Friday, November 9, 2007

Thoughts for EPL weekend 10 - 13th Nov

Liverpool : 4-1-6
Home : 1-0-4 (LWLLL)
Away : 3-1-2 (WWL-WL)

ATS Analysis
Liverpool resume their EPL challenge at home to Fulham after a confidence-boosting result in Europe. The 8-0 mauling of Besiktas is the largest margin of victory in CL history and all Reds supporters will see that result as a possible turning-point to kick-start Liverpool's domestic challenge again. Fulham travel to Anfield with no clear chance of upsetting the Reds.

ATS Take : Take Liverpool to build on their Home ATS, which has been woeful this campaign (1 win in 5). I'm tipping Liverpool to win by at least a 2-goal winning margin.


Chelsea : 5-1-6
Home : 1-0-4 (LLLLW)
Away : 4-1-2 (-WLLWWW)

ATS Analysis
Lampard & Drogba's return to first-team action has helped restore confidence in a Chelsea side which has returned to winning ways in recent weeks. Jose Mourinho will always be remembered as the manager who brought Chelsea their first Premership in 50 years. The new men at the helm, Avram Grant and Ten Cate have done well in their first ten games in charge, infusing a new attacking flair to Chelsea's play. The next ten will determine how Chelsea's season will finish. Going by the first 10 matches with 8 wins from 9, their form guide looks good.

Everton travel to Stamford Bridge in no short of confidence themselves, have gone a winning streak since the 1-2 loss at Goodison to Liverpool. They have racked up impressive wins at home and in Europe since, therefore an entertaining clash at Stamford Bridge awaits the neutrals.

ATS Take : DNB. Whilst it might be tempting to back Chelsea on the -1.5 handicap, I do feel that Everton will be up for this one.




Arsenal : 7-0-4
Home : 4-0-3 (LWWWLWL)
Away : 3-0-1 (LWWW)

ATS Analysis
For the die-hard Gunner fans, this has been a season to remember so far. Topping the Premiership in November and qualifying for the knock-out stage in CL. One interesting point to note though, the Gunners are into November now and history has it that Gunners for some strange reason, tend to not do well in November. Their results in November so far have been a come-from-behind 2-2 win at home to MU, and an away 0-0 draw in Slavia Prague. A coincidence? I think not.

ATS Take : Take Reading on the handicap. This is my contrarian opinion for the weekend. Its November and Gunners have already won 3 on the trot in their Away ATS, and their last two matches have been ATS losses (MU & Slavia Prague)

Manchester United : 7-1-4
Home : 4-0-2 (LWLWWW)
Away : 3-1-2 (LLW-WW)

ATS Analysis
Even if Alex Ferguson retires tomorrow, his 21-year tenure and achievements at Old Trafford will be enough to get him a place in the Hall of Fame. MU are currently in a purple patch, with 6 ATS wins in the Premiership and 4 ATS win in CL. Cumulatively, that's a 10-1-0 record. Very impressive by any standards. However, they entertain a Blackburn side which are also on an amazing winning steak themselves. 7 wins on the trot, and their last EPL away result was a hard-fought 2-1 win at White Hart Lane.

ATS Take : DNB or Take Blackburn on the handicap. My ATS analysis is similar to that of the Chelsea-Everton match. Whilst both MU and Chelsea have been red hot, they opponents are no slouches either. Blackburn will be up for this one.

EPL Betting : ATS Recap through Week 11 (3 - 4th Nov)

After a good midweek of results for the English teams in Europe, the focus now returns back to the domestic league where footie action resumes again with 3 fixtures on Saturday, and another 6 on Sunday, with Reading taking on Arsenal as the Monday Night Football fixture.

Due to personal and work committments, it has been 6 weeks since my last post on 22nd Sept, and I apologise for that. Eversince then, the ATS system has taken shape nicely too with some very strong trends developing.

