Premier League Preview : Game 5 September

Norwich VS Aston Villa

Record so far this season: Aston Villa:  W L L L

                                        Norwich:      D L W L

Norwich are performing inconsistently this season. Losing to Tottenham last Saturday means the Canaries only have won one game this season and although that is more wins than they had at this stage last season, results haven’t been going quite as planned for Chris Hughton’s men.

Gary Hooper could be ready to make his debut after his pre-season  injury, it will be interesting to see if he can adapt well after his moved down from Scottish champions Celtic.

Villa haven’t had the best of starts either, with their only win coming on the opening day against Arsenal. Paul Lambert will want to use this match against his old club to try and build some confidence within the squad.

My main worry for the Villa is Benteke seems to be their only goal threat. Other members of the team will need to step up in order for them to push on with their season.

Prediction: Norwich 2- 2 Aston Villa

Liverpool VS Southampton

Record so far this season: Liverpool: W W W D

                                     Southampton: W D L D

Liverpool lost their 100% record following Monday’s draw with Swansea. They are still undefeated however with Brendan Rogers pleased with the draw saying his team “showed character,” following losing an early goal at the Liberty Stadium.

It will be interesting to see how they do without the attacking prowess of Philippe Coutinho who is now expected to be out of action for a while with a shoulder injury which requires surgery.

Southampton really put pressure on West Ham in their last game and would have been disappointed not to at least of scored, with an inspired Jussi Jaaskelainen keeping them at bay.

Maurico Pochettino will want to come away from Anfield with something after their last game but it will be important for his players to not get frustrated and play their natural game.

This will be a tight game as both teams have started the season well, but I think Liverpool with the home advantage will just edge it.

Prediction: Liverpool 1-0 Southampton

Newcastle vs Hull City

Record so far this season: Newcastle: L D W W

                                        Hull:           L W L D

Newcastle have seen a vast improvement in the past couple of weeks. Now with two wins in a row under their belts confidence should be running high.

The “French Revolution,” as the media have dubbed it, seems to have turned a corner. However, there doesn’t seem to be any real depth to their squad so these types of games are indeed must wins for Alan Pardew’s men.

Hull’s away form will be a problem for them this season. Relying on their home form will be their main concern; however Steve Bruce will be buoyed by their performances in their away games against Chelsea and Man City.

Hull should give Newcastle a good fight but with their striking options limited and Danny Graham not firing on all cylinders, I feel Newcastle will extend their unbeaten run.

Prediction: Newcastle 2-0 Hull City

West Brom vs Sunderland

Record so far this season: West Brom: L D L D

                                       Sunderland: L D L L

A battle of the basement duo at the Hawthorns on Saturday as West Brom will feel that they have a massive chance to secure their first win of the season against struggling Sunderland.

West Brom managed a stoppage time draw with Fulham thanks to Gareth McCauley’s header last weekend, saving them from having an identical record to that of their visitors.

Steve Clarke will be disappointed with the start his team made but once his new signings have settled and he manages to get Shane Long on side, West Brom should be as good as they were last season and shoot up the table.

Sunderland have problems and I think there might be more problems to come. Paolo Di Canio is trying his best to try and incorporate an English vibe to the team but with the amount of foreign players and different languages within their squad, it has been hard for any of his players to settle. Paolo is certainly finding it tough at the top.

Prediction: West Brom 2-0 Sunderland

West Ham United vs Everton

Record so far this season: West Ham: W D L D

                                         Everton:    D D D W

West Ham have their Goalkeeper to thank for his inspiring performance against Southampton last Sunday. They could have even snuck away with the victory if James Collins hadn’t of blasted the ball way over the bar from a glorious, late opportunity.

Sam Allardyce has injury problems with a fair few of his first team out injured, most notably Andy Carroll who could even be out until after the New Year with his on-going foot and ankle problems. This means that the whole team will have to pull together if they are going to be able to find the goals form the Hammers.

Roberto Martinez will be thrilled with last Saturday’s victory over Chelsea, and their unbeaten start to the season.

The signings made by the Spaniard have inspired the team a lot and with Gareth Barry having a fantastic game last week they will be hoping that he could use that performance to inspire Everton to remain unbeaten.

Prediction: West Ham United 1-2 Everton

Chelsea vs Fulham

Record so far this season: Chelsea: W W D L

                                       Fulham:   W L L D

                                      

Chelsea have had a very bad week, and if they don’t win this west London derby, it will complete one of the worst weeks Jose Mourinho has endured in either of his spells with them.

