The reason for this is hosted on our own server meaning we can bring you much more of the posts you like

Away Goals Rule Forum Awards
Poster of the Year – Resurection Joe
New poster of the year (Must have joined After Dec 1st 2008) – The James
Best Thread of the year (Must have been started After Dec 1st 2008) – Moron of the day

None Away Goals Rule Awards
Man of the Year – Frankie Boyle
Woman of the year – Jessica Ennis
Film of 2009 – Star Trek & District 9 – Tied
Album of 2009 – Eminem – Relapse
TV Show of 2009 – Top Gear
Highlight of the year – Jenson Button winning the F1 World Title
Worst thing about 2009 – The Recession
Most deserving of a punch in the face award (otherwise known as the Jeremy Beadle award) – Thierry Henry
Silliest Mistake of 2009 – Tiger Woods and his Bits on the Side
Most Surprising thing about 2009 – Tiger playing the field & his fall from grace
Funniest thing from 2009 – Liverpool & Rafa Benitez
None football sports person of the year – Usain Bolt
Game of the year (PC or Console) – Fallout 3
Best non-football individual sporting event – Jenson Button winning the F1 World Title

Away Goals Rule Football Awards
Manager of 2009 – Pep Guardiola
Player of 2009 – Iniesta
Young Player of the year (AGR rules, must be no Older than 23) – Stephen Ireland
Football Villain of 2009 – Thierry Henry
Best Football Match – Liverpool 4-4 Arsenal

Away Goals Rule Team of the year (if a player should win 2 slots, left and right winger perhaps, we’ll take the 2nd highest)
Keeper – Given
left back – Evra
Right Back – Alves
Centre backs (2) – Vidic & Vermaalen
Central Midfielders (2) – Xavi & Iniesta
Wingers (2) – Ronaldo & Messi
Strikers (2) – Torres & Drogba

Away Goals Rule Hall of Fame – 2009 (MUST be Retired)
Players – Denis Irwin, Juninho, Gary Lineker
Manager – Herbert Chapman & Alf Ramsey
Overseas Player - Paolo Maldini
Overseas Manager – Johann Cruyff

Come and tell us what you think

Written by Jarv

Why not come and tell us what you are getting up to over the Christmas Holiday Season, Share your gossip and stories of your works party on the Christmas Chat Thread. The funnier the better!

We are currently running our Annual Awards and Hall of Fame vote, too, you can have your say here, The vote closes on the December 27th – so you better be quick to make sure your vote counts.

January Football Discussion

There is loads going on in January on Away Goals Rule, Have a look below at just a few of the things we will be discussing.

Come and see who is rumoured to be buying who in our January Transfer Thread.

As always, January also sees the start of the African Cup of Nations. Lots of premier league players will be playing and taking part and you can catch all the latest Discussion here on the African Cup of Nations Thread.

January includes the 3rd Round of the FA Cup and the Semi-Finals of the league cup and the first leg of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy Area Finals all of which find their home in our Cup Football Forum.

General Football

With Paul Hart and Mark Hughes already having been relieved of their jobs, tell us who you think will be the next to get the boot on the Premier League Sack Race Thread. Can Rafa survive the season? Will Zola be Saying Zo Long (see what i did there?)

Who will Qualify for the Champions League in possibly the Premier Leagues most open race ever? Vote and discuss this topic on the Premier League Top 4 Thread.

Tell us who you think will be playing Championship football next season and be relegated form the Premier League, and likewise, who will replace them in the top flight in our Battle for the Championship Thread.

We’ve not forgotten the other leagues too we have a Football League Forum and a Non-League Football Forum.

Despite some of Europe’s top league having a winter break the European Football Forum is still busy. Who will be the biggest mover in January? And don’t forget the Champions League and Europa League Draw discussion.

