KEEP LIFE SIMPLE

2011-10-14T02:56:00.000+08:00

Oh look! I still have a blog.

2011-05-12T02:08:00.004+08:00

To know that I missed out on director's list by a GPA margin of just 0.04 is a sickening feeling. 0.04. 15 subjects taken in year 1, I just needed one more grade from any of those 15 subjects, upgrade any of those C+s into a B, or a B into a B+, and I would be there.

Fine margins. At the start of year 1, I didn't specifically aim to get into the director's list. But it was a nice bonus as well. I normally wouldn't be bothered, after all it is meant to reward the really top students. But to know that you came so close really hurts.

I feel that I deserve it - but I can't complain. 25% of the cohort probably could say they feel they deserve it too, and I wouldn't be able to argue back.

When I see them getting their certificates, I will have to look on in envy instead. Knowing that I could have been there. Knowing that I probably should have been there.

I will have to console myself with the fact that only the top 7 people from my course get into the list. That means I was the 8th best student in a cohort of 70 people. Normally something I would be proud of. But right now it still feels hollow.

2011-04-26T22:39:00.002+08:00

Lazy to continue tweaking the layout.

Pic of IAD studio. Currently not using this room for lessons though.

Our next module is going to see us spend one week studying toilets and how & why sewage pipes are laid out in a certain manner. How wonderfully interesting.

2011-04-21T04:21:00.001+08:00

CHANGED BLOGSKIN BECAUSE I MESSED UP THE OTHER ONE AND CAN'T BE BOTHERED TO FIX... WORK IN PROGRESS

2011-04-21T02:07:00.001+08:00

How dare a spammer turn up on my blog with the name 'Chelsea'?!?!

Getting timetable for semester 2.1 tomorrow, hope its not as killer as sem 1.2.

2011-04-08T23:23:00.001+08:00

Cleared the stupid spam from my cbox, TAKE THAT!

2011-04-07T14:42:00.005+08:00

Woohoo a B for my project 1, all that time and money spent wasn't in vain (satisfied with anything more than a C)

Results for semester 1.2:

Communicating Design Ideas - Distinction
Digital Architectural Drafting - A
Architectural Design Theory - C+
Interior Elements & Construction - B+
IAD Project 1 - B
Multimedia Fundamentals - A
Drawing Essentials - C+
3D Art Fundamentals - C+

GPA dropped slightly, 3.22 for the semester. Coupled with 3.29 in first semester my GPA is now either 3.25. A marginal drop and a far cry from those courses chasing perfect 4.0 GPAs, but we are no ordinary school, and no ordinary course...

3 of my 5 worst-scoring subjects in year 1 are all art subjects (2D Art Fundamentals, 3D Art Fundamentals, Drawing Essentials). Coincidence? I think not. Art isn't something that can taught in one month and while I tried hard, I certainly don't have the artistic talent to push for a better grade.

2011-03-31T20:06:00.002+08:00

Long(er) post as promised...

P1 is over, it marks the end of year 1 in TP. It still feels like only yesterday when we began semester 1.1 but already two semesters, ten blocks and fifteen modules have passed by.

It has been a very steep learning curve but it has mostly been an enjoyable journey thus far. That has been immensely helped by the serious yet fun atmosphere that the cohort collectively creates, not the dreadful atmosphere at a certain secondary school where they produce a fear of failure in you, where they are more rigid than a stone block, a place where I just absolutely hated going to any day of the week.

How nice is it to be graded based on being able to generate and develop good ideas, not graded based on how much you can memorise from the textbooks and the notes you scribble? The block calendar system is intense and demanding but it is certainly a far more effective gauge of student ability than endless and excessive tests, quizzes and exams.

As for friends? I am closer to certain groups of course and do not speak as much to others, but generally there is no one I can't stand the sight of. Again the relaxed atmosphere helps with this; sharing jokes with the lecturer, laughs echoing around the studio. And the way our classmates are rotated every block also helps. We have a different set of classmates every block, which allows us to get to know and work with everyone in the cohort. So pretty much everyone in the cohort knows each other's name at least, unlike in secondary school where you have no need to interact with other classes, so there were probably 200 people in my year that I didn't know (and didn't want to bother to know).

I don't regret my choice at all.

2011-03-29T00:00:00.001+08:00

WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

2011-03-28T01:15:00.000+08:00

I am ready for my final presentation.

2011-03-26T06:53:00.001+08:00

I am such a genius!

No, its not the lack of sleep.

2011-03-22T15:39:00.009+08:00

P1 checklist for own reference

Floor plan - 80% done (DONE - 23/3 2am)
Model - 80% done
Elevations - DONE
Sections - 50% done (DONE - 23/3 2am)
Perspectives - 50% done (DONE - 24/3 8PM)
A4 proj. brief - DONE
A3 process journal - 50% done (DONE 25/3 4.30AM)
Storyboarding - not done (DONE 26/3 7AM!!!!!!!!)
Site Response/Other Diagrams - not done (DONE 25/3 3AM)
Site Plan - 50% done (DONE - 25/3 3AM)

More people are quitting course, it makes me feel sad. But at the same time, it makes me more determined to complete it.

2011-03-08T22:56:00.001+08:00

Messed up part of the code while randomly tinkering with the top picture. Oh well fixing that can wait till I have more time...

2011-03-08T01:44:00.002+08:00

The day I don't need to initiate everything is the day I will

Random post over, back to Crit 3!

Edit: What, this hopelessly neglected blog is 41 months old already?!

2011-01-21T21:40:00.001+08:00

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

2009-09-01T00:55:00.002+08:00

Man Utd 2 (Rooney 59pen, Diaby 64 own goal)
Arsenal 1 (Arshavin 40)

Viva Abou Diaby!

2009-09-01T00:16:00.002+08:00

Banta Singh walks into a bar in London, orders 3 glasses of beer and sits in the backyard of the room, drinking a sip out of each one in turn.

When he finishes, he comes back to the bar counter and orders 3 more. The bartender asks him, "You know, beer goes flat after I fill it in the glass; it would taste better if you buy one at a time."

Banta Singh replies, "Well, you see, I have two brothers. One is in Dubai, the other in Canada and I'm here in London. When they left home, we promised that we'll drink this way to remember the days when we drank together."

The bartender admits this is a nice custom and leaves it there.

Banta Singh became a regular in the bar and would always drink the same way. He'd order three beers and drink them in turn.

One day he came in and ordered only 2 beers. All the other regulars notice and fall silent.

When he comes back to the bar for the second round, the bartender says, "I don't want to intrude on your grief, but I wanted to offer my sincere condolences on your great loss."

Banta Singh looked confused for a moment, and then he laughs... "Oh, no,"

He said, "Everyone's fine; both my brothers are alive. The only thing is... I just quit drinking!"

2009-06-20T23:28:00.002+08:00

Nothing to post.... yawn

Ronaldo's off to the Bernabeu.
Tevez is gone.
Who else will come in?

2009-05-14T21:05:00.003+08:00

Wigan 1 Man Utd 2... 1 more point for the title!

2009-05-08T22:02:00.004+08:00

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINALS

Arsenal 1
(van Persie 76pen)

Manchester United 3
(Park 8, Ronaldo 11, 61, Fletcher sent off 76)

Man Utd win 4-1 on aggregate

---
Chelsea 1
(Essien 9)

Barcelona 1
(Iniesta 90+3, Abidal sent off 66)

Aggregate 1-1, Barcelona progress on away goals rule

Champions League Final
(ENG) Manchester United v Barcelona (ESP)
Stadio Olimpico, Rome

Epic Quotes
Didier Drogba to the cameras:
"Its a f**king disgrace"
-Who's the disgrace sir??? LOL!!! You dive, you toss coins into the crowd, you have no sportsmanship, you remonstrate with refs, you scream abuse into the cameras! You're a f**king disgrace!

2009-04-19T22:00:00.003+08:00

Some nice quotes from me.

"Epic fail is epic." - Needs no explanation.

"I don't like (read: hate) a.math no matter what the topic is. The subject is a load of rubbish" - A.math, what else?

"Advocating a.math infront of me is like putting yourself into a verbal shredder" - A.math, what else? x2

"A.math sucks." - A.math, what else? x3. Nice and simple.

"Okay I admit I fabricated the previous two quotes." - Lies, what else? But these are whiter than white lies, doing no harm, but actually containing truth..

2009-04-06T21:13:00.001+08:00

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 Ronaldo 14, 80, Macheda 90+3
ASTON VILLA 2 Carew 30, Agbonlahor 58

MACHEDA!! WONDER STRIKE FROM THE 17-YEAR-OLD DEBUTANT

2009-04-05T00:08:00.001+08:00

whee successfully made my custom skin.

2009-01-22T19:23:00.002+08:00

Random post.

Carling Cup Semifinals 2nd-leg
Manchester United 4 Derby County 2
Man Utd progress 4-3 on aggregate

Burnley 3 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (after extra time)
Spurs progress 6-4 on aggregate

Carling Cup Final- Wembley
Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur

And now, the main point of this post...

Subjects I am happy with (marks-wise):
-English
-E.History

Subjects I think are okay okay.. :
-Chemistry
-P. Geography
-HCL (pass=good enough)
-E.Math

Subjects I am disillusioned with:
-A.Math (put on hold till next term, when we return to being taught by the fat guy)
-Social Studies
-Biology

2008-12-19T23:03:00.002+08:00

Hmmmmmmmmmm~~~

BPL HEADLINES

ALIADIERE RESCUES POINT AGAINST HIS OLD CLUB
Middlesbrough 1 Aliadiere 28
Arsenal 1 Adebayor 17

BORE DRAW AT THE BRITANNIA
Stoke City 0
Fulham 0

VILLA PUT FOUR PAST BOLTON
Aston Villa 4 Agbonlahor 25, 67, Laursen 40, Davies og
Bolton Wanderers 2 Elmander 17, Davies 86

WIGAN CRUISE PAST TROUBLED BLACKBURN
Wigan Athletic 3 Heskey 10, Valencia 12, Cattermole 77
Blackburn Rovers 0

WEST BROM PUT TO THE SWORD
Sunderland 4 Jones 22, 24, Reid 40, Cisse 47pen
West Bromwich 0

POOL HELD BY BRAVE HULL
Liverpool 2 Gerrard 24, 32
Hull City 2 Mcshane 12, Carragher 22og

CAHILL'S LATE ACT FOR EVERTON
Manchester City 0
Everton 1 Cahill 90

UNITED HELD BY SPURS
Tottenham Hotspur 0
Manchester United 0

NEWCASTLE CRUSH POMPEY
Portsmouth 0
Newcastle United 3 Owen 51, Martins 77, Guthrie 89

CHELSEA DROP MORE HOME POINTS
Chelsea 1 Anelka 51
West Ham United 1 Bellamy 33

BLACKBURN BOSS PAUL INCE SACKED, REPLACED BY SAM ALLARYDCE

FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP
Quarterfinals
Al Ahly 2-4 Pachuca (AET)
Adelaide Utd 0-1 Gamba Osaka

Semifinals
Pachuca 0-2 Liga de Quito
Gamba Osaka 3-5 Manchester United

Final
Liga de Quito v Man Utd

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ROUND OF 16 DRAW
(ENG) Chelsea v Juventus (ITA)
(ESP) Villarreal v Panathinaikos (GRE)
(POR) Sporting Lisbon v Bayern Munich (GER)
(ESP) Atletico Madrid v Porto (POR)
(FRA) Olympique Lyonnais v Barcelona (ESP)
(ESP) Real Madrid v Liverpool (ENG)
(ENG) Arsenal v AS Roma (ITA)
(ITA) Inter Milan v Man Utd (ENG)

BPL FIXTURES
Manchester Utd do not play due to Club World Cup commitments-- match against Wigan postponed

Predictions in brackets

Fulham v Middlesbrough at Craven Cottage (1-0)
Blackburn v Stoke City at Ewood Park (1-1)
Hull City v Sunderland at K.C. Stadium (2-2)
Bolton Wanderers v Portsmouth at Reebok Stadium (2-1)
West Ham Utd v Aston Villa at Upton Park (1-2)
West Brom v Man City at The Hawthorns (1-1)
Newcastle Utd v Tottenham Hotspur at St James Park (2-3)
Arsenal v Liverpool at Emirates Stadium (1-1)
Everton v Chelsea at Goodison Park (0-2)

2008-12-09T20:44:00.002+08:00

Meh.

Carling Cup Semifinals Draw
Derby County v Man Utd
Man Utd v Derby County

Tottenham Hotspur v Burnley
Burnley v Tottenham Hotspur

BPL Headlines
CHELSEA CLINCH RECORD 11TH STRAIGHT AWAY WIN
Bolton Wanderers 0
Chelsea 2 Anelka 9, Deco 20

STRUGGLING ROVERS LOSE TO LIVERPOOL
Blackburn Rovers 1 Santa Cruz 85
Liverpool 3 Alonso 69, Benayoun 79, Gerrard 90+4

CITY HELD BY FULHAM
Fulham 1 Bullard 26
Manchester City 1 Benjani 6

HULL CONTROVERSIALLY DEFEAT BORO
Hull City 2 Turnbull 81og, King 85pen
Middlesbrough 1 Tuncay 78, Wheater sent off 84

BELOW-PAR GUNNERS EDGE VICTORY
Arsenal 1 Adebayor 16
Wigan Athletic 0

NEWCASTLE THROW THE POINTS AWAY
Newcastle United 2 Owen 8, 24
Stoke City 2 Sidibe 60, Faye 90

VIDIC LATE ACT SAVES UNITED'S BLUSHES
Manchester United 1 Vidic 90+1
Sunderland 0

BROM & POMPEY SHARE THE SPOILS
West Brom. Albion 1 Greening 38
Portsmouth 1 Crouch 58

VILLA CLAIM 3 POINTS IN EXHILARATING THRILLER
Everton 2 Lescott 30, 90+2
Aston Villa 3 Sidwell 1, Young 54, 90+3

SPURS BRUSH ASIDE HAMMERS
West Ham United 0
Tottenham Hotspur 2 King 68, O'Hara 89

MIDWEEK CHAMPIONS LEAGUE MATCHES
FC BARCELONA v SHAKTAR DONETSK at Camp Nou, Barcelona
AS ROMA v BORDEAUX at Stadio Olimpico, Rome
PSV EINDHOVEN v LIVERPOOL FC at Philipsstadion, Eindhoven
FC BASLE v SPORTING LISBON at St Jakob Park, Basel
MARSEILLE v ATLETICO MADRID at Stade Velodrome, Marseille
CHELSEA v CFR CLUJ-NAPOCA at Stamford Bridge, London
PANATHINAIKOS v ANORTHOSIS at Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium
WERDER BREMEN v INTER MILAN at Weserstadion, Bremen

MANCHESTER UNITED v AALBORG BK at Old Trafford, Manchester
JUVENTUS v BATE BORISOV at Stadio Olimpico, Turin
DINAMO KIEV v FENERBAHCE SK at Valeri Lobanovski Stadium, Kiev
FC CELTIC v VILLARREAL CF at Celtic Park, Glasgow
REAL MADRID v ZENIT ST PETERSBURG at Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
FC PORTO v ARSENAL FC at Estadio do Dragao, Porto
LYON v BAYERN MUNICH at Municipal de Gerland, Lyonnais
STEAUA BUCHAREST v FIORENTINA at Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest

BPL WEEKEND FIXTURES (predictions in brackets)
MIDDLESBROUGH v ARSENAL at Riverside Stadium (1-1)
SUNDERLAND v WEST BROM at Stadium of Light (1-0)
ASTON VILLA v BOLTON WANDERERS at Villa Park (3-1)
LIVERPOOL v HULL CITY at Anfield (2-1)
MANCHESTER CITY v EVERTON at City of Manchester Stadium (2-0)
WIGAN ATHLETIC v BLACKBURN ROVERS at JJB Stadium (2-2)
STOKE CITY v FULHAM at Britannia Stadium (0-1)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR v MANCHESTER UNITED at White Hart Lane (1-2)
PORTSMOUTH v NEWCASTLE UNITED at Fratton Park (3-2)
CHELSEA v WEST HAM UNITED at Stamford Bridge (2-0)

.

2008-12-04T17:36:00.004+08:00

Wee. Long hiatus over. I think.

Headlines.

SUNDERLAND SINK INTO DROPZONE
Sunderland 1 Cisse 11
Bolton Wanderers 4 Taylor 17, Cahill 21, Elmander 39, 55

FULHAM HOLD ON FOR POINT
Aston Villa 0
Fulham 0

TYNE-TEES DERBY ENDS GOALLESS
Middlesbrough 0
Newcastle United 0

TWO NEWCOMERS SHARE SPOILS
Stoke City 1 Fuller 73pen
Hull City 1 King 45

WIGAN'S LATE RESCUE ACT
Wigan Athletic 2 Camara 61, Boyce 87
West Bromwich Albion 1 Miller 47

10-MAN RED DEVILS CLAIM BRAGGING RIGHTS
Manchester City 0
Manchester United 1 Rooney 42, Ronaldo sent off 68

POMPEY SCRAPE VICTORY
Portsmouth 3 Crouch 49, Defoe 53, Davis 79
Blackburn Rovers 2 Derbyshire 62, Tugay 67

TOFFEES CLINCH NARROW WIN
Tottenham Hotspur 0
Everton 1 Pienaar 51

STAMFORD BRIDGE BREACHED AGAIN
Chelsea 1 Djourou 29og
Arsenal 2 van Persie 59, 62

LIVERPOOL STRUGGLE TO DRAW
Liverpool 0
West Ham United 0

Manchester Derby Review
MAN CITY 0-1 MAN UTD

Man City's Best Player-- Shaun Wright-Phillips
Didn't pose his usual attacking threat but was always at the right place at the right time. Made several crucial defensive tackles even though he is a winger and not a defender. Always kept running for the City cause and didn't deserve to be on the losing side.

Man Utd's Best Player-- Wayne Rooney
Not only did he bag the winning goal in the 151st competitive Manchester derby, he was also full of work ethic like Wright-Phillips, popping back to help out in defence and holding up the ball well to waste time to preserve United's lead, after Ronaldo had been sent off.

Man City's Zero-- Robinho
The big-name Brazilian signing had scored against Chelsea and Arsenal earlier on in the season but posed almost zero attacking threat to the United goal, apart from a couple of long-range free-kicks which went well wide. His possible influence in the game alongside Cristiano Ronaldo was highly anticipated but in the end both were disappointing.

Man Utd's Zero-- Cristiano Ronaldo
Made more attacking impact compare to Robinho, but got himself unnecessarily sent off (though admitted quite harshly) by the referee, first for a tackle which didn't deserve a yellow card, but warranted a yellow card for his reaction, sarcastically clapping the ref, and the second for deliberate handball after he claimed he heard a whistle. Put his team under unnecessary pressure, though they managed to hold on quite comfortably.

Best Moment: In stoppage-time and a last-gasp chance for City to maybe rescue a point, goalkeeper Joe Hart went up to the other end of the pitch for a City corner. After a goalmouth scramble, City captain Richard Dunne's shot was cleared off the line, then the ball broke to United. Joe Hart somehow managed to run back the distance of the pitch (no less than 80 yards) to keep out Rooney's superb effort from 45 yards. Guess who else ran the distance from one end to other to try and clear it off the line? Shaun Wright-Phillips.

Other Headlines
CRISTIANO RONALDO WINS BALLON D'OR (European Player of the Year)

Carling Cup Quarterfinals Round-up

Burnley 2
Arsenal 1

Stoke City 0
Derby County 1

Watford 1
Tottenham Hotspur 2

Manchester United 5
Blackburn Rovers 3

Teams in semifinal draw: Burnley (II), Derby (II), Spurs, Man Utd

Teams are in BPL unless indicated by Roman numerals

Next BPL Matchday (Predictions in brackets)
Fulham v Manchester City at Craven Cottage (1-1)
Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool at Ewood Park (1-2)
Arsenal v Wigan Athletic at Emirates Stadium (3-0)
Bolton Wanderers v Chelsea at Reebok Stadium (0-1)
Hull City v Middlesbrough at K.C. Stadium (2-1)
Newcastle United v Stoke City at St James Park (0-0)
Manchester United v Sunderland at Old Trafford (3-0)
West Bromwich Albion v Portsmouth at The Hawthorns (2-2)
Everton v Aston Villa at Goodison Park (1-0)
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur at Upton Park (1-2)

Hi.

2008-10-27T16:19:00.004+08:00

You fail.

/facepalm

youjustepicallyfailed.php

2008-10-08T21:27:00.003+08:00

Wee finally an update~ :D

I'm dunno how many weeks of results behind... so I'll just post the most recent one!

FABREGAS SAVE ARSENAL'S BLUSHES
Sunderland 1 Leadbitter 86
Arsenal 1 Fabregas 90

COTTAGERS AWAY WOES CONTINUE
West Bromwich Albion 1 Bednar 61
Fulham 0

BORO LEAVE IT LATE
Wigan Athletic 0
Middlesbrough 1 Aliadiere 90

RED DEVILS CLICK INTO GEAR
Blackburn Rovers 0
Manchester United 2 Brown 31, Rooney 63

FUMBLING GOALIE GIFTS BOLTON VICTORY
West Ham United 1 Cole 69
Bolton Wanderers 3 Davies 30, Cahill 36?, Taylor 86

BLUES CRUISE PAST VILLA
Chelsea 2 Joe Cole, Anelka
Aston Villa 0

TORRES LEADS L'POOL FIGHTBACK
Manchester City 2 Ireland 19, Garrido 41, Zabaleta 68- sent off
Liverpool 3 Torres 56, 73, Kuyt 90

FLOUNDERING SPURS STUMBLE AGAIN
Tottenham Hotspur 0
Hull City 1 Geovanni 10

ENGLAND DUO COMBINE TO BEAT STOKE
Portsmouth 2 Crouch 25, Defoe 51
Stoke City 1 Fuller 48

KINNEAR'S NEWCASTLE STORM BACK FROM THE DEAD
Everton 2 Arteta 16pen, Fellaini 30
Newcastle United 2 Taylor 44, Duff 46

And this weekend will be yet another international break. After Theo Walcott's hat-trick heroics in Croatia with that stunning 4-1 win in Zagreb, the England match against Kazahkstan has already been a sell-out, with a capacity 90,000 fans set to attend the match at Wembley. Lets see what head coach Fabio Capello can engineer, against a team that is surely going to put on the defensive brakes and try and frustrate their hosts. Don't forget Belarus too... they are underdogs too but proved a few months ago that they can play well-- they beat South American giants Argentina 1-0 in a friendly.

Thats all for now~

2008-09-02T18:50:00.003+08:00

Headlines again..

UEFA SUPER CUP
SCHOLES OFF AS ZENIT ACHIEVE SHOCK WIN
MANCHESTER UNITED 1
ZENIT ST PETERSBURG 2
Sent off: Paul Scholes (MANU)

BPL
WEST BROM BATTLE FOR FIRST POINT
BOLTON WANDERERS 0
WEST BROMWICH ALBION 0

POMPEY RUN RIOT AT GOODISON PARK
EVERTON 0
PORTSMOUTH 3

HULL GIVEN BPL WELCOME
HULL CITY 0
WIGAN ATHLETIC 5

10-MEN STOKE NARROWLY LOSE
MIDDLESBROUGH 2
STOKE CITY 1

HAMMERS STORM TO VICTORY
WEST HAM UNITED 4
BLACKBURN ROVERS 1

RAMPANT GUNNERS DESTROY MAGPIES
ARSENAL 3
NEWCASTLE UNITED 0

EXCELLENT SPURS HOLD CHELSEA
CHELSEA 1
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1

WRIGHT-PHILIPS RETURNS WITH A BANG
SUNDERLAND 0
MANCHESTER CITY 3

TORRES INJURED AS LIVERPOOL SLIP UP
ASTON VILLA 0
LIVERPOOL 0

Predictions 4/10, 0/10

Transfer News
BERBATOV SIGNS FOR MAN UNITED AT LAST--£30.7M

MAN CITY SECURE SHOCK ROBINHO SIGNING--£32M

BPL (after international break)

Liverpool 0-1 Manchester United
Liverpool will be without Torres and Gerrard for this titanic clash due to injury. With two first-team stalwarts out of the way, Liverpool will find it hard to stop their losing run against the Red Devils in the league. Manchester United won 1-0 here for the last two seasons and a similar result could be on the cards. A debut goal for new signing Berbatov perhaps?

No Gerrard, no win for Liverpool
No Torres, no goal for Liverpool
No Crouch, no draw for Liverpool
No Riise, no Finnan, nothing for Liverpool~

Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Arsenal
The Gunners are back on track after their shock defeat at Craven Cottage. Blackburn may prove to be a stern test physically, but Arsenal will edge this one.

Fulham 1-0 Bolton Wanderers
Fulham were not in action last week, but the week before that, they stunned Arsenal 1-0. Confidence will be high in the squad and hence they should defeat the Trotters with no real problems.

Newcastle United 2-0 Hull City
After a good start to the season, new boys Hull City bumped back to reality with a dreadful 5-0 capitulation at home to Wigan Athletic. Newcastle are no easy meat this season and will give the Tigers another reality check.

Portsmouth 2-1 Middlesbrough
Pompey demolished Everton 3-0 away from home and will be confident of winning against Middlesbrough. Boro could only struggle to a 2-1 win against 10-men Stoke City and will not fancy their chances at Fratton Park.

West Bromwich Albion 2-2 West Ham United
West Brom managed their first point of the season against Bolton and will be confident of their 2nd against a West Ham side that blows hot and cold. One moment they are on a good run and another moment they are on a losing streak. They will not find West Brom easy to beat at the Hawthorns.

Wigan Athletic 3-2 Sunderland
Wigan were impressive at the KC Stadium, winning 5-0 at the home of Hull City. Sunderland will be tougher opponents, and after their dismal loss to Man City despite dominating the first half, will want to put on a show for their fans. Expect an entertaining, end-to-end match here.

Manchester City 1-2 Chelsea
Newly super-rich Man City secured a transfer of Robinho from Real Madrid right under the noses of Chelsea, and Robinho, on his City debut, could be the man to put a dent into Chelsea's league hopes. This will be a tight match, with the outcome dependent on the managers' tactics and decisions.

Stoke City 1-3 Everton
Everton were thumped 3-0 at home by Pompey and will want to make amends for that poor defeat by playing well against newly-promoted Stoke. They will do well to guard against complacency though, as Stoke has already stunned Aston Villa at home.

Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 Aston Villa
Last season's corresponding fixture was one of the most exciting matches of the season. On the day Spurs were celebrating their 125th anniversary of their founding, the two sides played out a thrilling 4-4 draw, with Spurs coming back from 1-4 down to snatch a point in stoppage time. Expect another goalfeast here as both sides enjoy attacking football.

lalala.

