Our pals at chickendinner hand Liverpool some straws to clutch
Paddy Power think the title race is over and offer just 1/14 on Manchester United winning for the third straight season. To stop them, Liverpool must win all their remaining games and hope that the Red Devils drop six points. It’s all very unlikely but rather than accepting a premature end to an exciting campaign, we decided to look at where the holders are most likely to slip up:
Tottenham (h)
Spurs are unbeaten in six league meetings with the Big Four sides and have lost just one away game against a top-half side. Harry Redknapp’s side have lost one of their last nine and he has won there with West Ham and Portsmouth. Spurs haven’t won an away league match against a Big Four side since August 1993 - when they beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield. Verdict: United could drop two points here but three is unlikely.
Middlesbrough (a)
Boro have a deceptively good home record for a team in the bottom three and
Wigan staff try to help one another win Fabio Capello over
Fabio Capello has named a number of unlikely candidates in his England squads over the last twelve months: Joe Lewis, Michael Mancienne, Jimmy Bullard and Carlton Cole to name a few. However, Wigan goalkeeper Chris Kirkland has pushed the boundaries even further by tipping Titus Bramble for a call-up.
The Wigan defender, famed for screw-ups like the ones in the video above, has had a good season but surely still has some way to go before he can justify the label “international standard”, especially considering many other English centre-backs like Phil Jagielka, Matthew Upson and Gary Cahill have impressed this year.
However, talking up one another’s England prospects appears to be in vogue right now at the JJB, as Steve Bruce, who was famously never capped, has put in a good word for Kirkland, labelling him “the best goalkeeper in England”. All that remains now is for Bramble to point out that Bruce should be the next England manager and a perfect triangle will be complete.
[Cole’s goal at 2.05, his sending off at 3.10] Wigan 0/ West Ham 1
West Ham came away from a gritty bout at the JJB with a hard-earned three points last night, but suffered at the hands of more controversial refereeing from Stuart Attwell.
Carlton Cole scored a fantastic goal in the 34th minute, but was dismissed three minutes later when he was given a second yellow for a fairly innocuous challenge. Even Steve Bruce admitted that it wasn’t a sending off, and that Attwell’s approach did nothing to quell the ill-tempered match:
“It wasn’t a sending-off, for goodness sake. There was nothing in it, and the referee needed to show some common sense.
“But I’m afraid Mr Attwell, in my opinion, is not quite ready. And the undercurrent all stemmed from that sending-off.”
Chelsea went about dismantling Portsmouth in spectacular style last weekend and Big Phil will now be charged with the task of maintaining treacherously high standards. Chelsea may not have it all their own way at Wigan, but should leave a half-empty JJB with a full complement of points. Here’s why…
1. Wigan have failed in six attempts to secure a Premier League victory over Chelsea, losing five and drawing the other.
2. In four of the last five seasons, Chelsea have won their opening two league fixtures. Chelsea beat Portsmouth 4-0 on the opening day this year.
3. Chelsea have taken maximum points from each of their three previous trips to the JJB, scoring six
Enterprising Latics selling tickets at 1,000% mark-up
Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has done all that he can to make sure United have a super comfy stay in Greater Manchester this Sunday. Firstly, he cancelled a mid-week rugby game to make sure the surface was all lovely and smooth. Then, instead of sounding a war cry to his title-hungry opponents, he has told Sky Sports he would be ‘delighted’ to see Steve Bruce take over from Alex Ferguson this summer, should he retire.
Fergie and Whelan already have a solid relationship - the United gaffer was the guest of honour when the JJB opened in 1999, and according to various made up sources, the chairman sometimes lets the red-faced Scotsman tickle his belly like a cat.
Now, the Wigan supporters are doing their bit to bring Alex Ferguson his tenth title. According to The Guardian, Manchester Utd’s 4,928 allocation sold out last month, but Wigan expect as many as 20,000 extra Red Devils to be locked
Wigan boss makes sure playing surface suits the Red Devils’ needs
When Arsenal visited the ploughed field known better known as the JJB Stadium back in March, Arsene Wenger furiously declared that the poor playing surface was ‘disrespectful to paying fans’. To avoid a similar conflict with Alex Ferguson, Wigan have cancelled the Warriors’ Rugby League match that was supposed to precede the final game of the season:
“The last thing we want is a worldwide TV audience with the pitch having suffered from heavy rain, and Wigan rugby league club having played a game on there a couple of days prior to the football match,” said Ian Lenagan, who bought
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