World Cup 2010

We have a new World Cup 2010 section too, Without doubt the biggest sporting event of 2010 and all of us at Away Goals Rule are really looking forward to the tournament. Who do you think will win? How far will England get? Will David Beckham make the final squad? Who will go to South Africa in June and who will miss out?

Find out all the latest news and read the discussion about the tournament here, In the World Cup 2010 Forum.

So come and visit

http://www.awaygoalsrule.com

today and tell us exactly what you think, and most importantly, and once again, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the team at Away Goals Rule forum. All the best for you and your loved ones, and may your holidays be as great as you’d hoped, even if you don’t celebrate Christmas.

Anyway onto this weekend:

Saturday

Portsmouth V Liverpool

A tough one this one Liverpool have been poor but then again Portsmouth are bottom of the table and seemingly have no money. Still Pompey have been playing better than results suggest and they might just sneak something out of this game. Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 Draw

Aston Villa V Stoke City

Villa Really are on a roll of late and have moved into 4th on the Same points as Arsenal in third all be it playing 1 game more. Stoke will be fairly happy with their lot so far this season 21 points from 16 games will be more than enough to keep them up if they can repeat that in the next 16 games. I really don’t think Stoke will get anything from this game though.

Mystic Jarv predicts 3-1 to Villa

Blackburn Rovers V Tottenham Hotspur

Blackburn have a great home record and have not been beaten there since the 15th of August. Spurs form on the other hand is all over the place, 2 wins, 3 draws and a loss from their last 6 & personally I think Blackburn will just shade this one.

Mystic Jarv predicts 2-1 to Blackburn

Fulham V Manchester United

What a fantastic achievement it is for Fulham to make the knockout stages of the Europa League, I hope the draw is kind to them. United have major injuries at the back but are scoring more goals this season than last. Fulham need to get at United early and try to nick a goal to put the pressure on. That being said i think United will edge this one.

Mystic Jarv predicts 1-2 to Manchester United

Manchester City V Sunderland

Sunderland started great but have struggled over the last few games and need a win to get the confidence back a little. City also need a win having not picked up 3 league points since September. Tottenham fans were chanting “you’re getting sacked in the morning” to Hughes on Wednesday night, well he hasn’t been but pressure is mounting and they are 8th having spent close to a quarter of a billion since Hughes took over. The pressure on Hughes i think will be lifted a bit with this game and all will be rosy again if they follow it up with Wins against Stoke and Wolves over Christmas. They also have a game in hand

Mystic Jarv predicts 2-1 to City

Arsenal V Hull City

Out of the Relegation zone Hull have done better of late but are once again without Jimmy Bullard who has yet another injury. Arsenal aren’t the first team to struggle at Burnley and they wont be the last but from winning at Anfield to losing at Burnley while both United and Chelsea won. This was a shock result last year with Hull picking up 3 points, Can’t see it this time though.

Mystic Jarv predicts 3-0 to Arsenal

Sunday

Wolverhampton Wanderers V Burnley

McCarthy has come under a lot of fire for his team selection at Old Trafford and i can understand why the Wolves fans who forked out 42 quid to effectively watch the reserves but like he says if he wins on saturday which helps keep them up then all will be forgiven. Burnley got a great result at home to Arsenal but are hopeless away from home and i reckon Wolves will pick up 3 points here.

Mystic Jarv predicts 1-0 to Wolves

Everton V Birmingham City

Birmingham have been playing great of late picking up lots of points and are currently lying 7th and only 5 points off 4th, I don’t think they will manage 4th but if Alex Mcleish is given a nice chunk of money in january to buy a few more quality players then its a possibility, especially as the other teams around keep dropping points at regular intervals. Who thought Everton would be 15th after 16 games? I certainly didn’t, They’ve had lots of injuries which has shown the thinness of their squad and will want to pick up points soon or risk being caught in a season long relegation battle.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 draw but wouldn’t be surprised if either team wins

West Ham United V Chelsea

Can anyone see anything other than a Chelsea win here? West ham have little in the way of striking options and i’m not exactly sure where the goals might come from. Chelsea had a little wobble but i expect them to comfotably be in the top 2 at the end of the season and should they not be crowned champions i think they will be close by.

