Thursday 31 October 2013

Predictions For Premier League Gameweek 10

It's that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I did fairly well last week with one perfect result, six correct outcomes and three incorrect. It meant I stayed in 10th place in my predictions league although I did catch up on the leaders ever so slightly. Here's a look at how my predictions league stands.


Pos.    Player.                        Week.    Total

1.        Paul Kingston              55         770

2.        Sulabh                        105       720

3.        Kildare Gunner             80        710

4.        Wayne Hubbard           65        695

5.        Abu K                          80        680

6.        Karl-Yngve Lund         125       605

7.        goonerdhanesh           100       525

8.        MickTheGooner           130      495

9.        Gaurav Ahuja               115      485

10.      Michael Sheehy           100      430

Saturday November 2

Newcastle United v Chelsea

12.45pm GMT, St. James' Park, Newcastle

Newcastle have only won one of their four home games so far and only the bottom two have conceded more than them. They can be very good as they showed in their last home game against Liverpool and have the players to trouble most teams. They can equally be very poor when they're not at the best and it's not easy to know which Newcastle will turn up.

Loric Remy has lost his shooting boots in the last couple of games but he's still probably the best bet in the Newcastle team with Yohan Cabaye and Hartem Ben Arfa to be considered too.

Chelsea were more than a touch fortunate to win at home to City last week thanks to the generosity of Joe Hart. I thought City were the better team and Chelsea still have to convince me that they will go the distance in the league. They have the players to do it though and with Jose Mourinho in charge they have to be among the favourites.

Eden Hazard and Oscar look like the best fantasy bets in the Chelsea team with John Terry a possibility too.

Newcastle will have to be at their very best to get anything from this game and I don't think they will succeed.

Prediction: 1-2

Fulham v Manchester United

3pm GMT, Craven Cottage, London

Fulham weren't at the races against Southampton last week and still look like they will spend the season fighting relegation to me. Despite winning two games in a row before last week they are still only two points above that drop zone. For many seasons Craven Cottage was a hard place to get points from for visiting teams, but not so much in this calendar year in particular.

I can't see any Fulham players who are going to shine for fantasy managers.

United were more than a little lucky to win at home to Stoke last week and they needed that win badly. They still look nothing like the team they were last season and every team thinks they have a chance against them at the moment. If they are to have any hope of retaining their title they will have to improve an awful lot.

Wayne Rooney still looks like the best fantasy choice in the United team but it would be foolish to discount Robin van Persie.

I think a sub par United team are still good enough to beat a very ordinary Fulham team.

Prediction: 1-3

Hull City v Sunderland

3pm GMT, KC Stadium, Hull

Hull are unbeaten at home and have only conceded one goal in their four home games. They have made themselves a very hard team to beat at home in particular and will fancy their chances against a struggling Sunderland team. Their biggest problem has been a lack of goals with only seven in their nine games.

If he's fit Robbie Brady is the Hull player to have for fantasy managers.

Sunderland got their first win of the season last week in their local derby lasr week when they beat Newcastle 2-1. They have only taken one point in four away games and no other team has conceded more goals away from home. Despite getting that first win last week they have a long way to go to prove they can stay in this league.

If he stays fit Stephen Fletcher can do well for fantasy managers and Adam Johnson could be the player to provide him with assists.

I think Hull might just be good enough at home to win by the only goal.

Prediction: 1-0

Manchester City v Norwich City

3pm GMT, Etihad Stadium, Manchester 

City played well away to Chelsea last week but we the masters of their own destruction thanks to Joe Hart. They're a different animal at home though and have won all their home games and scored more goals than any other team at home too. If they can sort out their away form they will challenge for the league but it has to happen soon.

David Silva and Yaya Toure are in good form at the moment but Sergio Aguero is the City player excelling.

Norwich are in the relegation zone on goal difference and have lost three of their four away games. They are the joint lowest scorers overall and the joint lowers scorers away from home too. This is going to be a very tough game for them and they could be on the wrong end of a hiding.

Jonathan Howson is probably the best fantasy bet in the Norwich team but maybe not for this week.

I can't see anything other than a City win in this game.

Prediction: 3-0

Stoke City v Southampton 

3pm GMT, Britannia Stadium, Stoke

Stoke played very well away to United last week and really should have got something from the game. They are the joint lowest scorers in the league but at least they showed a lot more ambition last week. They have only won one of their four home games and need to improve on that as they are only outside the relegation zone on goal difference.

Stoke defenders would seem to be the best choices in their team at the moment with Ryan Shawcross and Asmir Begovic probably the best bets. If Marko Arnautovic can play like he did last week he might not be a bad option either.

Southampton are in fantastic form at the moment and a handful for any team. They have only conceded three goals in nine games and have already won away to Liverpool and drawn at United. They may not score an awful lot of goals but as long as their defence holds up they don't need to score too many.

