Paul Merson’s Premier League predictions, including Arsenal vs Man Utd

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PM: ‘What an incredible win for West Ham against Tottenham last weekend. But they must get their act together at home. West Ham have never looked like winning a game at the London Stadium and that’s a problem.

‘If they manage at beat Sunderland on home turf this weekend, then it’s game on in the race to avoid relegation. The Hammers have away games against Chelsea and Burnley coming up after this and they need some momentum. A win here would give them a massive chance of staying up in the Premier League.

‘Sunderland are one of the toughest teams to face though. They have lost just once in their last eight games across all competitions. With all their players back from the AFCON, I expect them to get even better.

‘I can’t see Sunderland losing this game. Who would’ve thought at the start of the season that we’ll be in January and saying this about Sunderland? That’s how good they’ve been. To be fair, both Leeds and Burnley have also impressed me.

‘I’m going for a draw here, but I won’t be surprised if Sunderland won this game.’

Prediction: West Ham 1-1 Sunderland

PM: ‘Fulham were beaten in the last minute against Leeds while Brighton secured a point in the last minute against Bournemouth. Talk about contrasting fortunes in their previous games.

‘I like Fulham at home, where they have performed well as a team. Honestly, I don’t see a lot between these teams. They are evenly-matched and are teams that can beat any team on their day. Even at the end of the season, there will only be a few points separating them.

‘I don’t think Harry Wilson will make the jump to a big club soon. If you’re a big club, you won’t spend money on someone like Wilson on the basis of six months. Should he continue this form for a year, he gets the big move.

‘Fulham to secure a narrow win here.’

Prediction: Fulham 1-0 Brighton

PM: ‘Burnley have turned a corner now. They drew with Manchester United, beat Millwall in the cup and got a point against Liverpool at Anfield.

‘I know all the Tottenham fans are excited because they beat Dortmund. But the standard of the Premier League is so high and that win was expected. Should they lose back-to-back games to West Ham and Burnley, Thomas Frank will be in deep trouble.

‘When you consider the teams Tottenham have faced in the Champions League this season, them being fifth in the table isn’t anything to write home about. Apart from PSG, Spurs have played Villarreal, Bodo/Glimt, Monaco, Copenhagen, Slavia Prague and Dortmund. That looks like the Europa League if you count PSG out!

‘I don’t think anyone should get carried away by Spurs’ performances in the Champions League. Frank desperately needs a win in this game, will he get it? I don’t think so. Burnley will make it difficult and that will make Tottenham nervous.’

Prediction: Burnley 1-1 Tottenham

PM: ‘If Manchester City had to pick a game for this weekend after the horror show away to Bodo/Glimt, they would pick Wolves at home! I say that because Wolves are now in a position where they must have a go in every game.

‘No point sitting 10 behind the ball, Wolves need points. And I think City would prefer playing teams like that now. I actually don’t think Wolves will feel bad about it being that way, especially if they saw what happened to City against Bodo/Glimt.

‘If this was two or three weeks ago, we would be calling it a 5-0 City win. But Pep Guardiola’s men don’t look the same anymore. City lost to United in the derby because they were outrun and outfought by their rivals. But I was shocked they lost in the Champions League.

‘Even though Bodo/Glimt made the semi-finals of the Europa League last season, the result is still one of the biggest upsets in Champions League history. They were well beaten on the night.

‘Manchester City face Tottenham and Liverpool, both away from home, after this weekend in the Premier League. They cannot afford to lose another game.’

Prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Wolves

PM: ‘This game is a pundit’s nightmare. Liverpool are unbeaten in the last 13 games, but six of them have been draws, which is a bit underwhelming for their standards. That draw at home to Burnley was the latest disappointment and Liverpool did not look good in that one.

‘Even the Kop raised their voice against the team in the second half against Burnley. We haven’t seen that happening a lot since Jurgen Klopp took over. There are only four points separating Liverpool in fourth and Everton in 10th! With some tough fixtures coming up, it can go from bad to worse real quick for Liverpool.

‘I’d be shocked if Mohamed Salah does not start against Bournemouth. If he doesn’t, Arne Slot is opening a can of worms here. This game could also suit Florian Wirtz. Bournemouth are a team that will let you play, so there will be space for Wirtz to exploit. I’d choose Salah, Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike as the front-three.

‘Liverpool won’t win the Champions League but it is very important they finish in the top four and qualify for that tournament next season. That is the big challenge for them now.’

Prediction: Bournemouth 1-2 Liverpool

PM: ‘Crystal Palace have now gone 10 games without a win. They will be without Marc Guehi as well. Even Jean-Philippe Mateta has expressed his desire to leave the club, which puts them in a bad position.

