English Premier Match Previews - 15-16 December 2007

Saturday, 15 December 2007

Birmingham v Reading, 15:00

History

* These two sides have never met in the Premier League
* This will be Alex McLeish’s 3rd game in charge of City having won his first game and suffered last minute defeat to Newcastle last week
* Mehdi Nafti misses the game through suspension after picking up a booking at Newcastle last week. Liam Ridgewell is still one booking away from a ban
* Referee Lee Probert has taken charge of Birmingham just once this season – in the 2-1 victory over Derby in August, booking just one player
* He is yet to take charge of Reading
* Ivar Ingimarsson is one booking away from suspension

Trends

* Birmingham have the 2nd worst home record in the league behind Derby with just seven points from their seven games
* Reading have the joint worst away record in the league (alongside Derby and Wigan) with just a solitary point from their seven away games – and this was on the opening day of the season at Man United!
* Both sides have won two of their last six games and lie slightly higher in the form table
* Birmingham have played the ‘middle 13’ clubs ten times this season and lost eight of those games, winning against just Spurs and Bolton
* Reading have conceded eight goals from outside the penalty area so far this season
* 15 of Reading’s 21 goals scored this season have come in the second half of matches
* 21 of Reading’s 33 goals conceded this season have come in the second half of matches also
* Birmingham have not received a red card all season
* Joint Reading top scorer Kevin Doyle has scored all his goals in the second half of matches, and other top scorer Dave Kitson has scored four of his five also in the second half
* Last weeks win over Liverpool was Reading’s first in six games since beating Newcastle in October
* Reading have played the ‘middle 13’ clubs nine times this season and only won two – losing six and drawing one
* Reading’s only red card of the season was on the opening day at Old Trafford

Betting

* Joint top Birmingham scorer Cameron Jerome has yet to score at St Andrews this season
* Birmingham have lost four of their last five games including two home defeats to Portsmouth and local rivals Aston Villa
* Birmingham have scored first six times this season and managed to win just half (3) of these games, drawing one and losing two of the others
* They have conceded first nine times this season and lost eight of the games – managing to turn it round and win against Wigan
* Birmingham have scored first in just two of seven home games this season
* Birmingham have scored three times however in the opening 15 minutes of a match this season and four times in the last 10 minutes of games
* Reading have scored seven times in the last 10 minutes of matches this season
* Both sides have conceded late on this season with Reading conceding eight in the last 10 minutes of games and Birmingham six
* Reading have scored first seven times this season and won five of these games, drawing one and losing just one
* They have conceded first this season eight times and lost every time
* Reading have yet to score first away from home this season

Derby v Middlesbrough, 15:00

History

* Derby’s Andy Griffin is one booking away from suspension
* George Boateng is also one yellow away from a ban
* Rob Styles has taken charge of Middlesbrough just once this season giving just one yellow card
* Styles has refereed Derby just once and gave three yellow cards in the game
* Middlesbrough won the last meeting between the sides – a 1-0 success at Pride Park in April 2002 – thanks to a goal from Robbie Mustoe
* Boro did the double over Derby that season also with a 5-1 win at the Riverside
* Derby’s last win over Boro in the league was a 4-1 win at the Riverside in January 2000
* Derby’s last home league win over Middlesbrough was a 2-1 win back in December 1998 thanks to late winner from Jonathan Hunt

Trends

* Derby have the worst home record in the league with just one win and two draws from their seven matches
* Middlesbrough have won just once away from home this season
* Derby are bottom of the form table with six defeats in six
* Derby top scorer Matthew Oakley has just two goals this season
* Last week’s goal by Steve Howard was Derby’s first in eight games and their first away goal of the season
* Derby have scored first in three of their seven home games this season
* Derby have yet to receive a red card this season
* Middlesbrough top scorer Stewart Downing (4) has yet to score away from the Riverside stadium
* Middlesbrough have won just one in the last six matches
* Boro have yet to win against a ‘Bottom 3’ side this season – losing to Wigan and drawing with Sunderland
* Boro have won the last three Premier League meetings between the sides and are four matches unbeaten

