Premier League Predictions: Matchweek 26

FRIDAY:

LEICESTER V BRENTFORD

The reverse fixture was Leicester's final game before Ruud Van Nistelrooy took over and he will have learnt how big a job he had on his hands when he saw them lose 4-1 from the stands.

His task of keeping the Foxes in the Premier League has been made even tougher ever since he got the job and they pretty much look good as gone.

I think they arguably look worse than they were under Steve Cooper as they've conceded a lot goals, and haven't scored many either.

Brentford had the best home record but the worst away record earlier in the season, but now it appears to have switched as they've won their last three on the road.

I think they'll make it four here because of their recent form away form away from home, and the fact that the Foxes have a terrible defensive record.

I think they'll win this one nearly as comfortably as they did the reverse fixture.

PREDICTION: 1-3

SATURDAY:

EVERTON V MAN UNITED

Everton boss David Moyes has won his last two home games against Man United and has beaten them three times since he left them. All wins came when he was at West Ham.

What he's done since returning to Everton has been absolutely remarkable as he's taken them from being relegation candidates to a team that could finish in the top 10.

All I can say about Man United and their game against Spurs was that they weren't clinical enough. I couldn't believe that Garnacho missed that chance he had which was by far the best one they had.

They had a lot of young players on their bench due to them missing a number of senior players through injury, and only one of them came on. This was a surprise given that they were losing the game and they needed something to lift them.

They'll again be without those injured players ahead of this one and because of their poor record against the smaller teams, I can only see another defeat for them here.

Especially with Everton being in such good form and playing well.

PREDICTION: 2-0

ARSENAL V WEST HAM

This is a must win game for Arsenal and an opportunity they need to take after Liverpool dropped points against Aston Villa in midweek.

I wonder is Mikel Merino will start as the false 9 in this one after coming off the bench to play in that position and score twice against Leicester last weekend.

With the Gunners lacking a clinical no.9 and having no recognised player in that position available, could Merino be their answer?

West Ham's indifferent start under Graham Potter continued last weekend with their defeat to Brentford and I'm not really surprised by it.

The players need time to adjust to Potter's style of play and Potter is still working out what his best team is.

Potter picked up a few wins over Arsenal when he was at Brighton and the Gunners' injury crisis will give his side a chance of getting something here.

But I think Arsenal will find a way to win and I think they'll do it via set pieces, like they have done for most of the season.

PREDICTION: 2-0

BOURNEMOUTH V WOLVES

Bournemouth will temporarily move into the Champions League spots if they win this game as they're currently just a point outside them.

What makes their season more impressive is that they've had a lot of injuries and they've dealt with it better than a lot of teams.

Andoni Iraola deserves a lot of credit for the job he's done and is surely a contender for manager of the season.

Wolves caused Liverpool some problems last weekend and were unlucky not to come away with a draw following a promising second half display.

Vitor Pereira's side have a winnable batch of games coming up which will give them the opportunity to get some points on board.

I do think they'll have enough to stay up, but for that to happen they need to start winning games because their current form is not great having won just once in their last five.

I don't see it starti8ng here though as I have to to hand the win to Bournemouth because of the form they're in.

PREDICTION: 3-1

FULHAM V CRYSTAL PALACE

Fulham haven't been as strong at home as they were last season, but they did get an important home win last weekend against Nottingham Forest.

Adama Traore was at the heart of everything they did in that game and he'll need to put in more performances like that one if he is to silence his doubters for good.

Crystal Palace were in the bottom three when they last played Fulham back in November with manager Oliver Glasner under a lot of pressure.

They've risen up the table since then as they're now 13th in the Premier League and have lost just three times since that game.

Glasner deserves a lot of credit for turning things around because a lot of managers might've been sacked had they had the results Palace had earlier in the season.

This should be a close London Derby as both teams look closely matched on paper.

But I think Fulham will just edge it as I think they'll have just enough quality to win the game.

PREDICTION: 2-1

IPSWICH V TOTTENHAM

Ipswich got their first league win of the season against Spurs back in November, but have won very few games since as they're still in the relegation zone.

They got a creditable draw last weekend against Aston Villa where they had new keeper Alex Palmer to thank for in keeping them in the game. I think they stand a better chance of staying up with him in goal because of Muric being error prone.

Spurs might be beginning to turn things around following back to back wins over Brentford and Man United, and they're also getting players back from injury which is another welcome boost.

James Maddison and Guglielmo Vicario both made a huge difference on their returns to the side against United, with the latter in particular showing how much of a miss he's been.

Spurs do still have a long list of injuries, but I fancy them to bag another win here as Ipswich have struggled at home this season.

PREDICTION: 1-3

SOUTHAMPTON V BRIGHTON

What much is there to say about Southampton?

Everyone one knows they're good as gone and other than that, I can't think of anything else to say about them.

Brighton looked very good in their win over Chelsea last weekend which has to be their performance of the season so far.

The Seagulls got hammered 7-0 by Nottingham Forest when they last played on the road and I can confidently say that we're not going to see a repeat of that in this one. Especially as they're facing the side at the foot of the table.

This should be a fairly routine win for Fabian Hurzeler's side.

PREDICTION: 0-3

ASTON VILLA V CHELSEA

Aston Villa really went for it against Liverpool in midweek with the chances they created and the draw they got was probably fair result as both sides had chances.

Villa have struggled in games after playing in midweek but I don't see that being a problem for them here as their game on Wednesday was not a Champions League game, which usually involves a lot of travelling.

Chelsea haven't won away from home since the middle of December when they beat Spurs with their record since then being three defeats and two draws from their five away games since.

They were being spoken about as possible title contenders after their win in the reverse fixture in early December, now they face a battle to finish in the top four with the club now in 6th place.

Enzo Maresca was proven right about them not being title contenders and so was I as I thought the pressure would get to them due to their squad being very young. But I didn't expect a drop off like the one they're going through.

Villa come into this game with an impressive home record and because of that and Chelsea's poor away form, I'm backing Unai Emery's side to take the points here.

PREDICTION: 2-0

SUNDAY:

NEWCASTLE V NOTTINGHAM FOREST

Newcastle didn't turn up against Man City last weekend with some people suggesting that they had an eye on the Carabao Cup final, which is a month away.

It will be interesting to see what kind of performance they put in here against a side who have the same goal as them in a top four finish.

Nottingham Forest have been beaten in their last two away games against Bournemouth and Fulham, which could be a sign that the pressure of being in a top four race is getting to them.

It does happen to sides who aren't used to being in this sort of position including Leicester under Brendan Rodgers, who were sitting comfortably in the top four for two straight seasons, only to completely blow their chances in the finals months of the season.

I think both teams will score here as they both have a lot of firepower in attack. But I'm backing Newcastle to bounce back from their thrashing at City with a much improved performance here.

PREDICTION: 3-1

MAN CITY V LIVERPOOL

Man City barely lay a glove on Real Madrid in midweek until maybe the final few minutes of the game. They looked passive, open, and were dominated all over the pitch.

I thought they would show more after a much improved display against Newcastle where they looked more like their old selves. But it wasn't to be as they didn't offer enough on the day.

After watching their performance against Madrid, Liverpool will feel that they can hurt City and they have the players to do so.

The reds were given a good game by Villa in midweek where they did have some chances that they should've taken. Darwin Nunez's miss towards was quite possibly the best one they had out of all the ones they missed.

They completely dominated City in the reverse fixture at Anfield and I think they'll do the same in this one.

The reds have shown signs of the pressure potentially getting to them recently, but I think they'll put in a performance here and expose City vulnerabilities like Real Madrid did.

PREDICTION: 1-3