Premier League Week 4 Previews and Predictions: Welbeck Debut, Top Two Clash
It has been far too long.
Three games to whet our appetite, then an inconsiderate international break. Were Sepp Blatter a more sensible man, a petition might be in order—but we all know it would promptly find the bottom of a FIFA rubbish bin.
In any event, the English Premier League will return on Saturday.
The top two face each other this week, as Chelsea and Swansea City look to separate from each other. Mario Balotelli could make his Anfield debut as a Liverpool man, while the Italian's former club—Manchester City—will travel southward to play Arsene Wenger's Arsenal.
Along with the other seven slated games, it should be a great weekend of football.
As most football enthusiasts will tell you, predictions are essentially impossible. If you could predict the future, there seems little point watching the games. That said, we all like to test our knowledge and clairvoyant abilities on occasion, so you have stumbled upon the right place should you be into these sort of mental exercises.
Over the Premier League's 380-game schedule, spanning 38 rounds and 281 days, Bleacher Report is going to be your crystal ball—looking over the sublime landscape of top-flight English football and providing answers.
Comments Section: Who Ya Got? // Review of Week 3
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What fun are predictions if you do them alone?
Throughout the 2014-15 Premier League season, the comments section will take on the writer.
Put your picks in the comments, then vote for who you think has the best predictions. The reader with the most upvotes will be pitted against yours truly, and the scores will be calculated into our running table.
Prediction Table
"B/R Prediction Table Through Wk 3 @danieltiluk—18 pts Comments Section—18 pts The CS was represented by Anuraag Sureshkumar last week.
— EPL Predictions (@EPLPredictions_) August 31, 2014"
How Does the Scoring Work?
Wrong prediction: zero points
Correct prediction: one point
Correct prediction and exact score: three points
For Your Copy-and-Pasting Pleasures
"SEP 13 ARS vs. MC SOU vs. NEW WBA vs. EVE CRY vs. BUR SUN vs. TOT STK vs. LEI CHE vs. SWA LIV vs. AVL SEP 14 MU vs. QPR HUL vs. WHU
— EPL Predictions (@EPLPredictions_) September 11, 2014 "
Must-Watch Match of the Week: Arsenal vs. Manchester City
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When: Saturday 13 September, 12:45 BST (7:45 a.m EST)
Where: Emirates Stadium, London, England
A quartet of former Gunners will travel down the M1 to face their former employers. Goalkeeper Richard Wright will compete in spirit, but the French trio of Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna and Samir Nasri are sure to hear smatterings of boos should they feature.
Both sides are returning from lamentable Week 3 results: Manchester City lost to underdog Stoke City 1-0, while Arsenal took a lead vs. Leicester they held for only two minutes in a 1-1 draw.
Rewarded with a heavyweight clash, Manuel Pellegrini and Arsene Wenger will be keen to rectify the dropped points of a fortnight past, thus providing spectators with an open match—but one neither side can afford to lose.
How deadline-day-signing Danny Welbeck adapts to the Arsenal ethic should be interesting to monitor as well.
Prediction: Arsenal 2-2 Manchester City
Players to Watch: Danny Welbeck, Samir Nasri
Southampton vs. Newcastle United
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: St. Mary's Stadium, Southampton, England
Had they gone down to a 27th-minute Mark Noble goal against West Ham, Southampton would have been in the relegation zone with just one point, but Morgan Schneiderlin came to his club's rescue—scoring a brace en route to a 3-1 Saints victory.
Flash forward two weeks and, with the transfer window now closed, the Frenchman remains under the control of Ronald Koeman. With all their dealings, retaining the services of Schneiderlin was arguably Southampton's best business this summer.
Now matched with Newcastle United, the Saints should feel confident.
Having three points seemingly wrapped up vs. Crystal Palace, conceding a stoppage-time equaliser in Week 3 robbed the Magpies of their first win of the season.
Alan Pardew's side are a difficult team to adjudicate. They have the talent to be in the top eight, but could also implode and finish bottom six. Expect more Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tendencies from Newcastle on Saturday.
