Saturday FA Cup and EPL Special LIVE:

Saturday FA Cup and EPL Special LIVE:

The quarter-finals of the FA Cup and Round 30th of this season's EPL, merged into a Super Saturday!

FA Cup:

Sunderland vs Everton: LIVE

Defender Phil Bardsley put the home side in-front after only 12 minutes, after a short free-kick was hit by him from 25 yards out into the net.

Phil Bardsley and Sunderland celebrate taking the lead against Everton after 12 minutes at The Stadium of Light.

Midfielder Tim Cahill equalised for The Toffees after taking a shot after Nikica Jelavic's header fell to him into the net from a corner - to score his second goal in 41 matches for Everton!

Midfielder Tim Cahill scores an equaliser for Everton in the 23rd minute to keep the away side in the FA Cup tie.

Halfway through the second half (65 mins), 1-1.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Bolton Wanderers: LIVE from 17:30pm

Team news from White Hart Lane at 17:00pm...

EPL:

Fulham vs Swansea City: LIVE at 15:00pm

10th placed Fulham host 11th placed Swansea in a mid-table battle at Craven Cottage. If either team wins, they could move up to 8th place. 

Swansea will have high morale after their 1-0 home win against 2nd placed Manchester City last Sunday, while Fulham lost late on at Villa Park against Aston Villa.

Wigan Athletic vs West Bromwich Albion: LIVE at 15:00pm

Bottom club Wigan host 14th placed WBA at the DW Stadium.

Wigan will be looking to push out of the relegation zone today provided that they win, while West Brom could be 8th at the end of the day (if the result at Craven Cottage goes their way).

The Stadium of Light,

FA Cup Quarter-Final,

Sunderland vs Everton:

Team line-ups:

Everton: Howard, Neville, Heitinga, Distin, Baines, Coleman,Fellaini, Osman, Drenthe, Cahill, Jelavic. Subs: Hahnemann, Hibbert, Jagielka, Stracqualursi, McFadden, Gueye, Anichebe.

Sunderland: Mignolet, Bardsley, O'Shea, Turner, Bridge, Larsson, Colback, Gardner, McClean, Campbell, Bendtner. Subs: Gordon, Wickham, Kilgallon, Vaughan, Meyler, Kyrgiakos, Elmohamady.

70: Header by striker Nikica Jelavic from 12 yards out..... COMFORTABLE SAVE!! by Simon Mignolet...

72:

Everton SUB:

Seamus Coleman OFF

Magaye Gueye ON

73:

Sunderland SUB:

Fraizer Campbell OFF

David Vaughan ON

79: 5 yellow cards in this match, 27 fouls...... Dangerous and stuck-in game. I predicted that it would either be a slender win or a replay. I should (but won't) be a betting man... :)

Let's digress for a few minutes, and look at some news:.

Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov is reportedly on his way back to Germany due to a lack of first-team action, with Hannover 96 leading the race.

Berbatov is actually under-rated at United... They need to give him a chance because every match he has played for them this season, he has at least scored once....

Dimitar Berbatov: Lack of first team action for the striker at Manchester United, means that he WILL leave in the Summer.

Anderlecht want Arsenal flop Chu-Young Park to join them to boost their strikeforce.

Chu Young Park: Leaving Arsenal after only one season at The Gunners?

£2million is in the works...

Harry Redknapp has confirmed Tottenham are ready to smash their record transfer fee to land £35million Lille wonderkid Eden Hazard.

Eden Hazard: The Lille winger is wanted by up to 6 different EPL clubs.... including Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Manchester United.

Sunderland have a big fight on their hands to hang onto key midfielder Stephane Sessegnon, who is struggling to settle in the North-West.

Should I stay or should I go? Sessegnon is wanted by PSG and Arsenal....

EPL LIVE Line-ups:

Wigan v West Brom:

Wigan: Al Habsi, Alcaraz, Caldwell, Figueroa, Boyce, McCarthy, McArthur, Beausejour, Moses, Di Santo, Maloney. Subs: Kirkland, Crusat, Ben Watson, Gomez, McManaman, Diame, Stam.