Betting

* Middlesbrough have the worst disciplinary record in the league this season with 36 yellow cards from their 16 matches. Derby have fared much better with just 24
* Rob Styles has given five penalties in 11 matches this season – the second most in the league behind Mike Riley with six
* Styles has given 45 cards this season and 32 of these have come in the second half
* Derby have scored first just three times this season and not lost – drawing two and and winning against Newcastle
* However they have lost every game that they have conceded first in – 12 times
* Middlesbrough have scored just 15 goals this season and four of them have come in the opening 15 minutes of games and four have also come in the last 10 minutes
* Both sides have conceded five times in the opening 15 minutes of matches this season
* Boro have scored first three times this season and won two of the games and lost just one
* However they have conceded first 12 times and won just once at Fulham in August
* In eight away games this season Boro have yet to score first

Fulham v Newcastle, 17:15

History

* Diomansy Kamara is picked up his fourth premier league booking of the season last week, alongside his one from the Carling Cup and so should face suspension
* Howard Webb has taken charge of Fulham just once this season giving just one yellow card to the Cottagers
* The sides have met 12 times in the Premier league and Fulham have a winning record with six wins to four and two draws
* Fulham did the double over Newcastle last season winning both matches 2-1
* Howard Webb takes charge of his first Newcastle game of the season

Trends

* Fulham are 15th in the home league table taking 10 points from their eight home matches so far this season
* Newcastle have won just one away match all season
* Both sides have identical form, winning one, drawing two and losing three of their last six matches
* Fulham have gone two games without scoring since their 2-2 draw with Blackburn in November
* Fulham have played ‘Middle 13’ clubs nine times this season, have lost four, drawn three and won two of these games
* 14 of Fulham’s 18 goals scored this season have come at Craven Cottage
* Newcastle’s leaky defense has conceded six times from crosses this season and eight times from outside the penalty box
* Newcastle have not beaten Fulham in four Premier league meetings
* Fulham have won four and drawn two of the six home Premier League meetings including the last two
* Newcastle are two matches unbeaten having previously lost three out of four
* Newcastle have won five of 11 matches against ‘Middle 13’ clubs this season
* Newcastle have failed to score once away from home this season and that was away to bottom of the table Derby County

Betting

* Referee Howard Webb has given 43 cards in 11 matches so far this season
* Fulham have not won in four matches and have lost three and drawn one of these
* Fulham have scored first eight times this season and only won one of these games. They have lost three and drawn four
* They have also conceded first six times and only won once – losing four times and drawing one
* Fulham have scored first in five of eight home games this season
* Fulham have scored four times in the opening 15 minutes of a match this season
* Newcastle have scored four times in the last 10 minutes of a match this season
* Fulham have conceded eight times in the last 10 minutes of a match this season
* Fulham have won the last three matches between the sides
* There has never been a draw in a Premier league match at Craven Cottage / Loftus Road between the sides
* Newcastle have scored in 10 of their last 11 matches
* Newcastle top scorer Obefami Martins has scored four of his six goals away from home this season
* He has also been first match scorer on three occasions this season
* Newcastle have scored first eight times this season and lost twice – winning five and drawing one
* They have conceded first seven times and have won just once – drawing two and losing four

Man City v Bolton, 15:00

History

* Man City are down to 6th in the league now – their lowest position of the season
* City’s last win against Bolton was a 1-0 success in Dec 2004 thanks to a Joey Barton goal
* That was also City’s last goal against Bolton
* Bolton won the last meeting between the sides at City of Manchester Stadium 2-0 thanks to a brace from Nicolas Anelka, which was their fourth successive victory over City
* The last meeting between the sides ended goalless at Reebok in January
* Kevin Davies will be making his 150th PL start for Wanderers
* Nolan and Davies are both one yellow away from a suspension

