Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/254848
23 Sport maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 5 FEBRUARY 2014 Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday WEATHER Rather cloudy with isolated showers becoming partly cloudy VISIBILITY: Generally good WIND: Variable force 2 to 3 becoming West Southwest force 3 to 4 SEA: Moderate becoming slight to moderate SWELL: Low Easterly SEA TEMP: 16 °C A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 White to play and mate in four moves A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Last week's solution Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. CHANCE OF RAIN 16 º C / 10 º C UV INDEX: 2 Today's Weather Chess Sudoku Across 1. Producing music (7) 5. Country of the United Kingdom (7) 9. Eccentric (3) 10. Dens (5) 11. Stage play (5) 12. Attempt (3) 13. Remove silt from river (6) 16. Ramble (6) 19. Cried (4) 21. Bread rolls (4) 23. Unclothed (4) 24. Abbreviated (9) 25. Old form of you (4) 26. Leave out (4) 27. Fruit of the pine (4) 28. Betray (6) 31. Weights (6) 35. Purse (3) 37. Insect stage (5) 38. Assisted (5) 39. Wager (3) 40. Not anywhere (7) 41. Earring with a pendant (7) Down 1. Shifted (5) 2. Find the answer (5) 3. Adhere closely (5) 4. Not won (4) 5. Whirlpool (4) 6. Huge (5) 7. Mission in Texas (5) 8. Speak in a slow manner (5) 14. Make rough (7) 15. Final course (7) 16. Stench (5) 17. Dilapidated (7) 18. Opponent of new technologies (7) 20. Consumed (5) 22. Dog (5) 28. Mass of eggs (5) 29. Relative by marriage (2-3) 30. Swearword (5) 32. Below (5) 33. Tree (5) 34. Stub (5) 35. Small child (4) 36. Movable barrier (4) Pursuits Kf6 Kg8 c8=Q+ Kh7 Qd7+ Kh8 (Kh6) Qg7++ THE clock is now ticking for the clubs fighting it out at the bottom of the ta- ble and it is not looking particularly good for the Fulham as they prop up the table. With only six wins under their belt and no less than 53 goals shipped Rene Meulensteen's work is more than cut out for him. A hatful of deals on transfer deadline day might give the fans a temporary high however I feel that most of the rushed deals will end up causing more damage than good. The club now has only four months to bed in and get going and with a to- tal of four new players arriving, life at the Cottage is not going to get easier. Cardiff City face a similar struggle and once more their new manager has dipped heavily into the trans- fer market in order to try save their season. Three new signings for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men and the team responded with a useful win against Norwich to lift them off the bottom. The winter transfer market can breathe new life into a struggling club however the majority of sign- ings seem to be emergency repair kits when compared to summer signings. Many lower division sides manage to get their hands on loanees and that in my opinion only adds to the unsettled feeling in the club. West Ham United also finally got a win over the weekend after a solid performance against Swansea with Andy Carroll on form to assist Kevin Nolan's two goals. Sam Allardyce's position seemed under threat so of- ten this season, particularly after be- ing thrashed against the likes of Not- tingham Forest and Manchester City so this win blows a sigh of relief for the defensive minded manager. It was only their fifth win of the season and it can act as a springboard to future success. Early on in the season many pre- dicted that Crystal Palace would struggle in the top flight and their current position of 16th suggests that they will be in the mix for the remain- der of the season, but one team I had not argued would struggle was West Bromwich Albion. The baggies are just above Palace and their new man- ager Pepe Mel is yet to register a win in three. They are now just one point away from the drop zone and things need to pick up fast if they are to sur- vive. A managerial change that is bring- ing out a degree if improvement was the one made at the Stadium of Light and mind you improving from their former manager Paolo Di Canio was never going to be a tough task. Gus Poyet has finally got into the groove in his new role and a much needed mo- rale boosting win against Manchester United in the League Cup Semi Final was just the tonic. They have moved from strength to strength since, re- cording their sixth win of the season last weekend. Once again the derby came around at the right time for Poyet's men as he emulated his predecessor in beat- ing Newcastle 3-0 at St James Park. It is wins like those than can really change a season and Sunderland have dragged themselves out of the bottom three and out of the hat labelled rel- egation favourites. That derby did highlight the sort of inconsistent form Newcastle United have played in this season and losing star man Yohann Cabaye to Paris St German in the transfer window did nothing to lift any spirits. They cap- tured Dutch forward Luuk de Jong on loan till the end of the season however Alan Pardew has now got to deal with a gaping hole in his midfield. It does seem to be a case where the window market might have derailed a decent season for the Toons, however the ad- vantage is that they still have time to get their form right and fight for those Europa League spaces. The bottom ten teams are only separated by six measly points so this season's relegation scrap is set to be as tight as ever. My current favourites to go down will have to be Fulham, Cardiff and West Brom due to that change in management however it is still all to play for and I would certain- ly say that at this stage no body in that bottom ten is any safer than anyone. One joke aimed at certain fans is that there is one team who have pulled to the safe 40 point mark, and that team is Manchester United, so you can all lay off the reds for a while as they cer- tainly will not be relegated! OPINION Mark Strijbosch Stuck in the mud Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen