Newcastle v Portsmouth is possibly the biggest match on this weekend’s schedule. Not being played until Monday evening both teams will know the layout of the table before taking to the field at St James’s Park.

Interim manager, Alan Shearer, has already expressed his desire to see the team win all of their remaining home games and regardless of the weekend’s results his mission remains the same. They must win not only on Monday night but against Fulham and Sunderland in their last remaining home games of this campaign.

For Portsmouth, their survival requirements will be a lot clearer come Monday. If those around them fail to pick up points then a draw in Newcastle may secure their Premiership pedigree for another season, a win and Paul Hart may very well be looking to next year, full of hope that he is still in charge at Fratton Park.

Shearer has insisted that he will keep faith with striker Michael Owen. The England international who used to play along side his manager in the national team has been struggling to score lately, however it is likely he will be handed his 250th Premier League start. Shola Ameobi is also in line for a milestone he will claim his 150th start for the Magpies if selected from the off. Having been shown more red cards than anyone else the Geordie faithful will be hoping that Shearer can keep all 11 men on the pitch as Newcastle go in search of their first win under their new boss.

Pompey go into the game having lost only two of their last nine games and will be hoping to bounce back from the defeat suffered at the hands of Man United in midweek. Paul Hart will have been relieved to see his team pull away from the trapdoor but they are not safe yet and he knows it. David James and Sylvain Distin are set to continue their record of playing in every minute of every league game this season and James will be making his 545th appearance in England’s top flight. Injured striker Nico Krancjar is unlikely to be fit but top goal scorer Peter Crouch should shake off a knock picked up during the defeat at Old Trafford.

Victory for Portsmouth would all but secure their future in the Premiership whereas defeat for Newcastle would all but end theirs. Either way it will be a nail biting and nervy match that may be settled by just the odd goal.

If Pompey come away with the points, Shearer really will have to prove that he is the messiah and perform a miracle to save his beloved Newcastle from dropping out of the top league of the English game for the first time in 16 years. This could prove to be the most important game of his career and he isn’t even playing.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Man City will be looking to claim only their second away win of the season when they make the trip to Everton this weekend. Despite spending big, and an impressive display in the UEFA Cup, City have failed to trouble teams away from the City of Manchester stadium.

Everton will be in a buoyant mood having secured passage to the FA Cup final last weekend and claiming a point away to Chelsea in midweek. This mid table clash should promise one thing, goals. Everton have scored the most at home out of any of the teams outside of the top three and Man City have conceded 27 goals while on their travels.

Having secured a place in the FA Cup final for the first time in 14 years the Toffees will be in an optimistic mood and the draw at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night will not have lessened that. Although they have an impressive goal scoring record at home the Merseysiders’ will be without Brazilian striker Jo who is ineligible as he is on loan from City. With Jo ruled out Everton are short of options upfront and may well turn to penalty shoot out hero James Vaughn to partner fans’ favourite Tim Cahill. Phil Jagielka and Tony Hibbert are likely to be brought back into the team having been rested in midweek as Everton go in search of their eighth home win of the season.

Mark Hughes will have been boosted by the news this week that Brazillian wonder Robinho wants to stay at the Eastlands’ club and he will be looking to him to provide the spark needed to secure victory on Saturday. Having won only once on their travels all season City has the fourth worst away record in the league.

Hughes will have to choose between Caicedo, Ched Evans and Danny Sturridge to lead the attack at Goodison Park. Sturridge scored last weekend in the 4-2 victory against West Brom and will be hopeful of being rewarded with a place in the starting line up. Micah Richards will be replacing injured Pablo Zabaleta at right back and long term injury lay off Shaun Wright Phillips continues his treatment for a sore ankle.

With Europa League places still an option for both clubs it will be a hard fought contest in Liverpool. Both teams will go into the game chasing the win and Mark Hughes knows that he has to improve City’s away form if he wants to be in charge next season.

Despite their only being four places between the two teams 12 points separate them and the visiting side will be eager to try and close this gap. David Moyes’s team are looking at a fourth successive Premier League victory over City who go into this weekend’s game facing another two North West derbies after this one.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

West Ham play host to Chelsea this weekend in a game that sees the Hammers’ searching for their first victory over their London rivals since 2003. The two teams go into the game with different agendas, one looking to solidify their bid for European football next season the other looking to make ground on second placed Liverpool.

