Australian midfielder Jason Culina will play no further part in the Asian Cup due to an ongoing knee problem.
Socceroos officials announced Culina had left Asia’s flagship national tournament in Qatar to receive treatment in Australia shortly after his country booked a semi-final spot with a 1-0 win over Iraq in the quarter-finals on Saturday.
Culina aggravated the injury in Australia’s Group C 1-1 draw with South Korea and has not played in the two matches since, with Carl Valeri taking his place in central midfield.
Osieck said he was disappointed to have had to let the Gold Coast United midfielder leave camp, but he knew it was right decision.
“We had hopes that Jason may be available for the upcoming matches, but the latest medical reports suggested that he would not be at 100 percent,” Osieck said
“Following discussions with our medical staff we have come to the decision that it is in Jason’s best interest that we let him return home to receive treatment to get his knee right.”
“It’s always disappointing to lose a player of Jason’s calibre, but the players and staff are fully supportive of Jason and we look forward to seeing him back with us as soon as possible.”
Culina spoke of his frustration at having to leave the tournament prematurely: “Unfortunately, I knew that I wouldn’t be at my best for the remainder of the competition,” the Gold Coast United midfielder said.
“I’m thankful that Holger has allowed me to return to hopefully recover as soon as possible.”
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“I wish the boys all the best for the remainder of the AFC Asian Cup and I’ll be watching from home.”
Under the AFC Asian Cup Regulations, Osieck is unable to bring a substitute player into the Socceroos squad for the remainder of the tournament.
The Socceroos will face Uzbekistan at Khalifa Stadium in the semi-finals on Tuesday after defeating Iraq 1-0 in the quarter-finals.
This weekend should prove to be one of the most exciting weekends in Premier League football for a long time. There are some interesting Premier League fixtures on Saturday, but Sunday is a football bonanza. We have three derbies to enjoy, as Aston Villa face Birmingham, Sunderland host Newcastle and Everton travel to Liverpool, and then to round off the action Tottenham will attempt to end Manchester United’s unbeaten Premier League run at White Hart Lane. Who will win? This is what the experts think…
Continue to PAGE TWO for the full predictions feature…
Football Writers’ Association Predictions – Week 23
Patrick Barclay (The Times)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
D
West Brom
V
Blackpool
H
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
A
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
D
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
D
Liverpool
V
Everton
D
Tottenham
V
Man United
H
Chelsea v Blackburn: Ancelotti in the groove.
Des Kelly (Daily Mail)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
D
West Brom
V
Blackpool
A
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
D
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
H
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
H
Liverpool
V
Everton
A
Tottenham
V
Man United
D
Liverpool v Everton: New manager, same problems. Kenny Dalglish’s arrival may have lifted the mood among the fans, but the performance against Manchester United in the FA Cup showed how much has yet to be done on the pitch. Everton’s form has picked up of late – barring a setback at Stoke – and I sense another disappointing day looms for Liverpool. Away win.
Shaun Custis (The Sun)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
A
West Brom
V
Blackpool
D
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
D
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
A
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
D
Liverpool
V
Everton
H
Tottenham
V
Man United
D
Man City v Wolves: City are still pushing on in the title race and will be confident of getting three points.
Andy Dunn (News of the World)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
H
West Brom
V
Blackpool
H
West Ham
V
Arsenal
D
Wigan
V
Fulham
A
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
A
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
A
Liverpool
V
Everton
A
Tottenham
V
Man United
A
Sunderland v Newcastle. Steve Bruce will be desperate to avenge the crushing defeat at St James’ Park but Newcastle have shown some decent form on the road (in the League) and could well pull off a derby double.
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Martin Lipton (The Mirror)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
D
West Brom
V
Blackpool
D
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
D
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
H
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
H
Liverpool
V
Everton
H
Tottenham
V
Man United
A
STOKE V BOLTON: Bolton’s push for the top six has started to stall recently but they should be good enough to get something from their trip to the Potteries. A point would be enough for Stoke, too
Steve Bates (The People)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
A
West Brom
V
Blackpool
D
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
H
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
H
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
H
Liverpool
V
Everton
D
Tottenham
V
Man United
H
West Ham v Arsenal: Can’t look beyond an away win for Arsene Wenger’s men for this one especially as West Ham are rock bottom of the table again and Arsenal have only lost one of their last six away games in the League.
