Soccer Saturdate: The push for Champions League qualification

Hi everyone. Back after a week's absence, this week sees crucial games in the fight for Champions League qualification. As usual, do comment on your own predictions, and see whether it matches against mine, or is somewhat similar. Cheers!

Crystal Palace (12th) vs QPR (18th) SingTel TV 102, StarHub TV 227 845pm

Form
Crystal Palace (7-9-12)	QPR (6-4-18)
Last 5 games: WDLWL Last 5 home games: WLLDL	Last 5 games: LWLLL Last 5 away games: LLLWL

Injuries/Suspensions
Crystal Palace	QPR
Injuries: Campbell, Chamakh (hamstring), Mutch (thigh) Suspension: Jedinak	Injuries: Dunne, Fer, Faurlin (knee) Suspension: Barton

Crystal Palace will have on-loan Arsenal forward Yaya Sanogo back from a hamstring injury, with Glenn Murray available again following suspension. Mile Jedinak continues his four-game ban.

QPR are hoping defender Darnell Furlong, midfielder Adel Taarabt and forward Eduardo Vargas will recover in time. Furlong (calf), Taarabt (groin) and Vargas (muscular problem) returned to training this week after missing last weekend's 2-1 home defeat to Tottenham through injuries. The trio will have to pass a late fitness test on Friday afternoon before club coach Chris Ramsey decides to select them. Joey Barton serves his 3rd and final match ban.

This could be one game where QPR might just nick it. I have this feeling that Crystal Palace would feel that they are relatively safe from the relegation dogfight, whereas QPR will give it a go to try and nick 3 points. The form of Charlie Austin would be crucial here, having scored in 3 of their past 5 away games (sadly all ending in defeat). As for Crystal Palace, Alan Pardew would need to remind his team that they are not entirely out of the relegation mire just as yet, and would need to motivate his charges to ensure that they do not get complacent. I see this as a potential cagey game, with the likely result of both teams cancelling each other out.

Prediction: 1-1 draw

Key Men: Charlie Austin

Arsenal (3rd) vs West Ham (10th) SingTel TV 102, StarHub TV 227, 1100pm

Form
Arsenal (16-6-6)	West Ham (10-9-9)
Last 5 games: LWWWW Last 5 home games: WWWLW	Last 5 games: DDDLL Last 5 away games: WLDLD

Injuries/Suspensions
Arsenal	West Ham
Injuries: Oxlade-Chamberlain, Gabriel (hamstring), Arteta, Wilshere (ankle)	Injuries: Tomkins(shoulder), Cole (hamstring), Carroll (knee), Reid (hamstring), Song (knee), Valencia (toe) Ineligible: Jenkinson

Oxlade-Chamberlain faces up to a month out with a hamstring injury, Flamini is back in contention after a hamstring problem. Jack Wilshere (ankle) is still a few weeks away from a return

West Ham are without James Tomkins after the defender dislocated his shoulder in training. Enner Valencia is struggling to be fit having suffered a severe cut to his toe after standing on a broken teacup. Carl Jenkinson cannot feature against his parent club. Morgan Amalfitano is back having served a three-match ban.

As with all London derbies, form should be thrown out of the window, although I can’t see Arsenal losing steam here. One might feel that they could be distracted by the must-win game against Monaco, but Arsene Wenger would want to ensure that they seal up the 3rd spot as early as possible to avoid last-day dramatics from taking place for another season. As for West Ham, they seem to have lost track as of late, and see themselves starting this week in 10th. Sam Allardyce is amazingly in the hot-seat of late, and to be honest if West Ham is really to let him leave after a season of amazing work from their gaffer, I would be at a loss for words. I do see Arsenal winning this, but not before West Ham make them work real hard for it. Arsenal to win by the odd goal, and consign West Ham to their 3rd successive London derby defeat (after Palace & Chelsea) Expect both Olivier Giroud and Diafra Sakho to feature heavily.

