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ALI'S BIG MATCH PREVIEW - MIDDLESBROUGH v BLACKBURN ROVERS 10-8-07
Alastair Brownlee
It all starts for real this weekend as Boro face Blackburn Rovers at the Riverside and I sense a real determination from Gareth Southgate that in his second season in charge the team play fast, attacking football with the aim to attract back the fans who for whatever reason have fallen by the wayside.
I spoke to the boss at his press conference on Thursday and he stressed that he wants the players to play with a spirit of adventure and not worry about making mistakes. certainly if those instructions are carried out then there is every reason to feel optimistic about what lies ahead between now and May 2008.
Living in the Boro I am well aware that some fans will take a lot of convincing to return to the Riverside. Finances in many households are very tight and some of the football played in recent seasons has been a pale imitation of the early years when Emerson, Juninho and Ravanelli made a season ticket for the Riverside the most sought after possession on Teesside.
So what are the Brownlee rose tinted spectacles reasons to be cheerful?
Well, Boro are about to enter their tenth consecutive season of Premiership football which is something that once great clubs now languishing outside the top flight such as Leeds United, Nottingham Forest, Sheffield Wednesday would gladly swap for the position they now find themselves in.
I also think that the summer signings can make a real impact.
Tuncay comes with a proven goal scoring record both for Fenerbache and at international level for Turkey. The fans love him in his home country, just ask any Boro fan who has spent their holidays in Turkey, and goal scoring is not his only quality. He also works incredibly hard for the team.
Jeremie Aliadiere has pace and after learning his trade at Arsenal now needs to step up to the demands of playing Premiership football week in week out.
As for Luke Young his ability to fill the right back role and possibly push for inclusion in the England squad is undoubted.
Already I can hear my friend and goal scoring legend Bernie shouting "Ali give a balanced view". Clearly the number of injuries to the central defenders has to be a worry and without Jonathan Woodgate and Emanuel Pogatetz to start the season leaves Gareth unable to pick one of the best central defensive partnerships in the top flight.
In addition, whilst Boro are determined to hold onto Yakubu, let's hope that all the talk of a move away from the Riverside hasn't unsettled the Nigerian international who is desperately in need of refinding his Premiership goal scoring touch as his scoreless run now stretches back to February.
Getting off to a good start is just what is required and the opening three fixtures, Blackburn at home followed by Wigan and Fulham away hold out the hope of getting points on the board.
Blackburn will, however, be a tough test and they have a good record against Boro coming out on top in the last five league and cup encounters.
The clash at the Riverside last season was decided by Nondas twenty-seventh minute header and up front Rovers, who already possess the dangerous Benni McCarthy who hit eighteen Premiership goals last season (second to Drogba on twenty goals in the race for the Barclays Golden Boot), have added further firepower with the signing of Roque Santa Cruz.
The Paraguayan international cost £3.3 million pounds from Bayern Munich and impressed in the thirty minutes he played in the friendly 3-0 win over Preston.
Certainly, Mark Hughes believes this is the strongest squad he has assembled so we have been warned.
In terms of pre season build up I thought Boro looked very good against AZ Alkmaar and I was delighted to see Stewart Downing get the first goal.
I am a big fan of Stewie's and would urge all the Boro fans to get right behind the winger. He celebrated his twenty-third birthday recently and has the international and Premiership experience to go with his undoubted talent.
It is often difficult for a local boy to get the attention paid to a million pound plus signing but Stewie is top quality and could be the key to turning our hopes for a good season into reality.
Opening day matches have not been lucky affairs for Boro as the Boksic and Job inspired 3-1 victory at Coventry back on 19 August 2000 remains the only opening day maximum in twelve attempts but Blackburn are also slow starters as they have won only one opening match in seven when they defeated Wolves 5-1 in August 2003.
Away from the Premiership build up the news that Century FM would not be able to provide commentary this season was, personally, very hard to take.
I have been incredibly privileged as a Boro fan that first attended Ayresome Park in 1967 to have reported and commentated on the team since 1982.
In that time I have commentated on over 1,000 matches and achieved a lifetime ambition when on 29 February 2004 I witnessed Gareth Southgate lift the Carling Cup and turn Boro into winners, at last.
The news broke whilst I was on holiday and it does still seem sad that the airwaves cannot have a freedom of choice for Boro fans who could decide whether or not to listen to Ali and Bernie or Paul and Gary.
Nevertheless, I do hope that Century will be able to regain the rights in the future and Bernie and I can be back doing what we enjoy the most, providing a top quality service to Boro fans that cannot be at the match.
I would like to thank all the fans who have sent letters and e-mails of support. I have kept all of them and at what was personally a very tough time provided me with a huge boost and proved that Boro fans are the best.
For the season ahead I will be at every game providing match reports for Century and the determination of the radio station to not walk away from Boro was proved this week when Bernie and I were asked to present a new show, Simply Red on Sunday, starting this Sunday from 11am until 1pm. I hope you will enjoy the Boro banter and pick up the phone and join in the fun.
