Players: 41 out of 49. Points scored: 229. Highest score: 9 (Sally Moon, Stewart Newport). Average score: 5.58. Prediction of the Week: Reading 1-1 Manchester United (Nicola Savage).

Results: Arsenal 3-0 Sheffield United; Aston Villa 2-0 Charlton; Fulham 0-2 Chelsea; Liverpool 3-0 Tottenham Hotspur; Manchester City 2-0 West Ham; Middlesbrough 0-1 Blackburn; Reading 1-1 Manchester United; Wigan 1-1 Watford; Newcastle 1-1 Everton; Portsmouth 0-1 Bolton.

On the most exciting weekend of the Predictorship season so far, the lead changed hands no less than three times. Dave Taylor (Chelsea) started on top with 28 points, but his five-point haul was not enough to stave off the challenge of Dave McAleer (Crystal Palace), who bagged seven points to take him into the lead, but only for a few seconds. Enter Hope Arnold (Manchester United) …

Risking a host of terrible puns on her name, Hope rises to the head of the class from sixth place with eight points, the pick of her scores being Middlesbrough 0 Blackburn 1. Hope now has 35 points, one point clear of Dave McAleer and two ahead of Dave Taylor, Pete Yoder (Wolverhampton Wanderers) and Nicola Savage (Winchester City), who storms into the top five for the first time and was the only predictor to favour a draw between Reading and Manchester United.

Sally Moon (Blackburn Rovers) and Stewart Newport (Wycombe Wanderers) - he of the world record Predictorship score of 15 - enjoy nine-point weeks but, after five weeks of the 2006-2007 Predictorship season, still nobody has broken the 11-point threshold. QPR defectee Stewart and Gabe Bevilacqua (Philadelphia Eagles) each secure the same three correct scores, which comes as a huge relief to the latter: Gabe was still searching for his first correct score going into last weekend’s action. Much like London buses, you wait ages for one and then three come along all at once.

Stuart Claxton (Reading) is the new owner of 49th spot, but only on goal difference from GWR picture desk supremo Michael Whitty (Bunch of Losers), whose team are doing exactly what it says on the tin. Michael will need to call his losers in for extra training sessions to turn them into winners. And finally … the answer to last week’s poser. The highest attendance for a football match at Old Trafford was the 1939 FA Cup Semi-Final between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Grimsby Town, watched by 77,000 people. Strange but true!

Quote of the week: “It is a work of eerie beauty” - Rob Dimery (Cheltenham Town) on Ipswich Town fan Nick Watson’s much-admired Predictorship logo

Quote of the week 2: “I would also like to add, for the record, that I have neither received nor handed out financial inducements at any time during my career as a Predictorship player” - More words of wisdom from Rob. Let’s hope that goes for the rest of you too …

If you have any ideas about how this weekly round-up can be improved or would like to see any additional facts and figures during the season, please send your suggestions to mattwhite03@hotmail.com. As always, Predictorship Statto reserves the right to quote you on anything you divulge in your e-mails when you submit scores. You have been warned!

Players: 47 out of 49. Points scored: 158. Highest score: 8 (Mazair Sattari). Average score: 3.36. Prediction of the Week: Jill Taylor (West Ham 0-2 Newcastle).

Results: Bolton 0-0 Middlesbrough; Charlton 0-1 Portsmouth; Everton 2-2 Wigan; Sheffield United 1-2 Reading; Watford 0-0 Aston Villa; Blackburn 4-2 Manchester City; Chelsea 1-0 Liverpool; Manchester United 0-1 Arsenal; Tottenham Hotspur 0-0 Fulham; West Ham 0-2 Newcastle.

This week’s average score - 3.36 - says it all. Three no-score draws, Arsenal’s surprise Henry-less win at Old Trafford and West Ham coming unstuck at home to Newcastle (even with THOSE two Argentinians in the Hammers’ team) made scoring a hatful of points almost impossible - unless you happened to be Maziar Sattari (Seattle Gooners).

