Once again, Wigan will be playing minus Gary Caldwell – serving the 2nd game of a 3-match suspension.
After missing the last three matches due to a back injury, Emmerson Boyce may be well enough to return while a final decision is still pending on Hendry Thomas’ ability to play.
On a positive note for Portsmouth, Anthony Vanden Borre will be returning after a suspension but Nadir Belhadj and Tal Ben Haim with both remain sidelined.
Danny Webber and Hermann Hreidarsson will both be out for the rest of the season.
Wigan Player Status:
Injured: Richard Kingson
Suspended: Gary Caldwell
Doubtful: Boyce (back injury), Thomas (unspecified)
After a horrible season, Portsmouth is sorely anticipating the prospect of an FA cup at season’s end.
The Portsmouth club may be down – but their fans certainly aren’t as boss Avram Grant’s team maintains their ability to play with pride.
With the drop zone just 4 points after the weekend’s results, this is the kind of game that fixture hosts Wigan are not looking forward to with the gap between them.
Roberto Martinez’s players are finding themselves facing increasing pressure with the demands of matching the fire that Portsmouth demonstrated at Wembley. If not, we may well be seeing these two sides face off against each other in the Championship next season.
Some other interesting points:
By beating Liverpool and Burnley 1-0, the Latics have won 2 of their last 3 home games. These are their only victories in the last 13 Premier League games.
In their last 13 Premier League games, Roberto Martinez’s club has failed to score more than one goal.
Wigan threw away 19 league points this season. A dubious feat only matched in the Premier League by Stoke.
Club captain Ledley King for Tottenham remains confident when talking about a comeback against Arsenal, this Wednesday, after his seven-week absence due to a thigh injury.
In other news, Wilson Palacios starts a two-match ban and fellow midfielder Niko Kranjcar will be sidelined with an ankle injury.
Arsene Wenger, manager for Arsenal, states that forward Robin van Persie will be returning to the squad after a five month absence as a result of ruptured ankle ligaments.
Recovering from a knee problem, Alex Song hopes to be in sufficiently good shape in time to play.
With all that said it should be no secret that this time around, there can be no room for error. A poorly-timed tumble on the notoriously treacherous Wembley turf for Michael Dawson now means that this is a season-defining moment for both Tottenham and Arsenal.
The one remedy for Tottenham’s FA semi-final disaster would be a first league win over Arsenal in ten years. This would keep them in contention for the 4th Champions League spot as well as ending the title challenge for their bitter rivals.
But it’s the Gunners who have more reason to feel confident. Aside from being the fresher of the two, Arsenal has recent events on their side. With either a win or a draw, they’ll set a club record of 21 consecutive top-flight matches without being defeated by another team.
Manager Arsene Wenger has noted that his side must win the remaining five matches to have a chance at the Chelsea, who are leading with three points ahead along with a superior goal difference. The only option is victory for Wenger which will most likely prompt him to bring Robin van Persie back into his squad for his first match since November.
This match may also see the return of Sol Campbell who hasn’t played at White Hart Lane since October of 2005. The subsequent hostile environment promises to be quite interesting
Also, watch: 17th April: Tottenham v Chelsea, 17:30
Chelsea can take a large step in the direction of the Double tonight by beating Bolton Wanderers, which would be the first time the Pensioners had achieved such a feat and the first club to do so since Arsenal in 2002. It seems the fates are with them as Manchester United could not get past a dogged Blackburn Rovers side on Sunday, drawing 0-0 and ceding the advantage to Chelsea. Sir Alex Ferguson admitted that they had the advantage, which is high praise indeed coming from a man who would not freely give up the correct time of day unless under severe duress.
The fact that they remain on course for this unique achievement is mainly due to the curious performance of referee Howard Webb in their 3-1 semi-final victory over Aston Villa at the weekend. In any other match the chances are that Jon Obi Mikel would have been sent off for dragging back Gaby Agbonlahor in the box and Villa awarded a penalty after 15 minutes; it is also not beyond the realm of possibility to speculate that any official witnessing John Terry’s attempted amputation of James Milner right leg, ironically dubbed a ‘tackle’ by the watching wags from the sporting press, might have been moved to mete out a harsher punishment than the reluctant, retrospective yellow. Seeing as they also had cause to bemoan Nejmander Vidic escaping a similar punishment in the League Cup Final earlier in the season, maybe Martin O’Neill shouldn’t have parked his car under that ladder, after accidentally dropping a mirror onto a black cat earlier in the day.
