Aston Villa vs Manchester City September 28, 2013

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Manchester City will be looking for their fourth consecutive victory in all competitions when they travel to Aston Villa on Saturday.

Aston Villa will attempt to contain free-scoring Manchester City when they meet in Premier League competition on Saturday.

Villa have made a steady yet unspectacular start to the 2013/14 campaign - collecting six points - and are one of only four sides yet to be involved in a draw this season.

Recent form suggests a stalemate is unlikely at Villa Park this weekend - with Villa having shipped four goals in a Capital One Cup clash with Tottenham Hotspur on home soil in midweek.

In contrast, City plundered five against Wigan Athletic to take their tally to 12 in their last three outings.

The standout result in that run came last Sunday, as Manuel Pellegrini oversaw a 4-1 derby demolition of Manchester United.

There is no doubting that an expensively-assembled squad is capable of maintaining those high standards and embarking on a sustained push for the Premier League title, but a return of one point from a possible six on the road so far this term suggests City need to shake off a bout of travel sickness.

Manuel Pellegrini's side followed up last weekend's win over local rivals Manchester United with a 5-0 thrashing of Wigan Athletic in the League Cup on Tuesday evening.

Aston Villa secured their first Premier League victory in four attempts last Saturday when they defeated Norwich City at Carrow Road.

However, Paul Lambert's side were knocked out of the League Cup by Tottenham Hotspur in midweek following a 4-0 loss.

Villa striker Christian Benteke has been ruled out for up to six weeks with a hip injury so Libor Kozak, who scored the winning goal against Norwich, is expected to start in attack.

City boss Manuel Pellegrini has no fresh injury concerns and could name the same XI that beat Manchester United, with Sergio Aguero and Alvaro Negredo starting up front.

Aston Villa: Guzan; Lowton, Vlaar, Okore, Luna; El Ahmadi, Westwood, Delph; Agbonlahor, Kozak, Weimann

Man City: Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany, Nastasic, Kolarov; Navas, Toure, Fernandinho, Nasri; Aguero, Negredo

Tottenham vs Chelsea September 28, 2013

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Danny Rose is also available after injury, while Aaron Lennon faces a fitness test on a foot problem.
Chelsea's Marco van Ginkel will be absent for at least six months after he tore his anterior cruciate ligament against Swindon Town on Tuesday.
Fellow midfielder Ramires also picked up an injury in that match and is rated doubtful.

It will be a case of master versus apprentice when Andre Villas-Boas' Tottenham Hotspur play host to Jose Mourinho's Chelsea.

Villas-Boas spent several years working alongside Mourinho during his first spell in charge at Stamford Bridge and a productive stint in Italy with Inter Milan.

A parting of ways, as Villas-Boas left his scouting days behind and looked to forge a coaching career of his own, has led to a breakdown in a once formidable friendship.

The rivalry in the dugouts at White Hart Lane on Saturday should help to add extra spice to what is already a London derby with plenty riding on it.

Spurs have made an impressive start to the season following a summer of heavy investment and one high-profile departure - with 12 points from five games leaving them level with arch-rivals Arsenal at the top of the Premier League standings.

Tottenham also boast the meanest defence in the division, having been breached just once, but Chelsea have been watertight at the back themselves - conceding only twice.

Goal scoring has been something of an issue for both sides - with Spurs netting on five occasions in as many outings and Chelsea on six - but the enviable array of attacking talent available to Villas-Boas and Mourinho suggests they will start firing at some stage.

Now they face another test - and for Spurs it's arguably a stiffer one - Chelsea.
Stiffer because it would be hard to overstate just how useless Spurs have been against Chelsea over the last couple of decades. Since 1990 the clubs have met 55 times in league and cup, with Tottenham winning only five games to Chelsea's 31. Spurs have won a meagre three Premier League encounters in 42 attempts.
It's a record so poor that you'd forgive Tottenham for just sending the points weaving through the London traffic on the back of a courier's bike to Stamford Bridge, saving themselves the bother of lacing their boots.

Former Tottenham goalkeeper Erik Thorsvedt repeated it, but it was our own Garth Crooks who actually coined the saying of the season so far. Asked to comment on Spurs' summer transfer dealings an inspired Garth replied: "They've sold Elvis and bought The Beatles."
So far, so true: Roberto Soldado, Paulinho, Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela have looked a pretty fab four as Spurs have won eight of nine games and conceded just one goal, though that solitary goal did lead to defeat in the game they would most have wanted to win - the derby at Arsenal.

Opponent: Tottenham Hotspur, 12 pts, +4 GD, 2nd in current Premier League table

Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 2013 at 12:45 BST (7:45 am EST, 4:45 am PST, 17:15 IST)

Venue/Location: White Hart Lane, London, England

Arsenal vs West Brom September 25, 2013

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Albion picked up their first league win of the season against Sunderland on Saturday and Clarke is hoping to see his squad maintain that form.

They face Arsenal – a side they have not beaten in three years – and although Arsene Wenger is expected to use some of the younger players in his squad, Clarke still has the visitors as favourites to progress.