Mystic Jarv predicts 1-3 to Chelsea

Monday

Wigan Athletic V Bolton Wanderers

A game both teams really need to win, especially as 2 wins in a row could jump either team into the top half if other results went their way, a tough encounter but Wigan to edge it in My Opinion.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 Win for Wigan

So there you go

Not sure if I will add anything else before hand so if not i wish you all a Merry Christmas.

Written by Jarv

As Always for all your premier league discussion and Match discussion please visit Away Goals Rule Football Forum

Pot one: Anderlecht,  Benfica,  Fenerbahce,  Hapoel Tel Aviv,  Galatasaray, Juventus,  Marseille,  PSV Eindhoven,  Roma,  Salzburg,  Shakhtar Donetsk, Sporting,  Unirea Urziceni,  Werder Bremen,  Wolfsburg,  Valencia.

Pot Two: Ajax,  Athletic Bilbao,  Atletico Madrid,  Club Brugge,  Everton,  FC Copenhagen,  FC Twente,  Fulham,  Hamburg,  Hertha Berlin,  Lille, Liverpool,  Panathinaikos,  Rubin Kazan,  Standard Liege,  Villarreal.

1st Knockout Round Draw

Rubin Kazan v Hapoel Tel Aviv
Athletic Bilbao v Anderlecht
Copenhagen v Marseille
Atletico Madrid v Galatasaray
Panathinaikos v Roma
Club Brugge v Valencia
Ajax v Juventus
Atletico Madrid v Galatasaray
Fulham v Shakhtar Donetsk
Liverpool v Unirea Urziceni
Standard Liege v Salzburg
Villarreal v Wolfsburg
Hamburg v PSV Eindhoven
Everton v Sporting
Lille v Fenerbahce
Hertha Berlin v Benfica

So There you Go, Please go here for Discussion of the Europa League 1st knockout round draw.

Written by Jarv

As Always for all your European football discussion and Match discussion please visit Away Goals Rule Football Forum

EDIT: Here is the draw for the 2nd Round

Champions League

Manchester United , Chelsea and Arsenal all go into the draw in the seeded pot,

which consist of Arsenal,  Barcelona,  Bordeaux, Chelsea,  Fiorentina,  Manchester United,  Real Madrid,  Sevilla.

and the unssded clubs are

AC Milan,  Bayern Munich,  CSKA Moscow,  FC Porto,  Lyon,  Inter Milan,  Olympiakos,  Stuttgart.

Clubs from the same country are kept apart as are those from the same group.

For some reason this round is split over 4 weeks instead of 2 this time around.

1st Knockout Stage Draw

Stuttgart V Barcelona
Olympiakos V Bordeaux
Inter Milan V Chelsea
Bayern Munich V Fiorentina
CSKA Moscow V Sevilla
Lyon V Real Madrid
FC Porto V Arsenal
AC Milan V Manchester United

So There you Go, Please Go here for Champions League Draw Discussion

Jarv

As Always for all your European football discussion and Match discussion please visit Away Goals Rule Football Forum

Europa League Draw to Follow

Saturday

Blackburn Rovers V Stoke City

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 draw

Fulham V Bolton Wanderers

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for Fulham

Manchester City V Hull City

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 win for Man City

Portsmouth V Manchester United

Mystic Jarv predicts a 0-2 win for United

West Ham United V Burnley

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for West ham

Wigan Athletic V Sunderland

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-2 win for Sunderland

Aston Villa V Tottenham Hotspur

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-2 win for Villa

Sunday

Wolverhampton Wanderers V Birmingham City

Mystic Jarv predicts a 0-1 win for Brum

Everton V Liverpool

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for Everton

Arsenal V Chelsea

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 draw

Written by Jarv

As Always for all your premier league discussion and Match discussion please visit Away Goals Rule Football Forum

Saturday

Aston Villa V Bolton Wanderers

Since beating Chelsea 3 weeks ago Villa haven’t won a game in the league and only won in the League cup on penalties, Their form is something Villa will want to rectify quickly if they serious want to challenge for Europe this season.

