Get the TiVo out and enjoy!

Manchester United v Manchester City (Saturday) – On a momentous day for football fans in Manchester and beyond, former United player Carlos Tevez leads the all-star Citizens into Old Trafford on Saturday, in an attempt to slay Sir Alex and his Red Devils. With just five points separating the two, it’s a crucial game. For United, Chris Smalling will make a rare start while Javier Hernandez is unlikely to feature. City is without Adam Johnson and Micah Richards, with Nigel de Jong a doubt, but Mario Balotelli could return. City has won just one of the last 26 Old Trafford league meetings but skipper Tevez has scored four in his last six games against United. Dimitar Berbatov, on the other hand, has only scored once in his ten games against City. – Kristian Anker-Møller

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Queens Park Rangers vs Nottingham Forest (Sunday)– QPR have been the Championship’s class act all season, which is saying a lot with Neil Warnock in charge, and have been the only side to have remained in the automatic promotion places all season. Cardiff keep flirting with the second spot but haven’t shown the defensive consistency needed to lock it down. Into the breach, then, have stepped Nottingham Forest.  Billy Davies has scooped up the latest Manager of the Month award after Forest hauled in a whopping 19 points in January . Going into this match, both sides look every bit promotion contenders. I still expect QPR to come away with the 3 points, however, because Loftus Road is where Adel Taarabt comes to life. — Tapesh Patel

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Wolfsburg v Hamburg (Saturday) – Wolfsburg are hoping that caretaker manager Pierre Littbarski can provide a much-needed lift after Steve McLaren’s sacking. For their first test, against Northern rivals Hamburg, the Wolves have suspended playmaker Diego for his spot kick antics last weekend, which were seen as the final nail in McLaren’s coffin, and will likely partner new signing Patrick Helmes with Grafite up front. Hamburg, meanwhile, are boosted by the return of defender Joris Mathijsen but they have had their own problems with a patchy run of results and an out of form Ruud van Nistelrooy. Coach Armin Veh will likely pin his hopes on striker Mladen Petric and flamboyant winger Eljero Elia to break down Wolfsburg’s shaky defence. While Hamburg are slight favourites on recent form, Wolfsburg have four wins and Hamburg only two with four draws from their past ten meetings. – Kristian Anker-Møller

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AZ Alkmaar v PSV Eindhoven (Saturday) – After suffering only their 3rd league defeat this season, Fred Rutten needs to pick up his men for the trip to Alkmaar. The surprise loss to ADO Den Haag means PSV go into the weekend level on points with last season’s champions FC Twente and 3 and 4 points ahead of Ajax and FC Groningen respectively.  AZ on the other hand are a far cry from the side who became champions under Louis van Gaal just two seasons ago.  Like PSV, they too need to recover from last week’s defeat at the hand to relegation threatened Excelsior.  Yet, despite that they’re only a few points away from securing a Champions League play-off spot.  Their biggest worry in this match?  Only one of PSV’s losses has been on the road. – Mohamed Moallim

Feyenoord v Heracles (Saturday) — The last time Feyenoord played at home, two of their promising young players left the pitch in tears, after disappointing the home fans yet again, this time against De Graafschap. Coach Mario Been has vowed not to quit in the face of growing pressure and near certain relegation.  They also lost both of their away matches in the interim, bringing their string of losses to four.  The weekend’s visitors, Heracles, also find themselves at the wrong end of the table, despite only losing once at home. It’s their away form that’s letting them down, suffering 9 defeats in 11 games.   With the mountain of adversity each side is bearing, it will take a herculean effort for either to claim 3 points in this one. – M.M.

