There are two days of exciting English Premier League action ahead. Here's a look at what to expect from the ten matches scheduled for Saturday (8) and Sunday (2), in my humble opinion.
Saturday:
There is one match scheduled for 12.45 p.m. British Standard Time, while there are six matches scheduled for a 3.00 p.m. British Standard Time start, with the Manchester United vs Fulham game the most interesting. The late game features Chelsea and Newcastle United.
Swansea vs West Ham United: Swansea are looking good under Michael Laudrup, with new signing Michu especially impressing in their 5-0 win over Norwich. West Ham have signed Matt Jarvis and Sam Allardyce expects him to play some part. West Ham will always be a tough team to beat under Allardyce, but Swansea have everything going for them at the moment, and will have been bolstered by the club record signing of talented midfielder Ki Sung-Yeung from Celtic.
Prediction: 3-1 to Swansea
Aston Villa vs Everton at Villa Park: Everton are coming off a brilliant victory against Manchester United Monday, so confidence is bound to be sky-high. The Toffees will also have new signing Kevin Mirallas available; the striker has been prolific in the Greek league but is expected to take some time to bed in. However, expect him to play some role Saturday.
Villa are yet to hit their straps under new manager Paul Lambert, after going down to West Ham. Lambert will be hoping for a better performance from his team, but face a tough task in Everton, even if they are playing at home.
Prediction: I'm going for an Everton victory by the odd goal: 2-1.
Manchester United vs Fulham at Old Trafford: United are wounded after losing to Everton and expect Sir Alex Ferguson's side to hit back with some venom. Robin Van Persie is in line for his first start for his new club, and should play alongside Wayne Rooney to form that mouth-watering partnership. Will it work? We'll just have to wait and see.
Fulham will know there will be no repeat of their opening day 5-0 victory over QPR.
Prediction: I expect United to bounce back from the loss, predictable, I know: 2-0 to the Red Devils
Norwich vs QPR at Carrow Road: Both teams are coming off 5-0 losses. So what does that mean? A 0-0 draw looks in the offing, or with two leaky defences, a high-scoring typically entertaining end-to-end Premier League match.
Prediction: QPR to nick it 3-2
Southampton vs Wigan at St Mary's: Both teams put up impressive performances against their more illustrious opponents. The Saints were unlucky to lose to City while Wigan more than held their own against Chelsea. Roberto Martinez will have to make do without Victor Moses after the forward made his move to Chelsea, so it will be interesting to see how the Latics will cope without him.
Prediction: 1-1
Sunderland vs Reading at Stadium of Light: The Black Cats have made twin signings in Steven Fletcher and Adam Johnson for a combined £25 million ($39.5 million) fee. If they will be available for the game, remains to be seen. Reading might find it hard to salvage something in this game.
Prediction: 2-0 to Sunderland
Tottenham vs West Brom at White Hart Lane: Spurs are still a work-in-progress under Andre Villas-Boas, but they would have, no doubt, been reinvigorated by the return of Emmanuel Adebayor, who signed for the club on a permanent deal. The striker, however, has hardly had a preseason, so it will be interesting to see how fit he is. West Brom will be still buzzing after their 3-0 victory over Liverpool and I expect them to give Spurs a run for their money in this game. Tottenham need a win, after going down to Newcastle, so they just might shade it, but it will not be easy.
Prediction: 2-1 to Spurs
Chelsea vs Newcastle at Stamford Bridge: The first really big game of the weekend. Blues have Cesar Azpilicueta and Victor Moses now in their ranks and Newcastle will need to stop the Eden Hazard juggernaut if they are to stand a chance of winning the game. All depends on how well the Magpies curtail the offensive four of Chelsea, and how well they make use of their possession. Newcastle will always have goals in them with Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse in their line-up.
Prediction: 1-1
Sunday:
Stoke vs Arsenal at Britannia: We all know what to expect when the Gunners visit the Britannia stadium - a tough physical battle. Arsenal had a disappointing outing against Sunderland, but with another week of training under their wings, the new signings of Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla will be better equipped. Cazorla looked at ease in his first match against Sunderland, and will need to fire Sunday. Tony Pulis will instruct his players to get the ball into the box as much as possible to try and take advantage of the perceived weakness of Arsenal.
Prediction: 2-1 to the Gunners
Liverpool vs Manchester City at Anfield: Liverpool were extremely disappointing against West Brom, even if they were down to 10 men early. Brendan Rodgers, who left his stars behind for the midweek Europa League game, will be desperate to make a statement at Anfield. A lot will depend on Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez.
City came back in the last moments to take all points against Southampton, a far from convincing performance, but showed fight you expect from the Premier League champions. Liverpool are going to find it really hard to break down Roberto Mancini's men, but if they are to do it, it will be at Anfield in Rodgers' first game at home in the Premier League.
Prediction: 1-1.
Alright I have stuck my neck out on the line with the predictions. Do feel free to post your opinions in the comments section.
