HAPPY 2009 !

Good luck to all readers of the blog in 2009 !

I have prepared previews of four matches for subscribers tomorrow, all would be termed at least strong selections and are from leagues where, win or lose, I am certain that I know more than any of the oddsmakers. It might be possible for me to lose a few skirmishes along the way, but we will always finish on the winning side in this particular battle, he said confidently !

Unfortunately, these previews will only be for subscribers to the email service, details of which can be found on the website www.predictuwin.com. I am happy that I have given everyone who reads the blog, an opportunity to sign up to receive the newsletter, at very competitive rates and from Friday, only standard packages will be available and will apply throughout 2009.

I am likely to post a couple of match previews on here over the weekend, so please check back, in the meantime, good luck with all your bets !

UPDATE 13.54 31/12 : Would any subscribers reading this, please check their inbox asap, as I have just sent an email message.

TUESDAY .... AND THE YEAR IS COMING TO A CLOSE !

Today's email has long since gone, sent to subscribers mid morning and I have just finished writing tomorrow's, which contains my first ever nine point football selection, that will be sent out at 9 o'clock tomorrow morning.

These are very exciting times for all involved in the service , on December 21st I wrote in the blog: I expect the next month to be very profitable, especially in the lower divisions of the Football League, where many of the teams are now performing at, or close to, the level I expected pre season. We also have the transfer window approaching and there is no way that the odds makers can be as up todate with the dealings, as I will be, which gives "us" a huge advantage. So, let the battle commence !

Since when, the newsletter service has made over 75 points clear profit ! So , do not say that you were not warned ! A twenty euro unit stake on each selection, would have cleared you well over 1,500 euros profit, even allowing for the massive 37 euros cost for the "holiday special". These are unbelievable returns over a 9 day period !

Time is running out if you want to join the service at a reduced rate. The offer referred to in the "Do they know it's Christmas time" post below, expires at midnight on New Year's Day and will not be repeated in 2009..... so get a move on !

There was no excuse for missing out on these winners, which would have given a big boost to your bankroll. You all know the quality of my previews, otherwise, why are you reading this ? Most of you have probably made quite a bit of money from following my write ups on the blog and could have used a tiny portion of those, to have signed up for the "holiday special". I sincerely hope that you have all done as well as subscribers to Predictuwin, over the holiday period, but, to be honest, it is highly unlikely.

I do not want to end on a negative note, so, thank you for reading the blog over the past twelve months and let me wish you all a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.

Good Luck.

MONDAY UPDATE ...

Only half time in the Monday night football games and subscribers to the email service have already secured at least a 12 point profit ! It is unlikely to get too much better, as Mansfield are trailing by two goals at the break, but two from three, at odds of 3.20 and 2.28 is a brilliant start to the week !

MANCHESTER UNITED- MIDDLESBROUGH

5 points half time draw 3.20 exchanges/ 3.10 Bet 365. ht 0-0 +11 points

BLACKPOOL - WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS

5.5 points half time draw 2.28 exchanges. ht 1-1 +7.04 points

MANSFIELD TOWN - BURTON ALBION

6 points Mansfield +1/4 ball 1.85 asian line. ht 0-2

Good Luck.

THE WEEK AHEAD ...........

Today turned into a fairly busy day, with three selections on the newsletter, including one at odds of 3.20, tomorrow, I am planning two match previews. Then the big guns come out, as, on New Years Eve, I will be sending out my first ever 9 point bet !

We have a very interesting day of non- league fixtures to start the New Year, the asian bookmakers will be forced into covering some low level matches that day and I am confident of coming out ahead in that "battle", especially in my current form !

Then we are into the weekend, which features the FA Cup third round, a full round of action in Spain, Scotland and Portugal, plus the NFL( where I have had over 70% winners this season) playoff wildcard games.

A big week is in prospect and another, where a little homework will pay massive dividends. Remember that the transfer window opens this week and has been extended until 17.00 (UK time) on February 2nd this year. The opening is bound to signal a flurry of activity and players and teams looking to seal big money moves, will not want to risk their future, or receipt of much needed funds, by starting in games, ahead of planned transfers.

Good Luck.

NFL UPDATE ....

What a day for subscribers ! Both NFL selection won easily .....ok, comfortably !

7 points Patriots -5.5 points 1.96 Vegas Line. WON 13-0

6 points Chargers -9 points 2.10 Vegas Line. WON 52-21

That made 7 out of 8 on Sunday, which ended a week where we were already well ahead ! Over 37 points profit yesterday alone, there is very little time left to sign up to the service at a reduced rate, please read the previous post.

I received a number of messages from happy subscribers overnight including ....

From Macedonia : I just wanted to applaud on some recent wins from the newsletter, great job!!!!

Singapore: BIG Congratulations on your PERFECT today! Thanks! :)

Bulgaria : well done Keith ,you have been outstanding today.Congratulations.

Back later.

SUNDAY UPDATE ......

I previewed five football matches today, six bets, five of which won, only Rochdale prevented a clean sweep, which was a shame, but the suggested bets still produced a profit of over 24 points !

They were ....

5.5 points "over" 2.5 goals Fulham- Chelsea 2.28 exchanges. RESULT 2-2 WON

2.5 points Frank Lampard to score anytime 3.0 Corals.... 2.875 Paddy Power.... bigger on the exchanges, but for limited liquidity, this should increase through the morning. Lampard scored twice.

6 points Doncaster Rovers +1/4 ball 1.87 asian line WON 2-1

6.5 points Leeds United level ball 1.95 asian line. WON 3-1

5 points Rochdale -1/2 ball 2.375 + ......... up to 2.45 in places. LOST 2-1

5.5 points Oxford United -1/2 ball 2.02 asian line. WON 5-1

Good Luck.

DO THEY KNOW IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME !

Well, the bookmakers certainly do, as they have been free and easy with their largesse this holiday period, latest gift was the circa 2.02 for Liverpool to win the second half at St James' Park, which they did 3-0 , see my half time update, two posts down.

I am full of holiday "cheer" myself, so will make one last offer to get you signed up to the email service. Send me an email on this link and I will forward details, there will be no offers at all in 2009, not one, zero, nil, nada, the newsletter is cheap enough already and the number of new subscribers will also be limited, to just ten per month in the New Year, so sign up now, there are no restrictions and you will make a significant saving.

Good Luck.

TODAY'S EMAIL ....

Here are my two early previews for today, which comprised part of the email sent to subscribers at 11.30 pm yesterday. The Leeds match is already into the second period, with my selection leading 2-1,hopefully they will hold on, but win or lose, can you really afford to bet without this service ?

FULHAM - CHELSEA

West London derby and probably Fulham's biggest game of the season, certainly the one their supporters look for first, when the fixture list is released.

Roy Hodgson has done a fantastic job in his twelve months in charge, preserving Fulham's Premier League status last season, making them a very tough side to beat and seemingly one free from any relegation fears this time round. He has got them very well organised and effective, but I think it is fair to say that their midfield lacks a little imagination and one that is stronger "stopping", rather than creating.

Having said that, they have been in fantastic form at Craven Cottage, where only West Ham have collected maximum points. Six of their nine starts there have been "over", they have also scored and conceded in six, scored in all but one, notching two or more goals six times.

I expect that we will see goals today, especially as both teams are set to be without key players, in important positions. Chelsea will be without central defenders John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho. Fulham centre back Breda Hangeland and midfielder Jimmy Bullard, who have earned rave reviews all season and are set to be atrgeted by a number of clubs in the "window", both face late fitness tests.