Prediction: 2-1 win to Arsenal

Key Men: Olivier Giroud, Diafra Sakho

Leicester (20th) vs Hull (15th) SingTel TV Ch 103, SingTel channel 228, 1053pm

Form
Leicester (4-6-17)	Hull (6-9-13)
Last 5 games: LLLDL Last 5 home games: LWWLL	Last 5 games: DWWLD Last 5 away games: LLLDL

Injuries/Suspensions
Leicetser	Hull
Injuries: Hammond (calf)	Injuries: Brady(calf), Snodgrass (knee)

Kasper Schmeichel may make his return for Leicester after four months out with a broken foot. Anthony Knockaert is omitted from the squard due to personal reasons.

Hull trio Mohamed Diame, Liam Rosenior and James Chester are close to first-team returns but will not be fit for this game. Robert Snodgrass is out for the season.

This game could well see an “upset” in terms of a victory for Leicester City. Hull have not impressed on their travels of late, and I think its due time that Leicester gets a victory to arrest their continuing descent towards Championship football next season. This game is a definite relegaton 6 pointer, and I personally feel that this game would be decided by either a moment of brilliance, or sheer utter mistake/error taking place. Leicester would hope for their major signing Andrej Kramaric to start firing on all cylinders, and the same would go for Hull City’s major buy during the winter transfer window Dame N’Doye. I predict for Leicester to nick a victory, and for Hull to push them all the way for the win.

Prediction: Leicester 2-1 winners

Key Men: Andrej Kramaric, Dame N’Doye

Sunderland (16th) vs Aston Villa (17th) SingTel TV 104, StarHub TV 229, 1053pm

Form
Sunderland (4-14-10)	Aston Villa (6-7-15)
Last 5 games: DLDLD Last 5 home games: LDWLD	Last 5 games: LLLLW Last 5 away games: LLLLL

Injuries/Suspensions
Sunderland	Aston Villa
Injuries: Giaccherini (ankle), Buckley (knee) Suspended: Cattermole, Johnson	Injuries: Cissokho (groin), Senderos (calf), Cole (hamstring), Baker (knee), Richardson (calf) Suspended: Hutton, Grealish

Sunderland are without the suspended Lee Cattermole after he picked up his 10th booking of the season in the recent draw at Hull and picked up an automatic two-match ban. Adam Johnson remains suspended by the club.

Christian Benteke will return to the Aston Villa squad after missing the FA Cup win, Ron Vlaar (calf) will be assessed. Libor Kozak is not yet match fit, but has returned to full training.

Is the Aston Villa revival in full flow under Tim Sherwood underway already? We have seen Villa clinching 2 back-to-back wins, but both are against the same opponents (WBA) This game pits 16th against 17th, and with relegation potentially having far-reaching effects for either team, both teams would want to start stringing some positive displays and pick up much needed points. Looking beyond Aston Villa’s pathetic form of late, I feel that they have turned the corner around. With Gus Poyet having escape a touchline ban for his argument with Steve Bruce, Gus would hope his team displays the same fiery brand of passion on the pitch as like what he did off it. However, I feel that both teams would most likely cancel each other out with a tepid display from both teams. A 1-1 draw.

Predicton: 1-1 draw

Key Men: Gus Poyet, Tim Sherwood (LOL) but really, both teams dont exactly have 1 player on decent form of late.

West Bromwich (13th) vs Stoke (8th) SingTel TV 107, StarHub TV 230, 1053pm

Form
West Bromwich (7-9-12)	Stoke (12-6-10)
Last 5 games: DWDWL Last 5 home games: WLWWW	Last 5 games: DLWWW Last 5 away games: WWDLW

Injuries/Suspensions
West Bromwich	Stoke
Injuries: McManaman (foot)	Injuries: Krkic, Odemwingie (both knee), Ireland (gashed leg)

West Brom have doubts over strikers Saido Berahino, Brown Ideye and Victor Anichebe. Berahino and Ideye have been playing through the pain barrier recently while Anichebe has a groin problem.

Ryan Shawcross is available after recovering from a back problem, but boss Mark Hughes must make a decision whether to throw him straight back in.. Stephen Ireland is likely to sit out with a gashed leg while Philipp Wollscheid (groin) is struggling.

Tony Pulis welcomes the arrival of the team that he manages for nearly 7 years, with him leaving Stoke due to a disagreement with the chairman. Stoke has made significant strides since Tony Pulis’ departure with Mark Hughes most likely going to steer Stoke to a 2nd straight top10 season. West Bromwich find themselves with the possibility of 3 strikers missing in action, and with Peter Crouch in good form of late, Tony Pulis might find himself not having such a great welcome. However, given West Bromwich’s good home form, this could well be a draw.

