NJ's Frozen Premier League Weekend

By Nishant Joshi

Weather! Oh my God! It's weather! Weather!

WEATHER!

If you watch the news today, you'll believe that the snow 'crisis' is akin to rogue mountain lions roaming our towns. Well, if it snowed all year round and rained for one week solid, I guess we'd be equally as flabbergasted. Which underlines our morbidly schizophrenic fascination with bad weather.

The snow has already claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands across the UK; as men 'avec femme' across the nation will be de facto slaves to their WAG's for the first time on a Saturday afternoon in January since the inception of Gillette Soccer Saturday outright.

With only a handful of fixtures surviving the weather in each division, there will be sparse pickings on Match of the Day, but there are still some bets which are worth a gander

Birmingham vs Manchester Utd



9th January 17:30 GMT
ESPN (16:45-19:45), ESPN HD (16:45-19:45)

In recent weeks, we have consistently backed Birmingham; and with some great reward too. It is becoming slightly tedious to continuously sing their praises each week, but the fact remains that they are the form team in the Premier League. Manchester United have exhibited worrying cracks in the past two months, most notably stemming from their defensive injury woes. Their defence has been shaky at the best of times, and having lost to Leeds in the FA Cup last weekend, morale cannot be too high in the camp. Nemanja Vidic will be out for another 10 days with a nerve problem, and his absences this season have shown how vital he is to them.

So, an out-of-touch Manchester United, away to the form team in the country, simply does not wash with me at 1.68. Birmingham at 6.6 are value which we cannot ignore. Having thought long and hard about this, we'll take a strong play on Birmingham in the 'draw no bet' market. The 'DNB' market is a contentious one at the best of times, with many - hitherto incoherent - arguments both for, and against. It is my opinion that all bets must be weighted towards the value in each market, and I hope that is what we are doing here.


Manchester City vs Blackburn



11th January 20:00 GMT
ESPN (19:00-22:30), ESPN HD (19:00-22:30)

Roberto Mancini was a surprise replacement for Mark Hughes and I am adamant that he will be sacked sooner rather than later. Billionaire businessmen generally don't have patience for people saying 'I just need some more time' when going without any tangible success for a couple of seasons, and I don't see how Mancini has a shot at anything other than the Carling Cup this season. Fourth place is certainly within grasp, thanks in main to a Liverpool side which has decided to take a group sabbatical this year, but the fact is that Mancini won't be afforded more than 18 months without a major trophy.

Nevertheless, the 'new manager syndrome' is still in full force at the City of Manchester Stadium and I expect that to continue against a lowly Blackburn side on Monday night. Carlos Tevez has hit an awesome run of form, and even though Emmanuel Adebayor is away at the African Nations Cup, the back-up with the likes of Craig Bellamy and Roque Santa Cruz - both facing their former club - is a luxury which few sides can afford.

Blackburn are hovering just above the relegation zone at the moment, and I expect their plight to worsen against a City side who have been formidable at home this season. There's excellent value on City to win by two or more here at odds-against.

NJ's Bets:

Birmingham to beat Manchester Utd (draw no bet) - 4.25pts @ 4.5 (Sky Bet , Boylesports, VCBet , Ladbrokes sportsbook )

Man City to beat Blackburn -1.5 Asian Handicap - 4pts @ 2.39 (188Bet)