Premier League: Five things to watch

Andre-Villas Boas, Arsene Wenger and Alex McLeish are all desperate for a win this weekend as Wolves search for somebody to replace Big Mick.

AVB watch

Am I the only one who felt a bit sorry for Andre Villas-Boas this week? As he trudged off the field after watching his somewhat new-look Chelsea suffer a Champions League spanking by Napoli, the Portuguese manager looked lost and a little stunned.

His dream job is turning into a nightmare and it just keeps getting worse. Without a Premier League win since January 14 – a 1-0 win over Sunderland – Chelsea are also facing an FA Cup replay with Birmingham and, in all probability, a Champions League exit.

And if reports are to be believed, half the team are not talking to him and some of the others are giving the team talks. Did we mention Rafa Benitez is lurking around too?

This weekend brings Bolton to Stamford Bridge, and while the Trotters are far from formidable, if Chelsea defend like they did in midweek even David Ngog will fancy his chances. But defeat to Bolton at home is unthinkable, right? For poor old AVB we hope so.

Wolves search goes on

As it stands, Wolves are still managerless. According to reports coming out of England, they have been turned down more often than Peter Crouch’s school trousers. Alan Curbishley and Walter Smith are both said to have rejected short-term contracts at Molineux while the spectre of Steve Bruce still looms over the club. None of these things are good signs.

They go to Newcastle this week in dire need of some points and some stability. It looks unlikely they will get either.

City are still the slickest

There seems to be a growing opinion that Manchester City have slowed down and are not playing at quite the pitch they were earlier in the season. While there is a grain of truth in that, they are still the most difficult team to play in the Premier League and with Carlos Tevez about to get back in blue again soon, they are only going to get even tougher to beat.

Blackburn arrive at the Etihad outside the relegation zone and on the back of a win over QPR but you wouldn’t bet on them to beat anybody would you, let alone the league leaders.

When the sides met at Ewood Park in October, City won 4-0 and with virtually a full squad to chose from, Roberto Mancini’s men could dish out a lesson on Saturday.

Any sign of a dodgy lasagne?

The mood around north London is fairly toxic whenever Arsenal and Spurs play but this game carries extra importance for the red half of the divide.

Arsenal’s well-known faults are being exposed on an almost weekly basis now and Arsene Wenger is getting the sort of grief normally reserved for managers in a relegation fight rather than one sitting in fourth place in the table.

The look of a worried man...

After simply disastrous outings against AC Milan in the Champions League and Sunderland in the FA Cup, that fourth place is now the only ‘trophy’ in Arsenal’s sights. To secure it they must get back on track and beating their neighbours would do a lot to pacify the more rabid among the Emirates faithful.

As for Spurs, they sit ten points clear of Arsenal in third but if they can keep on winning they may still have a shot at the title. A victory will complete a league double over Arsenal for Spurs and that is a big enough prize in their fans’ eyes.

Calming the nerves at Aston Villa

Vila’s sporadic bursts of form have gotten rarer and rarer as the season has worn on and after just one win in six in the league they sit in 15th, uncomfortably close to the relegation zone.

Alex McLeish’s side may have a seven-point cushion over those in the drop zone but they must halt the slide this weekend away to cellar-dwellers Wigan to prevent the relegation talk getting out of control at Villa Park.

Villa’s problem this season has been too many draws, with ten from 25 played. It is a criticism that has been levelled at McLeish before and it saw his Birmingham side relegated last season.

With Robbie Keane back in the L.A. sunshine, it has gotten just a little bit harder for Villa to eke out results in tight games. Villa must nab three points on Saturday and move away from trouble or the rumblings of unrest will just get louder for McLeish.