Chelsea will be looking to break a club record, with their 20th away Premier League start without defeat, it would also complete an unbeaten 2008 on the road.They have already claimed 21 goals and eight wins this season, away from Stamford Bridge.

H2h wise, seven of the last ten meetings have been "over", with four producing at least four goals. I am going to take this game to follow suit and also a little on Frank Lampard getting on the scoresheet. This most prolific of midfielders, already has 20 goals to his name in 2008 and got back on track for this season, with a goal against WBA on Friday, his first in twelve outings, after scoring 8 in his first 15 starts. His goals tend to come in batches and he might be worthwhile following for a few games.

5.5 points "over" 2.5 goals 2.28 exchanges.

2.5 points Frank Lampard to score anytime 3.0 Corals.... 2.875 Paddy Power.... bigger on the exchanges, but for limited liquidity, this should increase through the morning.

Team News Update @13.12 Hangeland starts, Bullard is out, Anelka is on the bench, alongside Carvalho, which is a surprise and Drogba starts upfront.

DIVISION 1

STOCKPORT COUNTY - LEEDS UNITED

County served us very well last season and this young, talented side, are once again battling for a promotion spot, but I think that they need at least another season at this level and am firmly in the Leeds camp today.

Now that the visitors have stopped the rot, with a draw at home to league leaders Leicester, we can surely expect them to press on. They had the better of that game, enjoying the bulk of possession and creating the greater number of attempts on goal. New boss Simon Grayson had an extended training session with his squad yesterday and star players Beckford and Robinson, are sure to strip fitter, after returning from extended injury periods on Boxing Day. They will face competition from Robert Snodgrass, who is pressing to start, after coming off the bench to score the equaliser.

As usual, Leeds have sold out their ticket allocation and will have a large travelling support cheering them on. County will be without Raynes, McNeill and Dicker and just don't have the options available to Grayson, who's side have managed a massive 336 attempts on goal this season, 133 more than County, an average of over six per start more. The early kick off will also be less of a disadvantage to the visitors, who have far more experience of starting at such ungodly hours !

6.5 points Leeds United level ball 1.95 asian line.

Back later.

GIVEN KEEPING NEWCASTLE IN THE GAME .... BUT FOR HOW LONG ?

I have just watched the first half of the Newcastle - Liverpool match and do not think there has been a more one sided Premier League 45 minutes in recent memory.

United's tactics are non-existent, they are incapable of defending a set piece and they have a world class performance from Shay Given and some woeful finishing from Liverpool, to thank for keeping the scoreline down to single figures !

Somehow, Newcastle have managed to score on the stroke of half time and pulled the scoreline back to 2-1, but this is down to the visitors stepping "off the gas", in the final minute of the half. Surely that will serve as a wake up call to Liverpool and if they get half as many chances and possession after the break, they will win this by a landslide. Joe Kinnear's side look clueless and if he doesn't change things around now, which he should have done 15 minutes into the game, he will probably be arrested for trying to impersonate a football coach !

Good Luck.

SUNDAY PLANS ...... AND INTO THE LION'S DEN IN BEAUTIFUL DEVON ..........

Fantastic day of sports action today, with a full round of football ( soccer) in England, along with the final day of regular season play in the NFL, where there is still an awful lot to be decided, with a number of playoff spots still up for grabs.

Massive day for followers of the email service, who were sent previews of five matches last night, which carried six selections and I am currently putting the finishing touches to my NFL update, which will include a further two selections. So, a very exciting final big betting day of 2008 to look forward to.

Of course, anyone that really appreciates the "beautiful game" is already on his, or her, way down to Devon, along with all the other Brentford supporters, to watch my beloved Bees face the might of an inform Exeter City. I have been trying to keep quiet about Brentford recently, not wanting to jinx them, but it would not be right to let the final game of the year pass without comment. The Bees are currently second in the table, with a game in hand over many of the teams around them and are on a six match unbeaten run. They face a big test today, as City are themselves unbeaten in five and are coming into the game on the back of a 4-1 thumping of an excellent Rochdale side and a 1-1 draw at Wycombe, where they restricted the league leaders to just three attempts on goal. The winner of today's game ( Brentford ?) , if there is one, will be in a very strong position entering the New Year.

However, why I really wanted to discuss this game, is the half time "entertainment", which has more than a little gladiatorial feel to it .People talk about pressure in sport all the time, but if you want to really know what that is, spare a thought for a young trialist at Exeter, who will be put through his paces on the pitch at half time today. After which, supporters will be asked to vote on-line to say "Sign" or "Reject",which will decide the prospect's future, hard to believe that the poor lad got much sleep last night !

Back later.

SATURDAY ..............

Last week I offered access to a "holiday special", where, for a minimal sum, you could have received the daily newsletter over Christmas and the New Year.

In just over a week, anyone shrewd enough to have taken advantage of that offer, has received previews of 25 matches so far, 16 of which have shown a profit, nine have "lost", although three of those were for half stakes, so effectively 16-7.5. These selections have produced a whopping 64.78 points profit.

I had one individual who paid 37 euros for this deal, he has bet 20 euros per unit and is currently almost 1,300 euros up in just eight days, 199 of which, he has used to sign up for a further three months. He will receive the newsletter until early April and still has circa 1,060 euros of his bookmaker's money, to bet future selections with.

He, along with all other subscribers has been sent just two previews for today, at odds of 2.14 and 1.96, tomorrow, he is expecting a bumper newsletter, looking at the full round of English matches, where I am looking to add to yesterday's 25 points + profit !

I hope that you have all done as well with your bets over the holiday period. If not, you really should consider joining the service, you read the blog, you know the quality of the previews, otherwise why are you here ? The daily newsletter contains circa 25-30 such previews each and every week and at around 15 euros per 7 days, offers fantastic value for money.

Take a look at these links:

Details of the service.

Email archive.

Q&A.

Ask any questions.

Good Luck.

SATURDAY UPDATE ....

Three bets on the Manchester City - Hull game, all won, at odds of 1.82 , 6.40 and 9.0 !

The 1.82 bet was landed inside 29 minutes, you had to wait another 7 minutes, before the 8-1 wager was secured !

Subscribers were sent this information yesterday, but then they do pay a "massive" two euros per day for the newsletter !

I will be sending them previews of 3-4 matches tomorrow and a massive 6-7 on Sunday, from the best service of it's kind on the internet.

www.predictuwin.com

Good Luck.

PREMIER LEAGUE ....

I have to stay away from my lower league previews, for the reasons outined earlier in the week, so just one of the more "basic" selections for today .......

MANCHESTER CITY - HULL CITY

Surely we will see fireworks at Eastlands today. The home faithful have already seen more goals than any other fans in the Premier League, 29 in total and will be hoping that the returning Robinho, will be able to fire them out of the bottom three.

We have discussed before, Hull's bravery on the road, where they really "go for it" and have tasted defeat only once, that coming at Old Trafford in a seven goal thriller, winning at Arsenal and drawing at Anfield. Their away starts have produced a league high 29 goals and only Chelsea have scored more road goals. Eight of their last nine have been "over" and averaged over 3.33 goals. Looking at all games, they have scored and conceded in their last six, with four producing 4+ goals, at an average of 3.67.

I will take a couple of "over" bets, along with a small stake on the "unquoted" correct scored option, which will basically, payout, if either side scores four or more and I think there is a real chance of this happening, as it already has, in three of The Tigers Premier League starts.

5.5 points "over" 2.5 goals 1.82 asian line.

1 point "over" 4.5 goals 6.40 exchanges.

1 point "unquoted" 9.0 exchanges.

post written at 19.15 25/12/09

Good Luck.

BOXING DAY ....

This is, for many people, their favourite day of the festive season. The pressure, stress and obligations of the "big day" have passed and there is time to focus on what you want to do .

Whether that be jumping into a frozen lake, or icy sea, which seems to have become a very popular activity in northern England on the 26th December, goodness knows why ! Or going to watch your favourite football team, on a day when attendances traditionally go through the roof, is up to the individual, I know which I would choose !

Incredibly, almost 40,000 are expected to watch a third tier game at Elland Road, when the now Simon Grayson led Leeds United, entertain league leaders Leicester City, in what is going to be a red hot atmosphere. I have previewed this match, along with five others on the email service for today, sending four out on the 24th and another two last night. I might post one of these on the blog later today, but am unsure about my plans and it will only be one, so, if you have something better to do and I am sure that you do, go and do it !

You can receive all the Predictuwin output by subscribing to the newsletter, further details can be found on the website www.predictuwin.com

Good Luck.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS !

I know that not all of you celebrate Christmas, but most of you will have some extra free time with your family, or loved ones, over the next few days.

Make the most of it, enjoy yourselves and have a happy and peaceful time.

Good Luck.

UN CONTE DE NOEL .......

Last "holiday" season, between December 23rd and January 6th, I posted 13 consecutive winners on the blog. Which proves that this is a fantastic time to make some money from the "old enemy", yes, you want to spend time with friends/ family and enjoy yourself, but if you take some of this downtime and use it to study a little more, believe me, it will pay dividends. There are no shortcuts to finding winners, unless you pay someone to do the work for you, in all seriousness, if you cannot make money at this time of the year, then you are probably not a winning punter. Which is fine I suppose, if gambling is your hobby/entertainment and you are happy to pay for it as such and can afford to lose, then have fun, enjoy yourself.

However, if you are more serious about your betting, then do the work and study. When the rest of the house is sleeping late on a Saturday, or Boxing Day/ New Year, get up a couple of hours early, or go to bed later and get to work. I know quite a lot of other "full time" gamblers, they work harder and longer than anyone else of my acquaintance. They will spend time with their families on Christmas Day, but I bet you that when everyone else has dozed off, or is watching television late in the day, they will be working ! I can also tell you that despite all the research that they do, you can never have too much information and that at least four of them pay to receive the Predictuwin newsletter. Why wouldn't they, it is cheap and if you read one thing per week of interest, even one per month, it will more than pay for itself. I like to think that there is something of value in the email each and every single day, but then, I am biased.

Like I always say, let me know if you find a better service somewhere else, I will subscribe to it immediately. But, IMO at the same or similar price, or any cost for that matter, there is not another newsletter that even comes close. I have seen services that charge thousands of dollars per month, there was one recently @ $2,399 for a daily tip with no preview ! For that money, I would want it hand delivered, along with breakfast in bed and a posse of dancing girls ! The newsletter costs as little as 11 euros per week and has averaged over 40 points profit each and every month, achieved by betting every selection blindly, most readers will improve upon those figures with a little personal input.

I have previewed two matches on the email today and make one a very strong selection, however, for me those games are already "over" and I am busy with the weekend fixtures .... a hard way to make an easy living !

By the way, do you know the odds of finding 13 consecutive winners ? At circa 1.90, it is well over 4,200-1 !

www.predictuwin.com

Good Luck.

MONDAY UPDATE .....

I wrote yesterday that I expected to have a very good month and subscribers are already counting their winnings just a day later. They were sent three selections today (see below) and the two football bets have already won, with the Strasbourg bet actually available at odds of circa 7.40 before kick off ! I cannot win everyday, that is impossible, but this service WILL make you decent returns in the long term.

MONDAY DECEMBER 22ND

Low profile on the football front today, two very low stake bets, a much stronger selection on the NFL game tonight and tomorrow, on what originally looked a non betting day, I will have at least two selections and am considering a "big" bet. That email will also include details of my plans for the holiday period.

ENGLAND PREMIER LEAGUE

EVERTON - CHELSEA

I am not going to spend too long on this, despite their problems at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea remain one of the top two teams in the Premier League and have been fantastic on the road this season, with a 8-0-0 record and an incredible 21-1 goal difference.

They will be looking for the three points that will take them back to the top of the table and having recorded two 1-0 wins at Goodison already in 2008, a third would do quite nicely. It is hard to see Everton, who might once again have to start with Tim Cahill upfront on his own, giving the Blues backline too many problems . I suspect Everton will try to frustrate the visitors as long as possible and look to steal a late winner. With four games in the next twelve days, Chelsea will not go chasing goals once and if, they take the lead. Unusually for me, I am taking the "under".

5 points "under" 2.25 goals 1.92 asian line. result 0-0 + 4.6 points

FRANCE LIGUE 2

RACING STRASBOURG - BOULOGNE

Racing have lost their way a little and lost two consecutive home starts, one in the league and another in the cup, with Sedan scoring four goals at la Meinau, which is almost unheard of. They are very motivated to get back on track tonight and are looking to collect the three points which would take them above the visitors and into second place in the table, Boulogne can also climb to that position with a point or more.

RCS have struggled with injuries recently and will again be without five players tonight, Cohade is suspended and Shereni, Othon, Marcos and Pele all injured, at least three would normally start. Boulogne, who have had a fantastic season, certainly by their humble standards and could be said to have massively over achieved, are also without several, including the suspended N'Diaye and although their problems are nowhere near as bad, they do not have the squad size or options available to Racing.

We have discussed in the past Racing's incredible home record in Ligue 2, they are 6-2-1 this season, but in their last three at this level are 34-11-2 with a 70-21 goal difference. So, they are conceding an average of 0.44 goals per game and earning over 2.4 points.

I have no doubts about which is the better team and am sure that Strasbourg will finish well above Boulogne come the end of the season, however, right now the home side will take a win of any discription and keeping a clean sheet will be a priority. Therefore, I am going to take a small bet on the 1-0 correct score, this was the margin of victory in Racing's pre Christmas game in their last two Ligue 2 seasons. As in most countries a "seasonal " win, in front of your own fans is seen as vital. The visitors tend to shut up shop on the road, where they have conceded only four goals and this correct score makes a lot of sense.

2.5 points Strasbourg to win 1-0 6.40 + exchanges. RESULT 1-0 +13.5 points +

NFL

GREEN BAY PACKERS @ CHICAGO BEARS

XXXXX XXXX XXX XX XXXXXXXXXXX

Good Luck.

MONDAY ROUND UP ..............

The Dolphins took time to get going, especially defensively, but finally landed our bet yesterday, at a frozen Arrowhead Stadium.

I have previewed three matches on the newsletter today, including tonight's NFL game between the Bears and Packers , the conditions will not be any kinder in Chicago, with a high of -12 degrees forecast for the Windy City.

The schedule has been very kind to us this week, with a couple of quiet days (24th/25th) which will enable us to spend the holiday period with friends and family, ahead of an incredibly busy weekend.

Tomorrow, I am planning a "big" bet, amongst two previews, if all is well, concerning team news and underfoot conditions, it will be a very rare eight point selection.

Then, we have a full English domestic programme on both Friday and Sunday, with a full round of fixtures from Scotland and Holland sandwiched inbetween, along with the final round of regular season games in the NFL, phew !

