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Possibly more interesting than the normal EPL pictures..
After the excitement of the Manchester derby and Chelsea maintaining their perfect start to the league campaign, the upcoming round of fixtures in the English Premier League looks almost tame in comparison.
The fact that all the games bar one on the Sunday and one on the Monday will be played on the Saturday may give some form of energy as fans listen to the other days scores filtering through but on paper, there may not be too much excitement.
However, with the Champions League teams having one eye on their European fixtures and some clubs already beginning to get desperate for points, there may just be a surprise or two to throw the bookmakers for six.
Chelsea's Joy of Six
And talking of six, Chelsea have managed to win their first six league games of the season and will be hoping to move into seventh heaven with an away trip to Wigan.
Under new boss Roberto Martinez, Wigan may be easier on the eye but there is not the same level of tenacity as there was under Steve Bruce. Perhaps the arrival of the Premier League favourites may be enough to spark some life into the club at the DW Stadium or maybe Chelsea will keep rolling on.
Twelve points separate the teams already, with Wigan having two victories to their name. Neither team has drawn a match in the league this season so far and the indications are that there will be a winner this time around if the form book is followed.
The top flight English clubs were involved in League Cup action this week so there won't be many excuses about tiredness as they face off against each other. Mind you, poor old Manchester United will likely be a bit tired after they had to play for 3 hours on Sunday against their neighbours Manchester City.
The referee was using an hourglass as opposed to a watch but miraculously, in the last minute of Fergie time, Michael Owen popped up with a derby winner which probably had many Manchester United fans choking. There wasn't a lot of love given out to Owen when he signed for the champions in the summer but if you can't love a player who notches a very late winner against your city rivals then you just aren't a football fan.
Will Barcelona Struggle at Stoke City?
There's no time to dwell on that though as Manchester United travel to the ground which some pundits believe is the hardest place in world football to visit. Yes, the Brittania Stadium, home of Stoke City is an undeniable fortress for the Potteries club but its status has taken on an almost mythical basis.
After Manchester United's easy capitulation to Barcelona in Rome's Champions League final, the English pundits were fighting back the tears and looking for ways to insinuate that Barcelona weren't the best team in the world.
The best the xenophobic analysts could come up with was the fact that Barcelona would struggle to win at Stoke on a wet, Tuesday night. This ludicrous form of football analysis not only overlooks the fact that Barcelona face a lot of tough treatment in La Liga but also does a huge injustice to Stoke City.
Yes, they are known for their long throws, dead ball deliveries and intimidating atmosphere but is there anything really wrong with that?
Pullis Adds Flair to Tenacity
Stoke City play to their strengths and were fully deserving of their safe position at the end of last season. Some clubs find the second season a trickier affair as their motivation isn't the same as well as opposition clubs having a better measure of tactics and style being offered.
In all fairness to Stoke boss Tony Pullis, his late capture of Tuncay from Middlesboro is likely to add a greater degree of creativity than his team showed last season and if they can maintain their backbone, they will be building neatly into a mid table team. Manchester United have already lost away to a small battling club (on a sunny midweek night in Burnley, a fixture that probably wouldn't have scared Barcelona) so there is no reason to suggest that Stoke cannot do the same and give United their second defeat of the season.
Pompey Couldn't Buy a Win
Whilst the team at the top are sitting pretty after six wins, the team at the bottom are in the opposite position and feeling very blue after six straight defeats. Pompey's early season form has been overshadowed by the circus that has followed the ‘will he won't he' takeover bid by the club and it seems as though no one really knows the answers about the takeover yet.
The thing is, even if the takeover is confirmed and ready to go, by the time the transfer window re-opens in January, Portsmouth could be condemned to the Championship already. There is a desperate need to start getting points on board and no time would be better than home to Everton on Saturday.
Everton, after that catastrophic start versus Arsenal where Jolene Lescott scored six own goals whilst wearing a Manchester City scarf (sorry, it only seems that way after the vilification, you would have thought that Everton only picked one player that day), they have picked themselves up and have been on the goal trail in recent weeks. Although they will have one eye on their upcoming Europa League tie, Davie Moyes will have impressed the need for Premier League points, so expect the Toffees of Merseyside to show the Pompey chimes no mercy.
Battle of the Goatees
The other half of Merseyside, the red half will be welcoming Hull and no one's favourite manager Phil Brown to Anfield. Both of the managers on show in this match have been responsible for terrible goatee beards so if there was any justice both teams would lose this match but in all likelihood,
Liverpool will hand out a convincing thrashing to their lowly opponents. Fernando Torres looks as though he is finally getting into the mood this season, which can only be good news for Liverpool and ominous news for their opponents.
Battle of the Gingers
Elsewhere, Arsenal remain in London but travel to Fulham whilst a mind-numbingly boring match between Birmingham and Bolton will take place at St Andrews. It may be a battle of the B but all neutrals would be praying for the killer bees to descend upon the two ginger headed managers, Alex McLeish and Gary Megson.
Neither managers have been overly loved at the clubs they have been in charge of, possibly because of their hair colour and maybe because of their negative tactics and dour demeanour. McLeish has certainly been a luckier manager than Megson, his triumphs at Rangers being the dictionary definition of jammy but will he have the luck against Megson, the man that West Brom fans called the Ginger Mourinho and the man Bolton fans call booooo.
It may not be the weekend fixture list that grabs your eye but there is still much to admire and anticipate from this weekend's Premier League fixtures.
by Andrew Reilly
for The Silver Circle at www.footballtip.co.uk
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Dear Greg,
I've been a member since July 2003, maybe one of the first to join the Silver Circle.
2004 was a good year but I really enjoyed the long run we had in, I think, July 2005. It was exhilarating! 2006-2007 was not as exciting although still quite profitable and so far 2007-2008 looks quite good. I'm wondering if we're going to hit a long one again soon. Anyway, it's been a pleasure as always with your service, Greg. Armstrong and you are one of the few people I trust on the internet. You have made my retirement so much more fun and financially happy!
Best Wishes, Trent Wrayford, Sidney
