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As a Liverpool fan I was very excited to read about the plans of coach Rael Benitez for next season. Players like Carlos Tevez, David Silva and Glenn Johnson have all been talked about to build on their best ever Premier League performance last season. Liverpool finished 4 points behind Champions Manchester Utd and only have two disappointing 0-0 draws with Hull to blame for not taking out their first title in 18 years.

But with the recent news that the American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillet are looking to re finance their own debts back in to Liverpool that will plunge the iconic club $500 million in to the red has left me and thousands of fans all around the world absoloutely devistated.

There has been alot of interest from Dubai International to buy the reds, but Hicks and Gillet are determined to push forward with their re financing plan that could see Liverpool having to come up with annual interest payments of around $60 million.

The plan will not only put a dent in the clubs plans to build on this years success, but may even mean an exodus of players as the clubs financiers look to balance the books, with Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres being top of the list to go. The situation could end up being similar that of Leeds Utd where debts forced them to sell off players and even saw them drop out of the Premier League, the club is still recovering.

The two owners say that the club is not for sale at any price and that they have the clubs best interests at heart. But ever since they took over, Liverpool has been run more like a circus show than a successful soccer team and has become the laughing stock of English football, with Gillet and Hicks being compaired with former Aston Villa chairman Doug Ellis and current Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has the most hated men in football.

They have used Liverpool as means to clear their own personal debts and if they have any heart or any respect for the people who spend $100 every week to watch the team they love they will sell up and let Liverpool get on with re building.

Liverpool are now at $3.75 to win the Premiership title in 2010 but expect those odds to lengthen if the sales to balance debts go ahead. Get your free bet at sportsbet.com.au

It may be hard to comprehend that a team that has just won its 18th league and 3rd in 3 years needs to do any sort of rebuilding, but with Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez on their way out of Old Trafford there is definitely going to be a lack of creative talent in the squad.

There are two games from this season that really stand out to me as showing up the cracks in the Manchester Utd Armour, the 4-1 defeat at home to Liverpool and the recent Champions League defeat to Barcelona. Both times Ronaldo failed to show up and both times the Manchester Utd midfield was out classed. The likes of Carrick and Park Ji Sung just aren’t good enough and unless Alex Ferguson has some big signings up his sleeve Utd will struggle next season.

I can see all the Utd fans jumping up and and down chucking stuff at their computers as they read this saying “what about Giggs, Scholes, Rooney and Berbatov”. Giggs had a great season there is no doubt about that, he didn’t win the PFA Player of the year for nothing. But he is 36 now and there is now way he can keep it up for much longer.

Scholes is 35 and as far as I am concerned he hasn’t been the at his best for a few years now. Berbatov is already whinging about the rotation system and hasn’t been the success that many people expected. Sowing flashes of brilliance one moment and then damn right laziness the next.

Then there is Rooney. Only a few years ago he was seen as the saviour of English football, skillful, strong, ran at defenders with pace and most importantly he scored goals. He still gets his fair share, don’t get me wrong 12 premiership goals is not to be sniffed at, but it is up there with the likes of Frank Lampard (who gets his goals from midfield), Kevin Davies and Dirk Kuyt and can hardly be seen as prolific, and  we rarely see the rest of his dynamic game that made him such a devastating young talent at Everton. People will say “he is a better all round player now with a greater understanding of the game”. But it is sad to see a player that as such a natural abilty to go forward and cause problems sitting out on the left of midfield, being forced to do his turn defending.

There is a concesus among Manchester Utd fans that the young talent at the club will see them through next season and that they have a similar squad of youngsters as Arsenal, but I just don’t see it. There isn’t a Cesc Fabregas or Theo Walcott coming through, not one that looks like they will be the next superstar to come off the Utd production line.

The only plus point for Manchester Utd is that they undoubtedly have the best coach in world football in Alex Ferguson, who has built a number of successful squads over his 26 years in charge. It is because of this that betfair have them as $2.62 favourites to win their fourth straight title. But can he really do it one last time?

Everton and Chelsea will face off in the worlds oldest domestic football competition, the F.A. Cup, on the 30th of May. The tie will be 128th final and as always it promises to corker. This year both sides go in to it in top form. Everton are still on high after disposing of city rivals Liverpool early on in the competition and then claiming the scalp of Premier league winners and Champions League finalists Manchester United at the semi final stage. Chelsea on the other hand will be looking to end the season well after failing to challenge for top honours. They will also want to give a fitting send off to coach Gus Hiddink who is likely to be replaced by Carlo Ancelotti in the summer.

There is no doubt that Chelsea will go in to this match as hot favourites. In fact sportsbet have Chelsea at $1.80 to take out their fifth F.A. Cup. This is mainly because they have a far superior squad packed with world stars that have lost only once in thier last 22 league and cup matches. They are captained by England’s Frank Lampard, and boast the premier leagues joint top goal scorer, Nicolas Anelka, but their depth of talent doesn’t end there.  Portugese legend Deco, England Captain John Terry and Ivory Coast forward Didier Drogba will all be vying for a spot in the starting line up.

Everton will be hoping that the magic of the F.A. Cup, and the fact that they have a better record than Chelsea (having appeared in the final 12 times winning it five times) will help them a massive upset. On their day Everton have proved to be a tough nut to crack. Not only did they beat Liverpool and Manchester Utd to reach the final but they  also recently held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw after wasting a number of their own chances. In form Australian Tim Cahill is an definite match winner. Cahill has a habit of popping up in the right place at the time to score the most important of goals and he loves the big stage. Everton have also finished the season strong after what was something of a sluggish start meaning that they have a lot of momentum going in to the final making them worth a $4.65 punt at Sportsbet

There are also alot of other ways to get your money on the game including betting on the final score, first goal scorer and the half time, full time result.

If you sign up to Sportsbet you will receive a $50 free bet on the game. Here are some of my recommendations on where to place your money.

Chelsea to be leading at half time and full time is $2.75 at Sportsbet. Another good one is $8.50 for it to be a 0-0 draw after 90 mins.

The two that I will be placing my money are Everton to be winning at half time and then Chelsea to be winning after 90 mins, Sportsbet are offering $26.00 for this. Well worth the free $50 punt in my opinion.

But most of my money is on draw half time then Chelsea to win at $4.50. I feel that Everton will come out all guns blazing in the first half and will push Chelsea back. But Chelsea have too much class and that will show late on.

There were many raised eyebrows within the Australian football world when relative unknown Pim Verbeek was handed the job as Socceroos coach. Many of us were looking for another big name to replace the one and only Gus Hiddink who guided The Roos to the 2006 World Cup Finals in Germany. It didn’t seem to matter that Hiddink had recommend his fellow Dutchman to succeed him, or that Verbeek came to the job with a wealth of experience from coaching all over the world. We wanted a Sven Goran Erikson or Roy Keane and that was that. How wrong we were. Pim Verbeek has guided his side to the brink of qualification to the 2010 World Cup to be held in South Africa. It is the first time the Socceroos have tried to qualify for the tournament through the tough Asian system and they find themselves top of their group yet to conceded a goal. This is thanks mainly to the astute tactical brain of Verbeek who has been able to take his side (Mostly without the big guns playing in Europe) to far flung parts of the world and get results. Verbeek is the on the verge of going down in Socceroo history as an outright legend, but he still has work to do yet.

The Socceroos have just three games remaining in their qualifying campaign. The first will be played in Doha on 6th of June against Qatar. The Aussies smashed Qatar 4-0 when they met in October 2008. Pim Verbeek had his full squad available at the time and it paid off as Everton star TimCahill scored early to settle any nerves. Brett Emerton was the man of the match though scoring twice before Josh Kennedy finished of a Hapless Qatar side. The Socceroos will be expecting to win once again, but with playing in Doha it may not be as one sided as the game in Brisbane, even with Cahill and the likes expected to make the trip.

Even so I am predicting the Socceroos will overcome any travel sickness and get a comfortable 2-0 win. Tim Cahill first goal scorer again?. Go to Betfair for your free $50 bet.

After the trip to Doha The Soceroos come back to the mother land to play two games, one against Bahrain and the other against second placed Japan. Australia will roll over Bahrain in Sydney on June 10th making the game against Japan in Melbourne a week later vital. This top of the table clash will decide who finishes top of the group and gets seeded for the finals in 2010. When the two sides met earlier in the group Australia put in a backs to the wall type display to scrape a 0-0 draw. But with the home crowd behind them and Harry Kewell looking injury free and back to something like his best I feel that The Socceroos will get up for this one and win comfortably 3-0.

Get your free $50 bet on the game at Betfair

The English Premier league is drawing to a close with Manchester Utd favourites to claim an amazing third title on the run. They are three points clear of their nearest rivals Liverpool who have also played one game more. While most people around the world would put their houses on Utd clinching a record equaling 18th league title, the run in suggests that it might not be so clear cut.