After 2 4-0 thumpings at the hand of Chelsea in their last 2 games Gary Megson will be glad to see the back of them for now at least however a trip to Villa park is not any easy away game either.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 to Villa
Aston Villa V Bolton Wanderers match discussion

Blackburn Rovers V Portsmouth

Pompey’s results have picked up a little to match their playing form and this is a massive game for them, both clubs find themselves in the bottom three and Blackburn are struggling more than i thought they would this season. They should now be over the Swine flu that hit the club and need to bounce back.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 to Blackburn …..just, however i could see it going the other way too
Blackburn Rovers V Portsmouth match discussion

Manchester City V Burnley

Burnley simply are not very good away from home and i can’t see them getting anything here. City are currently in the top 4 which is where they want to be and will really want to be there over the international break. There really should only be one winner in this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 to City
Manchester City V Burnley match discussion

Tottenham Hotspur V Sunderland

Like Villa, Sunderland have not won since their big victory on the 17th October and will want to get back on track as soon as possible, Lee Cattermole is injured and he ha been their driving force in the middle of the park and without him i believe they will struggle without him.

Spurs have had mixed fortunes from their recent matches and won’t be please by the 3-0 beating at the hands of their neighbours, if Spurs truly have designs on a Champions League place they have to win this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 to Spurs
Tottenham Hotspur V Sunderland match discussion

Wolverhampton Wanderers V Arsenal – 17:30

Wolves have picked up a point in each of their last 3 games, asll 3 of which i predicted them to lose, should they get something from this game they will really surprise me.

Arsenal will be pleased with the win last week against Spurs and Wenger must be delighted with their form, they’re scoring goals for fun. There is discussions about take overs going on at the moment but i don’t think it will put the team off their stride and i expect them to move into 2nd by Saturday night.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-3 to Arsenal
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal match discussion

Sunday

Hull City V Stoke City

Well phil brown is still in charge but you have to ask how much longer, the statement from the new chairman was hardly resounding and should 3 points not be forthcoming against Stoke i believe he will be gone by the time they play West Ham,  Should Brown be sacked it gives the club a couple of weeks while the internationals are on to find a New boss. The question is, is there anyone better out there that will want to goto Hull?

Stoke Captain Abdoulaye Faye says they can qualify for Europe this season, big brave words given the competition this season, if they are to then they have to win this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 0-1 to Stoke
Hull City V Stoke City match discussion

West Ham United v Everton

It was a bitter-sweet midweek for West ham, beating Villa was a top result but losing Carlton Cole was a blow to them, before that game they were struggling for form. Everton were struggling even more and are having a terrible season by their recent standards and failed to pick up a win in the whole of October.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 Draw
West Ham United V Everton match discussion

Wigan Athletic V Fulham

12th V 11th in the league, I didn’t see the game against Roma but i undertstand Fulham were unlucky to be down to 9 men. Still at the end of the day the Premier league is their bread and butter and this game is more important in the long term, beating Liverpool was a fantastic result for them and they will want to follow it up against Wigan.

Wigan got thumped at Portsmouth last week and have had a few mixed results since beating Chelsea, they have conceeded lots of goals too and will need to tighten up for this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 Win for Wigan

Chelsea V Manchester United

This game as a United fan worries me, United’s defence has been quite porous of late and Chelsea have been scoring lots of goals and playing great football but it’s never quite that simple is it. I believe United will be really up for this game and could just nick a win but to do that they need to cut out the defensive and keeping errors that plagued the game against CSKA on Tuesday. The normally steady Van der sar will definitely want the first and third goal back and a keeper of his stature shouldn’t have been beaten so easily.

United need to keep Drogba and Anelka quiet if they do that they have a chance, Chelsea have to nullify United’s Wingers which could be key to the game

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-2 for United (might be being an optimistic United fan here)
Chelsea V Manchester United match discussion

Monday

Liverpool V Birmingham City

Under normal circumstances in other seasons this would be such an obvious prediction but Liverpool are struggling and with Gerrard and Torres both doubtful and both possibly needing surgery on injuries 2009/2010 could be shaping up to be Liverpool’s worst season for many a year.

A draw against City and a victory against Sunderland are 2 results that surprised me a little , I tink they will lose this game but if they can frustrate Liverpool ealry on they might, just might get something.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 win for Liverpool
Liverpool V Birmingham City match discussion

Other Stuff

Although i Know nothing about boxing Mystic Jarv predicts a win for Haye against Valuev, like i said i know nothing so don’t put your house on it

Written by Jarv

GRAPHICS:

An easy one to start with, the graphics in FIFA 10 are pretty special, but they’re not perfect.  Player likenesses are not quite there, but during the game you won’t have time to stop and look at the fine details.  The kits are superb, and the overall definition of the graphics is very impressive indeed.

There are a lot more animations in this year’s entry into the long running series, and this gives an even more lifelike rendition of the beautiful game.  Player collisions are much improved over those seen in FIFA 09, adding further realism.

CONTROLS:

Familiar to anyone who has played a FIFA game before, the control mapping for the face buttons is the same as every 360 version to date.  The major difference in the controls this season is the new 360 degree dribbling, meaning you’re no longer limited to 8 directions to run in.  How much difference this makes in the grand scheme of things is debatable, as there is only so much control that you can exert using an analogue stick, it feels more like a 16 direction choice than a true 360 degree one.

Controls for long shots feel slightly different, and you need to be far more accurate with your aim now if you don’t want to see your intended 30 yard wonder goal hit the corner flag instead.  Passing controls feel solid and responsive, meaning that you’ll seldom be frustrated, there will however be some occasions where you’re trying to pass to one team-mate but FIFA decides you should be passing to another, and it can be a little annoying if and when that happens.

SOUND:

Nothing too ground-breaking on the sound front, Martin Tyler and Andy Gray return to provide commentary for the matches, and some of the interactions between them are quite interesting.  Unfortunately if anything happens on the pitch while they’re discussing a topic (such as the pace of the modern game, or a specific player) then they will break from the topic and not return to it, I have found myself delaying getting a shot away so that I can hear the end of Andy Gray’s opinion on how much faster the game is now to in his playing days!!

The crowd sounds offer atmosphere without ever being spectacular, and the calls from team mates such as “man on” and “I’ll have it” seem like a nice touch at first, but when you’re in 10 clear yards of space and your Italian team-mate shouts in a very English voice “man on” it seems a little out of place.  It’s a nice touch though, and hopefully can be refined for future iterations of the game.

AI:

Another big step forward has seen the AI develop into a genuinely positive aspect of the game.  No longer will defenders stand idly by as you run past them, and likewise your team mates will no longer run 20 yards to close down an opposition player only to turn and run away again.  Even on the game’s easiest setting the improvement is very noticeable, and will make you feel more like you’re playing against a capable opponent.

The urgency shown by your team mates when attacking has also improved, now midfield players will look to make runs into the box and support attacks, trying to feed off of any scraps that may fall their way from parried or blocked shots.  It makes the game feel much more solid, and further builds on the impressive FIFA 09.

GAME MODES:

There are plenty of game modes available to players of FIFA 10, EA has attempted to beef up the manager mode to make it the centre piece of the game, and to an extent this has worked.  Now features such as a wage budget will help to keep you in control of your team, instead of wages being deducted from the general budget after each match.