Glenn Moore (The Independent)
Home Team
Away Team
Chelsea
V
Blackburn
H
Man City
V
Wolves
H
Stoke
V
Bolton
D
West Brom
V
Blackpool
A
West Ham
V
Arsenal
A
Wigan
V
Fulham
D
Birmingham
V
Aston Villa
D
Sunderland
V
Newcastle
H
Liverpool
V
Everton
D
Tottenham
V
Man United
H
Tottenham v Manchester United: United have been doing just enough all season, but Spurs are formidable when in the mood and can end United’s long unbeaten run
Bayer Leverkusen and Hannover meet in a blockbuster clash at the BayArena on Friday as the battle for second spot in Bundesliga intensifies.
Bayer leapfrogged Hannover into second following their 3-1 defeat of Borussia Monchengladbach on Sunday.
They are 11 points behind all-conquering Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund, whose grip on top of the table is becoming more and more insurmountable as each round passes.
Hannover, a further two points behind Dortmund in third, slipped to a shock 1-0 loss at home to Schalke on Saturday to relinquish second place.
With Dortmund all but assured of taking the German title, Bayer and Hannover will fight it out over the remainder of the season for the second and final Champions League place.
Central to Hannover’s plans to upset Bayer will be Ivorian striker Didier Ya Konan, who failed to get on the scoresheet for the first time in five league games against Schalke.
The 25-year-old has 10 goals in 17 appearances this season, equal fifth-best in the league, and has been in astonishing form of late.
On Saturday, Dortmund take to the road to face a confident Wolfsburg still upbeat after ending a run of seven straight draws by edging Mainz 1-0.
Bayern Munich, who have risen to fourth on the table with a string of steady results, will relish a trip to leaky Werder Bremen, who have conceded a second-worst 39 goals in the league.
Early front-runners Mainz will look to turn around their mid-season blues at Kaiserslautern, who plummeted to 13th after a 5-1 hiding at Bayern last weekend.
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Improving Schalke will look to continue their climb up the table when they host Hoffenheim, while sixth-placed Hamburger is aiming for four wins in a row at Nurnberg.
Relegation battlers St Pauli and Koln square off at the Millerntor Stadion.
On Sunday, Freiburg will look to halt a three-match winless slide at lowly Stuttgart, and bottom-placed Borussia M’gladbach travel to an Eintracht Frankfurt outfit reeling from back-to-back losses.
So, it’s here again for another year. It’s going to happen and there’s nothing we can do about it and there’s no way we can get away from it. It’s like when your mother-in-law arrives just in time for kick off and proceeds to talk all the way through the first half, shut up for half time, before continuing her discussions through the second half, blissfully unaware that you’re trying to watch the match. Though, to be honest, if she wanted to distract me for 96 minutes tomorrow, she would be welcome to (bear in mind I’m single and haven’t got a mother-in-law here, so it’s going to have to be a very quick courtship and wedding at this late stage).
I hate derby day. As simple as that. I hate it. It’s a truly horrible day. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it’s the worst day of the football season. And some fool at the FA decided that it should happen twice a season. Clearly somebody is off their rocker.
It never fails to leave your stomach feeling the way it does after you’ve had a bug for three days and haven’t eaten. It never fails to make your fingernails shorter by however far you can physically get your teeth in behind them. It never fails to put your body under more stress than taking an exam that your life depended on you passing.
I’m not aware of such a test existing, but it’d definitely spice up GCSE exam halls.
One reason why it makes me (and I assume other Manchester City fans) feel like this is simple. The result is amplified: wins feel better, defeats feel worse, while draws feel like even damper squibs than they were. But the biggest reason of all, however, is actually that we’re Manchester City fans. Doing things the easy way isn’t in the club’s nature, so getting through derby day isn’t a simple achievement.
United fans have it easy. It’s win-win in their camp. They win, they get to taunt some City fans. They lose, they get to pretend that Liverpool is their big fixture and they don’t really care about City anyway. Though, of course, we all know they do thanks to the outrage felt at the Welcome to Manchester billboard, the (now cancelled) party to celebrate City’s lack of success and the (club endorsed) banner that shows the years where we have won nothing… thank you for showing such concern in little ol’ City.
