Arsenal VS Aston Villa – The Small Potato Preview

Did Arsene Wenger accidently ran over a black cat? The humiliation of losing to arch-rival Man Utd (and booted out of the FA Cup in the process), the unnecessary bookings, Adebayor’s miss in the Champions League … and that … that … (cue the often cliched Psycho shower scene theme) THAT horrific injury, plus the points lost in their last EPL encounter.

Yup, things aren’t going the Gunner’s way. And now they have to mentally prepare themselves for a mouth-watering encounter with Martin O’Neill’s men – which could somehow end up as THE turning point to their EPL season should they lose.

Villa could not have picked a better time to meet Arsenal and I believe key players like Gabriel Agblonlahor, Ashley Young, Marlon Harewood, Gareth Barry, and John Carew are in a good run of form – physically and mentally – which could probably see them unsettle the Arsenal defense, often seen as their weakest link.

But who am I kidding? An Arsenal team waiting to bounce back from their current misery, plus having their supporters behind them as they are playing at home – taking this to account I have to simply rate it an uphill task for Villa to come out of the wounded lion’s den with any points at all.

My prediction: Arsenal 3 – 1

Aston Villa VS Newcastle – The Small Potato Preview

The return of Keegan to Tyneside was splashed in the papers with the following headline phrases – “MESSIAH”, “KING KEV”, “SAVIOUR” … giving me the impression that he’s Aragorn from the LOTR movies.

But history has shown that Keegan probably does not have the mental strength and technical acumen to dent the Premier League Big 4 juggernaut. The EPL has become more corporate, more global, and certainly having a much more pressure-cooker environment than the early days when Keegan was thriving. Expect Keegan to join the nut-house in one or two seasons.

He certainly has a good bunch of players – Owen (now made captain), N’Zogbia, Milner (he will be key to Newcastle’s resurgence), amongst others.

But these days teams are won by management … which leads to Martin O’Neill’s Aston Villa.
It was no accident that many Villa players are now under heavy consideration for the new England regime led by Don Fabio. Take a look at players like Barry, Agbonlahor (injured, doubtful for the Newcastle game), Curtis Davies, Ashley Young.

O’Neill does deserve plaudits for bringing up young English talents and steering Villa to within touching distance of a final Champions League spot. (possibly the best they can do this season)

But facing rabid Newcastle supporters and facing a mini injury crisis and post-international fatigue, it is possible they may come out of this encounter empty-handed.

My prediction: Aston Villa 1  Newcastle 1

Astro FA Cup Schedule

Astro Starsports CH 813 will be giving us an assist for this weekend’s fixtures:

FA Cup 2007/08 (LIVE)
05 Jan 2008 2255 Round 3
06 Jan 2008 0110 Aston Villa vs Manchester United
06 Jan 2008 2155 Burnley vs Arsenal
07 Jan 2008 0000 Luton Town vs Liverpool
07 Jan 2008 0200 Stoke City vs Newcastle United

Astro’s vague schedule leaves me to wonder what game they will be showing for the 5th Jan 11pm slot on ESPN (CH 812) and Starsports (CH 813).

Answer: Tottenham Hotspurs vs. Reading (there’s a 99% chance that this will be the game )

WHAM-BANGERS AND PAIN-MEISTERS

It was a high-scoring week in the EPL! Check out our wham-bangers (the wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am variety) and pain-meisters (a little S&M, anyone? Kneel, fool!)

Liverpool vs Portsmouth - Final Score: 4-1
The wham-bangers: Benayoun, Distin (own goal), Mrawurari, Torres (2 goals)

Chelsea vs Aston Villa - Final Score: 4-4
The pain-meisters: Shevchenko (2 goals), Ballack, Alex, Maloney (2 goals), Laursen, Barry

Tottenham vs Fulham - Final Score: 5-1
The wham-bangers: Keane (2 goals), Huddlestone (2 goals), Defoe, Dempsey

Sunderland vs Manchester United - Final Score: 0-4
The wham-bangers: Rooney, Saha (2 goals), Ronaldo

Aston Villa 1 – Arsenal 2

As quoted by Arsene Wenger:

‘We were brilliant and resilient. In the first half we played some absolutely amazing football. We moved the ball quickly, were accurate with our passing in short spaces and made it difficult for Villa.

‘In the second half, the physical contribution from Villa and the fact some of our players dropped off a little bit, allowed them back in. ‘I felt at the end of the first half we seemed as if we weren’t right on top of things and that made it difficult. ‘But this is a big result. Because of the belief in the Villa side after their recent good run, we needed something special.

‘Maybe in the past, games like that have been our Achilles heel. But we have improved, have more experience and resilience and we panic less.’

Today’s Astro EPL Fixtures

ESPN

01 Dec 2040 Chelsea vs. West Ham United
01 Dec 2255 Blackburn Rovers vs. Newcastle United
02 Dec 0130 Wigan Athletic vs. Manchester City(Delayed)

Starsports

01 Dec 2255 Portsmouth vs. Everton
02 Dec 0110 Aston Villa vs. Arsenal

3-5-2 or 3-4-3

Welcome to our Late Edition to the EPL Fantasy Football Guide!
Better late than never? I’m Cantona Kickems, here to provide you some vital news to helpcha out with your YFF picks. Most of my tips are based on guestimating which team will win their matchup, and the number of goals scored in the process. Usually I’m biased towards the performing teams, ‘cos let’s face it, Koumas isn’t gonna earn much points if he’s up against a rampaging Red Devils frontline. He was largely absent in my 101.50 point performance on Week 8.

The big impact news are as follows:

Prominent Number 7s in the EPL

Presenting the current crop of number 7s in the EPL – and as mentioned in our last post, the number 7s are typically midfielders renowned for their speed and creativity in the flanks.

Well … except maybe for seasoned hit-man Schevchenko, who’s more likely to pull the trigger rather than loading the ammunition!

[Top Left--Bottom Right] Tomas Rosicky (Arsenal), Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd), Harry Kewell (Liverpool), Joey Barton (Newcastle), Andriy Schevchenko (Chelsea), Fredrik Ljungberg (West Ham), Ashley Young (Aston Villa), Andy Van der Meyde (Everton), Brett Emerton (Blackburn), George Boateng (Middlesbrough)

Top football stories of the weekend

1. Remember the day: Saturday, 1st September 2007

’twas the day the sky fell on our heads. It was the day that Liverpool got to the top of the Barclays English Premier League after a 5-year absence, thus announcing themselves as frontrunners for the league title. I have to applaud them for registering a resounding victory over a hapless Derby team without two of their best players.

YFF tip: For those of you who cashed in on Torres (11.33) this past weekend, keep him. But don’t expect much from his next game against Portsmouth: Fratton Park in a Fortnight.

Arbeloa/Riise dilemma – too tough to call who’s gonna play the next game. Don’t risk it.

Derby’s possibly gonna get a spanking from Newcastle as well, so I’d say keep these guys in consideration: Martins, Owen, Viduka (if he’s fit), and Milner.

2. Aston Villa 2 – Chelsea 0

The Good, the Bad, and the Injured

I’ve recently got an update of injury-stricken Rooney’s recent activities:

This weekend’s Game Predictions are out! I am glad to announce that Small Potato has returned unscathed from his wee trip to the Bintulu ghetto. Along with Scouser-for-life raZor^r3dz, they complete this week’s mamak panel of football experts. There are some big games in store for you football fans this weekend: Sunday’s double header in particular.

If you’ve got time to burn on a quiet Saturday night, keep a close watch on the Newcastle vs. Aston Villa game. Regardless of the result of this crackerjack