I have to be honest, whilst I will be posting virtually everyday this week on the blog, it is unlikely that I will carry many match previews.At this very special time of year, the matches are coming thick and fast and it is a real opportunity to make some money. I believe that I have a huge advantage over the oddsmakers, especially in the English lower leagues and it is only fair that this information is kept to subscribers. I do not want to publish something about a team, or teams playing on Boxing Day for example, in a open forum, when both teams have another three matches coming up almost immediately afterwards.

The only way to receive all the output from the service, is to subscribe to the newsletter. If you wish to give yourself a seasonal treat and sign up, I will add 33% free to a three month subscription, to anyone joining before midnight on Thursday, December 25th.

Further information can be found on the website www.predictuwin.com, you can also ask me any questions via the "contact us" tab on the site. Payment can be made using any bank credit or debit card, or via Paypal, should you wish to use Moneybookers or Bank Transfer, please send an email for details.

Once you have signed up, I will add the "bonus" week's immediately, this brings the daily cost down to around 1.60 euros per day and offers terrific value for money. You all know the quality of the match previews and the newsletter offers 25-35 of these per week.

Good Luck.

NFL ..... MIAMI DOLPHINS @ KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

If you want to turn a franchise around in double quick time, hire Bill Parcells for your front office and let him get the "hatchet" out. He started work by firing everyone and employing his former assistant, Tony Sparano, as head coach and that has turned out to be very good business indeed.

The pair have guided the Dolphins from 1-15 in 2007, to 9-5 this year and know that two more wins will take them into the playoffs. For now, they will settle for setting up a divisional decider next week in New York against the Jets and to do so, will have to see off the Chiefs tonight.

Kansas are a very poor 2-12 and have lost all eight non-divisional games and by an average of over 16 points, including a 23 point defeat to another East team, in Buffalo. Game time temperature is set to fall to around 20 degrees and I think that is why "the fish" are asked to "only"give up a shade over a field goal. However, the weather should play to the Dolphins' strength, which is running the ball and a physical defense, they have got very miserly recently and not given up a touchdown in twelve quarters of football.

Chiefs have the worst ranked defense in the NFL and are set to record an all time record for fewest sacks in a season, so, I do not think that Miami quarterback Chad Pennington will have lost too much sleep this week. He will be desperate to go back to the "Big Apple", after the Jets dropped him in favour of Brett Favre and I expect him to guide his very motivated team mates to a comfortable win.

6 points Miami Dolphins -3.5 points 2.03 Vegas Line.

Good Luck.

SUNDAY MORNING UPDATE ...........

Pretty good start, for all of you that signed up for the "holiday special", as the service has provided eight winners and four losers so far, two of those" losers" were only for half stakes, so we are effectively 8-3 and not even close to Christmas yet!

I have sent previews of three matches today, all were strong selections and also included really good value additional bets, at odds of 10.0 and 6.50 .

I expect the next month to be very profitable, especially in the lower divisions of the Football League, where many of the teams are now performing at, or close to, the level I expected pre season. We also have the transfer window approaching and there is no way that the odds makers can be as up todate with the dealings, as I will be, which gives "us" a huge advantage. So, let the battle commence !

Good Luck.

DIVISION 1 ...........

CHELTENHAM TOWN - WALSALL

I wrote a little about Town boss Martin Allen on the blog earlier this week, which you can view on this link. His team are in the bottom four, two points from safety with a tough sequence of fixtures coming up over the holiday period. I know quite a lot about his mindset and that he will really have his team really fired up today, they will have taken a lot of confidence from the win at Orient last week, who were previously unbeaten in seven. Town are seeking a fourth straight win and have tightened up considerably, with four clean sheets in six outings. Allen is not a great tactician, but his defence is always well organised and his form of man management "skills" are perfect for players at this level, he will instill confidence in them and makes the training sessions, where he works players hard, fun. The visitors have two very key players out today, with the spine of the team missing, if that wa s not enough, the club have suffered with a virus this week. There is little mention on their website of this, or the team news for today ,which, I believe, is significant, my understanding, is that many of the squad were affected. I also saw that for a reserve (B) team fixture on Thursday, they almost named a youth team (losing 5-1), which probably means that many of the fringe players are on standby for today . Home win.

6.5 points Cheltenham -1/4 ball 2.04 asian line.

Good Luck.

IMPS TO FOLLOW UP ...........

DIVISION 2

NOTTS COUNTY - LINCOLN CITY

We have been waiting for it and last week it came, with City thumping five goals past Accrington stanley, ahead of that game I wrote:

I was with Lincoln at the start of the season and to be honest, I feel that they have been incredibly unlucky, especially with injuries, they spent a lot of money, certainly salary wise, in getting some experience and quality to Sincil Bank, only to lose most of them for large chunks of the campaign. Also, they have certainly not had much luck at all in front of goal, things have certainly not gone their way recently, let me explain. In their last three starts, they had a 0-0 home draw with high flying Shrewsbury, where they created an incredible 22 attempts on goal, with 11 on target and enjoyed 68% possession, these are really huge numbers ! Next they went to Aldershot and again outshot their opponents (9-8) with am impressive six on target and had 59% of the ball, yet lost 2-0. Last week ,it was down to Devon to face Exeter and they were leading 1-0 and dominating all aspects of the game, then conceded an equaliser, before being redu ced to ten men and then to add insult to injury, losing to a 92th minute goal.

Such runs cannot continue indefinitely and I feel we should follow them in the coming couple of weeks. They are a good team and now that their classy midfield is back together and has had a few games to re-gel, the goals and victories should follow.

There would be little point in deserting them now, especially meeting a County side very short on confidence, with just a single win in six starts, during which they have conceded 13 goals. They will also be without five starters today, three of whom could be termed "key", through a mixture of injury or suspension.

The silky visiting midfield should be firmly in control here, with Frecklington and Oakes being two classy individuals, too good for this division and now that the strikers have found the net, boss Peter Jackson will have a couple of proven scorers even warming the bench, there should only be one winner.

6 points Lincoln level ball 1.94 asian line.

Good Luck.

SATURDAY PLANS ........

Good Morning !

It's just about that time on a Saturday, when the butterflies start to flutter in the stomach and the excitement levels rise. When all is said and done, despite being a little cynical about the way football is run, I still love the game, especially at the lower levels and look forward to the matches, much as I did as a schoolboy.

I especially like this period on a Saturday, when the newsletter has been sent and all the afternoon is free to follow the "beautiful game". I previewed seven matches today, one each from Scotland and mainland Europe, the other five are all Football League games, my "bread and butter".

The daily email is a commitment and takes up much of my day, even typing it with my limited two finger skills, can be a chore at times, especially when, like today, it runs to well over 1,500 words. That is why I charge for the service, but at circa 1.50 euros per day, it is hardly expensive and offers amazing value for money, as always, details of the service can be found on the website www.predictuwin.com and you can ask any questions through the "contact us" button there.

I will probably post a selection, maybe even two on the blog today, but cannot make any promises at present, with a number of you having signed up for the "holiday offer" (see below) it somehow seems a little unfair. Actually, anyone that is registered on the website, will have received a preview by email, so please check your inbox !

Back later.

FRIDAY UPDATE ...........

Thank you for the response to yesterday's post (see below) and I am pleased that a lot of you have signed up to receive the newsletter over the Christmas/New Year period. The more "fast fingered" of whom "got off to a flyer", as both of yesterday's UEFA Cup selections won, at odds of 2.23 and 1.84.