Trends

* Bolton have the joint 3rd worst disciplinary record in the league so far this season with 34 yellow cards from their 16 games. City have received 26 and two reds
* Bolton’s Nicolas Anelka is joint 2nd top scorer in the league with 8 goals
* However only two of these goals have come away from the Reebok
* City have conceded just three goals at home this season
* Bolton are in better form than City, taking one more point in the last six games
* 21 of Walton’s 31 cards this season have come in the 2nd half of matches
* Walton has given just one penalty so far this season
* City have gone two matches without a win and just one in the last four
* City top scorer Blumer Elano has not scored since October
* All four of his goals have come at City of Manchester stadium
* 13 of City’s 20 goals this season have come at home
* Only four of Bolton’s 16 goals this season have come away from home
* City are five matches without a win against Bolton
* Bolton have won two of their last three matches, following a run of three consecutive draws
* Referee Peter Walton has taken charge of Bolton twice this season, booking just one player – Nicky Hunt on both occasions
* Bolton have played ‘Middle 13’ clubs 10 times this season and won just once – against Reading

Betting

* City are the only side in the Premier League with a 100% home record. However they have taken one less point at home than neighbours United who have played a game more at home, but two points more than Arsenal
* Bolton have yet to win away from home this season
* Referee Peter Walton has given 31 cards in nine games so far this season
* City have scored first nine times this season and have yet to lose – winning eight and drawing one, and that was their last match scoring first – against Wigan
* However City have conceded first six times this season and won just once, losing four and drawing one
* City have scored first in seven of eight home games this season
* Only three of City’s 17 goals conceded this season have come at home
* Both sides have conceded four goals in last 10 mins of a match this season
* Bolton have conceded first nine times this season and have yet to win – losing six and drawing three

Portsmouth v Tottenham, 15:00

History

* Portsmouth have not beaten Spurs for five games , since a 1-0 win at Fratton Park in October 2004 when a Yakubu goal secured all three points
* Portsmouth have only beaten Spurs twice in the Premier League
* There has only been one draw in the Premier League between the sides, a 1-1 draw on New Year’s day this year, at Fratton Park

Trends

* Portsmouth with 30 points this season have twice as many as Tottenham as they occupy 5th place and Spurs are down in 13th place
* A win for Tottenham could only move them up the table by a place if Reading fail to win
* Spurs have suffered just one defeat in their last five games along with two wins and two draws to climb the table
* Although there is a 15 point difference between the two sides they have both scored 28 goals this season but the big difference is goals conceded Sours have conceded 29 goals twice as many as Pompey’s 14
* Overall at Fratton Park this season Portsmouth have yet to be beaten but drawn to many games, five out of seven with wins coming against Bolton and Reading
* Take out the four goals conceded in the Reading game and Pompey have conceded just two goals in six games and even with the Reading game it is less than a goal a game
* Nine if Pompey’s 28 goals have come from strikes form outside the penalty area compared to four for Tottenham
* Spurs have yet to be involved in a 0-0 draw this season
* Tottenham have had 12 different goal scorers this season, with the suspended Robbie Keane leading the way with eight goals, and six of them are English and Berbatov and Kaboul the only non British
* Spurs have conceded 10 times from shots form out side the penalty area which is the most by any side in the Premier League this season whilst David James has conceded just twice from outside the penalty area
* Four of Pompey’s top five goals scorers this season are African, the exception Croatia’s Nico Kranjcar
* On the road this season Spurs have yet to win with three defeats and five draws including three at 1-1

