Match previews - Sat 23rd Apr

A look ahead to Saturday's fixtures in the Barclays Premier League.

A busy afternoon of Barclays Premier League matches sees intriguing battles at the top and bottom of the table.
Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United have the chance to stretch their lead at the summit when they start proceedings with a home match against Everton.
At the other end, Blackpool aim to move out of the bottom three when they host Newcastle United, West Ham United also hope to get out of the relegation zone with a London derby against second-placed Chelsea. Bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers will be looking for a win over Fulham that could propel themselves to safety.
Birmingham City, who visit Liverpool, are also in relegation danger and Sunderland collide with Wigan Athletic with both sides bidding to avoid the drop.
Top-four chasing Tottenham Hotspur host West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa entertain Stoke City at Villa Park.

Man Utd v Everton

United's advantage at the top of the tree has been reduced to six points following their midweek goalless draw with Newcastle and Chelsea's win against Birmingham.
It was the first time the Red Devils have failed to score in 12 Barclays Premier League matches.
Everton lie second in the form table after collecting 14 points from a possible 18 and have moved up to seventh place.
The last time the teams met, they played out a thrilling 3-3 draw at Goodison Park.

Aston Villa v Stoke

Stoke will be on a high after their emphatic 5-0 FA Cup semi-final success over Bolton last weekend.
Both clubs appear to have banished the threat of relegation but will be gunning for a win to edge them closer to mathematical safety.
A last-minute Robert Huth goal ensured Stoke wrapped up all the points with a 2-1 triumph when the teams matched up in September.

Blackpool v Newcastle

Ian Holloway's Blackpool dropped into the relegation zone for the first time in season 2010/11 after last weekend's defeat to Wigan.
The Tangerines had a promising start to the season which included a 2-0 success over Newcastle in the opposite fixture back in September.
But they have plummeted in the second half of the campaign and lie second bottom in the form table with just a point from their last six matches.
Newcastle are virtually safe from going relegation after the midweek draw with Manchester United pushed them to the 40-point mark.

Liverpool v Birmingham

Sixth-placed Liverpool welcome Birmingham still harbouring ambitions of making fifth spot to claim a place in next season's Europa League.
They are currently five points behind Tottenham with five matches left of the season.
Birmingham's run of seven points from a possible nine have pushed them out of the relegation zone and up to 15th in the table but they are still not out of danger.

Sunderland v Wigan

Sunderland go into this crunch match against relegation rivals Wigan on an awful run of form.
The Black Cats have lost eight of their last nine fixtures and are five points above the trap door.
Wigan's success over Blackpool at the weekend lifted them out of the bottom three for the first time this season - only their third away win this campaign.

Tottenham v West Brom

Tottenham entertain West Brom after a morale-boosting midweek draw against Arsenal where they came back from 3-1 down to draw 3-3.
They can leapfrog Manchester City and move into fourth place should they win as City are not in action until Monday.
Roy Hodgson tasted his first defeat as Baggies manager against Chelsea at the weekend but his side have gleaned 11 points from their last six matches.

Wolverhampton v Fulham

Basement club Wolverhampton are in desperate need of points to claw their way out of relegation trouble.
Mick McCarthy's team are two points off safety and have lost their last two league fixtures. But the Molineux outfit's destiny is in their own hands with their final six matches against sides in the bottom half of the table.
Fulham have gleaned just one victory on the road all season and three points here will virtually secure their Barclays Premier League status for another season. Both teams will be fresh having not playing for two weeks.

Chelsea v West Ham

Chelsea have climbed up to second place with their win over Birmingham in midweek and Arsenal's draw with Spurs.
Carlo Ancellotti's troops move above the Gunners on goal difference and have hit form at a good time with six wins from their last seven matches.
West Ham's form has dipped with three straight defeats which has left them stranded in the drop zone and two points off safety.