Ed Chamberlin looks ahead to the Grand National, The Masters at Augusta and the return of the Barclays Premier League.There are two major puzzles to solve next week in two of the sporting years great occasions: The Masters and the Grand National.The two Im going to war with in the Aintree spectacular are Ucello Conti and Gallant Oscar. Im becoming something of a Gordon Elliott disciple but in Ucello Conti the case is obvious after two fine efforts in the top Irish handicap chases, most recently in the Thyestes where Jacques Ricou took the horse via Calais. Hes been laid out for the race, as has Gallant Oscar for another of Irelands shrewdest handlers, Tony Martin. Again Gallant Oscar has some top handicap form to his name, notably at both the Cheltenham and Punchestown Festivals last season. Hes been bought along very quietly this term with one race in mind and really caught the eye at Naas earlier this month.Finding the winner of the modern day Grand National is virtually impossible and youll here tips for every horse over the next ten days but lets hope Gallant Oscar and Ucello Conti give us a decent run for our money.After the battering they took at the Cheltenham Festival, the bookmakers will desperately want a result in the National and plenty of surprises over the three days. Sky Bet have bravely priced up 14 of the Aintree races and with Willie Mullins lining up plenty of his big guns - Douvan, Vautour, Black Hercules, Annie Power et al - they could be right up against it again.With Augusta course and distance form working out well year after year, the layers may struggle to get a result in The Masters too. Ill be having my annual each-way stab on Matt Kuchar at 66/1 with Sky Bet, who are paying on the first five places. The medias focus will firmly be on the big three - Jason Day, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy - which could play in to the hands of Adam Scott and he looks a great bet at 11/1.What a buzz England created against Germany on Saturday night. What a reality check they got versus the Netherlands on Tuesday. The teams true ability probably lies somewhere between the Berlin brilliance and the Wembley wobble.One thing is for sure: youd have taken this situation at the start of this season going in to Euro 2016. Leicester have shown few signs of feeling the pressure so far. They have won seven of their last nine games and lost just one of the last 13 matches since late December. Ed Chamberlin on the Premier League Back then it was fashionable to bemoan the lack of English talent but now we seem to have a wealth of prodigious, young, attacking players. Kane, Vardy, Alli, Welbeck, Sturridge, Barkley and co. could cause quite a stir this summer. Despite the hype from Saturdays brilliant comeback against Germany, expectations should remain low but it would be great to think Roy Hodgsons team will give it a real go in France.Those young stars take centre stage this weekend as the Premier League returns and the thrilling title race resumes. The top two are both live on Sky Sports with Tottenham (11/4 to win the title) at Anfield on Saturday Night Football then Leicester (8/15) part of the Super Sunday double header. Spurs must seize the chance playing first this weekend and crank up the pressure on the leaders. Beating Liverpool would send out a major message.Leicester have shown few signs of feeling the pressure so far. They have won seven of their last nine games and lost just one of the last 13 matches since late December. They have been magnificent. Their team spirit remains formidable and their performances on the international stage will give another surge of self belief to Vardy, Drinkwater and Kanté. The big difference to earlier in the season is that theyve tightened things up. Gone are the 4-3s and 3-2s. Leicester have won last three games 1-0. They might not be playing with the same flamboyance but theyve been really difficult to beat, especially at the King Power which will be absolutely jumping again on Sunday. Leicester are unbeaten in a club record 11 Premier League home games and have had six clean sheets in the last seven home games.Southampton will have their work cut out but will also be buoyant after their extraordinary comeback win against Liverpool two weeks ago, which must have been inspired by the Saints mascot that day - Sam Chamberlin!Southamptons season in many ways sums up the craziness of the Premier League. The Saints started well then had a horrible run of one win, thumping Arsenal, in 10 games as they went out of both Cups and all of a sudden they were nervously looking over their shoulders only seven points clear of the drop zone. A few weeks later and Southampton are only four points off the Champions League places. Madness.Whatever happens now, theyve had another brilliant season against all the odds and the focus this summer must be keeping key players and even more importantly persuading Ronald Koeman, who has done the most remarkable job, to extend his contract beyond next summer.After the game at the King Power, it promises to be a special day at Old Trafford as they rename the South Stand after the great Sir Bobby Charlton. Charlton joined Manchester United as an apprentice in 1953 and made his debut for the club 60 years ago. He went on to play for the club 758 times, scoring a club record 249 goals.Another landmark could be the 1,000th Premier League goal scored by Manchester United at Old Trafford. Man Utd have scored 999 PL goals at Old Trafford so far and will become the first team to score 1000 home goals if they score on Sunday. Their first Premier League goal at Old Trafford was scored by Denis Irwin in a 1-1 draw against Ipswich in August 1992 and since then there have been 81 different scorers at the Theatre of Dreams I absolutely love this time of year with the Premier League run-in and spring upon us with top events left right and centre. England reaching Sundays World T20 Final just adds to the mix. Cheap Vans Australia . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. Vans Old Skool Australia Sale http://www.cheapoldskoolaustralia.com/ . James, who turned 29 on Monday, injured his groin Friday during the Heats overtime loss at Sacramento. He sat out the following game, a 108-107 win Saturday in Portland, before coming back to help send the Nuggets to their seventh consecutive loss. Vans Old Skool Sale . Then the Pacers gave Oladipo and his Orlando teammates the cold shoulder. Paul Georges buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter spurred a 21-4 run, finally sending Indiana past the Magic 97-87 in a tougher-than-expected opening night matchup. Old Skool Australia Cheap . On June 12, just as the sun sets on the magnificent historical city of Sao Paulo the inventors, innovators and purveyors of “joga bonitowill” open their campaign. The opponent, Croatia and all its football might and will. As opposites do attract we are set for a corker of an opener.NEW YORK -- The Blair Pitch Project started to show results for the Atlanta Braves.Using a revised windup developed during a brief trip to the minor leagues, Aaron Blair won for the first time in 13 major league starts and helped the Braves slow the New York Mets wild-card chase with a 7-3 victory Monday night.Acquired from Arizona along with Dansby Swanson and Ender Inciarte in Decembers trade that sent Shelby Miller to the Diamondbacks, Blair had been 0-6 with an 8.23 ERA in his first 12 big league starts, including 0-2 in three outings against the Mets.Its frustrating giving up runs and going out, not getting a win for your team, but tonight was good, Blair said.Freddie Freeman, getting little sleep after bringing his newborn son home from a hospital late Sunday, drove in three runs off a misfiring Noah Syndergaard. Freeman had four hits for the Braves, who have the worst record in the National League, and Swanson had three hits and three RBI.Blair, a 24-year-old right-hander selected 36th overall in the 2013 amateur draft, went on the disabled list after an Aug. 28 loss because of a strained left knee, then worked on his mechanics during two injury rehabilitation starts in the minors. Braves pitching coach Roger McDowell wanted him to cut down on the turn in his rotation, to reach out farther with his pitching arm and to stay more upright.Obviously, giving up a run per inning wasnt great, so I was up for any changes, Blair said.Activated to start against the Mets, Blair (1-6) did not allow a hit until the fourth, when Curtis Granderson singled and T.J. Rivera hit a two-run homer.Blair gave up six hits in six innings, struck out four and walked one, lowering his ERA to 7.71.All the hard work that hes put in and making changes and sticking to it, not reverting back in stressful situations, its nice to see him rewarded for it, Braves manager Brian Snitker said. He got a good downhill plane going, I thought, and obviously some of those changeups they were swinging over had some late action.Blair was given the ball from the final out and received more than 50 text messages of congratulations.I was able to make pitches whenn I needed to, and if they hit the ball, they just hit it right at guys, he said.dddddddddddd. So some of the line drives I was on the luckier side.Syndergaard (13-9) allowed five runs in 3 2/3 innings, and Atlanta fouled off 26 of his 99 pitches. He started to falter in a 35-pitch second that included consecutive walks and RBI singles by Swanson and Inciarte, the first on a 99.9 mph fastball and the second on a slider.Freeman led off the third with an opposite-field homer to left, extending his streaks for hits to 23 games and for reaching base to 39. Freeman then reached down to slice an opposite-field, two-run double in the fourth for a 5-0 lead.Freeman could barely keep his eyes open afterward.I got nothing left. I left it all out there, he said. I can hardly think right now.OH SO CLOSERio Ruiz, a 22-year-old Braves third base prospect, had been announced as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning Sunday in his major league debut when Washington changed pitchers, rain started to fall and the tarp was brought out. The game, which had been interrupted for 1 hour, 7 minutes in the sixth, was called after a 1:50 wait. His parents, who changed their flight to stay after the first rain delay, did not make the trip to New York and headed back to Los Angeles.Theres nothing frustrating about being here in the majors leagues, he said. Im still all smiling.ROTATIONRHP Ryan Weber will start for the Braves in Wednesdays series finale, his second start this season and the seventh of his big league career.GREAT GLOVEBraves LF Matt Kemp, a two-time Gold Glove winner, ran in for diving catches in the seventh on Michael Conforto and Alejandro De Aza.TRAINERS ROOMBraves: RHP Mike Foltynewicz, hit on the left calf by Marcell Ozunas liner on Sept. 12, is playing catch and walking on a treadmill. Snitker said he could return this season.UP NEXTJulio Teheran (5-10) is to start Tuesday for the Braves and RHP Robert Gsellman (2-1) for the Mets, Teheran is 1-0 with a 0.78 ERA against New York in three starts this year. ' ' '