Liverpool are in red hot form taking 22 points from a possible 24 in their last 8 league games, while racking up a whopping 23 goals along the way.

On paper Liverpool should take a maximum 9 points from their last three games against West Ham Utd, West Brom and Tottenham Hotspur, which will put the pressure right back on the Red Devils.

It has been slip ups against the so called lesser teams that has cost Liverpool dearly so far this season. The defeats at Middlesbrough and Tottenham, as well as draws against the likes of Wigan, Stoke and Hull were all seen as major low points. But with Fernando Torres set to return to the fray after missing the 3-0 victory at Newcastle, and the new PFA Fans Player of the year Steven Gerrard in the best form of his career I really can’t see any slip ups.

Manchester Utd on the other hand have a couple of tricky home ties, against Arsenal and Manchester City. Utd recently eliminated Arsenal from the semi finals of the European Champions league meaning that the Gunners will be out to put a dent in their title challenge. The Manchester Derby is always unpredictable, but Manchester City’s manager Mark Hughes and his big money signings will also be looking to put in a good performance in hope that a derby victory will be enough to secure their massive pay packets for at least another year. Manchester Utd’s other two games are both away, one to Wigan Athletic and the other to Hull City. Wigan are languishing in mid table with nothing left to play for while Hull are just one place and three points above the relegation zone. Hull have already proved they are no pushovers after giving Utd a scare earlier in the season only to lose 4-3. They have also held Liverpool to two well deserved scoreless draws. It would take a very brave man to bet against Manchester Utd, but that is the beauty of soccer, you just never know what to expect.

Premier League Winners

Manchester Utd $ 1.07

Liverpool $ 7.05

Chelsea $ 80.00

At the other end of the table it looks as though West Brom are certain of relegation. They are six points away from the safety zone with just three games remaining. The last two relegation spots are currently occupied by Newcastle Utd and Middlesbrough, but Portsmouth, Blackburn, Sunderland and Hull are by no means out of trouble yet. It is going to be an exciting last few weeks.

Premier League Relegation

Blackburn $ 26.00

Sunderland $ 4.25

Hull City $ 2.65

Newcastle $ 1.45

Middlesbrough $1.22

You can get a $200 free bet on all these markets when you join Sportsbet today.

The FA Cup semi-finals are set to be played this weekend, and with three of the four teams still involved in the Champions League it has been a pressure filled week for these clubs.

Arsenal vs Chelsea

Both of these teams were involved in Champions League quarter final action mid-week and managed to progress to the semi-final stage of that tournament so it will be interesting to see who comes through and plays the better football in the first of the FA Cup semi-finals.

Of the two teams, Chelsea definitely had the tougher Champions League opponent where they had to fight off an extremely spirited Liverpool to progress through to the semi-finals of Europe’s top competition.

Arsenal on the other hand had a home game against Spanish team Villareal and were convincing in their 3-0 victory.

Chelsea are showing a new lease on life under coach Guus Hiddink and will be looking to improve on their poor record this season domestically against top four teams. The only point they have come away with from these matches was thanks to a 1-1 draw with Manchester United. They suffered a 2-1 loss at home to Arsenal in their last encounter and will play them again in May at Emirates.

Arsenal have had another steady season, and like their opponents are showing good form at the business end of the season. They are currently lying fourth on the EPL ladder, but have a very tough run home with matches against all three of the other top teams. How well they play over this period could determine whether Liverpool can snatch the title away from Manchester United.

The bookies have found it hard to split Arsenal and Chelsea for the FA Cup semi, with a Wembley game offering no home advantage to either side. Chelsea have been installed as slight favourites due to their recent strong form but it is worth mentioning that over the past 12 games the two teams have an identical record – 9 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss.

Should be an exciting match.

Chealsea – $2.45

Arsenal – $3.00

Draw – $3.15

Manchester United vs Everton

Everton are having an excellent season and will provide a definite challenge to a Manchester outfit that is heavily stretched at the moment between trying to defend their European title and fending off Liverpool’s challenge in the Premier League. This will leave Everton feeling they have a chance to slip under the radar and take the cookies in a one off game at a neutral venue.

Everton will be looking to draw on their last successful FA Cup campaign in 1995 where they claimed victory in the final…against Manchester United. To progress this far they have had victories over Aston Villa and Liverpool but will face the sternest possibly test to reach the final.

