England boss Fabio Capello announced his 30-member squad for the World Cup to played in South Africa next month. As always, there were a few surprising call-ups and a few glaring omissions.

Capello has coaxed Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher out of retirement to feature in the 30 man shortlist. Also making the list is Manchester City’s young winger Adam Johnson. Aston Villa’s young duo of Ashley Young and Gabriel Abganlahor have missed the bus but James Milner and Steven Warnock find a place in Capello’s scheme of things. Also, there is no place for Carlton Cole or Bobby Zamora who have performed admirably for their respective clubs over the past season.

The 30 member preliminary squad is as follows -

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, David James, Robert Green.

Defenders: Leighton Baines, Jamie Carragher, Ashley Cole, Michael Dawson, Rio Ferdinand, Glen Johnson, Ledley King, John Terry, Matthew Upson, Stephen Warnock.

Midfielders: Gareth Barry, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole, Steven Gerrard, Tom Huddlestone, Adam Johnson, Frank Lampard, Aaron Lennon, James Milner, Scott Parker, Theo Walcott, Shaun Wright-Phillips.

Forwards: Darren Bent, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Emile Heskey, Wayne Rooney.

England have a fairly strong set of players to choose from. If you are a betting person, there is money to be made over the next month. Check out if the world cup betting odds catch your fancy – there just might be a fortune in the offing !

The race for the fourth spot in the Premier League reaches another checkpoint this Saturday as both Tottenham and Manchester City play away at Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium respectively.

Spurs who secured a vital win against Chelsea last week kick-off Saturday’s proceedings against Manchester United who are one point behind leaders Chelsea. Manchester City play later against Arsenal who will most likely finish the season in third spot.

Spurs have a definite advantage with four games to go in the season. They are two points ahead of City and have a superior goal difference to Mancini’s side. Unless Spurs create a cushion for themselves for the fourth spot, the showdown between the two Champions League challengers on the 5th of May at the City of Manchester Stadium could prove to be the decider. City have to play Villa, Tottenham and West Ham after their game against Arsenal while Spurs have a relatively easy run-in against Bolton, City and Burnley.

If you are a betting person, there is decent money to made on this race for the final Champions League place with free sports betting. Compare odds with different bookmakers and there’s a fat chance that you might end up making a decent sum in the bargain.

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