Chelsea to bid fond farewell to Mourinho

After the dramatic developments of this week Manchester United will not be relishing the prospect of welcoming the wounded lion that is Chelsea to Old Trafford this Sunday. On the face of it United will be expected to win, having turned around their poor start to the season to produce five consecutive 1-0 wins. But although these are the sort of results that José Mourinho would have relished, not least kept him his job, we have not yet seen the United of last season. Admittedly, Sir Alex Ferguson's side have been without Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo for much of the season and the return of the pair will boost confidence ahead of the visit of Avram Grant's side. Nonetheless the words 'daylight' and 'robbery' spring to mind when reflected upon recent defeats of Tottenham and Everton while the 1-0 victory against Sporting Lisbon was about as exciting as an Andy Murray interview. Of course Chelsea have hardly set the Premiership ablaze themselves this time around but United must beware. Those players who earned themselves 'untouchable' status by Mourinho will be hurting at his departure and, if not for their new coach, will be doubly determined to put one over on the champions for the Special One. For those players that were outcasts under the Mourinho regime, meanwhile, this match represents a glorious opportunity to win the favour of their new leader. Don't be surprised to see Ashley Cole and Javier Belletti actually cross the halfway line at Old Trafford, Michael Ballack suddenly recover from injury and Andriy Shevchenko get on the scoresheet in a win for the visitors who, freed from the shackles of a defensive system, have absolutely nothing to lose and the 13/5 at SportingBet needs to be snaped up.Elsewhere Arsenal, who will be rubbing their hands at the prospect of further upheaval at one of their fiercest rivals, can expect to brush aside Derby Country at home. They may have surprised Newcastle on Monday but Arsenal are in a whole different league of their own, as evidenced by their comfortable 3-0 defeat of Sevilla on Wednesday. Expect over 2.5 goals at the Emirates Stadium. Meanwhile, Tottenham can overcome Bolton on Sunday as under-pressure bosses Martin Jol and Sammy Lee go head to head. Spurs have had a tough run of matches and were decidedly unlucky against Arsenal and Manchester United so their fortunes have to change at some point and they will be buoyed by their Uefa Cup display on Thursday. While Blackburn should have too much for travel-sick Portsmouth. Verdict: 2pt Chelsea to bt Manchester Utd @ 13/5 (SportingBet); 1pt treble on Arsenal, Blackburn and Tottenham @ 11/2 (SportingBet); 3pts Arsenal v Derby over 2.5 goals @ 3/5 (SportingBet) (Editor's Note: It is a surprise to see Chelsea at such a big price to beat United at Old Trafford. If Mourinho were still in charge would they be 13/5? Snap up the price at SportingBet!)