EPL Matchday 19: Insights and Predictions
It’s nearly Christmas! Excited? Well here’s another reason to get excited. From December 22 to January 4, 40 EPL matches are to be played. Yeah, you read that right, fourty. Now, I understand some of you are stressed, whether it be due to family coming in for the holidays or simply the travails of being a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club; but relax, as The Great Zamboni is here to give you a rundown of the ten matches of matchday 19 in the Premier League.
Arsenal vs. Liverpool
Not a bad starting fixture, eh? Arsenal emerged 1–0 winners against Newcastle last time on the pitch in a match where the Gunners dominated and the scoreline failed to do any justice to the balance of the game. Their opponents, Liverpool, earned an impressive result away to Bournemouth, beating them 4–0 and furthering Mohamed Salah’s quest for the Golden Boot. Both teams are coming into this one on the backs of impressive performances but with Mustafi out for the Gunners and Adam Lallana cleared to play for the Reds, Liverpool’s ferocious attack emerges victorious in a 3–1 victory for Klopp’s men.
Everton vs. Chelsea
Everton, under new manager Sam Allardyce, have experienced somewhat of a renaissance as the Toffees are now in 9th place. They handled now managerless Swansea 3–1 at Goodison Park and will be looking to increase their home win streak to five consecutive wins on the bounce.
Their quest for five straight home wins faces a bit of a roadblock in the form of Antonio Conte’s Chelsea, however. Chelsea are in third in the table and are coming off a lukewarm 1–0 win over Southampton which saw Eden Hazard play at striker. (Weird, but he played rather well). Expect Morata to return to the number nine position and Hazard replacing Pedro out on the left for this one. Everton might be experiencing a resurgence and will give Chelsea a good fight, but Chelsea take this one 2–1 for me, with Hazard and Morata cancelling out a Wayne Rooney opener from the spot.
Brighton vs. Watford
13th placed Brighton host 10th placed Watford in what should be an interesting match between two mid table sides. Brighton showed good defensive solidarity in a 0–0 draw with 6th placed Burnley last week while Watford will be looking to avoid their sixth straight match without a win (1 draw, four losses) as well as their fifth loss in six should they lose this week. Brighton have conceded just three more goals than both Arsenal and Liverpool and I think they’ll hold on for a clean sheet in a 0–0 draw against Watford’s rather anaemic attack.
Manchester City vs. Bournemouth
Given City’s form this season, I’m not even sure if I have to write too much on this one. I’m a Spurs fan and City absolutely demolished Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 last time out. From a Spurs perspective, while that was certainly one of our poorest performances, City deserve all the credit as they made Tottenham Hotspur look like a team of 11 schoolchildren. They played like the best team in Europe while their opponents, Bournemouth, were dominated 4–0 by Liverpool (a side that City beat 5–0). City have the best attack this season (56 goals scored) and the joint best defence (12 conceded) meaning that Bournemouth have no chance. Jesus returns to scoring ways with a brace and Aguero/Sterling each grab one in a 4–0 victory for City.
Southampton vs. Huddersfield
The Saints haven’t been marching anywhere this season, as they have picked up just 18 points from 18 matches and are three points away from the relegation zone. Their last match was a 1–0 loss against Chelsea where they actually played well, but their opponents, Huddersfield, crushed Watford 4–1 away from home and expect their away form to continue with a 1–0 victory at the Saint Mary’s Stadium.
Stoke City vs. West Brom
Stoke were bad last week, like, really bad. They lost 3–0 at home to a rather poor West Ham side in a match where The Potters amassed zero shots on target. Zero. That’s the first time this has happened since Swansea dropped zero on Tottenham in December of last year. Not good. West Brom are also in a rut as they lost 2–1 against Manchester United last week and are now sitting in 19th, three points from safety. I think new manager Alan Pardew gets it right and Salomon Rondon scores in a 1–0 victory for West Brom.
Swansea City vs. Crystal Palace
Managerless Swansea host fourteenth placed Palace in what should be an interesting battle in the race to avoid relegation. Palace were quite impressive in their 3–0 win against a 10 man Leicester and will be looking to continue their good form when they visit basement-dwellers Swansea. Much has been made of Roque Mesa and Renato Sanches’ dreadful form in midfield while Palace’s midfielders Yohan Cabaye and Luka Milivojević are in form and will help Palace dominate Swansea, 3–0.
West Ham vs. Newcastle United
This is yet another match of matchday 19 which sees two relegation threatened teams battle it out in the fight for surival come May. West Ham were impressive in their 3–0 win against Stoke where they kept the Potters without a shot on target while Newcastle showed defensive solidarity in a 1–0 loss to Arsenal, which might have been more if not for good organization at the back. West Ham were lead by the wonderful Manuel Lanzini last time out and I think he’ll be the forefront of their attack with a goal in a 1–0 win for West Ham.
Burnley vs. Tottenham Hotspur
Sean Dyche’s impressive 6th placed side host 7th placed underachievers Tottenham Hotspur in what is a crucial match for the North London club. Following Toby Alderweireld’s major hamstring injury suffered in the 3–1 win against Real Madrid in November, Tottenham have spluttered, with draws against Watford and West Brom coupled with poor performances against Arsenal, Leicester and Manchester City seeing the white half of north London closer to hitting the panic button with each dying second. Spurs will be determined to make things right against the league’s joint best defense and especially so considering the two drew 1–1 back in August courtesy of Dele Alli and a late Chris Wood equalizer. Spurs are only three points back of fourth place in the table at the moment and could possibly jump up to fifth and just a point back from fourth should other results go their way. It is not over for Tottenham in this race for the Champions League but things need to change over this festive period or Spurs could be on the outside looking in come May. Burnley are going to throw 11 men behind the ball from the get go in this one but I think Spurs emerge 1–0 winners (feat. Harry Kane) as Tottenham leap Burnley in the table.
Leicester City vs. Manchester United
This is a huge game for United as they visit Your 2015/16 Premier League Champions (lul) in what should be a fiesty one at the King Power Stadium. Leicester were reduced to 10 men following a controversial second yellow shown to midfielder Wilfred Ndidi for diving in what ended up being a depressing 3–0 home loss to Crystal Palace. Facts are facts, Leicester have a knack for showing up in big home games and Saturday is no different. If United drop points they could be in in a massive hole and potentially 14 points back of first place with their title hopes over. They need a win follwoing an embarrassing cup exit at the hands of Bristol City and I think Lukaku scores early on with Ibrahimovic adding another off the bench in a 2–0 win for United.