2008-08-29T20:08:00.004+08:00

Headlines from last week..

IMPRESSIVE HULL SNATCH DRAW
Blackburn Rovers 1 Hull City 1

LUCKY REDS FIGHT BACK
Liverpool 2 Middlesbrough 1

OWEN SCORES ON MAGPIES RETURN
Newcastle United 1 Bolton Wanderers 0

STOKE STUN VILLA IN THRILLER
Stoke City 3 Aston Villa 2

SPURS FLOP AGAIN
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Sunderland 2

BATTLING WBA LOSE TO TOFFEES
West Bromwich Albion 1 Everton 2

LOWLY FULHAM STUN GUNNERS
Fulham 1 Arsenal 0

CECH SAVES THE DAY FOR CHELSEA
Wigan Athletic 0 Chelsea 1

CITY ROMP TO VICTORY
Manchester City 3 West Ham United 0

UNSUNG HERO STRIKES AGAIN
Portsmouth 0 Manchester United 1

Predictions 5/10, 1/10

THIS WEEKEND

UEFA SUPER CUP
(ENG) MANCHESTER UNITED v ZENIT ST. PETERSBURG (RUS)
The Champions League winners face off against the UEFA Cup winners to earn the right to hold aloft the UEFA Super Cup trophy. The Red Devils are odds-on favourites to lift the trophy but Zenit are no pushovers, having been impressive on the way to clinching their maiden European title; albeit a 2nd-tier one. Manchester United still have not bought a new striker to provide the incisive finish to their attacking moves; hence this match could be full of entertainment and chances yet be short of goals.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE PREDICTIONS
Bolton Wanderers 1 West Brom 1
West Brom will go in search of their first points of this BPL campaign when they tackle Bolton at the Reebok Stadium. They have recorded two losses so far, but one-goal defeats by Arsenal and Everton is nothing to be ashamed of. They are more than capable of getting a point here.

Everton 0 Portsmouth 0
Two teams who love playing defensive football will probably play out an absolutely bore draw here. Their defensive tactics will cancel out each other and there will probably be few chances. Only watch if you need a way to fall asleep!

Hull City 1 Wigan Athletic 1
Hull have been impressive so far, getting 4 points out of 6 despite being tipped as relegation favourites. Infront of a boisterous home crowd, they could get another hard-fought point here.

Middlesbrough 2 Stoke City 0
Boro were unlucky to be beaten by Liverpool last weekend, but their opponents this weekend, Stoke City, are a vastly different side from the Reds in terms of quality. Middlesbrough should win this match comfortably.

West Ham United 0 Blackburn Rovers 1
Paul Ince is doing fine as a newbie BPL manager so far, and a win against West Ham away will certainly enhance his profile. West Ham collapsed 0-3 against Man City after Mark Noble was sent off and are set to struggle against the visitors.

Arsenal 2 Newcastle United 1
Newcastle have looked impressive so far, but the return of Cesc Fabregas to the starting line-up will prove too much for the Magpies to handle. The Gunners will be keen to forget the Fulham defeat by winning convincingly infront of their home fans here.

Chelsea 3 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Tottenham's poor start to the season looks set to continue as they face a trip to "fortress" Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea have not lost in over 80 matches. With Berbatov still not sold, he will have a detrimental effect on the team. Chelsea will win this one to gain revenge for last season's League Cup final defeat to Spurs after extra time.

Sunderland 1 Manchester City 0
Good transfer market purchases by Sunderland manager Roy Keane could prove to be the foundations of a good season for the Black Cats. They were unlucky to lose to Liverpool and then impressively won 2-1 away to Spurs. Man City are still in crisis despite last weekend's win and off-the-field issues could contribute to a loss here at the Stadium of Light.

Aston Villa 1 Liverpool 1
Liverpool were lucky to win both their BPL matches of the season so far very unconvincingly. Villa are no pushovers on home turf against the 'Big Four' and coupled with Liverpool's midweek assertions in their Champions League qualifiers, Villa should be able to get a point at least.

Week 2 Predictions...

2008-08-22T17:54:00.004+08:00

Week 1 Results

Arsenal 1 West Brom 0
Bolton 3 Stoke City 1
Everton 2 Blackburn 3
Hull City 2 Fulham 1
Boro 2 Spurs 1
West Ham 2 Wigan 1
Sunderland 0 Liverpool 1
Chelsea 4 Portsmouth 0
Villa 4 Man City 2
Man Utd 1 Newcastle 1

Predictions 4/10, 0/10

Week 2 Predictions

Blackburn Rovers 2 Hull City 1
The new boys had a dream start against Fulham in their Premier League debut, but they will fall back to earth from cloud nine against Paul Ince's Blackburn, who pulled off an impressive win at Everton, where no team outside the 'Big Four' won last season.

Liverpool 1 Middlesbrough 0
Liverpool looked toothless against Standard Liege and Sunderland. Some magic from star striker Fernando Torres may save them here.

Newcastle United 2 Bolton Wanderers 0
Both teams had good starts to the season, but Newcastle were arguably more impressive, drawing at Man United compared to Bolton's home win against newly-promoted Stoke. A win here for the Magpies could set the tone for a good season ahead for the 'Barcodes'.

Stoke City 1 Aston Villa 4
Stoke were branded 'naive' by their manager after their 3-1 defeat to Bolton, who are hardly world-class. They will await a footballing lesson by Villa, who were impressive in their win against Manchester City. Look out for Agbonlahor!

Tottenham Hotspur 3 Sunderland 1
Juande Ramos' head will roll if he doesn't get a win against the Black Cats. The Lilywhites will have something to prove after their poor start to the season, despite being branded as a contender to break into the 'Big Four' in pre-season.

West Brom 1 Everton 2
Everton have failed to strengthen in pre-season and it could cost them dear as they battle on four fronts again. They were booed by their home fans after the 2-3 loss to Blackburn, but should have enough in their engine to squeeze past last season's Championship winners.

Fulham 0 Arsenal 2
A poor start to the season by Fulham looks like it will become worse when they entertain the Gunners at Craven Cottage. They were beaten by newly-promoted Hull City and will fare no better against the Gunners in the first minor London derby of the season.

Wigan 1 Chelsea 3
Chelsea were highly impressive against Portsmouth and will no doubt grab all 3 points against the hapless Latics. Steve Bruce's Wigan are no pushovers though and should compete well against the Blues.

Manchester City 1 West Ham United 1
Man City had a poor start to the season, a shock UEFA Cup defeat, a loss to Villa on the BPL opening-day, and the arrest warrant in Thailand of club owner Thaksin. With new Brazilian signing not returning until after this match, West Ham should be able to leave the City of Manchester Stadium with a point.

Portsmouth 1 Manchester United 2
Portsmouth were battered 0-4 by Chelsea, but Man United also had a poor start to their season, struggling to a poor draw against Newcastle at Old Trafford. Carlos Tevez will return for this match though, and following a superb pre-season performance, could be just the spark United need to win here, something they have not done in the last 2 seasons.

Predicted Finish.

2008-08-15T21:17:00.003+08:00

1. Manchester United
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Arsenal
5. Tottenham Hotspur
6. Everton
7. Aston Villa
8. Portsmouth
9. Sunderland
10. Manchester City
11. Wigan Athletic
12. West Bromwich Albion
13. Newcastle United
14. Middlesbrough
15. Bolton Wanderers
16. West Ham United
17. Blackburn Rovers
18. Fulham
19. Hull City
20. Stoke City

Prediction #1

2008-08-12T19:59:00.003+08:00

First round of predictions coming up in anticipation of the new season, but firstly,

FA Community Shield
Manchester United 0 Portsmouth 0
Man Utd win 3-1 on penalties.

Predictions~
Arsenal 4 West Bromwich Albion 1 (Emirates Stadium)

Bolton Wanderers 2 Stoke City 0 (Reebok Stadium)

Everton 3 Blackburn Rovers 1 (Goodison Park)

Hull City 1 Fulham 1 (KC Stadium)

Middlesbrough 0 Tottenham Hotspur 3 (Riverside Stadium)

West Ham United 0 Wigan Athletic 0 (Upton Park)

Sunderland 0 Liverpool 2 (Stadium of Light)

Chelsea 3 Portsmouth 1 (Stamford Bridge)

Aston Villa 2 Manchester City 2 (Villa Park)

Manchester United 1 Newcastle United 0 (Old Trafford)

Bzzt~~

2008-08-05T17:01:00.002+08:00

Well, maybe this blog can be a personal 'casual' blog too.. lol. But it won't be the main purpose of the blog.

A rather belated post on NAPFA test.. I just feel like posting for some reason =x

2.4km Run- D
My best timing and good enough for me (achieved what I wanted), but I could have broken the 14min mark if I didn't nearly ram down a dustbin while running along a narrow corner. Lost a few secs there I think, but good enough~

Shuttle Run- C
Not the best way to start off your 5-item test by slipping and falling during your first try for your first item! Thats what happened to me, slipped and fell, regained my balance but still failed the 1st run. Hurt like hell after that, but sufficiently recovered for the 2nd run, which luckily got 10.74s, C (:

Sit&Reach- B
Not much to say here.. C on 1st try, B on 2nd.

Inclined Pull-ups- C
Shoulda done 1 more to get B.. good enough though, I was only aiming for D~

Standing Broad Jump- E
Curse this s***! Dammit. Silver went *poof* because of this. 1st jump was not counted cause I presumably 'double-jumped'; 2nd jump was only 190cm, not enough for D. Damn teacher didn't let me jump one more time. Zzz.

Sit-ups- A
Lol my best sit-ups performance ever, but it didn't matter in the end. I did till exactly 43 (for A) and then couldn't do anymore. Laid there resting for the remainder of the 2-3 seconds..

Next part of this post is for Friday's cross-country.. enthusiastic as ever, I am, but I don't know how to reach the destination! I think I'm gonna be late >_> Gonna run at my own pace again.. and stop as little times for water as possible.

But no, this post will not go off-topic!

PRE-SEASON MATCHES (based on memory)
MANCHESTER UNITED
Kaizer Chiefs 1 Man Utd 1
Orlando Pirates 0 Man Utd 1
Kaizer Chiefs 0 Man Utd 4
Man Utd win Vodacom Challenge
Portsmouth 1 Man Utd 2
Man Utd 1 Espanyol 0 (Solskjaer's testimonial match)
Peterborough 0 Man Utd 2
Aberdeen 0 Man Utd 2

CHELSEA
Lokomotiv Moscow 1 Chelsea 1
Lokomotiv win 5-4 on penalties
Chelsea 5 AC Milan 0 (wth?)
Chengdu Blades 0 Chelsea 7
Malaysia XI 0 Chelsea 2

ARSENAL
Burgensland XI 2 Arsenal 10
VfB Stuttgart 1 Arsenal 3
Arsenal 0 Juventus 1
Arsenal 1 Real Madrid 0

LIVERPOOL
Villarreal 0 Liverpool 0
Rangers 0 Liverpool 4
They played against some other team.. can't remember

well, bye for now lol~

Zappled's Display Pic Factory!

2008-07-26T18:38:00.009+08:00

Get a basic one (first image) for free! Subscribe to be able to change bottom text & font type, add background, and have the 'plane' line if you want! One free subscription trial pic per person, but with only the background feature~ (subscribing part is nonsense, i just want mine to be special :D)

Stadiums

2008-07-24T18:17:00.002+08:00

ARSENAL
Emirates Stadium, London

ASTON VILLA
Villa Park, Birmingham

BLACKBURN ROVERS
Ewood Park, Blackburn

BOLTON WANDERERS
Reebok Stadium, Bolton

CHELSEA
Stamford Bridge, London

EVERTON
Goodison Park, Liverpool

FULHAM
Craven Cottage, London

HULL CITY
KC Stadium, Hull

LIVERPOOL
Anfield, Liverpool

MANCHESTER CITY
City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester

MANCHESTER UNITED
Old Trafford, Manchester

MIDDLESBROUGH
Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough

NEWCASTLE UNITED
St James Park, Newcastle

PORTSMOUTH
Fratton Park, Portsmouth

STOKE CITY
Britannia Stadium, Stoke

SUNDERLAND
Stadium of Light, Newcastle

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
White Hart Lane, London

WEST BROMWICH ALBION
The Hawthorns, West Bromwich

WEST HAM UNITED
Upton Park, London

WIGAN ATHLETIC
JJB Stadium, Wigan

BPL 08/09

2008-07-11T19:29:00.005+08:00

A quick look at the 20 teams that will be playing in the Barclays Premier League next season, in alphabetical order.

ARSENAL
The Gunners have been quite busy in the transfer market in the off-season, buying Aaron Ramsey, Samir Nasri, selling Flamini and on the verge of selling Edebayor. Wenger's youngsters will start to mature after a decent season in the league last season. However, the Red and Blue tide of Manchester United and Chelsea will probably continue their recent monopoly of the BPL crown.

ASTON VILLA
Villa are set to lose inspirational captain Gareth Barry to Liverpool. They are still a very strong side though, and were on the verge of qualifying for the UEFA Cup next season. If they continue their recent progress under Martin O'Neill, it will be a question of when they will qualify for Europe, not whether.

BLACKBURN ROVERS
How Blackburn perform next season will depend on how astute new manager Paul Ince is. Ince is a managerial rookie, having only managed in English football's 4th division before being chosen as Blackburn manager. He has big shoes to fill, as Mark Hughes is an established manager. Ince could significantly boost his profile if he can lead Blackburn to a top-half finish next season.

BOLTON WANDERERS
Bolton have been busy in the transfer market, releasing a couple of players and buying a couple more as they seek to rebuild their squad. While they are a strong team defensively sometimes, they have lacked firepower since Nicolas Anelka left for Chelsea. More likely than not, they will find themselves once again fighting to avoid relegation next season.

CHELSEA
Having mercilessly sacked Avram Grant despite him leading Chelsea to runners-up in the BPL, Champions League and League Cup, owner Abramovich is once again going to spend big to win the one trophy he craves: the Champions League. Having loosened his purse-strings to hand to new manager Scolari an astonishing US$500m worth of fund to buy new players, Scolari will be under huge pressure to lead Chelsea to more silverware.

EVERTON
Everton rounded off another good season by qualifying for the UEFA Cup again. They excel defensively and can be considered as a mini-Chelsea side. It will no surprise in the 08/09 season if they qualify for European football's 2nd-tier competition, but trying to break the 'Big Four's dominance may be too big a task for the Merseysiders.

FULHAM
Fulham pulled off the Great Escape last season and will be looking to avoid another similar scenario. They struggled throughout last season, until the return from injury of Bullard and captain Mcbride rejuvenated the side. If Bullard and Mcbride can stay injury-free, Fulham should stay relegation-free too.

HULL CITY
Hull will be playing their first ever season in the BPL, having been promoted by winning the play-offs. It is very likely that they will be relegated straight away; recent history shows that play-off winners never seem to be able to stay for more than one season. Can they prove their doubters wrong?

LIVERPOOL
The Reds have always been dubbed title-contenders in preseason, then fall apart in a short span during the season. It happened last season, but this time round Liverpool's manager, players and staff seem confident that they will finally be able to get their hands on the prized silverware that has eluded them for nearly 2 centuries. However, with Chelsea, Arsenal and Man United all looking strong too, it will not be as easy as the Merseysiders think.

MANCHESTER CITY
Thaksin is once again spending big to ensure that his Man City side at least qualify for Europe. They started brilliantly last season but caved in at the turn of the year, leading to manager Eriksson's sack. Thaksin was unhappy with the team's league position, despite it being a huge improvement from the 06/07 season, when they had to battle relegation at one point. Can Mark Hughes come up with the goods for the ambitious Thaksin?

First 10 teams done, I'll finish the other half when I have time.

*K lets continue.

MANCHESTER UNITED
The reigning European and league champions have been quiet on the transfer front so far. Apart from selling Gerard Pique to hometown club Barcelona, the Red Devils have made no new acquisitions so far. Much of the transfer talk, however, has been focused on Ronaldo, with the player stating that he wants to move to Real Madrid. Manager Sir Alex Ferguson feels that the current squad is good enough but that won't be the case if Ronaldo moves. Who will Fergie buy before the transfer window closes? And will Man Utd continue their recent dominance in the BPL?

MIDDLESBROUGH
Middlesbrough are a team famed for playing well against big sides and flopping against 'smaller sides'. While managing creditable draws with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United, they sometimes struggled to beat teams closer to them in the table. They will most likely remain in mid-table mediocrity again.

NEWCASTLE UNITED
Newcastle seek to regain their place in English football's elite, but with owner Mike Ashley seemingly unwilling to spend too much, that could just be a daydream for the Magpies. They are certainly good enough for a top-half finish though, which would be a massive improvement from a near-disastrous last season.

PORTSMOUTH
The FA Cup winners have added Liverpool striker Peter Crouch to their strikeforce. They look solid in defence, while they also look strong in terms of attacking options. Playing in their first-ever European campaign, they should certainly challenge the other UEFA Cup-hopefuls for a second-successive season in Europe.

STOKE CITY
Right from the off, Stoke look like relegation fodder, as they do not have any established stars in the team. Many teams have defied expectations in their first BPL season though, and Stoke could well do the same. In that case, they would have to look out for the 'second season syndrome' which engulfs most promoted teams, most recently Reading. Can Stoke continue their journey in the promised land?

SUNDERLAND
Sunderland had a decent season under Roy Keane last season, and will look to build on that campaign. They will want to improve on it, and avoid the 'second season syndrome'. With some funds at his disposal, Roy Keane should be able to steer the Black Cats, so notorious for switching between the 1st and 2nd division consistently, to safety once more.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
The League Cup winners will certainly be strong contenders to challenge the 'Big Four' next season. When Juande Ramos took over as Spurs manager, he steered the Lilywhites to draws against Chelsea and Manchester United in the league, while winning both Arsenal and Chelsea in their successful League Cup campaign. Definitely a force to be reckoned with next season. They could well snatch a Champions League spot, depending on how they start their season.

WEST BROMWICH ALBION
The English Championship winners look quite strong and should be able to stay up with little or no difficulty. They were the topscorers in any English football division last season as they stormed to promotion. They were also FA Cup semi-finalists, and were very unlucky to lose to Portsmouth. While they could struggle away from home, they may be difficult to beat at their stadium, the Hawthorns.

WEST HAM UNITED
West Ham have rotten luck with injuries, keeping them away from an attempt at UEFA Cup qualification. With several players still suffering from long-term injuries, they could have to settle for mid-table mediocrity again. No denying though, that they certainly have quality in their side, and on their day, definitely can cause an upset.

WIGAN ATHLETIC
Wigan were organised and hard to beat following the appointment of Steve Bruce as manager, and they should be good enough to avoid relegation. However, whether Emile Heskey stays injury-free or not will probably decide where Wigan will eventually finish in the table.

Bring on the 08/09 season! 1 month away ><

Short Post...

2008-07-07T19:15:00.002+08:00

on Euro2008.

Team Awards
Comeback Kings-- Turkey

Greatest Flops-- France

Overachievers-- Turkey/Russia

Zero-Entertainment
1.France
2.Italy
3.Greece

High-Entertainment
1.Netherlands
2.Spain
3.Germany

Individual Awards
Impressive
1. Andrei Arshavin (Russia)
2. Bastien Schweinsteiger (Germany)
3. David Villa (Spain)

Flops
1. Thierry Henry (France)
2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
3. Petr Cech (Czech Republic)

THE MATCHES
Most Boring Match-- France 0 Romania 0

Most Entertaining Match-- Portugal 2 Germany 3

Not for the Faint-hearted-- Croatia 1 Turkey 1 AET, pen 1-3

Most Controversial Match-- Austria 1 Poland 1

Most Dramatic Match-- Czech Rep. 2 Turkey 3

Euro2008 Final

2008-06-30T19:55:00.005+08:00

GERMANY 0
SPAIN 1 Torres 33

F**king pissed off. International football doesnt like me. Fine, Spain played well and Germany didn't, but the referee was plainly, ridiculously, very biased towards the Spanish. Questionable calls all over, that went in favour of Spain. now lets watch Spain flop at South Africa 2010 World Cup. Or will they even qualify?

Euro2008 Semifinals

2008-06-27T17:43:00.003+08:00

Another post for the semifinal results..

GERMANY 3 Schweinsteiger 26, Klose 79, Lahm 89
TURKEY 2 Doral 22, Senturk 86

Comments: Yet another thrilling match provided by the Germans and the overperforming Turks. Germany were comprehensively outplayed by a largely reserve-team Turkish side due to injuries and suspensions. Germany virtually scored three goals with three chances, while Turkey had many chances but only found the back of the net twice. Senturk looked to have repeated Turkey's late-game feat with a 86th minute equaliser, but German defender Lahm had the last say by rifling into the top corner from close range in the 89th minute, breaking Turkish hearts. They still earn many plaudits for their never-say-die performances, though it is Germany who take their place for the Euro2008 Final.

SPAIN 3 Xavi 50, Guiza 73, D. Silva 89
RUSSIA 0

Comments: Spain had walloped Russia 4-1 in the groupstages, but this match was tipped to be different, as Russia's inspirational playmaker Arshavin returned from suspension against Sweden to spark Russia's run to the semis. However, he was tightly marked and failed to make an impression, as Spain blasted home three second-half goals to cruise to victory. It was still a good tournament for Russia, and they can be proud of their feat.

So in the final, it will be
Germany v Spain

Well I'm rooting for Germany; never really liked Spain..

Euro'08 Quarterfinals

2008-06-22T00:52:00.004+08:00

Well well short post for the quarterfinals.. will edit in once the other results are out.

QF1:
GERMANY 3 Schweinsteiger 22, Klose 26, Ballack 61
PORTUGAL 2 N. Gomes 40, H. Postiga 87

Comments: Portugal, dubbed the 'Brazil' of Europe, were sent out of Euro2008 after a thrilling quarterfinal tie against the Germans. Schweinsteiger again proved to be the Portuguese's nemesis. He scored twice when these two sides met in the World Cup 2006 3rd-Place Playoff, and he put in another man-of-the-match performance by scoring once and providing two assists with deadly free-kicks.

TURKEY 1 S. Senturk 120'(+1)
CROATIA 1 Klasnic 119'
After extra time, 90 mins 0-0, Turkey win 3-1 on penalties

Comments: Yet another dramatic victory for the odds-defying Turkish side. After progressing from the groupstages due to stoppage-time winners against Switzerland and the Czech Republic, they astonishingly repeated the late feat for a 3rd straight match. Klasnic thought he had won it, and so did all the Croatian fans and players, when he scored with a header one minute from the end of extra time. However, Turkey hit back and with the final attack of the match, Senturk rifled the ball into the top corner to stun the Croats and force a penalty shootout. More drama enfolded as Croatia missed their first and third penalty and saw their fourth penalty saved, while Turkey scored three out of three to reach the semifinals of the European Championships for the first time. Drama, drama, drama. Will Turkey be the 'Greece' of Euro2004?

NETHERLANDS 1
RUSSIA 3
After extra time

Comments: The Russians stunned hot favourites Holland to reach the Euro2008 semifinals for the first time, since they took part as the Soviet Union. They completely dominated the match, and the Oranje were lucky to bring the match into extra-time with a late equaliser. Russia continued to dominate in the extra 30 minutes though, and scored twice to earn themselves a well-deserved shock victory over the Netherlands.

SPAIN 0
ITALY 0
After extra time, Spain win 4-2 on penalties

Comments: An absolute bore, Spain and Italy cancelled each other out with boring, cautious football. All the sides in the other three quarterfinal ties threw caution to the wind and attacked consistently, providing viewers with great entertainment. The same can't be said of this match, as neither side had many chances and the Azzurri were playing for penalties from the start. They got the shootout they wanted, but Spanish keeper Casillas rewrote the script by saving two penalties to send Spain through to the last 4.

Euro2008 Update.

2008-06-14T16:19:00.003+08:00

We're 2 group matches into Euro2008 (except for Group D) and I'm gonna review some of the highlights of the tournament so far :D

NEW FAVOURITES
Netherlands are the new pundit's favourites to win Euro 2008 following their excellent start to their campaign. They completely outplayed world champions Italy 3-0 and followed that up with a superb 4-1 win over World Cup runners-up France. The two results mean that they top the group and will most likely mean that they face Greece/Sweden/Russia in the quarterfinals. If they can swat away France and Italy so easily, then their path to the semis should not be much of a challenge. However, confidence is one thing; overconfidence is another. If they can keep their feet on the ground and not be complacent, they could easily be crowned Euro champions come the end of the Finals.

STUTTERING FAVOURITES
France, Italy and Germany are all stuttering despite being some of the favourites to win Euro 2008. France and Italy both lost to Netherlands, and both drew with Romania as well. If Romania manage to beat the Netherlands in Group C's final match, France and Italy will both be sent home in the groupstages. That would be unthinkable for the two heavyweights who clashed in the World Cup final in 2006. And it would be an unthinkable achievement for Romania, who are no easy foes but are still by far the weakest team in the 'Group of Death'.

As for Germany, they started their campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over Poland, but were then shocked 1-2 by dark horses Croatia. At the start of the tournament, Germany would still have been almost certainly assured a place in the last eight as they will meet Austria in their final group match. Austria are the weakest team in the tournament and wouldn't have qualified if they were not co-hosts. However, the Austrians have proven to be difficult to beat. They were unfortunate to go down 1-0 to Croatia, then they held Poland to a 1-1 draw, albeit through a controversial stoppage-time penalty. Even if the Germans beat Austria, they will only finish second, which means that they will another tournament-favourite, Portugal, in the quarterfinals. These two teams were my "favourites" to reach the final, so for either side to be knocked out in the last 8 would be pretty much unthinkable.

--------------------------
So here are my new predictions!

QUARTERFINALS
Portugal 1 Germany 1
After extra time, Germany win 4-2 on penalties

Croatia 2 Czech Republic 1

Netherlands 2 Sweden 0

Spain 2 Romania 1
After extra time, 90mins 1-1

I'll post again when the semifinals arrive~

zzz

2008-05-30T20:34:00.003+08:00

I'm bored so here's another post..

International Friendlies

Singapore 0 Bahrain 1 (National Stadium)

I was at the National Stadium in Kallang to watch this match with my father, it was pretty uneventful, the national team put in a poor performance, and eventually lost to a goal which pretty much summed up the match: scrappy. Chances were few and far between, Singapore failed to keep possession of the ball for long periods, and they frequently gifted the ball back to the visitors with wayward passes. Better performance, Lions, or you're not gonna qualify for the next round of the World Cup qualifiers!