Betting

* Portsmouth have been involved in four 0-0 draws this season in the Premier League
* Since failed to score in their first two away games of the season Spurs have scored in the last six
* Pompey are on an 11 match undefeated run since losing at the Emirates back in September 3-1
* Portsmouth have not scored at home in their last three matches, which have all ended 0-0, since their 7-4 win over Reading
* Spurs have managed just two clean sheets all season and they came against bottom three sides Derby and Wigan
* Tottenham have scored in their last 12 matches since losing 1-0 at Old Trafford to the Champions and have only failed to score twice all season
* Portsmouth have scored first seven times this season and gone on to win each time keeping four clean sheets along the way
* Expect goals early on in this game with Portsmouth scoring five times and Spurs six times in the opening 15 minutes of matches nearly twice the League average
* 25% of Pompey’s goals have come in the last 10 matches of games netting seven times
* Tottenham have fallen behind seven times and never come back to win, losing five and coming back to get a draw at West Ham and Liverpool
* In the five games Pompey have fallen behind in they have only once come back to win, 3-1 against Bolton at home
* In the six matches Benjani has scored in this season Portsmouth have won four and drawn two and yet to be beaten
* Spurs have conceded seven times in the last 10 minutes of matches this season compared to just two for Portsmouth
* Pompey are averaging just under two yellow cards a game with 30 in 16 matches and Sean Davies (7) and Sulley Muntari (5), collecting 12 of those between them The average drops at Fratton Park with 10 yellows in seven games and Davies only collecting two at home along with Muntari and Papa Bouba Diop
* Spurs have scored first nine times this season and on only three occasions have they managed to hold on and win, losing tow and drawing four of the remaining six
* Referee Chris Foy is standing for the 11th time this season and has refereed Pompey twice already in away wins at Blackburn and Newcastle giving out five yellow cards
* Foy has refereed Spurs once in their 4-0 win over Derby giving out four cards but all to Derby players
* Overall this season Foy has averages 3.10 cards a match and given out twice as man to the away team which is above the average

Sunderland v Aston Villa, 15:00

History

* Sunderland have lost the last three games against Aston Villa
* Sunderland have drawn twice at home to Villa, both ending in 1-1 draws, in 2001 and 2002
* Aston Villa have won just once at Sunderland in the Premier League, the last time they met, in November 2005

Trends

* Sunderland has a win and two draws in their last six matches to go with three defeats
* Gabriel Agbonlahor is Villa’s leading scorer with six goals and three of these have come on the road but he has not scored in his last three matches
* The Black Cats have not been involved in a 0-0 draw all season
* Villa could move into joint 4th place with a win at the Stadium of Light depending on the other results around them
* Sunderland have managed two clean sheets all season both were in 1-0 home wins over Tottenham and Derby County
* Five of Sunderland’s seven attendances at the Stadium of Light have been over the 40,000 mark this season
* Sunderland have scored in 11 of their 16 matches this season in the Premier League
* Villa are one of the few sides to have conceded more goals in the first half than in the second with 11 of the 19 goals against them coming in the opening 45 minutes
* A win could move Sunderland up six places in the table depending on the other results around them
* Referee Steve Bennett has officiated twice for Villa this season and they have won both times and picked up three cards
* Bennett has yet to referee Sunderland this season
* Villa with 27 goals have nearly doubled Sunderland’s total of 15 with Villa scoring more goals on the road than at Villa Park, just 14 to 13
* After a four match winning run Villa have slipped to back to back home defeats against Arsenal and Portsmouth
* Martin O’Neill’s side are looking for a fourth straight away win
* On the road this season Villa have an excellent record with just one defeat in seven matches, a 1-0 defeat at the City of Manchester Stadium other than that they have three wins and three draws
* Villa have twice scored four goals in a match on the road this season at Blackburn and Tottenham

