English Premier League: EPL Week 16 Previews and Predictions

Chelsea made an impression with a key victory over Manchester City that saw them not only close their gap to seven points back but also snapped the Citizens' unbeaten record in the League.

Stoke City likewise had a great victory with their hard-fought and controversial win over Tottenham Hotspur that sees them in the right for some recognition for their play and improvement over the last few years.

Liverpool finally achieved a victory at home with a win over Queens Park Rangers 1-0. It should have been a much bigger scoreline but the Reds continue to rue missed chances.

In other results, Manchester United got back on the horse with a 4-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers following their elimination from the UEFA Champions League in the middle of last week.

Sunderland finally found three points as they defeated Blackburn 2-1 thanks to goals in the final 10 minutes to see Martin O'Neal enjoy a debut victory.

Norwich took the game to Newcastle United in an impressive 4-2 victory at Carrow Road thanks to a powerful display of aerial prowess.

This weekend we kick off a sprint into January and the winter transfer window as the EPL clubs will play four games or more each over the next two-and-half weeks.

Blackburn Rovers vs. West Bromwich Albion

Blackburn Rovers looked to be headed for a 1-0 victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light before the Black Cats pounced them from behind to pull out a 2-1 win on the debut of Martin O'Neal.

Steve Keane's charges once again were not able to hold on to take a key victory in the relegation battle.

West Bromwich Albion likewise were up 1-0 before Wigan Athletic managed an equalizer four minutes later and then got the win thanks to a spot kick from Jordi Gomez.

Match Prediction: Blackburn Rovers 2-2 West Bromwich Albion

Predicted Blackburn Rovers Starting XI: Paul Robinson, Michel Salgado, Scott Dann, Chris Samba, Gael Givet, Steven Nzonzi, David Dunn, Simon Vukcevic, Morten Gamst Pederson, Mauro Formica, Yakubu

Predicted West Bromwich Albion Starting XI: Ben Foster, Mick Shorey, Jonas Olsson, Gareth McAuley, Steven Reid, James Morrison, Graham Dorrans, Chris Brunt, Jerome Thomas, Shane Long, Peter Odemwingie

Players To Watch: Yakubu and Chris Brunt

Everton vs. Norwich City

Everton continue to suffer from a failure to find the back of the net.

David Moyes has to do something to solve the goal-scoring problem in January if he is to have any chance of making the fight to remain in the top flight any easier.

Norwich City have figured out how to score as they knocked four goals in over the weekend with a masterful display of aerial skill. Veteran Grant Holt continues to prove he can score from anywhere.

Match Prediction: Everton 0-2 Norwich

Predicted Everton Starting XI: Tim Howard, Tony Hibbert, John Heitinga, Phil Jagielka, Leighton Baines, Marouane Fellaini, Phil Neville, Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, Tim Cahill, Jack Rodwell, Louis Saha

Predicted Norwich City Starting XI: John Ruddy, Marc Tierney, Zak Whitbread, Russell Martin, Kyle Naughton, Andrew Crofts, David Fox, Wesley Hoolahan, Anthony Pilkington, Grant Holt, Steve Morison

Players To Watch: Tim Cahill and Grant Holt

Fulham vs. Bolton Wanderers

Fulham have been forced to recall David Stockdale from his loan spell to Ipswich Town after an injury to Mark Schwarzer suffered in the Cottagers' UEFA Europa League campaign.

After a great victory two weeks ago against Liverpool in the league they slumped to a loss at Swansea City's Liberty Stadium and are once again in need of a major boost.

Luckily for Fulham, Bolton Wanderers are the whipping boy for many in the EPL this season. An injury to Wanderer's best scorer this season in Ivan Klasnic could see their form spiral even more downward.

It will be up to former Liverpool striker David N'Gog to come in next to Kevin Davies and make a difference.

