Sunday's betting preview

NO MORE bank of Liverpool!!

Wow....some days you can't see the wood from the trees and others it's about as crystal as crystal (I hope). Some of these prices you need to snap up ASAP I really believe.

Yesterday was one topsy turvy day. Villa beat Man City and West Brom beat Man United two results which I'm sure you'll agree were unlikely picks before kick off. A mixed back which saw profit from out suggestions, in which I was particularly annoyed with Spurs-Chelsea 0-0 HT state not coming in (was confident) and pleased with Swansea-Arsenal most goals second half. It's a market I may very well use more often for Swansea with their possession style football.

Anyway, onto today and there's a huge list of selections to choose from, my biggest day ever in terms of selections. This could go bad!

Cercle Brugge v Standard Liege and the away side who are flying at the top are 1.90 to cover -1. So that's my first suggestion. They have scored 18 goals and conceded just three, so I've favouring a 0-2, 1-3 type score.

Stoke are evens to beat Norwich and I think that's fair enough. Hughton is under pressure and it may be starting to translate to the players. It's indeed better that they are away from home today but I think Stoke will have enough to see them off.

I'm going to town on this Liverpool match. They have been known as the bank of Liverpool for a reason in the past in that they have always won money for those opposing them consistently. They missed a shed load against United, good chances, it's unlikely that they'll have the same amount of shots today and come away with little success. The win is 1.72, which I'm on. The AH line is -0.75, which I'm on and can I see over 2.5 goals.....yeah possibly.

Reims v Monaco, and the away side are 1.74 to win. If you fancy it and are a little more adventurous then you could get Monaco on the line at 1.93 (-0.75).

Bremen v Nurnberg and I'm jumping at evens for the home side. Nurnberg haven't won a match yet and look to be in all sorts of trouble already. Bremen need to get going no doubt, but odds of evens I can't refuse. Braunschweig v Stuttgart is a similar proposition, surely the away side will have too much power at evens to brush away the relegation candidates?

This is the first time ever I'm having an almost clean sweep of the Italian matches too! Only Verona v Livorno I don't fancy calling. It's long enough already this preview, so I'll run through these quickly. Quite simply, Juventus -1 at 1.87 v Torino looks appealing. so too does Udinese +0AH 1.96, Inter 2.06 and Lazio 2.02. Sassuolo may have already had their FA Cup moment v Napoli and Lazio may be in the hunt for goals today. I'd also take Lazio 2 goals or more at 2.06. And something is forcing me to back Bologna on the line at +1.5 (1.91). They can be quite stubborn at times, and I can see them losing by the odd goal.

In Spain I'm looking at 3/4 games. Osasuna v Levante and I'm calling Levante -0.25 at 2.04, Celta Vigo to beat Elche at 1.94, and there to be Both teams scoring in Betis v Villareal. That's at around 1.70.

In the tennis, Joao Sousa plays Benneteau in the Malaysian Open Final. Sousa +3.5 games at 1.99 is the shout here. The pre match money is on Benneteau 3.1 to 1.46 but the Frenchman is renowned for bottling. Will he bottle again? Sousa is playing some great stuff at the moment so it should be a great final.

The other match I'm fancying is Chanelle Scheepers v Sabine Lisicki. Lisicki is the obvious favourite, but she hasn't played a great deal of tennis of late, and I'm not sure just turning up in Beijing and expecting to tee off is such a great idea. Scheepers to cover +4.5 games looks a good shout to me anyway, and that's where I would have put some money.

And that's it. A tump of bet suggestions, take your pick if you wish. 

Suggestions
Cercle v Standard. Standard -1, 1.90.
Stoke v Norwich. Stoke, 2.00.
Sunderland v Liverpool. Liverpool, 1.72.
Sunderland v Liverpool, Liverpool -0.75, 1.87.
Sunderland v Liverpool. Over 2.5 goals, 2.02.
Reims v Monaco. Monaco, 1.74.
Bremen v Nurnberg. Bremen, 2.00. 
Braunschweig v Stuttgart. Stuttgart, 2.00.
Torino v Juventus. Juventus -1, 1.87.
Atalanta v Udinese. Udinese +0, 1.96.
Cagliari v Inter. Inter, 2.06.
Sassuolo v Lazio. Lazio, 2.02.
Sassuolo v Lazio. Lazio 2 goals or more, 2.06.
Roma v Bologna. Bologna +1.5, 1.91.
Osasuna v Levante. Levante -0.25, 2.04.
Celta Vigo v Elche. Celta Vigo, 1.94. 
Betis v Villareal. BTTS, 1.70. 
Sousa v Benneteau. Sousa +3.5 games, 1.99. 
Lisicki v Scheepers. Scheepers +4.5 games, 1.96.