To recap, the current ATS records through week 12 for the BIG FOUR teams in England are presented below, with the respective home/away form guides shown in brackets (most recent record on the right)

Legend
W : Win ATS
L : Loss ATS
- = Push ATS

Liverpool : 4-1-6
Home : 1-0-4 (LWLL)
Away : 3-1-2 (WWL-WL)

Chelsea : 5-1-6
Home : 1-0-4 (LLLLW)
Away : 4-1-2 (-WLLWWW)

Arsenal : 7-0-4
Home : 4-0-3 (LWWWLWL)
Away : 3-0-1 (LWWW)

Manchester United : 7-1-4
Home : 4-0-2 (LWLWWW)
Away : 3-1-2 (LLW-WW)

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Addendum to Ars v Derby

After reviewing the current injury list at Arsenal, and also taking into account their past season best ATS sequence, I have decided to pick against them.

Rationale : Wenger may take this opportunity to field his second team after a terrific run in the past 3 matches which has taken them to the top of the leaderboard and also a great start to their UCL campaign.

Derby on the other hand most likely lineup the same starting XI who defeated the Magpies last Monday.

ATS Take : Take Derby on the handicap. Arsenal will win this one, its only a matter of by how many.

Friday, September 21, 2007

ATS for weekend 22-23 Sep

Thoughts for the Weekend
Another big weekend of EPL matches in store. Nothing gets bigger than the Red Devils clash at Old Trafford against beleagured Chelsea who must be reeling from the exit of Jose Mourinho. How will this affect team morale? Will the new interim manager have an immediate impact on the Chelsea team? Stay tuned to find out more.

Pure Plays

Liverpool : 3-0-2
Form Guide : WLWWL (most recent result on the right)
The internationals took a toll on Liverpool's players last weekend as they fought out a goalless draw at Portsmouth. The heroics of Reina helped Liverpool keep a cleansheet as he saved out a penalty from Kanu. During the UCL midweek, Liverpool faced a tricky tie away at Porto who has not lost in 23 matches at home to English opponents. They kept that proud record intact with a 1-1 home draw.
This weekend, Liverpool host Birmingham at Anfield, and the Merseysiders will be happy to return back to the comforts of home ground, where they have dominated opponents.
Rafa will most likely rotate this team again to ensure they do not lose ground on early season leaders Arsenal.
ATS Take : Take Liverpool cover the handicap against Birmingham

Chelsea 1-1-4
Form Guide : L-WLLL (most recent result on the right)
A lot has been said of the impact Jose Mourinho brought to Chelsea. 2 Premiership titles, 1 FA Cup and 1 Carling Cup in 3 seasons are by no means an easy feat for a new manager in the EPL. One must think that Chelsea's failure to capture the UCL in the last 3 seasons led to Jose's exit, fuelled further by a disappointing home result against Rosenborg on Wednesday night.
How will this affect team morale ahead of the crunch tie at Old Trafford? Without Lampard and Drogba, Chelsea can't seem to bag a goal. Having said that, Chelsea players tend to perform when they are down and everyone is throwing eggs at them. I'm sure Terry and co. will be up for this challenge against their biggest foes. Interesting point to note : Chelsea's last away ATS win was at Anfield earlier in the season when they drew 1-1.
ATS Take : Take Chelsea on the handicap away at MU.

Arsenal 3-0-2
Form Guide : LLWWW (most recent result on the right)
Arsenal can't seem to stop scoring. A 3-0 midweek home win against Sevilla followed up the nice 3-1 result at Spurs last weekend. Cesc can't seem to stop scoring and creating. The player to look out for though is Sagna. The French fullback has blended into Arsenal's stylish attacking football and they next take on Derby at the Emirates.
After registering their first win at Pride Park to Newcastle on Monday, Derby fans will be eager to see if this kicks start their season. I'm afraid not as the maurading young Gunners will pile on more misery for the Rams.
ATS Take : Take Arsenal to cover the handicap at home to Derby

MU 3-0-3
Form Guide : WWLLWL (most recent result on the right)
MU welcomed back Rooney and Ronaldo to their side last weekend away at Everton. The effects were not immediately felt, but team morale must be strong as their eked out another 1-0 win. That seems to be the war cry of the Red Devils now.
With or without Jose Mourinho, Chelsea are still a force to be reckoned especially with their defensive lynchpin Terry.
Interesting to note, the corresponding fixture last season, Chelsea won the ATS when they visited Man Utd at Old Trafford.
ATS Take : Take Chelsea on the handicap away at MU.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Post-Analysis for w/e 15 Sep

A mixed weekend for us as our picks were split. MU and Portsmouth did us proud while Spurs and Chelsea came undone at home.


