Everton v Newcastle

Barclays Premier League
Venue: Goodison Park Date: Saturday, 18 September Kick-off: 1500 BST
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live, full match commentary on BBC Radio Merseyside 95.8 FM, 1485 AM and DAB, Final Score & highlights on Match of the Day

TEAM NEWS

Newcastle boss Chris Hughton has said that he may make changes following the disappointing defeat to Blackpool.

Hatem Ben Arfa is pushing for a starting spot after an exciting cameo last week and Sol Campbell and Chiek Tiote could make their debuts.
Everton manager David Moyes will give a late fitness test to key midfielder Tim Cahill, who has a knee injury.
Jack Rodwell and Louis Saha remain on the sidelines, but Phil Neville is fully fit after three weeks out.

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Everton
Doubtful: Cahill (knee)
Injured: Anichebe & Saha (both knee), Rodwell (ankle)
Newcastle
Suspended: Xisco (two matches)
Injured: Best & Simpson (both ankle), Gosling & Guthrie (both knee), S Taylor (shoulder)

MATCH PREVIEW

As the board went up to signify the start of injury time last Saturday with his side 3-1 down at home to the might of Manchester United, Everton boss David Moyes was staring at another defeat and a start to the season that was taking another worrying turn.

Every player is hungry to play for Newcastle and that sort of competition is what we want... We wanted a squad situation and that's what we've got Newcastle boss Chris Hughton

But the dramatic interventions from Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta spectacularly salvaged a draw that could be the catalyst to get the Toffees out of a sticky mess.
More than anything, Moyes will have been delighted to see the back of the net bulge three times, given Everton had managed a solitary goal in their previous three league games.
The Blues will have been further boosted by Blackpool bringing Saturday's opponents Newcastle crashing back to earth last week. Magpies boss Chris Hughton will demand an improvement after that shock loss saw his side surrender their year-long unbeaten home record.
Away matches have proved to be Newcastle's Achilles heel in the Premier League, managing just five wins in their previous two seasons in the top flight. They will also be desperate to end a run of results against Liverpool-based teams that have made their trips to Merseyside a misery - it is 15 matches since they last won at Goodison Park or Anfield.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head
• Everton and Newcastle United have met 150 times in the league. Everton have won 57, Newcastle United 60 and there have been 33 draws.
• The home side has not lost in the last 15 league matches between these teams, since Newcastle won away at Goodison Park in 2001.
• Newcastle have not won on their last seven league visits to Goodison Park.

606: DEBATE Have your say on this match

Everton
• It is 16 years since Everton failed to win any of their first four league matches of the season.
• Everton have had the joint-most shots so far this season (83, including blocked efforts) yet they have not won a game.
• Tim Cahill needs to score twice to register a century of league goals in English football.
Newcastle
• Newcastle are the only side to name the same starting XI in all four games in the league this season.
• They have not won on any of their last 15 Premier League visits to Merseyside against either Everton or Liverpool.
• James Perch is the only player to be shown a yellow card in all four league matches this season. Edgar Davids is the only other player to have been booked in his first four matches in Premier League history.
• Newcastle goalkeeper Steve Harper has made only four saves in four league games this season.

Referee: Andre Marriner
Assistant referees: Scott Ledger & Martin Yerby
Fourth official: Stuart Attwell

Under-1.90
Over-2.00

Stoke v West Ham

Venue: Britannia Stadium Date: Saturday, 18 September Kick-off: 1245 BST
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live, local radio, Final Score, live on Sky Sports 2 & highlights on Match of the Day

 

TEAM NEWS

Stoke have no new injury concerns ahead of the visit of West Ham United.

Manager Tony Pulis may opt to field an unchanged side following Stoke's first win of the season on Monday, and Eidur Gudjohnsen will again be on the bench.
West Ham manager Avram Grant and defender Tal Ben Haim will miss the game because it falls on the Jewish holy day Yom Kippur.
Danny Gabbidon and Thomas Hitzlsperger are struggling with hamstring and thigh injuries respectively.

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Stoke
Injured: Sidibe (Achilles)
West Ham
Doubtful: Gabbidon (hamstring), Hitzlsperger (thigh)
Injured/unavailable: Ben Haim (religious reasons), Collison, Hines & Kurucz (all knee)

MATCH PREVIEW

Avram Grant's hangdog demeanour may be nothing new, but if the rumours are true then the former Chelsea manager's future at West Ham looks bleak.

