Premier League preview

Posted Friday, August 27, 2010 by skysports.com

Wigan will be out to avoid another 9-1 drubbing when they travel to Tottenham Hotspur, a rampant Chelsea entertain Stoke, Manchester United host West Ham while Manchester City travel to Sunderland on Sunday.

Blackburn Rovers recorded a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in last season's corresponding fixture as shot-stopper Lukasz Fabianski endured another day to forget. Whether manager Arsene Wenger will have resolved his goalkeeping dilemma in time for this encounter remains to be seen, but nonetheless the French coach will demand his players pick up from where they left off following a 6-0 thumping of Blackpool. Furthermore, Wenger could restore big guns Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie, who boasts a decent scoring record against Blackburn, to his starting XI. Meanwhile, Rovers, who have lost only one of their last 11 Premier League matches at Ewood Park, were beaten in their last outing, although they performed well enough to win the match at Birmingham.

Tottenham Hotspur head into their clash against Wigan Athletic in buoyant mood after they booked their place in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. Morale in the Latics camp is unlikely to be as positive following their ropey beginning to the new campaign. Roberto Martinez's men currently sit bottom of the table after conceding 10 goals in their first two matches, without reply. At least they beat Hartlepool in the Carling Cup on Tuesday to offer some respite. To make matters worse for Wigan, White Hart Lane was the scene of their away day crime last term, as Spurs smashed nine past them. And all signs point to another win for Harry Redknapp's charges, who are unbeaten in 12 games at home in the league.

Could Chelsea , the only side to boast a 100 per cent top-flight record this term, really again hit six goals past an opponent this weekend? One would probably not bet against it, such has been their impressive start to the campaign coupled with Stoke City's last trip to Stamford Bridge which saw them come away having suffered a 7-0 loss. Indeed, the Blues have netted 21 goals in their last three Premier League home matches, including that thumping of the Potters. Stoke have slipped to defeats in each of their first two matches of the term, while an Asmir Begovic-shaped cloud currently hangs over the club after the keeper allegedly refused to play in their Carling Cup win over Shrewsbury during midweek. Ironically, Begovic has been linked with Saturday's opponents.

Silly points
Manchester United play out an evening kick-off with West Ham United at Old Trafford. The Red Devils failed to see out an advantage over Fulham in their previous match, with manager Sir Alex Ferguson labelling the draw as "silly points" lost. The Scot will likely a fire a rocket up the backsides of his players ahead of this weekend's game. The Hammers have not enjoyed a decent start to the season, with a poor showing at Villa Park followed by a home loss against Bolton, in which they were guilty of being wasteful in the first half whilst poor defensively from long balls. It is far too early for the pressure to build on new boss Avram Grant, but a trip to the Theatre of Dreams followed by a home game versus Chelsea on 11th September is hardly an ideal schedule following such a stuttering beginning.

Newcastle United should be buzzing heading into their test against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Magpies stunned the Premier League last weekend as they put six past Aston Villa, with young striker Andy Carroll bagging a hat-trick. Wolves, though, will surely not be as abject as Villa, with the club having lost just one of their last seven league games. Indeed, Mick McCarthy's team have performed well in the top flight thus far, managing a return of four points from a possible six, while they rarely leak goals at Molineux. The pair last met in the Premier League in the 2003/04 season, with both encounters ending in 1-1 draws.

Blackpool and Fulham are also in action on Saturday in what is the former's first home game in the Premier League. The Seasiders were brought back down to earth with an almighty bump at Arsenal, but a return of three points from two away matches would have been taken by boss Ian Holloway at the start of the term. It is up to the Bloomfield Road faithful to create an intimidating atmosphere for the Cottagers. Indeed, Blackpool are unbeaten in their last nine home games. Mark Hughes has enjoyed a solid start to life in charge of the West London club, with last weekend's fightback for a point against United followed by a 6-0 spanking of Port Vale in the Carling Cup. The work for Hughes, though, needs to be done on away form as Fulham have won none of their last 19 Premier League trips on the road.

Travel sick
The first of Sunday's four matches takes place at the Reebok Stadium, live on Sky Sports HD1 & 1. Bolton Wanderers lock horns with Birmingham City with both sides having won their previous league games. The Trotters played to their strengths agasint West Ham last time out, notching an excellent 3-1 victory, while Birmingham battled against Blackburn to come from a goal down and win 2-1. Bolton boast a recently decent record versus the Blues having won their last three meetings, while the latter did not travel well last campaign, managaing just one three-point haul on the road in 2010 thus far.

Liverpool are in action against West Bromwich Albion at Anfield. The Reds are aiming to bounce back from Monday's league loss at Eastlands while the Baggies earned their first points of the season last weekend. Said defeat for the former partly deflated Roy Hodgson's bubble on Merseyside, although it can be suggested that Javier Mascherano's failure to partake in the match at such short notice did much to unbalance the manager's plans. For West Brom, a repeat of their display against Sunderland, and more, will be required, not the performance at Chelsea on the opening weekend. An interesting stat: Liverpool are currently on a run of four Premier League games without a win, their longest sequence since January 2008.

Conquerers of Liverpool, Manchester City, travel to Wearside to lock horns with Sunderland. City's defeat of the Reds further lifted optimism at the club, who boast a quite frightening array of talent within their squad. That depth will be invaluable for City head coach Roberto Mancini, who will be content with his charges' start to the term. The Black Cats' start to the season has been a concerning one after they threw away a two-goal lead, albeit with 10 men, then slumped at West Brom. Steve Bruce can, however, take heart from some solid home form, having have lost just one of the last 11 Premier League home games.

The weekend's full programme of fixtures is concluded at Villa Park as caretaker boss Kevin MacDonald's Aston Villa host Everton. MacDonald remains the bookmakers' joint favourite, along with Bob Bradley, to become the permanent successor to Martin O'Neill, despite the club's humiliating 6-0 drubbing on Tyneside last weekend and their exit from the Europa League. Everton boss David Moyes, meanwhile, will be hopeful that his side have put the wheels in motion for a positive run after they swept aside Huddersfield 5-1 in the Carling Cup. Prior to said win, the Toffees had lost at Blackburn and been held at home to Wolves.

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