With the 2009-10 Premier League season entering its final furlong, there are still thousands of managers searching for an all important edge to make their team stand out from the crowd.

Ok, so there may be a select group of fifty that get the most publicity and are supposedly under the most pressure but anyone that's played fantasy football knows that it wont just be Arsene Wenger and co that are faced with crucial selection dilemmas this weekend.

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Le Tissier, Cantona, Shearer: penalty kings. Experts, upon whom you could almost bet your mortgage in expectation of a successful penalty conversion. But where on earth are their penalty king successors?

As Tottenham fans, we watched yet another golden opportunity pass us by at Bolton as centre midfielder Tom Huddlestone stepped up for his first attempt at coveting the penalty-taker role, following too many failures from sharp-shooter Jermain Defoe.

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photo credit: johntrainor

1) John Terry- Chelsea

He� has his Chelsea club fighting for the title and it never hurts to have a figure like Terry in the middle of the defense.� With an explosive offense, Terry makes the Blues chances of winning the Premiership that much better.

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When United travelled to Turf Moor earlier in the season they suffered at the hands of the Clatrets fine start to the season. Burnley ran out 1-0 winners that day, and fair play to them they deserved it, but it should be a very different affair this time around.

Back then the Lancashire side were managed by the imposing and impressive figure of Owen Coyle.

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photo credit: nicknbecka

For those of you who do not know what the silver fox is, it is a term used to describe an older genleman that still is on the top of his game.� For example Brett Favre is often referred to as the silver fox of the NFL.� This list is of the top three Premier League players that have impressed so far this year despite being over 34 years of age.

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The second of our four half-term report cards (check out the first part here) for the 09/10 Premier League season features Burnley, Chelsea, Everton, Fulham and Hull City:

BURNLEY (14th, 20 points from 20 games)

It's a breeze to sum up the Clarets' season so far: excellent at Fortress Turf Moor, lamentable away from Fortress Turf Moor; Burnley have failed to win any of their ten games on the road, with just one draw and nine defeats.

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Chris Eagle's creative play inspired Burnley to a 1-2 away win against MK Dons in the FA Cup 3rd Round. Click to continue reading...

Piers Morgan is running a poll for the Best British Player of 2009. Burnley's Graham Alexander and City's Craig Bellamy are racing out in the lead.

Let's really piss him off by getting Ryan Giggs to win his poll.

VOTE FOR RYAN GIGGS

"VOTE for Ryan Giggs on Piers Morgan's Poll" was originally published at The Republik of Mancunia. Click to continue reading...

A week of two tough away games, and four points gained. On the face of it, an excellent haul, and unlikely to be bettered by anyone in these two fixtures all season. Yet there is a lingering sense of disappointment following the draw at Burnley, mainly because of a sense of what might have been.

After a great start, and an unusually early goal from Cesc, who fought valiantly until forced off with a hamstring injury which will keep him out of a Hull game he would have been desperate to play in after last year's spitting row, we could have put the game to bed with chances for Arshavin and Cesc going begging.

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Mini match report:� After just seven minutes, Cesc Fabregas showed composure and persistance to open the scoring with a low, accurate shot, before Graham Alexander equalised from the penalty spot after Thomas Vermaelen had felled Andre Bikey in the box. Fabregas tweaked his hamstring and was taken off just before half-time; in the second half, deprived of their creative leader, the Gunners struggled as Burnley created several decent chances.

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Chelsea are back to their three point lead over contenders Manchester United as they defeated Portsmouth 2-1 in a Premier League encounter last night. The Blues now sit pretty at 40 points with United at 37 with both having played 17 games. After Chelsea's draw over the weekend and Man U's win over the Wolves [. Click to continue reading...

It was not a vintage Chelsea performance, and they need a late penalty from Frank Lampard to secure a 2-1 win over last-place Portsmouth, but Chelsea once again have a three-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

Chelsea had led through a 23rd-minute goal by Nicolas Anelka but when Frederic Piquionne equalized for Pompey, you could feel the tension rise within Stamford Bridge.

