The Swamp World Cup is being played in Scotland. With a bit of forward planning the old Baseball Ground in Derby could have been a permanent venue.

David Bond on the death - or is it just stunned - of the 39th game.

Slaven Bilic comments on the Taylor/Eduardo clash.

The Fink Tank says that the stats show that Liverpool areclosing the gap at the top.

With eleven games to go it is worth looking at the points totals that have taken the Premiership title and secured the fourth Champions League spot over the last number of seasons.

Currently Arsenal have sixty-four points and are in track for a 90 point season. Such a total would match their unbeaten season of 2004 but fall below what Chelsea bagged in both 2005 (95) and 2006 (91).  Manchester United book-ends the five year spell with 89 points last season and 83 points in 2003.

It use to be pretty much accepted that a Championship winning team could afford to lose six games and still take the title. That theory was blown apart in 04 and 05 when Arsenal went unbeaten and Chelsea only lost once. Otherwise the other three seasons from 2003 to 2007 saw the Premiership winners each lose five games.

However, something did happen in terms of games lost last season that had never happened in a 38-game Premiership. It was the first time that the winners had not finished with the fewest losses.

Chelsea only lost three times but finished in second place to Manchester United who lost five games. Some might point to the fact that United won the league with games in hand but that is hardly unique in itself. So far Arsenal has one loss, second place United four while Chelsea and Liverpool have only tasted the bitter pill three times.

However, any interest Liverpool may have had in the title has largely evaporated on account of eleven draws from 26 matches. It’s even possible for Liverpool to finish out of the top four but finish the season with fewer losses than the eventual Champion.

Looking at the valuable fourth spot it seems that a points total of around seventy is going to be needed this season – it may even need more than the 71 points Newcastle finished with in 2002.

The lowest total for a fourth place team in a 38-team Premiership came in 2004 when Liverpool finished with sixty points and Gerard Houllier was sacked. The average over twelve seasons has been 66 points but with the present incumbents Everton sitting on 50 points with eleven games to play it is difficult to see how the average would be enough this season.  

So it only seems right to focus some attention on Sunday’s game at Goodison between Everton and another side that has sights set on a top four finish Portsmouth. Even though both these sides have struck for seven in a game this season this one is all likelihood will be a tight hard fought give-no-quarter tussle.

One player who may prove pivotal is former Portsmouth striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni. Yakubu has hit double figures in scoring each of his five seasons in the Premiership with 16 in his first season followed by 12, 13, 12 and 10 already this campaign.

Based on goals for and against Everton enjoys a slight edge in both categories with four more goals scored and three less conceded this season. However, Portsmouth’s goals tend to arrive in bunches with twenty goals coming in five games while the other twenty-matches have generated only seventeen goals.

Everton are six points ahead and should the gap become nine with ten games to go it would be extremely difficult for Portsmouth to bounce back.

A draw however might be a good result given that their schedule down the straight idoes not look that difficult.

How important is the first goal in this game?   Everton have only gained two points from a losing position this season – draws with Chelsea and Blackburn.  Portsmouth have only lost two points from winning positions – the first game of the season against Derby County.