I am also to grateful to Tyne Tees who have asked me to provide my own insight into every home match, so catch that on North East Tonight on Monday from 6pm.
I remain, as always, a Boro fan and hope that this Saturday evening we are celebrating the first three points of the season..
UP THE BORO !!!!!!!
RETURN TO ALASTAIR BROWNLEE INDEX PAGE HERE
A GUARANTEED PROFIT OF AT LEAST £41.20 ON PORTSMOUTH v FULHAM
Did you know that it is possible to win money on Sunday afternoon's Premiership clash between Portsmouth v Fulham, whatever the result?
The game kicks off at 3.00pm and we can guarantee you a profit of at least £41.20, whatever the result of the match. All you have to do is follow the simple instructions below and then sit back and enjoy the game. At full-time, you will be at least £41.20 better off, whatever the result of the match.
We must point out that if you want to take this bet, you should do it now because if the odds change, then the figures here will be invalidated. If they have changed, let us know and we will rework the bet for you.
You can still do this if you have a Betfair account but your overall profit will be reduced by £25.00 as you won't receive the £25.00 cashback as an existing account holder.
If you are unsure about this bet, you are most welcome to call us on 01642 223229 and we will help you as much as we can.
We're going to lay out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match and we will collect £115.00 if Portsmouth win, £112.20 if Fulham win and £114.13 if it's a draw. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much higher interest rate than you will get in any high street bank.
Here's how it's done. Just follow these simple instructions.
1. Open an account with Coral. It is really important that you enter the bonus code of CORALTD when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Betfair. It is really important that you enter the promotional code of BFB425 when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Extrabet
 .
This shouldn't take you any longer than a few minutes.
2. Make the following deposits into your new accounts.
Deposit £20.00 into your new Coral account.
Deposit £26.00 into your new Betfair account.
Deposit £25.00 into your Extrabet
account.
3. Now make the following bets.
Place £20.00 on Portsmouth at 3.00 (2/1) with Coral.
Coral will now add a £10.00 bonus to your account. Place this on Portsmouth as well. You will now have £30.00 riding on Portsmouth.
Back the draw with £25.00 at 3.7 (11/4) (or higher if available) with Betfair.
Place £26.00 on Fulham at 2.2 (6/5) with Extrabet .
Extrabet match your first bet up to £25 so you will now have £51.00 riding on Fulham.
The £25.00 matched bet will not show in your account but you can read all about how it works on the Extrabet site. It's the purple box that says '£25 FREE BET FOR NEW CUSTOMERS' on the top right hand side. Click here to visit the Extrabet site.
If you are unsure about placing these bets, please feel free to mail us or call us on 01642 223229 and we will talk you through it, no problem at all. There is no such thing as a stupid question.
You have temporarily laid out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match. I stress, temporarily... Now sit back, crack a beer open and enjoy the match.
4. Here's what happens at the end of the game.
If Portsmouth win, you collect £115.00. That's £90.00 from Coral plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If it's a draw, you collect £114.13. That's £89.13 from Betfair plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If Fulham win you collect £112.20. That's £87.20 from Extrabet plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
5. This means that the worst case scenario on the Portsmouth v Fulham match is Fulham win and you make £41.20 profit. However, if it is a draw you make £43.13 and if Portsmouth win you make £44.00. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much better rate of interest that you would get at any high street bank or building society.
6. It is absolutely vital that you click on the links on this page to open the accounts with the two bookies and enter the correct bonus codes or you may not qualify for the bonuses.
Also, before you place your bets, you should check that the odds haven't changed. If they have, let us know by mail or phone us on 01642 223229 and we will rework the bet for you.
Please feel free to contact us or phone us on 01642 223229 if you have any questions at all about this bet and we will help you as much as we can.
Please note that the bonuses are valid for new customers only so if you already have an account with one or more of the bookies we are using, you won't be able to do this. If that is the case, mail us or phone us on 01642 223229 and we'll create an alternative bet for you using different bookies.
This method of betting was used very successfully during the 2006 World Cup and you can read all about how it was done right here.
We guarantee this bet
It's understandable that some people will not believe that it is possible to do this. "What's the catch?" I hear you asking. My answer to that question is that we have been publishing arbitrage bets for four seasons now and literally hundreds of people have profited from following the advice on these pages.
Only twice has our refund guarantee been triggered and that was when we did all the figures wrong and sent refunds out to those who had followed our advice and made a small loss.
Our refund guarantee works like this. If this bet doesn't work like we say it will and you end up out of pocket, we will refund your losses. Simple as that.
That means that you simply cannot lose on this, whatever happens and even if we messed up the numbers.
The only stipulation here is that you must click on the links on this page to be eligible for the refund guarantee, not that you'll be needing to claim anyway. Just enjoy the profit and stay posted for many more of these throughout the season.
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