I have previewed three matches on the email service today and might post one of these on the blog later today. Tomorrow looks very promising (touch wood !) and I will be looking to start the holiday fixtures with a bang !

The Champions League draw has now been made and there are some humdingers ! Guess that pride of place must go to Inter-Man U and the "Special One - Sir Alex" rematch, no doubt the mind games between these two have already started !

Claudio "The Tinkerer"Ranieri also returns, to Stamford Bridge with his Juventus team, but the return of the well liked Italian, doesn't quite have the added spice of Jose's face off with Ferguson.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW

Chelsea v Juventus

Villarreal v Panathinaikos

Sporting Lisbon v Bayern Munich

Atletico Madrid v FC Porto

Lyon v Barcelona

Real Madrid v Liverpool

Arsenal v Roma

Inter Milan v Manchester United

Good Luck.

THURSDAY .........

My complaint about recent poor "luck" paid immediate dividends, with a late third goal in the Portsmouth game, which meant that all three of yesterday's evening selections won.

Today sees the last round of group games in the UEFA Cup and I have previewed two of them on the email service, unfortunately, with just the two selections, it will not be possible for me to post anything on the blog today.

There are four full rounds of domestic football over Christmas and the New Year and with most of us having plenty of free time to enjoy our favourite pastime, it is a fantastic time to sign up to receive the Predictuwin newsletter. Send me an email on this link and I will forward details of the cheapest way to sign up and also news of a holiday season special.

A reminder to subscribers, there will be an eight point selection for the weekend in tomorrow's newsletter, so please try to ensure that you see it asap, as the odds are unlikely to last long.

Good luck with your bets today.

DIARRA FIRST TO LEAVE .... WILL THE LAST ONE OUT KINDLY SWITCH OFF THE LIGHTS !

As promised earlier, here are my remaining newsletter selections for today, along with some basic notes, however, as you will see, much of the value has now gone.

PORTUGAL SUPERLIGA

ESTRELA DA AMADORA - PORTO

We opposed Estrela recently and they were comprehensively beaten at home by Sporting. Things have got a lot worse for them since, they have scored just once in four starts (in the aforementioned defeat) and collected only the single point. They are Superliga's lowest scorers with just six goals all season. The club has huge financial problems and the President has continuously failed to keep promises to pay players and other staff. It is clear morale is very low and they are not a team you should even consider backing at present.

Porto got off to a sluggish start, especially by their normal standards, but are in fantastic form at present, they have won their last six in all competitions, scoring two or more in each, away from home,they are unbeaten in five, with four wins. They currently sit five points adrift of leaders Benfica, with this "game in hand", they will be ultra keen to get the three points and reduce that deficit to just two, with the three teams above them in the table, all playing home games at the weekend. Away win.

7 points Porto -1 ball asian line 1.80..... NOW 1.71

UEFA CUP

PORTSMOUTH - HEERENVEEN

The "Fire Sale" at Pompey has begun and they have this morning accepted an offer from Real Madrid for Lassana Diarra. Finances at the club are in a terrible state and I doubt that any offers will be refused, once the window opens. They are currently eighth in the table, yet only five points above the relegation zone, they look defensively fragile, have only beaten Sunderland and Blackburn in 13 starts and we have already seen at Blackburn, the danger of having an inexperienced Premier League manager at the helm. We could take a small bet on them to be relegated, currently 13.0 and I am sure that we will be able to earn a little from that, in the coming weeks.

Nothing to play for today, both teams have been eliminated and will be more interested in the league matches ahead. Both are also incapable of keeping a clean sheet and Heerenveen are probably the most attack minded side in Europe ! Their 15 league starts have averaged 4.2 goals and all UEFA group games have been "over", as have Portsmouth's and 7 of their last nine in all competitions. Expect to see a lot of fringe players and some goals.

6 points "over" 2.5 goals 1.76 exchanges..... NOW 1.71

4 points Portsmouth to be relegated 13.0 Ladbrokes / Sporting Bet / Extrabet/ Betdaq ........ 11.0 + is acceptable....been well backed, now 9.0 with most companies

CLUB BRUGGE - FC KOPENHAVN

Hosts are through with a draw or better, FCK only with a win. Brugge come here on the back of several very disappointing performances and have conceded six in their last two league starts, including four at home to Standard over the weekend. That has seen them slip to third in the table, behind Liege on goal difference and four points adrift of Anderlecht, both of whom have home games at the weekend, whilst CB make the tough trip to Excelsior. It is hard not to see them giving that priority, although I assume that they would like to remain in Europe.

FCK have performed much better on the road this season and are unbeaten in four away UEFA Cup starts, including a very unlucky draw at Valencia. Their domestic season entered the Winter Break earlier this month, so they do not have any league game until March, therefore, although there is always the danger that they could be mentally "on holiday", we cannot expect them to give less that their best and that best, IMO, is at least the equal of the Belgium side. I have to take them getting a handicap start, especially as Brugge would snatch your hand off if offered a draw.

6 points FCK +1/4 ball 1.95 asian line.... NOW 1.88

Good Luck.

WEDNESDAY ....

Wow ! We have been a "little" unlucky recently.

These things tend to level out over a period of time, so I do not like to make too much of it, when things do not go our way, but Colchester really should have got something from the game last night.

They created 7-8 really good chances, hit the woodwork three times and were denied by the Luton goalkeeper twice in injury time alone. Anyway, that is in the past now, so onwards and upwards !

That was an often used "sign off" from Martin Allen during his time at Brentford, I wonder if the Cheltenham players are tired of hearing it yet ! Surely he has got them all to jump into the River Severn by now, unless he is waiting for it to freeze over first ! I have got a lot of time for MA, but his style of "man management" would never work at a higher level, can you imagine asking a Premier League player to bring a packed luch and help paint the training ground ! It would probably do them good of course, I would pay to see Gallas and Ronaldo arrive at training with sandwiches and a paint brush !

Allen and Milan Mandaric at Leicester City, was never going to work and I am surprised it lasted as long as it did, all four games ! However, a Division 1 relegation battle is "right up his alley" and I would not back against MA keeping Cheltenham Town up and also taking them on a long FA Cup run, a competition he loves..... keep an eye on The Robins !

I have previewed four matches on the newsletter today, but have actually put up five selections, as one, somehow evolved into an additional long term bet, whilst I was typing. I am intending to post a couple of these on the blog later today, so please check back.

Good Luck.

TONIGHT'S FOOTBALL ........... COLCHESTER ON THE ROAD

JOHNSTONE'S PAINT TROPHY

LUTON TOWN - COLCHESTER UNITED

I am keen on United here, they have not really adapted to their new home stadium yet, collecting just eight league points all season, but on the road, it is a different story with 16 points, including a fine 2-1 win at Leeds on Saturday. In addition to which, they have played every round in the JPT away from home, winning at Millwall, Gillingham and Bournemouth , all by identical 1-0 scorelines. They are clearly much happier when they do not have to make the running and are not posed with the problem of trying to break teams down.

Luton are unbeaten in three starts, but are fighting a losing battle to preserve their league status, the points deduction is/was simply too great and they remain 16 points from safety. I have no doubt that they will "up" for the game tonight , but at this stage of the JPT with the opportunity of some money spinning games ahead, I would expect that to be true of most of the remaining teams. They have struggled at Kenilworth Road for over a year, winning just 6 of their last 23 starts, all three wins this season, have come on the back of early goals. That makes a lot of sense, because if things do not go their way almost from the off, the under lying lack of confidence manifests itself and at least subconsiously, they are expecting the worst. There is at least a full division between these two clubs, even if we give Town back their 30 points and I believe that United have some improvement in them and expect a strong 2009 from the U's if they can find some home form.

