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Carling Cup Betting will hit its peak on Sunday. Manchester United will be looking to hold on to their Carling Cup, with victory over Aston Villa on Sunday. By that time, United will know where they stand in the race for the Premier League title as well, with Chelsea playing on Saturday, but all attention will be on their Wembley date against Martin O’Neill’s Aston Villa. Villa are enjoying a good season and are firmly lodged in the race for fourth spot in the Premier League. A lot of their good work can be attributed to the sound defensive system which O’Neill has instilled at the club, and they go into Sunday’s showdown with the best defensive record in the Premier League.

It was their defence which strolled into Old Trafford earlier in the season, to hold out for a surprise 1-0 win against the Red Devil’s, which sort of set a benchmark for what the Midlands side wanted to achieve this season. They have, slowly but surely, developed their own identity in style, personnel and have played their way into the upper tier of the Premier League. While they may take a more direct route to goal than Manchester United, that is simply playing to their strengths, and they do look a very good, organised and solid team. They certainly have pace up front in England hopeful Gabriel Agbonlahor, but they haven’t been prolific in front of goal, compared to the teams in the standings around them.

It is quite a strong England connection from Agbonlahor, with Emile Heskey, Ashley Young, Stephen Warnock, Stuart Downing and bright spark of the season, James Milner. As well as the pace of Agbonlahor, they have power in the air, but their route to goal has been a bit shy of other competitors. That hasn’t stopped their progress upwards though, as their defence has given them a great platform to build upon. The mainstay of this defence has been Richard Dunne and James Collins, who will need to police Rooney again. This allows them to soak  up a lot of pressure against teams, as well as conceding possession, because they are capable of winning matches by the odd goal. This is contrast to Manchester United, who drive towards goal with fluency, with England striker Wayne Rooney usually on the end of all the attacking moves.

Rooney, who can usually play just as well isolated, as well as part of a duo, is the main threat for Manchester United, and it goes without saying that the Villa defence will have to shepherd him well. Villa do not have many worries in terms of injuries and selection, with their more illustrious opponents having the lions share of that. United boss Alex Ferguson has to make do again without Rio Ferdinand and John O’Shea at the back again, as well as the experience which Ryan Giggs brings to the team. Owen Hargreaves is still absent, and midfielder Anderson injured himself against West Ham, and winger Nani will be missing through suspension.

Villa have had the better of the encounters between the two sides this season, but a lot could come down to big match experience. United have plenty of that, although they haven’t won a final at the new Wembley Stadium without needing penalties to do so, so that could factor in your betting strategies. It looks as if it will be a tight game on Sunday, and a draw is more than possible. United will start as strong favourites, even though they have had some woeful blips in from this season, which seem to come out of the blue. Aston Villa have gotten to the final, largely on the back of the reserve team, but the first team will be out in force on Sunday, including goalie Brad Friedel who has yet to play in the competition so far this season. Edwin van der Saar, who has just extended his contract at United, should get the starting nod for the Red Devils.

United also ran largely with their underlings through the competition, before the main players stepped into the fray to see off rivals Manchester City in the semi finals. This is the first piece of silverware on offer for the new season, and it’s no surprise that United are participating in it. They put the pressure back on Chelsea at the top of the Premier League with a midweek win over West Ham, after Ferguson tinkered greatly with his starting eleven. Now they will be looking to add what hopefully for United fans, will be the first silverware of another successful season. The key factor could be how well the Villa centre halves deal with a certain Mr Rooney, and rely on the pace that they have to catch United on the counter. It could be a big battle in the middle of the park for supremacy, as both teams have the capability to flood it.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Aston Villa 1, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 0, Aston Villa 1
Man Utd 3, Aston Villa 2
Aston Villa 0, Man Utd 0
Man Utd 4, Aston Villa 0

