My views on the upcoming round of Premier League fixtures

With Christmas over, thoughts will turn back to the Premier League as all players will mentally prepare themselves for the upcoming block of fixtures.

We return to action with a Friday night fixture that will see Manchester United host Newcastle, this will kick off at 8PM (GMT). We then move into a huge Saturday of football. Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City will be the early kick off at 12:30PM. At 3PM we have five fixtures. Brighton will travel to Arsenal, Brentford will welcome Bournemouth, Burnley will face Everton, Liverpool will welcome Wolves and West Ham will go up against Fulham. This will be followed by a game at 5:30PM between Chelsea and Aston Villa. Sunday will see two fixtures take place. Sunderland will face Leeds at 2PM and then to round off GW18 will be Crystal Palace at home against Tottenham Hotspur.

Manchester United vs Newcastle

United are feeling the effects of the African Cup of Nations as they lost their first fixture without Bryan Mbuemo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui. Although, this defeat was against the league’s most inform side, Aston Villa. For United it’s been a case of too many draws in recent weeks. Since November 1st they’ve drawn four times, this is in comparison to just one draw since the start of the season. There’s good and bad within that, but it depends whether you’re an optimist or pessimist. Do you see those draws as a point won, or two points lost? Ruben Amorim knows he needs to turn those draws into wins, but couldn’t achieve that against Aston Villa. United are one of the most creative teams in the league and are joint 2nd for most goals scored. The underlying statistics support the theory that Amorim has transformed this United side, but they need to develop a system of getting games over the line.

Newcastle have also been a team that are finding it hard to close out games and ensure a victory. They gave up a two goal lead against Chelsea in their last outing which would’ve have definitely stung. Eddie Howe’s men have a habit of conceding a goal every match, in fact the last time Newcastle kept a clean sheet, in the league, was the 5th October. This is an awful run and one that needs to stop immediately, considering that Newcastle had one of the most feared defences in Europe last season. However, their backline has been decimated and they’re resorting to doing whatever they can to survive. Dan Burn, Tino Livramento, Sven Botman and Kieran Trippier are all sidelined. These two sides are draw experts and that could be mirrored in this fixture, but I think Man Utd have the tools to turn this game into a win.

Predicted Result: Manchester United 1-0 Newcastle United

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City

Forest have probably felt like a club constantly on their travels as they’ve only had one home fixture in five games. But, that home fixture was a tidy 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur. In fact, despite the host of away fixtures, they’ve won three of their last five in all competitions. It’s respectable form, but it’s doing the job of creating some distance between them and the relegation zone. West Ham sit 18th, five points adrift of Forest. Sean Dyche knows his side have a small cushion, but he will crave the security that will come with another three points. It will taken them above Leeds and just a point away from Bournemouth and Tottenham Hotspur. More importantly though, they could end up being 8 points clear of West Ham. This is also a fixture that Forest won last season, so that will weigh heavily on Pep Guardiola’s mind.

Manchester City have well and truly overcome their early season form. They’re on a 7 game winning streak, scoring 21 goals in the process. Within that streak is four clean sheets. The idea is that they can now score freely and have defensive solidity. If City were to beat Forest then they’ll temporarily leapfrog Arsenal, who will play Brighton at 3PM. They’re banging on Arsenal’s door and just waiting for the North London side to slip up. The only thing that will perhaps trip up the Citizens is their away form as they have lost three times on the road. As much as I don’t think Forest will be able to halt the City juggernaut, I do think they’ll put up a fight and force City to dig deep into their reserves. If they can grab the first goal, I think it’ll derail City’s game plan.

Predicted Result: Forest 1-2 City

Arsenal vs Brighton

Arsenal spent Christmas at the top of the table and will be hoping it stays that way until the end of the season, but pressure is mounting. Two points separate them and City, it doesn’t look like that’ll increase anytime soon. Arsenal stuttered at the start of December with a loss against Villa, but have since found themselves unbeaten in all competitions since. This includes a quarter final victory over Crystal Palace on Tuesday night, by way of a penalty shootout. The Gunners need to keep this form going, but will need to be more lethal in front of goal. In the last four goals scored, three have been own goals and one has been a penalty. Mikel Arteta will be wary that his side aren’t scoring freely enough, despite creating plenty of chances. They have a chance to do it at the fortress they call the Emirates stadium, a ground that hasn’t seen Arsenal lose on this season.

