lawro and degenerate crackhead predictions

[Nigels Tackle]

ww has a new job so is too busy to do this apparently....

lawro's up against city season ticket holder mark radcliffe this week (he's on football focus discussing city @ 1215 tomorrow)
both are backing us to win
lawro going for 1-0 and radcliffe predicting 2-1
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/33890961

It has not been a good few weeks for Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, with two poor results, a red card and the row over their team doctor coming on to the pitch during the Swansea game which is just ridiculous for him to lose his temper about.
He is the best manager in the Premier League but when he has a bad day, he has a really bad day - and it is never his fault.
Jose Mourinho

I would be surprised if Mourinho is not looking to bring some more players in because you need fresh faces to make the regulars think their places are under pressure, and at the moment Chelsea do not have that.
I rarely tip Chelsea to lose a game under Mourinho but I don't think things are quite right with them at the moment.
You could look at it a different way and say 'well they did not play well against Swansea but they did not get beaten' but a few cracks appeared, which is unusual for them.
So it is a good time for Manchester City to play Chelsea and I think they will beat them.
Lawro's prediction: 1-0
Mark's prediction: We looked like we meant business against West Brom. I have got to go for a City win again although I can't see there being much in it. 2-1

degenerate crackhead is calling a draw
http://www.skysports.com/football/news/ ... aul-merson

Draw. Draw. Draw. You've only got to look at Jose Mourinho's record against the top teams, you can't underestimate that.

They have to get a result, otherwise they are five points behind City already. If I'd said to you at the start of the season 'Chelsea or Man City, but I'll give City a five-point head start', you'd say City will win the league.

Mourinho knows how important the draw will be. A lot of teams go out early in the season and think 'there's over 30 games remaining'. Chelsea do not play like that, the reaction to the draw at Swansea showed that. That's where Chelsea have the big advantage over the other teams.

PAUL PREDICTS: 1-1

updated by WW

[Wonderwall]

I want more finesse and cutting and pasting and also lets give them both a slagging, come on its tradition!!!!

Cheers NT :-)

[nottsblue]

Both are utter cretins who are stealing a living. Lawro is slightly a better pundit than DC, predominately because he can pronounce players names, but DC is more fun to watch as he's usually miles off the pace on Soccer Saturday.

Interesting that both don't think we will lose and that the pressure is already on Chelsea. DC also correctly points out Mourinhos style of playing not to lose in the big games. It reminds me of a saying, " the boat is safe in the harbour, but that is not the reason it was built "

[CTID Hants]

Carragher the Cunt has it down as a draw, calling Maureen a tactical genius in the big games...........

Arsenal will be desperate for win but draw good for Chelsea: Jamie Carragher previews Super Sunday

The former Liverpool and England defender says Arsene Wenger's title hopefuls will be desperate to avoid another slip-up, but believes the Premier League champions will be more than happy to leave the Etihad Stadium with a draw on Sunday afternoon.

This is a great opportunity for City, with a win, to move five points ahead of the champions after just two games of the season...

They would never have thought they could be so far ahead of Chelsea after two games, but they still have to win the match, which will not be easy against Jose Mourinho's Chelsea. You look at his record in big games and he or his team very rarely let you down. They always make it difficult and I think if they could get a draw there - which Chelsea are more than capable of - they will be pleased with that, given the week they have had on and off the pitch

I think it will be a difficult game for City, and for both sides of course, but I do not think one should get too carried away with Chelsea dropping points in the first game, as they were down to 10 men for the final half an hour. So I do not think it was too bad a point for Chelsea in the circumstances.

Jose Mourinho has tended to pack his midfield, absorb pressure and then hit City on the counter-attack in past visits to City, and with great effect... do you expect the Portuguese to adopt a similar strategy on Sunday?

Yes, he has a way of playing in these big games, especially away from home, which makes it really difficult for the opposition. He has great patience within the game and it does not bother him whether his team come into the match towards the end of the 90 minutes. It is a 90-minute game and I think that is how he sees it. He does not come flying out of the traps; he assesses how the game is going, and makes changes as the game is going on.

And they are the away side, so it is up to the home side to take the game to Chelsea, and I think that if Chelsea come away with a draw, then they will not be too unhappy.

City looked impressive at the Hawthorns on Monday, but would you anticipate Manuel Pellegrini tweaking his formation against Chelsea? Will Sergio Aguero start in place of, or even alongside, Wilfried Bony?

I do not think so, as City are the sort of side who do not really worry too much about the opposition. They played really well the other night, so I would not expect too much change. Maybe Aguero comes in for Bony, but they played very well and I think they will want to take that form, with which they have started the season, into the Chelsea game and try and take them on. That is the way Pellegrini has been since he came to England and I do not think too much will change.

How far forward do you think Yaya Toure will play?
I think he will play central midfield. David Silva looks like he has been earmarked for the role just off the striker and he was man of the match (against West Brom), so Pellegrini cannot really change his position.

So I expect Yaya to play central midfield, where he played very well on Monday - although obviously this will be a different proposition against Chelsea - and they will be looking for a similar type of performance.

[Foreverinbluedreams]

"And they are the away side, so it is up to the home side to take the game to Chelsea, and I think that if Chelsea come away with a draw, then they will not be too unhappy."

Why does this shit only apply when Chelsea are playing away? When they're at home they're not expected to take the game to the opposition, the very same pundits that trip out that line then try justify them parking the bus on their own turf.

[Hutch's Shoulder]

The BBC changed the scoring on Lawro's predictions, so he gets a lot more now for the right score, not just the result. Therefore he seems to have moved away from his blanket 2-0, although he'll probably find old habits die hard.