This weekend is week 24 in the Premier League and there are some great matches coming up including both the North London Derby and the Merseyside Derby. Not to mention matches that will continue to shape the top four and bottom three of the table.
For those of us in American, waking up for the early Saturday game (7:45 for me) is an absolute must. The North London Derby features both Tottenham and Arsenal facing off with the chance to take fifth in the table.
An Arsenal win combined with other favorable results, could see them go as far as third in the table. At this point Arsenal sit in fifth place on 42 points, just two ahead of Tottenham in sixth.
This is always an emotionally charged match and the combination of possible fourth place on the line means that it has taken on an all new importance.
Arsenal hold a clear edge in this match having won 4 out of the last six matches, however, Tottenham were able to break that hold, briefly, with a 1-1 draw earlier this season. Both teams are in tremendously good form and it’s hard to pick a winner. My prediction is a scoring a draw for this one.
The Merseyside Derby has had some interesting results recently. Everton are without a win in their last six meetings, but have managed to pull off four draws. This includes the 1-1 draw at Anfield earlier this season.
At the moment Liverpool sit at the top of the form table with 5 out of 6 wins. With Everton’s win in week 23 they were able to move out of the bottom of the form table, though barely with just one win in their last six.
This is another derby that has some massive implications. Everton are on a slide that sees them headed toward a relegation battle while Liverpool are chasing the dream of back to back top four finishes.
With the way that these two teams are playing it’s difficult to see anyone other than Liverpool walking away with all there points. The return of Daniel Sturridge comes at the best time possible and he could be the difference. There’s also the chance that Everton will buckle down and produce a shock result. It is a derby after all.
| Time | Home | Away | Final Score | |||
| Saturday, January 17 | ||||||
| 7:45ET/12:45GMT | Tottenham Hotspur | 2 | v | 2 | Arsenal | 2-1 |
| 10:00ET/15:00GMT | Aston Villa | 0 | v | 3 | Chelsea | 1 – 2 |
| 10:00ET/15:00GMT | Leicester City | 2 | v | 3 | Crystal Palace | 0 – 1 |
| 10:00ET/15:00GMT | Manchester City | 2 | v | 0 | Hull City | 1-1 |
| 10:00ET/15:00GMT | QPR | 0 | v | 2 | Southampton | 0 – 1 |
| 10:00ET/15:00GMT | Swansea City | 1 | v | 0 | Sunderland | 1-1 |
| 12:30ET/17:30GMT | Everton | 1 | v | 2 | Liverpool | 0-0 |
| Sunday, January 18 | ||||||
| 7:00ET/12:00GMT | Burnley | 0 | v | 1 | West Bromwich Albion | 2-2 |
| 9:05ET/15:05GMT | Newcastle United | 2 | v | 2 | Stoke City | 1 – 1 |
| 11:15ET/16:15GMT | West Ham United | 1 | v | 2 | Manchester United | 1-1 |
Manchester City and Chelsea should maintain their grips on first and second considering their opponents and their lack of scoring.
Southampton should also maintain their form as they take on Queens Park Rangers while Crystal Palace and Leicester City could produce a fun match to watch with goals from both teams predicted.
West Ham v Manchester United is shaping up to be a quality match as well and a fine way to end the weekend. I’m predicting a Manchester United win. They hold the edge over West Ham with 4 wins and 2 draws in their last 6 matches.
This weekend should be full of some great matches and I am definitely looking forward to it.