Week 32 is here, my friends, and with seven games to go, teams at the top and the bottom of the Premier League are getting pretty nervous.
It’s time to throw out some predictions for the 10 PL matches taking place this Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
[ STREAM: Every PL game live online ]
I’ve consulted my crystal ball and here’s how we see things panning out…
BASICALLY, FREE MONEY
Liverpool 3-1 Newcastle United – (Monday, 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN)
The Reds will have to get over the disappointment of two-straight defeats to Manchester United and Arsenal. So, they play Newcastle and will likely rack up a big win. This game has seen some incredible 4-3 wins over the years, but expect Raheem Sterling and Co. to rip a poor Magpies squad apart.
Burnley 1-3 Arsenal – (Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET, NBC)
Sean Dyche’s men will fight to the death at Turf Moor but the Gunners just possess way too much quality going forward. Expect this to be tight until half time and then Arsenal will kick into a higher gear late on. Eight wins on the spin for the Gunners. Can they mount a late title charge?
Manchester United 3-1 Manchester City - (Sunday, 11 a.m. ET, NBCSN)
The big game this weekend sees Manchester’s two teams heading in completely opposite directions. United has won six of seven, while City has lost three of five and Manuel Pellegrini is under severe pressure as the defending PL champs have dropped to fourth and Untied are ahead of them. City have won the last four derbies... but they won’t win this one.
Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 Aston Villa - (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, NBCSN)
Tim Sherwood is heading back to White Hart Lane for the first time since he was fired and his Villa side need a big win to ease their relegation fears. I don’t expect them to get it. Mauricio Pochettino’s side still have an outside chance of a top four finish and will expect Harry Kane to be fired up as Spurs fired a blank at Burnley last weekend.
DON’T TOUCH THIS…
QPR 2-2 Chelsea - (Sunday, 8:30 a.m. ET, NBCSN)
Chelsea has lost Diego Costa for the next four games and Loic Remy will have to come in and ease the loss. QPR have been very unlucky in recent weeks but with seven goals in their last two games, they can definitely rip teams apart. If their defense holds out, I expect the R’s to have a real go at Chelsea.
Southampton 2-1 Hull City - (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Premier League Extratime)
Saints are still pushing to finish fifth or maybe even higher, and that means a home game against Hull is a must-win after they lost to Everton. Steve Bruce has been very complimentary of Southampton in the build-up to this one so expect the Tigers to sit nine-men behind the ball and play on the counter. This will be tight but expect a home win, just.
Swansea City 1-2 Everton – (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Premier League Extratime)
Garry Monk used to play with Roberto Martinez and was then his captain at Swansea when the Spaniard was in charge. Both teams play attractive soccer so expect an open, entertaining game. The away side will make it four-straight wins if they prevail and their extra-quality in the final third may make the difference. Then again, the Swans have Gomis who is on fire.
“SO YOU’RE TELLING ME THERE’S A CHANCE…”
West Bromwich Albion 1-2 Leicester City – (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Premier League Extratime)
Houston, we have lift off. The Foxes won at home against West Ham last week and they need another win here to really give themselves hope of surviving the drop. WBA got hammered by QPR and Tony Pulis would not have been happy. Can he get a reaction from his side? I expect Leicester to build on their win last weekend.
Sunderland 1-0 Crystal Palace – (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Premier League Extratime)
Dick Advocaat saw the Black Cats’ survival hopes boosted by beating Newcastle in the Tyne-Wear derby last weekend and if his side defend well and can rely on Jermain Defoe, they should grind out another win against Crystal Palace. Despite beating Man City on Monday, Alan Pardew’s Eagles may struggle to dictate the tempo of the game as they are so used to playing on the break.
West Ham United 1-3 Stoke City - Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Premier League Extratime)
Confusion still surrounds Upton Park as Sam Allardyce’s future remains unclear. A defeat at Leicester last week said it all and although they have lost two-straight, expect Stoke to come flying out of the traps after they came pretty close to grabbing a point at Chelsea last weekend. Plus, it always helps when Charlie Adam can pull a 65-yard wonder goal out of the bag...