Saturday 27 December 2014

Predictions For Premier League Gameweek 19

It's that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I did reasonably well last week with one perfect result, five correct outcomes and four incorrect, but the players below me all did better than me and my lead at the top of my predictions league is now very narrow. You can see from the table below that there are three players closing in very quickly on me.


PositionPlayer NamePTSTWBB
NC 1 (1)Michael Sheehy1000+9510
NC 2 (2)goonerdhanesh985+1405
Up 3 (4)sodobo935+2255
NC 3 (3)Wayne Hubbard935+19010
NC 5 (5)Rutland Gooner775+1355


Sunday December 28

Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United

12pm GMT, White Hart Lane, London

Spurs have won six of their last nine games and their last three in a row and all of those wins were by the same 2-1 scoreline. They have had their problems at home though with only Crystal Palace and West Brom losing more games at home. They have struggled against the better teams in the league, but a win in this game could be just what they need to strengthen their challenge for a top four finish.

Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane are the Spurs players to have for fantasy managers at the moment with Nacer Chadli a pretty good option too.

United are on a very good run too with 22 points from their last eight games and a top four finish looks well within their grasp. They have only won two of their eight away games though and their performances have been far from convincing at times. A win would give them breathing space in third place, but a defeat would put them right in the middle of the fight for third and fourth.

Robin van Persie is the most consistent fantasy performer in the United team at the moment, but Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata and Radamel Falcao all have to be considered good options too.

I think this will be a very tight game and a draw is probably the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 2-2

Southampton v Chelsea

2.05pm GMT, St Mary's Stadium, Southampton 

Southampton seem to have gotten over their recent poor run, but they have some very tough games coming up. Only Chelsea and United have won more games at home and only those two teams have scored more home goals too. They will have to be at their very best to get anything out of this game, but they are capable of it.

Graziano Pelle has looked good in recent weeks for Southampton and all of their defenders have done well too, but they might not be the greatest option in this game.

Chelsea have won their last three games in a row since losing to Newcastle and they have kept clean sheets in all three of them too. Only City have won more away games and scored more away goals than Chelsea. Anything other than a defeat will see them on top of the table at the mid point of the season and they are strong favourites to do just that.

Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas are all excellent fantasy choices as are all of the Chelsea defenders at the moment.

Despite Southampton getting back on track in their last couple of games I think they will have a tough task getting anything from this game and will probably lose by the odd goal.

Prediction: 1-2

Aston Villa v Sunderland 

3pm GMT, Villa Park, Birmingham 

Villa have only won two of their eight home games and no other team has scored less goals at home. They have only taken one point and scored one goal in their last three games and they're the lowest scorers in the league with 11 goals in their 18 games. They're five points above the relegation zone and three points in this game would give them some real breathing space.

I still can't see any Villa players playing consistently well enough to make a difference for fantasy managers.

Sunderland have only won once in their last eight games and are only four points above the relegation zone. They have only lost two of their eight away games, but they have struggled to score goals away from home. They're the draw specialists of the Premier League with 10 draws in their 18 games and a draw in this game would not be a bad result for them, but a win would be an awful lot better.

Adam Johnson has scored in his last two games for Sunderland and could be worth a punt for fantasy managers if he can continue that form.

This is a game neither team can afford to lose and a draw is probably the most likely result.

Prediction: 1-1

Hull City v Leicester City

3pm GMT, KC Stadium, Hull

Hull got a very important win away to Sunderland on Thursday and it was their first win in 11 games. That win moved them out of the relegation zone and they have a chance to move further away from it with a home game against the bottom club. They have only won once in their eight home games though and that was in early October.

There are no Hull players I can see to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.

Leicester haven't won in their last 13 games and have lost their last six in a row. They're six points from safety with the season nearly half way completed and need to turn things around very quickly. They have lost eight of their nine away games and no other team has scored less goals away from home.

Leonardo Ulloa has done reasonably well for fantasy managers in recent weeks, but it's a risk picking any players from a team doing as badly as Leicester at the moment.

This is a real relegation six pointer and it could go either way, but I think Hull might just nick a win.

Prediction: 2-1

Manchester City v Burnley

3pm GMT, Etihad Stadium, Manchester 

City have won six of their eight home games and only Chelsea have a better defensive record at home. They have won their last seven league games in a row and kept clean sheets in four of them too. A win could close the three point gap to Chelsea with the leaders having a much tougher game away to Southampton.

The injury to Sergio Aguero seems to have brought the best out of David Silva and Yaya Toure and they're excellent fantasy choices at the moment along with any of the City defenders.