England 2 USA 0 (Wembley Stadium)

I watched this match on TV during the same day (well not really, it was past midnight). Obviously the quality and speed of play was much better than the earlier match, but that is to be expected. John Terry and then Gerrard got their names on the scoresheet to give new England coach Fabio Capello a highly convincing victory. The English kept the ball well, though they were arguably practicing profligacy infront of goal, with several good chances wasted. Still, they hardly broke a sweat in defeating the Americans, and that only bodes well for the future.

And a special preview to......

UEFA EURO 2008, SWITZERLAND AND AUSTRIA

THE PARTICIPANTS:

Austria (co-host)

Switzerland (co-host)

Czech Republic

Portugal

Turkey

Croatia

Germany

Poland

Romania

France

Netherlands

Italy

Spain

Russia

Greece (defending champs)

Sweden

MY FAVOURITES

Germany-

Personally I feel that the Germans are strong candidates for this year's edition of the European Championships. They were superb at the 2006 World Cup and were quite unlucky not to reach the final on homesoil. They have good players who excel when it comes to penalty shootouts, which is crucial, as knock-out matches often have a defensive feel about them and many matches end in stalemate. Definitely strong contenders.

Portugal-

The Portuguese have done well at recent major tournaments, finishing runners-up in Euro 2004 and fourth in the World Cup (ironically they lost the 3rd-place playoff against the Germans). My second choice for the two spots in the finals belongs to this team, as their emerging young stars like Ronaldo, blended with old faces like Luis Figo, could achieve great things for their national side. However, I feel that they will be thwarted right at the end yet again, and by Germany again!

3rd Place

Italy-

The World Champions did not have it easy in the qualifying stages, requiring a controversial late winner against Scotland to break the Scottish hearts. They will find themselves struggling to score goals after leaving out veteran striker Filippo Inzaghi. However, they still have enough quality to at least secure 3rd place. However, of cause, before that... the 'Group of Death' in Group C awaits. France, Netherlands, Romania, Italy. What a group that will be!

4th Place

Czech Republic-

The Czechs can be considered dark horses for Euro 2008. They did poorly at the 2006 World Cup Finals, but they were excellent in Euro 2004, until they were sent out in the quarterfinals by Denmark. Then, they proved themselves capable of matching with the best national teams on the planet. They shall do so once again, though old foes Italy will prevent them from taking 3rd place. (Italy knocked the Czechs out of the 2006 World Cup groupstages)

Punching Bags

Austria-

Austria, the co-hosts, are unfortunately named as my 'punching bag' team. Being the lowest ranked team in the finals, the results of their international friendlies have done nothing to prove that they can perform on the big stage. Embarassing defeats and late meltdowns led to fans protesting that Austria give up their spot, for 'better, more talented teams' to enjoy themselves on the big stage. The Czechs, the Portuguese and the Turkish are not easy opponents. Don't be surprised if the Austrians finish bottom of the group.

Done. >_>

Super long post.

2008-05-24T22:25:00.004+08:00

Time to see a very very long post here! I'm going to dump all sorts of results inside here... But firstly, something not related to soccer!

OMOK CUP
SEMIFINAL:
ATC 3 SUKI 0
-NIL- 1 ZAPPLED 3

FINAL:
ATC 1 ZAPPLED 4

So now ATC (YF) and Zappled (me!) both have one win each, ATC winning the first season's cup. Who will win the 3rd one in term 3? :O

Now on to soccer!

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE 07/08 MATCHDAY 38
The weekend that decided who won the BPL title and who got relegated, who got the UEFA Cup spot, etc! A thrilling weekend of fixtures, where all 10 matches were played at the same time. So who exactly won?

THE RELEGATION BATTLE
Birmingham City 4 Blackburn Rovers 1
Birmingham were in 19th and needed victory to have any chance of escaping the drop. They won convincingly, but it was not enough for them to stay in the BPL for another season.

Derby County 0 Reading 4
Reading were in 18th and also needed victory to escape the drop. They crushed woeful Derby but it was not enough as well.

Portsmouth 0 Fulham 1
Fulham pulled off the great escape with a 1-0 away success against Portsmouth. Fulham failed to win an away match in the BPL for over a year, then pulled off 3 consecutive away victories in the tail-end of the campaign to finish in 17th. What an escape.

UEFA CUP SPOTS
Everton 3 Newcastle United 1
Everton were in 5th at the start of the match and needed a point to secure another season of European football. They saw off the Magpies to grab the only UEFA Cup spot provided by the league (since both the FA and League Cups were won by teams outside the "Big Four").

West Ham United 2 Aston Villa 2
Villa needed a win to have any chance of European football next season. They failed to pull it off, but finishing 6th means that its still a good season for them.

THE CHAMPIONSHIP BATTLE
Chelsea 1 Bolton Wanderers 1
Chelsea needed to win and hope that Manchester United dropped points to ensure that the title went to Stamford Bridge. They conceded an equaliser in stoppage time and the title went to Old Trafford instead.

Wigan Athletic 0 Manchester United 2
Ryan Giggs came off the bench for his 758th United appearance, equalling Sir Bobby Charlton's record for most Man Utd appearances. Fittingly, the Welshman stroked home the Red Devils' 2nd goal to win the championship for his side. 17th title, 1 behind Liverpool! Go go!

OTHERS
No comments on these matches as they carry no significance.

Sunderland 0 Arsenal 1
Tottenham Hotspur 0 Liverpool 1
Middlesbrough 8 Manchester City 1 <-PRO.

Predictions 5/10, 1/10

FINAL BPL STANDINGS
1.Manchester United
2.Chelsea
3.Arsenal
4.Liverpool
5.Everton
6.Aston Villa
7.Blackburn Rovers
8.Portsmouth
9.Manchester City
10.West Ham United
11.Tottenham Hotspur
12.Newcastle United
13.Middlesbrough
14.Wigan Athletic
15.Sunderland
16.Bolton Wanderers
17.Fulham
18.Reading
19.Birmingham City
20.Derby County

BPL wrapped up! Next..

FA CUP FINAL
Portsmouth 1 Cardiff City 0 (FT)
Pompey clinched the second FA Cup in their club's history thanks to a first-half goal from Kanu. They will play UEFA Cup football next season, while Cardiff have to pick up the pieces and push for promotion during next season's English Championship (2nd division).

LEAGUE CUP FINAL
Tottenham Hotspur 2 Chelsea 1 (After extra time)
Of course, this match was played months ago. But this is a season review yeah??

SPANISH LA LIGA
Champions:Real Madrid
Real Madrid clinched a record 32th league title in Spain with many games to spare, as their title rivals faltered to hand Real perhaps one of their easiest crowns ever. Barcelona finished 3rd, an utterly disappointing and humiliating season for the Catalan giants.

ITALIAN SERIE A
Champions:Inter Milan
Inter looked like they were strolling to the Serie A title in January, leading by nearly 10 points. Fast forward to May and they were barely hanging on to their lead. However, a final-day victory at Parma saw them clinch the title ahead of AS Roma. AC Milan could only finish 5th in a disastrous season for the Rossoneri. This means that they will only play UEFA Cup football next season.

GERMAN BUNDESLIGA
Champions:Bayern Munich
A strengthened Bayern side strolled to the Bundesliga title, finishing over 10 points ahead of Werder Bremen. They also won the DFB-Pokal and reached the UEFA Cup semifinal, where they were humiliated 5-1 on aggregate by eventual winners Zenit St Petersburg.

DUTCH EREDIVISIE
Champions:PSV Eindhoven
PSV Eindhoven clinched the title on the final day of the season ahead of Ajax Amsterdam. Both teams will play in the UEFA Champions League next season.

SCOTTISH PREMIER LEAGUE
Champions:Celtic
Celtic won the title on the final matchday as Rangers faltered in their chase for a historic Quadruple. However, the Ibrox side still have two more pieces of silverware to play for and must pick themselves up quickly.

UEFA CUP
Final-
Zenit St Petersburg 2 Glasgow Rangers 0
Zenit won their first ever European title with a 2-0 win over Scottish giants Rangers. Two second-half goals handed the Russian side the Cup. The Russians will play in the UEFA Champions League next season, capping a superb season in which they won the Russian championship as well.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Final-
Manchester United FC 1 Chelsea FC 1
After extra time, Man United win 6-5 on penalties.
Manchester United won their 3rd European Cup with a dramatic penalty shootout win over Chelsea, in the first ever all-English final. Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 42nd goal of the season as he headed the Red Devils into the lead. However, Chelsea hit back with an equaliser, Lampard pouncing on a double-deflected shot from Essien to score. Chelsea then dominated large parts of the match but failed to score, and after Drogba was sent off for slapping Vidic, 120 minutes were up and penalties beckoned. Here is how the penalty shootout went..

PENALTIES
Manchester United o o x o o o o
Chelsea o o o o x o x
Legend: o=scored, x=missed

Shockingly Ronaldo saw his weak penalty saved by Cech to hand the advantage to Chelsea. Terry only needed to score his side's 5th penalty to win them their first European Cup, but he slipped on the run-up and his penalty hit the outside of the post, to their fans' shock. Shortly afterwards, United goalie van der Sar proved to be the hero as he pushed away Anelka's penalty to spark scenes of joy amidst the United contingent. The European double is achieved!

The end of a uber long post! If I remember something else, I'll add them in~

DECIDER SUNDAY.

2008-05-08T22:42:00.002+08:00

FIRSTLY, RESULTS FROM LAST WEEKEND.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
MANCHESTER UNITED 4 WEST HAM UNITED 1
ASTON VILLA 0 WIGAN ATHLETIC 2
BLACKBURN ROVERS 3 DERBY COUNTY 1
MIDDLESBROUGH 2 PORTSMOUTH 0
READING 0 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
FULHAM 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0
BOLTON WANDERERS 2 SUNDERLAND 0
ARSENAL 1 EVERTON 0
LIVERPOOL 1 MANCHESTER CITY 0
NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 CHELSEA 2

PREDICTIONS 7/10, 0/10!

ITALIAN SERIE A
AC MILAN 2 INTER MILAN 1

LOL ON TO THIS WEEKEND'S BPL FIXTURES. THE LAST FIXTURES OF THE SEASON! ITS WINNER TAKES ALL. IF MAN UNITED WIN THEIR FINAL MATCH, THEY WIN THE TITLE REGARDLESS OF CHELSEA'S RESULT. IF CHELSEA WIN, THEY WILL WIN THE TITLE ONLY IF MAN UNITED DRAW OR LOSE AT WIGAN ATHLETIC. ITS ALSO ALL TO PLAY FOR AT THE BOTTOM OF THE TABLE.

(All matches played at 10PM, Sunday)

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1
Birmingham need a victory to have a chance of escaping the drop. In truth, even a win may not be enough if other results conspire against them. This could well send Birmingham down into the second-division wilderness.

CHELSEA 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0
The useless Blues take on already-safe Bolton at the Bridge, needing a win to have any chance of winning the title. Can they win Bolton 18-0? *sarcasm*

DERBY COUNTY 1 READING 2
Relegated Derby could well pull the Royals down with them if they can achieve a result here. Reading's urgency however could re-write the script. Derby to finish with lowest points total in BPL, ever.

EVERTON 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1
Everton need a draw to ensure qualification to next season's UEFA Cup, while the Magpies have nothing to play for. Boring stalemate awaits. Do not watch.

MIDDLESBROUGH 2 MANCHESTER CITY 2
Boro like to lift themselves against "big" teams, while City will want to give a nice farewell present to out-going manager Sven-Goran Eriksson. A thrilling match could ensue if either side notches an early goal.

PORTSMOUTH 0 FULHAM 2
Pompey continue to be distracted by their FA Cup final appearance at Wembley, as their domestic form continues to dip. Fulham are attempting to repeat a 'Portsmouth' or a 'West Ham', and they will pull it off. Fulham to beat the drop.

SUNDERLAND 2 ARSENAL 3
Sunderland are excellent at home and will definitely be a stern test for Arsene Wenger's young Gunners. Both sides have nothing to play for, but Sunderland will definitely put up a spirited display should Arsenal grab an early goal. In that case, let the goals flow.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 0 LIVERPOOL 1
Spurs and the Reds both have nothing to play for. Spurs have been far from impressive in recent weeks, and a scrappy, boring match may take place right here. Here's to a few yawns.

WEST HAM UNITED 1 ASTON VILLA 2
Villa still have a chance of making it into the UEFA Cup, if they win. They couldn't wish for easier opponents than West Ham (other than Derby), as the Hammers are in poor form and were thrashed 1-4 at Old Trafford by Man United. West Ham may want to put up a show for their disgruntled home fans, but it may not be enough.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 3
THIS is the match every pundit has been talking about. Could the poor state of the JJB Stadium pitch end United's title hopes? No, I say. The Red Devils have come this far and to throw away the title on the final day of the season will be a cardinal sin. The Red Devils to repeat last season's victory, scoreline included.

THATS IT. NOOBS.

ZzZzZzZ

2008-05-03T17:01:00.002+08:00

ME HAS NO TIME. ME POST SIMPLE POST.

BPL RESULTS
CHELSEA 2 MANCHESTER UNITED 1
(SCREW YOU REFEREE.)
BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 LIVERPOOL 2
MANCHESTER CITY 2 FULHAM 3
SUNDERLAND 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 2
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 1
WEST HAM UNITED 2 NEWCASTLE UNITED 2
WIGAN ATHLETIC 0 READING 0
PORTSMOUTH 0 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1
EVERTON 2 ASTON VILLA 2
DERBY COUNTY 2 ARSENAL 6

GOALS GALORE OVER THE WEEKEND.
PREDICTIONS 2/10, 1/10

PROBABLY MY WORST PREDICTIONS, EVER. HAHA.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINALS 2ND LEG
MANCHESTER UNITED FC 1 Scholes 14
FC BARCELONA 0
1st leg 0-0, Man Utd progress 1-0 on agg.

CHELSEA FC 3 Drogba 33, 105(ET), Lampard 98(ET)pen
LIVERPOOL FC 2 Torres 64, Babel 117(ET)
After extra time, 1st leg 1-1, Chelsea progress 4-3 on agg.

MAN UNITED AND CHELSEA WILL MEET IN MOSCOW FOR THE FINAL. SCREW CHELSEA.

THIS WEEKEND'S BPL PREDICTIONS.
MANCHESTER UNITED 2 WEST HAM UNITED 0
ASTON VILLA 1 WIGAN ATHLETIC 0
BLACKBURN ROVERS 4 DERBY COUNTY 1
MIDDLESBROUGH 1 PORTSMOUTH 0
READING 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2
FULHAM 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
BOLTON WANDERERS 1 SUNDERLAND 1
ARSENAL 3 EVERTON 1
LIVERPOOL 2 MANCHESTER CITY 0
NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 CHELSEA 1

GO NEWCASTLE.

CHELSEA V MANCHESTER UNITED

2008-04-26T18:48:00.003+08:00

Super rushed for time, so this post will be very simple..

LAST WEEKEND'S RESULTS
ARSENAL 2 READING 0
FULHAM 0 LIVERPOOL 2
MIDDLESBROUGH 0 BOLTON WANDERERS 1
WEST HAM UNITED 2 DERBY COUNTY 1
WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 1
ASTON VILLA 5 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 SUNDERLAND 0
MANCHESTER CITY 3 PORTSMOUTH 1
Predictions:6/9, 2/9

THIS WEEKEND'S FIXTURES
TITANIC CLASH AT STAMFORD BRIDGE
CHELSEA 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 1 @ Stamford Bridge
Tired from Champions League exertions, both sides could change their tactics for this huge game at the Bridge. If Chelsea win, the Red Devils' lead is cut to just goal difference. If Manchester United win, the title is theirs. Stalemate? Three points' the difference. Both teams could well play defensively, which would benefit United more.

Other fixtures
BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 LIVERPOOL 2
MANCHESTER CITY 2 FULHAM 0
SUNDERLAND 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 1
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 1
WEST HAM UNITED 0 NEWCASTLE UNITED 2
WIGAN ATHLETIC 2 READING 1
PORTSMOUTH 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1
EVERTON 1 ASTON VILLA 2
DERBY COUNTY 0 ARSENAL 3

K DONE.

zzz

2008-04-18T20:43:00.004+08:00

Okay random title. Early post as I'll be very busy tomorrow; definitely won't have any time to post. Firstly, last weekend's results? Did anything change at the top of the table?

GUNNERS DOWNED
MANCHESTER UNITED 2 Ronaldo 53pen, Hargreaves 72
ARSENAL 1 Adebayor 49

BLUES DROP CRUCIAL POINTS
CHELSEA 1 Essien 55
WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 Heskey 90

WOEFUL DERBY THRASHED
DERBY COUNTY 0
ASTON VILLA 6 Young 25, Carew 26, Petrov 35, Barry 57, Agbonlahor 76, Harewood 85

REDS ALL BUT SECURE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOT
LIVERPOOL 3 Gerrard 60, Torres 82, Voronin 90
BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 Santa Cruz 90

Other results:
Birmingham City 1 Everton 1
Bolton Wanderers 1 West Ham United 0
Reading 0 Fulham 2
Sunderland 1 Manchester City 2
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Middlesbrough 1
Portsmouth 0 Newcastle United 0

Predictions:4/10, 2/10
So the bottom of the table changes dramatically after last weekend's matches. Fulham and Bolton both won to narrow the previously huge 5-point gap between 17th and 18th place. Now for this weekend's fixtures.. will there be anymore changes?

ARSENAL 2 READING 1 @ Emirates Stadium
The Gunners are all but out of the title race following defeat to the Red Devils. However, they still can secure automatic Champions League qualification if they can overhaul Chelsea, which is not impossible. They will look to win here.

FULHAM 0 LIVERPOOL 2 @ Craven Cottage
Fulham pulled off an emphatic 2-0 away success over Reading, their first away win in over a year. However, they will bump back to Earth against the Reds, who are looking to secure that final Champions League spot. Liverpool to win.

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 1 @ Riverside Stadium
Boro lift themselves against big sides but fall flat on their faces against the 'smaller ones'. Bolton could get an important point here.

WEST HAM UNITED 3 DERBY COUNTY 0 @ Upton Park
Derby must be wishing the season is already over. After conceding 6 goals in a match for a third time this season, they will be low on morale. Happy ending to their short BPL adventure? I don't think so...

WIGAN ATHLETIC 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 @ JJB Stadium
Wigan still need to rack in points to stay away from the dropzone. The draw against Chelsea helped, but they are not out of the woods. Matches between these two often end with loads of loads of goals. Last season's correspending fixture ended 3-3. Expect something similiar.

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 @ Ewood Park
The Red Devils can re-establish a five point lead over Chelsea with a victory here, but Blackburn are no pushovers. The league leaders will struggle before nipping this one.

ASTON VILLA 3 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 @ Villa Park
It is the Birmingham derby as these two sides battle for bragging rights. Villa are in top-form, with 4-0 and 6-0 victories over Bolton and Derby respectively. Expect the Villans to march on, pushing their city rivals into further relegation trouble.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 SUNDERLAND 0 @ St James Park
It is another derby encounter here, this time the Tyn-Wear derby. Newcastle are unbeaten in five and will be expected to extend that record against the Black Cats, who are poor away from home.

MANCHESTER CITY 0 PORTSMOUTH 0 @ City of Manchester Stadium
City and Portsmouth both have chances to make it into Europe. Expect an extremely tight match. David James' remarkable form in goal for Pompey could make the difference. Goalless draw is well on the cards at Eastlands.

Oh and just to suan Derby.. I shall list their biggest defeats this season!
0-6 v Liverpool (Anfield)
0-5 v Arsenal (Emirates Stadium)
0-5 v West Ham United (Pride Park)
1-4 v Manchester United (Old Trafford)
1-6 v Chelsea (Stamford Bridge)
0-6 v Aston Villa (Pride Park)
0-4 v Tottenham Hotspur (White Hart Lane)

n00bn00bn00bn00bn00b

2008-04-12T19:39:00.002+08:00

Brrrrr another stupid update. Last weekend's results, this weekend's predictions, same old stuff.

Last Weekend's Action
ARSENAL 1 Bendtner 54
LIVERPOOL 1 Crouch 42

ASTON VILLA 4 Barry 9,60, Agbonlahor 55, Harewood 85
BOLTON WANDERERS 0

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 Pedersen 29
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 Berbatov 9

FULHAM 1 Healy 74
SUNDERLAND 3 Collins 45, Chopra 54, Jones 75

NEWCASTLE UNITED 3 Martins 18, Owen 43, Viduka 58
READING 0

WIGAN ATHLETIC 2 Taylor 15, 55
BIRMINGHAM CITY 0

MANCHESTER CITY 0
CHELSEA 2 Dunne 6og, Kalou 53

MIDDLESBROUGH 2 Afonso Alves 35, 56
MANCHESTER UNITED 2 Ronaldo 10, Rooney 74

EVERTON 1 Osman 56
DERBY COUNTY 0

WEST HAM UNITED 0
PORTSMOUTH 1 Kranjcar 60

Midweek Fixtures- UEFA Champions League Quarterfinals 2nd leg
CHELSEA 2 FENERBAHCE 0
(1ST LEG 1-2, CHELSEA PROGRESS 3-2 ON AGGREGATE)

LIVERPOOL 4 ARSENAL 2
(1ST LEG 1-1, LIVERPOOL PROGRESS 5-3 ON AGGREGATE)

BARCELONA 1 SCHALKE 0
(1ST LEG 1-0, BARCELONA PROGRESS 2-0 ON AGGREGATE)

MANCHESTER UNITED 1 AS ROMA 0
(1ST LEG 2-0, MAN UNITED PROGRESS 3-0 ON AGGREGATE)

Champions League semifinal draw
Liverpool v Chelsea
Barcelona v Manchester Utd

This weekend's fixtures include a crucial match that could decide the fate of two title-challengers. It is none other than this fiery encounter, Manchester United against Arsenal. Scuffles have broke out on the pitch before, there is plenty of controversy and passion, opposing players have pelted each other with pizza, and in the backdrop three points are up for grabs.

MATCH OF THE WEEK:
MANCHESTER UNITED 3 ARSENAL 1 @ Old Trafford
Head-to-head this season-
Arsenal 2 Manchester United 2 (BPL)
Manchester United 4 Arsenal 0 (FA Cup)
Manchester United and Arsenal head into this crucial clash knowing that defeat or even a draw would dent their title hopes. A defeat for hosts United, coupled with victory for Chelsea over Wigan, would see the Red Devils' lead at the top of the league table cut to just goal difference. A defeat for visitors Arsenal would see the Gunners trail Manchester United by 9 points with just four games to go, effectively ending their title hopes. With such high stakes, none can afford to make any mistake. The fitness level of the players also come into play here. Manchester United had the luxury of resting Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney in midweek, and yet still achieve victory over AS Roma. On the contrary, many of Arsenal's key players played out their entire Champions League exit at the hands of Liverpool, while influential midfielder Mathieu Flamini picked up an injury which means that he will miss this match. Expect a cracking atmosphere, and a cracking match.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 EVERTON 1 @ St Andrews
Birmingham have good form at home. Everton have struggled recently to score goals; Birmingham could pick up crucial points here.

BOLTON WANDERERS 1 WEST HAM UNITED 2 @ Reebok Stadium
Disastrous Bolton are well on course to drop to the Championship next season. Expect them to be mercilessly beaten by West Ham.

DERBY COUNTY 0 ASTON VILLA 2 @ Pride Park
Villa have rediscovered their form following a 4-0 thrashing of Bolton. The slaughter of the lambs, Rams*, begins.

READING 2 FULHAM 1 @ Madejski Stadium
Fulham are disastrous on the road, while Reading have decent home form. The Royals to edge this to secure safety from relegation.

SUNDERLAND 2 MANCHESTER CITY 0 @ Stadium of Light
Sunderland have excellent home form while City are anonymous away from home. City are set to be embarassed further.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 2 @ White Hart Lane
Spurs continue suffering from their League Cup triumph hangover. They shall re-ignite their form against Boro, who are poor on their travels. A goalfeast awaits at the Lane, and the fans shall be singing.

PORTSMOUTH 2 NEWCASTLE UNITED 3 @ Fratton Park
Portsmouth's recent fairytale-like form is set to come to a bruising end, against a strong-looking Magpies side. All three of their strikers are in-form and Portsmouth's defenders shall be taught a footballing lesson.

LIVERPOOL 3 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 @ Anfield
Blackburn have improved recently, but Anfield is too hot to handle for them. Liverpool to sweep their smaller opponents.

CHELSEA 2 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 @ Stamford Bridge
Chelsea are hot on the heels of Man United and can't afford to slip up here. Slip up and Grant's head shall roll. Will he allow that to happen? No.

Midweek
EVERTON 1 CHELSEA 1 @ Goodison Park
Just three days after a bruising affair with Wigan, Chelsea have to contemplate a difficult trip to Goodison Park. Any team will always drop points now and then. This is that time for Chelsea.

Good luck to me, good luck to Man U, send the pathetic Gunners out of the race!

Lala. Lala. La.

2008-04-05T15:45:00.005+08:00

Another round of pathetic predictions in store :O

But firstly, last weekend's Barclays Premier League action!

BIRMINGHAM CITY 3 Zarate 40,54 McSheffrey 76pen
MANCHESTER CITY 1 Elano 59pen

BOLTON WANDERERS 2 Taylor 14,43
ARSENAL 3 Gallas 62 van Persie 68pen Samuel 90og
Red card:Diaby (Arsenal)

DERBY COUNTY 2 Villa 10,80
FULHAM 2 Kamara 24 Leacock 78og

PORTSMOUTH 2 Defoe 32,90
WIGAN ATHLETIC 0

READING 0
BLACKBURN ROVERS 0

SUNDERLAND 2 Jones 29 Reid 90+5
WEST HAM UNITED 1 Ljungberg 18

MANCHESTER UNITED 4 Ronaldo 17 Tevez 32 Rooney 53,70
ASTON VILLA 0

CHELSEA 1 Carvalho 5
MIDDLESBROUGH 0

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 D. Bent 25
NEWCASTLE UNITED 4 Butt 45 Geremi 52 Owen 65 Martins 83

LIVERPOOL 1 Torres 6
EVERTON 0

Predictions: 6/10, 0/10 (lol)

And for this weekend's predictions! Another clash of the titans is in store for us.. at the Emirates Stadium! (I can't be bothered to describe the clashes.. just my predicted scoreline =x

ARSENAL V LIVERPOOL @ EMIRATES STADIUM

ARSENAL 1 LIVERPOOL 1
Reverse fixture Liverpool 1 Arsenal 1

ASTON VILLA 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0 @ Villa Park

BLACKBURN ROVERS 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 @ Ewood Park

FULHAM 1 SUNDERLAND 1 @ Craven Cottage

NEWCASTLE UNITED 3 READING 2 @ St James Park

MANCHESTER CITY 0 CHELSEA 0 @ City of Manchester Stadium
Reverse fixture Chelsea 6 Man City 0

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0 @ JJB Stadium

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 @ Riverside Stadium
Reverse fixture Manchester United 4 Middlesbrough 1

EVERTON 2 DERBY COUNTY 0 @ Goodison Park

WEST HAM UNITED 1 PORTSMOUTH 2 @ Upton Park

And I'm bored so I'll post this very interesting Fifa07 peekture.. I'm playing as Macclesfield. See teh score? Its a cup final :D

Can I leave this blank?