Match Prediction: Fulham 2-1 Bolton

Predicted Fulham Starting XI: David Stockdale, Stephen Kelly, Brede Hangeland, Philippe Senderos, John Arne Riise, Dickson Etuhu, Simon Davies, Clint Dempsey, Bryan Ruiz, Andrew Johnson, Moussa Dembele

Predicted Bolton Wanderers Starting XI: Jussi Jaaskelainen, Paul Robinson, Gary Cahill , Zat Knight, Dedryck Boyata, Darren Pretley, Martin Petrov, Tuncay Sanli, Chris Eagles, Kevin Davies, David N'Gog

Players To Watch: Clint Dempsey and David N'Gog

Newcastle United vs. Swansea City

Newcastle United have to find a way to stop the bleeding as they have dropped a load of points in their last four games. Their defense has let them down due to injuries and despite the attack still scoring it has not been enough to overcome.

Swansea City achieved their first victory in five games and will hope they can pull off a victory against Newcastle like fellow promotion club Norwich did last weekend.

However, the atmosphere at St. James Park is certain to be hostile and to the Toons' advantage.

Match Prediction: Newcastle 2-1 Swansea City

Predicted Newcastle United Starting XI: Tim Krul, Davide Santon, Danny Simpson, James Perch, Ryan Taylor, Gabriel Obertan, Yohan Cabaye, Dan Gosling, Jonas Gutierrez, Shola Ameobi, Demba Ba

Predicted Swansea City Starting XI: Michel Vorm, Neil Taylor, Steven Caulker, Ashley Williams, Ashley Richards, Mark Gower, Leon Britton, Luke More, Leroy Lita, Danny Graham, Scott Sinclair

Players To Watch: Demba Ba and Danny Graham

Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Stoke City

Wolverhampton failed to make much of an impact against Manchester United but in-form attacker Steven Fletcher managed to get on the score sheet as the Scottish striker has six goals this season.

Stoke City upset Tottenham to make a point that they are much better than some give them credit for. However, they had a little help from the officials.

It should be a great match from Molineux on the weekend.

Match Prediction: Wolves 2-3 Stoke City

Predicted Wolverhampton Wanderers Starting XI: Wayne Hennessey, Stephen Ward, Christophe Berra, Roger Johnson, Ronald Zubar, David Edwards, Jamie O'Hara, Karl Henry, Matt Jarvis, Kevin Doyle, Steven Fletcher

Predicted Stoke City Starting XI: Thomas Sorenson, Marc Wilson, Jonathan Woodgate, Ryan Shawcross, Andy Wilkinson, Jermaine Pennant, Ryan Shotton, Dean Whitehead, Matthew Etherington, Peter Crouch, Jonathan Walters

Players To Watch: Steven Fletcher and Matthew Etherington

Wigan Athletic vs. Chelsea

Wigan Athletic took a 2-1 victory over West Bromwich Albion last weekend to move out of the drop zone for the first real time this season.

Jordi Gomez slotted home a spot kick that would be the difference as the Latics are slowly improving and just could manage staying up if they keep up the solid hard-working performances.

Chelsea however are the favorites as they travel to the DW Stadium. After knocking off Manchester City to close their gap at the top to seven points, the Blues are in great spirits to continue on in the League.

Match Prediction: Wigan 0-3 Chelsea

Predicted Wigan Athletic Starting XI: Ali Al Habsi, Maynor Figueroa, Gary Caldwell, Anton Alvarez,  Ronnie Stam, David Jones, James McCarthy, Jordi Gomez, Mohamed Diame, Victor Moses, Hugo Rodallega

Predicted Chelsea Starting XI: Petr Cech, Jose Bosingwa, Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Raul Meireles, Juan Mata, Ramires, Didier Drogba, Daniel Sturridge

Players To Watch: Jordi Gomez and Juan Mata

Queens Park Rangers vs. Manchester United

Queens Park Rangers had a masterful and inspirational display from veteran goal keeper Radek Cerny against Liverpool, but failed to equalize at Anfield despite his efforts as they fell 0-1 to the Reds.

