Premier League Week 5 Fixtures: EPL Picks and Predictions for Matchday 5
Week 4 of the 2014-15 Premier League season was filled with plenty of goals and upsets, and several top title contenders are already in win-now mode as we enter Week 5.
Last year's champions, Manchester City, will host Chelsea, and if the Blues win, the gap between the two title favourites would already be eight points. While it's too early to rule out any team for the title, that is a significant gap this early in the season.
Alan Pardew's tenure as manager of Newcastle United appears all but over—anything but a win and solid performance against Hull City could lead to his sacking as early as this week.
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Here's the full schedule for Matchday 5 of the 2014-15 Premier League season:
| 20 September | 12:45 p.m. | Queens Park Rangers | vs. | Stoke City | 0-0 |
| 20 September | 3 p.m. | Aston Villa | vs. | Arsenal | 1-2 |
| 20 September | 3 p.m. | Burnley | vs. | Sunderland | 0-1 |
| 20 September | 3 p.m. | Newcastle United | vs. | Hull City | 0-2 |
| 20 September | 3 p.m. | Swansea City | vs. | Southampton | 2-1 |
| 20 September | 5:30 p.m. | West Ham United | vs. | Liverpool | 0-2 |
| 21 September | 1:30 p.m. | Leicester City | vs. | Manchester United | 1-1 |
| 21 September | 1:30 p.m. | Tottenham Hotspur | vs. | West Bromwich Albion | 4-1 |
| 21 September | 4 p.m. | Everton | vs. | Crystal Palace | 2-0 |
| 21 September | 4 p.m. | Manchester City | vs. | Chelsea | 1-1 |
Chelsea's Perfect Start Comes to an End
The Blues are the best team in the Premier League, and they should be everyone's favourite for the title. Let's just get that out of the way.
Jose Mourinho has built a phenomenal squad with excellent depth, and based on their early showings, it's perfectly acceptable to predict them to win on Sunday. But a trip to the Etihad Stadium is never easy, and the Citizens desperately need a result.
It's still early in the season, but things haven't gone Manuel Pellegrini's way in recent weeks. His squad looked flat and uninspired against Stoke City, and Arsenal badly outplayed City for the first 28 minutes.
Sunday's match needs to be a turning point for the hosts, who need to keep pace with the leaders or risk playing catch-up for the rest of the season. Expect Pellegrini to make that very clear to his players.
According to The Guardian's Daniel Taylor, Stevan Jovetic should be good to go:
The Montenegrin has been the team's most in-form player during the early part of the season, and his return to the starting XI should boost Pellegrini's squad tremendously. Scoring comes easy for the Blues, so opponents will need the kind of scoring power to keep up.
Saturday's Result Will Be Irrelevant to Pardew's Future
Newcastle United should at the very least be a mid-table side. They have the talent and the budget to compete week in and week out, and perhaps even rival the likes of Everton and Tottenham for a spot in the Europa League.
Instead, the Magpies are currently ranked dead last in the Premier League standings. That's just unacceptable. As shared by Sky Sports, Pardew has led the team to just one win in their last 11 matches:
According to Goal's Graeme Bailey, it's a question of when Pardew will be out, not if:
A home fixture against Hull City shouldn't change the situation. Yes, the Tigers have a strong squad, and a win would be a great result for a Newcastle team struggling with injuries in the attacking third.
But fans have grown tired of Pardew, to the point where there's an entire webpage dedicated to the manager's excuses. People have had enough, and one result isn't going to change that. Pardew shouldn't (and won't) survive the month of September.
Champions League Hangover for Arsenal
Arsenal's schedule for the coming month is tricky: After Aston Villa they'll travel to Southampton, play in the North London derby, travel to Turkey to take on Galatasaray and play league-leaders Chelsea.
The Gunners have yet to put together a complete performance in the 2014-15 season. They've looked excellent at times, but never for the full 90 minutes. An injury to Mathieu Debuchy has forced Calum Chambers into the starting XI, leaving little depth at the centre-back position.
None of those things have to spell disaster, but after a physical midweek battle with Borussia Dortmund and with a number of tough fixtures on the horizon, it's very easy to look past a trip to Birmingham to take on Aston Villa on Saturday.
The Claret and Blue currently sit second in the standings and are coming off a 1-0 win at Anfield. An injury to Ron Vlaar should have sunk the team, but with momentum on their side, they can seemingly do no wrong—Nathan Baker did an excellent job replacing the Dutch international.
Will Arsenal lose at Villa Park? Not necessarily, but don't expect them to suddenly find their mojo.