2008-03-28T18:33:00.002+08:00

Results from Grand Slam Sunday, as well as predictions for this weekend.

Results-22~23 March 2008 Barclays Premier League
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 D. BENT 80,O'HARA 82
PORTSMOUTH 0

ASTON VILLA 0
SUNDERLAND 1 CHOPRA 82

BLACKBURN ROVERS 3 SANTA CRUZ 12,63,ROBERTS 45
WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 KING 17pen
(Blackburn reduced to ten men)

BOLTON WANDERERS 0
MANCHESTER CITY 0

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 SANLI 32
DERBY COUNTY 0

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 VIDUKA 6,OWEN 83
FULHAM 0

READING 2 BIKEY 31,79
BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 ZARATE 64

EVERTON 1 YAKUBU 8
WEST HAM UNITED 1 ASHTON 68

Grand Slam Sunday
MANCHESTER UNITED 3 BROWN 34,RONALDO 79,NANI 81
LIVERPOOL 0
RED CARD:MASCHERANO (LIV)

CHELSEA 2 DROGBA 72,81
ARSENAL 1 SAGNA 59

Total predictions:
RESULTS:3/10
SCORELINES:0/10
(lol pathetic)

And on to this weekend's fixtures! And its...
WAR ON MERSEYSIDE (on the pitch, at least)
THE MERSEYSIDE DERBY, EVERTON V LIVERPOOL
MATCH OF THE WEEK
LIVERPOOL 3-1 EVERTON @ ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL
It will be a typically ferocious and controversial Merseyside Derby this weekend. Liverpool and Everton, fierce city rivals, face off against each other for bragging rights in the city of Liverpool. The red half of Merseyside will be out in strength to cheer their team on and pip their much-hated 'blue half' rivals to the coveted fourth and final Champions League spot. Expect controversy in this match, the usual ingredient in every derby between these two sides. In the reverse fixture this season at Goodison Park, Everton were reduced to 9 men and Liverpool scored 2 penalties (including one in stoppage time) to secure victory at the home of the Evertonians.
REVERSE FIXTURE: EVERTON 1 LIVERPOOL 2

Other fixtures
BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 MANCHESTER CITY 1 @ ST ANDREWS, BIRMINGHAM
Birmingham will look to capitalise on Manchester City's disastrous away form to secure precious points in their bid to escape relegation. Birmingham have had decent results at home this season, including a draw against Arsenal, so they definitely are up to the task of keeping the Eastlands side at bay.

BOLTON WANDERERS 0 ARSENAL 1 @ REEBOK STADIUM, BOLTON
Bolton and Arsenal are both in poor form at the moment. Bolton have collected one point from the last 18 available, while Arsenal snapped their four-match drawing streak in the BPL with a.... defeat. That means that the Gunners have only collected four points out of 15, seeing their five-point lead at the summit trimmed down as they now trail Manchester United by 6 points. Bolton are struggling to score and Arsenal could well nip that single goal to secure a much-needed victory to boost morale.

DERBY COUNTY 1 FULHAM 1 @ PRIDE PARK, DERBY
Fulham will need to collect maximum points here if they want a chance of avoiding the drop. Derby are more than capable of facing up against their fellow strugglers at home, with their vocal supporters cheering them on. Derby could well grab a point, but arguably for nothing, as they are odds-on to be relegated at the end of the season.

PORTSMOUTH 2 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 @ FRATTON PARK, PORTSMOUTH
Pompey bumped to the ground bruising with a 0-2 defeat at Spurs last week. They should resume normal services this weekend as they host Wigan, who have collected just one away win this season. Win for Portsmouth.

READING 1 BLACKBURN ROVERS 3 @ MADEJSKI STADIUM, READING
Matches between these two sides always seem to end with loads and loads of goals to savour. In the corresponding fixture last season, Blackburn triumphed 3-2 and they could well do it again. Reading are a pale shadow of their best and Blackburn's quality should see them through.

SUNDERLAND 2 WEST HAM UNITED 2 @ STADIUM OF LIGHT, NEWCASTLE
Sunderland claimed their first away win of the season at Villa and with that, boosted their hopes of avoiding relegation. It won't hurt for them to collect more points here against inconsistent West Ham United. Sunderland's home advantage should cancel out West Ham's better quality. Stalemate.

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 ASTON VILLA 0 @ OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER
Manchester United opened up a five-point lead at the top of the table following a 3-0 victory over rivals Liverpool. They are expected to romp to victory against the off-form Villans. Villa crashed to a 0-1 defeat at home to Sunderland last week, a result that surely all but writes off their chances of qualifying for European football next season. Don't expect Villa to put up too much of a struggle in the intimidating Old Trafford cauldron.

CHELSEA 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 0 @ STAMFORD BRIDGE, LONDON
Chelsea moved to second following victory over Arsenal. They are expected to defeat Middlesbrough, who are poor travellers. Couple that with Chelsea's formidable home record, and what do you expect?

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 4 NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 @ WHITE HART LANE, LONDON
Expect a thrilling game of attacking football at White Hart Lane. Both sides have attacking-minded managers. Spurs have thrilled their fans this season with plenty and plenty of goals and the goals are expected to flow again against an easily-dismantled Newcastle defence. However, Spurs are not consistent in defence, as shown in their 4-4 draw with Chelsea. So expect Newcastle to bag some goals too. But Spurs to win. GOALS. GOALS. GOALS.

More Predictions from "A Phailure"!

2008-03-22T16:19:00.002+08:00

This post shall update the scores of the midweek matches, and predictions of ordinary Saturday, and.... GRAND SLAM SUNDAY!

Starting with the midweek matches~
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 4 CHELSEA 4
(Thrilling match!)
MANCHESTER UNITED 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0

And the predictions of ordinary Saturday and Grand Slam Sunday!
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 PORTSMOUTH 2 @ White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane erupted in midweek when Robbie Keane struck in the 88th minute to secure Spurs an amazing 4-4 draw with Chelsea. They will be in for another thrilling match as Pompey are in good form and are "all cylinders on"-ready to make it into Europe. This close-fought encounter should end stalemate.

ASTON VILLA 1 SUNDERLAND 0 @ Villa Park
Sunderland are a disastrous team on the road, having an away record that is even worst than Derby County- something not easy to achieve! Villa are in poor form, but should find enough firepower to see off the woeful Black Cats in their away kits.

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 @ Ewood Park
Blackburn went down 1-2 to West Ham last weekend, while Wigan won against Bolton with just ten men. Expect this match to be closely fought, as Wigan's tenacity and vigour could well earn them a valuable away point.

BOLTON WANDERERS 0 MANCHESTER CITY 1 @ Reebok Stadium
Bolton have lost their last 5 league matches and were dumped out of the UEFA Cup by Sporting Lisbon. City are in a patchy run of form, but should be able to overcome a Bolton side that is in even worse form than them.

MIDDLESBROUGH 3 DERBY COUNTY 1 @ Riverside Stadium
Bottom-side Derby County were impressive against Manchester United last weekend, but still lost out to a Cristiano Ronaldo goal. However, away from home, they will struggle to emulate that performance. Boro to win, comfortably.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 FULHAM 1 @ St James Park
This is arguably Kevin Keegan's best chance to get his first win of his second spell in charge of the floundering Magpies. Fulham remain in the bottom three despite an impressive win over Everton last weekend. They also struggle on the road, having last won in 2006. (incidentally in this stadium) Newcastle should be buoyed by their home support and finally achieve their first league win since December.

READING 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 @ Madejski Stadium
Two struggling clubs face off against each other in a pivotal clash in the battle for Premier League survival. Neither side are in particularly good form, but neither are in the mood to give their opponents victory either. Stalemate.

EVERTON 3 WEST HAM UNITED 1 @ Goodison Park
Everton will be looking to make up for their poor defeat away to struggling Fulham. West Ham finally won last weekend, breaking a sorry sequence of three straight 4-0 defeats. On paper, Everton's side is good enough to beat West Ham any day. Including today.

GRAND SLAM SUNDAY
MANCHESTER UNITED 2 LIVERPOOL 1 @ Old Trafford
The first of our 'Grand Slam Sunday' clash sees Liverpool travel to Old Trafford to face perennial rivals Manchester United. United opened up a three-point lead at the top of the table with a midweek victory over Bolton Wanderers, and a victory here will put them firmly on course for their second straight league title. The Red Devils should nip this by a very slim margin, with Ronaldo very likely the difference between the two sides. He has 33 goals in 35 games, and will love to continue his scoring-for-fun record against the Scousers.

CHELSEA 1 ARSENAL 1 @ Stamford Bridge
The second of our 'Grand Slam Sunday' clash sees Arsenal travel to bitter London rivals Chelsea. It is 3rd against 2nd, but the 2nd-placed Gunners are in woeful form in the league, drawing their last four matches home and away. Chelsea have struggled to win in 'big matches' this season. That includes defeats to Manchester United and Arsenal in the league, draws to Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, a Carling Cup final defeat to Spurs, and a humiliating FA Cup exit at the hands of second-division Barnsley. Avram Grant's lack of tactical nous could see their 'big game curse' continue.

LEAGUE TABLE - BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
1.MANCHESTER UNITED P30,70PTS
2.ARSENAL P30,67PTS
3.CHELSEA P30,65PTS
4.LIVERPOOL P30,59PTS
5.EVERTON P30,56PTS
6.PORTSMOUTH P30,50PTS
7.ASTON VILLA P30,49PTS
8.MANCHESTER CITY P30,48PTS
9.BLACKBURN ROVERS P30,46PTS
10.WEST HAM UNITED P30,43PTS
11.TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR P30, 36PTS
12.WIGAN ATHLETIC P30,31PTS
13.MIDDLESBROUGH P30,31PTS
14.NEWCASTLE UNITED P30,29PTS
15.READING P30,28PTS
16.BIRMINGHAM CITY P30,27PTS
17.SUNDERLAND P30,27PTS
18.BOLTON WANDERERS P30,25PTS
19.FULHAM P30,23PTS
20.DERBY COUNTY P30,10PTS

:o

2008-03-18T19:43:00.003+08:00

Whoops forgot predictions for last weekend. Another break for me =x

Results that I predicted:
FA CUP
MIDDLESBROUGH 0 CARDIFF CITY 2
MANCHESTER UNITED 0 PORTSMOUTH 1
RED CARD:KUSZCZAK(MANU)
BARNSLEY 1 CHELSEA 0
BRISTOL ROVERS 1 WEST BROMWICH ALBION 5

Barclays Premier League
BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 FULHAM 1 (Both incorrect)
LIVERPOOL 3 NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 (Both correct)
READING 2 MANCHESTER CITY 0 (Both incorrect)
SUNDERLAND 0 EVERTON 1 (Both incorrect)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 4 WEST HAM UNITED 0 (1 correct)
WIGAN ATHLETIC 0 ARSENAL 0 (Both incorrect)
PORTSMOUTH 4 BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 (Both incorrect)
ASTON VILLA 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 (Both incorrect)
CHELSEA 6 DERBY COUNTY 1 (1 correct)
Total:3/9,1/9

Results I did not predict
Barclays Premier League
DERBY COUNTY 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 1
LIVERPOOL 2 READING 1
PORTSMOUTH 2 ASTON VILLA 0
RED CARD:MUNTARI(POR),MELLBERG(VILLA)
SUNDERLAND 0 CHELSEA 1
WEST HAM UNITED 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1
ARSENAL 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 1
RED CARD:MIDO(BORO)
FULHAM 1 EVERTON 0
WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 0
RED CARD:KOUMAS(WIGAN)
MANCHESTER CITY 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1

Also, the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal draw! A couple of interesting fixtures await us, including one particular all-English tie!

ARSENAL FC V LIVERPOOL FC
1ST LEG:EMIRATES STADIUM, LONDON
2ND LEG:ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL

FENERBAHCE SK V CHELSEA FC
1ST LEG:SUKRU SARACOGLU, ISTANBUL
2ND LEG:STAMFORD BRIDGE, LONDON

Winners of these two ties play each other. The other two winners here play each other!

FC SCHALKE 04 V FC BARCELONA
1ST LEG:ARENA AUFSCHALKE, GELSENKIRCHEN
2ND LEG:NOU CAMP, BARCELONA

AS ROMA V MANCHESTER UNITED FC
1ST LEG:STADIO OLIMPICO, ROME
2ND LEG:OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER

I'll be back for more predictions this weekend :o

More Inaccurate Predictions!

2008-03-07T20:01:00.003+08:00

More inaccurate predictions are in store, as this weekend sees Premier League action, as well as the quarterfinals of the FA Cup. :D

Firstly, the FA Cup! (Football Association Cup)
FA CUP (numbers beside team name state which division the team is playing in)
(1)MIDDLESBROUGH 2-1 CARDIFF CITY(2)
Boro crashed to a dismal 1-0 home defeat to Reading in their last match. They could struggle against their second-division opponents as doubt starts to creep in their minds. However, they should still be able to squeeze through to a Wembley appearance.

(1)MANCHESTER UNITED 3-0 PORTSMOUTH (1)
The Red Devils booked a place in the Champions League quarterfinals during their midweek fixtures, but with such a huge squad, one can expect many changes. The last time Pompey visited Old Trafford, they were comprehensively defeated, and the same may again happen here as United continue their chase for a Treble.

(2)BARNSLEY 1-3 CHELSEA(1)
Barnsley shocked the world with a 2-1 win at giants Liverpool in the last round. However, they will struggle to repeat that stunning feat against a well-organised Chelsea side. Still, expect the minnows to fight bravely and give their supporters something to cheer about.

(3)BRISTOL ROVERS 1-1 WEST BROMWICH ALBION(2)
(Replay required)
Bristol Rovers are the lowest-ranked side left in the FA Cup quarterfinals. It is their second-ever FA Cup quarterfinal appearance, and while they are not expected to reach the semifinals, they could well secure a replay, and a valuable cash boost, with an inspired home crowd backing them up.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
BLACKBURN ROVERS 2-0 FULHAM @ Ewood Park
Blackburn managed a fortuitous 1-0 victory over Newcastle United at St James Park thanks to a last-minute goal from Matt Derbyshire. They should fare better against the hapless Cottagers, who are on the route to self-destruction with several poor displays matching their disastrous results. Blackburn should win this comfortably.

LIVERPOOL 3-0 NEWCASTLE UNITED @ Anfield
Liverpool routed West Ham United 4-0 at Anfield in midweek, and Newcastle United are next up on the chopping board. Several insipid displays have seen the struggling Magpies drop to within 3 points of the much-feared relegation zone. Unless Kevin Keegan can turn things around, Newcastle will be dragged into the relegation battle. Not this match, however. Liverpool are in fine form and it will be a real shock if the visitors get anything from this match at all.

READING 1 MANCHESTER CITY 1 @ Madejski Stadium
Reading managed a valuable 1-0 away victory over Middlesbrough to climb to within goal-difference of 17th-placed Bolton. Man City are poor travellers, and have won just 2 of their last 7 games to drop well out of the race for an European spot. An inspired Reading display could just see them earn a valuable point in their bid to escape relegation.

SUNDERLAND 1 EVERTON 1 @ Stadium of Light
Sunderland generally have a decent home record, while Everton suffered a deflating 0-2 defeat to Italian side Fiorentina in the UEFA Cup. That could inspire the Black Cats to play above themselves and haul themselves away from the relegation zone.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 WEST HAM UNITED 1 @ White Hart Lane
Spurs have suffered two shocking defeats since lifting the League Cup, being thrashed 1-4 by struggling Birmingham and losing 1-0 to Dutch side PSV Eindhoven in the UEFA Cup. Manager Juande Ramos will be lecturing his players after those poor displays. Their opponents, London rivals West Ham, are faring no better. They suffered terrible back-to-back 4-0 defeats against Chelsea and Liverpool. That could well sap their confidence, and provide Spurs a platform to win this crucial match.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 ARSENAL 2 @ JJB Stadium
Wigan managed a valuable away point in a 0-0 draw with Manchester City, while Arsenal stunned AC Milan 2-0 to progress to the Champions League quarterfinals. Arsenal could well carry the momentum forward to preserve their measly 1-point lead at the top of the league table.

(Midweek fixtures)
PORTSMOUTH 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 @ Fratton Park
In this midweek fixture, Pompey will be tired after playing their FA Cup quarterfinal against Manchester United. Birmingham could well profit from this, as well as from high confidence in their camp, following several good results recently. Think 2-2 against Arsenal and 4-1 against Spurs, anyone?

ASTON VILLA 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 @ Villa Park
Villa will seek victory here to continue their push for at least an UEFA Cup spot. They could well do it against an exhausted Boro side who are feeling the strains of a relatively small squad. Villa should sweep through this fixture comfortably.

CHELSEA 4 DERBY COUNTY 0 @ Stamford Bridge
The Blues will be in no mood to spare the hapless Rams any mercy. Derby have not won since September, an amazing underachievement. They are almost certainly doomed for relegation, and are easy meat for even the weaker teams in the Premier League. Expect a thrashing inflicted onto them by Chelsea.

A total of 9 fixtures being predicted! FA Cup predictions do not count. Enjoy your holidays =x

Score updates!

2008-03-06T16:36:00.004+08:00

Firstly, the Champions League Round of 16! A total of 7 UCL fixtures were played over Wednesday and Thursday. There will be one more next week- Inter Milan against Liverpool.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ROUND OF 16

LYON OUT OF THE PICTURE

From Old Trafford

MANCHESTER UNITED 1 Cristiano Ronaldo 41

OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS 0

Man United progress 2-1 on aggregate

Manchester United booked their place in the quarterfinals of the Champions League courtesy of a narrow 1-0 victory over French champions Lyon at home. Cristiano Ronaldo struck the only goal of the game in the 41st minute, after Lyon's backline failed to clear a shot by Anderson. The Red Devils failed to put their chances away in the second half and the match could easily have entered extra time, but the English champions pulled through to send Lyon packing.

HOLDERS VANQUISHED

From Stadio San Siro

AC MILAN 0

ARSENAL 2 Fabregas 84, Edebayor 90+2

Arsenal progress 2-0 on aggregate

Arsenal stunned holders AC Milan 2-0 at the San Siro in Milan to send the aging Rossoneri side packing at the round of 16 stage. Fabregas and Edebayor both scored in the final 6 minutes to hand Arsenal victory over an aging and tiring AC Milan side.

BARCA CRUISE THROUGH

From Nou Camp

FC BARCELONA 1 Xavi 3

GLASGOW CELTIC 0

Barcelona progress 4-2 on aggregate

Barca cruised into the Champions League quarterfinals with a comfortable 1-0 victory over Celtic. Superb build-up play in the 3rd minute saw them score the opening goal, and they were never really over-troubled by their opponents from Scotland, as Celtic exited the tournament in the round of 16 for the second consecutive season.

SEVILLA OUT ON PENALTIES

From Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan

FC SEVILLA 3 Alves 5, Keita 9, Kanoute 40

FENERBAHCE SK 2 Deivid 21, 80

5-5 after extra time, Fenerbahce progress 3-2 on penalties.

Sevilla crashed out of the Champions League in the first knock-out round following a penalty shoot-out defeat to Turkish side Fenerbahce. Sevilla trailed 3-2 from the first leg, and the second leg also saw a similar scoreline, signalling extra time. There were no goals in extra time, and in the ensuing penalty shootout, Fenerbahce goalkeeper Volkan made up for his earlier errors by saving three penalties. That handed victory to the Turkish side, for their first ever appearance in the quarterfinals.

BLUES SEND OLYMPIACOS OUT

From Stamford Bridge

FC CHELSEA 3 Ballack 5, Lampard 26, Kalou 48

CFP OLYMPIACOS 0

Chelsea progress 3-0 on aggregate

Chelsea cruised into the quarterfinal stage of this season's Champions League with a comfortable victory over Greek minnows Olympiacos. Goals from Ballack, Lampard and Kalou handed Chelsea 3-0 aggregate victory to enter the quarterfinal draw.

PORTO CRASH OUT

From Stade Luis Dragao

FC PORTO 1 Lopez 86

FC SCHALKE 04 0

1-1 after extra time, Schalke progress 3-2 on penalties.

German side Schalke 04 reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the first time in their history with a penalty shootout win over Portuguese giants Porto. 10-man Porto put the match into extra time with a late strike from Lopez, but their German counterparts won the penalty shootout following a goalless extra time period to send the 2004 winners out at the round of 16.

REAL MADRID STUNNED

From Santiago Bernabeu

REAL MADRID CF 1 Raul 75

AS ROMA 2 Taddei 73, Vucinic 90+1

AS Roma progress 4-2 on aggregate

European giants Real Madrid were stunned 2-1 at home by a resurgent AS Roma side. After Real defender Pepe had been sent off for two bookable offences, the Romans took the lead through Taddei. Though Raul equalised for the hosts, Vucinic scored in stoppage time to end Real's European campaign.

Barclays Premier League results

ARSENAL 1 ASTON VILLA 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

BIRMINGHAM CITY 4 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

DERBY COUNTY 0 SUNDERLAND 0 (Both predictions correct)

FULHAM 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 3 (1 prediction correct)

MIDDLESBROUGH 0 READING 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

WEST HAM UNITED 0 CHELSEA 4 (Both predictions incorrect)

MANCHESTER CITY 0 WIGAN ATHLETIC 0 (1 prediction correct)

BOLTON WANDERERS 1 LIVERPOOL 3 (1 prediction correct)

EVERTON 3 PORTSMOUTH 1 (1 prediction correct)

Round 13- 5/10, 1/10

Predictions Round Number (Dunno What)

2008-03-01T17:44:00.002+08:00

A small update on the Omok Cup before I move on to my weekly soccer predictions!

OMOK CUP SEMIFINALS @ OMOK CUP ARENA
OC ZAPPLED 3-0 OMOK SUKI CLUB
ATC 1-1 UNORTHODOX (Match in progress)

FINALS
OC ZAPPLED V ATC OR UNORTHODOX

On to soccer!
Barclays Premier League March 01/02 2008

Predictions
ARSENAL 2 ASTON VILLA 1 @ EMIRATES STADIUM
The Gunners have not won in 3 matches in all competitions, while they had to endure a horror week after seeing Eduardo da Silva break his leg. They will definitely find high-flying Aston Villa tough competitors. On their day, Villa will definitely be able to match Arsenal and either team could just scrape a victory here, or share the spoils.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 @ ST ANDREWS
This match is definitely a very tough match to predict. Birmingham received a confidence boost with a 2-2 draw with Arsenal, while Spurs picked up the League Cup in their most recent match. Juande Ramos has turned his side into a force to be reckoned with, and his tactical nous should see him emerge victorious against his Birmingham counterpart.

DERBY COUNTY 0 SUNDERLAND 0 @ PRIDE PARK
This match is definitely heading for a low-scoring bore draw or a scrappy 1-0 victory for either side. Derby have not won since last September, a run stretching an incredible 5 months, an eternity in soccer. Sunderland meanwhile have not won away from home all season long. How the hell do you predict a scoreline here? ._.

FULHAM 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 @ CRAVEN COTTAGE
Fulham are on the brink of disaster, as new manager Roy Hodgson has failed to turn things around in his short spell in charge of the club so far. They will not fancy facing the rampant Red Devils, who crushed hapless Newcastle United 5-1 away from home in their last fixture. The Red Devils will look for three points to put the pressure on the table-topping Gunners. Expect Fulham to be put to the sword, mercilessly.

MIDDLESBROUGH 2 READING 0 @ THE RIVERSIDE STADIUM
Boro were considered rather unfortunate not to get a point at Anfield last week, as individual errors and a ridiculous red card by the referee cost them at least a draw. They are up against the disastrous Royals who have lost their last seven games. Reading find themselves trapped in relegation trouble, and they will not have things any easier against Middlesbrough, who are looking to bounce back from that away defeat to Liverpool.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 @ ST JAMES PARK
Newcastle will surely get an ear-lashing from manager Kevin Keegan following their disastrous performance in an abysmal 5-1 defeat to Manchester United. Keegan has struggled to turn things around at the Magpies following his second spell in charge. Blackburn crushed Bolton 4-1 in their last fixture, a rather flattered scoreline as they did not exactly play well. Newcastle will be urged to play well and put on a show to satisfy some of their home fan's expectations.

WEST HAM UNITED 1 CHELSEA 1 @ UPTON PARK
Another London derby is in stall for us as Chelsea travel to West Ham. The Blues are hurting from a League Cup final defeat to hated rivals Spurs. West Ham will be confident of taking advantage of Chelsea's woes to move closer to an European spot. And why not, as they have managed home victories over the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool. Expect Chelsea to be pushed to the maximum by their eager London rivals.

MANCHESTER CITY 1 WIGAN ATLETIC 1 @ CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM
City have managed a measly 7 points out of their 7 last games, en route to dropping way out of the race for an European spot. Their once impenetrable home record has been shattered in recent weeks, thanks to defeats to Arsenal and Everton, and many many more draws against weaker opposition. They will not find it easy against Wigan, who are busy battling against relegations. The Latics may be out to prove a point, and get a point. (Pun unintended)

BOLTON WANDERERS 0 LIVERPOOL 1 @ REEBOK STADIUM
Bolton have struggled to score since the departure of star striker Anelka to Chelsea. They have a solid defence, but somehow conceded four in a 1-4 defeat to Blackburn in their last fixture. Their visitors, Liverpool, finally ended their disastrous winless streak and will be keen to continue their form. Bolton will just barely be sacrificed for the Reds' charge up the table.

EVERTON 2 PORTSMOUTH 1 @ GOODISON PARK
This will definitely be an interesting match in the EPL this weekend. Everton are unbeaten in 2008, including an impressive 2-0 victory at City in their most recent fixture. Portsmouth are difficult to break down, but the Toffees' impressive form should see them just edge this encounter, and remain firmly in the race for the final Champions League spot.

