Week 20 of Premier League action is here and there are some great matches on tap. Just three points separate the top three teams and depending on the outcomes of a few matches, the league table could look much different after this weekends match ups. My pick for match of the week has to be Liverpool at Stoke City. Here I take a look at this week’s games giving you insight on making your EPL soccer wager a winner.
#1 Chelsea maintained a single point lead over second place Manchester United after beating Fulham 2-1 last weekend. This week Chelsea will host # 11 Sunderland, who slipped on the league table after drawing with Blackburn in their last outing. They have lost five of their last six on the road. Chelsea will again be without Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou, Michael Essien and John Mikel Obi as all four are away on international duty in the African Nations Cup, but always have a strong showing at Stamford Bridge. With home advantage I expect Chelsea to pick up the win and all three points in this one.
#2 Manchester United narrowed the gap to just two points between them and the top of the table when they drew 1-1 with Birmingham City in their last match. ManU will be looking to avenge an earlier surprise loss to Burnley at Turf Moor in August with a chance to overtake the top spot on the league table. #14 Burnely will want to impress new manager Brian Laws when they visit Old Trafford on Saturday and rebound from a 2-0 loss to Everton. They will have their work cut out for them as several of their top defenders will be sidelined with injuries and Andre Bikey is absent on African Nations Cup duty. Look for United to exploit Burnely’s thin defense and take three points in this game.
#3 Arsenal maintained their position just three points behind the top spot on league table with a 2-2 draw with Everton last weekend and will have a chance to leapfrog over Manchester United with a win this Sunday when they travel to #18 Bolton Wanderers. New Manager Owen Coyle takes charge of the Wanderers for the first time against an Arsenal side that are top of the current form table with three wins and a draw from their last four. Bolton continues to struggle but kept from sliding any further down the table by drawing 2-2 with Hull City in their last match. I don’t see Bolton toppling Arsenal even with home pitch advantage. Expect Arsenal to pick up three points with a win.
#5 Tottenham Hotspur have won four out of five at home and will host #19 Hull City on Saturday. The Tigers are second from the bottom of the table taking just three points from a possible 18. The Hotspur beat West ham 2-0 in their last league match and have won three of their last four, but slipped one spot when Manchester City leapfrogged over them last week. With Tottenham having home advantage and Hull City’s recent poor form, I don’t see the Tigers taking anything away from this. Tottenham gets the win and the points.
# 4 Manchester City have won all four matches under new manager Roberto Mancini and with a big 4-1 win over Blackburn last week moved into fourth spot on the table. They will travel to # 12 Everton who slipped a spot after a draw with Arsenal but remain unbeaten in six, drawing five with a single win. City is only seven points behind leaders Chelsea and only six adrift of local rivals Manchester United, with a game in hand. I expect that Manchester City is too strong for the Everton side and pick up all three points in this one.
#6 Aston Villa maintained their current spot on the table after falling to Liverpool 1-0, recording their second successive loss. They will be aiming to avoid a third league defeat when they host # 17 West Ham United this Sunday. West Ham has lost their last three on the road and have one win in their last six matches. They will be looking to snap their losing skid as a loss could drop them to second bottom of the table at the conclusion of this weekend’s games. The Villans are 6-2-2 at Villa Park. I expect t Villa to win this one 3-1, grabbing some much needed points.
# 8 Birmingham City preserved their 12 game unbeaten streak with a 1-1 draw against Manchester United in their last league match. If you include FA matches, City’s unbeaten run soars to an impressive 14. They are still a long way from surpassing Arsenal who holds the record for the longest unbeaten league streak, set October 24, 2004, with an unbelievable 49. Birmingham will travel to #20 Portsmouth on Saturday who has just four wins on the season with three coming at home. With a 4-2-4-road record I don’t expect Birmingham’s streak to end at Portsmouth as they take the points with a win.
#9 Fulham have stalled mid table with two successive losses and could be in jeopardy of falling out of the top 10 should they lose to #13 Blackburn Rovers this weekend. Following their midweek Carling Cup defeat the Rovers have not won in 90 minutes for 12 matches including a 4-1 loss to Manchester City in their last league game. Fulham are aiming to avoid a hat trick of defeats but are dreadful on the road with just one win, five losses and four draws. They have struggled as of late and I see no reason for that to change this weekend. Expect both sides to split the points in a 1-1 draw.
# 10 Stoke City will want to build on their home win against Fulham when they host #7 Liverpool this weekend. Liverpool will be without their most influential trio of players in striker Fernando Torres, captain Steven Gerrard and midfielder Yossi Benayoun, all of who were injured in the midweek FA Cup exit.
Stoke has played well at home posting five wins three losses and two draws. Liverpool has been mediocre at best away from Anfield winning just four of ten. This should balance out the clubs making for an interesting game. With the season halfway completed, Liverpool will be desperate for a win to stop from slipping any further in the standings. Expect a draw in this one.
The final match of the week is #15 Wolverhampton Wanderers will host # 16 Wigan Athletic. Wigan have taken just one point from a possible 15 on the road losing their last league match to Birmingham City 3-2. The Wolves have won two of their last three at Molineux and I expect that trend to continue through this weekend. The Wolves take advantage of the home crowd to walk away with the win and the points.
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