Artur Boric, Dejan Lovren and Jose Fonte are all very good fantasy choices and Adam Lallana is not a bad one either.

Stoke could struggle against Southampton's pressing game, but I have a feeling they will take a point. 

Prediction: 1-1

West Bromwich Albion v Crystal Palace

3pm GMT, The Hawthorns, Birmingham 

West Brom have had a very tough run of games recently and haven't done too badly in them. They will fancy their chances of moving up the table with a home game against the bottom club. Up until last week West Brom had a decent defensive record and they will want to tighten things up at the back again after shipping four goals against Liverpool.

Morgan Amalfitano could be a very good fantasy bargain and he's still available at a good price. Both Liam Ridgewell and Gareth McAuley had being pretty well up until last week too.

Palace are now bottom of the table after Sunderland climbed above them last week. I will be surprised if they finish anywhere else but last as they just don't look good enough for this level to me. They have lost all of their away games so far and the chances are that record will continue.

I can't see any Palsce players to recommend to fantasy managers.

I can't see anything other than a West Brom win in this game.

Prediction: 2-0

West Ham United v Aston Villa

3pm GMT, Upton Park, London

West Ham are struggling to find the net and their cause hasn't been helped by injuries to their strikers. They spent a lot of money on Andy Carroll and have had no return yet due to injury, but at least their defence is proving to be very difficult to break down. They have performed better away from home and have actually lost three of their four home games.

Winston Reid and Jussi Jaaskelainen look to be the best fantasy choices in a defensively strong West Ham team.

Villa should have been a few goals up at home to Everton last week before Everton scored and they paid the price in a 2-0 defeat. They have only lost one of their four away games, but have failed to score in their last three games. Their counter attacking style is suited to playing away from home, but West Ham are hardly likely to throw caution to the wind going forward.

Christian Benteke is still the outstanding fantasy choice in the Villa team despite his penalty miss last week.

It's not easy to predict how this game will go, but I think a draw is the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 1-1

Arsenal v Liverpool

5.30pm GMT, Emirates Stadium, London

Arsenal have taken 22 points from their last eight games, but their next two games will be a real test for them. Their only defeat so far was at home to Villa on the opening day and they do look a little vulnerable at home. They will surely go all out for a win knowing what a huge boost it would be for them.


Mesut Ozil, Aaron Ransey and Olivier Giroud are the three Arsenal players most likely to succeed at the moment.

Liverpool are in very good form at the moment and only two points behind Arsenal. The Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge combination in attack is a real handful and they can score goals almost at will. Their defence hasn't been great though and that will make their job against Arsenal a very tough one. They are unbeaten away from home and only Arsenal have scored more away goals than Liverpool.

Both Suarez and Sturridge are very good fantasy choices with Steven Gerrard a possibility too.

This is a very hard game to call but I think Arsenal will have enough to get a narrow victory.

Prediction: 3-2

Sunday November 3

Everton v Tottenham Hotspur

1.30pm GMT, Goodison Park, Liverpool

Everton have been very good so far and don't seem to be missing the departed Marouane Fellaini after some good signings of their own. They have won five of their last six games with an away defeat to City being the only slip in that run. They have taken 10 points from their four home games with all of their wins being by one goal only. 

Romelu Lukaku is still the best fantasy option in the Everton team with Leighton Baines and Ross Barkley to be considered too.

Spurs have been very tight in defence and have got a lot of help from referees with dodgy penalties at the other end. They are finding goals very hard to come by since Gareth Bale was sold and they need to find some goal scoring form. They still haven't won any league game they have conceded in and had better hope for a clean sheet in this game if they're going to get something out of it. They have the joint best defensive record away from home with only one goal conceded in four games.

Jan Vertonghen, Michael Dawson and Hugo Lloris are probably the best fantasy bets in the Spurs team with Roberto Soldado to be considered too as long as he takes their penalties.

This is another game which could go either way, but I have a feeling Everton will edge it.

Prediction: 2-1

Cardiff City v Swansea City

4pm GMT, Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff

Cardiff have made themselves difficult to beat and somehow managed to hold out for a point at Norwich last week. Like so many otfer teams they are finding goals hard to come by and that's their biggest problem. They will be well up for the first ever all Welsh clash in the Premier League.

It's not easy to pick any Cardiff players who might make an impact for fantasy managers.

Swansea have won two of their four away games and are a good counter attacking team. They are one of the teams who are able to score goals and that should be more than enough to keep them in the Premier League. Welsh pride is at stake in this game and they're bound to go all out for a win for their fans.

Miguel Michu is probably the Swansea player most likely to do well for fantasy managers, but the points are being evenly shared among their players at the moment.

I think this will be a very close and hotly contested game which could go either way but might just end in a draw.

Prediction: 1-1

That's it for this week.

See you next week.


1 comment:

  1. Good predictions. Really very informative and creative. This sharing concept is a good way to enhance the knowledge pool about football. Thank you very much for this post. I like this site very much.

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