Betting

* Sunderland have scored in six of their seven home matches in the premier League this season, only Liverpool have stopped them scoring
* Sunderland have only scored more than once in a match at home on one occasion, 2-1 win over Reading
* Nine times Villa have taken the lead this season and they have gone on to win seven times only losing to the top two Arsenal and Manchester United
* Sunderland have fallen behind in 11 matches and yet to come back and win, losing nine and twice coming back to get a draw away at Birmingham and at home to Fulham
* Only Kenwyne Jones with two has scored more than one home goal for Sunderland this season
* Villa have only been involved in one 0-0 draw all season
* Villa have scored in their last 11 Premier League matches and only failed to score twice in 16 games this season against Manchester City and Newcastle
* Sunderland are averaging under a booking a game at home with six yellow cards in seven matches and no player has picked up more than one card
* In the five matches where Sunderland have scored first they have yet to lose, winning three of them and drawing twice
* Villa have fallen behind six times this season and only once have come back to win at home to Fulham
* Sunderland have only managed to score once in the opening 15 minutes of games this season whilst Villa have done it four times.
* 40% of Sunderland’s goals have come in the last ten minutes of matches six out of 15, Villa also have scored six times in the last ten minutes but it is only 22% of their goals
* John Carew has been the first scorer in Villa’s last two away matches
* After failing to score in their first two away matches of the season Villa have netted 14 times in five matches on an unbeaten run

West Ham v Everton, 15:00

History

* Last season it was honours even with both sides winning their home match in this fixture
* Everton’s last win at Upton Park was backing October 2002 thanks to a 69th minute goal from Lee Carsley when Everton were in a great run at Upton Park with three wins in four matches
* Everton have won on three of their last six visits to Upton Park

Trends

* Tanner has taken charge of West Ham once this season when they were beaten 1-0 at Villa Park and picked up two yellow cards
* Tanner has refereed Everton once before last season away at Reading, the Toffees were 2-0 winners and did not pick up a booking
* Recent form has seen West Ham win two of their last six matches, drawn two and lost two
* West Ham have only been involved in one 0-0 draw this season
* At home this season West Ham have only won twice in seven matches, there have been three 1-1 draws and they have lost 1-0 twice to the Gunners and Manchester City
* The Hammers have managed just one clean sheet at home all season, when beating Middlesbrough 3-0 back in September
* West Ham have scored seven times at Upton Park this season and all the goals scorers are British with Englishman Lee Bowyer and Carlton Cole leading the way with two apiece
* Five of Everton’s goals have come from headers this season compared to just one for West Ham
* Everton have nine goals on the road and Yakubu and Joleon Lescott lead the way with two goals apiece
* West Ham have not done well scoring in the first half with only six goals in the opening 45 minutes of matches
* Both sides have done well closing down at the edge of the box and have conceded just one goal each form outside the penalty area
* In eight away matches this season Everton have won three lost three and drawn twice
* Everton have been involved in just one 0-0 draw all season away at Portsmouth last Saturday

Betting

* Referee Steve Tanner will be taking charge of his 8th Premier League match of the season and has given out 17 yellow cards, only five of these have been to the home side. but has yet to send anybody off this season
* Tanner has awarded three penalties and they have all been to the home side
* West Ham averaging less than 2 yellow cards a match at home with 13 in seven matches and no player sent off, Lee Bowyer has the most at home with three
* Everton have done well scoring early and five times this season scored in the opening 15 minutes of matches compared to twice for the Hammers
* Everton have also scored well late on with six goals in the last 10 minutes, twice as many as West Ham have managed
* West Ham have done well conceding late goals compared to Everton with just two in the last ten minutes whilst Everton have conceded three times as many with six
* In nine matches when Everton have taken the lead they have gone on to win eight of them and lost just once, the Merseyside derby after a Sami Hyypia own goal gave them the lead
* At the other end of the scale in the six matches they have fallen behind in they have yet to win, losing four and drawing two
* The Toffees have managed just two clean sheets on the road this season
* In eight matches on the road Everton have picked up just 11 yellow cards with Joleon Lescott and Stephen Pienaar collecting two each
* Yakubu is Everton’s leading scorer with Premier League goals but only two of them have come on the road

Wigan v Blackburn, 15:00

History

* These two have met four times in the Premier League and Rovers are unbeaten
* Rovers have won three of the four matches between the two sides including doing the double over Wigan last season
* Rovers have outscored Wigan nine goals two in the four matches
* Wigan have lost both their home matches 3-0

