Betting Blog » Carling Cup

Mackay hails Bluebirds

Andy Charles — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:36:38 +0000

Cardiff City boss Malky Mackay has praised his players after they booked their place in the Carling Cup final with a dramatic victory over Crystal Palace on Tuesday.

The Bluebirds were a goal down going into the semi-final second-leg at the Cardiff City Stadium, after a goal from Anthony Gardner had given Palace the advantage following the clash at Selhurst Park earlier this month.

Cardiff got themselves back on level pegging when Gardner turned from hero to villain by deflected the ball past his own goal keeper. Those placing a Carling Cup bet should remember this.

In the tightly fought contest between the two Championship sides, the two sets of players could not find a winner in the 90 minutes or extra-time and the game went to the dreaded penalty shootout.

There is always a hero in these situations and it was City keeper Tom Heaton who saved Palace’s first two attempts and watched as the third sailed over the cross bar, as the Welsh side sailed into the Carling Cup final and a date at Wembley.

Mackay was delighted with the victory and praised his side for the character they showed under pressure. Anyone looking at the Odds Carling Cup final needs to bear this in mind.

He said: “I’m delighted for everyone at the football club. It’s a fantastic achievement for everyone and I thought the players were terrific.

“We knew the way Crystal Palace were going to play, they wanted to hit us on the counter-attack with pace. We had to make sure that we manipulated the ball.

“I think the fact that there were so many chances in and around their goal meant that the team kept believing.”

Advantage Palace in Cup-tie

Andy Charles — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:11:06 +0000

It was first blood to Crystal Palace in their Carling Cup semi-final with Cardiff City – but the job is only half done.

Anthony Gardner’s close-range header just before half-time was enough to give his Palace side the narrowest of football scores going into the second leg at the Cardiff City Stadium in two weeks’ time. Palace boss Dougie Freedman is confident his side will progress to the final at Wembley.

He said: “We have a team set up to win away from home. We’ll go there quietly confident and it’ll be a very interesting game.”

Palace had to do it the hard way after a virus ripped through the squad earlier in the week. Nathaniel Clyne and Dean Oxley were too ill to take part in the clash at Selhurst Park, while Paddy McCarthy and Mile Jedinak struggled through the game, the soccer betting was siding with the visitors ahead of kick-off.

Cardiff started the brighter of the two sides and created the best chances in the opening exchanges. However, Palace weathered the storm and gained a foothold in the game. They went into the break 1-0 up thanks to Gardner’s header.

The Bluebirds were left to rue a decision by referee Mike Dean just before the hour mark. Kenny Miller thought he had equalised, but the goal was disallowed for a foul on Palace goalkeeper Julian Speroni by Joe Mason.

Cardiff manager Malky Mackay couldn’t hide his disappointment as his side went on to lose the game. He questioned Dean’s decision to rule out Miller’s header.

“He’s had an absolute howler. Anyone that will see the pictures will probably tell you that. Not one of our players has gone anywhere near the goalkeeper, which is what he’s suggested the foul was for,” he said.

The tie is intriguingly poised going into the return leg on January 24.

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Fergie says sorry as Liverpool eye Wembley

Andy Charles — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 11:35:35 +0000

Manchester United manager sir Alex Ferguson apologies for his team’s performance against Crystal Palace following their shock 2-1 extra time defeat.

The Eagles upset the football betting and soared through to the semi-final following a thrilling display at the home of the champions. Darren Ambrose’s spectacular strike was good enough to win any game, but United hit back through Federico Macheda only for Glenn Murray to head home the winner in extra time.

The Carling Cup is well down Ferguson’s priority list but you would not have thought it after the game, saying: “I don’t know where to start. My apologies go to the fans because that was not a Manchester United performance. I don’t want to take anything away from Crystal Palace and I wish them every success because that was a fantastic, mammoth effort by every one of their players. But I’m just very disappointed.”

The draw also proved kind to Palace, pairing them with fellow Championship side Cardiff, with Premier League heavyweights Liverpool and Manchester City in the other game. The fans who went up to watch football live at Old Trafford couldn’t hide their delight at avoiding the big guns.

The Reds have eyed the Carling Cup as their best chance of silverware this season. The lack of European football has meant they have been able to field relatively strong sides in each round. Manager Kenny Dalglish knows that nothing shows you are doing a good job then trophies so if he can get his side to win at Wembley, it will guarantee the top job for years to come.

Manchester City’s quest for world domination may or may not included the Carling Cup, indeed in years to come there may be a time when they win absolutely everything. But Sheikh Mansour broke his silence to stress that the Premier League is his priority this season. Liverpool have already shown in their recent 1-1 with City that they are more than a match for them so their desire to reach Wembley for the first time and win a trophy again may just be the difference.

Kean rues injury woes

Andy Charles — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 09:00:11 +0000

With a mounting injury list at Ewood Park, Blackburn Rovers boss Steve Kean has admitted he has some tough selection decisions to make ahead of their Carling Cup encounter with Newcastle United on Wednesday.

The Lancashire outfit currently sit at the foot of the Premier League table after struggling with a host of injuries at this relatively early stage of the campaign.

Seasoned players such as Michael Salgado and David Dunn will miss the clash against the Magpies, whilst Steven Nzonzi and Jason Slew are suspended and cup-tied respectively. People looking at the Carling Cup betting should remember this.

With Rovers playing a day later than Newcastle over the weekend, many players at Ewood Park are running a race against time to be fully prepared for a big game, which could see Blackburn reach the quarter-finals of the Carling Cup.

Kean has revealed he will not be rushed in to making any decisions regarding selection ahead of the all-Premier League affair. Anyone placing a Carling Cup bet should bear this in mind.

He told the club’s website: “We are still down on bodies, and with Nzonzi suspended and Slew cup-tied we are lighter than we were on Sunday.

“We’ve a little bit of choice, but our programme is tighter than Newcastle’s as we played Sunday, they played Saturday.

“We’ll do some testing and just make sure everybody’s levels are back up so they are not putting themselves at risk.”

Newcastle do have some injury concerns of their own after striker Shola Ameobi was ruled out for up to six weeks with a hamstring problem on the weekend, whilst experienced defender Steven Taylor is a doubt for the trip to Ewood Park.

Arsenal vs Birmingham Carling Cup Final 2011 preview

Liverpool Fan — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 06:39:40 +0000

Arsenal vs Birmingham

February 27, 2011

Wembley Stadium, London

Carling Cup Final 2011

Arsenal will be favourites to break their six year trophy drought when they clash against Birmingham City in the Carling Cup final at Wembley. Bet on Arsenal vs Birmingham after reading our preview at Sportsbookie.com.

The Gunners have not won silverware since 2005 and will be without several key players in the form of Theo Walcott, Thomas Vermaelen, Lukasz Fabianski and Cesc Fabregas.Both Fabregas and Walcott picked up the injury in Arsenal’s 1-0 midweek win over Stoke City. In the Spaniard’s absence, Robin van Persie will wear the captain’s armband.

Birmingham have stunned one and all by reaching this stage of the tournament. They seemed dead and buried against West Ham in the semifinals but the introduction of the lanky Nikola Zigic produced a stunning turn around for Blues.

Zigic will again be a key factor in Alex McLeish’s plans. Birmingham’s greatest threat will come from set pieces- six of the eight Premier League goals the Midlands outfit have scored against Arsenal have all come from set pieces.

Arsenal have played in six previous League Cup finals and won two of them. Birmingham have finished on the losing side on both occasions they contested.

Bentley, Davies and Doyle are cup tied for Birmingham while Scott Dann, James McFadden and Valles are injured.

Arsenal form- last five games- most recent first-

Arsenal 1-0 Stoke ( Squillaci)
Leyton Orient 1-1 Arsenal ( Rosicky)
Arsenal 2-1 Barcelona ( Van Persie, Arshavin)
Arsenal 2-0 Wolves ( Van Persie*2)
Newcastle 4-4 Arsenal ( Djorou, Walcott, R.Van Persie*2)

Birmingham form- last five games- most recent first

B’Ham 3-0 Sheff ( Beausejour, Martins, Murphy)
B’Ham 0-2 Newcastle
B’Ham 1-0 Stoke ( Nikola Zigic)
W’Ham 0-1 B’Ham ( Nikola Zigic)
B’Ham 2-2 Man City ( Zigic, Gardner)

Verdict:- Arsenal to edge this one.

Arsenal 2-0 Birmingham ( Arshavin, Wilshere)