The Sports Mac: English Football Fives For September 9th, 2010

Top 5 Premiership Teams Right Now (NO CHANGES FROM LAST WEEK)

1.         Chelsea: Maintain a 2 point lead after, for them, a pedestrian 2-0 win at Stoke City

2.         Arsenal: Get a good road win, 2-1 at Blackburn to remain in a tie for second

3.         Manchester United: Keep pace with Arsenal and stay 2 points back of Chelsea after a comfortable 3-0 home win against West Ham United

4.         Aston Villa: After a rough week or so, they get a huge three points with a 1-0 home win over Everton to jump all the way up to 4^th in the table

5.         Bolton Wanderers: Stay in 5^th place an entertaining 2-2 draw with Birmingham at home

Top 5 Football League Teams Right Now

1.         Shrewsbury Town (League 2): Vaulted to the top of League 2 after a 1-0 home win over Rotherham

2.         Chesterfield (League 2): Moved into the last promotion spot after a 2-1 win at home over Lincoln City

3.         Colchester United (League 1): Jumped to 5^th in the table after a 1-0 road win at Walsall

4.         Rochdale (League 1): Won their second match in a row by getting a good 2-0 road win at Southampton

5.         Cardiff City (Championship): Carry a three match winning streak into this weekend after having last week off

Top 5 Premiership Players Right Now (NO CHANGES FROM LAST WEEK)

1.         Didier Drogba, Chelsea Striker: Scored his 4^th goal of the campaign via penalty in Chelsea’s 2-0 home win over Stoke City

2.         Theo Walcott, Arsenal Midfielder: The 21-year old had Arsenal’s first goal in the win over Blackburn, his fourth of the young season

3.         Nicolas Anelka, Chelsea Striker: Continues his fine form for the Blues as they remain perfect in the new campaign

4.         Florent Malouda, Chelsea Midfielder: Scored the first goal for Chelsea, his 4^th overall this season, in their 2-0 home win over Stoke City

5.         Andrew Carroll, Newcastle Striker: Had the game-tying goal in Newcastle’s 1-1 road draw at Wolverhampton; his fourth goal of the campaign

Top 5 Matches To Keep An Eye On This Coming Week

1.         League 1: Sheffield Wednesday vs. Carlisle United, Saturday: The top two teams in League One meet at Hillsborough in an early battle for league supremacy

2.         Premier League: Arsenal vs. Bolton, Saturday: the 2^nd place Gunners host Wanderers who hope to prove they’re ready for great things this campaign

3.         Championship: Ipswich Town vs. Queens Park Rangers, Tuesday: Two of the top 3 currently in the Championship meet as they look to solidify an early hold on a playoff position

4.         League 1: Peterborough United vs. Oldham Athletic, Saturday: 4^th in League 1 hosts 3^rd in a match featuring teams at the crowded top of the table

5.         League 2: Rotherham United vs. Burton Albion, Saturday: 5^th hosts 6^th as the two squads look to plant themselves firmly at the top of the League 2 table

5 Matches You Might Want To Just Get The Score On Sky

1.         Championship: Derby County vs. Sheffield United, Saturday: 15^th hosts 17^th as the two teams look to stay above the relegation zone

2.         League 1: Bristol Rovers vs. Brentford, Saturday: A match featuring two teams toward the bottom of League 1 with 9 points combined from 10 matches so far.

3.         League 2: Lincoln City vs. Barnet, Saturday: 18^th welcomes 17^th in the table as the two teams are just out of the drop zone

4.         League 1: Swindon Town vs. Southampton, Saturday: The Robins host struggling Saints as they try to beat them for the second time in 12 days

5.         League 2: Stockport County vs. Bradford City, Saturday: The Hatters host the 22^nd place Bantams as one club tries to leave relegation and the other tries to stay out