Updates

2008-02-27T20:04:00.003+08:00

First off, the Omok Cup! A few more matches have been completed, though we are still 1 match away from the semifinals.

Results
Omok Suki Club 0-2 ATC
OC Zappled 2-0 Omok Suki Club
ATC 2-0 UNorthodox

Current Standings
P=PLAYED, W=WIN, L=LOSE, PTS=POINTS, PF=POINTS FOR, PA=POINTS AGAINST
OC ZAPPLED P4, W4, L0, 12 PTS, PF8, PA2
UNORTHODOX P4, W2, L2, 8 PTS, PF5, PA6
ATC P3, W3, L1, 10 PTS, PF6, PA3
OMOK SUKI CLUB P4, W1, L3, 6 PTS, PF3, PA6
-NIL- P4, W0, L4, 4 PTS, PF3, PA8 (eliminated)

Semifinals
(1)OC Zappled v Omok Suki Club
(2)ATC v UNorthodox or UNorthodox v ATC

On to soccer! Results from the Barclays Premier League. And some headline news!
Headlines
BAD DAY FOR GUNNERS AS EDUARDO BREAKS A LEG
Birmingham City 2 McFadden 28, 90pen
Arsenal 2 Walcott 50, 55

ANOTHER THRASHING FOR STRUGGLING MAGPIES
Newcastle United 1 Faye 78
Manchester United 5 Rooney 25, 80, Ronaldo 45, 56, Saha 90

'El Nino' TO THE RESCUE
Liverpool 3 Torres 28, 29, 61
Middlesbrough 2 Tuncay 9, Downing 83

Compiled Results
BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 ARSENAL 2 (Both incorrect)
FULHAM 0 WEST HAM UNITED 1 (Both incorrect)
LIVERPOOL 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 2 (1 correct)
PORTSMOUTH 1 SUNDERLAND 0 (1 correct)
WIGAN ATHLETIC 2 DERBY COUNTY 0 (1 correct)
NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 5 (1 correct)
READING 1 ASTON VILLA 2 (1 correct)
BLACKBURN 4 ROVERS BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (1 correct)
MANCHESTER CITY 0 EVERTON 2 (Both incorrect)

Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10
Round 8- 5/10, 1/10
Round 9- 5/10, 1/10
Round 10- 4/10, 2/10
Round 11- 6/10, 1/10
Round 12- 6/9, 0/9*

There were only 9 fixtures as Spurs and Chelsea were participating in the League Cup Final. (Refer to post below)

League Cup Final

2008-02-25T21:08:00.003+08:00

Headlines

SPURS STUN CHELSEA AFTER EXTRA TIME
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 Berbatov 70pen, Woodgate 93ET
CHELSEA 1 Drogba 38
(AFTER EXTRA TIME)

They are the winners!

Location: Wembley, London

Attendance: 87,660

Analysis:

Tottenham Hotspur stunned bitter London rivals Chelsea in a 2-1 comeback victory after extra time for Juande Ramos' first trophy at the club, and Spurs' first major silverware since 1999. Spurs started brightly and contained the Blues in their own half, as they surged forward in wave after wave of attacks, but failed to make the breakthrough. They were duly punished by their more clinical opponents. Zokora brought down Drogba just outside the penalty box and picked up a yellow card. Drogba then spotted a gap in Spurs' human wall and curled the wall into the bottom corner, with Spurs goalkeeper Robinson poorly positioned. It was a lead Chelsea hardly deserved, but they nearly threw it away minutes after when Berbatov burst through on goal, but took too many touches and lost possession. Chelsea went into the half-time break 1-0 up, and started the second half well as they dominated possession, but like the normal Chelsea way, they were content to sit back and soak up the pressure. They were punished for not pushing for a second goal. A surging run from Lennon, one of the rare times he was involved in the match, saw him put a decent cross into the box. Defender Wayne Bridge handled the ball with his arm, and the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

The atmosphere in the stadium was tense, but Berbatov managed to coolly slot the penalty into the bottom corner to draw Spurs level. Suddenly Spurs were on the ascendancy, and they should have taken the lead on 81 minutes. Zokora was put through on goal, but he shot straight at the goalkeeper, then blasted the rebound high over the bar. The match went on to extra time, when Chelsea were stunned. A 93rd minute free kick was swung into the Chelsea penalty box. Woodgate's initial header was punched by Cech, but the ball deflected off the Spurs defender's face into goal, sparking wild celebrations amidst the Tottenham fans.

The remaining periods of extra time was totally dominated by Chelsea, as Spurs defended their lead from deep. Last ditch tackles flew in everywhere and eventually Spurs were mighty relieved to hear the final whistle. The fulltime whistle saw Spurs' players huddle in a group celebrating, while their fans waved hundreds of flags and sang in full voice. They celebrated as Spurs finally lifted their first major trophy since 1999.

My Man of the Match: Woodgate
Woodgate was brilliant in defence for Spurs, only committing one or two errors at most. He made plenty of important tackles and interceptions to maintain Tottenham's lead during the extra time period. As a bonus, he even scored the winner for Spurs. Definitely a night that the English defender won't forget.

Predictions.

2008-02-23T15:36:00.002+08:00

Time for the Omok Cup to be pushed down as.... more predictions are in store! As well as some stuff (or a whole load of crap) about this weekend's League Cup final between Chelsea and Tottenham. But firstly, the midweek European matches...

Champions League
LIVERPOOL FC 2 INTERNAZIONALE DE MILAN 0
Liverpool finally returned to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over 10-man Inter Milan. Inter's Italian defender Marco Materazzi was harshly sent off for two questionable bookings after only 30 minutes. The Italian league leaders then held on till the 85th minute, when Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt scored with a volley to give the Reds the all important lead. 4 minutes later captain Steven Gerrard scored to make it 2-0, and leave Inter in a huge hole ahead of the return fixture in a few weeks.

CFP OLYMPIACOS 0 CHELSEA FC 0
There was a bore draw in Greece as Olympiacos and Chelsea fought out a goalless draw, throwing the tie wide open ahead of the return leg at Stamford Bridge. It was a match with very few chances, and both sides would probably have been quite pleased with a draw.

FC SCHALKE 04 1 FC PORTO 0
German side Schalke 04 opened the scoring after just 4 minutes and never looked back as they claimed an important 1-0 victory over Portuguese giants Porto to put themselves in a favourable position ahead of the second leg in Portugal. An away goal for Schalke in two weeks time could see Porto exit the tournament, 4 years after they won it under Jose Mourinho.

AS ROMA 2 REAL MADRID CF 1
Roma came back from behind to grab a 2-1 victory against Spanish giants and European Cup favourites Real Madrid. Raul gave Real the lead after just seven minutes with a deflected strike, but Roma fought back and scored via Pizarro and Mancini. The second leg is at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid in a fortnight.

ARSENAL 0 AC MILAN 0
Arsenal and Milan fought out a competitive goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium, a result that would leave the Italian giants much more happier than their English counterparts. Arsenal dominated possession but Milan defended well and limited the Gunners to very few chances. The best chance of the match came in the 4th minute of stoppage time when Adebayor hit the crossbar with a header, and left the home fans sighing. This tie has now pretty much swung into AC Milan's favour.

GLASGOW CELTIC 2 FC BARCELONA 3
There was a 5-goal thriller in Glasgow during the midweek fixtures. Celtic twice took the lead in the first half, but were pegged back, and eventually lost the match to virtually doom their chances of qualification. Strikes by Hessilink and Robson sandwiched an equaliser from Barca's Lionel Messi in the first half. Early in the second half, Thierry Henry scored a sensational goal for the Spanish visitors to equalise, before Messi scored his second goal of the match to down the Scottish giants.

FENERBAHCE 3 FC SEVILLA 2
There was another five-goal thriller in Istanbul as Turkish side Fenerbahce pipped Sevilla 3-2 with a last-minute winner. Senturk scored the winner for the hosts in the 87th minute, to give them a slender advantage going into the second leg in Spain in a fortnight.

OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS 1 MANCHESTER UNITED FC 1
Lyon and Manchester United fought out an entertaining 1-1 draw at the Stade de Gerland in France. The first half was entertaining but saw no goals, as Lyon played a cautious counter-attacking game. Manchester United started the second half brightly and dominated the early proceedings, but Lyon scored against the run of play. The French giants caught the defending English champions on the break, with young talent Benzema turning and twisting before firing a low shot past United keeper van der Sar off the post and into the net to give Lyon the lead. United fought back and finally drew level via substitute Carlos Tevez. A ball into the penalty box was not properly cleared by Lyon's backline, and the ball eventually fell loose to Tevez 3 yards from goal, and he made no mistake, hooking the ball into the roof of the net to earn United an important away goal. The second leg will be at Old Trafford.

Barclays Premier League
BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 ARSENAL 2 @ St Andrews
League-leading Arsenal suffered two cup setbacks this week. They collapsed 4-0 at Old Trafford to Man United in the FA Cup, and were held to a draw by AC Milan at home in the Champions League 1st leg. This weekend, they face struggling Birmingham at St Andrews. Birmingham have been poor recently and Arsenal should be able to get all 3 points.

FULHAM 1 WEST HAM UNITED 1 @ Craven Cottage
A London derby is in stall as Fulham host West Ham. Erratic West Ham have perennially under-performed against the weaker sides in the league, a factor that may inspire Fulham to play above themselves to grab some important points.

LIVERPOOL 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 0 @ Anfield
Liverpool beat Inter 2-0 in midweek to regain some of their confidence. They could carry that momentum forward to defeat Boro. However, it will not be an easy task for the Merseysiders as Boro are unbeaten in over 10 games and will be confident of posing some problems for Liverpool.

PORTSMOUTH 2 SUNDERLAND 1 @ Fratton Park
Pompey have been strengthened by the acquisitions of Jermaine Defoe and Milan Baros, as well as the return of their African Nations Cup players. Sunderland are poor travellers, and despite 3 wins in their last 5 games, should probably crash to another away defeat.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 2 DERBY COUNTY 1 @ JJB Stadium
Wigan face off against Derby in a crucial relegation-deciding match on Saturday. Derby have not won away from home this season and Wigan will want to continue Derby's abysmal away form to pull away from the relegation trapdoor.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 @ St James Park
Struggling Newcastle have not won since 'The Messiah' Kevin Keegan returned to take over as Magpies boss. Newcastle have been woeful, as their defence continue leaking silly goals and their attack continue to misfire. A plus point for the Magpies is that Michael Owen has scored in his last two league games, and will want to continue that run. However, Manchester United are difficult opponents, and their quality infront of goal should see them pip the hosts to all three points.

READING 0 ASTON VILLA 2 @ Madejski Stadium
Reading have lost all of their last six games en route to being dragged into the relegation zone. They will not favour a difficult clash against in-form Villa this week. The Villans came from behind to rout Newcastle United 4-1 at home last time out, and Reading will need to defend properly to prevent a thrashing.

BLACKBURN ROVERS 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0 @ Ewood Park
Visitors Bolton have struggled to score goals following Nicolas Anelka's move to Chelsea in the January transfer market. Their goal-scoring woes are set to continue against a tough and uncompromising Blackburn defence who should be able to shut out Bolton's attacking options.

MANCHESTER CITY 1 EVERTON 1 @ City of Manchester Stadium
Man City's home form has dipped drastically in recent weeks. A loss to Arsenal was combined with draws against the likes of Blackburn and other teams. They will not fancy a difficult home match against the high-flying Toffees, who will look to defend well to shut out Manchester City's strikers.

League Cup Final--
CHELSEA VS TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR (10.55PM SG TIME, SUNDAY)
Chelsea face off against London rivals Spurs in the League Cup final, hosted for the first time since 2000 at Wembley. Chelsea defeated Everton to reach the final, while Tottenham Hotspur thrashed Arsenal 6-2 on aggregate to book their own places. It will be a keenly-contested match, but a low-scoring encounter seems likely, as Chelsea prefer to grind out one-goal victories, sacrificing flair and entertainment. Spurs' two strikers in the form of Robbie Keane and Berbatov will need to be dealt with accordingly if Chelsea want to lift the Carling Cup for the third time in 4 years. Spurs meanwhile will look to win under cup-specialist Juande Ramos to lift their first trophy for many many many many years. Who will win? I can't predict this. >.> I predict the match will enter extra-time before a winner is announced, though.

Long post complete! :D

Something different...

2008-02-22T20:16:00.003+08:00

Here's something different from soccer....

TEH OMOK CUP 1ST SEASON!

Number of participants: 5
Participants:
(Name) - (Team Name)
JEREMY - -NIL-
RUI SI - UNorthodox Club
WEN ZHE - Omok Suki Club
YU FEI - Anyhowtouch Club (ATC)
(Emo-kia didn't want to think of a name, so ZM gave him a GL name for his team)
ZI HAO - OMOK CLUB DE ZAPPLED (OC Zappled)

P=PLAYED, W=WIN, L=LOSE, PTS=POINTS, PF=POINTS FOR, PA=POINTS AGAINST
Standings
OC ZAPPLED -> P3, W3, L0, 9 PTS, PF 6, PA 2
UNORTHODOX -> P3, W2, L1, 7 PTS, PF 5, PA 4
OMOK SUKI CLUB -> P2, W1, L1, 4 PTS, PF 3, PA 2
ATC -> P2, W1, L1, 4 PTS, PF 2, PA 3
-NIL- -> P4, W0, L4, 4 PTS, PF 3, PA 8

Schedule Table/Results
UNorthodox 1-2 OC Zappled
Omok Suki Club 2-0 -NIL-
ATC 0-2 OC Zappled
-NIL- 1-2 UNorthodox
UNorthodox 2-1 Omok Suki Club
-NIL- 1-2 ATC
OC Zappled 2-1 -NIL-
Omok Suki Club 0-0 ATC (Match in progress)
OC Zappled vs Omok Suki Club
ATC vs UNorthodox
(These are groupstage matches)

Top 4 in the table after all the groupstage matches reach the semifinals.
1st vs 4th
2nd vs 3rd
Semifinals require 3 points to emerge victorious
Winners of the two semifinals meet in the final.
Semifinal A winner vs Semifinal B winner
Finals require 4 points to win.
Finals require you to win by a margin of at least 2.
Eg. 4-0, 4-1, 4-2, 5-3, 6-4, etc

Score updates will be posted A.S.A.P! Good luck in the Cup :X

Champions League Round of 16, 1st Leg

2008-02-19T17:57:00.003+08:00

Updated results from FA Cup
SHEFFIELD UNITED 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 0
PRESTON NORTHEND 0 PORTSMOUTH 1

Replays next week:
MIDDLESBROUGH V SHEFFIELD UNITED (Riverside Stadium)

UEFA Champions League
The UCL 2nd round resumes this mid-week as a total of 8 ties are played over 2 legs. I'll put in predictions and some comments when necessary, but these predictions will not be counted. Just for fun only. :X

GLASGOW CELTIC 0 FC BARCELONA 0
Celtic have a brilliant record at home in European games, mostly due to a very steady defensive backline. Barcelona are not in great form, and are struggling for goals. Like many of Celtic's home games against the giants of Europe, this could yet be another dull goalless draw.

CFP OLYMPIACOS 1 CHELSEA 2
The Greek side are through to the 1st knock-out stage of the competition for the first time. (Or the first time in many years, forgot) They are up against dark horses Chelsea at home in the 1st leg. This is expected to be a tight game, but Chelsea's efficiency should see them just manage to snatch victory, and virtually assure their passage to the quarterfinals.

LIVERPOOL FC 1 INTERNAZIONALE 1
The Reds' poor form was continued over the weekend after a disastrous 1-2 defeat to 2nd-division side Barnsley, which sensationally knocked the Merseysiders out of the FA Cup. In contrast, their UCL opponents Inter Milan are in brilliant form, as they are holding on to an almost inassailable lead of 11 points at the top of the Serie A table. Inter have flattered to deceive in Europe, underachieving in many of their campaigns. However, they could take advantage of Liverpool's poor run to at least snatch a favourable stalemate.

FC SCHALKE 04 1 FC PORTO 1
German side Schalke 04 take on 2004 Champions League winners Porto in a Round of 16 clash here in Germany. Nothing much to say about this, as neither side are established European heavyweights.

ARSENAL FC 2 AC MILAN 1
Both sides suffered morale-dipping setbacks over the weekend ahead of their highly-anticipated clash at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal were thrashed 4-0 by arch-rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup 5th round. Meanwhile, Milan were held to a second-consecutive draw, this time round away to Parma, to dent their Champions League qualification hopes. However, Arsenal's fletching youngsters should recover in time to outrun and eventually outscore the reigning European champions.

OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS 1 MANCHESTER UNITED FC 2
Lyon suffered a shocking 1-0 defeat to Le Mans over the weekend while Manchester United ripped apart old foes Arsenal 4-0 to reach the FA Cup quarterfinals. Lyon are perenially considered dark horses for the Champions League but have always seen their journey ended either in the round of 16 or the quarterfinal stage. Manchester United will have their confidence boosted after that massive win against the Gunners, and may well grab a precious away victory in the Stade de Gerland to take a huge step towards the quarterfinals. Touch and go, maybe?

AS ROMA 2 REAL MADRID 2
The domestic form of both sides have dipped over the few weeks. Roma collapsed to a second-straight away defeat, with the 2nd loss being against Turin giants Juventus, who are not participating in this season's Champions League. Real Madrid meanwhile have suffered 2 league defeats in 3 games, with the second a complacent 1-2 defeat to Real Betis after they had initially taken the lead early on. This is set to be a cracking game as both sides will look to put their woes behind and take a vital advantage in the two-legged tie. I would expect a relatively high-scoring draw.

FENERBAHCE 1 SEVILLA 1
Turkish side Fenerbahce are the surprise-participants in this season's UCL round of 16. This is just their second (I think) ever campaign in the second round of the Champions League. They will be put to the test against Sevilla, who are slowly recovering back to their former strength. The hosts could yet put up an inspired performance infront of their noisy fans to keep their dream alive going into the second leg at Spain.

Results for BPL and FA Cup 5th Round

2008-02-17T20:50:00.004+08:00

THE FA CUP 2007/08-- HEADLINE NEWS
1.ARSENAL THRASHED!
MANCHESTER UNITED 4 ROONEY 16, FLETCHER 20, 74, NANI 38
ARSENAL 0

2.LIVERPOOL CRASH OUT
LIVERPOOL 1 KUYT 38
BARNSLEY 2 HOWARD 59, 90+3

Full results:
BRISTOL ROVERS 1 SOUTHAMPTON 0
CARDIFF CITY 2 WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 0
CHELSEA 3 HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 1
LIVERPOOL 1 BARNSLEY 2
COVENTRY CITY 0 WEST BROMWICH ALBION 5
MANCHESTER UNITED 4 ARSENAL 0
SHEFFIELD UNITED V MIDDLESBROUGH
PRESTON NORTHEND V PORTSMOUTH

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE -- HEADLINES
1.UNITED CRASH TO DEFEAT ON MUNICH ANNIVERSARY
MANCHESTER UNITED 1 CARRICK 90
MANCHESTER CITY 2 VASSELL 24, BENJANI 45

2.STALEMATE AT STAMFORD BRIDGE
CHELSEA 0
LIVERPOOL 0

FULL RESULTS
ASTON VILLA 4 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1
BOLTON WANDERERS 0 PORTSMOUTH 1
DERBY COUNTY 0 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 3
EVERTON 1 READING 0
MIDDLESBROUGH 1 FULHAM 0
SUNDERLAND 2 WIGAN ATHLETIC 0
WEST HAM UNITED 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
MANCHESTER UNITED 1 MANCHESTER CITY 2
CHELSEA 0 LIVERPOOL 0
ARSENAL 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 0

Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10
Round 8- 5/10, 1/10
Round 9- 5/10, 1/10
Round 10- 4/10, 2/10
Round 11- 6/10, 1/10

LULZ. ARSENAL THRASHED! HAHAHAHAHA.

Derby Day and more predictions

2008-02-09T13:50:00.000+08:00

I'm back again with more inaccurate predictions! It is the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster in 1958 which claimed the lives of 23 people, including 8 Manchester Utd players. Highlights of this weekend include Man United vs Man City, and Chelsea vs Liverpool.

Fixtures & Predictions

ASTON VILLA 2 NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 @ VILLA PARK
High-flying Aston Villa face off against struggling Newcastle in this weekend's early kick-off. Villa suffered a blip last weekend, going down 1-2 in a shock defeat to second-from-bottom Fulham. Newcastle meanwhile continue to struggle to impress, with their cause not being helped by a goal drought and low confidence levels. Their goal drought and winless streak is set to continue against the Villans, who will want to recover from last weekend's setback and push on for an European spot.

BOLTON WANDERERS 1 PORTSMOUTH 1 @ REEBOK STADIUM
Bolton are solid defensively at home, but having sold Nicolas Anelka to Chelsea, the Trotters are now struggling for goals. Portsmouth have one of the best away records in the league this season, but with key African players not yet back from the African Cup of Nations, they won't be able to score too much. Expect a low-scoring draw to ensue.

DERBY COUNTY 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 @ PRIDE PARK
The Premier League's basement team are up against a revitalised Spurs side. The reverse fixture earlier this season saw Spurs race to a 3-0 lead inside 19 minutes en route to a crushing 4-0 victory over the Rams. Such a scoreline is not expected at Pride Park where Derby have recently put on more-than-decent performances, but individual errors have cost themselves dear. Derby are expected to give Spurs a run for their money, but the away team's class and confidence shall prevail.

EVERTON 2 READING 0 @ GOODISON PARK
Everton will look to bounce back from two consecutive goalless draws with a victory over the struggling Royals in their clash at Goodison Park. Reading have lost six straight matches and now sit only a few points above the dropzone. They will need to rectify the situation fast before they are sucked deeper in the relegation dogfight. However, they will not have it easy against the Toffees as Everton are perched nicely in a Champions League qualification spot and will want to stay there with a win. Expect Reading's defence (that has conceded a joint-worst 52 goals this season) to fall apart yet again.

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 FULHAM 1 @ THE RIVERSIDE STADIUM
Boro are a more-than-decent side at home, but today they play hosts to Fulham, who received a huge confidence boost with a unexpected 2-1 victory over Aston Villa. Bullard played a vital role in that victory and will be expected to spearhead his side's attack against Boro in this fixture. Expect the struggling Cottagers to continue their run and grab a vital point here.

SUNDERLAND 2 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 @ STADIUM OF LIGHT
Sunderland have had a decent run at home, with recent victories over Bolton, Portsmouth and Birmingham raising their hopes of avoiding the relegation trapdoor. Fellow relegation battlers Wigan managed a 3-0 victory here in a FA Cup tie last month, but Black Cats manager Roy Keane will be demanding that his side avoid a repeat of that drubbing. Infront of their home faithful, the Black Cats may just edge this, provided they get an early goal.

WEST HAM UNITED 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 @ UPTON PARK
Erratic West Ham seem to play well against high-flying sides and struggle against weaker opposition. That may inspire Birmingham and provide them hope of at least getting a point from Upton Park. If West Ham do not get an early goal, their home faithful may turn against them, which may work in Birmingham's favour. The visitors will be hoping that their defence can at least hold on till half-time.

DERBY DAY
MANCHESTER UNITED 3 MANCHESTER CITY 1 @ OLD TRAFFORD
The stars conspired for this fixture to be the closest match to the 50th anniversary of the Munich aircrash. Both sides will wear special jerseys for this fixture, with United wearing a replica of the jersey that the famous 'Busby Babes' used to wear in the 1950s. The Red Devils will want revenge following an undeserved 0-1 defeat to City in reverse Manchester derby earlier this season. Then, United dominated the match but lost thanks to a deflected goal, one of City's two goal attempts on target. It will be an emotional day for the Old Trafford faithful as they remember the Busby Babes, and a minute's silence will be observed as a mark of respect. After that, sparks will fly on the pitch as United will seek to regain top spot from Arsenal. Rooney and Evra are both suspended for the Red Devils, but with Cristiano Ronaldo in flying form, a victory for the hosts will be expected.

CHELSEA 1 LIVERPOOL 0 @ STAMFORD BRIDGE
In the reverse fixture at Anfield earlier this season, a lucky penalty for Chelsea earned them an undeserved 1-1 draw against the Reds. Since then, Liverpool's fortunes have floundered as a backroom power struggle has seen them fall out of contention for Premier League glory. Topscorer Fernando Torres will sit out for Liverpool, after picking up an injury while on international duty with Spain. This means that Peter Crouch will be in contention for a rare start for the Reds. Chelsea have managed to ekk out unimpressive victories despite an injury crisis, and up against a struggling Liverpool side trying to regain confidence, they should stretch their unbeaten home record to 76 games.

ARSENAL 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 @ EMIRATES STADIUM
The Gunners regained top spot last weekend following Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Spurs. Up against an erratic but difficult-to-beat Blackburn side at home, they should be able to squeeze out a victory to stay top-of-the-table.

