Liverpool Playing Second Fiddle

“Celebrate good times c’mon” were the lyrics pumping out of every Liverpool fan's vocal cords, at the weekend, as the Reds celebrated overcoming their bitter rivals, Everton, in the FA Cup semi-final.

However, whilst the celebrations in the red half of Merseyside may well continue for a few days to come, the reality remains that Liverpool are now a side playing second fiddle to the top teams in England.

It could be argued that Liverpool are using their cup success to disguise the fact that they have completely and utterly failed in the Premier League, this season.

Granted, Liverpool won the Carling Cup, and are now in the final of the FA Cup, but they have achieved this after pulling off a few decent performances in the Cups, rather than through confidence built after a consistent run of league form.

The owners of the club, Fenways Sports, are more than aware that they are not going to earn the big bucks by playing well in the FA Cup or the Carling Cup - although, anybody indulging in some FA Cup betting is likely to view the situation differently.

With the Reds needing Champions League football, if they are going to stand a chance of taking Liverpool back to the levels that the club achieved in the 1980s, when they dominated British football, and to an extent European football as well, you can see where the problem currently lies.

The aim for Liverpool this season has boiled down to winning the FA Cup, but the players will know that they'll have to stand up and be counted next season in the Premier League, as they once again face the reality of life without the Champions League. 

Whether King Kenny is the man to lead next year's charge remains to be seen. Pending some drastic changes, the Reds are unlikely to start the season as favourites in the Premier League odds.

Would QPR be missed?

The likes of Norwich and Swansea have offered something new and exciting, in what has been a tough season for the Premier League, with both sides playing great football and entertaining fans of soccer betting beyond their respective fan bases.

The reality remains, however, that fellow newly-promoted team QPR have become an outfit that is all too easy to dislike.

Sure, they didn't exactly lose any fans by sacking Neil Warnock, who isn't the most universally loved manager in the English game, but they have shed supporters through the manner in which Tony Fernandes has conducted himself, as well as the team's behaviour on the pitch at times this season.

With Joey Barton having failed to control his 'dislikeable' side, and the likes of Paddy Kenny bringing a fair bit of baggage along with them to the club, QPR have somehow managed to get rid of the spine of the team that brought them up into the Premier League. The escapees have been replaced with the sort of overpaid player that has no real love of the club or its history.

If QPRdo go down then it seems likely that they will have to replace large sections of the team they have assembled, while also massively cutting their wage bill, if they are to stand any chance of coming back up and staying in a decent financial position.

This may well be pure speculation at the moment, but there's little doubting the fact that the trap door is slowly but surely opening for QPR, leaving them in a position where they are just about ready to drop down into the brutal world of the Championship. The Hoops are currently third-favourites for the drop in Relegation Betting.

Wilshere to make Euros?

Arsenal fans will have been disappointed not to see midfielder, Jack Wilshere, in action in the Premier League this season. With the youngster nearing a return to full fitness, will he do enough to earn a place on the plane for the European Championships, this summer?

It was disappointing to hear the news that Wilshere had suffered a nasty ankle injury before the first ball was kicked in the ongoing Premier League season. The 20-year-old was injured during a pre-season tour of the United States, and has since been frustrated by setbacks, having originally been told that he would be back in the thick of the action by February.

Arsenal - and, indeed, people enjoying a bet on the Premier League - have missed Wilshere in the middle of the park. Arsene Wenger has limited options in midfield at the Emirates, this season. The Frenchman has admitted that the next few weeks will be important in the player’s recovery.

He said: "We try to keep the hope alive for him and without taking too many risks. That means we adapt day to day, to manage him, to improve his physical state and get him fit as quickly as we can without taking too big a risk, which means when he has pain, we stop him."

The big question on most peoples’ lips is: will Wilshere will be fit enough to delight fans of live football in the last few games of the season, and to push for a place in England’s Euro 2012 squad for the trip to Poland and the Ukraine this summer?

As with the Gunners, there are limited top-class players in the middle of the park for the Three Lions, and if Wilshere can get himself playing before the end of the domestic campaign, then he will certainly have a chance at the national side.