West Brom: Foster, Jones, McAuley, Ridgewell, Shorey, Thomas, Morrison, Mulumbu, Scharner, Brunt, Long. Subs: Daniels, Andrews, Dorrans, Dawson, Tamas, Cox, Fortune.

Fulham v Swansea City:

Fulham: Schwarzer, Kelly, Senderos, Hangeland, John Arne Riise, Ruiz, Dembele, Diarra, Dempsey, Johnson, Pogrebnyak. Subs: Stockdale, Baird, Murphy, Duff, Hughes, Etuhu, Frei.

Clint Dempsey and Pavel Pogrebnyak both start for the home side, along with Bryan Ruiz and Moussa Dembele.

Very strong Fulham side....

FACT: Mahamadou Diarra is going to start his first match for Fulham since moving from a free agent when he left Real Madrid last Summer.

Swansea: Vorm, Rangel, Caulker, Monk, Taylor, Allen, Britton, Sigurdsson, Routledge, Graham, Sinclair. Subs: Tremmel, Tate, McEachran, Lita, Moore, Gower, Richards.

Danny Graham and Scott Sinclair both start in strike for The Swans along with in-form goalkeeper Michel Vorm and striker Gylfi Sigurdsson. 

Michel Vorm: Has to be on top-form to prevent players such as Clint Dempsey and Pogrebnyak from scoring at Craven Cottage this afternoon...

FULL-TIME:

Sunderland 1 Everton 1

This means that the quarter-final, will go to a replay.

Replay will be played on the 27th of March at 19:45pm.

15:00:

The two 3oclock EPL kick-offs have started at Craven Cottage and the DW Stadium...

15:10:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs West Brom:

Wigan have had four shots at goal, and it is still goaless.... 

This is the difference between relegation and mid-table....

Although I give them credit for coming out of the starting blocks quick against a tough WBA side.

15:13:

Craven Cottage,

Fulham vs Swansea City:

Full-back/midfielder John Arne Riise takes a shot from 20 yards out.... OVER THE BAR!!

Unlucky by Riise, who used to score from over 20 yards a LOT in his Liverpool days... still looking for his first Fulham goal since moving last Summer.

Goals clip at Liverpool:

15:16:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs WBA:

Defender Emmerson Boyce takes a shot from 6 yards out... HITS THE POST!

Cleared away by the WBA defence...

Wigan are really pushing for the first goal here... That is their 5th shot of the game.

15:27:

Craven Cottage,

Fulham vs Swansea:

Midfielder Clint Dempsey takes a shot from 25 yards out... MISS!!!

15:29:

Craven Cottage:

Fulham vs Swansea:

Gylfi Sigurdsson takes a shot from 18 yards out... MISS!!

Fulham vs Swansea:

30: Cross by Riise to Bryan Ruiz who takes a shot from 25 yards out... SAVED! by Michel Vorm.

31: Shot by Swansea striker Scott Sinclair from 6 yards out... PARRIED OUT!! by Mark Schwarzer!

36: Cross delivered into the box by Scott Sinclair, finds Sigurdsson who takes a header from 6 yards out... GOAL!! 

Swansea are ahead at Craven Cottage!

Striker Gylfi Sigurdsson heads Swansea ahead at Craven Cottage against Fulham after 36 minutes.

Swansea celebrate their opening goal of the match against Fulham, courtesy of striker Gylfi Sigurdsson.

15:49:

HALF-TIME:

Fulham 0 Swansea 1

Gylfi Sigurdsson scored his 4th goal in 8 matches for the away team to put The Swans ahead at Craven Cottage. Fulham have to step up in the second half if they want to win this match against a tough Swansea side.

Wigan 0 WBA 0

10 chances for Wigan, to West Brom's 4 but no-one has been able to convert so far in this match-up.

Surely this will not be the final scoreline?

16:02:

The second halves have started in the EPL....

No substitutions at Craven Cottage or the DW.

16:08:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs West Brom:

Striker Shaun Maloney takes a shot from 25 yards out.... SAVE (caught)!! by goalkeeper Ben Foster...