Losing at Everton and Losing at home to Basle in the Champions League on Wednesday, Jose needs to find out what his best team is and find out quickly.

His main problem is up front. Eto’o is not fully match fit, and he doesn’t seem to trust Ba and/or Torres to do the business in the final the third of the pitch, so he will have to hope his midfielders step up and score the goals.

Fulham are in a similar position in the sense that they do not know what their best side is. Their last minute draw at home with West Brom last week summed up their season so far. Martin Jol will be hoping that they can go to Stamford Bridge and really put the pressure on a perhaps mentally weak Chelsea.

Unfortunately I don’t think they will be strong enough and Chelsea will be out to put their critic’s right.

Prediction: Chelsea 3- 1 Fulham

Arsenal vs Stoke City

Record so far this season: Arsenal: L W W W

                                     Stoke City: L W W D

Arsenal are on a high at the moment, not dropping a point since their opening day defeat to Aston Villa at the Emirates.

Arsene Wenger has clearly used his experience to full effect and has proven to the fans, who doubted his judgement literally weeks ago that they should keep the faith with the Frenchman.

Aaron Ramsay’s form has been pivotal to the Gunners, and if he keeps it up, along with the rest of the squad, then Arsenal could mount a serious challenge this season.

Stoke have been playing some decent football under Mark Hughes and with their draw against Manchester City increasing their unbeaten run to three games they go into this not short of confidence.

They wasted several chances against Manchester City, so going up against another of the Premier League title contenders, they will need to try and convert what chances they get against a very much rejuvenated Arsenal side.

Prediction: Arsenal 2- 0 Stoke City.

Crystal Palace vs Swansea City

Record so far this season: Crystal Palace: L L W L

                                         Swansea City: L L W D

Palace played ok against a poor Manchester United team whose performance left a lot to be desired and they were unlucky with their sending off.

They will need to use the home games to really dig their heels in and prove that they deserve to be in this division. Ian Holloway has also had what seems to be a total squad overhaul so it will be interesting to see with his charisma and heart whether he can bring a passion in his players.

                                                                  

Swansea have a busy schedule coming up so it is vital that they utilise their squad to its maximum potential.

Jonjo Shelvey was involved in more ways than he would have liked on Monday against Liverpool. Michael Laudrup has said that he “still has a lot to learn,” but with the best of his generation at the helm, he is sure to learn quickly.

I think this will be a tough game for the Swans, after fantastically winning in Spain on Thursday, it will have to be seen if their team can muster up the same energy levels to win on Sunday.

Prediction: Crystal Palace 1- 1 Swansea

Cardiff City vs Tottenham

Record so far this season: Cardiff City: L W D D

                                         Tottenham: W W L W

Cardiff have made a decent start to life in the top flight.

This will be a tough test for the Bluebirds as Spurs, bar the defeat in the North London derby, appear to have replaced Gareth Bale wisely.

Defence will be key for Cardiff in this game and with Steven Caulker playing against his old side; they will hope that he will be motivated extra to get one over on the team that sold him to the team in the Welsh capital back in August.

Spurs will really want to push on now that they have put the North London derby behind them with their win against Norwich last weekend, a team that they couldn’t beat last season.

Tottenham boss Andre Villas Boas will try to use his squad more now that their

Europa League campaign has kicked off and with the team he has on offer thanks to the money from the Bale transfer- they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with.

Prediction: Cardiff City 1-2 Tottenham

Manchester City vs Manchester United                   

Record so far this season: Man City: W L W D

                                       Man Utd: W D L W

The Manchester derby – With a new twist on things.

This will be the first Manchester derby for both managers, one who has experience of a fiery “Mersyside derby,” the other having experience in “El Classico.”

Manuel Pellegrini’s side have had a bit of an indifferent start, losing at Cardiff and drawing at Stoke. These are games City should be winning.

City as a team do seem to be at sixes and sevens at the moment but a win in Europe and a win in this fixture might help them really find out what their best starting team is and really challenge United, who after a dominant win in Europe on Wednesday as well are bound to test the blues at Eastlands.

United have been helped massively with Wayne Rooney’s return from injury and a sudden burst of form has aided the confidence of the team, this along with the addition of Fellani seems to have given United a new lease of life under David Moyes but they are still yet to find their ultimate killer edge. The main question will be can they find it on Sunday?

Prediction: Man City 2- 2 Man Utd.

Please give our Facebook page a like and follow us on Twitter to keep up to date with all the Entertainment you need.