Burnley have lost three of their last four games and slipped back into the relegation zone as a result. They have only won once in eight away games and they have only scored five goals in those eight games. They're only one point from safety, but they will do very well to avoid a heavy defeat in this game.

Danny Ings and Tom Heaton are the Burnley players who have performed well for fantasy managers recently, but they might not be the best options in this game.

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

Prediction: 3-0

Queens Park Rangers v Crystal Palace

3pm GMT, Loftus Road, London

QPR have taken 17 points from their nine home games and only four teams have scored more home goals than them. They're only two points above the relegation zone, but that's because of their awful away form. A win at home to one of the teams below them would be a huge boost in their bid to beat the drop.

Charlie Austin has been in great form for QPR and is almost a must have for fantasy managers at home in particular.

Palace were beaten at home by Southampton on Friday which saw them drop into the relegation zone and cost Neil Warnock his job. They have only won once in their last 12 games with only QPR and Leicester conceding more goals than Palace. They're only a point away from safety and a win in this game would move them out of the bottom three, but it won't be easy for them to get anything out of the game.

Mile Jedinak and Yannick Bolasie had being doing well for Palace, but their players aren't the best fantasy options for managers at the moment.

I think QPR's home form should be good enough to see them win this game by a couple of goals at least.

Prediction: 3-1

Stoke City v West Bromwich Albion

3pm GMT, Britannia Stadium, Stoke

Stoke got a very good win away to Everton on Friday to move above them into eleventh place. They have only won three of their eight home games so far and haven't managed back to back league wins yet this season. They have saved their best displays for games against the better sides, but they will be strong favourites to win their second game in a row in this game. 

There are no Stoke players making a real impression for fantasy managers at the moment.

West Brom have only taken four points from their last eight games and they're just two points above the relegation zone. They have won two of their eight away games, but only managed to score five goals in those eight games. Only Southampton have a better defensive record away from home though and they will feel they have a chance of getting something from this game.

I can't see any West Brom players to recommend to fantasy managers right now.

I think Stoke should be good enough to get the better of West Brom.

Prediction: 2-0

West Ham United v Arsenal

3pm GMT, Upton Park, London

West Ham were beaten by Chelsea on Friday, but they're still above Arsenal in the table. They have won six of their nine home games with only three other teams having a better defensive record at home. They're only a point outside the top four and a win in this game could see them move back into the Champions League places with the season half way completed.

Stewart Downing has been the best fantasy performer for West Ham so far with Andy Carroll well worth considering too.

Arsenal just about scraped a win at home to QPR on Friday and their injury problems have really stretched their squad. They have only won three of their nine away games, but only three teams have scored more away goals than them. They can hugely improve their position if they can win this game and the next one away to Southampton on Thursday.

Alexis Sanchez continues to be by far the best fantasy performer for Arsenal and is a must have for fantasy managers. 

I think this will be a very close game which could go either way, but Arsenal might just shade it.

Prediction: 1-2

Newcastle United v Everton

4.15pm GMT, St James Park, Newcastle 

Newcastle have lost their last three league games to slip back down to 10th in the table. They have won four of their eight home games, but have struggled to score goals with only 10 goals in those eight games. They need a win to get things back on track and they will feel they have a chance against a struggling Everton team. 

It's not easy to see any Newcastle players making an impression for fantasy managers at the moment.

Everton have lost four of their last six games and their last two in a row to drop to 12th in the league. They have only won two of their nine away games and a top four finish already looks beyond them. Only three other teams have conceded more goals than Everton and they will continue to struggle unless they sort out their defensive problems.

You can usually depend on Leighton Baines and Romelu Lukaku to score well for fantasy managers, but not at the moment.

I think this will be a very close game and a draw is probably the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 1-1

Monday December 29

Liverpool v Swansea City

8pm GMT, Anfield, Liverpool

Liverpool won away to Burnley on Friday to get their first win in four games. They're seven points off the top four and need to put a good run together to keep pace with the teams above them. They have only won three of their nine home games and only three teams have scored less goals at home.

Raheem Sterling still looks like he's the best fantasy option in the Liverpool team.

Swansea have won their last two games by the same 1-0 scoreline and they're only four points outside the top four. They have kept clean sheets in eight of their 18 games and will feel they have a chance of doing so in this game too. Only three teams have conceded less goals than Swansea and that defensive strength could prove tricky for Liverpool.

Gylfi Sigurdsson has impressed on a consistent basis for Swansea while Wilfried Bony has been in good form recently too. 

I think Swansea will make a real game of this, but Liverpool should just about manage a win.

Prediction: 2-1

That's it for today.

See you tomorrow. 


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