Premier League 09-10 (Page 7 of 9)

Chelsea and Stoke City have met 71 times in the league. Chelsea lead by 33 wins to 22, with 16 draws.

Chelsea are enjoying a five-game winning streak over the Potters, including all three Premier League meetings.

Stoke's last victory at Stamford Bridge was 36 years ago this month, 1-0 in the old first division in 1974.

Premier League 1, 2 and 3 May

- Saturday -

Birmingham - Burnley
St Andrews
Kick-off: 12.45 BST
Birmingham: 0-3-3
Burnley: 1-0-5
- Probable Teams -
Birmingham City (4-5-1): Hart; Carr, Johnson, Dann, Ridgewell; Larsson, Gardner, Bowyer, Ferguson, McFadden; Jerome.
Burnley (4-3-3): Jensen; Mears, Duff, Cort, Fox; Cork, Alexander, Elliott; Paterson, Fletcher, Nugent.
Referee: Peter Walton. Matches: 24. R 4. Y 60.
This season: Burnley 2 Birmingham 1.
Last season: Burnley 1 Birmingham 1, Burnley 1 Birmingham 1.
Birmingham have had a great season, but they have struggled a lot recently. Burnley have two games left but will be going back down to the Championship. Birmingham should be able to win this game at home.
Birmingham to win.

Manchester City - Aston Villa
City of Manchester Stadium
Kick-off: 15.00 BST
Manchester City: 4-1-1
Aston Villa: 4-2-0
- Probable Teams -
Manchester City (4-1-3-2): Nielsen; Zabaleta, Toure, Kompany, Bridge; De Jong; Barry, Johnson, Bellamy; Tévez, Adebayor.
Aston Villa (4-4-2): Friedel; Cuéllar, Collins, Dunne, Warnock; Downing, Petrov, Milner, A Young; Agbonlahor, Carew.
Referee: Mark Clattenburg. Matches: 29. R 5. Y 79.
This season: Villa 1 City 1.
Last season: Villa 4 City 2, City 2 Villa 0.
Both teams have impressed with strong form recently, but I will have to go for a City win in this one. City have been good recently, but lost against Manchester United and drew at Arsenal last week.
Manchester City to win.

Portsmouth - Wolves
Fratton Park
Kick-off: 15.00 BST
Portsmouth: 0-3-3
Wolves: 1-4-1
- Probable Teams -
Portsmouth (4-4-1-1): James; Vanden Borre, Mokoena, Rocha, Sowah; Yebda, Utaka, Brown, Hughes; Piquionne, Dindane.
Wolves (4-1-4-1): Hahnemann; Zubar, Craddock, Berra, Elokobi; Mancienne; Foley, Edwards, Jones, Ward; Doyle.
Referee: Mike Jones. Matches: 18. R 1. Y 59.
This season: Wolves 0 Portsmouth 1.
Last season: N/A.
The Portsmouth players will be playing for their future in this game as all players are up for sale at Fratton Park, due to their financial situation. Pompey have the FA Cup final left to be played and will save players who could be struggling with minor knocks and bruises.
More than 2.5 goals.

Stoke - Everton
Britannia Stadium
Kick-off: 15.00 BST
Stoke: 2-1-3
Everton: 3-3-0
- Probable Teams -
Stoke City (4-4-2): Begovic; Higginbotham, Huth Ab Faye, Collins; Delap, Whitehead, Whelan, Etherington; Fuller, Kitson.
Everton (4-4-1-1): Howard; Hibbert, Jagielka, Distin, Baines; Bilyaletdinov, Neville, Arteta, Pienaar; Cahill; Saha.
Referee: Howard Webb. Matches: 26. R 3. Y 99.
This season: Everton 1 Stoke 1.
Last season: Stoke 2 Everton 3, Everton 3 Stoke 1.
Their first meeting this season ended in a 1-1 draw at Everton, but the visitors have been strong recently, but Stoke are always good at home. I believe in a close one.
Draw.

Tottenham - Bolton
White Hart Lane
Kick-off: 15.00 BST
Tottenham: 4-0-2
Bolton: 1-1-4
- Probable Teams -
Tottenham Hotspur (4-4-2): Gomes; Assou-Ekotto, Dawson, Bassong, Bale; Bentley, Huddlestone, Palacios, Modric; Defoe, Pavlyuchenko.
Bolton Wanderers (4-4-2): Jaaskelainen; Steinsson, Cahill, Knight, Robinson; Weiss, Muamba, Wilshere, Taylor; Klasnic, K Davies.
Referee: Chris Foy. Matches: 25. R 2. Y 66.
This season: Bolton 2 Spurs 2.
Last season: Spurs 2 Bolton 0, Bolton 3 Spurs 2.
Tottenham have impressed me a lot this season and are leading the chase for a fourth place finish this season. Bolton have struggled this season but are safe from relegation.
Tottenham to win with 0-1 handicap.

