THE midweek fixtures saw the top three triumph in their respective games meaning that the gap separating Liverpool at the top from third-place Manchester City is only three points. With the season entering the home stretch, it makes for fascinating viewing and fans of the English Premier League (EPL) will be licking their lips in anticipation of Sunday’s showdown between bitter rivals Manchester United and Liverpool.
Fresh from knocking the Merseysiders out of the FA Cup in a thrilling encounter, Manchester United could land a fatal blow to Liverpool’s title ambitions. FocusM takes a look at the talking points from the weekend’s fixtures.
Crystal Palace v Manchester City (Sat, 8.30pm)
The reigning champions made short work of Aston Villa in midweek, which is no small feat given that Unai Emery’s side is flying high in fourth. But the 4-1 thumping at the Etihad Stadium highlighted Manchester City’s superiority over the vast majority of opponents, even those just a place behind them in the league table.
The game also saw Phil Fodden notch a hat-trick underscoring his growing stature as City’s talisman ahead of Kevin De Bruyne and Eerling Haaland. Crystal Palace have struggled for form and players are still finding their feet in new coach Oliver Glassner’s preferred 3-4-2-1 formation. Pep Guardiola’s side will be expected to pick up maximum points with minimum fuss.
Aston Villa v Brentford (Sat, 11pm)
Aston Villa will want to bounce back from their chastening defeat to Manchester City in midweek to keep their top four ambitions alive. With Spurs in hot pursuit, Unai Emery’s team can’t afford another poor result and will be confident that their home form will see them through against Brentford.
Villa will have skipper John McGinn back from suspension, though key striker Ollie Watkins remains sidelined. Brentford are slowly but surely climbing further away from the drop zone and a win here will put clear daylight between them and the chasing pack.
Everton v Burnley (Sat, 11pm)
Sean Dyche has set a new record at Everton—the longest winless streak ever at 13 matches. The threat of more point deductions looming on the horizon means the Toffees can’t afford for that run to continue. They have the chance to put things right with a series of relegation six-pointers, beginning with this home meeting with Burnley.
Though looking already doomed, Vincent Kompany’s team is experiencing its best form of the season, with last weekend’s battling draw at Stamford Bridge with ten men being the standout performance thus far. A draw will do neither side any favours, though that is the expected outcome.
Fulham v Newcastle United (Sat, 11pm)
Two sides with an outside chance of European football next season. Fulham, in 13th place, welcome Newcastle who are five points ahead in eighth place. The visitors have looked re-energised by the return of Harvey Barnes who scored two late important goals in a thriller against West Ham last weekend.
Eddie Howe’s attack has been severely blunted by injuries to the likes of Miguel Almiron but having Barnes and Anthony Gordon on the flanks will greatly improve the odds of an away victory. With both teams not exactly known for water-tight defending, this could be a high-scoring affair.
Luton Town v Bournemouth (Sat, 11pm)
Both sides played out a thrilling seven-goal encounter a few weeks ago, where Luton somehow came away with nothing despite leading 3-0 at one point. They can’t afford any more slip-ups as the battle for survival heats up.
The home side have been briefly boosted by points deductions to Nottingham Forest and possibly more to come against Everton, allowing them to momentarily get their heads above water. They will need to make every home game count, as next weekend they travel to the Etihad Stadium and few expect them to get anything from that game.
Hence, the Hatters need to seize the home fixtures against a beatable opposition with both hands.
Wolverhampton Wanderers v West Ham United (Sat, 11pm)
Both teams harbour European ambitions for next season and this can be viewed as a six-pointer in that regard as they are separated by just three points in the table. David Moyes has done a fine job juggling domestic and continental demands by getting the Hammers into the top half of the table.
Their 5-0 demolition of Freiburg in the Europa League also speaks of a growing pedigree among his players, who are getting used to the challenges of continental competition. Gary O’Neil can feel he has had a very successful first season in charge at the Molineux, having steered them comfortably towards mid-table safety. European qualification would be the icing on the cake.
Brighton & Hove Albion v Arsenal (Sun, 1.30am)
Brighton have been in poor form of late and are likely to struggle to contain a rampaging Arsenal side hell-bent on securing their first Premier League title in two decades. Though they gave another title challenger – Liverpool – a good fight last weekend, ultimately it was still not enough to prevent another defeat for the Seagulls.
The uncertainty surrounding Roberto De Zerbi hardly helps matters as the highly rated Italian is being touted as a potential manager at Bayern Munich and Liverpool. His refusal to commit his future to Brighton has led to increased speculation and this may have led to a drop in form for his team.
On a side note, striker Danny Welbeck who scored at Anfield last weekend, will want to put in another great performance against his old club.
Manchester United v Liverpool (Sun, 11.30pm)
The big game of the weekend sees the North West rivals face off at Old Trafford, the scene of a thrilling 4-3 FA Cup tie that went the way of the home side just a few weeks ago. After a demoralising last gasp defeat at Stamford Bridge by the same score line in midweek, Erik Ten Hag will need his side to rediscover the fight and the spirit that saw them quash Liverpool’s bid for a quadruple.
Manchester United will like nothing better than to derail their fierce rivals’ title bid but they are facing a defensive crisis with Lisandro Martinez and Viktor Lindelof sidelined with injuries. Jurgen Klopp, meanwhile, will hope his players have learned valuable lessons from that FA Cup defeat to ensure better game management.
The injury crisis is also easing, with Klopp being able to call upon Curtis Jones and Andrew Robertson. It is a high-stakes game that both managers will be desperate to win.
Sheffield United v Chelsea (Mon, 1.30am)
Chelsea will be buoyed by their 4-3 win against Manchester United in midweek. Having led 2-0 inside 20 minutes, the Blues contrived to trail 3-2 going into the final minutes of the game.
Somehow the motley collection of overpriced footballers managed to score not once but twice in injury time, sparking mad scenes of celebration among Mauricio Pochetinno and his staff as well as those of a blue persuasion at Stamford Bridge.
The Blades look dead and buried as they sit at the at the bottom of the pile. Perhaps this will release the hand brake allowing Sheffield United to play with greater freedom as they enjoy the last vestiges of top-flight football for this season anyway.
Tottenham Hotspurs v Nottingham Forest (Mon, 2am)
It was a must-win game for both sides for very different reasons. The home side are just two points adrift of Villa in fourth place with a game in hand. Victory against Forest will strengthen their bid for Champions League football next season, though the visitors have been in fine form of late, as exemplified by their handsome victory against Fulham in midweek.
Forest have been deducted four points for financial misdemeanours, placing them in the thick of the relegation battle. An away win would go a long way towards securing safety, and Nuno Espirito Santos will look to exploit Spur’s tendency to leave wide open spaces behind. – April 6, 2024
Main photo credit: The Guardian