Striker Jermaine Easter will be missing, after limping out of the match at Elland Road 25 minutes into the game, but that did not stop them winning and providing they can keep Luton at bay for the opening 10-15 minutes, they should be able to make their superior class tell and record another away win, which would be their tenth in 15 starts.

5 points Colchester -1/4 ball 2.03 asian line.

Good Luck.

NOT FOR THE SQUEAMISH !

PITTSBURGH STEELERS @ BALTIMORE RAVENS

These two are battling it out for the AFC North title, which the Steeelers will clinch with a win tonight, should the Ravens take the spoils, it will even things up at the top of the division and set up a nail biting final two weeks of the regular season.

There is very little love lost between these teams and even if there was nothing at stake, this would be an intense and full blooded encounter, but with so much on the line, this will not be for the squeamish !

Pittsburgh have the number one ranked defense in the NFL and are 5-1 on the road, Baltimore, the number two defense and a 5-1 home record. As you might have guessed, the reverse meeting was very close, with the Steelers winning 23-20 in overtime. I thought that Baltimore were very unlucky that day, they led by ten points at half time, but were hurt by penalties and the match turned on a fumble, when there looked little chance of a Steelers recovery. That knocked the suffing out of the Ravens for a while and they took time to recover, losing their next two, but they have since gone 8-1 , only losing to an on fire Giants team in nine starts. They thumped the Eagles 36-7 three weeks ago, since when, Philly have boosted the form by walloping Arizona and beating the Giants in New York.

The Steelers might have the higher ranked defense (just), but the Ravens have a much better balanced all round game and I expect them to win. They have won this fixture for the last five years, by an average of over 11 points, although two have gone to overtime. So, three recent meetings have gone the distance, I am going to bet the Ravens giving up just under a field goal and also take a minimal wager on it going into extra time again and hopefully, we can win both bets !

6.5 points Baltimore -2.5 points 1.85 general quote.

1 point match to go to overtime 10.0 Paddy Power / Ladbrokes

Good Luck.

THE TREND CONTINUES ........

SERIE A

GENOA- ATALANTA

I posted some statistics on Tuesday (see STATS post below). To update those numbers, there were only three home wins in the eight EPL fixtures yesterday, yet both Serie A games resulted in comfortable victories for hosting teams, so, no signs of the trend changing at present.

This is a match up between two teams on the fringes of the Champions League race, IMO Genoa are by far the stronger side and with three of their next four starts, coming against bottom four teams, they have a real chance to put some pressure on the clubs above them in the table. They took a huge amount of confidence from the derby win last week, when Serie A top scorer Diego Milito, notched his 12th goal of the season. Genoa are 6-1-0 at home and will certainly not be sitting back, as they return to a three man attack today. The only time they played with just two strikers at home, was in their opener against Milan, normally starting with a 3-4-3 formation, which plays to their strengths and is paying dividends. Atalanta are the archetypal upper mid table "A" team, very strong at home and struggling (1-1-5) on the road, where they have only scored five goals and are far more cautious, you might even say timid. Home win.

5.5 points Genoa -1/2 ball 1.97 exchanges.

Good Luck.

OFF TO A FLYER ...........

We have already landed the first bet of the day for subscribers, which was in the early SPL kickoff, I have reproduced it below. To receive the newletter everyday, costs circa 15 euros per week, for that, you get 25-30 full match previews per week delivered directly to your inbox, on a daily basis. In addition to the previews, there is often information that will help you pinpoint future winnners. If you bet on a regular basis, then this is a service you cannot afford to"do battle "without, for further details ......... www.predictuwin.com.

Good Luck.

SCOTTISH SPL

DUNDEE UNITED - GLASGOW RANGERS

United have been performing at a very high level recently, including, doing us a big favour at Inverness last weekend, they have lost just once in twelve starts, including a fine 3-3 draw in the reverse meeting between these two at Ibrox, a few weeks ago. They have been impressive at home, losing one in eight ,beating Hearts 3-0 and holding Celtic 1-1. Unlike last season, the goals have been flowing and they have scored two or more, in 8 of their last 11 starts. They were unlucky not to win the earlier meeting, after outplaying Rangers and conceding an injury time winner. Unfortunately, Francisco Sandaza, who scored twice that night, is unavailable today, otherwise I might have fancied them to record a famous upset.

However, Rangers simply have to win this game and stick to within four points of leaders Celtic, with their traditional New Year encounter just around the corner, to go into that game trailing by seven, would be unthinkable. They have hit a little goalscoring form, with 27 in their last nine matches, including seven (!) against Hamilton last week.

With or without Sandaza, this has been traditionally a high scoring fixture, with the last four here and 8 from 11, ending "over", home and away, that total raises to 16 from 22,or almost 73%. I have to believe that they will manage three today.

6.5 points "over" 2.5 goals 1.90 asian line. game was "over" after 54 minutes

NOVEL APPROACH FROM TROLLOPE .........

DIVISION 1

BRISTOL ROVERS - TRANMERE ROVERS

Visitors have been defensively sound recently and were 30 seconds or so away from getting a result in midweek, but conceded a very unlucky late equaliser and as a result, were forced into extra time and ultimately, a gut wrenching defeat. They really wanted that 3rd round cup tie against WBA and I suspect, that they might suffer something of a hangover this afternoon.

Long time readers of the blog/ email, know that Rovers have been favourites of mine/ours and they have finished the season very strongly, in each of the last two years. Now that they have little or no outside distractions, I expect them to have a big start to 2009 and another run at the playoffs is firmly on the cards.

Paul Trollope's side had a wonderful October, since when they have lost their way somewhat, being without a win in five starts, However, the three losses have come against Leicester, where they led away from home with three minutes to play, at Millwall where Rovers matched the Londoners all the way, eventually going down 3-2 and by the odd goal in three to Scunthorpe. They are/were the top three sides in Division 1 and things can only get easier. After the loss at the New Den, Trollope spoke about making some big defensive changes this week, I understand that he is now reconsidering that and it maybe, that his words were enough to re-motivate the back four, there is certainly little wrong with their game going forward.Tranmere have struggled for goals on the road and not scored away from home in 501 minutes of football. Home win.

5.5 points Bristol Rovers -1/4 ball 2.03 asian line.

Back shortly.

BUNDESLIGA ..........

VFB STUTTGART - BAYERN MUNICH

It is hard not to be impressed by Bayern at present, they are 15 games unbeaten, including six Champions League starts and are scoring for fun, with two or more in their last seven starts, eleven times in twelve, only falling short away at Fiorentina, where they drew 1-1 but had 18 attempts at goal and 55% possession. They will be ultra keen to get the three points that might well give them the "Winter Title", if Hoffenheim slip up at home to Schalke tomorrow. That would really set up the second half of the season for the German giants and I suspect boss Jurgen Klinsmann, who grew up in Stuttgart, will not lack motivation returning to his home town. He is without star player Franck Ribery, who has been on fire in recent weeks and he will be missed, but the Munich superclub will be boosted by the return of Ze Roberto, Lucio and Altintop. Hosts are without the suspended Arthur Boka and injured Ludovic Magnin.