That’s what makes the game so difficult to endure. It’s a horrible day, invented so neutrals can watch as people like me suffer nervous breakdowns and a whole manner of heart problems decades before we should. I love winning derbies, I just hate the actual playing of the game.
And then there are the neutrals! The pundits, ex-players, commentators, and fans of other clubs that don’t really care about the result, but take it upon themselves to tell us how much of a great game it’s going to be. The media build-up is incredible: you would think that no football match is ever going to be like it until the end of recorded time ever (which, at Old Trafford, will probably have about seven or eight added minutes).
The strange and ever-so paradoxical thing is that I’m now a part of that crazy build-up to the game. By writing this column, by doing this City podcast, or by being on the other City radio show that I am, I’m adding pre-match build up to the already unnecessary pre-match build up to a game that I hate watching every time it comes around.
And tomorrow’s game does have so much riding on it. United have just lost to Wolves and have lost their unbeaten run. City have dragged themselves out of a sticky patch of form with a comfortable victory over West Brom. But the form book traditionally goes out of the window when it comes down to who will win, especially as City tend to do well in this fixture when they’ve recently been playing poorly.
A City victory would pull United closer and drag City towards the top of the league (still having played a game more, mind you, so, should it happen, let’s not get too carried away). A United victory sends them clear at the top of the league and shunts them away from their neighbours. And a draw probably does more for Arsenal that it does for either side, though I think City would be perfectly happy with a point at Old Trafford.
It’s difficult to say how City will set up – Ferdinand is supposed to be out of the match (though we’ll only know for sure when the teamsheets are announced, after all it’s not like Mr. Ferguson doesn’t have form when it comes to something like this) and that, in theory, should leave United lighter at the back. City played well against West Brom, especially with Kolarov on the left flank, but to go unchanged would leave out one of this season’s linchpins in Nigel de Jong, who may or may not be fit. There are big selection decisions to be made.
But, with the stakes higher this season than they have been in any season for a long time, the one thing I feel pretty assured in saying is that this will be a nervy game. We could end up with two sides who are cancelling each other out because neither wants to lose. I see a game decided by a wondergoal. Or a fluke. Or a moment of hideous defending. Or nine minutes of added time. I don’t see another 4-3 thriller, especially if the game at Eastlands – which, let’s be honest, had less riding on it at the time – was as cautious as it was.
United won’t sit back and defend. And that might well help City, since we’ve been pretty good on the break this season and, with one or two blips aside, pretty strong defensively. But if that’s how Mr. Mancini decides to set up, then this could be one of the longest 90 minutes of our lives.
Not including stoppage time, obviously.
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Udinese’s push for Champions League football gathered steam on Sunday with a crushing 7-0 away win at Palermo.Antonio Di Natale scored a hat-trick to bring his season tally to 21 Serie A goals, but even he was outdone by Chilean winger Alexis Sanchez who scored four in the rout, as Udinese climbed to within a point of fourth-placed Lazio.Palermo finished the match with nine men after midfielder Armin Bacinovic was sent off five minutes before half-time and defender Matteo Darmian saw red on the hour mark.Lazio failed to make up any ground on the top three, after an Andre Dias own goal five minuted before the break saw them suffer a 1-0 loss at Cagliari, and Roma remain in sixth place after relinquishing a two-goal lead at home in their 2-2 draw with lowly Parma.Roma caretaker boss Vincenzo Montella was looking for a win in his first home game in charge, but a brace from Parma striker Amauri wiped out first-half strikes from Francesco Totti – making his 600th appearance for Roma – and Brazilian defender Juan.Cesena had a Luis Jimenez goal to thank for their 1-0 win at home over Chievo Verona, and Catania came from behind to beat Genoa 2-1 at home.Antonio Floro Flores handed the visitors the lead in the 19th minute, but second-half goals to Maxi Lopez and Gonzalo Bergessio lifted Catania to an important win in a fiery encounter that saw Domenico Criscito and Flores ordered off for Genoa, and Blazej Augustyn dismissed for Catania.Brescia played out a 2-2 draw with Lecce at the Stadio Mario Rigamonti, and Bari needed a late equaliser from Abdelkader Ghezzal to claim a point in their 1-1 draw at home with Fiorentina.
