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ALI'S BIG MATCH PREVIEW - MANCHESTER CITY v MIDDLESBROUGH 5-10-07
Alastair Brownlee
ORDER YOUR COPY OF ALI'S NEW BOOK 'VOICE OF THE BORO' RIGHT HERE
The call by skipper George Boateng for the players to come out fighting at Manchester City on Sunday has not only to be applauded but also backed up by actions on the pitch as Boro try to get the season back on course.
Injuries to key players and a testing run of fixtures are all factors in the recent mini slump.
Nevertheless, it was a cause for concern that after conceding the second goal at Goodison Park on Sunday, Boro rarely threatened the Everton goal and long before the final whistle the result had become a foregone conclusion.
The last three away games at West Ham, Spurs and Everton have all brought not only defeat but seven goals conceded and none scored so the timing of Boateng's call for the players to stand up and be counted could not be better timed.
It will, however, be a tough test on Sunday as Manchester City are really flying at the moment, sitting in third place in the Premier League with their opening four home matches all resulting in wins.
There was huge interest when Sven Goran Eriksson came back into club management at City and no doubt some sections of the media were waiting for the former England manager to fail but Sven looks like confounding the critics and has certainly put belief back into City.
One player to keep an eye on will be the Brazilian Elano who put in a terrific performance against Newcastle and scored a free kick that is already a strong candidate for goal of the season.
In a bid to lift the Goodison blues I went to the reserve match, ironically against Everton, at the Riverside on Tuesday.
The injury problems to the first team forced Steve Agnew to play a side filled with youngsters but they played some terrific football and were full value for the 3-1 win.
One performance, in particular, caught the eye and Graeme Owens looks to have a bright future.
Owens first came to my attention as a young fifteen year old who was part of the FA Youth Cup winning side in 2004. He can play on either wing but seems best suited to the right flank.
The fans who made the journey to White Hart Lane for the Carling Cup match saw Owens come on for his first team debut and he might be included in the squad for Sunday.
Owens is definitely someone to keep an eye on this season and I think he might end the campaign with a number of first team appearances.
The reserves are next in action at the Riverside on Tuesday as they take on Blackburn Rovers and I would recommend that fans go along and see the youngsters in action.
I would like to add my congratulations to those given to Jonathan Woodgate who picked up the Princes Trust Award for North East player of the year this week.
Woody thoroughly deserved the accolade and is not only a top quality defender but as a local lad has a huge influence around the club.
This is shown to great effect in the way he is helping David Wheater adapt to the Premier League. Wheater looks as if he has played in the top flight all his career but that is in no small part due to the guidance given by the player alongside him.
Whenever Bernie and I arrive at City of Manchester Stadium, thoughts inevitably go back to the match on 15 May 2005 when a place in the following seasons UEFA Cup came down to whether or not Mark Schwarzer could save a last minute penalty from Robbie Fowler.
What tends to be forgotten, with all the drama of the last minute shoot out, was that earlier in the match Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink had scored a free kick every bit as good as Elanos, and even after City equalised Boro had struck the post before referee Rob Styles pointed to the spot.
Thankfully, Schwarzer made a terrific save to become "the greatest Australian hero since Ned Kelly!"
Fans still ask where the phrase came from and it even reached the readership of the Sydney Morning Herald. I maintain that I had seen a film in which Kelly was portrayed as a Robin Hood type figure and in truth the only other Aussie I could think of was Rolf Harris!
So I think I made the right choice.
Listen to Ali's penalty save commentary right here...
Lets hope that Schwarzer is not as busy on Sunday and that we come away with three much needed points before the break for international fixtures.
I will be hosting Soccer Saturday at Century FM this weekend from 2pm until 6pm as I take a look at the football scene and then on Sunday I will provide updates from Manchester City as Boro take on the Blues.
There is not a Simply Red show this week but Bernie and I will be back with all the usual features on Sunday 14 October so make a date to give us a call on the usual number 08450021100 and text 85102.
ORDER YOUR COPY OF ALI'S NEW BOOK 'VOICE OF THE BORO' RIGHT HERE
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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