Still goalless...

16:14:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs WBA:
The deadlock has finally been broken here!
Midfielder James McCarthur scores for the home side with a sweet finish from 6 yards out after winger Victor Moses crossed the ball to him. 1-0.

Scrappy goal: Midfielder James McCarthur puts Wigan in-front against West Brom.

As it stands: Wigan are out of the bottom three, into 17th place.
You cannot say that this was not coming... Wigan have been pressing since the first whistle...


16:17:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea:
Fulham SUB:
Bryan Ruiz OFF
Damien Duff ON


16:23:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs West Brom:
Corner whipped into the box by Chris Brunt, finds defender Paul Scharner who heads the ball goalwards from 6 yards out.... GOAL!! Scharner equalises for WBA, against his old club Wigan. 1-1.

Sign of respect: Defender Paul Scharner equalises for West Brom against Wigan, but refuses to celebrate against his old club.

16:25:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs WBA:
There has been a heated argument between both sets of players here, after a late tackle by Wigan midfielder James McCarthur on West Brom's Youssouf Mulumbu. 
Mulumbu, Jerome Thomas and Emmerson Boyce have all been booked for descent and their part in the argument. 


16:26:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea City:
Winger Wayne Routledge finds striker Gylfi Sigurdsson with a precise pass who shoots from 12 yards out... GOAL!!  Sigurdsson doubles Swansea's lead and his tally for the afternoon!


16:39:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea:
Scott Sinclair with a pass to midfielder Joe Allen who takes a shot from 20 yards out... GOAL!!! Swansea have surely sealed three points away from home after this latest goal!?




16:53:
FULL-TIME:
Fulham 0 Swansea City 3
Sigurdsson scored twice and Joe Allen also scored for the away side as The Swans move up into  place with an impressive 3-0 victory over Fulham.


FACT: Today is only the third time that Swansea have scored 3 goals in an away match in the EPL - in their history.


Wigan 1 West Bromwich Albion 1
Midfielder James McCarthur gave the hosts the lead in the 54th minute, before defender Paul Scharner equalised for The Baggies in the 65th minute, which means that the two teams have to settle for one point each.






Analysis:


Wigan will feel disappointed that they did not win and get out of the bottom three, as they took lots of goal-scoring chances but only converted 1 out of 20 taken.


West Brom will feel good that they took a point away from home and are now in 12th place, but could have taken all three today against a Wigan side who did not take their chances. You would have thought that they would capitalize on their opponent's poor run of form, but it is hard to do without key player Peter Odemwingie who was missed today.


The match was dirty towards the end with both teams getting frustrated and there were 18 fouls, and 6 yellow cards.


Fulham will also feel upset that they could not impress their home supporters and get the result that they needed today, despite taking 14 shots and not scoring. Plus, they had a very strong team meanwhile Swansea's team was just above average; with the pace of Scott Sinclair and the clinical finishing of Gylfi Sigurdsson.


Swansea will feel good, after winning 2 in a row against very decent opposition (City and now Fulham), and now will push for a top 10 finish.


17:10:
Now onto the last football action today with the 2nd of 4 FA Cup Quarter-Finals this weekend:

Tottenham v Bolton:

Tottenham: Cudicini, Walker, Nelsen, Gallas, Assou-Ekotto, Van der Vaart, Parker, Modric, Bale, Defoe, Saha. Subs: Friedel, Kaboul, Giovani, Kranjcar, Rose, Livermore, Sandro.

Carlo Cudicini starts in-between the sticks for Spurs, defender Ryan Nelsen comes back into the squad.

Emmanuel Adebayor is out of action due to a hamstring injury so Louis Saha takes his place, while central defender William Gallas starts his first match for 10 weeks.

A strong Spurs side, that should be easily able to get the job done.

Bolton: Bogdan, Alonso, Boyata, Knight, Ricketts, Pratley, Muamba, Reo-Coker, Petrov, Miyaichi, Klasnic. Subs: Jaaskelainen, Eagles, Sanli, Kevin Davies, Ngog, Ream, Vela.