The dismissal of Rio Ferdinand last week against Wolverhampton Wanderers sees the injury-plagued Red Devils even more frustrated by selection difficulties. However, the need to fill empty positions continues to show the depth of Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Match Prediction: QPR 1-3 Manchester United

Predicted Queens Park Rangers Starting XI: Radek Cerny, Luke Young, Anton Ferdinand, Daniel Gabbidon, Armand Traore, Jaime Mackie, Joey Barton, Alejandro Damian Faurlin, Tommy Smith, Jay Bothroyd, Shaun Wright-Phillips

Predicted Manchester United Starting XI: David De Gea, Chris Smalling,  Phil Jones, Jonathan Evans, Patrice Evra, Nani, Michael Carrick, Antonio Valencia, Ashley Young, Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck

Players To Watch: Jay Bothroyd and Wayne Rooney

Aston Villa vs. Liverpool

Aston Villa finally got an away win over the last weekend when they beat floundering Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium to continue to pile the hurt onto Owen Coyle's club.

The Villains look to be without Shay Given in the net and will hope that Charles N'Zogbia can create for the attack in support of Darren Bent and Gabriel Agbonlahor.

Liverpool are back on the horse but they have got to find a way to finish their chances. They should have taken a comfortable win of at least 3-0 over Queens Park Rangers in front of their home crowd, but failure to be clinical finishers is hurting their chances against any club.

Match Prediction: Aston Villa 0-2 Liverpool

Predicted Aston Villa Starting XI: Brad Guzan, Alan Hutton, James Collins, Richard Dunne, Stephen Warnock, Chris Herd, Stiliyan Petrov, Marc Albrighton, Charles N'Zogbia, Darren Bent, Gabriel Agbonlahor

Predicted Liverpool Starting XI: Pepe Reina, Glen Johnson, Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger, Jose Enrique, Maxi Rodriguez, Charlie Adam, Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, Craig Bellamy, Luis Suarez

Players To Watch: Marc Albrighton and Maxi Rodriguez

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Sunderland

Stoke City managed an upset of the in-form Tottenham Hotspur when they traveled north to the Britannia Stadium. Tony Pulis and his charges managed to control the game rather well and possibly should have scored even more.

Sunderland welcomed Martin O'Neal to Wearside with a great victory over Blackburn Rovers at the Stadium of Light. In the end it was Sebastian Larsson coming to the rescue again when he curled home a perfect free kick for the win.

Match Prediction: Tottenham 2-1 Sunderland

Predicted Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI: Brad Friedel, Kyle Walker, Sebastien Bassong, Vedran Corluka, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Luka Modric, Scott Parker, Gareth Bale, Aaron Lennon, Rafael van der Vaart, Emmanuel Adebayor

Predicted Sunderland Starting XI: Kieren Westwood, John O'Shea, Wes Brown, Titus Bramble, Phillip Bardsley, Sebastian Larsson, David Vaughn, Jack Colback, Kieran Richardson, Stephane Sessegnon, Conor Wickham

Players To Watch: Rafael van der Vaart and Sebastian Larsson

Manchester City vs. Arsenal

Manchester City suffered their first defeat of the EPL campaign when they went down 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.

Roberto Mancini may feel down and out about it, but honestly a defeat could have been just what they needed to make them stop worrying about finishing first in everything and start focusing on just finishing.

Arsenal continue to ride the wings of Robin van Persie wherever they play.

The Etihad could be a tough place for them, but without a doubt Arsene Wenger's clubs will be well prepared for the clash and RVP is almost certain to have something to say about who wins.

Match Prediction: Manchester City 2-2 Arsenal

Predicted Manchester City Starting XI: Joe Hart, Stefan Savic, Vincent Kompany, Joleon Lescott, Pablo Zabaleta, Gareth Barry, Yaya Toure, Samir Nasri, David Silva, Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko

Predicted Arsenal Starting XI: Wojciech Szczęsny, Laurent Koscielny, Per Mertesacker, Thomas Vermaelen, Johan Djourou, Mikel Arteta, Alex Song, Aaron Ramsey, Gervinho, Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott

Players To Watch: David Silva and Robin van Persie

Conclusion

Manchester City hosts Arsenal in the Game of the Week while Tottenham host a possibly renewed Sunderland under Martin O'Neal.

The other game that should be an excellent match is Wolverhampton Wanderers and Stoke City. It is going to be another great weekend in the EPL.

Thanks for reading, and be sure to check out more on Bleacher Report and at the links below. You can follow me on Twitter @thedailyatz and Facebook or visit my website.