Prediction: Southampton 2-1 Newcastle United
Players to Watch: Jose Fonte, Moussa Sissoko
West Bromwich Albion vs. Everton
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: The Hawthorns, West Bromwich, England
Both beaten by a difference of three goals in their last Premier League outings, Everton and West Bromwich Albion will be seeking redemption.
The Baggies traveled to Wales and were soundly beaten by Swansea City, 3-0, putting their unbeaten start in some perspective. Two draws and one loss are not exactly inspiring results for a side projecting to be waist-deep in the relegation scrap come season's end.
Everton are alongside West Brom with two points.
Opening their 2014/15 campaign against Leicester City, Arsenal and Chelsea, some may have expected a better haul for the Toffees, but there are still 35 games left to navigate.
Expect Everton to capture their first three-point result—overpowering the defensive Baggies with sharp attacking thrust.
Prediction: West Bromwich Albion 0-2 Everton
Players to Watch: Chris Brunt, Leighton Baines
Crystal Palace vs. Burnley
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: Selhurst Park, London, England
Had results elsewhere not been as peculiar, Crystal Palace equalising a 3-2 game in the 95th minute would have received more attention.
Dwight Gayle scoring after 29 seconds vs. Newcastle United started the second Neil Warnock era in some style, with Manchester United loanee Wilfried Zaha supplying the Eagles their first take of the season.
In his return match at Selhurst Park, and playing Burnley, Warnock should be delighted with his side's opportunity to register three points.
Sean Dyche, though, will be expecting much of the same. Handed Chelsea, Swansea City and Manchester United to open, Burnley's one-point take may be a source of confidence. Now more evenly matched, this fixture will be the Clarets' best opportunity to date.
That said, the Eagles' honeymoon period should still be in effect—expect a close game in which Palace edge the newcomers.
Prediction: Crystal Palace 1-0 Burnley
Players to Watch: Wilfried Zaha, Danny Ings
Sunderland vs. Tottenham Hotspur
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: Stadium of Light, Sunderland, England
It all looked so smooth for Mauricio Pochettino, then—BANG—Spurs suffered a 3-0 defeat to Liverpool.
Tottenham may have previously flattered to deceive: Their first win came from a stoppage-time Eric Dier goal and beating Queens Park Rangers should be expected from a side playing European football.
Pochettino may actually welcome the adversity—it would seem difficult chastising your players while you win. Therefore, Spurs' loss may give the Argentine an opportunity to correct mistakes with attentive players.
Given Sunderland to test their wherewithal, Tottenham should take care of business away from White Hart Lane. Gustavo Poyet and Co., however, will not be so keen to oblige the Londoners. Losing their first game of the season in Week 3, the Black Cats will be motivated to rectify the early blip.
Attempting to "play football" with Tottenham, in this case, would be perilous: Look for Sunderland to counter and Spurs to boss possession with positive results.
Prediction: Sunderland 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Players to Watch: Connor Wickham, Emmanuel Adebayor
Stoke City vs. Leicester City
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: Britannia Stadium, Stoke-on-Trent, England
After Manchester City and Arsenal have completed their early duties, they can sit in the Emirates Stadium dressing rooms and watch a game between sides who took points from them in Week 3.
Who saw Stoke City beating the champions?
If you did—well done. But, for the rest of us, the Potters going to Manchester and drawing would have been a shock, the word for them eventually taking three points is more akin to flabbergasted.
Mark Hughes' task is to continue his club's momentum; stalled by the international break, a win vs. Leicester City would certainly renew confidence at the Britannia.
Not to be outdone, the Foxes have already taken points from Everton and Arsenal—it looks the 2013/14 Championship winners are integrating nicely into the top division.
How they deal with Premier League veterans like Stoke City, though, will determine their eventual fate.
Prediction: Stoke City 1-0 Leicester City
Players to Watch: Victor Moses, Leonardo Ulloa
Chelsea vs. Swansea City
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When: Saturday 13 September, 15:00 BST (10 a.m. EST)
Where: Stamford Bridge, London, England
As the only unblemished sides left in the Premier League, both Chelsea and Swansea City know a win Saturday afternoon would give them an early head start on their seasonal aspirations.