5 points Bayern Munich -1/2 ball 2.20 asian line.

Back later.

SATURDAY UPDATE .......

There has been a big change weatherwise in the UK, the temperature has risen several degrees, but with it has come torrential rain and even flash flooding, in certain areas overnight, it was particularly bad in the West Country, although most parts of the UK have been affected. If betting today, please note that this has now moved eastwards and many games on that side of the country, are going to be played in very poor conditions.

We have so much to look forward to today, last round before the winter break in Germany, three of the "big 4" in action in the EPL and to end the day, El Classico in La Liga, with most of the footballing nations in the world watching Barcelona host Real Madrid. I am really looking forward to this one, which I suppose, is stating the obvious. Now that the Champions League is on the back burner for a couple of months and there are no international distractions to boot, all the big European club sides, can concentrate fully on their domestic games and we have some huge fixtures in the coming weeks. Including, Lyon- Marseille and Juventus-Milan tomorrow, followed by Liverpool-Arsenal, Manchester United- Chelsea, Gillingham -Brentford and the Glasgow derby, all in the next month. I enjoy the CL matches, but the really big league games, when there are no outside considerations, provide far greater excitement and are for the fans, not the accountants.

I have looked at seven matches on the email today and covered a game each in Spain, Germany, France and Scotland, plus three domestic fixtures, so, something for everyone there. They are split between three "small" and four "larger/stronger" selections. I will post a couple of previews on the blog today, but they will be from the "small" group. The others will be kept for subscibers, which is why they pay the huge sum of around $3 per day to receive the information !

If anyone wants to treat themselves for Christmas and join the service, full details can be found on the website www.predictuwin.com , or you can ask me any questions via this link.

Good luck with all your bets today .

FRIDAY UPDATE .......

No excuses for anyone to have missed out on a very good day, all of you were offered a free copy of today's newsletter, which included full preview's of three matches, with a selection in each, they were ...........

6 points "over" 2.75 goals Chesterfield -Macclesfield 2.19 asian line. SCORE 2-4

6 points Lincoln -3/4 ball 2.28 asian line. WON 5-1

6.5 points Galatasaray -3/4 ball 1.89 asian line. WON 3-1

All three won (easily) and produced just over 20 points profit.

No time to rest on my laurels and before these matches were completed, subscribers had already received tomorrow's (saturday) newsletter. A massive seven matches have been previewed, with eight selections, including one at odds of 7.20 !

Good Luck.

FRIDAY .........

I have just finished today's email, in which I previewed three matches. It contains a couple of pieces of information, that for several reasons, I do not wish to publish on the blog, but if anyone wants to send me an email on this link, before 17.00 UK time, I will send them a free copy of the newsletter.

Good Luck.

ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME ................

We now know the sixteen teams that will go into the draw for the knockout stage, which will be held next Friday morning at 11.00 UK time. Group winners have home advantage in the second leg, can only meet a runner up, that is not from the same group, or from the same association (country).

So, Manchester United cannot face Villarreal, Chelsea or Arsenal, I assume that they want to avoid Real or Inter and would be "happy" with Sporting, Lyon or Atletico, but as you can see, there are no easy games left. On the other side of the draw, Chelsea and Arsenal will be content to avoid Barcelona, as will everyone else and maybe resurgent Bayern.

I am sure that some of the more cynical amongst you, probably think the draw has already been made, with UEFA desperate to keep the bigger, more influential clubs apart, I couldn't possibly comment. What is certain, is that we have one humdinger of a tournament !

GROUP WINNERS:
Roma, Panathinaikos, Barcelona, Liverpool, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Porto and Juventus

RUNNERS UP:
Chelsea, Internazionale, Sporting Lisbon, Atletico Madrid, Villarreal, Olympique Lyonnais, Arsenal and Real Madrid.

Back later.

MAGPIES TO SET UP NOTTS DERBY ..........

FA CUP REPLAY

KETTERING TOWN - NOTTS COUNTY

Winner of this tie will meet the lowest ranked team left in the competition, Eastwood Town, in the third round, so will have a fantastic chance to get to Round 4 and earn a plum, money earning tie. Actually, for County, even meeting the meeting with Eastwood, is likely to create huge publicity and probably a sell out crowd, Town are a Nottinghamshire club and only a meeting with Forest would create more interest in the area.

Kettering were unlucky not to win the first game and came very close on several occasions to a late winner. Going into that game, County were at a very low ebb and had just suffered a frightful thumping at Dagenham and a home loss to leaders Wycombe. That draw at least steadied the ship and they got back to winning ways with a 1-0 win over Morecambe at the weekend. They were well on top in that game and gave the visiting defence a bit of a "run around". The recent slump came as a shock to the team , as at times they can play a very slick, passing style, which is as good as anyone in the division, but sometimes you have to forget the fancy stuff and get back to basics. Which is the point that player Gavin Strachan, made in his excellent blog on the BBC website, when he wrote : By basics, I mean aspects of the game such as turning the opposition back four, winning tackles and working harder than the other team. We know we can still pass the ball better but it was imperative that we stopped the rot and got some points on the board."

Hosts have done fantastically well since returning to the "Conference" and are still involved in four competitions, there is no doubt that they will also be given this their full attention, but ten tough games since early November, will surely take it's toll soon. County performed very well in their last televised encounter and their silkier skills might be seen to greater effect live on Setanta tonight. They are able to name their very best starting eleven and are likely to benefit from the appoinment of Scott Mathieson as referee, he is a very lenient official and likes to let the game flow. He has given just 33 yellow and one red card in 19 games in charge this season and with the first match being a very sporting encounter, without a card being shown, "under" three yellow cards, which can be backed at circa 1.91 looks perfectly good value. As does Sean Canham, who has scored in his last two starts and come in for special praise from the coach, for his recent all round contribution, in the anytime goalscorer market at 3.75. But I am going to stick with County at the level ball option, they have avoided defeat in six of their last eight away games and if they are anything like their best, they should win.

6.5 points Notts County level ball 2.16 asian line.

Good Luck.

NOTE TO SUBSCRIBERS: I HAVE JUST EMAILED TOMORROW'S NEWSLETTER, WHICH INCLUDES A VERY STRONG SELECTION, PLEASE CHECK YOUR INBOX.

TOO POSH FOR THE CUP ?

FA CUP REPLAY

TRANMERE ROVERS - PETERBOROUGH UNITED

I am quite a fan of Boro and would not be surprised if they were involved at the business end of Division 1 this season, they have a real attacking threat, with three top class strikers, but are a little vunerable at the back, something that this very ambitious club will probably address in January. They are unbeaten in 15 league starts, but were not concerened about progression in the JPT or Carling Cup and I get the impression that even the FA Cup might not be high on the list of their priorities. In the league, they have some huge games ahead, with Oldham (6th), Leicester (1st) and Millwall (2nd) in their next three starts. The "reward" for winning tonight is a third round visit to WBA, I am not certain how much of an incentive that is for Boro, they hosted them in the Carling Cup last season and lost heavily. I believe that they are fully focused on reaching the Championship and would welcome a distraction free 2009. Looking at their website last night,all th e talk was of the league games ahead and you would not have known that they had a cup game tonight !

