Sports Blog 11/05/2016: Match Preview – Premier League, Wednesday 11th May 2016

Can Sunderland secure their Premier League safety with a win over Everton at 7.45pm on Sky Sports 1?

In their last 4 games Sunderland have produced a string of genuinely impressive performances, most notably last weekend’s rousing 3-2 victory over Chelsea, a game complete with was is likely to be John Terry’s final ever appearance in blue thanks to an injury-time red card. In fact since the start of March Sunderland have seen a relatively remarkable turnaround in form, with just 1 loss in 9 league games. Granted, 6 of those results were draws, but nevertheless it leaves the Black Cats just 3 points away from clinging onto to their place in the Premier League for another season.



A win over Everton would see Sunderland condemn Newcastle and Norwich to Championship football, whilst a draw (and at least 1 point from Sunday’s trip to Watford) would also mean Big Sam’s side stay up. A loss, meanwhile, would see the relegation battle go down to the wire, the Black Cats needing a win at Vicarage Road to avoid their fate falling into other hands. Fans will be hoping that Jermain Defoe, with an impressive 15 league goals this season (more than a third of side’s total tally) and a Super Mega PGM of 46-54, can save Sunderland’s bacon once again following his winner against Chelsea on Saturday.

As for the Toffees their season ended when they lost their FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United. Stuck in 12th place even a top half finish is likely beyond them, Everton needing two wins (Sunday’s game being against Norwich) and losses for Chelsea and Stoke to manage that most meagre of achievements. Wednesday’s game may well be one of the final few chances Everton fans get to see Romelu Lukaku, scorer of 25 goals all competitions and at a Super Mega PGM of 26-31, the Belgian supremo likely to leave over the summer.

Given the importance of Wednesday evening’s game it is hard to see beyond a home win, Spreadex offering a Sunderland/Everton Goal Supremacy spread of 0.65-0.85 alongside a Total Goals spread of 2.8-3.

There is slightly less to play for when Liverpool host Chelsea at 8pm on Sky Sports 2. Whilst 5th place is still a (slender) possibility, Jurgen Klopp is likely to be far more focused on next Wednesday’s Europa League final against Sevilla. Things looked a bit iffy for Liverpool as April turned into May, a league loss at Swansea followed by a 1-0 defeat in the away leg of their European semi-final. Yet the Reds bounced back in style, a confident 3-0 victory over Villarreal at Anfield chased up with a 2-0 win over Watford.



Chelsea, meanwhile, have fallen back off the wagon in the past month and a bit. Having racked up an impressive 15 game unbeaten run since he took over, Guus Hiddink’s first league defeat of the season (against Swansea) has derailed the Blues’ run-in, the club picking up a mere 4 points from a potential 15. Most recently Chelsea gave up their 2-1 lead over Sunderland, a loss that leaves them just 1 place behind Liverpool in 9th, but with an insurmountable 10 point gap between the 2 sides.

Despite the Reds ostensibly having one eye on their trip to Basel our Spreadex traders are still wary of the Blues slipping form, offering a Liverpool/Chelsea Goal Supremacy spread of 0.7-0.9 with a Total Goals spread of 2.95-3.15.

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