English Premier
2010-12-19 - Chelsea vs Manchester United
A Sports Betting Pick by Lamps
Football : England : Premier League
Sunday 19th December 2010
Chelsea
Last 5 Chelsea games at home : W3-D1-L1 F6-A4
Champions Chelsea look nowhere near the same side that won the league title back in May, in fact they look a totally different side to the one that started the season with 5 wins out of 5. The Blues have led the league for over three quarters of the season but now find themselves in 4th 3points adrift of leaders United despite playing a game more. Sunday’s game against the leaders is a great opportunity to close that gap in what appears to be a must win game for Ancelotti’s men
Back on 14th November just over 4 weeks ago Chelsea were a win away against Sunderland at home from going 7 points clear, disaster struck that day and the Blues were beaten for the first time at home in over a season. Since that game Chelsea are winless in an additional 4 games losing 1 and drawing 3, as a result the lead at the top is gone and a defeat at home to United could kill their title dream before Xmas.
Last time out Chelsea faced London rivals Tottenham at White Hart Lane and played very well despite going a goal down in the first half, eventually drawing 1-1 but missed a 92nd minute penalty to take all 3 points. I've mentioned this game in particular because in the previous 4 games Chelsea were playing to a slow tempo with no real threat or passion in the performances. However, against Spurs they looked much fresher and had spells of good attacking possession. All Blues fans will be hoping that game is a turning point in their mini blip.
The performance I believe is due to a few factors, one is Essien who missed 3 games due to his red card against Fulham was playing, the other is John Terry's return. The captain is a leader to this team and without him they look a different side. Finally the much needed return of 20 goal a season man Frank Lampard to the squad for the first time since August was a massive boost to the team. Frank is the vice captain at Chelsea and along with Terry is vital when encouraging and leading the side when on the field. It doesn’t shock me that once Lampard was on in the second half at Tottenham the side looked more stable and attacking going forward.
Team news is that Lampard will start against United after coming through a 60 minute practise game unscathed. Lampard should replace Ramires playing alongside Essien and Mikel in the Chelsea midfield. Drogba will start this week after starting last week’s game on the bench, it means Malouda and Anelka will play either side of Drogba with Kalou missing out. Benayoun, Alex, Bosingwa and Zhirkov all remain out so Ferreira will start right back with Ivanovic partnering Terry in the heart of Chelsea’s defence.
Predicted Chelsea Lineup :
Cech, Ferreira, Ivanovic, Terry, Cole, Mikel, Essien, Lampard, Anelka, Malouda, Drogba.
Manchester United
Last 5 Manchester United Away Games : W1-D4-L0 F6-A5
Alex Ferguson's men lead the pack at the summit of the Barclays Premier League with 34 points from 16 played. What's quite remarkable is despite being unbeaten so far this season they only lead second placed Arsenal by 2 points, however as mentioned above they have played 1 game less than their rivals.
On Sunday they visit the home of Champions Chelsea in what is a massive game for both clubs, a Chelsea win and they are back in the race for the title. Yet a United win would almost be like hammering 1 nail n Chelsea’s coffin despite it being only being December.
Winning at Stamford Bridge seems a tall task right now statistically, yes Chelsea have been poor lately but United have a poor record at Chelsea and overall away from home this season Ferguson’s men have drawn 6 out of 7 games winning just 1!
The away form is clearly preventing the Red Devils from pulling away at the top, in those 7 games even had they lost 3 and won 4 they would be 3 points better off than they are now. Even so, im sure Ferguson is delighted to be top and knows that going into this game if they avoid defeat they are potentially 6 points clear of their biggest rivals which is a large margin before xmas.
3 home games in the last 3 games for United has seen United take the full 9 points available but those games followed 2 draws away at Man City and Aston Villa. This side for whatever reason is vulnerable on the road and I feel if they go a goal behind it’s a massive order to win the game however to be unbeaten after 16 games shows great character and beating this side is going to be tough for any top team, let alone a rusty looking Chelsea side.
Team news is that Scholes is out of this clash and probably until the New Year with a groin problem. The only other casualty that’s not long term is O’Shea he has a calf injury and is likely to start on the bench on Sunday. Long term injuries other than Scholes include Valencia, Hargreaves and Owen.
This means we are likely to see a 5 man midfield with Anderson, Carrick and Fletcher in the middle with Nani and Park out wide. Rooney will start up top alone with the ever reliable pairing of Vidic and Ferdinand at the back.
Predicted Manchester United Lineup :
Van der Sar, Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Park, Anderson, Fletcher, Carrick, Nani, Rooney.
Verdict
It’s hard to split these two sides and given that I see neither team winning the draw stands out to me, and at a good price. Expect few goals and defences to come out on top, 0-0 or more likely 1-1 leaving United at the top of the table and Chelsea feeling like they have missed a great chance to get one over their biggest rivals.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Chelsea 1-1 Manchester United