Ivan Klasnic and Ryo Miyaichi both start for Bolton, which will strengthen their strikeforce and attacking flair against a strong Spurs side.

17:30:

White Hart Lane, 

Tottenham vs Bolton:

The referee blows the whistle to start the first half.

17:36:

A Bolton corner, whipped into the box by Martin Petrov, falls to defender Darren Pratley who heads the ball towards goal... hits Gareth Bale and falls into the net past Cudicini. 1-0 to Bolton after only 6 minutes, with Gareth Bale scoring an own goal.

17:41:

Gareth Bale speeds past the Bolton defence, before whipping a cross into the box for full-back Kyle Walker to put his head onto.... GOAL!! Spurs are level in less than 5 minutes after conceding! Bale repays Tottenham after his own goal and it is 1-1.

17:43:

Striker Louis Saha takes a shot from 20 yards out towards goal... SAVE! (caught) by Bolton 'keeper Adam Bogdan. 

17:53:

Full-back Benoit Assou-Ekotto crosses a ball into the Bolton 16-yard box for Bale, who heads the ball towards the net.. MISS!!

17:58:

Shot by Bolton midfielder Martin Petrov from 18 yards out....

MISS!

18:04:
Spurs corner, crossed into the box by winger Rafael Van Der Vaart to defender Ryan Nelsen who heads the ball towards goal..... MISS!!


18:13-18:55: Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba is down in agony.... Both sets of medical staff rush onto the pitch now to treat him...
This looks VERY serious...., now the supporters around the ground are gobsmacked and are chanting his name.
He collapsed near the half-way line, on his own without any physical contact from anyone else.
CPR is being performed.... but I think he needs more.
He is not breathing, and is being rushed to hospital.
Referee Howard Webb has called off the match.
Smart decision...

Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba recieves CPR from the medical staff after collapsing on the pitch in the 42nd minute against Tottenham.

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale comforts striker Jermain Defoe who is distressed by what is being seen.

Horror show: Tottenham players Assou-Ekotto, William Gallas, Carlo Cudicini and Bolton manager Owen Coyle are in absolute shock at what they have seen regarding midfielder Fabrice Muamba.

Get well soon Muamba, stay with us please.
I will pray for you.


A distressing end to a Saturday.....
I hope his family are ok and he gets better soon in hospital.


See you tomorrow everyone.
Please continue to support me by viewing frequently and following my EPL Blog
I am sure that you all will pray for Fabrice Muamba and his family at this disturbing time.
Thank you.

The Weekend's EPL Fixture Previews:

The Weekend's EPL Previews:

This is the 27th Round of this year's EPL.

This week's fixtures are crucial at both ends of the table with the season coming to an end soon (with only 11 matches left to play)

Tomorrow (15:00pm unless stated):

Liverpool vs Arsenal: LIVE at 12:45pm

The first EPL match of the weekend is also my featured Saturday match which will be played at Anfield as Carling Cup winners Liverpool face a morale boosted Arsenal side who thrashed rivals Tottenham 5-2 last Sunday.

Arsenal have injury concerns over captain (and striker) Robin van Persie (groin) and centre-back Thomas Vermaelen (ankle). Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey (ankle) has already been ruled out while Czech winger Tomas Rosicky (groin) faces a late fitness test. Midfielder Abou Diaby returns from a long absence after a hamstring problem.
Defender Francis Coquelin (hamstring) remains sidelined for at least another three weeks, along with centre-back Per Mertesacker (ankle) and Brazil full-back Andre Santos (ankle) is two weeks away from returning to training.
Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is awaiting an update on captain Steven Gerrard's fitness.
The midfielder has a tight hamstring, suffered in England's friendly match against Holland on Wednesday while defender Glen Johnson is expected to be fit after pulling out of the (England) national squad on Monday as a precaution.
Centre-back Daniel Agger is very likely to miss the next couple of weeks with cracked ribs, meaning defender Jamie Carragher is likely to get a recall.

FACT:  

Blackburn Rovers vs Aston Villa:

This match will be played at Ewood Park as 18th placed Blackburn host 15th placed Aston Villa. 

