Today's Papers / Top Dog / 17 March 2008 / Leave a comment " class="free-bet-btn" rel="external" onclick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/G4/inline-freebet');" target="_blank">Free Bet

Betfair's Top Dog sniffs around the truth behind the latest tabloid tales

Top Dog

Betfair's top dog sniffs around the truth behind the latest tabloid tales.

• Cruft's champion - Top stories that can dominate the news agenda
• Pedigree chum - Insights that tell you something you don't know
• Dog's dinner - Speculation, guesswork, or ideas that just don't come off.

Top Dog says:

Not sure if it's the sports pages or excerpts from Psychology Weekly News this morning. Almost every report concentrates on the mind games involved whether it's winning titles and promotions or fighting off relegation. Arsenal skipper William Gallas raises the biggest mental questions at the top of the table, Alex McLeish has more of them for Kevin Keegan at the bottom.

Cruft's:

The Sun - Bensation - Janine Self writes probably the best piece on Manchester United's debut goalkeeper Ben Foster and his contribution to their 1-0 win at Derby. Foster will be out again when Sir Alex picks his team to play Bolton on Wednesday and won't get enough games for a medal. But he's made sure United stay [1.63] favourites to lift the crown

Daily Star - We're not tough enough - The Star's David Woods reveals that things are getting tetchy behind the scenes at The Emirates. Skipper William Gallas has openly questioned whether Arsenal's young players have the mental toughness for the title run-in, and Woods, with good contacts at The Gunners, suggests other players are asking questions about the leadership qualities of their captain. It doesn't auger well for Arsene Wenger's team who are now as long as [6.2] for the title, a bigger price than [4.4] Chelsea, and [1.85] a top two finish.

Pedigree Chum:

Daily Mail - Heskey wrecks Megson's plan - Top Dog was highly amused to see Bolton throw away their UEFA Cup place to protect their team for playing Wigan and then lose that to ten men and an Emile Heskey goal as well. In the bottom three, Manchester United are [1.17] to give them another kick on Wednesday night and Gary Megson's team are now [2.24] to go down

Daily Express - Mind games for McLeish - Birmingham boss Alex McLeish made Scotland's players think they could compete with France and Italy so getting ready to face Newcastle shouldn't be so hard. McLeish tells John Wragg about the mental pressure of relegation and how it might affect Newcastle. Blues are [2.5] to get a third successive home win and drag Kevin Keegan further into the mire. The Toon boss is [3.15] in the managerial change market

Daily Mirror/The Sun - Thrown away - The Mirror uses a great back page picture of Robbie Keane's tantrum when he got taken off by Juande Ramos, while The Sun runs a whole sequence on the front of their pull-out. Signs that Spurs have lost their way since their Carling Cup win and Chelsea are [2.18] to win at White Hart Lane on Wednesday night.

Daily Mirror - Miffed - Coventry's Michael Mifsud admits he's missing Dele Adebola and the Sky Blues can't buy a goal at the moment despite Chris Coleman's best intentions. A point above the relegation zone they are a generous [4.4] to go down

The Sun - Aidy does a Delia - Meanwhile in the Championship Watford boss Aidy Boothroyd grabbed the microphone after the final whistle of a 0-0 draw with Stoke to thank Vicarage Road punters for their support. That's a man trying to keep the crowd on his side as the pressure builds. His team are [1.76] favourites for promotion even though they've failed to win big games lately. West Brom [1.86], Stoke [1.87] and Bristol City [2.28] are the other top contenders.

Dog' s dinner:

Daily Mirror - Becks left to sweat - Have the Mirror got a few bob of their budget to use up at the end of the financial year? Otherwise sending Martin Lipton to Dallas to see David Beckham play for LA Galaxy was nearly as pointless as Franco Baldini going to watch him too. Old Goldenballs probably did run the game, but whether that means it's worth recalling him for England is a different matter.

Today's other headlines:

The Sun - Mind out Gunners - McBride and gloom - Keane fuming as he's subbed - Heskey on a high - 28 page Super Goals pull-out - Stroppy Keane - Jussi's out for season - On me Ned, son - Av we got it, yes we Av - He's Sears to stay

Daily Express - Gallas is ready for fight - Renewed hope for Hodgson - Foster the saving grace for United - Capello knows King James in regal mood - Pilgrims eye promised land - Luck at last for Holloway

Daily Star - Heat's on Kev - Harper: Toon it around - Larss chance saloon - 20 page Seriously Football pull-out - Here comes McBride - Moyes hits Thames barrier - Terry's back in the goal routine - Torres can be Spaniard in the works - Fred passes first time - Holl's in tune for survival

Daily Mirror - Onuoha heads off Thak flak - Crunch time for Geordies - 20 page Soccer Mania pull-out - Here comes McBride - Simply the Boast - Wigan 10 out of 10 for courage - Dead and Boro'd - Stan Collymore

Daily Mail - A real fight to the finish - Focus on big three title chase - McBride delivers more Euro blues - Lucky Sven can smile as Ramos loses plot - The players do care they need a bit of luck says Keegan - Curbishley has no fears for Sears - Championship spotlight

Tags: football betting, Premiership title, Robbie Keane substitution, William Gallas