There are still some glitches, when I hosted Manchester United at the Priestfield Stadium (home of Gillingham for those who don’t know) and beat them 4-0 in the league cup the board were unhappy that I wasn’t doing well enough, and my reputation actually decreased, yet getting a draw in League 1 away at Leeds United saw my reputation increase.

I also saw my second choice right back disappear from my squad, and later found that he was now playing in Scotland without my ever selling him, it would have been far more annoying had it been my star striker who had vanished, but it was still irritating.  I’ve also heard of someone having a player randomly appear in their squad for no reason.

These are things that can be ironed out with patches through Xbox Live, but they seem like issues which should have been picked up and resolved before the game was released.

There’s also the Virtual Pro mode, whereby you can create a player, and via a series of accomplishments your player will improve.  Some of these accomplishments can be done in the game’s arena, such as scoring a single curved shot, or lobbed penalty, while others must be earned in match situations.  This can be done in any of the games many modes, from single matches, to manager mode, be a pro, or even online matches, meaning that improving your virtual pro is more organic than the be a pro was in FIFA 09.  It’s worth noting that you must play in semi-pro difficulty or higher to improve your pro, playing on amateur difficulty will not unlock the accomplishments.

You can also unlock goal celebrations, skill moves, and attire for your Virtual Pro by completing various tasks.  To unlock each tier of skill moves you must complete each move in the previous tier, ranging from simple step-overs in tier 1, to rainbow flicks in tier 4.  To unlock under-shirts for your player you must play 25 matches in the rain, which is not difficult when you play in England!!

There are also a range of online modes, unfortunately I’ve not been able to try these yet, but I have read that the online community can have problems as many players will quit matches when they trail by 3 or more goals.

LONGEVITY:

With Manager mode running for up to 15 seasons, a Virtual Pro to nurture, and the online facilities there is a lot of life to be had from FIFA 10.  EA Sports are setting a very high standard for football games these days, and Konami have a lot of work to do to have the Pro Evolution Soccer series catch up.  Manager mode alone can become all consuming of your spare time, trying to take a club from the bottom of the footballing pyramid to continental glory will take a lot of your time, as you slowly raise your manager reputation, bringing in richer sponsors, improving staff, and attracting new players to the team in a bid to progress.

CLOSING THOUGHTS:

FIFA 10 is not perfect, it has a number of flaws to it, but they’re flaws which you can overlook because the overall quality of the game is superb.  Menu navigation is slow and a little clumsy, and if you pick the wrong option then you have to go back to the arena instead of the previous screen, manager mode does some weird things and the player likenesses are not quite there for a lot of players, but it’s tremendously fun.  This is a game that makes you feel like you’re controlling an actual football match, if you’re a fan of the beautiful game then this is an absolute must, there’s something for everyone here, and that’s why I’m scoring it  an impressive…

OVERALL RATING:

9.2 / 10

Would you like to disagree? read the Fifa 10 discussion thread on the Away Goals Rule Football Forum

So onto This weekend, there’s only one game sunday so i’ve done all the games on here.

Saturday

Arsenal V Tottenham Hotspur

Harry reckons Spurs are capable of finishing above Arsenal,m brave words before a game at the Emirates where Arsenal have been fantastic, No Defoe, possibly no Lennon as well, it would be a stunning result for Spurs to win this one, in fact a\ draw would be a great achievement.

Arsenal have been destroying teams at home and until Chelsea beat Swine flu ridden Blackburn last week had the best goal difference by far and i expect them to win this one.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 3-1 win for Arsenal

Bolton Wanderers V Chelsea

Only one winner in this game, Chelsea will win handsomely, 5 players from Chelsea have been shortlisted for Fifa world player of the year, most of which i can understand but, John Terry has had a very average year at best and i really fail to see how he keeps getting nominated for things he doesn’t deserve like the best Defender in the champions league last season, never in a million years did he deserve that.

