EPL Week 37 Predictions: Premier League Picks, Key Players and Fixture Info
With Chelsea already declared Premier League champions, and the race for Champions League qualification all but done and dusted, the focus now shifts towards the relegation battle.
Manchester United and Arsenal meet at Old Trafford on Sunday in a game which will have implications for who finishes fourth and drops into the Champions League play-offs, but the attention on Saturday will be on the bottom end of the table.
Burnley and Queens Park Rangers are already relegated, but there are still five clubs who could fill the one remaining place in the bottom three.
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Sunderland and Leicester clash in a game which is likely to see the winner safe from the threat of relegation, while Newcastle have a huge fixture away to QPR following their recent free-fall down the table.
Here is a full list of this week’s fixtures, including predictions and key information:
| 1 | Chelsea | 36 | 25 | 9 | 2 | 70 | 28 | +42 | 84 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 36 | 22 | 7 | 7 | 77 | 36 | +41 | 73 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 35 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 66 | 34 | +32 | 70 |
| 4 | Manchester United | 36 | 20 | 8 | 8 | 61 | 36 | +25 | 68 |
| 5 | Liverpool | 36 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 50 | 39 | +11 | 62 |
| 6 | Tottenham | 36 | 17 | 7 | 12 | 55 | 53 | +2 | 58 |
| 7 | Southampton | 36 | 17 | 6 | 13 | 48 | 30 | +18 | 57 |
| 8 | Swansea | 36 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 56 |
| 9 | Stoke | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 42 | 44 | -2 | 50 |
| 10 | West Ham | 36 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 43 | 43 | 0 | 47 |
| 11 | Everton | 36 | 11 | 11 | 14 | 46 | 48 | -2 | 44 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 36 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 43 | 50 | -7 | 42 |
| 13 | West Brom | 36 | 10 | 11 | 15 | 34 | 47 | -13 | 41 |
| 14 | Aston Villa | 36 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 30 | 50 | -20 | 38 |
| 15 | Leicester | 36 | 10 | 7 | 19 | 41 | 54 | -13 | 37 |
| 16 | Sunderland | 35 | 7 | 15 | 13 | 30 | 50 | -20 | 36 |
| 17 | Newcastle | 36 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 37 | 61 | -24 | 36 |
| 18 | Hull | 36 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 33 | 49 | -16 | 34 |
| 19 | Burnley | 36 | 6 | 11 | 19 | 27 | 53 | -26 | 29 |
| 20 | Queens Park Rangers | 36 | 7 | 6 | 23 | 39 | 67 | -28 | 27 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 12:45 p.m. | Southampton | Aston Villa | 1-1 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 3 p.m. | Burnley | Stoke | 0-0 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 3 p.m. | Queens Park Rangers | Newcastle | 0-1 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 3 p.m. | Sunderland | Leicester | 1-2 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 3 p.m. | Tottenham | Hull | 3-0 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 3 p.m. | West Ham | Everton | 1-1 |
| Saturday, May 16 | 5:30 p.m. | Liverpool | Crystal Palace | 4-0 |
| Sunday, May 17 | 1:30 p.m. | Swansea | Manchester City | 2-2 |
| Sunday, May 17 | 4 p.m. | Manchester United | Arsenal | 1-1 |
| Monday, May 18 | 8 p.m. | West Brom | Chelsea | 1-2 |
Key Players
Jamie Vardy
Jamie Vardy has been an instrumental figure in Leicester’s recent resurgence which has given the club an excellent chance of survival following six wins from their last seven games, per Soccerbase.com.
Nigel Pearson will take his team to the Stadium of Light knowing that victory over Sunderland will secure Leicester’s place in the Premier League next season. Vardy’s contribution and performance is going to be crucial.
Vardy has scored recent winners against West Brom and Burnley, and he feels Leicester are now getting the results to complement the performances they have been producing all season. He said, per Tim Evershed of the Daily Express:
"We've not been in this position all season but that can change very quickly. Look where we were seven games ago and miraculously it all turned around as quickly as that so we know it's not over and done with yet. We've been putting the performances in all season and not been getting the points. Now it has turned around and we are getting the performances we deserve.
"
With four goals and eight assists in the Premier League this season, per WhoScored.com, Vardy’s form has warranted talk of an England call-up from Roy Hodgson, per Laurie Whitwell of the Daily Mail.
Whitwell outlined the qualities that Hodgson likes in Vardy and acknowledges an England cap would be a “remarkable rise” for the 28-year-old. Whitwell wrote:
"Vardy, who has been playing with pain-killing injections in his foot, is interesting Hodgson because of his pace and ability to win possession from the front. It would represent a remarkable rise were Hodgson to select Vardy, who was playing for Stocksbridge Park Steels in the eighth tier in 2010, and non-league Fleetwood Town just three years ago.
"
His playing style is going to cause problems for a Sunderland defence which can be short on pace. He will not give them a moment’s peace and can prove why Hodgson has been looking at him.
Ayoze Perez
Perez has already earned some valuable points for Newcastle this season and he needs to do it again against QPR.
The summer signing from Tenerife scored winners against Tottenham and Liverpool earlier in the season, and also produced a clever flick to open the scoring in a victory at West Brom.
Last weekend, he scored the equaliser against West Brom to take his tally to seven Premier League goals, per WhoScored.com. His goal also ended Newcastle’s eight-game losing streak, per Soccerbase.com, and left them two points and one place outside the relegation zone.
The game at Loftus Road will see Perez come up against a potential team-mate for next season. Newcastle are favourites to sign QPR striker Charlie Austin, per Mark Douglas of the Evening Chronicle.
Perez will be anxious to prove he can be an instrumental part in Newcastle’s plans next season, irrespective of any new signings. He will also be looking to show the sort of quality that has led to Manchester City watching him this season, per Luke Edwards of the Daily Telegraph.
With QPR’s relegation from the Premier League already confirmed, Newcastle are unlikely to have a better chance of picking up a win which is likely to be enough to see them safe.
The finishing ability and talent of Perez, whose movement and skill can bamboozle opposition defences, will be vital to their chances.
