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Sunday afternoon will see Chelsea take the field at Stamford Bridge against Liverpool in a desperate bid to recover from last weekend’s loss. This will be excellent game with only 3 points separating the two teams. Chelsea is currently in 2^nd place and Liverpool 3^rd in the 2009/10 Barclays Premier League season.

Chelsea

The Chelsea side is a very formidable opponent no matter where they play and have only taken the 1 loss so far in the 2009/10 Premier League season. Apart from a draw in a pre-season friendly, Chelsea had won every match so far this season until the surprise 3-1 loss to Wigan last weekend and they’ll be seeking to overcome this quickly. They also have a great chance to move 6 points clear of a major rival.

Along with Man U, Chelsea is the side to beat and have made an impressive start to their Premier League campaign.

Chelsea is developing a slight problem with injuries and has a few of players on the sidelines. Mikel, Ballack and Alex are all out for this weekend’s clash.

Liverpool

Liverpool has made an impressive return to form after their shaky start to the 2009/10 Premier League season despite losing to Fiorentina on Wednesday. Prior to this they had notched up 6 consecutive wins. The Liverpool side is shaping up a little differently this season with a more attacking mentality. They were able to score 6 times last weekend against Hull City.

Liverpool is quite clearly capable of winning this Sunday and will be keen to level on points with their title rivals.

The injury list at Liverpool shouldn’t affect their game too much with Aquilani on the sidelines with an ankle/foot injury and Mascherano looking doubtful with a virus.

My Opinion

This could quite possibly be the best Premier League match that we’ll see this season with both teams desperate to get the other out of the title race. Although it is still early in the season a loss here will hurt.

I would expect to see a draw, although it has been sometime since Chelsea last lost at Stamford Bridge. The new found attacking style of Liverpool could very well see this turn into a high scoring affair. As a Liverpool supporter I would like to see them win, but I would consider this to be an unlikely result.

My Tip – Draw (Odds of $3.45 at Betfair)

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.

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

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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.

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