LeeDixon

Is Stoke's reputation as a formidable home team warranted? They've won four at the Britannia Stadium, drawn two and lost two in the Premier League this season so perhaps it's not the fortress that some make out. Mind you, I was correct to predict that Tottenham's winning run would end there a fortnight ago and it remains true that few teams relish a trip to the Potteries. That certainly applies to Aston Villa, a team who, despite giving an improved performance against Arsenal, have little to cheer this Christmas. Stoke fans make the most noise and the Britannia's fearsome reputation will give the home side a psychological advantage. That can count for a lot, especially when things are going against you, as they are for Alex McLeish's men. Villa sit 12th in the table, at that crucial ...

It's been a poor week by Manchester United's standards. I've praised Newcastle's performance at Old Trafford in my preview of their match against Chelsea already. But whichever way you look at it, that was a match United really should have won if they're going to successfully defend their title. The shock Carling Cup defeat to Crystal Palace was a different story of course because only a couple of the players who started that would possibly feature in Sir Alex's strongest XI. It suggests that maybe there isn't as much talent in reserve at Old Trafford as there has been in yesteryear but that's for him to worry about another day. Let's just focus on this Aston Villa match for the time being. [u]Match Odds[/u] Aston Villa started the season well and were undefeated for a while but...

[u]Match Odds [/u] When selecting my weekly Banker from the Premier League's fixture list, a Spurs win is what I went with. Not that I think this will be a walk in the park for Harry Redknapp's side, where they win by three or four goals. But I do think Spurs are on a pretty good run at the moment and their win at Fulham showed they can be resilient as well as cavalier and grind out results, even when they're on the back foot as they were for most of the second-half in that match. And according to Opta, this is their best ever start to a Premier League campaign with 22 points from their opening 10 matches. And that after losing their first two matches. It's also worth remembering that Tottenham beat Villa home and away last campaign, 2-1 on both occasions. So plenty of evidence...