EPL betting preview

2

Here's the lay of the land with today's EPL games. Tottenham v Chelsea and I really fancy 0-0 Half Time game state. Last season Spurs scored 72% of their goals at home in the second half. Chelsea under Mourinho could be a little cautious first up too. I don't know, but the feeling I get with early kick offs in the Premier League is that there is lethargy all round, so it may take a while to get going. HT score 0-0 is 2.92, and I'm happy to take that.

Villa v City and I think a goal and a half would have tempted me for the home side, so I'll pass as the line is set at +1.

Fulham v Cardiff and I think this is a huge test for Fulham. Fulham have had the history behind them of being exactly what they say on the tin; they beat teams they are supposed to and lose to teams they are supposed to. However, there is pressure on them this year and the crowd are already getting on the managers back. There could be tension. Cardiff at +0.5 are 1.86 and it is tempting me. I think I'll leave it open to you, and I'll make a decision closer to kick off.

Big Sam normally gets his tactics spot on and will play the cards he's dealt against the bigger sides. Over 2.5 goals is 2.40 and I'm going to brave and back this. Both sides will have to target some games even this early in the season and this is one that West Ham will think they can win which may trigger a goal rush should any team concede early.

If you had given me closer to +2 for West Brom I'd have gone in, but I think I'll leave the United game alone.

I'm uncomfortable calling anything in the Southampton match, their odds are too low to back with confidence but alternatively on their day they may blow Palace away.

Swansea v Arsenal BTTS is the obvious shout here and the bookies have covered it. I'm tempted by the half with most goals though, the first may be a low scorer as Swansea, and even Arsenal, may look to play long periods of possession football. The second half may open up and so the half with most goals 2nd is looking decent at evens.

Suggestions
Tottenham v Chelsea. 0-0 HT, 2.92
Fulham v Cardiff. Cardiff +0.5, 1.86.
Hull v West Ham. Over 2.5 goals, 2.40.
Swansea v Arsenal. 2nd half most goals, 2.00.

Friday preview

Five suggestions tonight ranging from France to Spain to Germany. I'm going to watch Angers (1st) v Tours (3rd) and it should be a good game. I'm going for both teams to score in this at 1.79 as I feel both teams will pose each other problems. Even in defeat, and sometimes quite heavy, Tours can find the net so I'm hoping for the same here.

In another French encounter I'm going for Caen to beat Le Havre at evens. Caen's defence is leaky but I do think they can score a goal or two and at home perhaps the away side will be a little more defensive; Le Havre have a few good away draws recently and this could have been the way to go. But I just think the home side will force the issue tonight.

In Augsburg v Monchengladbach, I'm going for two suggestions. The first will be BTTS at 1.70 and the other Monchengladbach +0.25, 1.90. Monchengladbach have had a horror run away from home so I'm suggesting this based on my law of averages feelings on trends. It can't go on forever.

And in Valladolid v Malaga, I'm going for BTTS No at evens. Both can be cagey and I think this could one that fizzles out.

