PREVIEWS, TABLES, FIX
WATFORD V NORWICH TODAY, 8PM, SKY SPORTS
A glimmer of optimism for both these strugglers after ending six-game losing streaks. Claudio Ranieri’s Watford badly needed Joao Pedro’s late equaliser which secured a point at Newcastle, while Dean Smith said he hoped Norwich fans could see ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ after their 2-1 win over Everton. The two teams either side of the relegation line are separated by just a point but the Canaries will have played five games more than bottom club Burnley when referee Robert Jones blows the final whistle. MATCH STAT WATFORD HAVE WON EACH OF THE LAST FIVE MEETINGS BETWEEN THE TWO CLUBS
BRENTFORD V WOLVES SATURDAY, 3PM
Brentford are finding plaudits easier to come by than points right now. They were the better team for long spells against Manchester United on Wednesday but a failure to make the most of their chances and a 3-1 defeat means they have taken just three points from a possible 18. Wolves have added that finishing touch in recent weeks and it will be interesting to see whether the arrival of Chiquinho will mean Adama Traore, scorer of the third in last weekend’s 3-1 win over Southampton, makes his long-anticipated exit.
MATCH STAT
WOLVES HAVE CONCEDED ONE GOAL FROM OPEN PLAY IN THEIR LAST NINE LEAGUE GAMES LEEDS V NEWCASTLE SATURDAY, 3PM
Leeds put some of the postponements to shame last weekend with the way a threadbare squad, complete with a 15-year-old on the bench, won 3-2 at West Ham. Teenager Leo Hjelde’s fine performance may mean boss Marcelo Bielsa decides against rushing back any of the walking wounded as Leeds look for a third win in a row. The Magpies remain deep in the mire due to Watford’s late equaliser last weekend, increasing the urgency in this week’s pursuit of Diego Carlos to join the Saudi-backed revolution.
MATCH STAT NEWCASTLE HAVE LOST A LEAGUE– WORST 21 POINTS FROM A WINNING POSITION
MAN UNITED V WEST HAM SATURDAY, 3PM
United maintained their push for a top-four spot by winning 3-1 at Brentford on Wednesday even if goalkeeper David De Gea was their man of the match. Cristiano Ronaldo may not appreciate being taken off with 20 minutes to go but Ralf Rangnick insists he would do the same again. For all David Moyes’ moaning about schedules, West Ham only had themselves to blame for their last-gasp 3-2 defeat to Leeds, although it’s harsh to pin too much of it on Jarrod Bowen for blowing a late chance after his magnificent form. MATCH STAT MOYES HAS NEVER WON A PREMIER LEAGUE AWAY GAME AT UNITED IN 14 ATTEMPTS
SOUTHAMPTON V MAN CITY SATURDAY, 5.30PM, SKY SPORTS
City go into this game on the back of 12 Premier League victories in a row, needing another six to match their own record. But Southampton were responsible for one of their off-days this season, when they restricted the champions to just one shot on target in a 0-0 draw. That rearguard action was somewhat out of character for a Saints side who are often entertaining, even if they only had a trademark James Ward-Prowse free-kick to show for a below-par performance and a 3-1 defeat at Wolves last weekend. MATCH STAT EDERSON HAS KEPT A CLEAN SHEET IN EXACTLY HALF HIS 166 PREMIER LEAGUE GAMES
THE atmosphere at Goodison Park will be very different with cult hero Duncan Ferguson having taken caretaker charge of Everton following the sacking of Rafael Benitez.
But as one Big Dunc’s former clubs Newcastle have found, regime change – in their case the exits of unpopular owner Mike Ashley and manager Steve Bruce – are no guarantee of an upturn in fortunes.
The muddled thinking at Everton that has led to an astonishingly poor return on Farhad Moshiri’s vast investment was tidily summed up by Lucas Digne last week being allowed to join tomorrow’s visitors Aston Villa after falling out with the doomed Benitez.
