The busy Premier League schedule continues on Monday and features some intriguing clashes as the race for the title continues to heat up.
Arsenal will be looking to respond after their heavy 4-0 defeat to Southampton on Boxing Day as they failed to take advantage of leaders Leicester City slipping up.
In turn, that resulted in a perfect weekend for Manchester City who made up ground, while there was no change at the bottom of the table as Aston Villa failed to overcome West Ham. Check out our predictions for Monday’s fixtures below:
Watford 1-1 Tottenham
This should be a great game as both sides are in good form and have impressed to this stage. While Tottenham have enough quality in their side to claim all three points, the Hornets will have their say and secure a share of the spoils with the dangerous Odion Ighalo leading the way.
Crystal Palace 1-0 Swansea
Palace aren’t as impressive at home but they should have enough to see off Swansea who are still without a manager and are searching for consistency. The sooner the Swans can appoint someone the better, as this is a tough away day which they will return from empty-handed.
West Brom 2-2 Newcastle United
Newcastle suffered heartbreak on Saturday evening with Tom Cleverley scoring a late winner at St James’ Park for Everton. However, Steve McClaren’s side are showing some fight and they will need it at the Hawthorns to pick up a point.
Everton 1-0 Stoke City
Everton left it late last time out and they will have to be better against a Stoke side buoyed by their win over Manchester United. The visitors have some dangerous individuals who can make the difference, but back the home side to match their effort and eek out another tight win.
Norwich City 1-2 Aston Villa
Remi Garde suggested that his side needed 10 wins for their remaining 21 games, but he didn’t get off to a good start with a draw at home to a weakened West Ham side. However, the Frenchman will be pleased with certain aspects of the performance, and their desperation for a win will see them overcome Norwich.
Manchester United 1-2 Chelsea
This could be the end of the road for Louis van Gaal as it would mark a fifth consecutive loss in all competitions and that simply is unacceptable. Chelsea will be without Diego Costa, but the likes of Eden Hazard, Pedro, Oscar and Willian will cause the United defence nightmares while the frontline for Van Gaal will continue to struggle.
Arsenal 3-0 Bournemouth
Arsenal will come out blazing in this one as they look to respond after their disappointing loss to Southampton. While the best chance for the visitors could be to breach their defence early on to take advantage of any nerves, expect the Gunners to get back to winning ways with a solid performance.
West Ham 0-2 Southampton
The Saints will be in high spirits after their last game and so back them to head to Upton Park with confidence of taking all three points. The Hammers are without a win in eight and have struggled for goals, but it’s completely the opposite for their rivals and that will show.
Leicester City 1-1 Manchester City
Few would have expected this to be a top-of-the-table clash at the end of December, but here we are. The Foxes will be desperate to bounce back immediately after defeat at Anfield to ensure that they don’t start sliding down the table. Back them to produce a resolute performance against a City side without Vincent Kompany.
Sunderland 0-3 Liverpool
Liverpool battled their way to a win over Leicester on Saturday, but back them to make it a much easier job this time round against a Sunderland side struggling. Sam Allardyce was far from impressed with their effort against Man City, and this is a game that Liverpool will fancy dominating with their high pressing and quality on the ball.