Bolton’s only chance is to stun Chelsea from a set piece which they have been a little vulnerable in the past.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 3-0 win for Chelsea

Burnley V Hull City

Burnley’s 100% home record went last week and whether they can recover will be key to their season.

Hull have a few problems at the moment, i would say behind the scenes but its pretty much in public, The Chairman has gone and there were lots of rumours Brown had gone too, He hasn’t but unless their form picks up you can’t help wonder how long he has left.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for Burnley, and Phil Brown to be the first manager to be sacked.

Everton V Aston Villa

Moyes has complained about Everton having away games after game sin Europe which is the same problem both Man United and Chelsea and i think Liverpool have complained about in recent seasons, and curiously the following year they all got a bit better fixture list after European games from the “Random” fixture computer. However as it stands Everton wont be in Europe next year so wont make a difference and its fast turning into a poor season for Everton and to top it off they have terrible Injury problems.

Villa play their game in hand on Wednesday night and will want to win this game to ensure they can go into the top 4 if they win it. On Wednesday they beat Sunderland on penalties to reach the quarter finals of the Carling cup and will be buoyed by that.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 win for Aston Villa

Fulham V Liverpool

Liverpool got a great result last weekend against Manchester United without Steven Gerrard, I’m not going to mention the Ref again as i’ve posted elsewhere my feelings on his “performance”. They lost again against Arsenal in a competition which mioght very well have been their best chance at silverware this season.

Its a fine balencing act for Fulham this season, their over riding priority is the League but a decent run in the Europa league brings money and prestige which may in turn allow them to bring in better players and push up the table. Sadly i think they will lose this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 win for Liverpool

Portsmouth V Wigan Athletic

The Portsmouth Circus rumbles on, this weeks installment is a Transfer ban for non-payment of debts which basically, unless they get an infusion of cash, ends their chances of survival this season, no new players means they wont pick up enough points in my opinion.

Wigan broke Burnley’s 100% home record last week which was a great result (another one i got wrong) they sit in the top half of the table and have had a full week to prepare for this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for Wigan.

Stoke City V Wolverhampton Wanderers

Stoke’s home record should be enough to help them win this game despite losing to Pompey in the week the premier league is by far their main focus.

Wolves picked up 2 good draws in their last 2 premier league games, Away at Everton and home to Villa but they need to start turning a few into wins if they want to survive.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 win for Stoke City

Sunderland V West Ham United

Since beating liverpool Sunderland have lost 2 games, one only by Penalties but its still 2 losses in a row and they will want to rectify that this week, They’re only 3 points away from third, they wont finish in the top 4 but its commendable to be doing as well as they are but they need to get a win at home V West Ham. West ham grabbed a draw against Arsenal last week and might be gald of that point at the end of the season, they will need to start picking up wins very soon or it will be a big mountain to climb.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 win for Sunderland

Manchester United V Blackburn Rovers

Last weekend United were poor against Liverpool and deserved to lose and will want to get back to winning ways in the league this weekend and should have Darren Fletcher back to their line up but maybe missing both Vidic and Ferdinand with calf injuries, with Neville suspended and Giggs doubtful as well as park and hagreaves still not fit.

Blackburn are having a tough time Swine flu has hit their club and they have Chelsea and manchester United to contend with.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 3-0 win for Manchester United

Sunday

Birmingham City V Manchester City

Birmingham went against my prediction last week, i really didn’t think they would beat Sunderland and it was a good result, this time its big spending Manchester City who are currently 6th with a game in Hand.

City cruised past Scunthorpe, as they should have done, according to sky City spent more than 400 times what Scunthorpe did last summer. City, if they really have ambitions of top 4 need to really win games like this and i think they will.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 win for City

For all your Premier League Match Discussion visit Away Goals Rule Football Forum

More next week

Written by Jarv

PS Happy Halloween