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After months of waiting, the English Premier League got underway last week and it did not fail to provide the much needed football quality we all have been craving for. The goals, the tackles, the red cards and shocking results reminded us all of how much we love, and have missed, the English Premier League.
Now, Week 1 is done and we can look forward to week two already. Game week two promises a lot of excitement, particularly a London derby. Let’s take a look at the games.
Tottenham Hotspurs vs Chelsea (Sunday 20th August, 15:00 GMT)
The Champions of England were stunned in their opening match when they lost to Burnley by three goals to two. With two red cards, they had to claw their way back to reduce the deficit as they were down three goals by half time. Spurs, on the other hand, were comfortable 2-0 winners over newly promoted Newcastle.
Chelsea have a lot of injury concerns, and with two players suspended from their last match, they are not going into this match up with the upper hand. They will be boosted, however, with the return of Victor Moses and Pedro. They will still be without the services of Eden Hazard and Tiemoue Bakayoko.
Spurs have no injury concerns and their only injured player is defender Kierian Trippier as Heung Min Son is now back to first team action, which would boost their attack.
Predictions: Mostly due to suspensions and injuries, Tottenham have the upper hand in this fixture.
Swansea vs Manchester United (Saturday 19th August, 11:30 GMT)
Manchester United opened up the season with a commanding 4-0 win over West Ham, a game that saw new signing Romelu Lukaku grab two goals. United played very well and we can see that they mean business this season.
Swansea opened up the season with a goalless draw against Southampton. They were not looking sharp in front of goal, owing to the fact that they have lost the services of point man, Glyfi Siggurdson to Everton. As he was involved with almost all their goals last season, it might take a while for them to find their rhythm in front of goal.
Predictions: Manchester United takes this one. They have a solid defense that Swansea won’t be able to break and the combination of Lukaku and Pogba will be too much for Swansea to handle.
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace (Saturday 19th August, 14:00 GMT)
Liverpool played a 3-3 thriller against Watford in their opening match. Goals from Mane, Salah and Firmino confirmed that not much has improved with the Liverpool defense since last season. They can score but they concede just as much. Crystal Palace were floored by new boys Huddersfield by three goals to nothing. New manager, Frank de Boer still needs to work on his team. And with their winger, Wilfried Zaha to miss the match due to injury, they have a big task ahead if they plan to stop Liverpool
Predictions: Crystal Palace have a good record against Liverpool, mostly due to the fact that Christian Benteke loves to score against Liverpool, but with their performance last week and the way Liverpool are playing now, Liverpool can be expected to snatch the three points here.
Manchester City vs Everton (Monday 21st August, 19:00 GMT)
It took Manchester City almost one hour to score a goal against Brighton and Hove last week, even though they used their big two upfront, Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero. They went on to win that match by two goals to nothing. Everton also won their match last week thanks to a lone goal by Wayne Rooney on his second debut for Everton, but this week they face a tougher opposition in Manchester City.
Predictions: Wayne Rooney loves to score against Manchester City, but will that be enough for Everton? Manchester City’s newly revamped team, with their fast wingers and full backs, might prove too much for the Everton defence to handle. So if all goes as planned, Manchester City should have a comfortable win here.
Stoke vs Arsenal (Saturday 19th August, 16:30 GMT)
Arsenal survived a seven-goal thriller to edge out Leicester last week while Stoke lost to Everton by a lone goal.
Predictions: Arsenal will have the upper hand in this fixture as Arsene Wenger will be hoping to get all the points he can now before he starts facing tougher opposition.
Southampton vs West Ham (Saturday 19th August, 14:00 GMT)
Southampton played a goalless draw at Swansea while West Ham lost to a well-equipped Manchester United. Both teams are known to sit back and take their chances as they come.
Predictions: West Ham have spent the summer buying new players and it might take a while for them to gel together. I call this match a draw.
Burnley vs West Brom (Saturday 19th August, 14:00 GMT)
Burnley were shock winners at Stamford Bridge as they beat defending champions 3-2. West Brom edged out Bournemouth by a lone goal.
Predictions: With what Burnley played last week, they can be expected to channel that energy and get a win this week too.
Bournemouth vs Watford (Saturday 19th August, 14:00 GMT)
Bournemouth were defeated last week by Bournemouth. Watford battled it out with Liverpool and were forced to share the spoils in a 3-3 thriller of a match.
Predictions: This is expected to be a low scoring affair as the two teams are not big scorers. It might just play out as a draw.
Leicester City vs Brighton and Hove Albion (Saturday 19th August, 14:00 GMT)
Leicester were unfortunate to concede a last minute goal at Arsenal in their seven goal thriller. Brighton and Hove, on the other hand, tried all they could but they could not hold back Manchester City.
Predictions: Both teams are both coming off a loss but Leicester is the more experienced side and should expect to win this one.
Huddersfield vs Newcastle United (Sunday 20th August, 12:30 GMT)
New boys Huddersfield were totally comfortable in the league when they trashed Crystal Palace 3-0 away from home. Newcastle lost to Tottenham by two goals to nothing, a game remembered for Jonjo Shelvey’s red card.
Predictions: Huddersfield, with what they showed last week, will be a force to reckon with in the league this season and should be expected to take their chances against Newcastle for the win. All in All, it promised to be a weekend of great footballing action. Who are you rooting for?
Come on Liverpool!
Amazing game of football
Definitely watching the games in a few hours :-)
Wonderful article ...! Upvoted & Resteemed ,
fine post
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STOPPremier league is back!!! This is why i love EPL non of us here can predict the outcome of those matches on like laliga
Premier league is back!!! This is why i love EPL non of us here can predict the outcome of those matches on like laliga
Already a big weekend for some teams! Spurs v Chelsea and Man City v Everton should both be early season indicators of potential. Another win for Man Utd and Arsenal would give them momentum and confidence.
Can't wait for the Tottenham/Chelsea match!