Villa themselves maintain their increasingly forlorn chase for 4th place entertaining Everton on Wednesday night, who themselves are starting to salivate over the thought of catching a spluttering Liverpool like a recently released prisoner might when confronted with a tender sirloin; Wigan Athletic entertain, although that feels like the wrong word to describe this fixture, Portsmouth, unlikely but welcome FA Cup Finalists who had the chutzpah to begin an appeal to FIFA this week on the grounds that they be let into the Europa League next season for reaching the Cup Final. It’s the footballing equivalent of Harold Shipman reapplying for his Doctor’s license. They’ll be lucky if the Coca Cola Championship let them in next season but every neutral will be hoping they spoil the Chelsea coronation on May 15th.
Robin Van Persie will miss the match on Wednesday, but is set to be back for Saturday.
There is also the trifling matter of the North London Derby where Arsenal, who are creeping up on Chelsea and Manchester United like Ninjas, visit Tottenham, who are chasing the unwarranted riches of 4th place and a spot in the Champions League qualifiers; for possibly the most vital derby in recent seasons, the build-up has been decidedly low-key. That ends at 8pm on Wednesday Night in N7 with the potential for more explosive mayhem than could possibly be provided by the alumni of the nearby former Finsbury Park Mosque.
Although specifying that there were no formal talks, Dutchman Gus Hiddink has stated that there “was some interest” in replacing boss Mark Hughes.
It’s been confirmed that Roberto Mancini got the job at City while Hiddink was confirmed as Turkey’s new manager, which will begin officially in June.
It was at this point that Hiddink stated that he needed to make a judgement call regarding the offer from Turkey. It was noted that when City demonstrated interest in Hiddink he was, at the time focusing on two roles as Chelsea boss and the Russia coach.
Hiddink added that the situation was possible since it was from February till season’s end with Chelsea with no programme (with the exception of one game) with the national team.Taking over at Eastland, however, presented a major problem, since his contract with Russia included another 18 months. However, the contract expires next month which will free him to start his new role with Turkey. But Hiddink has admitted being conflicted over taking a position with a national team or opting to return to City’s more lucrative Premier League.
Hiddink is quoted as saying “It’s a big club, a club with history and also a club with money, of course”.
Ultimately, the decision was further made difficult because of Hiddink’s club experiences which included an enjoyable tenure with Chelsea. This only added to the dilemma of his decision.
In February of 2009, Hiddink replaced Brazillian Luiz Felipe Scolari (who had been sacked) and then went on to save their season with a 2-1 FA Cup final victory over Everton during the last game that Hiddink was in charge.
Having also been a former manager of Holland, Australia and South Korea, Hiddink has expressed belief in current Chelsea coach Carol Ancelotti’s ability to prevail where he, himself, fell short and will proceed to lead his Double-chasing table-toppers all the way to the Premier League trophy, this season.
“Yes, I think Chelsea will win the title, especially with Manchester United dropping points. When you see Chelsea playing against Villa, it shows there’s a lot of confidence in this team”, Hiddink says.
There are many people who watch live football online on their PCs. With the improvement in Internet technology, it is now easy to stream football matches and watch them live. There are many different software programs available in the market that allow you to stream football matches.
However, you need to keep certain aspects in mind before you go for one of these software programs. Some of them will be advertised as free software and the lure of going for one of them will be immense. But be careful about installing these programs because some of them will, in all probability, contain some spyware or malware that can access your personal information as well as harm your computer. You certainly do not want anything to happen to your hard disc. Apart from these dangers, a free software program will also be low performing and you will end up buffering the match instead of watching it live.
For a small price, you can go for a paid software program. We can guarantee that the return on investment will be more than satisfactory.
A paid software program is legal to use and you will not face any problem in the future. Broadcasting live football matches requires the necessary license and with a paid program, you can rest assured that the license has been acquired. The software program is easy to install in your computer and once the installation is done, you can watch football online no matter where you are in the country, provided you are connected to the Internet. You do not require any additional hardware to run the software and do not even need a TV Tuner card. With a computer and a high speed broadband Internet connection, you can stream football matches and watch football online.
To acquire this software, all you need to pay is for the equipment and the setup. The payment is nominal and more than makes up in terms of benefits. In the long run, you will save on a lot of money because you will have unlimited access to live football matches once you become a registered member. There are no unwanted advertisements to annoy you and the matches are buffered quickly, allowing you to catch the action in real time. Whether you have a Linux or Windows operating system, this software is compatible with all.
So, this season, forget your TV and watch football online with the software available.
Champions League, as we all know, is the crowning glory as far as UEFA club competition is concerned. Top clubs from all over Europe vie for Champions League glory every year. The latest season has already started and the top ranked teams have already started stamping their authority.
