This week's London Premiership derby sees relegation-threatened Crystal Palace at home to mid-table certainties Tottenham.
The reverse fixture a couple of weeks ago produced a 1-1 draw with Defoe scoring for Spurs and (quelle surprise) Andy Johnson scoring for the Eagles. Similarly both teams will be depending on their main strikers for this one.
Meanwhile the Mourinho/Wenger/Ferguson yawn-fest continues apace this week with the Chelsea boss dis'ing Fergie's wine cellar, Ferguson saying that Wenger was "a disgrace", and Wenger claiming that Ferguson "has lost all sense of reality". And just when you thought it couldn't get more silly and overblown, the police have stepped in and asked them to stop it because it might incite the fans into violence.
Oh come on! Us football supporters may not be the brightest bunch, but at least credit us with a sense of perspective (and/or) humour. Good grief!
Back in the real world, Chelsea will win easily at home to Portsmouth, Arsenal and Newcastle will have a player sent off each in a bad tempered narrow victory for the home side at Highbury (live on Sky at 4pm Sunday), Fulham will lose at Birmingham, and Charlton away at Everton has 0-0 written all over it.
In Division Two, Millwall should beat lowly Wolves at home, while West Ham take on fellow just-outside-the-playoff challengers Derby at Upton Park (live on Sky at 12:30pm Sunday). Mid-table QPR have a tough game away to relegation scrappers Coventry, and Watford, playing their 7th game of January so far and with a League Cup Semi-Final against Liverpool on Tuesday, will no doubt rest some players and lose away to title-challengers Wigan.
In the lower reaches of the league, Brentford will hope to continue their playoff challenge at home to mid-table Swindon, while Leyton Orient will have their work cut out as they take on both Rushden & Diamonds away.