The past couple of months have exposed some weaknesses in the Red Devils. They should have had the Premier League trophy in the cabinet by now, but by allowing Liverpool a sniff they have created extra pressure on themselves at the business end of the season and it wouldn’t be a surprise if at some stage we saw them stumble in either the FA Cup, The Champions League or the EPL.

The fact that this is a one-off game further fuels the chances of the Everton outfit.

The bookies have installed Manchester as red hot favourites and deservedly so when you look at the superstars in the team and what they have achieved over the past couple of seasons.

But the beauty of the FA Cup is that on any given day any team can achieve the unthinkable – and being a fan of Manchester not winning everything I’m hoping that day comes this weekend…and that Tim Cahill is in the thick of the action.

Manchester United – $1.75

Everton – $5.25

Draw – $3.40

If you’d like to place a bet on either of the semi-finals click here now and you can also get a free bet of up to $50 from Centrebet just for signing up

Crooksy

The second leg of the Champion’s League Football is currently underway and Liverpool have become the first of the four English teams to be eliminated from the tournament at the hands of arch-rivals Chelsea.

Liverpool were faced with a monumental task from the start – they had lost by two goals in the first leg at home and so had to win the match away at Stamford Bridge by three goals to progress to the semi’s.

Liverpool Started With A Rush

The first thirty minutes had Liverpool fans in a frenzy as their men went two goals up and the impossible started to look like a near certainty. The match developed into a classic as both teams traded goals and the final score of 4-4 meant that Chelsea had survived and will now play Barcelona in what will be their fifth semi-final appearance in the past six tournaments.

Liverpool can hold their heads high – they delivered a wonderful performance away from home without their talismanic leader Steven Gerrard, and can now focus their attentions on the race for the Premier League title. They are currently in second place behind Manchester United, who have a one point lead and a game in hand. With just 6 games remaining for Liverpool they will be praying for Man U to drop some points soon.

Barcelona Progress

In the other quarter final played yesterday Bayern Munich managed to salvage some pride with a 1-1 draw against Barcelona who had belted them 4-0 in the opening leg. Barcelona will have home advantage in the first leg of the semi-finals against Chelsea.

Other Quarter Finals To Be Played Tonight

Manchester United face a tough challenge tonight as they head to the home stadium of FC Porto with the tie locked at 2-2 after the first leg. No English team has won at Estádio do Dragão in eleven attempts but if any team is capable of breaking that streak it is the Red Devils who are the defending champions.

They are having another strong season in ’08/’09 – they are top of the table in their domestic competition, have progressed to the semi finals of the FA Cup and are currently on an amazing 22 game unbeaten streak in the Champions League.

That being said their ability to win on the road in recent times has not been so impressive, with just one victory away from homechampions league, manchester united, liverpool, chelsea, barcelona, arsenal in this European campaign. 

Bookmakers have installed them as favourites at 2.05

In the other quarter final left to be decided Arsenal will go into the second leg having travelled to Villareal and come away with a draw, giving them the advantage at home. Arsene Wenger’s men have yet to concede a goal at home in this tournament, but will be tested tonight with a couple of their key defensive players sidelined through injury.

Arsenal are heavily backed to win at around $1.50.

For odds on these matches and other specialty bets click here now to head over to Centrebet where you can also get a free bet of up to $50 when you sign up.

Crooksy

In a fantastic result for Australia, the Socceroos have done everything but guarantee their ticket to South Africa next year for the world’s biggest sporting event – the World Cup.

Playing in front of over 57,000 Sydneysiders at ANZ Stadium (formerly known as Telstra Stadium formerly known as Stadium Australia) the Socceroos came away with a 2-0 victory against a dogged Uzbekstani outfit who went into the game still playing for their own qualification spot.

Coming out from the half time break the scores were locked at 0-0, and coach Pim Verbeek’s decision to bring on replacement forward Josh Kennedy mid way through the second half was soon rewarded with him putting away a header to score the first goal.

The result was sealed soon after with a cool Harry Kewell slotting a free kick from the penaly spot.

Other group results meant that Australia are left needing just a draw from one of their last three matches – two of which are at home.

So although the job is not quite done it is hard not to get excited at the prospect that the Socceroos are heading to South Africa. It is a far cry from previous qualification campaigns: we were the last to qualify for the 2006 World Cup and we were the only team to go through the qualifications in 2002 undefeated…and still missed out on  a spot.