Brighton were having a very good time in the league up until recently. They’ve now only one once in their last five outings, scoring six and conceding seven. It doesn’t sound like a terrible record, but it’s seen them lose twice. They’ll be looking to get their season back on track against Arsenal, a team they’ve enjoyed playing against. Of the 20 games these two sides have played against each other, Arsenal have only won nine times. Brighton have six wins. Home or away, Brighton have quietly tormented the North London side, even last season this fixture saw a 1-1 draw play out. Having said that, these two sides have already played each other this season and it saw the Gunners win 2-0. I think it’s hard to bet against Arsenal at home, but Brighton will always make it awkward. Having said that, Arsenal have the firepower to win.

Predicted Result: Arsenal 3-0 Brighton

Brentford vs Bournemouth

Brentford ended a rut of four games without a win after their 2-0 victory over Wolves last weekend. Much like Nottingham Forest, Brentford have only had one fixture at home in their last five games and that ended in a draw. This run of results still sees them in 12th, which is a respectable position, but home form has been where Brentford have excelled. They’re fifth in the league for results at the Gtech Community Stadium, as they’ve still only lost once on home soil. This will have Keith Andrews excited for a return to home fixtures as a win could see move up to 7th in the league.

Bournemouth have had a very rough time of it recently and they’re facing the prospect of losing their star player in Antoine Semenyo. Semenyo could be off in January and that would mean Bournemouth losing their highest scorer in the league. If you pair this with the fact that the Cherries haven’t won a game since the end of October, it might go from bad to worse for Andoni Iraola. What will give some encouragement to Iraola is the fact that his side have scored the most amount of goals in the bottom 10. In fact you have to look all the way up to a team that are 7th in the league before finding someone that’s scored more. Even on the xG charts, Bournemouth should be five places higher. However, results matter more and they’re not getting them. I do think that Brentford are the more likely to get a result in this one.

Predicted Result: Brentford 2-1 Bournemouth

Burnley vs Everton

Burnley ended their losing streak last weekend with a draw away to Bournemouth. While that was a good result, it’s still looking extremely bleak for Scott Parker. However, there’s a glimmer of hope due to West Ham’s poor form. If Burnley can beat Everton then they climb out of the relegation zone. It can also leave them just four points off Forest who face Manchester City. With this in mind, Parker could galvanise his team and begin their road to safety. The best chance they can have of churning out wins would be at home. Despite dropping points in six of their eight games at home, they do still have two wins. They’ve also only conceded 10 at home which is the best out of the bottom five.

Everton had been doing much better in the league in the last couple of months, but two defeats in two games will bring a reality check for David Moyes. They sit in 10th, but a win can see them move up to 6th. There’s every chance they can as they have the 9th best away form in the league. Three wins on the road is nothing to sneer at, even the top sides only have five. This will be a warning for Burnley. However, Moyes will still be without Kieran Dewsbury-Hall, Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye. The absence of those three created a very flat performance against Arsenal. It’s tough to lose three of your key players at once, but Moyes will have to demand more from those who remain. I do think Burnley can capitalise on a weakened Everton side.

Predicted Result: Burnley 0-0 Everton

Liverpool vs Wolves

The Reds have resurrected their season and are now embarking on a journey up the table. They were down in 10th not so long ago, so to find themselves in fifth is great progress. However, they’re 10 points off the top team. Having said that, they’ve won three times in their last five games and have achieved back-to-back wins in the Premier League for the first time since the 20th September. Things are certainly looking up for Arne Slot and they have a nice home fixture to keep the momentum going. This is also good news for their injury and suspension situation, as Dominik Szobozslai is set to just miss this game.

Wolves are still without a win this season and are closing in on guaranteed relegation. Their top scorer still only has one goal and are yet to break double digits for goals scored in the league. Fans of Wolves will be expecting movement in January, but this will likely be with Championship football in mind. All Rob Edwards can do is try and get the best out of his side that he can between now and the end of the season. However, Liverpool will likely dispatch Wolves with extreme ease.

Predicted Result: Liverpool 5-0 Wolves

West Ham vs Fulham

A London derby. East vs West. Not exactly the fiercest of rivalries, but bragging rights are always good to have. West Ham are staring relegation in the face unless things change soon, they’re without in six games. Nuno Espírito Santo knows his side have defensive issues, but is struggling to plug the holes. The Hammers haven’t even kept a clean sheet since the end of August and that was away from home. This means they haven’t kept a clean sheet, at home, since the 27th February. It’s an awful and unwanted record, even if they’re able to keep a clean sheet against Fulham, it’ll be just two clean sheets kept, at the London Stadium, in the entirety of 2025. That puts into perspective just how bad West Ham have been in defence. It doesn’t get much better at the other end as only three teams have scored less than West Ham in the league.