Last 5 Match Goals
Man Utd: 13 For, 6 Against
Aston Villa: 11 For, 6 Against

Last 10 Form
Man Utd: W7, D1, L2
Aston Villa: W5, D5, L0

Asian Handicap Betting Advice: Yes, Manchester United will go into the betting as favourite, and rightly so. This should be a close game, with Aston Villa being such a tight unit, and therefore, any Asian Handicap bet which has Villa in the plus at a good price, should seriously be considered. Are United two goals better than Villa? Can Villa go better than holding out for a draw for long periods? These are questions worth asking, and both which point to a Villa plus.
Aston Villa +1 Asian Handicap: 4/5 at Victor Chandler

Carling Cup Betting often leans towards the underdog having their day in the sun at Wembley. Aston Villa start Sunday’s Carling Cup final as underdogs to Manchester United, and SportingBet are covering the event with a couple of great cash back promotions. Have a little extra coverage to back up your bets is great, and online Bookmaker SportingBet are stepping to the fore once against with two stake refund offers, one for lost First Goalscorer bets, and one for Correct Score bets.

The First Goalscorer refund will apply if Man Utd goal machine Wayne Rooney finds the back as last goalscorer, then all losing first goalscorer bets will be refunded. With the form Rooney is in, and pretty much being United’s sole source of goals, and with their penchant for popping up for late winners, this is a great promotion to jump on.

The Correct Score market refund will apply if Villa’s James Milner scores the last goal of the match. If the England World Cup hopeful buries the final goal and it messes up your correct score prediction, then SportingBet have you covered, as they will refund all lost stakes on the correct score market.

Will favourites United hang on the Carling Cup they won against Spurs last season? Can Villa top a great season for them, by creating an upset at Wembley. There is plenty of coverage on Sunday’s big match at SportingBet, and new account holders can get a £25 welcome bonus. Head on over to this excellent online bookmaker for your sports betting and check out the submarkets for the Wembley final, along with these fixed odds outright winner odds (for 90 minutes):

Manchester United to win: 3/4
Draw: 12/5
Aston Villa to win: 16/5

With all of the brouhaha surrounding the first leg of the Manchester derby Carling Cup semi final, the ties gets down to the real intense stuff on Wednesday night. City and United go into combat again at Old Trafford, with Alex Ferguson looking to overturn a 2-1 deficit. The first leg was all dominated by the precocious little Argentinean Carlos Tevez, who scored a brace for City. He seemed to revel in the moment, celebrating his goal scoring feats in front of the United bench, and taunting the easily riled Gary Neville for backing Ferguson in not signing Tevez to a permanent contract. Tevez of course, spent a long time at United on loan, but moved across the City to join the blue revolution in Manchester.

It’s all handbags at ten paces stuff, but it is highly amusing and entertaining. Watching Wayne Rooney doing playground taunts as Tevez was taking his successful penalty kick was a particular highlight. Now it will all be serious again, and will probably account for some fierce challenges going on at Old Trafford. The Ref is probably going to have his hands full. The passion of support surrounding the game really does not need any explanation. The fans will be fired up, the players will be fired up, and the managers will need to try and keep their players focused on the game. A hot headed sending off could cost either side dearly.

Aston Villa await the winners in the Final of the 2010 Carling Cup, after they produced a 10-goal thriller in their second leg against Blackburn. If City and United can produce half of that amount of goals between them on Wednesday night, it will be a fantastic game. The scoreline suggests that City have the edge, but in all honesty, United only have themselves to blame for being behind, as they looked for the large part, certainly in the early stages, to be the better team. With England star Wayne Rooney in red hot form, banging in 4 goals against Hull on the weekend, United at home cannot be counted out of course. That performance seemed to spark a flood of suggestions that he will be leaving Old Trafford for somewhere bigger. The only two teams who would stump up that kind of money would be Real Madrid or Barcelona. Those rumours can be summed up in one word. Unlikely.

Whether it is hairdryer or full on wind tunnel treatment that Ferguson gives his men, he will be ready for Roberto Mancini’s City. They will not like conceding ground at home to their nearest rivals. After receiving long time injured Rio Ferdinand back from injury, the centre half has now been charged with violent conduct for striking a Hull player. Most of Ferguson’s woes this season have come because they have been missing defensive players. This latest episode could lead to a three match ban for Ferdinand. He will still be available for the Carling Cup semi final, but would be missing against their next league match away at Arsenal on Sunday.

City could be a fuller strength than in the first leg, with Kolo Toure back from the African Cup of Nations, and striker Emmauel Adebayor likely to be eased back into action after the tragedy over the attack on the Togo team bus. Tevez again will be the pivotal figure for the light Blues, as he is the creative engine in the side. As for Brazilian forward Robinho, it looks as if he will be leaving Eastlands, at least temporarily, as there are a couple of Brazilian clubs looking to acquire his services on loan. After a long time out injured, he has looked extremely out of touch in his limited appearances back in the team. There will still be no Patrick Vieira for City either, which is a shame, as he is exactly the type of player needed for City in this situation, as he is struggling with a calf injury.

Batten down the hatches and get ready for an absorbing, full on contest between the Manchester rivals. How secure is United’s grip on the Carling Cup as defending champions? Will this herald in a new era of being “the biggest and best football club in the world” for Manchester City?

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Man City 2, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 4, Man City 3
Man Utd 2, Man City 0
Man City 0, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 1, Man City 2

Last 5 Match Goals
Man Utd – 9 For, 4 Against
Man City – 11 For, 6 Against

Last 10 Form (league and cups)
Man Utd – W5, D1, L4
Man City – W7, D1, L2

Win Percentage
Man Utd have a 68.4 win percentage at home
Man City have a 42.9 win percentage away from home

Match Prices (90 minutes)
Man Utd to win: 4/6 at Bet365
Draw: 3/1 at Victor Chandler
Man City to win: 9/2 at SkyBet

Betting Advice: How close is this one going to be? City rode their luck a little bit, and with Rooney looking sharp, it suggest United are going to find the back of the net at some point during the night. United do have an away goal, but that will only count after extra time. If the aggregate scores are level at the end of 90 minutes, then there will be extra time. Only then will the away goal rule come into play at the end of 120 minutes. Having your nose in front already could mean the difference for City. They will have to perform with a little more steel than they did at home. They are in good form though, so edging them with a handicap could pay off:
Man City +0.75 Asian Handicap: 43/40 at Bet365

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini suffered his first defeat since taking over at Eastlands, as his side lost 2-0 at Everton on Sunday. It had been a perfect start for the Italian since taking over at from Mark Hughes, and it will have been the first time that he saw his team outplayed so much. Whether they could just never quite get going, or whether Everton really were that good, there will be lessons to be learned from the performance. Defeat often does that to teams, and now it will be a test of Mancini’s management skills as he steels his troops to take on rivals Manchester United in the first leg of the Carling Cup semi final.

This is the rearranged match which was postponed due to the winter UK conditions, and the defeat against Everton will have signalled the end of Mancini’s honeymoon period. They have looked much better, much more decisive under the new management, but there were really undone against Everton. Every team will have their off day of course, but those dropped three points cost City quite dearly in the face for fourth spot in the Premier League. City could now have had a comfortably three point cushion, but are instead level with Tottenham on 38. There is now an immediate need to turn back to winning ways.

There was still no appearance by on-loan Patrick Vieira in City colours, and he will still be missing from the line-up on Tuesday night at the City of Manchester Stadium. Adebayor will still take the time he needs to get back into action after withdrawing from the African Cup of Nations and after Brazilian striker Robinho’s woeful performance against Everton, Mancini will be relying on a big performance from ex-United star Carlos Tevez to guide them to a first leg advantage. The little Argentinian has been in sparkling form for City of late.

With Aston Villa having one foot in the door of the final against Blackburn, this is a big test now for Alex Ferguson as well, after unceremoniously being dumped out of the FA Cup by League One side Leeds United. With a season of surprising results for United, and having seen Premier League challengers Chelsea hit seven goals on Saturday, the Carling Cup, for United, will take on extra meaning now. Ferguson will likely go with as strong a team as possible, whereas, had this been a normal season, dominating the league and still in the FA Cup, things may just have been different.

