Premier League preview

Arsenal and Manchester City take centre stage on Wednesday, while Chelsea look to break out of their ongoing slump.

Tottenham are also in midweek action, keen to keep their title push on track, and West Ham and Wigan will be looking to clamber out of the drop zone.

Arsenal can reclaim second spot with victory over Manchester City, but the Blues have won three on the bounce and currently pose the closest challenge to their arch-rivals Manchester United at the top of the table. There will be all to play for at Emirates Stadium and you can catch all the action live on Sky Sports 2, HD2 and in Sky 3D.

Tottenham have taken advantage of Chelsea’s recent troubles to move into fourth spot and they will be determined to cling on to that lofty standing. Harry Redknapp’s men, who are still being strongly linked with a loan swoop for David Beckham, go to Goodison Park to take on an Everton side that continues to toil towards the wrong end of the table.

Chelsea have taken only one win from their last eight top flight fixtures and have tumbled nine points off the pace in the title race. Carlo Ancelotti needs to turn things around quickly if he is to avoid Roman Abramovich’s axe, and three points on their latest outing are a must. Wolves will be no pushovers at Molineux, though, despite hitting rock-bottom once again on New Year’s Day.
Trouble

Five defeats in seven have seen Aston Villa slip to within a point of the relegation zone and, should results go against them, they are likely to find themselves inside the bottom three come Wednesday evening should Gerard Houllier fail to find a solution. The one positive for the struggling Villans ahead of the latest round of fixtures is that Sunderland, their midweek opponents, have won just once on the road this season.

Any wobble from Villa and West Ham will be waiting to pounce, having fallen back into the bottom three following a temporary New Year reprieve. The Hammers, who propped up the division at Christmas, are unbeaten in four, easing the pressure on boss Avram Grant. Newcastle will have ambitions of ending that run, though, with Alan Pardew’s side keen to cement their top half standing.

There was welcome relief for Roy Hodgson on Saturday as Liverpool edged out Bolton, but he needs more days like that if he is to win over a sceptical fan base and see out the season. A trip to Ewood Park could be just what the doctor ordered, with Blackburn having won only one of their last five and become embroiled in fanciful transfer speculation that continues to link them with the likes of Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho.

The final game in a busy midweek programme sees Bolton and Wigan lock horns in a North West derby. The Trotters have seen their European ambitions dented by back-to-back defeats, but they remain handily placed in seventh spot. In contrast, the Latics sit second from bottom after picking up only one win in seven and need to get their act together if they are to steer clear of trouble.