So the Champions League draw has been made and all in all it wasn’t a great one for the Premier League clubs. Not only do we have an all-English match up between Chelsea and Manchester United, but Tottenham will have to beat Real Madrid and in all likelihood Barcelona as well just to make the final. On the bright side, there is still a chance that we can have an all-English final at Wembley, with odds of 14/1 available on that to happen.
Just in case you had your eyes closed, here is the draw and the odds given by bet365 for each team to progress…
Real Madrid (2/5) v Tottenham (2/1)
Chelsea (4/5) v Man Utd (Evs)
Barcelona (1/8) v Shakhtar Donetsk (5/1)
Inter Milan (2/5) v Schalke (2/1)
So who do you think are the winners and losers from the quarter finals draw of the Champions League?
While on paper Tottenham probably have the hardest draw of all the English teams, Spurs fans can also look forward to some more cracking European nights (hopefully more than 2!) Real Madrid might have a formidable looking team, with special players in midfield especially, but Tottenham really do have nothing to fear. Spurs may have drifted from 14/1 to 25/1 all is certainly not lost.
Chelsea and Man United are in the easier half of the draw (ie: the one without Barcelona in it) and whoever wins the quarter final will really fancy their chances of reaching Wembley. Chelsea are slightly shorter at 13/2 to win the Champions League than Man United at 8/1 but that match is simply too close to call.
The odds on their being a Spanish winner of the Champions League have shortened dramatically, what with Barcelona out-classing Arsenal and there being a high chance of at least one La Liga team in the final. Maybe it’s worth a punt on an English winner at these odds though…
Nationality of Winner:
Spain – 8/15
England – 5/2
Italy – 8/1
Ukraine – 40/1
Germany – 40/1
How do you think Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham will fare in their respective Champions League quarter finals? Fancy a flutter on any of the odds above? I’m going down the bookies to put a few quid on Shakhtar at 40/1!
The Scottish FA have suspended Celtic manager Neil Lennon and Rangers assistant Ally McCoist for their Old Firm clash last week.The pair argued heatedly following Celtic’s 1-0 win in the Scottish Cup fifth-round replay, in which red cards were shown to Rangers players Steven Whittaker, Madjid Bougherra and El-Hadji Diouf.The Association suspended Lennon automatically due to an overhanging charge of misconduct, and he will serve a four-game ban from the technical area.McCoist, who is due to take over from manager Walter Smith at the Rangers helm next season, will cop a two-match touchline suspension.Bougherra and Diouf have both been reported to the Association’s disciplinary committee for misconduct, with penalties pending at an SFA meeting on April 12.A Scottish FA statement read: “The Scottish FA can confirm that Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager, and Ally McCoist, the Rangers assistant manager, have been charged with misconduct relating to the Scottish Cup fifth-round replay.””Mr Lennon will incur an automatic four-match suspension from the technical area, owing to a previous charge of misconduct, while Mr McCoist will incur a two-match suspension. These will be effective from March 16, 2011.””In addition, the Rangers players, El-Hadji Diouf and Madjid Bougherra, have been informed that they will be reported to the disciplinary committee for misconduct of a significantly serious nature. These will be considered at the committee’s next meeting, on April 12.”
Barcelona beat Villarreal on Saturday to open up an eight-point lead in La Liga after Real Madrid lost 1-0 at home to Sporting Gijon.A 79th-minute goal from Miguel de las Cuevas helped Sporting register an unlikely upset over second-placed Real at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.
Shorn of key men Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso and Karim Benzema, the hosts were reduced to a handful of half-chances from Germany playmaker Mesut Ozil and Argentina forward Angel Di Maria.
Striker Gonzalo Higuain nearly scored after coming off the bench in his first appearance following a four-month absence through injury.
But it was left to former Atletico Madrid man de las Cuevas to snatch a late winner for Sporting and deal a major blow to Real’s title ambitions.
It was Real coach Jose Mourinho’s first league defeat in charge of a home team for just over nine years and also the capital city club’s first home defeat of the season in any competiton.