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Standard Liege v Genk (Sunday) — Travelling to the Stade Maurice Dufrasne, in Liege, Genk cannot let up if they are to keep up with the purple flash that is Anderlecht. Romelu Lukaku and friends have a slender three-point gap and Genk need to win a tricky away fixture to keep the pressure on the leaders.  Currently on a ten game unbeaten run, they face a Standard side who have won their last three games and if the high-profile scouts still licking their lips at the likes of Steven Defour and Alex Witsel are any judge, are still a quality side. Genk will need Marvin Ogunjimi firing on all cylinders if they are to remain in the title hunt. – Andrew Gibney

So far, Genk have done well to keep the pressure on Anderlecht, even if there has been the odd draw in that long unbeaten run, stretching back to November.  Standard trail their visitors by 15 points but did knock them out in the Cup early in the season with star midfielder Axel Witsel on the score sheet. It’s been a yo-yo season so far for Standard Liège, with 3 successive defeats followed by 3 successive victories. It’s this inconsistency that has put any hopes of winning the league out of their minds for this season. – Mohamed Moallim

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Saint-Etienne vs Lyon (Saturday) — The Rhone-Alpes derby looks slightly different this time around. After a three-month unbeaten run, Lyon have stagnated, with two losses and a draw, but still look better equipped to take on St. Etienne than last time. Then, Les Verts were storming into first place, while Les Gones looked more like Les Gonners, as they languished near the relegation zone. There’s also the story of two want away stars to add to proceedings.  Dmitri Payet, the tornado at the eye of said storm, had a transfer request snubbed a couple of weeks back, while Yoann Gourcuff, after a(nother) decent performance for France, has claimed Claude Puel is cramping his style. Fair enough, considering what Blanc has brought out of him for Bordeaux and France. This match is quite literally too close to predict, with the sides separated by all of two goals in the table (in 5th and 6th respectively). I’ll edge it, on form, to Saint-Etienne. – Tapesh Patel

Sochaux v Marseille (Saturday) — If this game doesn’t produce more than 3 goals, I will eat my hat. It’s got BUT (French for goal) written all over it. The game, I mean, not my hat.  Sochaux sit 13th in Le Championnat, a measly eight points from a Europa League place.  Poor defence has plagued them all season, although they’ve had no problem whatsoever finding the back of the net. Only top of the table Lille have scored more goals that Francis Gillot’s men. Ideye Brown and Mobido Maiga have been lighting up the scorers’ column, with nine goals each.  Add to that the support of Marvin ‘You Make Me Very Angry’ Martin, who leads Ligue 1 in assists it surely is a recipe for some action. Oh yeah, Didier Deschamps’ Marseille, sitting in 4th, aren’t too bad either. — Andrew Gibney

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Brescia vs Lazio (Sunday) – Cassano-itis seems to be spreading to the Olimpico, as Hernanes has revealed he’s still having nightmares over his uncharacteristic petulance which saw him get sent off for Brazil in midweek and Eagles coach Edy Reja has admitted contacting his predecessor, Delio Rossi, asking how to handle problematic striker Mauro Zarate.  Former players Libor Kozak and Francelino Matuzalem will be looking to make a good ‘im-Brescian’ against their former club.  New boss/Same as the old boss Beppe Iachini has enjoyed a renaissance of sorts since being restored to the Brescia bench. His unorthodox 3-5-1-1 system could catch out a Lazio squad, who last won on the road at the end of October.  A win for the home side will see them climb out of the relegation places, while Lazio will be looking to cling to 4th place and stay in the Champions League hunt. – Shaun Best

Juventus vs Inter (Sunday) — Resurgent Inter can’t stop scoring and will look to continue their ruthless streak in Turin.  Despite conceding 13 goals in Leonardo’s first eight games in charge, the Nerazzurri are even more lethal at the other end of the pitch, as last week’s 5-3 demolition of Roma proves. It’s very much a case of Rafa who?  With Samuel Eto’o the main goal threat, Juve will also have to watch Wesley Sneijder carefully. The Dutchman has two goals in two games since his return from injury. Giampaolo Pazzini, who nearly joined Juventus before opting for Inter is also expected to start.  The home side will be looking for Alberto Aquilani and Milos Krasic to rediscover their form and support frontmen Alessandro Mati and Luca Toni, who both netted morale boosting goals in last week’s victory at Cagliari.  Both Giorgio Chiellini and Felipe Melo have issued a spirited Bianconeri battle cry in the runup to this game. With Champions League places to play for, a repeat of the 0-0 stalemate back in Week 6 isn’t likely here. – S.B.

