Just as the rest of Europe start to slow down and head toward their Winter break in the fixture schedule, in England, things are getting busier. This weekend sees a big match first up when Arsenal travel to Manchester City. Other games to watch though would be the two games at the bottom of the league with Cardiff taking on West Brom and West Ham against Sunderland.
Sunday will be a good indicator of Tottenham and Liverpool’s title credentials for this season.
SATURDAY (All Kick Offs 3pm BST/10am ET unless stated)
Manchester City v Arsenal: (12:45 BST/7:45 ET)
Both sides completed the Champions League campaign this past week by qualifying second in their respective groups. The difference is that Manchester City came from behind against European Champions Bayern Munich and only finished 2nd due to goal difference. Arsenal on the other hand were cruising to top spot until a 2-0 defeat against Napoli saw them barely qualify.
City played on Tuesday and Arsenal played on Wednesday so the extra day may give the home side an advantage but them being at home is usually the only advantage they need. The biggest headache for Pellegrini is which eleven to chose to start on Saturday. Pantilimon or Hart, Silva and/or Nasri?
Prediction:3-0.
Cardiff v West Brom:
Neither of these two sides excite me anymore. Cardiff have had to deal with problems off the field and have since struggled a little bit more on it. Albion on the other hand have tied against Chelsea and should have won but a late dubious penalty robbed them of that. They followed that up by racing to a 2-0 lead against rivals Aston Villa before letting that slip and holding on for a draw. Another tied game here wouldn’t be the end of the world for either side but both desperately need a win and will be looking at this as their chance.
Prediction:2-1
Chelsea v Crystal Palace:
Unfortunately I think this game has come too quick for Tony Pulis. Had it been a few weeks later I think he might have been able to possibly pull off a shock, especially with the Chelsea side finding their strikers somewhat off key right now.
Midweek in the Champions League was not the best performance again and I am sure Mourinho will be looking for a response, and I imagine they will deliver.
Prediction:4-0
Everton v Fulham:
Like Tony Pulis and Crystal Palace I think this game will come a bit too quickly for Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen. Everton are coming into this game after beating Manchester United and getting out of Arsenal with a point. With no distraction for midweek Roberto Martinez has been able to focus on this game. The question is can they play against the struggling sides.
Prediction: 1-1
Newcastle v Southampton:
Can Alan Pardew keep the momentum going from the previous weekend when they beat Manchester United on their own ground. A few days before that they lost to Swansea so with Newcastle you never exactly know what you will get. Southampton could prove to be a dangerous opponent who held Manchester City to a draw last weekend and had a good start to the Premier League. That point against City, however, was the only point Pochettino’s men gained in the last four games.
Prediction: 1-2
West Ham v Sunderland:
I think this game should be titled ‘Can’t Score, Won’t Score’. Despite four goals in the last three games Sunderland have only gained the single point, luckily that was also away from home. West Ham have struggled to score this season and only did once in the past two games. The game before that was a 3-0 victory at home and so that could be the fixture Sam Allardyce points to in order to motivate his side.
Prediction: 2-2
Hull City v Stoke City (Kick Off 5:30pm BST/12:30 ET):
Next season this fixture may not be the battle of the Cities. It could be the Tigers against City but I think no matter what the club is officially called in the future the fans will still call them Hull City.
To the game though and two ex Manchester United players face off against each other when Mark Hughes brings his team to Steve Bruce’s jungle! Can the visitors build on the Chelsea win from last weekend or will the struggle continue for Stoke City?
Prediction:0-0
SUNDAY. (Kick Off 1:30pm BST/ 8:30 ET unless stated)
Aston Villa v Manchester United:
David Moyes just has to win this game. Can you imagine coming out of Villa Park with just a single point or worse, another defeat. Two defeats in the last two games means the defending Champions are sinking like a stone in the League. It is not just the defeats though, their last League win came at home over a month ago. It isn’t good enough and may lead to a Crappy New Year.
Villa have beaten Southampton, Arsenal and Manchester City so far this season, can they add another big scalp?
Prediction: 0-3.
Norwich v Swansea:
Can Chris Hughton benefit from Swansea’s midweek distraction in the Europa League? Certainly you would hope so from a Norwich point of view who every time they take the pitch you feel it could be Hughton’s last game in charge. Another good sign is that their last six games they have won three, two at home. In fact the defeats were all away and against manchester City, Newcastle and Liverpool.
Swansea are mid table but you feel if they do not strengthen in January then the European and Premiership juggling act will see them fall down the table.
2-1
Tottenham v Liverpool (Kick Off 4pm BST/11am ET):
This isn’t a must win for Tottenham but I think calling it a must not lose is not far from the mark. In the last six League games they have faced four teams around them with top four ambitions and not won a single one. Liverpool have won against teams lower in the league but losing Gerrard will give Rodgers a little more room if Liverpool were to lose this game.
Prediction:1-2