Maziar’s magnificent eight-point haul includes three correct scores (Manchester United v Arsenal, Tottenham v Fulham and Charlton v Portsmouth) and takes him from 34th to 15th in the week 4 table. Even Norman No Mates (The Nil-Nils) - with the aid of three blank scoresheets - cannot match Maziar’s feat and has to settle for seven points along with the only two predictors who didn’t submit scores this week. To paraphrase that hairy rocker Mr Loaf: 47 out of 49 ain’t bad.

At the business end of the table, Dave Taylor (Chelsea) is still the man to catch on 28 points. 2005-2006 champion Mike Dufficy (Jersey United) rises to third and is one of six predictors on 27 points. Two-time Predictorship king Steven Dunlop (Benfica) drops to eighth after scoring a solitary point, but he’s in good company - 2005-2006 runner-up Cathryn Harker (Clapton F.C.), Cup holder John Collins (Millwall), who predicted all the way from Australia, and Rob Molloy (Farnborough Town) all chalked up a single point, as did Alex Iskandar Liew (Tricky Trees), who is now 49th and last.

Also noteworthy is FC Camena mastermind Gabe Bevilacqua (Philadelphia Eagles) who, four weeks into the campaign, has no correct scores to his name but sits comfortably in 25th. Skilful!

And now for something completely different …

From the Manchester United v Arsenal match, where Jens Lehmann’s head was nearly decapitated by a close-range Ronaldo shot (”That’s why you don’t see too many pretty goalkeepers” remarked the commentator), here’s a question for you: The attendance at Sunday’s match was 75,595, a record crowd for a Manchester United game at Old Trafford but bizarrely not a stadium record. That occurred in 1939 for an FA Cup semi-final between which two teams? Answer next week …

We in Britain are blessed not only with the most exciting football league but the most hilarious punditry. Commentators speak a language that wouldn’t be understood or tolerated anywhere but inside the confines of the football stadium or pub. “A spotters badge” to you if you can understand how “a boy whose on fire arriving at the back stick, latching on to a hollywood ball, can slot one in off the woodwork.” If you are excited by a world full of such Shakespearean soccer wordsmithery and can deliver up some proper football cliches and name and honour (or shame) the men who uttered them I’d be glad to keep a log of them. I’ll take every cliche as it comes, so set your stall out, why don’t you.

Players: 42 out of 49. Points scored: 246. Highest score: 10 (Saleel Sathe). Average score: 5.86. Prediction of the Week: Neil Hayes (Arsenal 1-1 Middlesbrough).

Results: Arsenal 1-1 Middlesbrough; Bolton 1-0 Watford; Chelsea 2-1 Charlton; Everton 3-0 Liverpool; Manchester United 1-0 Tottenham; Newcastle 1-2 Fulham; Portsmouth 1-0 Wigan; Sheffield United 0-0 Blackburn; West Ham 1-1 Aston Villa; Reading 1-0 Manchester City.

Dave Taylor (Chelsea) remains in pole position after three weeks of the new Predictorship season, but only on ‘goal difference’ from Steven Dunlop (Benfica), who has one less correct score.

Dave and Steven are already threatening to pull away from the chasing pack. They are two points clear of Dave McAleer (Crystal Palace) and Pete Yoder (Wolverhampton Wanderers) and three points better off than seven players on 22 points, five of whom have identical records. Furthermore, two of those five (are you still following me?) are last season’s top two predictors, Mike Dufficy (Jersey United) and Cathryn Harker (Clapton F.C.). The cream has risen to the top with alarming speed.

Saleel Sathe (Liverpool Reserves) bags the best score of the week (10) to rise from 38th to 21st. Going against team orders, Saleel is one of six predictors to plump for a home win for Everton against his beloved scousers, a score that brought a smile to the faces of everyone in the blue half of Merseyside and footie fans across the globe (with the notable exceptions of Saleel, Joe Zalewski and all other Liverpool supporters).

We welcome two new predictors this week: Malaysian-based Nottingham Forest fan Alex Iskandar Liew (Tricky Trees - the nickname of the greatest football team in the world. Who said I have to be unbiased?) and Minnesota Vikings fan Brian Dunlop (Purple Haze), remarkably no relation to annoyingly-good Predictorship wizard Steven and fortunately no admirer of cack-handed guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Good luck to both of you for the rest of the season.

