Same here. I do the pools (Premier 10) and this week it was an absolute nightmare.
Liverpool vs Man Utd: Man Utd always seem to beat Liverpool, but Liverpool have had a fantastic start in two difficult games (I watched their first game of the season v Sunderland and it was dreadful, but Torres came up with the goods when they needed it - sign of the best teams!). I have a feeling Liverpool will win this one, I see them being serious contenders this season, IF and only if they can keep their good start going. But I never trust my instinct, and Berbatov will be itching to score, so I went for
Man Utd.
Blackburn vs Arsenal: Paul Ince is doing good work with Blackburn, and Arsenal were beaten by Fulham last week, so it's going to be a very interesting game - especially with Blackburn being at home. But you imagine
Arsenal will win, especially with Theo being phenomenal for England mid-week.
Fulham vs Bolton: Fulham managed to beat Arsenal the other week so they're not a side to be sniffed at, but Bolton beat Stoke in a difficult game on opening day 3-1 so they're no pushover. I had to say
Fulham though after the Arsenal game.
Newcastle vs Hull: Newcastle are managerless and the fans aren't too pleased with the board, so it's going to be awkward. Some fans are apparently going to boycott the game - will be interesting to see how many stay away. Hull had a great start beating Fulham, but they were hammered by Wigan 5-0 last week. Still, I think they're good enough to stand up to Newcastle in their current state. I went for a
draw.
Portsmouth vs Middlesboro: I was surprised to read that Middlesbrough have beaten Portsmouth in their last two games, with a 0-0 the game before that. I like Portsmouth, but I'm not "feeling" the Crouch/Defoe partnership at the moment. I think Crouch only has one or two things going for him, and Defoe is very inconsistent. Middlesbrough aren't the best team in the world but saying that, they would be unbeaten so far if it wasn't for a 94th minute Gerrard goal - credit to Gareth Southgate. I've gone for another
draw.
West Brom vs West Ham: I'm looking forward to this one because neither team will have a sponsor on their shirt, it'll be like the good old days! :mryellow: It's funny how the fixture computer came up with this one, exactly when the West Ham sponsor had to be removed. West Brom aren't world-beaters but West Ham have lost their manager and their sponsor in the space of a week (and remember Zola doesn't start the job until next week) - I've put this one down as a
draw as well.
Wigan vs Sunderland: Both sides have had a weird start to the season; Wigan lost their first two games and then beat Hull 5-0, whilst Sunderland lost their first two games and then beat Tottenham 2-1 (before losing 3-0 to Man City the following week). They're very similar and I couldn't pick between them so, again, I've gone for a
draw.
Man City vs Chelsea: The Man City players will be excited with so much money arriving into the club, although saying that a few will be nervous of losing their place in January. Robinho is a fantastic buy, but because they already have a world-class team (despite only beating Wigan 1-0 and drawing 1-1 with Tottenham) I think
Chelsea will win this one.
Stoke vs Everton: Stoke have made a good start to life in the Premier League; they've beaten Aston Villa and Middlesbrough already. I think they'll make things tough for Everton, who aren't having a great season after Bill Kenwright publicly announcing that the club could use a couple of billion quid to keep up with the "big four". I think Saha will prove himself at Everton though, so it's going to be tight. Another
draw I think.
And finally...
Tottenham vs Aston Villa: Tottenham have had a poor start, whereas Aston Villa are playing decent stuff so far (and did well to get a point from Liverpool). I think Tottenham have to win a game sooner or later though, and this is a game they can win. So I've put down
Tottenham.
[/Alan Hansen]
So now you know my pools stake for this week, if I win you'll all know at the same time as I will, if I get every result wrong you can all laugh at me.