Palermo vs Fiorentina (Sunday) — Expecting a quiet week for Palermo is like asking if Paul Robinson will turn over a new leaf in Neighbours? Of course not, so let the soap opera continue.  Will Fabrizio Miccoli burst into tears again if he nets against another former club? Is Fabio Liverani really going to terminate his contract? Does Javier Pastore really fancy Juventus over Barcelona? Let the drama unfold.  Coach Delio Rossi hasn’t been immune either. He’s spent the week giving babysitting advice to Lazio and denying speculation he’s set to coach the Viola next season.  On the pitch, Palermo have won their last seven at home, while Fiorentina are yet to win away this season. It’s not all cut and dry though. The superstitious Sicilians have yet to win a lunchtime kickoff, having lost against Brescia, Lazio and Cagliari and fighting to save their Serie A bacon, struggling Fiorentina are without injured Dane Per Kroldrup. He joins Sebastien Frey, Stevan Jovetic and Juan Manuel Vargas on the sidelines. Adrian Mutu could make a surprise return after being welcomed back into the squad.  For Palermo, Cesare Bovo and Federico Balzaretti have recovered from knocks and fit again Abel Hernandez is pushing for a recall, but may have to be content with a place on the bench. – S.B.

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Atlético Madrid v Valencia (Saturday) — Atléti have core issues.  As in they don’t seem to have one.  Yes, the squad includes Diego Forlan, Kun Aguero, Tiago, Diego Costa, Diego Godin and David de Gea.  It has also just acquired Brazilian national Elias from Corinthians.  Aguero is rumoured to be sought after by the likes of Chelsea and United but has only managed 7 goals on the year.  That’s well down the La Liga list, even if you rule out Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s matching totals of two dozen as being of another world.  The press has been filing missing person reports on Forlan throughout the campaign but he is tied with the Argentine for the Rojiblanco’s goal scoring lead.  Tiago has just 4 goals and Diego Costa a paltry 3.  The problem is that there is no one at the Vicente Calderon to feed all the snipers.  Simao Sabrosa had filled that role but he needed help and, instead, his 5 assists and 4 goals have been sold off to Besiktas.  This is a make or break game for Atléti.  If they don’t take all three points, they’ll be in danger of falling off the European pace.  Valencia, on the other hand need to get a result away, as they are in a pitched battle with Villareal for the 3rd automatic Champions league spot. – Martin Palazzotto

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Brazil v Uruguay, South American U20 (Sunday) – The final game of the tournament features the two top teams, who will probably represent the continent at the London Olympics in 2012.  Uruguay can be considered the biggest surprise of this U20, leaving early favorites Argentina and Colombia in their wake.  For the Brazilians, Neymar will be back afer a suspension and with the help of Lucas and Casemiro may get the point needed to confirm the Brazilian place in London.

This one is really important for Brazil because the Olympic Gold is the only title never won by he Seleção. — Fab Presilli

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Boca Juniors v Godoy Cruz (Sunday) – Boca are the early favorites in this season’s Clausura, with the additions of coach Julio Cesar Falcioni and former Banfield star Walter Ervitti.  For once, Juan Roman Riquelme may have some help.  Martin Palermo, another headliner on Argentina’s most popular club, has announced that he will be retiring after this season. Palermo, 37, is sitting on 299 appearances, over 2 stints with Juniors, and 187 goals.  He also has 34 goals in nearly 100 appearances for Estudiantes and spent time in Spain with Villareal, Real Betis and Alavés.  He’s also famous for claiming a headed goal from 40m out in a league match in last year’s Clausura.  With Boca not having topped the table in several years, Palermo would find it especially sweet to bow out on a high note. – Fab Presilli

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UANL Tigres v Cruz Azul (Saturday) — The Apertura’s dominant club, Cruz Azul, have found some resistance in the Clausura.  They sit second in Group 3, a point behind Pumas.   Tigres, meanwhile, are flying high in the tough Group 1, well ahead of the likes of Chivas de Guadelajara, Santos Laguna and Apertura playoff champions, Monterrey.  Hector Mansilla is already on the boos with 3 goals.  Tigres have to know, however, that any slip will open the door a crack, all that any of those three sides need to come barging back into the picture.  Los Cementeros, for their part, will be looking to skin one cat just to keep another within striking distance. With the trio of Emmanuel Villa, with 3 goals, and Hugo Droguett and Christian Giménez, each with 2, hunting as a pack, they may just bring home a pelt. — Martin Palazzotto

UNAM Pumas v Chivas de Guadelajara (Sunday) — Cruz Azul take some heart, knowing that their rivals, Pumas face a tough match themselves, at the Omnilife Stadium against Chivas.  The Goats, for points behind Tigres, need to shake off the fatigue from their long Copa Libertadores campaign, which ended in a heartbreaking loss to Brazilians Internacional.  Such is the price to be paid, though, when you sell young talents like Manchester United starlet Javier Hernandez, who might be of use in times of need.  None of their forwards have registered more than a single goal.  At least they know who they have to stop.  Virtually all of UNAM’s goals have come from Juan Cacho, who is averaging a rate of one strike per game in the club’s 5 matches to date.  Pumas spent the Apertura hopelessly chasing Cruz Azul, however, and would dearly love to return the favour in the second season. – M.P.

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In case you missed it, here’s a peek at Martin Palermo’s incredible goal for Boca Juniors.

See you next week!

The Roar’s turn around under Ange Postecoglou has been quite remarkable. By the end of the 2009/10 season, the Roar languished in 9th spot, one from the bottom. This triggered a massive overhaul of the club, with Postecoglou being brought in to replace former Socceroo boss Frank Farina. Postecoglou immediately got to work, releasing many of Brisbane’ stars, including Craig Moore who was in contention for a spot in the national side at the time. He also recruited well and the end result was a new look Brisbane side ready to line up for the 2010/11 season. Many sceptics were unsure of the Roar’s ability to challenge for the title considering many of the players were new and had very little time to gel. Some unimpressive 0-0 draws and a 0-3 loss to  Melbourne Victory meant it looked like it was going to be a long season ahead, however, following the loss to the Victory, the Roar struck a vein of incredibly good form.

That game in Melbourne was the last time Brisbane dropped all three points to an opponent. In the games since, they have taken at least one point from every game to announce themselves as the best side in the country. With the finals series due to start in a week and a half, the Roar look likely to enter the play-off as the most feared and dangerous team, a side everyone will want to avoid.

Sydney FC’s season from hell ends

Reigning champion, Sydney FC have failed to make the finals series this season. After defeating the Victory in last season’s Grand Final, in Melbourne, the Sky Blues have had a dismal season that now sees them out of contention for a final spot. A number of star players from last seasons campaign have left the club in the interim, including John Aloisi, Karol Kisel, Craig Bolton and captain Steve Corica.

Coach Viteslav Lavicka worked hard to fill the gaping holes in the squad but it was to no avail. The signings of Nick Carle, Scott Jameison and Liam Reddy were expected to keep Sydney at the top of Australian Football but that hasn’t been the case and, following their 1 goal draw with Newcastle, it is now impossible for the Sky Blues to climb from 9th to 6th.

On the bright side, they’ll be able to direct all their attention to the upcoming Asian Champions League campaign.

Melbourne Victory secure Finals spot

Last years runners-up Melbourne Victory, almost suffered the same fate as the no longer defending champions. yet, with just one game remaining, the Victory are now guaranteed Finals football, following their 2-0 wins over Gold Coast last Sunday and Newcastle mid-week. Danny Allsopp saw that his club lived up to their name against the Gold Coast, while Tom Pondeljiak and Robbie Kruse, in his first game back after the Asian Cup, found the net against Newcastle Jets. The Victory will journey to either Adelaide or the Gold Coast for their elimination final depending on which way results fall in the final week of play. As a lower seed, they’re faced with a four match route to the title but they’ve traveled down that path already and will be prepared.  It bears remembering that the Victory are the only side to defeat the Roar this season, making theirs an interesting Grand Final pairing, should it come to pass.