Dating back thousands of years, Yom Kippur is the most significant day of the Jewish year. It is a strict day of fasting and abstaining that forbids all followers to work. West Ham United fully respect and understand the situation West Ham statement on Avram Grant's absence

The Hammers have made their worst start to a league campaign in their 115-year history, and fans have already had to lower their expectations from a mid-table finish to simply top-flight survival. A fifth straight defeat at Stoke is unthinkable.
Grant will miss the game that many are speculating could decide his future in order to observe the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur. Also missing for the same reason will be Tal Ben Haim, which means captain Matthew Upson's plea for a settled backline will go unheeded.
The Hammers need look no further than Stoke for inspiration. The Potters shrugged off their own nightmare start to the season with a late comeback against Aston Villa for their first victory of the campaign.
Tony Pulis illustrated his commitment to the cause by attending the Villa game despite a family bereavement earlier in the day, and the Stoke boss will be looking for the same level of bravery from his squad as he plots the club's ascent up the table.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head
• These sides have met on 78 previous occasions. Stoke have won 29, West Ham 31 and there have been 18 draws.
• West Ham have won on three of their last four visits to Stoke.

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Stoke
• Stoke are yet to keep a clean sheet in five league and cup fixtures this season.
• They have lost six of their last nine Premier League matches.

• Kenwyne Jones is set to make his 100th Premier League appearance.
• Matthew Etherington has been the most successful crosser in the league this season, finding a team-mate 12 times.
West Ham
• Only Swindon in 1993/94 (-12) have ever had a worse goal difference after four Premier League games than West Ham this season (-10).
• The Hammers have kept one clean sheet in their last 16 league games.
• They have not won a match away from home since the opening day of last season (a 2-0 win at Wolves).

Referee: Lee Mason
Assistant referees: Andy Halliday & Mick McDonough
Fourth official: Kevin Friend

Under-1.8
Over-2.20

Inverness CT v Hearts

Venue: Caledonian Stadium Date: Saturday, 18 September Kick-off: 1200 BST
Coverage: BBC Sport website

Full-backs Kenny Gillet and Kevin McCann are injury doubts for Inverness.
Dani Sanchez and Gil Blumstein are hoping to overcome knee injuries but striker Richie Foran remains out.
New signing Rudi Skacel is unlikely to be included in the Hearts squad as the Czech Republic international needs training, having been without a club.
Lee Wallace, Dawid Kucharski, Stephen Elliot and Andrew Driver are injured while Marius Zaliukas remains sidelined by a contract dispute.

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Inverness CT (from): Esson, Tokely, Proctor, Munro, Gillet, Cox, Duncan, Hayes, Ross, Odhiambo, Rooney, Tuffey, Golabek, McBain, Duff, Sutherland, Sanchez, Morrison.

Hearts (from): Kello, Barr, Bouzid, C Thomson, Black, Stevenson, Glen, Obua, Palazuelos, Templeton, Elliot, Santana, Balogh, Kyle, Jonsson, Mrowiec, J Thomson, Robinson, Novikovas

Under-1.75
Over-2.30

Racing Club vs Lanús

Racing Club vs Lanús Match Preview

Racing had a promising start in this competition defeating Quilmes and Boca Juniors, but four consecutive victories have stopped the Academia from claiming a place within the best. Miguel Angel Russo is aware he needs to react fast not to fall once again to the relegation zone. Former Liga's top striker Claudio Bieler will be missing this match, for his accuracy diminished greatly with Racing (7 goals in 25 caps) and Gabriel Hauche will be taking over his place. Paraguay's Marcos Cáceres returns to the team in Lucas Licht's place to strengthen Racing's back line. Giovanni Moreno is almost fully recovered from a sprained ankle and will join the offense, allowing Russo to adopt a 4-4-1-1 formation to asphyxiate the Granas at their own ground.

Lanus will be hosting Racing this Friday and the wounds inflicted by Godoy Cruz (who humiliated the team 4-1) are still bleeding. It was the first defeat of the Granas in the tournament and Luis Zubeldia knows his rival will try to take advantage of the individual capacities of its strikers to bag the victory. "they'll try to overrun our defense from the beginning, and we'll have to rely on our strengths to claim the three points. We both have excellent players, and repeating what we've done in the last matches will be our main goal" were Lanus' coach words. Team's captain Sebastian Blanco believes the team is lacking not only precission but also lack, as the posts have stop Granas' strikers from scoring in the last three rounds. Two teams desperate to secure a victory to boost their spirit, who will make it?