Trends

* Wigan have gone 13 matches without a win in the Premier League since beating Sunderland 3-0 in August
* Wigan have managed just six goals at home all season and half of them came in the 3-0 win over Sunderland
* Rovers have lost just once on the road this season in seven matches and that was at Old Trafford to the Champions
* Wigan have gone into the lead in four matches this season and three of them were back in August when they won two and drew one, since then they have done just once at St Andrews losing to Birmingham City 3-2 after twice taking the lead
* Rovers go into the match with just one win on their last six matches, a 3-1 home win over Newcastle.
* Five of the 30 goals Wigan have conceded this season have been in the opening 15 minutes of matches whilst Rovers have yet to concede in this period
* Blackburn Rovers have scored six of their 20 goals this season from outside the penalty area whilst Wigan have managed just the one
* Wigan have only played seven games at home this season, nine away, and not won in five with three defeats and two draw
* Referee Mark Clattenberg has taken charge of Blackburn once already this season at home to Birmingham City and gave out three cards to Rovers players
* Clattenberg has refereed Wigan once this season as wee, in there 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Liverpool and they collected just two yellow cards

Betting

* Wigan have also gone 13 games without keeping a clean sheet since the 3-0 win over Sunderland
* Wigan have scored just one goal at the JJB Stadium in their last 360 minutes
* Rovers have managed just three clean sheets all season in 15 matches
* In seven matches at the JJB this season Wigan have collected 10 yellow cards with Titus Bramble accounting for three of them and no other player getting more than one
* Wigan have not been involved in a 0-0 draw this season and Rovers have been twice against two of the Big Four Liverpool and Chelsea
* In the 12 matches when Wigan have fallen behind this season they have never managed to come back and win, they have lost ten and drawn two of the matches
* Wigan have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last five home matches
* 33% of the goals Wigan have conceded this season have come in the last ten minutes of matches, 10 out of 30 whilst Rovers have conceded five of 19 goals in this period
* In seven matches on the road this season Rovers have picked up 16 yellow cards and a red card with no players collecting more than two booking
* Rovers have collected 31 yellow and four red cards to date this season
* Wigan have had 27 yellow cards and two players dismissed this season
* Referee Mark Clattenberg will be taking charge of his 12th match of the season and to date has issued 35 yellow cards and 23 of these have gone to the home side, the highest % of any Premier League referee this season
* Clattenberg has also sent off three players with straight red cards and they have all been home players
* This will be the third straight season Clattenberg has refereed this fixture
* To continue Clattenburg’s theme of favouring the away side he has given two of his three penalties this season to the away side
* Clattenberg refereed this fixture last season and gave out five bookings, all were to Rovers players, the previous season he gave each side a single yellow card

Sunday, 16 December 2007

Arsenal v Chelsea, 16:00

History

* Last season it was honours even with both matches ending as draws, 1-1
* Chelsea are unbeaten in the last six encounters between these teams. A 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge in February 2004 was their last defeat
* Arsenal’s last win at home was a 2-1 in October 2003 with goals by Edu and Henry.
* Chelsea’s only one win away to Arsenal was 2-0 in December 2005 when goals by Joe Cole and Robben secured the victory
* Chelsea have only beaten Arsenal five times in 30 Premier league clashes
* There has never been a 0-0 draw in the Premier League between Arsenal and Chelsea at Arsenal’s ground and only one 2-2 draw, in December 2004
* Michael Essien has been Chelsea’s point saver in the last 2 encounters, both resulting in 1-1 draws
* Alan Wiley has refereed the fixture twice before (the last two) giving seven yellow cards and one red card over the two matches, with both games ending 1-1
Arsenal legend Thierry Henry leads the Arsenal Premier scoring charts against Chelsea with eight goals against their London rivals
John Terry is Chelsea’s second top scorer in Premier League games against Arsenal with just two goals – Dennis Wise leading the way with three. Both Terry’s were at Arsenal

