Bayern & West Ham to make most of hometown advantage

On Saturday we get a great send off to the club football season with the Champions League final between two of Europe's finest clubs in England's own Chelsea & Bayern Munich in Bayern's own stadium, in England we get the proclaimed 'richest game in football' with the Championship Playoff final with Blackpool & West Ham fighting it out for a lucrative spot in the Premier League. We've previewed both games, taking a look at the strengths & weaknesses of the teams involved & the likely outcomes.

(Ashley Cole will need to be at his best to deal with Bayern's wingers)

Chelsea and Bayern Munich face up in the Champions League final this Saturday at the Allianz Arena after they saw off Spanish super giants Barcelona & Real Madrid respectively in their semi-finals. But the victories came at a price for them as both sides are missing influential players for the show piece event. Chelsea have a number of notable problems in defence with suspensions to captain John Terry & Branislav Ivanovic and the fact that David Luiz & Gary Cahill have missed the end of season games injured. Both players have declared themselves fit but it will is a problem for Roberto Di Matteo have to start both knowing their lack of match practice. Despite all the plaudits for Chelsea's defensive performances in the competition (especially in the Camp Nou) against Barcelona it will be a different & much harder challenge facing them this time. Barcelona played without any real wingers which allowed the Blues to sit back with two banks of four & suck up all the space in the middle of the park as everything was played in-front of the centre halves whilst Bayern will look to use their dynamic wingers in Franck Ribery & Arjen Robben to exploit the wide areas & get behind Chelsea's backline to provide the balls to prolific striker Mario Gomez. Ashley Cole is an excellent fullback but with Jose Bosingwa likely to start on the right Bayern will know that there is a real weakness to be exposed & clearly have the players to do it.

Another major blow for Chelsea is them missing arguably their player of the season in Ramires. His work rate, no stop running & knack of scoring critical goals can't be matched anymore by his likely replacement Michael Essien who has sadly struggled to capture anything like his best form since a number of long term injuries. Frank Lampard's performance is also dragged up by Ramires doing the running that he can no longer do & it would be no surprise to see the Chelsea great age before our eyes with Bayern's midfield swamping him & Bastian Schweinsteiger is definitely a younger & arguably superior version of Lampard.

In striker Didier Drogba though Chelsea have a player who rises to the big occasion & on his day can simply be unplayable. We know this by looking at his Wembley record where he has scored on every occasion he has played with the latest being goal number eight in the FA Cup victory over Liverpool.

Bayern know it's key to their chances of victory to keep Drogba very quiet but like Chelsea are suffering from a number of selection dilemmas with centre half Holger Badstuber & left back David Alaba both suspended, so manager Jupp Heynkes has the choice of Ukrainian Anatoliy Tymoschuk or ex-Premiership Daniel Van Buyten to play at the back, and decide whether to play Rafinha at right back & switch the imperious Philipp Lahm to left back or play Diego Contento in Alaba's position.

(Bastian Schweinsteiger can put in a five star performance)

With this in mind Bayern's best form of defence is attack & they certain have the players to punish Chelsea. The midfield of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Toni Kroos, Franck Ribery & ex-Chelsea Arjen Robben looks too strong for Chelsea & they will look to pull the strings & striker Mario Gomez is having an outstanding season having scored 41 goals in 51 appearances & 13 in as many games in this season's Champions League. We really rate Schweinsteiger & he could have a great game in this one without Ramires to stop him, he's as short as 6/1 to be Man of the Match so Sportingbet's offer of 10/1 should be backed.

Chelsea have to win it in Bayern's 'backyard' or face the prospect of having no Champions League football to look forward to next season but sadly we expect Bayern to take advantage of Chelsea's suspensions & defensive weaknesses & enable Heynkes to become the fourth man to win the European Cup with two different clubs & can win in 90 minutes at the general price of 5/6.

(Mark Noble is a Hammer through & through & could bag a goal here)

At Wembley, two sides are looking to bounce back to the big time at the first attempt of asking as West Ham United take on Blackpool. This will be the third time the two side have met this season with the Hammers recording two comfortable victories with the impressive score lines of 4-0 & 1-4 but this high pressure encounter could prove a closer affair with the huge prize on offer.

Both sides finished the season strongly with West Ham picking up 17 points & Blackpool 15 points in their last eight league games before their two semi-final victories over Cardiff City & Birmingham City respectively. West Ham go into the match with the favourites tag & on paper they have the big name players with the spine of the team made up of Robert Green, James Tomkins, Kevin Nolan & Carlton Cole. They kept two clean sheets against Cardiff & have been scoring with regular ease lately with two or more goals in all but one of their last eleven games with duo Carlton Cole & Ricardo Vaz Te striking up a profitable partnership.

