Portsmouth are again fantastic value in the Barlay's Premiership

Portsmouth is once again the team possessing all the talent, but seemingly not trusted by the punters in a recurring theme. They take on the relegation bound Birmingham City at St Andrews, who is without a manager Steve Bruce after he left for Wigan Athletic

Portsmouth is taking on all challengers home and away this year, and was only denied last week at home by a fine display of goalkeeping from Joe Hart. They have great attacking talent, led by Niko Kranjcar and Benjani Mwaruwari. Kranjcar scored a goal to sink England's Euro chances last Tuesday night and early Golden Boot leader Benjani Mwaruwari has seemingly beaten opponents and goalkeepers with ease. He is repaying the faith shown in him by influential coach Harry Redknapp. The attacking threat posed by the aforementioned players has buried many teams this season. The defence has also been steady, with only 13 goals conceded so far.

Manager-less, and only a win away from being in the relegation zone, Birmingham's hopes for this year are fading fast. Their knight in shining armor may not be that far away, with Chinese businessman Carson Yeung wanting to control the club. If this happens Birmingham's stocks may rise, but as they stand, Birmingham has little star quality on the park. Enigmatic Frenchman Oliver Kapo, who has scored 5 times is the clubs leading EPL marksman, is one shining light for the club.

Portsmouth are far too talented to let a team like Birmingham to control a period of the match for long enough to score a goal. They are the best value of the round with odds of $2.35 available at Sportsbet Australia.

Perhaps not the most highly-promoted of all clashes, but a match I am looking forward to, is the underrated Fulham taking on Mark Hughes' Blackburn Rovers at home.

Fulham had reason to celebrate earlier this week when David Healy broke Davor Sukars record of 12 goals in Euro qualifying matches. The record was broken when he slotted home against Denmark to bring his tally to 14 and winning Northern Ireland a spot in Euro 2008. Unfortunately for the Fulham faithful, he hasn't set the same tone in the EPL, sharing top spot on his clubs sheet with Clint Dempsey who has scored four. If these two get going, along with the mercurial Henri Kamara and the workhorse Simon Davies, Fulham can provide enough of a threat to score goals on anyone.

Blackburn manager Mark Hughes, after being named manager of the month, looks set to sign a rolling 12 month contract similar to Alex Ferguson's. His charges will want to celebrate with a win over the dangerous Fulham. Benji McCarthy and Roque Santa Cruz have formed a dynamic partnership this campaign, combining for 9 goals in the EPL alone, and 14 overall in all competitions, and if these two can get going, then goals will be the order of the day.

I think Blackburn will triumph. Their form of late is irresistible and their manager is making waves across Europe, even being linked to the England job. I would take the $2.50 available at Sportsbet Australia.

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