"We can be dangerous underdogs," he told the club's official website. "As a team the last two performances have been good.
Nicklas Bendtner is set for his first Arsenal appearance since August 2011 against West Brom.
Arsene Wenger will rest some of his key players, including Jack Wilshere, while Theo Walcott needs stomach surgery.
West Brom's second-round hat-trick hero Saido Berahino is pushing for a start, having come off the bench in Saturday's win over Sunderland.
His cause will be strengthened by the expected absence of injured strikers Shane Long and Matej Vydra.


West Brom continued their recent record of bringing about a Premier League manager's demise when their 3-0 win over Sunderland resulted in Paolo Di Canio being sacked last weekend.
Roberto Di Matteo, Mick McCarthy, Andre Villas-Boas and now Di Canio have all departed after league defeats against the Baggies in the last 18 months.
With approaching 20 years in the job and his side top of the Premier League, there'll be no such insecurity for Arsene Wenger at The Hawthorns.
The Gunners' recent record against the Baggies - winning the last four meetings - will give the Frenchman even more cause for optimism.
Steve Clarke has insisted his Albion side won't have one eye on Saturday's trip to Manchester United - a wise move considering Arsenal have won their last 10 games on their travels.

One player who will be pushing for a start is young striker Saido Berahino, who netted a hat-trick in the second-round win against Newport County.

Arsenal have triumphed on their last four visits to the Hawthorns and will be confident going into the tie after their victories over Marseille and Stoke in the last week.

Wenger has generally used the Capital One Cup to introduce some of his young players, which means the likes of Emmanuel Frimpong, Serge Gnabry and Chuba Akpom could start.

One youngster who will not be involved is Gedion Zelalem after the midfielder was ruled out for two months earlier in September.

Manchester United vs Liverpool September 25, 2013

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League Cup games in early autumn can be soulless affairs, but Manchester United versus Liverpool is never for the faint hearted - and the potential return of the divisive Luis Suarez, allied to United's painful derby defeat at Manchester City on Sunday, adds buckets of extra spice.

New Delhi: Unruffled by his expulsion from the Indian cricket board, former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi has decided to watch Wednesday`s Capital One Cup match between Manchester United and Liverpool at the Old Trafford.

After decided to ban Modi at its Special General Meeting (SGM) in Chennai, sveral news channels were trying to get his reactions.

"Too many requests for interviews today. Got to go to Manchester for Man U vs Liverpool - so Arnab will be last show today," Modi tweeted.

Liverpool manager
Under new manager David Moyes, United have made their worst start to a season in nine years. Admittedly they've had a tough fixture list, but the Scotsman will give everything to ensure his team emerge with victory.
Wayne Rooney says it's the "ideal game" for United at this juncture, but Liverpool's supporters would love nothing more than turning the screw on their bitter rivals. Manager Brendan Rodgers might just be more motivated by seeing Luis Suarez make a swift return to goal-scoring ways, while avoiding any unnecessary dramas.
"I have no doubt that, having been out, Luis will be even hungrier but his commitment and fight for the cause will still be the same," he said.

Manchester United: De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Smalling, Buttner, Nani, Jones, Giggs, Kagawa, Rooney, Hernandez

Subs: Amos, Fabio, Anderson, Carrick, Zaha, Januzaj, Welbeck

Liverpool: Mignolet, Toure, Sakho, Skrtel, Enrique, Henderson, Lucas, Gerrard, Moses, Sturridge, Suarez

Subs: Jones, Alberto, Aspas, Sterling, Ibe, Kelly, Wisdom

Elche vs Real Madrid September 25, 2013

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Real Madrid make their first trip to Elche in 24 years on Wednesday looking to claim their fifth win in six La Liga games this season. 

Carlo Ancelotti's side have dropped just two points so far this term - in a 2-2 draw at Villarreal - and go into the match at the Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero on the back of a 4-1 win over Getafe on Sunday.

It was supposed to be Gareth Bale's big day—his home debut in the Santiago Bernabeu against a Getafe side susceptible to a large defeat.

That's not how it progressed, though. The Welshman's injury in the warm-up paved the way for another 90 minutes of headline-making from Cristiano Ronaldo, as his brace in the 4-1 win took him above Hugo Sanchez into fifth in Real Madrid's all-time top scorers list.

There's barely anytime to take that in, though, as on Wednesday Los Blancos travel to newly promoted Elche for their sixth match of the league season—it will be day six of an 11-day run featuring a La Liga match each day.

Real came from a goal down to beat their city neighbours at the Bernabeu, with Cristiano Ronaldo grabbing a brace.

The last time Real faced Elche, they did the double over them with 3-1 and 4-2 victories in the 1988-89 top-flight campaign, and the capital club have only lost one of their last 10 meetings against the newly promoted side. 

Fran Escriba's team made it back into La Liga for the first time since 1989 by winning the Segunda Division last season, but they have yet to win on their return to the top tier.

However, they have only lost twice in their opening five games, and can take heart from the fact that they have not been beaten in either of their home matches.

But worryingly for Escriba, whose side have kept just one clean sheet this term, Real have scored 10 goals in their last two matches. 

Ancelotti will definitely be without world-record signing Gareth Bale after the Wales international picked up a thigh injury in the warm-up before their game with Getafe.