Swansea City are the EPL's surprise package—and you would expect the Welsh outfit to regress to the mean eventually—but points taken from Chelsea would be an echoing statement of their intent to compete for European places.
Chelsea, on the other hand, will look at Manchester City playing Arsenal and think: "At least one title contender will drop points this week, let's extended the gap." Playing at home is sure to give the Blues more incentive to press on for a dominant result, one which they are likely to perform.
Jose Mourinho does have some man management to contend with, as Chelsea—starting Saturday—will play seven matches in 22 days; great news for Blues' supporters, but slightly more worrisome for a Chelsea boss whose main striker, Diego Costa, is struggling with hamstring issues.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Swansea City
Players to Watch: Cesc Fabregas, Nathan Dyer
Chelsea Bus Watch: Do the Blues even own this alleged bus anymore? We shall find out next week vs. Manchester City.
Liverpool vs. Aston Villa
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When: Saturday 13 September, 17:30 BST (12:30 p.m. EST)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool, England
Demolition, beating Tottenham 3-0 in London, demolition.
Receiving our first look at Brendan Rodgers' tactical mind, it was essentially: "Luis Suarez out, Mario Balotelli in—go and play the same." Can you blame the Liverpool boss? Scoring 101 goals last season, the 4-4-2 diamond was arguably the best arrangement in the Premier League given one's personnel.
The more interesting finding from Week 3's game was confirming that after losing Suarez—and much attention placed on Daniel Sturridge and Balotelli—the fulcrum of Liverpool is now Raheem Sterling.
How the 19-year-old goes, so do the Reds.
Aston Villa are still waiting on their fulcrum, Christian Benteke, to return from injury—so finding enough goals for Paul Lambert's side to compete is difficult.
Out gunned from the kickoff, expect Liverpool to pounce on Villa without hesitation.
Prediction: Liverpool 3-1 Aston Villa
Players to Watch: Raheem Sterling, Ron Vlaar
The Weekly Balo: Liverpool sold £50,000 worth of Mario Balotelli shirts the day he signed, per BBC Sport.
Manchester United vs. Queens Park Rangers
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When: Sunday 14 September, 16:00 BST (11 a.m. EST)
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester, England
After a raucous deadline day, Manchester United now have, on paper, the best attack in English football.
Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Angel Di Maria, Juan Mata, Adnan Januzaj and Monaco loanee Radamel Falcao equals, without doubt, a potent offence—but what of the Red Devils' defence?
Marcos Rojo, Daley Blind and Phil Jones look to be the new face of Manchester's rear guard, and they do not exactly inspire confidence. That said, Louis van Gaal is thought to be a brilliant tactician, so maybe he expects his offence to pummel opponents before United's defence is even questioned.
The new-look Red Devils get their fourth chance at three points vs. Queens Park Rangers.
Harry Redknapp's side is sure to hunker down in an attempt to counter and stagnate Van Gaal's attack. It is likely to fail, given the gulf in quality, but United had better get used to parked double deckers.
If Manchester United fail to register a win, the already thin patience of some may just break.
Prediction: Manchester United 2-0 Queens Park Rangers
Players to Watch: Angel Di Maria, Junior Hoilett
Hull City vs. West Ham United
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When: Monday 15 September, 20:00 BST (3 p.m. EST)
Where: KC Stadium, Kingston upon Hull, England
The argument for "best transfer window" is largely subjective. Chelsea did well, Liverpool likewise, but the most unlikely of clubs who did—seemingly—great business this summer was Hull City.
Adding Hatem Ben Arfa (loan), Gaston Ramirez (loan), Jake Livermore, Tom Ince, Mohamed Diame and Michael Dawson, among others, the Tigers look to have secured a top-half finish for themselves—but games are not played with pounds, they are played on the pitch.
Hull's opponents, West Ham United, have been rather bipolar this season—with a loss-win-loss record to their name. It would seem a win fits their pattern, but the sample size is too small for such assumptions.
Playing away from home, West Ham will likely allow Hull City to control the game. Having new players intent on proving a point and older players unwilling to be dropped, the Tigers should edge the match in the late stages.
Prediction: Hull City 2-1 West Ham United
Players to Watch: Hatem Ben Afra, Mauro Zarate
