EPL Picks & World Cup Qualifying Verdicts

Before our Week 4 Picks, time for a quick take about the end of the transfer window... and the end of Chelsea's transfer dealings until January 2011. As I had earlier predicted, there were no major moves at the deadline, unless you count Richard Dunne and his red card propensity to Villa a "major move." However, there was major news at the deadline as FIFA banned the Blues from the next 2 transfer windows for coaxing French starlet Gael Kakuta out of a contract with Lens, illegally. If the charges are true (why would they not be at this point?) then Chelsea have been justly punished. It's bad enough for the European Super Clubs to gobble up all of the footballing talent on the planet, but to do so illegally deserves a harsh penalty.

Will Chelsea be adversely affected? Certainly. No new players for the foreseeable future means Chelsea will have to depend on the players currently there for the next 16 months. Is any club better equipped to handle such a ban? No. Chelsea's got great depth and quality, and if any club can survive a ban on signing new players, it's them. Don't shed a tear for Roman Abramovich and Chelsea, they'll be just fine.

Now onto the picks for Week 4, and as you'll see... perhaps I've found my new calling in picking EPL games with a 73% winning record as I hit the top of the Yoder table, (thank you, thank you, blowing kisses to adoring fans)

Last Week's Results:

Mr. Yoder I: 7-1-2 23 pts

Mr. Yoder II: 6-2-2 20 pts

Dr. Yoder: 5-3-2 17 pts

Total After Week 3:

Mr. Yoder I: 24-9-3 75 pts

Mr. Yoder II: 23-10-3 72 pts

Dr. Yoder: 20-13-3 63 pts

Bolton (0-3-0) @ Portsmouth (0-4-0)

If you're going to see one game of footy this year, make sure this one isn't it. This bottom of the table clash isn't likely to get folks excited, but at least one fanbase will have some points at the end of this one! Give Bolton credit, they did have the lead against Liverpool twice last week before falling to a late Gerrard strike. Pompey responded to their awful start by selling Niko Krancjar, while Bolton added Croatian F Ivan Klasnic, fresh off of a spitting/kidney punching incident with John Terry midweek. At least Bolton are trying. They're the smart pick, although my colleagues disagree.

Y1: Bolton Y2: Pompey Doc: Pompey

Wolves (1-2-1) @ Blackburn (0-2-1)

Another riveting encounter sees 13th placed Wolves at 18th placed Blackburn. Rovers scored their first goal and registered their first point in a draw with West Ham while Wolves were perhaps unlucky to draw at home to Hull City. I smell a draw here too, but Wolves seem to have found their EPL footing while Blackburn looks likely to struggle to score goals all season long. Unless Sam Allardyce can find some sort of Harry Potter like spell, it'll be a relegation-threatening campaign for Blackburn. At least the good doctor believes in magic, he's old-school like that.

Y1: Wolves Y2: Blackburn Doc: Blackburn

West Ham (1-1-1) @ Wigan (1-3-0)

Wigan, in their bright orange hunting camo away jerseys, (at least they are better than Newcastle's hideous uniform (left). Yes I just wanted an excuse to make fun of Newcastle, but at least they top the Championship table, for now...) lost at Everton last week, while West Ham drew at Blackburn. Wigan have really slipped since their opening day win at Villa (3 straight losses) while Zola's Hammers are off to a steady start to the year, they should be undefeated in reality. Carlton Cole has been on form for WH, he'll get a goal in a win.

Y1: West Ham Y2: West Ham Doc: Wigan

Burnley (2-2-0) @ Liverpool (2-2-0)

Tough being a Liverpool fan and seeing your team with the same record as Burnley, who have already played Man U and Chelsea. Yikes. The season's not over of course, but Liverpool face a lot of must-win home games against mid to bottom table sides (case in point, Burnley) to stay in the hunt. Draws from here on out just won't be good enough. Gerrard's heroic game-winning goal last week might just be enough to bring the Liverpool season to life. At least that's what I'm hoping for. I don't know if I can keep these picks going till May if my Reds are out of the hunt at Christmas again... and yes I never thought I would ever care this much about soccer. Praise the Lord I saw the light!

Y1: L'Pool Y2: Liverpool Doc: Liverpool

Chelsea (4-0-0) @ Stoke City (2-1-1)

Stoke City are at an all-time high. The Potters sit 5th on the ladder after 4 games, they made two great signings from Boro in Tuncay and Huth; they are a runaway freight train. And just as things are going so well, an angry Chelsea team looks to pick them up off the tracks. This one is a tough one to call because of Stoke's great home record, and Chelsea's dominant start to the season. 4 wins from 4 and a +8 GD sees Chelsea looking down from the top at everyone else. Will the off-field distractions hurt them? Not as much as a resolute Stoke team. I'm hoping for at least a draw, and going with the upset.

Y1: Stoke Y2: Chelsea Doc: Stoke

Hull City (1-2-1) @ Sunderland (2-2-0)

This game comes at the perfect time on the calendar after Hull sold their inspirational captain, CB Michael Turner... to Sunderland! He'll come back to haunt his own club right away as this should be a Sunderland win. With new faces Turner and Ghanian John Mensah at the back, Lorik Cana in midfield, and Darren Bent up front, Sunderland might even make a run at European qualification. Oh, and to Phil Brown: please start Jozy Altidore!!

Y1: Sunderland Y2: Sunderland Doc: Sunderland

Arsenal (2-1-0) @ Manchester City (3-0-0)

The Adebayor Bowl is one of the two most salivating fixtures of the weekend. Arsenal played very well at Old Trafford last week only to lose out to an Abou Diaby own goal (brilliant header though!). Man City keep rolling on, only needing 1 goal to defeat Pompey last week. This, however, is Man City's first Big 4 test. You've got to figure that Adebayor and Toure will be keen to show Arsene Wenger what he sold away. Again, why you would want to sell 2 of your top 5 players to direct competition is beyond me. The Togo striker has got off to a fantastic start this season at Eastlands, and what a story it would be if he defeated the Gunners on Saturday. This is the statement game City need, and will win.

Y1: Man City Y2: Arsenal Doc: Man City

Manchester United (3-1-0) @ Tottenham Hotspur (4-0-0)

This is the main course of the weekend as United travel to White Hart Lane. Can Tottenham keep up their form and break up the Big 4? Possibly. It will depend on how well Niko Kranjcar can do in the absense of Croatian playmaker Luka Modric, who's out with a broken leg. Spurs' hero this season has been Aaron Lennon, who again bagged all 3 points last week with a late goal against Birmingham. United has been shaky for lengthy spells thus far. They were very lucky to beat Arsenal last week. The EPL world will be turned upside down this weekend as Spurs go to the top of the table, and beat United, who will fall below their city rivals. Doc differs, "Oh Man U, they'll be ready for this one!" He's a lot smarter than I am...

Y1: Spurs Y2: Man U Doc: Man U

Aston Villa (2-1-0) @ Birmingham (1-2-1)

Aston Villa are back to form after wins over Liverpool and Fulham. Honestly, being knocked out of Europe might be the best thing for them with the lack of depth in their squad. Sunday, they travel to Birmingham for the Second City Derby. Hard to pick against Villa in this one, although you never know in derby matches. It'll be interesting to see how heated things get between these fierce rivals after the breakout of violence between West Ham and Milwall last week.

Y1: Villa Y2: Villa Doc: Villa

Everton (1-2-0) @ Fulham (1-2-0)

Everton and Fulham play again on Sunday this week, this time against each other, and both are in need of a win. These two clubs have too much quality to be sitting 15th and 16th on the table. Everton will be boosted by signing Dutch defender Johnny Heitinga to finally end the Joleon Lescott saga. The loser of this one will be under a lot of pressure to recover from a poor start. In truth, Fulham probably need this one more playing at home. It really is a coin flip, tails says Fulham... tails it is.

Y1: Fulham Y2: Fulham Doc: Everton

World Cup Qualifying Verdicts

As far as WCQ goes, England and Spain are in, the United States have a foot in the door, and Diego Maradona's time in the managers chair is running short in Argentina. Several star-studded nations around the world are struggling in qualifying and could find themselves watching with everyone else come next Summer. Let's span the globe and tell you whether the top teams on the bubble are in or out.

Argentina - They lie a point below automatic qualification... and a point above missing out on a chance to qualify completely. Maradona's side face bottom of the table Peru and Uruguay (who sit right below them) in their last WCQ games. In the end, it's hard to picture a World Cup w/out the South American giants. Somehow, some way, Maradona (maybe he should have tried the Biggest Loser instead...) guides them to the finals by winning their last 2 games. Way too much talent to miss out, in spite of their eccentric manager. Don't cry for me, Argentina, they'll sneak in. VERDICT - IN

Portugal - Cristiano Ronaldo missing out on a World Cup?? It could very well happen if Portugal doesn't win their last 2 qualifiers at home against Hungary and Malta. But, manager Carlos Queiroz has been under fire from the start and Portugal has never gotten going. Like Argentina, the shock with Portugal is an inability to score goals with so much talent. Portugal draws against Hungary to see them miss out on a playoff. We're sure FIFA will find some way to change the rules and make Ronaldo eligible for Denmark to get him on the field though. VERDICT - OUT

Turkey - The heroes of Euro 2008 are mired in the middle of Group 5, 4 points behind Bosnia-Herzegovina. BH only needs to muster up a win at world power Estonia to lock in their place for the 2nd place playoffs in Europe. Of course, it's hard to imagine Bosnia-Herzegovina as a world power, but here we are. VERDICT - OUT

Of course, mentioning Turkey gives me an excuse to share one of the funniest clips of all time. Maybe this video will cheer up Turkey...

Nigeria & Egypt - These two African powers are in serious trouble. Nigeria sit 2 points behind Tunisia, but the Super Eagles won't play Tunisia in their last 2 games. So, they need 2 wins and a Tunisia loss/draw to get in... on a hunch, I think they'll sneak into South Africa. Egypt is in even more trouble as they sit 3 points behind Algeria in Group C. They play Algeria in their last game, however, Egypt's vastly inferior goal differential will be their death knell. They might need a win by 5 goals to advance, it won't happen. VERDICT - IN & OUT

Concacaf - 4 teams for 3 spots: United States, Mexico, Honduras, Costa Rica. The loser ends up playing likely Ecuador (or Argentina if our predictions are somehow wrong). Costa Rica looks to be the odd team out as they have been plummeting recently in WCQ. They currently sit on the outside looking in and have to travel to T&T and the US (no home games at their home fortress Saprissa (right)). There isn't a way for Costa Rica to leapfrog any of these teams, good luck in South America. VERDICT - COSTA RICA OUT

We'll be back later today with our immense Stateside football preview as we get ready for Week 1 of the Pros and Week 2 of the College kids. I think I'm going to get a turkey sandwich...