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The English Premier League had a set of midweek fixtures including Burnley v Arsenal on Wednesday, December 16, 2009. It was a chance for Arsenal to continue their good form after defeating Liverpool on the weekend. Burnley, on the other hand, was looking to get a much needed result at home as they will be battling relegation.

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Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas gave the north London side the lead at Burnley, only to see Graham Alexander score an equalizer from the spot. The draw hampers Arsenal's title hopes and Arsene Wenger's side had enough opportunities to take all three points.

Get Arsenal Tickets at Fantastic Prices Now!

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Here at In The Stands there is a lot of banter in our head office about how everyone is doing in the Premier League's Fantasy Football game. So we thought that we will bring in number 208 (out of 2.15 million) to give us a few tips. Please welcome Chez...

"I would bring him in, but I know as soon as I do he will start playing rubbish.

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Eight red cards, thirty two goals and more talking points than a Peter Andre exclusive, Gameweek 11 had everything. Even by the implausibly high standards set in Fantasy Football, this week was a bit special.

Whether you winced as Shay Given batted away James McFadden's penalty, rejoiced as Jamie Carragher finally got his comeuppance, or sat indifferently as Phil Brown's tenure at Hull approached its conclusion, chances are you will have had an exciting last seven days in the world of Fantasy Football.

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Robin Van Persie

Van Persie was the� Gunners� go-to-guy in the Match of the Week as Arsenal defeated Tottenham 3-0.� Van Persie would� score twice in the critical match and the result continues to push the Gunners towards the top of the league table.� Van Persie has seven goals and six assists on the year putting him in the top five in total points of all Premier League players this season.

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I recently asked the question: When Will Phil Brown Go?, & it seems in all actuality I'm no closer to an accurate answer of that question than when I posed it last week. Hull City lost another football match this weekend at Turf Moor to current over-achievers Burnley, 2-0. Two Graham Alexander goals were enough to see off a brave Hull City that will feel slightly cheated by the outcome.

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Phil Brown has been talking a storm about Jozy's "Twittergate" this week, including gems like this:

Asked if Altidore had put the twit in Twitter, an unimpressed Brown replied: "I'd have put an 'a' in it."

Now that is the kind of comment Maradona would be proud of!

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Burnley's veteran defensive midfielder ,Graham Alexander, scored twice to help Burnley beat Hull 2-0. Click to continue reading...

A brace from veteran defender Graham Alexander gave Burnley a much deserved win.

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1-0 Alexander

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Being a Dundee United fan, it would presumably be welcome news that club legend Paul Hegarty has joined George Burley's coaching staff for the national side. The fact that he only collected a handful of caps in his playing career is surely nothing to be worried about – there are after all a number of high-profile backroom string-pullers with comparable experience – but it isn't just the emotional, tactical and judgment-related rollercoaster ride of Burley's reign that flavours this appointment with a lack of ambition.

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The lunchtime kickoff match was as good as advertised. Both teams came into the match with something to prove. Burnley had won eight straight matches at Turf Moor dating back to last season. Sunderland, meanwhile, had only scored two goals in their last nine away matches in the Premier League.

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Reina
Johnson Carragher Skrtel Insua
Gerrard Lucas
Benayoun Kuyt Riera
Torres
Goals:
Benayoun 27' 61' 82'
Kuyt 41'
Perfect. No complaints. I had hoped it'd be similar to Stoke, and it's the exact same result. Four goals (and Liverpool should have had more), a clean sheet (with no frights from set plays), a Benayoun hat-trick, and the ability to rest players like Johnson, Kuyt, and Torres (plus a Degen sighting! Click to continue reading...