The sixth spot is still not set but Wellington need only a draw in one of their two remaining matches to dispatch Newcastle Jets, who are clinging to hope by their fingernails.

News

News has come out that Pierre Littbarski will replace Steve McLaren at the helm of Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga. Littbarski guided Sydney FC to the inaugural A-League title in the 2005/06 season, when Dwight Yorke took the league by storm. His appointment is perhaps a sign that the A-League is starting to have a bigger influence on world football.

Karol Kisel was in hot form for Sydney FC last season as they claimed both the minor and major premierships. His stellar season attracted Sparta Prague, who snapped up his services. Rumours have started to emerge that following Sydney’s disappointing season, Kisel is on the verge of returning to the club and helping them back up the table in the 2011/12 season.

Reto Vanni, currently with FC Basel in Switzerland, has announced he is interested in a move to Australia. It is said four A-League clubs are interested in gaining Vanni’s signature, with Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Heart believed to be leading the race for the former Swiss U/21′s services.

Next Week

In the final week of matches, Central Coast have the opportunity to cement second spot on the ladder and end Newcastle’s Finals aspirations should they win their clash with the Jets on the 13th of February.

Sure it started well. Pierre Litbarski had them working well and with the touch of Dwight Yorke class in the middle it was a romp to the inaugural title. It was fun. But how things changed. The Terry Butcher years, John Kosmina, Branko Culina, all promising so much.

But the problem… oh the problem. Players were scouted. They were seen performing well for other A-league teams, teams with a work ethic and organisation. They were purchased. They were shoved on  the pitch and they were left to get on with it. Excellent cogs in well run machines were being dumped in a bucket and asked to tell the time. It didn’t work, it couldn’t work. Until now.

Because  Vítězslav Lavička has come in and turned them in to a team, a team moreover that it more than the sum of its parts, that has a game plan, that uses it’s player to their abilities and, most of all, a team that does not feature John Aloisi. The A-league’s highest paid player gets left on the bench to stew, given a late cameo when the games stretched, a simple and effective indictment of his ability to play as part of this team.

Instead Alex Brosque and Mark Bridge have formed a devastating partnership up front. Brosque is slighter, but he is faster, and Bridge, no slouch, has that extra burst of pace aligned with his more muscular and powerful build.  Given an extended run up front this season they’ve produced some dazzling performances. True, Brosque should score a few more goals, and likewise Bridge should set more up but on current form they’re the most lethal double act going, and both these players having been bought from other A-league franchises, poorly used and both in danger of seeing their natural talents squandered.

A good example was against Wellington Phoenix last weekend. The Phoenix had, in their previous game, thrashed the stuffing out of Gold Coast Utd 6-0 and have, since, comfortably beaten the Newcastle Jets2-0 but in Sydney they were never in the game. First the Sydney front two combined with a neat one-two to set Bridge free and plant a powerful shot just inside the far post with venom. Next up Brosque just refused to give up the ball in the opposition area before finding some space to fizz a favoured left foot shot low at goal which the keeper could only parry before Steve Corica tapped it away and, saving the best for last, Brosque ran half the length of the pitch before delivering the ball in low for Bridge to sweep in to the net. Game over.

There was a scare when Wellington won a dubious penalty but justice was served when it was ordered retaken for encroachment and Clint Bolton got down easily to scoop up the second attempt. Sydney are back. Enjoyable to watch, enthusiastic, looking like they’re enjoying their football and even space in the team for fan favourite and foundation player Terry McFlynn of whom it was announced this week that he’d signed a contract extension keeping his at the club till the end of the 2012/13 season.

Sydney sit atop the table, 1 clear of Melbourne Victory and 5 of Gold Coast, who they face next at Skilled Park. A win will keep them top but also send out quite a message, since it would mark victory over every opponent they’ve thus far faced, and should they follow it up the following week against Perth Glory it will mean a win against every other team in the league. That may be no great achievement, and there’s  sure to be losses to come, but knowing that on your day your team can beat anyone has got to be good for the confidence and with an ethic, a tactic and a well balanced team, that top spot is theirs to lose.