Andy Hornby Coral

Check out @fletcherr's Tweet: https://twitter.com/fletcherr/status/383493947726647299

Martina Hingis, her mother and mother’s boyfriend ‘beat up’ estranged husband

By Eurosport | Tramlines – 15 hours ago

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Former women's tennis world number one Martina Hingis has allegedly beat up her estranged husband with the help of her mum, according to several Swiss newspapers.
French showjumper Thibault Hutin claimed in July that he had walked in on Hingis to find her with another man after one year of marriage. He claims he took her back only to discover her cheating again.
In a bizarre twist, Hutin - who is waiting to divorce the Grand Slam champion - says he was sitting at home minding his own business when Hingis, her mother and her mother's boyfriend combined to launch an attack on him.
“On Monday evening, I was in our shared apartment when the doorbell rang. In the course of a dispute, Martina and her mother Melanie Molitor pounced on me - beating and scratching me. My upbringing forbids me to beat women," he told Blick.
"I resisted every effort but Mario Widmer, the partner of Melanie, struck me in the head with a DVD player. ”
Hutin says he had to call police to recover his credit card and passport from the trio. A police report apparently suggests it was a "violent incident" with Hutin claiming he had received threatening text messages.
He has since moved into a hotel with plans to return to Paris.
“The policemen went back to the apartment with me and forced the three to surrender my valuables," Hutin is quoted as saying.
“They wanted to kill me. I’m shocked! I never thought it would go so far."

Wednesday's betting preview

Laudrup wants to defend this

Carling Cup action tonight and there's a lot I'm unwilling to call. Swansea are away to Birmingham and are looking to begin their defence of the cup with victory at St.Andrew's. Laudrup is likely to name a strong squad I would imagine and the 1.83 looks good to me for a side bang in form.

The clash of the night is no doubt Man Utd and Liverpool, but there's too much uncertainty all round. United will want to show tumps more character after their slamming by City, whilst Liverpool are still licking their wounds after an impotent display at home. Suarez is back for the Anfield outfit, but I wouldn't want to call it.

I'm not sure I can back Arsenal outright, they are likely to have a mix and match side and I'm not sure Wenger takes these cups seriously full stop. But neither is it advisable to back West Brom so I'll give this a miss.

In Serie A, Milan have very likely been read the riot act. They play Bologna tonight and I think that this is a game that they need to win. I appreciate that Milan look out of sorts but it simply has to change around soon and they looked partially better against Napoli last time out, even though Balotelli was key to that. Milan are 2.04 and that's good enough for me even with some absentees.

Roma are 1.97 to win at Sampdoria tonight, and I think the home side have got some serious issues this season. Take Roma to win here.

The final game of interest tonight is Granada v Valencia, and I'm looking at Valencia on the -0.25 handicap at 2.05. Yes Valencia got turned over by Betis but I'm not sure many saw that one coming. Valencia bounced back with a 3-1 win against Sevilla and combined with the fact that Granada can't score this season, I think puts the odds in favour of an away win.

David Moyes drowning his sorrows after derby defeat

Check out @BBCSporf's Tweet: https://twitter.com/BBCSporf/status/381869922730508288

Saint Etienne v Toulouse, some tennis thoughts

Have they enough to back?

Did anyone see that Zulte-Wigan last night? How on Earth didn't Zulte at least win that one? It just highlights once again the perils of betting and why I am sticking to giving suggestions and analysis only. The stress and strains of day to day betting is just too much in this current climate, but I am still happy to share any thoughts/suggestions with you which you can do what you like with!

Saint Etienne's home record is, in the main, very good. Out of the last 20 home matches they have lost/drawn 8 times though a number of those have been in Europe/Cup matches. Toulouse away have won/drawn 12 matches from the last 20 games.The battle lines are drawn at 1.80, 3.25, 5.00.

If you look at where Toulouse have picked up points away from home from last season, they perfectly represented where they were in the pecking order. Finishing 10th, they had nine teams above them and they lost 7/9 games away from home. One draw was against Montpellier and the other...against Saint Etienne funnily enough.

Saint Etienne had a mixed bag against the top, which you'd expect, but were very good only losing one and drawing two against the bottom half teams whilst at home. Toulouse are -4 goals and Etienne +4 goals, although you could argue that Saint Etienne have had a generous start to the season fixture wise versing four of the sides ranked 15th or lower.

Interestingly, Toulouse have drawn two matches against some top sides; once against Marseille 1-1 and they managed to snuff out Monaco 0-0 away. That may have been the joker in the pack match though for the season trend as they have played two other league games away and lost to Bastia 2-1 and Valenciennes 3-0.

