MY ACCOUNT
The Manchester derby headlines a potentially pivotal weekend in the Premier League title race as Manchester City welcome Manchester United to the Etihad.
Liverpool could be within three points of leaders City if they beat West Ham on Saturday, while there are big games at Norwich and Newcastle in the relegation battle.
Leicester vs Leeds (Saturday, 12.30pm, BT Sport)
The Jesse Marsch era at Leeds begins with a trip to Leicester as the Yorkshire club try to arrest a shocking run of Premier League form.
Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure at Elland Road ended with four straight defeats, with at least two goals conceded in the first half of each of the Whites’ past five league games — the worst such run in top-flight history.
Including caretakers, six of the past seven managers to take charge of Leeds have lost their first Premier League game at the helm.
Leicester picked up a vital three points by beating Burnley 2-0 on Tuesday but have thrown away leads in each of their past three home league games, losing two of those.
Aston Villa vs Southampton (Saturday, 3pm)
FA Cup quarter-finalists Southampton will look to continue their stunning 2022 at Aston Villa.
Villa Park has been a happy hunting ground for the Saints, winning on each of their past three visits and not losing in six attempts.
Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side have only lost once since the turn of the year and have scored in 10 league games in a row, a record only bettered by Manchester City.
For Steven Gerrard, a welcome win at Brighton last weekend eased any fears of his team being dragged into the relegation battle but with three defeats in six home games, he will want to make Villa Park a fortress again.
Burnley vs Chelsea (Saturday, 3pm)
Chelsea will need to block out the noise surrounding Roman Abramovich’s sale of the club as they travel to Burnley.
The Blues have won on six of their seven Premier League visits to Turf Moor but the Clarets did pick up a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge earlier this campaign.
And Thomas Tuchel’s side will be desperate not to be drawn into the battle for a top-four spot, with Arsenal only five points behind them with a game in hand.
Recent results have seen Burnley close the gap to safety at the bottom but they remain in the drop zone, fighting to keep their top-flight status.
Newcastle vs Brighton (Saturday, 3pm)
In-form Newcastle welcome out-of-sorts Brighton to St James’ Park on the search for a fifth win in six games.
The Magpies’ victory at Brentford last time out lifted them to the heady heights of 14th and a third consecutive home win would be their best run in three years.
They will be wary of the fact they have dropped a league-high 21 points from winning positions all season, while Brighton have picked up the second most from losing (11).
And the Seagulls are something of a bogey team for Newcastle, having won four and drawn five of their nine Premier League meetings.
Norwich vs Brentford (Saturday, 3pm)
Norwich meet Brentford knowing victory for the Canaries would do their survival hopes the world of good and heap more misery on free-falling Brentford.
Three successive defeats have left Dean Smith’s side rooted to the bottom of the league, five points from safety with 12 games left to play.
Brentford, meanwhile, looked to be taking to the Premier League like a duck to water but have only picked up one point from their past eight games and are only three clear of the bottom three.
Smith was in charge of the Bees for three years and has never won a game against a club he has previously managed.
Wolves vs Crystal Palace (Saturday, 3pm)
Victory is a must for Wolves against Crystal Palace if they are to keep their slim hopes of a top-four finish alive.
Damaging defeats to Arsenal and West Ham have halted the momentum of Bruno Lage’s side after winning six of their eight previously.
Patrick Vieira’s visitors have won each of the last two meetings between these teams without conceding, most recently securing a 2-0 victory at Selhurst Park in November.
But the Eagles have not done the double over their West Midlands opponents since 2012-13.
Liverpool vs West Ham (Saturday, 5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Liverpool know three points against West Ham will heap the pressure on City ahead of Sunday’s Manchester derby.
The Reds can close the gap to just three points on Saturday evening and have only lost one of their past 48 home league games against West Ham.
They are unbeaten at Anfield in 17 Premier League matches, winning their last six games by an aggregate score of 18-2.
Jarrod Bowen has been the Hammers’ star man this term and the Liverpool-linked winger will break Steve Potts’ record of featuring in 78 Premier League matches in a row should he feature on Merseyside.
Watford vs Arsenal (Sunday, 2pm, Sky Sports)
Arsenal can take advantage of tough games against the top two for the teams above them when they visit lowly Watford.
The Gunners have three games in hand on both Manchester United and West Ham, and could move into the top four with victory at Vicarage Road.
They have won their past three away league games and scored in all 15 of their top-flight encounters against the Hornets.
Despite struggling for victories, Watford have kept three clean sheets in six games under Roy Hodgson and picked up a goalless draw at Old Trafford last weekend.
Manchester City vs Manchester United (Sunday, 4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City can do the double over Manchester United for just the second time under the Spaniard if they win Sunday’s derby.
Ex-United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had overseen three consecutive victories at the Etihad for United and Ralf Rangnick will be desperate to keep that record up.
In fact, no other Premier League fixture has seen more away wins than the 21 in the Manchester derby.
Raheem Sterling has been in red-hot form for City in recent months but is still looking for his first goal in 23 appearances against the Red Devils.
Tottenham vs Everton (Monday, 8pm, Sky Sports)
Two sides enjoying their most difficult seasons in recent memory face off when Tottenham and Everton meet on Monday night.
Spurs are looking to avoid a third straight home league defeat for the first time in nearly 14 years, while Everton have not won on the road in the top flight since August.
The Toffees sit 17th ahead of the weekend’s games but may drop into the relegation zone before kick-off after losing 13 of their past 17 league games.
Unfortunately for Frank Lampard’s side, Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son have hit form in recent weeks with seven and six goals respectively in their past 11 top-flight matches.
Follow each game with our unbeatable live scores service. Simply tap the Scores tab on the web or download the LiveScore app from the App Store for iOS devices or Google Play for Android.