Fulham have had a mixture of emotions in the last few weeks as they have produced wins, but three defeats in five games is still not good enough for Marco Silva. Within those defeats, the margin has only been by a single goal which makes it an even more tough pill to swallow. However, early season frights of being relegation contenders has alleviated, as they’re now 10 points clear of West Ham. But, Silva won’t be content with just surviving the season, he’ll demand more and a push for European football will be on his agenda. The West London side sit just three points off 7th, so they can definitely make a case to be on the European roster next season. Although, I do think West Ham will frustrate Fulham, they just won’t be able to grab a win.

Predicted Result: West Ham 1-1 Fulham

Chelsea vs Aston Villa

Chelsea have certainly stuttered since their claims to be title contenders, after their draw against Arsenal. Including the draw against Arsenal, the Blues have only won twice in seven games. That’s for all competitions, just league form looks a little more concerning as it’s just one win in five games. The free scoring nature of this Chelsea side has also looked a little blunt in recent ties, they’ve only scored six goals in the last five league games. This is compared to the 23 goals scored in their first 12 league games. The contrast of almost two goals a game compared to just over one goal a game is concerning. Enzo Maresca will be well aware of his side falling away from a title contending position and a win won’t even bring them up to speed with the 3rd place side, Aston Villa.

Villa find themselves 3rd in the league after a gargantuan run of games that has seen them win 10 games in a row in all competitions. If they’re to beat Chelsea then they’ll equal a record that has stood within the club for over 100 years. No Villa side, since 1914, has ever achieved a run of more than 11 games won in a row. It just goes to show how sensational this Villa side has been. However, looking at the xG table, Villa are supposed to be 16th in the league. Perhaps this kind of statistic will catch up with them, but they’d rather win any game 1-0 with only one shot on target than care about xG. I do think Villa’s wild run of games will end here, but I think they’ll remain unbeaten.

Predicted Result: Chelsea 2-2 Villa

Sunderland vs Leeds

Despite having six players away at the AFCON, Sunderland earned a draw away to Brighton. Regis Le Bris will be very happy with that, but will know that he has to keep going. The two sides were promoted together last season, with Sunderland the side that had to earn promotion by way of play off’s. Despite this, Sunderland have adapted much better to the rigorous nature of the Premier League. They find themselves 6th in the league with a chance to crack into the top four with a win. You can’t bet against them getting a result at the Stadium of Light, they have the fourth best home record in the league. They also haven’t yet lost a game on home soil either.

Leeds have found their feet in the league as well, but it took them much longer to adapt. It’s the early season form that has held them back. They sit 16th in the league, but almost half their points have come in the last five games. This includes two wins against Chelsea and Crystal Palace, in which they scored seven goals in. The last five games has seen Leeds face Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Crystal Palace. That’s an extremely tough run, but Daniel Farke’s men only lost once in that stretch and still managed to score 13 goals. It’s fair to say that Leeds’ attack has clicked into place and they have Dominic Calvert-Lewin to thank for that. If he scores against Sunderland, that’ll be six games in a row that he’s scored in. Despite Leeds and their great form, I do feel like Sunderland are a completely different beast at home.

Predicted Result: Sunderland 3-2 Leeds

Crystal Palace vs Tottenham Hotspur

Palace are tired. I saw that when they played Arsenal in the EFL Cup, but they still dragged themselves to a penalty shootout. That just goes to show the spirit and determination within Oliver Glaser’s team is at an all time high. Leeds put Palace to the sword in their last Premier League outing, but that was a culmination of many different factors. One of the factors has been injuries. Palace have been torn apart by injuries in recent weeks and that doesn’t look like stopping soon. Chris Richards was stretchered off against Arsenal on Tuesday night, adding to the injury woes. Palace’s last two games in the league has seen them ship seven goals with only one in reply. But, you can never take this team lightly.

Spurs are in just as much of a rut as Palace, but Spurs’ rut has been ongoing for much longer. The North London side have only won once in their last five league games, this has sent them spiralling down the table. Spurs could find themselves further down than 14th before they even kick a ball. Thomas Frank can’t seem to string together any sort of form, they haven’t even put together back-to-back wins in the league since the opening two games of the season. They’ll also be without two suspended players from their controversial defeat to Liverpool last weekend. Xavi Simons and Christian Romero will both miss this fixture. With that in mind, coupled with Palace’s home form, I can’t see Spurs winning this one.

Predicted Result: Palace 2-0 Spurs