- Sunday -

Liverpool - Chelsea
Anfield
Kick-off: 13.30 BST
Liverpool: 3-2-1
Chelsea: 5-0-1
- Probable Teams -
Liverpool (4-4-1-1): Reina; Johnson, Carragher, ayala, Agger; Maxi, Aquilani, Mascherano, Babel; Gerard; Kuyt.
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Ferreira, Terry, Alex, A Cole; Lampard, Ballack, Malouda; Kalou, Drogba, Anelka.
Referee: Alan Wiley. Matches: 25. R 5. Y 78.
This season: Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0.
Last season: Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1, Liverpool 2 Chelsea 0.
Liverpool will be desperate to bounce back from their Europa League semi-final failour against Atletico Madrid on Thursday. But Chelsea have been very strong recently. Liverpool needs a win in this one to have a chance of finishing fourth in the Premier League table.
More than 2.5 goals.

Fulham - West Ham
Craven Cottage
Kick-off: 15.00 BST
Fulham: 1-2-3
West Ham: 2-1-3
- Probable Teams -
Fulham (4-4-2): Schwarzer; Pantsil, Baird, Smalling, Shorey; Dempsey, Dikgacoi, Greening, Riise; Okaka, Nevland.
West Ham (4-4-2): Green; Faubert, da Costa, Upson, Spector; Behrami, Parker, Kovac, Noble; Ilan, Cole.
Referee: Andre Marriner. Matches: 26. R 9. Y 96.
This season: West Ham 2 Fulham 2.
Last season: Fulham 1 West Ham 2, West Ham 3 Fulham 1.
Fulham managed to get into the Europa League final on Thursday, but their players should have that strong performance against Hamburg in their legs coming into this game. West Ham have a chance of causing an upset in this one.
More than 2.5 goals.

Sunderland - Manchester United
Stadium of Light
Kick-off: 16.00 BST
Sunderland: 4-0-2
Manchester United: 4-1-1
- Probable Teams -
Sunderland (4-4-2): Gordon; Bardsley, Turner, Kilgallon, Richardson; Campbell, Henderson, Meyler, Malbranque; Bent, Jones.
Manchester United (4-3-3): Van der Sar; Rafael, Vidic, Evans, Evra; Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs; Valencia, Berbatov, Nani.
Referee: Steve Bennett. Matches: 26. R 5. Y 98.
This season: United 2 Sunderland 2.
Last season: United 1 Sunderland 0, Sunderland 1 United 2.
It has been ages since Sunderland last managed to beat Manchester United and I do not expect them to win this season either. United have been very strong recently and are desperate for a win in their battle with Chelsea for the Premier League title.
Manchester United to win.

- Monday -

Wigan - Hull
DW Stadium
Kick-off: 13.30 BST
Wigan: 2-1-3
Hull: 0-1-5
- Probable Teams -
Wigan Athletic (4-3-3): Kirkland; Melchiot, Caldwell, Bramble, Figueroa; Watson, Diame, McCarthy; N'Zogbia, Moreno, Rodallega.
Hull City (4-4-2): Duke; Mendy, Gardner, Mouyokolo, Dawson; Barmby, Fagan, Boateng, Bullard, Geovanni; Folan, Altidore.
Referee: Phil Dowd. Matches: 28. R 5. Y 86.
This season: Hull 2 Wigan 1.
Last season: Hull 0 Wigan 5, Wigan 1 Hull 0.
Hull have got nothing to play for in this one as they are all but relegated. Wigan won both meetings last season, but lost away to Hull this season. Wigan should win at home at the DW Stadium.
Wigan to win.

Blackburn - Arsenal
Ewood Park
Kick-off: 17.00 BST
Blackburn: 2-3-1
Arsenal: 2-2-2
- Probable Teams -
Blackburn Rovers (3-5-2): Robinson; Nelsen, Jones, Givet; Salgado, Basturk, Nzonzi, Pedersen, Olsson; Kalinic, Roberts.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Sagna, Campbell, Silvestre, Clichy; Song, Diaby; Walcott, Arshavin, Rosicky; van Persie.
Referee: Martin Atkinson. Matches: 29. R 4. Y 118.
This season: Arsenal 6 Blackburn 2.
Last season: Blackburn 0 Arsenal 4, Arsenal 4 Blackburn 0.
Arsenal needs to strengthen this summer and it is likely that Arsene Wenger will get a bit money to spend. They are currently out of the race for the Premier League title, but are ready for the Champions League next season. They have been strong against Blackburn in recent seasons, but Wenger could be tempted into giving his youngster a chance in this one.
More than 2.5 goals.

Leaders Chelsea can seal a third league double over Liverpool in the last six seasons.

Liverpool are unbeaten against the Blues at Anfield in their last three meetings (W2, D1) since a 4-1 defeat in October 2005.

There have been 22 goals in the last six games between the two sides in all competitions.

Source: BBC

Sunderland v Manchester United:

It is six years since the club last won their final four matches of the season. In 2002-03 they beat Blackburn, Tottenham, Charlton and Everton on their way to the title.

United have the best defensive record in the division, conceding 28 goals in 36 matches. They have kept four clean sheets in a row away from home in the top flight.

Wayne Rooney has scored 148 club goals, while Paul Scholes needs one more to register 150 for Manchester United.

Source: BBC