Editor / 11 February 2010 Free Bet View Market

"Defeat to Everton was a massive disappointment but a convincing win in front of their fans is the best way to move on."

It wasn't a great week for us last time out, although we did call the big game right as Chelsea proved to be too strong and clinical for Arsenal. The Gunners were very poor in that match but bounced back to beat an in-form Liverpool side on Wednesday night. Unfortunately for Arsenal fans, that has been the story of their season so far with breathtaking performances followed by lacklustre football and until they find consistency, they're not in the same class as Manchester United and Chelsea.

There's some good news on our long-term bets though with the odds on Wayne Rooney shortening on both the Premier League top goalscorer and PFA Player Of The Year markets since I recommended backing him a couple of weeks ago. It's difficult to keep such a good run of form going throughout the whole season but Wayne has managed it despite playing virtually every minute of every match in recent weeks. Let's hope he's still got some gas in the tank when the World Cup kicks off.

We're back to that most unpredictable of competitions that is the FA Cup this weekend and then it's the small matter of the Champions League the following midweek. You can read all my thoughts on those European matches from Monday onwards here on www.betfairffotball.com.

Man City v Stoke

Make no mistake: this is a huge game for Manchester City. They're still on track for a Top Four finish in the league and they're in with a real chance of winning this competition, especially now that three of the Big Four are out. They will still be hurting from defeat to United in the Carling Cup but a painful experience like that can galvanise you and lead to better things. Back in 1984, when I was at Everton, we got to the final of the League Cup where we played Liverpool. We went to a replay after having been the better team in the first match, where we were cruelly denied a penalty, and then ended up losing 1-0 to a Graeme Souness goal second time out. Rather than licking our wounds and cursing our luck , we picked ourselves up, vowed to make amends for it and went on to win the FA Cup a few months later by beating Watford. And I don't mind telling you, I scored in the final! But Stoke will be no pushovers and Roberto Mancini can't afford to take any liberties when it comes to team selection. Emmanuel Adebayor needs matches under his belt and is scoring goals so I'd expect him to play whilst Carlos Tevez is one of the fittest players around so I'd also be surprised if he's rested for this one. The City boss probably has more first-team players available than he has at any point during his tenure so far, so whatever team he picks will be a strong one. This will be a good test for his side but home advantage and that extra little bit of magic from a Tevez, Adebayor or Petrov should see City book their place in the next round.

Recommended Bet: Back Draw/Man City at [5.0].

Chelsea v Cardiff

No John Terry for this one but other than that I expect most of the big guns to play, especially as they're not playing in the Champions League in midweek. Defeat to Everton was a massive disappointment but a convincing win in front of their fans is the best way to move on. Cardiff will have to put in their best performance of the season just to earn a replay but I can't see anything other than their 2009/10 FA Cup campaign ending on Saturday afternoon.

Recommended Bet: Chelsea to win 3-1 at [13.5]

Derby v Birmingham

With wins over Nottingham Forest and Newcastle, Derby are putting a nice run together. This now seems a tougher fixture for Birmingham than it would have seemed three or four weeks ago. But in a season where relegation probably isn't a concern for Alex McLeish anymore, he can afford to play his very best team and try to keep this FA Cup run going as long as possible. Having gone to Goodison Park and knocked out last year's FA Cup finalists on their own patch in the last round, I wouldn't be too surprised to see Birmingham repeat the trick against a lower league team. But I don't expect it to be easy.

Recommended Bet: Birmingham to win 1-0 at [8.4]

Reading v West Brom

There's no doubt West Brom have the better players and are the better team as the Championship table proves. But Reading are at home and are taking a linking to the competition after their shock win against Liverpool at Anfield. My gut feeling is we won't find a winner on Saturday afternoon and they're going to have to do it all over again in the next couple of weeks.

Recommended bet - A 1-1 draw at [7.0]

Southampton v Portsmouth

Whatever has gone on off the field, and let's face it a heck of a lot has gone wrong, the attitude of the Portsmouth players has been spot-on as their late equaliser against Sunderland proved on Tuesday night. This is a big derby match though and Southampton certainly won't want to lose it in front of their own fans. Another tie that I fancy going to a replay.

Recommended Bet: 2-2 draw at [19.0]

All correct score predictions:

Man City v Stoke - 1-0
Derby v Birmingham - 0-1
Reading v West Brom - 1-1
Southampton v Portsmouth - 2-2
Fulham v Notts County - 2-0
Bolton v Spurs - 1-1
Crystal Palace v Aston Villa- 0-2
Rangers v Hibs - 2-1
Lyon v Real Madrid - 2-2
Milan v Man Utd - 0-0
FC Porto v Arsenal 1-1
Bayern Munich v Fiorentina - 2-0