Another interesting stat is that last season Toulouse were masters of the unders. Away from home, almost 70% of their matches came in at under 2.5 goals. They will probably look to contain the home side for long periods. And furthermore to that, whether Toulouse played home or away, they had a high percentage of 0-0 draws at half time game state. At home they achieved goalless parity 9 times (47%) whilst away they achieved the same feat 8 times (42%). As an edge if you're adamant about backing the home team you could wait in-play for odds closer to evens.

A lot of time for this boy!

In the tennis, Meusburger v Zhang could be a coin flip. Zhang has the obvious home advantage that was so key in seeing Robson lose to Zheng yesterday, but Meusburger's hit a purple patch in form in her career, and it wouldn't surprise me if she wins here.

One match that interests me highly is Tursunov-Sousa. Sousa is a player that I like a lot and seems completely fearless at the moment. He's combative, spiky with no little talent. Sousa is +4.5 games at 1.80 with 365, which you could probably get better odds closer to the event with other bookies. This opens up a tump of possibilities including Sousa losing in straight sets 6-4 6-4. I believe that Sousa could take a set which would leave the handicap almost a foregone conclusion. 

Zulte Waregem v Wigan

The game that stands out for me tonight is this little fella. Zulte had a seven goal thriller on the weekend at Genk and before that another seven goaler in beating Anderlecht, so they are finding the net and conceding. Wigan need to start pulling their socks up and tonight they could be in for a long old night, but they can score against a side who like to enter into an end to end slug fest.

Over 2.5 goals is 2.06 and I like the look of it. Also it doesn't have to be said that I think Zulte will win too. Furthermore, if you're after value betting, then I cannot see what is wrong with Thorgan Hazard to score anytime at 4.3 (Betfair). The guy scores, he takes their penalties and everything will be engineered through him. I would personally have had him down for around 2.5-3.00, so this represents as big a value bet as you're likely to see.

Suggestions
Zulte win 2.80
Over 2.5 goals, 2.06.
Hazard to score 4.30

This is a story about athletes and breast reduction, focusing on Simona Halep (Ta to @danbrusca for highlighting this)

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/lifestyle/2013/09/young-women-undergoing-breast-reduction-for-competitive-sports/

Morning thoughts

Not much to get the juices flowing today I must admit. It's extremely difficult to gauge just how much these players are interested in both Metz and St.Petersburg, both events seem as shite as you can get. Seppi...well I can never touch this guy, too flaky and if you fancy Mahut then I wouldn't discourage you, it's all on the day with the Italian and whether he can, quite frankly, be arsed to give a match.

Simon is 1.40 which normally is nice. However, he's been in appalling form losing his last five consecutive matches including a retirement when he was losing to Pospisil last time out. Yes he's French, and like Mathieu, they have a penchant for giving up when the going is tough....no national history of quitting there then!

Stakhovsky-Sousa interests me. I've watched a hell of a lot of Sousa on the Challenger circuit and I like what I see. He is starting to feel at home with the big guns and he really could be one to watch in the next year or so. Obviously the scalp of note recently has been Dimitrov at the US, so yeah, he's got a fighting chance here today. Sousa on the +3.5 handicap is 1.90 and that looks half decent to be honest.

Gulbis is always fun to lay, and again it depends what side of the bed he got out of. Or indeed, if he's been paid a boat load of money to lose today. The other matches are underway in the ladies events, but I would have said Meusburger on some sort of handicap was the go to bet there, 4.00 against Cornet is too long and she's in great form. 

You should never touch Robson, her serve is just too big of a worry and when it goes wrong it goes wrong spectacularly. Zheng has a win recently against Venus, and whilst I know that isn't such a great deal anymore, it does show she is capable. Zheng at home too? If you want to oppose Robbo then Zheng on the +2.5 handicap is 1.83. 

