Premier League Week 29 Fixtures: EPL Tickets, Schedule, Picks and Predictions
The Premier League title race is set for yet another twist in Week 29 as second-placed Tottenham Hotspur take on third-placed Arsenal in the north London derby.
Table-toppers Leicester City will be looking to capitalise on at least one of their rivals dropping points when they travel to Vicarage Road on Saturday evening to face Watford.
Manchester City will hope to get their fading challenge back on track at home to Aston Villa, while Villa's relegation rivals Newcastle United are in desperate need of three points and host Bournemouth.
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Here is the full schedule for the weekend's action, complete with score predictions and ticket information for each game.
| Saturday, March 5 | 12:45 p.m./7:45 a.m. | Tottenham Hotspur vs. Arsenal | 2-1 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Chelsea vs. Stoke City | 2-1 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Everton vs. West Ham United | 2-2 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Manchester City vs. Aston Villa | 3-0 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Newcastle United vs. Bournemouth | 2-1 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Southampton vs. Sunderland | 2-0 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 3 p.m./10 a.m. | Swansea City vs. Norwich City | 2-0 |
| Saturday, March 5 | 5:30 p.m./12:30 p.m. | Watford vs. Leicester City | 1-2 |
| Sunday, March 6 | 1:30 p.m./8:30 a.m. | Crystal Palace vs. Liverpool | 0-3 |
| Sunday, March 6 | 4 p.m./11 a.m. | West Bromwich Albion vs. Manchester United | 1-2 |
For ticket information on all Premier League games visit the official site or go to the ticket page on the home club's official website (links provided below):
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Arsenal
Chelsea vs. Stoke City
Everton vs. West Ham United
Manchester City vs. Aston Villa
Newcastle United vs. Bournemouth
Southampton vs. Sunderland
Swansea City vs. Norwich City
Watford vs. Leicester City
Crystal Palace vs. Liverpool
West Bromwich Albion vs. Manchester United
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Arsenal
After both sides failed to make ground on Leicester—who themselves dropped two points at home to West Bromwich Albion—picking up three points in the derby on Saturday is even more vital.
Particularly for Arsenal, who slipped six points behind the Foxes and three behind the Lilywhites after back-to-back defeats to Manchester United and Swansea City.
Though Spurs also lost to West Ham United on Wednesday, the defeat could well just be a blip among some otherwise excellent form having won the six league games prior. Indeed, football writer Iain Macintosh believes Arsenal's setback to be far greater:
Social media has been awash with jokes at the Gunners' expense, like this one from the Guardian's Barney Ronay:
Arsenal have now lost three successive matches in all competitions, and things could be set to get even worse for the north London outfit on Saturday as they will be without two key players. Per the club's official Twitter feed, Wenger confirmed Petr Cech will miss the derby:
So too will Laurent Koscielny, per their website. Without their two most important players at the back, Spurs—who have only been outscored by Leicester this season—stand an excellent chance of getting on the scoresheet.
The Gunners may well find it equally difficult at the other end, with Olivier Giroud enduring a lengthy goal drought:
Theo Walcott has been equally uninspiring, while even the likes of Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez have failed to hit their usual heights of late.
Barring a dramatic turnaround or a calamitous Tottenham performance, the organised and defensively solid Spurs can all-but knock Arsenal out of the title race on Saturday.
Newcastle United vs. Bournemouth
It's equally vital for the clubs at the bottom to pick up a win this weekend, and for Newcastle, that's no exception, as they missed the chance to escape the relegation zone despite only needing a point against Stoke City.
Time is running out for the Magpies, and if they're unable to start piling on the points soon, they'll find themselves relegated from the Premier League for a second time, as the Chronicle's Mark Douglas noted:
One of the few positives Newcastle can take from Wednesday's defeat is that their defence showed a marked improvement on their abysmal display at Chelsea, where they lost 5-1.
BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko described their display at the back as "organised and resolute" as well as "uncharacteristically assured." The Chronicle's Chris Waugh highlighted Jamaal Lascelles as one of their better performers:
Bournemouth will be coming into the game on a high after their impressive 2-0 win over Southampton, but if—and, admittedly, this is a big if—Newcastle can keep them quiet at St James' Park, where they have been far better than on the road, the Magpies stand a chance of grabbing three points.
They will need to be more positive going forward, though, with at least two of Ayoze Perez, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Seydou Doumbia starting up front.
Should Steve McClaren do that—particularly if the prolific Doumbia is given his first significant run out since arriving in January—his side may well earn a brief respite from their troubles.