The meeting will reunite the man voted Chelsea’s greatest ever player with his former employer, Gianfranco Zola has managed an impressive transformation in West Ham since taking over and will be eagerly awaiting the arrival of his former club.

Chelsea had won the last six meetings between the two sides until a resilient Hammers travelled to Stamford Bridge earlier in the season. They left with a well deserved point and felt that they could have got more from the game. Zola will however be without another former Chelsea player Scott Parker who remains sidelined with a groin injury meaning the Italian will have to look elsewhere for midfield security. He may turn to on loan holding player Radoslav Kovac who has recovered from a thigh strain but the Czech is unlikely to start having made only three appearances all season.

Guus Hiddink may look to rotate some of his team ahead of the crucial trip to the Nou Camp in the Champions League Semi Final next week. Salomon Kalou, Jon Obi Mikel and Franco Di Santo could all start as could Michael Mancienne due to the defensive problems that the club are going through at the moment. Both Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka are likely to be rested with next week’s game looming large in the Dutchman’s mind.

Although mathematically not out of the title race yet Chelsea will be looking more at consolidating their current position and possibly pushing on for second; Zola will be optimistic about his side’s chances of causing an upset, hopeful of a new contract offer he will be pushing his players to go out and make a name for themselves.

Although Chelsea have an impressive form on the road this season (they have claimed 11 victories from a possible 16) West Ham have been very hard to beat at home. They have only lost one of their last six at Upton Park and that was against league leaders Man Utd. All in all the home side will be looking to seize this opportunity to cause an upset and continue chasing a spot in next year’s Europa League.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Liverpool travel to Hull on Saturday knowing that they must win all of their remaining games if they are going to stand a chance of catching league leaders Manchester United. England’s most successful team will be eager to prevent their rivals from equalling their league title record, however with United three points clear with a game in hand the chances of that happening are not high.

Hull however have problems at the other end of the table, Phil Brown’s side currently sit in 16th and are just three points outside the relegation zone. A defeat here would leave them at the mercy of Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland both of whom could leapfrog the East Yorkshire club were they were to come out of their own Saturday fixtures victorious.

Rafa Benitez will be conscious of the fact that his team have played two – eight goal thrillers in the last two weeks and may elect to rotate his squad. However with Steven Gerrard still doubtful due to the groin strain he picked up in the first leg of Liverpool’s Champion’s League Semi Final against Chelsea his midfield options may be limited.

The Reds’ skipper missed out on his side’s home draw against Arsenal on Tuesday night and will be keen to get back into action before the end of the season. Benitez has previously admitted it may be difficult for the England international to be ready in time and in form Israeli, Yossi Benayoun, is likely to come in to the starting XI.

Skrtel is likely to regain his place at the expense of Daniel Agger whose poor defending was responsible for at least one of the four that the team conceded earlier in the week. With only six games remaining Benitez will be aiming for the three points at the KC Stadium.

The Tigers should welcome back Bernard Mendy who terrorised the Liverpool defence at Anfield earlier in the season. Daniel Cousin will face a late medical on his back and club skipper Ian Ashbee will serve the second game of his two match suspension having picked up 10 yellow cards. With Hull looking for what would be only their second win in 18 games three points would be invaluable. It would help pull them away from the relegation table and raise morale before the last few games of the season.

Currently sitting in 2nd Liverpool will take nothing less than the win; they have been frustrated at home this season in games that they would have hoped to take all the points. In the reverse fixture of this earlier in the season the Reds were held to a 2-2 draw in front of an unimpressed Kop and the Red half of Merseyside will be hoping that they rectify this mistake on Saturday.

Victory would put them back atop the Premiership, until Manchester United play in the late kick off, at least.

Soccerlens prediction: Liverpool to win 1-0.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

In the late kick off on Saturday, Man United play host to a resurgent Tottenham side that will be looking to upset their hosts in their pursuit of another league title.

Having won their last two games against West Ham and Newcastle, Spurs search for their first third consecutive win since April Fools’ day 2007. When Harry Redknapp arrived at the London club they were sitting in the relegation zone but have seen their fortunes improve dramatically and now sit 9th on 44 points. When the former Pompey boss took over at White Hart Lane the club only had two points from their first eight games. However within a few short weeks he had managed to pull the club out of the relegation zone and up the table even reaching the League Cup Final to see his side defeated by today’s opponents on penalties.