Thank you Asian Football Federation

Results From Some Other World Cup Qualifiers

World Cup Qualifier: England beat Ukraine no thanks to terrible …

There must be another goalkeeper in England apart from David James, surely. England maintain their winning streak, no thanks to their worst keeper in living memory.

World Cup Qualifiers Results-South America March 31, April 1

Here are the results from the South American World Cup 2010 Qualifiers played on March 31, 2009 and April 1, 2009. This is Round 12 of the CONMEBOL Group Round. Also check out European WC Qualifiers April 1 Results Asia WC Qualifiers …

World Cup Qualifier: WALES 0 GERMANY 2

Another World Cup home game, another 2-0 defeat but this time everyone seemed quite happy and cheerful rather than outraged and indulging in the blame game, however what a contrast. After last weekend’s gutless 2-0 collapse to Finland, …

World Cup: Czech Rep. 1, Slovakia 2

The Czechs’ remaining World Cup qualifiers are away to Slovakia (September 5th) and at home to San Marino (September 9th), Poland (October 10th) and Northern Ireland (October 14th). Uefa.com Match Report …

World Cup Qualifier Video Highlights : Bolivia 6-1 Argentina …

… strange it may sound, Diego Maradona’s three game undefeated streak came to an abrupt end after Argentina were slaughtered 6-1 by Bolivia in the altitude of La Paz. bolivia vs argentina, english premier league, EPL, world cup qualifier.

World Cup 2010 Qualifier: Europe round-up 1/4/09

Wales fought bravely but were powerless to stop Germany from extending their lead at the top of Group Four in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier. A thunderbolt of a strike from Michael Ballack in the 11th minute saw the Germans take the …

If you had of looked at the betting markets for the English Premier League just over two weeks ago, you’d have seen that Manchester United were about as short as you can get in a race with 19 other challengers and a dozen rounds yet to be played. They were seven points clear of their nearest rivals Liverpool and to make matters even more difficult for their opponents they had a game in hand as well.

How could last year’s champions of Europe possibly lose from there?

Flash forward to the present and we have been given a great example of how quickly things can turn around in sport. It all began with Liverpool’s 4-1 thumping of Man U in Manchester, a game bookies had given Benitez’s men little chance of winning. It was followed up the very next weekend with Liverpool hammering top 4 candidate Aston Villa 5-0, and the shock loss of United to Fulham – their first back-t-back loss in the EPL since 2005.

All of a sudden Liverpool’s rich vein of form has seen them firm from 11/1 in to 5/2 in just two weeks. Manchester remain favourites at 4/11 as they are one point clear of Liverpool with a game in hand over the rest of the field. Chelsea are in third spot a further 3 points back.

So what has gone wrong for Man U…and what has gone right for Liverpool?

Liverpool’s Resurgent Combination Up Front

The key for Liverpool over the past few weeks, has been the partnership between home town hero Steven Gerrard, and the prodigiously talented Spaniard Fernando Torres. Gerrard has been in imperious form of late scoring 6 goals in his last 3 games and is putting himself forward as a candidate for FIFA Footballer Of The Year.

His combination with Torres definitely raises the performance of the rest of the team, and this has been obvious since the Spaniard’s return from injury. With such strikepower up front the rest of the team understands that if they do their job well, the goals will come and over the past few weeks they have delivered on this.

The Problem For Manchester

Having assumed such a commanding lead at the top of the table, all the talk over the past few weeks had been about the possibility of them claiming an unprecedented five titles in the one season. This may have led them to take their eye of the ball so to speak.

In interviews with many of the players after their defeat to Fulham, there was a definite air of surprise about what was happening, which is often an indication that some complacency had slipped in to their camp.

Obviously they are trying to manage their resources in their bid to claim Cup victories in Europe and at home, but they will need to pick up their act once the season regular resumes at the conclusion of the upcoming round of international friendlies.

Manchester’s Opponents Will Be On Liverpool’s Side

They play Aston Villa straight up, with Martin O’Neill’s men currently lying three points outside of the top four. A loss to Manchester would put a huge hole in their drive to qualify for the Champions league next year and will give them the greatest possible incentive to win.

Then there is the fact that the majority of teams in the competition (with the obvious exception being Everton) would rather see Liverpool claim the title, and you have a situation where all of Manchester’s opponents will be gunning for their head.

The next couple of months are going to make for some very interesting viewing.

Crooksy