Ferguson pretty much has a full squad to choose from, with only a couple of minor exceptions, but missing the likes of Hargreaves and Ferdinand has become the norm for the season, and they are carrying on without them. The two sides produced a classic when they met in the league earlier in the season, with a late goal from Michael Owen clinching a 4-3 win for the Reds. If we get half of that excitement it will be great, but things could be a little bit tighter. Manchester City’s best chance will probably to be attack though, and try to get as much out of the home advantage as they can. Under Mancini they have generally looked more cohesive going forward than under Hughes.

It is Carlos Tevez who is the pivotal player for City, and if Vieira could have been fit for the game, then it can be assured that he would have loved to have turned out against United for his first game back in the English top flight. He could be the extra still and class that City would have benefited from in this game, and certainly in the match against Everton. United though haven’t been at their best this season, but have still proved to be better than most, by keeping up challenges in the League and the Champions League.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Man Utd 4, Man City 3
Man Utd, 2 Man City 0
Man City 0, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 1, Man City 2
Man City 1, Man Utd 0

Last 5 Match Goals
Man City – 10 For, 3 Against
Man Utd – 12 For, 3 Against

Last 10 Form
Man City – W7, D1, L2
Man Utd – W6, D1, L3

Win Percentage
Man City have a 69.2 win percentage at home
Man Utd have a 66.7 win percentage away from home

Match Prices
Manchester City to win: 8/5 at Paddy Power
Draw: 12/5 at SkyBet
Manchester United to win: 19/10 at Boylesports

Betting Advice: Intriguing game this one, to say the least. Manchester City will want to attack, but by the same measure, Ferguson will send him men out probably with a more defensive frame of mind. They will be looking to take at least a draw back to Old Trafford for the second leg, as that is where their strengths should like. It could all hinge on how creative Tevez is in breaking down the United defence. Tough call on the outcome, but would lean towards a draw. Instead will go for over/under.
Under 2.5 Goals – 4/5 at BetFred

Sports betting week 18 - 24 January

Date	Sport	Org.	Venue	Event
10-31 Jan		CAF	Angola	Africa Cup
19-30 Jan		UEFA	Hungary	Futsal EC Final tournament
19-20 Jan		FA	England	League Cup
19-20 Jan		FFF	France	Ligue 1
22-24 Jan		DFB	Germany	Bundesliga
23-24 Jan		RFEF	Spain	Primera Division
23-24 Jan		FIGC	Italy	Serie A
18-30 Jan		WTA	Melbourne	Australian Open
18-31 Jan		ATP	Melbourne	Australian Open

Thursday, 14 January 2010: Right, here we go again, with the rescheduled Carling Cup Semi Final First Leg match between Blackburn and Aston Villa. The snow fouled things up last Tuesday, so now it is time to head to Ewood Park to see where this tie takes the two teams. Kick off is at 8pm. The other semi final between Manchester City and Manchester United, which was also postponed, will play their first leg next week. So it is time for Blackburn or Villa to get one foot in the door of the first domestic Cup Final of the season. The two teams are far apart in terms of position and form at the moment.

When they met in the FA Cup on January 2nd, Villa ran out 3-1 winners against 10 man Blackburn, making harder work of the win than was probably necessary. Still, they got the job done, and the Carling Cup offers a little respite from the pressure of the Premier League, in which they are just three points out of the drop zone and haven’t managed a win in nine matches. Big Sam Allardyce must really be feeling the pressure at the moment. Blackburn’s current woes were compounded on Monday night, when Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez hit a cool hat-trick against Rovers, sinking them 4-1 in the league. Blackburn then, in all fairness, looked pretty woeful. It was not a performance that would have instilled much hope that there is better times ahead in 2010. Mind you, Manchester City looked great and took full advantage of their weaker opposition.