One of my favourite places to watch live Champions League is my local pub. It is one place that is frequented by the supporters of Arsenal. As my favourite team is also Arsenal, I feel absolutely at home there. All of us have a gala time watching the Champions League matches and supporting the Gunners. We also have heated discussions and debates during the half time. I simply enjoy those 15 odd minutes that we spend discussing and debating.
My son, who is a fan of Manchester United, visits this sports bar nearby. Once I made the mistake of allowing him to coax me to watch live Champions League in that sports bar. I had a tough time seeing boys of his age cheer Manchester United. Although the atmosphere was very nice and the bar seemed ideally suited to watch live football matches, I somehow missed my favourite small pub. The newer generation is crazy about these up and coming sports bars and they seem to have a great time watching live Champions League action in those bars. For us, the relatively older generation, the best places are still those local pubs that make us feel completely at home among people we know so well.
Although I’m not the sort who spends a lot of time on the Internet, I know that many people watch live Champions League on the Internet. In fact, my son was recently talking about this website that allows its users to watch live Champions League by streaming the matches. He even let me experience one of the matches. I must admit I was impressed by the quality of the broadcast. The experience was similar to watching live Champions League on TV.
As an old timer, I still reach my favourite pub whenever there is a football match on. That is one place that allows me to watch live Champions League with complete peace of mind. I don’t have to bother about technicalities and fights with the wife. All the other patrons are my friends and we have a great time together watching live Champions League on the telly there.
There are many ways that you can watch live football . The best part about watching live football is it is available anywhere you go in the world. Football as a game is followed and watched all over the globe. It does not matter where you are, if you have access to a cable TV or Internet, then you can catch the game.
These days, most of the big names in club football play across the globe before they start their regular season. They travel to Asia and America and play friendlies with the local clubs. There are some hardcore fans that travel along with their club to watch these matches by being in the stadium. For these fans, there is no alternative to watching live football except by being where the action is. If you are one of them, then I’m sure that you have your season ticket for matches being played by your favourite club.
If you are someone who does not like or does not have the chance to watch live football in the stadium, then the next best alternative for you is TV. If you have a cable connection and you are subscribed to sports channels that telecast football matches, then you can catch all the live action on the telly. The biggest advantage of watching live football on TV is that you can sit at the comfort of your home and watch the match. You also have the advantage of having access to replays and savour the goals scored by your team.
Some people also prefer to visit their neighbourhood bars and pubs to watch live football. Although the number of people is lesser than those in the stadium, the much smaller atmosphere of the bar or the pub creates an electric atmosphere that can match the noise in the stadium, relatively. Sitting at the bar or the pub also allows football lovers to watch the match along with their friends. The heated discussions and debates are wonderful to participate in and savour.
The younger crowds can also be seen frequenting the sports bars. Sports bars create an ambience that is completely sporty. There are big screens installed in these bars where football fans can catch the action live. They can drink beer and ale and watch the game amid friends.
If you want to watch live football, then there are a variety of options available for you.
There are times when we are not subscribed to a particular TV channel and hence, lose out on our favourite football matches. Imagine the plight when you know that your team is battling it out on the pitch and you are having to sit at home and not watching the action. Thousands of football fans face this situation day in and day out.
Internet technology has ushered in a new era where you can watch football on your computer, no matter where you are. All you need is a computer and a high speed broadband Internet connection. Once you have these two items on you, you can go for football streaming and watch your favourite team play. Many people say that a modem and any Internet connection is enough for football streaming. However, to enjoy football that way you do on the TV, you must go for a broadband connection. It will cost you a tad more but the viewing experience will more than make up for the extra money spent.
Football streaming is easy. If you search on one of the search engines, you will find links to various websites that offer free streaming of live football matches. However, you need to be wise before you choose the website that you want for football streaming. When a website streams live football matches, it has to spend a lot in buying telecast rights and for a dedicated server. The quality of streaming that you will get in these websites will surely not fill your appetite. What you need to do is go for a paid subscription website. The enhanced quality of live football in paid subscription websites is likely to make your football streaming experience much better. Paid websites, because they charge subscription, are able to buy rights to football matches and are also able to buy a dedicated server for themselves. As a result, they are able to offer much better quality of football streaming.
Paid football streaming websites offer two types of membership. You can either go for a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription or you can go for a pay per view subscription. In both the cases, what you get in return is an enhanced experience in football streaming. You can follow your favourite football matches from the comfort of your home and experience real life live matches.
In this age of technology, football streaming is one of the easiest ways to watch the game.