‘For Chelsea, this is a must-win game and so you’d expect them to get the three points. Usually, Palace away is an incredibly tough fixture. But like I always say, it’s all about timings in football and no better time to face them than now.

‘Seven or eight weeks ago, Chelsea would have been happy with a draw in this game. Considering how Palace are playing at the moment, anything less than three points will be a massive disappointment now.

‘Liam Rosenior is looking after Cole Palmer quite well. But when Palmer scored the penalty against Brentford last week, I thought his celebration was a bit strange. Call me a cynic, but I noticed how he didn’t celebrate with his teammates or the fans. That was strange for me.

‘Chelsea must keep Palmer happy. But I’ve always said it, if some other club offers £120 million for Palmer, Chelsea will sell him. That is what Chelsea always do in the transfer market.

I’m also not happy about Chelsea playing Palmer on the right. He needs to play as a no.10 with Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez or Reece James behind him. Just give him a free role.

‘When Palmer plays on the right, he’s too easy to pick up. We saw that when he went up against Antonee Robinson during the Fulham game. So why put him there? It will be interesting to see what happens with Palmer in the future amid rumors of a move away from Chelsea.’

Prediction: Crystal Palace 0-2 Chelsea

PM: ‘This is a massive football match in the context of the top four. I was disappointed with how Aston Villa performed against Everton last weekend. I just didn’t think they would lose that game.

‘Newcastle enjoyed a good win against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League. But I thought they were poor against Wolves in the Premier League last time out. Newcastle are missing something whenever they play away from home. They were so slow against Wolves and did not show the urgency they have at St James’ Park.

‘Villa are 10 points ahead of Newcastle at the moment. If they get a win, Newcastle won’t catch them in the table. That will rule Newcastle out of the race to finish fourth and they will have to fight it out for fifth-place then.

‘I’d want Yoane Wissa to start ahead of Nick Woltemade in this game. Ezri Konsa will enjoy going up against someone like Woltemade. If Wissa can make runs away from Konsa, that might trouble Villa at the back. I expect an entertaining draw.’

Prediction: Newcastle 2-2 Aston Villa

PM: ‘I’ve been so impressed by Brentford this season. Not just in terms of winning games, the way they are playing. For 70 minutes against Chelsea, they were outstanding. Chelsea were fortunate not to concede a goal and win that game.

‘Nottingham Forest sat in there and got a draw against Arsenal. I think Brentford will win this one. This is also payback time for them! Brentford will remember how they got destroyed when they met Forest in the first game of the season.

‘It’s a completely different scenario in the table now and I can’t see anything but a win for Brentford.’

Prediction: Brentford 2-0 Nottingham Forest

PM: ‘It absolutely shocks me to death when people say this is now a massively different game after Manchester United beat City last weekend. In all honesty, I’d be surprised if Arsenal don’t win this.

‘Arsenal won 3-1 away from home to one of the best teams in Italy in midweek. They went to Chelsea and scored three in the EFL cup not long ago. So I don’t buy the claim that facing Manchester United at home is ‘difficult’ for Arsenal.

‘Viktor Gyokeres and Gabriel Jesus scoring against Inter is great news for Arsenal. I think Gyokeres needs to come off the bench in the next few games. When the defenders are tired, the game will open up for him and he can make an impact. So it’s better if he comes on for the final 20 minutes.

‘I can’t seem to make a case for Manchester United even after their win over City. Don’t get me wrong, they played well in that game. But Arsenal are just superior. Manchester United win one game and people say they can trouble Arsenal? I don’t get that one bit!

‘If you told me I had to bet on one team to win this weekend, I’d actually go Arsenal. Everything points to a win for Mikel Arteta’s men here. They are just so good at home. 29 points from 11 games at the Emirates. Even when they looked so bad against Liverpool, they did not lose.

‘Manchester United beat City because they were able to outrun their rivals. They won’t be able to do that against Arsenal.’

Prediction: Arsenal 3-0 Manchester United

PM: ‘This will be a good game. Everton were outstanding against Aston Villa. But they will miss Jack Grealish in this game. I don’t think people understand how good Grealish is in that position. Matty Cash is someone who likes to go forward and he couldn’t do it because of Grealish in the last game!

‘Leeds showed a bit of inexperience when they went gung-ho and lost 4-3 to Newcastle but they would have learned from that experience. They are a team that are on the rise and I fancy them here.

‘Everton have now gone four games without a win on home turf. Not long ago, they were slaughtered by Brentford. I think Leeds win this.’

Prediction: Everton 1-2 Leeds