Whether Blackburn will be able to field any kind of first team strike force on Wednesday night will remain to be seen. Benni McCarthy and Jason Roberts both are struggling with injuries, and El Hadji Diouf is serving a suspension. As this match represents half a step over the threshold to a Cup Final, Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill will be sending out the big guns, after resting most of them for the FA Cup victory over Rovers. On even par, Aston Villa should be strong enough to beat Rovers, and when you pile on Blackburn’s current misery, it should make the task even easier for Villa. But this is a Cup semi final and anything can happen. Blackburn probably won’t go at it so lamely as they did against Manchester City, they simply cannot.

With the home advantage, they need to take as much as they can away from the game. It won’t be easy, and Villa will be strong favourites. They need to take at least a draw back to the second leg at Villa Park, but they will have to overcome their big drop in form and a big goal scoring drought to do that.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 1
Blackburn 2, Aston Villa 1
Blackburn 0, Aston Villa 2
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 2
Aston Villa 1, Blackburn 1

Last 5 Matches Goals
Blackburn – 5 For, 12 Against
Aston Villa – 6 For, 5 Against

Last 10 Matches Form
Blackburn – W0, D6, L4
Aston Villa – W5, D2, L2

Match Prices:
Blackburn to win: 2/1 at Stan James
Draw: 12/5 at Totesport
Aston Villa to win: 6/4 at 888Sport

Tip: Aston Villa -1 Asian Handicap – 3/1 at Bet365

Manchester City v Manchester United
Wednesday, January 6th
Kick Off: 7.45 pm

Just when we thought that the FA Cup third round was not going to throw up any major shocks, other than Liverpool being held to a draw by Reading, Leeds United go and turn over their old rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford. The League One side, with a goal from Jermaine Beckford, stole the headlines of the third round, leaving Alex Ferguson cursing his lack lustre side. It was win for Leeds, which was well deserved through hard work and enterprise when pushing forward, exposing some of the frailties that has plagued Manchester United at the back this season. This time it was simply the pace of the Leeds forward which undone the Red Devils.

Now however, United have the chance to at least get some silverware under their belt, which should ease the restless natives around Old Trafford. Yes, they are still in the hunt for the Premier League title, and still in the Champions League, but they have suffered some very unexpected defeats this season. They have crashed and burned in a quarter of their Premier League fixtures, and this latest shock exit from the FA Cup, the first time ever Alex Ferguson has gone out in the third round while at the helm of United, will no doubt sound harsh repercussions throughout the team.

There has been a lack of quality this season from United, who have had more than their fair share of injury problems to contend with. Now this makes the Carling Cup Semi Final against neighbours Manchester City, all the more spicy. In terms of optimism, there is suddenly a lot more ringing around the air at Eastlands, after the departure of Mark Hughes. Italian Roberto Mancini has stepped into the hot seat, and has made a good start with three wins from three. They overcame a tricky FA Cup third round tie away at Middlesbrough, and where Hughes was only guiding the light blues to draw after draw, Mancini has already appeared to have made a difference.

Even with a weakened side ahead of the Carling Cup fixture, Mancini took a conservative approach which paid off in the end, even if it was not the most glamorous of victories. Put simply, they got the job done, and that is the fine line between keeping your job and not. Being able to scrape tight away victories counts as massive three points in the league, and when it comes to the cup, there is often at least one potentially difficult fixture like that to get through.

But is back home for Mancini’s Manchester City now, as they look to make Manchester United suffer even more. This is where they will need to press home as much of an advantage as they can, ahead of the second leg at Old Trafford. The two sides produced a classic when they met in the Premier League in September, with a late Michael Owen goal stealing the points in a 4-3 victory for the reds. City have yet to concede a goal under Mancini, and they will look to build upon that by closing out United. Can United bounce back from that shock FA Cup defeat? No doubt Ferguson will be giving his players the hair dryer treatment at the next training sessions, and there will no doubt be changes to the starting eleven on Wednesday night.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Man Utd 4, Man City 3
Man Utd 2, Man City 0
Man City  0, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 1, Man City 2
Man City 1, Man Utd 0

