Oh AVB, you really are a tiresome little man. Once again, your side’s inability to take three points from a match is the fault of the referee. Not your indisciplined players, not your tactics, not the other team having played well, in fact nothing other than poor refereeing. Maybe pressure from above is starting to tell on the manager, but everybody is against Chelsea apparently, including our top referees. Admittedly, it is a struggle not to intensely dislike a team which is managed by such a bitter man, which contains more than its fair share of thoroughly distasteful individuals, whose fans see fit to throw abuse at Rio Ferdinand because somebody had the temerity to accuse John Terry of allegedly racially abusing Rio’s brother, whose lawyers have sufficient influence to delay Terry’s trial until July for his club’s own benefit when you or I would have been dealt with many weeks ago, and whose idea of propriety and respect was to send the nauseating Peter Kenyon (thankfully no longer in his position) up to collect a Champions League final medal after Man.U. had chosen the eminently more worthy Bobby Charlton as their representative.


The list is becoming longer all the while, and I for one am looking forward to the slow decline of the club until they realise that respect and acclaim need to be earned rather than expected.
 

With the return of Luis Suarez to first team action, there is likely to be a toxic atmosphere at the first match of the coming weekend’s Premier League fixture list, particularly after Wayne Rooney’s ill-advised decision to state publicly that Luis Suarez should have been sent off on his return to action on Monday:
 

1)Man.U. v Liverpool: Not one for the faint hearted, and you can bank on there being disciplinary issues to discuss following this match, but United have enjoyed plenty of success at home against Liverpool, having won seven of the last eight meetings at Old Trafford in League and Cup. Liverpool have also struggled for goals on the road this season, and they may be set for a narrow defeat here.
 

2) Blackburn v QPR: Just when it looked as though Rangers had stumbled upon a powerful and effective forward duo, with both players having scored on their debuts, Djibril Cisse’s moment of madness against Wolves has resulted in a three match suspension which could prove extremely costly for his side. In contrast, Blackburn’s main goal threat, Yakubu, has now completed his own suspension and will return to help his team record a victory that would take his side above QPR if the margin is at least two goals.
 

3) Bolton v Wigan: All of the bottom six teams are playing other sides in the same predicament this weekend, and all are tricky matches to call, but this one could hinge on the fact that Wigan have failed to overcome Bolton in their last eight meetings in League and Cup. They are also without a win of any sort for nearly two months, and they may struggle to improve either of those records on Saturday.
 

4) Everton v Chelsea: Two wins and three draws from their last five matches in all competitions represents an encouraging run for Everton, but exactly the same stats recorded by Chelsea are proving more of a concern to a club still harbouring hopes of Champions League qualification. It took an injury time goal for Chelsea to win at Goodison in the League Cup earlier this season, which provided them with their first win there in five attempts. With memories of Everton’s battling win over Man.City still fresh, I see no reason why they can’t take a point from this encounter in what may be quite a low-scoring match.
 

5) Fulham v Stoke: Stoke have scored just once in their last four League games, and just once in their last five visits to Craven Cottage. 1-0.
 

6) Sunderland v Arsenal: One of the more intriguing fixtures of the weekend sees Sunderland attempting to extend their fine recent form against a side who haven’t won on their last three visits to the SOL.  Arsenal quite clearly retain the ability to absolutely destroy teams when everything clicks for them, but over the last five years, Sunderland have kept things pretty tight against the Gunners home and away, and in their current confident mood, a low-scoring draw may be the outcome here.
 

7) Swansea v Norwich: Only Man.City have conceded fewer goals at home than Swansea, and Man.United remain the only side to have won at the Liberty, so Norwich will have their work cut out in trying to secure the double over their fellow newcomers. As further evidence in the home side’s favour, and with the Oscars looming, it is worth noting that the Best Picture award in the year of Norwich’s last triumph at Swansea went to West Side Story, so that should give you some idea of how much the Canaries relish travelling to South Wales. Last season’s Championship encounter ended in a 3-0 home win , and while I don’t think the scoreline will be as emphatic on Saturday, the result should be similar.
 

8) Tottenham v Newcastle: This promises to be one of the more fascinating encounters of the weekend. Depending on which version of Newcastle turns up, they may be able to cause Spurs serious problems now that Demba Ba has returned alongside his Senegalese teammate, Papiss Demba Cisse, who also scored on his debut last Sunday. It is their defending away from home that may be their downfall though, as their collapses at Liverpool, Norwich and Fulham have demonstrated, so while I can see Newcastle notching at least once, they may well concede more than they score in what should be a hugely entertaining match.
 

9) Wolves v West Brom: Mick McCarthy was very honest about how much trouble his side were having until Djibril Cisse’s sending off at QPR last Saturday, but it was his tactical and personnel changes at half time that made the biggest difference, and the confidence levels of his players will have received a huge boost as a result. Their visitors on Sunday need to be taken very seriously though, as no side outside the top seven has won as many away games as West Brom, and they have proved in winning three of their last four League games at Molineux that the derby occasion holds little fear for them. A tremendously difficult game to call, but I’ll go for a score draw and hope for the best.
 

10) Aston Villa v Man.City: Villa will be relieved that no City players are called Cisse, having allowed players of that name to score on their debuts against them in consecutive matches last week. It’s now over three months since Villa last won a home match, but it’s also nearly five years since City won at Villa Park, so there is plenty of hope that the home side can at least avoid defeat here. City’s away form provides further encouragement for Villa, as they have won just one of their last six on the road, and have scored just three goals in the process. I fancy a score draw to spice up the title race a little further.
 

Four selections comprise this week’s accumulator, and a £10 stake with Paddy Power on Sheffield United, Cowdenbeath, Alloa and Queen’s Park would return £54.89 if all won their matches.
 

Good luck!