Under-1.75
Over-2.40

Gimnasia La Plata Vs Huracán

Gimnasia La Plata vs Huracán Match Preview

Friday's first game will have the weakest team of the league receiving Huracan at the Forest and Diego Cocca's future will surely have much to do with the outcome of this game. Gimnasia has not scored a single goal in the tournament and the team is sinking deeper week after week in the murky waters of relegation. "This is not the time to talk but to think" were Cocca's words, as he is aware his head might roll if the Globo leaves La Plata with the full scoring. Juan Neira will most likely retreat to the halfway line to provide a wider point of attack, mandatory for Gimnasia to secure the victory considering Hugo Iriarte and Hernán Encina are struggling with injuries, and Pablo Fontanello is unable to perform. As long as Gaston Sessa manages to keep Gimnasia's goal shut, then the team might be celebrating its first victory in the Apertura on Friday night.

Chulo Rivoira's team has eight points from two victories, two draws and two defeats, and thanks to last week's victory over Clausura's leader Argentinos the path towards the top was cleared for the Globo. Many players are struggling with injuries (Marcos Brítez Ojeda and Rolando Zarate) but might recover on time for this week's game. At least Gastón Machín is back on the team and he might take over Juan Morales' place, for the witty midfielder provided much more to Huracan during the last match when he entered the field for the second half, when their rival's defenders could not match his speed. "We're improving match after match, we know each other better. Gimnasia will have a tough time against us this Friday" were Machin's words.

Under-1.60
Over-2.60

De Graafschap Vs Heerenveen

Match Preview

De Graafschap
Injured: Purrel Fränkel

Heerenveen
Injured: Roy Beerens

Preview: De Graafschap is the only team that stands out as a sure relegation material. The team recorded a 1-0 win against Excelsior and ever since has failed in acquiring points. It made good displays against Groningen with a man down, and against ADO. But we feel there is too much class difference between them and Heerenveen. There will be 3 changes in the away team, with which Ron Jans will be hoping to improve it. The crucial part of the match will be the performance of Bas Dost and this time he will score.

Under-2.70
Over-1.50

Eintracht Frankfurt Vs Freiburg

The German Bundesliga football match between Eintracht Frankfurt (10th) and Freiburg (14th) kicks off on Commerzbank Arena at 20:30 CET 17 September 2010. Stats and info are based on previous season for the first 3 rounds of the new season.
Eintracht Frankfurt has played 17 German Bundesliga matches this season on Commerzbank Arena. On home ground Eintracht Frankfurt has won 7, drawn 5 and lost 5 matches. This ranks Die Adler (Eagles) 10th in home team performance in the German Bundesliga.
Freiburg has played 17 German Bundesliga matches this season away from home. On away ground Freiburg has won 4, drawn 4 and lost 9 matches. This ranks the Breisgau-Brasilianer 12th in away team performance in the German Bundesliga.

Stats and info are based on previous season for the first 3 rounds of the new season.

Eintracht Frankfurt is placed 10 in German Bundesliga – scored 47 goals and conceded 54. Freiburg is placed 14 in German Bundesliga – scored 35 goals and conceded 59.


Under-2.20
Over-1.80

Accrington Stanley v Lincoln City

Venue: Crown Ground Date: Friday, 17 September Kick-off: 1945 BST
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live, BBC local radio, Final Score & highlights on The Football League Show

TEAM NEWS

Accrington have no new injury concerns, although Craig Lindfield (knee) and Alan Burton remain sidelined.

Terry Gornell looks likely to continue up front in Lindfield's absence.
Lincoln forward Gavin McCallum comes back into contention after a hip injury but striker Andy Hutchinson (foot) could be out for two months.
Reunion Islands midfielder Adifane Noussoura is still awaiting international clearance and will not make the trip to the Crown Ground.

Under-1.8
Over-2.20

Doncaster v Leeds United

Venue: Keepmoat Stadium Date: Friday, 17 September Kick-off: 1945 BST
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live, BBC local radio & highlights on The Football League Show

TEAM NEWS

Doncaster are still without James Hayter (hamstring), as well as James Chambers and Wayne Thomas, who are both sidelined with knee injuries.

But James O'Connor is expected to shake off a knock in time to play.
Leeds United boss Simon Grayson is tipped to make changes, with Ramon Nunez, Davide Somma and Ross McCormack among those vying for starting places.
Robert Snodgrass (knee) and Billy Paynter (shin) could be ready to play for the first time this season.

MATCH PREVIEW

These clubs meet for the first time since Doncaster Rovers caused an upset by pipping Leeds to promotion by beating them in the 2008 League One play-off final.
Now back in the Championship, Leeds had won three consecutive league matches before slumping to a 5-2 defeat against Barnsley on Tuesday night. Simon Grayson's side, who face Sheffield United next week, will be looking to bounce back in the second of three Yorkshire derbies for them in the space of seven days.
Boss Grayson made no excuses for his team's defending against the Tykes, and will expect better against a Doncaster side that are fourth in the table and enjoying an excellent start to their campaign.
Rovers have not won a home league match against Leeds for 59 years, but have won both their games at the Keepmoat Stadium this season and are usually tough to beat there. They were excellent in Tuesday's 3-1 home victory against Norwich.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head
• Leeds have won their last three away matches against Doncaster.