(Can the evergreen Kevin Phillips have yet another day in the sun?)

Blackpool under the guidance of the charismatic Ian Holloway won many friends last season with their brand of football in the top league & have a strong team spirit, they carried on playing an attacking & open game upon relegation & it's served them pretty well. Their team has a good blend of experienced campaigners in Ian Evatt, Barry Ferguson & Gary Taylor-Fletcher mixed with highflying youngsters of Matt Phillips & Tom Ince. Also let's not forget that if Blackpool need a goal then they have the perfect option in the evergreen Kevin Phillips (17 goals this season) sat on the bench ready. Stephen Dobbie has made quite an impact for Blackpool since joining on loan from Swansea in March & if the Seasiders are to succeed they might require him to have a stormer.

There's no doubt in our minds that with the money they've spent & the players that they have that West Ham should've got automatic promotion & probably the Championship title this season, it would be a crushing disappointment if they couldn't succeed here & with the good memories they have of their two impressive wins over the opposition so far this year the Hammers should be backed to win the game at a very reasonable price of Evens. West Ham will have the bulk of the support in the stadium with many of the neutrals unlikely to be that neutral & that will help, Blackpool's defence hasn't been good enough on their travels & they are running into West Ham at the wrong time as they look to have stepped up a couple of gears once the prize was in sight. An interesting extra bet can be had by backing Mark Noble to score at anytime at tasty odds of 5/1, he's West Ham's penalty taker & with things likely to get nervy for players & officials a spot kick could be on the cards, 16/1 for him to be first scorer also looks overpriced so back it.

Selections:
Bayern Munich to beat Chelsea in 90 minutes at 5/6 (various)
Bastian Schweinsteiger to be Man of the Match at 10/1 (Sportingbet)
West Ham United to beat Blackpool in 90 minutes at Evens (general)
Mark Noble to score first at 16/1 & at anytime at 5/1 (Ladbrokes)

European Giants clash in the Allianz Arena

We're back with selections from a couple of great games on Tuesday - it was a nearly weekend for us as Everton took the lead v Liverpool only to throw it away & Crewe & Torquay only getting draws when deserving better in League Two. Add to those results Cappa Bleu finishing like a train in the Grand National when clearly being underestimated & given too much to do by Paul Moloney & it seemed like we were always destined to be nearly men, Chelsea did the business in the FA Cup though thanks to a little refereeing help & things could be on the upturn on the betting front here!

(Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid - could Mario Gomez claim the match ball?)

The two Champions League semi finals look really good affairs & to kick off we see two of the most exciting teams in the world face off in Germany as Bayern Munich host Real Madrid in the Allianz Arena as they seek to progress to the final being held in their own stadium. Both sides can lay claim to having just about the best attacking talent around with Bayern having Ribery, Gomes & Robben all capable of wreaking havoc on opposition defences & Real Madrid being able to pair the incredible Cristiano Ronaldo with the powerful & skillful beasts that are Benzema & Higuain. Both sides have reached this stage with the minimum of fuss really, the one time Bayern were in a bother after trailing 1-0 from the first leg v Basle they came out & stuck 7 past the helpless Swiss side! Bayern's chances of league success have faded but that means they're able to put absolutley everything into this game & showed that by resting a few players at the weekend including captain Philip Lahm, they'll be desperate to get a win here so that they have a lead to take to the Bernabeu, that should mean we see their usual attacking ethos in operation & nobody seems to have found a way of stopping Mario Gomes as of yet. Mourinho is nothing if not pragmatic & he may put out a more defensively minded team than usual, with Germany international Sami Khedira acting as a shield to his defence, that shouldn't take away Madrid's goal threat though as Ronaldo has so much quality he scores in near enough every game regardless of tactics. Even is Real do adopt a more defensive strategy than usual it shouldn't be anything too extreme & we can see goals in this one with 5/6 about over 2.5 being a very juicy price. For an extra bet at what could be a big price take Mario Gomez to bag the first goal of the game at 11/2, or back him at 9/2 with Betfred & take advantage of their offer where they'll double the odds if you back a player & he scores again after opening the scoring & treble it if he knocks in a hatrick.