Results :O

2008-02-03T17:22:00.001+08:00

Arsenal return to the top of the table as Manchester United are held to a draw by Spurs. Chelsea's run of 9 straight wins in all competitions was also ended by a draw against Portsmouth. I'll add a few new features too in this post :o

MANCHESTER CITY 1 ARSENAL 3 @ CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM
Manchester City's unbeaten home record came to an end yesterday after a 3-1 defeat to league leaders Arsenal. Early goals from Adebayor and Eduardo da Silva put Arsenal 2-0 up before the Eastlands side pulled a goal back. However, a late goal by the in-form Adebayor put the result beyond doubt and City have not won at home for 4 consecutive games. Are the wheels coming off City's express train? (Both predictions incorrect)

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 1 @ WHITE HART LANE
There was drama at White Hart Lane in an explosive match that saw an astonishing 10 yellow cards, an amazing seven directed towards the players in red as the referee went on a booking spree. Spurs took the lead in the 20th minute controversially. A quick counterattack from the hosts saw Jenas tumble in the box, with the ball brushing off his arm into Lennon's path. His cross-shot was pushed away by van der Sar, but the rebound fell straight to Berbatov who slotted it home calmly. van der Sar was also booked for his protests at the goal not being disallowed. The referee struggled to control the players towards the end of a feisty first half, as Huddlestone and then Jenas were both booked for crunching tackles, alongside bookings for Patrice Evra and Wes Brown. The second half was similiar in terms of the dominance of the hosts, but they failed to take their chances as United struggled to cope with Tottenham's high tempo play. Robbie Keane was put through on goal by Berbatov but shot weakly at the United keeper, to the dismay of the home fans. Owen Hargreaves, Rooney and substitute Nani then were all booked by the referee. Nani was rightly booked for a crunching tackle that could have seen a red card, but the bookings of Hargreaves and Rooney were both debatable decisions. Rooney's booking particularly was an important one as he will now miss the Manchester derby through suspension. Spur's wastefulness was duly punished by United in the 93rd minute. With the last kick of the game, Carlos Tevez swept Nani's corner in the net after a slight deflection off Michael Dawson. United will know that they were lucky to get a point. (Both predictions incorrect)

PORTSMOUTH 1 CHELSEA 1 @ FRATTON PARK
Nicolas Anelka gave the Blues the lead at Fratton Park, but it wasn't enough as Portsmouth levelled through debutant Jermaine Defoe and held on for a well-deserved point. This match was expected to be a tight one, and that was how the match was played during the first half, which ended goalless. 10 minutes into the second half and Anelka put Chelsea ahead, but Defoe equalised 9 minutes later to end Chelsea's run of 9 straight wins in all competitions. (Both predictions correct)

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 DERBY COUNTY 1 @ ST ANDREWS
Derby County earned a valuable point away to fellow relegation strugglers Birmingham City. Birmingham looked to have secured all 3 points till Villa equalised for Derby in the 88th minute for a point. Despite the draw, Derby remain well adrift of safety and will probably still be relegated at the end of this campaign. (Both predictions incorrect)

BLACKBURN ROVERS 0 EVERTON 0 @ EWOOD PARK
This was pretty much a drab match, but Everton could easily have won it with a little more luck. The visitors had a goal disallowed, and saw a free-kick power off the bar in the second half. The result means that Aston Villa can make up ground on the Merseysiders with a win against Fulham. (1 prediction correct)

READING 0 BOLTON WANDERERS 2 @ MADEJSKI STADIUM
Reading remained winless in 2008 after a poor defeat to Bolton at home. It was Bolton's first away win of the current campaign, with goals from Nolan and Helguson. Matthew Taylor also missed an early penalty kick for the visitors, who pull away from the dropzone following a precious victory, while Reading continue their slide down the table. (Both predictions incorrect)

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 WEST HAM UNITED 0 @ JJB STADIUM
West Ham's up-and-down season continued with a defeat at relegation strugglers Wigan. Entering this match with a last-gasp victory over Liverpool, the Hammers had reason to feel confident that they could come away from Wigan with a win. However, Kilbane struck deep into 1st half stoppage time, and Wigan held on for 3 points that could prove valuable in the race to escape the drop. (Both predictions correct)

LIVERPOOL 3 SUNDERLAND 0 @ ANFIELD
The scoreline reads 3-0, but it was by no means an easy victory for the Merseysiders. A drab first half performance left the Kop wondering if they could manage what should have been a routine victory to end their poor run of form. Goals from Peter Crouch and Torres put the Reds 2-0 up, but during Sunderland's period of dominance, the Black Cats had reason to feel aggrieved, with two penalty claims turned down by the referee. The first one should have been a clear-cut penalty for handball by Jamie Carragher, but the second was also debatable. The visitors were made to feel more angered when Liverpool were awarded a penalty late on, which was converted by club captain Steven Gerrard. (1 prediction correct)

NEWCASTLE UNITED V MIDDLESBROUGH @ ST JAMES PARK
Live on Chn27, 9.30pm

FULHAM V ASTON VILLA @ CRAVEN COTTAGE
Live on Chn27, 12am

Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10
Round 8- 5/10, 1/10
Round 9- 5/10, 1/10
Round 10- 4/8, 2/8

LEAGUE TABLE (POINTS)
ARSENAL (60)
MAN UNITED (58)
CHELSEA (54)
EVERTON (44)
LIVERPOOL (43)

Another Round of Predictions

2008-02-02T19:20:00.000+08:00

Yet another round of predictions! Bettar luck this time, next time, and next time. (I make no cence)

FIXTURES AND PREDICTIONS
MANCHESTER CITY 1 ARSENAL 1 @ CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM
Manchester City remain unbeaten on home turf in the league this season, but 3 straight draws have blunted their once-perfect record. Yet, they could be fancied to take a draw off the Gunners. Their unbeaten home record will be under threat, yet they should survive it in the end.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 DERBY COUNTY 1 @ ST ANDREWS
Birmingham are slipping into the dreaded dropzone despite some decent results, including a shock 1-1 draw at Arsenal. Derby remain rooted to the bottom of the table languishing far away from safety, but they managed a morale-boosting 1-1 draw against high-flying Manchester City. Still, their away form has been terrible and that will swing this match towards Birmingham's favour.

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 EVERTON 1 @ EWOOD PARK
Everton are perched in a Champions League following a good run of form, but their hosts today in the form of Blackburn Rovers are no pushovers. Blackburn are a tough, physical team and are hard to deal with at home. Their strikers are hungry for goals following a dip in form, and they could well manage a draw here and halt Everton's run temporarily.

PORTSMOUTH 1 CHELSEA 1 @ FRATTON PARK
Pompey are a different team without their African players who are at the African Cup of Nations, but Chelsea are also a struggling side, despite a run of 9 straight wins in all competitions. Their attacking resolve has been very poor, and it has only been an excellent defence that has kept them from dropping points, as they scrape one-goal victories week in, week out. Their defensive tactics however could well backfire at Pompey, as the hosts will be content to settle for a point, making this a potentially dull game.

READING 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 0 @ MADEJSKI STADIUM
Both sides are struggling at the wrong end of the league table. Reading's run of five matches without victory have pummeled them towards the relegation zone, while Bolton's shocking away form has not helped ease their relegation fears. Reading are a decent side at home and will no doubt take advantage of the Trotter's away woes to grab three important points and steer themselves towards midtable safety.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 MANCHESTER UNITED 3 @ WHITE HART LANE
These two sides meet again for the second time in a week. This match promises to be a brilliant match of football, with both sides preferring attacking-minded gameplay. The last home match Spurs played in saw them score 5 goals in a 5-1 win over hated rivals Arsenal. The last match which United play at White Hart Lane (last season's correspending fixture) ended in a resounding 4-0 victory for the Red Devils. Goals are expected to flow freely, but United's on-form strikeforce may prove too much to handle for the Spurs backline.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 WEST HAM UNITED 0 @ JJB STADIUM
Relegation-threatened Wigan host erratic West Ham United at the JJB Stadium. Wigan have had some decent results since Steve Bruce took over as Wigan boss, but they still lack the consistency needed to climb out of the dropzone. West Ham similiarly are inconsistent, winning matches that they were not expected to, while losing straight forward ones. Wigan may find that extra inspiration today to beat West Ham and move out of the dropzone.

LIVERPOOL 2 SUNDERLAND 1 @ ANFIELD
Liverpool are on a shocking run of 5 matches without victory in the league, which has seen them pummel to 7th place in the league, outside even an UEFA Cup slot, let alone a Champions League spot. Sunderland have won 3 of their last 5 matches, but have found points hard to come by away from the Stadium of Light. Liverpool will look to end their sorry run and move back towards that coveted UCL spot, currently held by hated city rivals Everton.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 @ ST JAMES PARK
The "Keegan Effect" has not exactly taken place at St James Park. With 3 matches in charge, Keegan's side has amassed a grand total of 0 wins and 0 goals. He badly needs some goals and wins as soon as possible, before the impatient Magpies faithful turn against him. There is no better way to do that in today's "Tyne-Tee Derby", between the Tynesiders (Newcastle) and the Teesiders (Middlesbrough). Boro are inconsistent away from home (actually at home too) but Newcastle will be inspired to go for victory and give their long-suffering fans something to cheer about.

FULHAM 1 ASTON VILLA 3 @ VILLA PARK @ CRAVEN COTTAGE
Premier League strugglers Fulham play host to Villa in a match of contrasting qualities. Fulham lack players with real quality needed for the pace of the Premiership, but Villa have several exciting attacking players who could play a part in England's national squad. Fulham have managed an abysmal 2 wins in 24 league matches, while Villa have only lost once away from home. Expect Fulham's wretched run to continue as Villa will probably wreck havoc at Craven Cottage.

Lalala.

Another veeeeery long post.

2008-01-26T14:24:00.000+08:00

Results of Round 9

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 1
The visitors dominated the match, but were guilty of not taking their chances. They were duly punished for their profligacy in front of goal when super-sub Matt Derbyshire prodded a low cross into goal in the 75th minute to rescue the hosts. Blackburn were lucky to get a point here. (Both predictions incorrect)

FULHAM 0 ARSENAL 3
The hosts were completely dominated in this London derby. The Gunners raced to a 2-0 lead against the Cottagers before half-time, and completed the scoring when Tomasz Rosicky tapped in a cross from Eduardo da Silva. Fulham manager Roy Hodgson has started his reign with 4 defeats out of 4, including an embarassing exit in the FA Cup against lower league opposition. He needs some wins now before the fans turn against him. (1 prediction correct)

PORTSMOUTH 3 DERBY COUNTY 1
Portsmouth finally ended an abysmal goalless and winless run at Fratton Town stretching back to nearly 10 games. Derby drew first blood and took a shock lead when they scored from a close range tap-in after barely 6 minutes. Portsmouth's current top scorer Benjani however finally broke the host's frustrating goal drought at home with 2 goals in 4 minutes before half-time to send Pompey 2-1 up. The African striker then completed his hat trick in the second half to hand Pompey a long-awaited 3 points at Fratton Park. (1 prediction correct)

READING 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 2
Doughty Reading, for long periods of this match, looked like they would limit the Red Devils to a deflating goalless draw. However, a moment of magic in the 77th minute from Rooney put the league leaders crucially infront. Reading nearly equalised when a stunning run from midfielder James Harper ended with a cracking shot, that swerved barely centimetres wide of the far post, with United keeper van der Sar well beaten. Reading pushed on and attacked in numbers, but were duly caught on the break by a classic Manchester United counter-attack. A cross into United's penalty box was cut out by Darren Fletcher, and the loose ball fell straight to Ronaldo. The Portuguese winger then dribbled the ball for nearly 70 yards before unleashing a low shot into the Reading goal to secure 3 points for the Red Devils. A nervous win for the league leaders, but a crucial one. (Both predictions correct)

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 SUNDERLAND 0
Robbie Keane celebrated his 100th goal for Spurs as his side defeated Sunderland 2-0 to continue their charge up the table. Aaron Lennon added a second in stoppage time to condemn the Black Cats to yet another miserable away defeat. Sunderland have had decent results at home, but their poor away form could be a catalyst for relegation. (1 prediction correct)

BIRMINGHAM CITY 0 CHELSEA 1
Lucky Chelsea grabbed a late winner to earn themselves a rather undeserved victory at St Andrews. The Brums hassled the Blues all the way and could easily have earned themselves a creditable draw. Instead, Claudio Pizarro struck with a header in the 79th minute and the hapless hosts ended the match with nothing to show for their efforts. (Both predictions incorrect)

NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 BOLTON WANDERERS 0
Kevin Keegan's 2nd spell in charge of the Tynesiders began with a drab goalless draw at home to the Trotters. It was a frustrating first half for both sides as neither could carve out a decent opening. Newcastle had a few half-chances in the second half, but arguably Bolton could have grabbed all three points in stoppage time. Jlloyd Samuel struck the ball towards goal from 6 yards after the ball had broke to him, but much to the relief of Newcastle, goalkeeper Shay Given produced a reaction save to push it away. (Both predictions incorrect)

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 EVERTON 2
The calamitous defender Titus Bramble allowed Everton to grab all three points in this tight encounter. The match looked to be heading towards a goalless 1st half in the 40th minute. However, a minute later, a trademark laughable error from the Wigan defender put Andy Johnson through on goal, and he gratefully accepted the wrapped present by slotting it into the back of the net. Barely 3 minutes later, with the Latics still shocked, Everton grabbed a second, Joleon Lescott putting the ball across the goalline after he had been left totally unmarked. Wigan grabbed a lucky goal in the second half to ignite hopes of a comeback, but Everton stood firm for 3 points. (Both predictions incorrect)

MANCHESTER CITY 1 WEST HAM UNITED 1
City were lucky to escape with a draw, with a controversial equaliser from Darius Vassell. The City striker was offside when the ball was played into the Hammer's penalty box. However, the linesman did not flag for offside, and the striker put City on level terms, after Carlton Cole had given the visitors the lead with a brilliant overhead kick. The scoreline stayed the same all the way till the final whistle, and the hosts remain outside the top 6 positions.

LIVERPOOL 2 ASTON VILLA 2
Liverpool's league woes continued as they were held to a fourth consecutive league draw. Played in the backdrop of a rift between management, manager and player, Liverpool took the lead through Israeli winger Yossi Benayoun. Posters demanding the club's American owners to leave could be seen all over the stadium as the fans made their support for beleaguered manager Rafael Benitez known. The Reds were then undone by 2 goals in 4 minutes in the second half, one of them an own goal by Arbeloa. However, forgotten striker Peter Crouch came off the bench to equalise 2 minutes from time and grab a draw for the Reds. However, it must be said that a draw is hardly enough, and Liverpool's wait for their 1st Premier League title since 1990 must be stalled for another year. (Both predictions incorrect)

Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10
Round 8- 5/10, 1/10
Round 9- 5/10, 1/10

Other headlines:
Arsenal thrashed!
-Arsenal's youngsters were handed a footballing lesson by Tottenham Hotspur, as they crashed out of the League Cup semifinals 2-6 on aggregate, following a 5-1 thrashing by the Lilywhites at White Hart Lane. It was a first Spurs victory over Arsenal in 23 matches, following years of misery for their fans. The first leg ended 1-1, with Arsenal managing a fortuitous equaliser from Theo Walcott. There was no such luck this time round, as Jenas gave the hosts a dream start, finding the back of the net after only 3 minutes. Nicklas Bendtner made it 2-0 for Spurs with an own goal in the 26th minute. 3 minutes into the second half and Robbie Keane made it 3-0 with a quickfire counter-attack, before Aaron Lennon made it 4-0 with yet another counter-attack. Adebayor came on for the Gunners and scored a consolation goal, but sparks were flying among the Arsenal players, as the Togolese international had a quarrel with teammate Bendtner, before appearing to headbutt him. The two had to be separated by team captain William Gallas. Steed Malbranque capped the scoring for Spurs with a stoppage time tap-in, in a truly special night for all the fans of the London side.

Chelsea through to Wembley
-The Blues defeated Everton 1-0 to defeat the Liverpudlians 3-1 on aggregate, reaching their 3rd League Cup final in 4 years. Joe Cole's goal in the 69th minute was enough to see off the Toffees, but the visitors required several important saves from Petr Cech to keep the scoreline that way. The result means that there will be a London derby in the League Cup final at Wembley, between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

And this weekend sees action from the 4th Round of the English FA Cup! Interesting fixtures include non-league side Havant and Waterlooville's dream trip to Anfield to face Liverpool, as well as an intriguing fixture at Old Trafford, with Manchester United taking on Tottenham Hotspur, 3 days after the London side smashed Arsenal 5-1.

A Veeeery Long Post.

2008-01-18T16:40:00.000+08:00

Hi finally I'm posting something :O Post will include this weekend's EPL fixtures and predictions, the English FA Cup 3rd Round replay results, and the FA Cup 4th round draw.

THE FA CUP 3RD ROUND REPLAY RESULTS
MANCHESTER CITY 1 WEST HAM UNITED 0
HEREFORD UNITED 1 TRANMERE ROVERS 0
HAVANT AND WATERLOOVILLE 4 SWANSEA CITY 2
NEWCASTLE UNITED 4 STOKE CITY 1
LIVERPOOL 5 LUTON TOWN 0
READING 0 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
MILLWALL 2 WALLSALL 1
WEST BROMWICH ALBION 2 CHARLTON ATHLETIC 2
(AFTER EXTRA TIME, WBA WIN ON PENALTIES)
BRISTOL ROVERS P-P FULHAM
SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY P-P DERBY COUNTY
BARNET P-P SWINDON TOWN
(These 3 matches to be re-scheduled)

THE FA CUP 4TH ROUND FIXTURES
SOUTHEND UNITED VS BARNSLEY
MANSFIELD TOWN VS MIDDLESBROUGH
ARSENAL VS NEWCASTLE UNITED
COVENTRY CITY VS MILLWALL
OLDHAM ATHLETIC VS HUDDERSFIELD TOWN
SWINDON TOWN OR BARNET VS FULHAM OR BRISTOL ROVERS
LIVERPOOL VS HAVANT AND WATERLOOVILLE
SOUTHAMPTON VS BURY
PORTSMOUTH VS PLYMOUTH ARGYLE
DERBY COUNTY OR SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY VS PRESTON NORTHEND
WATFORD VS WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
PETERBOROUGH UNITED VS WEST BROMWICH ALBION
WIGAN ATHLETIC VS CHELSEA
HEREFORD UNITED VS CARDIFF CITY
MANCHESTER UNITED VS TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
SHEFFIELD UNITED VS MANCHESTER CITY

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE- FIXTURES AND PREDICTIONS
BLACKBURN ROVERS 2 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 @ EWOOD PARK
Blackburn have been erratic of late, but poor travellers Boro will still dread travelling to face Blackburn, who are a difficult side to play against on their day. The hosts should get three points to further recover from a damaging run of defeats late last year.

FULHAM 1 ARSENAL 2 @ CRAVEN COTTAGE
A London derby takes centre stage as relegation-threatened Fulham take on second-placed Arsenal at Craven Cottage. Fulham have appointed Roy Hodgson as their new manager, but his reign hasn't started the way he would have preferred, with two defeats out of two, albeit by narrow margins. The Gunners will be gunning for revenge following a lacklustre 1-1 draw with Birmingham City at home, only the second time this season that they have dropped points at the Emirates.

PORTSMOUTH 1 DERBY COUNTY 0 @ FRATTON PARK
Pompey are severely weakened due to the African Nations Cup, with key players in midfield and attack jetting off to seek international glory. The unlucky Rams remain rooted at the foot of the table, almost certainly set to be relegated. The results do not always tell the truth though, as they should have had more points with battling displays, but ended up conceding heart-breaking late goals to condemn themselves to defeats. Nevertheless, the hosts still have a far stronger squad than Derby, and should narrowly scrape 3 points.

READING 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 @ MADEJSKI STADIUM
The Royals are Manchester United's recent bogey team. There have been 5 occasions where these two sides have clashed since Reading won promotion last season, and they managed to secure stalemates in 3 of those matches, while the other two were narrowly scraped by the Red Devils, both by 3-2 scorelines. Nevertheless, with the Red Devil's attacking quartet of Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez in red hot form, few can see the Royals even getting a draw out of this.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 3 SUNDERLAND 1 @ WHITE HART LANE
Poor travellers Sunderland take on a rejuvenated Spurs in London this weekend. Sunderland revived hopes of escaping relegation with important victories over Bolton and Portsmouth. However, a trip to Spurs may prove to be daunting, as the Lilywhites are currently in good form, and are looking to climb up the table towards an European qualification spot. With Spurs scoring goals with ease, this could be an open attacking game of football.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 CHELSEA 1 @ ST ANDREWS
Birmingham achieved one of the biggest shock's of the season thus far with a fantastic 1-1 draw at Arsenal. That feat made them the only team other than league leaders Manchester United to have taken points off the Gunners at the Emirates this season. Earlier this season, Chelsea pulled off a fortunate 3-2 win over their hosts today. Despite the recent arrivals of Anelka and Ivanovic to name a few, the Brum's spirited performances could well earn them a point against their more illustrious opponents.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0 @ ST JAMES PARK
Newcastle are rejuvenated following the appointment of Kevin Keegan as manager, nearly 11 years after he left the club. He is deemed the Magpie's most successful manager in recent times, though he failed to win any silverware for the "sleeping giants" of English football. They were hammered 0-6 by Manchester United last weekend, but with the appointment of Keegan announced, the team's spirit was raised and they crushed Stoke City 4-1 in the FA Cup 3rd round replay, despite being reduced to 10 men early in the match. Bolton's firepower have been heavily weakened by the departures of El Hadji Diouf and Nicolas Anelka, who went to the African Nations Cup and moved to Chelsea respectively. Despite the host's shaky defence, not many people will expect the Bolton frontline to pose too much threat.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 EVERTON 1 @ JJB STADIUM
A revitalised Wigan take on Everton in an intriguing battle this weekend. Everton are comfortably perched in 5th spot while Wigan are precariously perched just above the dreaded dropzone, but Wigan have produced many good results recently, including an excellent 1-1 draw at Anfield against powerhouses Liverpool. Everton were recently dumped out of the FA Cup by lower league side Oldham Athletic, while also losing the 1st leg of the League Cup semifinal to Chelsea, albeit controversially. Up against their spirited hosts, they may well drop points and allow other European qualification-hopefuls to consolidate their places in the top seven.

MANCHESTER CITY 2 WEST HAM UNITED 2 @ CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM
Man City pulled off a lucky win over West Ham in midweek in the FA Cup 3rd round replay, and barely 3 days later the teams meet again at the same venue. The Hammers will be gunning for revenge. They failed to convert countless opportunities in midweek and were left stunned when City snatched an undeserved winner. City's form has dipped over the last few weeks, although they are still carving out victories at home. Any more points dropped this weekend, and they could well drop out of the race for the final Champions League spot.

LIVERPOOL 3 ASTON VILLA 1
The Reds will be looking to put on a roaring performance as a show of support for beleaguered manager Rafael Benitez. The Liverpool manager has come under heavy criticism for poor results, including 4 straight draws in the league. Even near-bankrupt League One side Luton Town managed to force a FA Cup replay with them. He has rightly been blamed for many of those poor results, due to his controversial rotation policy. He has dropped on-form players for under-performing ones, and has clearly paid the price for his side are virtually out of the race for the league title. Striker Fernando Torres is in red-hot form but still hasn't pinned down a permanent starting spot. Peter Crouch has put in decent performances in his rare cameo appearances, but Benitez still prefers the less-effective Kuyt or Voronin. He has also displeased the club's owners with public outbursts at them, but the owners in turn have hardly provided him with any support during difficult times. Liverpool fans will hope that the Spaniard gets his formation and tactics correct and gain 3 vital points, to at least pin down a Champions League spot.

(Btw, I missed last week's predictions! Forgot about it =x)

The FA Cup 3rd Round 07/08

2008-01-07T17:17:00.000+08:00

Here are teh results...

ASTON VILLA 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 2
BARNSLEY 2 BLACKPOOL 1
BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 COVENTRY CITY 4
BOLTON WANDERERS 0 SHEFFIELD UNITED 1
BRIGHTON 1 MANSFIELD TOWN 2
BRISTOL CITY 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 2
CHARLTON ATHLETIC 1 WEST BROMWICH ALBION 1
CHASETOWN 1 CARDIFF CITY 3
CHELSEA 1 QUEENS PARK RANGERS 0
COLCHESTER 1 PETERBOROUGH 3
EVERTON 0 OLDHAM ATHLETIC 1
HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
IPSWICH TOWN 0 PORTSMOUTH 1
NORWICH 1 BURY 1
PLYMOUTH 3 HULL CITY 2
PRESTON NORTHEND 1 SCUNTHORPE 0
SOUTHAMPTON 2 LEICESTER CITY 0
SOUTHEND UNITED 5 DAG AND RED 2
SUNDERLAND 0 WIGAN ATHLETIC 3
SWANSEA 1 HAVANT AND WATERLOOVILLE 1
SWINDON 1 BARNET 1
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 READING 2
TRANMERE 2 HEREFORD 2
WALSALL 0 MILLWALL 0
WATFORD 2 CRYSTAL PALACE 0
WEST HAM UNITED 0 MANCHESTER CITY 0
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 2 CAMBRIDGE UNITED 1
BURNLEY 0 ARSENAL 2
DERBY COUNTY 2 SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY 2
FULHAM 2 BRISTOL ROVERS 2
LUTON TOWN 1 LIVERPOOL 1
STOKE CITY 0 NEWCASTLE UNITED 0

Teams in the 4th round draw--->
Premier League- Man Utd, Middlesbrough, Wigan, Portsmouth, Arsenal, Chelsea

Championship- Southampton, Barnsley, Wolves, Cardiff, Preston, Sheffield Utd, Coventry, Watford, Plymouth

League One- Huddersfield, Oldham, Southend, Utd

League Two- Peterborough, Mansfield

REPLAYS:
MANCHESTER CITY V WEST HAM UNITED
WEST BROMWICH ALBION V CHARLTON ATHLETIC
HEREFORD V TRANMERE
READING V TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
BARNET V SWINDON
BURY V NORWICH CITY
MILLWALL V WALSALL
HAVANT AND WATERLOOVILLE V SWANSEA CITY
FULHAM V BRISTOL ROVERS
DERBY COUNTY V SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY
LIVERPOOL V LUTON TOWN
NEWCASTLE UNITED V STOKE CITY

Results Round 8

2008-01-05T15:06:00.000+08:00

FULHAM 1 CHELSEA 2 (Both predictions correct)

ARSENAL 2 WEST HAM UNITED 0 (1 prediction correct)

MANCHESTER UNITED 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0 (1 prediction correct)

MIDDLESBROUGH 0 EVERTON 2 (Both predictions incorrect)

READING 2 PORTSMOUTH 2 (Both predictions incorrect)

ASTON VILLA 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 MANCHESTER CITY 2 (Both predictions incorrect)

BOLTON WANDERERS 1 DERBY COUNTY 0 (1 prediction correct)

LIVERPOOL 1 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 (Both predictions incorrect)

BLACKBURN ROVERS 1 SUNDERLAND 0 (1 prediction correct)

Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10
Round 8- 5/10, 1/10

No League action today as the FA Cup 3rd Round commences this weekend. The 44 teams from the Championship and the Premier League finally join the competition to face off against the 3rd, 4th division or non-league sides for one of the spots in the 4th round.