It's been a strange old start to the season for Liverpool. They headed in with sky-high expectations after taking home the silver medal in last season's Premier League race, but the mob from Merseyside have lost two and won two in their first four games of 2009-10.
And it could have been worse - for when the half-time whistle blew in their last outing against Bolton Wanderers, it looked like the Reds would go into the international break with three defeats under their belts. Click to continue reading...

From Turf Moor, Attendance 20,872 , Referee Alan Wiley Burnley 1 0 Manchester United

Robbie Blake (19)

Burnley Team Statistics Manchester United 1 Goals 0 3 Shots On Target 4 6 Shots Off Target 9 0 Shots Blocked 6 1 Corners 1 0 Offsides 2 8 Fouls 12 2 Yellow Cards 1 0 Red Cards 0 32. Click to continue reading...

The Scotland team to face Norway:MarshallHuttonCaldwell, GCaldwell, SDavidsonAlexanderBrownFletcherCommonsMcCormackMillerFirst impressions:No place for McFadden: Impact sub? I would have thought tonight might have been a night to use him to create a spark.Lone frontman: Miller supported by McCormack and Commons as well as Brown and Fletcher. Click to continue reading...

The Scotland team to face Norway:MarshallHuttonCaldwell, GCaldwell, SDavidsonAlexanderBrownFletcherCommonsMcCormackMillerFirst impressions:No place for McFadden: Impact sub? I would have thought tonight might have been a night to use him to create a spark.Lone frontman: Miller supported by McCormack and Commons as well as Brown and Fletcher. Click to continue reading...

Graham Alexander is Burnley's captain, is £4.5m, and best of all is likely to line up in front of his stated position. Alexander is listed in the game as a defender but he's really Burnley's defensive midfielder. While he likely won't be earning clean sheet points every week, every little bit helps. Click to continue reading...

Once again, I give to you my fantasy football guidelines in handy list form. This is the latest variation on something I first wrote down in 2004. They have served me well over the years, and I hope you find them useful in choosing your teams this season.
1. Punch above your weight
You generally want to pick anyone playing in a more advanced role than they are designated by the fantasy game - defenders playing in midfield and midfielders lining up as forwards. Click to continue reading...

Burnley play football.� That's what you hear about this club who after a disastrous start to last season came on late to win promotion via the Championship playoffs.� Along the way they had an amazing Carling Cup run, knocking off FOUR Premier League clubs before falling to Spurs.
They are going to need that Cup run mentality week-in and week-out this season. Click to continue reading...

UPDATE: According to Burnley's official website, Graham Alexander has signed a new one-year deal with Burnley.

June 1st, 2009 According to Sky Sports News, Burnley have offered a new one-year deal to 37-year-old Graham Alexander.

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At the start of last season Burnley were not really considered promotion contenders from the Championship and they raised more than a few eyebrows by getting themselves promoted. They're a small town club with small resources but manager Owen Coyle managed to guide them to the play-off final, where they beat heavy favourites Sheffield United 1-0. Click to continue reading...

The story of Coca Cola Championship is over, at least for this season. When I wrote about the biggest achievements this season, mentioning Wolves, Sheffield United and Swansea, probably many of you wondered where is FC Burnley and their heroic campaign in the league and both Cups.

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According to Sky Sports News, Burnley have offered a new one-year deal to 37-year-old Graham Alexander. Adam Kay and Alex McDonald were also offered new deals.

Steve Jones, Gabor Kiraly, and Alan Mahon were all released by the club.

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Fantastic scenes as Wembley on Monday as Burnley won their play off against Sheffield United and will now play in the English Premier League.

As a Blackburn Rovers fan it is amazing to see Burnley make the top flight of football. For those of you who don't know, Blackburn and Burnley are bitter, bitter rivals.

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Disabled fan mysteriously healed by Burnley goal Britain, Britain, Britain... This mobile phone footage from the Championship play-off match between Burnley and Reading truly is a miracle for the digital age. As Graham Alexander gives the Clarets an 84th minute lead from the penalty spot, one fan suddenly finds he can walk again! Click to continue reading...