The return of the Premier League was highly welcomed by fans of clubs around the country last weekend following the international break. Between an exhilarating North-London derby, an intra-team bust-up and yet another Liverpool loss, the Premier League is well and truly back. It was a great weekend for Arsenal fans, not only thrashing Spurs 4-1 but also seeing both Liverpool and Manchester City lose, tightening their grip on the top spot. So, what’s to come this weekend?
Embed from Getty ImagesBrentford vs Burnley
The away side have some form as of late, winning three in their last five and narrowly losing last time out away at Brighton when Igor Thiago saw his second penalty of the game saved by Bart Verbruggen deep into stoppage time. It was the striker’s 7th goal in his last seven games, bringing his total to nine for the season, bettered only by Erling Haaland.
He faces a Burnley defence that has conceded nine goals in their last four matches and so will be looking to hit double-digits in his goal tally. His Burnley counterpart, Zian Flemming, has earned his place in the Burnley starting XI, scoring twice in his second start against Wolves and finding the back of the net against West Ham in a 3-2 defeat. Brentford, too, are prone to conceding a goal or two, so the more clinical striker on the day could be the deciding factor in this affair.
Embed from Getty ImagesAhead of the clash, Brentford manager Keith Andrews reported no new concerns of injuries in his squad. It was reported last week that Fabio Carvalho has sustained an ACL injury, ruling him out for the rest of the season. The Portuguese midfielder underwent surgery this week, which ‘went well’ according to Andrews.
New signing Antoni Milambo is also out with an ACL injury, whilst Josh Dasilva is out with a knee ligament issue. For Burnley, Zaki Amdouni is expected to be out until April with a crucial ligament tear, whilst Connor Roberts and Jordan Beyer are expected to be back in January after months on the sidelines.
Manchester City vs Leeds
The home side is six points behind league leaders Arsenal, but could close the gap should Arsenal drop points against Chelsea. The home side has only been beaten once at home this season – a 2-0 loss against Spurs in their first home game of the season.
An Erling Haaland goal is almost inevitable these days, with the Norwegian striker only failing to score in three games this season. With the away side conceding 11 goals in their last five games, it certainly looks likely that Haaland will add to the 14 goals he already has this season. Both Rayan Cherki and Nico O’Reilly have also hit form as of late, with the former providing three assists in his last three games and the latter getting a goal and two assists in his previous five.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe away side have only won once away from home this season, against bottom-of-the-table Wolves, and currently sit in 18th. It’s challenging to see Leeds taking anything away from the Etihad when considering both sides’ form, but this is the Premier League, the greatest league in the world, and anything is possible. Rodri is still ‘not yet’ fit to start, according to Guardiola and Kovacic isn’t expected back until March.
As for Leeds, Daniel Farke said that ‘Anton Stach will definitely miss the game’ due to ‘concussion protocol’ and that Sean Longstaff will be out for ‘almost four to six weeks’ with a calf injury. As for Sebastiaan Bornauw, Farke believes he will be a ‘late call’ on whether or not he can be in the matchday squad.
Sunderland vs Bournemouth
Newly promoted Sunderland are flying high upon their Premier League return, only two points off a Champions League spot. The Black Cats are unbeaten at home this season and will look to maintain that record as they host Andoni Iraola’s Bournemouth. The Cherries are also unbeaten at home this season, but have only managed one point from their last three games.
The away side were without their star man, Antoine Semenyo, last time out and only managed a draw against West Ham, though it’s expected that he’ll be back in the squad for the clash against Sunderland. Bournemouth fans will be hoping the Ghanaian’s return will take Bournemouth back to winning ways, with the side only managing one victory in their last five. On the contrary, Sunderland have only suffered one defeat in their previous five, taking away eight points from a possible 15.
Embed from Getty ImagesAhead of this weekend’s fixture, Sunderland doesn’t have any new injury concerns but will soon be expecting both Habib Diarra and Aji Alese to return to the squad in the coming month. Unfortunately for Bournemouth, both Ben Gannon-Doak and Ryan Christie were injured during the international break in a game against Greece and won’t feature at the Stadium of Light.
Speaking on the matter, Iraola told the media, ‘It could be three weeks, four weeks, something like this.’ The Spanish manager also gave an update on Antoine Semenyo, stating, ‘If everything goes well today (in training), I think he is going to be available for tomorrow.’
Everton vs Newcastle
Last time out, the away side managed an impressive win against Manchester City at St. James’ Park, with Harvey Barnes scoring twice in seven minutes to take all three points. Newcastle, however, have suffered three defeats in its last five games and conceded 10 goals in the process. On top of this, the Magpies are yet to win away from home this season, so Moyes’ men will be looking to capitalise, especially since they’ve only been on the end of one defeat at the Hill Dickinson Stadium this season.
They will, however, be without Idrissa Gana Gueye following his bust-up with teammate Michael Keane and consequential red card in their 1-0 victory over Manchester United. A clean sheet against Newcastle would make it three on the bounce for the home side and make them unbeaten in four. A victory could see the Toffees move deep within the top half, depending on how other results go, whereas a Newcastle win is unlikely to propel them much further up the table.
Embed from Getty ImagesMoyes confirmed ahead of the game that Everton’s appeal against Gueye’s red card was rejected, meaning the Senegalese international will miss Everton’s next three games. Moyes also confirmed that Seamus Coleman suffered a ‘small hamstring injury’ last time out at Old Trafford and will therefore miss this weekend’s game. Fellow defenders Nathan Patterson and Jarrad Branthwaite are also sidelined with a hernia and hamstring issue, respectively. Another Toffees player injured is German midfielder Merlin Rohl, who Moyes believes won’t be back until ‘the start of January.’
For Newcastle, Eddie Howe remains ‘hopeful’ that Sven Botman will be available for selection ahead of the trip to Merseyside, but said that Kieran Trippier is ruled out with ‘a hamstring injury.’ The Magpies will also be without Emile Krafth, who came back from international duty with a ‘knee issue’, whilst new signing Yoane Wissa has returned to training but is still not ready to play.
Tottenham vs Fulham
Both London sides have suffered three defeats in their last five games, with Spurs on the receiving end of a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of rivals Arsenal. Fulham have won two of their previous three games, both at home. Both sides have been struggling for form this season, with neither side managing more than two consecutive wins. Spurs will be confident, though, as the Cottagers are yet to win away from home this season.
That being said, four of Spurs’ five wins this season have come away from home, only managing to pick up five points from a possible 18 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. A win for the home side could see them move into European contention, whereas the away side currently sits three points above the relegation zone.
Embed from Getty ImagesSpurs’ captain, Cristian Romero, is serving a one-match ban after accumulating five red cards against Fulham, whilst Yves Bissouma, Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison and Dominic Solanke all remain sidelined. Radu Dragusin is not yet ready to feature but is close to returning, and Ben Davies has returned to training.
For Fulham, Sasa Lukic returns from suspension, but Antonee Robinson and Rodrigo Muniz remain sidelined. Spurs are without a victory in their last three and will be looking to return to winning ways, whilst Fulham will be looking to get their first win away from home this season.
For preliminary reports on Sunday’s matches, stay posted; they’ll be posted soon.