Dave Pundit's Predictions 11/02/12

Hi, I'm Dave Pundit. It's been quite a week in football, what with Capello resigning and all, and I must say I think the FA have handled this appallingly. I understand the need to crack down on racism but to crack down on John Terry is just ridiculous. That said, I'm glad to see the back of Capello, we need an Englishman in the England job, and hopefully the FA will do the right thing and get Harry Redknapp in. It'll be nice to see the FA's money going into an English bank account for once.

Man Utd v Liverpool
What a game to start the weekend with; the biggest local derby in football. If ever there was a game to wash away the bad taste of all the racism scandals surrounding football at the moment it's this one. There won't be a hint of it here. Just the two best teams in the land going toe-to-toe. The big question is can De Gea withstand the onslaught from the likes of Downing, Carroll and Henderson? The answer is: possibly. But maybe not.
Verdict: 1-1

Blackburn v QPR
It shows you how deep in the mire Blackburn are when they concede seven goals to a mediocre team like Arsenal. Luckily QPR aren't anywhere near good enough to be mediocre yet, they're distinctly average. However I think Mark Hughes could well push them up the league he's got the requisite English grit there's no doubt about it. Plus the signing of Bobby Zamora: the new Geoff Hurst will be a boost. This one will be close but I think Blackburn will edge it.
Verdict: 2-1

Bolton v Wigan
Bolton are an interesting team, sometimes I think they could be a gritty powerhouse of a team like Stoke, they held on to Kevin Davies in the transfer window and he's guaranteed to elbow a few defenders of the park so they obviously have that about them but then they go and sell Gary Cahill and replace him with a Yank. What do Americans know about defence? They can't even pronounce it. Wigan on the other hand aren't interesting at all. In fact the only interesting thing I can think of to do with Wigan is that I have no idea what a Latic is. Whatever happened to good old-fashioned nicknames? Things like The Reds or The Blues or The Mauves? Probably some kind of politically correct uprising from colourblind people has made them illegal or something.
Verdict: 2-0

Everton v Chelsea
People have questioned whether John Terry will be able to focus on football with a court case looming over him but people forget that he is a rock. Negative thoughts can't penetrate his granite skull. Nothing penetrates that skull. He may no longer be the England captain but he will always be a leader of men armband or no armband. He reminds me of me, I was never the captain of any of the clubs I played for but I was still a leader on and off the pitch, the only thing I need armbands for is swimming.
Verdict: 0-2

Fulham v Stoke
Hopefully this will be a real game for the purists. Lots of pure violence and not much fancy pants passing and movement. It's been a long time since we've seen a real leg breaking challenge, I don't know if it's because defenders are too scared to get stuck in or that attackers aren't putting their legs in the way as much as they used to but I'm hoping for all that to change here. Of course with Fulham having a foreigner in charge it's unlikely but if Pulis has got any sense he'll scythe Jol down on the sidelines just to show his boys the way forward.
Verdict: 0-1

Sunderland v Arsenal
It's not often I say this about an Arsenal player but I do like the look of young Oxlade-Chamberlain, he may be young but he looks strong as an Ox. In fact it wouldn't surprise me if the Arsenal fans start giving him the nickname horse or something. Then again the French eat horses don't they? It's also great timing for him to break through now while Arsenal are on the slide because hopefully Wenger will get the sack and he won't get turned into some kind of skillful winger and ruin all his brute charm. I'm not sure he'll be enough to make the difference against a Martin O'Neill team though he's never needed skill to get his teams playing well.
Verdict: 2-1

Swansea v Norwich
If anywhere can rival Norwich for inbred, animal shaggers it's Wales. But at least Norwich are good old-fashioned English inbred animal shaggers. And I for one would rather have my inbreds in the country pissing out rather outside the country pissing in. Especially as they probably have four cocks or something.
Verdict: 0-1

Tottenham v Newcastle
Thank God the courts saw sense and found Redknapp not guilty. I mean what is the world coming to when one man can't give another man £180 grand, put it into an off-shore account and then not get their story straight about what the money was for without raising suspicion? Still at least Redknapp can concentrate on football without any other distractions for a while. This could well be a corking game, Newcastle have been playing well all season and I definitely think if Redknapp turns down the England job then Pardew should get it. I can't see him passing up the opportunity of a lifetime.
Verdict: 1-1

Wolves v West Brom
There seems to be a Midlands derby every other week at the moment, it's getting dull quite frankly. Let's hope one of these teams, preferably the foreigner managed West Brom, can get relegated and reduce the number of Midland derbies in the top league. I for one think it would be far more preferable if we saw the likes of West Ham, Southampton or Birmingham come back up instead.
Verdict: 2-0

Aston Villa v Man City
Aston Villa have to make the most of having Robbie Keane for a couple more games because they'll miss his English grit when it's gone. Now call me crazy, and many psychiatrists have although few of them have walked away afterwards, but I think Villa will edge this one, they just have too much Englishity to be blown apart by some rich foreigners. Rain or shine England keeps going. Unless it snows.
Verdict: 1-0