Burley blasts Hearts to Scottish summit

Heart of Midlothian, the pride of Edinburgh, are the only side in the Scottish Premier League with a 100 per cent record after winning maximum points from four outings - (away) Kilmarnock 4-2, (home) Hibernian 4-0, (away) Dundee United 3-0, and (home) Aberdeen 2-0.

This afternoon the roof of the old main stand at Tynecastle will be lifted again as Hearts will march out with high hopes of chalking up a fifth straight win at the expense of Motherwell.

Last season's outcomes do not augur well for Hearts, having lost three times to Motherwell in the League and drawn the remaining match. On top of that they were also knocked out of the semi-finals of the League Cup - 3-2 after extra time at Easter Road - Motherwell.

This season everything is new at Tynecastle. The west-coast side are backed by Lithuanian banker Vladimir Romanov (he is not in the same class of Chelsea's Roman Abramovich) and managed by former Scottish international George Burley.

The ex- Ipswich Town player (later played at Gillingham, Motherwell, Ayr, Falkirk and Motherwell again) returned to East Anglia in 1994 as player/manager of Colchester. He then took over at Ipswich and steered them to the Premiership and a place in the UEFA Cup after they finished fifth.

But the season that followed they returned to the second tier of the English game and he left Portman Road by mutual consent.

After a spell at Derby he took over at Hearts last June. He scrutinized the continental market and signed various new players. While still in search of more talent, the Czech striking partnership of Rudi Skacel (scored five goals) and Roman Bendar have become known as 'The Specials' by the fans.

Another derby

Tottenham vs Chelsea: Following their win over Arsenal by a fluke Didier Drogba goal at Stamford Bridge last week, Chelsea will be involved in another all-London clash, this time against Tottenham.

Both teams are undefeated after three outings as Spurs drew 0-0 at Blackburn and Chelsea defeated West Brom 4-0 in midweek.

Tottenham striker Jermaine Defoe has already scored half his total of away goals last season. In 2004-05 he netted twice from 13 away matches.

Tottenham failed to beat Chelsea in 17 straight league matches at White Hart Lane - their last win (1-0: Claesen) came in August 1987.

Newcastle vs Man. United. After reaching the Champions League group phase at the expense of Hungary's Debrecen (6-0 on aggregate), Man. United will stay on their travels, bidding to preserve their 100 per cent record in the league.

The capture of goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar will go down with the other shrewd signings by Alex Ferguson.

Newcastle again let their fans down after the 0-2 defeat at Bolton and are still without a goal. They also failed to sign Michael Owen on a permanent basis after they offered Real Madrid a sum of £15m. Instead Newcastle opted for Deportivo's Albert Luque.

Fulham vs Everton. The Villarreal hurdle was too high for Everton to clear after they had lost the first leg at Goodison Park 1-2. The Span-iards progressed 4-2 on aggregate.

At least, in the league, the Blues proved that last season's surge was no flash in the pan when they won at Bolton, one of the strongest home fortresses in the top echelon.

The Cottagers suffered back-to-back losses after their 1-4 upset at Highbury on Wednesday. In the four times the two sides clashed in the Premiership, Fulham won all their home tussles and conceded only one goal.

M'boro vs Charlton. Charlton succeeded in winning their first two matches for the first time since they gained Premiership recognition.

If the good omens persist, then Charlton are safe for yet another season. So far, no Premiership club was relegated after winning the opening two games.

M'boro collected their first win of the season with a significant 3-0 victory at Birmingham. All past five clashes at Boro's den between the contestants finished draws.

West Ham vs Bolton. From the trio of promoted clubs, West Ham have fared the best to date after they earned four points from two outings.

The Hammers seek to continue with their good work in front of their own fans. The Wanderers, who welcome defender Bruno Ngotty after a three-match suspension, claimed their first win of the campaign at the expense of Newcastle (2-0). The Trotters' last league triumph at Upton Park arrived in April 1964 (3-2), having lost four of their previous five calls.

WBA vs Birmingham. These Midland derbies have always been nail-biting affairs, not to mention the spilling of fans onto the pitch of play in some of the latest clashes.

These two teams have met for only two seasons in the Premiership football. The games at the Hawthorns finished in a 2-0 win for the hosts and a share of the spoils (1-1).

This afternoon, Birmingham must watch out for midfielder Darren Carter who was despatched to their rivals in pre-season. The Baggies saw their undefeated run halted at Chelsea in midweek, while City were trounced at home 3-0 by M'boro.

Aston Villa vs Blackburn. Both sides were involved in drawn matches this week. Villa at Port-smouth (1-1) and Blackburn at home to Tottenham (0-0).

Villa, who will be in search of their first win of the season, bolstered their front-line with the signing of Milan Baros from Liverpool.

Mark Hughes was full of praise for Kerimoglu Tugay after the Turk's great goal against Fulham.

In their first direct clash in the Premiership, the match at Villa Park ended in a 0-0 draw. Since then, in the nine remaining matches, the home side lead the guests 5-4 in terms of wins.

Man. City vs Portsmouth. Following their 2-1 triumph at Sunderland, Man. City will be keen to register their first three-pointer in front of their own fans at the City of Manchester Stadium.

After two consecutive defeats, Pompey earned their first point at home to Aston Villa. The south coast side's last victory at City's backyard was attained 42 years ago (2-0) in the 'old' Second Division.

Since then, from 11 other league matches, the Citizens won seven.

Wigan vs Sunderland. At the JJB Stadium, the home fans will have high hopes of watching their favourites claim their first win in the top flight against fellow newcomers to the Premiership.

After three upsets on the trot, Sunderland will strive to emerge with at least a point.

On the six other occasions the two sides met in lower divisions, the Latics have failed to win as Sunderland emerged victorious twice with the remaining fixtures ending as draws.