In other news: David Roberts (Watford) sends out his scores to the entire Predictorship field on Friday. Luckily, few take any notice of his “crazy psychology games” and the Hornets man slumps to a four-point week. Tom Palmer (Southampton) is the wackiest predictor of the week for a highly possible Chelsea 6 Charlton 1 and Norman No Mates (The Nil-Nils) is still propping up the table. No change there then.

More next week …

Players: 38 out of 47. Points scored: 288. Highest score: 10 (Dave Taylor, Patrick Bevilacqua, Nigel Birrell). Average score: 7.58.

Prediction of the Week: Mark Young (Scotland 6-0 Faroe Islands) - score sent live from the US Open, Flushing Meadow!

Results: Czech Rep. 2-1 Wales; England 5-0 Andorra; Georgia 0-3 France; Germany 1-0 Republic of Ireland; Italy 1-1 Lithuania; Luxembourg 0-1 Holland; Northern Ireland 0-3 Iceland; Scotland 6-0 Faroe Islands; Spain 4-0 Liechtenstein; Brazil 3-0 Argentina.

The competitive edge in the Taylor household should intensify this week as Dave’s Chelsea usurp Jill’s Dartmoor Rovers at the top of the Predictorship. Dave matches Jill’s week 1 score of 10 to remain a point clear of Patrick Bevilacqua (DC Adunited), who moves up from seventh to second and now has the most correct scores of any player to date - five. Impressively, Dave stuck to his guns and delivered his usual 10 1-0 predictions in a week which promised some high-scoring, one-sided encounters. Holland’s narrow win in Luxembourg and Germany’s inability to score more than a single goal against the Republic of Ireland played right into his hands. Jill, meanwhile, drops from the head of the pack to 8th.

The consistent Steven Dunlop (Benfica) drops one place to third as Scott Christie (Aberdeen) moves menacingly into contention (4th). There are also some new faces in the top 10: Crystal Palace’s Dave McAleer (5th), one of four British Hit Singles & Albums predictors in the league, Peterborough United’s Steve McHugh (6th), Charlton Athletic’s Nigel Birrell (7th), who also weighs in with a healthy 10 points, and the pride of West Bergholt, newcomer Jodie Kemp (10th).

Congratulations to the seven predictors who marked their card with a 5-0 win for England, the six players who plumped for a Brazil win at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, Ankaragücü’s Matthew White for this week’s sole away win prediction for Iceland in Northern Ireland and anyone who went a bit mad with their scores: England 8-0 Andorra and Luxembourg 0-6 Holland are predictions that bring some much-needed variety to the Predictorship and should be highly encouraged - if you’re brave enough.

Paul Dolan (Metrostars) and Sanjiv Sachdev (Doncaster Rovers) pull away from the danger zone by submitting their first scores of the season, but Stuart Claxton (Reading), Trevor Morris (Sunderland) and Norman No Mates (The Nil-Nils) are already marooned at the bottom with a solitary point each. More next week …

The first two times I heard this, I didn’t believe it. I didn’t believe that Tevez (and Masherano, I guess) was heading to Arsenal. And I sure didn’t believe that he was heading to West Ham. This guy was the most expensive transfer in South American history, and, generally speaking, the most likeable Argentinian player since Maradona. Tevez is just that cool.

Which is not to say that West Ham isn’t that cool, but, well, you have to imagine that there were bigger clubs who were interested in young Carlos. Clubs like, wait, what’s that one in London, with the Russian guy and the smarmy coach…what’s their name again?

Could it really be that Chelsea are secretly behind the move, and are using West Ham as a feeder club to get these two boys from the unfashionable hemisphere up to speed on living in Engerland before moving them across town next summer? Could this really be true? Seems a bit of a stretch (if Abramovich wanted these guys, why not just, err, buy them?) — but hey, we like conspiracy theories.

Hammers complete Tevez, Masherano deal
Something fisy about Tevez and Masherano to West Ham deal