Trends

* After 15 matches unbeaten Arsenal lost their unbeaten run at the Riverside going down 2-1 to Middlesbrough
* Arsenal scored in injury time through Tomas Rosicky to maintain their record of scored in all 16 Premier League matches this season.
* The Gunners also conceded for the 12th time in 16 matches
* Stewart Downing’s penalty was the first against the Gunners this season
* At the Emirates Arsenal are unbeaten with an impressive seven wins and a draw scoring in all eight matches and but only keeping clean sheets in four of the games
* They have met the other two Big Four sides this season and drawn both games, 1-1 at Anfield and 2-2 at home to United
* Chelsea have just two headed goals this season with Arsenal on four, last season Chelsea got 16 goals from headers six more than Arsenal
* As well as scoring goals in the opening 15 minutes the Gunners have also conceded in this period with five compared to just one for Chelsea
* Chelsea have kept three successive clean sheets
* Nine times this season Chelsea have gone ahead in matches and eight times they have won with only Everton coming back to stop them taking all three points
* In the eight matches they have gone on to win after taking the lead they have not conceded
* In the last two matches they have fallen behind in they have ended up losing 2-0 at Old Trafford and Villa Park
* In the first three matches they fell behind in this season they came back to win against Birmingham City and Reading and got a draw at Anfield
* Arsenal have conceded three times from outside the penalty area with Chelsea yet to concede one this way
* In eight away games this season Chelsea have five wins a draw and two defeats
* Frank Lampard is Chelsea’s leading scorer on the road with three goals this season out of the 10 they have scored
* In eight matches on the road Chelsea have collected 17 yellow cards with no player getting more than two
* Wiley last refereed the Blues in their 1-1 draw with Everton at the start of November and he booked two Chelsea players
* Last time Alan Wiley refereed Chelsea on the road they were 1-0 winners at the Reebok over Bolton Wanderers and he booked just one Chelsea player

Betting

* The Gunners have fallen behind twice at home this season, against Fulham they came back to win 2-1 and against Manchester United ended up drawing 2-2
* In seven of their eight matches at home Arsenal have scored at least two goals, the exception their 1-0 win over Manchester City
* Arsenal have gone ahead 10 times this season and not lost, winning eight and drawing twice
* In the six games they have conceded first they have lost once, last Sunday, come back to win three of them and drawn twice
* Arsenal start games better the Chelsea with six goals in the opening 15 minutes of matches compared to just two for the Blues, last season Chelsea outshone the Gunners in this area
* In the last 10 minutes of matches the Gunners have an amazing record compared to Chelsea with 12 goals to Chelsea’s one
* Alan Wiley will be refereeing his 14th Premier League match of the season and has given out 43 yellow cards but only sent off one player
* Wiley has not yet awarded a penalty this season
* Wiley is one of the few referees to have booked more home players than away players 22 to 21
* Alan Wiley has taken charge of the two sides a total of 40 times between them and given 74 yellow cards and three 3 red cards in this time
The last seven matches between the sides have produced 33 yellow cards and one red
* Arsenal have picked up 24 yellow cards but only six have come at the Emirates
* Chelsea have collected 31 yellow cards with 17 coming on the road and 14 at the Bridge
* Chelsea have had three players red carded and the Gunners just one
* Chelsea have kept eight clean sheets in their last nine matches with only Tim Cahill scoring against them in this time
* Chelsea have scored in their last eight matches since drawing 0-0 at the Bridge with Fulham at the end of September
* Chelsea have scored first in their last eight matches