Predictions Round 8

2008-01-01T20:33:00.001+08:00

Zzzzz rushed for time :( No thoughts also, just my predicted scorelines =x

FULHAM 1 CHELSEA 2 @ CRAVEN COTTAGE

ARSENAL 3 WEST HAM UNITED 1 @ EMIRATES STADIUM

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0 @ OLD TRAFFORD

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 EVERTON 1 @ RIVERSIDE STADIUM

READING 2 PORTSMOUTH 2 @ MADEJSKI STADIUM

ASTON VILLA 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 @ VILLA PARK

NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 MANCHESTER CITY 1 @ ST JAMES PARK

BOLTON WANDERERS 2 DERBY COUNTY 1 @ REEBOK STADIUM

LIVERPOOL 2 WIGAN ATHLETIC 0 @ ANFIELD

BLACKBURN ROVERS 3 SUNDERLAND 1 @ EWOOD PARK

Results Round 7

2008-01-01T14:54:00.000+08:00

Im not gonna comment cause I dont' feel like it.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 FULHAM 1

CHELSEA 2 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1

PORTSMOUTH 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 1

SUNDERLAND 3 BOLTON WANDERERS 1

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 6 READING 4

WEST HAM UNITED 2 MANCHESTER UNITED 1

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 ASTON VILLA 2

EVERTON 1 ARSENAL 4

DERBY COUNTY 1 BLACKBURN ROVERS 2

MANCHESTER CITY 0 LIVERPOOL 0

MY SCOREBOARD (Number of results correct, number of scorelines correct)
Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10
Round 7- 4/10, 1/10

Predictions Round 7

2007-12-29T15:01:00.000+08:00

The VS logo won't be used, its too large! =x

VS
BIRMINGHAM CITY VS FULHAM @ ST ANDREWS
Prediction: 2-0
Birmingham have put in some good performances under new manager Alex McLeish. In contrast, Fulham have struggled throughout the season and it remains to be seen what will happen with a new manager at the helm. The Brums should easily swat aside a troubled Fulham side who are sinking into the relegation zone at an alarming rate. Their midweek 1-5 loss in the London derby to Spurs won't do their morale any good either.

VS

CHELSEA VS NEWCASTLE UNITED @ STAMFORD BRIDGE
Prediction: 2-0
Injury and suspension have derailed Chelsea's title challenge. They are up against the Magpies at home today, with the Magpies struggling and being booed by their own fans, while boss Sam Allardyce apparently has been given three games to save his job. His task against Chelsea, who have a mighty record at home, will not be helped by Joey Barton's assault on a stranger in public. He was denied bail and will miss this match, and the visitors will miss his drive in midfield. Chelsea are missing more than 9 key players through injury and suspension but are still unlikely to be troubled by Newcastle.

VS

PORTSMOUTH VS MIDDLESBROUGH @ FRATTON PARK
Prediction: 3-0
Pompey have not scored in their last six league games at home. However, their defence has been excellent, with five of those games ending in 0-0 draws. They should break their scoring duck against woeful Boro. The visitors crashed to a 0-3 defeat to Birmingham in midweek. Pompey's defence is rock-solid, and their attack will be inspired to go all out to grab some goals. Add in Middlesbrough's porous defence, and you've got a home win for Pompey coming up.

VS

SUNDERLAND VS BOLTON WANDERERS @ STADIUM OF LIGHT
Prediction: 1-1
Struggling Sunderland have dropped to second bottom in the league table after just two wins in 13 games. After their midweek 0-4 thrashing by Manchester United at home, they will certainly get a earlashing from manager Roy Keane, as he attempts to improve results to keep the Black Cats in the league. They are up against an improving Bolton side, but the Trotters have not won away from home this season. Sunderland should at least get a point to slowly ease their way out of the dreaded dropzone.

VS

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR VS READING @ WHITE HART LANE
Prediction: 3-1
Reading's away form was woeful early in the season, but they are gradually improving, with two straight away draws against Birmingham and West Ham. Still, Spurs should not be troubled by the Royals, as they are in good form, and will be high in confidence following the 5-1 thrashing of Fulham. The hosts should continue their winning run and continue their push up the league table.

VS

WEST HAM UNITED VS MANCHESTER UNITED @ UPTON PARK
Prediction: 0-1
West Ham beat the Red Devils twice last season, but this season, their home form has been poor, with just two wins in nine games. This should be a very tight game of few chances, but with so much quality in the Red Devils, just one moment of magic from any player would probably be enough to win this game.

VS

WIGAN ATHLETIC VS ASTON VILLA @ JJB STADIUM
Prediction: 1-1
The Latics are gradually improving under new manager Steve Bruce, while Villa have had three straight draws in the league. Despite the gulf between these two sides in the league table, Wigan look good enough to grab a point from this and slowly move up the table.

VS

EVERTON VS ARSENAL @ GOODISON PARK
Prediction: 1-1
The Toffees have lost just once in 14 games, that one game an unlucky loss to Manchester United. Against the Gunners who look to be losing steam, they are highly fancied to get a draw at least. The Gunners have struggled in recent weeks, either only managing odd-goal victories or dropping points unexpectedly. They will need to buck up to have any chance of being in the title race next May.

VS

DERBY COUNTY VS BLACKBURN ROVERS @ PRIDE PARK
Prediction: 1-2
Derby have put in good performances recently, but have just had one point to show their efforts. They were unlucky to lose during their midweek fixture against Liverpool, but against Blackburn, the visitor's in-form striker Roque Santa Cruz may just prove to be the difference between these two sides.

VS

MANCHESTER CITY VS LIVERPOOL @ CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM
Prediction: 2-2
The Citizens have lost just once at home this season, that was to Spurs in the League Cup. In the league, they have a formidable record of nine wins, one draw and no defeats, which is equalled by only Manchester United and Arsenal. They have scored many goals at home recently, but have conceded nearly as many goals as they score. This should remain the same against the Reds. Liverpool's inconsistent performances will once again be revealed on the pitch and City should be able to get a draw.

Results Round 6

2007-12-28T16:49:00.000+08:00

Goals aplenty at Stamford Bridge, Stadium of Light and White Hart Lane!

CHELSEA 4 ASTON VILLA 4
A match that had nearly everything. Three red cards. Two penalties. Eight goals. Controversy. An injury time equaliser from Villa. I would say, the only thing missing was a missed penalty! Villa stunned the Blues by deservedly going 2-0 up in the 44th minute. Minutes later in first-half stoppage time, the referee controversially awarded a penalty to Chelsea and sent off Zat Knight. Andriy Shevchenko converted the penalty to give his side a vital lifeline. Barely five minutes after the restart, the Ukrainian hitman made it 2-2 with an excellent strike. On the 66th minute, it was 3-2 to the Blues. And it was Shevchenko, who had an excellent match, who set up the goal. His flick-on found Alex, who drove the ball into the net to give the Blues the lead. It was hard to see how the Villans would equalise, but equalise they did. Ashley Young's freekick found defender Laursen, who toepoked home for 3-3. Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho was then sent off for a dangerous two-footed tackle. But two minutes from the end, Chelsea took the lead again. Michael Ballack, making his first appearance of the season, drove a good freekick into the bottom corner, giving Scott Carson no chance. But Villa did equalise in stoppage time. Ashley Cole blocked a shot on the goalline using his arm. The referee awarded a penalty and showed the Blues defender the red card. Villa captain Gareth Barry then slotted the penalty home to secure Villa a deserved point in a stunning match on Boxing Day. (Both predictions incorrect)

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 5 FULHAM 1
Spurs ran riot at White Hart Lane, with Robbie Keane and Tom Huddlestone both grabbing a brace, while substitute Jermaine Defoe grabbed the 5th in stoppage time. Clint Dempsey had earlier scored for Fulham to make it 1-2, but Fulham were porous in defence and Spurs swept to a huge victory to leave the Cottagers languishing in the bottom three and managerless. (1 prediction correct)

WEST HAM UNITED 1 READING 1
Reading looked to be in trouble after being reduced to 10 men before the 30th minute mark had passed. Gunnarsson launched in with a two-footed tackle and the referee promptly showed a straight red card. A yellow should have been better though, as he did get the ball. Then just before half-time, the hosts took the lead. Solano lifted the ball over onrushing Reading keeper Hahnemann to give the Hammers the lead. It didn't seem like Reading would be able to get back into the game, given that they were poor travellers. But they did grab an equaliser on the hour mark through Dave Kitson, then clung on for a point at Upton Park. (Both predictions correct)

BIRMINGHAM CITY 3 MIDDLESBROUGH 0
Boro, after two straight victories over Arsenal and Derby earlier this month, look like reverting to their old ways. An own-goal by Stewart Downing opened the scoring, they conceded a second from a set-piece through slack defending, and conceded a late penalty to make it 3-0 to Birmingham. It was a vital win for the Brums, as they are starting to pull away from the dropzone. (Both predictions incorrect)

DERBY COUNTY 1 LIVERPOOL 2
What should have been an easy game for Liverpool, the Reds won the match the hard way. Torres scored a superb solo effort after just 12 minutes and the Reds were cruising. Midway through the second half however, poor defending from a Derby free-kick allowed McEveley to grab a dream equaliser for Derby County. The Ram's hearts were broken right at the end however, as Steven Gerrard hammered in a close range winner for Liverpool to keep them in the top four positions. (1 prediction correct)

EVERTON 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 0
The Toffees bounced back from their defeat to Manchester United with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Bolton. The visitors had not won away from home this season, and were once again very poor as two second-half goals from Phil Neville and then Tim Cahill secured them three easy points to stay in a UEFA Cup spot. (1 prediction correct)

SUNDERLAND 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 4
The Red Devils trounced Roy Keane's Sunderland 4-0 without getting out of second gear. Rooney broke the offside trap to open the floodgates, Saha added a second with a deft finish, Ronaldo grabbed the third with a stunning free-kick, and Saha grabbed his second from the penalty spot after Nani was tripped in the box. For United, it was a victory that pushed them up to the summit of the table, for the Black Cats, it was a defeat that sent them second from bottom. (1 prediction correct)

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED 0
Boos rang from the away stand of the JJB Stadium after Newcastle crashed to a miserable 1-0 reverse against the struggling Latics. The Magpie's performance was uninspiring, the fans were frustrated and they eventually left the stadium with nothing. Wigan grabbed the winner midway through the second half, when a fantastic free-kick from Taylor drifted into the net to secure three points for the Latics, who are now out of the bottom three. (Both predictions incorrect)

PORTSMOUTH 0 ARSENAL 0
Pompey once again could only manage a 0-0 draw at home, their fifth in 6 home games. Not that they wouldn't mind this result today though, against the Gunners. Their defence was solid for much of the match, and indeed it was Pompey who had the best opportunity. Benjani rounded Arsenal goalkeeper Almunia but lost his footing, and the closest Gunners defender frantically blasted the ball away to safety. For the Gunners, the draw meant that they relinquished top spot to Manchester United, and they will need to improve quickly before their tricky tie to Goodison Park over the weekend. (1 prediction correct)

MANCHESTER CITY 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 2
City's 100% home win record in the league came to an end with a controversial 2-2 draw with Blackburn. The match sparked into life midway through the first half, with 3 goals in as many minutes from both teams. First, City opened the scoring in the 26th minute, Darius Vassell getting onto the scoresheet. Barely a minute after that, Roque Santa Cruz equalised with a powerful header. 60 seconds later, it was advantage to Man City again, when Blackburn skipper Ryan Nelsen headed the ball into his own net. The scoreline remained the same until the 82th minute. David Dunn was possibly offside when he headed across goal for Santa Cruz to equalise again for Blackburn. The linesman initially flagged offside, then changed his decision, and the referee awarded the goal for Santa Cruz's 7th goal in just four games. For Blackburn, the vital point ended a run of four defeats in a row. (Both predictions correct)

MY SCOREBOARD (Number of results correct, number of scorelines correct)
Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10
Round 6- 7/10, 2/10

Predictions Round 6

2007-12-26T14:21:00.000+08:00

Omg too rush >.< No pics for this one =x

CHELSEA 2 ASTON VILLA 0 (STAMFORD BRIDGE, LONDON)
The Blues have not lost at Stamford Bridge for a few years now in all competitions, and that looks set to continue against an off-form Villa side. The Villans have gone four matches without a win, including last weekend's 1-1 draw with City. Chelsea managed a forfuitous victory at Blackburn last weekend, but will be without 1st and 2nd choice goalkeepers Cech and Cudicini for this midweek clash. It will be up to their defenders to protect their 3rd-choice goalkeeper Hilario, who has had very little match time. The reverse fixture earlier this season saw Villa defeat the Blues by two goals, a result which, alongside Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Norwegian side Rosenborg in the Champions League, saw "The Special One" Jose Mourinho leave his post as Blues manager. Chelsea will not want a repeat of that result if they still want to have a say in the title race.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 FULHAM 0 (WHITE HART LANE, LONDON)
Spurs were unlucky not to leave Arsenal with a point last week. Their shaky defence has become more solid and steady under Juande Ramos, although the defence still has its occasional blips, like their 2-3 loss to Birmingham earlier this month. Goalkeeper Robinson is in flying form, keeping his side in a match with several flying saves. This is in stark contrast to months ago, when he was at fault for more than half of the goals Spurs leaked. Their counterparts today, Fulham, are in a wretched run of form. 5 matches without tasting victory saw manager Lawrie Sanchez sacked. They managed a 1-1 draw against Wigan last Saturday, but against their London rivals who have a point to prove, this will be yet another defeat for the Cottagers as they remain in relegation trouble.

WEST HAM UNITED 1 READING 1 (UPTON PARK, LONDON)
The Hammers have very erratic form. If one looks at their recent results, don't be too surprised to see "Win, Lose, Win, Win, Lose, Lose, Draw, Lose, Win" or something like that. Just when they are looking good, they can slip to a surprise defeat. Just when they look to be low on confidence, they can sneak a victory. Just look at the past weeks. Two defeats by Everton in the league and the League Cup quarterfinals, then a trip to in-form Middlesbrough, who had two straight wins. But West Ham won the match in stoppage time. This could yet be another off-day for the erratic Hammers, against poor travellers Reading, who have picked up just two away points this season. The Royals will be looking for points to stay away from relegation trouble.

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 (ST ANDREWS, BIRMINGHAM)
Both sides come into this fixture on the back of defeats. Birmingham were routed 0-3 by a revived Bolton side, while Boro crashed to a surprise 1-2 home reverse at the hands of West Ham. Boro were rather unlucky, conceding the winner in stoppage time. They will be going all out to grab victory against the Brums at St Andrews. The hosts badly need victory at home to inspire their fans, but they will probably be made to wait for it again, with Boro's Tuncay Sanli in formidable form. After a slow start to his career with Boro, he has scored thrice in four games, and will be counted on to deliver the goods for the visitors today.

DERBY COUNTY 0 LIVERPOOL 3 (PRIDE PARK, DERBY)
Derby put up their best performance of the season in the 2-2 draw with Newcastle United at their own backyard. This was their first away point of the season. However, it will be back to a crushing defeat against the Reds, whose solid defence are a far cry from the Magpie's. With striker Fernando Torres supplying the goods, there is simply no way for the Rams to get anything out of this match.

EVERTON 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (GOODISON PARK, LIVERPOOL)
Everton were on a formidable 13-match unbeaten run, but that run was ended by champions Manchester United at Old Trafford last Sunday. Still, manager David Moyes will be happy about his side's performance as they came so close to grabbing a point. Bolton are having a good run of form, but against the Toffees who are looking to bounce back before their crunch tie against Arsenal, Everton should edge this.

SUNDERLAND 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 2 (STADIUM OF LIGHT, NEWCASTLE)
Two dubious refereeing decisions cost the Black Cats a total of 3 points from 2 matches. The 3 points would have pushed them away from the dreaded dropzone. However, as it stands, Sunderland sit in the bottom three, and ex-United captain and current Sunderland manager will hardly relish this fixture against his previous bosses. Sunderland have shown dogged determination and spirit this season, but United, based on current form, should still edge this one.

WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 (JJB STADIUM, WIGAN)
Wigan managed a draw away to Fulham on Saturday, while their visitors today, Newcastle, managed a lucky 2-2 draw at home to Derby. Both sides are unable to keep clean sheets and with neither able to piece together a run of wins, this looks to be a drab draw at the JJB Stadium.

PORTSMOUTH 1 ARSENAL 1 (FRATTON PARK, PORTSMOUTH)
A potential banana-skin for the Gunners. Portsmouth have not scored at home since the amazing 7-4 victory over Reading. However, their counterparts do not have the best defence, having kept only around 5 clean sheets so far in the league. Pompey's African attacking players should finally break their goal-scoring woes at home. For Arsenal, the fixture the fixture list will take its toll, and Pompey could profit from that.

MANCHESTER CITY 2 BLACKBURN ROVERS 2 (CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM, MANCHESTER)
This is a surprising prediction from me, given that City have a 100% win record at home in the league, while Blackburn have lost 4 straight games. However, City have not always been convincing despite their results, while Blackburn have put up many spirited displays and were often unlucky not to get some points. City's home record is something to be proud of, but it is worth mentioning that the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool have not visited them yet, while their 1-0 victory over Manchester United was very lucky and came when the Red Devils were off-form due to off-season commitments. Over the second half of the season, expect City's record to be shattered.

Results Round 5.

2007-12-24T15:58:00.000+08:00

(I won't use pics for this, too troublesome =x)

ARSENAL 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
Spurs had a decent game and were unfortunate not to at least get a point. Robbie Keane's missed penalty proved decisive, as just minutes later, the Gunners grabbed a winner. Spurs responded admirably well after Arsenal had scored the opener minutes into the second 45 minutes, with Berbatov scoring a scorcher from an acute angle to level the scores. Spurs had a justified claim for a second penalty, but the referee decided not to award it, and the Gunners, rather fortunately, hold on for three points. (1 prediction correct)

ASTON VILLA 1 MANCHESTER CITY 1
Villa were once again left frustrated as they failed to win again. Bianchi scored the opener for City with just 10 minutes on the clock, but within 4 minutes Villa were level, as Carew used his body strength to hold off the defenders before toe-poking the ball past the keeper into the net. After that, Villa had several chances to score a winner, but they failed to take their chances, and in the end the match ended 1-1. (Both predictions incorrect)

BOLTON WANDERERS 3 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0
Bolton continued their revival under new manager Gary Megson, scoring three late goals to rout the visitors. Birmingham lost their concentration to allow Diouf and Anelka (twice) to score in the last 12 minutes and secure three vital points for Bolton. The result moves them up to 13th place and away from the dropzone. It is starting to look like they will not be in the bottom three of the league table come the end of the season. (1 prediction correct)

FULHAM 1 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1
The battle of the strugglers, a draw didn't really do neither team much good. A point apiece meant that Fulham remained 17th, away from the dropzone on goal difference, while Wigan remained in the bottom three, a point from safety. Wigan took the lead on the 70th minute, Marcus Bent scoring for the visitors. However, Clint Dempsey crucially scored the equalised eight minutes later to ensure that the manager-less Cottagers grabbed a point. For Wigan, they are slowly but steadily moving towards the right direction. (Both predictions correct)

LIVERPOOL 4 PORTSMOUTH 1
A slightly flattered scoreline, the Reds went 2-0 up after just 16 minutes, via a goal from Benayoun, and an own goal by Distin, when the ball very unluckily bounced off his knee into his own net, with the goalie stranded. Pompey regrouped after the break and managed to grab a goal through Benjani, resulting in much pressure from the visitors. However, on the 66th minute, the match was over as a contest. A neat throughball found Babel, but Pompey goalkeeper James rushed out to bundle the ball away from him. Unfortunately, the ball fell straight to Torres, who clinically finished to make it 3-1. Torres then scored his second goal of the match 15 minutes later to ensure that the Reds do not lose further ground on the top two. (1 prediction correct)

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 WEST HAM UNITED 2
Boro were rather unfortunate not to get a point here, as a dramatic stoppage-time winner from Scott Parker condemned the hosts to their first defeat in three games. The hosts had taken the lead through Wheater, but four minutes later Dean Ashton levelled the scores for the Hammers. It looked as if the match would end 1-1, until Parker's intervention ensured West Ham left the Riverside Stadium with three points in the bag. (Both predictions incorrect)

READING 2 SUNDERLAND 1
The curse of the "stoppage-time winner" struck the Black Cats again. Last week, they were unfairly denied a winner in injury time by the referee. This time, they conceded a goal in stoppage time, which meant they left the Madejski Stadium with nothing to show for their efforts. An 82nd minute penalty from Chopra seemed to have secured a hard-fought point for the Black Cats, but in injury time, the linesmen ruled that Hunt's shot had already crossed the goalline before the goalkeeper parried it away. Television replays suggested that it was correct, as the ball had just barely crossed the line before Craig Cordon pushed it away. Reading grab three points. (1 prediction correct)

MANCHESTER UNITED 2 EVERTON 1
A hard-fought win for the Red Devils, which in truth, never looked like coming. A moment of magic from Ronaldo saw him curl a stunning finish past Everton goalie Howard to give the hosts the lead. However, just five minutes later, the Toffees were on level terms. Pienaar took advantage of United's shaky right-flank defence to curl a cross into the penalty box. Tim Cahill then leapt highest to head the ball past stand-in goalkeeper Kuszczak (SP) into the net. Superb defending by the visitors kept the scoreline at one goal apiece, and it looked like they would cling on for a point. Until a moment of madness from Pienaar. Barely three minutes from time, Giggs made a surge into the penalty box. Pienaar however stuck a leg out and tripped him, and the referee had no choice but to point to the penalty spot. Ronaldo stepped up and coolly sent the Everton goalie the wrong way to earn United all three points with his 16th goal of the season, 11 in the league. This means that he is now topscorer in the Premier League. (1 prediction correct)

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 DERBY COUNTY 2
The "Toon Army" were very nearly embarassed by bottom-of-the-table Derby County. Derby arguably put up their best performance of the season, taking the lead twice, and taking the game to their opponents. They were unfortunate not to get all three points, though. In the 86th minute, a defensive error in the Rams backline allowed Mark Viduka to lash home his second equaliser of the match and rescue a point for the Magpies. Newcastle looked shaky throughout the match and were lucky to rescue a point. Their performance was nothing great, as shown by the boos which rang in St James Park after the final whistle had been blown. (Both predictions incorrect)

BLACKBURN ROVERS 0 CHELSEA 1
The Blues were very fortunate to get all three points from this match, but their hard-earned victory was marred by an injury to goalie Petr Cech. He collided with Roque Santa Cruz in the second half, picked up an injury, and was replaced by Chelsea's third-choice goalkeeper, Hilario. He looked shaky during crosses and corners, but produced an excellent save to keep Santa Cruz's solid header away from the back of the net. Throughout the entire second half, Blackburn pushed on for an equaliser after Joe Cole's opener in the first half. They were unlucky not to get a point, as brave defending and solid goalkeeping ensured Chelsea grab three points to stay in the title race. (Both predictions incorrect)

Scoreboard (Number of results correct, number of scorelines correct)
Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10
Round 5- 6/10, 1/10

Others:
SPAIN-"El Classico"
FC BARCELONA 0 REAL MADRID CF 1

ITALY-The Milan Derby
INTER MILAN 2 AC MILAN 1

FRANCE-TOP OF THE TABLE CLASH
AS NANCY 1 OLYMPIQUE LYON 1

Predictions Round 5.

2007-12-19T13:55:00.000+08:00

ARSENAL V TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR [DERBY MATCH]
PREDICTION: 3-1 (EMIRATES STADIUM, LONDON)
A fiery London derby between the Gunners and Spurs. Spurs were poor travellers, but two wins on the trot away from home, against Portsmouth and Man City (in the League Cup) will have bolstered their confidence. However, they will find the Emirates Stadium crowd intimidating, and the league-leaders should win this one comfortably.

ASTON VILLA V MANCHESTER CITY
Prediction: 2-1 (VILLA PARK, BIRMINGHAM)
City are reeling from a League Cup quarterfinal exit at the hands of Spurs. Villa themselves are not in great form, but against City who are mediocre travellers, they should see this as an opportunity to get three points and establish themselves as a top-half-of-the-table side. Villa should be able to nick all three points narrowly.

BOLTON WANDERERS V BIRMINGHAM CITY (REEBOK STADIUM, BOLTON)
Prediction: 2-1
Both sides are experiencing revivals under their new managers. However, Bolton have been far more impressive, their performances belying their lowly BPL league position. They should be able to continue their impressive run of form against fellow strugglers Birmingham, who are finding it difficult to pick up points on the road. They are also struggling to keep clean sheets and can't defend setpieces properly, which is Bolton's specialty. That could work in the host's favour.

FULHAM VS WIGAN ATHLETIC (CRAVEN COTTAGE, LONDON)

Prediction: 1-1

Fulham are the draw specialists of the Premier League, and their inability to convert draws into wins has left them languishing in the dropzone. They have just sacked manager Lawrie Sanchez following a poor run of form, and confidence in the team may be low. Against the Latics who stunned Blackburn 5-3 at home, Fulham should just about manage to scrape a point from this. This could be a drab and boring game of football.

LIVERPOOL VS PORTSMOUTH (ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL)

Prediction: 2-1

Both sides are struggling for form at the moment, Liverpool having collapsed to two straight defeats in the League against Reading and Manchester United, while being knocked out of the League Cup by Chelsea. Against Pompey who suffered a dismal 0-1 defeat at home to Spurs, the Reds may just feel the urgency to lift their game and grab three points to stay in the title race.

MIDDLESBROUGH VS WEST HAM UNITED (RIVERSIDE STADIUM, MIDDLESBROUGH)

Prediction: 2-2

Boro are in good form at the moment, with two straight wins against Arsenal and Derby propelling themselves up the table. However, an erratic West Ham United side are always a good side on their day, and you never know, this could be one of their good days. They probably have enough to snatch a point from The Riverside, and end their wretched run of form.

READING VS SUNDERLAND (MADEJSKI STADIUM, READING)

Prediction: 2-0

Reading are a decent side at home, having picked up five wins and three defeats, two of those defeats by Arsenal and Chelsea. In contrast, Sunderland are a poor team on the road, having failed to pick up maximum points from any of their away games. They shouldn't pose too much threat to an up-and-down Reading side. This should be yet another away defeat for the Black Cats.

MANCHESTER UNITED VS EVERTON (OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER)

Prediction: 3-0

United are one of the most potent attacking sides in European football, and domestically they have the best defence as well. Everton are in great form at the moment, unbeaten in 13 games in all competitions, winning 11 of those matches. They should be able to hold off the Red Devil's wave of attacks for some time, but once the first goal is scored, the floodgates will open. The hosts should win this easily if they grab an early goal.

NEWCASTLE UNITED VS DERBY COUNTY
PREDICTION: 3-0 (ST JAMES PARK, NEWCASTLE)

Newcastle are having a decent run of form, moving into the top half of the table. In contrast, hapless Derby County look set to drop back to the Championship after this season. Derby may have shocked the Magpies 1-0 at Pride Park earlier this season, but the "Toon Army" will be out for revenge and the Rams will have to prepare for another thrashing.

BLACKBURN ROVERS VS CHELSEA

Prediction: 1-1 (EWOOD PARK, BLACKBURN)

Blackburn Rovers are in poor form at the moment, and their blazing start to the season forgotten. They are no longer the same side that was so tough to beat earlier on. However, against a Blues side whose attack have been severely blunted by the loss of Drogba and Shevchenko to injuries, the hosts could manage a point from this match as long as they cramp the midfield area and prevent the Blues from taking a foothold in the match.

