WEEK 21
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Predictions will generally be posted by Friday each week,
AND the analyses should be up by Wednesday following each weekend’s games.
The odds that I quote on each game are the first available and are quite
possibly subject to change as the game day approaches.
WEEK 21 January 6th– 8th
All times are Mountain Standard Time
LAST WEEK’S SUMMARY
WEEK 20
If I was Manchester City right now, I’d be kicking myself. How did they piss away two points against a team that clearly did not expect to get anything from this game. Apart from the fact that they have now allowed Arsenal a six-point cushion, their lack of composure in the second half was abyssmal. Wolves really took it to West Ham and even if three points won’t save them, at least they’ll have some familiar faces to play against next year in the Championship League. Aston Villa got back to their winning ways against Notts Forest (for my Gold Star Pick) and although they now have the same number of points as Manchester City, the Citizens have a vastly superior goal difference. The games for week 21 are being played on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and then we have a break until Jan 17th when Week 22 kicks off with Manchester City playing Manchester United.
WEEK 21 GAME 1 – Tue 6th Jan 1:00 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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WEST HAM |
NOTTS FOREST |
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| Odds PICK | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds PICK | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: After last weekend’s beating at the hands of Wolves, it’s hard to back The Hammers playing a pub team. Notts Forest seemed to be on the uptick, but a couple of setbacks in their last two matches have hampered their revival. They need this one to keep ahead of the dregs that are below them. As it happens, West Ham happen to be one of those dregs. Nottingham Forest PICK. | |||||||
| RESULTS: 1-2 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: This was a big, big game for both teams. If West Ham would have won it, they would be just one point shy of the relegation zone. If Notts Forest were the victors, they would be seven points clear of the drop. To be fair, Forest weren’t that good, for many reasons, but they didn’t need to be. West Ham were worse, as usual. An unfortunate own goal by Murillo gave the hosts the lead, but Nicolas Dominguez had it all tied up 10-minutes after the restart. At the very end, a clumsy attempt at a clearance by goalkeeper Alphonse Areola resulted in a penalty and Morgan Gibbs-White made no mistake with the conversion. As stated many times before, this will be the last we see of West Ham in the Premier League for some time. In the end, they have no one but themselves to blame, as the rot can be squarely placed on the shoulders of the so-called management/owners. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 2 – Wed 7th Jan 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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EVERTON |
WOLVERHAMPTON |
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| Odds -1/2 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds + 1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Wolves got their first win of the season against West Ham last time out. That success may give them some much-needed confidence. To be honest, I always had them pegged for relegation, I just didn’t think they would be this bad. While I think it’s too late to save them, I think they may pick up a few more points now that they have broken their duck. Wolverhampton +1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 1-1 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: Wow! Wolves unbeaten in their last three matches, who could have seen this coming? Well, it’s about time. For most of their games up until now, they have shown a fighting spirit with precious little to show for it. At Everton’s new stadium, they did go one goal behind in the early stages of the match to a decisive strike by Michael Keane. Teenager Mateus Mane managed to grab the equalizer in the second half, and at that point what had been a somewhat dull game came alive. Everton sort of lost their focus and first goalscorer Keane and then Jack Grealish were sent off in the closing minutes. Then it took a typical Pickford acrobatic save to deny what would have been Wolves first away victory of the season. Everton were lucky to escape with a point, while Wolves should be encouraged with their last few performances. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 3 – Wed Jan 7th 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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MANCHESTER CITY |
BRIGHTON |
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| Odds -1 1/2 | O/U 3 1/2 | Odds +1 1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: For a team that can only end up with a draw against West Ham and Wolves, it’s not with much confidence one could expect them to get anything here. City at home should not have too much bother with this lot. I’ll take Manchester to beat the spread. Manchester City -1 1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 1-1 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: Manchester City falter yet again. For the third week in a row, all they could manage was a draw against teams that they should have beaten with ease. If he had any hair, manager Pep Guardiola would be pulling it out right now. These past results defy analysis. I can’t see where the problems lay? Most of the first team players are fit and at times when they put a sequence of moves together it just looks like poetry and yet, that killer instinct is missing. At this point they should have six points more than they currently have and that would put them on a par with League leaders, Arsenal. If I was a City fan, I would not be happy right now. |
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WEEK 21 GAME 4 – Wed 7th Jan 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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BOURNEMOUTH |
TOTTENHAM |
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| Odds -1/2 | O/U 3 | Odds +1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Bournemouth held Arsenal to some degree last time and only lost by the one goal. For some reason Tottenham seem to be better away from their home ground. Without taking out any big loans to finance this move, I will take Spurs to win this. Tottenham +1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 3-2 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: We’ve seen this picture before. Tottenham go out to an early lead, a fifty-minute goal to Mathys Tel and yet not only do they go in at half-time 2-1 down, but after an equalizer by Palhinha at the 78th-minute, piss it all away at five minutes into extra time at the end. Bournemouth manage to break an eleven-game winless streak at the expense of a dysfunctional Spurs side, who with every week seem to be slipping further down the table. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 5 – Wed 7th Jan 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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CRYSTAL PALACE |
ASTON VILLA |
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| Odds Pick | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds Pick | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Crystal Palace always seemed to be punching above their weight, and while their League position looked pretty good for much of the first half of the season, reality has set in. Even with the addition of Brennan Johnson from Spurs, the Eagles are going to flop around the middle of the table as usual! I don’t see any real problems for Aston Villa here, and at the moment the odds are Pick’em. So that’s what I’ll do. Aston Villa. Pick. | |||||||