(Midfielder Ben Marshall has been in the goals in recent weeks with 2 in his last 3 games)

In the Championship, Leicester City host Burnley at the King Power Stadium. Leicester are 9th & Burnley are two places below in 11th so if either side has any ambition of making the play-off places this is a must win fixture. Leicester are in decent form with four wins & two draws in their last eight league matches but they were defeated away at Millwall last weekend, the hostile atomosphere at the New Den means it's always a tough place to go though. However it's the Foxes home form that stands out with 11 victories so far & they are on a current unbeaten run of seven matches, winning five of these matches with the most impressive ones coming against play-off position teams of Birmingham City & Cardiff City. Burnley's league form is mixed but they are unbeaten in their last three with two victories over Doncaster Rovers & Brighton & Hove Albion. Away from home this season Burnley have been defeated ten times out 21 matches & only managed five clean sheets, they've lost four of their last seven away games & we don't expect them to put up too much resistance here. Leicester City can win on their own patch at the best price of 8/11.

Selections:
Over 2.5 goals Bayern Munich v Real Madrid at 5/6 (BetVictor & 32Red)
Mario Gomez to score first at 11/2 (BetVictor & William Hill - or Betfred & their double delight/hatrick heaven offer at 9/2)
Leicester City to beat Burnley at 8/11 (general)

The double on over 2.5 goals & Leicester pays £31.67 to a £10 stake

Top strikeforces to detonate on helpless foes

We didn't get much luck woth Tuesday's picks as Hull went down limply against Portsmouth & our other pick Shrewsbury in the lead against Port Vale but having their game abandoned! We're having a look at the best club competition in the world tonight & also a League One match between a club riding high & another right at the bottom, good luck with any bets you have & hopefully these can give you some pointers.

(Franck Ribery can return to haunt his old club Olympique de Marseille)

It looks like there could be an exciting match in place in the Champions League as Marseille host attacking powerhouse Bayern Munich in the first leg of their quarter final. Bayern are still in the  chase for domestic honours as they trail Borussia Dortmund by 5 points but Marseille are having a very disappointing season on the home front & are currently in 9th place in Ligue 1, it's been better for them in Europe but this should be the point of their exit from the competition. Bayern have lost twice in Eurrope so far but one was when fielding a very weakened side at the Etihad versus Manchester City & then although they lost 1-0 in Basle, thy comprehensively turned it around with a 7-0 demolition at home a week later. Marseille have got this far after qualifying in 2nd in the same group as Arsenal even though they lost twice at home in that group stage, to Olympiakos & Arsenal, two sides definitely inferior to Bayern. Going through in the last round over two legs against Inter Milan may read well for Marseille but Inter are a mess this year & have just had to replace Claudio Ranieri as manager, if they are to have a hope though they'll need to win here & that could mean they take to atttacking the German side. Everyone knows Bayern's weakness & it comes in defence although their young defenders seem to have shored them up a bit this year with just 18 conceded in the league, there's still a suspicion that they are a bit too naive in Europe though & so they make up for it by having one of themost exciting & potent attacks around. Mario Gomez is the real deal & has 36 goals in 39 games so far this season including 11 in Europe, we know how good Arjen Robben & Franck Ribery can be but Toni Kroos is also emerging as a real star & we think they'l all be looking to get on the scoresheet tonight. Bayern have scored 26 goals in their last 5 games & will come to France looking for the win. Marseille's fist choice keeper is suspended & that is bad news for them but it got worse at the weekend with key defender Diawara seriously injured & likely to be out for the remainder of the year, with these problems in defence the have to look to attack plus Bayern are great going forwards so over 3.5 goals at 11/4 is worth a wager plus Bayern to win at 10/11 is a confident selection.

(Ched Evans scored the goal in the reverse fixture v Chesterfield & will fancy another)

In League One recent Johnstone's Paint Trophy winners Chesterfield travel to take on 3rd placed Sheffield United at Bramall Lane but it's unlikely to be as happy a day for Chesterfield as their Wembley excursion was. Sheffield United will go back into 2nd place above city rivals Wednesday if they win or draw here & they'll be desperate to get a win over the league's bottom placed club, with home form of 13 wins from 19 games they are pretty formidable opposition for Chesterfield & their two away wins in 19 games. Ched Evans keeps banging the goals in & has 6 in 6 & in their last match United went away to MK Dons & stuck five in the back of the net & they'll be licking their lips about facing Chesterfield who've been conceding an average of two in every away game. Chesterfield's recent form has also been indicative of their league position with one win in 7 although they did scrape 3 draws in a row before succumbing to Huddersfield last week. We strongly suspect that the Johnstone's Paint win won't have done Chesterfield any favours & they may be emotionallly & physically tired, with Sheffield United rested odds of 11/8 for the Blades to win by two or more goals look a steal!

Selections:
Bayern Munich to beat Marseille at 10/11 (Paddy Power & Ladbrokes)
Marseille v Bayern Munich to be over 3.5 goals at 11/4 (William Hill)
Sheffield United to beat Chesterfield with -1 goal handicap at 11/8 (Skybet & Ladbrokes)