Defending champions Barca duly took advantage, despite being made to work by Villarreal.
They eventually edged a tight encounter in the Estadio El Madrigal 1-0, courtesy of Gerard Pique’s 66th-minute strike.
With Lionel Messi starting on the bench under an injury cloud, the visitors struggled to breakdown Villarreal, who went close on several occasions through Italy striker Giuseppe Rossi.
Xavi Hernandez had an effort tipped over the bar in one of Barca’s few clear-cut chances, before Messi was introduced on 52 minutes.
But it was Brazilian Dani Alves rather than Argentine superstar Messi who finally crafted the breakthrough.
Finding space on the right, Alves sent in a cross that glanced off the head of Sergio Busquets before finding its way to Pique.
The Spain international defender used his chest to cushion the ball down and then smacked a volley past Villarreal goalkeeper Diego Lopez from close range.
The win puts Pep Guardiola’s side firmly in control of the title race and – with eight matches left in the season – on course for their third consecutive championship crown.
Elsewhere, four goals from striker Roberto Soldado helped Valencia come from a goal down to beat Getafe 4-2 away from home.
The win keeps Valencia third, a distant 16 points behind Real and 24 back from Barca.
Vitoria Setubal took another step towards safety after securing a late 1-1 draw at Academica in the Liga Sagres on Friday.Sitting one spot above the two relegation places, Claudio Pitbull hit an 82nd minute equaliser for Setubal to extend their gap over the bottom two to five points.
Despite missing the chance to take maximum points, the draw also moved Academica six points clear of the 15th-placed Naval Primeiro de Maio.
Miguel Fidalgo had given the hosts a 39th minute lead and they earned a penalty five minutes into the second half, but striker Modou Sougou’s attempt was well saved by Setubal goalkeeper Diego Silva.
When Jose Pedro was sent off for the visitors on the hour mark, it looked as though Academica would collect a vital three points despite the penalty miss.
But Sougou also picked up a second yellow card in the 69th minute before Pitbull struck an important leveller with eight minutes remaining.
The result pushed both teams another point from the bottom two, but neither is yet safe with three games for each to play.
Borussia Monchengladbach and Eintracht Frankfurt will be fighting for their lives in the Bundesliga on Saturday, while St Pauli look doomed.Monchengladbach have spent much of the season propping up the table.
But they beat Hannover 1-0 away last week and are now three points off safety with two matches remaining.
They host overachievers Freiburg this weekend, before a trip to Hamburg on the last day of the season.
Faced with a similar situation in the 1997/98 season, a Steffen Effenberg-inspired Gladbach won both of their last two matches to narrowly survive.
It remains to be seen if the 2011 edition can match those heroics.
Frankfurt fans also face a nerve-wracking conclusion to the season.
Third from bottom and just one point away from safety, they play host to Cologne, who are four points better off in 14th place and require just a draw to guarantee their survival.
Wolfsburg are the other team battling to avoid the drop.
They have won their last two matches – Felix Magath’s first victories since returning as coach in March – to climb out of the bottom three.
League champions as recently as 2008/09, they remain just one point clear of the relegation zone and are at home to Kaiserslautern on Saturday.
St Pauli looked destined to return to the second tier after just one season back in the top flight.
Six points from safety with a vastly inferior goal difference to the teams above them, they would need big wins in both matches to have any chance of a remarkable escape.
And with Champions League contenders Bayern Munich arriving at the Millerntor on Saturday, it would appear an impossible task.
Worse still for St Pauli, Bayern will not be lacking in motivation.
They finally moved into third place – the final European Cup qualification berth – after Hannover lost last week and will fiercely defend their two-point advantage in the last two matches.
Werder Bremen are still just four points clear of the drop and will be hoping newly crowned champions Borussia Dortmund arrive nursing a hangover from their title-winning celebrations.
Stuttgart, five points above the bottom three, must take points off third-placed Hannover as they seek to guarantee their survival.
Elsewhere, Hamburg travel to second-placed Bayer Leverkusen, while sixth plays eighth when Nuremburg host Hoffenheim.
Mainz can secure Europa League qualification with a win away to Schalke, who exited the Champions League at the hands of Manchester United on Wednesday.