RIP Ken Norton. A true great. A link to ESPN article and the full Holmes-Norton WBC Heavyweight Fight 1978

http://www.espn.co.uk/boxing/sport/story/239461.html

9th of June, 1978..............Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
WBC Heavyweight World Championship

Tonight's Champions League matches and QPR

Going from top to bottom then, I haven't been impressed with either Milan or Celtic so far in game 1. Milan are 1.45 which is possibly a little on the short side if they have as many injuries as purported to be. Atletico are playing some nice stuff this season and should see off Zenit but again you couldn't be tempted into it. Austria-Porto pass; you'd fancy Porto on the win but I haven't seen enough of Vienna to justify anything with any certainty. Barce v Ajax should be a very good game. Barcelona are quite obviously heavy favourites but Ajax have been stringing together some nice performances, but it will need a huge defensive ask to keep the Spanish giants out for long periods.

Chelsea-Basel and it's a home sider all the way, although 1.36 gives you nothing. Marseille v Arsenal does interest me. Personally, and although Arsenal are playing well, French sides can have the ability to frustrate and I wouldn't be surprised if this ends in a draw. Marseille haven't won a league game in two mind so they're not exactly flushed with over-confidence. Napoli-Dortmund could be anything depending on the mentalities of the two coaches I guess. Benitez would be looking for a tight controlled game you'd guess and Dortmund may even be happy playing into the hands of this, away from home. Draw maybe? Could very well be.

A lot of people are laying Schalke tonight, and against PAOK you could certainly accrue the evidence to suggest that they may be right. However, people may be forgetting that they did beat PAOK and although they were all over the shop in that match, they went on to beat Leverkusen 2-0 and Mainz 1-0. Two clean sheets in two games from a purported shite defence? It's not bad. Steaua haven't lost a match in FIFTEEN games, but I'm not quite sure what that tells you as you're talking the Romanian league and friendlies primarily.

My suggestion tonight would be a QPR win against Brighton. 2.05 here (may be higher/lower now depending) and I can't see any reason not to back them.

Swansea v Liverpool

Could be zzzzoring

Okay, this game could be a turgid piece of shit but I wouldn't really have the confidence to back anything with a great deal of certainty. It's going to be kind of like Brendan Rodgers v Brendan Rodgers with both sides looking to pass the ball as aimlessly as possible. I wouldn't be surprised if both teams had 80% possession!

On the face of it, under 2.5 looks the shout. Swansea like to play an ultra possession game, but with the introduction of Shelvey into their side they do possess the ability now to be more direct. However, the emphasis is still more or less on slow build up and a safety first mentality. Whilst Liverpool are undefeated they have their points tally mainly due to their excellent defensive work. Liverpool are sort of playing a Jose game these days snatching an early goal, then clinging on for dear life defending it.

The biggest threat to the unders market then would be a Swansea early goal which may trigger a goal fest. Ultimately, I would think both managers would be content with a point and the draw at 3.45 may be another angle you may want to consider. I can't see Liverpool losing this I have to be honest, but obviously a £20 lay at 3.5 would be exposing yourself to a £50 loss.

Jonjo Shelvey is 3.5 to be booked and I like these odds. The man's an idiot and together with what could be frantic midfield action and the fact that he's facing the Reds I reckon this has a nice chance of landing.

Recommendations
Under 2.5 goals, 1.82.
Jonjo Shelvey to be booked anytime, 3.50.

Morning thoughts

Huge pressure on Jol

Some strange results yesterday with Udinese getting a draw from behind against Bologna at their fortress and Sampdoria getting hammered by Genoa at home 0-3. Then in the evening Spanish kick off Betis overturned some recent poor form by thrashing visitors Valencia 3-1. Salzburg were again there for the taking on the overs winning 0-5, and so to was a major opening when Standard Liege went down 1-0 to Oostende only to come back and win 2-4. The lay opportunity for 2.64 would have been jumped all over by the pro bettors I reckon.

Super Sunday wasn't quite as Super though, the two televised games managed zero goals as Reading-Brighton and Southampton-West Ham both drew 0-0, the latter I would have backed on the West Ham +0.5AH. The Bears managed a 1 point win which would have seen a -5.5 points handicap loss if you had punted from kick off on them.

In the Saturday rugby union matches New Zealand covered their -6.5 point handicap comfortably enough but there was lots of controversy surrounding that particular match as the IRB later deemed that a South African player should not have been yellow carded for a tackle. There was also a sending off for the Africans in a game littered with niggling encounters. NZ ran out 29-15 winners in the end whilst I was surprised that the Argentinians pushed the Aussies so near testing them 14-13 in Australia. 