Prediction: 1-1

Key Men: Peter Crouch

Burnley (19th) vs Manchester City (2nd) SingTel TV 102, StarHub TV 227, 130

Form
Burnley (4-10-14)	Manchester City(17-7-4)
Last 5 games: DLDLL Last 5 home games:DWLDL	Last 5 games: DWWLW Last 5 away games: DWDWL

Injuries/Suspensions
Burnley	Manchester City
Injuries: Marney, Long (cruciate)	Injuries: None

Burnley wont have Matt Taylor or new signing Fredrik Ulvestad in the Burnley squad. Taylor continues his slow recovery from Achilles surgery but is not yet ready for the first-team squad

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany will hope to be recalled for the champions. The Belgium defender was dropped for City's last game against Leicester after a spell of indifferent form, while midfielders Fernandinho and Samir Nasri also missed out. Striker Wilfried Bony will hope to retain his spot after a first start for the club in the victory over the Foxes

Burnley will have their work cut for them against a Manchester City squad hoping to start closing the gap between them and league leaders Chelsea, who are already 5 points behind with Chelsea having a game to spare. However Burnley are no pushovers, although their league positions speaks otherwise. Burnley have done pretty well against the bigger teams, and with both teams having their own agenda in getting the 3 points, this could be a tighter game than expected. I am going for a Man City victory, but only just.

Prediction: 1-0 to Man City

Key Men: David Silva

Chelsea (1st) vs Southampton (7th) SingTel TV 102, StarHub TV 227, 2130pm

Form
Chelsea	Southampton
Last 5 games: DWWDW Last 5 home games:DWDWD	Last 5 games: WDLLW Last 5 away games: WWWWL

Injuries/Suspensions
Chelsea	Southampton
Injuries: Mikel (knee)	Injuries: Rodriguez (knee), Mayuka (groin)

Jose Mourinho will resist wholesale changes on Sunday following the midweek Champions League exit. The Blues boss insists "everyone wants to play" and has Nemanja Matic available for domestic duty

Toby Alderweireld is set to make his first appearance in nine weeks. The Belgium defender has been out since picking up a hamstring complaint at Manchester United on Jan. 11 and is likely to start at Stamford Bridge.

After Chelsea's painful exit to PSG at Champions League, and with Man City's loss to Burnley, I believed that Chelsea will have double the motivation to do well against a Southampton side that has gone a little off steam as of yet. However, Southampton do still have a realistic chance of finishing in the top 4 this season, and they definitely will not be easy to deal with. Their previous encounter finished in a fiery 1-1 draw in which Mourinho felt that a penalty decision involving Cesc Fabregas didnt go their way, and I believe that this match will also provide the same amount of fireworks and controversial moments as well. I would honestly hope for the Saints to come up with an upset and at the very least make the league slightly more interesting, but I doubt Mourinho will let slip at the chance of going 8 points ahead of City with a game in hand. Chelsea to win this by 1 goal.

Prediction: Chelsea 1 Saints 0
Key Men: Nemanja Matic, the backline of Southampton

Everton (14th) vs Newcastle (11th), SingTel TV 103, StarHub TV 228, 0000 (Monday)

Form
Everton (6-10-12)	Newcastle (9-8-11)
Last 5 games: DLDLL Last 5 home games: DDDWW	Last 5 games: DDLWL Last 5 away games: LLWDL

Injuries/Suspensions
Everton	Newcastle
Injuries: Oviedo (hamstring), Hibbert, Pienaar, McGeady (all knee) Suspended: Barry	Injuries: Haidara, Dummett (knee), Taylor (Achilles),, de Jong (collapsed lung), Tiote (knee) Suspended: Cisse

Everton full-back Leighton Baines (groin) faces a late fitness test. Centre-back John Stones is expected to be available again after missing Thursday's Europa League win over Dynamo Kiev due to a virus.