Rovers are in good form too, they have lost just once in eight, that coming at Yeovil, when they were missing six players, with three suspended and been beaten only twice in 13, keeping, an impressive, nine clean sheets in that sequence. They had a fine 2-1 win over Leeds at the weekend and have twice shared the spoils with Boro this season. They drew the league meeting at London Road 2-2, where they led by two goals and created 17 attempts at goal and in the first cup game, had 55% possession and restricted the home side to just a single attempt on target and not many teams will do that this season. I am sure that Rovers, currently in 9th spot, 5 points off the playoff places, also have promotion dreams of their own, but they have always been a cup side and are very excited by the prospect of playing Albion and I strongly feel xxxx xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxxx xxxxx xxxxxx xx xxxxxx xxxxx xxx xxxxx xxx xxx xxxxx xxxx

xxxx Tranmere Rovers level ball 1.80 asian line....

Sorry, but I have had to censor some of this post.

Good Luck.

CHAMPIONSHIP ..............

SWANSEA CITY - BARNSLEY

Hosts are missing a couple of key players, but Darren Pratley's absence is offset by the return from suspension of Leon Britton and Roberto Martinez's squad is big and decent enough to handle the situation, although Ferrie Bodde will be impossible to replace. Still, City are a quality side and have now come to terms with the fact that he will be missing for most of the season, which was probably going to be the case, when the transfer window opened anyway.

The injury situation at Barnsley is getting dire, they are likely to be without seven players tonight , have few options and claim that the squad is down "to the bare bones" and will pick itself. They have not scored for 219 minutes and were outplayed, on home soil, by a Reading side reduced to ten men for an hour at the weekend.

Big game for City who need the win to stay in touch with the playoff spots. They are strong at the Liberty Stadium, where they have already thumped Wolves, beaten Hull and outplayed, but failed to get the win over QPR and Birmingham, they do not face anything of that calibre this evening.

6 points Swansea -3/4 ball given @2.11 asian line.... NOW 1.94

Back later.

THE VALUE , OR OTHERWISE, OF HOME ADVANTAGE ................STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Last season, much was made of the number of away wins in Division 2 of the Football League and many people were happy to follow the "road" favourites almost blindly and probably made a little money. Over the entire season, the division only produced 39% home wins, just a shade higher than the visiting teams managed.

On Saturday, I was interested in Newcastle at home to Stoke, actually, my idea was based more upon opposing City, but the odds on offer, just didn't feel right, so I left the match alone. This season, the EPL has produced fewer home wins than any other major league in Europe. Infact, the number of wins for the hosting team , has been in sharp decline for some time . In 05/06 over 50.5% of fixtures were won by the home team, that number fell to circa 48% the following season and again by another 2% last campaign, at present, the rate is around 41.5 %, so you could argue that the true odds for a "home" in a random top flight fixture is 2.41 . Obviously, I am not advocating that Manchester United at home to, well almost anyone should be that price, that would be silly, but please think long and hard before betting anyone at odds on, in this increasingly competitive league.

Only United and Liverpool are unbeaten on home soil, Villa and Fulham have lost one each, every one else, has been defeated at least twice. Which includes Chelsea and Arsenal, at their former fortress home ground's. We have not hit the half way mark yet, I hear you cry, which is true, but over the last two seasons there have been far fewer home wins after Christmas and this is a trend I do not see changing too much in the coming months.

If you like your home favourites, how about Serie A, where most teams seem to be suffering from travel sickness this season. So far, almost 58% of matches have been decided in favour of the host, only four teams have won less than three and an eyecatching eleven, have lost one or less. This is a massive percentage increase, especially at this stage of the season, over any recent year and you would have to be a brave man, or be getting a very good price, to consider taking any visiting team at present. Only Juve, Inter, Fiorentina and Lazio have recorded more than two away wins. Of course, 58% is an incredibly high number and not one I can see lasting too long, but 150 games is a reasonable sample and worthy of note.

Good Luck.

TUESDAY PLANS ...........

Happy Harry Redknapp made another successful return to Upton Park and won for the fourth successive time since leaving the unhappy Hammers.

That leaves Tottenham and West ham level on 18 points, but the mood and atmosphere at both clubs is in stark contrast, the hope that three clean sheets had given Gianfranco Zola's team, being quickly forgotten. However, with things so tight in the Premier league and ten clubs seperated by just five points, both are just two wins off seventh place !

I have previewed five matches on the email today, giving two minor bets on the Champions League, along with three much stronger selections, including one "big" bet ( last six have won) on the English domestic leagues. I will post a couple of these on the blog later today, so please check back.

Good Luck.

MONDAY ...........

I have just written today's email, it did not take too long, as I only previewed one match, albeit a strong and confident selection. It is a case of the calm before the storm, as there is an incredibly busy sporting week ahead for us, tomorrow looks especially good and I am planning a "big" bet, the last six of which have won.

On the website www.predictuwin.com you will find a full email archive going back to last September, not that anyone would want to read all of them, but it does give an idea of what the service has to offer. The newsletter has produced over 527 points profit since then, but it offers so much more than a pure " tipping service", which this, most certainly, is not. Having said that, it is vitually certain to make you a profit, providing you take a long term approach to your betting. Over this very long sample, almost seven weeks from ten have made money and that is by betting blindly every selection, many of my readers are a little more selective and have fine tuned the service to suit their needs and are producing even greater returns.

Take a look, it costs nothing and if you register on the site, which is also free and only takes a minute or two, you will also receive the odd "freebie" newsletter.

Good luck with your bets today.

FOOTBALL HERO ..........

No, I am not talking about Michael Owen, who, surprise, surprise, has recovered fitness and rediscovered where the back of the net is, when his contract is up for renewal, but Tony Mowbray.

His WBA team have tried to play football this season and to that end, have been very successful, despite what the league table might say. Box to box, at times they have played as well us any team outside the big 4 and with a little more good fortune in front of goal, could easily have another 7-8 points in the bag. Mowbray refuses to abandon his principles and wants to play the right way ,hopefully, he and Albion will get their reward sooner, rather than later. It must be frustrating to be a WBA fan, but to their credit, most have said that they are happy with the performances and enjoy watching the team play. Despite what the cynic inside some of us might think, not all decisions in football are made purely upon results and I know two very big clubs in the UK, who have Mowbray at the very top of their list, should they need to find a new coach and all do, at some time or other.

I really hope that they win today and West Brom could hardly be facing Portsmouth at a better time. Pompey were in Germany late on Thursday night for a UEFA Cup tie and a 3-2 loss to Wolfsburg, signalled the end of their european campaign for this season. That was the fourth game running that they have conceded two goals or more and there are clear signs that they are running on empty at present. This will be their 11th start in 44 days, which included two away games in Europe and for most players, also involved an additional trip and game for their national team. The squad has been stretched by injury over this time and Traore and Diarra, two key players, will again be missing today. Over the same period, WBA have played just seven times, today will be number eight, their players have not lost heart and are desperate to get started on the climb up the table.

Portsmouth have financial troubles too ( join the club) and have apparently been "officially" put up for sale this morning, which was the worst kept secret in football.

I am backing Albion to get the win that will take them off the foot of the table and restore a little of my faith, in the beautiful game.

4.5 points WBA -1/4 ball 2.33 asian line.... now 2.14

Good Luck.

SUNDAY MORNING ........... VERY EARLY !

Another pleasing day on Saturday, with three winners from the four selections. I have just sent Sunday's newsletter, yes, a very long day ! It includes a look at the golf in South Africa, which concludes this afternoon, three football matches and tonight's NFL action.

Back later this morning.

Update: The golf scores can be viewed here http://www.nedbankgolfchallenge.com/ ..... "our" man is on the charge !