And just to highlight the plight of Fulham for a second; many thought they would canter it against West Brom, but I disagreed. The boo boys are already out and this could be the start of a decline. I think they are in real trouble. West Brom on the handicap looked a right bargain and so it proved. 

Joe Hart struggling

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2416575/Joe-Hart-struggling-England-No-1-goalkeeper.html?ico=sport^mostread

http://eplindex.com/39416/joe-hart-time-dropped-error-save-stats.html

Morning thoughts

Woeful display from the Flipper

Kirsten Flipkens was a major casualty in Quebec yesterday, getting hammered by Hercog (who is in some good form lately) 6-3 6-1 which highlighted once again that a lot of women on the tour when they are going through some mental issues just collapse and fold like a pack of cards. Her movement was minimal and it did beg the question 'what the hell was she doing there'?

Ukraine-England bored the pants off everyone and England backers would have been left disappointed at the bet loss. Scotland had a good win in Macedonia and them on the handicap would have been a great shout, something I later regretted not getting on. The one I did get on though was Cyprus v Slovenia, with Slovenia being backed at 2.06 coming through 2-0.

France ended their five games without a goal by scoring four against Belarus, winning 4-2. I have been stung by France plenty in the past so there was little hope of a repeat backing here, so I was happy to avoid altogether.

Uruguay beat Colombia to keep their hopes firmly alive in the qualification group 2-0.

Looking through today and there is no football bet that stands out. There may be some nice tennis in-play opportunities though which I'll no doubt Tweet throughout the day.

Williams again puts the doubters in their boxes with another Slam

Williams is way too good for the rest

Serena Williams firmly put the haters back in their little boxes last night with a convincing three set victory over Victoria Azarenka. Yes Azarenka tried and yes it wasn't quite the cake-walk that I had predicted, but in the end a crushing 6-1 in the final set showed just how effective Serena can be when the eight ball is starting to cover her. The truth of the matter is, which the so called 'experts' (especially of Twitterland) will fail to grasp, is that Serena Williams is by far better than anyone else in the field; even Victoria Azarenka. This is a crushing decisive statement but it highlights just how lop-sided the women's game has become.

After the match we had the usual trotting out of lines such as 'How good is this women's game?' etc, but most people have failed to understand that what was meant to be, was.....in that when Serena decides that she wants to win, she will win. It is that simple. It doesn't matter which game players like Azarenka bring to the table, when it hits the fan, Williams has two or three gears which the other players can only dream of finding. Forget Cincinnati as tipsters/punters/experts would remind us for the millionth time, this is Grand Slam terrain, and what Williams has is an entire arsenal of experience to win the match when the going gets tough.

Williams in Cincinnati could barely be bothered and she still reached the final. I felt there were several issues with her that week, mostly it seemed mental ones. Not that she doubted her game, but just cloudy thinking whatever was going in between the ears. The worst thing Azarenka could have done was beat her there, Serena would have been far more vulnerable winning that and lowering her guard. Williams even said herself that the Cincinnati loss was the injection of energy she needed and to remind her that success has to be worked at and that the feeling of losing is a nasty one.

Serena's problem most of the time is that of sheer boredom and disappointment that she barely gets a game anymore. She has a nasty habit these days of winning the first set and then totally taking her foot off the pedal. But then again who can blame her as she leaves a trail of carnage over most opponents even those ranked around her. For her these days, with all the wins and the money, it's more about the match itself in the Grand Slams, than anything else. What she needs to get her to the highest level is a match and to be matched. It's only when this happens does Serena take it the level that the other women just cannot even dream to get close to.

What you'll have trumpeted over the next few days is a plethora of pundits and column inches dedicated to how well the other girl did. Well that's just fine, but don't kid yourself that the race is getting closer. It is not and Boris Becker alluded to as much. Matches are decided purely from the racquet of Williams and nobody else.

Hats off to England as other bankers crash and burn. Williams-Azarenka final.

England came home...wow!