Villa could move up to 10th place (if results go their way) and Blackburn could move out of the relegation zone (if results go their way).  

Aston Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov will return to action tomorrow against Blackburn after recovering from a thigh injury.
Striker Darren Bent will be out for the remainder of the season with a bad ankle injury putting his Euro 2012 hopes in doubt.
Right-back Alan Hutton (hamstring) and centre-back James Collins (knee) are expected to be available after withdrawing from mid-week international duty with Scotland and Wales respectively.
Blackburn welcome midfielder David Dunn back from injury but are worried by the fitness of Martin Olsson.
Dunn missed last weekend's 3-0 loss against Manchester City due to a thigh injury but has trained all week while wide man Olsson picked up slight knee and ankle problems on international duty with Sweden.
Olsson's twin brother Marcus could make his home debut for the club but defenders Jason Lowe and Gael Givet serve the final matches of their suspensions.

Rovers will be sorely miss centre-back Christopher Samba who moved to Anzhi Makhachkala last Friday for £12million.

Manchester City vs Bolton Wanderers:

This match comes from The Ethiad Stadium as 1st placed City host 19th placed Bolton in a big mis-match between the top and bottom of the table.

City are close to a full strength squad for the match against Bolton.
Manager Roberto Mancini is still to fully assess the fitness of all his players following their return from midweek international duty but has not reported any problems.
Striker Carlos Tevez had a successful run-out for the reserves this week after returning to training but is not yet ready for a first-team comeback.

Bolton midfielder Mark Davies (hamstring) is hoping to be fit ahead of the game.
Striker Kevin Davies (knee) is again doubtful while Defender Gretar Steinsson (calf) will be assessed after suffering a knock on international duty for Iceland.
On-loan defender Dedryck Boyata is ineligible to play against his parent club but fellow defender Joe Riley (foot) is back in contention.

FACT: The last time Bolton beat Manchester City away from home was the 23rd of December 2006. 

Stoke City vs Norwich City:

8th placed Norwich face a tough trip to Stoke (who are in 12th place).
Stoke have defender Robert Huth back for tomorrow's clash with Norwich at The Britannia Stadium.
Huth is set to return to the home side having completed a three-match suspension following his sending-off against Sunderland last month.
Manager Tony Pulis will check on the condition of midfielder Glenn Whelan, who picked up a knock on international duty with the Republic of Ireland, ahead of kick-off.
Midfielder Jonny Howson could make his Norwich debut after finally returning to fitness from a knee injury.
Striker James Vaughan has picked up a hamstring problem which will delay his return from knee surgery, while full-back Marc Tierney (knee) is also out.
Centre-back Daniel Ayala (hamstring) trained this week, but may not be rushed straight into action. England under-21 defender Ryan Bennett has now joined up with his new club following a loan spell back at Peterborough.

QPR vs Everton:

This match comes from Loftus Road as 17th placed QPR face 10th placed Everton.

Everton striker Nikica Jelavic could be set for a return to the squad for tomorrow's trip to QPR.
The Croatian, has missed the last two matches with a groin problem but he played 45 minutes in an international friendly against Sweden in midweek so he should be fit.
Midfielders Jack Rodwell (hamstring) and Leon Osman (knee) could also be in line for a recall after appearing for the reserves but January signing Darron Gibson is missing, as he suffered a knee injury.
Full-back Luke Young could feature for the hosts after a month sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Striker Djibril Cisse and midfiedler Samba Diakite will both miss the game through suspension.
Fitz Hall trained with the squad this week but manager Mark Hughes does not believe the defender will be ready for the game.
Striker DJ Campbell is set to return to training from a hamstring injury next week.

