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Terry facing fight for form as Chelsea host Bridge battle

John Terry has suffered a dip in form © Getty Images

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John Terry and Wayne Bridge come face-to-face this weekend as football throws up one of those timely quirks of fate at Stamford Bridge.

Just two days after Bridge made himself unavailable for England duty, due to Terry's alleged off-the-field involvement with the mother of Bridge's child, the pair now stand opposite one another as Chelsea welcome Manchester City to west London. The Bridge/Terry duel will undoubtedly take centre stage, but the Chelsea skipper arguably has more important things to deal with. Terry hardly covered himself in glory during the recent 2-0 win at Wolves, and he was again off colour as Diego Milito skipped by him for Inter Milan's first goal at the Giuseppe Meazza on Wednesday.

Saturday's fixture has barely ever been more significant either. Chelsea must win to re-establish their four-point lead in the Premier League title race over Manchester United, who contest Sunday's Carling Cup final with Aston Villa, while City cannot afford to lose ground in the race for the final Champions League spot.

Chelsea v Manchester City
Chelsea are unbeaten in 11 games in the league, but Carlo Ancelotti must continue to contend with injury problems as Yuri Zhirkov and Ashley Cole remain absent at left back. Florent Malouda coped admirably at the back against Inter, so he may continue with either Salomon Kalou or Joe Cole filling in further forward. Petr Cech begins a one-month absence due to a calf injury, so Hilario will be expected to cover between the sticks for a game in which Carlos Tevez returns to City. The Argentinean forward will likely be a direct replacement for Emmanuel Adebayor, who starts a four-game ban.

Stoke v Arsenal
Arsenal remain right in this title hunt after they closed the gap on Manchester United last week, and news of a £35 million annual profit only serves to prove the Gunners are one of the best-run clubs in England. Arsene Wenger would love a Premier League trophy to hammer home that point, but that dream will be all but over unless he can win on his bogey ground at Stoke, where Arsenal were knocked out of the FA Cup earlier in the season. Tony Pulis' men extended their unbeaten run to seven games by defeating Manchester City, during which Ryan Shawcross served warning to the Gunners with a headed goal from a Rory Delap throw - a tactic likely to be employed heavily come Saturday.

Burnley v Portsmouth
The true essence of Portsmouth Football Club will be seen this weekend as, following Friday's fall into administration, thousands of Pompey fans travel the length of the country to support their team at Burnley. Portsmouth will start the game 16 points adrift of Burnley due to a nine-point penalty, but that may actually lift the pressure on the players as relegation seems inevitable. Brian Laws' Burnley side are certainly under the spotlight, having lost six of their last seven games, and nothing less than victory will suffice at Turf Moor.

Bolton v Wolves
Owen Coyle built a superb reputation for good football at Burnley, but that currently counts for nothing as he leads Bolton towards relegation from the Premier League. Bolton's spirited draw at home to Tottenham in the FA Cup only served to hide five games without a win in the league, but Wednesday's 4-0 drubbing in the replay at White Hart Lane now leaves Coyle with no protection as his team reside in the bottom three. Wolves are a point ahead of the Trotters, and they have an unpredictable record in this season's relegation battles, beating Bolton at Molineux and drawing away at Hull, only to lose at home to Wigan.

Birmingham v Wigan
Wigan need to arrest an alarming slump in form as they visit Birmingham, who are surely already safe as they sit 10th on 37 points - 14 above the drop zone. Wigan have not won in six matches, leaving them just two points clear of 18th-placed Bolton. The Latics need Hugo Rodallega to rediscover the early season form that saw him score five goals in 10 league outings. Rodallega has only managed two in 16 since that spell.

Everton players were dejected after defeat to Sporting © Getty Images

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SUNDAY

Tottenham v Everton - LIVE ON ESPN
Tottenham begin the weekend in fourth and that is where they will intend to finish it, despite the outbreak of a virus at the club. Harry Redknapp closed down Spurs' training ground on Friday and relocated his press conference, although he would not mention the names of players who may miss out against Everton. Roman Pavlyuchenko is pushing to start after scoring four in his last two, although it is Jermain Defoe who has a point to prove after missing a late penalty in the 2-2 draw at Goodison Park earlier in the season. David Moyes must lift his troops following Thursday's Europa League exit at Sporting, but he can at least be buoyed by the return of Phil Jagielka, who is once again expected to be on the bench at White Hart Lane.

Liverpool v Blackburn
Liverpool will be waiting to pounce on any slip-ups by Manchester City and Tottenham, although they will have to shore up their own defence if they are to overcome Blackburn. The Reds' defending of set-pieces in Romania against Unirea Urziceni will have had Sam Allardyce licking his lips as Chris Samba and co arrive on Merseyside. Dirk Kuyt will return to Liverpool's starting line-up after being rested in midweek, and he may be given the striking role as Fernando Torres continues his return with cameos off the bench. Both sides are on good runs, with Liverpool suffering just one defeat in nine, while Rovers have won their last two.

Sunderland v Fulham
There has to be a time when a manager sinks or swims, and that time is upon Steve Bruce at Sunderland. Winless in 13 games, the Black Cats hover three points above the relegation zone despite spending relatively more than the majority of clubs around them. In-form Fulham have not lost in their last four games, but they could be the perfect fodder for Sunderland after returning from a mammoth European effort at Shakhtar Donetsk, which may have cost the Cottagers the services of top scorer Bobby Zamora due to an ankle injury.

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