Others:UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW (ROUND OF 16)

(SCO) FC CELTIC VS FC BARCELONA (ESP)

(FRA) OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS VS MANCHESTER UNITED FC (ENG)

(GER) FC SCHALKE 04 VS FC PORTO (POR)

(ENG) LIVERPOOL FC VS FC INTERNAZIONALE DE MILANO (ITA)

(ITA) AS ROMA VS REAL MADRID CF (ESP)

(ENG) ARSENAL VS AC MILAN (ITA)

(GRE) OLYMPIACOS VS CHELSEA FC (ENG)

(TUR) FENERBAHCE VS SEVILLA FC (ESP)

Testing logos.

2007-12-18T20:56:00.001+08:00

Blockbuster Sunday Results

2007-12-17T22:50:00.000+08:00

Hie, instead of points for each correct prediction, I'll just use "x/10", because the point system is..... ineffective.

RESULTS

BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 READING 1
Reading, poor travellers of the league, picked up just their second away point of the season at St Andrews. They went a goal down after just four minutes, but in the 51st minute, they were awarded a penalty, and Stephen Hunt made no mistake from the penalty spot, converting his second penalty in as many games to rescue an important away point for the Royals. (Both predictions incorrect)

DERBY COUNTY 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 1
An important relegation battle, Derby desperately needed to win this match. While they were reeling from a 1-4 defeat at Old Trafford, Boro had a morale-boosting 2-1 victory over Arsenal. Derby however continued their poor form both home and away, when they conceded the winner in the 38th minute, Tuncay Sanli placing his shot into the back of the net from close range. Middlesbrough pick up three important away points, and their second successive victory to pull them away from relegation trouble. For Derby, they are now three victories adrift of safety, and look a good bet to drop back to Championship football come next May. (Both predictions correct)

MANCHESTER CITY 4 BOLTON WANDERERS 2
A rather lop-sided scoreline, the match was anything but lop-sided. Bolton fought back from Bianchi's early opener, scoring twice before the break to amazingly go 2-1 up. City fought back after half-time, getting an equaliser after just three minutes into the second half. Darius Vassell secured victory late on, before City grabbed a fourth in stoppage time. Bolton manager Gary Megson will be pleased with his side's display, despite getting nothing from the game eventually. (1 prediction correct)

PORTSMOUTH 0 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
A match which changed many statistics. Portsmouth's first home defeat in the league this season. Spur's first away win in the league this season. Spur's first away clean sheet this season. Portsmouth's 11-match unbeaten run ended abruptly. A strangely lacklustre Pompey side were bossed around by the visitors, with the visitors finally grabbing a late winner through Dimitar Berbatov. It was a match that many, including me, expected Pompey to win. Spurs, perennial underachievers, somehow get three points from an away match for the first time this season. (Both predictions incorrect)

SUNDERLAND 1 ASTON VILLA 1
The Black Cats came into the match in the relegation zone and needed a response. They got a response, Higginbotham opening the scoring for the hosts after just 10 minutes. Maloney equalised in the second half through an excellent free kick, but Sunderland should have grabbed all three points in stoppage time. From a Sunderland corner, the ball was bundled into the back of net, but the referee controversially ruled that Villa goalkeeper Scott Carson was fouled and disallowed the goal. That decision could be a decisive moment in Sunderland's season, as they need to get as many points as possible at home to avoid a relegation battle. (Both predictions correct)

WEST HAM UNITED 0 EVERTON 2
Just three day's after these two sides clashed in the League Cup quarterfinal, West Ham had a chance to avenge the 1-2 defeat, at home also. But it was not to be. On the stroke of half-time, Everton's Yakubu scored, returning to haunt the Hammers. He had scored the winning goal three days earlier. Late in the second half, nearly into stoppage time, the hosts were committing men forward for an equaliser. This meant that they were exposed to counter-attacks, and on one such occasion, was punished. After the Toffees regained possession in their own half. A long punt forward was met by Etherington, but he headed the ball straight into Johnson's path. He made no mistake with the chance, lobbing the ball over the onrushing keeper into the empty net for Everton's second, and three points. (Both predictions incorrect)

WIGAN ATHLETIC 5 BLACKBURN ROVERS 3
An amazing match at the JJB Stadium. Eight goals, a red card, a missed penalty, controversial decisions, two hat-tricks from Marcus Bent for Wigan, and Roque Santa Cruz for Blackburn. What more do you expect from a game of football? Wigan put up their best first-half performance in months, racing to a 3-0 lead after 37 minutes. Santa Cruz then scored with a crisp volley minutes into stoppage time to pull a goal back for Blackburn. 3-1 at half-time, then in the second half, Santa Cruz scored again to make it 2-3, and give Blackburn a realistic chance of equalising. Then on the hour mark, Blackburn defender Emerton was sent off after receiving his second yellow card, making Blackburn's mission near impossible. But they achieved the impossible, Santa Cruz with an excellent header to make it 3-3, and complete his hat-trick. There were doubts over who should receive the matchball however, after Marcus Bent completed his own hat-trick with goals in the 66th and 81st minute to seal an exciting victory for Wigan, their first in quite a while. (Both predictions incorrect)

FULHAM 0 NEWCASTLE UNITED 1
A drab, boring game of football, neither side looked inspired and there were few chances. The crowd had nothing to cheer about, with both sides looking lacklustre. But somehow, a goalless stalemate was avoided. Newcastle's Alan Smith was brought down in the penalty box in stoppage time, and a penalty was awarded, much to the dismay of the home fans, who have already seen their side throw away points late on in a match many times this season. Joey Barton stepped up to score his first goal in Newcastle colors, condemning Fulham to yet another defeat. The defeat means that the Cottagers drop into the bottom three, while Newcastle move into the top half of the table. (1 prediction correct)

BLOCKBUSTER SUNDAY RESULTS

LIVERPOOL 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 1
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez had not tasted victory over Manchester United in the league since he took over as manager of the Reds. He was made to wait longer, as United continue an impressive record of not losing at Anfield in the league since 2001. The Reds, backed by a ferocious Anfield capacity crowd, dominated possession and the match but failed to carve out clear-cut openings. In contrast, United looked dangerous whenever they attacked. On one such occasion, the Reds were left stunned. Owen Hargreaves's shot was deflected out for a United corner, two minutes before half-time. With Rooney left unmarked outside the box as the Red Devils prepared to take the corner, a short corner was passed to him. His shot was always swerving wide, but midway through it was met by an unmarked Tevez, who clipped the ball into the roof of the net. Replays showed that he was not offside either, as Yossi Benayoun had not moved away from his goalline position. Liverpool completely dominated the second-half but lacked cutting edge. The closest they went to grabbing an equaliser was when substitute Babel's long range shot flashed wide of the target. Yet for all of the host's pressure, they could have and should have conceded a second goal on 78 minutes. A quick breakaway saw Ronaldo chip a beautiful cross to an unmarked Rooney at the far post. Ten yards out with only Reina to beat, the England striker somehow dragged his shot wide, much to the jeers, and relief, of the Anfield-faithful. Liverpool's last chance came in stoppage time. Vidic pulled down Crouch just outside the box for a Liverpool free kick. But Reds skipper Steven Gerrard could only swerve the free-kick just over the bar. Manchester United once again hold on for a vital three points. Woo! (Now I can laugh at YF!) (Both predictions incorrect)

ARSENAL 1 CHELSEA 0
A fiery London and top-of-the-table derby match. Ashley Cole's first return to the Gunners since he moved to Chelsea was met by huge roars of boos and jeers whenever he touched the ball. Midway through the first 45 minutes, a mini brawl ensued when Chelsea and England captain Terry chopped down Arsenal's influential playmaker, Cesc Fabregas. The referee quickly kept the players in check, and booked Terry and Lampard for their troubles. Later on, Terry was caught by a stray foot from Emmanuel Eboue, and was substituted with suspected ligament damage. Arsenal did take the lead at the stroke of half-time though. A corner from Fabregas should have been a formality for Chelsea goalie Petr Cech to collect. However, the keeper, rated as one of the world's best, made an uncharacteristic error, missing the ball completely, allowing Arsenal skipper and former Blues player Gallas to nod the ball into an empty net. Chelsea played with more attacking purpose in the second half. Mikel and Shevchenko both had long-range efforts well saved by Arsenal goalie Almunia, but it was the Gunners who looked more likely to score on the counterattack. They twice put the ball into the back of the net from a swift counter-attack, but both goals were disallowed, for offside and a foul in the build-up respectively. Shevchenko then had a swerving free-kick punched away by Almunia, before Petr Cech pulled off two consecutive stunning saves to keep Chelsea in the game. First, he blocked a shot from six yards out, then blocked Fabregas's rebound as well. In between that, Joe Cole hacked down Emmanuel Eboue, and received a yellow card. Eboue was also stretchered off the pitch. A brawl then ensued in the fifth minute of stoppage time, as Ashley Cole let his frustrations get the better of him. Fabregas chopped down his former teammate in Chelsea's penalty box, with a tackle that should have deserved a red card. Cole's retaliation also should have deserved a red card, as he slapped Fabregas in the face. Amidst the chaos, the referee blew the final whistle and booked the Arsenal playmaker for his tackle, but the Chelsea defender got away with his retaliation. All in all, an amazing 10 yellow cards, five for each side, but the Gunners get the three points to return to the top of the Premier League. Not for long, Gooners! (Both predictions incorrect)

Scoreboard (Number of results correct, number of scorelines correct)
Round 1- 8/10, 2/10
Round 2- 5/10, 2/10
Round 3- 4/10, 0/10
Round 4- 4/10, 2/10

UCL Matchday 6 Results

2007-12-15T21:59:00.000+08:00

MATCHDAY 6

GROUP A
FC PORTO 2 BESIKTAS JK 0
OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE 0 LIVERPOOL FC 4
(PORTO, LIVERPOOL QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP B
CHELSEA FC 0 VALENCIA CF 0
FC SCHALKE 04 3 ROSENBORG SK 0
(CHELSEA, SCHALKE QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP C
REAL MADRID CF 3 S.S. LAZIO 1
CFP OLYMPIACOS 3 SV WERDER BREMEN 0
(REAL, OLYMPIACOS QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP D
AC MILAN 1 GLASGOW CELTIC 0
SHAKTAR DONETSK 1 SL BENFICA 2
(MILAN, CELTIC QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP E
GLASGOW RANGERS 0 OLYMPIQUE DE LYONNAIS 3
FC BARCELONA 3 VFB STUTTGART 1
(BARCA, LYON QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP F
AS ROMA 1 MANCHESTER UNITED FC 1
SPORTING CLUB DE PORTUGAL 3 FC DINAMO KYIV 0
(MAN UTD, ROMA QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP G
PSV EINDHOVEN 0 INTERNAZIONALE DE MILANO 1
FENERBAHCE 3 CSKA MOSKVA 1
(INTER, FENERBAHCE QUALITY FOR NEXT ROUND)

GROUP H
ARSENAL FC 2 STEAUA BUCARESTI 1
SK SLAVIA PRAHA 0 SEVILLA FC 3
(SEVILLA, ARSENAL QUALIFY FOR NEXT ROUND)

Groupwinners: Porto, Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Barcelona, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Sevilla

Group runners-up: Liverpool, Schalke 04, Olympiacos, Celtic, Lyon, AS Roma, Fenerbahce, Arsenal

UEFA Cup place: Marseille, Rosenborg, Werder Bremen, Benfica, Rangers, Sporting Lisbon, PSV Eindhoven, Slavia Prague

Predictions Round 4

2007-12-14T17:47:00.000+08:00

Its Blockbuster Sunday!

Fixtures

BIRMINGHAM CITY V READING (ST ANDREWS, BIRMINGHAM)

DERBY COUNTY V MIDDLESBROUGH (PRIDE PARK, DERBY)

MANCHESTER CITY V BOLTON WANDERERS (CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM, MANCHESTER)

PORTSMOUTH V TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR (FRATTON PARK, PORTSMOUTH)

SUNDERLAND V ASTON VILLA (STADIUM OF LIGHT, NEWCASTLE)

WEST HAM UNITED V EVERTON (UPTON PARK, LONDON)

WIGAN ATHLETIC V BLACKBURN ROVERS (JJB STADIUM, WIGAN)

FULHAM V NEWCASTLE UNITED (CRAVEN COTTAGE, LONDON)

LIVERPOOL V MANCHESTER UNITED (ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL)

ARSENAL V CHELSEA (EMIRATES STADIUM, LONDON)

Predictions

BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 READING 1
Birmingham were unlucky not to get a point away from St James Park against Newcastle. Reading are on a high after a 3-1 victory over Liverpool, but they are poor travellers. Against Birmingham who are slowly rising up the table under new manager Alex McLeish, the hosts should be able to get three points.

DERBY COUNTY 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 1
Derby remain rooted to the bottom of the table. Against fellow relegation strugglers Boro, this will be a important match for both teams. For Derby, a win will still leave them stuck in the bottom three. For Boro, a win pushes them up the table significantly, away from the dropzone. Given Boro's confidence-boosting win over Arsenal, they should get all three points against a perilous Derby side that just can't score.

MANCHESTER CITY 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 1
City have a 100% win record at home this season, but they are not exactly clean-sheet specialists either. Against a rejuvenated Bolton side fresh from a 4-1 thrashing of fellow strugglers Wigan, City should still edge it, but expect Bolton to push City to the limit.

PORTSMOUTH 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1
Portsmouth have had four 0-0 draws in their last five home games. Their run of goalless draws at home should end against Spurs, who are poor travellers, and have a notoriously poor record of keeping clean sheets, conceding goals whereever they go, including several really laughable ones. Spurs with their prolific strikers should at least get a goal, but Pompey will continue their unbeaten run at home.

SUNDERLAND 1 ASTON VILLA 1
Sunderland, defeated by Chelsea 0-2 in their last Premier League match, are steadily slipping towards the relegation zone. Roy Keane will no doubt give his players a big wake-up call. Against Villa who succumbed to two consecutive home defeats previously, Sunderland may see this as an opportunity to get important points on the board.

WEST HAM UNITED 1 EVERTON 1
These two sides just met three days earlier, when Everton beat West Ham 2-1, also at Upton Park, to reach the semifinals of the League Cup. The sides were evenly matched until Yakubu's late winner, and the same scenario should happen in this Premier League encounter.
WIGAN ATHLETIC 1 BLACKBURN ROVERS 3
Wigan hit a new low after a crushing 1-4 defeat to fellow relegation strugglers Bolton. Against a Blackburn side looking to get back to winning ways, they probably shall be spared no mercy and remain stuck in the bottom three. Roque Santa Cruz will want to prove himself if he starts the match, as he missed several golden chances to score during Blackburn's 0-1 home defeat against West Ham. Blackburn should be able to nick three points easily.

FULHAM 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED 2
Newcastle are slowly moving in the right direction. A creditable 1-1 draw with Arsenal was followed by a last-minute 2-1 win over Birmingham City. As they start getting points on the board, the Magpies will grow in confidence. Against Fulham, who are notoriously known for collapsing in the second half after a splendid first half performance, the visitors could fancy their chances, as Fulham also have one of the worst defensive records in the league so far.

LIVERPOOL 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 1

On current form, both sides look very hard to beat. Liverpool have not managed a win against the Red Devils in the league for over six years, and last season was the same. Liverpool dominated the match from the first minute, United's Paul Scholes got himself sent off, and United were desperately clinging on for a draw. Until John O'Shea scored a 91st minute winner. That result proved a catlyst for the Red Devils to clinch the EPL title for the first time in four years. Similarly, a result for either Liverpool or Manchester United here will do them a world of good for the race to the title. A victory would be morale-boosting, confidence-boosting and table position-boosting. Neither side want to lose this, expect a rather tight game. The most likely outcome is a draw.

ARSENAL 1 CHELSEA 1

A fiery London derby, a fiery top-of-the-table clash, beautiful, exciting football, aka joga bonito, what more do you expect from a fixture? Arsenal's steamroll to pole position in the league thus far took a huge blow at Tyneside and Teeside last week. Held by a 1-1 draw by struggling Newcastle United, they were defeated 1-2 by Middlesbrough, who are still in relegation trouble. 5 dropped points meant that their potential six-point gap over 2nd placed Manchester United was cut to just one point. Should they lose this game, they will certainly surrender top spot. The scoreline probably would be lesser than Arsenal's 2-2 draw with United at the Emirates Stadium earlier this season, as both side's key attacking players are either injured or facing fitness doubts. Arsenal's Francesc Fabregas, the team's key playmaker, has not fully recovered from injury. Robin van Persie has only just returned to the starting line-up and may not be fully sharp. Chelsea hitman Didier Drogba has just had surgery on his knee, which means he will miss the match. His physical presence will be missed, and Chelsea have struggled to score goals without him. Of the Blue's other strikers, none seem good enough a replacement for him. Kalou is more of a supporting striker than a targetman, often supplying the final pass for his strike partner. Shevchenko still hasn't settled in the Chelsea jersey, scoring a paltry two league goals this season. Pizarro is not exactly renowned for being a world-class finisher. This should end as a draw too.

Predictions Round 3

2007-12-11T20:53:00.000+08:00

Speaking of pathetic... >.<

RESULTS

ASTON VILLA 1 PORTSMOUTH 3
Villa dominated huge parts of the match, but what made the difference between the two sides was that while Villa were wasteful infront of goal, Pompey took their chances well. With Villa 0-3 down, captain Barry scored a late penalty which sparked a late revival, but they could not break down a determined Portsmouth defence. Easy win for the south coast side. (0 POINTS)

CHELSEA 2 SUNDERLAND 0
What should have been a pretty routine win for the Blues, they were made to work hard for the victory. Sunderland never really threatened infront of goal, but Chelsea failed to kill to game off until the last 15 minutes, when Lampard slotted a late penalty to secure three points for Chelsea. As a bonus, Shevchenko scored, for once!!! The Black Cats had midfielder Liam Miller sent off for retaliation against Pizarro, but the referee failed to see that the Peruvian striker had kneed the Sunderland midfielder first. Chelsea were probably lucky not to end the match with 10 men. (3 POINTS)

EVERTON 3 FULHAM 0
A second-half hat trick by Yakubu proved enough for Everton to grab three points comfortably. The match was goalless at half-time, but Everton upped the tempo in the second half, and Fulham once again throw away points after half-time. Everton look set to continue their red-hot form. (3 POINTS)

MANCHESTER UNITED 4 DERBY COUNTY 1
In precarious conditions, the Red Devils took until five minutes before halftime to break down the Ram's defence. Cristiano Ronaldo saw his goalbound shot parried away by the Derby keeper Bywater, but Giggs was on hand to tap in the ball into goal, for his 100th league goal for United. Tevez then scored either side of half-time to put the Red Devils comfortably 3-0 up, but a moment of madness by United custodian van der Sar saw him rush off his goal line when he didn't need to, and Derby pulled one back, for, amazingly, their first away goal of the season. After like... 8 matches! Amazing. Ronaldo then scored a penalty in stoppage time to make it 4-1. The scoreline was familiar yet unfamiliar to Derby. Familiar cause they conceded four again, unfamiliar cause they finally had a player on the scoresheet. (3 POINTS)

NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
The Magpies fought back from a goal down early in the first half to win the match. After Jerome had given Birmingham an unlikely lead, Newcastle equalised late in the first half through a Martins penalty kick, before Beye scored his first goal for Newcastle in the 92nd minute (aka stoppage time!) to win the match dramatically for the hosts. It was a much needed win for Newcastle, as it was their first win in nearly 10 matches. (0 POINTS)

READING 3 LIVERPOOL 1
Probably one of the shock results of the season, with a huge whiff of controversy about it. This is Reading's first ever win over England's traditional "Big Four Clubs" of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United. Reading opened the scoring controversially. Carragher was judged to have brought down the Reading player inside the box, but video replays showed that the initial contact took place outside the box. Stephen Hunt stepped up to score from the spot and give Reading the lead. Reds skipper Gerrard equalised for Liverpool after a pass from Torres put him through on goal with only the goalkeeper to beat, and he made no mistake from 12 yards. After that, Liverpool had a few seemingly-good penalty calls rejected by the referee, before Doyle put the Royals back infront via a free-kick. Harper then wrapped things up, as a swift counter-attacking move put him through on goal, and he rounded keeper Jose Reina before putting the ball into the empty net. Great three points for Reading. (0 POINTS)

MIDDLESBROUGH 2 ARSENAL 1
Another shock result, as Arsenal's unbeaten season in the league came to an end as well. Stewart Downing gave Boro the lead from the spot after just three minutes. Tuncay Sanli scored for the second match in a row to put the hosts 2-0 up. A goal from Rosicky four minutes into stoppage time was nothing but a consolation for the Gunners as they dropped points for the second consecutive game. (0 POINTS)

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 MANCHESTER CITY 1
Supersub Defoe came off the bench to score the winner for Spurs eight minutes from time, just one minute after City had midfielder Ireland sent off for a reckless challenge on Lee Young Pyo. Before that, Pascal Chimbonda controversially scored the opener before half-time when he got a touch on a free-kick to nudge the ball into the net, though video replays suggested that he was offside, and there was a suspicion of handball as well. City equalised in the second half via half-time substitute Bianchi before Defoe's winner. (3 POINTS)

BOLTON WANDERERS 4 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1
The battle of the cellar-dwellers saw in-form Bolton rip Wigan apart with four goals. Scharner scored an own-goal after just three minutes, before Wigan managed to find an equaliser. Anelka then missed from the penalty spot. He made up for the miss though with a goal, after Nolan and Davies to give Bolton a comfortable victory that lifted them away from the relegation zone. (0 POINTS)

BLACKBURN ROVERS 0 WEST HAM UNITED 1
A boring first-half was goalless. A intriguing second half saw just one goal. Half-time sub Dean Ashton scored to give the Hammers the lead seven minutes after the restart, and Blackburn were unable to haul themselves level, with Paraguayan striker Santa Cruz being especially wasteful with two glaring misses. After a 3-1 comeback victory against Newcastle, Blackburn succumbed to yet another defeat at home, a factor that could decide which clubs get a UEFA Cup spot come next May. (0 POINTS)

TOTAL:12 POINTS
CORRECT RESULTS:4
CORRECT SCORELINES:0
*too ashamed*

Predictions 3rd Round (: And others

2007-12-06T15:34:00.001+08:00

3rd round of Predictions!! haxx0rz

FIXTURES
ASTON VILLA V PORTSMOUTH (VILLA PARK, BIRMINGHAM)
CHELSEA V SUNDERLAND (STAMFORD BRIDGE, LONDON)
EVERTON V FULHAM (GOODISON PARK, LIVERPOOL)
MANCHESTER UNITED V DERBY COUNTY (OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER)
NEWCASTLE UNITED V BIRMINGHAM CITY (ST JAMES PARK, NEWCASTLE)
READING V LIVERPOOL (MADEJSKI STADIUM, READING)
MIDDLESBROUGH V ARSENAL (THE RIVERSIDE STADIUM, NEWCASTLE)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR V MANCHESTER CITY (WHITE HART LANE, LONDON)
BOLTON WANDERERS V WIGAN ATHLETIC (REEBOK STADIUM, BOLTON)
BLACKBURN ROVERS V WEST HAM UNITED (EWOOD PARK, BLACKBURN)

PREDICTIONS!!!111ONEONEONEoneoneone

ASTON VILLA 2 PORTSMOUTH 1
Villa are in good form, with 4 wins in their last 5 games. Against a Pompey side whose strikers have suddenly gone cold, Villa will see this as a good chance to push themselves further up the table.

CHELSEA 3 SUNDERLAND 1
Chelsea have strung together a long unbeaten run, while Sunderland just halted a 8-game winless run with a win over Derby. Still, Chelsea will be too good for the Black Cats, and will comfortably grab all 3 points to keep up the pressure on Arsenal.

EVERTON 2 FULHAM 0
Everton are in stunning form at the moment, being undefeated in 8 matches. Meanwhile, Fulham are probably the worst travellers in the league, with no wins in their last 23 away games, stretching back to last season. Everton will see this as a good opportunity for 3 points.

MANCHESTER UNITED 4 DERBY COUNTY 0
A United side with Ronaldo on fire and Rooney back from injury, both looking for goals. This can only spell trouble for bottom-of-the-table Derby, who have not scored since a stunning 1-0 win over Newcastle. Mauled 0-5 by West Ham, 0-5 by Arsenal, 0-6 by Liverpool and 0-4 by Spurs, another thrashing is in the house for the hapless Rams.

NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1
Newcastle ended a dismal losing streak with a 1-1 draw at home against leaders Arsenal. Alex McLeish meanwhile had a dream start as Birmingham manager with a 3-2 win at Spurs. With both sides looking to string together a run to push themselves up the table, expect a draw.

READING 1 LIVERPOOL 2
Reading are decent at home, but against the Reds who are in superb form, they will find it difficult to get anything out of the match. Torres scored a hat trick here in the League Cup earlier this season, and would love to have a repeat. Liverpool to win.

MIDDLESBROUGH 1 ARSENAL 2
Boro are in poor form at the moment, home and away. Against an injury-hit Gunners side, they will still be unable to defeat the league leaders. This would probably be an Arsenal win by a small margin, with Boro putting up a struggle but still ending up empty-handed.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 3 MANCHESTER CITY 1
Whenever Spurs are in town, expect entertainment. They score many goals, and concede just about as many as well. Spurs will be simmering from a 2-3 reverse at home against Birmingham last time out, and will be looking to set things right against City, who are not the best team on the road. Spurs should win this game.

BOLTON WANDERERS 1 WIGAN ATHLETIC 1
The battle of the Premier League strugglers. Bolton are fresh from a 0-4 reverse at Anfield, while Wigan battled to a deserved 1-1 draw against City, even though Wigan had captain Melchiot sent off in the second half. Both sides will be looking at this match cautiously, as they want a win to push themselves away from the dreaded relegation zone, but don't want a defeat as it would mean more trouble for them. Expect a stalemate.

BLACKBURN ROVERS 2 WEST HAM UNITED 1
Blackburn ended a dismal run of matches with a 3-1 comeback victory over the Magpies last weekend. They should be able to do the same against the Hammers, who are injury-hit and fresh from defeat at Chelsea in the London derby last weekend. Blackburn to nip the game by a small margin.

OTHER UPDATES
Barclays Premier League
NEWCASTLE UNITED 1 ARSENAL 1 (FULLTIME)
UEFA Champions League--Group D
AC MILAN 1 GLASGOW CELTIC 0
SHAKTAR DONETSK 1 SL BENFICA 2
(AC MILAN AND CELTIC THROUGH TO KNOCK-OUT PHASE)

GOOD LUCK TO ME! NO MORE PHAIL SCORES PL0X ):