Liverpool v Man Utd, 13:30

History

* Referee Mark Halsey has never taken charge of this fixture although has refereed the two sides 37 times in total between them
* United go into the game six points clear of their rivals
* Jamie Carragher is one booking away from suspension
* No United player has more than three bookings this season
* The sides have met 30 times in Premier League history, with United dominating with 16 wins to Liverpool’s seven and seven draws also
* Liverpool’s last win over United at Anfield was a 3-1 win in November 2001, thanks to a brace from Michael Owen
* Liverpool have only managed to win on four occasions in 15 Premier League matches at Anfield against United. United have beaten their rivals eight times at Anfield
* Liverpool have not scored against United for 486 minutes when a John O’Shea own goal was Liverpool’s only goal in a 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford in September 2004 and Liverpool’s last scorer in this fixture at Anfield was Harry Kewell who scored in a 2-1 defeat in November 2003

Trends

* United have the best defensive record in the Premier League this season with just eight goals conceded. Liverpool are joint second best with nine goals let in
* Liverpool have the second best disciplinary record in the league behind neighbours Everton with just 18 yellow cards so far. United are next best with 19 yellow and one red
* Cristiano Ronaldo is joint top scorer in the Premier League with nine goals alongside Adebayour of Arsenal
* United lie third in the form table with four wins, a draw and one defeat from their last six matches. Liverpool are seventh with one less win and one more draw than United
* Referee Mark Halsey has awarded three penalties in 12 matches so far this season
* In 15 league matches against United, Steve Gerrard has only scored once – the opener in a 2-0 win for Liverpool 6 ½ years ago
* Last weeks defeat to Reading ended a run of three consecutive wins for Liverpool
* They also conceded their first goals since drawing with Arsenal in October
* Only nine of United’s 29 goals this season have come away from home
* Liverpool have been awarded four penalties this season compared to just two for United
* Both sides have started and finished games well this season – with United managing 3 goals in the opening 15 mins of matches and 6 in the last 10, with Liverpool getting 2 and 7
* Liverpool have yet to conceded a goal this season from outside the penalty area
* United’s last away win was against Aston Villa in October
* United have yet to lose in two other matches against ‘Big 4’ sides this season – beating Chelsea and drawing with Arsenal and scoring two in each match
* United have won the last three league meetings between the sides and not conceded a goal in the process
* United have won four of the last five league meetings between the sides at Anfield
* There has only ever been three draws between the sides at Anfield, and never a 1-1 draw

Betting

* Only two of Ronaldo’s nine goals in the league this season have come away from Old Trafford
* Liverpool have only the 10th best record at home in the league this season – with just 13 points from their seven matches. United have the best record with 25 points
* United only have the 8th best away record in the league this season with three wins, two draws and two defeats from their seven matches
* Referee Mark Halsey averages less than three cards per match with 34 cards from his 12 matches so far this season
* 26 of these cards have come in the second half of matches
* Sami Hyppia has scored twice at Anfield for Liverpool in previous matches against United
* Jamie Carragher has been booked five times in league matches against United
* United have had a player sent off in two of their last three visits to Anfield
* The last five matches between the sides have produced a total of 23 yellow cards and two red cards which were both for United players
* Liverpool top scorer Fernando Torres has scored all six of his league goals this season at Anfield
* Dirk Kuyt has yet to score at Anfield this season
* Both Liverpool’s other two matches against ‘Big 4’ opposition this season have ended in 1-1 draws
* Liverpool have scored first 10 times this season and have won seven and drawn three times
* They have only conceded first twice this season – winning the Merseyside derby and losing last week to Reading
* Liverpool have scored first in six of their seven home matches this season – the only exception being the goalless draw with Birmingham
* United have conceded three times in the opening 15 minutes of matches this season
* Carlos Tevez is yet to score away from home for United
* Cristiano Ronaldo has never scored against Liverpool
* United have scored first 12 times this season and have never lost and won 10 of these matches
* They have only conceded first three times this season and lost two of these matches 1-0. The other match they turned around against Aston Villa
* Ronaldo has scored first for United three times this season and they have won every time
* United have scored first in just three of seven matches away from home this season
* United are unbeaten in six league matches against Liverpool home and away, conceding just two goals