Premier League Picks - 21 October 2011

Rob Alexander finds two bets from the weekend's Premier League action.

The Manchester derby takes centre stage this weekend as United host City in one of the biggest Premier League matches of the season so far. Sir Alex Ferguson's side have the chance to go top of the table with victory but the current league leaders will not give up their position without a fight in what promises to be a fierce encounter. Chelsea will be hoping for a draw in the Manchester derby so they can close the gap even further with a win over Queen's Park Rangers at Loftus Road.

There aren't many other stand-out matches this weekend, apart from the potentially key match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Swansea City. Wolves need to get some are on a poor run of form, having lost five in a row in the Premier League and will have to improve their home form especially if they are to avoid a relegation battle at the end of the season. Swansea City meanwhile, are yet to claim a point away from home this season and that form is of concern to manager Brendan Rogers as he bids to keep the Welsh side in the Premier League.

The Premier League card is split evenly between Saturday and Sunday this weekend, which hopefully means I can find a good pick from each day's fixtures. Currently sitting on a 7 point loss for all picks so far this season I need to find some solid profit this weekend.

Saturday Pick

Bolton Wanderers v Sunderland

Two sides at the wrong end of the table do battle on Saturday afternoon in a match that could well turn both sides season's around. Bolton will be encouraged after a 3-1 away win at Wigan saw them climb off the foot of the table, while Sunderland performed admirably at Arsenal last Sunday and will be disappointed not to have taken something from the match.

Bolton and Sunderland are two sides with ambitions to make the top half of the table and to be found languishing around the relegation zone is embarrassing for them both. Owen Coyle's side have had a really tough start to the season and will need to get their home form up to scratch before they can be considered top 10 contenders. Sunderland need points on the board as well and will be confident of claiming at least a point at the Reebok.

I'm backing Sunderland to build on their excellent performance away at Arsenal by actually taking something from this match. Bolton are still fragile and although a win over Wigan did something to alleviate their problems it was a derby match where form tends to go out the window.

Bet 2 points on Sunderland 0 at 2.5 with Paddy Power.

Sunday Pick

Fulham v Everton

After a reasonable start to the season, Everton have lost three on the bounce in the Premier League in their matches against Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea and will be determined to get back to winning ways against Martin Jol's struggling Fulham side.

Fulham's 6-0 hammering of QPR in their last match at Craven Cottage will be a distant memory after the 2-0 defeat at Stoke and the midweek defeat in Poland to Wisla Krakow. Their home form is improving though, with confidence found after last month's 2-2 draw against Manchester City where Fulham came back from 2-0 down.

The result's between these two sides at Craven Cottage have been pretty even over the last few season's, a draw last season and a win for each side in the previous two. In this match I fancy Everton to derail Fulham's home form as they will be much fitter and fresher than the Londoners after Fulham's tough away Europa League trip.

Bet 1 point on Everton -0.25 at 2.6 with bet365