The Golden Nuggets: Extras

By Sports Magician

CHAMPIONSHIP

Crystal Palace have been gradually stripped of anything they had going for them and it's going to get worse. Palace fans may not have always seen eye to eye with Simon Jordan, but at least they knew he was one of them, an ardent Palace fan. The chairman is no longer in charge, administrators are, and with that came a ten point penalty that took the Eagles out of the play-off race and into a relegation dogfight. Soon after, Victor Moses, the one shining light of the team, had to be auctioned off to Wigan. And after an FA Cup run ended at Villa Park, it wasn’t too much longer before the man who was holding things together on the pitch - Neil Warnock - was gone, too. Warnock stayed in London, leaving a club struggling to stay afloat to join a club that can boast the richest owner in English football, QPR.

Palace have won one of their last ten games, and while clubs around them are finding ways to win the odd game and keep the points total ticking over, Paul Hart’s side are struggling to do the same. It’s going to get a lot worse for Palace fans before it gets better. The season started with faint hopes of a play-off spot, and flirted with a sustained run in the FA Cup; but will end with relegation.

PICK: 4*CRYSTAL PALACE RELEGATED FROM THE CHAMPIONSHIP @ 1.83 (BET365)


BUNDESLIGA

Hertha Berlin have endured a wretched season and although they pulled off a stunning 5-1 win at Wolfsburg last weekend, they still remain five points adrift at the foot of the Bundesliga. Don’t be fooled by the result, it is unlikely to spark a winning streak that will ensure safety. The bottom two face automatic relegation in Germany and with only seven games remaining, time is running out. Hertha face difficult matches against Borussia Dortmund and Stuttgart, but that’s not even the worst of it. Hertha’s last three fixtures are against the three sides fighting for the title - Schalke, Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich. The Berlin side will almost certainly need points from those games, and the chances of them getting them are slim, to say the least.

PICK: 5*HERTHA BERLIN FINISH IN THE BOTTOM TWO OF THE BUNDESLIGA @ 1.40 (BWIN)


LA LIGA

Tenerife have been poor travellers this season, taking only two points from thirteen away games, and that kind of form will hardly help them in their fight for survival. Six of Tenerife’s remaining ten games are away from home and the calibre of the opposition does not bode well for the La Liga strugglers. Tenerife face Malaga, Sevilla, Gijon, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia on the road and it’s hard to see where they will break their away duck, or even take as much as three points in total.

The Canary Islands outfit are only two points off safety, but the side they are chasing - Real Zaragoza - have a squad that is stronger since some key acquisitions in the January window. Tenerife’s four home games have the potential to yield points - against Valladolid, Getafe, Santander and Almeria - but the pressure on them to do so, given their awful away record, will be immense. Realistically, Tenerife will need to win at least two of those remaining home games, but more likely three, just to give them a fighting chance of survival. There is no reason to suggest that Tenerife’s away form to close the season will be much different than what they have exhibited during the entire campaign.

PICK: 5*TENERIFE RELEGATED FROM LA LIGA @ 1.91 (BET365)

Sports Magician