THE VERY BLUNT PREMIER LEAGUE PREVIEW & PREDICTIONS (WEEK 27)
It’s all a bit hectic at the moment isn’t it? Liverpool beat Chelsea to lift the EFL Cup with a bunch of kids and the FA Cup hurtles towards the quarter-finals, so what’s the state of play in the Premier League?
Every week we’ll be giving you our blunt takes and predicting each Premier League match featured in our Pick 10 league along with any other big fixtures - will you take our advice?
Brentford vs Chelsea
I could be wrong, but I genuinely don’t believe there’s a more dislikeable manager in the Premier League than Thomas Frank. The way he whinges about refereeing decisions rubs off the wrong way, maybe it’s his face - who knows? Three defeats in a row does not make for pretty reading, even if two of those were against Manchester City and Liverpool. Could Brentford fall into a battle for survival? They’re only five points ahead of 18th Luton and are dreadful defensively.
Have we moved past Gary Neville branding Chelsea “billion-dollar bottle-jobs” yet? The EFL Cup final result will sting, particularly for Mauricio Pochettino who has yet to win any silverware in English football. There have been times when Pochettino has come under pressure throughout the season but the possibility of trophies and European football has always kept the Argentine in situ. Chelsea have endured a horrid Premier League campaign, an FA Cup triumph might be the only way Poch keeps his job.
Prediction: Brentford 1-2 Chelsea
Everton vs West Ham
Clawing back four points from their 10-point deduction on appeal is welcome news for Everton fans. You’ll have to go back as far as 16th December to find the last time Sean Dyche’s side won a Premier League fixture. This has to give Everton a lift, they’ve been toothless in front of goal - Dominic Calvert-Lewin is without a goal in his past 20 games, Beto hasn’t scored since the 3-0 win over Newcastle United in December.
Jarrod Bowen picked a good time to score his first career hat-trick. David Moyes had been coming under pressure from some supporters having not won a game in 2024 before Monday night, with their last fixture at London Stadium a 6-0 loss to Arsenal. Not only was the result and performance good for Moyes, but also for Bowen's chances of being in the England squad for Euro 2024. He is now up to 14 goals in the Premier League, behind only Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah.
Prediction: Everton 2-2 West Ham
Newcastle vs Wolves
Eddie Howe hasn’t masterminded another push at the top end of the Premier League and Newcastle’s Champions League campaign petered out following a statement 4-1 victory over PSG. Through to the FA Cup quarter-finals, the Magpies will do well to salvage European football from this campaign - Aston Villa have seemingly replaced them among the big boys. The big worry is the defence, it's 20 goals conceded in eight games so far this year in the league, 31 in 12 since Nick Pope's injury.
Say it with me, ‘Gary O’Neil is a football genius!’. Yes, we have gone from predicting a 20th place finish for Wolves to championing O’Neil as the greatest manager alive. The team is handily placed to battle for a European spot, although that could be a stretch too far for this current squad. Eleven wins so far this term is as many as they managed in the entirety of last term, underlining their progress under O’Neil.
Prediction: Newcastle 1-1 Wolves
Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool
Everton might be celebrating a reduction in their 10-point deduction, but Nottingham Forest face an anxious wait as their Premier League financial breach case will be heard next week. Nuno Espirito Santo's side sit one place off the relegation zone with 24 points, four points ahead of Luton who have a game in hand. Forest have now scored 17 Premier League goals in Nuno's time in charge - the same as in the first 17 games of the season under Steve Cooper - and that is a positive.
Liverpool won the first domestic silverware of the season, but at what cost? 12 count them 12 first team players are sidelined through injury putting Jurgen Klopp's final season title challenge under serious threat. If the Reds can somehow navigate the next month unscathed, key players will return in time for the run in - that’s a big if though. Klopp will have to turn to the youth than earned the club their 10th league cup success in the FA Cup this week.
Prediction: Nottingham Forest 2-2 Liverpool
Luton Town vs Aston Villa
Luton were brutally dumped out of the FA Cup by Manchester City this week, probably for the best given the state of play at the basement of the Premier League. The Hatters are four points adrift of 17th place Forest but do have a game in hand, the real kicker was Everton gaining four points back from their 10-point deduction. Rob Edwards has already exceeded most people's expectations for how the club would cope with the Premier League this season, but sticking by the former Wales international could galvanise the team.
Most expected Villa to drop off at the turn of the year, yet they’re still here. Impressively, there’s only an eight-point gap between Unai Emery’s side and leaders Liverpool. Douglas Luiz, Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey have all been involved in more than 10 home goals this season, putting all three in the top five in the Premier League along with Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland. They have had some obstacles and come through those winning three of their past four league games.
Prediction: Luton Town 1-3 Aston Villa
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