United go in to the game once more atop the summit of English football. They lead title rivals, Liverpool by three points and still retain a crucial game in hand. The victory against Portsmouth on Wednesday night was marred however by injuries to Gary Neville and John O’Shea who will both miss out on Saturday. It is likely Wes Brown will step into replace the injured Neville and is in line to make his first league start since picking up a foot injury in October.

Club captain, Rio Ferdinand, is set to return after being rested for the midweek game and he will lead out his team as they go in search of their 15th home victory of the season. The title holders’ will be given extra motivation if Liverpool are successful in defeating Hull in a three o’clock kick off that would see the Merseysiders’ return to the the top of the Premiership on goal difference. Having not lost to the Spurs in their last 15 league meetings, Sir Alex Ferguson will be hoping that his side can claim the three points and push even closer to lifting the trophy.

Tottenham go into the game without the injured Michael Dawson who picked up an ankle injury during the 1-0 victory over relegation strugglers Newcastle last weekend. Hopes will be high amongst the Spurs faithful considering that they haven’t been beaten by any of the top four so far this season and have claimed famous victories over Chelsea at White Hart Lane a few weeks ago and Liverpool earlier in the season. Gilberto may start on his 33rd birthday but Man Utd striker Frazier Campbell who is on loan at Spurs is ineligible. Harry Redknapp will be keen to become the first Tottenham manager to win a Premier League game at the theatre of dreams and will be hoping his side can push into the European spots with a victory.

Soccerlens prediction: Manchester United to win 2-1.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Another Premier League season is edging to its climax and yet again its United that sit atop the table, having pulled three points clear at the league’s summit. With a game in hand it seems almost unimaginable that they would lose it now.

So with the title all but decided, attention can now turn to the scrap for second place between Liverpool, Chelsea and to a lesser extent Arsenal.

Once the adrenalin had left the system on Tuesday night there was time to digest the night’s action. Another outstanding game involving Liverpool this season yet for the Red faithful another home draw. Anfield, once impossible to play at, has seen far too many draws this season (seven in all) and the simple fact is that if they had won all of the home games that they had drawn they would be top of the table.

Admittedly you could say that about anyone; however the fact is that Rafa Benitez’s side have been far more impressive in the league this year than in past seasons doing the double over both Chelsea and United. Out of all the top four Liverpool do probably have the easiest run in, the trickiest of their remaining fixtures being home to Spurs on the last day of the season. Furthermore they do have the advantage of being three points clear of Chelsea and nine ahead of Arsenal.

Chelsea will still be hoping that they can catch Liverpool and claim the runners up spot. However with Guus Hiddink conceding the title after last night’s draw with Everton and with a Champions League Semi Final and FA Cup Final to prepare for it is likely the Dutchman will start to rotate his squad. Having to play at the Emirates in May is their most difficult remaining fixture and Arsene Wenger will be keen to take the points off of his London rivals and continue his side’s impressive run of form. On the last day of the season Chelsea travel to the Stadium of Light and Sunderland may well still be playing for Premier League survival. This could cause Hiddink’s team one or two difficulties especially with the FA Cup Final and potentially the Champions League final in the following week.

At the moment Arsenal are joint top in the current form league, having won five of their last six games and Wenger is keen to push on. Having started the season poorly the Gunners have quietly gone about their business and will be looking at the chance of claiming at least third eagerly.

They face United in their Champions League Semi Final on Wednesday and thus the prospect of having a much stretched squad as they try to compete on both fronts. The defensive injuries are causing problems but Wenger will be buoyed by the four goals his team scored at Anfield on Tuesday night.

With Chelsea and United to still play Arsenal most certainly have the hardest run in but they also have the least pressure, with fourth all but secured they can rest assured of Champions League football next year (although finishing in third would allow them direct passage to the group stages instead of qualifiers). Playing host to Stoke looks like an easy three points on the last day of the season especially considering that they look safe from relegation.

Liverpool look good for second, despite some poor home results this season they have a three point lead and the easiest run in. Neither Chelsea nor United will be looking forward to play Arsenal and with all three of them competing in the Champions League Semis the games may be tepid affairs; then again people said that about Arsenal Liverpool. So with only a few weeks to go, United all but champions in what order do you see the big four finishing this season?