Normally England come in for some wrath from myself, but last night they covered the handicap against Moldova to land a lot of punters some nice winnings. Meanwhile there were some big coupon busters out there and the joke display of the night goes to the arrogant and fragmented Dutch who seem to have a wealth of personal issues and egos getting in the way of their excellent 11 on the pitch.

They drew 2-2 with Estonia, with the Dutch being priced at 1.18. Up and down the land you'd have heard shouted phrases 'shit list' and 'bottlers'. It seems that yesterday's bankers are today's shaky ones. France also continued their complete lethargy and you just cannot back them in my view. They are so unpredictable and just so French. 90 minutes of inactivity at Georgia saw the hosts claim a point off them, who knows what was wrong with the French; time of the month, egos....time of the month egos.....! But they are just all over the place and very unprofessional when it comes to seeing off the smaller teams.

Bosnia also suffered a setback losing 0-1 to Slovakia whilst the game of the night was probably Northern Ireland v Potugal, with the away side 2-1 down and a man down, before the sending off count was leveled, then the score, then the win finally ground out.A shout out to Russia U21s too who came from behind to beat Slovenia in a very good game to watch.

Williams blitzed Na Li in what was embarrassing for the sport and not even a better latter part of the second set could hide that Williams is far superior to anything else on the tour. Azarenka easily beat Pennetta and one can only assume that Simona Halep was being sick somewhere watching her destroyer get destroyed.

Stan 'The Man' Wawrinka. Belgium U21s.

One of the best performances of 2013

Stan 'The Man' Wawrinka crushed Andy Murray yesterday to move a step closer to a Flushing Meadows final. Many would have plumped for the Scot but personally the +5.5 games handicap for Wawrinka was just too good to turn down. In truth, this was as stable a bet as any with the Scot not looking quite himself even with convincing wins over his lesser opponents. Wawrinka though is being rejuvenated, and partly I believe this is down to the Fed decline.

Wawrinka is undoubtedly now Switzerland's number one player, and at times yesterday you could have closed your eyes and thought it was the Djoker or Nadal. The crispness of his hitting was absolutely sublime and whilst Murray wasn't at his best, even at his peak he would have struggled against the assault laid on by Wawrinka. It was a straights victory and the next phase of the US Open looks really appetizing.

The second performance of the day goes to Belgium U21s, who overturned a 1-0 half time deficit to record a 1-3 victory against Italy U21s; an excellent turnaround. 

Wayne Rooney's head injury worse than first expected!

Managed to obtain an exclusive photo of Wayne Rooney's recovery, head injury is worse than originally thought... pic.twitter.com/JiFAQsbSz0
— Joe Konopka (@Josepi) September 5, 2013

Federer out and still bitterness surrounding Simona Halep's exit

Robredo schools Fed last night

Well the warning lights were well and truly on for Roger Federer even before his match against Robredo last night and he didn't fail to deliver. Robredo played some excellent tennis on his way to an unbelievable straight sets victory against the arrogant Swiss maestro, but now it seems that it's Roger who has a ton of questions to answer about his future. The wheels have been just about kept on in recent months, but could this be one serious blow that Fed will not be able to bounce back from?

When star players lose their tag of invincibility the other players step up to the plate, and it seemed that Robredo was fully aware that he wasn't playing a superman at the other side of the net last night. People are now queuing up to take Roger on with the stats backing this angle up that Fed has lost something out of his game this last year.

Simona Halep was the biggest disappointment from yesterday. Not so much in her own performance as she always tends to start slowly, but more so in the way that she exited. Pennetta played some very good tennis first set, and she thoroughly deserved that there is no doubt. But Simona came back strong in the second and took the momentum fully, before the rain came at a crucial time, just as she was serving for the set. When they came back from rain hours later, Halep was true to form and was again slow out of the blocks of which Pennetta took advantage. In truth, it was one of the saddest muggings you're ever likely to see. Halep was obviously in the ascendency and barring an act of God (which happened), would have won the match convincingly in a decider against a quickly tiring Pennetta.

You could argue that Halep was a little unsportsmanlike after the match storming off, but to be honest if I was in her shoes I'd be absolutely gutted that she was robbed so badly. From a betting angle, just how do you factor that into the equation. Just another obstacle punters have to face on a daily basis it seems.