Restricted Choice

Pardon, am still in celebratory mood after this fantastic Meydan Thursday meeting. Besides the disappointment of Bold Silvano, every selection was bang on. The calls on Mendip, Spring of Fame (both available at double figures), Kinglet, Mutahadee were as good as expected, while Dubai Prince, Mr Brock and Dark Matter proved rewarding lays as well. The analysis of Meydan form is working wonders since the start of the Carnival and may it continue!

It's also been an eventful last couple of days in football where Capello resigned as England manager at the same time that Harry Redknapp was found non-guilty of his tax evasion charges. Talk about timing. No doubt that Redknapp is the best man for the job. If not him, give it to Martin O'Neill. I would take either one of them. O'Neill is not English, so what? If tomorrow Mourinho expressed interest in the job, all those voicing on the rooftops that "the manager has to be English", would welcome the Portuguese in a flash. Would they rather have Stuart Pearce who's accomplished nothing but who's English? Come on, the manager has to be "preferably" English, but if not, as long as he's been part of English football and understands the players he's working with and he speaks English well (no loss in translation), he should be considered. Stuart Pearce at 6/1 to become England permanent manager, makes me laugh. Well, what has he accomplished? If Mc Laren was a total disaster, then the FA can ponder what kind of failure appointing Pearce would be.

Ok, here's my selections for this week-end's football; Man Utd take on Liverpool, a rivalry which has somewhat lost its lustre for the past years because of the diverging fortunes of both teams. Man Utd have been tops for the past decades, Liverpool have been perennial disappointments year after year. The Red Devils are again gunning for the title, Liverpool are fighting for a 4th place finish. Rooney and Chicharito look to be back in form and I see Man Utd either winning or drawing this. A draw-no-bet on them looks safe, even if Johnny Evans looks set to start.

Newcastle have been admirable this year but they are in for a tough match at Tottenham. Having Harry Redknapp back (at least for the moment until he signs for England), and more importantly worry-free of off-field problems, should boost the players. It's essentially a must-win for them if they are to keep pace with the Manchester teams at the top. I recommend Tottenham as a draw-no-bet as well.

In Spain, Barcelona travel to Osasuna and must go get the 3 points there to realistically have any chance to retain the title this year. I don't think it's a certain deal they will win, but I cannot see them losing either, so I  go draw-no-bet on the Blaugrana. Real Madrid play Levante at the Bernabeu and they should get maximum points from this game. They are a Win.

I also see a Win for Bayern against Kaiserslautern in the Bundesliga.

My value punt of the week-end is in racing Stateside where the Group 1 Donn Handicap will be run at Gulfstream Park. The main pretenders are last year's Preakness winner Shackleford and Belmont's winner Ruler on Ice. Word from Shackleford's camp is that the colt is in great form, and definitely the distance will suit. I cannot see him out of the first 3 in this race, so Shackleford looks a safe Place bet.


Win: Real Madrid, Bayern Munich

Draw-no-bet: Man Utd, Tottenham, Barcelona

Place: Shackleford

Meydan Week 6

Godolphin are out in full force in Week 6 of the Carnival and it will not be surprising if they win the bulk of the races. Some leading contenders for the Dubai World Cup will be in action, so the Thursday meeting is going be give some good indication of their progress towards World Cup night.

Race 1 is for Arabian pure-breds and I must admit I know nothing about them except that they are much more difficult to train than thorougbreds!

Race 2, 1m3f Handicap. Indications are that this race will go to Godolphin, unless Jamr decides otherwise. The Blue team have leading duo Holberg and Spring of Fame to count on and I think the winner will come out of these 2. Holberg has serious form from last year and is coming back after a year layoff. He might need the run. Spring of Fame came a good second to Prince Bishop about 3 weeks ago, and should improve on that run. My preference goes to Spring of Fame as a Place. Mr Brock always gives a good account of himself but the age and distance will play against him. Should be at good odds to be laid against for layers.

Race 3, 2000 Guineas. An open contest which should go to either a Godolphin colt or Mike de Kock's Mickdaam. Let me say here that Dark Matter from Singapore is possibly the best horse in the race and has beaten many of the same opponents before. However, he has run an extra race since he beat all these and is bound to lack some freshness as a result. He's a current lay at his current odds of 4/1. Of the Godolphin representatives, I like Kinglet the most and the way he finished his last race means that the distance will suit him perfectly. I recommend him as an each-way.

Race 4, 1m4f Handicap. This is quite an open contest and I will be interested to follow Irish Flame, who was one of last year's main disappointments from the de Kock stable. Word is that he's in much better shape now than last year, but he'll have to show it on the track first. If he's fit and at his best, he should be in the first 3, but that's not certain. Too open to call.

Race 5, 1m Group 3. Bold Silvano makes his comeback in this mile race. He's bound not to be 100% for this race after coming from such a layoff and with his main aim being World Cup night. Still, if he's serious about the World Cup, he has to show he's still got ability against some useful sorts in that race. My recommendation is an each-way on him.