Here’s my pick:

1) Man United
2) Liverpool
3) Chelsea
4) Arsenal

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

As Thierry Henry slid the ball into the back of the net the Nou Camp erupted and one Czech man sat somewhere near south London watched on in horror. He, like the thousands of others watching, had witnessed Josep Guardiola’s side destroy another La Liga rival.

The 4-nil drubbing of Sevilla now takes their season total goals to a staggering 92 surpassing the record previously held by Johan Curyff’s dream team. Petr Cech will have been watching and you can rest assured that what he saw would have made him very uneasy ahead of Chelsea’s Champions League Semi Final next week.

With Andres Iniesta lobbing the keeper from outside the area, Eto smashing one in, Xavi adding an outstanding third and Henry rounding off the performance the plaudits were lining up and pundits rushing to their thesaurus to come up with new ways of saying how impressive the Catalan giants are at the moment.

Now they begin preparations for the arrival of Chelsea on Tuesday night. Spain’s second most successful side will be looking to take a lead into the second leg in London and have every right to be confident. The simple fact is that you can not stop them from scoring. Having smashed four past Bayern Munich in the first leg of the quarters it would be a brave man that bets against them taking the trophy this year.

Despite having lost to English opposition on several occasions over the last few years their goal scoring prowess speaks for its self and the recently rocky Cech will not be looking forward to lining up against several of the best players in the world. Chelsea can be caused further worries by the fact that fans’ favourite Lionel Messi was rested for the Sevilla game and he will be eager to build on his reputation against an English side.

The Londoners’ main concern will be the fact that they conceded four at home to Bolton and four at home to Liverpool recently. They can not afford to let this happen against Barca, they simply wont be able to pull it back against ‘keeper Victor Valdes who himself has set new records this season for clean sheets. Drogba and Anelka will be looking to take an away goal back to Stamford Bridge and they really need at least one if they are hopeful to progress.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

With all the players that have come in to the City of Manchester stadium the time may come this summer when the board look to recoup some of their money.

Having spent in the region of £100m on transfers since the much publicised take over many fans will be looking on in interest to see which big name the club are going to be linked to this summer.

However it may be just as interesting to see who will leave. Obviously the chances of Ireland and Given leaving are almost zero (and those of Robinho as well, if … well … Robinho is to be believed) but some of their team mates may be getting a little worried as July 1st approaches.

Despite the huge amount of money that the club has spent recently they are finding it hard to score goals. Although City have the third best home record in the league they do have the third worst away record having won only once this season on their travels.

They have scored only 15 goals in 16 games away from Manchester and Hughes may be looking to off load some of his misfiring strike force. With Ecuadorian striker Caicedo only scoring twice in 21 league appearances this season it is likely that his days may be numbered at the Eastlands club especially with Brazilian striker Jo returning from his loan at Everton come the end of the season.

Craig Bellamy’s record for City is slightly better having bagged three goals in the five appearances he has made since his transfer in January although he is now out for the rest of the season through injury. The Wales captain may well be given more time in the start of the new season to really stake his claim to staying at one of the world’s richest clubs.

It is also likely that injury plagued Darius Vassell may soon be packing his bags with both Bolton and Derby rumoured to be interested in the England striker.

The midfield is probably where City has looked most impressive this campaign, Steven Ireland’s fantastic form has seen him pick up PFA Young Player of the Year nomination and he rightly deserves it. However the young Irishman has had a fair bit of support this year, with some fantastic performances from Robinho and Shaun Wright Phillips the trio have totalled 22 of City’s 51 goals. Possible departures include the hot and cold Elano who had a poor start to the season, although his recent form has improved including a fantastic performance in the recent UEFA Cup exit.

Having spent big to bring in Shay Given it is unlikely that anything will change with regards to the shot stoppers especially with talent like Joe Hart and Kasper Schmeichel waiting on the touchline. However their defensive protection may very well change, admittedly Micah Richards is unlikely to be sold but Danny Mills who has been out on loan for the past three seasons is surplus to requirements as is Michael Ball. Although City are unlikely to get much for the pair.

If Hughes is still in charge come the start of next season he will be hoping that he has got in some new talent. Although City have looked very impressive on the odd occasion most of their performances do not justify the huge sums of money spent, they currently sit in 10th and they finished the season in 9th last year before spending over £50m.

