Recently in phil-tomlinson Category
A short article written for www.footy-boots.com looking at Chelsea's new midfield import Deco.
'Big Phil' Scolari has wasted no time in bringing Deco to Chelsea and the Portuguese ace looks ready to take the Premier League by storm.The Brazil-born schemer was deemed surplus to requirements at Barcelona and new Blues boss Scolari, having managed Deco with Portugal, quickly landed him for £8million. It might seem a little steep for a midfielder who is 31 next month, but considering his lively showing at Euro 2008 he looks far from a spent force.
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It was the news every Italian fan and coach Roberto Donadoni was dreading - a tournament-ending injury to a key man before Euro 2008 had got underway.
But that's the reality for the Azzurri, who must deal without inspirational captain and centre-back Fabio Cannavaro after he tore ankle ligaments in training.
It's undoubtedly a huge blow for the World Cup holders and one which they may struggle to overcome having being drawn in the 'Group of Death'.
France, Holland and group outsiders Romania make up the other Group C protagonists, but the Italians still remain favourites to win the group at short-looking football odds of 2.88.
But it might be worth considering a quarter-final line-up with Donadoni's men.
Holland seem to have the knack of squeezing through difficult qualifying groups at major tournaments, while France have the resilience to reach the last eight and then throw in Romania, who took four points from Holland in qualification and topped the group and it really is any two from four to go through.
The bookies fancy France to join the Azzurri in the knock-out phase, and although it would be a brave move to oppose Italy, fortune favours the brave and it might pay dividends to perm the other three sides in dual forecast football bets to reach the quarter-finals.
Betting enthusiasts will have to trawl back nine games to find a match between Chelsea and Liverpool with more than three goals, but when the two sides meet on Wednesday that trend may well be bucked.
Liverpool know they must score on the Kings Road - a feat which has so far eluded them under Rafa Benitez - if they are to reach the Champions League final in Moscow.
The Reds were the dominant force in the semi-final first leg at Anfield and created ample chances before being undone at the death by a John Arne Riise own goal.
The in-form Peter Crouch could be rewarded with a rare start and alongside Fernando Torres the duo have the ability to trouble John Terry and Chelsea.
Torres passed up a terrific chance in the first leg to score and he is unlikley to be so generous again against a Chelsea side buoyed by Saturday's 2-1 win over Manchester United.
Avram Grant's men will be out of the blocks quickly and will be intent on trying to bulldoze their way past Pepe Reina and an early goal for either side will go a long way to landing a punt at attractively priced odds on the over 2.5 goals market.
The last meeting between the two sides at the Bridge was a 0-0 bore draw, but Wednesday's tussle promises so much more and with it a goal fest.
Greece shocked Europe four years ago when they lifted the European Championship title in Portugal and it seems they have been written off again this time around.
Much was made of the squad's freshness in 2004, but it was coach Otto Rehhagel's tactical genuis which turned Greece into an Italian-like well-oiled machine.
Rehhagel's men carved out three consecutive 1-0 wins, from the quarter-final to the final, to land the trophy and with it a remarkable piece of history.
Half of the winning squad will be back to defend their title and once again they look well-rested ahead of the June kick-off in Salzburg against Sweden.
Greece only dropped five points in qualification and racked up seven clean sheets in their 12 games and they look primed to produce another dour, but effective, defensive display at the finals.
They should squeeze through their group, just as they did four years ago, as only Spain look to have the firepower to break down their dogged resistance.
Russia historically are poor travellers and Sweden never seem to work their way out of the initial phase of tournamnets.
Then the quarter-finals could see the Greeks paired with France or Italy, who look the pair to beat from Group C, but they will not be worried by that prospect - having disposed of the French at the same stage last time around. Italy may provide a sterner test in a game which I advise you to avoid watching at all costs unless you've re-mortgaged the house on a 'no-goalscorer' bet.
If they can edge through, the semi-finals and final will pit Greece with the cream of Europe. However they showed they have no respect for reputations last time around and with a water-tight rearguard to build on, the two frontmen Ioannis Amanatidis and Theofanis Gekas might just surprise one or two people.
Rehhagel is likely to switch to a 4-4-2 formation for the finals after employing a 4-3-3 style in qualification, but that won't alter their work ethic and if you can get a price of around 33/1 it will be worth trading before the tournament begins.
This season's FA Cup has produced a string of shock results which has without doubt produced one of the more memorable tournaments, but don't expect the excitement to continue at Wembley.
Portsmouth are the heavy favourites to lift the famous trophy, but all the indications are that the showpiece won't be a classic Trevor Booking and his FA cohorts are hoping for.
It's all too easy to use the cliche it will be a 'cagey affair', but a lack of goals certainly looks like being the order of the day on May 17.
Harry Redknapp's Premier League boys, marshalled by Sol Campbell, have been rock solid this season conceding less than a goal a game, while in attack they have been regular scorers without being razor sharp. But with the prolific Jermain Defoe cup-tied 'Harry' will have to choose from the unpredictable Kanu, John Utaka, and the goalless duo Milan Baros and David Nugent.
It will hardly have Dave Jones shaking in his boots and his well-marshalled defence are a tough nut to crack having conceded just over a goal a game in the Championship this term.
The Bluebirds have hardly been free-scoring themselves although they do possess recognised goal-getters in the form of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and the injury-prone Robbie Fowler. In Joe Ledley and Peter Whittingham they do have the necessary talent to carve out opportunities, but trying to run through top-flight heavyweights Campbell and Sylvain Distin will almost be a 'Mission Impossible'.
It really is hard to make a case for an open game packed with goals and when you look at some of the recent stats, a goalless draw or a 1-0 scoreline simply is a must for any die-hard punter.
Four of Pompey's five games in the FA Cup this term have ended 1-0 including the semi-final win over the Baggies, while Cardiff's semi-final also ended with a 1-0 triumph over Barnsley.
Four of the FA Cup finals from 2000 have also had just one goal or less in them - so a low-scoring game is a 'mortgage job' if you pardon the cliche!
Paul Jewell cannot be blamed for the sorry demise of Derby County in the Premier League this season, but he certainly hasn't helped matters at Pride Park. The Rams' showing in the top flight this season has been dreadful and they look odds on to break a new record low points tally.
A fact which has obviously has not escaped the beleguered former Bradford City chief.
Early on in his tenure he said: "They come out on a Saturday on match day and they fall apart at the first sign of adversity."
It was a statement in reference to their 4-1 mauling by Championship side Preston in the FA Cup and months later after a 2-0 reverse at his former club Wigan, Jewell said: "Some players are not worthy of being here and the sooner we can get them out the better."
Probably a brutally honest assessment of his Rams squad, but not one he should have repeated in the media.
Then it's no surprise that Derby have picked up just one win in the league all season - a 1-0 win over Newcastle and that was back in September under previous boss Billy Davies.
Jewell's players have had all the confidence, and the little belief they had before his arrive in November 2007, sucked out of them in a mentally-draining season.
I'm not for one minute suggesting the squad was good enough to stay in the top flight, but with Kenny Miller, Robbie Savage, Giles Barnes and Danny Mills in their ranks they should have been able to muster a worthwhile effort instead of being doomed by the end of March.
Jewell knows he needs to clear the decks for an assault on next season's Championship title, I just hope the players he brings in can handle being torn to shreds in the press on a Sunday.