Race 6, 1m1f Group 2. The main race of the card and one main prep for the DWC. This is going to be a hot contest and it won't escape the grasp of either de Kock or Godolphin again. Dubai Prince is without doubt top-notch but there are many questions regarding him. He's a lightly-raced colt that has been beset with injuries. His odds look way too short. I think Mendip and Master of Hounds will run well. They have the benefit of a run a month ago and will have the necessary improvement in them. Prince Bishop has been impressive in his win 3 weeks ago and could be involved in the placings. My selection would be a Win couple on Master of Hounds and Mendip, and that should provide cover if one of them wins.

Race 7, 1m1f Handicap. Mutahadee was impressive on his last win and should at least be in the placings. I have him as a Place.

Win: Master of Hounds/Mendip

Place: Spring of Fame, Mutahadee

Each-way: Kinglet, Bold Silvano.

Week-end football

Don't want to be blowing the trumpet too loud, but Thursday's results at Meydan gave way to massive cheers all afternoon. Musir won and easily beat Mendip in the match-bet. Master of Hounds was second at odds of 7/1 for Place at the exchanges. Fantastic to hear that several of you followed the selections; hopefully the current vein of form continues going into this week-end.

It's another round of football on the European scene; in England, Man Utd welcome Bolton and it's hard to argue the hosts at the Theatre of Dreams, even though they can throw the odd clanker like against Blackburn a few weeks back. Their injury list seems to be easing and Rooney looks to be back on form. Bolton are a disappointing bunch and manager Owen Coyle is on the hot seat at the moment. Man Utd certainly won't lose this game, and are a draw-no-bet recommendation.

There is no doubt that Man City is feeling the pressure. They have lost another home game in mid-week, in the Carling Cup to Liverpool. They have lost their captain Kompany for 4 games. They will still have too much class when they visit struggling Wigan on Monday. It is the perfect game for them to get their confidence back. Man City is recommended as a draw-no-bet as well.

In La Liga, Barcelona welcome Real Betis in what is a must-win game if they are to keep pace with a flee-ing Real Madrid. The hosts should win this game and are an easy Win selection. Real Madrid face a more difficult encounter when they visit Mallorca. I think Mourinho will have his players spot on for getting the 3 points and I expect them to win this match. They are also recommended as a straight Win.

Third-place Valencia host struggling side Real Sociedad and the hosts have to be very well-fancied here. Both teams lost in mid-week in the Copa del Rey, with Sociedad getting thrashed 6-1 at Mallorca. The visitors are in a precarious situation, being only 2 points above the relegation zone and I expect Valencia to deepen their woes further on Saturday. A draw-no-bet on Valencia looks safe.

In Italy, the competition is heating up at the top of the table with at least 5 clubs within an 8-point gap. There is no clear dominant team in the Serie A. Juventus will look for maximum points as they host Cagliari and I expect them to get at least a draw. So they are advised as a draw-no-bet. Same for Fiorentina as they host bottom-of-table Lecce. The hosts have solid form at home and should recover from their 3-0 drubbing at Roma in the Coppa Italia in mid-week.


Win: Barcelona, Real Madrid

Draw-no-bet: Man Utd, Man City, Valenci, Juventus, Fiorentina

Meydan Week 2

It's the second week of the Carnival at Meydan and as expected the Thursday card looks very competitive. No question that the attraction of the night is the Group 3 Maktoum Challenge race which features possible starters for the Dubai World Cup; i.e., much of it will depend on how they fare in this race first.

My pick in this race is Musir; it's simple, if he's top fit and near his best, he will win the race.He's coming off a 130-day break, so he's bound to be ring-rusty, but he's done very well coming back from a layoff before. There are 3 horses that could potentially outsmart Mike de Kock's colt; Master of Hounds, the stable's second-string which is bound to have a new lease of life under the South African trainer, having joined from the Ballydoyle camp. I've written many times how horse careers get transformed when they go through that transition and Master of Hounds looks up to great things under the care of de Kock. I have a feeling the trainer will use this race to gauge MOH's actual abilities, with a potential tilt at the DWC race itself should he show enough class.

Xin Xu Lin is being touted by Godolphin this year and it will not surprise me if he makes the frame.This is a high-class South American champion that was rushed to race in Meydan last year, and seems in much better condition to race this year. Al Zarooni looks bullish on his prospects and that usually means that the horse is expected to deliver. He can be a top contender if the others are not fully wound-up.

Finally, Mendip has serious form on the Meydan race-track. I have reservations about him since he was well beaten by Musir before and I find it hard to see him reversing the roles. His near-300 day layoff in such a competitive race looks to put him at a disadvantage as well. His No 1 stall should have him well placed in the race as long as he does not get caught on the rails.

My recommendation is a Place on Musir. Coming from stall No 4 should put him in good stalking position. If his form shines through, he should be right at the finish.

For anyone wanting a match-bet punt, I would go for Musir over Mendip. I also believe either Xin Xu Lin or Master of Hounds (or both) will be in the first 3, so a couple Place on both could be rewarding as well.


Place: Musir