To build the team around their spine of quality players they will have to sell off those that are not needed or simply not good enough, this will enable the manager to bring in players of the right pedigree to really challenge and hopefully win some silverware next season.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Well now we have seen everything – Alan Shearer the Premier League’s all time top goalscorer has resorted to bringing in a therapist to improve his players’ confidence.

Having not won in their last eight games Newcastle are in desperate need of a change of form if they are going to stay up. With trouble all over the pitch reports today claim that Shearer has brought in a specialist therapist to raise the level of confidence within the team.

This is not the first time something like this has been tried to attempt to stave off relegation, Leeds United spent thousands of pounds on tropical fish when they were mired in a fight for survival. This did not work. Then again, Roy Keane was also rumoured to have brought in a psychologist to help at Sunderland, and the England regime before Capello was keen on therapists as well.

In other words, the track record of therapists in football isn’t that good.

With his side going into a massive relegation scrap against Portsmouth on Monday night, only victory will do as the Magpies edge ever closer to the drop. They go into the game with England international Michael Owen looking for his first goal in 12 games but with both Mark Viduka and Obafemi Martins fit after returning from injury against Tottenham at the weekend.

It’s not just going forward that United have been struggling recently though and Shearer’s hired help will no doubt be talking to the defensive players as Newcastle search for their first clean sheet in seven games. A defeat would all but end their hopes of staying up, already four points adrift of safety with only five games to go the manager has repeatedly stressed the importance of winning all the remaining home games.

Things are looking slightly more positive for Portsmouth after the weekend’s results saw them move six points clear of the relegation drop. Despite losing to Manchester United last night Paul Hart’s team have been in impressive form recently and will travel to St James’s Park knowing that a victory will all but secure their safety. However they will not get an easy ride at Newcastle, the fans will be behind the team and midfielder Alan Smith has added his voice to those calling for Shearer to stay on. Whether he does or not may well depend on whether his side stay up or fall to the Championship.

So Shearer has turned to a therapist to aid his players as they go in search of the elusive first win under the messiah but having only won four games at home all season the signs are not good. If they were to fail to win or even worse, lose, then forget therapy, Newcastle would need a full-blown miracle to prevent relegation.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

They may have been knocked out of the UEFA Cup, failed to make the last two in the FA or League Cups and not be in the title race anymore but Aston Villa could very well end the season with silverware.

They are taking part in the fourth outing of the Peace Cup which began back in 2003. The three previous contests have been held in South Korea with PSV Eindhoven taking the glory in 2003, Tottenham Hotspur in 2005 and Lyon lifting the trophy in 2007. This year’s tournament sees big names like Aston Villa, Juventus, Sevilla and Real Madrid all competing. This time the clubs travel to Andalucía to face off in search of glory, with the winners receiving $2m and the runners up $500,000.

Villa has been drawn against Spanish side Malaga and Scottish giants Celtic in what could prove a tricky group. Boss Martin O’Neil will be looking to provide some of his younger players with more experience of continental football prior to their likely European campaign next season.

Despite being drawn against two difficult sides hopes will be high at Villa Park that they will be able to make it through the group stages to play one of the biggest teams in Europe, in Real Madrid or Juventus. One English team have already won the competition with Spurs winning the final thanks to two Robbie Keane goals to beat Lyon 3-1.

The competition welcomes clubs from across the world including Al-Ittihad from Saudi Arabia, Fenerbahce from Turkey, LDU Quito from Ecuador and Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma from South Korea. 2006 saw a women’s version, the Peace Queens Cup, played amongst eight national sides from five continents with the USA triumphant.

The tournament is run through the Sunmoon Peace Football Foundation which is connected to South Korea’s Unification Church and they provide the prize money for the winning team.

In South Korea the matches attracted large crowds and over 56,000 people watched Lyon win in 2007. The organisers hope that by moving the event to Europe and attracting some of the biggest clubs in world football they will attract even more spectators. Similar tournaments are held in Africa between club sides representing different nations in an effort to heal wounds left about by war.

Although Martin O’Neil will be facing his old employers when Villa meet Celtic there will be no doubting his determination to win. Not only would victory in this tournament give the Midland side a great moral boast in their preparations for next season but it would also give them plenty of publicity which may be necessary to attract the quality players that Villa need to break into the top four.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News