All eyes will be on the Etihad on Sunday afternoon as Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions entertain an under-fire Red Devils side for the 192nd Manchester derby.
But United’s trip to their very noisy neighbours is just one of a number of intriguing top-flight fixtures this weekend, as battle lines are drawn and narratives play out at both ends of the table.
Fresh from their Carabao Cup triumph and a midweek defeat of Southampton in the FA Cup, league leaders Liverpool look to hold off their title rivals with victory away to a Nottingham Forest side hovering just four points above the drop zone.
Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea, meanwhile, aim to bounce back from their disappointment at Wembley with a second win on the trot after seeing off Leeds in the FA Cup on Wednesday night. The Blues could rise to as high as ninth should results go their way over the coming days.
Newcastle will hope to get their pursuit of European football back on track at home to Gary O’Neil’s in-form Wolves, while Aston Villa target their third straight win in the league versus Luton.
Elsewhere, Spurs and Crystal Palace do battle in an all-London affair at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, third-placed Arsenal travel to lowly Sheffield United, Everton host West Ham and Fulham head to Brighton after stunning Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Previewing the weekend’s fixtures for Sportskeeda, former England, Arsenal and Aston Villa star Paul Merson delivered his predictions and pinpointed where each game could be won and lost.
Merson’s prediction: Newcastle 3-2 Wolves
Newcastle went to Arsenal and got absolutely battered as I predicted. They had a great result in the FA Cup in midweek but are set to play against Man City in the quarterfinal, so that’s the end of their cup run, you could say.
Wolves, on the other hand, are a very underrated football team and have been a good team to watch under Gary O’Neil. I think there will be goals in this one but I think Newcastle will just nick it at home. I’m only saying that because while Wolves are a good team, they are at their best when they aren’t expected to win, which isn’t necessarily the case here.
The Magpies got into the top four last season and that came as a huge surprise. In terms of their performances in the current campaign, I’m not really shocked with their current predicament as they collectively overachieved last season, so everyone knew it would be impossible for them to keep that up. We shouldn’t judge them based on that as we all knew that wasn’t going to happen again!
Merson’s prediction: Tottenham 3-1 Crystal Palace
This is a nice game for Tottenham as Palace have a new manager in Oliver Glasner and are set to be without Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise, without whom they’ve really struggled this season. Spurs play a certain game and this would have been a dangerous game if both Eze and Olise were fit, but without the pair, Palace don’t have enough firepower to secure a positive result.
Ange Postecoglou’s side have to win this game as Aston Villa have ramped it up a little bit in recent weeks, so I think they’ll get a comfortable win in front of their home fans.
Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool
Merson’s prediction: Nottingham Forest 1-2 Liverpool
People might say it’s a blessing in disguise for Forest to get knocked out of the FA Cup, but I don’t agree with that. As far as Liverpool are concerned, they have a lorry load of injuries with a handful of young kids featuring regularly for them, but sooner or later, it might be a game too far for the young lads.
This is a hard game, but I think Liverpool could have a bunch of senior players back in the squad for this one, with Darwin Nunez, Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Wataru Endo expected to play some role in this game. I doubt Klopp will rush his key players back, especially with the Manchester City game on the horizon, but he’ll have them on standby in case this game doesn’t go as planned.
Their young players have been outstanding so far, but they can’t play against Man City, with all due respect to them, so it remains to be seen how Klopp approaches this game in terms of his selection. Nonetheless, I’m going for a Liverpool win, but this is not going to be straightforward for the Reds.
Brentford vs Chelsea
Merson’s prediction: Brentford 1-2 Chelsea
Brentford have a decent record against Chelsea and are in a spot of bother after Everton’s points deduction was reduced to six. Their squad has been reduced to its bare bones due to injuries, so I think Chelsea will get the job done here.
In terms of their hopes of staying up, I think Ivan Toney’s return to the team will get them over the line. He’s only going to get fitter as the season goes on, while the rest of the players will get tired, which is a massive advantage.
Everton vs West Ham
Merson’s prediction: Everton 2-1 West Ham
Everton got an absolutely massive boost earlier this week as their points deduction was reduced to six from ten, which will allow them to play without fear between now and the end of the season. They aren’t safe yet, but their situation isn’t as bad as it was before, so they just have to ensure they don’t lose too many games.
Sean Dyche and Co have some nice fixtures coming up and Goodison Park will be absolutely bouncing ahead of this game. I think they will make it count and secure a massive win that will take them another step closer to Premier League safety.
Fulham vs Brighton
Merson’s prediction: Fulham 1-1 Brighton
Fulham were by far the better team against Manchester United and deservedly got a stoppage-time winner through Alex Iwobi. Brighton, on the other hand, are so up and down and a fun little team – they are absolutely impossible to predict. Roberto de Zerbi’s side are a pundits’ nightmare, they make you look so silly!
Neither of these two sides is playing for anything in terms of the Premier League, so I think they will cancel each other out.
Luton vs Aston Villa
Merson’s prediction: Luton 1-2 Aston Villa
I’ll go for an Aston Villa win here as they are a solid, well-coached side at the moment. Luton will cause teams problems at home and have been really good at Kenilworth Road this season, but their confidence will be shot after conceding six against Manchester City and Elijah Adebayo’s absence will be a huge factor as well.
I think Manchester United are a million miles off the race for a top-four spot at the moment, so it’s between Tottenham and Villa. At the moment, I think I’ll go for Villa to secure UEFA Champions League football next season as Spurs are too open at the back for my liking.
Burnley vs Bournemouth
Merson’s prediction: Burnley 1-2 Bournemouth
I was shocked by Bournemouth’s loss against Leicester City in the FA Cup. They are pretty much safe in the Premier League so it was the perfect time for them to have a right swing at the FA Cup, but they blew it! If they lose this one, their season kind of fizzles out and people could forget how impressive they were in the middle of the campaign, which is unfortunate for Andoni Iraola and his team.
After Everton’s points deduction was reduced to six, I think it’s curtains for Burnley and Sheffield United. It’s not like Burnley aren’t trying, but they don’t have the players to make their brand of football work, and the gulf of class between these two sides and the rest of the Premier League is absolutely massive.
If Dom Solanke is fit for this one, I think Bournemouth will get all three points.
Manchester City vs Manchester United
Merson’s prediction: Man City 3-0 Man United
If Rasmus Hojlund was fit, I’d have given Manchester United a chance in this game as the away side would have had a lot of pace in attack with the Danish striker playing alongside Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford. Now that Hojlund is out injured, I think it would be one-way traffic in favor of the home side. I actually think Manchester United are going to the Etihad Stadium in damage-limitation mode – so I’m going to be kind and go for a 3-0 home win but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a lot worse.
Erling Haaland scoring five goals away from home against a Premier League side in the FA Cup is not normal, but we tend to take him for granted. I can’t put into words how extraordinary a feat that is – it was mindblowing and I mean it. He’s absolutely ruthless in front of goal and doesn’t care if he scores a tap-in or a diving header, that’s what I love about him!
I personally think Liverpool’s game against Forest is a harder one to call than this one, so I’m going for a comfortable home win.
Sheffield United vs Arsenal
Merson’s prediction: Sheffield United 0-3 Arsenal
I can’t see anything but an Arsenal win here. After successive defeats to Fulham and West Ham United in late 2023, I thought the Gunners’ title challenge would fizzle out, but they’ve been absolutely magnificent since the turn of the year and are scoring goals for fun!
Again, I’ll stop at three, but I think it could be any scoreline here. Arsenal have a good balance to their team and will look to score early as they have in most of their games in recent weeks.
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