Last 5 Matches Goals
Man City – 10 For, 6 Against
Man Utd – 11 For, 5 Against

Last 10 Matches Form
Man City – W6, D3, L1
Man Utd – W7, D0, L3

Match Prices:
Man City to win: 11/8 at Totesport
Draw: 23/10 at Ladbrokes
Man Utd to win: 12/5 at Boylesports

Blackburn v Aston Villa
Tuesday, January 5th
Kick Off: 8pm

After meeting in the FA Cup on the weekend, there is the rapid return of Blackburn v Aston Villa in cup action, this time in the semi final of the Carling Cup. The FA Cup third round tie at Villa Park ended in a 3-1 victory for the home side, after Blackburn were reduced to 10 men. Things weren’t all plain sailing though, as Blackburn made Villa work hard for their victory. Both sides were much changed from their regular league line ups, with both managers, Martin O’Neill and Sam Allardyce gearing up for the semi final of the Carling Cup. Odd that it would take so much preference, but key players were rested as they are on the threshold of a Cup Final appearance.

Villa needed the win to restore some confidence, after having a difficult festive period, which included a  heavy defeat to Arsenal and then a cruel injury time loss against Liverpool. But Aston Villa are riding high and there is a lot of optimism in the air that they are really pushing on. Despite their two losses over Christmas, Villa are still in the mix in the race for a top four finish. A cup final appearance would certainly be a big step in the right direction for Martin O’Neill and his attacking team.

Both managers will throw out more experienced teams for the Carling Cup semi final, as silverware for both clubs will mean a lot. Blackburn are a lot closer to the relegation zone than they are to a top six finish, and this would ease some nerves and some pressure of the management team. It will signal a nice return to Sam Allardyce too, who has only recently returned to action after undergoing heart surgery. One of the biggest characters in the game, it would be hard for anyone to feel aggrieved about him lifting the trophy in the final.

Villa largely have the upper hand over Blackburn in terms of recent meetings, but there is all to play for in a Cup Semi Final, and that is generally where form and status gets thrown out of the window. Villa though, will be confident of the same result as the FA Cup one, and therefore become the real pain in Blackburn’s Cup Ambitions side for the season.  Can Blackburn cling onto something for the season and leave Villa with just the FA Cup. There would be some kind of parity about all that, but with both teams fielding strong sides, Villa should still have the slight edge, although there will not be much between them on the night. They would probably be happy to come away with a draw to take back to Villa Park for the second leg.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 1
Blackburn 2, Aston Villa 1
Blackburn 0, Aston Villa 2
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 2
Aston Villa 1, Blackburn 1

Last 5 Matches Goals
Blackburn – 5 For, 10 Against
Aston Villa – 6 For, 5 Against

Last 10 Matches Form
Blackburn – W0, D6, L4
Aston Villa – W6, D2, L2

Match Prices
Blackburn to win: 15/8 at Boylesports
Draw: 12/5 at Boylesports
Aston Villa to win: 13/8 at Victor Chandler

The only priorities which Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger seems to place on the Carling Cup, is to give his youngsters some valuable first team experience. Again the Frenchman will field the young Gunners against Manchester City, which should make for a very interesting game. Arsene Wenger will stick to his guns with his youth policy as they head north to take on Manchester City and Emmanuel Adebayor. Many will remember that it was a clash against Arsenal’s Robin Van Persie earlier in the season that earned ex-Arsenal player Adebayor a three match ban. That has no chance of happening again as Van Persie is out for several weeks after picking up an injury playing for his country.

This will be Manchester City’s best chance of making it past the quarter finals in the league cup for nearly 30 years. It would look that way on paper, but Manchester City at the moment, do not know how to do anything other than draw games at the moment. Quite comically in a way, they have tied 7 out of their last 8 games, with their only victory coming in the last round of the Carling Cup against Scunthorpe. This is a puzzling factor for boss Mark Hughes, as they just cannot seem to get over the winning line in their matches, even from the position of leading games for long periods. The lack of returns from the clubs big summer spending is now becoming an issue.

