mooney, on loan from Reading, is ineligible so Cody McDonald could make his first start. Excellent winger Lee Croft is in doubt (will play, I guess), while defender Dejan Stefanović, midfielder Wes Hoolahan and strikerCarl Cort are long time injured. Full Carrow Road will try to help the lads to reach the golden victory. But the biggest problem will be second half of the pitch where will be one of the best league teams.

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With a victory in Birmingham, Preston made a complete mess on the top. Birmingham, Sheff.Utd and Reading are now the contenders for a place number two (80 points, 79 and 74). Royals have a simple calculation. Win tonight and win at Sunday against Birmingham at home (have a better mutual score) and to hope Sheff.Utd. will lose in London against C.Palace. But, beauty of the situation is Reading can loose even a play-off spot, with two possible defeats! Preston is now just three points below (have a better mutual score than Reading) and will host QPR. Too much numbers and solutions, but it is for sure Steve Coppell's lads will go for a win tonight. Considering the names, they're the most quality squad in a league. Not so good run of results, with too many draws put them in this position. But, in the last round they overplayed Derby on the road (2-0), with two goals scored and two cancelled. Big blow is injury of striker Noel Hunt who suffered a fracture to his ankle against Barnsley. Full-back Chris Armstrong returns following his recovery from a knee injury, while striker Kevin Doyle is also set to come back.

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Really big game is tonight. Before a Birm.-Pres. game I planned to put my money on Canaries. Now I can't imagine which side has an advantage. Opposite motives, League One against Premier. Biggest fears against biggest ambitions. Full crowd against the quality. No one will be satisfied with a draw. Just a victory gives a faith. I expect another open game and again will bet on goals. Expekt offers 2.oo and I accept. Over.

Crystal Palace-Reading

With the defeat against Barnsley, Eagles are definitely out from play-off race. Twelve points under the 6th Burnley with eight rounds left. Even Neil Warnock said that story is over. Injuries, less experience and not so good roster are the main reasons for that. The good thing is they're on the same distance from the relegation, as from play-off. Now, they only have to bring this unsuccessful season till the end. Neil Warnock has described his defensive injury list as a "nightmare"  (Paddy McCarthy-shoulder, Claude Davis-thigh, Matt Lawrence-hamstring and Jose Fonte-thigh) are all set to miss out. Youngster Johnny Ertl could make his first league start.

On the other side Royals are coming fully motivated. Four points behind Birmingham (and direct promotion). After two draws and a defeat (just one win from previous eight games), win against Doncaster on the road (1-0) returned a confidence. Maybe it was a start of new good run of results. Steve Coppell has no big concerns about the squad. Ivar Ingimarsson is out for the season, and Graeme Murty is currently sidelined as well. Sam Sodje got 90 minutes for the reserves in midweek as they beat Millwall 3-1.

One side is sick of life, second is thirsty for blood. Boring saturday against D day.Wounded defence against killing attack. Johnny Ertl against Kevin Doyle. Odds on Reading are in slightly drop, but 2.40 (expekt, unibet, pinnacle) looks more than good. I don't care about double chance, my money goes on clear away win.