| RESULTS: 0-0 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: I’ve said this more than once this season, how could this happen? Villa missed a good opportunity to close the gap at the top of the Table, but couldn’t find a way past a resolute Palace defense. Signing Brennan Johnson from Spurs will give the Eagles some much needed firepower as their goal-scoring endeavors have been sorely lacking as of late. Indeed, he did have some solid chances to put the ball in the net, but eventually came up short. Aston Villa also had their share of moments that could have swung the game their way, but they too were found lacking. Crystal palace looked for the most part tired, and in the end were fortunate to finish with a point. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 6 – Wed 7th Jan 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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FULHAM |
CHELSEA |
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| Odds +1/2 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds -1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Chelsea have just fired their manager, and though it may seem harsh, they should be doing better with the talent at their disposal. With their grounds within walking distance of each other (1.4 miles), home advantage shouldn’t count for much. On the other hand, -1/2 handicap might. I’ll take the Cottagers to keep it close. Fulham +1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 2-1 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: The game had barely gotten underway when Chelsea went one man down, after Marc Cucurella was sent off. Having just returned to the team after a mild injury, Cucurella hauled down Harry Wilson, in what appeared to be dangerously close to the penalty box. Chelsea still have not addressed their disciplinary problems, and new manager Liam Rosenior will have his work cut out for him in trying to bring this side to heel. That is the Blues’ seventh red card this season, far and away more than any other Premier League side. Add to that the dramatic drop-off in Cole Palmer’s effectiveness, Liam Delap’s struggles with injuries, and it looks like they have finally given up (for the time being at least) on Garnacho, and you have a team that has problems to spare. Harry Wilson scored the winner for Fulham, having already had an earlier effort disallowed, and after all was said and done the home team deserved all the points. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 7 –Wed 7th Jan 12:30 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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BRENTFORD |
SUNDERLAND |
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| Odds -1/2 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds +1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: The Black Cats come to town and their attitude is plain for all to see: they fear no-one. Certainly not Brentford. With a 1/2 goal advantage, Sunderland look to be the bet. This game looks like a draw to me, and I expect the Cats to go home with at least a point. Sunderland +1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 3-0 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: Igor Thiago scored another brace of goals to bring his tally for the season up to 16. At the half, the Cats were only down one goal, but if Enzo Le Fee hadn’t made a complete pig’s ear of a penalty attempt, kicking the ball directly at goalkeeper, Caoimhin Kelleher, then they would have been all tied up. Up until that point, without producing much in the way of real goal scoring attempts, Sunderland had been holding their own. In the second period, Brentford started to take more control, and two more goals put the game out of reach for the visitors. Both of these teams have been something of a surprise (to me at least) this season, as I thought both of them would struggle, so far that hasn’t been the case. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 8 – Wed 7th Jan 1:15 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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BURNLEY |
MANCHESTER UNITED |
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| Odds +1/2 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds -1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTION: Manchester United can be the very definition of useless; thing is you never know which team is going to turn up. There is no way they should be where they are in the League table, and although I wouldn’t stake much on it, Burnley may just surprise everyone. but not me. No Bet. | |||||||
| RESULTS: 2-2 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: Well, I didn’t have the courage to put any money on it, but I can’t say I was surprised at the result. As far as the stats went, United overwhelmed the Clarets with 24 shots to 5 and 65% possession, but Burnley were gifted an own goal shortly after the game started. Benjamin Sesko finally found the net and managed to bag a couple of goals, but they weren’t enough to give the Red Devils a victory. Refusing to concede, Burnley came back towards the end and Jaidon Anthony snatched the equalizer. United can’t feel very good about this result as they let two points slip through their fingers. Burnley on the other hand should take some comfort in claiming a point, even if it does prove futile at the end of the campaign. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 9 – Wed 7th Jan 1:15 |
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| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
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NEWCASTLE |
LEEDS |
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| Odds -1/2 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds +1/2 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Another game that looks like it could go to a draw. Leeds have been putting some results together of late, but they need an extra push to go clear of the drop zone. They may get it here. It wouldn’t be a large bet, but I think I’ll take the Whites to at least snag a point. Leeds +1/2 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 4-3 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: Leeds were cruising to an unlikely victory and then injury time at the end of the game turned up. At the end of the 90, the Whites were 3-2 up, and it looked as if they were going home with all the points. Newcastle had to come from behind three times before they could put a mark in the win column. One minute into injury and Bruno Guimaraes scored from the penalty spot to tie the game up. If that wasn’t enough to break Leeds’ hearts, Harvey Barnes finished the game off with the Magpies’ fourth goal at the 90+12-minute mark. A setback for Leeds, no doubt, but they are still 8 points clear of the relegation zone, and if they can maintain their current form, should be looking at Premier League football again next year. | |||||||
WEEK 21 GAME 10 – Thurs Jan 8th 1:00 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOME | AWAY | ||||||
 ARSENAL |
ARSENAL |
LIVERPOOL |
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| Odds -1 | O/U 2 1/2 | Odds +1 | |||||
| PREDICTIONS: Well, this is interesting. Arsenal may be at home, but a full goal favorite over Liverpool! I know The Reds have their problems, but they do have the personnel to beat just about anyone on any given day. Apart from the fact that this should be a good game, I think Arsenal could get beat. I’m going to take Liverpool and the goal here. Liverpool +1 | |||||||
| RESULTS: 0-0 | |||||||
| ANALYSIS: You don’t often see these two go at it and have it end goalless. At the end, the stats were pretty even, though Liverpool didn’t register one shot on target. Arsenal seemed to have the game in hand during the first half, but the momentum shifted in the second. Eventually it could have gone either way, and I’m sure one goal would have finished it, but neither side could break the deadlock. Jeremie Frimpong, for Arsenal, was always a threat down the right wing with his speed and agility, but time after time his final pass went astray. With the leading three teams all drawing, there was no change at the top of the Table, and Arsenal are still six points clear at number one. | |||||||