West Bromwich Albion vs Chelsea:

13th placed West Brom host 5th placed Chelsea in an interesting match-up between mid-table and top 6 fighters.....
Strikers Didier Drogba and Daniel Sturridge are expected to be fit for tomorrow's match against WBA.
Drogba has shaken off the knee problem that forced him to miss the Ivory Coast's friendly against Guinea, while Sturridge is expected to recover from the toe injury picked up in England's 3-2 defeat against Holland.
Captain John Terry is progressing well following minor knee surgery, while full-back Jose Bosingwa remains a doubt with a hamstring strain.
Winger Jerome Thomas is the hosts main fitness doubt after suffering a hamstring injury during the 4-0 win over Sunderland.
Skipper Chris Brunt has returned to training after a two-month lay-off with a broken foot but Roy Hodgson is weighing up whether he is ready to return against The Blues.
Fellow midfielder Paul Scharner is making good progress with his rib injury but, even if available, is only likely to be among the substitutes in this match....

Wigan Athletic vs Swansea:

14th placed Swansea go to the DW Stadium where 20th placed Wigan have only scored 23 goals this season out of 26 matches which is the worst goalscoring record for any team in the EPL this season.
Swansea goalkeeper Michel Vorm has overcome a virus to be available against Wigan.
Strikers Danny Graham and Leroy Lita are also expected to be fit after being hit by the same illness.
But midfielder Kemy Agustien is facing a lengthy lay-off after surgery revealed that his ankle injury was worse than first thought.
Wigan manager Roberto Martinez will have to make a late decision on the fitness of some of his internationals.
Paraguay defender Antolin Alcaraz and Honduras defender Maynor Figueroa both had long trips after playing for their countries in South America and were not expected to arrive back until late on Friday.
Defender Gary Caldwell sustained a cut leg playing for Scotland in midweek but he is expected to recover.

Sunday:

Newcastle United vs Sunderland: LIVE at 12:00pm

The North-west derby comes from The Sports Direct Arena as two in-form sides (6th and 9th place respectively) face each other in a tasty match which could change the shape of the table completely.

Fulham vs Wolverhampton Wanderers: LIVE at 14:05pm

This match will be played at Craven Cottage as 11th placed Fulham host 16th placed Wolves.
Wolves' leading scorer Steven Fletcher is available after illness for the Premier League clash at Fulham on Sunday after missing the 2-2 away draw with Newcastle last weekend.
Caretaker boss Terry Connor has to decide how to accommodate Fletcher and fellow striker Kevin Doyle, who scored the equaliser at the Sports Direct Arena, in the same line-up.
Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey and midfielder Dave Edwards should both be fit after being ruled out of the Gary Speed Memorial Match against Costa Rica with ankle injuries.
Mahamadou Diarra could make his Fulham debut.
The former Real Madrid midfielder penned a deal until the end of the season earlier this week and manager Martin Jol has confirmed he could be involved at Craven Cottage this weekend.
Fulham right-back Stephen Kelly is a doubt with a little tear in his right quad, while midfielder Dickson Etuhu will be assessed when he flies back from international duty today. Zdenek Grygera (knee) and Steve Sidwell (hernia) are the only first-team players unavailable.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United: LIVE at 16:10pm

My Sunday featured match comes from White Hart Lane as 3rd placed Tottenham host 2nd placed Manchester United in a hot battle at the top of the table. There is 8 points between the two sides, and if United prevail then Spurs' title challenge is virtually over.

Louis Saha could play against his former club United on Sunday, while Carrick could also play against his former club (Spurs).
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is confident that Gareth Bale will be fit to face Manchester United on Sunday despite the winger suffering a hamstring injury in midweek.
Kyle Walker is fit despite suffering an ankle injury against Arsenal last week and Redknapp is also confident that Rafael van der Vaart (calf) and Ledley King (knee) will feature.
Scott Parker is suspended following his sending off at the Emirates Stadium last weekend while long-term absentees William Gallas (calf) and Tom Huddlestone (ankle) remain sidelined.
Manchester United defender Chris Smalling is doubtful after needing stitches in a head wound sustained during England's friendly defeat to Holland.
Wayne Rooney has recovered from a throat infection but Antonio Valencia (hamstring), Tom Cleverley (ankle) and Michael Owen (thigh) are all out.

FACT: Tottenham have not beaten Manchester United since the 19th of May 2001.

FACT: Spurs have only lost once at home this season, third best record so far this season in the EPL (behind Liverpool and Manchester City).