It was dismal defending as much as anything that led to last Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Norwich – a result which sealed Benitez’s fate after half a season in charge.
Not for the first time it has been left to Ferguson to lift spirits and who better to start getting the best out of star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin as he looks for his first goal after a long injury lay-off. Short of
beating Liverpool – the club with which Benitez’s connections were so strong he was never going to be forgiven when things went wrong – the next best thing to raise morale would be to inflict a blow on Steven Gerrard’s Anfield tribute act at Aston Villa.
That’s not a criticism of Gerrard who utilised his connections with Philippe Coutinho to bring the Brazilian on loan from Barcelona for the rest of the season, with suggestions Luis Suarez is keen to join Villa in the summer.
Coutinho’s stock may have fallen since his £142million move from Liverpool in 2018 but it already looks like a coup after an assist and a late equaliser on his Villa debut as a substitute in last weekend’s 2-2 draw with Manchester United.
Unlike the Champions League winner who has just left Everton, Gerrard has galvanised the enthusiasm among Villa supporters even if the results have been a little hit and miss.
Whether Ferguson gets the chance to do the same in the longer term at Everton may well depend on him making an instant impact.
ARSENAL V BURNLEY SUNDAY, 2PM
Given Arsenal have off-loaded two players since the postponement of their game at Tottenham and the fact Burnley have not played a league match since January 2 due to Covid, it feels fanciful to have left a space for this game. If they were unable to play 72 hours after last week’s Carabao Cup semi-final, first leg, who knows the toll on the Gunners after last night’s second leg with Liverpool? When Burnley finally do return to action, manager Sean Dyche’s side will have a lot of games and ground to make up.
MATCH STAT BURNLEY’S 1-0 WIN LAST SEASON ENDED A RUN OF NINE STRAIGHT LOSSES AT ARSENAL
CRYSTAL PALACE V LIVERPOOL SUNDAY, 2PM, SKY SPORTS
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is probably the Premier League’s most vocal dissenter against the kind of turnaround that sees his team follow last night’s semi-final with a trip to Crystal Palace less than 72 hours later. There are few noisier places to visit than Selhurst Park where there has been much to enjoy since Roy Hodgson handed over the managerial reins to Patrick Vieira. ‘We need to find a better way of playing football and it’s happened a bit quicker than we thought it would,’ said owner Steve Parish.
MATCH STAT LIVERPOOL HAVE WON THE LAST NINE MEETINGS, WINNING 7-0 AT PALACE LAST TERM LEICESTER V BRIGHTON SUNDAY, 2PM
Leicester must pick themselves up from having led Tottenham 2-1 with just 15 seconds of the allotted injury-time remaining only to somehow lose 3-2. Before Steven Bergwijn’s double, Brendan Rodgers had cause to be happy with a substitution of his own, with Harvey Barnes almost immediately setting up James Maddison for what felt like the winner. Adam Webster is being talked of as a possible England centre-half after he headed draw specialists Brighton’s equaliser in their midweek draw with Chelsea. MATCH STAT BRIGHTON HAVE WON ALL THREE OF THEIR SUNDAY PREMIER LEAGUE GAMES THIS SEASON
CHELSEA V TOTTENHAM SUNDAY, 4.30PM, SKY SPORTS
Antonio Conte must take Tottenham back to the club he led to the title in 2018 in happier mood after Bergwijn’s injury-time heroics at Leicester, although seeing as his side had 27 shots it was hardly undeserved. Spurs’ tepid Carabao Cup exit, 3-0 on aggregate, is fresh in the memory but life in the league has been tougher for Thomas Tuchel recently. The midweek draw at Brighton made it four without a win and leaves Chelsea 12 points off the top. Frank Lampard was sacked with an 11-point deficit a year ago. MATCH STAT NO EX-BLUES BOSS HAS EVER THEN WON A PREMIER LEAGUE GAME AT STAMFORD BRIDGE