Chelsea vs Everton Preview: Morata is still far from a title-winning striker

November 8, 2018November 7, 2018 Sam Pilger Leave a comment

This was only ever meant to be a season of transition for Chelsea as the club recovered from the turmoil of last season, and allowed their new manager Maurizio Sarri the time to settle in to English football.

But after eleven games Chelsea find themselves believing they might actually stage a genuine title challenge, as they sit in second place just two points behind Manchester City at the top of the table.

Chelsea have been a revelation under Sarri, playing attractive attacking football to win eight games and draw the other three to remain one of only three teams yet to lose in the league alongside Liverpool and City.

But while their title rivals can each boast a reliable supply of goals – City have Sergio Aguero, and Liverpool have Mo Salah – Chelsea have to make do with the more modest talents of Alvaro Morata leading their forward line. Read More

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Liverpool vs Fulham Premier League Preview

Liverpool vs Fulham Preview: Reds to bounce back from Serbian sorrows?

November 8, 2018November 7, 2018 Andrew Beasley 1 Comment

Liverpool vs Fulham looks like being a stone cold, cast iron home banker. You can get odds of 30/1 for Fulham to win on Sunday. Yet anyone who witnessed the Reds’ abject efforts in Belgrade on Tuesday night will think the away side’s chances are considerably better than that.

Even so, when looking at the expected goal data for 2018/19, it’s easy to see why the bookmakers have come up with the prices they have. You can work out the percentage chance of any score line using the statistics, and doing so suggests a 9-0 Liverpool win is more likely than a 0-0 draw. Liverpool vs Fulham Expected Goals xG Prediction Read More

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Dortmund vs Bayern Munich Bundesliga Preview

Dortmund vs Bayern Munich: Can the Black-and-Yellows slip away?

November 8, 2018November 7, 2018 Constantin Eckner Leave a comment

The German Bundesliga has to sometimes bear the criticism that it is a league with great fans and great stadiums yet mediocre teams. But mediocrity does certainly not apply to the two clubs which are expected to have a close title race this season. Borussia Dortmund are currently leading the league by four points ahead of Bayern Munich who will travel to Dortmund for their highly anticipated ‘Der Klassiker’ showdown on Saturday.

Bayern Munich’s head coach Niko Kovač does not have the easiest job in the league right now. The 47-year-old Croatian took over last summer after two successful years at Eintracht Frankfurt that ended with Frankfurt beating Bayern in the German Cup final in May. Kovač’s authority in the locker room and his energetic style were supposed to reinvigorate an ageing Bayern side.

The winningest club in Bundesliga history has not spent much money on big signings the past few years. The only transfer of note prior to this season was Leon Goretzka who came on a free from Schalke. Bayern’s issues, however, are more profound than just the quality of the squad which is still superior to every other squad in the league and most in Europe. Read More

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Premier League Fantasy Football selections: Week 12

November 8, 2018November 8, 2018 Andrew Beasley Leave a comment

We had our usual mixed bag of an outcome last week. Lacazette, Maddison and Sigurdsson all got into double figures for points. However, our other quintet mustered just 5.75 between them, so shall remain nameless here.

Here are the matches in Draft Kings‘ competition this week.

Premier League week 12 Fantasy Football selections

We’ve run the numbers (you can see our leader board here), and here are the eight players we’re resting our hopes on in week 12. Read More

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Premier League Team of Week 11: Well played, Mr. Anderson

November 6, 2018 Andrew Beasley 1 Comment

You know the drill by now. We compile a leaderboard for the weekend’s games, and pick the bones out of it to hammer it into a vaguely cohesive XI. Here’s our Premier League team of week 11.

Goalkeeper: David de Gea. Bournemouth 1-2 Manchester United.

Rival fans like to joke about where United would be if de Gea ever left; ‘League One’ is the most common response. That may sound extreme, but with six saves (including one clear-cut chance) he kept his side in the game long enough to win it yet again. Read More

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Juventus vs Manchester United Preview: Will United turn up this time?