Arsenal’s youngsters do continue to prove themselves, as displayed in the last round, where they beat Liverpool. A win would lift club spirits after the senior players were demolished in the league by Chelsea on Sunday. Despite Arsene Wenger’s insistence that their title hunt isn’t over, it is with some guts that he sticks by his youngsters in this competition, as it does represent a good chance for them to genuinely compete for silverware. Whether selection issue devalue the competition or not, it is a firm testing ground for the youngsters at the club. It was how Cesc Fabregas found his fame, and look at him now, one of the best players in the Premier League.

Manchester City will likely push hard with senior players, as seeing the Carling Cup sitting in the trophy cabinet at Eastlands, would at least show some forward momentum from the expensively amassed squad. Arsenal’s approach will be easy come easy go, but it could be a good open, entertaining and attacking game.

Manchester City to win: Evens at BetFred
Draw: 11/4 at ExtraBet
Arsenal to win: 10/3 at Coral

Betting Advice: Should be a fun match to watch. The Arsenal youngsters  like to attack with enthusiasm, while keeping to the fluent passing ethos of the club. They will likely be tested more than they were against Liverpool in the previous round, as Manchester City will be hungrier for success in this competition than the London club are.

Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce, who has thankfully on the mend from his angioplasty operation. The 55 year old naturally won’t be at Ewood Park for their quarter final match against Chelsea on Wednesday night. Blackburn are not on a great run at the moment, drawing 0-0 with Stoke on the weekend, which followed a 3-0 trouncing by Fulham. Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti fielded a few players from outside the main starting bunch in the last round, which saw them cruise past Bolton 4-0 at home. Even Chelsea’s non-starting team is stronger than most other teams can cope with, as Ballack, Joe Cole, Malouda and Deco were all present. Even without the likes of John Terry, Frank Lampard , Michael Essien, Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, Chelsea are still a handful to contend with.

It will probably be abbreviated version of Chelsea which takes the field, and they will be confident that they will be able to keep up the challenge for honours on all front. Gael Kakuta, who was part of the Champions League squad for the first time last week, could make a start as Daniel Sturridge is out injured, and Ancelotti takes into consideration the heavy fixture schedule the best teams in the country have to contend with.

Blackburn will remember their fixture against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge earlier in the Premier League this season, when they left with their tails between their legs after being hammered 5-0 by the Blues. Chelsea are unbeaten in nine matches and have fallen back into the groove of accumulating clean sheets. The London side will of course start as very strong favourites, even being the away side, and are a good bet to make the semi finals of the Carling Cup.

The Carling Cup does offer some kind of respite from the pressures of the league, especially for the teams in the lower half of the Premier League. Portsmouth have shown that, as have Blackburn who have been banging in the goals in the competition this season. At home Blackburn are a much different prospect than the one that takes the road. They have lost 6 out of 7 matches on the road in the Premier League this season, while only having lost one at home. As Chelsea demonstrated on the weekend again against Arsenal, they are supremely confident in their abilities at the moment.

Chelsea have now disposed of Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool in the league, and are finding goals fairly easy to come by, scoring 28 times in a current sequence of nine games. There could be more goals on display at Ewood Park on Wednesday evening. Chelsea have the full game, strength, passing ability, creativity and the ability to tough it out and catch teams on the counter attack to. Blackburn, who will be missing David Dunn in midfield, will need to compete hard in that area to try and contend with the powerful Blues.

Blackburn to win: 6/1 at SkyBet
Draw: 3/1 at Bet365
Chelsea to win: 8/15 at BetFred

Betting Advice: Chelsea are favourites to progress and win the tournament too. Current evidence of form, it is difficult to see where they will fall down in the Carling Cup. But Blackburn will remember that Chelsea have lost twice away from home this season, and a win for the Lancastrians would ingite their season, and give Allardyce an extremely nice get-well gift.