The biggest trend to emerge is the continued winning form of Arsenal, which the young Gunners have also carried into Europe with a convincing 3-0 win at home to highly-rated Sevilla. Cesc can't seem to stop scoring at the moment.

Updated ATS post w/e 15 Sep

Liverpool : 3-0-2
Arsenal : 3-0-2
Chelsea : 1-1-4
Man Utd : 2-0-4

Saturday, September 15, 2007

ATS for weekend 15 Sep

Pure Plays for weekend 15 Sep :

MU to cover the handicap away at Everton.
Chelsea to cover the handicap at home to Blackburn.
Arsenal to not cover the away handicap at Tottenham.
Liverpool to not cover the away handicap at Portsmouth.

Monday, September 3, 2007

Post-Analysis for w/e 2 Sep

Post Analysis of Pure Plays from last weekend

Liverpool continue to build on their early season form to climb to 1st place. That makes 10 goals at Anfield and 12 goals in 3 matches. An amazing run for a team once known for its defensive brilliance. The addition of Torres, Babel, Voronin, Benayoun and a born-again Pennant has given more speed to Liverpool's attack and their passing is reminiscence of yesteryears. Look out for more goals from the Red half of Merseyside.


Liverpool 3-0-1
ATS Take : Take Liverpool to cover the -1 3/4 handicap
Final Result : Liverpool won 6-0 at home to Derby
Post Analysis : A 6-0 drubbing of the hapless Rams only reiterates what Rafa's main focus is on this season. With more firepower and speed to this improving Liverpool side, the Liverpudlian faithful must be happy with this new attack-minded team. Even without sidelined captain Stevie G, Liverpool's speed and passing was too much for Derby as they registered their largest home win in a decade since the famous 9-0 drubbing of Crystal Palace almost a decade ago.

Chelsea 1-1-3
ATS Take : Take Villa +3/4
Final Result : Chelsea loss 0-2 at Villa Park
Post Analysis : Poor Jose must be wondering what was on Abramovich's mind after Villa got their second goal. In post-match reports, Jose was quoted saying, "The boss decides when he wants to leave. He doesn't have to give any reasons. I sometimes also leave early from matches as I don't want to be caught in a traffic jam". The only jam Jose will be faced with over the next fortnight will be the Euro qualifiers which will take up most of his international players time. Barring injuries (Lampard thigh injury), Jose must have missed his midfield general at Villa Park as they lost that battle to a more combative Villa side.

Arsenal 2-0-2
ATS Take : Take Arsenal to cover the -1 handicap
Final Result : Arsenal won 3-1 at home to Pompey
Post Analysis : Young Gunners continue to build on their post-Henry era by riding out a solid 3-1 home win against Portsmouth. With Cesc in irresistable form (3 goals in 3 matches), it seems that Arsenal have found a new leading man in the young Spaniard. More to come from these young Gunners as they mix it up with the best at the top.

Manchester United 1-0-4
ATS Take : Take MU on the -1 3/4 handicap
Final Result : MU won 1-0
Post Analysis : Another lacklustre performance from MU as they sorely miss R&R. Only the halftime introduction of Louis Saha saved them from an embarrassing goalless result at Old Trafford. Some may say Keano knew the insides of this Red Devils side, but we would leave it imagination what Fergie's men were thinking. Poor finishing with in-ept passing is not that way. Having said that, a tight defence gives MU 3 clean sheets in 5 matches.