Previews

Rovers and Villa go again

Author: Lynda Collins
Date: 05/01/2010
Football betting

Blackburn Rovers host Aston Villa in the first leg of their Carling Cup semi-final a matter of days after the two sides locked horns in the FA Cup third round.

Sportsbook favourites Villa came out on top in that encounter, with both sides choosing to rest players with a seemingly more important game on the horizon.

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Rovers' 3-1 reverse at Villa Park also came at the cost of a red card to Senegal forward El Hadji Diouf, which means that he will miss the Tuesday night action.

Ewood Park boss Sam Allardyce is also currently without injured Australian duo Brett Emerton (groin) and Vince Grella (thigh).

Villa head north buoyed by their success, with boss Martin O'Neill telling the club's official website: "It won't do us any harm winning the game. It is better to have won than lost.

"We've got a big semi-final to look forward to now, everyone is talking about it. Blackburn are saying it's their biggest game for a long, long time.

"There are two games to be played and every single minute in these matches will be vital."

Villa continue to be without long-term absentees Curtis Davies (shoulder) and Wilfred Bouma (ankle), but O'Neill has a fully-fit squad to choose from apart from those two.

Also on Tuesday evening, Stoke City play host to Fulham hoping to arrest a Premier League slump which has seen them fail to win in their last six league outings.

A 3-0 FA Cup third round win at home to non-league York City helped morale at the Britannia Stadium, but boss Tony Pulis was careful not to read too much into that victory, despite naming a strong looking line-up.

Pulis has the luxury of a fully-fit squad to choose from, with his trickiest decision over who to start with in attack, with City having scored just 15 times in 19 league games so far this season.

Fulham laboured to overcome lower league opposition at the weekend as well, with a goal from the in-form Bobby Zamora just enough to see off Swindon Town at Craven Cottage.

Zamora has now scored six times in his last eight games, providing the kind of spearhead that the hosts are currently lacking.

However, the Cottagers had to make do without star defender Brede Hangeland and he is unlikely to recover from a calf injury in time to feature in midweek.

Right-back John Paintsil will also be absent due to a knee injury, while Simon Davies (ankle) seems unlikely to feature.

Last season's corresponding fixture ended goalless, before Fulham won 1-0 on home turf thanks to an Erik Nevland strike.

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