606: DEBATE Have your say on this match

• Rovers' last home victory in the league against Leeds was a 2-0 win in August 1951.
Doncaster
• Championship matches involving Doncaster have yielded 20 goals this season (11 for, nine against). Only those involving Barnsley have produced more (23 goals).
• Rovers have 11 points and have scored 11 goals this season.
• Doncaster had the best disciplinary record in the division last term, and this season have had fewer fouls committed against them in Championship matches than any other side (48).
• Seven different players have netted league goals for Doncaster this season, giving them the Championship's joint longest goalscorers list.
Leeds
• Leeds have 10 points, have scored 10 goals and conceded 10 this season.
• They are the only side to have come from behind to win two Championship matches, and they have recovered seven points from losing positions.
• United have committed 88 fouls this season - more than any other team in the Championship.
• Midfielder Bradley Johnson is set to make his 100th appearance for Leeds.

Under-1.90
Over-2.00

Juventus vs Lech Poznan

Juventus vs Lech Poznan Preview

Lech Poznan's Sergei Krivets says his side have nothing to lose when they meet Juventus in the Europa League.

"I think Juve may underestimate our abilities and may not be fully focused for the upcoming match," he said. "If that is the case, we will have a great chance to come back home with a decent result."
Lech, who lost to Sparta Prague in the Champions League play-offs, are the minnows in a tough Group A which includes Manchester City and Salzburg as well as Juve.
"It is a very difficult group," said Krivets.
"But at the same time it is also a very attractive one.
"We know that we are outsiders in this group but we will do our best and try to get good results."
Juve have had a poor start in Serie A with just one point from their opening two games.
After a 1-0 defeat to Bari, Luigi Del Neri's men were held to a 3-3 draw at home by Sampdoria on Sunday.
"We have great margins for improvement," said Juventus captain Alessandro Del Piero.
"We need to be more efficient in attack and be more focused and organised on the defensive end.
"I nevertheless believe that we took a step forward against Sampdoria with respect to our first match at Bari."
Having failed to qualify for Europe's elite club competition after their disappointing seventh-place finish in Serie A last term, Juve have high hopes of going far in the Europa League.
"It's a difficult competition, with many high-level teams like Liverpool and Manchester City also in the tournament," said Del Piero.
"It will not be easy for any team to go all the way."

Del Piero will lead Juve's attack alongside Italian compatriot Vincenzo Iaquinta, with summer signing Fabio Quagliarella not eligible to play in the competition.
The Polish champions welcome back Serbian midfielder Dimitrije Injac, who has shaken off a muscular problem, while coach Jacek Zielinski will have to do without injured striker Jacek Kielb.


Under-2.30
Over-1.80

Sevilla vs Paris St Germain

Sevilla are still looking forward to beginning their Europa League campaign against Paris St Germain.

Having finished fourth in the Primera Division last season, Sevilla had the chance to qualify for this season's Champions League but were surprisingly knocked out by Braga at the play-off stage.
The Andalusians have instead had to make do with a place in the Europa League a competition they have enjoyed considerable recent success in - winning its predecessor the UEFA Cup in 2006 and 2007.
"It's clear that we would all liked to have been in the Champions League, but a player wants to win whichever competition they are taking part in," said Sevilla captain Andres Palop, who was part of those successful UEFA Cup teams.
"We are going into the game with the same desire as if it was the Champions League. There is no difference in facing a team in the Europa League than in the Champions League."
Regarding the possibility of Sevilla winning the tournament for the third time in six years, the veteran goalkeeper said: "We are looking day by day. We are among the favourites to be up there but it's a long way off and and we need to fight well to get through this group, which is the strongest in the Europa League.

"If we qualify we have to take it game by game with the hope of reaching the final.
"This title is not going to be easy to achieve. I'm taking this as seriously as if it was the Champions League."
Aside from PSG, Antonio Alvarez's side also have to face Borussia Dortmund and Karpaty Lviv in Group J.
Sevilla have picked up three points from their opening two league games, leaving them third in the Primera Division standings, while French aside PSG are seventh in Ligue 1 in with seven points from five games.
At the weekend Antoine Kombouare's side picked up their first win since the opening weekend when they recorded a 4-0 home win over bottom club Arles-Avignon.

Under-1.90
Over-2.20