20:00 – Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool
This match has become huge for Blackburn. After seemingly digging themselves out of trouble with some good results in March, Steve Kean’s men find themselves plunged back into the drop zone again following three straight defeats. Anthony Modeste will be unavailable after his red card against West Brom at the weekend.
Meanwhile Liverpool are in freefall and now sit 8th, level on points with Norwich City. Kenny Dalglish’s men did win the Carling Cup and may decide to rest players ahead of a Merseyside derby at Wembley in the FA Cup semi final. Pepe Reina is also still suspended so Rovers will see this as a real chance to pick up three vital points.
WEDNESDAY 11th APRIL 2012
19:45 – Manchester City v West Bromwich Albion
Just how will Man City react to their title challenge effectively ending at the Emirates on Sunday? Roberto Mancini must pick his side up without Mario Balotelli after his sending off at the weekend and ensure they keep pride in the side and wrap up second in the table at least. City were held to a goalless draw at the Hawthorns earlier this campaign.
The Baggies will be keen to show what they can do against the top sides and arrested their recent poor run with a 3-0 victory over Blackburn on Saturday. After putting his unfortunate spell at Liverpool behind him, Roy Hodgson has safely guided West Brom to mid table and is once again being talked about as a potential candidate for the England job.
19:45 – Wigan Athletic v Manchester United
Man Utd moved eight points clear with victory against QPR on Sunday and will know they must do a professional job against Wigan on Wednesday. With no Champions League of FA Cup fixtures, the road is clear for Sir Alex Ferguson’s men for collect yet another Premier League crown.
The Latics have given themselves a real fighting chance of survival and deserved a point at Stamford Bridge on Saturday which marked their first defeat in five. Roberto Martinez’s men will want to banish the memory of the 5-0 defeat at Old Trafford earlier this season and move out of the bottom three.
19:45 – Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal
For a third game in a row, Wolves were defeated after going in front. The latest attempt at Terry Connor’s first three points was a Stoke on Saturday but the Potters ground out a 2-1 win leaving Wolves bottom, 8 points from safety. With a tricky looking run in, the home side will be doing all they can to nick a shock point or perhaps all three. Connor will no doubt be reminding his squad about the game at the Emirates earlier this season where Wolves came away with a 1-1, despite being reduced to ten men.
Arsenal are flying with victory at Man City the latest big win for a rejuvenated squad. With Tottenham’s unprecedented fall from the title race, Spurs are now seriously looking over their shoulders in the race for fourth. A win for Newcastle on Monday and draw for Chelsea, adding to Tottenham’s defeat makes for interesting reading in the race for a Champions League spot but Wenger’s men have a chance to move five points clear of that drama if they can collect the points at Molineux.
20:00 – Queens Park Rangers v Swansea City
This is a massive game for Queens Park Rangers. The fans know it, the players know it and Mark Hughes clearly knows it after resting key players at Old Trafford on Sunday. Joey Barton and Bobby Zamora are likely to return on Wednesday as Rangers look to pull away from the bottom three with games against Tottenham, Chelsea and Man City still to come. Hughes’ men are undefeated in the last three home games, including wins over Liverpool and Arsenal.
Brendan Rodgers will be keen for his squad to get back to winning ways and finish the season strongly. After effectively securing a second season in the top flight, Swansea have lost their last three and now sit 14th in the table. Whilst there is little to play for in terms of relegation or battling for Europe, there is still a realistic chance of the Swans finishing in the top half of the Premier League which would be a fantastic achievement.