November 5, 2018November 6, 2018 Scott Patterson 1 Comment

The reason why both David Moyes and Louis van Gaal were sacked by Manchester United was their inability to guide Manchester United to the Champions League. The former was sacked two days after it became mathematically impossible for the team to finish in the top four, even though the reality was that it had been confirmed much earlier.

Van Gaal was sacked two days after winning the FA Cup with United in 2016. They finished fifth that season and therefore missed out on qualification for the elite European competition.

In contrast, Jose Mourinho booked United’s place in the Champions League at the end of his first season in charge after winning the Europa League. United bowed out in the first knock-out round following the group stage though, after putting up very little fight against Sevilla.

Still, in the following season, United finished second and again qualified for the competition, and supporters will be hoping for improved performances in this campaign. Read More

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Crvena Zvezda vs Liverpool Champions League preview

Crvena Zvezda vs Liverpool: Close the gates and catch that Liverbird

November 5, 2018 Milos Markovic 1 Comment

It’s been more than a year since the Serbian giants lost a home game.

A deep look into the club statistics across all possible competitions would reveal a remarkable piece of information: the Belgrade behemoths last suffered a home defeat at the hands of Arsenal (1-0) on 19^th October 2017.

Since that moment, Crvena Zvezda have embarked on an astonishing stretch which currently stands at 23 matches at Stadion Rajko Mitic without a single defeat.

It was in no small part that Crvena Zvezda goalkeeper Milan Borjan stands as the one player responsible for such an amazing feat. The Canadian international has been one of the most notable Crvena Zvezda players this season in the Champions League and Twelve’s numbers are there to support such a claim. Read More

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Tottenham vs PSV Eindhoven Preview: Spurs struggling with fixture pile up

November 5, 2018 Ahmad Yousef Leave a comment

Despite their best ever start to a Premier League season Spurs have found it difficult to get going especially with the recent fixture congestion.

Tottenham’s Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday night will be their fourth game in the space of eight days and after not adding to their squad in the summer, Spurs are struggling to keep their players fit. With injuries to Dembele, Danny Rose and Eric Dier, Spurs will be relying on less favoured players over this tough period.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side were unconvincing in their 3-2 victory over Wolves, having nearly blown a 3-0 lead. Goals from all three of Spurs’ attackers (Erik Lamela, Lucas Moura and Harry Kane) put Tottenham in a very comfortable position after 68 minutes. However, after conceding two penalties in the space of 11 minutes Spurs endured a very shaky last 10 minutes trying to hold onto the lead. Read More

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Inter vs Barcelona Preview: Catalans to secure a last 16 spot?

November 4, 2018 Roy Nemer Leave a comment

FC Barcelona will look to clinch a berth in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League when they visit Inter Milan at the San Siro on Tuesday night.

Ernesto Valverde’s men will be looking to continue their good form of late, having won their last five matches in all competitions and this with the likely addition of Lionel Messi. The Argentine has missed Barcelona’s last four matches, including the 2-0 win against Inter at the Camp Nou. However, he has been included in the squad list despite not receiving the green light as of yet.

Messi’s absence has coincided with the rebirth of Luis Suárez, as it’s the number 9 who’s been carrying the goal scoring load. The Uruguayan has netted six goals since Messi went down with his shoulder injury (three of which came in the clasico against Real Madrid) and is back to his best. Read More

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Manchester City vs Southampton Preview: Saints Will Need a Miracle

November 2, 2018 Martin Hawkes-Teeter Leave a comment

After a scare-free Halloween week, City’s next opponent in the crowded fixture list is Southampton. Though the Saints put in an excellent performance against the Blues last year, City are much improved this season against teams in the lower areas of the table. Given the easy early schedule, I’m not quite ready to declare this team superior than last year’s edition despite the impressive start.

Still, one thing that can’t be denied is that they’ve played much better against teams outside last year’s top six. City last season averaged 13 shots and five shots on target more than such opponents, a pretty high baseline. This season, they’re averaging an incredible 19 and eight in those categories. Read More

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