Newcastle striker Papiss Cisse will miss the game as he begins a seven-match ban. The Senegal international incurred the suspension after accepting an FA improper conduct charge. Jack Colback returns after sitting out the last two games following his 10th booking of the campaign. Rob Elliot returns following his recovery from a long-term thigh injury along with midfielder Remy Cabella, who has shaken off a knee problem.

I really hope for Newcastle to compound Everton’s domestic misery with a win, but with Cisse being suspended for such lengthy duration, Newcastle’s chances of completing a double over Everton doesnt look too rosy. However, given that Everton has a gruelling mid week Europa League game against Dynamo Kiev, I would think that Newcastle would have a decent shot of at least getting a point. Given Lukaku’s lack of form, Steven Naismith could well be the key men to look out for, provided if he starts the game. As for Newcastle, it would be once again up to Moussa Sissoko to come up with the driving force for the Magpies. I am going on a limb, and predicting a tight 2-2 draw.

Prediction: 2-2 draw

Key Men: Steven Naismith, Moussa Sissoko

Manchester Utd (4th) vs Spurs (6th), SingTel TV 102, StarHub 227, 0000 (Monday)

Form
Man Utd (15-8-5)	Spurs (15-5-8)
Last 5 games: DWLWW Last 5 home games: WWWWL	Last 5 games: WLDWW Last 5 away games: WLLLW

Injuries/Suspensions
Man Utd	Spurs
Injuries: van Persie (ankle) Suspended: di Maria, Evans	Injuries: None

Ashley Young has overcome the leg injury he suffered in the 2-1 FA Cup defeat to Arsenal. Marcos Rojo is doubtful because of a groin problem.

Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino has a fully fit squad to choose from. With only league fixtures remaining, Pochettino has been able to give his squad a two-day break in the lead up to the game at Old Trafford.

Both teams have deceiving form. One would have thought that this would be a easy victory for Man Utd given their impressive home form, and Spurs wretched away form. However, delve deeper and you would realized that Man Utd’s oppnonents have been teams struggling of late whereas for Spurs, they have been playing top-caliber teams like Fiorentina and a Liverpool team steamrolling everyone of late. Man Utd had finally seen their luck ran out when they lost the FA Cup quarter-final tie deservingly to Arsenal, and I believe that Spurs do have the quality to turn the race for 4th up on its head with a victory. With di Maria and van Persie missing, the onus will be on Wayne Rooney once again to step up. As for Spurs, with Harry Kane (or HurriKane) still on that impressive streak, do expect a tight game with plenty of quality on display. I would go for a Spurs victory to further continue Man Utd’s losing streak with tougher games to come.

Prediction: 2-1 Spurs

Key Men: Wayne Rooney, Harry Kane

Swansea (9th) vs Liverpool (5th), SingTel TV 102, StarHub 227, 0400 (Tuesday)

Form
Swansea (11-7-10)	Liverpool (15-6-7)
Last 5 games: DLWWL Last 5 home games: WDLDW	Last 5 games: DWWWW Last 5 away games: WDWWL

Injuries/Suspensions
Swansea	Liverpool
Injuries: Bartley (knee)	Injuries: Enrique (knee), Allen (hip)

Bafetimbi Gomis should be available after collapsing during the 3-2 defeat at Tottenham on March 4. Gomis suffers from a vasovagal condition which causes low blood pressure and prompts fainting episodes, but he returned to training on Wednesday. Other than that, Garry Monk has a full-strength squad to select from.

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is back in contention, having missed the last seven games with a hamstring injury. Defenders Martin Skrtel (head) and Mamadou Sakho (hip) are expected to be fit but there could still be a doubt over midfielder Joe Allen (hip).

This fixture has been synonymous with Jonjo Shelvey. The ex-Liverpool player has netted in the last three league matches between Liverpool and Swansea as a Swans player, though the last of these was an own goal. Liverpool seems to have finally found the balance and the personnel to execute the 3-4-2-1 tactic, and they really have been impressive of late. However, Swansea are no mean pushovers at home, having lost just once in the past 5 home games. I do expect Liverpool to pull through to further spice things in the race for 4th, with Shelvey once again expected to play a big role, and for Philippe Coutinho to finally break out of his mini “slump” and to perform well here.

Prediction: 2-1 win to Liverpool

Key Men: Jonjo Shelvey, Philippe Coutinho