Man City looking to bounce back from Fulham comeback...

Manchester United have had a fantastic start to the season and are already odds-on with some bookmakers for the title. this week they face Leeds in the Carling Cup and Sir Alex Ferguson is sure to give a number of keys players a rest following last weekend's win over Chelsea. United are deservedly favourites to edge this encounter but as with all such derbies the result may not necessarily go to form. On home soil Leeds to come through in 90 minutes, or at least avoid defeat looks fair value, albeit at small stakes.

Liverpool meanwhile will want to waste no time in forgetting about thier thrashing at the hands of Tottenham and a trip to Brighton gives them the opportunity to get back on track. The hosts however will be looking to take their league form into this cup game and give Liverpool a similar shock to the famous wins in the early 80s. With home advantage again we'll opt for a small interest in the Championship side.

Bolton won 10 of their 19 home league games last season with their 4 defeats coming to Chelsea, Man City, Liverpool and Sunderland. Bolton have lost their first two home games this term, but that those were to the two Manchester sides means they are no cause for alarm. Norwich haven't won away in the Premier League since 1994 and despite the Canaries earning a decent point at Wigan and putting up a good fight at Chelsea we don't think their away day blues are likely to end at the Reebok.

Wolves started the season with back-to-back wins over Blackburn and Fulham and despite falling back since then they look good enough to avoid a relegation dogfight. QPR's fortunes have been much more mixed though with awin over Everton sandwiched by dissappointing defeats against Bolton and Wigan. On home soil, Wolves should win this and odds nearing Evens look very good value.

Manchester United versus Chelsea is always a big game but at this point in this season it takes on an interesting significance. A win for Chelsea will signal the Manchester clubs aren't going to have it all their own way and that a 3-horse race is a realistic prospect. A win for United and many people will be waving goodbye to Chelsea's title ambitions. A draw meanwhile would be a better result for the visitors than the hosts such is United's form. All things considered we have to back United. Their form has been sensational while Chelsea's has been distinctly average. It's always dangerous betting against a side of Chelsea's calibre though so if you're getting involved in the betting tread with some caution - Chelsea are not Arsenal and a result similar to Gunners 8-2 mauling is distinctly unlikely.

Man City have scored 8 goals in their two Premiership away games this season and will travel to Fulham in high spirits this weekend. Martin Jol's side are yet to win in the Premiership this season and despite their desperation to change that, City just look relentless right now. Both sides will be coming into this game off the back of European fixtures and that tempers our confidence a little. How City perform on the road, and particularly how they perform coming off Champions League nfixtures in midweek could be instrumental in determining how serious their title push turns out to be. It may not seem it but this is a real litmus test for Roberto Mancini's side.

Southampton have been underestimated by the bookmakers so far this season, as our tip on them to beat Ipswich at 5/2 earlier in the season atests. They are a side very much on the up and who have the potential to bag plenty of goals. A record of 19 wins from their last 23 home games suggests they should be heavily odds on favourites against Birmingham, yet odds of 3/4 and 8/11 are widely available. Birmingham on the other hand are struggling on and off the pitch and it looks like being a long hard season for them. The Blues have won just 4 away league games since the start of 2010. Unless Southampton suffer from complacency - always a risk for sides with such a good record - the 3/4 on the home win looks a fair value play.

West Ham have started the season well - on the road at least - and they did some shrewd business at the end of the transfer window despite losing Scott Parker. Millwall have started the season reasoanbly but not spectacularly and we expect no more than a middle table finish for them this season. This is of course a bitterly fought East London derby and that makes the outcome harder to predict. Nevertheless West Ham are the better side and at 6/4 we think it is they that offer the better value.

Brighton have started the season exceptionally well and are showing - as Norwich and Leeds did last season that the gap between League One and Championship has narrowed in recent seasons. With Leicester spending big and aiming high themselves this will be a real test of both sides credentials. The Foxes haven't quite clicked yet though and while we fancy them as favourites for this game their odds look unappealing. Considering the formbook and long odds of 11/5 we'll have a small interest in the visitors - but with small being the operative word.

West Ham have started the season poorly at home and are also yet to pick up a home win. Three straight wins on the road shows just how good they are though and while Scott Parker will be sorely missed, Nolan and company should still have enough to see off Pompey. Look out too for possible debuts from the likes of David Bentley and Henri Lansbury.

Moving to the Premiership, Wigan have started the season well but that doesn't disguise the fact that they struggle so much against big four sides. Last season they lost 3-0 at Man Utd, 2-0 at Arsenal, 1-0 at Man City, and 1-0 at Chelsea. The season before that they lost 8-0 at Chelsea, 5-0 at Man Utd, 3-0 at City, and 4-0 at Arsenal. The absence of any away goals is notable and will be a distinctly worrying pattern for Roberto Martinez given Man City's abundance of firepower. With this in mind we'll take a 1 point stake on City to win to nil at 4/5 with Unibet. Wigan's hope would be that they can catch City unexpectedly on the counter and with that in mind we'll also go with 1pts on City to win with a 2 goal handicap which could still come in even if the hosts concede.

Next we look at Arsenal, who desperately need to bounce back from their defeat at Old Trafford and have the perfect opportunity to do so when they face Swansea on home soil. The Gunners new signings will have little time to bed in but Arsene Wenger will desperately need them to hit the ground running at the Emirates. The stakes are high for Wenger, and so too is the risk with any bet. We'll include them in a very low stakes double but go no further.

And in that pairing we're teaming Arsenal up with Cardiff. The Bluebirds host a Doncaster side with just one point from five games and should be able to take the three points. Again there is risk - the hosts form isn't great and the visitors desperately need a win. Treat with caution.

Our remaining two tips involve sides battling it out at the top of the Championship. Brighton have started this season as they finished the last and must be fancied at 11/8 away at a Bristol City side that has home advantage but has started the season poorly.

Leicester fans meanwhile will be hoping their big spending translates into results on the pitch as they travel to unfancied Barnsley. The hosts are yet to win at Oakwell this season and there is little in the formbook to suggest that will change here.

England need two wins from their two matches this week according to Fabio Capello and a glance at the standings show why. England are still in control of their own destiny but only just. First up is a trip to Bulgaria. The hosts are dangerous but have nonetheless failed to win at home since October 2009. England meanwhile have picked up consecutive away wins in qualifying and with some exciting young players coming through - at Manchester United particularly - the visitors should be well equipped to return to England with three points.

The last time Netherlands lost a qualifier away from home was way back in November 2007 when they fell to a 2-1 reverse against Belarus. Since then their form has been nothing short of exceptional - reflected by their rise to the top of the FIFA rankings. This weekend they face a trip to Finland. The hosts results suggest they will be far from pushovers but the Dutch look very well equipped to overcome them and we'll add them at 1/4 to make up an even-money double.

One to avoid?

While England are facing Bulgaria, Germany will be hosting neighbours Austria. Germany have lost just once since their World Cup exit to Spain and remain one of the favourites to win Euro 2012 outright. Austria meanwhile have fared less convincingly, losing six of their last seven. The real risk here is that Germany simply don't turn up, having already won their group with 21 points from 7 games. With Austria still holding out hope of claiming second spot conspiracy theorists might well see value in opposing the hosts at 1/5 and a hedge may well be worthwhile for those including them in accumulators. Nevertheless our best tip is to steer clear.